tonyfsu21

If you don’t already gamble in the casino, you could start there. The casino rates would assist you in taking your vacation to the next level. Spending so much time in the casino “might” nix your spa plans exc in favor of giving them your money but the payout could be decent in terms of discounts. We normally cruise 3-4 times per year and since I started playing in the casino the Suites have been more within reach even on the Oasis Class ships. Good luck.

Agree with Matt on the pack and play downstairs.
I would think they could and should be able to do that.

A pack n play upstairs would be a tight fit.  It would either end up partially (if not totally) blocking access to the bathroom or stairs.  There is way more space downstairs with far less impact on getting around.

There are "benefits" but you have to spend a lot more $. Even 100.00 a throw will not do it if you don't have the eye of the host for tracking. I have noticed that the dealers are not consistent with tracking. I have found that $500 per hand or roll or whatever seems to get the kind of attention And benifits I believe you are looking for. I spend a hefty sum of money because I enjoy the thrill of gambling and every once in a blue moon I make some money. The perks tend to offset this a bit but if your looking for land based casino perks then you will 100% be disappointed. 

Wow.  High praise indeed !  Thanks, Tony.

Hopefully Raj will be back on Harmony when you sail. He was an amazing concierge. 

@WAAAYTOOO your awesome! Your reply should end with a "mic drop" because you answer so precisely that there is nothing else that needs to be said! I really appreciate your quick response. 

PS: don't be fooled by the standard issue email the week prior to your sailing advising you to show up to the port at a designated time slot. Just disregard it and start heading to the Port to arrive @ 11. RCs attempt at crowd control....

The NCL casino program sounds like a better program. I can't even imagine the fact that they disclose "tiers" after dealing with the casino Royale Top Secret/Classified program for so many years! At least you know where you stand on NCL.

The NCL casino program sounds like a better program. I can't even imagine the fact that they disclose "tiers" after dealing with the casino Royale Top Secret/Classified program for so many years! At least you know where you stand on NCL.

I absolutely agree. NCL's Casinos at Sea is far more competitive with attractive offers to casino players than Club Royale.

Our last cruise was on Harmony as Star Class suite guests.  Part of the Star Class program includes unlimited specialty dining.  It was during this cruise that I learned that you CAN get too much of a good thing.  No matter how hard I tried I could not manage to eat 3 meals a day.  I can honestly say that we completely underutilized the free specialty restaurant perk.  I wanted DESPERATELY to eat and eat and eat but I just couldn't.
Now I will admit that part of the problem was that we didn't eat b'fast until at least 9:00 (having closed down the casino most nights) so lunch was almost always missed leaving dinner as the only time to try the specialty restaurant.  I think the single exception was a lunch at Johnny Rockets one sea day.  We only had the beef on weck at the Park Cafe once during the whole cruise, which is unheard of for us !
....and there is almost always at least 1 night that we want what they are serving in the MDR - usually that is lamb shank night since that is Dan's VERY favorite onboard meal....so that's one night that we will usually either go to the MDR or, in the case of our last cruise, have the meal brought to our suite.
So for us, I think a big specialty dining package would not be cost effective.  Are the upgrade options (aged steak and lobster) included ?  I imagine not.  They are in the Star Class program.

UGH.  Yep. Worst fear, confirmed.  Not happy with this.  Will have to see how it goes.  
I have always found the casino rates to be the best deal, too but was always able to top it off with the certificates.  That's gone, I guess.
In that case, I agree.  The certificate is basically useless unless you want to cruise on one of their "free" cruises (which has only happened once for us).
It certainly is becoming less and less attractive, that's for sure.

It's not what it seems. $7000 (if that is actually the figure) is not a true $7000. It's the running total of what is cycled through. That includes all the ups and downs while playing the machine. 

Tony, I would not worry about the fares on any of the cruises that you have booked.  They are "safe".  The only thing that could gum that up would be if you tried to upgrade or change the reservations.  If they remain as they are, you are good.
What COULD happen though is, if you decide not to gamble, [according to  other blog posts] you might lose your status, meaning that you might not be able to get free drinks and waive the 5% convenience fee on cash advances.  ...and it might affect your ability to get a casino rate discount on any future cruises that you book.  BUT there is a chance [according to other blog posts] that we are losing those big discounts and ability to combine certificates, etc anyway.  So, as with all, things Club Royale, I just don't know !
I wouldn't worry about anything that you already have booked though.  I have the same (cruises already booked) and I will not be able to make any changes to them either not only b/c of the craziness with CR but also b/c of the non-refundable deposit bullsh*t.  The RCI glitter is definitely flaking off....

No, "speak" was not a pseudonym for gratuity. Just explain your situation and that they're not booked in suite and you'd like them to join you in lieu of the children. For two, it shouldn't be a problem. All 8 would be a different story. 

Tony, you definitely will not have to pay for room service from the MDR.  That much I know for sure.  As long as the food is delivered to your suite you can get as much as you want from the MDR during hours that the MDR is operating.
As for access to the CK/Suites Lounge, I'm not really sure what to suggest to you.  There are 2 Concierges - one in the D Club and 1 on the Suites Lounge but from my experience, there are numerous people at or near the doors of both the CK and the SL so "seeing" the Concierge might not really help you.  It can't hurt to try.  I'm sure that the correct answer is that only suites guests are allowed in the Suites Lounge but I also know that having them go to dinner with you in the CK should be easy to arrange.  The lounge is definitely more problematic than the restaurant.  I would just ask and see what happens but then you're alerting them to the fact that your parents are NOT suites guests so if the answer is not the one you want, then they will know for sure that your parents aren't eligible to be there.
I was in a similar situation last Feb. on Harmony and, in the end, we ended up just not inviting our non-suite guest friends to the lounge b/c we didn't want to make them feel bad that they weren't allowed in and we didn't want to put the Concierge in an uncomfortable position to have to deny them entrance.
One thing I will say....we were in a Star Class suite and our Genie made sure that our [non-suite] friends were always included in any activities that the Genie arranged for us.  They were presented with a bill for specialty dining (we were not) but they were never excluded and they always had reserved seats with us when we went to the theater or the ice show.  I was very grateful to him (our Genie)  for that.
 

