Monarch Steps Down From Her Throne

It’s been 20 years since I stepped aboard the regal Monarch of the Seas, my first Royal Caribbean cruise.  It was a trip that would change the way I would vacation in the future, and unknowingly influence my future career path. I remember being in awe of the glitzy and glamorous Centrum and elegant dining room. At 73,941 gross tons, Monarch was one of the largest and most innovative cruise ships in the world at time of its completion, but today she is considered merely mid-size!  So I was a bit sad to hear that on April 1, 2013, Monarch of the Seas will be transferred to Royal Caribbean's Madrid-based sister company, Pullmantur Cruises.  She will join her sister Sovereign of the Seas and the Empress of the Seas, leaving her home in Port Canaveral for the Mediterranean shores. Bon Voyage, lovely lady.