STATUS MATCH FOR RCL GROUP

[Jill]

11 minutes ago, TXcruzer said:

Agreed, big swing and a miss as far as I am concerned. More Value for regular "X" customers to sail Royal than the other way around.

This is very true! Way better for X to Royal. It’s Royal’s fault for ditching the happy hour and going to vouchers. They spoiled us and now we’re kicking and screaming for our vouchers on X

[Lovetocruise2002]

Did not take 7 days. My app has already updated my status.

[Jill]

I commented on Bayley’s facebook post as well as RCI’s post and Cruise Director Mitch’s post about the vouchers. I want my 5 drink vouchers, not a 2 hour happy hour. Got a lot of “likes.”  If we aren’t vocal about it they’ll think we’re fine with it lol. I even created a #teamfreedrinkvouchers

From just a D+ perspective: we’re empty nesters eager to spend our children’s inheritance. We’re ready to start checking off the bucket list cruises. Have done one with Royal (holy land) and have our first booked with X (Norwegian Fjords). Celebrity hands down has the better European itineraries that we very much prefer. With Royal, we will still use for Caribbean, just not on Icon class. 

Royal will be getting attention from us empty nesters when Discovery class comes out but I think it’s in their best interest to push us to Celebrity. I would happily go……with my 5 drink vouchers

[smokeybandit]

4 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Did not take 7 days. My app has already updated my status.

The app is updated for me, but website is still the old status.

[Jill]

5 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Did not take 7 days. My app has already updated my status.

Me too! 

[Lovetocruise2002]

4 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

The app is updated for me, but website is still the old status.

I just check the website. Same like you said, old status. Not sailing X until August 2nd so not too worried.

[smokeybandit]

FYI, this status across Celebrity and SilverSea shows in the RC app.

[WAAAYTOOO]

30 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

The app is updated for me, but website is still the old status.

Same here

[JustMeJoe]

34 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

My app has already updated my status.

Be careful; after all, it is that wonderous Royal App .

[PurdueFlyer]

5 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

He's missing the point here. 

Right, that was my main takeaway also.  Burn what, Jason?  Does he actually understand you need to be able to redeem points for, I don't know, ANYTHING, in order to make that comparison to Bonvoy?  I accrue nights with Bonvoy to maintain my status, or get to the next status level.  The nights reset every year.  I earn points at the same time, which can be redeemed for free stuff, or hoarded depending on my mood.  It's not an either / or proposition.  

The ironic part is that any marketing executive will tell you that loyalty programs are designed to entice new spend patterns / behavior.  Not to continue to reward existing behavior from the same people.  That's what WE want, but not what the loyalty program VP wants.  As much as I moan about Bonvoy not having a good Q3 promotion or whatever, they know my spending pattern isn't going to change on them, because it hasn't in 20 years.  I'm lifetime Platinum; my travel is 100% leisure and self-funded.  Give me my free breakfast and late check-out, and I'm happy.  I'm a loyal customer, but I'm not really a high-value customer. 

Yet Royal seems content to just keep doling out the same 1 point for Inside/Outside/Balcony and 2 points for a suite.  There's no reward for going to the spa, or buying specialty dining, or getting a drink package over and over.  So I don't.  I enjoy my cruise experience largely on what's included in the fare.  Most sailings I leave the ship with a Folio that only has gratuities on it  The promotions are always targeted at new bookings and are usually related to fares, or the occasional cruise planner sale.  

Pinnacle is still light-years away for us, and 4 of our last 5 cruises have been on Celebrity.  Seeing "Elite Plus" on my next keycard is nice, but I was hoping Royal would have throw me something to "keep me on the hampster wheel" so to speak (and in turn, make me become more valuable to THEM).  Instead, all they threw me was an extra bag of laundry on Celebrity.  

Hopefully this continues to evolve. 

[instaGator]

The new CAS fine print is out (attached).  I never noticed this "substitute a similar loyalty program" verbiage before.  

crown-and-anchor-society-benefit-grid.pdf

[karl_nj]

this is interesting too:

 

 

I guess leaving the door open to do something like DCL just did, putting in a clause where they can expire your membership if you don't sail once every 5 years.

 

[FionaMG]

16 hours ago, Lovetocruise2002 said:

Did not take 7 days. My app has already updated my status.

Mine actually updated a couple of days before the email went out. I didn’t realise what was happening at the time.

[Rackham]

37 minutes ago, instaGator said:

The new CAS fine print is out (attached).  I never noticed this "substitute a similar loyalty program" verbiage before.  

crown-and-anchor-society-benefit-grid.pdf 861.94 kB · 0 downloads

Well, the previous grids didn't have 8 pages of T&C included. Holy moley. 

