All the excitement of your cruise beginning means you'll want to get onboard as fast as possible, meaning you don't want paperwork to slow you down.

Royal Caribbean has digitized the embarkation process to a point that it's about as smooth as can be from getting curb to gangway, but I've found there's a better way to have your SetSail Pass handy.

The Royal Caribbean app is where you go to conduct online check-in, and it can display the SetSail Pass too, but it can be clunky to get to quickly and in many cases, the app fails to pull up the pass on embarkation day.

After I complained about being stuck in the terminal without my SetSail Pass because the app failed, a number of readers told me I should add it to my Apple Wallet (there's a Google Wallet for Android devices too), and it's been a game changer.

While the Royal Caribbean will probably work, there are several reasons why adding it to Apple or Google Wallet can be beneficial.

Convenience at your fingertips

Having your SetSail Pass available to show quickly speeds up the embarkation process significantly.

You'll have to show it at least four times throughout the check-in process:

• To enter the terminal
• To verify which check-in line you should enter
• To actually check-in
• To scan in and board the ship

Plus, until your cabins are ready and you can collect your SeaPass cards, you'll only have your SetSail Pass to use to purchase drinks onboard.

It's super simple to double tap your phone's side button and pull it up without having to even scan your face.

A backup in case the app fails

For some strange reason, the Royal Caribbean can occasionally fail on embarkation day.

It works just fine in the days and months leading up to your cruise, but I've experienced a number of times where it refuses to pull up the SetSail Pass on embarkation day because of a phantom error.

When this happens, you have to go to the check-in desk and have a physical SetSail Pass printed out instead.  It stops you in your tracks and delays embarkation.  While this only takes a few minutes, I'm too excited to wait around because I want to board.

Most recently this happened to my friend that was cruising with me on Enchantment of the Seas, and he had to go back to get one printed out.  Meanwhile, I had added my SetSail Pass to my Apple Wallet and had no issues.

Faster to pull up when you need to show it

Even if the Royal Caribbean app works flawlessly, it's clunky to access the pass when you don't have it stored in your wallet.

You have to unlock your phone, get to the Royal Caribbean app, and then go to the check-in section to access it.

Considering how many times you might have to show the pass, especially if you're going to be ordering a lot of drinks when you get onboard, it's so much easier and faster to have it in your wallet.

You might be able to see your GTY cabin

There's a little hack with the Apple Wallet that might help anyone that booked a guarantee cabin.

When you let Royal Caribbean pick your room, there's a delay until your room is assigned. It could take days, weeks, or even months for them to assign a cabin to you.

However, you might be able to figure out which room you're assigned earlier with a clever hack that leverages the Apple Wallet.

Cruisers call it "the bar code trick", and here's how it works:

Once you reach the point you can check-in for your cruise, if you have an Apple device, add your set sail pass to your Apple Wallet. 

Below the barcode on the SetSail Pass are a set of numbers. The numbers after the dash represent the cabin you have been assigned.

If you see "GTY" instead of numbers, you truly haven't been assigned yet.  Another sign you haven't had your room assigned yet is if you don't see a muster station on your SetSail Pass, then you almost certainly don't have an assignment yet.

How to add your SetSail Pass to your Apple Wallet

If you're convinced now to use the Apple Wallet, here's how to set it up.

After you complete check-in for your cruise, tap the Check-in button from the bottom row navigation.

Below your travel info, arrival time, and health status is the option to View SetSail Pass.

When you pull it up, click the Add to Apple Wallet button that should be below the barcode.

Tap Add in the top-right corner of the pass preview to add it to your Apple Wallet.

That's it! Now you can double-click the side or home button on your lock screen and you should see the Royal Caribbean pass there.

Every cruise line has an app, but Royal Caribbean's is by far the best one in the industry right now.

Whenever you're comparing apps, it's a subjective exercise. But I think Royal Caribbean's is so much better because of how many features they've rolled into it.

While the app has existed in various forms since 2017, a renewed focus and push to make the app really useful began in 2020 and has continued to today.

It's not a perfect app, but I think some of the features added over the last two years have really stood out from other lines.  And that's given the app separation from the pack, given how other cruise line apps lack so many of this functionality.

