Are Royal Loyal to Customers - Of Course Not

[cruisebot21]

Lets look your points in reverse order:

 

2) RCL is pulling their ship from UK

 

because.......

 

1) RCL isn't selling enough cabins at profitable prices, are having to discount fares, and to top it off, existing bookings want the lower fares too. 

 

Seems simple to me.

 

 

[nelblu]

1 hour ago, gkbiiii said:

Costa is screwing long time guest big time.  All status points last for three years and only "Classic & Premium" category reservations qualify for status points.

 

CostaClub: new General Conditions 2019

Starting 1 January 2019, the guidelines for earning CostaClub points will change. By choosing the Total Comfort Rate, Classic or Premium (or other future non-promotional rates), your points double or even triple depending on how far in advance you book your vacation. Choosing a Suite comes witch even more advantages! Here’s how it works:

 

THE OTHER RULES FOR EARNING POINTS REMAIN VALID:
 

ON-BOARD PURCHASE POINTS: 2 for every dollar spent on board or on costacruises.com before departure.

FLIGHT POINTS: up to 500 as a lump sum for expenses incurred for Costa flights.

3 YEARS OF VALIDITY:from 15 June of each year, only those points accumulated during the previous 3 years are considered valid.

RATES EXCLUDED: cruises purchased with the Basic Rate or other promotional rates and/or special discounts do not allow you to earn cruise points. Members who book with a group rate are awarded cruise points based on the cabin they select; double or triple points will not be awarded, even for advance bookings. Corporate Rates and students groups also do not qualify for cruise points. For these rates, however, you may still earn points through on-board purchases.

 

https://www.costacruises.com/costa-club/general-conditions-2019.html  

 

 

 

No proofreading.  I did not know that Suites comes with a "Witch" .  Where's that English teacher that was giving certain Ops on this thread grammar assistance.

[Clarea]

1 hour ago, cruisebot21 said:

 ...

1) RCL isn't selling enough cabins at profitable prices, are having to discount fares, and to top it off, existing bookings want the lower fares too. 

 

Seems simple to me.

 

 

 

Royal may be selling staterooms at profitable prices, however they can likely make more profit elsewhere.  Same reason California is way down on their list.

[Iamcruzin]

5 hours ago, Host Clarea said:

 

Celebrity has free minor category upgrades, but I believe those are typically much less costly than Royal's balcony discount.

after only one sailing with Celebrity you are eligible for a one level category upgrade with in the same category. For example you get a midship balcony, ocean view or interior for the price of a lower priced  forward room within the same room category. We book ocean views in the past. It was a total of $60 savings but that will vary by category and length of cruise. Still a savings and it's more than Princess or Royal give for only sailing one time prior.

Edited May 21, 2019 by Iamcruzin

[John&LaLa]

4 hours ago, Iamcruzin said:

after only one sailing with Celebrity you are eligible for a one level category upgrade with in the same category. For example you get a midship balcony, ocean view or interior for the price of a lower priced  forward room within the same room category. We book ocean views in the past. It was a total of $60 savings but that will vary by category and length of cruise. Still a savings and it's more than Princess or Royal give for only sailing one time prior.

 

It's only worth more money if you truly think it's a better location.

[Iamcruzin]

5 hours ago, John&LaLa said:

 

It's only worth more money if you truly think it's a better location.

You can say that about any of the perks.  Most of which have no value to me.

Edited May 21, 2019 by Iamcruzin

[Milwaukee Eight]

15 hours ago, gkbiiii said:

Costa is screwing long time guest big time.  All status points last for three years and only "Classic & Premium" category reservations qualify for status points.

 

CostaClub: new General Conditions 2019

Starting 1 January 2019, the guidelines for earning CostaClub points will change. By choosing the Total Comfort Rate, Classic or Premium (or other future non-promotional rates), your points double or even triple depending on how far in advance you book your vacation. Choosing a Suite comes witch even more advantages! Here’s how it works:

 

THE OTHER RULES FOR EARNING POINTS REMAIN VALID:
 

ON-BOARD PURCHASE POINTS: 2 for every dollar spent on board or on costacruises.com before departure.

