Club Royale - Masters is a joke, don't bother

[jtsongas]

This year was the first time I reached Masters level with Club Royale and was looking forward to some additional benefits. Club Royale first refused to honor the fact that I reached the points necessary and then after finding I had they only honored the status by putting it on the room card. I sailed in late April and was expecting the new benefits to be in place; onboard credit, carry-on bag drop off with delivery, welcome lunch with Chops menu, 2 device surf and stream - nope, none were honored. The crew acted like I was trying to steal something or was crazy when I asked about the carry-on bag option or the lunch. After multiple conversations with the casino host (too later for half the benefits) she finally got them applied on day 6 or 7 of the cruise. The casino host said she had a list of Masters players and I was not on it. Also, on previous cruises I have always received a bottle or two of wine from the casino but nothing on that cruise until after I mentioned it to the host. One the last full day of the cruise in the evening she had three bottles of wine delivered, not sure if she thought I would bathe in it or get plastered before leaving the ship.

 

Well, not the best start to the new program year but I though perhaps the offers which come in the mail would be a bit better reaching this new level. At Signature my offers were always for a mix of Junior Suite and Balcony staterooms. Now that I have achieved Masters my first offer was for short cruises with a mix of Balcony and Ocean View staterooms. My second offer was for $100 off of a European cruise. The first offer was bad and the second is an absolute joke. They have devalued the program to the point that any future cruises I have on Royal will not involve gambling any of my money, I'll save it for lines that actually value my business. Has anyone actually seen any value in Masters that I am somehow overlooking?

.

[bonsai3s]

Following.. genuinely interested.

 

* The only "Masters" I know is golf...and "Masters" in Jeopardy...and "Masters" and Johnson.

[Bead Pirate]

I have been Masters for a couple of years and have bever had the experience(s) described above. It may be that as you have newly reached the status (no excuses here) that you have fallen between the cracks.

[crewsweeper]

1 hour ago, bonsai3s said:

Following.. genuinely interested.

 

* The only "Masters" I know is golf...and "Masters" in Jeopardy...and "Masters" and Johnson.

It's for casino users.  You get 1 point for every $5 wagered. for OP to get 100,000 points he had to have wagered $500,000.🤨  Hope he won at least a healthy portion of that back.

[Georgia_Peaches]

I’m not understanding why your Master’s level wouldn’t be honored. Is it easy to prove how many player’s points you have accumulated?

[twangster]

1/2 million dollars for some onboard credit, carry-on bag drop off with delivery, welcome lunch with Chops menu, 2 device surf and stream?

 

Looks like one example when it would have been cheaper to buy The Key. 

[crewsweeper]

1 hour ago, twangster said:

1/2 million dollars for some onboard credit, carry-on bag drop off with delivery, welcome lunch with Chops menu, 2 device surf and stream?

 

Looks like one example when it would have been cheaper to buy The Key. 

Or just go to Vegas.  Much better perks for that level of $

[Mikew0805]

1 hour ago, twangster said:

1/2 million dollars for some onboard credit, carry-on bag drop off with delivery, welcome lunch with Chops menu, 2 device surf and stream?

 

Looks like one example when it would have been cheaper to buy The Key. 

Only if you wouldn't have gambled anyway. 

26 minutes ago, crewsweeper said:

Or just go to Vegas.  Much better perks for that level of $

Nah.. I would rather be on a ship. 

[Tiggerontheseas]

2 hours ago, twangster said:

1/2 million dollars for some onboard credit, carry-on bag drop off with delivery, welcome lunch with Chops menu, 2 device surf and stream?

 

Looks like one example when it would have been cheaper to buy The Key. 

 

I don't pretend to know how well the OP has done gambling, but betting 1/2 a million doesn’t necessarily mean losing 1/2 a million.  Of course, it would for me because I have TERRIBLE luck.  😆 

[Wanna Be Retired]

2 minutes ago, Tiggerontheseas said:

 

I don't pretend to know how well the OP has done gambling, but betting 1/2 a million doesn’t necessarily mean losing 1/2 a million.  Of course, it would for me because I have TERRIBLE luck.  😆 

Me too!  Everybody around me gets hand pays and I get nothing. I can’t figure out what I do wrong.  I appear to be betting the same.  I just stink.

[crewsweeper]

6 minutes ago, Wanna Be Retired said:

Me too!  Everybody around me gets hand pays and I get nothing. I can’t figure out what I do wrong.  I appear to be betting the same.  I just stink.

There are some games that require both skill and luck and good money management.  But most are just pure luck and favor the house.  

[Wanna Be Retired]

5 minutes ago, crewsweeper said:

There are some games that require both skill and luck and good money management.  But most are just pure luck and favor the house.  

I have zero skill, zero luck and the house hates my guts!  That’s what I got going for me! 

[orville99]

3 hours ago, twangster said:

1/2 million dollars for some onboard credit, carry-on bag drop off with delivery, welcome lunch with Chops menu, 2 device surf and stream?

 

Looks like one example when it would have been cheaper to buy The Key. 

