DCThunder Posted July 21 #76 Share Posted July 21 7 hours ago, J13C85 said: Even the slightest incentive is better than nothing. In our case, it put Princess, HAL and Celebrity on equal footing. Also, as we are nearing Elite on Princess, we are less likely to explore HAL as we would have to start all over again (as we did with Princess). While what you say about "starting over" if you switch to HAL is true, HAL does sail itineraries that Princess doesn't do and to me, those itineraries trump the loss of some perks. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
helby Posted July 21 #77 Share Posted July 21 On 7/20/2024 at 6:37 AM, Coral said: Yes it definitely is getting shared between sister lines. I have received promos from Cunard with my Captain Circle number and referencing that I am a Princess cruiser and this promo is targeted towards me. https://www.princess.com/en-us/legal/legal-privacy I agree with Coral. I got a mailed brochure from Cunard a few days ago referencing my Captain's Circle number. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare BlerkOne Posted July 21 #78 Share Posted July 21 2 hours ago, Retired-N-Happy said: Not on NCL. Have first hand experience on the Prima with their drink package starting immediately on embarkation day with the limited Texas menu, which had specially marked bottles and only certain beers available. Once international waters were hit, the regular bottles were put on display to be used. That's the difference between Carnival and other lines. As you know Carnival doesn't start Cheers out of Galveston or NYC until day two, whereas other lines out of both cities start them immediately. Yet NCL charges full gratuities on a less than a full selection of alcohol. Carnival is the only honest cruise line of the bunch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Retired-N-Happy Posted July 21 #79 Share Posted July 21 (edited) 1 hour ago, BlerkOne said: Yet NCL charges full gratuities on a less than a full selection of alcohol. Carnival is the only honest cruise line of the bunch. Cut me a break. The reduced selection of alcohol is for about five hours from 12-5. Carnival is honest since they eliminate Cheers and don't just enter the drinks into their system like NCL, RCI, & MSC do when they reach international waters. In the end Carnival makes more money since drinkers have to pay for each drink instead of having it covered by the package. In the long run, Carnival makes more money to the detriment of the cruiser. Edited July 21 by Retired-N-Happy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shandryl Posted July 21 #80 Share Posted July 21 (edited) 17 hours ago, BlerkOne said: Does Princess still have something similar? I don't go to either these days. Just seems like a good place to acquire a parting covid gift. That's funny! good one!😄 Edited July 21 by shandryl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtnesterz Posted July 21 #81 Share Posted July 21 (edited) 11 hours ago, J13C85 said: Even the slightest incentive is better than nothing. In our case, it put Princess, HAL and Celebrity on equal footing. Also, as we are nearing Elite on Princess, we are less likely to explore HAL as we would have to start all over again (as we did with Princess). HAL does give loyalty for a cruise history with the other Carnival lines: To qualify as a member of the Program, you must have taken at least one qualifying HAL cruise or have sailed with one of the World’s Leading Cruise Lines: Carnival Cruise Lines, Princess Cruises, Cunard Line, Seabourn or Costa Cruises. These guests are automatically enrolled as a Star Mariner when they make their first booking with Holland America Line because of their affiliation with the World’s Leading Cruise Lines. Potential for OBC, a free drink... Something. Edited July 21 by mtnesterz 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare BamaVol Posted July 24 #82 Share Posted July 24 On 7/20/2024 at 9:06 AM, DCThunder said: I hope everyone realizes that the entire purpose of "loyalty programs", regardless of the entity setting one up, is to get your data and then use that data for some purpose. That purpose is usually so they can sell you more of something and also so they can sell that data to various data brokers. The purpose isn't to "reward" frequent users of the product, although that's the lure used to get you to sign up. It would be interesting to know if cruiser data is shared between lines at the CCL level. I'd think it probably isn't, which is why CCL management would much rather have separate programs for Carnival, Princess, HAL, and Cunard so they get four streams of cruiser data rather than only one. They can slice and dice that data by all sorts of demographics and individually target come-ons to get just the mix of passengers they want. How do you manage to cruise anonymously? 