LobsterStalker

Absolutely reasonable assessment If I lived 25 minutes from port I'm sure I'd have reached D+ by now instead of just reaching D The cost to cruise for me is almost doubled by the time we Fly , nights in hotels pre and post , food , transportation ... I envy your situation !

And my suggestion is that you could take that up with the Pool Attendant I.E. the guy in charge of the situation , because he disagrees with you. Happy Sailing

All reasonable possibilities and opinions !! Wow I'm impressed I was starting to believe my rationality was outnumbered 100-1 on this thread It seems like it may be more like 100-5 ... Cheers :)

I concur with your reasonable assessment Cheers

A lot of closed minded people on here that only choose to see one side of the story ... Their side Yes , clearly a problem exists , and I agree , clearly there are steps that could be taken in the right direction , but blanket policies that supersede the ability for people who act with common sense to do so , are not the answer

Based on what you just said , you are already being classed a "chair hog " by many... many in this thread ! Cheers

Do you believe if the attendant says that is acceptable , that he is wrong and you are right ? What else do you propose if DW and I sit in the theatre and grab a spot 40 minutes before showtime and 20 minutes later I go for a bathroom break that she should be accosted when she tells someone the seat is occupied ..?

You are kinda making my point for me ... Even though I am abiding by what the attendants are telling me is perfectly acceptable , you are insinuating that I should just take the time to pack everything up and lug towels , water bottles , sunscreen backpack to go grab a byte. There is nothing wrong with making your chair your base of operation for the day if you are using it properly and not abusing as many many do ! We spend the majority of every day by the pool ,and shouldn't get caught in the crossfire Cheers

I understand what you are saying completely , but that doesn't change the fact that "chair hog" is becoming such a stereotyped term , that people who are acting 'reasonably ' get wrongfully lumped into the category . To fix the "problem " to the satisfaction of the ones with the most extreme views on the subject , would mean that maybe 10% of people who use the chairs could do so as they are meant to be used . Some people seem to think it's like musical chairs and as soon as your A$$ leaves the cushion they should have the right to claim it.

Based on what you stated happened with your 2 daughters , doesn't it stand to reason that his should revert back to platinum ? or maybe Emerald if he reaches that on his own by then ?

Hard for me to count all the ways I disagree with above statements... but I'll give it a go ! >>> "stuck "... your description , not mine . Perks do mean a lot to people and how they make choices . Do I believe some put too much weight into that aspect ... ABSOLUTELY ! I never claimed that their decision would be right or wrong , just that it would be the decision of many . >>> "perceiving" Royal to be the best for you and not being willing to venture out could be very inconclusive. Not telling you what to do with your vacation dollars by any means , and if you are happy where you are that is the main thing . I have done 13 cruises , 12 being with Royal for just this reason , we have always had good experience , however , we did take one cruise with NCL and were pleasantly surprised that there were several things that actually beat Royal in our opinion. Since then we have been very open minded about other lines , if the right situation presented ! The value of our loyalty perks is just one of many factors to go into those decisions >>> "fixed income"... Don't disagree that a lot are , but disregarding the ones who do have the means would be shortsighted . But more than any of that the simple fact that people receive perks and recognition makes them feel special.. and obviously the more perks the better . Just out of the blue taking those status away (especially to reward in some way those who have not earned it ) would feel like a slap in the face that many would simply not tolerate . Do people get too caught up in status ? as I said ...ABSOLUTELY ! but that is why the lines know how important they are . Cheers Happy sailing !

Exactly ... No reason !! yet it is common practice. My only guess is that they think if people knew they were going to get assigned a time which can easily be 2 hours outside of their normal dining time, that maybe they would reconsider and book a different cruise ...? This way they at least have you aboard , and just have to deal with the ramifications on the spot...? Seems like a shortsighted business practice but I have no other guess. Also , I had no idea that MTD went back that far . I'm assuming they rolled that out on the Oasis class then maybe ? Our first Oasis class was 2019

I only received 1 E mail ... refund posted today Cheers

"The Chef’s Choice gift is exclusive to Diamond, Diamond Plus and Pinnacle Club members on 5+ night sailings. Gift and frequency of delivery to the stateroom varies by ship and length of sailing" I am diamond for my upcoming sailing .. can someone explain this part to me as it seems rather vague. And is this something I need to request or is it supposed to be automatic ? Thx Cheers

