Booking an upgraded cruise ship is better than sailing on a new ship. It's not just about saving money—which you will—there are other perks of cruising on a fresh and familiar ship.

I spent three nights on Royal Caribbean's latest ship, Utopia of the Seas, in mid-November. I used Royal Up to bid $100 for an elevated interior stateroom. While not guaranteed, Royal Up is a ...

Before building begins, the ship is broken down digitally via computer modeling software into sections, ultimately resulting in 80 total portions. These are built separately and then welded and ...