Diamond Plus - No More Concierge/Suite Lounge Access

[davekathy]

1 hour ago, TBurr said:

The latest in RCCL downgrading its produced. First they no longer have the evening cabin cleaning so they can fire half their housekeeping staff, now their elite members lose another benefit.  I think they are learning from the airlines how to alienate their best customers. I recently sailed on Celebrity and found a far superior service, food, product and as an Elite member there they offered a great benefit.  I suggest you consider leaving RCCL since they have left us, and going to Celebrity. I am done with RCCL since they are done with me.

Wish Celebrity's CC would provide a lounge like the CAS DL. Now Celebrity doesn't do the evening CC HH in the Sky Lounge from 5 to 7:PM with snacks. Yes they do the CC HH from 5 to 7 at most bars. Nowhere near the same.  IMO, the perks/benefits are a draw between the CAS and CC. 

[Georgeny]

1 hour ago, Mark_UK said:

Im a D+ and never really used the concierge lounge, what was I missing out on?

We enjoyed the hot and cold hors duerves etc. and up until recently drinks not taken from benefit drink number on card. They did this 12 years ago starting the diamond plus level and cutting out diamonds. Took years to then get higher level. Now again!!! RCL has been our preferred line though we sail others. I honk they should realize that the reason they have so many diamond and plus people is because we sail a lot. Oh well another travel alternative rapidly entering not such a deal arena. Have 9 day on Liberty seas scheduled but will start looking at MSC who is looking to gain market share. 
 

george in ny

[island lady]

7 minutes ago, davekathy said:

We prefer the DL over the CL on the class of ships (Radiance class, Voyager class and Freedom class we sail on.  2019 was the first year our Seapass cards wouldn't open the CL door on the freedom. No prior notice. But the LA politely advice us. 🍷

 

Coffee machine is not reliable in the DL on our current adventure.....and can't access the CL as alternative.   😞 

[Jimbo]

Always been a little stuffy in the Concierge/Suite Lounge for our liking anyway and I don't mean the because the room  has 4 walls.

 

No great lost.

[nelblu]

3 minutes ago, Another_Critic said:

Apparently you only sail on low volume top-tier sailings.  In my experience, the D lounge (and the bars) all packed.  And to add insult, the CL is "empty".

Off Oasis and the D lounge, at least prior to early dining hours, was not filled to capacity.  Used the DL extensively to get my fill of the decaf cappuccino during the day.

[Tulsacoker]

Now fingers crossed everyone not in a suite banned from Suite Lounge  

 

 

😬

[Another_Critic]

I know this will never happen, since they pamper the suite guests, but they really should limit the D lounge to NON-suite guests. 

[Tatka]

2 minutes ago, davekathy said:

Wish Celebrity's CC would provide a lounge like the CAS DL. Now Celebrity doesn't do the evening CC HH in the Sky Lounge from 5 to 7:PM with snacks. Yes they do the CC HH from 5 to 7 at most bars. Nowhere near the same.  IMO, the perks/benefits are a draw between the CAS and CC. 

 

I like to have drinks available in various bars on X.

[island lady]

3 minutes ago, Tulsacoker said:

Now fingers crossed everyone not in a suite banned from Suite Lounge  

 

 

😬

 

Not too many sailings now that Pinnies in non suite are allowed in CL/SL.   

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 12, 2022 by island lady

[Tatka]

1 minute ago, Another_Critic said:

I know this will never happen, since they pamper the suite guests, but they really should limit the D lounge to NON-suite guests. 

Why? They may have part of family, or friends not sailing in suites. If they are D or D+ they should be able to be in DL.

[Baowen]

I haven't used the concierge lounge for years so no great loss.  I realize that if I want to frequent the suite lounge, I need to book a suite.  I find the other D+ perks more beneficial than access to a second lounge.

 

Beth

[Tatka]

5 minutes ago, Georgeny said:

We enjoyed the hot and cold hors duerves etc. and up until recently drinks not taken from benefit drink number on card. They did this 12 years ago starting the diamond plus level and cutting out diamonds. Took years to then get higher level. Now again!!! RCL has been our preferred line though we sail others. I honk they should realize that the reason they have so many diamond and plus people is because we sail a lot. Oh well another travel alternative rapidly entering not such a deal arena. Have 9 day on Liberty seas scheduled but will start looking at MSC who is looking to gain market share. 
 

george in ny

 

We became D in 2018 and D+ in 2022. People cruise much more now, especially with WiFi available and cheap so numbers grow.

[davekathy]

1 minute ago, Tatka said:

 

I like to have drinks available in various bars on X.

Unlimited drinks at the various bars was something that CC members  had before the covid shutdown. Nothing new.  IMO, since Celebrity has done away with the evening CC HH in the SL (pre covid shutdown) I liked to see the CC follow the CAS lead with the tier level drinks being all day and the amount based on tier level. 

[John&LaLa]

Que Sera Sera I guess.

[st5310]

4 minutes ago, davekathy said:

Unlimited drinks at the various bars was something that CC members  had before the covid shutdown. Nothing new.  IMO, since Celebrity has done away with the evening CC HH in the SL (pre covid shutdown) I liked to see the CC follow the CAS lead with the tier level drinks being all day and the amount based on tier level. 

