Explora Journeys loyalty program guide: The Explora Club, explained
Startup cruise line Explora Journeys hasn't had much time to build up a loyal following. It's only been operating since 2023.
But that doesn't mean that it's not treating its most loyal customers right.
The still relatively unknown luxury brand has a 1-year-old loyalty program, the Explora Club, that brings significant discounts for sailings after just a few cruises and, at its higher tiers, everything from onboard credits for wellness experiences and shore excursions to unlimited free laundry.
At its top tier, the Explora Club program even offers what may be the ultimate perk in the cruise line loyalty program universe: a free cruise for two.
Only a handful of other brands, such as Royal Caribbean, offer such a perk.
Additionally, Explora Journeys recently enhanced its loyalty options for customers by expanding its partnership with Hilton.
Here's a look at the Explora Journeys Explora Club loyalty program in detail.
Ways to earn points
There are two ways to earn points in the Explora Club:
- Spending nights on an Explora ship
- Spending money on an Explora ship
In the first bucket of points earnings (points earned by spending nights on ships), you will earn a baseline amount of 100 points for every night that you sail on one of the line's three vessels.
On top of that, you will get additional points for every night that you stay in a higher-end suite.
Specifically, your points earnings on a per-night basis will correspond to the following chart (note that on Explora Journeys ships, all cabins are called suites, with Ocean Suites being the entry-level category that accounts for most rooms):
| Type of cabin | Points earned per night |
|---|---|
Ocean Suite | 100 |
Ocean Penthouse | 200 |
Ocean Residence | 300 |
Owner's Residence | 1,000 |
As you can see, your earnings rate goes up considerably if you stay in a top suite.
In the second bucket of earnings (points earned by spending money on ships), you will earn 100 points for every 1,000 euros or dollars you spend on most fee-based extras like spa treatments and premium drinks.
Such points are earned in blocks of 100, so you won't earn any points through spending unless you spend more than 1,000 euros or dollars during a sailing (after which you'll get 100 points).
Two other notable caveats to this type of earning are that you won't earn points for spending at several of the onboard boutiques on Explora ships, including Encore by Explora Journeys, Rolex, Cartier, Panerai, Piaget and Buccellati, and you won't earn points for spending at onboard casinos.
In addition to the above, you will earn 100 points for every 1,000 euros or dollars you spend on shore excursions, whether they are booked in advance of sailing or on board.
Program tiers and benefits
There are five tiers to the Explora Club loyalty program:
- Classic (upon joining the program)
- Silver (1 to 5,000 points)
- Gold (5,001 to 20,000 points)
- Platinum (20,001 to 50,000 points)
- Diamond (50,001 or more points)
You are awarded status in each tier after you complete the sailing needed to reach the points threshold for that tier. For instance, you become a Silver member after completing your first sailing, when you earn your first points. You then become a Gold member after the sailing that puts you over the 5,001-point threshold for that tier.
Points should appear in your account within 10 days of sailing.
As is typical for cruise line loyalty programs, the entry-level tier of the program (Classic) doesn't bring all that much in terms of perks. The main benefit at this level is that you get access to exclusive Explora Club member offers. You'll also get a personalized welcome gift upon boarding.
Additionally, at the Classic level, you will receive:
- Priority access to new cruises when they're announced
- Access to a dedicated area in the My Explora section of the line's website
The next tier of the program, the Silver tier, brings several additional perks, including one that is quite valuable: a 5% discount when booking future sailings. That's real money in your pocket.
In fact, given that Explora Journeys sailings can cost more than $1,000 per day, this one perk alone can be worth hundreds if not thousands of dollars when making a booking.
This 5% savings, it should be noted, is only for the cruise portion of bookings. It does not apply to the cost of flights, transfers, port taxes, hotels, destination experiences, pre- and post-Journey services, prepaid services or insurance booked through Explora Journeys.
On the positive side, this 5% discount can be combined with most other promotions and offers, with the exception of group booking rates and certain other promotional fares, such as those labeled as "Explora Journeys Travel Advisor Benefit," "MSC Family Benefit" and "Interline" fares.
Related: Explora Journeys cruise ship review: Setting a new bar for luxury at sea
In addition to all the perks of the Classic tier, the Silver tier also brings:
- An exclusive Silver member welcome gift
- A signature loyalty delight
- A bottle of Champagne when sailing on your birthday
- 5% savings on Explora Journeys merchandise at the Explora Journeys boutique
- Priority assistance at the Explora Experience Centre
- An invite to an exclusive cocktail event with ship leadership
- A focus group invite
- A personalized welcome from the general manager
Once you reach the Gold tier of the program, you get three additional perks, none of which get us all that excited.
The best extra perk at the Gold level, in our opinion, is an additional free bag of laundry once per cruise. (It's labeled "additional," as some categories of cabins already come with some free laundry services.)
