Loyal to Royal.

[CGTLH]

5 minutes ago, Edmund said:

Do you know the perks of owning 100 Stocks?

$250 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 14 or more nights
$100 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 6 to 13 nights
$50 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 5 nights or less
Applicable on any eligible Royal Caribbean International or Celebrity Cruises voyage.

Ref: https://www.rclinvestor.com/contact-us/faqs/shareholder-benefit/

[JohnK6404]

I'd say we're Royal to loyal. DCL is the only other line we've sailed to date (our first cruise), but they are a little expensive. We would try other lines like Celebrity, NCL, and DCL again, but not until we at least hit Diamond, LOL!  

We really like Royal for many reasons. They have a large, well maintained fleet. Offer varied itineraries including their own properties like CocoCay and Labadee! Generally, they offer the newest, biggest, and most innovative ships (we're currently in that bigger/better phase... Oasis class is our favorite!). We find excellent, consistent, and friendly service onboard... we've never been disappointed. Excellent Broadway quality entertainment and many activity options. Also, for us, they offer the best bang for the buck!

We also love that feeling of comfort when you board a Royal ship due to familiarity with their shops, venues, and restaurants.

[Censored]

9 minutes ago, CGTLH said:

$250 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 14 or more nights
$100 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 6 to 13 nights
$50 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 5 nights or less
Applicable on any eligible Royal Caribbean International or Celebrity Cruises voyage.

Ref: https://www.rclinvestor.com/contact-us/faqs/shareholder-benefit/

wow, thanks for that. Im assuming its any cruise all year long or a one time thing?

[RorySC]

28 minutes ago, Edmund said:

You are not weird. I think and do the same thing., with one exception. My wife and I are gamblers. High rollers you might say. So we take full advantage of the Casino Royale program and thus all of our cruises are comped. As most of our cabins were suites we were catapulted into Diamond Plus status during Covid.  My wife dont drink, so I can use 12 a day, and drinks are free in the casino anyway.(and drinks are free in Coastal Kitchen as well) Further we have never paid for internet as well. I usually bring the amount of cash to gamble what the cruise would cost . If I lose it all, I just paid for my next cruise. It took some time to figure it all out., but it works for us.  You have to be very strict and responsible. Do not chase your losses and go to the ATM!   

I see what you are saying (and not because I am reading it off the screen) We are not nearly high rollers. We budget $100 a night each to play. If you have left over, well more for the next day. If you are there all evening with what you have for the night....then you have a nice evening of entertainment. So I guess for a 7 night, we are willing to loose $1400 down there. We no longer do the photos thing, sometimes will do a excursion or two and places like Nassau don't even get off the ship anymore. We have been pretty lucky as far as with our OBC from booking, then more from the RCCL Stock OBC, then some from our TA we have been having small bills at the end of the trip. I will say that, because I feel over the years the menu in the MDR has been feeling a little warn out. We have been doing more Specialty dining lately. But even that you can purchase a unlimited dining package and get great value from it. The amount of drinks the give us is enough for us. I do not think I will ever make it to Pinnacle before I am dead. Unless they have another Double point special again. But Royal is very innovative, they will always come up with new things to peek your interest and grab that $, and I am ok with that.

[Censored]

7 minutes ago, JohnK6404 said:

I'd say we're Royal to loyal. DCL is the only other line we've sailed to date (our first cruise), but they are a little expensive. We would try other lines like Celebrity, NCL, and DCL again, but not until we at least hit Diamond, LOL!  

We really like Royal for many reasons. They have a large, well maintained fleet. Offer varied itineraries including their own properties like CocoCay and Labadee! Generally, they offer the newest, biggest, and most innovative ships (we're currently in that bigger/better phase... Oasis class is our favorite!). We find excellent, consistent, and friendly service onboard... we've never been disappointed. Excellent Broadway quality entertainment and many activity options. Also, for us, they offer the best bang for the buck!

