No more First Cabin Access for Diamonds/Platinums?

It is one of a continuing series of cutbacks. At that point lots of people would say enough already and see what else is out there.

 

Loyalty to my family and friends not a cruise line.

There’s always going to be the straw that broke the camel’s back and others are closer to the breaking point than others. Some may have even reached that breaking point and changed their primary cruise line.

John just posted again on his page that there is no change and that it is still a benefit for VIFP guests.

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John just posted again on his page that there is no change and that it is still a benefit for VIFP guests.

 

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That doesn’t mean much and often isn’t credible.

Not too long ago, John posted three times within a week that prices would not be increased for Bon Voyage prices once new broke on CC. Within 24 hours of his confirmation and reassurance, the prices jumped higher. We also shouldn’t forget about the VIFP fiasco,

That doesn’t mean much and often isn’t credible.

 

Not too long ago, John posted three times within a week that prices would not be increased for Bon Voyage prices once new broke on CC. Within 24 hours of his confirmation and reassurance, the prices jumped higher. We also shouldn’t forget about the VIFP fiasco,

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I'm thinking Carnival is on the verge of announcing changes to the VIFP program to overhaul benefits/levels, and this is but one aspect of that. Personally I think its still a little too early in wave season to make an announcement though. I think Carnival will wait until most people have booked their spring and summer cruises before making an announcement. They don't want to scare away any spring/summer bookings (their busiest time of the year).

It could be early access to cabins is not going away, but may be available to a different group based on new loyalty thresholds. That would mean JH wasn't lying, but neither are the people posting contrasting information on Carnival's social media page. Both could technically be right under such circumstances.

That's purely speculation on my part though. I still haven't booked a cruise with Carnival this year. I've found better value elsewhere this year. I'm 4 cruises away from Diamond on Carnival.

Just read on another social media page that they are removing this perk. If true, I will be really upset.

 

 

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Doesn't bother me in the long run, But, if they remove it from Plats and Diamonds, then they will also remove it from FTTF and that would upset me as I pay extra for FTTF and that would not be right as FTTF is not cheap.

YES !!!! It is a nice Perk

It sure is. Drop off all the junk I'm carrying, make a drink and go to lunch.

Also, some cruise lines do allow for all staterooms being ready when boarding starts. If it’s that important of a benefit, there are other options that provide this to everyone.

Also, some cruise lines do allow for all staterooms being ready when boarding starts. If it’s that important of a benefit, there are other options that provide this to everyone.

If there’s one thing that I’ve learned by sailing on as many cruise lines as possible rather than sticking with Carnival is that, many times, I’m treated better as a first timer on other cruise lines than as Platinum on Carnival. That says a lot about what a mediocre past guest program VIFP is.

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Princess gives everyone access to their cabin on boarding. I wish they would extend loyalty accross all brands but do not see it happening.

We always heard this' date=' but our rooms were not ready on our October Regal cruise until around 2:00. It is part of what convinced us to get FTTF for our February Carnival trip. I think Princess [i']tries [/i]to have cabins ready but does not guarantee it.

It won't happen because your S&S card won't be in the mailbox until your cabin is ready.

On the Pride (not sure about other ships) S&S card was given at check-in, not waiting at the room.

We are nowhere near D/P at only 11 days, and enjoyed the early room access on our last cruise through Faster to the Fun - especially since we like to carry everything on board. I cannot see this being taken from FTTF (I know I wouldn't pay the added price just for shorter lines) and hope they do not remove it as a benefit for those who earned the loyalty levels.

If the access is removed we would likely wait until later to board, but I wonder how many people will start doing this and if it will have unintended consequences of late lines.:confused:

When Carnival changed reaching the loyalty levels to "sea days" instead of cruises taken (used to be 25 to reach Diamond, if I remember correctly) I was a bit annoyed, cause even with 23 CCL cruises taken I have "only" 161 sea days. I still need 6 more cruises to reach the Diamond level of 200 sea days. Even if a cruiser took 7 day cruises, they would need at least 11 cruises to become platinum the way the program stands now. After 6 cruises on NCL I am already Platinum there, with better perks. While I do not cruise for perks, it is nice to see my loyalty is rewarded in some way. Hopefully CCL will not "dumb down" its' loyalty program again.

Before the VIFP program was announced in June 2012 there was no such thing as a Diamond level. You reached a Milestone (now a totally separate rewards program) after 25 cruises and at that time you got a white S&S card that said Milestone on your 25th and later cruises. When the rumors about the new loyalty program were swirling many veteran cruisers thought, and some say were told by Carnival employees, that anyone at the "Milestone" level would be grandfathered in the top level (Diamond) of the new program. That did not happen and many were upset. Diamond level was established at 200 days and has stayed there.

 

On the Pride (not sure about other ships) S&S card was given at check-in, not waiting at the room.

 

They are already putting cards in mailboxes on various ships outside of the cabins and are supposed to be rolling it out fleet wide at some point. So if your cabin isn’t ready you can’t get in.

