rhinomike

Thank you. I will look online and see which dining rooms are midship. 

I know usually there is a dining room for dinner that is a little more casual than the other. 

Does anyone know which is more causal on the Dawn and Sky?  Thank you. 

1 hour ago, rockmom said:

Voyager class.  No reservations, the times will show on the Cruise Compass that is handed out daily.  For the ice show, they might assign you a certain time, that's how it was on Explorer this past summer.  Certain sections of the ship were assigned designated times.  For comedy, you just show up.  This is why I was saying that for a long cruise on Explorer, I'm not sure I'd see the value in the Key.  

 

Ahhhh. Got it now. Thank you so much. You have been such a big help. I really appreciate it. 

What class ship is Explorer of the Seas?  Will I need to make reservations for the shows with the Key Program. I’m a little confused. Lol. 

1 minute ago, rockmom said:

Correct--only those who have purchased the Key can get all the perks.  This is where you have to decide if it's worth it--add up how much wifi and a lunch at chops would be for all of you first.  And then consider your time as far as waiting in line for shows versus knowing you'll have seats held until show time.  It may not 'pencil out' for you, especially if you're not on a ship that has a ton of shows, flowriders and so on.  I have it for Allure, but won't book for Freedom, based on me doing the math and considering how I feel about time in line for each of those cruises, as well as who I'm cruising with.  It's not a one size fits all decision.  

Great advice. Thank you. We are on Explorer of the Seas for two weeks in July. So I just bit the bullet and spent $1400 for the five of us to have the key package.  Thank you for the help and advice. 

15 minutes ago, Blondiemomm said:

Just you and wife seeing you have a separate cabin..its everyone over 6 in the SAME stateroom

But then my college age kds wouldnt have the same perks. Right?  They couldn’t board early with us or sit in the shows with us, etc.....   correct?

I will need to book fr both cabins and all five of us. Total is about $1400. 

22 minutes ago, ZandZ said:

Its everyone in the cabin i believe... However, if you are looking to enjoy the perks together, you would have to buy for everyone, wouldn't you?

On the website it gives me the option to book for each person in the cabin. So it goes by person not cabin. So I would have to buy three key packages for one cabins and two key packages for the other cabin. Correct?

11 minutes ago, 3bzmom said:

If it's available for your sailing, it will appear in your cruise planner under "internet and more."

K. Got it. I found it. Now I see lots of back and forth going on above. I have two cabins. Me and my wife in one and my three college age kids in a connecting room. Do I have to buy it for all of us or just me and my wife?   It will be $1400 for all five of us. Is it worth it?  We are first time RC cruisers. Platinum on Carnival and NCL.  

Without reading through 35+ pages. Can someone help me figure out how to purchase the key package. We are on Explorer of the Sea boarding July 7th in Southampton, England.  There are five of us with two connecting balcony cabins.  Would love to get the key package. I spoke with our advisor who then referred us to a senior advisor specialist. Neither had ever heard of the key package. I am a newbie to RC. Can I book it online?

37 minutes ago, fizzywm said:

That's one of the models they make and should work well if you want to carry it around with you. I have the TM-02, which doesn't have its own battery. It is smaller and lighter but you would need to attach an external battery if you want to use it on the go. https://smile.amazon.com/HooToo-Wireless-Performance-TripMate-Hotspot/dp/B00HZWOQZ6

Perfect. Thank you. I will order the same one as you. I really appreciate it. 

21 minutes ago, Host Clarea said:

 

It would not be worth that upgrade price to me.  I'd be happy with an outside view (no balcony).

I agree with you. But the wife wanted a balcony really bad. She just booked a balcony room for us. I told her to out the kids in a inside cabin across the hall. But they had one set of connecting cabins left with balconies. So she got those. Ouch. But she is happy. Thank you so much for your help.  It is greatly appreciated. I will pay it forward. 

13 minutes ago, Teacher42 said:

Dear Rhino,  Do not believe Explorer has the suite amenities , let alone the deck space to provide a Key program. Your senior advisor may be right. Try MM post #9 suggestions, she is occasionally right.

Yes. Thank you. I just booked it. I did exactly what she said. $18k. For two weeks. Two connecting balcony rooms. 

26 minutes ago, Host Clarea said:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=55188055&postcount=105

Thank you so much. You have been so helpful on all my questions on numerous threads. Greatly appreciated. 

A little off subject. First time on RC. Curious as to what the cost of the WiFi is per device. We are going on a 14 day cruise. Thank you. 