I agree with you on all of that. Oasis class is the best!  Royals innovations always impress me.   Im more into the ship itself than Itineraries,...

[RorySC]

17 minutes ago, Edmund said:

The stock was a good buy at $75. It will go higher until  another media reported disaster, or more Covid variants. Its still a gamble. Do you know the perks of owning 100 Stocks?  

• $250 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 14 or more nights
• $100 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 6 to 13 nights
• $50 Onboard Credit per Stateroom on Sailings of 5 nights or less
• Applicable on any eligible Royal Caribbean International or Celebrity Cruises voyage.
• Excludes any charter or Galapagos sailings
• Royal Caribbean Group will no longer honor Shareholder Onboard Credit requests for Azamara received on or after March 19, 2021 as this brand is no longer part of the group

[RorySC]

14 minutes ago, Edmund said:

I agree with you on all of that. Oasis class is the best!  Royals innovations always impress me.   Im more into the ship itself than Itineraries,...

I agree, we love the Oasis class. There is the Oasis class...then there is everything else!

[billdauterive]

29 minutes ago, Edmund said:

wow, thanks for that. Im assuming its any cruise all year long or a one time thing?

EVERY cruise. 

If you cruised a 7 day each week all year, you'd get a total of $5200 in OBC (which is tax free).  That's why it's such a great deal for anyone who cruises frequently anyway (assuming the stock price isn't significantly over valued).

[billdauterive]

1 hour ago, RorySC said:

The day the CDC announced a shut down for Covid in 2020, the stock dropped to around $19. (I scooped up a 100 shares) If you got in soon...Score!!!

 Sorry, gotta flex a little even if it wasn't at the EXACT bottom

[mamie]

I'm going on my third cruise in March with Royal but I must admit Carnival has my eye wandering. However, I hear it's more of a party cruise which is not my style. I'm tempted to go on carnival just for their rollercoaster and to try Shaq and Guy's food. For those who have gone is it worth it?

[Censored]

19 minutes ago, mamie said:

I'm going on my third cruise in March with Royal but I must admit Carnival has my eye wandering. However, I hear it's more of a party cruise which is not my style. I'm tempted to go on carnival just for their rollercoaster and to try Shaq and Guy's food. For those who have gone is it worth it?

Ive never done a Carnival cruise. But from people who have, most of them favour Royal.  

[Censored]

On 2/6/2022 at 5:44 PM, Bobbie said:

Just found out that free laundry for Diamond Plus members is no longer a perk.  Now only $10.00 off the current price for a bag of laundry.  With btbtb cruises planned, this is one perk I will really miss.

Do suites get free laundry? not sure  I always do 2 weeks too.

[RorySC]

20 minutes ago, mamie said:

I'm going on my third cruise in March with Royal but I must admit Carnival has my eye wandering. However, I hear it's more of a party cruise which is not my style. I'm tempted to go on carnival just for their rollercoaster and to try Shaq and Guy's food. For those who have gone is it worth it?

Well....I am sure that Jamie Oliver will agree when I say that these restaurants are there food in name only LOLOLOLOL

[RorySC]

1 hour ago, Edmund said:

wow, thanks for that. Im assuming its any cruise all year long or a one time thing?

Every time for as long as you own the stock.

[Censored]

On 2/7/2022 at 9:04 AM, RorySC said:

OK, time to show just how weird I can be at times when it comes to thinking.

I have pretty much remained Loyal to Royal for several reasons, but here is just a few.

 

16 cruises, 12 with Royal

Royal (Majesty of the Seas) was the first cruise I was ever on I think it was back in 1997. From that point I was deeply hooked on cruising. I have also tried, Celebrity, Holland America, Princess, and regrettably paradise Bahamas. (That's a story for another day) but have always came back to Royal.

I have always been someone looking for the so called Cruise Hacks type of thing while remaining Loyal to Royal.

I am originally from NJ, now living in SC..looking to move to FL.

