Royal Caribbean Group reports bookings rush with easing of Covid rules: Travel Weekly

Since announcing an easing of Covid testing and vaccination requirements, Royal Caribbean Group said bookings have grown “significantly higher” than in 2019, the company reported in an SEC filing Thursday. 

Bookings for 2022 and 2023 saw an “immediate positive impact” since the company announced on Aug. 23 that it would ease testing and vaccination rules on most sailings, according to documents Royal Caribbean.  

The company — which owns Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Silversea Cruises — said bookings are significantly outpacing 2019 levels. From a cumulated standpoint, the company said, 2023 is booked “within historical ranges at much higher rates.”  

That’s an improvement from July when Royal Caribbean said during its Q2 earnings call that the second half of 2022 was booked below historical ranges but at higher prices than 2019. At the time, Royal Caribbean said all quarters for 2023 were booked within historical ranges and at record pricing.

The update came in a filing about the company beginning a private offering of senior guaranteed notes due 2029.

Royal Caribbean said it intends to use the proceeds with cash on hand to redeem all of its outstanding priority guaranteed notes and senior secured notes due in 2023.

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