Crown & Anchor Points Choice Program: What It Is and How It Works
By Aleisha White | Published: March 17, 2026
Royal Caribbean Group is offering guests a more flexible way to gain status with the Points Choice program. Members of the Crown & Anchor® Society (basically, you, if you’ve already completed or are about to complete your first sailing) receive Cruise Points for each night at sea.
The more nights you spend at sea, the more Cruise Points you get. These points help you earn a higher loyalty status every time you sail, providing more benefits with each tier. Now, you can apply your points to your preferred program across several Royal Caribbean Group brands.
This guide explores the Crown & Anchor Society, what the new Points Choice program is and how to apply your points to your preferred program to keep increasing status in a way that works for you.
What Is the Crown & Anchor Society?
The Crown & Anchor Society is the Royal Caribbean loyalty program — and was recently named the Best Cruise Line Loyalty Program by The Points Guy. Everyone who completes a Royal Caribbean sailing is automatically enrolled and earns Cruise Points based on stateroom category and number of nights sailed.
So, for example, if you stay in a stateroom, you’ll earn one point per night. If you choose to stay in a suite, you’ll earn two cruise points per night. These Cruise Points accumulate each time you sail, helping you scale your loyalty status. With each status tier, you can unlock exclusive offers, onboard amenities, priority access to events and more benefits. The more you cruise, the more cruise points you earn and the faster you can accelerate your loyalty status.
How Do Cruise Points Work in Practice?
Let’s say you’re departing on a 10-night sailing and you’ve chosen to stay in a suite. You’ll earn two points per night, which tallies up to 20 points total at the end of your sailing. By now, you’ve already earned Gold Status (which requires three Cruise Points).
If, during your next sailing, you depart on a 14-night cruise and you stay in a balcony stateroom, you’ll earn one point per night, or 14 total. Your Cruise Points from both sailings combine, giving you 34 points overall. By now, you’ve unlocked Platinum Status, which requires 30 points.
Higher status gives you access to even more of what you love, and that’s just one of the ways Royal Caribbean rewards loyal guests. Now, it’s easier than ever to earn a higher status across multiple Royal Caribbean Group brands by applying your Cruise Points to your preferred program, with Points Choice.
What Is the Points Choice Program?
The Points Choice program is a loyalty enhancement that helps you apply loyalty points your way, no matter which Royal Caribbean Group brand you sail with. All guests departing on a Royal Caribbean sailing on or after January 30th, 2026, can unlock greater flexibility in how they grow their status.
By submitting a Points Choice request, you can choose to apply your points to a loyalty program of other brands in the Royal Caribbean Group, including:
- ● Captain’s Club with Celebrity Cruises®.
- ● Venetian Society with Silversea®.
To apply your points to a different program, you must already be enrolled in that loyalty program. Points exchange rates, which are subject to change and published annually, apply. This just means that two points earned with the Crown & Anchor Society may translate to more or fewer Captain’s Club points or VS days, and vice versa. On top of that, the new loyalty status match program can help you scale your status even further. More on that soon.
Note that if you prefer to keep your Cruise Points with Royal Caribbean, there’s no action required. Overall, this means you can grow your status and scale benefits with other brands in the Royal Caribbean Group, even as you sail to your favorite destinations with Royal Caribbean.
What Is the Loyalty Status Match Program?
The Royal Caribbean Group has upgraded the loyalty status match program across Royal Caribbean, Celebrity Cruises and Silversea to bring you even bolder benefits at sea. Members can now access one-for-one tier matching. Once you’re enrolled in your program of choice, you’ll automatically enjoy status parity across all three brands.
For instance, if you’ve earned Diamond Status with Royal Caribbean, you can enjoy the benefits of Elite Status when you sail with Celebrity Cruises and 250 VS Days when you sail with Silversea. Note that each ship offers unique loyalty rewards, meaning the perks are not identical — the status is.
Here’s where it gets really good: If you’re someone who loves sailing with multiple Royal Caribbean Group brands, Points Choice and the loyalty status match program make it even easier to build your loyalty status — no matter which brand you sail with.
