No more diamond access to diamond lounge on Royal Caribbean??

[Engineroom Snipe]

14 hours ago, deepcman said:

Will you be changing your signin name to 'FORMERRCIGUY'

 

No, "THECRUISERFORMERLYKNOWNASRCIGUY" 😁

[nelblu]

15 hours ago, deepcman said:

Will you be changing your signin name to 'FORMERRCIGUY'

 

Actually, it should be X RCL Guy.  He's divorcing from RCL.😆

 

Extreme action about a benefit that was not readily available to D+.

 

[nelblu]

4 hours ago, Mick B said:

Hi all

 

There is another solution here, before barring the diamond members from the diamond lounge, it may be an idea to bar the Pinnacle members instead as they currently have access to the concierge and/or suit lounge and also get a spill over lounge if too many suites guests are on board (which is becoming more and more which is why parts of ships are being changed from golf courses to suites).

The reason I suggest this is because I have witnessed situations where a pinnacle member has gone into the diamond lounge at 2pm and taken with her, various knitting items and laid them across an entire row of seats and refused to move them at 4pm when guests arrived, but then moved them when her friends arrived so they can have seats leaving others who arrived on time either standing, going to an over-spill or leaving feeling let down by RCL as the staff have said they know about this but don't want to say anything as they could get into trouble.

 

 

 

WOW, a chair hog in the DL. 😆

 

I guess the Concierge did not give this lady the allowed 20 minutes as it applies to the loungers.

Edited December 14, 2022 by nelblu

[StephPS79]

15 hours ago, taglovestocruise said:

Truly unbelievable how many reps are at a total loss with accurate information.  I can see however the D Lounge becoming the D+ lounge.  We were on Quantum last month and the DL was packed every night, they opened the side doors and used the upper level of the Music Hall as overflow.  

 

You don't think there is any chance that Jim misunderstood, and confused the term Concierge Lounge with Diamond Lounge?  You feel 100% confident that didn't happen?

 

I'll never understand how people take a 1 post drive-by complaint as gospel, swearing off a cruise line because of it.  This thread is a perfect example of how misinformation spreads.

 

 

[BND]

15 minutes ago, StephPS79 said:

 

You don't think there is any chance that Jim misunderstood, and confused the term Concierge Lounge with Diamond Lounge?  You feel 100% confident that didn't happen?

 

I'll never understand how people take a 1 post drive-by complaint as gospel, swearing off a cruise line because of it.  This thread is a perfect example of how misinformation spreads.

 

 

You don't think if you read his post that he states that "DIAMOND" will no longer have access to the DL that maybe he was told incorrectly?  Diamonds have not had access to the CL since we made D years ago.  We just missed out.  But, this type of post is common on here and FB.  Instead of asking, they post on here as if something is gospel to a bunch of people who could easily answer the question correctly.

Edited December 14, 2022 by BND

[davekathy]

15 minutes ago, StephPS79 said:

I'll never understand how people take a 1 post drive-by complaint as gospel, swearing off a cruise line because of it. 

Works for me. More room in the DL for us. 😂

[island lady]

15 hours ago, Another_Critic said:

They used to do that on Anthem, but the last few times I sailed on her, they had a small "Pinn lounge" set up in the Music Hall (outside the DL doors).

 

Pinnacle event here on Serenade is roped off section of VCL.  We are enjoying it.  🙂 

[island lady]

15 hours ago, smokeybandit said:

I also got a similar email that said that only Pinnacles and Suites were allowed to board the ship at all!

 

Oh you are so bad....  😄 😄 

[StephPS79]

13 minutes ago, BND said:

You don't think if you read his post that he states that "DIAMOND" 

 

Hence the word "misunderstood" and "confused."

 

Is it possible he received inaccurate information.  Of course.  Is it possible he didn't?  Of course. 

 

Since I wasn't part of the conversation and have only the word of this rando posting on the interwebs (which, let's not forget, is inaccurate - regardless of where the misinformation occured), I'm certainly not going to make any decisions regarding how I feel about RCI or any of their reps, and declare my departure! from said cruise line.

 

[island lady]

12 hours ago, cruisegirl1 said:

You shouldn’t be so upset, as you are in good company. Pinnacles are often not allowed into the concierge lounge either.