 

 Interested in moving to FL for several reasons, but some of them are cruise related. I was playing on paper one day to figure out, just what we spend on travel to and from ports, luggage fees, hotels the night before, and sometimes a night the day we arrive back to home port. Alcohol package, and Internet. Sometimes, adding this all up came to 2-3 thousand. Sometimes more/less.

 

 When it comes to the Alcohol package, we tried with and without a package. Without, we found it to be stressful (Always counting, or looking at the bill every evening) we lost $ every time. Our daily routine We found that with a fresh squeezed OJ in the morning, a water or two for excursions, a coffee or two that is not pee pee water, a Gatorade, and then 2 or 3 drinks a day each was way more then the drink package. So the package pays off for us big time. You have to have at least 5 drinks or a combination of about 5 of anything on that list per day to make it work.

So then I was thinking if I became Diamond or above, I would get 4-6 free drinks a day depending on what tier you are at, and discounted Voom (about 20%).

A while back I had hoped to be able to push myself up in tier levels with purchasing points. NOPE, Royal does not offer this. So had to come up with a new plan. I started listening to Matt @ RCB, and now shop early and often to lock in rates on everything cruise related. I do 99% of my bookings downstairs in Next Cruise for the added OBC and reduced Deposits of only $100 pp, then have the reservation switched over to my TA. If we have to cancel or make a change, we only lost $100 pp or during the Cruise with confidence no loss at all. This made it even more easy. We also were purposely booking Jr. Suites because they will normally let us board around 11am, and you get double points for each night. Since we normally sail BtB or longer sailings, we have been getting 28 points per sailing. A added plus is when Royal has a special (like during the early time of Covid) they had double points. So our 28 points were 56 points for a sailing. We pompously booked cruises for cheap at times knowing that they would be canceled during Covid so we would get a 150% FCC. With the extra 50% FCC we switched up to a Jr. Suite We hunkered down and booked as much as we can just to take advantage of the double double points and extra FCC's, pushing us up to Dimond Plus real fast. Now we can relax a bit. We can drop down to a regular Balcony room, with the added discounts for Diamond, made a regular balcony even cheaper, and we get 5 drinks a day each. so no more drink package a savings of around $1,000, per sailing and we even get a discount on the Voom.

 

Also staying Loyal to Royal, keep an eye on RCCL stock. The days leading up to Covid, the stock was about $135 ish. This morning it is around $75. I have seen it up to around just under $100 in recent weeks. It is up & down but I am sure over time, it will go back up and even pass the high of $135. The day the CDC announced a shut down for Covid in 2020, the stock dropped to around $19. If you got in then...Score!!! If you own 100 shares or more, you get OBC for each sailing that range from I think $50 up to $250 per reservation depending on the length of sailing for as long as you own the stock

 

Now here is what we are really excited about.

With Celebrity Honoring our Diamond status in whatever they call their comparable status, we have a whole new list of Itinerary's and ships to try and we still stay within the family. BUT, if you ever feel the need to "Jump Ship" (no punt intended) some other lines are honoring your RC status on their lines as well. Such as MSC if you sail with them. But we are Loyal to Royal...and staying here.

P.S. When we move to Fl, we cut out flights, baggage, hotels so there is a nice savings as well.

Yep.....told ya we are weird and or to much time on our hands to think.

Tell me more about your research on FL. Im looking too. It makes sense.  I posted about this.  Matt may have some insight on this as he lives in Florida along with Tony from La Lido Loca.  

 

 

[RorySC]

5 minutes ago, Edmund said:

Tell me more about your research on FL. Im looking too. It makes sense.  I posted about this.  Matt may have some insight on this as he lives in Florida along with Tony from La Lido Loca.  

