Sapphire casino tier and above allowed in the Retreat/Michaels club again?

[fstuff1]

Summit 10/26 cruise in an balcony.

 

Got an email from Shoreside Retreat Concierge saying he'll be working hand in hand with Sylvia and Connie, your Retreat Concierges aboard the Celebrity Summit to help me with anything pre-boarding.

 

so high casino tiers allowed again in the Retreat?

[Jim_Iain]

Nope....not yet.   Zenith's are also currently not allowed  in either.

 

I'm currently on Millennium on B2B and nothing has changed.    The ships are sailing with near 100% suite occupancy.

[Northern Aurora]

When we were on the Millennium for 14 days in September there were no high casino guests in Michael's Club/Retreat Lounge.  No Zeniths either except for the Zeniths like us who had booked suites.  

 

On the second leg a Zenith took the position that he and his wife had booked a large number of cruises and hence should be allowed access to MC/RL.  He escalated his arguments to the retreat manager and then up to the hotel director.  He lost.  But he gained a reputation as a difficult guest.

[fstuff1]

1 hour ago, Jim_Iain said:

Nope....not yet.   Zenith's are also currently not allowed  in either.

 

I'm currently on Millennium on B2B and nothing has changed.    The ships are sailing with near 100% suite occupancy.

 

thx.

I have no idea why i got the email then.

[cruising teacher]

I’m Zenith and got the same email. I didn’t even know that they have a Zenith Concierge in Kansas City. Not sure how she could help on board.

[verizon]

On my next cruise I don’t think I am going to book a suite again.

On the recent Chic Night it was so difficult to get a sommelier in Luminae.

Services is just so so.

Suite is almost 100% occupancy.

she even told me it never that busy since the ship started in June.

Edited October 19, 2021 by verizon

[jagoffee]

9 minutes ago, verizon said:

On my next cruise I don’t think I am going to book a suit again.

On the recent Chic Night it was so difficult to get a sommelier in Luminae.

Services is just so so.

No issue for us, but we tend to eat early.  I believe there are two sommeliers in Luminae this cruise.  It is usually just one from my past experiences.  Service has been outstanding for us.

It is nice to have some internet this morning even if it is still a little slow.

 

Usually we use the retreat facilities to avoid the crowds.  On this cruise the rest of the ship is a dream.  42% capacity total and the suites are probably 100%.

Edited October 19, 2021 by jagoffee

[dollydosh]

We're Sapphire Blue Chip and got the same email, then had a phone call from the  Concierge. We explained we were Blue chip and not in a suite, he then apologised and said there'd been a mistake but he'd be quite happy to help if we had any queries.

[Big_G]

17 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

Nope....not yet.   Zenith's are also currently not allowed  in either.

 

I'm currently on Millennium on B2B and nothing has changed.    The ships are sailing with near 100% suite occupancy.

 

Just curious if they're providing a separate lounge for Zenith?

[LGW59]

3 minutes ago, Big_G said:

 

Just curious if they're providing a separate lounge for Zenith?

Like a separate lounge room that only zenith can use?

[cruisestitch]

There is no separate area devoted to Zeniths’ use.

[jcpc]

18 hours ago, fstuff1 said:

Summit 10/26 cruise in an balcony.

 

Got an email from Shoreside Retreat Concierge saying he'll be working hand in hand with Sylvia and Connie, your Retreat Concierges aboard the Celebrity Summit to help me with anything pre-boarding.

 

so high casino tiers allowed again in the Retreat?

I’m sailing Summit in a Royal Suite and I received 2 generic emails from “ConciergeJxxx” who indicated he was in contact with Sylvia and Connie and offered to help.  Long story short…..these generic emails were sent in error.  I have since been in contact with the shoreside concierge for Summit (who is NOT ConciergeJxxx, but is in fact a female!) who has handled all our requests.  

Edited October 19, 2021 by jcpc

[Big_G]

13 minutes ago, LGW59 said:

Like a separate lounge room that only zenith can use?

 

11 minutes ago, cruisestitch said:

There is no separate area devoted to Zeniths’ use.

 

Thank you.

[jcpc]

17 hours ago, Northern Aurora said:

When we were on the Millennium for 14 days in September there were no high casino guests in Michael's Club/Retreat Lounge.  No Zeniths either except for the Zeniths like us who had booked suites.  

 

On the second leg a Zenith took the position that he and his wife had booked a large number of cruises and hence should be allowed access to MC/RL.  He escalated his arguments to the retreat manager and then up to the hotel director.  He lost.  But he gained a reputation as a difficult guest.

I know I’ll probably be unpopular with Zeniths, but it amazes me how entitled some Zeniths are.  I’m guessing quite a few Zeniths are “difficult guests”.  I am also a Zenith and I am just happy to be able to sail again.  Having or not having access to MC/RL is inconsequential to me. 

