| Copyright 2005 | | | | than 65,000 berths on them and is growing. Here's |
| * Introduction * | | | | their story. |
| Ever heard of a luxury hotel that moves every | | | | Flash back to 1969. An idea suddenly struck Arne |
| half hour? | | | | Wilhelmsen and Edwin Stephan (Arne was a |
| You guessed it: it's a Royal Caribbean cruise ship, | | | | Harvard-educated investor and Edwin a famous |
| a mass of one hundred thousand tons, that glides | | | | Floridian businessman). The idea was that there |
| on the ocean between Florida and the islands of | | | | was a large community of extremely wealthy |
| the Caribbean on a regular basis. | | | | Americans in Florida, and that this community |
| Royal Caribbean International is the second largest | | | | would put down top dollar for a short, relaxing |
| cruise ship operator in the world with revenues in | | | | luxury cruise to the nearby Caribbean. |
| excess of $4 billion. It owns 28 ships with more | | | | |