Key Cards at Check-in or at Cabin?

[JFO23]

Will our sea pass cards (key cards) be given to us when we check in at the terminal or will they be at our cabins? Haven’t been on Royal for sometime, wondering if we will go straight to our cabin and pick them up like we do on Celebrity. 

[sgerth]

The key card will be at your cabin.

[BND]

It seems they've gone to all cards at cabins since restart.  Prior to Covid, it was port dependent.   For example, in Baltimore, they always gave us our cards at check in.  Now, they're on the door.

Edited August 3, 2022 by BND

[twangster]

Unlike Celebrity you must wait for cabins to be ready, Royal doesn't allow you to drop bags and retrieve cards like Celebrity does.

[rudeney]

When I told my wife about this, her first thought was, "Someone else could take into our cabin!"  🤣

[flamingos]

3 minutes ago, rudeney said:

When I told my wife about this, her first thought was, "Someone else could take into our cabin!"  🤣

I'm surprised there isn't more of an issue of people ordering drinks on someone else's room.  🙂

[BirdTravels]

4 minutes ago, rudeney said:

When I told my wife about this, her first thought was, "Someone else could take into our cabin!"  🤣

Nah... if someone wanted a cabin for a few minutes/hours, they would pick a suite. 

[HelenaCruiser2012]

That was my first thought too!

[rudeney]

4 minutes ago, flamingos said:

I'm surprised there isn't more of an issue of people ordering drinks on someone else's room.  🙂

 

That thought crossed my mind, but someone would have to be really dumb to do that.  They have cameras at the cash registers and you'd get caught.

 

3 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

Nah... if someone wanted a cabin for a few minutes/hours, they would pick a suite. 

 

Um, we have a suite  😮  (now I'm going to tell my wife that and she's really going to be worried! 🤣)

[BND]

12 minutes ago, rudeney said:

 

That thought crossed my mind, but someone would have to be really dumb to do that.  They have cameras at the cash registers and you'd get caught.

 

 

Um, we have a suite  😮  (now I'm going to tell my wife that and she's really going to be worried! 🤣)

Has not been an issue.  If someone did that, they would get kicked off the ship.  Remember, there are cameras, even in hallways.  Going to guest services would fix it quickly anyway.

Edited August 3, 2022 by BND

[flamingos]

27 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

Nah... if someone wanted a cabin for a few minutes/hours, they would pick a suite. 

 

Back in the day, the suites would all be open for you to peek into, when you boarded.

[soremekun]

Strangers in your stateroom, before you've had a chance to put the upsidedown pineapple on your door, is a bit presumptuous....... but efficient.

[cruisegirl1]

Cabin doors are locked and key cards are in a sealed envelope. No one will use your cabin. Further, until about 1pm,  the fire doors  are closed so passengers won’t be in the hallways. 
 

m

[Mum2Mercury]

2 hours ago, flamingos said:

I'm surprised there isn't more of an issue of people ordering drinks on someone else's room.  🙂

Yeah, a motivated thief could wear a hat while ordering drinks.  No, it wouldn't be a whole-cruise thing, but someone could get a couple drinks at the very beginning. 

28 minutes ago, cruisegirl1 said:

Cabin doors are locked and key cards are in a sealed envelope. No one will use your cabin. Further, until about 1pm,  the fire doors  are closed so passengers won’t be in the hallways. 

Which doesn't help people who don't arrive until 3:00 or so.

 

I don't think this keys-on-the-door thing is a great plan.

[rudeney]

2 hours ago, BND said:

Has not been an issue.  If someone did that, they would get kicked off the ship.  Remember, there are cameras, even in hallways.  Going to guest services would fix it quickly anyway.

 

Yeah, I know.  This was just my wife's thoughts.  She tends to worry about things like that, whereas I don't give it a second thought. In fact, if someone actually did that - took my SeaPass card and charged on it, I'd just pay it.  I mean, I figure they need it bad enough to risk it, then they must really need it.

[bonsai3s]

30 minutes ago, cruisegirl1 said:

Cabin doors are locked and key cards are in a sealed envelope. No one will use your cabin. Further, until about 1pm,  the fire doors  are closed so passengers won’t be in the hallways. 
 

m

That reminds me, on the Odyssey, just 3 months ago...we had the same cabin (b3b) and on turn-around-day we went back to our cabin early...saw an envelope by the front door. My wife said "Oh! we got another set of new seapass cards". (We were given new seapass cards earlier being b2b) When she opened the envelope, the new seapass cards had someone else's names on them...we took it down to guest services.

 

* Found out later "a few" envelopes were delivered to the wrong cabins. 

 

[futureAG]

I'm super confused. First time Royal cruiser AND I'm from the old days of cruising where you got your card at check in. So If your sea pass card is in your room and you cant get to it until after 1pm.... how do you "ding" to get on the ship, and buy drinks and such before you get your cards?

 

Also... does RC card come with a hole or slot for lanyard? Is the lanyard even still a thing?? Do you have to visit GS to get a hole punch? 