So, if you love bringing the kids on Royal Caribbean sailings and enjoy romantic getaways with your spouse on Silversea sailings, you can apply your points from both sailings to either loyalty program to keep increasing status. Note, status parity still applies for both cruise lines.
Are There Any Limits to the Points Choice Program?
While the Royal Caribbean Points Choice loyalty program enables guests a whole new level of flexibility in scaling their status, certain limitations do apply.
You cannot transfer points from one individual to another — only between the brands. For those who were planning on bringing the kids for the extra points, they’ll earn their own points on their account.
Any points earned before January 30th, 2026, cannot be converted via the Points Choice program; however, points earned on sailings departing on or after January 30th can be.
There are also a few exclusions to keep in mind, including:
- ● Partial point conversions: When exchanging Crown & Anchor points to VS Days with Silversea, partial points do not apply.
- ● Casino Royale® and Blue Chip programs: While an elevated loyalty status can unlock some benefits in Casino Royale, the Casino Royale and Blue Chip programs are separate reward programs and cannot be interchanged with Cruise Points.
- ● Royal Caribbean Visa Signature® card: This is also a separate reward program and cannot be interchanged with Cruise Points.
How To Apply Points Choice To Your Preferred Program
When you sail with Royal Caribbean, you’ll continue earning Cruise Points as you always have — once your cruise is complete. From January 30, 2026, a Points Choice request form is available on the Royal App and online on the Crown & Anchor webpage. Here, you can submit a Points Choice request and select the brand you’d like to apply your earned points to.
You can submit your Points Choice request:
- ● Before your sailing.
- ● Up to 14 days after your cruise.
Any requests made after 14 days from the completion of your cruise cannot be processed, so it’s best to get in quick if it’s something you’d like to do. Also, note that you’ll need to submit a separate request for each sailing.
You must already be enrolled in the loyalty program you’d like to transfer your points to before you add them. To do this, log in to the Royal App and navigate to the Loyalty Match to complete your enrollment.
Points earned from the brand you sailed get added to your loyalty account first. After the Points Choice request is submitted, your original points are deducted from your account and added to your desired loyalty program. You’ll need to allow for around 30 days after you complete your cruise and submit your request for points to transfer.
Benefits and Considerations for the Points Choice Program
The Points Choice program is designed for guests who split their time between different brands in the Royal Caribbean Group, ensuring their vacation spend is rewarded to the max, regardless of which cruise line they sail with.
- ● Accelerating status enhancement: By applying your Cruise Points to your preferred program, you can easily increase loyalty status.
- ● Retaining status across brands: The loyalty match programs allow you to retain your equivalent loyalty status regardless of which brand you sail with.
- ● No need to start over: When switching cruise lines, you can pick up where you left off. There’s no need to start building your status from scratch.
If you’re considering taking advantage of the Points Choice program, here are some questions you may ask yourself:
Do You Often Sail With Different Brands in the Royal Caribbean Group?
If you love cruising with Royal Caribbean and don’t regularly sail with Celebrity Cruises or Silversea, it might make more sense to keep your status points with the Crown & Anchor Society.
On the other hand, if you split your time evenly between different brands and prefer the status benefits of another, it might make sense to submit a Points Choice request.
Is Your Goal Program Benefits, Status Matching or Both?
Status matching across brands is automatic, meaning you only need to apply points to a different program if you want to accelerate your loyalty status with that program.
Which Program Benefits Do You Prefer?
If you sail more often with Royal Caribbean but prefer the Celebrity Cruises loyalty benefits, you may choose to apply your points to your program of preference.
Enjoy Even More Flexibility on Your Sailing With Points Choice
The Points Choice program is a major shift in how you’re rewarded for your time at sea. By funneling your points into your preferred program, you now have the flexibility to grow your status on your own terms.
If you’re scaling the tiers of the Crown & Anchor Society or building toward new milestones with Celebrity Cruises or Silversea, your loyalty now travels with you.
