Question on becoming Elite Status

[cruzin4us]

I'm currently at 10 cruises or 94 cruise days (Platinum).

 

We are doing a B2B cruise in August 2023 for 30 days (Scottish Highlands & Wales and Iceland/Greenland) and I'm wondering if it would be worth doing five 3 day cruises beforehand to become an Elite status?     I know I can book a suite for double the points, but I'm not sure the expense to become Elite would be worth it.

 

I don't care about some of the items such as free canapes,  afternoon tea or early access to itineraries.    However,  priority ship to shore early water shuttle disembarkation and the free laundry do have some appeal to us.     But other than that, is there really any big incentive to become an Elite?    I know on HAL you get a big discount on wine packages and Specialty dining, but on Princess that doesn't appear to be the case.

 

So, give me your thoughts. 

[cruzsnooze]

I don't use the laundry because they use such hot water stains get set and clothes shrink. But for you do some math and see if 5 cruises are worth more then the perks you want. In your place I would put that money into club class for your trip and skip doing the shorter cruises. Princess elite and/or suite perks are not very good anyway.

[cruzin4us]

7 minutes ago, cruzsnooze said:

I don't use the laundry because they use such hot water stains get set and clothes shrink. But for you do some math and see if 5 cruises are worth more then the perks you want. In your place I would put that money into club class for your trip and skip doing the shorter cruises. Princess elite and/or suite perks are not very good anyway.

Interesting, never even thought about the CC....That may be the way to go.   Thanks for the suggestion!

[Ken the cruiser]

We’re also focused on making elite for 2 reasons, free laundry and being able to book a cruise a day earlier than everyone else. But, at the same time as others have mentioned, how much is saving around $50-60 for a bag of laundry every 4 days on longer cruises worth to you? As far as the tenders go, that perk only works if you’re not booked on a Princess excursion, which we usually are.

[1965]

58 minutes ago, cruzin4us said:

I'm currently at 10 cruises or 94 cruise days (Platinum).

 

We are doing a B2B cruise in August 2023 for 30 days (Scottish Highlands & Wales and Iceland/Greenland) and I'm wondering if it would be worth doing five 3 day cruises beforehand to become an Elite status?     I know I can book a suite for double the points, but I'm not sure the expense to become Elite would be worth it.

 

I don't care about some of the items such as free canapes,  afternoon tea or early access to itineraries.    However,  priority ship to shore early water shuttle disembarkation and the free laundry do have some appeal to us.     But other than that, is there really any big incentive to become an Elite?    I know on HAL you get a big discount on wine packages and Specialty dining, but on Princess that doesn't appear to be the case.

 

So, give me your thoughts. 

I like half price wifi, 10% off excursions, & exchanging the free mini bar set up for coffee pkg. 

[vjmatty]

48 minutes ago, cruzsnooze said:

I don't use the laundry because they use such hot water stains get set and clothes shrink.

 

I am surprised how much more I use the laundry room than the free service...between not shrinking my clothes and having them clean the same day it is more of a plus.

[JF - retired RRT]

1 hour ago, Ken the cruiser said:

We’re also focused on making elite for 2 reasons, free laundry and being able to book a cruise a day earlier than everyone else. But, at the same time as others have mentioned, how much is saving around $50-60 for a bag of laundry every 4 days on longer cruises worth to you? As far as the tenders go, that perk only works if you’re not booked on a Princess excursion, which we usually are.

When you look at it that way, it's not such a great perk is it? You can do a load of laundry (which would be a lot more than those cheesy paper bags hold) for 6 bucks...if you bring your own detergent/softener. Then maybe consider the time you'll spend loading the washer/dryer, hanging around till they're done, and sorting & folding.

In spite of the fact that it's not worth much $$, I still use this perk on every cruise

BTW: if something has a stain, treat it before you send it to the laundry.

[jgd3rdbcfd]

Elite is not what it use to be - free internet, laundry, bar set etc.  Calculate the value to you before spending the money to get there via suite.

[Sea Hag]

1 hour ago, 1965 said:

I like half price wifi, 10% off excursions, & exchanging the free mini bar set up for coffee pkg. 

The mini bar swap is my favorite, but those other two items are nice too.

[skynight]

3 hours ago, cruzin4us said:

I'm currently at 10 cruises or 94 cruise days (Platinum).

 

We are doing a B2B cruise in August 2023 for 30 days (Scottish Highlands & Wales and Iceland/Greenland) and I'm wondering if it would be worth doing five 3 day cruises beforehand to become an Elite status?     I know I can book a suite for double the points, but I'm not sure the expense to become Elite would be worth it.

 

I don't care about some of the items such as free canapes,  afternoon tea or early access to itineraries.    However,  priority ship to shore early water shuttle disembarkation and the free laundry do have some appeal to us.     But other than that, is there really any big incentive to become an Elite?    I know on HAL you get a big discount on wine packages and Specialty dining, but on Princess that doesn't appear to be the case.

 

So, give me your thoughts. 

No. It does not make financial sense. You can pay for laundry on your month long cruise for less than it would cost to book 5 cruises. Take the 5 short cruises if you want to cruise not to become elite.

[cruzin4us]

I think the biggest perk to me would be:   Being able to get off the ship quicker when we have to tender.    On our Iceland/Greenland trip there are 4 tender ports.    We are DIY'ers when in comes to excursions, and we like to beat the rush of all the busses.   That's probably the biggest benefit for us anyway.    The laundry would be 2nd but it's not the deal breaker.  

[sirclean]

check for repositioning cruises.  There are usually some one day cruises from Vancouver to Seattle, or Seattle to Vancouver in September/October, and in April/may  (start and end of the Alaska season).

