Royal Caribbean Group

Last updated

Royal Caribbean Group
FormerlyRoyal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.
Company type Public
NYSE:  RCL
S&P 500 component
ISIN LR0008862868
Industry
Founded1997;27 years ago (1997)
Founder Arne Wilhelmsen
Headquarters 25°46′31″N80°10′41″W / 25.7753°N 80.1780°W / 25.7753; -80.1780 , ,
U.S.
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Services Cruises
RevenueIncrease2.svg US$13.900 billion (2023) [1]
Increase2.svg US$2.878 billion (2023) [1]
Increase2.svg US$1.704 billion (2023) [1]
Total assets Increase2.svg US$35.131 billion (2023) [1]
Total equity Increase2.svg US$4.724 billion (2023) [1]
Number of employees
Increase2.svg 107,700 (2023) [1]
Subsidiaries
Website royalcaribbeangroup.com
Footnotes /references
[2]

Royal Caribbean Group, formerly known as Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd., is a global cruise holding company incorporated in Liberia and based in Miami, Florida. It is the world's second-largest cruise line operator, after Carnival Corporation & plc. As of 2023, Royal Caribbean Group fully owns three cruise lines: Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, and Silversea Cruises. [3] They also hold a 50% stake in TUI Cruises and Hapag-Lloyd Cruises. [4] [5]

Contents

History

Royal Caribbean Group was formed as Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. in 1997 when Royal Caribbean Cruise Line purchased Celebrity Cruises. The decision was made to keep the two cruise line brands separate following the merger; as a result Royal Caribbean Cruise Line was re-branded Royal Caribbean International and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. was established as the new parent company of both Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises. [6]

A third brand under Royal Caribbean Cruises ownership was formed in 2000 when Island Cruises was created as a joint venture with First Choice Holidays. Island Cruises became an informal cruise line on the British and Brazilian markets. [7]

In November 2006, Royal Caribbean Cruises purchased Pullmantur Cruises based in Madrid, Spain. From there, the company expanded rapidly with the creation of Azamara Cruises in May 2007 as a subsidiary of Celebrity Cruises. [8] It followed this with the formation of CDF Croisières de France in May 2008 to serve the French-language market. [9]

Royal Caribbean also has an interest in TUI Cruises, a joint venture with TUI AG, [10] which began operations in 2009 aimed at a German-speaking market. TUI Cruises's subsidiary, TUI Travel, had a 50% interest in Island Cruises following their merger with First Choice Holidays in 2007. [11] In October 2008, Royal Caribbean Cruises rationalized their holdings by selling their share of Island Cruises to TUI. [12]

In early 2019, Royal Caribbean announced in a joint venture with ITM Group the formation of Holistica, a company that intends to develop cruise destinations. [13] The only known destination that the company is to develop is the Grand Lucayan Resort, located in Freeport after the hotel campus was sold to newly formed subsidiary by the Bahamian Government.

On July 10, 2020, Royal Caribbean Cruises purchased the remaining shares of Silversea Cruises. [3] That same month, it also changed its name to Royal Caribbean Group. [14] [15] It also adjusted its logo. [16] [17] Royal Caribbean sold Azamara Cruises to Sycamore Partners in March 2021 for $201 million. [18]

In July 2022, Royal Caribbean Group received court approval to purchase Endeavor, a former Crystal Cruise ship, for $275 million. The ship was renamed Silver Endeavour when it officially joins the Royal Caribbean's subsidiary, Silversea Cruises' fleet. [19] [20]

Subsidiaries

Royal Caribbean International

Royal Caribbean International (RCI), previously known as Royal Caribbean Cruise Line (RCCL), is a cruise line brand founded in 1968 in Norway and organized as a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Group since 1997. Based in Miami, Florida, it is the largest cruise line by revenue and second largest by passengers counts. In 2018, Royal Caribbean International controlled 19.2% of the worldwide cruise market by passengers and 14.0% by revenue. [21]

As of January 2024, the line operates 28 ships and has three additional ships on order.

Celebrity Cruises

Celebrity Cruises is a cruise line headquartered in Miami, Florida [22] and a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Group. Celebrity Cruises was founded in 1988 by the Greece-based Chandris Group, and merged with Royal Caribbean Cruise Line in 1997. [23] Celebrity's signature logo is an "Χ" displayed on the funnel of Celebrity ships, and is the Greek letter chi, for "Chandris". [24] [25]

Silversea Cruises

Silversea Cruises is a luxury cruise line headquartered in Monaco. Founded in 1994 by the Vlasov Group of Monaco and the Lefebvre family of Rome it pioneered all-inclusive cruising with its first ship, Silver Cloud. [26] Since July 2020, it has been owned by Royal Caribbean Group.

