Zenith access to Retreat Lounge

[tfred]

16 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

 

I think it is a positive move by Celebrity but not sure it will make any difference in our choice to start sailing other lines.  

 

While it is a big move on the part of Celebrity,  the fact that we have to book with the all inclusive for suites negates any of the benefits of Zenith for us.    Currently Zenith has no value to us when traveling in RS's and only  free laundry when in a CS.   

 

 

Status in the rest of the traveling world (hotels, airlines) has devolved into guest recovery issues when there is a problem.  Upgrades for seats or rooms is really a thing of the past. If you are in a suite I don't know what else they could do for you that you already haven't paid for on X

 

I also think that high volume cruisers will naturally look for other experiences outside whatever line they are on.  X can only do so much for itineraries and after a while it is repetitive   X should do a better job in moving Zeniths to Silversea for new and interesting routes.  At least it keeps it in the family instead of wandering to Ponant or Seabourne etc.  There is little to offer X Zeniths on Silversea other than OBC since SSea is pretty much all inclusive as well, but it's worth the effort. 

[Jim_Iain]

15 hours ago, micruiser2002 said:

Do Zeniths automatically get all included?  If not then it could be a cost to Celebrity to allow them into the lounge for free drinks if they have not already paid for a drink package.  

Zeniths get Free Premium Drink Package (so that is not the issue),  they also get free premium Internet and Free Laundry.    Now if you are Zenith in a Suite you are forced to pay for all the same perks in your fare as oppose to the past when you could book without perks that we already have

 

Some of you may have the same feeling shortly when some of the airlines like Delta start dropping access to their lounges for many that currently can access them.

[Jim_Iain]

3 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

There’s no way I’d ever let them do my laundry!  Free or not. Just no. 

 

Wondering if you have had a bad experience with the laundry service.   When we are on a ship for 4-6 weeks it would be impossible (or impracticable) to not have laundry done on the ship.    Anything delicate I have dry cleaned and have not had any problem with shrinkage or damage to our laundry.  

One part I do use often is the pressing service to get the wrinkles out of our Sports and Dinner Jackets and Pants after being in our suitecase.

[NutsAboutGolf]

18 minutes ago, tfred said:

Status in the rest of the traveling world (hotels, airlines) has devolved into guest recovery issues when there is a problem.  Upgrades for seats or rooms is really a thing of the past. If you are in a suite I don't know what else they could do for you that you already haven't paid for on X

 

I also think that high volume cruisers will naturally look for other experiences outside whatever line they are on.  X can only do so much for itineraries and after a while it is repetitive   X should do a better job in moving Zeniths to Silversea for new and interesting routes.  At least it keeps it in the family instead of wandering to Ponant or Seabourne etc.  There is little to offer X Zeniths on Silversea other than OBC since SSea is pretty much all inclusive as well, but it's worth the effort. 

 

Upgrades are alive and well for those with status.  What has steadily increased are the requirements to obtain the status that gives you upgrades

[Jim_Iain]

2 hours ago, zitsky said:

Some of my underwear came back loose.  And I didn’t lose that much weight on my cruise.  😂

 

You could always go Comando and not have to worry.   🤣

[cruzzzinma]

My limited experience with Royal Caribbean in Grand Suites on older ships was that Royal makes a much bigger deal about the the upper loyalty levels than Celebrity does. I don’t think any passengers on Celebrity ever asked me what my loyalty level was. That wasn’t my experience on Royal.

[verizon]

3 hours ago, zitsky said:

Some of my underwear came back loose.  And I didn’t lose that much weight on my cruise.  😂

Do you know you get a bottle of wine if you bring to Guess Relation Office ?

LOL

[markeb]

45 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

Upgrades are alive and well for those with status.  What has steadily increased are the requirements to obtain the status that gives you upgrades

 

I don't know where you're flying. Rooms sometimes. Seats almost never. I've seen sold out flights with 50 elite flyers on the upgrade list (United)...

[NutsAboutGolf]

11 minutes ago, markeb said:

 

I don't know where you're flying. Rooms sometimes. Seats almost never. I've seen sold out flights with 50 elite flyers on the upgrade list (United)...

 

If United has 10 unsold business class seats, even if there are 200 people on the list, the 10 on top of that list receive the upgrades

[markeb]

6 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

If United has 10 unsold business class seats, even if there are 200 people on the list, the 10 on top of that list receive the upgrades

 

There are never 10 unsold seats. That's the point. I'm second priority for free domestic upgrades; haven't been upgraded even using my premium upgrade points on a domestic flight in years. Waitlisted for international, never cleared.

 

I'm watching a flight for this evening. I'm near the top of the waitlist for Polaris (my wife one lower, so let's hope THAT doesn't happen). There "may" be two seats at this point, but they could just as easily sell them before boarding.

