Jump to content

New Program called "The Key"


ValerieJo
 Share

Recommended Posts

1 hour ago, tinkr2 said:

Well I just caught up on this thread, it really needs to be chopped off and a new one started. I was only about 7 pages behind and that took forever.

 

It shouldn’t be chopped off.  How is that going to help?  It’s convenient to have all of the comments in one place and not to have to search through different threads.  Only catch up as much as you want.  

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

45 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

We had 2 carry on size bags and 2 roller-boards 25 inch I believe. No one asked what they weighed or checked the weight. Just tagged them and away we went. 

Agreed. There is 2 of us and they took 5 bags from us. One a full sized roller weighing over 25lbs, a medium roller, backpack and 2 cross body bags. Incredibly easy.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

OUR REVIEW OF THE KEY ON THE SYMPHONY:

 

We just got off the Symphony last week. The boat was amazing. The trip was amazing, but like everyone else, we were very curious about the Key.  It was just two of us. We are in our 40's. We decided to try the Key program. 

 

For those wanting a simple version..... I do not think I would do the KEY again. I do not feel it was worth the price and we bought it for $19.99/day. 

 

Overall, I found the program did not live up to what I hoped it would.  I feel like we paid for a service and RCL lacked in following through with the experience. 

 

What it has to offer and what we got:

Early embarkation & Lunch at Chops - We were some of the first people on the ship. However, they did not check to see if we had the KEY, we just walked on with the other passengers.

 

Lunch at Chops was of course wonderful. It was nice not to fight the crowds in the buffet and was a great way to start out our vacation. We did not carry extra bags with us on board so I did not feel the bag "drop off" was applicable to us. 

 

Reserved seating at shows- Reservations ARE required at shows. Fortunately I did not cancel the show reservations I had made pre-trip. There were no signs for the KEY holders anywhere. We did not know where to sit and when we asked crew, they all seemed confused and inconvenienced. 

 

We got the WOW bands and were told we would only need those to get into the shows. Come to find out, they required our seapass cards to verify we were key holders and we had to rush back to our room before a show to get our cards to get into the show. Annoying. I would like RCL to have some way of showing the KEY on the wow bands. 

 

There were no benefits with debarkation or embarkation at ports.  So no benefit for having the KEY there. 

 

Debarkation day:

It was nice to get a breakfast on departure day. However, if you are wanting to leave quickly, this is not a good benefit. Breakfast took just as long as a dinner and we were in a rush to get off the boat. 

 

We were escorted off the boat by a crew member, allowing us to bypass the long lines. This was great. We were walked directly to our luggage. 

 

Private Times on Flowrider, Rock Wall, Zip lining 

We did use the benefit of the private KEY times on the Rock wall. We were the only ones there during the KEY time. However, they limit the wall you can use. It was the "harder" side of the two walls. The times were either first thing in the morning or right before dinner. Which was not convenient. 

 

We did not use the flowrider. This was not something we were looking at using. We did use the zipline, but the line was never so long that it made it necessary to use the KEY time. 

 

I did notice that the flowrider KEY times was 8:00 - 9:00 am or after 6:00 pm

 

Internet

This is the only place I feel the KEY was beneficial. I knew I would be getting the internet anyway, so felt the KEY was worth trying. However, my husband was not going to do the internet, so for him the VOOM was not a benefit. 

 

Was the cost worth it? Not to me. I feel like I paid for a service that did not produce the experience we were thinking it would. I understand this is a new program, but staff were still very confused and the signage was extremely minimal. 

 

I feel the KEY would be for those people who are looking more for uninterrupted Flowrider time. Getting the internet anyway. Lunch on the first day and quick debarkation. 

 

I will add that there were limited number of KEY holders. I can confirm that I do not think there were over 100 sold. 

 

Edited by aandersen33
Addition
  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 2/12/2019 at 10:42 PM, blueridgemama said:

 

I would take issue with the last poster who said "most people  have decided that it isn't worth it" There are several reviews from people that have actually used the program who have been very pleased with the benefits and perks that it offers. Since it is a new program there have been some changes made to the original perks. You might want to go to the other thread on this subject and read some of the actual reviews (not the opinions of those that have not actually used the program) There is a review from someone who was on the Symphony of the Seas. After you read the description of the benefits  only you can decide if it is worth it.

What thread is that? 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just received an email from Royal offering the Key at 20% off. When I open up cruise planner it still has a price of $31.99. Just wondering if they raised the price again and the discounted price of 20% is the $31.99 or they just have not taken the 20% off the $31.99.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 minutes ago, aespo4 said:

Just received an email from Royal offering the Key at 20% off. When I open up cruise planner it still has a price of $31.99. Just wondering if they raised the price again and the discounted price of 20% is the $31.99 or they just have not taken the 20% off the $31.99.  

Yep my son (travelling with us next month) just got the 20% off email (we all already purchased it) but checking to see if there was a deal I checked and it still shows 19.99 (Indy) - that said the deluxe beverage package that had been $49 forever is now $52.  So I think they are always just hoping the find the right marketing phrase for someone getting the email.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

28 minutes ago, aespo4 said:

Just wondering if they raised the price again and the discounted price of 20% is the $31.99 or they just have not taken the 20% off the $31.99.  

