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For those of you who have had the pleasure of experiencing the Royal Genie service, what kind of requests did you make from your Genie.  What kind of requests (if any) did you have to pay extra for on top of your cruise fare?  Just trying to get an idea of what to expect from a Genie and what experiences (if any) I would have to expect to receive from them for an extra cost.  I don't mind paying for things, I'm just curious what I would be paying a "price" versus a "gratuity" for.

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Hi there. Usually they contact you weeks prior your cruise. They send letters and forms for you to fill them in and send them back with any special requests(including Cabanas). The service is complimentary as long as you book a Royal suite or higher categories in Oasis class & quantum class ships.  I hope this works for you.

Regards,

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@abnermkd Thanks for your response.  I'm looking at booking an A2 on Allure so I believe that is Star Class.  I'm looking forward to the experience and was just trying to get accurate expectations.  I understand that the genie service is complimentary with Star Class, however would the Cabana also be complimentary if reserved through the Genie or would that be an extra cost?

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2 minutes ago, RestingBirds said:

You mentioned not knowing if it's Star Class.  Just a reminder they revamped the suite classes and cut some rooms from the genie program if I read it right (I could be totally wrong) you might want to double check.

Well that would stink if I booked a room thinking it had Genie and ended up not having genie.  However for my sanity, I just doubled checked the FAQ on the Royal Suite Class website. and saw the following: ( I booked 10330 on Allure so I think I'm good, at least for now)

Royal Suite Class offers three tiers of accommodations, based on the suite category, Star, Sky, and Sea.

Star

  • Royal Loft Suite
  • Owner’s Loft Suite
  • Four Bedroom Family Suite (Harmony of the Seas only)
  • Grand Loft Suite
  • Sky Loft Suite
  • Two Bedroom AquaTheater Suite (Oasis of the Seas, Allure of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, Decks 8, 9, 10)

Sky

  • Crown Loft Suite
  • Owner’s Suite
  • Royal Family Suite
  • Superior Grand Suite
  • Grand Suite
  • One Bedroom AquaTheater Suite (Oasis of the Seas, Allure of the Seas, Harmony of the Seas, Decks 11, 12, 14)

Sea

  • Family Junior Suite
  • Junior Suite
  • Spa Junior Suite

*Staterooms vary by ship class. Stateroom categories and suites are subject to change without notice.

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I think I may have found the article.  I see an image on the below article that looks very similar to the one you posted, however it's slightly different.  Wonder which one is correct?

The image on the below article has all A1 and A2 still included in Star Class.

http://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2017/03/01/royal-caribbean-re-categorize-all-staterooms-fleet-wide

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2 hours ago, clmsnskr said:

And this from @Matt on a comment later on in that blog post.

http://disq.us/p/1god0oy

Maybe @Matt can chime here in and give me some peace of mind.  Because if A2 isn't Star Class, I'm definitely changing my reservation. Specifically is Deck 10 Aqua Theater Suites on Oasis Class ships still Star Class?

Let's be clear. Category A1 & A2 are Star Class.

A3 and A4 are Sky Class.

These changes will go into effect beginning with the new 2018/2019 deployment. For Oasis of the Seas, the effective date is May 6, 2018.

Here is where I got all this info: http://creative.rccl.com/Sales/Royal/General_Info/17055586_Recat_Sales_FAQs.pdf

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3 minutes ago, Matt said:

Let's be clear. Category A1 & A2 are Star Class.

A3 and A4 are Sky Class.

These changes will go into effect beginning with the new 2018/2019 deployment. For Oasis of the Seas, the effective date is May 6, 2018.

Here is where I got all this info: http://creative.rccl.com/Sales/Royal/General_Info/17055586_Recat_Sales_FAQs.pdf

Thanks @Matt.  Also just for clarification, on Oasis Class ships is the following accurate?

A1 (8330, 8730)
A2 (9330, 9730, 10330, 10730)
A3 (11330, 11730)
A4 (12330, 12730)

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Just now, clmsnskr said:

Thanks @Matt.  Also just for clarification, on Oasis Class ships is the following accurate?

A1 (8330, 8730)
A2 (9330, 9730, 10330, 10730)
A3 (11330, 11730)
A4 (12330, 12730)

I don't know offhand the specifics.  Certainly your travel agent can confirm the stateroom category. Also keep in mind the room recategorization occurs on sailings on or after May 6, 2018, so what it is today might differ after that date next year. It depends on your sailing.

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2 minutes ago, Matt said:

I don't know offhand the specifics.  Certainly your travel agent can confirm the stateroom category. Also keep in mind the room recategorization occurs on sailings on or after May 6, 2018, so what it is today might differ after that date next year. It depends on your sailing.