I think it's new as well and is a coverall for whichever direction Royal eventually decides to take the program.

18 minutes ago, karl_nj said:

I guess leaving the door open to do something like DCL just did, putting in a clause where they can expire your membership if you don't sail once every 5 years.

Wouldn't be surprising. The stated goal of matching tiers across RCG's three primary brands is to keep 100% of passangers' cruise vacation dollars with them. The benefits given are the carrot. Losing loyalty status if not vacationing with RCG is the stick.

[HeWhoWaits]

Website updated for me some time after 8:30 p.m. yesterday.

[Lovetocruise2002]

35 minutes ago, HeWhoWaits said:

Website updated for me some time after 8:30 p.m. yesterday.

I just checked. I've been updated too on the website!

[RCIfan1912]

Help me understand the fuss because I truly don't get it. You always got matching status. When I logged in months ago to Celebrity my Diamond status was auto Elite. I'm not understanding the excitement here at all. 

[Rackham]

Just now, RCIfan1912 said:

Help me understand the fuss because I truly don't get it. You always got matching status. When I logged in months ago to Celebrity my Diamond status was auto Elite. I'm not understanding the excitement here at all. 

 

Take a look at this RCB article before the change happened. Only certain levels status matched instead of a 1:1 match that they've moved to.

[steverk]

59 minutes ago, RCIfan1912 said:

Help me understand the fuss because I truly don't get it. You always got matching status. When I logged in months ago to Celebrity my Diamond status was auto Elite. I'm not understanding the excitement here at all. 

The difference happens when you are diamond plus or Pinnacle. Previously,  you would have been matched to elite status.  Now you will be elite plus or zenith. 

Further, this is the first time they've status matched on Silversea. 

[RCIfan1912]

23 minutes ago, steverk said:

The difference happens when you are diamond plus or Pinnacle. Previously,  you would have been matched to elite status.  Now you will be elite plus or zenith. 

Further, this is the first time they've status matched on Silversea. 

Ok, so no offense to anymore here loving this move but this is something that should have been from the very beginning. You either match status or you don't. I'm not gonna pat them on the back for this one. They were (forgive my language) screwing the top tier of the program and they fixed it. 

[WAAAYTOOO]

13 minutes ago, RCIfan1912 said:

Ok, so no offense to anymore here loving this move but this is something that should have been from the very beginning. You either match status or you don't. I'm not gonna pat them on the back for this one. They were (forgive my language) screwing the top tier of the program and they fixed it. 

I won't disagree with you in principle....but almost all loyalty programs everywhere will save their highest tiers for those who earn it with time and $$.  I totally understand your feelings on this match, in particular, since it is basically within the RCI family, but every brand wants to save their highest and most valuable loyalty levels for their most loyal customers.

I am now a Zenith X loyalty program member and I have never ever set foot on a Celebrity ship.  Do I really deserve to have a complimentary unlimited premium beverage package, unlimited premium internet package and unlimited laundry service ?  With the exception of the internet, I don't get any of those things even on Royal Caribbean.  For me, this is an incredible match.  There are a few things (minor) that don't equate that well for me (e.g., I would miss BOGO vouchers and the exclusive breakfast venues that I get on Royal) but overall, this is a winner for P to Z, IMO.

[Cakemeister]

This news made me start planning on how I can get from 150 points to 700 points, where I previously had no interest. I'm guessing this was Royal's intention.

 

 

[steverk]

58 minutes ago, RCIfan1912 said:

Ok, so no offense to anymore here loving this move but this is something that should have been from the very beginning. You either match status or you don't. I'm not gonna pat them on the back for this one. They were (forgive my language) screwing the top tier of the program and they fixed it. 

I'm certainly not offended by your comment,  but I also don't really agree with it. Whether D+ and Pinnacle were previously getting screwed or not, this is an improvement on the program and we should all be happy about it.

Also, keep in mind that Carnival Cruise Lines Inc. And NCL holdings offer no status match between brands at all. Royal Caribbean Group has long been more generous than that.

[JasonOasis]

46 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

I won't disagree with you in principle....but almost all loyalty programs everywhere will save their highest tiers for those who earn it with time and $$.  I totally understand your feelings on this match, in particular, since it is basically within the RCI family, but every brand wants to save their highest and most valuable loyalty levels for their most loyal customers.

I am now a Zenith X loyalty program member and I have never ever set foot on a Celebrity ship.  Do I really deserve to have a complimentary unlimited premium beverage package, unlimited premium internet package and unlimited laundry service ?  With the exception of the internet, I don't get any of those things even on Royal Caribbean.  For me, this is an incredible match.  There are a few things (minor) that don't equate that well for me (e.g., I would miss BOGO vouchers and the exclusive breakfast venues that I get on Royal) but overall, this is a winner for P to Z, IMO.