Other significant investments

TUI Cruises


TUI Cruises is a cruise line based in Germany. It was formed in 2007 as a joint venture between the German tourism company TUI AG and the American cruise line operator Royal Caribbean Group, both of whom hold a 50% stake in the company.

Holistica Destinations

Holistica Destinations was formed in early 2019 as a joint venture between Royal Caribbean Group and the ITM Group with the intention of purchasing the Grand Lucayan Resort and re-developing the neighbouring Freeport Harbour in The Bahamas as a cruise destinations that would benefit the local Freeport economy. [27] However, the Government of the Bahamas withdrew support for the re-development of the Grand Lucayan Resort citing that it was 'not in the best interests of the Bahamian people'. [28] Holistica continues to plan for a Freeport Harbour re-development. [29]

Holistica also operates three other popular cruise destinations in the Caribbean. These are Costa Maya in Mexico, Roatan in Honduras, and Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic. [30]

Grand Bahama Shipyard

Grand Bahama Shipyard is a ship maintenance facility located in Freeport, the Bahamas. Royal Caribbean Group holds a 40% stake. Other investors include Carnival Corporation (40% stake) and the Grand Bahama Port Authority (20% stake). [31]

Royal Caribbean Group and Carnival Corporation announced a joint investment of $350 million in the shipyard in 2021, partly in response to damage suffered to the facility after an incident involving the collapse of two cranes during maintenance on Oasis of the Seas and damages caused by Hurricane Dorian, both occurring in 2019. [32]

iCON Infrastructure partnership

Royal Caribbean Group and iCON Infrastructure entered a partnership in 2022 to own, manage, and develop strategic cruise port infrastructure in home ports and key ports of call. [33] The partnership includes Royal Caribbean International-operated Terminal A in PortMiami, as well as several development projects in Spain, Italy, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Royal Caribbean Group holds a 10% stake. [34]

Wamos Air

Wamos Air (formerly Air Pullmantur)[ citation needed ] is a wet-leasing and charter airline headquartered in Madrid, Spain. Royal Caribbean Group holds a 19% stake.

Strategic partnership with Meyer Turku and Finland

In December 2022, Royal Caribbean announced a strategic partnership with Meyer Turku and the government of Finland to chart the way forward for innovative and sustainable shipbuilding in Finland. [35] [36]

Former brands

Related Research Articles

This article talks about transportation in the Bahamas, a North American archipelagic state in the Atlantic Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Celebrity Cruises</span> Cruise line headquartered in Miami, Florida, US

Celebrity Cruises is a cruise line headquartered in Miami, Florida and a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Group. Celebrity Cruises was founded in 1988 by the Greece-based Chandris Group, and merged with Royal Caribbean Cruise Line in 1997. Celebrity's signature logo is an "Χ" displayed on the funnel of Celebrity ships, and is the Greek letter chi, for "Chandris".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Freeport, Bahamas</span> City in Grand Bahama, The Bahamas

Freeport is a city, district and free trade zone on the island of Grand Bahama of the northwest Bahamas. In 1955, Wallace Groves, a Virginian financier with lumber interests in Grand Bahama, was granted 20,000 hectares of pineyard with substantial areas of swamp and scrubland by the Bahamian government with a mandate to economically develop the area. Freeport has grown to become the second most populous city in the Bahamas.

<i>Marella Explorer</i> Century-class cruise ship built in 1996

Marella Explorer is a Century-class cruise ship owned and operated by Marella Cruises. Before joining TUI she cruised as MV Galaxy with Celebrity Cruises, and later as Mein Schiff with TUI Cruises. She was laid down at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany, on 25 May 1995, was launched in May 1996, and was delivered to Celebrity Cruises on 10 October 1996. She entered service on 21 December 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chandris Line</span> Defunct Greece-based shipping company

Chandris Line was a Greece-based shipping company founded in 1960 by Anthony Chandris to operate ocean liners between Greece and Australia. Initially the company also traded under the names Greek Australian Line, National Greek Australian Line and Europe-Australia Line.

