Royal Caribbean Charging $89 for Crown’s Edge Attraction

Last Updated on November 29, 2023

Royal Caribbean’s new ship, the Icon of the Seas, is almost ready for its first guests. A booking on this ship is pricing, with a sailing on the new flagship of the fleet costing considerably more than other ships and more than a cruise on some luxury cruise lines. But the onboard expenses are just as bad, with Royal Caribbean charging up to $240 for daybeds in common areas. Now, they released the price for their new thrill attraction Crown’s Edge, and it’s ridiculous. 

About Crown’s Edge on Icon of the Seas

One of the new attractions on Icon of the Seas is Crown’s Edge, an ride where you’re suspended high above the ocean on the Royal Caribbean Crown and Anchor logo. It appears to be a cross between a ropes course and a skywalk. Guests are suspended 154 feet above the ocean and navigate across planks. Towards the end, the floor drops from underneath then, and they glide to safety. 

According to Royal Caribbean, “the ride experience is approximately 90 seconds and may vary by rider. The full experience will be approximately 15 minutes long, which includes time for gearing up.”

Crown’s Edge: an expensive attraction

Originally, Crown’s Edge was supposed to be included in the cruise cost according to early press releases and presentations to travel advisors. Then, in November 2022, Chief Product Innovation Officer Jay Schneider told travel advisors that it would have a “nominal cost.” 

Now, the attraction is available for booking on the Cruise Planner, and the cost is an astounding $89.99 per person on a sea day or roughly $1 per second. Royal Caribbean will also include a video of the experience as part of the fee.  

It is not known whether this will be the pricing for everyone. For many things, Royal Caribbean uses dynamic pricing, which often changes for each sailing. Right now, we can confirm the price is the same for three different Icon of the Seas sailings in the first half of 2024 according to their cruise planner. 

Our take: Royal Caribbean is pricing itself out of the market

Both Carnival and Norwegian cruise lines have extensive ropes courses available on some of their ships at no additional charge. The Carnival Mardi Gras and Celebration include a zip-line portion over the ship’s side, much like Crown’s Edge. But Royal Caribbean feels their experience is worth an exorbitant $89.99 per person, even though it’s not a full ropes course.

Royal Caribbean is quickly pricing itself out of the affordable vacation market. Over the past few months, we’ve seen them start charging for day beds in areas where other cruise lines offer them for free, adding a high fee to access a kid-free area on Perfect Day at CocoCay, increasing the specialty dining pricing, and now this. According to their investor calls, Royal Caribbean leadership feels these cost increases are acceptable and will continue to do it until guests stop paying.