Tell me about 'Member Cruises'. Just booked one for Nov '12. Good or bad? lol

[ChristieNJ]

Hi everyone! I've never booked a Members Cruise before, however we are booked on one for next November of 2012. Not quite sure what to expect...can you shed some light on the good, the bad, and the ugly?? :p TIA

[reallyitsmema]

We did a members cruise on the Jewel last year. We booked because it was the only week that worked with our schedule, not because it was a members cruise. There were over 1,200 C&A members on board. There was a welcome meeting in the theatre at 3pm before we left port that had a lot of raffles. It was the "good" RCL stuff like umbrellas, luggage scales, luggage, clocks and decent "stuff". We won nothing but a lot of people on our rollcall won stuff.

 

There was a gift in our cabin every other day. First day was a magnet for the door, then a thermal cup and also a canvas tote. I think there was one more but I am not sure.

 

Diamond plus got a free excursion which for our cruise was a day long tour in Halifax NS. I heard it was a great excursion.

 

There were free beading classes and I think dance lessons but we didn't do any because the sign up process was a free for all after the raffles.

 

As far as people, there were a lot of very nice people we met, especially those on our rollcall. We also met some diamond encrusted, self importants that we learned to ignore.

 

I wouldn't go out of my way to book another one but I wouldn't not book because it was a members cruise.

[ChristieNJ]

Ok, good to know! Thanks, Mema, for the information! :)

[PH8]

I've read a lot about members cruises.......I wouldn't do one.......too many Pinnacle,DP/D members to make it any more special than any other cruise........overcrowding in the CL/DLs.......too many that that think they are way more important than others.............nope,not for me.:)

[ChristieNJ]

I've read a lot about members cruises.......I wouldn't do one.......too many Pinnacle,DP/D members to make it any more special than any other cruise........overcrowding in the CL/DLs.......too many that that think they are way more important than others.............nope,not for me.:)

 

Oh wonderful. This is going to be my first cruise as diamond, too! And the Explorer doesn't have a lounge so this should be a barrel of fun lol.

[megr1125]

i'd thought about booking that one, but well.....the CL and overflow will be packed and goodness knows the 19th hole will be jammed....

 

sooooo maybe i will skip that one........

[BND]

It's the Nov 4, 2012 cruise? We booked last year. We had no clue it was a member's cruise. It will be our first cruise as Diamond. Not what we planned. Not entirely thrilled.

[Debde]

I've been on one and will avoid them at all cost now. I think it is the type of thing you must experience yourself and you'll see what I mean!! :eek: ;)

 

Yes, we still have stuff in the 'cruise' closet packed with logo stuff so on that note it's pretty nice.

[Cruising89143]

I've read a lot about members cruises.......I wouldn't do one.......too many Pinnacle,DP/D members to make it any more special than any other cruise........overcrowding in the CL/DLs.......too many that that think they are way more important than others.............nope,not for me.:)

 

I still remember reading all the threads about the members cruise on the Freedom a few years back. That was enough to make me avoid them at all costs. Some of those threads did provide some good entertainment.:)

[ryansmum]

Hi everyone! I've never booked a Members Cruise before, however we are booked on one for next November of 2012. Not quite sure what to expect...can you shed some light on the good, the bad, and the ugly?? :p TIA

 

Our last cruise was a members cruise - it was great. Gifts in our room every other day, some events with raffles. There were classes which we didn't attend but were told were fab. Ours was a European cruise so maybe different but we would have no hesitation in booking another.

[FLCRUISEGAL]

Christie-

 

Just for grins....here's my review from the Freedom from a zillion years ago. I'm sure you will have an awesome time. All the little perks are a ton of fun.

 

********************************************************

 

Just returned from the 10-15 crown and anchor member cruise on the Freedom. The cruise on a whole was excellent and my husband and myself really enjoyed ourselves. The ship is fantastic and the entertainment was the best yet.

 

I wanted to post directly regarding the issues experienced in relation to the fact that this was a member cruise. As most of you will remember, RCI had a huge marketing campaign with this member cruise as it was on the Freedom. Do you remember all of those e-mails, the crown and anchor magazine, and special crown and anchor member booking with an advance booking 800 number? Well they got off to a great start a year and a half ago, tons of the members booked the cruise and then RCI was stunned when we actually showed up to take the cruise!!

