All the excitement of your cruise beginning means you'll want to get onboard as fast as possible, meaning you don't want paperwork to slow you down.
Royal Caribbean has digitized the embarkation process to a point that it's about as smooth as can be from getting curb to gangway, but I've found there's a better way to have your SetSail Pass handy.
The Royal Caribbean app is where you go to conduct online check-in, and it can display the SetSail Pass too, but it can be clunky to get to quickly and in many cases, the app fails to pull up the pass on embarkation day.
After I complained about being stuck in the terminal without my SetSail Pass because the app failed, a number of readers told me I should add it to my Apple Wallet (there's a Google Wallet for Android devices too), and it's been a game changer.
While the Royal Caribbean will probably work, there are several reasons why adding it to Apple or Google Wallet can be beneficial.
Convenience at your fingertips
Having your SetSail Pass available to show quickly speeds up the embarkation process significantly.
You'll have to show it at least four times throughout the check-in process:
- To enter the terminal
- To verify which check-in line you should enter
- To actually check-in
- To scan in and board the ship
Plus, until your cabins are ready and you can collect your SeaPass cards, you'll only have your SetSail Pass to use to purchase drinks onboard.
It's super simple to double tap your phone's side button and pull it up without having to even scan your face.
A backup in case the app fails
For some strange reason, the Royal Caribbean can occasionally fail on embarkation day.
It works just fine in the days and months leading up to your cruise, but I've experienced a number of times where it refuses to pull up the SetSail Pass on embarkation day because of a phantom error.
When this happens, you have to go to the check-in desk and have a physical SetSail Pass printed out instead. It stops you in your tracks and delays embarkation. While this only takes a few minutes, I'm too excited to wait around because I want to board.
Most recently this happened to my friend that was cruising with me on Enchantment of the Seas, and he had to go back to get one printed out. Meanwhile, I had added my SetSail Pass to my Apple Wallet and had no issues.
Faster to pull up when you need to show it
Even if the Royal Caribbean app works flawlessly, it's clunky to access the pass when you don't have it stored in your wallet.
You have to unlock your phone, get to the Royal Caribbean app, and then go to the check-in section to access it.
Considering how many times you might have to show the pass, especially if you're going to be ordering a lot of drinks when you get onboard, it's so much easier and faster to have it in your wallet.
You might be able to see your GTY cabin
There's a little hack with the Apple Wallet that might help anyone that booked a guarantee cabin.
When you let Royal Caribbean pick your room, there's a delay until your room is assigned. It could take days, weeks, or even months for them to assign a cabin to you.
However, you might be able to figure out which room you're assigned earlier with a clever hack that leverages the Apple Wallet.
Cruisers call it "the bar code trick", and here's how it works:
Once you reach the point you can check-in for your cruise, if you have an Apple device, add your set sail pass to your Apple Wallet.
Below the barcode on the SetSail Pass are a set of numbers. The numbers after the dash represent the cabin you have been assigned.
If you see "GTY" instead of numbers, you truly haven't been assigned yet. Another sign you haven't had your room assigned yet is if you don't see a muster station on your SetSail Pass, then you almost certainly don't have an assignment yet.
How to add your SetSail Pass to your Apple Wallet
If you're convinced now to use the Apple Wallet, here's how to set it up.
After you complete check-in for your cruise, tap the Check-in button from the bottom row navigation.
Below your travel info, arrival time, and health status is the option to View SetSail Pass.
When you pull it up, click the Add to Apple Wallet button that should be below the barcode.
Tap Add in the top-right corner of the pass preview to add it to your Apple Wallet.
That's it! Now you can double-click the side or home button on your lock screen and you should see the Royal Caribbean pass there.
