travelbug4

That's fantastic news! Was your cabin in the new section or the old section? We are booked in the old section which I believe is the area that had issues so curious if those cabins have AC.

Curious if there are any updates on the AC on the Star Pride now? Thanks!

We had a great experience with the emed proctored tests. So easy and I would do it again in a heart beat. We had 5 people but purchased 10 tests (each test is in it's own box so yes two people can use the two pack). A 2-pack sent off to our college student, a 2-pack sent to my mom in a different state and a 6-pack sent to three of us residing in the same house. Was nervous about missing parts of the test so we had two for each person but our tests were perfect and not missing pieces. Was so easy for each of us to simply open the Navica app at checkin and show them the negative test on our phone. We will use the remaining tests for future trips. Proctors came on immediately. My husband will probably take these on work trips to Europe to test to get back to US now that we know how easy they are.

Our 16 year old had his own Navica account. Was super easy for him to just open the app at checkin and show his negative test on his phone.

Just took our second RCCL cruise and our first using The Key program. I debated getting it but am so glad we did. I know many people said it isn't worth it, but for us it was worth every penny. - First, it was just a 3 night cruise for 5 people (2 adults, 2 teenagers and my mom). (3 interior promenade cabins) - 21.99pp, pd - originally it was 29.99, but I saw a price drop and snagged the lower price. - We were going to do the surf and stream for everyone anyway so this was just $1 pp,pd more - 11:30 am boarding! Literally some of the first guests on board. This gained us 2 hours on the ship as we had 1:30 boarding, which with a 3 day cruise is huge. I kept checking up until the day before to see if earlier times opened up and they never did. - Luncheon in the MDR with the Chops Grille abbreviated menu was outstanding! One of the best filets I've ever had. Very relaxing, had a bottle of wine, a nice round top table by the window and no stress of carrying trays and carry-on bags with huge crowds. Just a handful of other Key guests up on Deck 5. - Nice to be able to drop some of our bags just outside the restaurant and have them sent to the cabin. - Day 2 - Fruit bowls arrived in each of our cabins from The Key. Not necessary but a nice touch - Dedicated time for ice skating. My son and husband had the ice to themselves for the first 30 minutes. - Flowrider! This was incredible. Our son tried this and loved it. Basically had a private lesson for an entire hour with 3 staff members who rotated who taught. There was literally one other person using the Flowrider during The Key private hour. This private lesson in itself we felt paid for the They Key for 3 days. At non-Key times, the line was huge! We did not do the Rock Climbing. - Seating for shows! We walked into Studio B for the ice show (which was very crowded) at 8:25 for an 8:30 show. Mentioned we were with The Key and before I could finish she said right this way! They had three rows of seats for us to choose from. Introduced us to the next person who worked there and said they are with The Key program and he sat us down in great seats that are held for The Key guests. Around 8:28 they released the seats to anyone else that wanted them. This was a nice perk as we were running from dinner to get to the show. We did not use this perk in the Royal Theater as it wasn't crowded and we just found some seats. - Disembarkation. Loved the relaxing pace of the Key. Breakfast was available in the MDR on Deck 5 for Key guests from 6:30-8:30 (they checked cards). I guess other guests can eat in the MDR until 8 but on a different deck. We headed there around 8:15, had a leisurely breakfast and then walked off the ship when we were ready around 9am. Overall, we decided for a 3-night cruise the Key is worth it. I can see how it can get very expensive and not worth it on a longer cruise. But for us, it was just perfect.

Just checked in for an upcoming cruise and got a 1:30 check in time. Then saw the Key (we are new to RCCL). Has anyone used The Key on Freedom of the Seas recently? I'm wondering if it will give us an earlier boarding time so we can get to the Chops lunch. Also wondering what times the flowrider and rock wall times are for the Key. And also it says you get to choose departure time. Does anyone know how late that is? Is it right after the breakfast? Thanks for your help. Just weighing our options and learning 🙂 Any other details about it would be great!