I never attempted MTD before the shutdown and can only speak to the disaster I have witnessed in the 3 cruises since returning last fall. Also noteworthy ... It is not just MTD that is all mucked up as you stated , because of this , but it has also apparently led to the overpromising of Early TD spots that aren't actually available. I'm 3 for 3 since return showing up with Confirmed? Early dining only to show up to find I have no table at all !! And a herd of people in line to resolve the same ... Makes no sense If they were operating this smoothly at one point and can no longer seem to get it right , but for now it's a ***** show Cheers

You either don't understand the change or do understand and want to fire people up with the exaggeration ! Most here do acknowledge the change ,however , it's just not the imaginary change you are speaking of . I have experienced the new policy and found it to be quite silly , but I have not yet heard 1 person here claim that anyone told them they had to clean their plate... but simply that you can't be served 2 entrees at the same time. Get your first entree...look at it...change your mind ... tell them you are done with it and they'll take it away and bring your second one ASAP ! Facts matter Cheers

The simple reason that NCL 'Freestyle' dining works (and works well) is because there whole dining system is geared that way ! Royal on the other hand wants to compete with NCL on this issue , but is unwilling to drop traditional dining altogether... Based on the number of complaints and what I've experienced recently ,Trying to merge the 2 systems clearly has too many faults and needs to be adressed ! Cheers

You must be drinkin the Kool aid if you believe that one... Start resetting pinnacles status to gold , they'll still cruise , but it won't be with Royal !!

One way to limit would be to set the rule that if you are a spouse who has been grandfathered that you would have to travel with the person you actually got the benefit from ... There are many approaches

Maybe I used the wrong phrase with " taking advantage "..? Those examples you are giving are all paying passengers , Earning their points within the framework of the loyalty program . Disclaimer >> I have not read the policies other than what was quoted earlier , but According to the verbiage presented from Royal that people have quoted earlier in the thread , it seems to me as though there has been a lot of oversight on Royal's part when it comes to enforcing how the rules regarding minors is supposed to be , and also a lot of poor judgement on their part in allowing all the extra tier matching along the way . JMHO , but to me its common sense that someone taking their first cruise ever after marrying a D or D+ should not be able to then divorce and have status matched for life , and also could pass it on to 5 new minors in the process...and to make it even more ludicrous , again , based on what was stated earlier in this thread ..it's even possible to spread the wealth in the same manor just by being in a 'relationship '?? Hmmm.. ??? Cheers... P.S. I guess to actually answer your question , It should stop at Paying Loyal passengers

I have long thought that the current system as it stands is like a pyramid scheme that has to eventually reach its breaking point. The frustrating point for me is that DW and I are just reaching Diamond.. the old fashioned way, and are looking forward to the few useful benefits that has to offer . It is clear Royal is currently revamping a lot of services with cost cutting in mind. So it stands to reason they need to take a hard look at changes (or enforcement) to C&A as well . As I see it there 2 logical options 1) Reduce the benefits for ALL (including of course all the loyal customers who got to their tiers by actually earning it ) or 2) Reduce the number of beneficiaries by attempting to weed out the undeserving and those who have been allowed to take advantage of the system . A lot of people complaining about kids status demotions etc. will be complaining a lot more if option number 1 kicks in . ...If it is a choice between 1 & 2 , I certainly hope option number 2 is explored fully first !! Cheers

I disagree that it isn't clear what the appropriate status would be . It states "adjusted back".. so if not that doesn't mean adjusted to their actual points earned what would the 'back' possibly be referring to ?

Be prepared for some level of disappointment if you are comparing to NCL. In my opinion they have it right , and Royal has it VERY wrong ! There are other threads on the subject that will enlighten you GL Cheers

From what I've seen , all or at least most !

It most definitely is a huge problem However the solution is not as easy as you may think without a LOT of collateral damage and pissed off people . For example we are usually at the pool around 7:30-8 AM , and generally will spend most of the day there . Maybe an hour after we get there is when we will take a break and go grab a quick breakfast at windjammer .... Should our belongings be removed ? Should we not leave our things ? Well if you say yes, you are wrong according to the attendants we have spoken to . They have explained that is perfectly acceptable. Take it a different direction ... Someone claims their chair and decides to go cool off in the pool. Pool becomes a social interaction and they end up being 2 hours chatting . Should they come back to a chair with strangers where their belongings were ? If so , what was the cutoff before they became a hog ? Is it like go feed the meter every 20 minutes ? Sit down for a minimum of 30 minutes before you venture back to the pool ? It is a complex problem with no easy solution , hence the reason the problem exists at the level it does ! Cheers