Vision Of The Seas

The 1998-built Vision of the Seas cruise ship is the last of the Vision-class Royal Caribbean liners, with sisterships Splendour OTS (now Marella Discovery), Grandeur OTS, Enchantment OTS, Legend OTS (now Marella Discovery 2), and Rhapsody OTS.

The vessel (IMO number 9116876) is currently Bahamas-flagged (MMSI 311321000) and registered in Nassau.

History - construction and ownership

Royal Caribbean International (RCI) is a US passenger shipping company, trademarked travel brand, and subsidiary owned by Royal Caribbean Group (RCG/shipowner). RCI was established in 1968 and currently has over one-fifth of the worldwide cruise market. RCI also has RCG's largest fleet by both vessel number and GT tonnage (ship sizes and capacities).

All RCI liners have names ending with "of the Seas".

The 2000-passenger ship Vision OTS is one of RCI's older liners. Each of the Vision-class vessels, although in the medium-size range, also offers big-ship touches. The boat features many of the expected Royal Caribbean facilities: a 7-deck-high Atrium named the Centrum, a funnel-side rock-climbing wall, a solarium pool with sliding glass roof, and the signature circular Viking Crown Lounge.

What makes Vision OTS so appealing is the layout strategy applied here, and later on the Radiance-class vessels. It uses many glass walls in public areas to bring outside views inside. In fact, more than 2 acres of glass were used in Vision's construction to make the sun, sea, and sky part of the interior as much as possible.

Decks and Cabins

Vision Of The Seas staterooms (1018 total, in 24 grades) include 97 Suites, 136 Balcony, 380 Oceanviews, and 405 Inside cabins. Cabin sizes vary between 130-150-190 ft2 (12-14-18 m2). Most cabin balconies are sized 40 ft2 / 4 m2. The largest accommodation is the Royal Suite (1185 ft2 / 110 m2 plus 140 ft2 / 13 m2 terrace). Wheelchair-accessible cabins number 14.

The boat has 12 decks, of which 11 are passenger-accessible and 5 have cabins.

Shipboard dining options - Food and Drinks

Vision OTS offers a traditional main dining room - The Aquarius, a 2-tier venue spanning Decks 4 and 5, made elegant by enormous windows and a grand staircase. During the 2013 refurbishment, it received minor decorative touches, new carpeting, and Chef's Table. Passengers can book the intimate space for $95 per person and enjoy a wine-paired dinner hosted by the ship's executive chef and sommelier.

Chef's Table is nestled toward the back of the dining room, accented with warm lighting, dark wood paneling, large portholes, and chandeliers made of silverware. Three for-fee restaurants, which first debuted on Oasis of the Seas, appeared on Vision: Giovanni's Table, Izumi, and Chops Grille. They are open between 6 and 9:30 pm (kids ages 3-13 can dine only until 7 pm).

Follows the complete list of Vision of the Seas restaurants and food bars.

• Aquarius Restaurant (1158-seat aft Dining Room; offers Brasserie 30 lunch on sea days; Chef's Table)
• Windjammer Cafe Lido buffet restaurant (454-seat, offers Early Breakfast at 6:30 am, Breakfast between 7-11:30 am, Lunch 11:30 am-3:30 pm, Dinner 6:30-9 pm)
• Chops Grille (74-seat specialty restaurant; reservations recommended)
• Giovanni's Table (78-seat Italian specialty restaurant)
• Izumi (79-seat Asian specialty restaurant)
• Park Cafe (complimentary deli restaurant; serves the Solarium area).

Shipboard entertainment options - Fun and Sport

The Centrum Atrium of all Vision-class vessels is a hub for onboard entertainment. Its midship location is ideal for the activities held throughout the day and night. Vision OTS' most notable upgrades during the last refurbishment are the addition of R Bar and the Centrum Experience aerobatics show. During the day, guests head to the Centrum for live music, enrichment activities, art auctions, and more.