1 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare BlerkOne Posted July 24 #83 Share Posted July 24 On 7/21/2024 at 12:53 PM, Retired-N-Happy said: Cut me a break. The reduced selection of alcohol is for about five hours from 12-5. Carnival is honest since they eliminate Cheers and don't just enter the drinks into their system like NCL, RCI, & MSC do when they reach international waters. In the end Carnival makes more money since drinkers have to pay for each drink instead of having it covered by the package. In the long run, Carnival makes more money to the detriment of the cruiser. Malarkey. In my experience it was later than 5 even on Princess, and Carnival leaves later than Princess. I seriously doubt you have access to facts to support your allegation. I also seriously doubt drinkers without a package drink the same or more than when they have a package. Besides, on Carnival, many cruisers are getting free drinks when the casino is open, first day or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare karatemom2 Posted July 24 #84 Share Posted July 24 On 7/21/2024 at 1:00 PM, mtnesterz said: HAL does give loyalty for a cruise history with the other Carnival lines: To qualify as a member of the Program, you must have taken at least one qualifying HAL cruise or have sailed with one of the World’s Leading Cruise Lines: Carnival Cruise Lines, Princess Cruises, Cunard Line, Seabourn or Costa Cruises. These guests are automatically enrolled as a Star Mariner when they make their first booking with Holland America Line because of their affiliation with the World’s Leading Cruise Lines. Potential for OBC, a free drink... Something. We cruised one time with HAL in Alaska several years ago and were surprised to find we got the equivalent of having sailed with them once prior - or what would be Gold level with Princess. It really didn't get us anything other than an invite to their equivalent of the Captain's Circle Party. No perks to speak of, at least at that time. It was a great itinerary, but we quickly determined we hadn't yet aged into the HAL demographic, so have not taken another trip since with them. If they decided to fully match our Elite level on Princess, I might consider it, but I don't see that happening. I will say they have some great itineraries, and I love the look of their ships. But the Casino was a giant yawn for the DH - no Craps table on the Amsterdam that trip which was a big bummer in his book. Maybe that has changed, but for now we will stick with Princess and maybe sprinkle in an NCL here or there. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kay S Posted July 24 #85 Share Posted July 24 2 hours ago, BamaVol said: How do you manage to cruise anonymously? Paper bag with two holes over the head. 🙂 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCThunder Posted July 24 #86 Share Posted July 24 1 hour ago, karatemom2 said: but we quickly determined we hadn't yet aged into the HAL demographic, so have not taken another trip since with them. I think you would be very surprised that the demographic on HAL (at least the cruises I've been on with them) aren't anything like what you think it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
voljeep Posted July 24 #87 Share Posted July 24 5 minutes ago, Kay S said: Paper bag with two holes over the head. 🙂 and a tinfoil hat ... 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare BamaVol Posted July 24 #88 Share Posted July 24 2 minutes ago, voljeep said: and a tinfoil hat ... And a counterfeit passport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare karatemom2 Posted July 24 #89 Share Posted July 24 5 minutes ago, DCThunder said: I think you would be very surprised that the demographic on HAL (at least the cruises I've been on with them) aren't anything like what you think it is. Well, maybe it has changed or maybe it was just the cruise we were on, but it seemed to skew quite a bit older. We were closing down the piano bar at 10 p.m. every night with one other couple our age and we were in the minority. Earlier in the evenings as we would walk back to our cabin to freshen up after dinner we were shocked to see all of the breakfast cards already out on the doors by 8:30 p.m. It was not what I would classify as an energetic crowd. We felt very young though, so that was nice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iamcruzin Posted July 24 #90 Share Posted July 24 On 7/19/2024 at 8:18 PM, memoak said: Haven’t even heard a rumor of this. I would expect a Princess / Hal combine would be more likely since they have a lot more in common I agree. There is a big difference between a Carnival experience and a Princess experience and I don't think one would jump from Carnival to Princess even with loyalty points. Royal Caribbean and Celebrity are more on the same page. IMO Royal is a step up from Carnival in terms of the adult experience. The name Carnival its self suggests a circus with clowns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kay S Posted July 24 #91 Share Posted July 24 2 hours ago, karatemom2 said: Well, maybe it has changed or maybe it was just the cruise we were on, but it seemed to skew quite a bit older. I try not to draw conclusions based on one cruise. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cathygh Posted July 25 #92 Share Posted July 25 Princess used to match status with P&O and Cunard in the UK, but stopped doing that in 2019. It would be great if they would reintroduce that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cruisemeister2002 Posted July 25 #93 Share Posted July 25 I think it's great when loyalty is rewarded across a group like Carnival. Funny this subject has just been raised as I recently queried having accessed my Princess account, why the last cruise I did on P&O wasn't on my list of cruises. Not that it mattered a great deal as I am Elite status already. It tuned out that after 2017 the loyalty from one group P&O to Princess ceased. P&O had for instance never allowed total cross loyalty as they only gave half points for cruises taken on another cruise line in the CCL group. I have two concerns regarding loyalty programs. Firstly the fact that more and more enjoy cruising therefore