If you've already been on a cruise, this will sound familiar: when you book, they ask whether you belong to the cruise line's "loyalty club" or "members club." Most people ignore it or don't think it matters. Big mistake. I've done thirteen cruises — seven with one line and five with another — and today I hold a fairly high status with both. Let me walk you through how this actually works, and why it's worth taking seriously once you're a repeat cruiser.

It's a points system: every cruise you take, and every night you sail, earns you points. More nights means more points — a five-day cruise isn't the same as a two-week one. Your cabin matters too: a suite earns more points in the same week than an interior cabin, and a high-category balcony earns more than a standard interior or ocean-view.

Two things are important to understand here. First, points are individual, per person, not per cabin — though of course everyone in the same cabin gets the same number. Second, points don't get counted until you're back in port: even on a seven-night cruise, they won't show up until the trip ends, usually one or two weeks later.

As you accumulate points, you move up levels — bronze, silver, gold, platinum, each line names them differently — and each level unlocks more perks for your next cruises.

The main one is a growing discount on everything you buy on board: specialty restaurants, Wi-Fi, excursions, and so on. The percentage climbs with your tier, from around 3-5% at the entry levels up to 25% or even 40% at the top. Here's a detail most people don't know: if you book these extras once you're already on the ship, there's usually a surcharge (10-20%, depending on what it is) compared to booking before you board. If you have a status discount, it offsets that surcharge — sometimes it even ends up cheaper than booking in advance.

Then there are the visible perks: a welcome cocktail specifically for club members, and if your tier is high enough, something more exclusive — a special show, a dinner at a specialty restaurant, a bottle of champagne or prosecco waiting in your cabin with chocolates, depending on the line and the tier.

And there's one perk nobody talks about that's very real: every time you order a drink, you hand the bartender your cabin card so they can check whether it's included. When they see a high-tier card, they treat you better — not because they know you personally, but because they know you're someone who comes back, and it's only natural for a business to look after repeat customers a little more. I've noticed the same thing with restaurant reservations: at a club event with several hundred people on board, we were always treated wonderfully at group dinners — partly because of the numbers, but also because everyone in the group held a high status.

Whatever line you're sailing with, sign up on the spot — it's free, and every future cruise moves you closer to the next tier. Here's a comparison: I've flown a huge amount in my life, one year I took 52 flights — one a week. I had frequent-flyer status with the five or six airlines I flew most, and even so, I never built up real discounts for future trips. Absurd.

Here, with just thirteen cruises split across two lines, I already hold high status with both. Why the difference? A cruise costs more than a flight, and people repeat less often on cruises than on planes, so cruise lines hand out points generously to encourage you to come back. If you already cruise fairly often, this is an important hack: sign up, no question — you'll level up faster than you'd think.

First, not signing up at all — it's free, and cruise lines push it precisely because they want your data so they can get you to come back. Second, not knowing you can claim points for cruises you've already taken: if you sailed without being registered, many lines let you write in and request credit for that cruise, within a certain window (usually six months to a year). Third, losing points on a cruise because the booking wasn't properly linked to your club profile — it happens more than you'd think, and it's a shame, because with everything these programs give you, it's worth keeping an eye on.

They combine perfectly. Your status still climbs with the cruise line whether you book directly or through a club. And here's the best part: comparing prices against people with the highest cruise line status, our prices through the club are still better. The cruise line still credits you the points either way, even though you didn't buy the cruise directly from them. So you save money booking through the club, and you keep earning loyalty points with the cruise line — the best of both.

Sign up for the loyalty program of every cruise line you plan to sail with — right away, without overthinking it, since it's free. If you don't have a preference between lines, take a look at their loyalty programs before choosing: if one looks more attractive than another, prioritize that line for your next trips. But don't obsess over it either — points add up fast and generously; you don't need two hundred cruises to reach a solid status.

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