An $80 Million Surprise Bonus Gives All Royal Caribbean Employees A Stake In The Company

MIAMI, Jan. 24, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A record-setting year for Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) will translate into a surprise financial reward for each of the company's 66,000 employees.

After announcing RCL had achieved its three-year Double-Double goal of doubling earnings per share and recording a double-digit return on invested capital, the company today told employees they will be thanked for their contribution with individual salary bonuses of five percent.

"Exceptional results require exceptional effort," said Richard D. Fain, RCL's chairman and CEO. "Reaching the Double-Double required remarkable focus and discipline from our employees, and they delivered."

Employees will receive equity awards equal to five percent of their 2017 salaries in an $80 million program called the "Thank You, Thank You Bonus."  The awards, which vest over three years, will go to all employees – shipboard and shoreside, full-time and part-time, domestic and overseas. Corporate officers, however, are excluded. In addition to the five percent equity awards, the company will contribute to the Crew Welfare Fund for upgrades to crew living and recreational areas.

Fain said the Thank You, Thank You Bonus had the added benefit of enabling employees to see the company as shareholders do. "Ours is a people business, Fain said." We want to thank every one of our people for the hard work that got us to today's announcement, and give them a stake in our success going forward."

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE: RCL) is a global cruise vacation company that owns and operates three global brands: Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Azamara Club Cruises.  We are a 50 percent joint venture owner of the German brand TUI Cruises, a 49 percent shareholder in the Spanish brand Pullmantur and a 36 percent shareholder in the Chinese brand SkySea Cruises. Together, these brands operate a combined total of 49 ships with an additional thirteen on order as of December 31, 2017.  They operate diverse itineraries around the world that call on approximately 540 destinations on all seven continents.  Additional information can be found on www.rclcorporate.com.

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SOURCE Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.