Royal Caribbean's highest loyalty program tier offers the very best onboard perks a cruiser can get.
Pinnacle Club requires 700 points to reach, and it's 525 points more than the next tier down. It may seem like a lifetime of cruises away to reach the level, but every time I cruise, I'm grateful to have made it.
I have taken almost 100 cruises with Royal Caribbean, and accumulated over 800 points within the Crown & Anchor Society. My point total is pretty small compared to most other Pinnacles I know, but it still counts!
Read more: How to earn Crown & Anchor points quicker
I was never one to cruise just for loyalty status, but the benefits as you get towards the top are undeniably nice to have. Royal Caribbean's benefits offer easy ways to save time and money, and it's difficult to imagine cruising without them.
Here's a glimpse at the exclusive perks that come with Pinnacle Club membership.
Priority everything
One thing that changed a lot when I moved from Diamond Plus to Pinnacle is you truly feel like you're cruising first class, even when you're not in a giant suite.
Royal Caribbean grants Pinnacle Club members priority boarding with suite guests, which means you have a special boarding line and lounge area in the cruise terminal. When it comes time to board the cruise, you're among the first to board too.
Once onboard the ship, Pinnacles are allowed access to the Suite Lounge for the duration of the cruise (assuming there aren't too many onboard). This is a less busy alternative to the Crown Lounge, and also comes with great views too.
Access to Coastal Kitchen on the new ships is a tremendous benefit too, as it adds a new complimentary restaurant choice. I've started eating more often at Coastal Kitchen than I ever did when I stayed in a suite. Maybe it's because of the added value, or maybe it's because they have French onion soup on the dinner menu every night. You decide.
Pinnacles have the option of wear a gold name tag that's given to them when the turn Pinnacle. Personally, I've never worn it, but many Pinnacles swear by it because they notice enhanced service from crew members.
I think my gold colored SeaPass card for being Pinnacle stands out enough, but you can't deny it crew members tend to do a double take when they see you're Pinnacle.
Just like embarkation, the suite concierge will escort you off the ship on the final day of the cruise, and you'll get luggage tags for the first group too.
Special added events
As a Pinnacle Club member, you'll get invited to various events during your cruise. Depending on your sailing length, there can be different events to choose from.
On my most recent sailing on Anthem of the Seas in Europe, I was invited to a Pinnacle lunch event where we had a group meal with other Pinnacles onboard and the chance to meet the officers.
Known as "Cheers with an officer", it's basically the Chops Grille lunch served in the Main Dining Room, and since everyone is a Pinnacle Club member, there are a lot of "war stories" being shared among big time cruisers.
Topics of discussion included favorite itineraries, upcoming cruises booked, and pretty much anything relevant happening in cruising right now. It's like a super cruiser discussion thread in real life.
Pinnacles are also invited to other events, such as behind the scenes tours, Top Tier events, and more.
It's optional to attend any of them, but going adds a dimension of community you won't find at the other tiers.
So many free drinks
I thought getting 4 free drinks a day as a Diamond member was nice, but having 6 as Pinnacle makes a big difference.
Royal Caribbean gives free drink vouchers to use at any bar, restaurant or lounge every day of the cruise. It's an incredible benefit:
- Diamond: 4 drinks per day, per person
- Diamond Plus: 5 drinks per day, per person
- Pinnacle: 6 drinks per day, per person.
My kids get free drinks too, albeit they're at Diamond Plus level.
Since moving up to Pinnacle Club, I haven't bought a drink package since turning Pinnacle because I get so much value from my free drinks (and casino benefits).
Even if I use up all my drink vouchers for the day and pay out of pocket for 3 or 4 drinks, I'm still saving money compared to a Royal Caribbean drink package.
Free cruise incentive
If you think once you hit Pinnacle that you max out the rationale to continue cruising with Royal Caribbean, think again.
Besides wanting to take advantage of the added perks I already mentioned, Royal Caribbean will continue giving Pinnacles free cruises in the future.
When you hit 700 points, you'll get a free seven night cruise to the Caribbean in a balcony cabin to use. If you choose a cruise that matches all three of those conditions, then the base cruise fare is free except for port fees, taxes and gratuity.
If you want something else, then you have the choice to take a $2400 value to use towards any cruise, which means you could upgrade to a suite, or do a 9-night cruise, or simply sail elsewhere in the world.
You'll get another free cruise every 350 points after that, which means there's a good reason to keep going. For example: 700, 1050, 1400, 1750, 2100, et al.
Incredible status matching with Celebrity
Royal Caribbean recently updated its status matching with sister line Celebrity Cruises, and the result is incredible.
I just sailed on Celebrity Reflection and was granted full Zenith level membership, which is Celebrity's top loyalty level.
I was given a complimentary premium drink package, premium one-device wifi package, access to The Retreat (suite lounge), priority embarkation/disembarkation, and more.
I was blown away by how lucrative being a Zenith member is, and I got it all simply for being a Pinnacle Club member.
I sailed on Celebrity Apex last year before the status matching change, and the updated benefits make sailing on Celebrity so much more tantalizing.
Moving up to Pinnacle means you not only reach the top level of Royal Caribbean, but also Celebrity. That adds a major bonus to the value.
Reaching Pinnacle has changed how I cruise
While I don't think chasing loyalty status is a good reason to cruise, I can't deny I've enjoyed the benefits that have come with being Pinnacle.
In short, it's made me feel more valued by the cruise line for my loyalty, and meeting other Pinnacles has been a real highlight.
I think the benefits you get at Diamond are plenty good on their own, but if you find down the line getting closer to that 700 point threshold, it might make sense to think about a strategy to get there given how nice these added perks have been for me.
