Starting June 30, Royal Caribbean will begin offering port calls to itineraries sailing from Singapore onboard Spectrum of the Seas. Although Royal Caribbean cruise ships have been operating from the city-state since December 2020, both Quantum of the Seas and Spectrum of the Seas have only offered seacations.ย
This is about to change with the addition of Kuala Lumpur and Penang in Malaysia to the itineraries. The change is unexpected as most countries in Asia are still under strict COVID-19 controls. Many cruise lines have decided to postpone any Asia sailings until later this year or next year.
Royal Caribbean Adds Two Ports To Singapore Cruises
With the entire fleet operational, Royal Caribbean is now focusing on expanding the number of ports that ships can call at. This has led to the addition of two ports to itineraries sailing from Singapore.
Spectrum of the Seas will visit Kuala Lumpur and Penang starting with the June 30 departure. Royal Caribbean said the following to guests booked onboard one of the voyages:ย
“Now that we have officially completed our return to service across our entire fleet, we’re excited to share that our Spectrum of the Seas sailings out of Singapore will now include visits to ports in Malaysia, beginning with our June 30th, 2022 sailing! We’re so happy you chose to sail with us, and we can’t wait to take you to these beautiful destinations.”
The voyages will now sail from Singapore and head north through the strait of Malakka and visit Kuala Lumpur. After a day in Malaysia’s bustling capital city, Spectrum of the Seas will head to Penang, where guests can visit George Town. The second-largest city in Malaysia was awarded the UNESCO World Heritage Site status in 2008 for its historical city center.ย
After a day at sea where guests can enjoy everything Royal Caribbean’s Quantum-class ships offer, such as Flowrider, the Northstar, and more, she will return to Singapore.
Royal Caribbean Taking The Lead In Asia
As the cruise line did in December 2020, Royal Caribbean is again taking the lead by opening up cruising in Asia. While it seemed that the continent would be the first to return to normal when Royal Caribbean and Dream Cruises started offering cruises in 2020, the opposite became true.
Dream Cruises owner Genting filed for insolvency earlier this year and has been forced to sell most of its assets. On the other hand, Royal Caribbean has been forced to keep operating 3- and 4-day seacations out of Singapore since surrounding countries have been operating under strict COVID-19 measures.
Even now, guests sailing onboard Spectrum of the Seas to Malaysia will need to comply with several measures from the Malaysian government. All guests must download, register, and activate the MySetahtera app. Once guests complete the pre-departure form, they should download the Blue Traveler Card.ย
On top of that, guests who received only two doses of the Chinese-made Sinovac or Sinopharm vaccines must have a booster shot to debark in Malaysia.
While it is only an addition of two ports to the itinerary, the move from Royal Caribbean provides hope that cruising will be able to return to relative normality soon. As it stands, only Royal Caribbean and Silverseas have any concrete plans for cruises in the coming months.
Only a few more cruise ships will be sailing around the continent from September onwards. Viking Orion and Viking Mars; Silver Shadow and Silver Muse; and AIDAbella and Mein Schiff 5 are the only ships with plans for cruises in Asia this fall.