 

Diamond, diamond plus, and Pinnacle have access to the diamond lounge. Nothing has changed there

 

m

 

And have not been allowed in the CL for weeks now on Serenade....no loss, no big deal for us.  😉   

 

Except for the poor concierge and waiters in there, as it is a ghost town in there each night.  Pockets not being lined with much tip money..feel bad for them.  😞 

[davekathy]

18 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

And have not been allowed in the CL for weeks now on Serenade....no loss, no big deal for us.  😉   

 

Except for the poor concierge and waiters in there, as it is a ghost town in there each night.  Pockets not being lined with much tip money..feel bad for them.  😞 

IMO, the LA should look at the numbers of D, D+ and P's on a specific cruise and decide whether or not to open the CL(for those ships that still have a CL) or the SL to D+ (CL) and P's (CL, SL) based on those numbers. I believe the CAS drinks loaded on our Seapass cards are a good crowd control. But maybe not for all ships (?).  But all this is way above my paygrade. We're just along for the ride and enjoyment. If we didn't hangout in the DL (~45 minutes) in the evening for our pre-diner drinks, we would hangout in the VCL in the evening for our pre-diner drinks. 

Edited December 14, 2022 by davekathy

[John&LaLa]

5 hours ago, Mick B said:

On my last sailing which was a TA on the Anthem back on October 2022, they uploaded a free coffee onto my sea-pass everyday and these could be used in the MDR or the coffee shops which cut down on going to the diamond lounge.

Perhaps, as a good-will gesture to the D+ members that have spent a lot of time and money cruising, RCL could make this perk a permanent thing on all ships as this may help cut down the queues for the diamond lounge coffee machine as this is now the biggest issue in the lounge, yes, the queue for the coffee machine which can take up to 20 minutes as you now get the 4, 5 or 6 free drinks on your sea pass everyday, the need to use them in the diamond lounge has dropped which is what I suspect this perk was introduced to do.

 

Nothing stopping anyone from using a drink voucher to get a coffee at Cafe Promenade or MDR. My wife does that now

[ReneeFLL]

7 hours ago, jean87510 said:

I just became Diamond in time for my sailings starting last November 2021.  Since then I've sailed on 6 cruises with one upcoming on Sunday.  Other than the Grandeur where the wifi signal in the Diamond lounge was excellent, I don't see the attraction of these lounges other than for free drinks.  Am I missing something?  I am reading a post where someone is actually leaving because they can't get into a suite lounge in the future?  No criticism of people's likes or dislikes.  Just can't understand what the attraction is other than free drinks for a few hours plus food.  Especially if you have a drink package. 

They haven’t had the free drinks since the restart. You have to use your vouchers for them.

[Wineaux007]

44 minutes ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Nothing stopping anyone from using a drink voucher to get a coffee at Cafe Promenade or MDR. My wife does that now

On Brilliance last month they loaded one free coffee on your seapass for latte-tudes.  When the coffee machine crapped out, unlimited latte-tudes access.

[jean87510]

1 hour ago, ReneeFLL said:

They haven’t had the free drinks since the restart. You have to use your vouchers for them.

I didn't on the Grandeur which is what I'm going by.  If this is true for other ships, the vouchers are a good idea then.

[jean87510]

7 hours ago, Mick B said:

Hi all,

I too am not surprised by this announcement, and I am sure this is just the start of many changes.

Due to Royal having a Diamond lounge at only 80 cruise points, it is possible on certain sailing that most of the ships cruisers would have access. I too can see them re-branding the diamond lounge the diamond plus lounge or possible creating a new tier around the 340 point area and calling the lounge after the new tier barring all diamond and any d+ under the 340 mark.

 

There is another solution here, before barring the diamond members from the diamond lounge, it may be an idea to bar the Pinnacle members instead as they currently have access to the concierge and/or suit lounge and also get a spill over lounge if too many suites guests are on board (which is becoming more and more which is why parts of ships are being changed from golf courses to suites).

The reason I suggest this is because I have witnessed situations where a pinnacle member has gone into the diamond lounge at 2pm and taken with her, various knitting items and laid them across an entire row of seats and refused to move them at 4pm when guests arrived, but then moved them when her friends arrived so they can have seats leaving others who arrived on time either standing, going to an over-spill or leaving feeling let down by RCL as the staff have said they know about this but don't want to say anything as they could get into trouble.

