First time as Diamond question

[Jt4428]

5 hours ago, meadowlander said:

If you are asking about Cape Liberty, there is no special treatment for diamond. Boarding times are not enforced, not looked at in Bayonne. You will check in and be assigned to a seating area close to the escalators & elevator if the boarding process has not begun. Once it does begin, those sitting in row 1 board first followed by each row behind regardless of loyalty status, regardless of scheduled boarding time.

 

There is an area for key, pinnacle & suite guests, They do get priority boarding.

We went out of bayonne last week. Quickest boarding ever!

[toxicfairy]

6 hours ago, OCSC Mike said:

 

If you were a teacher here in Florida (like my wife who is in her 24th year I think), you'd still consider yourself a schlub for the amount of work and bureaucracy you'd be dealing with for subpar pay and lack of benefits.

 

Don't sell yourself short; my impression from over the years is that paras can be very important.

 

P.S. I think most of us knew what you meant.

Lol I've worked as a Para for 22 yrs now. Special education ( mostly non verbal  severe autism with  extreme behaviors). Pay is stupid low but benefits are good. 

[Jingerwoppy]

I think we've learned from prior experiences that you can never be sure how things will go. Just when you think you've got it figured out, there's some issue that arises and it can change things We just go at our assigned time and we generally expect to not have a hiccup but we understand it's possible.  

[island lady]

13 hours ago, doghog said:

Jason T. Liberty. Pay more for less. We should be use to it by now since that's been the norm for the last three years. 🤬

 

LOL...I am just taking my cruise money elsewhere...which is a shame after 20 years of loyalty.  I have no reason to be loyal to RCI any longer with all the cutbacks.  Viking is definitely not cheap, but they value their customers.  I want that again from a cruise line.  This one...sadly, does not care about their long time cruisers any longer.  

[BNBR]

1 hour ago, island lady said:

 

LOL...I am just taking my cruise money elsewhere...which is a shame after 20 years of loyalty.  I have no reason to be loyal to RCI any longer with all the cutbacks.  Viking is definitely not cheap, but they value their customers.  I want that again from a cruise line.  This one...sadly, does not care about their long time cruisers any longer.  

 

We took some time off from cruising and have one coming up now. The pricing of drinks/dining packages, etc all insane.  Really bad taste in my mouth about Royal. But should be a fine cruise anyways (Crown Loft). I'm not sure we'll be loyal anymore after this one though.  I miss the classier style of cruising.

[joeyancho]

We have recently sailed from Los Angeles,  Miami, and Galveston.   There is no priority boarding for diamond plus.  Another casualty of the pandemic along with civilty. 

[doghog]

2 hours ago, island lady said:

 

LOL...I am just taking my cruise money elsewhere...which is a shame after 20 years of loyalty.  I have no reason to be loyal to RCI any longer with all the cutbacks.  Viking is definitely not cheap, but they value their customers.  I want that again from a cruise line.  This one...sadly, does not care about their long time cruisers any longer.  

But you guys had a blast getting there. Even with a broken foot. 😉 

[island lady]

4 hours ago, BNBR said:

 

We took some time off from cruising and have one coming up now. The pricing of drinks/dining packages, etc all insane.  Really bad taste in my mouth about Royal. But should be a fine cruise anyways (Crown Loft). I'm not sure we'll be loyal anymore after this one though.  I miss the classier style of cruising.

 

So do we, hence the switch to classier lines.  Sigh...yes, more money, but tired of the degradation of RCI.  

[meadowlander]

5 hours ago, joeyancho said:

We have recently sailed from Los Angeles,  Miami, and Galveston.   There is no priority boarding for diamond plus.  Another casualty of the pandemic along with civilty. 

The changed in civility began before the pandemic. Early 2017, perhaps a few months before.