The latter, ignore all %off marketing messages, virtually meaningless. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

11 hours ago, tinkr2 said:

Well I guess you're really going to be angered by the new price of 31.99 with the same perks.

 

My hubby gets up at 6 am for the gym. By 8 in the morning he will be more than ready to flow ride.:classic_rolleyes:

Well I just caught up on this thread, it really needs to be chopped off and a new one started. I was only about 7 pages behind and that took forever.

Nope. I bought at $19 USD. So idiots who want to pay $31.99 per day still can. Do you want to pay $31.99 tinkr2? 

Same goes for the drinks package fluxuations. If you also want to pay $71 USD per day you can. The more brighter lot will wait and buy at $43.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

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. 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So, had the priority tender access this morning on Grand Cayman. I already posted the instruction sheet we were left last night;  instructions were to report to guest services whenever you were ready to depart.  We had an independent excursion booked they called tender tickets one through six at 10 AM.  Of course we did not get tender tickets but went to guest services shortly after the 10:00 announcement.  There were several key members there and the folks at guest services seemed a bit confused about the process.  In very short order however they had taken us around to an elevator that had been locked for staff,. We were taken directly to deck one past all the people waiting on the stairs between decks three and one, and taken directly to the front of the line and placed on the tender. Very smooth.  So far I have been very happy with my purchase of the key at $19.99 

  • Like 5
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

20 hours ago, cre8tiv said:

This thread is falling into an abyss.

 

I agree. I wish they would create a new thread for those that have actually used the Key and had a review and thoughts about how it worked for them, pro or con. It's getting difficult to weed through all the negativity and speculation.

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 feb 2019 oasis key Flowrider hours 3-4pm. Port day in Sint Maarten. 

 

Started with 4 key people. Ended with 5. All familiar faces. At 4 pm the boogie board line was about 7 people not counting us. The stand up at 4 pm was about 5 people, not counting us. 

 

Pretty good old day for Key today.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

15 feb 2019 oasis of the seas Flowrider hours 8-9am. At sea day

 

again early hours for key Flowrider with the 8 am start. General hours start at 9am. On the other side it looks like a private class with 6 people. Today there are a total of 4 key people which is all we had for the entire hour. I was a little grumpy getting up early for the 8 am start, but it is a beautiful day and key Flowrider hour was much fun. At 9 am 2 nonKey joined the boogie board side and two key left for the stand up side. So again 4 people for the first 15 minutes or so after 9 am. Then a fifth showed up and we were satisfied and left around 9:30 (not because of the number of people in line). For nonKey people 9 am would be a great time to boogie board. As we left the line remained a very short three people( two in line and one riding)

 

value on the key key is hard to quantify. I certainly had a great time, but I can’t say that the key is needed to have a great time with short waits.

 

An unanticipated side benefit of the key is the ability to switch between boogie board and stand up. I’m taking a go at standup and my husband is sticking to boogie board. During the key hour we can stick together and not have to split up. We really like that!

 

On the rockwall front, I have spent a lot of time on my balcony, which has a view of the rockwall. Sometimes there is a long line. Sometimes there is no line. Key times are deserted. So if you are flexible with your time, which you have to be to make use of the key hours, you can climb with no wait. Random hours get busy though. Value is murky here. 

 

(I hope I’m not boring you all too much. This is information I loved hearing before my cruise, so I hope it is useful to someone else)

 

 

 

 

  • Like 7
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 minutes ago, Orsino said:

(I hope I’m not boring you all too much. This is information I loved hearing before my cruise, so I hope it is useful to someone else)

 

 

 

 

 

Appreciating the real-life feedback from you and others! Thanks!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Orsino said:

15 feb 2019 oasis of the seas Flowrider hours 8-9am. At sea day

 

again early hours for key Flowrider with the 8 am start. General hours start at 9am. On the other side it looks like a private class with 6 people. Today there are a total of 4 key people which is all we had for the entire hour. I was a little grumpy getting up early for the 8 am start, but it is a beautiful day and key Flowrider hour was much fun. At 9 am 2 nonKey joined the boogie board side and two key left for the stand up side. So again 4 people for the first 15 minutes or so after 9 am. Then a fifth showed up and we were satisfied and left around 9:30 (not because of the number of people in line). For nonKey people 9 am would be a great time to boogie board. As we left the line remained a very short three people( two in line and one riding)

 

value on the key key is hard to quantify. I certainly had a great time, but I can’t say that the key is needed to have a great time with short waits.

 

An unanticipated side benefit of the key is the ability to switch between boogie board and stand up. I’m taking a go at standup and my husband is sticking to boogie board. During the key hour we can stick together and not have to split up. We really like that!

 

On the rockwall front, I have spent a lot of time on my balcony, which has a view of the rockwall. Sometimes there is a long line. Sometimes there is no line. Key times are deserted. So if you are flexible with your time, which you have to be to make use of the key hours, you can climb with no wait. Random hours get busy though. Value is murky here. 

 

(I hope I’m not boring you all too much. This is information I loved hearing before my cruise, so I hope it is useful to someone else)

 

 

 

 

Very informative Appreciate the feedback! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share

  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...