 

I can't remember the exact numbers, but we had about 880 diamond members and 150 diamond plus members.

 

It should have been our first clue they were having problems when they were calling the d/d+ members regarding the free shore excursion. 2 weeks out. That was a joke that I will go into more detail later.

 

Well after a year and a half of waiting for the cruise to roll around, we hit the port of miami with much excitement. We got to the port around 11:30 and breezed through check in. The nightmare began from there. The ship was delayed by customs, not a problem. These things happen. The problem was the way the pier personnel were handling the situation. They completely ignored the priority embarkation for the d/d+. As a lowly diamond member with 14 cruises, I was letting the d+ members speak. As you can imagine, they were not happy to be ignored. The situation ended up getting a little out of control as the RCI pier people speaking with the priority people were very rude. The end comment from one was " your documents say boarding is at 2:00 pm. That really set us all off. What the heck would they do if 3600 people showed up at 2:00?? Anyway this was really not taken well and at this point they threatened to call the "real" police from downstairs. A real swell way to start the cruise. The priority people were finally let on, and on a good note, all the fighting to get on took so long, the cabins were ready, yeah!

 

Due to the number of d/d+ on the cruise, the diamond lounge was moved to the pharoh's lounge. Now if I were the Assistant loyalty ambas. assigned to

the diamond lounge, I would have said to myself, self- you are going to need some additional personnel for this. Well apparently, Dianna did not have this conversation with herself. The zillions of people showed up for happy hour with 1 maybe 2 food stations and 2 servers. Well that went over like a ton of bricks. Once again, I am still confused as to how they are so ill prepared for the folks that they knew were going to be onboard with a year and a half notice. Each night it would get a little bit better, but then they started throwing people out of the lounge for wearing shorts. That started another scandal. They even threw out people who showed up to the pool party in shorts. go figure. Dianna only had excuses and after the 2nd day was never to be seen again by the diamond members. I lost a 5.00 bet to my husband because I was sure she would show up on the last day for tips, but she didn't even show then. Anyway, on a happy note the bartenders and servers were excellent. The bar manager also had an open bar on the last night to try and make up for all of the problems earlier in the week.

 

On Tuesday the D/D+ members had our shore excursions. We elected the catamaran tour as we had taken this tour in the past and really enjoyed it. RCI did not bother to tell us it was not the tour as mentioned in the book. We boarded 3 catamarans expecting a great tour. We motored out for a little bit, went through the safety drill and then proceeded to motor back to a spot right in front of the ship just a little bit from where we started. They had the snorkeling in the marina. I could have thrown a roll from the windjammer and hit the snorkeling spot! This was a horrible place to stop. We asked the worker on our boat why we did not go to the real snorkeling spot, he said that this is what RCI told them to do. The trip was looking up as we set sail for the beach for a burger lunch. We stopped at a private beach club which looked really great at the start but had no running water in the bathrooms. It took about 5 minutes for the place to turn really gross. The ride back to the ship was excellent and the nice frosty beverages made things a little bit better. The folks that took the passion island tour had a great time so I was glad some were happy.

 

I don't remember the order of the gifts, but here they are:

 

RCI hat

RCI bag

pen

Freedom art-miniature framed painting - very cool

regular blue frame everyone gets

no gifts on 2 days

 

The plat, diamond/+ brunch was also not well received. We did not attend, but our tablemates were not impressed. Of course bunches of those darned repeat guests showed up to another event they were invited to and they were not expecting it. This was on nearly the last day, so there was no excuse at this point. They had it as a buffet on the 3rd floor, but there were more people than fit on that floor. It was not a situation where you can have guests traipsing up and down a million stairs for food. So in the end we were smart to have slept through it.

