brillohead

Yeah, I know.... that's why this was a topic of discussion. If you read back through the whole thread you'll see that.

There is always a CAS discount on balconies for Platinum and above... it just doesn't really add up to much at the lower levels.

Just FYI, not every inside room has so little space. The older/smaller ships are more likely to have the bed against the wall, or a random room that was squeezed in somewhere on a newer ship, but MOST inside rooms on Explorer class and larger ships have a walk-space on both sides of the bed.

As someone else said, you will have one hour of dedicated Flowrider time for the entire cruise, and it's shared with everyone else who also has The Key, typically at 8am on one day. Depending on how many people are in your group, it would probably be considerably cheaper to get a multi-device Voom package and then purchase group lessons on the Flowrider.

The dispensers at Sorrento's and Cafe Promenade (especially on smaller ships) and sitting on the bar on the pool deck don't have a dispenser bar, but they still have the "no filling water bottles" rule. The spigot would be directly on the mouth part if you were refilling a narrow-mouth water bottle on a dispenser like this:

At the Freestyle machine, set the cup on the machine and fill that way. No worries about the lip of the cup hitting the spout, which is the concern when filling at other stations.

Because they say it's for carry-on only. If you pack it in your luggage, it will show up on the scans, and your luggage will be diverted to the Security Room and not delivered to your room. When your luggage still hasn't been delivered to your room by the first night, you'll be directed to go look for it at Security, where you'll have to open it up to show you aren't smuggling booze on board. Then you'll have to lug it back to your room on your own... which kind of defeats the point of having it delivered to your room. So instead of having your luggage delivered to your room the first afternoon, you'll be lugging it there yourself late that night, and unpacking when you'd rather be going to a show or going to bed.

That's because you're not properly logging off from the network. Just turning off the wifi or turning off the device doesn't log you off from the network -- you have to actually go to onboardicafe.com/royal/logout.aspx in order completely disconnect and open up that allotted device's space on the network.

I really wish they'd make the CAS discounts applicable in advance. They're pretty useless on board. I either give my free days to someone else that I met on board, or I use them on my last two days so I don't have to log off my phone to connect my computer.

Luggage Valet isn't a benefit of The Key. You're maybe thinking of delivery of hand-carried luggage on embarkation day, which is completely different than Luggage Valet.

It depends on WHEN you purchased The Key. There was a short period of time when, due to "social distancing" protocols, they weren't doing the Chops lunch on embarkation day and instead offered the free room service/specialty dining discount. Shortly afterward, they re-enacted the Chops embarkation lunch and discontinued the room service/specialty discount. So if you purchased during the period of time when the room service/specialty discount was in effect, that's the offer you get when you finally sail. I had it both ways -- I purchased two Keys for two different cruises, both were on sale for like a dollar more than Voom Stream. The cruises were only a month apart, but one was purchased under the free room service rule and the other was when Chops lunch was in effect at the time of the purchase.

Any type of material is allowed -- whatever you choose.

If you want sand that stays sandy all the way out, I'd use the Harbor Beach spot. The view isn't as good, but the sand is consistent underfoot. The "outer" beaches have the rotted seaweed underfoot when you get out past waist deep, so it's slimy underfoot and smells like farts when you walk on it. Water is the same temp everywhere, though.

I've had that happen before, too. It works for me as a solo cruiser. But if dealing with more than one passenger, it's cheaper to buy a multi-device internet package and share it instead of paying for The Key for each person.

Basically all of Michigan plus much of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois are on school-age spring break that week. Prices are crazy then as a result.

You'll see sunsets in one direction and sunrises in the other. Depends on whether the ship is northbound or southbound at the time.

The soda package only includes fountain soda, not cans. So if you want a Coke Zero (from a can) instead of a Diet Coke (from the fountain), they will charge you for the can. The soda package also includes the Coke Freestyle machine, which you need to use the special cup they give you to activate the machine. You can get a regular fountain drink from any bar without the special cup.

I've done inside, outside, Central Park balcony, and oceanview balcony rooms. I've also spent time in all the other suites visiting friends. Personally, I'm just as happy in an inside as I am in any of the others. It really depends on how YOU want to spend your time on the ship. If you spend a lot of time hanging out in your room or on your balcony, then those things are important to you and worth spending the money on. If you are literally only in the room to shower and sleep, then you won't find the value in a larger room and balcony that you won't spend time enjoying.

They were restricting the Top Tier Event during the masking part of COVID, I think it was literally only D+ and P (as in, the actual top tiers). But since the masks have come off (social distancing not as much of a thing), they've reopened it to the other levels.

When I say carry-on, I mean to carry onto the ship. Obviously anything over three ounces can't go into a carry-on for a plane ride, but this isn't a forum about plane rides, it's a forum about cruise ships. If an unknown liquid is in the checked bag GOING ONTO THE SHIP, it's more likely to get flagged as "potential smuggled booze" and involve going to the security room to open the bag and prove that it's not liquor, which messes up your first evening on board and delays being able to unpack your luggage. If the bottle of liquid is in the carry-on bag GOING ONTO THE SHIP, it's simple enough to show it's not booze and get on with the rest of the day.

The "priority" boarding has been done away with since COVID.

If it's a closed loop cruise out of the USA, the passport is perfectly legal and all that is needed. For people who didn't read properly, the passport doesn't expire until AFTER the cruise. It is completely fine to cruise on a valid passport.

I've learned too much about it to ever be able to support one of the "dolphin encounter" excursions. Whether it's "ride a dolphin" or "get in the water and pet a dolphin" it's extremely exploitative and cruel to the dolphins.

If it's a "must have" item, I would pack it. Put it in carry-on to avoid a trip to The Naughty Room.

My comment was regarding the OP's post and the person's post I was quoting..... the quoted person has reading comprehension issues. I've gotten both kinds of cups on different ships.