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Mon 27 Oct 2008, 12:27 GMT

Royal Caribbean drops fuel supplement


Cruise line announces decision to eliminate fuel surcharge in November.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has announced that the company's fuel supplement will no longer apply to new Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Cruises bookings made on or after November 10, 2008, anywhere in the world, for sailings that depart on or after January 1, 2010.

The decision follows the decision made earlier this month by cruise line rival Carnival Corp. to eliminate its existing fuel supplement for all new bookings on 2010 departures.

Royal Caribbean said the recent fall in bunker prices had been taken into account when making the decision to eliminate the fuel supplement. The company also said it had also established specific guidelines that will determine whether fuel supplement refunds will be provided for sailings that begin in 2009 and later, which were booked prior to November 10, 2008, if fuel prices remain below a specific price threshold.

For 2009 sailings and 2010 sailings booked before November 10, 2008, the company will determine on a quarterly basis whether fuel supplements will be refunded.

Refunds, in the form of an onboard credit, will be provided if the closing price of West Texas Intermediate fuel is $65 or less, at the closing time of the New York Mercantile Exchange, two weeks prior to the beginning of the upcoming calendar quarter.

When those conditions are met, Royal Caribbean says an onboard credit will be provided to all guests on sailings that begin during the upcoming calendar quarter.

The dates on which the price of West Texas Intermediate fuel will be measured, and the quarters during which refunds could apply are as follows:

Fuel Price Determination Date Quarter of Possible Fuel Supplement Refunds
December 18, 2008 First quarter 2009
March 18, 2009 Second quarter 2009
June 17, 2009 Third quarter 2009
September 17, 2009 Fourth quarter 2009
December 18, 2009 First quarter 2010
March 18, 2010 Second quarter 2010
June 17, 2010 Third quarter 2010
September 17, 2010 Fourth quarter 2010


In a statement Royal Caribbean said "The company will continue to closely monitor the movement of global fuel prices and recognize that an upturn in those prices could necessitate the reinstatement of a fuel supplement."

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. is a global cruise vacation company that operates Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Pullmantur, Azamara Cruises and CDF Croisieres de France. The company has a combined total of 38 ships in service and six under construction.

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