Celebrity Blue Chip ?

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2654979

Just posted the new benefits emailed out today...

The free play is based on the prior cruise theoretical loss or actual loss. Percentage of the higher of the two. The email to me sounds like it's based on coin-in. I called to clarify

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Just got the email with the outline of the "new rewards" for Blue Chip. I'm Sapphire - I see that they've eliminated the specialty dinner and the spa credit, plus changed the free play - now it's a minimum of $500 with the possibility of higher based on your gambling on the prior cruise.

As I read the new chart the Standard drink package is only good for the casino. Not sure if this restriction was there before. Now if you want to leave the casino with a drink I don’t think they are going to tackle you. Obviously when you tip the server a little more they pay “attention” to you. I was wondering if the casino 20% discount is still in existence plus then the “performance” discount is on top of that like it has been. Is there anybody here who is going to be on the August 11 slot tournament cruise. If so we could compare notes.

As I read the new chart the Standard drink package is only good for the casino. Not sure if this restriction was there before. Now if you want to leave the casino with a drink I don’t think they are going to tackle you. Obviously when you tip the server a little more they pay “attention” to you. I was wondering if the casino 20% discount is still in existence plus then the “performance” discount is on top of that like it has been. Is there anybody here who is going to be on the August 11 slot tournament cruise. If so we could compare notes.

Standard drink package for Amethyst has not changed. Always been "casino only".

Standard choices are something like $6 and below. Limited. The casino servers are pretty good about figuring out a way to give you what you want...some of them at least! ;)

The free play is based on the prior cruise theoretical loss or actual loss. Percentage of the higher of the two. The email to me sounds like it's based on coin-in. I called to clarify

 

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I got the same info. I told them that it sounded like it was based on tier points or coin in. It also started today no matter when you booked. We did not come out well.

Can someone please post the old tier benefits chart? I thought I had one printed out but cannot find it. Thanks

Standard drink package for Amethyst has not changed. Always been "casino only".

 

 

 

Standard choices are something like $6 and below. Limited. The casino servers are pretty good about figuring out a way to give you what you want...some of them at least! ;)

EDIT. Didn’t realize this was referencing Amethyst level only.

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Good morning blue chippers ,boarded the Equinox yesterday and the new tier program has already started. Even know your email stated starting August it has already started . For ruby only 2500. For sapphires only 500. And amethyst only 100. No more laundry credit, no more spa credit, no more dinner for 2 in a speciality restaurant .

This casino program is not going to make a lot people happy

Also no friend and family discounts

As I read the new chart the Standard drink package is only good for the casino. Not sure if this restriction was there before. Now if you want to leave the casino with a drink I don’t think they are going to tackle you. Obviously when you tip the server a little more they pay “attention” to you. I was wondering if the casino 20% discount is still in existence plus then the “performance” discount is on top of that like it has been. Is there anybody here who is going to be on the August 11 slot tournament cruise. If so we could compare notes.

Boarded the Equinox yesterday and will be on for 3 weeks , a lot of unhappy campers with this new program.

Good morning blue chippers ,boarded the Equinox yesterday and the new tier program has already started. Even know your email stated starting August it has already started . For ruby only 2500. For sapphires only 500. And amethyst only 100. No more laundry credit, no more spa credit, no more dinner for 2 in a speciality restaurant .

This casino program is not going to make a lot people happy

Did you get anything in free play above the minimum for your tier based on your play on your prior cruise?

Boarded the Equinox yesterday and will be on for 3 weeks , a lot of unhappy campers with this new program.

I have three cruises scheduled and was planning more this year, this certainly changes the dynamic for the worse. We never got the email which I find interesting, neither one of us.

My Hubby gets all these offers from other lines and I keep talking him out of them telling him not to dilute his play. The changes seem to blow my argument out of the water now. In many cases his amount wouldn't even be calculated before we got back on since we do many with just a week in between. Each of us getting a specialty dinner was a very enjoyable perk to me. Ticks me off that I just missed buying a specialty pkg. on sale for my next cruise since we couldn't use a 6 night pkg. with the two free. Surprise that perk is gone.

