Ever considered hosting a conference or event on a cruise ship?

Here, Royal Caribbean’s MICE guru, Alexis Puma, gives his top five reasons why you should set sail.

1. Innovative Meeting and Event spaces at sea.

Planners want to put together events that are memorable. Innovative ships boast an incredible array of features all in the one place, that will absolutely wow even the most jaded event attendees.

There’s a huge variety of impressive theatres, lounges and outdoor spaces equipped with state-of-the-art technology and complimentary A/V services, including very distinct spaces like the SeaPlex on Ovation of the Seas, the largest indoor active space at sea. The venue is wonderful for presentations and exhibitions, and also offers team-building activities like bumper cars and circus school. The iFly skydiving experience and North Star – a pod that rises 90m above sea-level – also offer unique team-bonding activities and you’d be hard-pressed to find so much variety, so close together, back on land.

The cutting-edge technology available on Royal Caribbean ships is especially appealing to MICE planners, with features like VOOM, the fastest internet at sea, allows corporates to stay in touch while on their cruise, with instant streaming, real-time sharing and 24/7 connectivity from anywhere in the world.

2. Tremendous value, combining food, dining and entertainment. Clients typically save 30 per cent compared to land.

A cruise can offer a company massive savings. Meals, entertainment, activities, staging and décor, a health club experience, meeting rooms, AV equipment, photographer and production staff, beverage options, shore excursions and team-building activities can all be rolled into one fee, and we typically see the overall cost come to 30 per cent less than an on-land package.

Quality is never sacrificed for great value. For example, many international Royal Caribbean ships feature Broadway shows like Cats, Hairspray and Grease — the actual, licensed FULL production on a ship. This would typically cost guests over $100 per person to attend on land, however, it’s included in the cruise fare.

3. Short cruise itineraries out of Asia and Australia, perfect for corporates.
Normally corporates like 3-7 night cruises, so there’s a number of options out of Australia and Asia which are perfect for companies. 3-5 night roundtrips out of Singapore, calling to ports lie are very popular and provide a wonderful central meeting point for companies with international delegates. In the 2019/2020 summer cruise season, Royal Caribbean will up their offering of short cruises out of Sydney, offering 11 cruises of between two and 7-nights, across three different ships – including Ovation of the Seas, the biggest and most technologically advanced in Australia.

4. Customisation!

There are so many options available to customise your event, depending on your budget and objectives. Different accommodation options might include opulent two-storey suites for VIPs, or twin share balcony cabins,  while restaurant options can include world-famous Jamie’s Italian and Royal’s own Wonderland, featuring whimsical food and décor –  the options are endless.

And we’ll work with you on adding those special touches. For instance, we had a CEO who wanted to do a dramatic entry for their Welcome Party – so he bought out a bunch of restaurants and zoomed in on Royal’s onboard zipline to kick off the party. We also had a corporate client who wanted to offer samples of their energy drinks using the Bionic Bar – our robotic bartenders which feature on ships like Ovation – so we worked with our hotel teams to program the recipe and featured this during one of the client’s private events. We can come up with some very cool, very unique experiences!

5. Plan B.

A ship offers corporates a special type of contingency plan not offered on land – we have the ability to move with the weather! The comfort and safety of our guests and crew is always our top priority, which corporates value more than ever in this day and age.