Royal Caribbean’s app is free to download for Apple and Android users - and it’s quickly become a must-have for cruising. 

From a streamlined onboarding process to improving the onboard cruise experience, here’s why Royal Caribbean’s app has become the gold standard of cruise technology.

1. So easy to plan everything before the cruise begins

One of the key features that sets Royal Caribbean’s app apart is its functionality prior to even stepping onboard your cruise ship. 

Before your vacation begins, you can use the Royal Caribbean app to plan excursions, purchase internet, reserve specialty dining and buy drink packages. This means you don't need to go online to the cruise planner, instead utilizing the app for quick purchases. This allows you to plan more conveniently from your phone, such as when you’re on the go and away from your computer.

In comparison, I find Norwegian Cruise Line’s app worthless before you sail onboard. Even with a recent refresh, many report constant glitches and freezing with attempting to pre-cruise plan. 

Additionally, Carnival Cruise Line’s app only redirects you from the app to the browser online for pre-boarding planning, making the app feel less functional.

2. A digital safety drill is inside the app

Embarkation day has greatly improved because of the eMuster with Royal Caribbean's app. 

Perhaps one of the least parts of cruising, all cruise passengers are required to complete a safety briefing under law before the ship can set sail. Gone are the days of crowding onto the promenade deck in the scorching heat for the mandatory muster drill. This painful safety drill never felt like the best way to start your vacation. 

Royal Caribbean revolutionized the way muster drills are conducted by incorporating the drill into its app. to Now, guests watch the pre-cruise safety video, hear the emergency horn sound and accept safety guidelines on Royal Caribbean’s app. 

Guests can complete the safety briefing at their convenience now, as long as all requirements are completed by a certain time on embarkation day (usually in the late afternoon). You have to visit your muster station in person once onboard, but you have a timeframe to complete this step.

3. It can get you into your cabin

Some of Royal Caribbean’s newest cruise ships allow guests to unlock their staterooms with a digital key through the app. For example, Royal Caribbean’s Odyssey of the Seas and Icon of the Seas, allow guests to use the app to unlock their stateroom. Although this functionality has been available in the hotel industry for a while, Royal Caribbean is one of the first cruise lines to integrate this technology. 

The digital key setup is straightforward and only requires three steps before you can start using the app for your stateroom key. This means you don’t need to fumble around a beach bag looking for your SeaPass card.

Also, some new ships allow guests to use the Royal Caribbean app in their stateroom. You can also use the Royal Caribbean app to control the stateroom TV, including streaming content from your phone directly to the TV. In addition, you can control the room temperature, lights and curtains in some staterooms.

4. Going "curb to bar" quickly

Boarding day can be hectic regardless of which cruise line you’re sailing with. Luckily, Royal Caribbean’s app provides easy access to check-in, upload security photos, complete the health questionnaire, scan your passport photo and generate a mobile boarding pass. You can also select your arrival times for embarkation.

Once you’re at the terminal for cruising, you can continue accessing your boarding pass within the app or download the pass to your phone’s wallet. 

Unlike Carnival Cruise Line, which still requires guests to print their boarding passes for embarkation day, Royal Caribbean’s app is much more convenient in this way.

5. Free chatting onboard

Another major perk of Royal Caribbean’s app is being able to chat with other guests during your cruise - for free! Starting in January 2023, Royal Caribbean announced that all guests could use the chat feature on its app as a complimentary perk moving forward. 

This allows for easy communication onboard the ship, especially when you're at sea and away from cell service. After all, internet on a cruise ship is still very expensive. Guests can chat with their travel group without needing to purchase internet access. On select ships, guests can also chat with Guest Services through the app, avoiding long lines at the desk

Other cruise lines, including both Carnival Cruise Line and Norwegian Cruise Line, charge each guest to access onboard chat while cruising. Carnival Cruise Line charges $5 per person to use their HUB app's chat feature. 

6. Future cruise planning

Not only does Royal Caribbean’s app provide an enhanced onboard experience, but you can also book future vacations! One of the newer features of Royal Caribbean’s app is the ability to plan a future cruise directly on your phone. With a new search functionality, prospective cruisers can easily look for their next cruise vacation. 