I can imagine the people who don't get the email not being aware when they board, they won't be happy.

Hi everyone,

For comparisons sake, here is the link to the Blue Chip benefits prior to 7-27-2018

https://www.celebritycruises.com/ca/things-to-do-onboard/casino/blue-chip-club

and here is the current link to the Blue Chip benefits as of 7-28-2018

https://www.celebritycruises.com/content/dam/celebrity/pdf/blue-chip-club-tiers-benefits.pdf

For those in Amethyst

Free play went from $175 to a $100 guaranteed

and the removal of the free specialty dinner

For those in Sapphire tier

Free play went from $1000 to $500 guaranteed

Removal of the friends and family discount

Removal of the free specialty dinner

Removal of the $50 dollar laundry credit

Removal of the $100 spa credit

Removal of the welcome aboard amenity

Added casino host event

For those in Ruby tier

Free play went from $5000 to $2500 guaranteed

Removal of the friends and family discount

Removal of the free specialty dinner

Removal of the $100 dollar laundry credit

Removal of the $250 spa credit

Removal of the welcome aboard amenity

Added casino host event

For amethyst, sapphire and ruby tiers you have the ability to earn free play/promo chips above your guaranteed amount per the website.

* Free play and promo chip benefits are based on gaming and tier: Ruby level guests, the greater of $2,500 or 15% of the previous sailing's gaming activity. Sapphire level guests, the greater of $500 or 10% of the previous sailing's gaming activity. Amethyst level guests, the greater of $100 or 5% of the previous sailing's gaming activity. Free play and promo chip benefits are capped at $10,000 in value per sailing. Annual cruise benefits are based on play. All benefits are for the account holder only and subject to availability. Additional restrictions may apply, and benefits are not transferrable. Management reserves the right to suspend, withhold, or cancel the loyalty program at any time. Reel and video slot machine points: $1 coin in equals one tier point. Video poker and video roulette points: $2 coin in equals one tier point. Table games: $8 table theoretical equals one tier point. For full details, call Blue Chip Club at 1-866-461-7170

So if you are a slots player, video poker or table player, it is the greater of your actual loss or your theoretical loss. I confirmed this with Blue Chip.

Amethyst level slots example. To get to your prior benefit of $175, your actual loss would have to be $3500 on your previous sailing. $3500 x 5% = $175

Sapphire level slots example. To get to your prior benefit of $1000, your actual loss would have to be $ 10,000 on your previous sailing, $10,000 x 10% = $1000

Ruby level slots example. To get to your prior benefit of $5000, your actual loss would have to be $ 33,333 on your previous sailing, $33,333 x 15% =$5000

Now it easier to get to a higher number on theoretical loss as opposed to your actual loss depending on the hours played, the house edge per the game, and the average bet size. " Perfect" play on video poker should generate a high theoretical loss if you play several hours per day as opposed to your actual loss, as the house edge is smaller, and you have skill involved in the game.

I was told by Blue Chip, that you can use your benefits on as many cruises as you want, and that includes the short cruises which is great. There will still be blue chip tournament sailings which may provide you with extras and more discounts, but again, it is all based on your play. Blue Chip will also make offers for other non tournament sailings on a free or discounted rate depending on your play.

For those who have large theoretical losses or actual losses on a cruise, they will earn more free play, and could earn a significant amount more for their next booking. For the majority of casino players in the Blue Chip club they probably won't earn more than the minimum guarantee, but that is just a guess at this point.

I did hear back from Blue Chip this morning that the casino host is able to provide discretionary comps above the room comp value that Blue Chip gave you for your cabin on a particular sailing.

I look forward to hearing about actual players' take under the new system once they get back.

Kk99, what is counted as “actual loss”? Say you bring $1000 on board but during the cruise you get a big win of $2000. Then you wind up playing through your original $1000 plus that that additional $2000 back in over the course of the cruise. Is that counted as part of your loss?

