Best Way to Reach Elite Status

[Charles4515]

5 minutes ago, peachcreamsicle said:

Wow! That’s an amazing price and I’m super tempted 😍 we’re sailing on the Equinox this December, so assuming we like it, I just may! 
 

Question: what does it take to book the military discount? My husband was in the army for 10 years, but I’m not sure if that’s enough. 

They only offer it on select sailings but when you book ask about it. You might find that other offers are a better deal. I don’t think it takes more than being a veteran. 

[peachcreamsicle]

5 minutes ago, CaroleSS said:

Platinum on RCCL gets you Select status on X, not Elite....so, yes, easier to get there.

Oh yes, my mistake! I meant Diamond, not Platinum. 
 

So Diamond on RCCL (80 points) = Elite on Celebrity (300 points). 

[peachcreamsicle]

5 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

They only offer it on select sailings but when you book ask about it. You might find that other offers are a better deal. I don’t think it takes more than being a veteran. 

Thank you, will check it out in the future! 🙂

[CaroleSS]

1 minute ago, peachcreamsicle said:

Oh yes, my mistake! I meant Diamond, not Platinum. 
 

So Diamond on RCCL (80 points) = Elite on Celebrity (300 points). 

If I sail in an Aqua cabin (5 points per night) for 60 nights, I'm Elite. If I sail on RCCL for 60 nights, I'm not yet Diamond. 
 

X does give you the opportunity to gain status faster if that is what you want.

[CaroleSS]

Plus, if you are to be objective about things, the highest level you can attain by reciprocity is Elite. If you use RCCL to attain Elite status, that's as high as you can go. 
 

if you want to have Elite status on X, the better way would be to sail on X, knowing you might be able to attain a higher level with better benefits. Yes, it will take more "work" to get there.

[peachcreamsicle]

18 minutes ago, fenton04 said:

We been cruising since 1987 but got serious in 2000.  One cruise a year on 7 days or more.  Then took a Panama Canal cruise on Celebrity Infinity.  Game changer and the focused on RCL and before you know it diamond/elite.  Just finished New England/Canada in September.  Totally on board for Celebrity brand.  We figure we are going to cruise might as well earn some perks.

So you did Royal Caribbean cruises after your “game changer” Celebrity Infinity? For the points? 

[peachcreamsicle]

2 minutes ago, CaroleSS said:

Plus, if you are to be objective about things, the highest level you can attain by reciprocity is Elite. If you use RCCL to attain Elite status, that's as high as you can go. 
 

if you want to have Elite status on X, the better way would be to sail on X, knowing you might be able to attain a higher level with better benefits. Yes, it will take more "work" to get there.

Yes, you’re right.  
 

I just wonder if they’ll ever just “combine” the two loyalty brands.   Then everyone could just book whatever they like without thinking of the loyalty points.

[Georgia_Peaches]

1 hour ago, peachcreamsicle said:

Ahh, ok thank you! How do you find Royal Caribbean compares to Celebrity in terms of food and overall vibe? Do you have a preference between the two? 

I haven’t sailed RCI since 2013 so can’t really speak to food and such. Much has changed since then. Back in my RCI days I recall enjoying the food but when we jumped to Celebrity, I recall enjoying the food even more. If I had to guess, these days the line between food across RCI and Celebrity are likely quite blurred. 

[CaroleSS]

6 minutes ago, peachcreamsicle said:

Yes, you’re right.  
 

I just wonder if they’ll ever just “combine” the two loyalty brands.   Then everyone could just book whatever they like without thinking of the loyalty points.

Doubt it

 

I don't worry about any company's loyalty points because, IMHO, they don't amount to anything anymore.

Edited October 26, 2023 by CaroleSS

[Boston lab girl]

I am Diamond plus on Royal and my next cruise gets me to elite plus on celebrity. 
really wish  they would combine the programs. I like the Royal ships because of the activities. Bumper cars on anthem , mini golf on all the ships. The ice shows and aqua shows. My last cruise on Royal was September 22 and the food was good. I love pizza and the buffet. No complaints in main dining room. The shows were good. Celebrity is quieter. It’s the little things like cold towels when returning to the ship. Having the towels placed on the chairs. As for points we booked jr suites for double points. And concierge on celebrity and sometimes a suite. I really try to stick with these two because of the status. We also have the credit card that we use for on board credit and have stock which also gives us $100 per cruise of onboard credit. The only thing we usually use is the laundry( we take long cruises) and the drinks. ( we are not big drinkers so two drinks a day) we don’t need the drink package. We also like the evening socials ( glad celebrity is bringing them back.) Diamond lounges on Royal are great spaces. 

[CaroleSS]

The RCCL website says Elite is the highest you can attain via reciprocity. Is this incorrect?

 

maybe I misunderstood you.....you will attain Elite Plus due to your sailings on X?

Edited October 26, 2023 by CaroleSS

[mrgabriel]

24 minutes ago, peachcreamsicle said:

Yes, you’re right.  
 

I just wonder if they’ll ever just “combine” the two loyalty brands.   Then everyone could just book whatever they like without thinking of the loyalty points.

