Could Cruise Lines Offer Day Passes to Visit Sister Ships? Guests Are Asking
Key Aspects:
A Celebrity Cruises guest has proposed the idea of a day pass to visit Royal Caribbean ships to enjoy waterslides.
This could help promote the differences between cruise lines, which might appeal to curious travelers.
Security and logistical concerns, however, make such excursions or passes to different ships unlikely.
It can be a very interesting part of cruising to dock in popular ports of call, such as Nassau or Cozumel, and see what different ships and cruise lines may be your neighbors for the day. But would you like to go to your neighbor’s house, or in this case, a ship, for an afternoon visit?
In a Celebrity Cruises Reddit thread, some guests are suggesting exactly that: day passes to other vessels.
“I wish that Celebrity could provide an excursion that lets us use the water slides on Royal Caribbean ships when we are sharing a dock,” one guest commented.
Other suggestions for similar visits to other ships could include guided tours and restaurant experiences to show off what one ship or cruise line has in comparison to another.
This could be a great idea for guests who may be nervous about what one line offers in comparison to what they are more familiar with experiencing onboard.
“We say this EVERY time we’ve been to CocoCay. We want to tour the Icon of the Seas before we ever decide to give [Royal Caribbean] a try,” one guest replied. “I’m spoiled by Celebrity but I’d consider RC if we could see what the amenities were actually like.”
Celebrity Cruises and Royal Caribbean are sister lines, both owned by Royal Caribbean Group, which also owns Silversea Cruises.
The idea of visiting another ship while in port can be tempting, and could potentially be an interesting way for cruise lines to promote one another.
This could be especially valuable as different cruise guests’ preferences change over the years, or if they are shopping around for a different type of cruise experience.
Cruise Hive has already reported on the “Points Choice” program that permits guests sailing on one Royal Caribbean Group cruise line to opt to have points from a cruise sailing credited to a sister line, customizing how guests develop their loyalty on the different lines.
If travelers have the opportunity to visit other ships, it could inspire even more choice between the lines and foster greater overall loyalty across all three brands.
Do Other Guests Agree?
The original poster’s suggestion did not get as much support as they might have expected. Many commenters pointed out that Celebrity Cruises and Royal Caribbean have very different vibes with respect to how family-friendly they may be, what amenities are offered for what age groups, and the overall type of experience.
Some saw that such a plan might become nothing more than a money grab for the company.
“Icon Class Day Pass $799 per person, per hour,” one guest quipped, followed quickly by another commentor’s follow up of “Plus 18% gratuity.”
It simply must be pointed out that the waterslides on Icon-class ships are currently experiencing a variety of maintenance and repair issues, and many of them have been extensively closed.
Hundreds of internet videos and cruise reviews are available to give guests an idea of what another line offers or what a specific ship may be like without a specialized day pass to visit while in port.
Many guests also noted that they research their cruises before booking and deliberately choose Celebrity Cruises for its more upscale, polished experience with fewer teens and young cruisers aboard.
Cross-Ship Tours Are Tough to Do
In reality, such tours or day pass options are difficult to do. There are strict security protocols in place that limit guests’ access to only their cruise ship, and local customs regulations may also impact who can access what vessel.
One commenter posted that Royal Caribbean’s president, Michael Bayley, was even asked if this was possible during a President’s Cruise.
“Someone brought up a similar question to Michael Bayley on the Royal Caribbean President’s Cruise last year and he said the logistics would tough but they might look into something like this.“
Furthermore, to permit such a tour, whether a general guided tour, an access pass to onboard amenities, a dining experience, or a chance to see a show, extra crew members would be necessary to ensure everything happens smoothly. Depending on a ship’s crew complement, this may simply not be possible.
Cruise ships often use times when a vessel is in port to conduct drills, crew training, or maintenance operations when there are fewer guests aboard. Bringing on additional guests for a tour experience would be exceedingly difficult.
It could also be logistically challenging if such a tour were planned in advance, but one of the ships had to delay or cancel the port visit due to a medical evacuation, poor weather, or mechanical difficulties.
Fortunately, Celebrity Cruises guests do get some of the “Royal Caribbean experience” with port visits to Perfect Day at CocoCay, where the Thrill Waterpark and its 14 waterslides are waiting to welcome them.
Could Cruise Lines Offer Day Passes to Visit Sister Ships? Guests Are Asking