[bonsai3s]

38 minutes ago, futureAG said:

I'm super confused. First time Royal cruiser AND I'm from the old days of cruising where you got your card at check in. So If your sea pass card is in your room and you cant get to it until after 1pm.... how do you "ding" to get on the ship, and buy drinks and such before you get your cards?

 

Also... does RC card come with a hole or slot for lanyard? Is the lanyard even still a thing?? Do you have to visit GS to get a hole punch? 

- You ding using your setsail pass.

 

- For buying drinks...they just ask for your cabin number. 

 

-Haven't seen seapass cards with holes when issued to us. Someone can correct me, but holes are discouraged because the seapass cards have chips. We still see lots of lanyards.

[rudeney]

13 minutes ago, bonsai3s said:

-Haven't seen seapass cards with holes when issued to us. Someone can correct me, but holes are discouraged because the seapass cards have chips. We still see lots of lanyards.

 

It depends on the ship.  For those that still use mag stripes, holes are fine (avoiding the stripe, of course).  Those that have converted to RFID, they don't want you to punch a hole because you could punch into the chip.  Honestly, I wish they'd either just make the cards with a hole, or print them with a marker indicating where it's safe to punch.

[BND]

13 hours ago, bonsai3s said:

That reminds me, on the Odyssey, just 3 months ago...we had the same cabin (b3b) and on turn-around-day we went back to our cabin early...saw an envelope by the front door. My wife said "Oh! we got another set of new seapass cards". (We were given new seapass cards earlier being b2b) When she opened the envelope, the new seapass cards had someone else's names on them...we took it down to guest services.

 

* Found out later "a few" envelopes were delivered to the wrong cabins. 

 

For our b2b's on HOTS (Nov/Dec) and EN (Apr)we did get a second set of seapasses on our door on the second leg.  So, it does happen.  On HOTS, we had different dining tables assigned, one on each set of cards.  DH had to go to the dining room and straighten it out.

Edited August 4, 2022 by BND

[ramja96]

13 hours ago, Mum2Mercury said:

Yeah, a motivated thief could wear a hat while ordering drinks.  No, it wouldn't be a whole-cruise thing, but someone could get a couple drinks at the very beginning. 

 

Hmmm ....... sounds like "someone" is formulating their plan ...... 😈

[BND]

23 minutes ago, ramja96 said:

 

Hmmm ....... sounds like "someone" is formulating their plan ...... 😈

Then there's always the risk of getting some teenager's cards who have a room next to or across from their parents lol.

[brillohead]

I've never understood why people are concerned about the key cards outside the door.  

If they enter your EMPTY room, so what?  They can't take anything, b/c your stuff isn't in there yet.

If they take your cards, so what?  Your picture comes up on the register when you buy something, and it would be obvious that it's not you.  

 

[Mum2Mercury]

14 hours ago, bonsai3s said:

* Found out later "a few" envelopes were delivered to the wrong cabins. 

Yes, with all the crew has to do on turn-around day, that seems very easy to do. 

Reminds me:  When our oldest started college, she picked up her ID card, which opened her dorm room and held her meal plan money.  Her university included textbooks rental in the cost of tuition (SUCH a good thing), and when she went to get her books, they handed her the wrong books.  Turns out she and another freshman shared a name (and their middle name is rather unusual!), and the university'd loaded their information/money onto the wrong cards.  

Easily fixed, but it caused some anxiety for a first-day freshman.  

The two girls ended up being in several classes together and lived in the same apartment complex junior-senior year -- but they learned fast to look after one another.  

12 hours ago, futureAG said:

Also... does RC card come with a hole or slot for lanyard? Is the lanyard even still a thing?? Do you have to visit GS to get a hole punch? 

If you're into lanyards (why are you into lanyards?) you can pick up a fishing license holder in the sports department at Walmart -- or you can order them from Amazon, but you might have to buy half a dozen from Amazon.  It's a plastic sleeve that can clip onto a lanyard /you can slide any ID into it.  We picked them up to protect our vaxx cards.  

12 hours ago, bonsai3s said:

- You ding using your setsail pass.

How can you "ding" onto the ship if your Ship ID is in your room?  

32 minutes ago, ramja96 said:

Hmmm ....... sounds like "someone" is formulating their plan ...... 😈

I'm always trying to figure out how to optimize things /how things could go wrong. 

But, believe me, I'm too honest to steal drinks, and -- anyway -- I'd be too afraid of being caught. 

[rudeney]

7 minutes ago, brillohead said:

I've never understood why people are concerned about the key cards outside the door.  

If they enter your EMPTY room, so what?  They can't take anything, b/c your stuff isn't in there yet.

If they take your cards, so what?  Your picture comes up on the register when you buy something, and it would be obvious that it's not you.  

 

 

It was my wife who said that she was concerned.   She's not a worrier, she just over-thinks things sometimes.  And I would never, ever take advantage of that trait as a joke.  No, never! 😜