JohnK6404

FYI... If you have an upcoming sailing that includes CocoCay check your Cruise Planner just in case... For our 10/3/21 Oasis sailing, ALL cabanas (excluding Coco Beach Club) have dropped to $499 in the Cruise Planner today!

21 days to go! FYI... ALL cabanas (excluding Coco Beach Club) have dropped to $499 in the Cruise Planner today!

I'll just say that everyone values the Key perks differently. The value also varies based on ship amenities/ship class. Opinions will be all over the place. The friends we sailed with went as far as to say that they will always purchase the Key going forward (they are frequent cruisers - never in suites) as long as the price is reasonable. I agree that the price of the Key and your desire to purchase the Voom package are the biggest factors. We all (wife and friends) thoroughly enjoyed the Key on our Allure cruise back in May 2019, but that was pre-Covid. We purchased it at $19.99 which was a no-brainer as we all wanted the Voom package anyway. We really enjoyed the Chops Lunch (actually in Chops at that time) on embarkation day, special semi-private breakfast on the last morning in the MDR, reserved seating at all major shows (we would just arrive 10-15 minutes before each show and we were escorted to reserved section in the center of the venue... no scrambling for decent seats and we all sat together... many dirty looks!), carry-on bag delivery to cabin upon boarding, etc. We were also escorted off the ship at the end of the cruise through the terminal utilizing the Star Class line (no one else on line). The terminal was packed and the regular line was of course snaking throughout the terminal at Port Everglades. We got a lot of confused looks that morning! We were through customs and in our car in literally 10-15 minutes from the time we all met in the Royal Promenade (Champagne Bar) and were escorted off the ship. I don't believe that perk is part of the Key program anymore. However, in a Covid world with reduced capacity sailings, it may not be that much of a perk at this time especially at the current pricing. My wife and I still purchased it for our 10/3/21 Oasis sailing at $21.99 (probably as high as I would have gone), but we just received this cancellation e-mail from Royal this morning... time for me to cancel the DBP and purchase the DBP plus VOOM!

Hi Linda! Here is the current policy as per Matt's post on 8/27/21. On B2B trips, Royal will test you onboard prior to the second cruise at no cost to you... https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2021/08/27/royal-caribbean-did-not-change-their-back-back-cruise-policy

Just another experience with CVS PCR test. My wife and I booked our tests online a couple of weeks in advance as soon as the scheduling opened up. Sort of a dry run for our cruise in OCT as we have another trip this week that requires a NEG test result as well. We did the test at the CVS drive-thru just before noon yesterday (SUN, 8/29) morning and just got our results e-mailed to us this evening (MON, 8/30) around 7:00 PM... so, just under 2 days. Results came via e-mail from both CVS and from Quest Diagnostics (they actually ran the test for CVS). Hopefully, we'll get the same quick turnaround for the cruise! Will definitely be monitoring the policy and timeframes in SEPT. Good luck everyone!

We're sailing on October 3rd... still not open yet.

Us too!!! Woohoo!

Hi everyone! *** CHECK-IN IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR OUR SAILING! *** We picked the earliest check-in slot currently available for us (12:00 P - 12:30 P)... not sure if that time was an option because we purchased the Key and one of the perks is the embarkation day Chops lunch in the MDR and they'll need to allow us onboard early enough for lunch. OK, now we're starting to get excited! 54 Days to go! ?

Just an FYI in case you have not been notified. Just a minor change in departure time out of Cape Liberty for our cruise. We just received this notification tonight from our travel agency... here is an excerpt from the e-mail... "As part of the guidance received from the CDC, Royal Caribbean implemented new boarding protocols and you'll need some extra time for check-in. As a result, departure from Cape Liberty, New Jersey will now be at 6:00 PM, instead of 4:00 PM. As a reminder, we kindly ask that you arrive to the port during your pre-selected check-in window. This is imperative to ensure minimal wait time and less crowds during the boarding process. Please visit your Cruise Planner for additional details. " Sunset is around 6:35 PM on that day... hopefully it will be a pretty one as we sail out of New York Harbor! 59 days and counting! ?

Hi @kt2000! We're all hoping! Join us here for this sailing...

Majesty of the Seas back in 2010. Charted for a corporate recognition cruise by my employer. The only cruise my wife and I have been on that went to Coco Cay (pre- Perfect Day)... can't wait to see it now! First cruise ever was Disney Wonder back in 2004 (honeymoon). Hooked on Royal ever since! ?

Welcome to both of you! I agree, you both will have a blast on Oasis class ships!

Definitely not... they just grabbed a generic cruise ship image. I believe the estimated size of the Icon class is around 200,000 tons... somewhere in between Quantum and Oasis class... I don't believe any official drawings or schematics have been released to the public yet. They may not even be done with the final design just yet. Can't wait to see what she'll look like!

I would not let it bother you. You paid for, and certainly deserve, those perks when you booked your Star class cabin. We had similar responses every now and then even with the Key back in May 2019 (reserved seating at shows, early disembarking the ship on port days, etc.). People just had no idea what the Key was, but that was back in 2019. No hostility, but many confused faces...

Yuummmm... can't wait! Last time we had lobster tails was on our last cruise on Allure back in May 2019. I normally don't order lobster at home (and I know, Maine lobster is better, but these tails were delicious).

Just the 2 for now... Oasis (10/3/21) & Odyssey (2/12/22)... Always looking of course, but want to make sure our upcoming Oasis cruise sails out of Cape Liberty!

Chris, great to hear that you are back! I hope you'll still be on Odyssey when we sail on 2/12/22! Best of luck and we'll be looking forward to your videos!

Enjoy our Chops Grille embarkation day lunch and then walk through Central Park and order a Lava Flow from the Trellis Bar!

Maybe there is a different policy based on your region... that would explain the difference in your experience. We're referring to the US website and cruise planners.

@PPPJJ-GCVAB, you're correct. I purchased the DBP for our OCT 2021 sailing (old planner) just now and for our FEB 2022 sailing (new planner) a couple of weeks ago. In both cases, the 18% gratuity is not added until it's in your cart. There is no change to the purchase of beverage packages. One major change (and @twangster pointed this out in his comparison review)... ... involves specialty dining reservations and dining plans. Royal is now adding gratuity to specialty dining reservations in the new planner. I booked the same restaurant (not a dining plan) for both sailings and the old planner does not tack on gratuity, but the new planner adds a gratuity at checkout. We tip anyway, but now you'll have to keep that in mind when you're onboard. Maybe the check will reflect that the gratuity was prepaid and/or have a line to allow for "additional gratuity".

Have a great time! You beat us by 2 weeks! LOL! ?

Thanks! So jealous! Can't wait to do a B2B one day!

Once again, can't wait to get back out there! This will be the newest ship we've sailed on and the first time visiting these amazing ports! My wife and I will be cruising with our good friends once again (sailed with us on Allure in 2019). Anyone else on this sailing? ?

Can't wait to get back out there! This will also be our first time back to Coco Cay since 2010! Fingers-crossed they resume normal operations by the end of summer out of Cape Liberty (looks more promising each day)! Just my wife and I on this sailing... first time it will be just the two of us since our honeymoon back in 2004! Anyone else on this sailing? ?

Our first, and only, visit to date was back in June 2010 on Majesty. We had a great time, but I don't remember too much (probably because there was no "wow" factor back then like we had previously experienced at Castaway Cay during our honeymoon). Also, we had to tender back then... a little bit of a pain in the butt. Can't wait (fingers-crossed) to go back for the first time in 11 years this OCT on Oasis for the ultimate "wow" factor! We really enjoyed Labadee, so we expect this to be even better! ?