Earning cruise credits - industry standard is number of days cruised

[fortinweb]

I know how Celebrity's loyalty program works. 1-4 credits = Classic. 5 to 9 credits = Select. 10+ credits = Elite. Credits are earned one per cruise, an additional credit for cruises 12 nights or longer, and one additional credit for category Concierge Class or higher. Credits are not based on number of days cruised.

 

A report on Cruise Critic news pages describes Carnival's revamped loyalty program. A sentence that caught my eye: "the new levels are determined by days cruised, an industry standard model, rather than number of cruises completed."

 

Seeing that the days-per-cruise calculation is reported to be the industry standard, do you think there is any chance that Celebrity will eventually go to this format? To me this seems to be the most equal and fair way of earning credits.

 

As it now is structured, even a 1, 2 or 3 day cruise can accrue 2 credits each - Celebrity currently has one 1 day cruise, 2 two day cruises, and 2 three day cruises available to book. Taking these five cruises a person could gain a maximum of 10 cruise credits and be Elite status for only 11 days of cruising if they book Concierge or higher cabins, while a single 12 day cruise can only accrue three credits maximum, a huge difference in the number of credits.

[C 2 C]

 

Seeing that the days-per-cruise calculation is reported to be the industry standard, do you think there is any chance that Celebrity will eventually go to this format? To me this seems to be the most equal and fair way of earning credits.

 

I'm hoping that X will eventually make the switch.

 

However when I asked about the one day cruise I was told that no cruise points would be granted despite the cabin type picked. So for now only 5 two day cruise is the minimum to reach elite.. but it would take a long time because of the infrequency.

 

What I really would like to see is complete reciprocity with the RCL system.

[AlanAllyn]

It is not yet an "industry standard." Some lines, including RCI, have switched, but many lines still count cruises.

 

I agree that days is a more fair way of counting.

[MicCanberra]

It seems to me that it would be a sensible approach, however, even on shorter cruises X will still make alot of money through their drinks, casino and shopping. To accumulate credits for elite, you need the minimum 4 cruises (max 3 per cruise). I put it to most people once you have cruised X 4 times, you are pretty well hooked anyway to cruise with them again whether it is a short cruise or not.:D