<i>Empress of the Seas</i> Cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean International

Empress is a cruise ship owned by Cordelia Cruises, an Indian cruise line. She is the sole ship of her class. She entered service with then-Royal Caribbean International in 1990, transferred to Pullmantur Cruises in 2008, and then returned to Royal Caribbean International in 2016. In December 2020, she was retired from the Royal Caribbean fleet and sold to Cordelia Cruises.

MV <i>Horizon</i>

The MV Horizon was a cruise ship that sailed from 1990-2020, and was the first new build for Celebrity Cruises. She was sent for scrapping in Aliaga in 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Island Cruises</span>

Island Cruises was a cruise line that was founded as a joint venture between Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. and First Choice Travel PLC, each of whom owned 50% of the company. The company operated in Europe, the Caribbean, and South America, aiming its products primarily at markets in the United Kingdom, Brazil and Argentina. First Choice was later acquired by TUI Travel. In 2008, Royal Caribbean sold its stake in the company to TUI, and the cruise line's only fully owned ship, the Island Escape, was transferred to TUI's Thomson Cruises. Island Cruises was discontinued in 2015.

MS <i>Sovereign</i> Cruise ship (1987–2020)

MS Sovereign was one of three large cruise ships of the Sovereign class operated by Pullmantur Cruises and formerly by Royal Caribbean International. When she was completed in 1987, Sovereign of the Seas was the world's largest passenger ship. On 24 June 2020, due to economic losses caused by COVID-19 pandemic, Sovereign arrived and was beached at Aliağa, Turkey, where she was dismantled.

Pullmantur Cruises was a cruise line headquartered in Madrid, Spain. It began operations in the late 1990s as an offshoot of the Madrid-based travel agency Pullmantur. In 2006, Pullmantur Cruises, through its parent company, was purchased by U.S.-based Royal Caribbean Group, but Royal Caribbean later sold a 51% stake in the cruise line to Spain-based investment firm Springwater Capital, retaining a 49% stake.

STX Europe AS, formerly Aker Yards ASA, was until 2012 a subsidiary of the South Korean STX Offshore & Shipbuilding.

<i>Azamara Quest</i> Cruise ship

Azamara Quest is an R-class cruise ship that entered service for Azamara Cruises on 24 October 2007. She was built in 2000 for Renaissance Cruises as R Seven. Following the collapse of Renaissance Cruises in 2001 she was laid up for two years, until chartered to the Germany-based Delphin Seereisen as Delphin Renaissance.

<i>Azamara Journey</i> Cruise ship

Azamara Journey is an R-class cruise ship owned and operated by Azamara Club Cruises. Gross register tonnage is 30,277, with a capacity of 694 passengers, plus 390 crew members. She was built in 2000 for Renaissance Cruises as R Six. After the bankruptcy of Renaissance Cruises, she sailed for Pullmantur Cruises who renamed her Blue Star in 2003 and Blue Dream in 2005.

Silversea Cruises is a luxury cruise line headquartered in Monaco. Founded in 1994 by the Vlasov Group of Monaco and the Lefebvre family of Rome, it pioneered all-inclusive cruising with its first ship, Silver Cloud. Since July 2020, it has been owned by Royal Caribbean Group.

CDF Croisières de France was a cruise line that catered to the French cruise market, with French as the primary language used on board. CDF was a subsidiary of Pullmantur Cruises, and offered cruises to the Mediterranean operating from mid-March until November. Most CDF cruises were all inclusive. in many, but not all cases, the price included airfare. However, cruises could be purchased without airfare as well. CDF ceased operations in 2017.

Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) is a cruise line trade association. It merged with International Council of Cruise Lines (ICCL) in 2006, forming an expanded organization incorporating the existing functions of both organizations. The merged organization, which uses the CLIA name, is located in Washington, D.C.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Premier Cruises</span> Cruise line (formed early 1990s)

Premier Cruises was a cruise line holding company formed in the early 1990s that focused on the family cruise market as well as on developing cruise operations in new geographic markets. The company's business focus was to acquire older cruise vessels, refurbish these vessels in order to offer "traditional cruise experiences", operate the vessels in geographic areas, such as Europe and south/Central America.