Thanks @Matt  The sailing I've booked what I think is an A2 (Deck 10 Aqua Theater Suite) is for early 2019 on Allure of the Seas.  I will check with RCCL directly on my question since I booked this directly through them.  BTW: I'm not opposed to moving the reservation to a Travel Agency if there is an incentive to do so.

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Just now, clmsnskr said:

BTW: I'm not opposed to moving the reservation to a Travel Agency if there is an incentive to do so.

I always use a TA.  For situations like this, let the TA do all this homework and research for you.  Time saved alone is worth it.  

Here is why you should use a TA: http://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2016/06/15/why-first-time-cruisers-should-use-royal-caribbean-travel-agent

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44 minutes ago, clmsnskr said:

Thanks @Matt.  Also just for clarification, on Oasis Class ships is the following accurate?

A1 (8330, 8730)
A2 (9330, 9730, 10330, 10730)
A3 (11330, 11730)
A4 (12330, 12730)

You have it right.  RCI made some crazy changes to the Royal Class Suite program a couple of weeks ago(When they came out with all of the new cabin categories) where they removed the 2 BR ATS from Star Class but then immediately reversed that decision (who's surprised ???) and put them back in.  So all of the 2 BR ATS are Star Class and the 1 BR suites are Sky class.  BUT during that same time frame they declared that the 2 BR ATS would be withheld from general inventory with a requirement of a minimum number of guests (I think 4 or 5).  So the fact that you snagged one for only 2 people is very lucky.  I managed to get one in Feb 2019 too but most of them are being withheld or 2 people.

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Anyway back to the reason for this post.

For those of you who have had the pleasure of experiencing the Royal Genie service, what kind of requests did you make from your Genie.  What kind of requests (if any) did you have to pay extra for on top of your cruise fare?  Just trying to get an idea of what to expect from a Genie and what experiences (if any) I would have to expect to receive from them for an extra cost.  I don't mind paying for things, I'm just curious what I would be paying a "price" versus a "gratuity" for.

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Wow....we did get off topic, didn't we ??

I feel as though the questionnaire that was sent to us a number of weeks in advance was a complete waste of time.  I could just tell that Reyno had not even looked at it....and I understand why.  Insipid questions that added nothing to our experience and told the Genie nothing.  If they had asked us what drinks we wanted in our suite and what food, if any, we wanted on embarkation, that would have been good enough.  The rest was a waste.

So, having said that, I will say that Reyno did a excellent job of anticipating our needs.  He had already made a full week's worth of specialty restaurant reservations.  Of course, had we wanted anything changed, he would have gladly done so but his schedule looked fine to us, so we went with it. Since we were traveling with others who were also in a Star Class Suite (as well as with a couple who were in an inside cabin !) we were delighted to find out that the Genies coordinated and merged our schedulehe.  Predictably, as the week wore on, our schedules tended to deviate some but it was still nice to have the genies work together.

The only special request that we made of Reyno the whole week was to have him coordinate a party in our suite on the second day.  I had volunteered to host the Cabin Crawl so I wanted some snacks and drinks brought to the room as we were the first stop in the CC.  I estimated 20 people (16 actually showed) so Reyno arranged for 4 bottles of sparkling wine, 3 meat platters from  Jamie's and all of the glasses, plates, napkins etc. that we would need.  It was all promptly delivered prior to the start of the CC and everyone was duly impressed.  Reyno, himself, did not come to the event, but he arranged everything.  Our friends in the SLS had a similar event as they were the last stop on the CC.  They had red and white wine and cheese trays and crackers on their end.

The only thing we had to pay for was the sparkling wine.  I think it was $28/bottle which wasn't bad.

Other than that, it was just reservations and changes to reservations.

I will say that we paid for nothing else.  Absolutely everything was included, including drinks that went over the max. limit.  Now, had we been drinking expensive drinks all week that possibly would have been noted and perhaps changed but I never saw a single charge for anything except for the sparkling wine for the CC.

When we went to Chops, Dan ordered the aged steak AND the lobster and he was not charged any additional fee.

We only went to the thermal spa once but if we had decided to go back, that would have been included.  Reyno said that they would probably charge us but that he would remove any of those charges.  That was one nice thing about the Genie.  He/she has access to your seapass account so if there are any erroneous charges he/she can remove them personally.  For some reason there was a charge (I can't remember the amount) from Silk on our account.  We never went anywhere near Silk. Reyno just removed it from our account.

I don't know what would possible be an extra expense for Star Class.  The only thing we were advised that was NOT included were the pastries at Stabuck's.  All of the coffee products were included but not the pastries.  We went to Johnny Rockets for lunch one day.  When he saw our seapass all he said was, "just keep ordering".  All of the food, shakes, sodas - everything - was covered.

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3 hours ago, DocLC said:

Listening to the podcast now. Some of it actually sounds kind of disappointing. 