[swjumbo]

It’s safe to say that things change and not always for the better but obviously Celebrity isn’t what it used to be for some. 

There are many other cruise lines out there who want your custom. Does laundry or a lounge really make that much difference?
 

Jim and Iain have the best blogs and posts and are Celebrity fans but they appear to have tried another line.

 

I love Celebrity but have just booked a Princess cruise to see how it compares next April. 

 

If you’re not happy then vote with your feet! They’ll soon get the message.

 

Edited September 25, 2023 by swjumbo

[NutsAboutGolf]

46 minutes ago, markeb said:

 

There are never 10 unsold seats. That's the point. I'm second priority for free domestic upgrades; haven't been upgraded even using my premium upgrade points on a domestic flight in years. Waitlisted for international, never cleared.

 

I'm watching a flight for this evening. I'm near the top of the waitlist for Polaris (my wife one lower, so let's hope THAT doesn't happen). There "may" be two seats at this point, but they could just as easily sell them before boarding.

 

I get that and agree that there are far fewer unsold seats than there were in the past

[NutsAboutGolf]

16 minutes ago, swjumbo said:

It’s safe to say that things change and not always for the better but obviously Celebrity isn’t what it used to be for some. 

There are many other cruise lines out there who want your custom. Does laundry or a lounge really make that much difference?
 

Jim and Iain have the best blogs and posts and are Celebrity fans but they appear to have tried another line.

 

I love Celebrity but have just booked a Princess cruise to see how it compares next April. 

 

If you’re not happy then vote with your feet! They’ll soon get the message.

 

 

I believe they only care about bookings, don't really care if they're brand new or Zenith although probably prefer new so they don't have to give away free benefits.  They claim to have strong bookings and on the RCI side, claim their newest ship still being built, the IoS, has possibly broken every booking record in the book.  I'm extremely curious to see what's next after the E-class

[goofysmom99]

38 minutes ago, swjumbo said:

If you’re not happy then vote with your feet! They’ll soon get the message.

 

I have but I don't think anyone cares.  I look at this reinstatement of lounge access as an attempt by X to get something, anything out onto social media that has a positive spin.  They've done a remarkable job generating negative publicity, even compared to other lines' cut backs.  Cutting the MDR food so severely on a line whose hallmark was its food reputation is dumb, dumber, dumbest.  So isn't it just swell zeniths get lounge access (and it doesn't cost X a dime).  

[tfred]

2 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

Upgrades are alive and well for those with status.  What has steadily increased are the requirements to obtain the status that gives you upgrades

taking a look at the DL board on Flyertalk would give a different impression.  Where most of the seats in First Class were open (70%) previously, now most seats are sold and only a few available for upgrades.  I am a Marriott top tier lifetime and it is very difficult to get any upgrade of note anymore.  

 

DL status will be based on actual $ spending with DL - that will cut out quite a few pax

 

Airline and hotel status has to be re-earned every year unlike cruise ships which just accumulates. 

 

X knows all the big data associated with Zeniths and trend lines.  They also know crowding in lounges is a big problem at airports (DL SkyClub and Amex lounges have a line out the door).  That line has the people who earned access by spending incensed because now they cant get in. A few Zeniths shouldn't be a problem with Retreat now.  Most R lounges are not that busy and the increase load won't cost anything to X.  

[NutsAboutGolf]

35 minutes ago, tfred said:

taking a look at the DL board on Flyertalk would give a different impression.  Where most of the seats in First Class were open (70%) previously, now most seats are sold and only a few available for upgrades.  I am a Marriott top tier lifetime and it is very difficult to get any upgrade of note anymore.  

 

DL status will be based on actual $ spending with DL - that will cut out quite a few pax

 

Airline and hotel status has to be re-earned every year unlike cruise ships which just accumulates. 

 

X knows all the big data associated with Zeniths and trend lines.  They also know crowding in lounges is a big problem at airports (DL SkyClub and Amex lounges have a line out the door).  That line has the people who earned access by spending incensed because now they cant get in. A few Zeniths shouldn't be a problem with Retreat now.  Most R lounges are not that busy and the increase load won't cost anything to X.  

 

Agreed that upgrades are greatly reduced yet I was specifically commenting on what I highlighted, "a thing of the past".  If you are flexible with your dates and if you're okay with a layover, you can increase your odds of an upgrade.  There's often no biz available when I fly to LAX yet often there is when going out of SFO for whatever reason.  Also with United's same-day change, you may be able to switch to a different flight with more biz availability.  With United there is a big market for folks to resell their PlusPoints, you can find them right now on eBay.  With Delta/AMEX lounges, US military members who have an AMEX plat do not pay an annual fee so that gets them into AMEX and Delta lounges; not saying that right or wrong, just that it's part of the congestion

 

Back on topic, haven't visited a Retreat lounge yet, which is better, Retreat or airline lounges?