This is from the Port Canaveral excursion page:

EXCURSION DETAILS



 

PRINT

Here's what it includes:

(Note: VIFP Club Platinum and Diamond members do not need to purchase this package as these and other benefits are included as part of your VIFP Club status.)

Priority Check-in with Express Boarding

The quicker you board the ship, the quicker you're holding a frosty drink.

Guaranteed Stateroom

Your stateroom will be ready as soon as you board, so you can relax or freshen up for the fun you're about to have.

CARNIVAL’S FASTER TO THE FUN PACKAGE:

BOOK IT TODAY TO JUMPSTART THE FUN

Yes. That has remained the same. It’s the other page that it has been removed from.

Yes. That has remained the same. It’s the other page that it has been removed from.

Did you see JH's FB post regarding this thread and the subsequent responses about CC members? It is hard to believe that this Linda person isn't actually JH (totally doesn't sound like someone who has actually participated in this thread) and the subsequent posts are not nice about CC and its' members, but at least JH "said" again that the perk would not be taken away from VIFPs. Only time will tell on that claim. Still not sure why they still haven't fixed their website though!

I copied part of the FTTF excursion details,because I saw someone mention they weren't able to get into the excursions to see if it had been changed. I didn't read the entire thread. If it was already mentioned that there was no change in the wording of the FTTF excursion, I apologize.

Before the VIFP program was announced in June 2012 there was no such thing as a Diamond level. You reached a Milestone (now a totally separate rewards program) after 25 cruises and at that time you got a white S&S card that said Milestone on your 25th and later cruises. When the rumors about the new loyalty program were swirling many veteran cruisers thought, and some say were told by Carnival employees, that anyone at the "Milestone" level would be grandfathered in the top level (Diamond) of the new program. That did not happen and many were upset. Diamond level was established at 200 days and has stayed there.

Milestone was always a separate program. False rumors/Fake News continued unabated until many mistakenly believed them. Kind of reminds me of this one.

I copied part of the FTTF excursion details,because I saw someone mention they weren't able to get into the excursions to see if it had been changed. I didn't read the entire thread. If it was already mentioned that there was no change in the wording of the FTTF excursion, I apologize.

No worries! I just wish they would fix the other page and be done with it.

For those who think it's silly to carry your luggage on, if you've ever had something missing from your luggage, had your luggage go for a swim, had something damaged from being squashed under tons of other luggage, had something ruined because someone's luggage had liquids in it that leaked all over yours or had your luggage lost temporarily or possibly forever, you might not think it so silly.

For those who think it's silly to want to board early, perhaps you've never had 11am checkout at your hotel with nowhere else to go. Or perhaps you've never driven to port and arrived around lunchtime. If I have a 5 hour drive, I'm not going to wait until the latest possible time to leave, as I like to account for any car trouble or crazy traffic.

Did you see JH's FB post regarding this thread and the subsequent responses about CC members? It is hard to believe that this Linda person isn't actually JH (totally doesn't sound like someone who has actually participated in this thread) and the subsequent posts are not nice about CC and its' members, but at least JH "said" again that the perk would not be taken away from VIFPs. Only time will tell on that claim. Still not sure why they still haven't fixed their website though!

I like how he said "VIFPs". Which ones? Red? Gold? Platinum? Diamond? We're all "VIFP's"

Did you see JH's FB post regarding this thread and the subsequent responses about CC members? It is hard to believe that this Linda person isn't actually JH (totally doesn't sound like someone who has actually participated in this thread) and the subsequent posts are not nice about CC and its' members, but at least JH "said" again that the perk would not be taken away from VIFPs. Only time will tell on that claim. Still not sure why they still haven't fixed their website though!

I firmly believe that the overwhelming majority of posts on his page referencing CC are made by one or two people who scout out discussions here and write in under false names claiming to be the OPs in threads when they aren’t. They almost always reference him as “Heald” and there are other tell tale signs I have come to recognize.

Yes he said it again, but those of us that have been around the block before with other things know better. I won’t believe it until it’s back on the webpage or Carnival makes an official announcement from Corporate. John doesn’t count in that regards.

I firmly believe that the overwhelming majority of posts on his page referencing CC are made by one or two people who scout out discussions here and write in under false names claiming to be the OPs in threads when they aren’t. They almost always reference him as “Heald” and there are other tell tale signs I have come to recognize.

 

I've always figured it was either him or his assistants to rile up the FB group.

So where is this thread that started all of this?

So where is this thread that started all of this?

Gone. One thread contained a typo in the heading. One thread initiated the poll. For some reason they were combined. The result is that the first post in THIS thread is not from the person who created the poll.

Confused?

Gone. One thread contained a typo in the heading. One thread initiated the poll. For some reason they were combined. The result is that the first post in THIS thread is not from the person who created the poll.

 

Confused?

Confused Yes but thank you for explaining