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Hi Wonderman3,

Yes, if you spent $1000 of your own funds, and then won and spent an additional $2000 then you have an actual loss of $3000. If you are sapphire tier that is worth $300 calculated on 10% of your actual loss. Since the $300 is less than your next cruise slot play or promo chip benefit guarantee for sapphire tier, you would get the $500 free play on your next cruise.

You do not receive points that count towards tier status on the free play. But if you won on the free play and cashed out the winnings and then played the cash or ticket back through the machine, then that counts toward tier status points, and win/loss.

So when the casino offers buying slots or chips with an added bonus amount, the bonus amount does not count on the tier points.

Most people who play a number of hours will probably have a higher theoretical loss than actual loss on video poker or blackjack if they are skilled players.

On slots there is more volatility as the house edge is higher, and no skill involve to reduce the house edge.

Hopefully, people will report back how their experiences are after their sailings with the new changes.

I called Blue Chip a little while ago and my Sapphire level free play for my next cruise will only be $606. Higher than the $500 minimum but still down $394 from the prior incentive. I know that they are using theoretical loss to calculate that; that’s basically your total play times the house edge. I know my total play was around $40K since I earned around 8000 points on my card (8000 x $5 coin in per point). If you estimate house edge around 15% for their slots, which is all I play, that comes out to $6000. 10% of that is $600. So that seems likely how they are calculating it.

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We have been offered discounts on Celebrity through BlueChip. We generally book our future cruise when on board. How does that work? Does anyone know which is a better deal?

I've been in the Blue Chip Club since its inception and didn't find out about the new changes until today.....just like others, I received no emails or notifications, so I've been reading the threads to try and find out more information.

The new changes are definitely a step down for me as a Sapphire level player. My onboard casino credit amount will drop from $1000 to $500 as I've never lost enough to qualify for anything higher under the new system.  I'm also not very happy they did away with the Speciality Restaurants, Spa and Laundry credits. 

Hopefully this thing with the Casino hosts being able to add more perks under the new system pans out. I thought they had that ability with the old program, but I've been on 6 cruises in the last two years and haven't seen much from them. I guess I'll find out in January of 2019 on my next cruise.

For those who are wondering about W-2G's for hand pays, I was told they are not required onboard ships like they are at land based casinos. The only time you will receive one at a ship casino is if you win the Jackpot for that particular slot machine.  This was told to me by the casino staff on one my Celebrity cruises last year. I'm not big on the table games so I don't know how it works for them. 🤔

1 hour ago, stephycpd said:

I've been in the Blue Chip Club since its inception and didn't find out about the new changes until today.....just like others, I received no emails or notifications, so I've been reading the threads to try and find out more information.

 

The new changes are definitely a step down for me as a Sapphire level player. My onboard casino credit amount will drop from $1000 to $500 as I've never lost enough to qualify for anything higher under the new system.  I'm also not very happy they did away with the Speciality Restaurants, Spa and Laundry credits. 

Hopefully this thing with the Casino hosts being able to add more perks under the new system pans out. I thought they had that ability with the old program, but I've been on 6 cruises in the last two years and haven't seen much from them. I guess I'll find out in January of 2019 on my next cruise.

 

For those who are wondering about W-2G's for hand pays, I was told they are not required onboard ships like they are at land based casinos. The only time you will receive one at a ship casino is if you win the Jackpot for that particular slot machine.  This was told to me by the casino staff on one my Celebrity cruises last year. I'm not big on the table games so I don't know how it works for them. 🤔

I have several W2Gs this year from celebrity on video poker. Ranging from $1250 to $4000. None were jackpots and was told they had to give the form of it's $1200 or more even though I was playing $25 a hand. Had a couple from NCL on slot machines too. Not jackpots either but over $1200. 

11 hours ago, Paulras said:

I have several W2Gs this year from celebrity on video poker. Ranging from $1250 to $4000. None were jackpots and was told they had to give the form of it's $1200 or more even though I was playing $25 a hand. Had a couple from NCL on slot machines too. Not jackpots either but over $1200. 

