huskerdan25

By the time we realize that our LTE was taken over by Princess it was $2000 bill.

Huh?! Princess took over your LTE? Anyway, sounds like this was your mistake, not Princess but I guess if you want to blame them for your mistake and no longer will cruise with Princess, that is your loss. I guarantee you that if you do the same thing you did on this cruise on a cruise with another cruise line, you will get the same results. Put your phone in airplane mode while on the cruise or buy an international package if you plan to use your LTE coverage on your phone.

Why do people think it's ok to belittle others on this site. I knew there was a reason a few years ago that I stopped looking on here. I was brought up that if you can't say anything nice then don't say anything. If you are ever in this unfair situation in which for I have paid almost $8,000 maybe you do would be slightly green eyed. I'm annoyed yea but not stupid

Maybe because your response seems very immature. The fact that you might sit at somewhere on the ship wondering if the person sitting near you got a better deal on the cruise than you or maybe even was able to go on the cruise for free and that you would spend your time on the cruise letting that bother you is amazing to me. I know for fact that there are people on my cruises that got better deals or someone bought the same car just bought and probably for a better price but why would I be bothered and let my purchase experience or my cruise experience be negatively impacted by that?! What a way to go through life thinking it is so unfair. Not a healthy way to live life in my opinion.

Book and pay for your cruise at a price point that is acceptable to you and who cares what someone else paid. And rejoice in the good fortune of others rather than think things are unfair because you weren't fortunate to experience the same good fortune. Hopefully some day you will experience good fortune and if you share that with us, I will be the first to congratulate you, not be upset that I didn't get the same good fortune.

just occurred to me: Since we are already in an inside cabin (always are), we can never expect a move over offer to downgrade. I am gonna go cry in the corner and cancel all my princess trips from now on!

LOL! I may have to go cry in a corner and cancel all of my cruises with Princess because it is just so unfair that you will never get a move over offer to downgrade. Life is just so unfair!

Yes exactly I'd rather have not known. If u can leave it till last minute and get a good deal I say well on you I have absolutely no problem with that BUT to offer 100% discount seems unfair. I'd booked paid and was happy now 10/11 days to go an I'm a bit to say the least not happy. I will go on my cruise in the cabin I booked but I will wonder if the person sitting on my table at dinner has had a freebie!!

Really?! If I found out someone got a moveover deal or any deal that resulted in them getting a better deal or even a free cabin, I would say good for them. It certainly wouldn't impact my cruise and I certainly wouldn't cancel. Pretty stupid in my opinion!

On my first Alaska cruise, we showed up to check in and found out we had been upgraded from an oceanview to a category BA balcony cabin due to someone having to cancel last minute. Would seem pretty stupid that someone might actually be upset that they didn't get the upgrade or some offer that would lower the price of their cabin because we got lucky to get an upgrade. And that is what it was, luck.

If I found out that someone sitting at my table in the MDR got a freebie, I would congratulate them, not whine that it is so unfair because I didn't get the same freebie. And the only way I would find out is if they shared that information with me because frankly, I wouldn't give a damn if someone on the cruise got a freebie or a deal that wasn't offered to me. Wow!

It should not come as a surprise that "Ocean Medallion" is designed for only one thing: increase Princess revenues. It is not designed as a benefit to "guests," for improved security, or to enhance guest experience onboard. It is designed to help princess separate your from your money by facilitating more shop purchases, faster beverage purchases and encourage the making of spa appointments. Period. Everything they tell us about "Medallion Class" is marketing.

Oh My God! You mean, Princess, as a business, is trying to increase their revenue?! What is wrong with Princess?! I just don't understand why they are trying to be even more profitable. I guess I should go to another cruise line because I'm sure they aren't trying to increase revenue on the backs of their cruisers!

Ok, kidding aside, I personally probably won't use many of the mentioned option with this but I am certainly not upset nor concerned about anything to do with the medallions. You never know, I might actually use some of the options that are meant to improve my experience but I am not going to judge this before it even takes place. I look forward to hearing from others who will experience this before me (my first ocean medallion cruise won't be until my Royal cruise in January 2019) to get real experiences, not panicked prejudgments of this.

and still with free 2 check-in luggage.

