Two sides disagree on overboard Royal Caribbean passenger

All interested parties agree that Oasis of the Seas passenger Bernardo Elbaz went overboard November 6. How and why is now the point of contention. Attorneys for the Elbaz family said the man was subject to anti-gay hostility from the crew and that an altercation in his cabin led to the fall. Royal Caribbean's statement was that a domestic dispute led to Elbaz jumping.

Complicating matters is the disturbing video of Elbaz clinging to a life boat after the initial fall from his balcony. In the video someone can be heard yelling: "You don’t touch me. Because of you this happened, because I stepped out the door. Let go of me."

If the reports are true that multiple crew members came to the cabin that night, it will be tough to dispute the true nature of the event. Either the crew members' stories will be consistent and point to Elbaz, or one of the crew members will come forward to identify any Royal Caribbean employees who might have physically forced Elbaz off the ship.

Our guess is that regardless of guilt, Royal Caribbean will look to settle. They don't want any negative attention especially as the industry approaches wave season.

Royal Caribbean adding water slides

In an interview with TTG Digital Royal Caribbean CEO Michael Bayley announced his hopes to add water slides to Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas. Royal Caribbean's Harmoney of the Seas -- which debuts next year -- already has water slides in its plans.

Royal Carribean's been one of the innovators in unique cruise ship experiences, so it is somewhat surprising that water slides are not common place on all their ships already. Other lines have already proven how popular the slides can be. For Royal Caribbean this offers a crowd pleasing experience and likely can handle many more passengers (of all ages) than a wave rider.

All these features certainly make for memorable cruises. This couple just got married in Royal Caribbean's North Star. Maybe they can renew their vows on a Royal Caribbean water slide in 2016.

ICYMI: The New York Times goes behind the scenes on cruise operations

Earlier this week the New York Times published a long piece on the operations of cruise ships with a focus on Royal Caribbean's Oasis of the Seas. Regular cruisers already know about the tons of food consumed each trip or the thousands of towels washed daily, but this article goes into further detail and explains how Royal Caribbean looked to other industries to improve operations and efficiency.

A few years ago, Royal Caribbean brought in experts in industrial productivity, including DHL and the German carmaker Porsche, to help manage complex flows on the ship. As an example, the efficiency experts helped determine where to locate waiter stations in the main dining room to reduce the number of footsteps needed to serve hundreds of diners simultaneously.

Read the whole article to learn more about how each new generation of ship creates a new set of logistical challenges for the cruise lines.