Good cruise booking tips from the Royal Caribbean Blog

Everyone's got a tip on how to save when booking a cruise. Some are obvious and rehashed over and over. Others are less known and could be of good use to you, the next time you book. The Royal Caribbean Blog posted their five booking tips and we found the list insightful. They start with the common suggestions of booking early and using a travel agent, but then suggest some less common advice, like:

-- Sail from alternate ports.  You might not have the same variety or frequency that you get out of Miami, but alternative ports can provide a little bit of a price break.

-- Sail on older ships. Bigger and newer are not always better for your wallet. The older ships still have outstanding amenities and the same levels of service. None of the major cruise lines use really old ships, so even the "older" portion of their fleet are still huge and provide a great experience. 

Royal Caribbean Blog checks in on Harmony of the Seas

If you haven't seen them yet, do check out Royal Caribbean Blog's series of construction photos on the Harmony of the Seas. The new ship is coming along and the new photos give a glimpse into some of the interiors as well as many of the Royal Caribbean standards.

Boarding tips from Royal Caribbean Blog

It is such a simple question: "when can I board my cruise?" Yet there isn't a simple straight forward answer. The Royal Caribbean Blog provide some general boarding tips for first-time cruisers. The blog may be focused on Royal Caribbean ships, but the advice is true for nearly all lines.

The key is to know your ship's departure time and bring what you need until your room is ready. Also make sure you get there in time. You wouldn't want to miss your first cruise. 

Royal Caribbean rolling out high speed internet to all ships

Things are speeding up with Royal Caribbean's popular Voom service. The program -- which provides high speed internet on board -- will be available on all Royal Caribbean ships in 2016. The basic rate is $15 a day, but there are a variety of discounts and packages available when passengers buy multiple days or use multiple devices.

The service is currently available on all Oasis and Quantum class ships. It will be rolled out to the other ships later this year and into 2016. All reviews of the speed and quality of Voom have been good, so this should lead to a better experience for all Royal Caribbean passengers. It should also lead to other cruise lines improving their high speed services and prices.

Royal Caribbean Blog shares Harmony of the Seas photos

Photo from Royal Caribbean via RoyalCaribbeanblog.com

The Royal Caribbean Blog posted a series of photos of the Harmony of the Seas floating. The ship is the latest in the new and already popular Oasis class of ships. The first scheduled sailings are still planned for 2016.