Diamond Benefits Question

[emory2001]

I searched in here and google before asking, and it’s NOT a question about reaching Diamond mid-cruise. 😂

 

I have 4 cruises booked from Nov 2021 to Dec. 2022. I realized with the current double points offering, plus one of those cruises being in a suite, I will reach Diamond during my March cruise on Odyssey. If I book one more cruise before then, just a 2 or 3-day, I’ll be Diamond before and ON that Odyssey cruise. I’m trying to figure out if the benefits are worth it to pay for one more cruise just to be Diamond one cruise earlier, because I definitely will be before my May cruise.

 

It looks like Quantum class (and I presume Ultra Quantum too?) does not have Diamond lounges, and you have to be Diamond+ to go into the Concierge Lounge. I saw that Diamond+ has free drinks on the Sea Pass card instead. Does Diamond have that? And if so, how many drinks per day? For my kids, having my same status, I presume this would include free non-alc drinks for them? 

 

Are there any other on-board Diamond benefits that aren’t listed in the official benefits chart online? 

[Tee & Chilli]

You’ll most likely pay more for the cruise than the benefits are worth. 
Diamond benefits - free photo, drinks, lounge access, internet discount.

Edited June 27, 2021 by Tee & Chilli

[orville99]

Diamond Club is on Deck Four on Odyssey. It is either three (what it was pre-COVID) or six drinks/day. If your children are under 18, they will receive the same benefits as you (sans liquor)

[livingonthebeach]

1 minute ago, Tee & Chilli said:

You’ll most likely pay more for the cruise than the benefits are worth. 

 

True now that they got rid of free unlimited drinks in the Diamond Lounge.   Maybe if you book a lot of balcony cabins, the balcony discount might be worth it. 

[Ourusualbeach]

26 minutes ago, emory2001 said:

For my kids, having my same status, I presume this would include free non-alc drinks for them? 

unfortunately it does not included drinks for kids.  In a lounge we have had no problems but they do not get vouchers for use elsewhere

[Sobro]

The best benefit is the use of the Diamond Concierge, who can do everything Guest Services can do except cash transactions. I hate spending time in line while on vacation.

 

And I also don't believe in chasing Status for the minimal monetary benefits. 

[Merion_Mom]

If  you think that being on a cruise is always "worth it", then taking any cruise, whether it gets you to Diamond or is just a cruise, is a good idea.  🙂

[davekathy]

Reaching diamond was cool (for us) but we just enjoyed the ride until we finally hit the magic number. @emory2001if you feel it's worth the additional expense to reach diamond sooner, go for it. 

[firefly333]

26 minutes ago, orville99 said:

Diamond Club is on Deck Four on Odyssey. It is either three (what it was pre-COVID) or six drinks/day. If your children are under 18, they will receive the same benefits as you (sans liquor)

I'm not sure I understand your 6 drinks comment. 3 vouchers previously. New if they dont have diamond lounge is 4 anytime anywhere drink vouchers. 

 

Pinns get 6? 

[Baowen]

I would do it if I could find a really cheap 3 night cruise just to avoid the mid cruise hassle of trying to get my status changed. FYI-the Ovation does have a Diamond lounge.

[Merion_Mom]

There is no ship in the current RC fleet without a Diamond Lounge.

[davekathy]

1 minute ago, Baowen said:

I would do it if I could find a really cheap 3 night cruise just to avoid the mid cruise hassle of trying to get my status changed. FYI-the Ovation does have a Diamond lounge.

Unless you're doing a B2B cruise and you make diamond sometime during the first leg and want to be recognized as a diamond for the second leg, there is no reason to contact the LA to have the tier level changed mid cruise. The LA has no reason make the change as diamond tier level won't be recognized on the cruise the magic number hits. Once the cruise is over the tier level will atomically change to diamond. 

[smplybcause]

I'm debating another cruise to make sure I get diamond in 2022. Main reason is if the 4 vouchers a day for up $13 changes the drink package equation for me. Hitting the 5+ drinks a day is easy for me, but if I'm getting the first 4 a day free I can likely spend less than a drink package but still drink as much as I want. 

 

But at the same time it'd only be cruises at prices I'd want to go on. Silly to spend $1000 on a cruise you're meh about to save a couple hundred a cruise. 

Edited June 27, 2021 by smplybcause

[smokeybandit]

Racing to diamond really isn't worth it, but if you're planning on trying to get to D+, then that gets you that much closer a cruise quicker

[Cigar King]

If it's worth it to you, then go for it.  I don't think I would do it.  That being said, If it were me I would look to upgrade on of the other cruises to a suite and get the extra points that way.

[firefly333]

50 minutes ago, smplybcause said:

I'm debating another cruise to make sure I get diamond in 2022. Main reason is if the 4 vouchers a day for up $13 changes the drink package equation for me. Hitting the 5+ drinks a day is easy for me, but if I'm getting the first 4 a day free I can likely spend less than a drink package but still drink as much as I want. 

 

But at the same time it'd only be cruises at prices I'd want to go on. Silly to spend $1000 on a cruise you're meh about to save a couple hundred a cruise. 

I looked yesterday and really every cruise I looked at was around $1000 for 7 days. Are you very close to the port? I look at shorter cruises but then start thinking about the add on expenses. 6 hours each way in a SUV, cruise parking, maybe a hotel the night before. I just looked at hotels for my dec cruise and was shocked tbh how much they went up recently. 

 

By the time I add in extra costs, tips, I think might as well book a longer cruise. I keep talking myself out of short cruises everytime i book one, i change my mind.

 

I wouldnt chase pts. Unless a super bargain appeared, I'm done booking. 

