Royal Caribbean is the world's second largest cruise line, originally sailing only within the Caribbean. Today they cruise to over 280 ports of call, in 81 countries on 6 continents. Royal Caribbean was founded in 1968 by 3 Norwegian shipping companies: Anders Wilhelmsen & Co., I.M. Skaugen & Co. and Gotaas Larsen. Not long afterwards they launched their first ship the Song of Norway (1970), followed by the Nordic Prince (1971) and the Sun Viking (1972), that were specifically designed to sail in the Caribbean. In 1974, instead of building a new ship it was decided they would lengthen The Song of Norway. In an effort to speed up the process they built an 85 foot center section that was ready and waiting for the Song of Norway to be sailed back from the Caribbean to be cut in half and the new section inserted. On the sail back the ship was outfitted and decorated and ready to take on passengers when it docked in Florida. This was so successful that they did the same thing to the Nordic Prince in 1980. In 1986, they showed more innovation when they leased land on Haiti to be used as a private destination for those cruising with them. They later added another privated destination, Coco Cay in the Bahamas. They have continued to incorporate innovative ideas over the years beginning by adding climbing walls to the first ship in 2003 (on all ships today), ice skating rinks, miniature golf courses and surf simulators on various other ships. Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., now sails 5 different brands: Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Pullmantur, Azamara Cruises, and CDF Croisieres de Framce. Today, Royal Caribbean advertises themselves as "The Nation of Why Not". They have 42 ships in service with 1 under construction. In the cruise industry Royal Caribbean's Radiance and Voyager class ships have become a class unto themselves, the largest in the industry. Royal Caribbean ships are considered to have the most luxurious ships in the industry. It is because of all of these things that in the mass-market cruise lines they have repeatedly taken top honors.

• 1968: Three Norwegian shipping companies founded Royal Caribbean
• 1972: The Sun Viking ship was added to the Royal Caribbean line
• 1986: The company acquired a destination spot in Haiti for its customers
• 1993: Company goes public on the NYSE
• 2006: Royal Caribbean finalized the purchase of Pullmantur Cruises

Oasis Class: (1,181 feet) (5,400 passengers double occupancy)

• Oasis of the Seas (2009)
• Allure of the Seas (November 2010)

Freedom Class: (1,112 feet) (3,634 passengers double occupancy)

• Freedom of the Seas (May 2006)
• Liberty of the Seas (May 2007)
• Independence of the Seas (May 2008)

Voyager Class: (1,020 feet) (3,114 passengers double occupancy)

• Voyager of the Seas (November 1999)
• Explorer of the Seas (October 2000)
• Adventure of the Seas (November 2001)
• Navigator of the Seas]] (December 2002)
• Mariner of the Seas]] (November 2003)

Radience Class: (962-965 feet) (2,110-2112 passengers double occupancy)

• Radience of the Seas (April 2001)
• Brilliance of the Seas (July 2002)
• Serenade of the Seas (August 2003)
• Jewel of the Seas (May 2004)

Vision Class: (867-989 feet) (1,804-2252 passengers double occupancy)

• Legend of the Seas (May 1995)
• Splendour of the Seas (March 1996)
• Grandeur of the Seas (December 1996)
• Rhapsody of the Seas (May 1997)
• Endhantment of the Seas (July 1997)
• Vision of the Seas (May 1998)

Sovereign Class: (880 feet) (2,390 passengers double occupancy)

• Soverign of the Seas (January 1988)
• Monarch of the Seas (November 1991)
• Majesty of the Seas (April 1992)

• Disney Cruise Line: Official Site | Wikipedia

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