[RRTcruiser]

Yep civility improved early 2017

[Tatka]

On 8/26/2023 at 9:01 AM, island lady said:

 

LOL...I am just taking my cruise money elsewhere...which is a shame after 20 years of loyalty.  I have no reason to be loyal to RCI any longer with all the cutbacks.  Viking is definitely not cheap, but they value their customers.  I want that again from a cruise line.  This one...sadly, does not care about their long time cruisers any longer.  

I don’t know. We are only D+ , but we enjoy RCI. Honestly we were not loyal, but benefits that come with their program are nice. 
Viking may be nice, but they don’t have so many ships we can reach easily.. and entertainment isn’t as good. Maybe for occasional trip they will work, not for 5 a year.

[LobsterStalker]

13 minutes ago, Tatka said:

I don’t know. We are only D+ , but we enjoy RCI. Honestly we were not loyal, but benefits that come with their program are nice. 
Viking may be nice, but they don’t have so many ships we can reach easily.. and entertainment isn’t as good. Maybe for occasional trip they will work, not for 5 a year.

Curious . Have you been on Viking ? Do you know entertainment is not as good ?

 

Cheers

[Tatka]

14 minutes ago, LobsterStalker said:

Curious . Have you been on Viking ? Do you know entertainment is not as good ?

 

Cheers

In comparison to Royal even most mass market pales. Luxury and near luxury lines have different priorities. I never sailed on Viking, but many of my friends and family do sail. 

[island lady]

9 hours ago, Tatka said:

I don’t know. We are only D+ , but we enjoy RCI. Honestly we were not loyal, but benefits that come with their program are nice. 
Viking may be nice, but they don’t have so many ships we can reach easily.. and entertainment isn’t as good. Maybe for occasional trip they will work, not for 5 a year.

 

We adored RCI perks when we turned D+, and were even able to access the CL when we did, which was a big draw for us.  There were so many nice perks with turning that level, and then the 340 (which was 350 at the time) was even nicer with more perks.  

 

Now....not so much.  I guess you have to have been there at the time.  Even Pinnacle is being curtailed now too.  

 

We hardly ever go to the shows any longer on RCI, too many repeats.  I won't miss it on Viking. 

 

We have 5 booked with Viking over the next two years....but they are much longer than week long cruises.  😉 

[Engineroom Snipe]

On 8/25/2023 at 12:44 PM, jbooth2099 said:

We are Coal on  this trip coming up, which I assume is Pre-Diamond.  We were told to wait in the parking lot until everyone else gets on board and then we will be let on once we clear inspection for lice.

 

 

You will also get a great perk:

 

A behind the scenes tour with the engineering officer as he gives you hands-on exclusive operator's rights to the MSD (Marine Sanitation Device) control area. This is once in a lifetime privilege to make sure that the vacuum flushes make it to their final resting place keeping everything shipshape for your fellow passengers.

 

Please make sure to dress accordingly (Tyvek hazmat suite, preferably dress white on formal night and matching organically filtered face-mask is recommended but not required).

 

You must sign a waiver to be eligible for this 16 hour tour and everyone in your tour party must be present for the entire tour. There are no age limits but everyone participating is expected to be able to pull their weight and your hands will be checked for callouses. Those with observable callouses will be made honorary officers and supplied a keepsake whip which will have to be surrendered to the captain before being cleared on the final day of the cruise.

 

🤣

[Tatka]

2 hours ago, island lady said:

 

We adored RCI perks when we turned D+, and were even able to access the CL when we did, which was a big draw for us.  There were so many nice perks with turning that level, and then the 340 (which was 350 at the time) was even nicer with more perks.  

 

Now....not so much.  I guess you have to have been there at the time.  Even Pinnacle is being curtailed now too.  

 

We hardly ever go to the shows any longer on RCI, too many repeats.  I won't miss it on Viking. 

 

We have 5 booked with Viking over the next two years....but they are much longer than week long cruises.  😉 

 

It is only natural that with higher number of cruisers reach level benefits cannot be at the same level. Can you imagine overcrowded Suite Lounge with all D+ ? We are completely fine with it. We just take d'oeuvres and use our drink and find some place near large windows. In VCL for example or somewhere else.

