Introduction — Status Matters – A New Cruising with MJ Series
Cruising with MJ – Elite Status with Carnival
Cruising with MJ – Elite Status with Disney
Cruising with MJ – Elite Status with NCL
Cruising with MJ – Elite Status with Princess
Cruising with MJ – Elite Status with Holland America
Cruising with MJ – Elite Status with Celebrity
Cruising with MJ – Elite Status with Royal Caribbean
Cruising with MJ – Elite Status Reciprocity with Affiliate Brands
Cruising with MJ – Elite Status Summary
There’s more to elite status than meets the eye. Most readers will be intimately familiar with the benefits of holding elite status with airlines, hotels, and even rental car companies. But did you know cruise lines offer elite programs as well? Not unlike the programs you are more familiar with, the more you sail, the more elite you can become. You’ll recognize a lot of elite benefits with cruise lines, especially the level names like Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. No, they don’t call their levels helmsman, second mate, chief mate, and Captain! 🙂 The benefits are even similar like priority check in and boarding, upgrade opportunities, and even lounge access. That’s where the similarities end. I’ve toured the bridge of the largest cruise ship in the world thanks to my elite status. Can’t think of any cockpit tours I’ve received thanks to my elite status with airlines. Other elite benefits run that gamut from complimentary shoe shines to free laundry. We’ll cover them all here.
With cruise lines, your progress towards elite status is cumulative for life. OK, sure, they can change the benefits, but you need not requalify each year. In other words, once you hit a certain elite level, you’re there. You only need to worry about getting to your next level, and once you hit that mark, it’s yours from then on no matter how often you cruise.
In this series, I’ll cover the elite programs of the big cruise lines, and wrap things up with a summary of elite reciprocity amongst brands. In other words, Royal Caribbean owns Celebrity and they offer elite reciprocity between the two lines which we’ll talk about here. Much like air travel, I find that I’d rather cruise with elite status than without it. Feel free to ask questions along the way.
Thanks!
@MrsMJ, well said. Perhaps you should write a post on that. 🙂
I’m sure you’ll get to this, but lounge access on the ship is a different experience compared to any airline lounge. The airline lounge is a place where people keep to themselves and go about doing work or reading or whatever. Lounge access on the ship is a social experience. Friendships are formed, evening and future plans are made. Information is shared. Stories are told. And the staff always makes you feel welcomed and at home. Airline lounge access is just a way-stop to your destination. On the ship, it is a destination!
If only earning status didn’t take so long! I was only 2 cruises away from platinum with carnival and looking forward to earning it next year then the switch from number of cruises to days at sea set be back to 4 more cruises. At 2 cruises a year it set me back a whole extra year!
Looking forward to this. One thing that maddens me as a loyal to Royal (all three of my cruises on them) is that you cannot earn across brands. I am gold and nearly platinum with RCCL. Wish I could earn cruise credits for C&A on Celebrity. It’d be similar to airline alliances. Otherwise I feel less motivated to try Celebrity over other lines.
I also wish they’d have guaranteed upgrade certificates say one when you reach eah status above emerald or something.
Cruising is the only way to travel!
You gain status after your first cruise w/ most lines as well.
Looking forward to this very much. Wish any line would do a status match challenge or the like. Guess they do not see the value of poaching “frequent floaters” from the competition?
Marshall,
GREAT. Just what I was looking for.
Bryan