Is Your Sail Status Important To You or is it Just Another Gimmick?

We don't go around bragging about being Elite on Princess. But when we cruise on other lines without our Elite perks, we really miss them.

We do enjoy our drinks/internet perks which we have earned from our loyalty to one line which was convenient based on where we lived. Now that we have relocated/retired we are branching out to new lines and new itineraries. We did get tickled watching the Pinnacles draw their chairs into a circle in the lounge (TA so large lounge was used) and heaven forbid if anyone else though of drawing near).

The last post brings up the "bragging" issue and, unfortunately, it is alive and well on most cruise lines. DW and I enjoy socializing and meet lots of new folks (some who have become long term friends). There are some who seem to make a habit out of "boasting" about their status, their "large suite," etc. I must reluctantly admit that most seem to be fellow Americans (we have seldom heard a European play this game).

There is nowhere worse (when it comes to boasting) then on HAL which is a line upon which we have cruised over 500 days (now we are boasting). HAL runs two different recognition programs. The Mariners Club (which is similar to frequent cruiser programs on other lines) issues Stars....ranking from 1-5 (there is a 6th "secret" category called the "President's Club." HAL does issue cute little pins showing one's Star level..and there are quite a few passengers who actually wear the tacky things. And HAL has a 2nd silly program called their Medallions. They git frequent cruisers with Medallions that are about 4 inches in diameter (very tacky) which comes with a ribbon (like winning a medal in a children's swim meet. The Medallions are based on actual days cruised and they have bronze, silver, gold and platinum. They are usually awarded by the Captain at a ceremony and there are a few HAL cruisers who consider these ceremonies to be among the highlights of their cruise life :(. And then you have some "loyal HAL cruisers" who actually wear their Medallions around the ship....on the day when they have the Mariner's lunch. A few years ago HAL announced they were going to eliminate the Medallion Program....and you would have thought they had announced the end of food on HAL...the way some of these folks protested and whined. So HAL relented and still give out these worthless Medallions. I actually tried to give mine away at an onboard auction (for charity) but was told, "you are not permitted to auction off your Medallion." Some do try to sell them on Ebay (just noticed there are 2 for sale with no bids).

Another incident happened to us as we were boarding a ship at Port Everglades. We were directed to the Priority Queue (for those who have high status) and noticed that the "Priority" line had over 30 folks waiting...while the regular line (for the peons) had only 2 passengers waiting. So we simply walked over to the shortest line (for Peons) are were quickly checked-in....while the Priority folks continue to cool their heels in their very slow moving line. As we walked passed the Priority line to board to exit the room and board the vessel we heard a lady loudly exclaim....."I worked hard to get in this line (Priority) and I will be damned to go to that regular line!" I really had to laugh at that time (as DW was poking me in the ribs to shut up). The truth is that nobody "works" to get frequent cruiser perks....but rather simply spends time and money :).

Hank

I think of these little extras as perks, not status. They aren't really "important", but they are nice. And no way would I book a cruise specifically so I can get extra internet minutes or a shorter check-in time. It's just that I haven't been compelled, yet, to change lines.

And HAL has a 2nd silly program called their Medallions. They git frequent cruisers with Medallions that are about 4 inches in diameter (very tacky) which comes with a ribbon (like winning a medal in a children's swim meet. The Medallions are based on actual days cruised and they have bronze, silver, gold and platinum. They are usually awarded by the Captain at a ceremony and there are a few HAL cruisers who consider these ceremonies to be among the highlights of their cruise life :(. And then you have some "loyal HAL cruisers" who actually wear their Medallions around the ship....on the day when they have the Mariner's lunch.

The medallions look ridiculous. When I first saw them around the necks of some very elderly people, I thought I might have missed the funniest belly-flop contest ever. :D

with over 50 cruises across a few lines I've got a high level status on a few lines. I don't need to tell people on a cruise what I am but I'm very happy to have the free 240 mins internet each on celebrity and the 2 bags of washing each on ncl because it saves me money and time doing laundry when I get home. I like the free1 cabin upgrade on celebrity, it just saved me £800 on the cabin type I wanted and I'm happy to get priority tender tickets too - I've earnt every one of the benefits because I've paid for them over time. does it make me choose 1 line over another, no I will happily change cruise lines to do a b2b which means packing and unpacking for the itinerary at a price that works

Excellent post Hlitner, but I disagree on the Holland America pins. They are neither cute nor little.

