In the cruise industry, turnaround days—when our guests from one journey disembark and new ones board—are a race against the clock for the ship’s crew. They have mere hours to fully prepare the ship for an entire new batch of guests—as well as stock up for the next itinerary.
On board Oasis of the Seas, one of the world’s largest cruise ships, guests don’t have to worry about any of it—the frenzy and excitement all takes place behind the scenes. During these pit stops, which happen every seven days, Royal Caribbean staff work to store food, clean every guest room, and further prepare every inch of the ship for its next wave of nearly 6,000 guests—all in 10 hours. Curious how it’s done? Check out the video below:
More than 2,100 crew members start turnaround day at 6:30 a.m., before current guests have even started disembarking, by loading enough food on the ship to feed a small city. Chefs personally inspect all of the herbs, fresh fruits and vegetables, specially sourced meats, and other food items to ensure the best quality for our guests.
The ships are stocked with everything that the crew and guests will need for the duration of the cruise—like more than 10,000 rolls of toilet tissue, 1,000 new light bulbs, almost 2,000 pounds of coffee and everything in between. It wouldn’t be possible without equal parts precision and dedication, but Royal Caribbean does it regularly across all 24 ships in our fleet and soon our 25th, Symphony of the Seas.
