Greetings Travel Partners!

The anticipation and excitement here is at an all-time high as we prepare for the arrival of Allure of the Seas(SM) in Port Everglades in just ten short days. She'll join her sister Oasis of the Seas® in port, and I can hardly imagine what it will be like to finally see these two revolutionary ships side by side. With just one month until Allure of the Seas' maiden voyage, here are some recent developments in her progress:

•	We're excited to announce that the first and only Starbucks® at Sea will be brewing soon on Allure of the Seas' Royal Promenade. As a Starbucks enthusiast myself, I couldn't be happier to hear about this latest addition to the ship's 25 other specialty dining options.
•	More recent news: Four-time Grammy Award-winning artist Taylor Swift is scheduled to perform during Allure of the Seas' January 16th sailing. Guests onboard will have the chance to win passes to the performance by participating in Taylor Swift-themed events that will take place during the cruise. There's still limited availability for this sail date; check out our Taylor Swift page to learn more.
•	Pick up the latest copy of Travel Weekly, Travel Age West, or Canadian Travel Press to get a free 3D Allure of the Seas brochure! Use the included glasses to watch all the ship’s amenities pop out from the page.

And we promise--there's more to come as Allure of the Seas makes her way across the Atlantic. See the flurry of action surrounding Allure's debut by checking in on our Allure Webisodes. Then, get the insider's perspective at Adam and Richard's blogs, where they will chronicle the exciting developments.

Warm Regards,

Vicki L. Freed, CTC
Senior Vice President
Sales and Trade Support & Services
Royal Caribbean International

I'm happy to share the following email we received from travel agent Dave Corless, of Travelonly in Brantford, Ontario, who says: "I wanted to let you know that I sent out a couple of e-quotes recently [using the eConnect tool on CruisingPower.com] which resulted in 2 bookings on the Liberty for next year, largely as a result of the nice presentation." Thanks for the feedback, Dave! Your email illustrates this week's sales tip: to use e-tools to deliver visually pleasing, convenient communications to your clients. Our fully-detailed e-quotes with information on itinerary, category/staterooms, ship and other departures dates can be generated with your agency information and sent to clients in mere seconds, as a link that always features the most timely pricing information. This is just one of many useful features on CruisingPower.com that agents can use to enhance their business communications, and in turn, boost sales commissions.

WANT TO BE A FEATURED V.I.P.?

Do you have an interesting story to tell? Email your story and photos to AskVicki@rccl.com and you may be featured in an upcoming issue.

TRAVEL WEEKLY READER'S CHOICE AWARDS

Thank you so much for your nominations for the Travel Weekly Readers Choice Awards. Because of your outstanding support, Royal Caribbean is a finalist for ten awards! We would really appreciate your vote in this home stretch of the competition. Vote now.

ANNOUNCING VIP CRUISEPASS 2.0

Be sure to download and install the new and improved VIP CruisePass 2.0, the latest version of our award winning desktop widget. It's revamped with new features to help our travel agent partners stay connected with the latest deals, itinerary updates, weather alerts and news. The first 1,000 agents to download and install the new VIP CruisePass from 10/25/10 until 11/8/10 will be entered to win great prizes! Click here to download now.

SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER: THE MUSICAL

Royal Caribbean is slipping on its boogie shoes this spring for Saturday Night Fever: The Musical, our third licensed main-stage musical production at sea. The acclaimed West End musical will debut aboard Liberty of the Seas in April 2011, as part of the ship's revitalization that begins in late January 2011. Stay tuned for more information on this show and other enhancements coming to our fleet next year!

I recently visited our Oregon call center in Springfield to celebrate its 5th anniversary. Thank you to all the employees at our Oregon outpost for the outstanding level of support you provide to customers and travel agents, and congratulations on five years of service!