[smplybcause]

58 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

I looked yesterday and really every cruise I looked at was around $1000 for 7 days. Are you very close to the port? I look at shorter cruises but then start thinking about the add on expenses. 6 hours each way in a SUV, cruise parking, maybe a hotel the night before. I just looked at hotels for my dec cruise and was shocked tbh how much they went up recently. 

 

By the time I add in extra costs, tips, I think might as well book a longer cruise. I keep talking myself out of short cruises everytime i book one, i change my mind.

 

I wouldnt chase pts. Unless a super bargain appeared, I'm done booking. 

 

Yes, all Florida ports are easily drivable morning of the cruise. One less than an hour away which is how I've gone on so many weekend ones - a lot easier to get a group to take off one day than 5! But I'm with you at I haven't done a M-F cruise because why wouldn't I just do a 7 day? 

 

For me the bigger thing against it is likely sailing solo so that makes things expensive. Though being so close means I can jump on a last minute deal if they somehow appear. 

[firefly333]

4 minutes ago, smplybcause said:

For me the bigger thing against it is likely sailing solo so that makes things expensive. Though being so close means I can jump on a last minute deal if they somehow appear. 

Lol I'm just the opposite. Solo means more pts, so I'm not inviting anyone until I hit that 340 pts.

 

Carnival had some last minute deals, but havent seen any from rcl, but I'm watching. I'm thinking the double pts will keep rcl prices up.

[smplybcause]

20 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Lol I'm just the opposite. Solo means more pts, so I'm not inviting anyone until I hit that 340 pts.

 

Carnival had some last minute deals, but havent seen any from rcl, but I'm watching. I'm thinking the double pts will keep rcl prices up.

 

Oh yea the points are nice. But makes the short little weekenders more than I'd probably want to pay. I can usually sail NCL cheaper solo. Though I have a solo on Royal next year that's a deal. 

[forgotmyCCname]

 

Our last family cruises the "kids"

(Emory 21,21,23!) enjoyed Diamond lounge on Freedom / Allure for a latte or for a card game as the venues were dead during non- cocktail hours. They were 18,20 and 20 and did not get vouchers for drinks. 

We had our cocktails in the suite lounge on both ships as suite guests; the suite lounge had a lot of traffic especially on Allure. Our last trip on Allure had many Pinnacles( and they were all friendly!😅)
 

Royal "rewards" are pretty meh. At least on NCL we get free laundry and excursion discounts and even that isn't worth "chasing" to us. For some reason I thought that there were similar benefits in Royal but I don't see them.

If we didn't have to fly in and I had the opportunity, I would take pretty much any cruise right about now!! Looking forward to Symphony in the fall.

5 hours ago, emory2001 said:

I searched in here and google before asking, and it’s NOT a question about reaching Diamond mid-cruise. 😂

 

I have 4 cruises booked from Nov 2021 to Dec. 2022. I realized with the current double points offering, plus one of those cruises being in a suite, I will reach Diamond during my March cruise on Odyssey. If I book one more cruise before then, just a 2 or 3-day, I’ll be Diamond before and ON that Odyssey cruise. I’m trying to figure out if the benefits are worth it to pay for one more cruise just to be Diamond one cruise earlier, because I definitely will be before my May cruise.

 

It looks like Quantum class (and I presume Ultra Quantum too?) does not have Diamond lounges, and you have to be Diamond+ to go into the Concierge Lounge. I saw that Diamond+ has free drinks on the Sea Pass card instead. Does Diamond have that? And if so, how many drinks per day? For my kids, having my same status, I presume this would include free non-alc drinks for them? 

 

Are there any other on-board Diamond benefits that aren’t listed in the official benefits chart online? 

 

[yogimax]

6 hours ago, Sobro said:

The best benefit is the use of the Diamond Concierge, who can do everything Guest Services can do except cash transactions. I hate spending time in line while on vacation.

 

And I also don't believe in chasing Status for the minimal monetary benefits. 

Really?  I find the lines often longer to see the concierge than at Guest Services.  Some folks will tie up the concierge for long periods of time.  We hardly ever use the services of the concierge.

[John&LaLa]

4 minutes ago, yogimax said:

Really?  I find the lines often longer to see the concierge than at Guest Services.  Some folks will tie up the concierge for long periods of time.  We hardly ever use the services of the concierge.

 

The Loyalty Ambassador is also a guest services staff member. They can do most anything a concierge can do

[emory2001]

Thank you for all the input. I still haven’t decided. I have some time. I do live in Florida and can easily drive to any port the morning of the cruise.

 

We’re in a suite for our November cruise, so I’m already maximizing points there and it would take a whole extra cruise (just 2-3 days though) if I want to “chase it,” as you put it, for my March cruise.

 

I completely agree Royal could have better loyalty benefits, which is why I’ve never “chased status” before. I just happened to notice I’m going to be really close right before going on the newest ship, so I thought it might be worth considering.

Edited June 28, 2021 by emory2001

[Biker19]

7 hours ago, smplybcause said:

Main reason is if the 4 vouchers a day for up $13 changes the drink package equation for me.

Just realize that could go away on any sailing at any time.

 

Biker, who would not base any booking on potential perks.

[smplybcause]

1 hour ago, Biker19 said:

Just realize that could go away on any sailing at any time.

 

Biker, who would not base any booking on potential perks.

 

Oh I've gotten into various debates with my diamond friend that also got the solo balcony steal on odyssey. He's convinced it'll stick so he doesn't need to buy the drink package. I think if it puts a damper on drink package purchases there's a decent chance it'll revert once capacity is back up. 

 

I mean would I maybe book a weekend cruise on a good deal to get 4 points a night? Yea. But if it was a good enough deal I'd book it anyways - the points would be just a bit of a nudge. I did 4 nights at a Mexican AI and all it really made me want to do is go on a cruise and living so close the weekend cruises mean I could take only a half day off for the whole cruise.