Princess Cruises' Loyalty Program - Captain's Circle [Review]

Princess Cruises is a luxury cruise line that sails to hundreds of destinations all over the world. It currently operates 15 large ships, with 1 more coming in 2024.

This luxury cruise line offers destination-specific and cultural experiences (think traditional Māori performances in New Zealand or ukulele lessons in Hawaii) in addition to traditional cruise activities like casinos, art auctions, and pools.

Princess also rewards its loyal guests with the Captain’s Circle loyalty program. Captain’s Circle offers benefits and perks to returning guests after just their first cruise. The more you cruise with Princess, the better your perks become.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Captain’s Circle program including how to earn points and what you’ll get at each membership level.

Table of contents

Captain’s Circle Loyalty Program
- How To Earn Cruise Credits and Cruise Days
- Keep Track of Your Points
Captain’s Circle Membership Benefits
Book Your Princess Cruise
Princess MedallionClass vs. Captain’s Circle
Final Thoughts

Table of Contents

Captain’s Circle Loyalty Program
- How To Earn Cruise Credits and Cruise Days
- Keep Track of Your Points
Captain’s Circle Membership Benefits
Book Your Princess Cruise
Princess MedallionClass vs. Captain’s Circle
Final Thoughts

Captain’s Circle Loyalty Program

Princess Cruises’ loyalty program, Captain’s Circle, rewards return guests with perks and bonuses both onboard and on land. There are 4 levels of membership and you’ll be automatically enrolled after your first Princess cruise: Gold, Ruby, Platinum, and Elite.

How To Earn Cruise Credits and Cruise Days

There are 4 tiers of membership that are determined by either number of cruises (cruise credits) or total cruise days:

Cruise credits are earned for each completed cruise. You’ll earn double cruise credits when you sail on an exclusive occupancy fare (a single traveler who occupies a stateroom alone and has paid a single traveler supplement) or in a full suite (not including mini-suites).
Cruise days refers to the number of nights you’ve spent at sea.

For example, if you take a 7-night Caribbean cruise in a balcony stateroom, you’ll earn 1 cruise credit and 7 cruise days. If you take a 10-night cruise in a full suite, you’d earn 2 cruise credits and 10 cruise days.

Captain’s Club Loyalty Level	Number of Cruises/Cruise Credits	Number of Cruise Days
Gold	1	1
Ruby	3	30
Platinum	5	50
Elite	15	150

Hot Tip: Your membership level is determined by either cruise credits or cruise days, whichever gets you to the next level quicker. You don’t have to fulfill both requirements to advance to the next level of membership.

Keep Track of Your Points

You can easily keep track of your cruise history and current Captain’s Circle status in your online account. Once you log in, go to My Profile then Cruise History to see your past cruises and a count of your cruise credits and cruise days.

Captain’s Circle Membership Benefits

The benefits you receive from Captain’s Circle are cumulative, so each level is also entitled to all benefits earned at each lower level.

Gold

Captain’s Circle Gold status is earned after your first completed cruise.

Access to a Circle Host onboard
Captain’s Circle launch savings and preferential pricing offers
Captain’s Circle section in your online My Princess account
Circle Savings Account
Gold member recognition pin
Members-only onboard events

Ruby

Captain’s Circle Ruby status is earned after completing 3 cruises or 30 cruise days.

Access to Captain’s Circle Help Desk phone line
Princess Platinum Vacation Package upgrade, including a 100% cancelation benefit, double accident and sickness benefits, and expanded medical and evacuation coverage.
Ruby member recognition pin

Ruby Princess — As a Captain’s Circle member, you’ll be eligible for perks and benefits on board every Princess ship. Image Credit: Princess Cruises

Platinum

Captain’s Circle Platinum status is earned after completing 5 cruises or 50 cruise days.

10% off Lotus Spa treatments
10% off photos from the Photo Gallery
50% off MedallionNet Wi-Fi package
Complimentary copy of the Princess Destination Collection brochure
Early access to Dine My Way reservations
Platinum and Elite lounge
Platinum member recognition pin
Priority boarding

Elite

Captain’s Circle Elite status is earned after completing 15 cruises or 150 cruise days.