For example:

Guest: Can you arrange a "best of the specialty restaurants" tasting in our cabin
Genie: You can work with private dining to make that happen

Thanks kind of a let down.  Why couldn't the genie handle that request for them?

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Also, I saw this on another blog.  It's an older post, but nonetheless this is what it says as a perk of Star Class

"If you desire a private happy hour, in-suite handcrafted cocktail service is yours for the asking"

Can anyone tell me about this and/or if it's still actually a thing?

I didn't want to link directly to another blog here, however I will be happy to share the article privately for anyone that has traveled Star Class recently if they would like to tell me if it's still accurate.

Edited by clmsnskr
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1 hour ago, clmsnskr said:

Also, I saw this on another blog.  It's an older post, but nonetheless this is what it says as a perk of Star Class

"If you desire a private happy hour, in-suite handcrafted cocktail service is yours for the asking"

Can anyone tell me about this and/or if it's still actually a thing?

I don't have any personal experience as I'm cheap and would rather cruise twice as much; thus, I often go steerage class.  However, take a look at this:  

 

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I suppose if someone actually had some sort of clout (sp?) outside of their suite (like if you're Adam Sandler, the president, Mick Jagger, etc) i'd say go for the personal Chef's Table request, but i personally would never ask for that in my suite.  Somewhere i think it crosses an arrogance line that proves nothing except how highly you think of yourself.  But that's just me.

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7 minutes ago, RestingBirds said:

I suppose if someone actually had some sort of clout (sp?) outside of their suite (like if you're Adam Sandler, the president, Mic Jagger, etc) i'd say go for the personal Chef's Table request, but i personally would never ask for that in my suite.  Somewhere i think it crosses an arrogance line that proves nothing except how highly you think of yourself.  But that's just me.

yea, that's a good point.  I'm certainly not arrogant, nor do I have a sense of entitlement, but it would certainly be an awesome experience nonetheless.  I'm, for sure, not going to be their first guest to request that, though :-)  It was just a random idea that popped into my head while discussing Chet's table on a facebook thread.  I had the realization that the balcony dining table for the PFS seats about the same number of people as Chef's Table, then there came the idea.

My other idea was that if you're staying in a Star Class for your onboard wedding, could you have the Genie arrange to have your ceremony conducted at the aqua theater?  That would be kind of neat, as well.

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Sorry, just now seeing this!

We sailed Star Class over New Years on Anthem of the Seas.  We have also stayed in an A1 on Oasis, but prior to the Royal Suite Class.  Great room.  

I remember listening to Len's podcast and being a little concerned that the Star Class experience wasn't quite what I was expecting.  And honestly, it wasn't.  But it was fabulous in it's own way.  We would definitely do it again. 

I'll address your specific questions first and then add in some other experiences.  Someone answered your question about cabanas on Labadee being included.  They're not, but he will handle booking that for you before the rest of the suite guests get a stab at it.  You'll get the one you want.  However, we did have "private" tours with other Star Class guests.  We were offered a bridge tour and a theater tour.  He also booked the escape room for the Star Class guests (not on Allure, but just giving you ideas).  

We asked about dinner on our balcony one night.  He suggested that we not do that because all of the food is delivered at once and the later courses wouldn't be as warm as they would like.  This is why I think Chef's Table on the balcony was told no.  I'm sure if you pressed hard enough, you might get your way, but it's not the experience you want them to have. 

Weddings are conducted through a separate department of RC.  This is something you would want to work on WAAAAAY before you ever have contact with your Genie, so I wouldn't imagine they would be of any use.  

Ok, now let's talk about a typical day in the life of a Star Class guest. 

Your Genie will deliver a hand written schedule for you the night before with your Cruise Compass.  On this he will have activities that he has "scheduled" for you.  These are activities that he will meet you at to either a) get you to the front of the line or b) put you in the best seats in the house.  This could also include escorting you off the boat to meet up with an excursion or private tours.  Don't want to do something? Not a problem, just tell him.  Want to add something?  Same thing.  

Our Genie usually touched base with us at breakfast.  Not really sure how he knew when we were eating lol.  He would go over his schedule and if we had anything else we wanted to do or any concerns. Then we would see him briefly during various parts of the day.  For example, Anthem has bumper cars.  We would meet him in front of the arcade and he would walk us to the front of a two hour line and put us on the next set.  We would show up 10 minutes prior to a show at night and there was Derek, smiling holding the best seats for us.  We ate in the MDR one night and he went in earlier in the evening and put up a reserved sign by a window for us (wish we did this more often).  On San Juan, we arrived at port at 3 PM.  You could imagine the amount of people who were ready to get off the boat by that point.  He walked us to the front of the line.  

