kdeason912

I can't speak to boarding at PC but I was on Harmony a few weeks ago with the key and the crew who were affected by it were very well aware of it. We had no problems except for a full reserved seating section one night. 

With any type of priority boarding you can arrive whenever you want. (Acrually anyone can arrive whenever, they just use the times in an attempt to somewhat control the flow of boarsing) We cruised 2 weeks ago and arrived at Port Everglades about 10 am and were able to board as soon as they began the process. 

21 minutes ago, LiamsMommy2008 said:

You have to schedule your departure? I thought one if the key benefits was breakfast and departure at your leisure? Am I missing something?

Just got off of Harmony this morning and we could get off whenever we wanted. It must depend on the ship...

Can't remember what I've posted to date but went to the ice show on night 5 of our cruise and had reserved seats in the first 3 rows on the left side of the rink. We got there about 25 minutes early and there were very few people in that section. Got off Harmony this AM. We skipped breakfast as we were ready to hit the road. There was no line to get off the boat so the girl directing us off told us it would take longer if she sent us to the key area for escorted departure. We were off the boat and through customs in less than 20 minutes. The area for key luggage was in the very front of the luggage room just next to the star class luggage. Overall for us the experience was worth the money due to the early embarkation and reserved seating. I don't know that I would see much value on some of the smaller boats in the fleet. Hope I've provided some valuable info for those on the fence. Happy sailing!! 

Can't remember what I've posted to date but went to the ice show on night 5 of our cruise and had reserved seats in the first 3 rows on the left side of the rink. We got there about 25 minutes early and there were very few people in that section. Getting off of Harmony in the AM so I'll post about how that goes. So far for us it has been worth it but reading other reviews I'm not sure I would trust it as the differences throughout the fleet seem very drastic! 

9 hours ago, tinkr2 said:

Will you post a picture of your key letter and the activities schedule? That seems to be where the most discrepancy is between the ships and the weeks.

So HOS day 2, sea day, went to The Fine Line show in the Aqua Theatre tonight. Arrived about 15 minutes early. They were checking for reservations tonight and had reserved seating, center section top 4 or 5 rows, HOWEVER... arriving 15 minutes early the section was already full, sort of. There were people holding seats for other guests that had not yet arrived. I was slightly frustrated and did say something to the girl manning the rope but got little response from her. There were still decent seats available in other areas so no big loss just frustrating. Moral of this post is to arrive earlier than 15 minutes before the Aqua Theatre shows. I will post activity schedule at some point. 

Used the key for Grease in the Royal Theatre n Harmony last night and seating was the top 5 rows of the bottom level of the theatre. Great seats, same area was for Suites, Diamond Plus, and Pinnacle guests. Our brochure in room says reservations are required and we had them but no one scanned our cards, they only looked for our key symbol. We arrived about 15 minutes before the show started and there were plenty of seats. They removed the barriers about 5 minutes before the show. So far, for the 2 of us, the cost of the key has been totally worth what we paid. Oh, and obviously the internet is working well. I'm in my interior room sending this on a sea day and have had zero problems with connections. 

1 hour ago, alexpfsu said:

Are you able to "cut" the line if you choose to for Flowrider and such? I know others have posted that during normal operations that you are given priority on all activities. Or does the Key now only help for 1 Flowrider/Zipline (ect) during the only posted Key time? 

 

This was one of the main reasons for booking the Key.  Otherwise with the new Terminal A in Miami its not really worth it for my family in upgrading the Key.  Getting on and off the ship now is extremely fast for everyone with the way it was built (from what I have read online.)  Buying internet and lunch at chops will be a lot cheaper than getting the Key.

 I haven't been to any activities yet so I can't report on cutting lines, etc. The way the in room letter reads they arent doing it that way this week. There are flowrider hours everyday for key holders. 

1 minute ago, rockmom said:

Odd that there wasn't a place to check carry on luggage, I thought checking it at the theater or similar venue, had been the one thing that was very consistent in everyone's reports.  

Yea, we specifically asked and were told our rooms would be ready at 12... others aren't ready until 130... we also saw some people with larger bags in chops which I'm sure they would have preferred to get rid of so IDK why thisbwasnt available today. We didn't mind bc we don't carry much on anyway but I would have been frustrated had we carried on larger bags banking on the check bags option...

Boarded Harmony this am with the key. We arrived at Port Everglades about 1015 and literally walked straight through security and check in. Waited about 10 minutes to board because they weren't boarding anyone when we arrived. Back to back cruisers were scanned through first, of course, followed by suite guests then key guests. We were easily in the first 50 people on board. There was a designated waiting area for key holders. Once on board we got our wrist bands, wifi access codes, and waited around for lunch at Chops. We arrived at 1135 and were seated immediately, place was never full while we were there. No place to check carry on luggage on this cruise but rooms were ready at 12. Daily times for most activities, with 2 times on flowrider some days. Ice skating only has one time for the whole week. Just from the boarding process alone they key purchase has totally been worth it to this point! 