This feature makes it easy to plan your next cruise directly from your phone, avoiding the need to navigate a browser. You can even purchase gift cards in the app for your future cruise and have your new reservation booked with just a few clicks.

If you're sailing on a Royal Caribbean cruise, you can also take advantage of NextCruise deals without needing to visit the office on the ship. There's no better way to get over the post-cruise blues than booking your next sailing before disembarking!

7. See your photos without the crowd

Remember when cruise lines would print out every photo taken and display them in a gallery each evening? While some older vessels still use traditional photo galleries, Royal Caribbean’s app integrates digital photo capabilities for your sailing. The app provides extremely easy access to your professional photos taken during your cruise. 

While onboard, you will provide the photographer with your stateroom number after photos are taken. This will link the digital photos directly to your profile, which is accessible in your Royal Caribbean app. You can view all of the photos you’ve taken, along with downloading and purchasing photos on the app. Now, you don’t need to waste time combing through hundreds of photos of strangers to find your pictures!

8. Manage your loyalty status

Royal Caribbean’s loyalty program - the Crown and Anchor Society - is also accessible in the cruise line’s app for all loyalty members. Considering Royal Caribbean has one of the best rewards program for loyal cruisers, it's important to keep track of how many points you have and the benefits you're entitled to. 

First, cruisers can now enroll in the Crown and Anchor Society though Royal Caribbean’s app. This feature makes enrollment quick and convenient for newer cruisers. Directly on your phone, you can also view your current loyalty tier and associated benefits for the Crown and Anchor Society. The app also displays your total cruise points and number of cruise nights for quick access, so you can stay up-to-date on your status.

9. Book restaurants with a few clicks

One of the biggest highlights of cruising with Royal Caribbean is having so many dining options to choose from, including both complimentary and specialty restaurants. However, the larger the cruise ship, the more important it is to plan your dining reservations in advance. With more guests vying for reservations at the restaurants onboard, waiting until the last minute for making specialty dining reservations isn’t a good strategy.

The Royal Caribbean app allows you to browse onboard restaurants, reserve specialty dining, and schedule My Time Dining reservations. This can be especially helpful for those wanting to avoid a long line for My Time Dining in the main dining room each night.

Those who purchase a dining package, such as the Ultimate Dining Package, can also reserve all restaurants in Royal Caribbean's app as well. This latest update has been a highly-anticipated change, as many cruisers scrambled to make reservations on embarkation day.

10. Check out everything happening onboard

Before Royal Caribbean launched its app, the cruise line handed out daily schedules, known as the Cruise Compass. With the inception of the app, Royal Caribbean has essentially ditched the physical Cruise Compass (unless guests request one specifically) for its digital platform. The app allows you to browse daily activities, headliner showtimes, themed parties and more.

With Royal Caribbean’s app, guests are empowered to manage their cruise experiences and daily onboard activities. Cruisers can bookmark certain activities to create a custom, personalized schedule for each day. The app also sends 15-minute reminders for your bookmarked events, ensuring you won’t miss a thing.

11. See the menus to decide where you want to eat

While it may seem like a small detail, I love that I can see the menu in the Main Dining Room for every day of the cruise in advance.

Instead of having to wait to see the menu until you show up, you can access each menu for the duration of your sailing. 

The advantage here is being able to plan out when you want to skip the main dining room and book specialty restaurants instead. For instance, I plan to book our specialty dining on the evenings when the main dining room menus are less appealing. But, no one wants to miss lobster night in the dining room!

Although Carnival Cruise Line has the same feature for their app, Norwegian Cruise Line does does not provide nightly menus for their main dining room in their app. Instead, the evening menu is only available for viewing outside the restaurant, posted in the afternoon on the same day. This isn’t a huge issue, but it is a nuisance!

12. Book flights

Another feature that differentiates Royal Caribbean’s app from competitors is the ability to book flights for your upcoming sailings. Royal Caribbean’s app has a new feature to book flights directly in their app. The app also includes options for exploring transportation and lodging, though these redirect users to an online browser.

Air2Sea allows you to book flights for your cruise through Royal Caribbean. This provides additional assistance if issues arise with your travel, which can be helpful if you encounter unexpected travel challenges tying to get to and from the cruise port. 

