(+1 345) 244 2431. This didnt take long at all, and our whole group was onboard the ship shortly after 11:00. Try your best to adhere to the check-in time, but they will still admit you for check-in if you were to arrive later. Since your luggage isnt guaranteed to arrive in your room before dinner, youll want to make sure you have everything you need ahead of time. Try to get on the ship as soon as you can (in other words, get inline at the port early or get to the airport to the Royal Caribbean desk early to get the first transfer to the pier). (He was right!) On Voyager, Freedom or Radiance class ships, be sure to visit the helipad for my favorite sailaway spot. I use the Ziploc bag to hold wet swimsuits until our room is ready, so you wont need this item if you dont have a wet bathing suit to store. The tours and excursions available to book in the ports your cruise will visit are many, so take advantage of the resources online to find the perfect tour before your cruise begins. These programs often offer other perks as well that are usually only reserved for suite passengers. Commonly it is expected to tip somewhere around $1-$2 per bag. This means you can still be on Royal Caribbean's wifi and use the app, but avoid a huge bill. Many people here, I think, . 1. Lots of passengers arrive early, standing in line for the opportunity to board early and be among the first on the ship. Cruise lines want you to be loyal to them, so ranking up your loyalty tier is a great way to get faster boarding times in addition to a ton of other perks. It's important to note that these times that you choose during online check-in are only port arrival times. . When Can You Check In For Royal Caribbean Cruise To be honest, your embarkation day usually starts . Most cruise terminals enforce the boarding times, but occasionally you find situations where a particular pier agent doesn't pay attention to the check-in time or say anything about it. And the earlier check-in time you have, the sooner you get to get onboard the ship and start vacation. What food is included with your Royal Caribbean cruise? While you may want to save the added expense,regular medical insurance will not usually cover medical services onboard or in port. The open house is when you can go to meet the staff, register your kids, and ask any questions. You're probably wondering what to expect on the day you board the ship. The result is far fewer guests in the pools, hot tubs and water slides than at any other time on your cruise. You can actually get hundreds of dollars of onboard credit by simply booking onboard, but the exact amount depends on how long a sailing you book and in which stateroom category. You can even start using your drink packages right away to help you get into vacation mode even faster! The earliest that guests can board a cruise is between 4-5 hours before the ship is scheduled to sail away. That means if a couple buys The Key for a 7 day cruise it will cost at least $350. An unusual exit wound as a result of a shotgun suicide to the head. Members also get invitations to special events, like behind-the-scenes tours of the ship. If you make a purchase through one of these links, I may receive a small compensation at no extra cost to you. If not, just leave blank, How being early is the secret to the best Royal Caribbean cruise, from start to finish, purchase the drink package of your choice online, 5 Royal Caribbean things you had no idea existed. We fly in early enough to explore the port city if we want to prior to embarkation day. That is a question for Royal Caribbean. Using a travel agent simplifies this entire process. It is the fourth-largest cruise line in the world by passengers, controlling about 8.6% of the total worldwide share of the cruise market by passengers as of 2021. Corkscrews will be provided for guests to enjoy their drinks in their stateroom. Other families, like mine, like to get the process started as soon as possible. As an added bonus, by arriving to your embarkation port at least a day early, that means you get to start your vacation sooner! Check-in opens up 45 days before your cruise begins. The FCC . 35 Royal Caribbean cruise tips and tricks that will make your voyage You don't plan to take advantage of its . By planning to arrive to your departure port at least one day early, you assure yourself that a travel delay will not impact your ability to get on your cruise. If you want to have a hassle-free boarding process, its important to stay organized and keep all your important documents organized and easily accessible. While this isnt necessarily the time in which you will board the ship, it is a good indicator of when you will be allowed to embark. Two brothers started Cruise Fever in 2011 when they decided they couldn't stop cruising so they might as well write about it. You can enjoy a lineup of adventures on a Royal Caribbean cruise from Day One, like the North Star observation capsule, ice skating and more. People often wonder what is the cheapest month to go on a cruise, and the key is cruise when others cannot. Unfortunately, there's no wifi coverage in Labadee. Check out Intelligent Cruiser here for a better cruise vacation. As long as the cruise line doesnt make a drastic change to their program you will keep reaping the rewards for every cruise. All rights reserved. Hi there! That seems like a lot to save an hour or two on embarkation day. $50k Emergency Medical Evacuation Insurance. Welcome aboard! As for Royal Caribbean opening up additional earlier times, it's not usually the case. If you selected my-time dining you will want to select your preferred time as the most popular times book up fast. You can then save this information and complete the rest of the check-in process at a later