There is a tram that runs the length of the cruise ship area if you take the water taxi there you can take the tram back. If you are traveling with someone with limited mobility or who just can't walk long distances if you talk to the crew once you get off the boat they will assist you with smaller golf cart type vehicles. We have used these before when we've traveled with my elderly mother in law. 

I've been on cruises that have swapped Nassau for Labadee a few times and it's always been a medical issue with a passenger as Nassau is closer than Labadee if something occurs after leaving Florida. They both have perks if you've never been to either. Labadee is beautiful and they have my all time favorite specialty drink - the Labadoozie!!! Enjoy!

So I am booked on Harmony in April of this year and the price in my cruise planner is still 23.99 which is where it has been for months now. I have cruised with Royal several times now and I have never noticed the prices in the cruise planner changing as much as they have this go round. The drink package price I feel like changes every day... its gone from a low of $52/person/day to a high of $59/person/day and everywhere in between. Is this normal and I've just never noticed or is this just Royal testing the waters on prices? Does this have something to do with how many of a particular item have already been purchased for the particular cruise? My cruise is in the dead of Spring Break so I'm wondering if they're not selling many "Keys" because of larger families traveling together with the kiddos? Just a thought. Also thanks to everyone who has provided feedback on their cruise experiences with the key. It's been helpful in deciding whether to keep ours or not. 

I booked the key on Harmony for April 2019 cruise in December, I think it was at a discounted rate, can't remember for sure at this point. My cruise planner has ALWAYS stated that reservations are required for some venues on board even with the key, and that some venues would not be included with the key, such as the comedy club.  If you've never been on one of the larger boats you have to make reservations for these shows anyway, however there is no "reserved" seating. You get there, get in line, they scan your card to be sure you have reservations for that time, then you race everyone else to find a decent seat with a good view. The perk of the key is the RESERVED seating, therefore you can arrive later and still be guaranteed a good seat. Also, maybe you can reserve for multiple shows then choose at the last minute if you actually want to go...maybe not, we shall find out. Also all of the shows are not offered all week on the larger boats as they do change out entertainment throughout the cruise so you still have to have some planning if you want to see everything or have specific shows you don't wanna miss. Just remember, the big boats (Oasis/Harmony class) don't operate the same as the smaller boats for obvious reasons. Also, with this being a new program I'm sure lots of changes will be made within the first year or so of the roll out to improve upon the guest experience. If you don't wanna be a guinea pig then don't sign up for awhile. Last thing, last cruise I took on Oasis the entertainment could not be reserved until about 60 days out, maybe even later than that so if you're outside of that time frame and don't see entertainment yet I wouldn't freak out. Just log in daily to ensure you know as soon as the stuff is posted. With the key or without this is the best way to ensure you're not late on picking times, etc. I cruise April 7 on Harmony and will post my impressions after my cruise.

Happy Sailing!!

So I just purchased this for Harmony in April 2019. The major change I see on our cruise planner is guaranteed room availability with early boarding now instead of dropping carry-on's with staff.  I agree this is pricey for a larger family and I don't think I would do it with kids because of the price, however as others have mentioned the internet alone is a large part of the cost. Also, getting seats for shows on Oasis class ships is a huge ordeal and consumes a lot of time with waiting in line which means many times leaving dinner early or rushing through meals to get in line. For me the removal of this hassle alone is huge and worth a little extra money. I considered upgrading to suite class but juniors don't get a lot of the benefits of other suites and no grande suites are currently available for this cruise. I don't have high roller money for anything over that (gotta save that for the casino LOL) and we don't have high status with crown and anchor. We are very loyal to Royal so while some may be upset about me "buying my perks" isn't that really what everyone has done? Not trying to rude bc I plan to buy my way right on up the ladder too! I do know they greatly limit the number of "keys" available on each cruising. Another blog I read about the key said they were limited to 100 during the pilot on Oasis so I really can't see that large of an effect on other's benefits.  Also someone mentioned the times for deck activities like flow rider and on the pilot cruise it was an our or so before normal hours begin, a few days throughout the cruise. I think one day was from 12 to 130 for example. May have been a port day, I'm not sure. Anyway, hope this clears some questions and alleviates some concerns. I'll post again after we cruise with opinion of my experience. Happy Cruising!!!

How is the internet service? I am sailing on July 8th and will have to take an exam while in port on July 10th. I can deal with little slow but I'm scared to death I will lose my connection and get locked out of my exam. Any information you can provide about the internet will be greatly appreciated!!! Thanks!!

Can anyone tell me if they've had problems with losing an internet connection completely mid application? Also, is speed better when cruise is in port? I have to take an exam on an upcoming cruise and I'm a little anxious. Thanks!!

Hello all!

I will be cruising on the Carnival Magic on July 8 and just discovered I will have to take an exam for an online class while on the cruise. I am considering purchasing the premium internet package. Can anyone attest to the quality on board with this package? Does it matter if I use the internet on port days or at sea? Thanks so much in advance! I am freaking out right now!

Katie

I just booked a cruise on Oasis and I'm not yet able to reserve onboard entertainment. Do you remember how early you were able to make reservations?