Cruises from one port in 2024 will require you to use the Royal Caribbean app to check-in.

Royal Caribbean announced it will require app check-in only for cruises departing from Vancouver, British Columbia.

Traditionally, guests had the option to do check-in via the website, app, or even wait until they arrived at the cruise terminal.

With this new change, anyone booked on an Alaska cruise from Vancouver can check-in only with the Royal Caribbean app up to 45 days before departure or until 9 a.m. local time on the sailing date.

If a guest cannot check in via the app, they have the alternative option to check in once at the terminal.

The Royal Caribbean app has some functionalities for check-in that are not available on the website, including:

• Passport scanning to capture the details of your passport. You’ll still need to present your passport at the terminal, but the data entry is handled for you in the app.
• The ability to take or upload a photo of yourself, which is a security requirement before boarding.
• Reminders to complete a few quick health questions in the app before your cruise.

The news was conveyed to travel agents in a weekly email newsletter.

There was no explanation provided, other than stating, "When your clients check in on the app they spend less time in the terminal and more time on vacation."

At this time, no other cruise ports require the guest to use the Royal Caribbean app only for check-in.

The Royal Caribbean app is available in the Google Play and App Store as a free download.

Higher app prominence

Royal Caribbean's app has become more and more important to the guest experience.

Development of the app over the last few years has accelerated, as its role was first elevated due to a need to offer more contactless options as the cruise industry emerged from the industry shutdown of 2020-2021.

Since then, Royal Caribbean has seen its app as a way to improve the guest experience. Specifically, the app features are meant to expedite processes and simplify things.

Core functionality includes being able to browse ship activities, conduct the muster drill, and a guest-to-guest chat feature.

Royal Caribbean has quietly rolled out an express boarding option in Miami, but it requires the user to complete all the steps of check-in via the app, including scanning the passport.

Read more: The extra step you should take before your cruise for the fastest way on a ship

In 2020, the app was required for sailings from Singapore, but the app has never been required in other ports.

How to check-in with the Royal Caribbean app

Up to 45 days before your cruise begins is when you can start checking in for your cruise. 

Similar to checking in for a flight, the app asks for important travel information that is required in order to sail. By doing the check-in before the cruise, it saves time at the cruise terminal doing exactly the same thing.

To begin the check-in process, you just need to click the purple globe icon at the bottom of the app.

For each guest, there are three sections to complete:

1. Travel Info
2. Arrival Time
3. Health & Safety

Starting with Travel Info, you can use the drop-down arrow under "Scan your passport" to select the desired document type.

To scan the passport, the app will start the camera on your device. Aim the camera at the information page of the passport. Line up the bar on the screen with the bottom two lines of information of the passport. This is called the “Machine Readable Passport Zone” (MRZ).

You have the option to take a selfie photo with the app. You could skip it, but you'll then need to take the photo at the cruise terminal. Alternatively, you can return later in the app to upload a photo as well.

There is other required information, including your country of residence and where you were born.

You can also enter your Crown & Anchor Society loyalty number on this screen.

Following that, you will need to enter your home address, emergency contact information, and add a credit card for onboard expenses.

Section two allows you pick from an arrival time. This is when you can select a time to arrive to the cruise terminal on embarkation day.

The final section is to be completed within 24 hours of embarkation, and has a health questionnaire to fill out.

That's it! You'll have a SetSail pass at this point that you can use to check-in when it's time to go to the cruise terminal.

A new update to Royal Caribbean's app could save you time waiting in line on your cruise ship.

Souvenir photos have long been a cornerstone of the cruise ship experience, where passengers pose in front of backdrops with the ship's photographer to possibly purchase a print or digital download later.

Royal Caribbean's app now has a photos option on at least one ship that could make reviewing these photos much easier.

RoyalCaribbeanBlog reader and forum moderator Lovetocruise2002 spotted the new icon while sailing on Wonder of the Seas.

It's not clear which ships support this new feature in the app. It's not uncommon for some ships to support certain app features.

When you click the icon, photos you've taken that have been tagged by facial recognition appear in the app.

Guests can favorite the photo by clicking the heart icon, which makes it easier to spot the best photos later for ordering.