FLIGHT POINTS: up to 500 as a lump sum for expenses incurred for Costa flights.

3 YEARS OF VALIDITY:from 15 June of each year, only those points accumulated during the previous 3 years are considered valid.

RATES EXCLUDED: cruises purchased with the Basic Rate or other promotional rates and/or special discounts do not allow you to earn cruise points. Members who book with a group rate are awarded cruise points based on the cabin they select; double or triple points will not be awarded, even for advance bookings. Corporate Rates and students groups also do not qualify for cruise points. For these rates, however, you may still earn points through on-board purchases.

 

https://www.costacruises.com/costa-club/general-conditions-2019.html  

 

 

I can see something like this coming. 

[Milwaukee Eight]

14 hours ago, nelblu said:

 

No proofreading.  I did not know that Suites comes with a "Witch" .  Where's that English teacher that was giving certain Ops on this thread grammar assistance.

Not permitted by CC rule but interpretation varies. 

[Iamcruzin]

16 hours ago, gkbiiii said:

Costa is screwing long time guest big time.  All status points last for three years and only "Classic & Premium" category reservations qualify for status points.

 

 

 

Out of curiosity I took a look at Costa's loyalty benefits.  Seem to be a whole lot of nothing even at the top levels. There was nothing there that would compel me to commit to booking a cruise with them every three years just to keep my status.

[John&LaLa]

5 hours ago, Iamcruzin said:

You can say that about any of the perks.  Most of which have no value to me.

 

I find many of my perks to be very valuable,  even the intangible ones. 

[Sizzlechest]

7 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

I find many of my perks to be very valuable,  even the intangible ones. 

 

The issue isn't if they have value, although that's questionable. The issue is that in order to obtain those perks, you have to submit yourself to a single company over YEARS and THOUSANDS of dollars spent. Loyalty programs rely on the "Sunk Cost Fallacy." They keep those carrots dangled out of reach and when you finally get a bite, you resist any suggestion that they were not valuable because you worked so hard to get them.

[John&LaLa]

1 hour ago, Sizzlechest said:

 

The issue isn't if they have value, although that's questionable. The issue is that in order to obtain those perks, you have to submit yourself to a single company over YEARS and THOUSANDS of dollars spent. Loyalty programs rely on the "Sunk Cost Fallacy." They keep those carrots dangled out of reach and when you finally get a bite, you resist any suggestion that they were not valuable because you worked so hard to get them.

 

Failed logic in my opinion, but whatever floats your boat. 

 

We sailed 20 cruises prior to Embracing Royal. Carnival, Holland, Princess, Norwegian,  and lines that went out of business.  Our decision to mainly sail Royal was based on positive experience,  value, ships, and Pt Canaveral.  Royal sails from there, it was close to Atlanta. 

 

We only sail if I find value in the sailing. Discounts, perks, proximity to home are all calculated into the equation. 

 

It works well for us

[Sizzlechest]

25 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Failed logic in my opinion, but whatever floats your boat. 

 

We sailed 20 cruises prior to Embracing Royal. Carnival, Holland, Princess, Norwegian,  and lines that went out of business.  Our decision to mainly sail Royal was based on positive experience,  value, ships, and Pt Canaveral.  Royal sails from there, it was close to Atlanta. 

 

We only sail if I find value in the sailing. Discounts, perks, proximity to home are all calculated into the equation. 

 

It works well for us

 

You're basically saying that the "loyalty perks" don't matter because no other cruise line offers what RCL does and you choose to do business with them based on their up-front merits. Or, the long-term perks DO matter to you and you admit to falling for the sunk cost fallacy. Failed logic, indeed.

[Iamcruzin]

2 hours ago, Sizzlechest said:

 

The issue isn't if they have value, although that's questionable. The issue is that in order to obtain those perks, you have to submit yourself to a single company over YEARS and THOUSANDS of dollars spent. Loyalty programs rely on the "Sunk Cost Fallacy." They keep those carrots dangled out of reach and when you finally get a bite, you resist any suggestion that they were not valuable because you worked so hard to get them.

