Royal Caribbean to offer free on-demand access to The Autism Channel

Royal Caribbean International is to become the first in the hospitality industry to offer complimentary on-demand access to exclusive content from The Autism Channel onboard most of its ships.

Complimentary on-demand access to the streaming television service will be available from late October in all staterooms onboard Quantum-, Oasis-, Freedom-, Voyager- and Radiance-class ships on LED flat-panel interactive televisions. Programmes, which aim to provide information and resources to those who support people with autism spectrum disorders, will be initially offered in English, as well as closed-captioned for guests who are deaf or hard-of-hearing.

“The Autism Channel is delighted that Royal Caribbean has chosen to make this valuable content available on many Royal Caribbean ships,” said Jeffrey Kasky, president of The Autism Channel. “For every one person on the autism spectrum there are six more persons directly impacted by that person. Complimentary access to The Autism Channel’s exclusive content will benefit many Royal Caribbean guests and bring more awareness to Autism.”

The new offering enhances the cruise line’s existing Autism Friendly programme, which is designed to provide inclusive cruise vacation experiences for families living with autism and other developmental disabilities.

As part of the program, Royal Caribbean has introduced autism-friendly services including sensory friendly movies, an autism-friendly toy lending programme, and more. Plus, all youth staff have attended autism awareness training.