In testing on Wonder, Lovetocruise2002 reported guests would still need to go to the photo area if you had purchased a photo package.

Providing copies in the app potentially saves time for guests, as they no longer need to go to the photo station to review photos.

Not only is there only one area on the ship to go to review photos, but the photo area becomes inundated with other guests on the final day who all want to see how their photos came out.

Royal Caribbean has taken steps to speed up this process over the years, including going to digital copies instead of prints, utilizing facial recognition to group photos quicker, and adding more photo kiosks.

The app could potentially reduce demand for kiosks.

Cruise fans seem to love the new approach. LandstromCruise wrote on the Royal Caribbean Blog message boards, "This will be so much easier than running to the crowded photo area to try and view them.  This will make my wife happy! "

Jax also liked it, "This makes me very happy. I suggested improving this process on my post cruise survey last time."

asquared17 also likes how much more convenient this new option is, "This takes out a lot of the guess work when it comes to finding out which ones we will keep!"

Is a photo package worth it?

You could buy individual photos on your cruise, or buy a photo package that includes unlimited prints or digital downloads. But is this a good investment?

Given that a single 8x10 print will cost about $20, a package sounds like a more affordable way to get more for your dollar.

The price of a photo package will vary from ship to ship, but prices for an upcoming Independence of the Seas cruise are:

• 5 photos: $79.99
• 10 photos: $127.99
• 20 photos: $174.99
• 50 photos: $209.99

The photo package will include any photo that you, or anyone else from your cabin, are in the photo. Meaning, as long as someone from your cabin is in the photo, it could be included in your photo package.  If you have multiple cabins booked, you'd need another photo package for people in those cabins (unless someone from your cabin happens to be in their photo).

Just like Royal Caribbean drink packages, if you take the time to get enough photos for your photo package, it could be a great investment.

There are photo stations set up around the ship each evening, along with photographers on the dock when you disembark the ship.

In order to get enough photos for the package to make financial sense, you'll need to coordinate your plans so that you have time to stop for at least a few photos each evening. 

The evening photographers are the main draw to souvenir photos, and they're only around in the evening right around dinner time. Lines can sometimes be quite long for photos, especially on formal night.

While you could certainly take your own photos, many guests enjoy the fun backdrops you can only find at the photo stations. Moreover, the photographers have above average cameras, professional lighting, and do a good job of positioning everyone to produce great looking results.

One issue with the photo package is if you're traveling with a large group. While a photo package for a family staying in the same cabin makes sense, photo packages for groups spread across multiple rooms can make things quite pricey. So either your friends and family also buy a photo package, or only you come home with the printed memories.

If you want to get a photo package, always pre-purchase before the cruise to save money.  There's almost always a discount offered online, and it makes a difference.

You'll also want to plan your day around getting photos taken, so you can get the best value out of the cost. This sounds easy while you're still at home, but there's so much happening on a cruise, you'd be surprised how difficult it can be to muster the motivation to get everyone dressed and ready for photos every day.

It looks like Royal Caribbean is about to drop a fee it had been charging guests.

Royal Caribbean's app has a chat feature that currently costs $1.99 per guest, per day to use it.

While at a question and answer session aboard Wonder of the Seas on Thursday, Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley told travel agents in attendance the line will remove the cost to use the chat feature.

According to travel agents in attendance, Mr. Bayley said the change will go into effect beginning January 1, 2023.

Following up on a promise

This isn't the first time Mr. Bayley talked about removing the fee for the chat feature.

At a similar event held on Odyssey of the Seas in 2021, Mr. Bayley said the cruise line would change the chat feature to free.

 "I remember that we had a lot of arguments internally within the company about a dollar ninety nine."

"I'm tempted to say we'll drop it, but nobody seems to be reacting against it. So we'll we'll drop it. Yeah. I think that will be good."

It now appears that promise is coming to fruition. 

Why a free chat feature makes a difference

By making the chat feature free, this opens up the function to many more passengers.

Since most guests do not purchase an internet package, that limits communication options for passengers while onboard a ship.

Moreover, having a free chat feature allows kids to use the chat feature without their parents having to spend anything extra.