date. There, crewmembers will typically check you in via . This is the perfect time to make dining changes/requests, book activities and specialty restaurants, secure shore excursions, etc. Guests should arrive at the terminal within the arrival time slot you selected during Royal App check-in. Changing one guest name - Royal Caribbean - Cruises Forum Unlimited food and posh amenities await you, and its only feet away when youre in the cruise terminal. First, if you miss The Key check-in window, you have to fall back to whatever time you had before. Over the course of a 7-night cruise, those savings add up quickly! Having an extra day or two provides a buffer to account for travel delays. But it wasn't a nightmare either. Have you heard about Royal Caribbean's unlimited drink packages? We didnt even have to get off the couch. Read more: 10 biggest tipping mistakes cruisers make. Your email address will not be published. How early can I board my Royal Caribbean cruise? If you followed our previous advice about arriving to your port city early, then likely your hotel will have a check-out time in the early part of the morning, which is the perfect excuse to head to the cruise port. My Tips for Using the Royal Caribbean Cruise Planner Royal Caribbean cruises that depart from the United States will often open the cruise terminal for check-in sometime between 9am and 10am. The day your cruise begins is full of excitement, and naturally, you may be wondering what time you can board the ship. This is a great spot to see the port as you leave, especially for those that do not have a balcony stateroom or simply want something a little different. This is a 9 night cruise and price per night is noted below for each cabin type. Adventure Embarkation - Royal Caribbean International - Cruise Critic Tasks such as repricing, making special requests, dealing with weather events and more are why I use a travel agent every single I book a cruise. This makes it easy to undress them poolside, and they can hop right in. Our next RCL isn't until December 2016. I booked my Symphony of the Seas cruise five months in advance of my February sail date. The majority of cruises leave port at 4 or 5:00 pm. One mistake a lot of new cruisers make is to book the cheapest cruise they can find because they assume the ships are more less all the same. In general, on a cruise with RCI, you can change 1 bane, no problem, as long as at least one original guest stays . When you purchase anything before your cruise via the Cruise Planner site, you will be required to pay for it at the time of purchase. Avoid a huge cell phone bill by putting your phone into airplane mode while on your cruise. Here are some basic considerations. So, make sure you keep everything within reach and enjoy a smooth boarding process. If you're in a suite, you don't need to pay extra for this package too. Depending on when you go to select a time, there will be variety of 30 minute windows . Onboard Shows and Tickets FAQs | Royal Caribbean Cruises So the best way to learn about what is offered on your cruise is to check out a past Cruise Compass. You start getting benefits after just one cruise, and you never lose your status. Most cruise ships will . Here are my tips for the Royal Caribbean Cruise Planner. Please see my disclosure policy at the bottom of this page for more details.). So which food is included and which cost extra? Also, since your cruise will likely take you to foreign countries, its crucial to have a passport with you. The benefits wont always be the same, and you have to fill out a form and wait for approval. Be sure to check it. r/royalcaribbean - Is Royal Caribbean strict about boarding times? Do Started in 2010, Royal Caribbean Blog offers daily coverage of news and information related to the Royal Caribbean cruise line along with other relevant topics of cruising, such as . The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached, or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Royal Caribbean Blog. The person didnt even ask for the ship name or location and gave monosyllabic responses. The actual times, however, will vary by sailing. Required fields are marked *, document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id", "a0f9c8c1261d574f1224454f4fa00eeb" );document.getElementById("d5aa0859c9").setAttribute( "id", "comment" );Comment *. Royal Caribbean sells its cruises largely based on the concept of supply and demand. Regardless of which day you choose, some specialty restaurants offer a lunch discount compared to dinner. You can login to your account on the Royal Caribbean website or via the Royal Caribbean App. 2. Children between the ages of 0-5 are complimentary and ages 6-12 are $10 per child at any specialty restaurant. Can anyone who has recently been on the Serenade rec. Its recommended to have travel insurance. The price will be different depending on which port youre sailing from $59.95 in Miami to $129.95 in Seattle. Either way, you should have plenty of time to enjoy all the entertainment and activities onboard the ship. Often this comes down to the ports of call being visited by the cruise line. Carnival allows you to check-in 14 days before the cruise date, for Royal Caribbean its 45 days, and for Norwegian Cruise Line you can check in 21 days before a sailing. By having a reservation, you will be seated faster. Once you get onboard and connect to the ship's wifi, it will ask you if you want to just use the app. Every cruise line has its own procedure for when they open up the check-in process. Generally speaking, the best price for a Royal Caribbean cruise can be found when booked many months in advance. Many newspapers also spread a false story on April Fish Day, and a subtle reference to a fish is sometimes given as a clue to .