The 3 star mariner "benefits" have done nothing for me after nearly 200 day credits on Holland America. I just figured out what the Mariner Society has done for me.

Annual Cruise Planner - Don't need a printed booklet.

Mariner® magazine - Worthless, can't read it. Nice and shiny magazine, though.

15% discount at shophollandamerica.com - You're kidding. What would I buy? They don't have 3 star logo wear.

Recognition pin - Shudder. Have you seen one?

Special offers on select sailings - Sometimes Mariners pay more. Isn't that Special?

50% discount on cruise fares for 3rd/4th guests (on select sailings) - If only I wanted two or three more people in my cabin!

Mariner Society Welcome Onboard Lunch - Open to everybody. HAL will update their website someday. Maybe.

Collectible gift - It's a tile. Hint: If it says it is collectible, it is nearly worthless.

Mariner Society Brunch with complimentary sparkling wine - Food onboard? That's a benefit? I don't drink wine.

Discount on select spa treatments - Doesn't include what I want, a man's haircut.

Mariner Society Welcome Onboard Reception - Must have missed this one. I still don't drink wine.

10% discount on select logo wear - They'd should pay me to advertise HAL.

25% discount on wine packages - I still don't drink it.

25% discount on specialty restaurant surcharges - I have saved $15!

25% discount on mini-bar purchases - Never took advantage of this one.

Complimentary photo of ship - Maybe 5" x 7".

In summary, I have saved $15 and I have more coasters than I can use. If I cruise another thirty some days, I could save $7/day on unlimited laundry on the following cruise.

The 3 star mariner "benefits" have done nothing for me after nearly 200 day credits on Holland America. I just figured out what the Mariner Society has done for me.

Annual Cruise Planner - Don't need a printed booklet.

Mariner® magazine - Worthless, can't read it. Nice and shiny magazine, though.

15% discount at shophollandamerica.com - You're kidding. What would I buy? They don't have 3 star logo wear.

Recognition pin - Shudder. Have you seen one?

Special offers on select sailings - Sometimes Mariners pay more. Isn't that Special?

50% discount on cruise fares for 3rd/4th guests (on select sailings) - If only I wanted two or three more people in my cabin!

Mariner Society Welcome Onboard Lunch - Open to everybody. HAL will update their website someday. Maybe.

Collectible gift - It's a tile. Hint: If it says it is collectible, it is nearly worthless.

Mariner Society Brunch with complimentary sparkling wine - Food onboard? That's a benefit? I don't drink wine.

Discount on select spa treatments - Doesn't include what I want, a man's haircut.

Mariner Society Welcome Onboard Reception - Must have missed this one. I still don't drink wine.

10% discount on select logo wear - They'd should pay me to advertise HAL.

25% discount on wine packages - I still don't drink it.

25% discount on specialty restaurant surcharges - I have saved $15!

25% discount on mini-bar purchases - Never took advantage of this one.

Complimentary photo of ship - Maybe 5" x 7".

In summary, I have saved $15 and I have more coasters than I can use. If I cruise another thirty some days, I could save $7/day on unlimited laundry on the following cruise.

HAHAH - Great Post! :D:D :D:D

I wear my status around my neck as a lanyard works for me. Doesn’t matter whether on Princess, Elite, RCI, Platinum or Carnival next week, total newbie or CMV next month again first time cruiser with them.

The only time I have flaunted my status was when a woman pushed in front of me to get a coffee, I reminded her I was before her in the line and she slammed her card on the counter and said I am Platinum. Couldn’t help myself, brought out my card I am Elite, I was here first, I win. Lol

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The 3 star mariner "benefits" have done nothing for me after nearly 200 day credits on Holland America. I just figured out what the Mariner Society has done for me.

