Confirmation no change to loyalty benefits

[uktog]

Included in the email introducing us to the name of A4 (Azamara Onward, a bit of a tongue twister) is confirmation there is no change for the moment in loyalty benefits and reciprocity which is good news for those that were concerned about this for upcoming bookings

 

https://www.azamara.co.uk/loyalty/azamara-circle/transition?utm_source=et_consumer_globalcirc&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=strat_globalcirc_031921_circ_eml_ship_name&ecid=em_23310932&rid=232934668&emsc=GBR_PG_PLAT_MH_YESBKFUTURE&emct=Z&lnkid=http%3A%2F%2Fazamara.com%2Ftransition%3Futm_source%3Det_consumer_globalcirc%26utm_medium%3Demail%26utm_campaign%3Dstrat_globalcirc_031921_circ_eml_ship_name

[mdpa]

Great news, hopefully all existing bookings will benefit from the shared status. 

[CYNSport]

I found these FAQ to be very interesting.  Reciprocity was mentioned between Celebrity and Crown and Anchor only (which has little to do with Azamara).  Also, it appears that Azamara Circle status will be fleeting for those who have earned all their points with Celebrity.

• As an Azamara Circle member, will I have status and points with Celebrity's Captain's Club if I’ve only ever sailed with Azamara?

  Yes. Captain’s Club points are currently earned for both Azamara and Celebrity sailings. Members will keep any points previously earned from sailings on either cruise line.Yes. Captain’s Club points are currently earned for both Azamara and Celebrity sailings. Members will keep any points previously earned from sailings on either cruise line.

• As a Captain's Club member, will I have status and points with Azamara if I have only ever sailed with Celebrity?

  No. To have had status or points with Azamara, you must have at least one past sailing with Azamara.

• Will the reciprocity benefits between Celebrity Captain's Club and Royal Caribbean Crown & Anchor Society continue?

  Yes.  There will be no change to the reciprocal benefits between Captain’s Club and Crown & Anchor Society.

[Host Jazzbeau]

22 minutes ago, CYNSport said:

I found these FAQ to be very interesting.  Reciprocity was mentioned between Celebrity and Crown and Anchor only (which has little to do with Azamara).  Also, it appears that Azamara Circle status will be fleeting for those who have earned all their points with Celebrity.

Not fleeting – non-existent.  The way I read it, there will be no Azamara status for those who have earned all their points with Celebrity.  Those who have sailed at least once on each line will keep all their points and status on both, but those who have only ever sailed on one of them will only have points and status on that one.

 

The question that this FAQ doesn't answer is what about an Azamara cruise that was booked before the split – if that would be your first Azamara cruise, will you have carried-over status for it [and therefore always] just like someone who completed an Azamara cruise before the split?

[uktog]

I read it to be what has always been the case, your Celebrity status is recognised for the purposes of reciprocal benefits onboard (events invites, laundry, Wifi etc) but you don’t acquire an equivalence on your Azamara record until the conclusion of your first cruise.  I cannot imagine this would change, after all guests moving over from Celebrity have always been a target market and may be even more so in the future. 

[CYNSport]

4 hours ago, uktog said:

I read it to be what has always been the case, your Celebrity status is recognised for the purposes of reciprocal benefits onboard (events invites, laundry, Wifi etc) but you don’t acquire an equivalence on your Azamara record until the conclusion of your first cruise.  I cannot imagine this would change, after all guests moving over from Celebrity have always been a target market and may be even more so in the future. 

I don’t see any statement about reciprocity between Azamara and Celebrity status. Maybe I missed it, but the only reciprocity mentioned was between Celebrity and Crown and Anchor.

[mdpa]

22 minutes ago, CYNSport said:

I don’t see any statement about reciprocity between Azamara and Celebrity status. Maybe I missed it, but the only reciprocity mentioned was between Celebrity and Crown and Anchor.

Read the content in the link. I think you mistakenly went directly to the FAQ’s (easy to do).

 

“We’re happy to share that you’ll keep any reciprocal points that you’ve earned to date for Celebrity or Azamara.

In other words, you will not lose any previously earned Club Points or Azamara Circle Points. You’re also still able to earn cumulative points in both programs for the time being.  At some point in the future this benefit will change, and members will only earn points when sailing on their respective cruise line. We’ll continue to keep you updated with any additional information.”

[jelayne]

I sure hope that the “some point in the future” is after June, 2022 .  We booked a 23 N cruise on the Journey in a suite and we could sure use those 184 points. 

[upwarduk]

15 hours ago, CYNSport said:

Members will keep any points previously earned from sailings on either cruise line.

SAILING- I have earned a number of PUP points, with Celebrity actives while sailing has been paused. 
I wonder if these too will be counted? It would be very difficult to separate points earned via sailings and Captain’s Club points earned via PUP activities.

[CYNSport]

3 hours ago, mdpa said:

Read the content in the link. I think you mistakenly went directly to the FAQ’s (easy to do).