We always love free laundry as a perk when cruising, as it takes away one of the persistent pain points of such trips: keeping all your clothes clean. That said, a single free bag of laundry per cruise isn't really a game changer in the way unlimited free laundry would be.
The two additional Gold member perks are an exclusive Gold member welcome gift and a surprise ritual or signature gift, distinct from turndown service.
The first two tiers of the program, the Classic and Silver levels, may not bring all that much in terms of valuable perks. But on the flip side, they're super easy to achieve.
To become a Classic member, all you have to do is sign up for the program. No cruise is necessary. And it only takes a single cruise to reach the Silver level.
You also can reach the Gold level of the program in as few as one cruise if you stay in a top suite, given all the extra points you'll earn for such stays. But for the typical passenger who stays in an entry-level Ocean Suite, it'll likely take five to seven sailings to reach the Gold level, depending on your onboard and shore excursion spending level.
The elite level that makes a difference
In general, we find the first three tiers of the Explora Club loyalty program just so-so when it comes to perks. With the exception of the 5% discount on future cruise bookings, there really aren't all that many perks that are truly valuable in these three tiers. But the value of the program definitely steps up at the Platinum tier.
At the Platinum tier, you get two more perks that bring real savings on every cruise:
- A $100 credit for wellness experiences
- A $100 credit for shore excursions
Assuming you sign up for at least one treatment at the ship's spa and one shore excursion, that's $200 in value right there.
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Additionally, the Platinum tier of the program brings:
- An exclusive Platinum member welcome gift
- A daily complimentary laundry bag (maximum of one per day)
- A behind-the-scenes bridge tour (upon availability)
To reach the Platinum level, you'll need to take as many as 29 seven-night cruises, assuming you stay in entry-level Ocean Suites and don't spend much on board. But if you stay in higher category suites and/or spend a lot on board or on shore excursions, you could reach the Platinum tier far more quickly.
Best elite perk
The ultimate perk for Explora Club loyalty members, by far, comes upon reaching the top Diamond tier of the program. You'll get a complimentary weeklong cruise in an Ocean Suite.
You heard that right: an entirely free cruise. And it's a cruise not just for you but for a guest, too.
Just note that there is some fine print on this free cruise, the most notable of which is that it only becomes redeemable once you have spent 400 nights on an Explora ship.
Additionally, while touted as a free "weeklong" cruise, the reward is technically only valid for a six-night cruise, not a cruise lasting a full week. That said, you can pay a little extra to book a longer journey. In the fine print for the reward, Explora Journeys notes that it "has a corresponding economic value and members can pay the difference for a higher-value Journey."
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In addition to this free cruise, upon reaching the Diamond tier of the Explora Club program, you'll also become eligible for complimentary suite upgrades when making bookings — another truly valuable perk.
Just note that these upgrades are subject to availability, and upgrades to an Owner's Residence (the highest category of rooms on Explora Journeys ships) are excluded.
Another great perk at the Diamond level is that you will get a complimentary private transfer from your arrival airport or hotel to your ship on the day of embarkation. This private pickup service is assigned to the Diamond member and all the guests in the same reservation and can be requested once per cruise.
The Diamond level also brings:
- An exclusive Diamond member welcome gift
- An exclusive embarkation area
- A meet-and-greet experience with the line's president on Explora Journeys sailings
- A complimentary culinary experience (e.g., Chef's Kitchen)
- A private shopping adviser
Note that, as is usually the case with cruise line loyalty programs, Explora Journeys customers do not have to requalify for status each year.
That said, your status in the Explora Club is contingent upon booking and/or sailing with the line at least once every five years. If your last disembarkation date from a ship is more than five years (60 months) prior to your next sailing, all of your accrued points will expire, and you will be downgraded to the Classic level.
Explora Club status match
Do you have high-level status with another cruise line? The good news is that Explora Journeys is one of only a handful of cruise lines that offers a status match feature that will instantly catapult you to a high-level status in the Explora Club program, too.
The Explora Club's status match program allows guests who hold loyalty status with more than a dozen other cruise lines, including Seabourn, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Silversea Cruises, Crystal and Ponant Explorations, to match their status to equivalent tiers in the Explora Club prior to sailing.
Members of the Seabourn Club loyalty program who are at the Silver level of status, for instance, can status match to the Silver level of the Explora Club program. Members of the Seabourn Club program at the Gold and Platinum levels can status match to the Gold level of the Explora Club program.
A full list of loyalty programs you can status match to the Explora Club program is available here.
Bottom line
For the most part, the 1-year-old Explora Club loyalty program only offers modest perks at its lower tiers of status. But once you reach the higher tiers of the program, it brings real value, including onboard credits and, at its highest level, an entirely free cruise for two.
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