South Pacific cruise specialist Paul Gauguin Cruises solely operates one small ship, the 330-passenger Paul Gauguin, however it has a loyalty program worthy of a a lot greater cruise model.
The Paul Gauguin Society, because it’s referred to as, has a number of standing tiers that include such beneficial perks as important reductions on cruises, onboard spending credit and free onboard laundry service.
What’s extra, the Paul Gauguin Society loyalty program is one the place you begin having access to a number of the greatest perks proper after your first cruise — one thing that is not at all times the case with cruise line loyalty packages.
Plus, the Paul Gauguin Cruises program has some of the enjoyable tier-level naming constructions within the cruise enterprise. Significantly, who can flip down the chance to formally be titled an “admiral” or a “commodore” when cruising?
Methods to earn factors
The Paul Gauguin Society points-earning system — for those who may even name it that — is about as simple as may be. Each time you sail with the road, regardless of how lengthy the voyage, you’ll get credit score for one crusing. Your standing degree in this system will rely totally in your whole variety of sailings and nothing else. In contrast to at some traces, your standing degree won’t be influenced by what number of whole days you sail or the kind of cabins you e book.
That mentioned, there’s a not-so-obvious approach to accumulate extra credit for sailings than you may assume attainable, on condition that Paul Gauguin Cruises operates only one ship in a single area of the world. Hidden within the fantastic print of the Paul Gauguin Society program guidelines is the pronouncement which you can get credit score for any sailings you are taking with French cruise line Ponant. The 2 traces are associated, as Ponant has owned Paul Gauguin Cruises since 2019.
Provided that Ponant operates 13 ships all over the world, the partnership supplies much more potential sailings that can contribute to your Paul Gauguin Society standing.
Program tiers and advantages
There are 4 tiers to the Paul Gauguin Society loyalty program:
- Main (two to 4 sailings)
- Admiral (5 to seven sailings)
- Grand Admiral (eight to twenty sailings)
- Commodore (21 or extra sailings)
Day by day Publication
Reward your inbox with the TPG Day by day publication
Be a part of over 700,000 readers for breaking information, in-depth guides and unique offers from TPG’s specialists
You might be awarded standing in every tier degree as you full the crusing simply earlier than reaching the crusing rely wanted for that tier. As an illustration, you turn out to be a Main in this system after finishing one crusing and shall be a Main throughout your second, third and fourth cruises with the road. You then turn out to be an Admiral after finishing your fourth cruise and shall be an Admiral to your fifth, sixth and seventh cruises.
Even on the lowest Main degree, the perks of the Paul Gauguin Society are pretty strong. As quickly as you are taking your first cruise with Paul Gauguin Cruises, you’ll qualify for a 5% low cost on any future cruise you e book whereas on board a crusing. That is a fantastic perk, because it quantities to actual cash in your pocket.
Moreover, you’ll obtain:
- A $50 per particular person shipboard credit score
- Complimentary onboard laundry service
- Entry to Ponant Yacht Membership Loyalty Cruises
The subsequent tier of this system, the Admiral tier, brings an excellent greater low cost of seven.5% while you e book a future cruise. Additionally, the onboard credit score that you’ll obtain doubles to $100 per particular person.
Associated: Why your subsequent dream trip needs to be this luxurious island cruise
Plus, as an Admiral, you will get a 20% low cost on onboard purchases (with some caveats talked about under).
Observe that the previous passenger reductions can’t be mixed with different promotions the road is operating until in any other case said throughout these promotions. In different phrases, you possibly can’t double dip on financial savings.
Moreover, the previous passenger reductions are solely out there to the primary and second passengers in a cabin. In case you are reserving a cabin for 3 or 4 individuals, the previous passenger low cost and facilities won’t apply to the third or fourth particular person within the cabin.
Different fantastic print on the perks on the Main and Admiral ranges:
- You’ll be able to obtain a most of two shipboard credit per particular person per reserving.
- The complimentary laundry service is proscribed to 2 gadgets per day per particular person.
- Sure restrictions apply to the low cost for onboard purchases; amongst purchases which are excluded from the low cost are shore excursions, scuba diving outings, jewellery and artwork bought on board.
The elite degree that makes a distinction
We’re followers of each of the primary two tiers of the Paul Gauguin Cruises loyalty program as a result of high quality of their perks. However the Grand Admiral tier of the Paul Gauguin Society is the place we expect your loyalty to the road actually begins paying off.
For starters, as a Grand Admiral, you get a ten% low cost in your cruise fare — a major quantity. Provided that the road’s cruises typically begin at round $500 per particular person, per day, this will add as much as a whole bunch of {dollars} of financial savings per cruise.
On the Grand Admiral degree, your onboard credit score will rise to $150 per particular person, which is extra actual cash in your pocket. You need to use it to cowl the prices of, say, pampering your self at Paul Gauguin’s stress-free Algotherm Spa.
However maybe essentially the most engaging perk on the Admiral tier is that you simply qualify for a cabin class improve while you sail, ought to a cabin for such an improve be out there. There’s nothing like a free improve to make a cruiser be ok with their loyalty to a line.
Observe that the cabin class improve is topic to availability, and you will not obtain a cabin improve, ought to one be out there, till you arrive on the ship.
Different perks on the Grand Admiral degree embrace:
- A better 25% low cost on onboard purchases
- A complimentary bottle of Champagne
- An invite to a particular previous visitor cocktail social gathering with the ship’s captain
- A waiver on change charges if you’ll want to change your cruise date inside 12 months of your unique reserving
Observe that for the latter perk, the change have to be made 90 days or extra earlier than your unique crusing date.
Finest elite perk
It is a powerful name on one of the best elite perk of the Paul Gauguin Society loyalty program. In contrast to some frequent cruiser packages, there is not one clear standout perk, such because the free cruise that Royal Caribbean Crown & Anchor Society members get after reaching the highest Pinnacle Membership degree.
That mentioned, on the high Commodore tier degree of the Paul Gauguin Society program, passengers get an excellent greater 12.5% cruise fare low cost. It is onerous to argue that is not an enormous deal.
Additionally, upon reaching the Commodore tier, you will get a extra hefty onboard spending credit score than at different tiers: $200 per particular person.
As on the Grand Admiral degree, your low cost on onboard purchases on the Commodore degree shall be 25%. You may additionally get a complimentary cabin class improve when reserving on the Commodore degree and a complimentary bottle of Champagne.
On the Commodore degree, as on the Grand Admiral degree, you will additionally be capable of alter your cruise dates with out charges when altering inside 12 months of your unique reserving if the change is made 90 days or extra earlier than your unique crusing date.
Benefit from the ceaselessly standing
Observe that, as is normally the case with cruise line loyalty packages, Paul Gauguin Cruises prospects wouldn’t have to requalify for standing annually. Standing within the Paul Gauguin Society program is predicated on the variety of sailings you could have taken over your lifetime, and such “factors” by no means expire. That implies that somebody who hits Commodore standing will stay at that top-tier degree ceaselessly (or till Paul Gauguin Cruises makes a change to this system).
Such “ceaselessly standing” is among the nice allures of cruise line frequent cruiser packages. Against this, many airline frequent flyer packages require loyalty members to requalify for standing annually.
Backside line
The Paul Gauguin Cruises loyalty program is extra strong than you may count on for a cruise model that solely operates a single ship. You may get a whole lot of worth from being a member, even after only one cruise. There are various quantities of reductions on cruises and onboard credit score out there in any respect 4 ranges of this system.
Planning a cruise? Begin with these tales:
