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18 minutes ago, Another_Critic said:

Hopefully they don't change the P->Z benefits to "enhance your cruise experience".

They would actually have to elevate the P benefits to match the Z benefits, and I doubt they are going to do that. The president of X stated (twice) in a web video today that the Z benefits would absolutely not change as a result of the matching program.

33 minutes ago, cruise wizard said:

 

We essentially made the break from Royal to Celebrity over a year ago - this is just frosting on the cake. Celebrity suites are just out of our budget - so not experiencing the full Zenith benefits.

We tend to prefer to sail on the older and smaller ships, and suites on those are more in our price range. When we decided to book the 11 night southern on Ascent, the cost/day of a sky suite was more than double the cost/day of a sky suite on Equinox, so we settled on a Prime Concierge Suite. Zenith status makes that compromise much more doable on the Edge class ships.

31 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

Exactly!  Well said!   🙂   It goes both ways.  😉 

Couldn’t have come at a better time for us. Already starting to shift our cruise focus away from RCL to Celebrity and Silversea, and this change just makes it easier to do. Not really any benefit on the Silversea end, and since we always sail in suites, the Zenith benefits are nice, but really don’t make or break our decisions.😇

27 minutes ago, little britain said:

My guy is just downgrading me to Cruise only and saving me $800.

You win! 

Ours is an 11 night cruise ($840/pp), so we both win😇

21 hours ago, little britain said:

No it’s not a requirement - it’s a choice. 
 

2 of my cruises are sold out so I don’t have an option to reprice to cruise only; but I am just checking out the 3rd… 

Just got of the phone with Celebrity - removing the AI internet and drink package and repricing to cruise only just saved us $1,680 on our Ascent cruise for next December😇

1 hour ago, TourDeCruise said:

What do they mean by Diamond Plus and Pinnacle Club amenities that I highlighted below? Are those the personal amenities that we choose pre-cruise to enjoy during the cruise such as soda, beer, wine, cookies, etc.?

That is my understanding. You would, however, receive the same on board benefits as any other Pinnacle - internet, drink vouchers, etc.

1 hour ago, PhillyFan33579 said:

No one has said anything about the loyalty programs being combined. 

I don't view this as a combination, just a leveling up of programs based on the intensity of cruising activity.

24 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

The Pinnacles really make out with the free Deluxe Beverage Package vs 6 free drinks.  Not to mention free laundry and free Premium WiFi.  I do not see a lot of Zenith's rushing to Royal Caribbean sailins as a result of this, but I do see a lot of Pinnacles headed to Celebrity

Zenith benefits are definitely better than Pinnacle benefits. On RCL, the internet is only comp’d on Oasis class. Quantum class, and Icon class ships. Laundry perk is the same on both lines, and the drink package is a big plus on X.

3 hours ago, little britain said:

The cruises come with the packages as standard

Is AI a U.K requirement? In the U.S. we have the choice of cruise only or AI. If I can drop the AI internet and drinks add-ons and revert to cruise only on our Ascent cruise it will save us almost $1,500.😇

2 minutes ago, smokeybandit said:

I still show as Elite on Celebrity, so I guess they haven't updated everything yet.

Mine is updated in the app, but hasn't updated yet on the website.

5 minutes ago, lovesthebeach2 said:

My celebrity status is showing Elite+ now too!  So who has a list of what the benefits are?  We’re on Adventure now on a sea day and internet isn’t that great to try to find it. 

See my post #23 in this thread.

1 minute ago, The Fun Researcher said:

If only Celebrity would do drink vouchers starting at Elite, like Royal does with Diamond and above.  That would make Celebrity MUCH more enticing for us versus the way it is now.

 

Diamond on Royal blows Elite out of the water IMO.

Celebrity also just updated their Elite benefits, and the way I read it, the happy hour is now honored every evening, and at any bar on board (although the wording was not all that clear.)

6 minutes ago, little britain said:

Off to cancel the Premium drinks package upgrade and the wifi upgrade! Save a few $$

 

I have 3 X cruises booked so very happy with this news!

 

The cruises usually come with basic drinks package and wifi when we book them.

Please post back on how that works out or if there are any glitches. We don't have an X cruise booked where it will make a difference until December 2025, but if we can drop the drink and internet packages sooner than later, maybe it will save us a few $$

2 minutes ago, molly361 said:

I have a group one booked with my TA that comes with the perks as well but I just checked and if I downgrade to the regular rate without the perks it will cost MORE!!

Is that because it was a group booking, or possibly because it was booked a long time ago before prices went up.

9 minutes ago, molly361 said:

Zenith gets WIFI and the Premium Drink package correct?

Captain's Club benefits brochure:

Captain-Clubs-Benefits-Brochure-V8.pdf

Just now, Tlbecker1 said:

My Celebrity app has listed Zenith for over a week.  I honestly thought it was an IT glitch until I received the email today.

