Royal Beach Club Santorini
Eastern CaribbeanMay 2026
Icon of The Seas
- Episodes
- 2
- Ports of call
- 4
- Nights
- 9
- Sailed
- May 2026
Trip brief
This series follows our seven-night Eastern Caribbean cruise on Icon of the Seas, round trip from Miami in May 2026. We gave ourselves two days in Miami before boarding, then sailed to St Maarten, St Thomas and Perfect Day at CocoCay, with three sea days to get to know the ship.
Icon was the reason we booked. We wanted to see whether Royal Caribbean's first Icon Class ship lived up to the noise around it: the Pearl in the Royal Promenade, the AquaDome and its food hall, Surfside for families and the specialty restaurants, Empire Supper Club among them.
Ashore we kept things simple, with one excursion in each port and the free side of CocoCay on our second visit to the island.
In this series:
- Two days in Miami: Wynwood, a Little Havana food tour and South Beach
- Boarding Icon of the Seas and our first sea days
- St Maarten by mini speedboat, and Trunk Bay on St John
- Perfect Day at CocoCay and the Everglades on the way home
The episodes
All vlogsWatch the full series
Every episode from this trip, in the order we filmed it. Press play and come along.
We're in Miami!
We finally sailed Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, two years after its debut. Here’s our balanced take: what we loved, what to watch out for, and who it’s best for.
This was our first time on an Icon Class ship, and Icon of the Seas impressed us. The restaurants were a highlight, along with how many places there are to eat for free, from the AquaDome Market to Surfside, and the entertainment was just as strong. The ports lived up to the ship too: crossing from St Thomas to St John for Trunk Bay was breathtaking. With so much to do on board and ashore, it was a very busy week, so plan your days and leave some time to slow down.
Ports of call
All destinationsWhere this series goes
Every port from the voyage. Each opens its own guide with the places we filmed.
Sint Maarten
St Maarten
The Dutch half of St Martin, a small island shared with France, where cruise ships dock at Philipsburg and jets land just over the sand at Maho Beach.
US Virgin Islands
St Thomas
The busiest of the US Virgin Islands, with a duty-free harbour town at Charlotte Amalie and the national park beaches of St John a short ferry ride away.
Bahamas
Coco Cay
A private Bahamian port exclusive to Royal Caribbean international cruise line passengers.
Where we slept
The ship and the stays
Every place we slept on this trip, with the booking links we used to get the same rooms.
A modern Marriott on Biscayne Bay at the edge of downtown Miami, with a rooftop pool deck and PortMiami a short drive away: our base for two nights before Icon of the Seas.
From the journal
All storiesStories from this series
The written companion to the trip: longer reads, extra frames and the small details the videos had no room for.
Review
Is Icon of the Seas really Iconic?
Royal Caribbean's Icon of the Seas launched in 2024 as the world's largest cruise ship. It has eight neighbourhoods, each with dining and bars, and runs on LNG fuel.
Review
Miami Marriott Biscayne Bay: Our Pre-Cruise Hotel of Choice
Where we stayed before Icon of the Seas: modern rooms, a rooftop pool deck and a short ride to PortMiami, plus what to know about the partial bay views, the destination fee and embarkation-day traffic.
Things To Do
The Best Thing We Did in Miami: A Little Havana Food Tour
A small-group food tour through Little Havana with Secret Food Tours, covering Cuban coffee, sugarcane juice, pastelitos, croquetas and a Cuban sandwich on Calle Ocho.
Keep watching
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