 

 

We now live Charleston, SC...but because we are still active both 52. No children, very flexible work schedule. We are big kids, that absolutely love to cruise. We feel that being Floridians gives a lot of financial benefits. Not only taxes and weather, but we are big foodie people as well. I wont even get into the topic of finding Italian food in SC. We like to be able to walk around Disney area, stroll the beaches, and most important. Hop on a weekend cruise for the weekend when we want.  The only issue we have had is trying to find WHERE in Florida we want to live. We have looked everywhere not far from the coast from Ft. Lauderdale up as far as Vero, as west as Orlando. Have not landed on anything just yet. So the hunt still rages on.

[mathbees]

5 hours ago, Edmund said:

But from people who have, most of them favour Royal.

Count me in that group. I did six Carnival cruises before trying Royal (got up to their Gold status). I had a lot of fun on their ships, but I do feel more "at home" on Royal. I'm not saying I would never cruise them again, but given a choice, it's Royal. 

I do look at the Celebrity Edge and may try that ship, but I don't think that quite counts as a second choice after RC.

[LCWind]

5 hours ago, RorySC said:

Every time for as long as you own the stock.

Comped cruises from the casino are not eligible to receive the shareholder OBC.  So, I sold my shares!

[Ray]

16 hours ago, Edmund said:

 

Whats the difference between a Scotsman and a canoe?   A canoe tips! 

Oh the old ones are the best! 

Everyone knows the Grand Canyon came about because a Scotsman dropped a dime and he kept on digging until he found it.

And that copper wire was invented be 2 Scotsmen fighting over a penny. 

Btw youre months late to the party!! I AM the 1st 1 to make fun of us scots being tighter than 2 coats of paint! Have made jokes about it since i got here with regards tips thats personal between me and steward so no need to feel sorry for them as its not your concern you just stick to worrying about your own things such as whether your lumberjack shirt is washed.

[Ray]

20 minutes ago, Ray said:

 

.

20 minutes ago, Ray said:

 

 

[Censored]

4 hours ago, Ray said:

Oh the old ones are the best! 

Everyone knows the Grand Canyon came about because a Scotsman dropped a dime and he kept on digging until he found it.

And that copper wire was invented be 2 Scotsmen fighting over a penny. 

Btw youre months late to the party!! I AM the 1st 1 to make fun of us scots being tighter than 2 coats of paint! Have made jokes about it since i got here with regards tips thats personal between me and steward so no need to feel sorry for them as its not your concern you just stick to worrying about your own things such as whether your lumberjack shirt is washed.

I live in an igloo, and wear a parka. Have you heard the rumour that the Grand Canyon was started by a Scotsman who lost a coin in a ditch?

[Censored]

13 hours ago, LCWind said:

Comped cruises from the casino are not eligible to receive the shareholder OBC.  So, I sold my shares!

wow! thanks for that info!

[Ray]

6 hours ago, Edmund said:

I live in an igloo, and wear a parka. Have you heard the rumour that the Grand Canyon was started by a Scotsman who lost a coin in a ditch?

Yes i have! thats why i mentioned it in the post you actually quoted and replied on   

[Moby Dick]

On 2/8/2022 at 9:52 AM, mamie said:

I'm going on my third cruise in March with Royal but I must admit Carnival has my eye wandering. However, I hear it's more of a party cruise which is not my style. I'm tempted to go on carnival just for their rollercoaster and to try Shaq and Guy's food. For those who have gone is it worth it?

As I said above, I was very loyal to Carnival.  But, on 3 of my last cruises with Carnival we had major issues.  
For example:  We went on the Sunshine just after it went through its upgrades, circa 2016.  They added a deck or two to the front portion.  We stayed on Deck 11 which was one of the new decks.  The major problem, they did not have enough elevators to the deck, only 2 elevators, one deck below there was, I think it was 10 elevators.  If you got on the wrong elevator, you had to get off at deck 10 and move over to one of the two elevators that went all the way up to deck 11.  One evening, I have to mention here, I am disabled and can't stand for long, we waited over 45 minutes for an elevator to show up.  Guess what - the elevator was being used by an employee to transport a large rack of towels and sheets and actually went up to get down.  We waited for about 30 more minutes for an available elevator to show up, not empty, just enough room for our party of 4 to enter.  During this entire time, we were calling the Customer Service desk sever al times and they said each time that they were sending someone up to assist.  No one ever showed up.  We went to the customer service desk and asked to speak to a ships officer.  The ships officer showed up after about 15 minutes of waiting and I might as well have been talking to the elevator door that didn't open enough.  It also seemed that they added many new cabins to the ship which added dozens of more cruises but it didn't seem that they were able to add additional crew, things were too busy (full ship), lines were too long, everywhere, maintenance wasn't being accomplished (automatic doors not opening or closing, one door by the Ice Cream machine was open the entire cruise), the ship was dirty and the exterior of the ship was a rusty mess.