How Royal Caribbean's chat feature works

The chat in Royal Caribbean's app works very similar to other texting apps you may have used in other apps.

Royal Caribbean's chat offers one-to-one guest chat, along with group chats.

Once onboard the ship and logged onto Royal Caribbean's Wi-Fi  network (no internet package required to use the app), other guests will show up as offline or online but are only online if they have the app opened and to the “chat” window.

If your travel agent linked your reservation before sailing with a friend or family the will automatically show up in your list of contacts. You also have the option of adding other guests.

Royal Caribbean's app is available on the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store.

In addition to uploading a photo of your Covid-19 vaccine, Royal Caribbean has added the optional ability to upload a photo of your booster card.

A third vaccine dose, or booster as it is commonly referred to, is not required by Royal Caribbean except in certain European countries, so the cruise line has added a new field to submit proof of a booster in those scenarios.

The new booster proof field appears to be available for most, if not all, sailings. 

Providing a vaccination record is a required field in the pre-cruise check-in guests can complete in the Royal Caribbean app, with the booster field marked as optional.

Thanks to RoyalCaribbeanBlog reader smokeybandit for noticing the new functionality has been added.

Royal Caribbean's app is available on the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store.

The advantage of uploading vaccine proof before the cruise

Whether boosters are required or not, uploading proof of Covid vaccination can expedite the check-in process in the cruise terminal.

Just as taking a selfie photo means one less thing to do in the terminal, a photo of the vaccine card allows Royal Caribbean to verify a passenger's vaccination status.

It's acceptable not to upload a photo of your vaccine card in advance, but you will have to wait for the port agent to take a photo while in the terminal.

Guests will still need to bring their vaccine card with them, but taking the photo at home will allow the embarkation process to move just a little bit faster since the terminal staff will not have to take time to take photos of everyone's card.

Will Royal Caribbean require booster shots?

As of right now, Royal Caribbean has no plans to require a booster shot for most sailings, including cruises from the United States.

Ever since boosters became available, Royal Caribbean has been steadfast in labeling them as optional and recommended, but not required, for cruise ship passengers.

In all the health protocols released this year, Royal Caribbean, "strongly recommends" guests get boosted before their cruise. In fact, they have been warning future protocols may require boosters as far back as February 2022.

Boosters are now part of the mandatory vaccination program for crew members. Royal Caribbean began a booster campaign for its crew several months ago.

Crew members have the option to get their booster in their home countries prior to rejoining the ship. Or they will be given the opportunity onboard.

Royal Caribbean has updated its app so kids that are fully vaccinated can upload photos of their vaccination card.

Up until now, the app did not give parents the option of uploading a photo of their child's vaccine card in the app because there was legacy logic that did not ask for children's vaccine cards due to the Covid-19 vaccine being only available for kids 12 and up.

In the months since the vaccine has been approved for kids as young as 5, the app did not open up the option for kids vaccine cards to be uploaded, which meant an extra step of verification in the cruise terminal on embarkation day.

Now, the Royal Caribbean app allows the option for kids under the age of 12 to upload a photo of their vaccine card.

Thanks to RoyalCaribbeanBlog reader smokeybandit for noticing the 1.31.2 update added the function in Royal Caribbean's app.

Royal Caribbean's app is available on the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store.

Why you should submit a photo of your vaccine cards

By submitting your vaccine card via the app, you can speed up the check-in process.

Just like taking a selfie, it's necessary to take a photo of the vaccine card so that Royal Caribbean can verify a passenger's vaccination status. Those that do not upload a photo via the app, will have to wait for the port agent to take a photo.

Guests will still need to bring their vaccine card with them, but taking the photo at home will allow the embarkation process to move just a little bit faster since the terminal staff will not have to take time to take photos of everyone's card.

How to upload your vaccine card photo

The vaccine card photo upload is part of the four-step check-in process in Royal Caribbean's app.

You can upload a photo when you first complete the online check-in process, or go back later to add a photo.

The third step is to upload a photo of your vaccine card, along with entering the vaccine manufacturer and date of last dose.

After uploading a photo, the app will put it into a waiting status as it gets manually verified.

Don't worry that it remains in the "waiting" phase for a little bit. Eventually the card will either be accepted or you will be asked to submit it again.