At night, the place to grab a drink and dance to a live band is the R Bar. The Some Enchanted Evening Lounge and the R Bar are ideal for meeting and mingling with friends before heading up to the Viking Nightclub on Deck 11. Those who prefer a more relaxed dancing ambiance should choose the Some Enchanted Evening Lounge.

The updated Viking Crown features tiered seating areas and outward-sloping windows. It also provides the best location for viewing the passing scenery.

Additional amenities include complimentary 24-hour room service, supervised youth program, Internet/Wi-Fi access, laundry, and self-serve laundromats (14).

Follows the complete list of Vision of the Seas lounges, clubs, and other entertainment venues for kids, teens, and adults.

• Masquerade Theatre (853-seat, features grand production shows with dance, acrobatics, comedy, and games)
• Photo Gallery and Shop; Art Gallery
• The Centrum (7-deck atrium and social hub, offers aerial acrobatics entertainment); Some Enchanted Evening Lounge (300-seat show entertainment lounge); Crown Lounge (fka Diamond Club Lounge & Bar for past guests only); Concierge Club (suite and past guests only); Viking Crown Lounge and Nightclub
• R Bar (41-seat cocktail bar); Cafe Latte-tudes Bar (12-seat specialty coffee bar, Starbucks Coffee); Schooner Bar (125-seat piano bar)
• Centrum Boutiques (duty-free; clothes, perfumes, accessories, jewelry, logo souvenirs, General Store/alcohol and cigarettes)
• Casino Royale (241-seat)
• Royal Caribbean Online Center (Internet computer room; 24-hour)
• Vitality at Sea Spa and Fitness Center; 6 Jacuzzis; 3 swimming pools
• Solarium lounge (includes Cafe Bar, pool bar, and adults-only pool area)
• Outdoor Movie Screen
• Video Games Arcade; FantaSeas Teen Center and Disco; Royal Babies and Tots Nursery
• Adventure Beach; Adventure Ocean kids lounge area
• Sports Court (golf simulator, table tennis, basketball court); Jogging Track; Rock-climbing Wall.

Itineraries

Vision of the Seas itinerary program is currently based on homeporting in Baltimore MD (since May 2023). The roundtrips visit popular destinations in the Southern Caribbean (12-day itinerary to St Croix USVI, St Maarten, Antigua, Barbados, St Kitts, St Lucia, Dominica), Florida and Bahamas (7-8-day to Port Canaveral, Miami, Nassau, Freeport, CocoCay), Bermuda (5-day to King's Wharf/overnight), Bermuda and Bahamas (9-day to Kings Wharf, Nassau, CocoCay), and Canada and New England USA (9-day to Boston, Portland ME, Saint John NB, Halifax NS).

For summer 2021 (June 26 through August 28), Vision OTS operated Bahamas roundtrips from Bermuda. However, this program was canceled in May 2021. The 7-day itinerary (roundtrip from Kings Wharf/first time for RCI) had scheduled 2 sea days before visiting CocoCay Bahamas, followed by 2 more sea days before the arrival in Bermuda.

Royal Caribbean's unique out-of-Bahamas and out-of-Bermuda voyages were offered as "fly-cruise" deals (flight+cruise packages) and open for booking to customers of all nationalities. Through RCI's Air2Sea program, airfare rates were US$99 per person - roundtrip flights from NYC's Newark or LaGuardia airports. For comparison, the cheapest ex-NYC flights in June-July 2021 were US$335 pp.

Vision OTS was built by Chantiers de l'Atlantique Shipyard (St Nazaire France). The ship's godmother was Helen Morin Stephan - wife of Edwin Stephan (founder and Vice Chairman of Royal Caribbean). The inaugural cruise (maiden voyage) started on May 2, 1998.