As much as people at the D+ or D level are not happy (fully disclosure I'm D+) I think Royal set up this status match like they did to reward pinnacle members who really were getting shafted if they took a cruise on Celebrity.

I took my first Celebrity cruise this past March and we did get status matched to Elite Plus on Celebrity (we of course didn't get any points credited to ur Royal account) but that has never been on the table.  However when doing research on the status match prior to our March cruise I thought it was interesting that Pinnacle members on Royal would only be Elite Plus on Celebrity putting them at the same status as myself a simple D+ member.

I think Royal took a measured approach with this updated status match some Crown and Anchor members are gaining a lot with the Captains club while others like myself in the D+ range there is basically no change at all.  I think that is on purpose, I think Royal still wants to keep Celebrity Cruises, Celebrity Cruises they don't want Celebrity to turn into Royal 2.0.   What I noticed on my first Celebrity cruise is just how different the entire cruise is and feels compared to a Royal Caribbean cruise. Royal isn't trying to loose the Celebrity brand or the Celebrity experience which is totally different from a Royal Caribbean cruise.   When my husband and I took our Celebrity cruise we book the all-inclusive package (which includes the classic drink package) when we booked the cruise which for a drinks and wifi package was cheap when compared to Royal's deluxe beverage package.  Although my usual favorite vodka was not included in the classic beverage package they did have a suitable alternative vodka and I didn't have to settle for Absolute.    

For people at the D or D+ level who are not happy with the small if any changes or those saying I want my free drinks not some happy hour I would say take a look a Celebrity and good long hard look at Celebrity and you will find Celebrity being a premium cruise line offers a lot of value at a fraction of the price point as a Royal Caribbean cruise especially to those unhappy about the lack of free drinks. The drink packages on Celebrity the fact they still have classic and premium gives us the consumer choices that we don't have on Royal Caribbean where we are forced to buy the DBP.  As a D+ member I'm not upset at all with the status match program.

 

[AandD]

48 minutes ago, JasonOasis said:

As much as people at the D+ or D level are not happy (fully disclosure I'm D+) I think Royal set up this status match like they did to reward pinnacle members who really were getting shafted if they took a cruise on Celebrity.

I took my first Celebrity cruise this past March and we did get status matched to Elite Plus on Celebrity (we of course didn't get any points credited to ur Royal account) but that has never been on the table.  However when doing research on the status match prior to our March cruise I thought it was interesting that Pinnacle members on Royal would only be Elite Plus on Celebrity putting them at the same status as myself a simple D+ member.

I think Royal took a measured approach with this updated status match some Crown and Anchor members are gaining a lot with the Captains club while others like myself in the D+ range there is basically no change at all.  I think that is on purpose, I think Royal still wants to keep Celebrity Cruises, Celebrity Cruises they don't want Celebrity to turn into Royal 2.0.   What I noticed on my first Celebrity cruise is just how different the entire cruise is and feels compared to a Royal Caribbean cruise. Royal isn't trying to loose the Celebrity brand or the Celebrity experience which is totally different from a Royal Caribbean cruise.   When my husband and I took our Celebrity cruise we book the all-inclusive package (which includes the classic drink package) when we booked the cruise which for a drinks and wifi package was cheap when compared to Royal's deluxe beverage package.  Although my usual favorite vodka was not included in the classic beverage package they did have a suitable alternative vodka and I didn't have to settle for Absolute.    

For people at the D or D+ level who are not happy with the small if any changes or those saying I want my free drinks not some happy hour I would say take a look a Celebrity and good long hard look at Celebrity and you will find Celebrity being a premium cruise line offers a lot of value at a fraction of the price point as a Royal Caribbean cruise especially to those unhappy about the lack of free drinks. The drink packages on Celebrity the fact they still have classic and premium gives us the consumer choices that we don't have on Royal Caribbean where we are forced to buy the DBP.  As a D+ member I'm not upset at all with the status match program.

 

I agree. The status match is good for us. We have never been on Celebrity but are looking at their itinerary's that are different then Royals. It's nice that we get some perks like sailing on Royal. 4 or 5 drinks a day is nice but we are ready to change it up a little. We have never had any problems on Royal but are ready for a change.

[JustMeJoe]

3 hours ago, WAAAYTOOO said:

For me, this is an incredible match.  There are a few things (minor) that don't equate that well for me (e.g., I would miss BOGO vouchers and the exclusive breakfast venues that I get on Royal) but overall, this is a winner for P to Z, IMO.

I agree with what you've said Raye, and it does have us thinking of "experimenting" in the future.  We've sailed X once and basically liked it, but decided to stick with RCCL for the loyalty program.  Now.....hmmm?  It appears to me (don't really know) that the Zenith Lunch takes the place of the Royal breakfast venue.  Does anyone have experience with that?

