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RCCL/Celebrity Credit Card Press Release (8/19/13)

Andy

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Andy

Andy

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Posted (edited)

Hi Everyone,

 

Here's the press release on the new credit card. I hope this is helpful !

 

===================

 

 

ROYAL CARIBBEAN CRUISES LTD. FAMILY OF BRANDS AND BANK OF AMERICA

RENEW PARTNERSHIP AND LAUNCH NEW AFFINITY CARDS

Groundbreaking card benefits now to include ability to earn and redeem points on three brands:

Azamara Club Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, Royal Caribbean International

 

MIAMI – Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. and Bank of America today announced the multi-year renewal of their affinity partnership and the launch of new credit cards that will offer unique benefits created for enthusiasts of the Azamara Club Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, and Royal Caribbean International brands.

 

“MyCruise Rewards,” one of the most unique new features of the cards, introduces a cruise-industry first: it gives cardmembers the ability to redeem points not only with the cruise brand that they choose for their affinity card, but also across the other two brands in the Royal Caribbean corporate family. Through MyCruise Rewards, cardholders can earn discounts on cruise-related packages and redeem points for cruises, stateroom upgrades, specialty gifts, and onboard credit across all three cruise lines. The new cards provide double points for purchases on Azamara, Celebrity, and Royal, and one point for every dollar spent on all other purchases.

 

“We deeply appreciate our Celebrity Cruises loyalists, and are excited to once again offer a Celebrity affinity credit card, one that provides greater value and flexibility than ever before, including the opportunity to earn and redeem points across all three of our award-winning brands,” said Lisa Kauffman, Vice President, Marketing, Celebrity Cruises.

 

Consumers can choose from a variety of benefits, as each of the new cards offers special features. More information on the features of each brand’s cards, including rates and fees, is available on the following sites:

 

· www.azamaraclubcruises.com/mycruiserewards

· www.celebritycruises.com/mycruiserewards

· www.royalcaribbean.com/mycruiserewards

 

 

“We know how important choice is to our guests, so the new cardmember benefits introduce a variety of rewards, such as more than 100 redemption options, making it easy and fun for our guests to enjoy flexibility as they treat themselves while vacationing with our brands,” said Carol Schuster, Senior Vice President, Marketing, Royal Caribbean International.

 

“We’re pleased to build on our long-standing affinity partnership with the brands of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.,” said Jeff Norwine, Affinity Banking Executive for Bank of America. “These new cards are designed to resonate with cruise aficionados by providing rewards that complement their lifestyle and interests.”

 

The new cards also expand a points-donation option. Now, cardmembers can choose to donate the cash value of their points to each of the brands’ nonprofit partners: Celebrity Cruises supports The Breast Cancer Research Foundation®, and Royal Caribbean International is aligned with Make-A-Wish Foundation. The cruise lines support these organizations in a variety of ways year-round.

 

Some restrictions apply; complete details can be found online.

 

About Bank of America

Bank of America is one of the world's largest financial institutions, serving individual consumers, small- and middle-market businesses and large corporations with a full range of banking, investing, asset management and other financial and risk management products and services. We serve approximately 51 million consumer and small business relationships with approximately 5,300 retail banking offices and approximately 16,350 ATMs and award-winning online banking with 30 million active users and more than 13 million mobile users. Bank of America is among the world's leading wealth management companies and is a global leader in corporate and investment banking and trading across a broad range of asset classes, serving corporations, governments, institutions and individuals around the world. Bank of America offers industry-leading support to approximately 3 million small business owners through a suite of innovative, easy-to-use online products and services. The company serves clients through operations in more than 40 countries. Bank of America Corporation stock (NYSE: BAC) is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

www.bankofamerica.com

 

 

About Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (NYSE/OSE: RCL) is a global cruise vacation company that owns Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises, Pullmantur, Azamara Club Cruises and CDF Croisières de France, as well as TUI Cruises through a 50 percent joint venture. Together, these six brands operate a combined total of 41 ships with four under construction. They operate diverse itineraries around the world that call on approximately 460 destinations on all seven continents. Additional information can be found on www.royalcaribbean.com, www.celebritycruises.com, www.azamaraclubcruises.com, www.pullmantur.es, www.cdfcroisieresdefrance.com, www.tuicruises.com, or www.rclinvestor.com.