More than 3X of the total $$ we spent on all of the RCL cruises that got us to Pinnacle🤑

[jtsongas]

3 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

I’m not understanding why your Master’s level wouldn’t be honored. Is it easy to prove how many player’s points you have accumulate

Agreed, seems they should be able to see it easily and when I contacted Club Royale they can see it but still needed to have it "honored" and updated on my account which I could not understand. This apparently could only happen by another group which drives me nuts with Club Royale that no one is empowered to do anything. 

[jtsongas]

3 hours ago, twangster said:

1/2 million dollars for some onboard credit, carry-on bag drop off with delivery, welcome lunch with Chops menu, 2 device surf and stream?

 

Looks like one example when it would have been cheaper to buy The Key. 

The benefits are few and not really that big a deal as I get a good number of benefits with Pinnacle but the fact that they are not interested in honoring the scraps they offer is what really makes me mad. The biggest benefit up to now has been the free cruises that they gave, of course now that I finally achieve Masters they reduce the offering to the point that I cannot be bothered with their free offerings.

1 hour ago, Tiggerontheseas said:

 

I don't pretend to know how well the OP has done gambling, but betting 1/2 a million doesn’t necessarily mean losing 1/2 a million.  Of course, it would for me because I have TERRIBLE luck.  😆 

Sure doesn't mean losing half a million but the amount through the machines and I definitely have not come close to making back the money I dropped but with all the free cruises (14 post COVID) I feel comfortable with the spend.

[Tiggerontheseas]

13 minutes ago, jtsongas said:

Sure doesn't mean losing half a million but the amount through the machines and I definitely have not come close to making back the money I dropped but with all the free cruises (14 post COVID) I feel comfortable with the spend.

 

Can't complain about free cruises!  And entertainment in any form is going to cost money.  

[Tiggerontheseas]

1 hour ago, Wanna Be Retired said:

Me too!  Everybody around me gets hand pays and I get nothing. I can’t figure out what I do wrong.  I appear to be betting the same.  I just stink.

 

Oh, me too.  It’s a running family joke at this point.  If we are heading to the casino my husband asks if I would prefer to save time and just flush the money down the toilet now.  Ha!

[watcher_62]

I also hit Masters this year, and since that time have been on 3 sailings.  It's pretty obvious that many of the RCL team do not know about the program and benefits, as my experience on the first cruise was similar to yours - I had to ask for and explain what should have been automatically offered.  The second and third cruises were better, and the hosts did make a point of making contact.  But that said, it's certainly not what you'd expect the a "top tier" experience to be.

 

I do think that the comment someone made about the Key is pretty accurate in some ways.  Masters simply are included in their embarkation and lunch. The Grand Suite annual benefit is definitely nice, but so far the casino offers and perks are no different to Signature.We'll see how things go on the 10 upcoming bookings this year and next winter.  At this point if I don't hit it again before next march, I don't think I'm missing much.

 

On a side note, it's always interesting to read the comments people make when you open a "Masters" thread. The name seems to bring out the comedian in many 😄!   

[jtsongas]

7 minutes ago, watcher_62 said:

... The Grand Suite annual benefit is definitely nice...

I was able to find a shorter 6 day cruise that had a Grand Suite available to use and when I called in to claim it they acted amazed that I was able to find one to claim the annual benefit.

[watcher_62]

6 minutes ago, jtsongas said:

I was able to find a shorter 6 day cruise that had a Grand Suite available to use and when I called in to claim it they acted amazed that I was able to find one to claim the annual benefit.

I had booked a 7 day on the Anthem in a balcony, and when we checked there was only 1 GS available, so they put us in a two bedroom Grand Suite.  Now I have my own bedroom to sleep in if I end up in the doghouse at some point...😄 

[bucfan2]

2 hours ago, orville99 said:

More than 3X of the total $$ we spent on all of the RCL cruises that got us to Pinnacle🤑

Assuming OP lost each and every penny....we have no idea how much they won/lost, and doesn't appear to be our business as they chose not to share that financial information.

[smokeybandit]

I won $10 once using my $6 D+ credit.

 

I walked away quite happy.

[orville99]

11 hours ago, Jimbo said:

You actually kept track of how much each cruise cost you to become Pinnacle? Is that a requirement of becoming a Pinnacle member? I really don't want to know how much we spent on or for cruises.

I keep track of how much it costs us to do everything...it is called a budget.

[d9704011]

2 minutes ago, orville99 said:

I keep track of how much it costs us to do everything...it is called a budget.

I usually think of a budget as an estimate of income and expenditure for future planning.  Keeping track of past expenses is more of an accounting that is very useful for budget forecasting.

[orville99]

49 minutes ago, d9704011 said:

I usually think of a budget as an estimate of income and expenditure for future planning.  Keeping track of past expenses is more of an accounting that is very useful for budget forecasting.

Absolutely. The fundamental components of financial literacy are knowing where your money comes from, where it needs to go next, and where it went in the past. All parts of effective budgeting.

 

I track what the average cost is for all of the cruises we have taken since we started cruising 40 years ago broken down by decade, by year, by cabin category, and by cruise line. When we get on board and book our next cruises, we use that data to determine how many cruises we can book, when they can be scheduled so they fit in the budget, and what types of accommodations we can book within that framework. 

Edited May 20, 2023 by orville99