The Royal Caribbean app is an integral part of a cruise experience. Most passengers onboard will find themselves using the app multiple times a day to reserve shows, see what dining venues are open, check their account balance, and much more.

The Royal Caribbean app is free to download and is available on both Android and iOS devices. To download the app, simply head to the App Store or Google Play store. Once you have the app downloaded and opened, you will be prompted to sign in with your Royal Caribbean account. You do not have to have an internet package to use the Royal Caribbean app.

Knowing the ins and outs of the app’s features can make your cruise vacation a lot smoother. Let's jump in and take a look at the features on the Royal Caribbean app.

Calendar and Planner

When you open the app, you will be brought to the main page which is home to your daily planner, calendar, and helpful information for your cruise. This page is the main hub for the app and is where you can see the daily schedule of activities onboard.

To view the schedule of activities and events, swipe up on the words “Daily Planner”. Here, you can scroll through each day to view everything happening onboard. You can also select the “filter” button to filter by category, such as entertainment, fitness, and activities.

If you see an activity that looks interesting, you can press “Add to Calendar” to add it to your own personal calendar within the app. This can be a great way to keep those activities that interest you organized, and you will also receive a notification on your phone thirty minutes prior to a scheduled event.

Another thing you can do in the Daily Planner is reserve activities, shore excursions, and entertainment. Our recommendation is to open the Daily Planner shortly after embarking the ship and look for any activities or entertainment that require a reservation.

Popular activities like the North Star and RipCord by iFLY offer both complementary and paid options, but the complimentary reservations usually fill up very quickly. Shows can also fill up quickly, so it is a good idea to make reservations early to help ensure you can see and do everything you want on the ship.

Royal Caribbean usually adds activities to the Daily Planner in the days leading up to your sailing, so it may appear blank if your sailing date is further away.

Also located on the main page of the app are buttons that bring you to pages where you can access check in, safety, health, dining, and account information. Here is a brief overview of each of those pages:

Safety

The safety page is very important, as this is where you will complete the eMuster drill prior to sailaway. Royal Caribbean’s new eMuster is a three step process in which you watch a safety video, listen to the emergency horn, and visit your muster station once onboard the ship.

Our recommendation is to complete the eMuster as soon as possible once onboard. You may even choose to complete the first two steps before arriving at the terminal so that all you have to do once onboard is visit your muster station.

Check out our full article on the new eMuster drill for a more in-depth look at the process.

Check-in

The check in page is where you can complete the check in process prior to embarkation.

On this tab, you will input your documentation and contact information, as well as select an arrival time at the terminal for embarkation day.

Before you check in on the app, be sure to have your passport and vaccination card on hand.

Account

The account page is where you check your account balance throughout the cruise. It can be a good idea to check this page periodically to ensure you are aware of how much you are spending onboard and that there are no mistakes.

If you notice any unexpected or incorrect charges, you can get them resolved at Guest Services.

Dining

Feeling hungry? The dining page is the most convenient way to learn about which dining options are available onboard.

You can see which restaurants and venues are open, make dining reservations, and view restaurant menus. 

Digital key and stateroom controls

Select Royal Caribbean ships offer a digital key option, where you can choose to open your stateroom door using your app in addition to your SeaPass card.

In addition, some staterooms may offer stateroom controls, where you can control the temperature, lighting, curtains, and television through your app.

Virtual Reality Games

Depending on the ship, there may be other pages available to you in the app.

For example, on Quantum class ships, you can use the Two70 button to participate in Expedition Two70: An Augmented Reality Feature.

On Oasis class ships, you can click on the games button, head to the Boardwalk neighborhood, and point your phone’s camera at game posters near Playmakers to launch various games on the app.

Deck Maps

Another useful feature on the app, especially on the first day of your cruise, is the ability to view the ship’s deck maps. You can access this page by clicking on the small ship icon near the top of the screen.

The deck maps page offers detailed, deck by deck plans of your particular ship. We recommend browsing through the deck maps prior to your cruise to familiarize yourself with the ship’s layout and offerings. Whether you need to meet at a restaurant for dinner, find the Escape Room in time for your reservation, or you simply get lost, the deck maps can point you in the right direction.

