I know quite a few people who will only take their cruise holidays with one company, in order to build up more loyalty points on their membership programmes, but what are the benefits of this? Is it worth sticking to just one cruise company or is it better to try a few different companies to see which style suits your needs.
Each company has different styles of service, décor, entertainment, dress codes and general atmosphere and, different companies suit different types of people. As such, I think it’s best to try a few different cruises to find which style suits you, and your travel companion’s best.
I Love Royal Caribbean!
I have cruised with Royal Caribbean on a number of occasions, not because I wanted to remain loyal to them in order to accumulate points, but simply because the dates and itineraries have suited what I wanted from my holidays more than other companies.
This has led to me reaching a reasonable tier on their membership programme and being offered benefits such as discounts in the bars and shops on-board, opportunities to be upgrade, and invitations to membership parties with free food and drinks.
However, the best benefit I’ve experienced is the dedicated area at check in for members of a high tier on their membership programme. This has meant I’ve been able to check in within 5 minutes, waiting only behind one group of people, and saving a huge amount of time waiting in a large queue. On my holidays, time is precious, and any time saved waiting in a queue is even better!
The rewards that come with being on the highest level of a loyalty programme can be lucrative and tempting. On most cruise lines the highest members will have their laundry done for free, be invited to dine with the captain, receive free upgrades if available, be invited onto the ship’s bridge and many more.
Best to be Loyal To One Company
However, the number of points, or night on board, you need to accumulate in order to reach these are very high and it would be hard to do so without being loyal to one company.
Whilst the benefits that come with taking multiple cruises with one company are nice (who can argue with free food and drink at parties!), it wouldn’t be enough to keep me cruising with one company over any others. The itinerary, and the ship’s facilities, will always be more important to me than any rewards I might receive for my loyalty.
Thanks Emma