Edited by Host Andy
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Andy

Andy

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I'm getting an error message. Could you please re-post?

 

Thanks!

 

I've already started a thread on this (which is now merged), and the press release is posted at the top of this thread. Thanks !

Edited by Host Andy
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Andy

Andy

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Andy, should I assume that this card is only availble to those who live in the USA.

 

Hi Dmk,

 

My guess is yes. However, I do not have a definite answer. Perhaps the Celebrity Cruise person will respond.

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klflote

klflote

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I'm on the fence about the value of these benefits:

 

Basic 2 points/$1 on RCI travel and redemption for discounts/OBC at $1 for $100 points: that's pretty standard compared to other cards. Still, enough to get me interested. And a few of the rewards are more than 100 points/$1 (e.g., some of the upgrades).

 

Two-for-one annual airfare: This comes from a company called Promotions in Travel, LTD, and some quick googling showed a host of responses saying the certificates are not worth the paper they are printed on. A few posts include the point that companies (e.g. Celebrity) that partner with PiT end up disappointing the customers; the opposite of their intention.

 

$300 discount off one future cruise (CC class) if you spend $10K in 2 months: If this were not a one-time thing, I'd sign up immediately. As it is, I'd have to time the application to coincide with using the card for a big purchase; then the one-time benefit would be nice, but it seems like a lot to go through for that one-time benefit.

 

10K bonus points when you spend $10K annually: That's worth $100, covering the annual fee and leaving a $31 benefit. That's good if the other benefits measure up.

 

50% off second guest at speciality restaurant: Alas, only once per cruise or it would be a significant incentive. Still, maybe $20 - $45 a year to me (also applies only on Celebrity ships, unlike the OBC and other offers which apply to both RCCL and X -- that also limits the benefit).

 

10% off Private Journey excursions and Premium Beverage packages: Not helpful to me, unfortunately, but I can see how the beverage package discount would be useful for many.

 

My current card has not great benefits which is why I'd consider changing. But I'm hoping others here might have either good things to say about their experiences with the travel vouchers, or some other point about the new X card to sway my opinion. I used to love pulling out my Celebrity Visa card and dreaming of my next cruise every time I paid for something....

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Andy

Andy

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So, does this mean my already accumulated points can be used on Celebrity? I hope so!

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

 

Hi Barbara,

 

I believe I read elsewhere that points can be used on all 3 brands at the end of this month. With that said, I'm not certain if previously accumualted points are interchangable.

 

Normally, I'd suggest asking Bank of America, though it may be a challenge, as they are clearly not geared up for the program yet. I called today, spent a total of 90 minutes trying to get answers for our community. I was transferred to 3 different people who barely spoke english, and knew absolutely nothing about the product. Definitely not off to a good start.

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Andy

Andy

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I'm on the fence about the value of these benefits:

 

Basic 2 points/$1 on RCI travel and redemption for discounts/OBC at $1 for $100 points: that's pretty standard compared to other cards. Still, enough to get me interested. And a few of the rewards are more than 100 points/$1 (e.g., some of the upgrades).

 

Two-for-one annual airfare: This comes from a company called Promotions in Travel, LTD, and some quick googling showed a host of responses saying the certificates are not worth the paper they are printed on. A few posts include the point that companies (e.g. Celebrity) that partner with PiT end up disappointing the customers; the opposite of their intention.

 

$300 discount off one future cruise (CC class) if you spend $10K in 2 months: If this were not a one-time thing, I'd sign up immediately. As it is, I'd have to time the application to coincide with using the card for a big purchase; then the one-time benefit would be nice, but it seems like a lot to go through for that one-time benefit.

 

10K bonus points when you spend $10K annually: That's worth $100, covering the annual fee and leaving a $31 benefit. That's good if the other benefits measure up.

 

50% off second guest at speciality restaurant: Alas, only once per cruise or it would be a significant incentive. Still, maybe $20 - $45 a year to me (also applies only on Celebrity ships, unlike the OBC and other offers which apply to both RCCL and X -- that also limits the benefit).