Enough of my rant. 

[Riley]

On 2/6/2022 at 4:44 PM, Bobbie said:

Just found out that free laundry for Diamond Plus members is no longer a perk.  Now only $10.00 off the current price for a bag of laundry.  With btbtb cruises planned, this is one perk I will really miss.

We are D+ and just got off a cruise on the 25th of February.  Free laundry was still being offered.

[Riley]

On 2/8/2022 at 9:03 AM, Eddy said:

wow, thanks for that. Im assuming its any cruise all year long or a one time thing?

Every cruise, including back to back (each segment is counted individually).

[steverk]

14 hours ago, Riley said:

We are D+ and just got off a cruise on the 25th of February.  Free laundry was still being offered.

Were you in a suite or just a regular room? 

[WAAAYTOOO]

1 hour ago, steverk said:

Were you in a suite or just a regular room? 

The free bag of laundry is a loyalty (D+) perk and has nothing to do with being in a suite.  The only suites that get laundry service (which is unlimited) are Star Class.

[steverk]

14 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

The free bag of laundry is a loyalty (D+) perk and has nothing to do with being in a suite.  The only suites that get laundry service (which is unlimited) are Star Class.

Awesome! Thanks!

I'm planning a B2B2B2B next year and was concerned about laundry!  I'll be D+ by then, so this helps a lot!

I looked at the list of C&A benefits and this one wasn't listed, so it is news to me.

[WAAAYTOOO]

31 minutes ago, steverk said:

Awesome! Thanks!

I'm planning a B2B2B2B next year and was concerned about laundry!  I'll be D+ by then, so this helps a lot!

I looked at the list of C&A benefits and this one wasn't listed, so it is news to me.

Yes...this will be very valuable to you !  This amenity is per person, too....so if there are 2 of you that are D+, you will get 2 bags per cruise !

[Pattycruise]

44 minutes ago, steverk said:

Awesome! Thanks!

I'm planning a B2B2B2B next year and was concerned about laundry!  I'll be D+ by then, so this helps a lot!

I looked at the list of C&A benefits and this one wasn't listed, so it is news to me.

Have you seen the size of the  laundry bags?  I wouldn't be too excited!  Practice rolling your clothing tight to maximize what you can get in there!

[Censored]

58 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

The free bag of laundry is a loyalty (D+) perk and has nothing to do with being in a suite.  The only suites that get laundry service (which is unlimited) are Star Class.

so is it still valid? Or discontinued perk?

[Censored]

5 minutes ago, Eddy said:

so is it still valid? Or discontinued perk?

IM doing 4 weeks soon and would really like that perk

[KristiZ]

23 minutes ago, Eddy said:

so is it still valid? Or discontinued perk?

It is valid on 5+ night sailings.

[Done]

On 2/4/2022 at 5:14 PM, Eddy said:

Ive cruised enough on Royal to achieve Diamond Plus status in the Crown and Anchor Society.  Im fascinated by cruisers loyalty to the brand.  I think the tier levels and rewards has something to do with it, even though some of the perks are really no big deal.  Super Mario and a few like him are anomalies . These people live on ships and I know Royal is very good to Mario.   I personally like the suites on Royal and the Coastal Kitchen cuisine. I have never eaten at any of the specialty restaurants to date. Sometimes I switch it up and go to MDR if I see some specialty items I like. Since I am a gambler and member of Casino Royale Signature status, all of my Royal cruises are comped. Most of them suites., along with free play. My next cruise comes with $1,000 free play. or OBC whatever I choose.  The Oasis class of ships have the biggest casinos, and that makes a difference too.  So I would like to know why other people are loyal to Royal?  And if Royal ceased to exist , what would be your second choice of cruise line?