After boarding the liner, you enter the Centrum - the majestic forward Atrium (7 decks high, midship open-floor design). At the bottom of the Centrum is the Champagne Terrace - a relaxation venue decorated with marble, brass, real grass, and live palm trees. At the top of it, on Deck 11, is the Viking Crown Lounge - one of Royal Caribbean's signature venues. The Viking Lounge is the perfect place to watch the scenery during your always-special RCI voyages. Vision's interior design features a large amount of glass and many open spaces.

ex-Bermuda to Bahamas cruises 2021

Following the Coronavirus crisis, for summer 2021 RCI scheduled Vision OTS Bahamas cruises leaving from Bermuda. The 7-day itinerary (roundtrip from Kings Wharf) had 2 sea days before visiting CocoCay Bahamas (port stay 8 AM - 5 PM), followed by 2 more sea days before the arrival in Bermuda.

• The unique Royal Caribbean ex-Bermuda mini-season (June 26 through August 28) was based on "fly-cruise" deals (flight+cruise packages), and the voyages were open for booking to customers of all nationalities. Prices were in the range of USD 550-1100 per person with double occupancy.
• Bookings opened on March 29, 2021. Through RCI's Air2Sea program, airfare rates were as low as USD 99 per person - roundtrip flights from NYC's Newark or LaGuardia airports. For comparison, the cheapest ex-NYC flights in June-July 2021 were US$335 pp.
• However, on May 20th, this program was entirely canceled. Reportedly, RCI's decision was due to poor sales, as customers anticipated the company's ex-USA operations would start earlier than previously expected.

All affected bookings were offered a 125% refund in FCC (Future Cruise Credit/based on the fare paid and automatically issued before/on June 18, 2021) or a 100% monetary refund (before/on June 30, 2021).

Itineraries 2017 changes

On August 22, 2017, Vision had scheduled a 16-night Transatlantic crossing (Copenhagen to Cape Liberty, Bayonne New Jersey) visiting ports in Denmark, Norway, the UK (Scotland), and Iceland. Homeported in Cape Liberty NJ, Vision started operations on September 7, 2017, with a 13-night "New England Fall Foliage" cruise from the USA to Canada (Quebec City). The itinerary was also offered on September 20 and October 1 and 11 (replacing the previously scheduled Rhapsody cruises) and included ports in Massachusetts, Maine, and Nova Scotia.

• All Royal Caribbean European cruises on Vision of the Seas (August 22 through November 17, 2017) were canceled.
• All guests booked on the affected itineraries were provided with a full refund, the option to rebook on another RCI ship, plus onboard credit (on the rebooked cruises). All customers with airfare purchased through Royal Caribbean were also fully refunded. Those who purchased their own flights were refunded for the airline change fee only. Travel agency commissions were protected for all paid-in-full cruises.
• In early August 2016, RCI added more Western Caribbean itineraries leaving from Galveston TX (4- and 5-night Mexico cruises to Cozumel and Costa Maya), with bookings expanded through April 2018.

Vision OTS refurbishments review

The list of changes after the drydock refurbishment in October 2013 included:

• new lounges ("Concierge" and "Diamond")
• new dining options - "Park Cafe" (complimentary deli), and the specialty restaurants "Chef's Table" (VIP dining), "Chops Grille" (steakhouse), "Izumi" (Asian), and "Giovanni's Table" (Italian)
• Nursery
• new "Centrum" area entertainment programming (now with aerial acrobatic shows and LED screen wall)
• "R Bar" (1960s retro-style bar)
• Jumbotron (poolside movie screen)
• upgraded passenger cabin amenities (flat TVs, iPads)
• Wi-Fi coverage upgraded to shipwide
• Digital signage boards installed

The vessel was also drydocked in November 2018 and February 2022. Both projects were routine (for general maintenance and classification works).

Vision OTS' last drydocking was in 2024 (April 20 through May 24), conducted at Grand Bahama Shipyard (Freeport Bahamas). The project included routine maintenance and classification/safety inspections, technical overhaul, hotel upkeep, and some upgrades to public areas.