 

10% off Private Journey excursions and Premium Beverage packages: Not helpful to me, unfortunately, but I can see how the beverage package discount would be useful for many.

 

My current card has not great benefits which is why I'd consider changing. But I'm hoping others here might have either good things to say about their experiences with the travel vouchers, or some other point about the new X card to sway my opinion. I used to love pulling out my Celebrity Visa card and dreaming of my next cruise every time I paid for something....

 

Just to be clear, several of the benefits listed above, are associated with the PREMIUM card, which carries an annual fee of $69.

 

If you would like to compare the Premium Card vs the No Annual Fee Card, details can be found here : http://www.celebritycruises.com/genericHtmlTemplate.do?&pagename=celebrity_credit_card

Edited by Host Andy
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  • 2 weeks later...
mcrcruiser

mcrcruiser

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Has anyone read all the fine print on the new card? I would love a short synopsis and if you think it is worth the annual fee? Thanks in advance.

 

imo Banks or Credit Card companies charging fees are just to make them money .Rarely are the credit cards used enough to amortize the fees to make it worth while :o.

 

Better alternatives are credit cards which can be used for multiple uses & Do Not charge fees ;).A example I am personally familiar with is the Hilton Honors American Express credit cards .They accumulate Hilton Honor points for hotels but can be used for air fares & cruises ie :D. The basic Hilton honors American Express credit card has no fees :D. We also have the American Express SPG credit card for Sheraton ,Westin ,W ST Regis hotels ie --no charge

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ninnau

ninnau

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Has anyone read all the fine print on the new card? I would love a short synopsis and if you think it is worth the annual fee? Thanks in advance.

The card I have has no fee. It is thru Bank of America. It can be used with Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, and Az--etc.

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Andy

Andy

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Hi Everyone,

 

There are 2 Celebrity branded cards. One has no annual fee, and the other is a "Premium" branded card, with a $69 annual fee. In some cases, the free card will suffice, but there are some excellent benefits on the Premium card, if you can make them work for you.

 

In full disclosure, as we sail Celebrity nearly 100% of the time, I opted for the Premium Card for the first year. I will take advantage of the Premier benefits, and, as the year progresses... decide if I made a good decision.

 

Here's a link to the details on both cards : http://www.celebritycruises.com/genericHtmlTemplate.do?icid=mcc_ab1_crdtcr_1308_cclb_lk_724032&pagename=celebrity_credit_card . I hope this is helpful !

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Andy

Andy

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Can someone explain the 'two for one airfare' perk? Thanks.

 

 

Hi Amy,

 

This is from the terms and conditions page : https://www.applyonlinenow.com/USCCapp/Ctl/entry?sc=VABWMF#tc . I hope this information is helpful !

 

2 for 1 Airfare Voucher. Cardholders will receive a discounted companion airline certificate good for two tickets for one low price. The certificate is issued upon approval of a new account and on each anniversary thereafter. 14-day advance purchase required. Fares subject to change without notice. Selection of airline varies by market. Airline service is not available in all markets. The discounted companion ticket is only available on fares offered through Promotions in Travel LTD. Normal taxes and fees charged by the airline will apply to both tickets. See complete terms and conditions sent with registration form. Additional restrictions may apply. Federal law prohibits students from receiving a premium.

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Andy

Andy

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Hi Everyone,

 

BTW, If you have additional questions, Bank of America's phone number for the Celebrity Visa Signature card, is 800-932-2775.

Edited by Host Andy
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  • 3 weeks later...
seeyakids

seeyakids

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Just received email for Celebrity Visa Promo.....10K points bonus, double points on Celebrity, RCI and Azamara purchases, no annual fees (similar to the RCI Visa promo last year). They also offer a premium card ($69/yr) which also includes 2 for 1 annual airfare, $300 off Concierge stateroom, specialty restaurant discounts, and discounts on excursions and beverage packages. Has anyone gotten this and your thoughts? Looks promising especially as we have booked 2 Celebrity cruises for 2014 (Alaska and TA).

Thanks

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