Tell me about the suite life on RC!

[lilsonicfan]

Hey all, just pondering an RC cruise ... I'm looking at a transatlantic on one of their bigger ships, Symphony - which I think is Oasis-class. As a family of 5, our options are: ultra spacious ocean view (no balcony), two connecting balconies (or, I'm sure, other types of rooms next to each other but I'm not too interested in inside or OV), or a Grand Suite 2 bedroom. Obviously the Grand Suite is significantly more expensive, as in more than 2x the price of two connecting balconies. I know the question of 'is it worth it' is subjective, so I thought I'd ask what you like about sailing in suites on RC and what is worth considering. The transatlantic has only one port before its final destination so it is a lot of days on the ship.

 

[OKW Lover]

The advantage of a Suite (grand suit, owners suit and loft suite, but not a Junior Suite) on the Oasis class ships is the access to a concierge who can book shows and dinner reservations for you. But our favorite benefit is eating in Coastal Kitchen. Think of the difference between cooking for 5,000 and cooking for a few hundred.

You also get priority boarding and disembarking.

 

[laceltris3]

I got a Royal Up upgrade to a suite on our cruise for Spring Break. I used the lounge and free drinks and the Concierge helped with a reservation or two, and ate breakfast in the suite only restaurant, but to be honest, we also had The Key and we used those benefits way more. The exclusive access to on ship attractions was really nice. My kids spent so much more time on the flowrider and rock wall and ice skating during the Key only time slots.

 

[OKW Lover]

but to be honest, we also had The Key and we used those benefits way more.

As I understand it, The Key offers basically the same benefits as being in a Suite does. Right?

 

[ScooterScott44]

The grand suites fall into the Sky class of the Royal Suites program specific to the Oasis and Quantum class ships. So the suite experiences are just a little different compared to the rest of the fleet. As you noted, is it better or worth it is really subjective.

Probably the biggest perk out of all the items is access to the lounge and Coastal Kitchen. We have done the transatlantic on DCL in cat T and done a few different cruises in suites on Royal. The Oasis class wins the head to head for the suites lounge. Especially if you are not doing the UDP then having all day access to CK really would sway me. We have access to drinks elsewhere so only grabbed drinks in the lounge in the evening but reports are besides the free drinks during happy hours, the lounge has free beer and house wine the rest of the day (Needs confirmation).

The extra space in room is nice, and the suites seating in certain venues can be really helpful. The free VOOM internet (one device per guest in the stateroom is a nice perk. The suites sun deck on that ship does include a hot tub which we found (on a sister ship) was much less crowded, even though it was smaller. Those a a few things to consider.

As for Key vs. Suites - at boarding Key boards after suites, the internet is included in both. The boarding lunch might be attractive with the key but CK lunch is probably close and if you have the UDP then it really is not a perk. The edge for the key would be the special times for flowrider, etc. That may not be as much of a benefit depending on your group’s interest in those things. The other fact is a TA, with so many sea days and age mix, that may ease some of the activities demand. Not sure if the carry on bag drop is a huge perk for the key but that is another difference.

 

[lilsonicfan]

All super helpful and so much to consider. I really appreciate all of these replies!

 

[ScooterScott44]

Here are two links to Royals FAQ’s that you can compare the perks of each, suites vs. key. They really are pretty close so it would come down to what is most attractive to you of these, the room differences, and the cost comparison.

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/what-are-the-benefits-of-royal-suite-class

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/what-are-the-benefits-of-the-key-program

I’ll add that there might be a few little things that don’t make the list. For example, in the suites they have pool towels there for you so no pool towel check out. Your room card is a different color and labeled suites/Sky. It doesn’t really matter except at the show seating, but it does seem to get recognized by staff even through they have always been friendly and helpful.

Happy planning!

 

[lilsonicfan]

The Key does sound like a possible way to go.

The cruise pricing is currently coming in at $20,000 for a grand suite vs $8,800 for two connecting balconies; it does seem hard to justify quite that much money.

I am also very tempted by the UDP! Although it does seem a lot of food.

 

[laceltris3]

As I understand it, The Key offers basically the same benefits as being in a Suite does. Right?

Many similar benefits. But The Key includes exclusive time slots for ice skating, flow rider, rock wall, which the suites do not include. I guess, for us, the time savings and lack of crowds on the attractions is better than the lounge and concierge. Since we have to get two rooms for our family, it's cheaper to get the key than book two suites.

 

[peacefrogdog]

We did our first suite cruise in July On Maringer. To us the most welcomed perks were being able to be in Barefoot beach if stopping in Labadee, having access to the suite lounge‘s happy hour , and being able to get priority disembarkation.
The least notable or valuable perks for us were the breakfast in Chops (didn’t seem to be any different menu than eating in the main dining room), special seating at the shows, and the suite seating area by the pools (that had very little to no shade )

 

[Evita_W]

The grand suites fall into the Sky class of the Royal Suites program specific to the Oasis and Quantum class ships. So the suite experiences are just a little different compared to the rest of the fleet. As you noted, is it better or worth it is really subjective.

Probably the biggest perk out of all the items is access to the lounge and Coastal Kitchen. We have done the transatlantic on DCL in cat T and done a few different cruises in suites on Royal. The Oasis class wins the head to head for the suites lounge. Especially if you are not doing the UDP then having all day access to CK really would sway me. We have access to drinks elsewhere so only grabbed drinks in the lounge in the evening but reports are besides the free drinks during happy hours, the lounge has free beer and house wine the rest of the day (Needs confirmation).

The extra space in room is nice, and the suites seating in certain venues can be really helpful. The free VOOM internet (one device per guest in the stateroom is a nice perk. The suites sun deck on that ship does include a hot tub which we found (on a sister ship) was much less crowded, even though it was smaller. Those a a few things to consider.

As for Key vs. Suites - at boarding Key boards after suites, the internet is included in both. The boarding lunch might be attractive with the key but CK lunch is probably close and if you have the UDP then it really is not a perk. The edge for the key would be the special times for flowrider, etc. That may not be as much of a benefit depending on your group’s interest in those things. The other fact is a TA, with so many sea days and age mix, that may ease some of the activities demand. Not sure if the carry on bag drop is a huge perk for the key but that is another difference.

Another difference is that Suites get free room service and can order room service from the main dining room during normal hours. The key does not officially get either of these benefits, but some have reported getting free room service with the key.

 

[Evita_W]

The Key does sound like a possible way to go.

The cruise pricing is currently coming in at $20,000 for a grand suite vs $8,800 for two connecting balconies; it does seem hard to justify quite that much money.

I am also very tempted by the UDP! Although it does seem a lot of food.

Keep watching, this can change very quickly. There are also the even higher end suites on the Oasis class ships that include the UDP, Drink Package, all gratuities, a royal genie and much more. We haven't done that, in fact we are only doing a suite on our upcoming cruise because we got upgraded for free, as they needed the accessible cabin we were in and we only needed it for the wider door and additional space for a scooter, so we got upgraded and the person that needed the accessible cabin got what they needed.