eventually most of the ship ends up in the top tier. With P&O they have a lunch especially for top tier travellers, it's getting so that they have to have two sittings on different days. The other is that eventually as has happened before the goalposts are moved so you then have to accumulate more points to achieve the next tier. Inevitable I suppose. Personally I think the P&O loyalty is slightly better than Princess. You receive a calendar at Christmas, 10% odd onboard spending and excursions,half bottle of Champagne, Captains cocktail party and the Special Lunch with wine free flowing (although I have noticed the flow getting down to a trickle of late). Whereas Princess give a mini bar, laundry, shoe shine, afternoon tea in cabin, priority boarding (you get that with P&O) , Priority tendering (outbound), canapes on formal nights, 10% off onboard spend and excursions. The difference being when booking excursions on P&O pre cruise it is deducted prior to payment whereas Princess give you the 10% as OBC once aboard the ship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Micahs Grandad Posted July 25 #94 Share Posted July 25 22 hours ago, Iamcruzin said: I agree. There is a big difference between a Carnival experience and a Princess experience and I don't think one would jump from Carnival to Princess even with loyalty points. Royal Caribbean and Celebrity are more on the same page. IMO Royal is a step up from Carnival in terms of the adult experience. The name Carnival its self suggests a circus with clowns. We jumped from Carnival to Princess as we wanted more sophistication and wanted to see the world, got tired of the Caribbean Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
voljeep Posted July 25 #95 Share Posted July 25 (edited) deleted off topic Edited July 25 by voljeep Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iamcruzin Posted July 25 #96 Share Posted July 25 19 minutes ago, Micahs Grandad said: We jumped from Carnival to Princess as we wanted more sophistication and wanted to see the world, got tired of the Caribbean Princess has the best itineraries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iamcruzin Posted July 25 #97 Share Posted July 25 9 hours ago, Cruisemeister2002 said: I think it's great when loyalty is rewarded across a group like Carnival. Funny this subject has just been raised as I recently queried having accessed my Princess account, why the last cruise I did on P&O wasn't on my list of cruises. Not that it mattered a great deal as I am Elite status already. It tuned out that after 2017 the loyalty from one group P&O to Princess ceased. P&O had for instance never allowed total cross loyalty as they only gave half points for cruises taken on another cruise line in the CCL group. I have two concerns regarding loyalty programs. Firstly the fact that more and more enjoy cruising therefore eventually most of the ship ends up in the top tier. With P&O they have a lunch especially for top tier travellers, it's getting so that they have to have two sittings on different days. The other is that eventually as has happened before the goalposts are moved so you then have to accumulate more points to achieve the next tier. Inevitable I suppose. Personally I think the P&O loyalty is slightly better than Princess. You receive a calendar at Christmas, 10% odd onboard spending and excursions,half bottle of Champagne, Captains cocktail party and the Special Lunch with wine free flowing (although I have noticed the flow getting down to a trickle of late). Whereas Princess give a mini bar, laundry, shoe shine, afternoon tea in cabin, priority boarding (you get that with P&O) , Priority tendering (outbound), canapes on formal nights, 10% off onboard spend and excursions. The difference being when booking excursions on P&O pre cruise it is deducted prior to payment whereas Princess give you the 10% as OBC once aboard the ship. My first cruise on Princess was 1991 when it was owned by P&O. The loyalty program didn't start until Carnival took over. I had to scan a photo that was taken by the ships photographer and send it to them to prove that I had sailed on Princess in order to get credit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kay S Posted July 25 #98 Share Posted July 25 (edited) 42 minutes ago, Micahs Grandad said: We jumped from Carnival to Princess as we wanted more sophistication and wanted to see the world, got tired of the Caribbean Come to the west coast and try Mexico and Hawaii. 🙂 Oh, and Alaska. Edited July 25 by Kay S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Micahs Grandad Posted July 25 #99 Share Posted July 25 (edited) 23 minutes ago, Kay S said: Come to the west coast and try Mexico and Hawaii. 🙂 Oh, and Alaska. Been to Hawaii on Carnival and Princess. Found we preferred Princess. Back when we started with Princess Carnival did not go to Europe on a regular basis. Edited July 25 by Micahs Grandad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beg3yrs Posted July 26 #100 Share Posted July 26 18 hours ago, Iamcruzin said: Princess has the best itineraries. While I won't disagree with that statement, I personally think they've cut back on some of the more amazing itineraries. They used to go up the Amazon - no more. We've taken several of the Grand Adventures - don't really see much of that any more (if I'm wrong, tell me!) As their ships get larger, the variety of itineraries gets smaller. Boo! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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