 

There were many other issues that made us feel like they really did not care that all of these loyal customers were onboard. As previously mentioned, the overall cruise was great. I did mention many of the major issues on my comment card so hopefully they can make some changes. The bottom line is if you are gold or platinum, the member cruises on the mega class ships are great, once you have earned the additional benefits and you are not receiving them on you member cruise that's when I really question if they were glad we were there. I suggested they do not have another member cruise on the Freedom or the Liberty until they can get these issues taken care of. I know I will never get my husband on another member cruise and this was the general feeling from most that I spoke with over the week.

 

Thanks for the venting, now I will just concentrate on all of the positive memories we had on the Freedom, just wanted to let the others know of our below gold anchor service experience on this cruise.

 

Thanks

 

Lori

[dirtgirl]

Run, Christie, run!!! :p

[mommabean]

Our last cruise was a members cruise - it was great. Gifts in our room every other day, some events with raffles. There were classes which we didn't attend but were told were fab. Ours was a European cruise so maybe different but we would have no hesitation in booking another.

 

I think you may be correct.

 

Anyone who is willing to go on a repositioning/TA or even a cruise in December with the Diamonds in Dec. promotion shouldn't think a members cruise is any different. The concierge lounge on any of these will be the same - jam packed to the point of opening an overflow lounge. And the D event on non CL ships should be a blast...with all the D and above there.

 

Apparently the extra cruise credit in Dec. softens the blow of overcrowding by those with superior attitudes for many of us. :D

 

Gina

[BND]

On the C&A page with Members cruises I don't see this one listed. Where did you find that it was a Member cruise?

[cruisenfever]

On the C&A page with Members cruises I don't see this one listed. Where did you find that it was a Member cruise?

The November 4, 2012 Member's Cruise on Explorer was announced on the recent September 26,2011 Member's Cruise on Splendour.

[BND]

The November 4, 2012 Member's Cruise on Explorer was announced on the recent September 26,2011 Member's Cruise on Splendour.

 

Great. We booked this cruise months ago. We were hoping our first cruise as Diamond would be a typical early Nov cruise and that we'd be able to use the D "lounge" in the evenings for a drink before dinner. I'm trying to figure out who actually benefits from these cruises? We're also in a GS on this trip so that will be crowded too without a separate DL. Geez.

[FTLcruisers]

we just completed our 3rd members cruise (9/26/11 on Splendour out of Venice - went to Turkey, Greece, Croatia) and it was more like what is described here than our first two. There were not that many members so we are guessing that might be the reason for the sort of ho-hum "special" treatment. If I remember right, there were only 600+ members with 132 diamond+ and 4 pinnacle members. We are d+ and have found our other cruises to be more special than this one. They did offer us a free excursion to Ephesus Turkey but the private one we had booked included more so we went with that-and it was that tour or nothing so we just didn't take advantage of the freebie. We did not receive as many gifts as we had on the 2 prior members cruise but that was OK with us as we have plenty of RCL stuff.

 

I would not go on another members cruise but I also would not avoid one if the date/itinerary worked for me (as was the case in the last one).

 

Marianne

[BND]

we just completed our 3rd members cruise (9/26/11 on Splendour out of Venice - went to Turkey, Greece, Croatia) and it was more like what is described here than our first two. There were not that many members so we are guessing that might be the reason for the sort of ho-hum "special" treatment. If I remember right, there were only 600+ members with 132 diamond+ and 4 pinnacle members. We are d+ and have found our other cruises to be more special than this one. They did offer us a free excursion to Ephesus Turkey but the private one we had booked included more so we went with that-and it was that tour or nothing so we just didn't take advantage of the freebie. We did not receive as many gifts as we had on the 2 prior members cruise but that was OK with us as we have plenty of RCL stuff.

 

I would not go on another members cruise but I also would not avoid one if the date/itinerary worked for me (as was the case in the last one).

 

Marianne

 

And that's our issue we picked the Nov 4 EOS for the date/length,etc and that it doesn't interfere with Thanksgiving and is at the end of hurricane season. We love EOS so we'll just have to deal, but what makes these trips so "special"? Free RCI crap doesn't appeal to me, nor does a free excursion.

[Jimbo]

The November 4, 2012 Member's Cruise on Explorer was announced on the recent September 26,2011 Member's Cruise on Splendour.

 

Did more then one person announce this or should we call back and get a different answer?:rolleyes:

 

I find in hard to believe they would have their ducks in a row this far out to really know this is a member cruise already.

