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Zenith back in the Retreat

cruising teacher

By cruising teacher,
in Celebrity Cruises

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LGW59

LGW59

Posted
Posted
12 minutes ago, Dolebludger said:

No no, I meant what is a Zenith in the context of Celebriy’s loyalty program. How many nights, cruises, etc are required to be one?

OK I will paraphrase myself, people who have reached the highest point

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crusinthrough "Live from...." Rare

crusinthrough

Posted
Posted (edited)
6 hours ago, TeeRick said:

Don't quite see the analogy.  We have used our earned points/miles to fly first class in the US and Business Class internationally.  That is within the rules of most airline reward (loyalty) programs.  We have also paid for these seats too plenty of times.  

You used miles to purchase an upgrade, which means you can only benefit from the upgrade up until you no longer have miles.  Zenith access is not contingent on having anything available.  Once you reach the status you have unlimited entries into the lounge (until the program changes).  Airlines do offer free upgrades based on status but you are competing with multiple other people for one or two seats that were not purchased.  Paying customers come first.    

 

This is much more of an issue with Royal Caribbean and their top their level of Pinnacle than Celebrity.  I sail in suites and rarely find a need to go into the suite lounge so my space is always available. 

Edited by crusinthrough
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Tom-n-Cheryl "Live from...." Rare

Tom-n-Cheryl

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Posted

Not sure if it was noted in this thread (didn't read every post) but when I search out the retreat PDF file on Google, this is the verbiage I see there --- perhaps they've updated it, though the date is the same:

 

Q. Can Zenith members enjoy access to The Retreat Lounge? A. Zenith access to the lounge at The Retreat lounge will be limited to members staying in The Retreat until further notice.

 

Tom

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neverlaysup

neverlaysup

Posted
Posted
On 3/2/2022 at 12:16 PM, LGW59 said:

When I fly long flights, I go first class and I often travel with friends who fly coach/economy, by choice.  They are nice people as well but does not mean they should fly in first class if they did not pay for it.  Kind of like saying, gee I have flown on said airline XXX times, I have earned a seat in first class.  Sure, but you still need to pay for it.

Not always true, I am Concierge Key on American and I can buy the cheapest coach tickets I want to and almost always get upgraded to first class. I can also pay for it but if availability is there I can save plenty of cash and get the same seat. 

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DogLover

DogLover

Posted
Posted
9 minutes ago, neverlaysup said:

Not always true, I am Concierge Key on American and I can buy the cheapest coach tickets I want to and almost always get upgraded to first class. I can also pay for it but if availability is there I can save plenty of cash and get the same seat. 

The difference being Concierge Key is by invitation only whereas Zenith status is "earned" through CC worthless points. And yes, this post is certainly "grab the popcorn" worthy.  🙂

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neverlaysup

neverlaysup

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, DogLover said:

The difference being Concierge Key is by invitation only whereas Zenith status is "earned" through CC worthless points. And yes, this post is certainly "grab the popcorn" worthy.  🙂

It may be invite only but I got there by loyalty which meant copious amounts have been spent. Really no different than Zenith. 

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swjumbo

swjumbo

Posted
Posted

There’s a thread drift here.

As a prospective Zenith member (aren’t we all?) I look forward to the benefits.

I also realise that by the time I reach that status I will be retired.

There is no easy way to put this and some people will not agree but here goes.

 

When I pay for a suite I am paying for The Retreat. I will only ever be able to pay for a basic suite but I want to feel comfortable and not being somewhere where I shouldn’t be. I do not want Zenith members thinking they’re better than me. 

 

I have met a few Zenith members who thought they owned Celebrity. I do not want to spend time listening to these people in The Retreat thinking I am not worthy.

 

Therefore it is simple. 
Suite = Retreat

Zenith = Enjoy your privileges 

 

Respect the fact that other people are entitled to The Retreat and it’s not all about you.

 

The staff and ships are amazing so enjoy because one day, when I’m a Zenith member, I’ll be happy to go to any bar or restaurant and will not expect the entitlement of The Retreat. Unless, of course, I’m in a suite. 

 

Happy Cruising xx

 

 

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chemmo Holiday Sharing Rare

chemmo

Posted
Posted (edited)

When we are in the Retreat Lounge we enjoy chatting to others. Conversation usually starts with ‘Hello’, it then often progresses to ‘Where are you from?’ sometimes goes on to favourite previous cruises or jobs/interests…We haven’t a clue who are Zenith’s, Blue chip members or what suite category someone is in…All we know is everyone there has a right of entry regardless of it being because they are in a suite, loyalty or casino perk…
 

Since drinks packages were introduced we have never found the Retreat Lounge/Michael’s to be particularly full on any cruise other than an occasional special event. Hopefully Zeniths and others can return soon.

 

Our experience on RC was very different. The suite lounge and dining area on Oasis was heaving with pinnacle guest! We knew they were pinnacle because they had their badges to prove it….It was so busy we decided to go to the diamond lounge one early evening (we are D+ on RC) and that was really busy too. We went to sit on a couple of unoccupied chairs and were told they were ‘reserved’. As I was on crutches at the time I felt the rejection deeply! My better half rounded up a couple of odd chairs and we chuckled over our pre dinner drinks reflecting that at least our next cruise was on Celebrity!

