On Royal Caribbean cruises, passengers can go big on adventure during their vacations.
The cruise line offers some of the biggest thrills at sea from a 10-story dry slide and a zip line on its huge Oasis-Class ships to water slides, rock-climbing walls, and surf and skydiving simulators on others.
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Royal Caribbean is always working on something new to wow its passengers and offer adventures for every type of cruiser. Escape rooms, laser tag and mini golf are other popular onboard activities that add excitement to the Royal Caribbean cruise experience for many passengers.
Since the cruise line is constantly innovating and enhancing its ships, it sometimes replaces venues and reimagines activities to provide an even better experience for its passengers.
In 2023, Royal Caribbean retired one of its signature attractions to make way for what the cruise line called at the time a “new versatile venue for exciting onboard activities.”
Now, nearly two years since that announcement, the cruise line is finally testing out a new version of its discontinued Skypad attraction.
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Royal Caribbean unveils a new Skypad experience
Originally a bungee virtual reality experience where passengers bounced on trampolines inside a yellow sphere on the top deck of a handful of Royal Caribbean ships, Skypad shuttered in spring 2023.
Before that, Skypad temporarily closed in 2019 for a safety review after a passenger was injured on the attraction due to a harness malfunction. The passenger filed a lawsuit against Royal Caribbean.
Now, a new type of virtual reality adventure is breathing life back into the yellow Skypad sphere, according to RoyalCaribbeanBlog.com.
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A new Skypad expedition: Adventure in Space & Underseas invites passengers to “immerse themselves into the vastness of interstellar space and explore the depths of the ocean and vibrant coral reefs through the lens of virtual reality technology,” the popular website reported.
Passengers wear virtual reality goggles and ear cups designed to block out ambient sound during the experience. Various films offer immersive experiences with space, sci-fi, and underwater themes, according to Royal Caribbean Blog,
New Skypad experience is only available on one ship so far
For now, the new Skypad experience is only available on one ship, Spectrum of the Seas, a Quantum Ultra-Class ship that sails Asia cruise itineraries from China.
Royal Caribbean has not yet shared whether the new experience will roll out to the other cruise ships that feature a Skypad, which include Independence of the Seas, Mariner of the Seas and Odyssey of the Seas.
The new Skypad experience costs $15 per person. Participants must be at least six years old, and kids under 12 must be accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. The experience can be booked prior to sailing via the Pre-Cruise Planner or on the Royal Caribbean app.
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While the new Skypad experience isn’t yet available on all ships with a Skypad, passengers will still find plenty of things to do on these action-packed cruise ships. Popular top-deck activities on board Independence of the Seas and Mariner of the Seas include The Perfect Storm dueling racer waterslides and FlowRider surf simulators.
On Odyssey of the Seas, a Quantum Ultra-Class ship, passengers can find even more to explore indoors at SeaPlex, the largest indoor activity space at sea. SeaPlex offers bumper cars, glow-in-the-dark laser tag, indoor sports courts, and more.
Along with surf and skydiving simulators on the top deck, Odyssey of the Seas also features Royal Caribbean’s innovative North Star observation capsule, which offers passengers the opportunity to enjoy 360-degree views from 300 feet up.
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