 

That wouldn't make much sense - although RCI doesn't always make decisions based on what makes sense.

 

Supposedly, Royal Caribbean and Celebrity offer two different products. Royal Caribbean has more bells and whistles and has marketing more directed to families. Celebrity doesn't have nearly the amenities of RCCI ships and is marketed more to adults/couples (although there are some ads now targeting groups of adults). 

 

And the more people with loyalty status, the more it costs a company to provide perks ... so what's given for 'free' is eroded OR more points are needed for the same thing. 

[39august]

Celebrity is not geared toward families with children. That is not to say they don't cruise Celebrity, but you will find a more mature vibe than RCL. If you really go for RCL's ice shows, Broadway shows, diving shows, etc. you may be very bored with Celebrity's entertainment. On the other hand, if you would like a little more refined atmosphere, very nice coffee bar area which blows away the coffee bars on RCI, wonderful crew and very clean ships, you would like Celebrity. And they also offer free varied flavors of ice cream every day in the buffet area. That is something we never saw on RCI.We gave up RCI for Celebrity after our first Celebrity cruise in Dec. 2017. 

[DaKahuna]

23 minutes ago, CaroleSS said:

The RCCL website says Elite is the highest you can attain via reciprocity. Is this incorrect?

 

maybe I misunderstood you.....you will attain Elite Plus due to your sailings on X?

 

 

 We were Diamond on RCCL when we took our first Celebrity cruise.  That made us Elite but with zero cruise points.  We will make Elite + on our next Celebrity cruise as we have cruised Celebrity enough to accumulate 733 points, as of today.  We have also reached Diamond Plus and have 368 cruise points with Royal Caribbean. 

 

IF you do the math, the quickest and least expensive way to achieve Elite on Celebrity through status match is to make Diamond on Royal Caribbean.  40 nights in a Junior Suite will get you the 80 points you need. To reach 300 on Celebrity you would need to do 38 (37.5) in a Sky Suite.  The cost difference between the two is significant. 

 

[Pinboy]

3 hours ago, peachcreamsicle said:

My husband and I are excited to experience the perks bestowed upon Elite status cruise

Really ???

To spend all that money to receive a few perks ----- that might change at any time?

We " graduated " to Elite a few yrs ago--- nothing to get " excited " ( as you say ) about.

Suggestion : Wanna get " excited " ?? Go to Centre St Deli ( was there twice when in Toronto ) for a great meal and mingle with some of the Toronto " Elites "---- more fun than having a few mini canapes with a Jr Officer, a free bag of laundry , or a scoop of gelato.

LOL--- "Elite" sounds better than it is---- I believe 80-90 % of the passengers are Elite or higher on most cruises . 

FYI--- We enjoyed every one of our Celebrity cruises --- Food, Service , Cleanliness of the ships, met very nice people--- etc .

 

[CaroleSS]

3 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

 

 We were Diamond on RCCL when we took our first Celebrity cruise.  That made us Elite but with zero cruise points.  We will make Elite + on our next Celebrity cruise as we have cruised Celebrity enough to accumulate 733 points, as of today.  We have also reached Diamond Plus and have 368 cruise points with Royal Caribbean. 

 

IF you do the math, the quickest and least expensive way to achieve Elite on Celebrity through status match is to make Diamond on Royal Caribbean.  40 nights in a Junior Suite will get you the 80 points you need. To reach 300 on Celebrity you would need to do 38 (37.5) in a Sky Suite.  The cost difference between the two is significant. 

 

I do apologize. I originally ready that you were E+ due to reciprocity, but re-read your post and determined you had done so via sailing. I should slow down the reading and increase my comprehension!

 

I did some math too. It seems that the benefits folk like most are the 4 "free" drinks and laundry. 4 drinks per day for a 7-night cruise has a monetary benefit of $330. Laundry adds, say, $20. The Elite benefit then becomes $350.

 

To go from 24 RCCL points to Diamond would require another 56 points (80 points). 56/7 = another 8 7-night cruises. Not sure how much that would cost (although you would get the benefit of the cruise experience), but it hardly seems worth the cost for $350.

[Team Stag]

2 hours ago, Charles4515 said:

That is another reason not to cruise for loyalty perks. They can change them anytime. When I was about one cruise short on Royal for Diamond and one short on Celebrity by actual points they changed the goal posts. I had to do about 3 more sailings to move up.  

This happened to us as well.  We got on a cruise in 2012 and after that cruise we would be one CC Cruise away from Elite.  While sailing they changed the program and when we got off the ship, we were 3 - 7 day cruises in CC away from Elite.  On the ship, the host said there were some adjustments made for people in our case; but we never got them.  So we stopped sailing with Celebrity.  Until 2021 when they one of the first cruises lines to start sailing again.  After that cruise, we realized we missed Celebrity and have returned to them for a least one cruise a year.

 

Back then Bev Packages were still in their early days; so the Elite Happy Hour would have been a big savings for us.  Now, we don't use many of the benefits.  We like room service breakfast, the social gatherings tend to be really crowded, wifi and beverages (up to this point) have typically been included.  My wife uses the laundry benefit simply because it's available.  