[Jim_Iain]

15 hours ago, cruising teacher said:

I’m Zenith and got the same email. I didn’t even know that they have a Zenith Concierge in Kansas City. Not sure how she could help on board.

I get a call from a  Shore-side Zenith Concierge every cruise.   Even though we don't have access to Retreat they are your point of contact pre-cruise for reservation, special request  and any problems you may have.  

 

Last cruise when in a suite I got a call from both the Shore-side Concierge and the Zenith Shore-side Concierge asking the same questions.   We often like to dine in Specialty Restaurants on the fist evening. 

 

[TommyD3]

1 hour ago, Jim_Iain said:

I get a call from a  Shore-side Zenith Concierge every cruise.   Even though we don't have access to Retreat they are your point of contact pre-cruise for reservation, special request  and any problems you may have.  

 

Last cruise when in a suite I got a call from both the Shore-side Concierge and the Zenith Shore-side Concierge asking the same questions.   We often like to dine in Specialty Restaurants on the fist evening. 

 

My family (all at least double Zenith) have not received a single call from Celebrity prior to any of the 6 cruises since the restart. FYI every cruise my family members were the top cruisers. Seems like that was dropped in addition to the Retreat lounge. Unfortunate that Celebrity no longer cares about guests with between 160 and 200 Celebrity cruises !!!

[Alakegirl]

Check that they have correct phone numbers….records are getting all messed up.  Other Zeniths are receiving pre-cruise phone calls.

[DaKahuna]

13 hours ago, verizon said:

On my next cruise I don’t think I am going to book a suite again.

On the recent Chic Night it was so difficult to get a sommelier in Luminae.

Services is just so so.

Suite is almost 100% occupancy.

she even told me it never that busy since the ship started in June.

Which ship was this? 
We never had that issue sailing pre-COVID on ships at capacity. 
 

[jagoffee]

Each new ship has more suite cabins and thus more passengers eligible for the retreat lounge in general.  The lounge is very crowded at the peak times on the current Apex cruise.  Personally I am starting to wonder if the Zenith and/or high Blue Chip members will ever be allowed access again.  Certainly not until the Covid protocols are over.  I have never seen it so crowded. I know that I will not be stopping in anytime near 5-6 PM again on this cruise.

Edited October 20, 2021 by jagoffee

[wrk2cruise]

1 minute ago, jagoffee said:

Certainly not until the Covid protocols are over.

 

Covid protocols are what they used to restrict access in the first place.  What covid protocols are you experiencing in the Retreat Lounge?   We have not seen any capacity restrictions or social distancing on the Edge and Equinox sailings we have been on since the restart.

[jagoffee]

9 hours ago, wrk2cruise said:

 

Covid protocols are what they used to restrict access in the first place.  What covid protocols are you experiencing in the Retreat Lounge?   We have not seen any capacity restrictions or social distancing on the Edge and Equinox sailings we have been on since the restart.

They ask you to social distance (which is impossible) and they required masks at the beginning of the cruise.  Once we left our last port for the crossing, masks became optional for passengers.  Masks are still required for all crew members.  Since the ship is operating with only 42% passenger capacity, it is much easier to maintain distancing outside of the Retreat areas.  
Once the staff is not required to wear masks and the ships return to be fully operation, perhaps they will reconsider larger gatherings.  I think the ship within a ship concept is growing significantly, spoiling it somewhat.

Edited October 20, 2021 by jagoffee

[Paulras]

I think all Sapphire and above should be emailing their complaints to BCC and Captains Club. There are usually only a couple of us on each (full) cruise so it's not like we're going to fill up the lounge.  This is an important benefit of keeping our loyalty with Celebrity, in my opinion. Considering the other perks for Sapphire and above are less valuable with everything included, it's like a double smack in the face, and honestly costs them nothing.

 

Email your complaints: bluechipclub@celebrity.com to let them know your feelings.

[cruising teacher]

3 hours ago, Paulras said:

I think all Sapphire and above should be emailing their complaints to BCC and Captains Club. There are usually only a couple of us on each (full) cruise so it's not like we're going to fill up the lounge.  This is an important benefit of keeping our loyalty with Celebrity, in my opinion. Considering the other perks for Sapphire and above are less valuable with everything included, it's like a double smack in the face, and honestly costs them nothing.

 

Email your complaints: bluechipclub@celebrity.com to let them know your feelings.

All Zenith members should be voicing their displeasure at being excluded from  this amenity. Or an alternative option should be available 

[WNcruiser]

Just curious. If Zenith members already get a free premium beverage package, why do they need access to the Retreat lounge? 
 

 

[LGW59]

8 minutes ago, WNcruiser said:

Just curious. If Zenith members already get a free premium beverage package, why do they need access to the Retreat lounge? 
 

 

Oh boy, buckle your seatbelt!