What do CC, HH, and CAS stand for?  Thanks..

[DaKahuna]

22 minutes ago, island lady said:

 

Being Pinnacle and having access to CL/SL is not a given either....with no way to know if you do or not.....until after you board. 

 

 I believe this changes that -- Read it again as it clearly states Pinnacles will have access. 

 

[John&LaLa]

39 minutes ago, Colibri51 said:

Not happy that Diamond Plus can no longer access the Concierge Lounge because of too many top tier members. If that is true and Diamond Plus can no longer access the Concierge lounge due to high volume, then why not prohibit Pinnacle to access the Diamond lounge as that also is impacted by large numbers of top tier members.  

 

Impacts many thousands less I guess

[Starry Eyes]

27 minutes ago, st5310 said:

I've been reading these posts and I can't say I'm surprised at the vitriol.  I disagree with most, as I believe the perks are fine.  However, for those of you who are complaining that the perks "suck," perhaps you can tell me what perks you SHOULD be getting, in addition to the laundry bag, vouchers, etc.  And how do the perks we DO get compare with other similar lines, e.g. Carnival, HAL, NCL, et al.?

DW and I are both D+, but we LOVE the lounge which is why we book Grand Suites. 

 

It is always bad business to remove benefits.  Royal could have made this announcement with an advanced date, say "starting March 1, 2023" or something like it, then just deal with the overages until the new policy kicks in.  

Your idea of announcing a future date like March 2023 for this change would make sense if D+s were really going to be allowed into the CL’s in the interim.  But we have not been allowed in on recent sailings and Royal knows how the numbers look for upcoming sailings.  If very few or no D+’s would be allowed into CL’s because of capacity limits between Dec 16 and March, better to tell the truth now: no more D+ in CL.  

[Another_Critic]

10 minutes ago, Tatka said:

Why? They may have part of family, or friends not sailing in suites. If they are D or D+ they should be able to be in DL.

Because the DL is packed and the CL/SL is often empty.  And the bars are packed too!

[davekathy]

18 minutes ago, Another_Critic said:

To hang out with the low-life D and D+.  😄

I resemble that comment. 🤣

[John&LaLa]

43 minutes ago, sergeant655 said:

The only difference i found between the cl and dl comes with the new drink card system. The concierge lounge, has the classic happy hour unlimited drinks  while the diamond lounge uses the current vouchers. I have been using the diamond lounge  as I found no difference between the 2 and sometimes if there’s a lot of diamonds on board a ship, for example a transatlantic or transpacific they would have the happy hour in a bigger venue , on the voyager or freedom class, they would use the star lounge on deck five or the entire Viking crown lounge. Some ships now put the diamond lounge on deck 5 instead of 14

 

I've had to use vouchers in CL when not staying in a suite

[davekathy]

2 minutes ago, st5310 said:

What do CC, HH, and CAS stand for?  Thanks..

Captains Club, Happy Hour and Crown and Anchor Society. 

[Another_Critic]

2 minutes ago, st5310 said:

What do CC, HH, and CAS stand for?  Thanks..

CC = Captain's club (Celebrity's loyalty club)

HH = Happy Hour

CAS = Crown and Anchor Society (Royal's loyalty club)

[Tatka]

3 minutes ago, Another_Critic said:

Because the DL is packed and the CL/SL is often empty.  And the bars are packed too!

 

So you want to take D benefits because people booked a suite?

I cannot see this working at all. It is their benefit after all.

Why and how they use it is their business.

I suspect suite people will in most cases use Suite Lounge. They have Happy Hour there too. Unless they want to be with their friends/families and forgo HH.

Edited December 12, 2022 by Tatka

[ILCTCRUISER]

In my opinion,  RCCL suffers from an affliction called Weak Senior Management.  Over the years, so many decisions seem to be reactive in nature.  Not great visionaries there and I’ve sat in on webinars and “coffee talks” with a number of them.  RCCL management tends to assume a “follower” strategy.  It waits for the “others” to act and judges how the market responds before it makes a move.  Not a novel strategy, many companies in many industries assume it.  RCCL just doesn’t seem to have the people in place who can pull it off effectively.

 

BUT this decision to exclude D+ from the CL seems to be something that’s been in the works for some time.  Yes, that seems to contradict what I just stated.  I accept that.  This change in D+ benefits probably has been on the burner for quite a few years.  Call it:  Loyalty Program Goes Wild.  Loyalty programs are created to build and then maintain market share.  As some above have suggested, thresholds to gain D and D-Plus are really quite low.  RCCL used its loyalty program as a marketing tool and it’s turned around and bit it in the rear end.  TOO MANY D and D+ passengers.  Especially in regard to the lounges.  First step taken:  the current drink voucher program, which we prefer.   However, I think this recent change in D+ benefits suggests the voucher program didn’t quite do the job.  CLs are still being used to the point full-suite passengers have a hard time getting a seat…and, it follows, they complain.   Rightfully so.  

RCCL won’t ever share numbers but I’m confident that the Double Points program created a lot of D+.  These lounges can only accommodate so many people.

 

D+ members don’t worry.  Pinnacles will be next.