JOINING holiday makers on Royal Caribbean cruise ships is a raft of new technology which is expected to improve the travel experience across all areas.  

Over the two years the company will roll out an guest app on all its 48 ships, it will banish check-in lines at ports, equip its crew members so they can anticipate guests' needs and enable giant cruise ships "to sail through the water on a fuel-saving curtain of air".

RCL chairman and chief executive officer Richard Fain said, "The pace of change is relentless-and so are we.

"We are harnessing a range of technologies to enhance every facet of our business, every minute of our guests' vacations, and every inch of the ships we build."

The company is looking to make its guest operations more efficient through - 

• Boarding ships in shorter times and skipping check-in lines with the help of facial recognition technology.
• Using the on-board app to sign up for shore excursions, order drinks and make dinner reservations using a smartphone.
• Transform ship spaces into virtual environments and interactive games,where stateroom ceilings might be replaced by starry skies, the walls of a restaurant can transform into the sights and sounds of an outdoor café and digital signs challenge you to play an arcade game. 

"Consumers are buying experiences now, not things," Mr Fain said,

"So we are creating ways for them to design holidays rich in made-to-order, memory-making moments, and even providing recommendations based on what they have enjoyed before or shared with us about their preferences. And with our mantra of continuous improvement, our strategy is to constantly upgrade the guest experience across the fleets of all our brands."

For more information on cruises, go to Royal Caribbean International.