[SplashOfWater]

I'm happy that Royal has status match with its sister brands. NCL does not. 

[CruiseGus]

On 5/30/2024 at 11:12 AM, smokeybandit said:

But me earning C&A points on Celebrity to push me to the next C&A tier would.

Can we even begin to imagine the complaints about "how top heavy the loyalty structure is" if they allowed you to earn points no mater which line you sailed.  Enough complaints now about the first 12 months back from Covid when they allowed you to book double points through Dec 2022

[MisterBill]

On 5/30/2024 at 1:10 PM, USFFrank said:

Too bad Celebrity doesn't give daily drink vouchers like Royal Caribbean does. I'm in the Diamond / Elite tier and would rather have the vouchers to use as I please instead being limited to just the evening cocktail hour.

Hopefully that will change by early 2026.

 

Personally, I don't see it happening unless they make major changes to the CC program. They chose not to do it when they switched Royal from Happy Hour to vouchers during Covid. My personal feeling is that Celebrity didn't switch because it would cut into All Included bookings, since many don't need the drink package once they have the vouchers that can be used any time of the day.

I agree that the vouchers are far superior, we just got D+ with the status match change and are looking forward to five drinks a day (we already had trouble using four most days except for Coco Cay). 

[Brian Thomas]

We are Diamond Plus.  Been cruising with celebrity for awhile now getting our status to Elite Plus. We have been given that. Yes Royal benefits pretty good.  The perk we are looking forward to is unlimited speciality (certain) coffees and teas all day. 

[Riley]

It's a way to get RCL high-tier folks off the fence to try Celebrity who previously had been reluctant to give up them perks. I am now searching the Celebrity site to book, not just browse.

[RCIfan1912]

1 minute ago, Riley said:

It's a way to get RCL high-tier folks off the fence to try Celebrity who previously had been reluctant to give up them perks. I am now searching the Celebrity site to book, not just browse.

Now that I definitely agree with. I personally didn't think this is as revolutionary as people are making it seem. It's very nice, it rights a wrong. 

The fact that NCL doesn't match the they suck doesn't help. That's a separate issue. NCL sucks, we all know this already. 

[TXcruiser33]

We will earn D+ next month on our Rhapsody cruise (yea for that extra drink voucher and bag of laundry!!).

We also just booked our first Celebrity Cruise(s) - B2B next May. We did this before this new status match program was announced, but i was excited to see it when the news came out.

Now i'm just trying to figure out exactly what perks i've gained by becoming Elite+ instead of Elite on Celebrity! As best as I can tell, it's a 2nd bag of free laundry....

I definitely will miss the drink vouchers, would love unlimited coffees, other than that we're excited to try Celebrity with or without extra perks!

[Mike n Ky]

If the points had crossed over from Celebrity we would have sailed with them sooner. But we were going to stick with Royal exclusively until we hit D+ and we got there earlier this year. Pinnacle is not a goal. Three weeks from tomorrow, boarding Apex out of Southhampton on our maiden voyage with Celebrity. Appreciate the status match but which line we will sail in the future is not influenced by it.

[HeWhoWaits]

9 hours ago, Mike n Ky said:

If the points had crossed over from Celebrity

We went back to our cruise history and did a comparison of where we would be using the Celebrity point system on our Royal Caribbean cruises (best guess on which point level applied to JS on Royal). Even being generous, we would only have reached Elite under Celebrity's system while we are D+ with Royal (thus Elite+). The double C&A points coming out of Covid helped, but as a Granny Smith to Honeycrisp comparison, we would have reached D+ without those extra points on our Celebrity cruise earlier this year if that trip counted at one point per night C&A.

[smokeybandit]

Some great improvements have been made within the Crown and Anchor Society, and, according to Michael Bayley, "there's a lot more planned over the next few years."

The cruise line is currently investing in new technology to bring it all together.

 

Within the next few years, cruisers can expect to "feel happier with the loyalty program."

[WAAAYTOOO]

I just came across a post over on CC re: The Z/P status match.  The OP was an angry X cruiser who didn't care much for the addition of the Pinns at the Z luncheon.  The response to this post (from the Prez of X) pretty much confirms (last para) what we have been assuming -- The status match is intended to keep customers in the Royal Family Group.

[WAAAYTOOO]

Further clarification.  General impression:  The X Z's are NOT happy.

 

[ZootTX]

Man, some folks are waaaay too invested in their cruise line status.

[twangster]

18 minutes ago, ZootTX said:

Man, some folks are waaaay too invested in their cruise line status.

That can happen when you spend a couple of hundred thousand with a company.