TUI Cruises is a cruise line based in Germany. It was formed in 2007 as a joint venture between the German tourism company TUI AG and the American cruise line operator Royal Caribbean Group, both of whom hold a 50% stake in the company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Azamara</span> Cruise company

Azamara is a cruise line based in Miami, Florida, that operates four cruise ships on worldwide itineraries.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "2023 Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Form 10-K" . Retrieved 1 March 2024.
  2. "Proxy Statement" . Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  3. 1 2 "Royal Caribbean Group Acquires Remaining Interest in Silversea". www.rclinvestor.com. Miami, Florida: Royal Caribbean Group. PRNewswire. 10 July 2020. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  4. "Investor Relations Overview". Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. Archived from the original on 18 December 2008. Retrieved 10 November 2008.
  5. Newman, Doug (30 April 2008). "Celebrity Galaxy to Be TUI Cruises' First Ship". At Sea with Doug Newman. Archived from the original on 19 July 2008. Retrieved 10 November 2008.
  6. Plowman, Peter (2006). The Chandris Liners and Celebrity Cruises. Rosenberg Publishing. p. 219. ISBN   1-877058-47-5.
  7. "Island Cruises ownership" (PDF). Island Cruises press material. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2008. Retrieved 11 December 2007.
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  9. Cruise Business Review: Royal Caribbean starts new cruise line dedicated to French market Archived 2008-03-19 at the Wayback Machine , retrieved 14. 10. 2007
  10. "TUI AG and Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. announce joint venture to serve German cruise market". Royal Caribbean Cruise Ltd. Press Release. Archived from the original on 6 July 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2007.
  11. "Tui Travel plc Begins Trading on the London Stock Exchange" (PDF). TUI Travel PLC press release. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2008. Retrieved 11 December 2007.
  12. "Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. to Sell Its Interest in Island Cruises to First Choice Holidays Ltd". Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. 6 October 2008. Archived from the original on 8 September 2012. Retrieved 10 November 2008.
  13. "Holistica" . Retrieved 30 August 2019.
  14. Kalosh, Anne (9 July 2020). "Have you noticed? It's now Royal Caribbean Group". seatrade-cruise.com. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  15. Jibilian, Isabella. "Royal Caribbean Cruises has officially changed its name after quietly dropping the word 'cruises' and tweaking its logo". Business Insider. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  16. Sloan, Gene. "Surprise! Royal Caribbean Cruises just changed its name, without telling anyone". The Points Guy UK. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  17. "Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. changes corporate name". www.bizjournals.com. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
  18. Chang, Brittany. "Royal Caribbean has sold its Azamara brand including 4 ships for $201 million as the company continues to push back 2021 sail dates". Business Insider. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
  19. "Royal Caribbean Acquires Crystal Endeavor Ship for Silversea Fleet". TravelPulse. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
  20. Kumaresan, Shivani. "Royal Caribbean Receives Court Approval To Acquire Cruise Ship Endeavor". Benzinga. Retrieved 21 July 2022.
  21. "2018 Worldwide Cruise Line Market Share". cruisemarketwatch.com. Cruise Market Watch. Archived from the original on 6 November 2018. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
  22. "Contact Us." Celebrity Cruises. Retrieved on 20 January 2010.
  23. Staff, C. I. N. (17 April 1989). "Chandris to Launch Chandris Celebrity Cruises". www.cruiseindustrynews.com. Retrieved 13 November 2022.
  24. Maritime Matters: Sun Vista, retrieved 29. 11. 2007 Archived 16 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  25. Ulrich, Kurt. (1997). Monarchs of the sea : the great ocean liner. London: Taurus Parke Books. p. 177. ISBN   1-86064-373-6.
  26. Hutcheon, Helen (3 November 2013). "The fab four". The Australian . Retrieved 4 May 2014.
  27. "Royal Caribbean CEO hints at future plans for Freeport, Bahamas resort purchase". 27 May 2019. Retrieved 30 August 2019.
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  30. "Destinations". 2020. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  31. "$350 Million Expansion Planned for Grand Bahama Shipyard". 15 July 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  32. "$350m investment for Grand Bahama Shipyard". 22 June 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  33. "Royal Caribbean Partners With iCON Infrastructure To Redefine Destination Development". 20 December 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  34. "Royal Caribbean Group Forms a Strategic Partnership with iCON Infrastructure to Launch New Chapter of Destination Development" (Press release). 19 December 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2023.
  35. "Royal Caribbean Group Announces Strategic Agreement with Meyer Turku Oy, Finnish Government | Royal Caribbean Group Press Center".
  36. "Royal Caribbean Announces Strategic Agreement with Meyer Turku, Finnish Government - Cruise Industry News | Cruise News".

25°46′31″N80°10′41″W / 25.7753°N 80.1780°W / 25.7753; -80.1780