 

If you are near LA, you can find some short 3 or 4 day LA to Cabo trips that are inexpensive and fun.

 

IF you are short only 3 credits, one short one and one in a suite will get you there.  Remember that IF there are 2 of you travelling, only one needs to be elite.  So if one doesnt mind travelling alone, book a short one (it wont save on the fare but may save some airline costs) 

[tuckerboxbill]

You can also travel solo and get double credits. "Someone I know" 😉 did this a couple of times , including the 1 night special from Vancouver to Seattle for 2 cruise credits 🙂

[sirclean]

there are some 3 day pacific coastal cruises for as low as 198 (9/24/2022)

 

there is a 4 day '80s themed' trip out of LA in October 22 for 248 I think. 

 

So you decide, but just these 2 are already nearly $500 before flights and other expenses.  You can pay for a lot of laundry for that! 

[sirclean]

2 minutes ago, tuckerboxbill said:

You can also travel solo and get double credits. "Someone I know" 😉 did this a couple of times , including the 1 night special from Vancouver to Seattle for 2 cruise credits 🙂

 I was there too~  It is quite a popular way to spend part of a weekend!  You get a room food, entertainment, and friends for one low price! 

 

(However Im not seeing any on the Princess site at the moment). 

[cruzin4us]

5 minutes ago, tuckerboxbill said:

You can also travel solo and get double credits. "Someone I know" 😉 did this a couple of times , including the 1 night special from Vancouver to Seattle for 2 cruise credits 🙂

 

3 minutes ago, sirclean said:

there are some 3 day pacific coastal cruises for as low as 198 (9/24/2022)

 

there is a 4 day '80s themed' trip out of LA in October 22 for 248 I think. 

 

So you decide, but just these 2 are already nearly $500 before flights and other expenses.  You can pay for a lot of laundry for that! 

 

 

I'm in San Diego, and that was my thought.   I get casino offers right and left (free room and princess +).   All I'd be responsible for would be port fees and taxes (as long as I stay out of the casino).     If I can find a few of those cheapies, I might just do that.   I've got a year to get them done 🙂

 

If I can find some out of SD to Ensenada I'd be golden!

 

[sirclean]

"

• 
• • 1.1k
• March 30, 2006
• Valley Center, CA

• #1  

Posted 8 hours ago

I'm currently at 10 cruises or 94 cruise days (Platinum).

"

 

I remember when I was at that point, I made a push to get The Black card before my upcoming Alaska trip.  It takes 3 single fare trips to do it.  The cruises are not hard to find.  They are fun to do too!  IF you want to do it, DO IT! 

 

(IT wont necessarily make financial sense!  Especially now that they have cut back on the benefits for being Elite, ... I was able to get one OBC credit of $25 for my loyalty level before it ended. )

 

My cruise buddy likes to use the laundry every day!  As he usually makes a long drive to catch the ship (it's good to be retired, I understand), he brings a bunch of clothes on board and leaves with an extra 10 days of 'driving clothes' cleaned for the continuation of the driving portion of his vacation!  So HE enjoys the hell out of the laundry and the fridge full of beer he doenst have to pay for!!

 

SO if you dont enjoy your status, perhaps a travel companion will!!  Mine does!!

[sirclean]

Get READY!!

 

2 back to back cruises from San Diego on 9/1 and 9/6 2022 on the Diamond Princess (and again November 😎

 

Good luck!  IT will be fun!!! 

 

5-Day West Coast Getaway with San Francisco

Roundtrip from San Diego, California

 

5-Day Cabo San Lucas Getaway

Roundtrip from San Diego, California

[CalLuvsCrusingToo]

Count me in as an Elite who does their own laundry.

Its so simple, put timer on my phone, watch a movie or nap.

Last cruise I did Rm Serv & had drink delivered to my cabin while doin my laundry.

Plus, you get it back a heck of lot sooner.

Edited May 10, 2022 by CalLuvsCrusingToo

[Princessfan20]

6 hours ago, cruzin4us said:

I think the biggest perk to me would be:   Being able to get off the ship quicker when we have to tender.    On our Iceland/Greenland trip there are 4 tender ports.    We are DIY'ers when in comes to excursions, and we like to beat the rush of all the busses.   That's probably the biggest benefit for us anyway.    The laundry would be 2nd but it's not the deal breaker.  

 

It has been our experience on longer cruises and especially TA's there are a lot of Elite's on board.  Several cruises we were on there easily were over a 1000 and you are lucky f you get your laundry back in 3 or 4 days.  Not sure if that helps or hurts the priority tender boarding.

 

To us all the OBC's that Princess gives and allows are what's important and our Elite status is not the same or as valuable as we enjoy in other travel programs.

Edited May 10, 2022 by Princessfan20

[trbarton]

10 hours ago, cruzin4us said:

I'm currently at 10 cruises or 94 cruise days (Platinum).

 

We are doing a B2B cruise in August 2023 for 30 days (Scottish Highlands & Wales and Iceland/Greenland) and I'm wondering if it would be worth doing five 3 day cruises beforehand to become an Elite status?     I know I can book a suite for double the points, but I'm not sure the expense to become Elite would be worth it.

 

I don't care about some of the items such as free canapes,  afternoon tea or early access to itineraries.    However,  priority ship to shore early water shuttle disembarkation and the free laundry do have some appeal to us.     But other than that, is there really any big incentive to become an Elite?    I know on HAL you get a big discount on wine packages and Specialty dining, but on Princess that doesn't appear to be the case.

 

So, give me your thoughts. 

I did a short cruise so I could have the Elite status. I was going on a 19 day cruise & one of the perks was the free laundry. If I was in your shoes I would book a short cruise. 
 

Tom😀