Royal Caribbean International adds new ‘Gold Card’ membership tier to celebrate the first birthday of Club Royal

MIAMI, 2015-9-28 — /Travel PR News/ — Royal Caribbean International has announced the addition of a new ‘Gold Card’ membership tier to celebrate the first birthday of Club Royal, its industry-leading reward and recognition programme for travel agents. The birthday celebrations also marked the launch of a unique ‘Virtual Queue’ competition, which gives agents the opportunity to secure their place on an exclusive two-day sailing on Harmony of the Seas.

The new incentives were unveiled last night at a ‘Glam & Gold’ party attended by 100 agent partners to mark the scheme’s huge success, which in the space of just 12 months has built a membership of nearly 6,500 and rewarded bookings made on more than 50,000 Royal Caribbean holidays.

The announcement signifies Royal Caribbean’s continued investment in its travel agent partners, which in the last year has included increasing the size of the sales team and investing in a new vehicle fleet to drive agent relations and capitalise on a strong and growing network.

Going for gold!

Club Royal members earning over £1,000 in rewards will now join an elite Gold Card tier, receiving a new, gold branded MasterCard® with £300 to spend on a personal cruise and a £25 birthday bonus.

Additional benefits include invitations to exclusive events and inaugurals, plus ten places on a Club Royal Panel with Royal Caribbean’s Managing Director UK & Ireland, Stuart Leven and Sales Director UK & Ireland, Ben Bouldin. Gold Card members will be required to make a set number of bookings a year in order to remain in the elite tier.

Get to the front of the ‘Virtual Queue’ for Harmony of the Seas’ launch

As Royal Caribbean counts down to the arrival of its exciting, new ship, Harmony of the Seas, the company is launching its biggest-ever trade competition. For the chance to win one of 1,000 places on an exclusive two-day sailing on the new ship, Club Royal members simply need to submit a picture of themselves on the dedicated website www.myclubroyal.co.uk and engage with Royal Caribbean via bookings and interactions on social media to make their way up a virtual queue and secure their spot on the guestlist. The top 500 agent partners in the queue at the competition’s close on 1 March 2016 will scoop a much-coveted ticket for them and a guest onboard Harmony of the Seas.

Ben Bouldin, Sales Director UK and Ireland said, “Travel agents are hugely important to us and their loyalty underpins our success. We’re investing in our relationships with agents and growing our sales team to support our growth aspirations.”

“Club Royal is a major part of this initiative. It already rewards loyalty in a way that no other programme in the industry does, but we’re enhancing it even further because we want to recognise those agents working hard on our behalf as best we can.”

Club Royal is open to all travel agents achieving ‘Captain’ status on Royal Caribbean’s e-learning programme, ‘Cruising for Excellence’. It offers members rewards for every booking made, directly uploaded onto a prepaid branded MasterCard®, with other incentives including unique opportunities such as invitations to inaugural sailings, or Red Letter Day discounts and benefits.

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Notes to editors

About Royal Caribbean International: 
Royal Caribbean International is an award-winning global cruise brand with a 46-year legacy of innovation and introducing industry “firsts” never before seen at sea.  The cruise line features an expansive and unmatched array of features and amenities only found on Royal Caribbean including, Broadway-style entertainment and industry-acclaimed programming that appeals to families and adventurous travellers alike. Onboard, guests are catered to with the cruise line’s world-renowned friendly and engaging Gold Anchor Service by every staff and crew member.

Royal Caribbean has been voted the “Best Mainstream Cruise Company” for the fifth year running in the 2015 Travel Weekly UK Globe Awards; the “Best Ocean Cruise Line” by the Times, Sunday Times and Times Travel Magazine in 2014; the “Best for First Time Cruisers” and “Best for Families” in 2014 by Cruise International.
The cruise line sails 23 of the world’s most innovative cruise ships to the most popular destinations in Europe, Bermuda and the Caribbean, Canada and New England, Alaska, South America, Asia, and Australia and New Zealand.

Media can stay up-to-date by following @RoyalCaribPR on Twitter, and visiting RoyalCaribbeanPressCenter.com. For additional information or to make reservations, holidaymakers should call their travel agent; visit www.royalcaribbean.co.uk or call 0844 493 3033 (calls cost 7p per minute plus your phone company’s access charge). Travel professionals can visit Cruisingpower.com

Media Enquiries:

Royal Caribbean team at Lexis:

General contact: royalcaribbean@lexisagency.com / +44 (0)20 7908 6596

Harriet Sharp, hsharp@lexisagency.com / +44 (0)20 7908 6428

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