Ours haven't updated yet. Not sailing on X again until next January, and already booked in a Retreat suite, so no rush for us.

6 minutes ago, Starry Eyes said:

They have excluded retreat lounge access from the reciprocal benefits list (except when staying in Retreat or if exception is made at sole discretion of X)

Which is essentially the same suite lounge restriction on RCL when there are too many Pins on board.

It will be interesting to see how long it takes for my X account to update, but it will definitely move a few people to the other two cruise lines😇

😎Just got this email from Celebrity:

SHARED STATUS FOR  OUR LOYAL MEMBERS

We’re elevating our loyalty status match program to give you the best benefits at sea. Captain’s Club members will now receive one-for-one tier matching across all three Royal Caribbean Group brands: Celebrity Cruises®, Royal Caribbean®, and now also Silversea®. This shared status gives you more benefits than ever before, and more ways to see the world—with more than 50 incredible ships sailing to nearly 1,000 destinations.

Find your Celebrity Cruises Captain’s Club tier below and discover your loyalty match for Crown & Anchor Society® and Venetian Society.

Please allow up to seven days for your status to take effect. Onboard status match benefits begin June 5, 2024.

We’ve updated Captain's Club Terms and Conditions including disclosures on how your data will be shared with other brands within the Royal Caribbean Group, as well as our dispute resolution process. By using our website, or the Captain's Club program, you agree to be bound by these updated Terms and Conditions.

START ENJOYING ONE-FOR-ONE TIER  MATCHING BENEFITS BY ENROLLING TODAY.

ENROLL NOW   FAQS

Please review the loyalty match terms and conditions for full details on eligible benefits. Some benefit exclusions may apply.

23 hours ago, island lady said:

 

Yup...same as us we never go over our six.   With the ship giving us 3 bottles of wine, the ability to bring on two more (though we never do an longer) AND the six person drinks per day.  Hick...  🤪

 

IMHO...for us...any more than that, time for me to find the nearest AA meeting.  😄 

Forgot all about the wine. When we do our typical B2B’s, we always come home with 2-3 bottles left over. We’re just not big drinkers any more.

33 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

Unfortunately the "freebie" beer for suites is now cheap domestic.  Yes, you can still get Heineken (And Bucky's favorite Stella) but you will have to use a voucher or pay for it.  😞  

 

Yes...another RCI cut back as the prices still keep going up.  😣

Good thing we rarely drink enough in a day to ever go through our freebies…😇

On 11/16/2023 at 9:04 AM, island lady said:

Heads up on the selection of the "free beer/wine" during the 11 -11 for full suites.  

 

DH used to enjoy his Heineken and Stella for that time slot, now it is limited to canned (U.S) domestic cheap beer.  And the wine...OMG...awful!!  It's their own label brand.  Really bad.  

 

Luckily had plenty of vouchers to use during those hours.  

 

This was the case on Wonder last week.  Not sure if all Oasis class ships have gone to that, but I am assuming they have.  Yet another RCI cut back.  😖

We have never had a problem getting Heineken in the suite lounges on any Oasis class ship (including Wonder) during the 11 AM - 11 PM hours, but then we haven't sailed on her so far this year.

On 5/8/2024 at 10:00 AM, sadiwest said:

It states they can only be used toward fare on a newly booked cruise, but I know people have spoken about using them to pay ob accounts. 

They can only be used to reduce the cruise cost when initially booking the cruise - they cannot be used for on board expenses.

If you want to purchase a gift card that can be used on board for expenses, you need to purchase it directly from Royal Caribbean.

1 hour ago, cruiseguy1016 said:

 

Why would Disneyland have a balloon with a Royal Caribbean logo on it? 😁

 

Maybe a Mickey Mouse company needs a Mickey Mouse balloon😄

3 minutes ago, Vacuum49 said:

We are sailing on Indy from Miami on Mon 9/16. We fly in to FLL on Sun 9/15. Which is prefered to stay? We are a party of 6 or we can split up for transfers. Thanks

The biggest challenge is getting between anywhere in Fort Lauderdale and the port of Miami. The last time we sailed out of Miami, it took us almost an hour to get to the port after we crossed the Miami city limit. Every major roadway leading to the port is seemingly under construction, and traffic moved so slowly that a 90 year old with a walker could have passed us in a blur😱. We would still do a pre cruise in FLL, just plan on leaving for the port really early on cruise day.

The downside to staying pre-cruise in Miami is the hotels close to the port are outrageously overpriced.

18 minutes ago, BirdTravels said:

Yup. That magic “line in the sand” on a small island makes everything safe. All of the Haitians crossing in to the DR every day are magically all good people once they cross the border. 

The DR has been quite vigilant in sending them all back as soon as they are caught entering without a valid visa.