Would you take a 3 day cruise to make Diamond plus

[scottie99]

My DW and I are on the maiden voyage of the Anthem in April. We are also booked on our second Azamars cruise in July.

 

When we come off Anthem, we will be 3 nights short of Diamond plus.

 

There is a 3 night cruise available on Explorer 3 weeks later. Inside cabins ( which we havnt used since our first cruises ) are available at £299 [$459). Flight to Southampton would add£220.

 

Is it worth it to do a cruise for the sole reason to reach Diamond plus?

[kruzerci]

My DW and I are on the maiden voyage of the Anthem in April. We are also booked on our second Azamars cruise in July.

 

 

 

When we come off Anthem, we will be 3 nights short of Diamond plus.

 

 

 

There is a 3 night cruise available on Explorer 3 weeks later. Inside cabins ( which we havnt used since our first cruises ) are available at £299 [$459). Flight to Southampton would add£220.

 

 

 

Is it worth it to do a cruise for the sole reason to reach Diamond plus?

 

 

If there were a 3 night cruise within driving distance for $100 a person per night, sure.

 

For an absurdly overpriced inside cabin (ick :eek:) for three nights and flights that cost almost as much as the cruise, you would be out of your mind to do it unless you were just dying to go on the cruise itself.

 

There is such little difference between Diamond and Diamond Plus, there is absolutely no reason to do it.

[Julesben]

If there were a 3 night cruise within driving distance for $100 a person per night, sure.

 

For an absurdly overpriced inside cabin (ick :eek:) for three nights and flights that cost almost as much as the cruise, you would be out of your mind to do it unless you were just dying to go on the cruise itself.

 

There is such little difference between Diamond and Diamond Plus, there is absolutely no reason to do it.

 

Pretty much my thoughts, very little difference, however cruise if you fancy the break.

[molly361]

I would not do it. The only difference between D and D+ that we liked was the CL on the Oasis class ships which is now gone.

 

Other than that the benefits are pretty much the same (except for the additional $25 balcony discount.)

[Paulxyz2004]

I cruise for the cruise / ship / ports / activities etc. not for loyalty Status. Unless the cruise you are talking about would be something I really wanted to do, as in checking out a port, or a ship I´ve not had the Chance to check out before or desperately needing a quick getaway I wouldn´t do it. Even then I´d probably consider the Price you mentioned as too much for this.

I´ve been sorta in your shoes before in looking at short getaways and most everytime it was just too much Money for it. However I would never pay that much Money just to gain the next higher loyalty Status.

[yolanda1]

I wouldn't bother, unless that particular cruise is one that you would be choosing to go on anyway, and the price is one that you are happy to pay.

 

I don't believe the RCI loyalty programme offers enough to cruise for any other reason than just enjoying the cruise itself. Personally I wouldn't do a 3 night cruise at all, but that's an individual choice.

 

If you think the benefits are worth it to you, go for it. Enjoy your other cruises! :)

 

 

.

[Summerknight]

Nope, we will be three nights away from D+ after our next two bookings. DH mentioned adding a three day to one of the cruises to get there. There is no reason to do so, as mentioned the perks are not very exciting.

[RCI Cruisers 004]

Sure...life is short, enjoy !

[powelweb]

There doesn't look to be any change in benefits on Azamara when you move from Diamond to Diamond plus on Rccl- you would still be at the "Discoverer" level with Le Club so unless you really just want to take the extra RCCL cruise to get the 3 points as other posters have noted, it doesn't seem like it would impact your July cruise.

[Big_G]

We did a last minute four to get over the hump but it was a great deal. We almost always fly to cruise so the flights and cruise price had to line up perfectly, a rare occurrence for us. If it hadn't we wouldn't have booked it.

[spookwife]

My DW and I are on the maiden voyage of the Anthem in April. We are also booked on our second Azamars cruise in July.

 

When we come off Anthem, we will be 3 nights short of Diamond plus.

 

There is a 3 night cruise available on Explorer 3 weeks later. Inside cabins ( which we havnt used since our first cruises ) are available at £299 [$459). Flight to Southampton would add£220.

 

Is it worth it to do a cruise for the sole reason to reach Diamond plus?

 

not if you have to fly. and not for that price for a lousy inside.

[Paulette3028]

My DW and I are on the maiden voyage of the Anthem in April. We are also booked on our second Azamars cruise in July.