To put things into perspective, I think you need 7000 points to reach Pinnacle. I have been posting regularly on CC since 2008 and don’t even have 7000 posts yet. 

[Biker19]

5 minutes ago, Iamcruzin said:

To put things into perspective, I think you need 7000 points to reach Pinnacle.

You have one extra 0 there.

[taglovestocruise]

2 hours ago, Sizzlechest said:

 

The issue isn't if they have value, although that's questionable. The issue is that in order to obtain those perks, you have to submit yourself to a single company over YEARS and THOUSANDS of dollars spent. Loyalty programs rely on the "Sunk Cost Fallacy." They keep those carrots dangled out of reach and when you finally get a bite, you resist any suggestion that they were not valuable because you worked so hard to get them.

Next time I am sitting the Dl and am working on my 4th gin and tonic with a plate of wings in front of me I will think about the emotional gin and tonic carrot dangling in front of me and wonder if it was worth staying loyal. . 

[John&LaLa]

47 minutes ago, Sizzlechest said:

 

You're basically saying that the "loyalty perks" don't matter because no other cruise line offers what RCL does and you choose to do business with them based on their up-front merits. Or, the long-term perks DO matter to you and you admit to falling for the sunk cost fallacy. Failed logic, indeed.

 

I appreciate the perks as long as they are there. Perks is in my calculations. You may have missed that when jumping to your conclusion 😉

Edited May 21, 2019 by John&LaLa

[taglovestocruise]

4 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

You have one extra 0 there.

700, 7000.  After 15 years were are only at 173.  We start our next 18 night cruise 2 points short of D+.  I think we well ask/demand  for compensation. 

[nelblu]

7 hours ago, Milwaukee Eight said:

Not permitted by CC rule but interpretation varies. 

What does the misspelling (witch vs with) in the Costa announcement have anything to do with CC rules.













































































































































































































































































































































































 

 

[Iamcruzin]

32 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

You have one extra 0 there.

Oh so maybe there is a chance LOL.. probably not since the only thing I know about any of these programs is what I read here. 

[jetta8300]

23 hours ago, 4774Papa said:

One point the jetta8300 made, I strongly disagree with.

"I would honestly like to know which "perk" people think are actually worthwhile.  It's baffling to me."

 

I can tell you that we love the Diamond happy hour benefits on Royal.  We have only done one cruise, the Explorer of the Seas TransPacific from Sydney to Seattle last Spring.   For 23 days we enjoyed the happy hour and didn't have to pay for a single alcoholic drink.  The happy hour runs from 4:30pm until 8.   We usually started dining about 7:30 so we could even order a glass of wine with our meal.  This is a significant benefit.  We can order drinks all over the ship.  We are moderate drinkers, usually about 4 glasses of wine a day.  Some people once paid $50-$80 a day for a beverage package.  Not for us.   If we didn't have the Diamond happy hour, we would probably not buy a package, just pay for wine or a few drinks.  We used to average about $500 for the two of us for a 14 day cruise until we became Elite on Celebrity and that happy hour reduced our normal alcohol expenses to about $300 for two weeks.

 

When we pick a cruise line, the loyalty benefits should not be overrated, but they should not  be  ignored.  There is a value.  However, in picking a cruise line that doesn't offer this benefit, it gives Royal an edge over other lines that don't offer such benefits.  Also,  in picking a cruise line, the quality of food, service, entertainment make a difference.  Of course, itinerary is always a major element.

 

When we fly, I am enrolled in a both the Delta and American frequent flyer benefits programs.  We have earned several free flights, including trips to Australia, Europe and within the USA.  These benefits are not to ignored by a smart traveler, just at perks on a cruise.

 

As for NCL providing fee alcohol drink packages, yes they do.  However, NCL's prices for their cruises mushroomed once they added perks like this.  

Further, NCL charges an absurd 20% gratuity on the "FREE" beverage package with an imputed value of $99 per day per person.

When we cruise on NCL, we pick another perk and bring our own wine, pay the $15 per bottle corkage fee and pay less for our alcohol than we would JUST paying the 20% gratuity.   At least Celebrity doesn't charge a gratuity for their beverage packages that are perks when booking a cruise.