In terms of specialty restaurants, we were basically told "Be Our Guest."  At Izumi, which is normally ordered a la carte, we were told to just go for it.  Whatever we wanted.  Chef's Table was included.  

We also received a variety of gifts from our Genie throughout the week.  This was a cool bonus. 

I wouldn't worry too much about people saying "my Genie wouldn't do this."  There are generally reasons why they can't do something or suggest against it.  In the end it all works out and is an incredible experience.  

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  • 9 months later...

I'm way late to the game on this post but was trying to clarify. I'm booking a European cruise in 2019 on Oasis and wanted to make sure the 2BR ATS is still in Star Class, because.....

 

We had our first Genie experience last summer on Anthem and it was amazing!  I wasn't sure I'd enjoy it... sounded a little too stuffy for my "fly by the seat of my pants" vaca attitude, but I could not have been more wrong. Our Genie was Joyce and she was a powerhouse!  I'm very much ADHD and while meds help, after having this awesome assistant, I wanted to hire her permanently to organize my entire life! 

Embarkation was not completely smooth.  I don't think people at the port were familiar enough with the program, so there was some confusion. We ended up being put in the Star Class lounge area with another family, and it took several port employees to figure out how to handle our luggage.  I sent a message to Joyce as soon as we arrived at the port and she did send someone to let us know she was working with another family on disembarking and would be with us asap.  She also messaged me the same. Once someone figured out our luggage - someone tried to put it with the other suite luggage and had to tell them I thought ours was different, etc - it was whisked away and arrived before we boarded. 

When Joyce arrived, she quickly escorted us onto the ship and gave us a grand tour, delivering us to our cabin (at this point I think it was around noon and we arrived at port around 11:30).  There were goodies waiting for us and she made suggestions as to where we could eat, etc.  We bought Starbucks sometime early that first day, and Joyce asked what we each had and if that's what we enjoy most, then asked for a delivery time and sent our favorite coffee drinks to the cabin every morning. If we didn't want them, needed to change the order or the time we told her! And if we forgot, we left her a note - or sent her a message - or called her.  She seemed to be all over the ship all at once, but rarely appeared the least bit rushed or stressed (embarkation days were the exception and that was minimal - and expected when you're arranging for your guests leaving AND arriving all within a couple of hours).

We attended more shows that we normally would have, just knowing we had good seats and didn't have to worry about making reservations or standing in line.  Sounds silly, but that took the minimal vaca stress out of the picture!  Shore excursions were less stressful as well. I've always worried we would miss our guide (first cruise years ago, booked a private excursion and could not find our leader, so I'm paranoid), but we would meet Joyce, sometimes in a lounge for breakfast, and she would hand-deliver us to our guide. 

I love specialty restaurants, so knowing those were included was awesome.  We ended up eating in one twice, and the second time (same server), were asked if we had any favorite dishes from the other restaurants or anything we'd not tried yet that was appealing and then brought those to our table from the other venues! I'm not sure how much influence the Genie had on that, but it was awesome! 

We ended up doing the theater tour and the bridge tour, though we slept through the galley tour.  The theater tour was especially fun, given that my daughter is ms creativity!  I asked one of the guides (cast member) if there was an official cast list. He indicated there was not, but had us wait and returned with a hand-written list that one of the cast members had created. He'd copied it for their use and gave the original to us.  Very sweet!  Oh and our Chef's Table was attended by the lead in the main production! I'm not a big "Oooo look a famous person!" type, but this situation was fun because he openly discussed what it's like to perform and live on a cruise ship for so many months.  He and his girlfriend made dinner a thousand times more fun!

Again, I can't say enough about the Genie program.... It's unique and makes cruising a different experience. We are going to Cuba in November and I'm very sad we don't have access to the program on that ship (although my bank account is quite thankful).

 

 

 

 

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Yes, all 2 BR ATS are Star Class.  There was a short-lived SNAFU right around the time that they were re-categorizing the cabin classes and they temporarily mis-categorized the 2 BR ATS as Sky rather than Star class but they quickly fixed their error and correctly categorized them back as Star Class.

So, you shall have your Genie !  I couldn't agree with you more.  The Genies are wonderful and make the entire Star Class experience wonderful.  For what it's worth, we have had issues with checkin on all of our Star Class cruises (Harmony/FLL) so they're STILL trying to get it all squared away.  They always want to take our luggage before we check in with the SC people inside the terminal.  We will NOT make that mistake again this time !

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18 minutes ago, walkietalkiegg said:

I'm way late to the game on this post but was trying to clarify. I'm booking a European cruise in 2019 on Oasis and wanted to make sure the 2BR ATS is still in Star Class, because.....

I just booked a week and a half ago for March 2019 and was told that the 2BDR ATS are Star class.  Thanks for sharing your experience.  Can't wait to try it out next year!  But I am afraid of what is to follow....

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