I can't answer your question about the suites but as far as I know the $7.95 is per order, but I don't think that applies to suite guests. 

Like John, I can't really answer the question, either. However, you can get a "key only" card for your parents so that don't need to use the kids' cards. Also, if you speak to the lounge attendant, it's likely he or she will work with you rather than needing your parents to use the kids' cards.

To be honest, I don't even know if Royal Caribbean still has a link to information about the Player's Club.  I couldn't find it...but that doesn't mean there isn't one.
You do not have to join the Club anymore.  It is my understanding that you are automatically enrolled in the program when you insert your Seapass card into a slot machine or have a dealer swipe your card at a table. HOWEVER, I recommend that if you want to be "noticed" and seriously considered for benefits (if you aren't a high roller...as I am not) your best course of action is to make sure that you make yourself known to 1) the casino host/hostess 2) the casino manager and 3) the pit bosses, in that order.  Tell the casino host, the very first time that you enter the casino, that you want to be considered for casino rates on bookings and the other benefits that come with being a member of Club Royale.  IMO there is no substitute for being known by the management.  You will be "known" one of 2 ways (or perhaps, both) - either throw a lot of money around (make large wagers, consistently) or spend a lot of time in the casino with more modest wagering.  I fall into category #2 as I do not make big wagers. 
Undoubtedly, the casino management will tell you that is a function of accumulating points.  As Marc said above, doing that with slots is a whole lot easier than it is with table wagering.  The slot machines tally your wagers very methodically (1 point for every $5 wagered, I believe).  Tracking play at the tables is much more difficult as it is a combination of swiping your Seapass card and depending upon the dealers and pit bosses to track your wagering and win/loss patterns.  ...and in the end, no matter what they tell you, I think it's really a matter of perception - whether management believes you have played a sufficient amount of time in the casino or not.  Obviously, if you have sufficient points then you have sufficient points but there are times, I know for CERTAIN, when neither Dan nor I had sufficient points but we still retained our status.  It's really a fickle program without much structure or metrics.  They will, no doubt, recite the rules to you, but I'm not sure that they actually follow them.  Just my opinion.

I know exactly what you're saying, Marc.  ...but I will say that, as with all things Royal Caribbean, including Club Royale, it depends on who you talk to.  I was also told that the envelope for advanced booking a CR discount was 18 months (no more than 18 months in advance).  In March 2017 I booked a cruise on Harmony for Feb. 2019 - almost 2 full years ahead and they started out telling me I could not book a casino rate that far in advance, but in the end, they did it anyway.  So the rules are never hard and fast with them, it seems.
Maybe they are getting stricter with these kinds of restrictions.  I know that, for the past couple of years, some people were having trouble applying their earned CR certificates to previously booked casino rate bookings but I was always able to get mine applied - even multiple certificates to the same already discounted cruise...until I couldn't anymore.  So they clamped down on that one, maybe they are clamping down on the 18 month advance thing, too.  So far, I have still been able to combine the casino rate and the value of the certificates but only for new bookings, now.
I'm not going to panic until I am denied combining the cruise certificate with a casino rate...or until I find that the 42 - 50% discount I have previously been getting on suites is reduced significantly.  At that point I will have to make some decisions.  I have 6 cruises [suites] booked - all with casino rates, all with refundable deposits and all with certificates of some kind added on.  This may be the end of my gravy train or it may not be.  I will find out, eventually !

I have 6 on the books (all either at significant casino discounts or "free" as a result of certificates) so I will keep doing what I'm doing until those have been exhausted BUT if it turns out that they are no longer giving the [admittedly very generous] casino rate discounts then that will be all for me.
A number of years ago I cruised with NCL for the first time and I received a "free" cruise from them - after just ONE cruise !  Up until now the NCL casino program has not had the same lucrative benefits that Club Royale has so I stuck with Royal but if those benefits are now gone, I will certainly be looking at NCL and other cruise lines again.
I completely agree with Marc and Tony. It's like we're finding some kind of hidden treasure whenever they give you a discount or a certificate.  NEVER have I seen a PROMOTIONAL program so steeped in secrecy, ambiguity and anonymity.  I never seem to know what the rules are from sailing-to-sailing.  Maybe these latest tales are misinformation.  I certainly hope that is the case.  Only time will tell, I guess.
I will never stay out of the casino.  That's the primary reason I'm on the ship....but it may well be the casino on another cruise line or shore casino.

If you have never seen the Everglades take an Uber to Everglades Holiday Park and go on an airboat ride. It's pretty entertaining if you have never done it. You could also catch the water taxi at the Hilton Marina (close to port) and take it to the Margaritaville Hotel stop. Walk across the street & cut through the hotel to the Hollywood Beach Boardwalk (lots to see & do). If you want to stay local to Fort Lauderdale beaches just take an Uber to Fort Lauderdale beach (las olas) and enjoy the beach. There's lots of dining choices & the beach is perfection. 

https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2017/03/06/barefoot-beach-cabanas-royal-caribbeans-labadee

See the casino host when the casino opens on the first night. Introduce yourself and ask them to rate your play. If it's just slot machines your sea pass card will keep track of your play and qualify you. It's always a good idea to introduce yourself to host though.