Would Changes in the Captain Club Affect Your Cruising.

[Dave85]

I don't know what many people expect with any potential change in the elite program. The main problem with Celebrity's successful program is that so many people are achieving the highest level that here is no facility on board to handle the numbers. I do not foresee a curtailment of perks or higher thresholds for the present levels.

 

I can guess/speculate that the evening lounge will have to be replaced with a voucher system only because no lounge can handle the numbers on some cruises. The new VIP program might be a test to assign Michael's Club as a lounge for a new level and higher suite levels. The morning breakfast perk is also coming under stress. I don't know how the numbers there will be controlled.

 

Without a new program I can foresee a desire to stray to other lines not for the perks but for variety. I would like to see different entertainers, different itineraries or different perks...

 

I'm not an expert nor a cruise line executive, but it seems that the easiest way to handle all of the above is create an "Elite +" level akin to Royal's Diamond Plus and make some minor program tweaks for the existing elite level, like moving towards vouchers. Might result in some minor benefit loses for Elites, but they can surely get creative and offset the lost benefits in other areas (perhaps some additional useful coupons or better booking benefits).

[BosoxI]

Compared to what Princess put us through, X's Elite program is far to easy to qualify for. Itineraries and cost will always be our priorities, and we're certainly not married to Celebrity or any other line for that matter. It probably would tick me off if benefits I was accustomed to were to disappear. In certain situations that might cause me to look elsewhere. I do like Princess' food better, HA has some nice ships, and the QM2 is my all time favorite. There are a lot of places to spend our cruise dollars, including not taking a cruise at all.

[NLH Arizona]

I thought I had my Elite status from my last cruise, but in checking my next cruise (April 2014) would make me Elite. If they change the program prior to me making Elite and/or reduce the perks, when looking at cruises, Celebrity wouldn't be my first choice. Same goes if they do away with the extra point for concierge class, I'll dropped down to just a regular balcony on my two cruises I have booked.

[deelastcre]

I would definitely book a regular balcony instead of C1 and sail more on other lines. I love Celebrity, but if they change before I get to Elite I won't be a happy camper.

[wallie5446]

Agree - to each their own. But for the record, for many of us it is a lot more than a $5 drink. )

 

I was being very 'toung in cheek', and yes it is alot more than that. Our upcoming sailing with give us 9 points, so I guess we can not miss what we have yet to get.:D We sailed the Ruby Princess last Nov, paid more, had better perks, than the Elite level on X, but the overall product was very lacking. We are close to Diamond on RCCL, sailed on the the Freedom Oct 2011, and it was about as good a week as it gets! This Nov I expect the Reflection to be better, or we may never get our last point, because all the minor perks wont make up for a so-so week on ship.

[We're The Groupnors]

For us it would depend on how the perks change, but in general I would say it would not change our loyalty. We've only had one cruise on X as Elite, and assuming they would not change the coupon structure, but just the cocktail receptions it would make little to no difference to us. DH doesn't drink, and since we always take late seating we have a big gap between the cocktail party and dinner that makes it less appealing to us. We do enjoy the ambiance of the Elite Lounge, but not having access is certainly not a deal breaker. We'd rather have the internet minutes and free laundry.

[celebritydave]

Agree 100% :)

 

Lou

 

Me too.:D

[karena1]

If you are Elite or close to it and they changed the the qualifications to a lot higher points to where you no longer qualify would you chase after the points to requalify, or just not be as "loyal" and sail on other cruise lines and forget about it. It has taken us 3 years to get to Elite and we have been able to enjoy one cruise as an Elite member. If they raise it to a higher level I doubt if we would ever qualify again so I guess we would forget about it and consider other cruise lines. Right now we have reservations for X and that is mainly so we can enjoy the benefits before the change. If they do make a change and we no longer qualify we may look elsewhere and cancel. It still depends on a lot of other factors but now having the Elite status for us is a big plus for loyalty to Celebrity.

 

I am also wondering how many do sail mainly because of the perks that they get for being Elite?

 

 

 

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if it is anything like what Royal did, you will be grandfathered in. We were D+ under Royal's old system, and when they did the conversion of "Points" to " # of days cruising" we were converted at a rate to keep us at D+. So my guess is no matter what they change, you will still be Elite.

 

Don't know that for sure of course, but it would make sense that whatever level you are at now is the level you would be when it changes. But if you were close to Elite before, it might take longer to get to Elite. My sister was 1 cruise away from Diamond when Royal changed their policy and it took her 2 extra years to finally make Diamond once the program changed.

[Dave85]

if it is anything like what Royal did, you will be grandfathered in. We were D+ under Royal's old system, and when they did the conversion of "Points" to " # of days cruising" we were converted at a rate to keep us at D+. So my guess is no matter what they change, you will still be Elite.