10% discount in The Shops of Princess onboard
10% discount on shore excursions
Afternoon tea in your stateroom
Complimentary Grapevine Wine Tasting
Complimentary laundry service
Complimentary minibar setup
Deluxe canapés delivered to your stateroom on formal nights
Early access to new itineraries
Elite member recognition pin
Priority disembarkation
Priority tender access
Shoe polishing service

Bottom Line: There are 4 levels of elite membership in the Princess Cruises’ Captain’s Circle loyalty program — Gold, Ruby, Platinum, and Elite. You’ll earn Gold membership status after your first cruise with Princess.

Book Your Princess Cruise

Now that you’re familiar with Captain’s Circle benefits, let’s talk about the best way to book your next Princess cruise. There are tons of websites that you can use to book a cruise, so be sure to do a little comparison shopping so you get the most bang for your buck.

When you’re making a large purchase like a cruise, you’ll want to use a credit card that’s going to reward you. Princess Cruises offers its own credit card, the Princess Cruises® Rewards Visa® Card. You might think since Princess Cruises is in the name, it would be the best option to book a Princess cruise, but you’d be wrong!

The Princess Cruises card is currently offering a 10,000-point bonus after making your first purchase. Unfortunately, that’s only worth $100 in onboard credit. Compare that to a card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card which offers a much more lucrative welcome bonus:

Or consider the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card which currently has a welcome bonus worth at least $750! That $750 can be used as a credit on your statement toward any travel purchases — including a cruise!

Bottom Line: The Princess Cruises card isn’t the best way to pay for your cruise. Look for a card that offers a great welcome bonus as well as the ability to earn transferrable points like the Capital One Venture card or Chase Sapphire Preferred card. Alternatively, you can book your Princess cruise with credit card points.

Princess MedallionClass vs. Captain’s Circle

While MedallionClass sounds like it’s part of a loyalty program, in reality, it has nothing to do with Princess Captain’s Circle.

MedallionClass is a cruising style that allows guests benefits like touchless check-in, keyless stateroom entry, the ability to locate your loved ones on the ship, and much more. This is all achieved through each passenger’s Medallion, a small wearable device that helps them personalize their vacation.

Final Thoughts

On a Princess Cruise, you’ll get the large ship experience along with luxury amenities and specialized activities you may find on a smaller ship.

Captain’s Circle is Princess’ loyalty program. You’ll automatically be enrolled after your first Princess cruise and your benefits continue to add up the more you sail with Princess.

For more information on what Princess has to offer, check out our full Princess Cruises review which details everything from ships and destinations to dining and onboard activities.

The information regarding the Princess Cruises® Rewards Visa® Card and Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.

Frequently asked questions

What are the loyalty levels on Princess Cruises?

Princess Cruises’ loyalty program, Captain’s Circle, has 4 levels of membership:

Gold — after first completed cruise
Ruby — after 3 cruises or 30 cruise days
Platinum — after 5 cruises or 50 cruise days
Elite — after 15 cruises or 150 cruise days

What are the benefits of elite status on Princess Cruises?

The benefits offered by Captain’s Circle, Princess’ loyalty program, vary based on your elite level. At the low end, members will receive special offers and members-only onboard events. At the high end, Captain’s Circle members get priority disembarkation, discounts on shore excursions, priority tender access, complimentary minibar setup, and more.

What's the difference between Princess MedallionClass and Captain's Circle?

Princess MedallionClass is a way of cruising where guests wear small Medallions that act as keys, credit cards, tracking devices, and more. Princess Captain’s Club is the cruise line’s loyalty program that offers benefits to repeat guests.

How do I find my Captain's Club number?

You can easily find your Princess Captain’s Club number in your online account. Just log in to your account and click on My Account>Profile Information.

5 comments

Nedra Farwell June 20, 2021

What is my membership number?

Jarrod West June 21, 2021
Hi Nedra,
You’ll need to contact Princess customer service to have them assist you with that at 1-(800)-774-6237.
Reply

PETE TIMMIS October 19, 2021

No more free internet minutes for elite members. Very disappointed if this is the case.

April February 15, 2022
I think as Elite member you get all the benefits of the other lower tier PLUS those added perks for Elite.
Reply
joe March 28, 2023
No more free internet time for Elite members, wow, how can they possibly do that, moving the goal-posts after the game has commenced, to suit themselves, and rob their very loyal customers of ‘forever status’ that was promised? I feel a great number of previously loyal customers will vote with their feet. How short-sighted and dismissive of so-called valued customers!!! This change needs to be re-evaluated by Princess. I sense their credibility is on the line. What do others think???
Reply

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Princess Cruises’ Loyalty Program – Captain’s Circle [Review]

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