 

“We’re happy to share that you’ll keep any reciprocal points that you’ve earned to date for Celebrity or Azamara.

In other words, you will not lose any previously earned Club Points or Azamara Circle Points. You’re also still able to earn cumulative points in both programs for the time being.  At some point in the future this benefit will change, and members will only earn points when sailing on their respective cruise line. We’ll continue to keep you updated with any additional information.”

Thank you. This is very clear. 

[Host Jazzbeau]

Don't forget the middle bullet of @CYNSport's quoted text from the Azamara FAQ:

• As a Captain's Club member, will I have status and points with Azamara if I have only ever sailed with Celebrity?

  No. To have had status or points with Azamara, you must have at least one past sailing with Azamara.

 

That seems very clear to me that if you have never sailed with Azamara, you will NOT get any status or points carried over after the split.

[prish]

14 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Don't forget the middle bullet of @CYNSport's quoted text from the Azamara FAQ:

• As a Captain's Club member, will I have status and points with Azamara if I have only ever sailed with Celebrity?

  No. To have had status or points with Azamara, you must have at least one past sailing with Azamara.

 

That seems very clear to me that if you have never sailed with Azamara, you will NOT get any status or points carried over after the split.

I just posted a question about reciprocal status from Celebrity, appears it won’t happen as we haven’t sailed Azamara in the past! 😟

[mdpa]

8 hours ago, prish said:

I just posted a question about reciprocal status from Celebrity, appears it won’t happen as we haven’t sailed Azamara in the past! 😟

Is this for a cruise booked prior to sale or a tentative upcoming cruise not yet booked? I would think bookings prior to sale (and paid in full) would be reciprocal since this was a booking benefit.

[prish]

3 minutes ago, mdpa said:

Is this for a cruise booked prior to sale or a tentative upcoming cruise not yet booked? I would think bookings prior to sale (and paid in full) would be reciprocal since this was a booking benefit.

 
This would be for a yet to be booked  2022 cruise, as things stand we’re watching how the Covid situation evolves and don’t want to book anything until late summer or early fall. Unfortunately reciprocity looks unlikely...

[TeaBag]

Do I understand the changeover has already happened as of Mar 19?  The announcement reads, "We are officially an independent company".  I guess they have to adjust everyone's account to reflect the independence.  We have not sailed Azamara but we are booked for 2 sailings. My tier and points still show.  I will be sad to see them go to 0.

[prish]

TeaBag, your points should stay as you have cruises booked on Azamara. We’ll probably miss out as we are only looking to book later this year.

[ECCruise]

1 hour ago, TeaBag said:

Do I understand the changeover has already happened as of Mar 19?  The announcement reads, "We are officially an independent company".  I guess they have to adjust everyone's account to reflect the independence.  We have not sailed Azamara but we are booked for 2 sailings. My tier and points still show.  I will be sad to see them go to 0.

Judging from their posts, the fact that it appears that the Pacific Princess was turned over on Friday, I would think that it has closed.  And hopefully your points remain!

 

[Host Jazzbeau]

I'm not sure whether the sale closing [which happened Mar 19] automatically triggers the loyalty plan split – the Azamara website still looks exactly the same, and it may take some further time for them to separate the IT operations.  We'll know for sure around April 12 when Celebrity credits the next round of PowerUP points.

[uktog]

19 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I'm not sure whether the sale closing [which happened Mar 19] automatically triggers the loyalty plan split – the Azamara website still looks exactly the same, and it may take some further time for them to separate the IT operations.  We'll know for sure around April 12 when Celebrity credits the next round of PowerUP points.

It does not - there is still in many areas shared services and will be for some time.  Given how tied the loyalty system is to the IT system, it will be at the time that they separate that you will see the biggest changes

[Host Jazzbeau]

So I just need another 2-3 months to earn enough Celebrity PowerUp points to bring my total to 516 – then the 30% off sale upgrade on my 2022 Azamara cruise will bring my total to 750 and earn the big 6 free night payoff.  Finally a reason to be thankful that IT is such a bear!

[BuckGood]

If you have the RCCL Bank of America card you can no longer use OBC that was Earned from Azamara cruises charged to that card! I tried to put some OBC to our cruise in January 22 but was called by Royal Caribbean resolutions representative that I Couldn’t! 😡

[excitedofharpenden]

57 minutes ago, BuckGood said:

If you have the RCCL Bank of America card you can no longer use OBC that was Earned from Azamara cruises charged to that card! I tried to put some OBC to our cruise in January 22 but was called by Royal Caribbean resolutions representative that I Couldn’t! 😡

Well that makes perfect sense. Why would it continue?  RCG don't own Azamara any longer. 

 

Phil 

[Host Jazzbeau]

Celebrity PowerUp points posted today (May 13) – and also show on my Azamara account.  So the programs are still united. 

[TeaBag]

Same here.  Did we only earn 1 point?  I thought it was two.

[jelayne]

We earned 4 points. But not sure what activities they were for.