Also located on the deck maps page are buttons for activities, dining, entertainment, shops, shore excursions, spa, fitness, and services. Each of these selections will bring up a list of what is offered onboard in each category, along with where on the ship a particular place is located. If you click on the Windjammer, for example, you can read a description of the venue and click the “Find on Deck” feature to see exactly where the Windjammer is located on your ship.

Profile Page

The avatar icon near the top of the screen brings you to your individualized page where you can access information on your profile, stateroom, check in, reservation, dining, internet, and recent charge activity. You can also access your SetSail Pass from this page, as well as switch between sailings on the app if you have multiple cruises booked.

Chat Feature

In the top right corner of the app, you will see a message icon. This is how you access the app’s chat feature. 

The chat feature allows you to chat with other guests onboard without having to purchase an internet package. This can be a good option for large groups who need a way to contact each other throughout the day. 

Chat is totally free to use and you don't need to buy an internet package to use it!

Do I need to use the app?

Some passengers may not own a smartphone or are hoping to shut their phone off for the duration of the cruise. While the app is not required, it offers a much more convenient way to access your cruise information, upload and view documents, and reserve activities.

If you’re not using the app, you can make reservations in person, print your SetSail Pass, and browse the paper Cruise Compass to view daily activities, but this will often be more of a hassle than using the Royal Caribbean app.

Those who are looking to stay disconnected on vacation may want to consider using the app but not purchasing an internet package. By doing so, you won’t be distracted by your phone, but will still be able to utilize the app’s features.

The Royal Caribbean app is getting updates all the time, and some cruisers have noticed a change to the option to upload a photo of your Covid-19 vaccine card.

In September 2021, Royal Caribbean added a new way for passengers to upload a photo of their vaccine card directly into the app to speed up the check-in process in the cruise terminal.

The ability to upload a photo is not yet possible for every ship, but it is being offered on more ships once available.

When the feature was added in September, the app would immediately move your status to green to indicate you are done, but now cruise fans are noticing it changes to a gray hourglass status instead to indicate your card is being validated.

RoyalCaribbeanBlog reader David Beers reached out to Royal Caribbean to get an idea of what this change means exactly, especially as it relates to checking in for a cruise.

Jheanell Pagon from Royal Caribbean's Executive Office indicated the vaccination submission status has been updated so that the cruise line can manually check the validity of the card being uploaded.

"After reviewing your correspondence with our Port Operations team, they advised they recently deployed a new feature in the Guest Check-in App to include a Vaccination Submission Status. So now, the status We are validating your card is the normal new status you’ll see once you enter your vaccine record during Online Check-in."

"Once submitted, it then takes us 24 to 48 hours to approve since we are manually checking the validity of each card."

Guests will still need to bring their vaccine card with them, but taking the photo at home will allow the embarkation process to move just a little bit faster since the terminal staff will not have to take time to take photos of everyone's card.

Royal Caribbean's app is available on the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store.

In an effort to make the check-in process easier, Royal Caribbean has added a new feature in its app to scan a copy of a passenger's Covid-19 vaccination card.

Ever since Royal Caribbean restarted cruises, vaccinated guests have had to get their vaccine cards photographed by the terminal staff. 

With this new feature in the app, guests could instead take a photo of their card just like they take a selfie photo to speed up the embarkation process.

RoyalCaribbeanBlog reader twangster spotted the feature for a Freedom of the Seas cruise on October 8, but it is not appearing for all sailings.

When enabled, guests can take a photo of the front and back of the vaccine card, as well as select which vaccine manufacturer they have.

Guests will still need to bring their vaccine card with them, but taking the photo at home will allow the embarkation process to move just a little bit faster since the terminal staff will not have to take time to take photos of everyone's card.

Royal Caribbean has worked steadily to speed up the check-in process in its app by allowing guests to do as much as they can at home to save time at the terminal.

With new features and capabilities coming to Royal Caribbean's app as a result of ensuring health and safety are the top priority. This includes a variety of new changes:

• Enforced check-in times at the cruise terminal
• Muster 2.0 enhanced safety drill
• Digital Key and stateroom controls
• Wellness check and health questionnaires 

Royal Caribbean's app is available on the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store.