Edited by chemmo
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Jim_Iain "Live from...." Rare

Jim_Iain

Posted
Posted
On 3/3/2022 at 10:08 AM, Dolebludger said:

No no, I meant what is a Zenith in the context of Celebriy’s loyalty program. How many nights, cruises, etc are required to be one?

3,000 Captain Club points.      Number of days would depend on what level room you book for each cruise.

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Jim_Iain "Live from...." Rare

Jim_Iain

Posted
Posted
8 minutes ago, wrk2cruise said:

What sort of makes me chuckle about this thread is since the points conversion about 10 years ago I think it's pretty much impossible to get to Zenith without sailing the majority of the time in suites.

What do you mean?  LOL    It's only 250 nights is Suites or 1,000 in a Veranda.  

 

In the original program you could hit it with 100 cruises in any cabin class which was pretty easy for some Floridians on  lots of short cruises.    When they shifted to the current point structure Suite Travelers really got screwed over in the conversion.  

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Cruising89143

Cruising89143

Posted
Posted

I agree that this is much more of an issue on RCI than X. RCI has created an ugly monster with the Diamond lounge and allowing Pinnacles in the suite lounge and dining room. Personally for us we prefer to have cocktails at one of the bars in place of a Diamond/Retreat lounge. We stepped off the Navigator OTS (four nights) this morning and never stepped foot in one of the lounges. We had the drink package and enjoyed the peace and quiet of our favorite bar. 🙂 We moved from RCI to X for the longer cruises due to Celebrity’s suite program. RCI’s suite program is weak. Very weak. This week was our first RCI cruise in nine years and we will only look at the short cruises that are close to home.

 

We really haven’t had an issue on X but on RCI I grew tired of the one-upmanship games. I think many of us have stories that we could share of this type behavior. In the end the cruise lines will do whatever they feel is best for their needs. There will always be someone who isn’t happy with the changes.

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NutsAboutGolf Holiday Sharing Rare

NutsAboutGolf

Posted
Posted
On 3/2/2022 at 9:16 AM, LGW59 said:

When I fly long flights, I go first class and I often travel with friends who fly coach/economy, by choice.  They are nice people as well but does not mean they should fly in first class if they did not pay for it.  Kind of like saying, gee I have flown on said airline XXX times, I have earned a seat in first class.  Sure, but you still need to pay for it.

 

On 3/2/2022 at 10:40 AM, wrk2cruise said:

So those frequent travelers who use points for a first class upgrade shouldn't be there as they didn't pay for first class?  Oh wait it is a perk the airline provides to those passengers who have earned it.

 

This is for everyone.  I travel a lot, four round trips this year and will be on #5 tomorrow.  Most major lines have the upgrade list, they each may slightly differ to how to get ahead on the list (if you have their airline credit card for example) but the most heavily weighted factor is your current airline status.  Regardless how you get status whether frequently flying to a nearby city or infrequently going on long hauls, you stand a very good chance of getting free upgrades to business/first class.  Many of us will rebook flights to flights with lots of first class availably if business class is nearly full on the original since we know there's a very slim chance we'll get an upgrade.  I personally rebooked a LAX to HNL (Oahu) direct flight the morning of to one with a SFO layover, by doing so I paid an extra $50 out of pocket due to the economy price being more but received a lie flat seat from SFO to HNL for no additional cost.  Most airlines also have the million miler club where you receive lifetime status, same with hotels.  If receiving free upgrades is valuable to you, it makes sense to pay a little bit more to stay with the same airline.

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cruiseerf

cruiseerf

Posted
Posted

We very much enjoy our time in the Retreat/Michaels club lounge.   We book mostly suites however last minute sometimes we do book aqua class or veranda cabins.  We are Both Zenith members at least twice and would like to be clear.   For those that say the Retreat was "never crowded" you must be a Zenith looking for a seat there?   Our experience has been that on day of Arrival and Departure, Many Zenith members hold court in The Retreat/Michaels club.....often inviting their friends and family to depart with them in pre arranged transport.   When we have been onboard and there have been groups of 10+ with people in Various cabin types it makes the Retreat lounge hosts the bad guys explaining the rules everyone knows Before boarding.   Pre Covid Transatlantic we had 28 Zeniths onboard with partners which meant 56 extra people......Michaels club was a horror......no seats, talkers who didn't' know when to shut it, no dress code enforced,   and many Zeniths who felt they owned the ship.  Transatlantic B4 that we had 22 which equated to 49 extras and we had a group in Michaels that was not only disrespectful but also nasty.   After several of these VERY CROWDED transatlantics,  I would say that the Retreat should indeed be kept separate and only for suites.   Zeniths are well taken care of in Tuscan for Brekkie,  Lunch, so many choices, and dinner as well, and Laundry pressing and dry-cleaning is covered.   Too many people in Celebrities program are continually trying to game it.    This is not fair to the people actually paying in Todays $$$ for the services they do not get when the Zeniths are out in full force.   It only takes a few to spoil it for all of us.   

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