On 1/12/2019 at 8:13 AM, fizzywm said:

 

It’s not intuitive the first time but it’s pretty easy. You have to connect your phone to the tripmate’s WiFi network. Once connected to tripmate, open your browser and go to Tripmate’s admin page (address is on the back of the router), and in there is an option to connect Tripmate to wifi. Select Royal’s wifi network. After tripmate says it has connected, go to login.com and enter your access code, as you normally would. From then on every device connected to hootoo will be able to access the internet since they are connected through the “logged-in-to-voom” device.

 

I mentioned hootoo here but there are plenty of other brands of travel routers that may be better. I’m not sure if the one I have can clone the MAC address like Bob mentioned, which would be necessary if they blocked it on their network. 

Anyway you could post an Amazon link to the one you have or one that will work. I would like to order one. Thank you. 

Is this it?

HooToo Wireless Travel Router, FileHub, 10400mAh External Battery, USB Port, High Performance Travel Charger - TripMate Titan 300Mbps (Not a Hotspot) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B074LHG47K/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_tai_Og8rCb9W5D328

On 1/21/2019 at 8:53 AM, John&LaLa said:

 

Does your sailing have the Key pkg?  You get some perks that way

I asked our Senior Advisor and he had never heard of the key package. I explained to him what you said and he said no such thing. Strange. He was a senior advisor we were transfered to because it was a large transaction. $18k. Ouch. 

On 1/21/2019 at 9:12 AM, Merion_Mom said:

 

Mike, the Explorer does not offer all that much in the way of perks. 

 

In your situation I would book connecting larger balcony cabins (unless boy #3 would prefer a Pullman/bunk bed to a sofa bed, then that’s the regular balcony category). Those Baltic cruises (and 5 flights! 😳) are expensive enough, and shore excursions won’t be cheap either. 

Ok. Thank you for the advice. Just booked two connecting balcony rooms. 

Thank you for the response. Two interior rooms is about $12k. Two balcony rooms are $18k. It will be me and my wife in one cabin. The other cabin will be my three college age kids.

We depart Southampton England in July.  

9 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Does your sailing have the Key pkg?  You get some perks that way

I booked the flights. My wife is doing the cruise. I will ask her. Thank you. 

What are the perk differences between the key program and suites?

Would love to hear opinions on this ship. We normally don’t like sea days and we will have four on our 14 day cruise.  We usually do interior or ocean view rooms. Thinking about upgrading....   Upgrade to a balcony worth the money?  Thank you. 

9 minutes ago, Host Clarea said:

 

Correct, suite perks are only for those booked in the suite.

Ok. Thank you. Is there a price I could pay to include them n our perks or would I just have to book them into a suite?  If that is the case I would probably just put us all in balcony rooms. Unless you have better suggestions or think the suites are worth the extra $15k for the five of us. Thank you. 

Hello...l.  First time ver here on the RC boards. We are ready to book today sailing in July. We fly to London on July 5th. Then we would board Explorer of the Seas for a 14 day cruise. Our main port we are excited about s St. Petersburg, Russia. Our first time on RC. We are Platinum on  Carnival and NCL but newbies to RC. Any recommendations or secrets when booking?  Any big differences?

We are thinking about booking a suite (Grand or Owners). Are the perks worth it?  I know NCL has excellent perks.  Curious about RC perks. Maybe we should just stick with a balcony room and save the money???

Me and my wife want to get a suite and then put our three college age kids in a regular room near us. NCL and Carnival lets us include them in our perks. Will RC allow them to be included or would I also need to book them a suite? 

Sorry so many newbie questions from a seasoned cruiser. Lol. 

14 hours ago, esm54687 said:

 

I also recommend getting a clamshell on GSC. It's approx $40 for two lounge chairs, a shade thing, and most importantly..... a priority tender ticket. GSC can be brutally hot and shade at a minimum.... You can reserve on GSC but best to reserve on board at Excursion Desk to ensure you get one (can't pre book prior to cruise).... Latitude discount / Excursion promo can be applied to this. When you get to GSC just have the attendant give you a clamshell with a shade that has a mesh panel so that the breeze can pass through or else it's a sauna in the clamshell..... the clamshell part is separate from the lounge chair so if you find a good location but the clamshell doesn't have the mesh, just ask to change clamshell. Here's a thread with pictures: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2546706

Do you get priority tender with the Cabana?

15 hours ago, TOMTOMRN331 said:

I will let you know. We sail 2/24 

Great. Thank you. I will be there in April. I reserved a Cabana today. 

We will be there in April on the Sky. What is there to do on the island besides water stuff?  We love water activities. We already reserved a cabana. But some of the people we are going with aren’t lay around by the beach people. I know there is snorkeling, wave runners, etc....   anything else to do?  Any exploring or excursions?  Any pointers or tips for our visit there?  Thank you.