 

When we come off Anthem, we will be 3 nights short of Diamond plus.

 

There is a 3 night cruise available on Explorer 3 weeks later. Inside cabins ( which we havnt used since our first cruises ) are available at £299 [$459). Flight to Southampton would add£220.

 

Is it worth it to do a cruise for the sole reason to reach Diamond plus?

 

We live in Florida and can drive to a port. We take 3 day cruises, because it is easy for us to do and get a little escape from the work world....I wouldn't do it if I had to add airfare....not enough of an extra incentive to make D+; so it will take a little longer to reach....the biggest extra incentive is a small extra discount on balconies after reaching D+.

[reallyhooked]

My DW and I are on the maiden voyage of the Anthem in April. We are also booked on our second Azamars cruise in July.

 

When we come off Anthem, we will be 3 nights short of Diamond plus.

 

There is a 3 night cruise available on Explorer 3 weeks later. Inside cabins ( which we havnt used since our first cruises ) are available at £299 [$459). Flight to Southampton would add£220.

 

Is it worth it to do a cruise for the sole reason to reach Diamond plus?

 

For me, not worth it.

[PSCruiser]

Since you don't have a RC cruise booked right now, you may find when you pick that cruise, maybe out of Florida, that there is a short cruise right before that will serve the purpose of getting you to D+ for the main cruise.

However, on the 3 day Explorer cruise, if you haven't been to Bruge before, its a great city to tour.

[SamFritz]

I don't see how it could possibly work out as a financial advantage. Of course there are some benefits that are about your perceived value. I wouldn't cruise just for the points.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[BecciBoo]

Actually, we did just that. It was Majesty a 3 day and 4 day b2b back in the day before they changed the point system.:D In no hurry to become Diamond Plus now though, not much incentive. Just $25 more off a cabin and the concierge lounge...wouldn't do it again unless it was dirt cheap as it was back then, the 3 day only cost us $124 each and the 4 day $279 each.

Edited March 8, 2015 by BecciBoo

[Jiffymom]

We are booked on a 7 night freedom in May with family.

Husband and I flying in by ourself early for a four day. Same airport so doesn't cost us anything extra. We will be D+ after those two,

[Bobal]

I don't think it's worth it - and I am D+. The only advantages are a little extra balcony discount, an additional gift (eg full bottle of wine), a free meal in Speciality on first night (which is usually heavily discounted anyway) and reserved seating at shows.

 

There are no extra internet minutes (as there used to be) and since almost all ships now have a D lounge and the CL benefits on Oasis class have gone, there are no extra benefits in the CL lounge.

 

If you were close to a port and liked the itinerary it may be worth considering but I wouldn't do it for an inside at what it will cost you.

[Doc Rick]

My wife and I were faced with the exact same question just a few weeks ago. We are 7 days short of D+ and have a $350 future cruise credit from a less than "Wow" experience on the Vision of the Seas last year. We wanted to escape the cold weather here in Delaware, so we searched for a last minute cruise leaving Cape Liberty, New York, or Baltimore to avoid airfare.

 

After searching, Royal Caribbean's prices were outrageous. Even though we had a $350 credit and would make the D+ mark, we just could not justify spending that much money for a cruise just to receive Diamond Plus benefits - which really isn't that much different. My wife, who has been a RC enthusiast for over 10 years, suggested we research some other cruise lines departing our area.

 

We did a quick search, and Norwegian Cruise line had a Mega Ship, the Breakaway, sailing out of New York. The Breakaway is the largest cruise ship to sail out of New York and is only about 2 years old. The cost for this cruise was only $699 per person for a mid-ship balcony on the 9th floor, and it included the Ultimate Beverage Package for the both of us in this price. This beverage package far, far exceeded the value of any Diamond benefits we receive on RC in my opinion. We do enjoy the Diamond Lounge and it's perks, but we had the freedom to drink whatever we wanted, wherever we wanted, whenever we wanted, and as much as we wanted.

 

So to answer your question... I would not simply plan a cruise just to make a tier level. As a matter of fact, I would recommend everyone try a different cruise line... just to see that RC is not the only ship in the sea. We loved the Norwegian Breakaway!

 

I am still a big fan of Royal Caribbean, but after trying Norwegian, I now know that I have many more choices in cruising -and pricing/perks plays a big roll in booking our next cruise vacation. Until Royal Caribbean gets back to more competitive pricing, we will be trying other ships and other lines - even with D+ status 1 cruise away and a $350 future cruise credit.