Edited October 26, 2023 by Team Stag

[fenton04]

1 hour ago, peachcreamsicle said:

So you did Royal Caribbean cruises after your “game changer” Celebrity Infinity? For the points? 

Well when the cruises in the 80's and 09's are so much different than now.  But if you want to approximate the 80's and 90's cruises Celebrity. It is as close as one can get.  Definitely not Royal (welcome to the future).

 

[DaKahuna]

7 minutes ago, CaroleSS said:

 

I did some math too. It seems that the benefits folk like most are the 4 "free" drinks and laundry. 4 drinks per day for a 7-night cruise has a monetary benefit of $330. Laundry adds, say, $20. The Elite benefit then becomes $350.

 

 You do not get 4 free drinks on Celebrity.  Celebrity gives Elite and above two hours of Happy Hour where drinks from a specific menu of drinks are free.  You could consume four, you could consumer more, you could consume less. 

 

7 minutes ago, CaroleSS said:

 

To go from 24 RCCL points to Diamond would require another 56 points (80 points). 56/7 = another 8 7-night cruises. Not sure how much that would cost (although you would get the benefit of the cruise experience), but it hardly seems worth the cost for $350.

 

Yes, it is considerable less expensive to simply pay for your laundry and buy your drinks as you go than to accumulate the points specifically for those items.  We cruise for the destinations, the shipboard experiences, and for the relaxation.  The various status levels are simply side benefits that happen as a result of us choosing to take cruises for our vacations. 

 

[Ex-Airbalancer]

2 hours ago, peachcreamsicle said:

Wow! That’s an amazing price and I’m super tempted 😍 we’re sailing on the Equinox this December, so assuming we like it, I just may! 
 

Question: what does it take to book the military discount? My husband was in the army for 10 years, but I’m not sure if that’s enough. 

Does he have a CF1 card ? It was $200 off the price with military discount

The cf1 card also gets you free luggage on AC, Air Transat , West Jet and Porter 

And a bunch of other discounts 

The deal may not be the same come December,  with Celebrity if you see a deal you have jump on it 

Edited October 26, 2023 by Ex-Airbalancer

[allyfree]

1 hour ago, Boston lab girl said:

I am Diamond plus on Royal and my next cruise gets me to elite plus on celebrity. 
really wish  they would combine the programs. I like the Royal ships because of the activities. Bumper cars on anthem , mini golf on all the ships. The ice shows and aqua shows. My last cruise on Royal was September 22 and the food was good. I love pizza and the buffet. No complaints in main dining room. The shows were good. Celebrity is quieter. It’s the little things like cold towels when returning to the ship. Having the towels placed on the chairs. As for points we booked jr suites for double points. And concierge on celebrity and sometimes a suite. I really try to stick with these two because of the status. We also have the credit card that we use for on board credit and have stock which also gives us $100 per cruise of onboard credit. The only thing we usually use is the laundry( we take long cruises) and the drinks. ( we are not big drinkers so two drinks a day) we don’t need the drink package. We also like the evening socials ( glad celebrity is bringing them back.) Diamond lounges on Royal are great spaces. 

Agree with all of this .... we too are D+ with RCI and love the ice shows, aqua theatre, etc. but prefer Celebrity for good adult spaces and better food

[Charles4515]

55 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

You do not get 4 free drinks on Celebrity.  Celebrity gives Elite and above two hours of Happy Hour where drinks from a specific menu of drinks are free. 

For me that specific menu only means gin and tonic or beer. The liquor used is pretty basic quality. I would rather pay fo good quality liquor than drink their limited shelf  quality offerings. They use Beefeater Gin which is fine mixed with tonic although my not my prefered gin. So I do order that. And their wine choices usually come with a headache. 

[hcat]

2 hours ago, peachcreamsicle said:

Yes, you’re right.  
 

I just wonder if they’ll ever just “combine” the two loyalty brands.   Then everyone could just book whatever they like without thinking of the loyalty points.

Hope never!  Diamond crossover  has inundated X....and diluted value of the Cap Club program..just my opinion!

[Charles4515]

3 minutes ago, hcat said:

Hope never!  Diamond crossover  has inundated X....and diluted value of the Cap Club program..just my opinion!

It would be dumb of them to combine points but they sometimes do dumb. The limited status match is a little too good but really those Royal cruisers are not getting much. Celebrity cruisers going on Royal are getting more out the match if they don't mind going on Royal. 

[DaKahuna]

19 minutes ago, Charles4515 said:

For me that specific menu only means gin and tonic or beer. The liquor used is pretty basic quality. I would rather pay fo good quality liquor than drink their limited shelf  quality offerings. They use Beefeater Gin which is fine mixed with tonic although my not my prefered gin. So I do order that. And their wine choices usually come with a headache. 

 

 I understand.  When we sailed in non-suites, I usually just ordered the pinot noir.  However, it has been a long time since I have not had the premium beverage package. 

 

 I prefer Hendrick's and Diet Tonic when I drink G&T.