 

We are looking forward to our next Royal cruise next month to the Arctic Circle of Norway.  Yes, and that great Diamond Happy Hour, great entertainment, dining and service.

 

You're misunderstanding me... I'm not saying that these perks aren't "nice".  Of course a free drink is nice.  A little tumbler is "nice".  But from what you're saying, there is a $200 savings for you in free drinks in 14 nights.  And due to this $200 savings  in free drinks you are willing to severely limit your choices and experiences in cruising, and limit yourself to one cruise line.  Which to me is baffling.  

 

It's up to the individual if these little perks are worthwhile.  And of course some people here think it is.  But an extra $200 off my bar bill for a 14 night cruise is in no way going to make me limit my choices to one cruise line.  I have hopefully years of cruising ahead, we are only in our mid thirties.  And I have LOVED our experiences with different variety and lines.  I hope to especially enjoy each cruise company's private islands.  More than once.  Carnival's Half Moon Cay is unbelievable As was Norwegian's Great Stirrup Cay, and RCI's Labadee.    and I can't wait to try CoCo Cay.  We loved Norwegian's Haven area, and Carnival's serenity area, and RCI's ships and entertainment.  There is no $200 savings in bar bills that would tempt me to limit my vacationing experiences simply for loyalty or a few perks.

Edited May 21, 2019 by jetta8300

[taglovestocruise]

6 minutes ago, jetta8300 said:

 

. 

7 minutes ago, jetta8300 said:

 

 

It's up to the individual if these little perks are worthwhile.  And of course some people here think it is.  But an extra $200 off my bar bill for a 14 night cruise is in no way going to make me limit my choices to one cruise line.  

 

You have not seen the extent of drinking in the Diamond lounge.  And on the transatlantics the DL overflow is in the clubs.  I can easily see a savings of  $1400 over 14 nights per couple, as well as a $350 balcony cabin discount. We have been on Royal, Princess, NCL and Carnival.  Even without the loyalty program our first choice now is RCL. 

[jetta8300]

1 minute ago, taglovestocruise said:

You have not seen the extent of drinking in the Diamond lounge.  And on the transatlantics the DL overflow is in the clubs.  I can easily see a savings of  $1400 over 14 nights per couple, as well as a $350 balcony cabin discount. We have been on Royal, Princess, NCL and Carnival.  Even without the loyalty program our first choice now is RCL. 

Our first choice is also royal.  But from what you're saying there are other reasons you like royal better in addition to the perks.  That I completely understand.   There are a lot of us that aren't big drinkers, and would never rack up free alcohol to amount to $500 even if it was free.  My husband and I can't drink that much multiple days in a row.  So I understand what you're saying , and if the bar savings is that huge, and you're a big drinker, I get it.  But for a lot of us that is not a factor.

[tinkr2]

3 hours ago, taglovestocruise said:

Next time I am sitting the Dl and am working on my 4th gin and tonic with a plate of wings in front of me I will think about the emotional gin and tonic carrot dangling in front of me and wonder if it was worth staying loyal. . 

There is no question that the perks have value. Otherwise you would not have purchased the Key. 

And the free drinks have a tangible value. At current drink prices, we save 100 minimum for our 8 drinks  PER day. 

As someone who hops all over, 3 different cruise lines this year and looking at a 4th, I can assure you I miss my perks and the value they have, when on other lines. 

[Sizzlechest]

1 minute ago, tinkr2 said:

There is no question that the perks have value. Otherwise you would not have purchased the Key. 

And the free drinks have a tangible value. At current drink prices, we save 100 minimum for our 8 drinks  PER day. 

As someone who hops all over, 3 different cruise lines this year and looking at a 4th, I can assure you I miss my perks and the value they have, when on other lines. 

 

Yes, they have value. Sort of. The Key is a good deal at $19.99 if you're planning on getting the high-speed Internet plan for everyone. To pay that just for preferential boarding, not really. Regardless, people have been loyal to Royal just to earn a spot in front of the line and now they sell it to the highest bidder. Makes you feel cheated, no?