Hmmm....well that's interesting. Looks like I just had lazy staff. Thankfully my hand pay wouldn't have affected my taxes that year anyway. LOL

For those interested, I called Blue Chip today and they still haven't determined if Sapphire and Ruby will get access to the Retreat Lounge on the Edge and the upcoming renovated ships which don't have Michael's Club. I'm amazed that this hasn't been determined yet only 12 days from the first Edge sailing. Hopefully the answer is that we get into the Retreat Lounge.

If you're a Sapphire or Ruby, try calling and make it known that this is an important benefit. They told me over the summer that most people didn't use the free specialty dinner and the laundry credit so that's why they got rid of them. I find that hard to believe. But we can't let them take the lounges away too! 

On 9/16/2018 at 12:39 PM, dazey said:

We have been offered discounts on Celebrity through BlueChip. We generally book our future cruise when on board. How does that work? Does anyone know which is a better deal?

It depends. If you are going to book a Suite then you may as well book with Blue Chip directly. By booking onboard you get the extra onboard credit. But Blue Chip will give you 20% off Suite pricing (except for Edge). In order to get that discount though they have to take over ownership of your booking. When they do that the extra onboard credit from booking onboard gets kicked out. If you are booking a non-Suite cabin then book onboard and get the extra onboard credit. If you have casino incentives earned from play on a prior cruise you can apply that to a cruise booked either through Blue Chip or any other source and it won’t impact an extra onboard credit you have. Hope that made sense.

On 11/16/2018 at 9:06 PM, Paulras said:

I have several W2Gs this year from celebrity on video poker. Ranging from $1250 to $4000. None were jackpots and was told they had to give the form of it's $1200 or more even though I was playing $25 a hand. Had a couple from NCL on slot machines too. Not jackpots either but over $1200. 

You are correct. The line is $1200. There are some situations though where you may win over $1200 but not have to get the W2G. If you are playing a slot game and trigger a bonus you will only get the W2G if one or more individual

spins within the bonus wins $1200 or more. If you win say $2000 but you had no single spin in the bonus that was $1200 or more then you won’t get a W2G. I know this because earlier this year I had a bonus for $1700 but didn’t get a W2G. Within the bonus I had one spin that paid $1100 and then the rest of the spins cumulatively paid $600. This is different from my local land-based casinos where no matter how the bonus comes together if the total win is over $1200 you get a W2G.

On 11/19/2018 at 4:33 PM, Paulras said:

For those interested, I called Blue Chip today and they still haven't determined if Sapphire and Ruby will get access to the Retreat Lounge on the Edge and the upcoming renovated ships which don't have Michael's Club. I'm amazed that this hasn't been determined yet only 12 days from the first Edge sailing. Hopefully the answer is that we get into the Retreat Lounge.

 

If you're a Sapphire or Ruby, try calling and make it known that this is an important benefit. They told me over the summer that most people didn't use the free specialty dinner and the laundry credit so that's why they got rid of them. I find that hard to believe. But we can't let them take the lounges away too! 

Yes, they gave me the same line about no one using the perks which I do not believe as everyone I’ve seen posting on Cruise Critic who is Sapphire definitely used those perks. I always used the dining and spa in totality and would use half of the laundry credit at least.

And as for the Retreat Lounge, I’m wondering if the reason they may not allow it for Edge is because of access issues. The Lounge will connect to the Retreat sundeck which is definitely not open to Sapphire/Ruby who are not suite guests. I imagine that keycard access is required to enter the lounge, which Sapphire/Ruby guests they could program to allow in. But it may not be keycard access to the sundeck from the lounge, it may be unrestricted. So that means non-Suite Sapphires/Ruby guests might be able to access the sundeck. Of course the same issue would apply to non-Suite Zenith guests and I have heard that they will be allowed in the lounge but not the sundeck. It will be interesting to see how that works. On M class revolutionized ships it should not be an issue as they are supposedly putting the Retreat Lounge where Michael’s Club currently is which is several decks away from where the Retreat sundeck will be.