Empress and Majesty of the Seas are leaving Royal Caribbean’s fleet

Royal Caribbean International said that the Empress of the Seas and Majesty of the Seas will depart its fleet later this month.

The Empress, which launched in 1990, and the Majesty, launched in 1992, are the two oldest ships in the Royal fleet. 

The line said both ships were sold to an undisclosed party, based in the Asia-Pacific region, that will release details on future sailings at a later time.

Royal said the Empress, originally the Nordic Empress, was its first ship designed for three- and four-day cruises, and the vessel was the first to sail out of Cape Liberty in Bayonne, N.J. when Royal Caribbean opened the terminal in 2004. Most recently, in 2017, the two ships became Royal’s first vessels to cruise to Cuba.

The Majesty was a sister ship to the Sovereign of the Seas, once the biggest cruise ship in the world.

• Related: Sunset cruises: Saying goodbye to some of the most talked-about ships at sea

“Touted as the cruise industry’s most groundbreaking ships when they were introduced, [the Empress and Majesty] continued to make history throughout their more than three decades of service,” Michael Bayley, CEO of Royal Caribbean, said in a statement. “Saying goodbye to these two beloved ships is a major moment in Royal Caribbean’s history — one that is difficult but necessary. With plans for new, innovative ships to join our fleet in the upcoming years, we look forward to our guests and crew continuing to make new memories with us.”

The two Royal ships are the latest in the global cruise fleet to depart from major cruise lines, which are reeling from nine months of Covid-related travel restrictions and are looking to cut costs. Parent company Royal Caribbean Group earlier this year sold off its three ships from its jointly owned Spanish brand, Pullmantur, the Monarch and the Sovereign, originally the Sovereign of the Seas and the Monarch of the Seas, and the Horizon, which sailed for Celebrity Cruises.

The industry this year will lose a record number of ships, the majority from Carnival Corp. brands, which has committed to removing 18 ships from its nine brands before the end of 2020, and has already parted with several of Carnival Cruise Line Fantasy-class vessels as well as Holland America Line’s Rotterdam, Veendam, Amsterdam and Maasdam.