Few, if any cruise passengers miss wearing masks and dealing with ever-changing rules on exactly what was required of them in different parts of the ships they were on.
People generally also appreciate not having to take covid tests before their cruises because the effort made taking the trips that much more complex.
In addition, while cruise passengers likely have mixed feelings about vaccine requirements being dropped, that change has certainly been a positive for the industry,
During Royal Caribbean's second-quarter earnings call, Chief Executive Jason Liberty talked about how dropping covid-related rules helped the cruise line.
The other major milestone for the group and the industry is related to the CDC ending its program for cruise ships, as we are now transitioning to the point where everyone will be able to vacation with us. As we've always said, the health and safety of our guests, crew, and communities we visit are our top priority, and cruising has proven to be one of the safest environments anywhere. After two years of successfully working with us, the CDC has transitioned from enforcing protocols and policies for the cruise industry to suggestions and recommendations to be in line with the travel and tourism sector.
That's a very careful way to say that having less oversight and being able to drop vaccine requirements mean more passengers will be able to sail.
That may make sailing slightly less safe for everyone onboard, but it's an important step to bringing the industry back to where it was in 2019, before covid.
Royal Caribbean has, however, quietly brought back a policy it used during the early days of its return to sailing after its covid shutdown.
Image source: Daniel Kline/TheStreet
Royal Caribbean Makes a Positive Policy Change
People who gamble on Royal Caribbean ships can earn/get free cruises in a number of ways.
Some are very clear. If you earn 2,500 points in the casino -- $5 in slot play or $10 in video-poker play equals one point, while points are awarded at table games based on play -- you get a free cruise issued in March of the following year.
Royal Caribbean (RCL) casino gamblers also sometimes get emails offering them free cabins on select sailings. This program is less clear and appears to be based on an algorithm that's not shared with passengers.
The cruise line also awards so-called instant-rewards certificates based on your play on a particular cruise. Traditionally, if you earned 1,000 points on a cruise, you would get $100 off on your next booking, with that number going up until you hit 2,500 points and earn a free interior cabin.
Those instant-rewards certificates are generally more valuable than the random email offers Royal Caribbean sends because they can be redeemed on nearly every nonholiday sailing seven days and under (with some exceptions).
Casino players prize those offers and generally redeem them during their sailings in order to get added free-play bonuses on the awarded cruises.
On its October sailings, Royal Caribbean has brought back a pandemic-era policy when it comes to those free sailings. And passengers are thrilled.
Royal Caribbean Getting a Free Cruise Easier
Royal Caribbean does not publicize changes to its instant-rewards program. And just because it has changed on one (or many) ships does not mean that it has changed on every ship.
But according to first-hand experience and social-media reports, many ships have been offering a free interior room on select sailings to passengers who earn only 800 points.
The list for those free sailings is somewhat limited and generally includes only sailings that are near-term.
But Royal Caribbean is offering free cruises at less than a third of the points it normally requires. This was a common practice during the early days of its return to sailing when demand for cruises was lower and the pool of people who could sail was more limited.
In addition, Royal Caribbean has lowered the total, at least on some sailings, to earn a traditional, less limited free interior cabin to 2,000 points. It has also dropped the threshold to earn a free balcony stateroom to 3,000 points.
These changes -- which are major positives to the cruise line's casino gamblers -- suggest that while prices for cruises have generally been lower than they were prepandemic, getting gamblers onboard with free trips may actually be more profitable than selling the same rooms at lower-than-normal fares.