I'm not a gambler.  In the few times I have played the best I have ever done was break even. 

I am curious though, the mention of "free stuff" always peaks my interest.  Do you play table games or slots/video poker?  I would hope your losses are less than the value of the comp'ed cruises but in all honesty I think that would be rare.

In response to your question, we have done one cruise on NCL with the family when our 2  girls were younger and had a terrible cabin.   Also been on a Celebrity cruise and our first experience with a drink package.  We had a great time and were seated at a MDR table with a member of the British Parliament and her husband.  Very interesting discussions at dinner!

Been all Royal otherwise and we like it although they haven't changed the MDR dinner menu much, many of the sea day planned activities and the game shows.  Our first cruise with Royal was on the ship then named Nordic Empress. 

[steverk]

1 hour ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

Yes...this will be very valuable to you !  This amenity is per person, too....so if there are 2 of you that are D+, you will get 2 bags per cruise !

Even better! 

[steverk]

58 minutes ago, Pattycruise said:

Have you seen the size of the  laundry bags?  I wouldn't be too excited!  Practice rolling your clothing tight to maximize what you can get in there!

Good suggestion!  I've seen the bags. Not large but enough to do a couple shirts.  We'll have to supplement by doing some stuff in the sink.  Also planning to bring some old clothes we can simply throw away.

[WAAAYTOOO]

You can actually get quite a bit into those bags if you have the plastic ones.  The paper ones are kinda lame but the plastic ones you can get quite a bit into.

[smokeybandit]

24 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

You can actually get quite a bit into those bags if you have the plastic ones.  The paper ones are kinda lame but the plastic ones you can get quite a bit into.

The paper ones make me think I should be ordering a large soft pretzel to go.

[Censored]

1 hour ago, Toby said:

I'm not a gambler.  In the few times I have played the best I have ever done was break even. 

I am curious though, the mention of "free stuff" always peaks my interest.  Do you play table games or slots/video poker?  I would hope your losses are less than the value of the comp'ed cruises but in all honesty I think that would be rare.

In response to your question, we have done one cruise on NCL with the family when our 2  girls were younger and had a terrible cabin.   Also been on a Celebrity cruise and our first experience with a drink package.  We had a great time and were seated at a MDR table with a member of the British Parliament and her husband.  Very interesting discussions at dinner!

Been all Royal otherwise and we like it although they haven't changed the MDR dinner menu much, many of the sea day planned activities and the game shows.  Our first cruise with Royal was on the ship then named Nordic Empress. 

by free stuff, I mean free play, amenities, free internet, champagne to room, on board credit, vip status in casino, nobody questions me for comped drinks,  to name a few.  I never gamble more than what a stateroom would cost. My wife and I now generally get suites,  B2B GRAND suites,   Crown Loft suites,   I have 4 weeks B2B out of Barbados soon ALL suites. , and I probably will gamble very little on that deal  seeing as it is a 7 island hop and I will be out and about most of the time.    So the key is to play responsibly , and dont chase your losses. If I lose my bankroll for that week, then I am DONE. I just paid for my cruise or future one.  To date, I am far ahead, as a result of a few jackpots. I like video poker, my wife plays slots,   2-8 bucks a pull.  I play 5.-10   This is not for 30 cent gamblers.  Further we get one free cruise anywhere Royal goes in the world annually. on top of monthly/weekly offers.  Now that I have joined URcomped.com  they will send us on numerous other ship brands, but all I want to try it Celebrity as they match my D plus status. and I want to try the new suites on the EDGE.