 

We do 11 dayer to Southern Caribbean in January, 12 dayer to Southern Caribbean in March, 7 dayer to Bahamas in May/June, 9 dayer to New England/Canada in September and 7 day cruise to Bahamas on Thanksgiving.

[island lady]

3 hours ago, Tatka said:

 

It is only natural that with higher number of cruisers reach level benefits cannot be at the same level. Can you imagine overcrowded Suite Lounge with all D+ ? We are completely fine with it. We just take d'oeuvres and use our drink and find some place near large windows. In VCL for example or somewhere else.

 

We do 11 dayer to Southern Caribbean in January, 12 dayer to Southern Caribbean in March, 7 dayer to Bahamas in May/June, 9 dayer to New England/Canada in September and 7 day cruise to Bahamas on Thanksgiving.

 

Actually D+ never had access to the SL.   The SLs went in as replacements for the almost defunct CLs.  Still find a few CLs on the smaller ships, but all the new ones now are SLs.   On the ships that still have the old CL, D+ were permanently kicked out a few months ago.   And now even Pinnacles don't have access if their numbers are over the "threshold" determined by each ship.  

 

Since the voucher program went in, we no longer venture into the CL or SL...or even DL except for early morning coffee.  Like you, our go to for happy hour is usually the VCL.  

[frank808]

On 8/28/2023 at 1:58 AM, island lady said:

 

We adored RCI perks when we turned D+, and were even able to access the CL when we did, which was a big draw for us.  There were so many nice perks with turning that level, and then the 340 (which was 350 at the time) was even nicer with more perks.  

 

Now....not so much.  I guess you have to have been there at the time.  Even Pinnacle is being curtailed now too.  

 

We hardly ever go to the shows any longer on RCI, too many repeats.  I won't miss it on Viking. 

 

We have 5 booked with Viking over the next two years....but they are much longer than week long cruises.  😉 

We got to access the CL as D+ for maybe 4 cruises and then got the boot if not sailing in GS or better.

 

Cutbacks to D+ benefits such as wine choices, bridge tours, galley tours, etc. with an INCREASE in prices has wife and I choosing MSC YC. We will still cruise RCL just that the D+ status does not hold any weight anymore. Would be a P by now if we did not sail with MSC. Have noticed the erosion of benefits for P status level, so we are more willing to sail on other lines. 3 years ago we would be sailing 90% of our cruises on a RCl ship now it is more like 50/50.

 

Hope to meet you in person one day.

[yogimax]

13 hours ago, frank808 said:

We got to access the CL as D+ for maybe 4 cruises and then got the boot if not sailing in GS or better.

 

Cutbacks to D+ benefits such as wine choices, bridge tours, galley tours, etc. with an INCREASE in prices has wife and I choosing MSC YC. We will still cruise RCL just that the D+ status does not hold any weight anymore.

The biggest losers (IMHO) over the last decade have been D+ members.  We also enjoyed the CL on Anthem until we were tossed out.  Also gone... bridge tours, meal with an officer (now cheers), galley tours, priority check-in, beer removed as an amenity, etc..

 

Yet, we still have some nice perks... three free bottles of wine, 10 drinks a day (for both of us), free photos, laundry, balcony discount, etc..

 

Maybe it's inertia, but (for now) we're sticking with RCCL.

[OCSC Mike]

1 minute ago, yogimax said:

Yet, we still have some nice perks... three free bottles of wine, 10 drinks a day (for both of us), free photos, laundry, balcony discount, etc..

 

Maybe it's inertia, but (for now) we're sticking with RCCL.

 

We turn D+ after our next cruise and I'm very much looking forward to some of the above perks (plus 2 BOGO meals and 4 days of free internet between the 2 of us).