 

I'd be stunned if there wasn't a grandfathering in. I know someone relayed a rumor earlier that there wouldn't be, but that really makes no sense. You'll upset a few people if you grandfather and then water down the perks a little, but you'll upset A LOT of people, unnecessarily I might add, if you strip them of loyalty program status all together that they've spent a lot of money to accrue. I think many reasonable cruisers will appreciate that the current program structure is unsustainable and would be completely understanding of some necessary restructuring.

[ROSSCOT]

Just returned from a 12 night sailing on Equinox in the Med. As an Elite member I do not find the perks or the Elite evening event location very appealing, the sky bar location is like meeting people in a hotel lobby no atmosphere, in my opinion Michaels bar would be more suitable location for the event. The restricted hours of 5pm to 7pm is far to early especially if you have been on a port tour.

The laundry ticket I used to freshen up some clothes, the rest of the so called perk tickets went in the bin. I go on holiday to get away from the computer.

I would like to see Celebrity giving complimentary deals on speciality dining, as this is something everyone could enjoy, as it is now only drinkers, gamblers, and computer lovers have any benefit

The upside of the cruise was the food in M.D.R

Any changes to the points or tier status would not influence my booking priority

 

Can anyone tell me why Celebrity charge 15% service charge for self service wine card in cellarmasters wine bar

[CruisingChick]

There have been times when we've had a couple of cruises (on different lines) in mind, but stayed with Celebrity because of the additional benefits and familiarity with the ships. The benefits we get from the loyalty program save us a few hundred $$$ each cruise and although they aren't make or break items the good feeling we get from knowing we get them, well, feels good.

 

So... if they took the benefits away it would affect our decision making process, but it wouldn't necessarily mean we'd go elsewhere. It isn't totally financial though. It's just part of the overall experience.

 

Tom

 

Tom, I agree. My DH and I really appreciate the Elite perks. Whenever we are thinking about booking a cruise on another line we never pull the trigger because of what you have mentioned.

 

We became Elite before these perks were in place. We were very close to booking a Princess cruise as we felt Celebrity did not care about it's loyal Captain's Club Members. Then Celebrity announced the upgraded perks for Elites. We did not book the Princess cruise and have been sailing exclusively with Celebrity.

[Montana]

Agree - to each their own. But for the record, for many of us it is a lot more than a $5 drink. We go to virtually every social hour event (for an hour or so), use most of our internet minutes, and always use our laundry coupons. Add it up and it is a lot more than $5 that's for sure! We also often travel with our adult son (also Elite). For the three of us, that savings can be well over $400-$500. In my world, that is worth considering when weighing options. (although I agree Celebrity would still weigh very high for other reasons)

 

Cannot argue here.

[Happy Cruiser 6143]

Frequent cruisers:

 

Read the Cruise Critic news:

http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=5483

 

Well, they sure weren't treating the suite cruisers well when I was on the Infinity. We had a Royal Suite which came complete with a dreadful sewage odor on our veranda. Guest Relations Manager had the nerve to say to me, "Well, you didn't want to use your balcony, did you?" I won't be in a rush to book a Royal Suite again. Neither will I be in a rush to sail on the Infinity.

[celebrity]

Cannot argue here.

 

If Celebrity took away our perks , we would be devastated.

Love the product and the efforts Celebrity has taken to keep us loyal.

[Gran2five]

We enjoy the Elite perks and feel that Celebrity is our cruise line of choice but should these perks disappear, maybe not so much.

 

We have travelled with other cruise lines but it was because the ports of call were more interesting than those offered by Celebrity in a given year. We always start our cruise search by looking at what Celebrity has to offer. If some of the Elite perks such as breakfast, cocktail hour etc. were removed, then we might look elsewhere.

 

We do realize that Celebrity has to do something as the number of Elites continue to grow - an Elite + tier with Concierge Service sounds like a good idea.

[Honeybearhollow]

We will be Elite soon and are really looking forward to the perks. We have deliberately chosen AQ cabins in an effort to raise our points. We might have been just as happy with balconies. We would be very unhappy if the status was taken away just as we are getting to it. We would be just as happy with vouchers for drinks as we enjoy the company of fellow travelers whether they have sailed many times or just a few. We choose our cruises based on the itinerary, the ship and the cost. Yes, we are inclined to choose Celebrity because that is the line we have the most reward points on and because the S ships are lovely. That would change if we were not treated right by Celebrity.

[amusea]

I think that people are putting their heads in the sand to some extent. The reason that the programs have to change is that there are just too many elites on most cruises and the number of elites keeps increasing. Something has to give. Even if Celebrity adds more levels it is most likely that some perks will have to be redistributed to higher categories. I would guess that the greatest number of elites are in the ten to twenty point category. That is where the most change probably has to take place.

I have cruised Celebrity since its first year of operation. Originally it was one credit per cruise - period. When they changed to the current, much more generous way of counting, I lost all the points that I had accrued prior to the change. Now there will probably have to be another change in the way credits are counted which will seem unfair to some folks as it did to me.