Annual Cruise Planner - Don't need a printed booklet.

Mariner® magazine - Worthless, can't read it. Nice and shiny magazine, though.

15% discount at shophollandamerica.com - You're kidding. What would I buy? They don't have 3 star logo wear.

Recognition pin - Shudder. Have you seen one?

Special offers on select sailings - Sometimes Mariners pay more. Isn't that Special?

50% discount on cruise fares for 3rd/4th guests (on select sailings) - If only I wanted two or three more people in my cabin!

Mariner Society Welcome Onboard Lunch - Open to everybody. HAL will update their website someday. Maybe.

Collectible gift - It's a tile. Hint: If it says it is collectible, it is nearly worthless.

Mariner Society Brunch with complimentary sparkling wine - Food onboard? That's a benefit? I don't drink wine.

Discount on select spa treatments - Doesn't include what I want, a man's haircut.

Mariner Society Welcome Onboard Reception - Must have missed this one. I still don't drink wine.

10% discount on select logo wear - They'd should pay me to advertise HAL.

25% discount on wine packages - I still don't drink it.

25% discount on specialty restaurant surcharges - I have saved $15!

25% discount on mini-bar purchases - Never took advantage of this one.

Complimentary photo of ship - Maybe 5" x 7".

In summary, I have saved $15 and I have more coasters than I can use. If I cruise another thirty some days, I could save $7/day on unlimited laundry on the following cruise.

ROFL! If you post this on the HAL blog you will really upset more then a few folks. But for us, some of the HAL benefits do matter. We often purchase the wine packages, and as 5 Star Mariners we get 50% off....which saves us hundreds of dollars on longer cruises. The free laundry is also a great benefit on long cruises as neither DW or I like spending part of our cruise in a laundry room. We also get 50% discounts on the alternative restaurants which is a money saver. And now that we have reached that 5 Star Level (shhhhh....please don't tell anyone) we finally get a small discount on Internet packages (for those not familiar with HAL they do not give free internet to frequent cruisers....like on Celebrity and Princess.

Do we like the perks? Sure....they do save us money. Do we wear those perks around our necks? Nope. As to the HAL Pins....you might be right. All or our cruise pins, medallions and that other garbage has either been buried in a storage drawer at home or tossed in the garbage. My one cruise keepsake is the Diamond (faux of course) pin we got years ago from Orient Lines. Figure it might increase in value and some day be worth at least $2.

Hank

The only Cunard benefit that we definitely use is the Internet time. Priority boarding is OK, I guess, but on the Christmas cruise the VIP check-in queue is longer than the regular queue (although it probably moves faster).

The laundry discount isn't valid when you're still burning through OBC and we missed all of the cocktail parties this time.

The last post got me thinking about cocktail parties. Years ago we would go to any kind of cocktail party...even if it meant waiting in queues. But over a lot of cruises we realized that these parties (often for frequent cruisers) meant standing in a long queue, rubbing elbows with the Captain and some of the crew, being crammed into a seat in a large lounge, being given a lousy free drink, and then having to cool our heels why the Captain gave the normal speech (they are all pretty similar).

We then realized that if a lot of folks were going to those parties, the regular bars were less crowded and had great service. So why folks are waiting in line for those parties we are now sitting at our favorite bar having a much nicer cocktail in a better setting. We could care less about rubbing elbows with the Captain (even if that Captain is a friend) or other senior crew.

One recently retired HAL Captain (Halle Gundersen) was well aware of what I speak :). So on one long Prinsendam crusie he vowed to have all the 4-5 Star Mariners to his own cabin for a small cocktail party. The problem was that out of about 600 passengers,....nearly 400 fell into the 4 and 5 Star group. But he pulled it off by have around 20 small parties (it was a 62 day cruise)! Perhaps that cruise drove him to retirement :).

Hank

We enjoy the tangible benefits that have value to us. The intangible benefits like priority boarding, pins, medals, special lunches or cocktail parties are meaningless to us.