[doghog]

4 hours ago, micruiser2002 said:

I meant in the Suite lounge, I believe they get the unlimited drinks there.  Otherwise they have to use their CAS limit?

I believe non suite Ps have to use their CAS drinks in the SL also.  

[markeb]

26 minutes ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

Back on topic, haven't visited a Retreat lounge yet, which is better, Retreat or airline lounges?

Depends. The drinks are all free (for the most part; I’m sure there’s a limit) in the retreat. Food can be better depending on the airline and location (overseas better than domestic). Centurion is probably better than either, but they’ve become too crowded. 

[chemmo]

2 hours ago, swjumbo said:

It’s safe to say that things change and not always for the better but obviously Celebrity isn’t what it used to be for some. 

There are many other cruise lines out there who want your custom. Does laundry or a lounge really make that much difference?
 

Jim and Iain have the best blogs and posts and are Celebrity fans but they appear to have tried another line.

 

I love Celebrity but have just booked a Princess cruise to see how it compares next April. 

 

If you’re not happy then vote with your feet! They’ll soon get the message.

 

I guess the really clever thing to do is take each vacation as it comes…

 

Loyalty to no company

Look for exactly what you want from a vacation at that one moment in time

Consider a range of options and their prices

Be willing to be adventurous 

 

For the first time in many years we are about to do an AI in Europe, first in a very long time…

 

All we want is a crash out, we didn’t want to fly far but wanted good weather, we didn’t want much sightseeing…If we had chosen a cruise we may have seen good ports as a chore rather than a pleasure…

 

Celebrity doesn’t only face competition from other cruise lines…

[micruiser2002]

17 minutes ago, chemmo said:

I guess the really clever thing to do is take each vacation as it comes…

 

Loyalty to no company

Look for exactly what you want from a vacation at that one moment in time

Consider a range of options and their prices

Be willing to be adventurous 

 

For the first time in many years we are about to do an AI in Europe, first in a very long time…

 

All we want is a crash out, we didn’t want to fly far but wanted good weather, we didn’t want much sightseeing…If we had chosen a cruise we may have seen good ports as a chore rather than a pleasure…

 

Celebrity doesn’t only face competition from other cruise lines…

I agree, I just finished booking a trip for next June with my family to Venice & Turkey and first time in a very long time not using Delta or one of their partners.  I am also going to start looking at some of my casino offers for other cruiselines.

[zitsky]

If everyone leaves Celebrity, these threads will get a lot shorter and take less time to read.  Win-win.  😁

Edited September 25, 2023 by zitsky

[C-Dragons]

3 minutes ago, zitsky said:

If everyone leaves Celebrity, these threads will get a lot shorter and take less time to read.  Win-win.  😁

But who would be here to “talk” to you? 😉

I guess we will all have to stay with X and keep you company.  🍿🥤

[paulh84]

41 minutes ago, chemmo said:

I guess the really clever thing to do is take each vacation as it comes…

 

Loyalty to no company

Look for exactly what you want from a vacation at that one moment in time

Consider a range of options and their prices

Be willing to be adventurous 

 

For the first time in many years we are about to do an AI in Europe, first in a very long time…

 

All we want is a crash out, we didn’t want to fly far but wanted good weather, we didn’t want much sightseeing…If we had chosen a cruise we may have seen good ports as a chore rather than a pleasure…

 

Celebrity doesn’t only face competition from other cruise lines…

 

Why would you not? My opinion is different than many here but I cannot imagine going on what is essentially the exact same cruise hundreds and hundreds of nights and doing the same drive-by tourist trap experience time and time again. How boring is that? There is a lot to see out there. 

[swjumbo]

47 minutes ago, chemmo said:

I guess the really clever thing to do is take each vacation as it comes…

 

Loyalty to no company

Look for exactly what you want from a vacation at that one moment in time

Consider a range of options and their prices

Be willing to be adventurous 

 

For the first time in many years we are about to do an AI in Europe, first in a very long time…

 

All we want is a crash out, we didn’t want to fly far but wanted good weather, we didn’t want much sightseeing…If we had chosen a cruise we may have seen good ports as a chore rather than a pleasure…

 

Celebrity doesn’t only face competition from other cruise lines…

Chemmo.

Tried to send an email with no success.

Have a look at this contributor. 
As we’re getting the Apex next year in Southampton, the Sky Princess might just be a suitable replacement.

 

[sunnyBGI]

The official announcement “materialized”. Nice 🙂