Those who think they would consider using alternate cruise lines will have a hard time finding another line, except perhaps the sister company RCI, that equals the Celebrity program or experience. I am Elite on Princess and have many cruise points on HAL and Cunard - (see below). I think that regardless of the changes that are made, Celebrity still offers the best value of the large cruise lines.

[dbkate]

We are Elite, but the perks are not that significant. However, the inconsistent policies are a problem. On our December 2012 cruise, the solarium was open to children every day for 6 hours. When I wrote Michael Bayley, I discovered that the captain of each ship can admit children to the solarium whenever he wants! Our reservation agent had told us the solarium is always off limits to kids. We are searching for a line with an adults only solarium. Any suggestions?

[NLH Arizona]

We are Elite, but the perks are not that significant. However, the inconsistent policies are a problem. On our December 2012 cruise, the solarium was open to children every day for 6 hours. When I wrote Michael Bayley, I discovered that the captain of each ship can admit children to the solarium whenever he wants! Our reservation agent had told us the solarium is always off limits to kids. We are searching for a line with an adults only solarium. Any suggestions?

They don't have "adults only", but give Crystal a try, as there are not that many children on them.

 

If Celebrity changes the Elite program too much, since I'm almost there, I'll probably just go back to Crystal. I won't be able to have as many cruises, but the ones will be five star luxury.

[pbrady]

We, our group of 6, have actually talked about this. First, we all have 20 cruises with Celebrity, but many with other cruise lines. If they change the Elite benefits, we are gone. We stayed with Celebrity, not because we think they are that much better, but we are all non-smokers. Secondly, we like the 14 night cruise but are tired of the same itinerary every year. It appears that they sign long term dock agreements, but why can't 2 S class ships switch up ports, say every other year, to vary the itinerary? Because of those two things, we'd be back on Princess (same smoking policy as Celebrity now) for the foreseeable future.

[A Sixth?]

We are Elite, but the perks are not that significant. However, the inconsistent policies are a problem. On our December 2012 cruise, the solarium was open to children every day for 6 hours. When I wrote Michael Bayley, I discovered that the captain of each ship can admit children to the solarium whenever he wants! Our reservation agent had told us the solarium is always off limits to kids. We are searching for a line with an adults only solarium. Any suggestions?

 

Give me a break... if you cruise December 15-29 on Equinox, on any ship afloat there will be kids....

 

I amazed that children were only permitted in the solarium every day for ONLY 4-6 hours. :rolleyes:

 

edit. We have no children, but know how holiday sailings work. Some of best cruises we ever had were with friends and their kids.... but it was nice staying aboard after the public schools went back.

[miched]

We, our group of 6, have actually talked about this. First, we all have 20 cruises with Celebrity, but many with other cruise lines. If they change the Elite benefits, we are gone. We stayed with Celebrity, not because we think they are that much better, but we are all non-smokers. Secondly, we like the 14 night cruise but are tired of the same itinerary every year. It appears that they sign long term dock agreements, but why can't 2 S class ships switch up ports, say every other year, to vary the itinerary? Because of those two things, we'd be back on Princess (same smoking policy as Celebrity now) for the foreseeable future.

 

When did they change the smoking policy? We were on the Ruby in Nov and they still allowed smoking in many inside areas. We like a lot of features that Princess has. One is the coffee card that they have. I found that the Happy hour for the Platinum and Elite was intersting. It seems as if the lounge is not that appealing when you have a nominal charge for the drinks. There was never more than 30 attending and sometimes less than 10. The upgrades are also a good perk.

 

 

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[VK3DQ]

Hi Folks

 

I would like to see all "perks" done away with ! :D

 

What I would like to see is all passengers get the same high standard of service

 

 

But if you cruise lots of times your points earn you a discount off the cruise price. ;):p:D

 

That would ensure that all the "elitist" stuff would be done away with but you could all feel much better knowing your cruising cheaper !

 

Slightly tongue in cheek but perhaps I suggest a better idea

 

best regards

 

John

[ariawoman]

We are currently Select and have one cruise booked this year in Conceirge and waiting to book CC in early 2014. We are chasing Elite and still need one more cruise besides the ones above to make it. Because we are trying to reach elite status we've only sailed Celebrity and are only looking at those cruises.

 

If they changed the Captain Club's point system it would only matter to me if they took away some of the Elite perks. If they just add two new levels with more perks that would be fine by me but if they now lower perks on Elite then we will not cancel the cruises we have booked. However going forward we'll consider other lines more actively when looking to cruise.

 

Loyalty is two ways. I hope Celebrity adds additional levels without penalizing those of us all ready in the program.

 

I'm in the same boat as you it would seem, though I'll be select after my October sailing, then after May be i think 2 credits shy of elite (wish my rcl sailing in december would count lol).

 

I think they'd have a hard to taking things away from those that already achieved the level - but those of us almost there, could get squashed depending on the changes (that might or might not occur)

[bigbenboys]

I want to say no we would not make charges. But we stopped cruising on HAL because the perks were so much better on Celebrity and RCL. Richard