Having said that these benefits play little or no influence on our cruising habits. They are really quite minor compared to other non cruise programs or benefits that one can enjoy from TA provided OBC's

The cruise lines are so similar today. We buy on itinerary, ship, and price. Cruise line and frequent sleeper rewards don't make it to our decision tree unless there is a tie. If there is, RCI will win if this is the final decision point.

While we do enjoy some of the benefits of loyalty programs, they are not a factor in our decision process when choosing which ship we wish to vacation on.

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The medallions look ridiculous. When I first saw them around the necks of some very elderly people, I thought I might have missed the funniest belly-flop contest ever. :D

During our last HAL cruise we decided to attend the Mariner luncheon. We usually never attend but we were enjoying the MDR on the K and thought why not? We sat by a larger table in which everyone was wearing these obnoxious and tacky medallions. When the Captain sat at the table I finally realized what they were. You are right, the medallions are ridiculous. I can’t believe the people wear them at all, let alone wear them with pride.

To most it is not a matter of "status" but rather loyalty "level" with whatever benefits are associated with your level. I have never experienced someone lording their "status" over another. But based on some of the other posts in this thread, I guess I have just been lucky.

I was just looking forward to free laundry and getting on the ship to my lunch before 2 thousand other folks did. So I stay with what I have until I meet all those requirements, and then I will branch out.:).

I do wear my sail and sign card on a lanyard, not to show it off, but so I can remember where it is. I have to wear one everyday of the week on land, I kind of feel naked without it.

The perks with the different levels have become less and less desirable. Priority boarding lines are sometimes longer than first time cruisers. We pick the shortest line, in spite of the "status" line. We liked having the free bag of laundry on our last Celebrity cruise, but a $30-35 bag of laundry isn't a deal breaker or maker. A special lounge with free drinks is pretty useless if you have the drink package and is crowded. We used to get a discount on balcony or above, but now, we can usually get a better deal without using it, especially since you can't combine it with other offers. If you buy the internet purchase or get it as a free "perk" the limited "free internet" you get with your status is useless. Priority lounge for disembarkation with pastries and coffee isn't a big deal since we've already eaten and are ready to leave when we head to our station. We don't use very many of the perks that come from the status. We wear our Seapass card on a lanyard because at my age, I can easily loose 3 or four of them on any given cruise and you'd have to be standing pretty close to even notice the status on it since we are usually in a regular balcony cabin.

I have long wondered how many folks wear their house keys, car keys, and drivers license around their neck:')

Hank

You really think it's the same as carrying your housekey or DL with personal information on it? Personally, I'm not on the cruise to impress you.

If you buy the internet purchase or get it as a free "perk" the limited "free internet" you get with your status is useless.

We have status on Carnival which gives us free laundry, priority boarding/tendering/guest services line, and some bottled water. These are nice to have, particularly on longer cruises. These perks aren't a factor in which cruise lines we choose and aren't even missed as we cruise other lines.

However, MSC has a loyalty match program, offered as a lure to get experienced cruisers on their brand new ships sailing the Caribbean. My Carnival Diamond tranlated into MSC's top level Black Card, and that along with the low introductory cabin fares convinced me to give the Seaside a try.

I feel it's a nice thing when a company shows appreciation for the money I've spent with them. Now if only cruiselines would give free cruises like airlines give free flights for frequent flyer miles......sigh.

You really think it's the same as carrying your housekey or DL with personal information on it? Personally, I'm not on the cruise to impress you.

Many many cruisers of all types of levels carry their ship account card in a necklace type lanyard, but I've never read a post about how the entry level folk are showing off. I mean, imputing a motive to impress when that cruiser has used the lanyard from cruise 1 is spurious.

We pick a cruise for its ports. However, with diamond/elite status on RCC and Celebrity, if cruise-lines have similar ports we opt for the lines where we have status, Why? We love the free drinks. On our recent Celebrity cruise, the drink offer did not include embarkation night so my husband and I each got one glass of wine at the bar. Cost? $22.00...which in my mind is a good reason to sail where perks are available.