 

Jimbo:)

[BND]

Did more then one person announce this or should we call back and get a different answer?:rolleyes:

 

I find in hard to believe they would have their ducks in a row this far out to really know this is a member cruise already.

 

Jimbo:)

 

As I posted, I can't find it anywhere. There's a couple of cruises listed on the C&A page, but this one isn't.

[cruisenfever]

Did more then one person announce this or should we call back and get a different answer?:rolleyes:

 

I find in hard to believe they would have their ducks in a row this far out to really know this is a member cruise already.

 

Jimbo:)

Yes, it was verified by folks on the Splendour Member's Cruise. C&A will verify if you call. We've been on many Member's Cruises where they have been announced more than a year in advance.

 

Loyalty Ambassadors are now selling it as a Member's cruise. If you look on the RCI website you will see that there are 2 suites available......a RFS and a JS. All the good balcony cabins have been booked. Pretty strange that all the "good" and "suite" cabins have been booked this far out.

[cruisenfever]

Great. We booked this cruise months ago. We were hoping our first cruise as Diamond would be a typical early Nov cruise and that we'd be able to use the D "lounge" in the evenings for a drink before dinner. I'm trying to figure out who actually benefits from these cruises? We're also in a GS on this trip so that will be crowded too without a separate DL. Geez.

Since the Explorer is a Voyager class ship and only has a nightly Diamond Event, you are better to have booked the GS and get full use of the CL.

 

Yes, the CL will be crowded as it is not that large to begin with. An alternate CL will most likely be set up to accommodate all those D+/PC and Suite Guests.

 

Who benefits.........good question. There are those C&A Members that look forward to Member's Cruises just for the chance to be recognized.

[ChristieNJ]

On the C&A page with Members cruises I don't see this one listed. Where did you find that it was a Member cruise?

 

We just got off Explorer one week ago, and on our cruise we booked the 11/4/12 cruise. Once we picked that date and itinerary, Belinda (the loyalty ambassador) told us it was a Members Cruise. I still do not see it listed as a Members Cruise online, but we were told that it is. Now, when we booked it and we were told what it was, silently a bell went off in my head about reading about past Members Cruises on these boards, but I didn't say anything because my mother was excited about finding the convenient date/itinerary to begin with. So that's why I came here to ask.

 

Thank you everyone for posting the info. Now I'm scared. lol :eek: Especially trusting my good buds Carol and Kathy! :p

 

BND - this will also be my first cruise as Diamond.

 

Ok everyone, now I want you to think of it in this light:

 

We will be traveling with my parents, who will be Platinum on this cruise. Because of health issues, chances are my husband and I will NOT be taking advantage of the free excursion, because I'm sure my parents would not be able to do it anyway. It's also not like my husband and I would be spending much time in the nightly Diamond event because we spend time with my parents, who like I said will only be Platinum at that time.

 

So, in light of the fact that we probably WON'T be making much use of what will be offered to us anyway, would I still be advised to avoid this? We will just be doing our regular cruise traditions (beach, pool, dinner, and trivia). What concerns me are 'those people' who will be thinking they're entitled to everything because of their status. If there are a few hundred of those, I might be jumping overboard, followed by the rest of my family! I hate that mentality. Is it THAT prevalent on these cruises?

 

EEK! :eek:

[BND]

I wonder about the attitude too. We've only seen it a few times, no more than one or two people on a cruise, but still... Listening to someone in the CL on Freedom talking loudly about how she had spent a lot of money to get her D+ status and that kids didn't belong in there. She said that and a few other things making sure everyone knew she was "above" most others. It's not her opinion about kids (because we for or own reasons think that Happy Hour should be adults only), but her entire attitude that was the issue. We have met some great people in the CL, but if there's too many people trying to use the CL and Diamond event, it can turn into not such a nice place to be.

[mommabean]

Christie,

 

You won't notice the superior attitude if you aren't in the CL. Sometimes we just try to take it as part of the "entertainment". Sometimes when there are many of them on a cruise it can get pretty good. Just sit back and watch the competition. :eek: :D

 

Gina