 

Until I have anything remotely close to a bad cruise or I can't get what I consider reasonable prices, I'm not going anywhere.

[doghog]

10 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

 

We turn D+ after our next cruise and I'm very much looking forward to some of the above perks (plus 2 BOGO meals and 4 days of free internet between the 2 of us).

 

Until I have anything remotely close to a bad cruise or I can't get what I consider reasonable prices, I'm not going anywhere.

Plus you can't miss what you never had. 

[pcur]

On 8/25/2023 at 5:13 AM, toxicfairy said:

I remember seeing different lines and different wait areas to board. But it's been a few years. This will be first cruise as Diamond.  Will there be a different line or wait area? I know people who have sailed many times and are higher c&a status act like it's no big deal but for us shlubs that can only cruise once every few years it is a big deal. 

TIA

It's always a big deal to me to have priority boarding.  I appreciate it!!  I was dismayed when they eliminated priority boarding for D and D+, because it's one of C&A perks that is very meaningful.  

 

But, at least they are letting the C&A upper level members board first according to their level.

[bucfan2]

18 hours ago, frank808 said:

We got to access the CL as D+ for maybe 4 cruises and then got the boot if not sailing in GS or better.

 

Cutbacks to D+ benefits such as wine choices, bridge tours, galley tours, etc. with an INCREASE in prices has wife and I choosing MSC YC. We will still cruise RCL just that the D+ status does not hold any weight anymore. Would be a P by now if we did not sail with MSC. Have noticed the erosion of benefits for P status level, so we are more willing to sail on other lines. 3 years ago we would be sailing 90% of our cruises on a RCl ship now it is more like 50/50.

 

Hope to meet you in person one day.

We appreciate each and every cruise, and if/when we don't - we're done. That being said, the cutback of the bridge and galley tour (as well as priority boarding) was a tough pill to swallow. I do let each concierge we meet know our disappointment. 
 

We are beginning to book other lines in addition to RCL. What used to be 100% Royal has become 70/30.  I see next year closer to 50/50, and won't be surprised if we continue the trend.  Reaching Pinn is near, but that means little to us (our goal is to be Pinn for at least 5 years before anyone even knows).

Edited September 1, 2023 by bucfan2

[Engineroom Snipe]

3 hours ago, bucfan2 said:

We appreciate each and every cruise, and if/when we don't - we're done. That being said, the cutback of the bridge and galley tour (as well as priority boarding) was a tough pill to swallow. I do let each concierge we meet know our disappointment. 
 

We are beginning to book other lines in addition to RCL. What used to be 100% Royal has become 70/30.  I see next year closer to 50/50, and won't be surprised if we continue the trend.  Reaching Pinn is near, but that means little to us (our goal is to be Pinn for at least 5 years before anyone even knows).

I, like yourself, just want a good, solid cruise. Pay attention to the little things and I do not care about any perks. I was a "nothing" before they even invented Crown and Anchor on my first cruise and I think I enjoyed everything about it more than all of the "points" they have given me since then.

[island lady]

On 8/31/2023 at 11:23 PM, frank808 said:

We got to access the CL as D+ for maybe 4 cruises and then got the boot if not sailing in GS or better.

 

Cutbacks to D+ benefits such as wine choices, bridge tours, galley tours, etc. with an INCREASE in prices has wife and I choosing MSC YC. We will still cruise RCL just that the D+ status does not hold any weight anymore. Would be a P by now if we did not sail with MSC. Have noticed the erosion of benefits for P status level, so we are more willing to sail on other lines. 3 years ago we would be sailing 90% of our cruises on a RCl ship now it is more like 50/50.

 

Hope to meet you in person one day.

 

Me too Frank.  And was so happy to hear you and and your family are safe.  🙂 

 

Yup, pretty much done with RCI now.  Just need to sail on what we had booked in the past, but not booking with them any longer.  All our last few new booking have been with other lines, mostly Viking.