 

I used to love this lounge when I first became a diamond member and loved to have a drink and a chat with fellow passengers and make new friends, but it became a task of having to arrive at 3pm to get a seat and part of the day was lost to this.

I still go in there from time to time, but only for a quick chat, a coffee and some grub, and to see the concierge to arrange anything that he/she can help with.

The one thing about having a concierge club for me was when the coffee machine in the diamond lounge was broke for days on end, you could nip into the concierge lounge and use theirs.

 

On my last sailing which was a TA on the Anthem back on October 2022, they uploaded a free coffee onto my sea-pass everyday and these could be used in the MDR or the coffee shops which cut down on going to the diamond lounge.

Perhaps, as a good-will gesture to the D+ members that have spent a lot of time and money cruising, RCL could make this perk a permanent thing on all ships as this may help cut down the queues for the diamond lounge coffee machine as this is now the biggest issue in the lounge, yes, the queue for the coffee machine which can take up to 20 minutes as you now get the 4, 5 or 6 free drinks on your sea pass everyday, the need to use them in the diamond lounge has dropped which is what I suspect this perk was introduced to do.

 

So, sending pinnacle members to the Concierge/suite lounge and having 1 free special coffee on your pass each day may cut congestion in the diamond lounge and would be a much better option than banning the diamond members.

After all, it is not the cruiser's fault that so many people are rising up through the tiers, lets face it, for sheer value, what other holiday destination could offer anyone the things they get on these ships for the price they charge, so naturally, people will come back time and time again and join the C&A club. 

 

There is no point getting upset with the changes that will come, as there will have to be some changes made in order to make a profit, and I suspect certain food in the MDR and Windjammer will be next to be changed/cut-down to possibly make people take up the pay-for restaurants.

 

all the best 

Mick.

 

Someone actually brought knitting needles onto a ship?  👀

[island lady]

2 hours ago, davekathy said:

IMO, the LA should look at the numbers of D, D+ and P's on a specific cruise and decide whether or not to open the CL(for those ships that still have a CL) or the SL to D+ (CL) and P's (CL, SL) based on those numbers. I believe the CAS drinks loaded on our Seapass cards are a good crowd control. But maybe not for all ships (?).  But all this is way above my paygrade. We're just along for the ride and enjoyment. If we didn't hangout in the DL (~45 minutes) in the evening for our pre-diner drinks, we would hangout in the VCL in the evening for our pre-diner drinks. 

 

LOL...as you already know...that is what we do.   And you two had to collect us that one night to bring us into the DL...which...thank you again, was a nice thing to do.  🥰

 

And of course once you left, we resumed our seats at the VCL bar.  😄 😄 

[davekathy]

10 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

LOL...as you already know...that is what we do.   And you two had to collect us that one night to bring us into the DL...which...thank you again, was a nice thing to do.  🥰

 

And of course once you left, we resumed our seats at the VCL bar.  😄 😄 

My man Bruno. 👊

[island lady]

8 minutes ago, davekathy said:

My man Bruno. 👊

 

OMG...we miss him.  Best bartender ever!!  🥰

[iuki]

On 12/13/2022 at 12:32 PM, John&LaLa said:

No, the change is D+ do not have access to the Concierge Lounge on ships that still have them

Thanks for the clarification.

[shellunderwater]

10 hours ago, Engineroom Snipe said:

No, "THECRUISERFORMERLYKNOWNASRCIGUY" 😁

Maybe Felicia....

[John&LaLa]

7 hours ago, jean87510 said:

Someone actually brought knitting needles onto a ship?  👀

 

Laura always does. And she's a Pinnacle😉🤣🤣

Edited December 15, 2022 by John&LaLa

[njkruzer]

7 hours ago, jean87510 said:

Someone actually brought knitting needles onto a ship?  👀

I bring either knitting or needlepoint,  especially on long cruises.

[Wineaux007]

9 minutes ago, njkruzer said:

I bring either knitting or needlepoint,  especially on long cruises.

I'm bringing my own Bloody Mary Mix -- Mr & Mrs T, Bold and Spicy.

[jean87510]

8 hours ago, John&LaLa said:

 

Laura always does. And she's a Pinnacle😉🤣🤣

🤔