 

- Doc

[nednrom]

My DW and I are on the maiden voyage of the Anthem in April. We are also booked on our second Azamars cruise in July.

 

When we come off Anthem, we will be 3 nights short of Diamond plus.

 

There is a 3 night cruise available on Explorer 3 weeks later. Inside cabins ( which we havnt used since our first cruises ) are available at £299 [$459). Flight to Southampton would add£220.

 

Is it worth it to do a cruise for the sole reason to reach Diamond plus?

 

NO, not worth it.

[BillB48]

If I could make all the pieces work, I'd take a cruise because it's Sunday!! Diamond plus... all the better:D.

[A2Mich]

Ok--here's my take, and from my perspective most loyalty programs really don't offer too many extremely valuable benefits. I think that we see ourselves as the greyhound, and the rewards at stake like the carrot dangling in front of us. The cruise lines perspective is probably more like throwing their loyal dog a bone. Along the lines of "well, you've been a good boy, so here's a little treat for now."

 

Is there any one (or more) particular benefit that is that enticing to simply make you want to book a cruise to obtain? Or is it for bragging rights? Honestly, outside of Royal Caribbean circles, no one will really care what your past cruiser status is. Are you simply sticking with RCI out of blind faith to achieve this status, or do you firmly believe that this is the best product for you? BTW, I'm not making a personal attack--just throwing out some things to think about. I would also second the other suggestion to try other cruise lines' products. Maybe you will like Celebrity, Princess, HAL, etc before spending more money for no reason other than to achieve a new status level in a loyalty program. That said, I don't know how much you are contemplating spending on this short cruise, but of all of the added benefits you might receive, are these benefits REALLY monetarily worth what you are spending? Just a few ideas.

[scottie99]

Ok--here's my take, and from my perspective most loyalty programs really don't offer too many extremely valuable benefits. I think that we see ourselves as the greyhound, and the rewards at stake like the carrot dangling in front of us. The cruise lines perspective is probably more like throwing their loyal dog a bone. Along the lines of "well, you've been a good boy, so here's a little treat for now."

 

Is there any one (or more) particular benefit that is that enticing to simply make you want to book a cruise to obtain? Or is it for bragging rights? Honestly, outside of Royal Caribbean circles, no one will really care what your past cruiser status is. Are you simply sticking with RCI out of blind faith to achieve this status, or do you firmly believe that this is the best product for you? BTW, I'm not making a personal attack--just throwing out some things to think about. I would also second the other suggestion to try other cruise lines' products. Maybe you will like Celebrity, Princess, HAL, etc before spending more money for no reason other than to achieve a new status level in a loyalty program. That said, I don't know how much you are contemplating spending on this short cruise, but of all of the added benefits you might receive, are these benefits REALLY monetarily worth what you are spending? Just a few ideas.

 

Perhaps I should have pointed out, we HAVE salled previously with Carnival, HAL, Celebrity, NCL (6 times) P&O (about 10 times) Regent and Azamara.

[Sandlapper in exile]

I wanted to do a transatlantic this spring. Briefly, the prices for the Allure and the Vision were the same.

 

For the ship, I wanted to do the Allure. For the itinerary, the Vision (I've wanted to visit Gibraltar.) The Allure (a 12 nighter), however, would have left me one single point short of D+. I ended up choosing the Vision (a 15 nighter). Gib was one factor, the extra nights another, but I'd be lying if I said picking up D+ wasn't also a factor.

 

But I was wanting to do a TA anyhow. I wouldn't have spent the money just to pick up D+, and I wouldn't advocate anyone else doing it.

[Colorado Babe]

I think it is up to you whether or not it is worth it to cruise for three days to make Diamond Plus. I am also close like you and will definitely book one more cruise in June to reach that goal so that we are Diamond Plus when my husband sails with me and our friends again in September.

 

Some may question why Diamond Plus is such a big deal. My reason is because all of our friends that we cruise with are Diamond Plus and Pinnacle. My husband and I feel left out when we can't eat with them for breakfast in the Diamond Plus area in the Main Dining room and also join them in the CL when were not in suites. So, our reasons are more personal and not about the status even though they will socialize in the DL and sometimes go in the regular dining room to accommodate us in the morning for breakfast.

 

With that said. If you have the money and it means that much to you, I say go for it and enjoy your new status.