In 1969, Arne Wilhemsen and Edwin Stephan realized that there were many wealthy Americans living in Florida who would probably pay for a cruise to the Caribbean. The two sold this idea to several Norwegian shipping companies who came together to create Royal Caribbean Cruises. Their first ship, the 700 passenger Song of Norway, sailed in 1970, with two more, Nordic Prince and Sun Viking, following soon after making it the largest Caribbean cruise company of the day.
Royal Caribbean realized it needed bigger ships to keep up with demand. In 1978, it started the practice of stretching its ship. The Song of Norway was cut into two and an 85 foot new midsection was added to it. This added an additional 300 passengers to the vessel. This exercise also was done to the Nordic Prince in 1980.
The 1980s were a period of huge expansion for the company. The main cruising market segment, Upper and Middle class Americans, were getting richer and the demand for bigger cruises and more destinations began to grow. Royal Caribbean responded to this with the creation of Labadee, its own private resort on the north coast of Hispaniola, and the construction of the Sovereign of the Seas, the very first "mega-ship." Royal Caribbean also merged with Admiral Cruises in 1988, increasing the size of its fleet (although each company would keep its identity.)
The 1990s finally brought the cruise line out of the Caribbean and into the rest of the world. In 1990, Royal Caribbean started cruises in Europe with Mexico cruises (out of the US west coast) began in 1991. The company went public in 1993 under the symbol RCL. In 1995, the company celebrated its 25th year with the introduction of the Legend of the Seas, its first ship for around-the-world cruises. It purchased the Celebrity Cruise line in 1996 and to demonstrate their commitment to their new world wide focus, they renamed the company "Royal Caribbean International" in 1997.
In the last decade, Royal Caribbean has continued to expand their company. In 2000, they added the "Explorer of the Seas", the first ship to have research facilities on board. Today, most of their ships offer amenities such as ice skating rinks and climbing walls which sets them apart from their competitors.