We only fly Southwest unless we can't get the flights we want. Almost always get a better fare on non-stop flights than other airlines lowest fares (which doesn't include check-in luggage), 2 free check-in bags per person and we always pay the Early Bird fee of $15pp. Never have to worry about checking in as you get automatically checked-in 36 hours before your flight and always get a low number in the A group. Well worth the cost of the Early Bird fee.

I know this doesn't help for those that fly other airlines but thought I would chime in since someone decided to use this thread to speak down about Southwest.

We have used the Southwest app to check-in when we didn't use the early bird option and have checked in exactly 24 hours before our flights and still got an A boarding slot. And if your tickets are under the same confirmation number, you can have both (or more) of your boarding passes on your phone and never have to print them out. They can scan your boarding passes.

My suggestion is that you take reviews with a grain of salt. Princess is known for being THE cruise line for Alaska and Glacier Bay is a must in my opinion. The ships in the same class as the Ruby (We have been on the Emerald) are very nice ships. I would never recommend NCL over Princess.

Enjoy the Ruby and Glacier Bay!

Anddddddddddd

 

I CAN GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! does a lil happy dance!!!

 

All three of my Docs said, yes go so we leave wedneday and sat sail saturday!!

 

thank you for all your positive thoughts and prayers and good vibs!!

 

Now to finish packing!!

Awesome news! I hope you have an amazing cruise!

Even with this offer, Princess is much more expensive than Celebrity Cruises (same standard)

One of the reasons I haven't booked another cruise with Celebrity is that I have found pricing to be better on Princess for the cruises I am interested in. Your statement makes it sound like Princess is higher across the board and this simply is not true.

The problem with that is if you book on Caribbean Princess the ongoing propulsion issue will almost certainly result in an itinerary change down the road. We booked for March 18 of next year. We booked it back in August of 2016. The itinerary has now been changed. One can't count on the stated itinerary staying in place when booking on Caribbean Princess.

Yes. I wasn't suggesting booking another cruise on the Caribbean Princess, just another cruise (and I should have said ship) that has St. Maarten on the schedule :)

Your currently booked cruise won't qualify for the 3 for free I believe since it is for cruises from Summer 2018 to Spring 2019.

Ports are never guaranteed but if a port is very important to you and your current booking won't take you there, then cancel and book a cruise that does go there. If the new cruise starts in Summer 2018, you will be able to take advantage of the 3 for free promotion.

Good luck!

St Thomas has always had a high crime rate but most instances take place at night long after the cruise ships have left.

Very important point made by Floridalover! I booked a cruise for my son and his new bride for their honeymoon cruise on the Ruby for this coming January to MR. I think what stuck out to them that caused them concern was that these crimes in Mexico are happening in the light of day. They became concerned enough that I rebooked them on the Regal to the Eastern Caribbean for a week earlier than the Ruby cruise. I want them to feel safe and comfortable and the report was enough to raise their concern to make the switch.

I realize that the prices for all things go up, but it seems that Princess cruises have really skyrocketed in the last few years. I really like Princess and have been on 4 of its ships and Id like to go back...but its become very pricey. I used to be able to get balcony rooms for around or even under $1000 pp for 7 days, now they seem to start at $1500. What's changed I wonder? Its a shame.

I think you will see that this is the case with all of the cruise lines. Overall though, the price of a cruise vacation is still reasonable for what you get versus a land vacation. It is still a great bargain for us.

BTW, I booked my son and his new bride on the Regal for this January in a balcony cabin for $899 per person (not including taxes and port fees) so you can still get reasonably priced balconies.

probably depends on your taste which you prefer. I was wowed by the live tree on Celebrity. Probably just bored of Princess atriums

I admit that we too were wowed by the live tree.

My jaw actually dropped when I read that sentence but then remembered you were on Summit I'm assuming if you went to Bermuda. The S Class ships have beautiful atriums.

Actually, Cinerma is right. The Atrium on the Regal/Royal is much nicer and grand than that on the S class (I've been on the Reflection twice). Not sure about on the Crown as I haven't been on the Crown.

Do not know where you heard that.

We live on the West Coast & our first cruise was on Royal when they were stationed in L.A........decades ago.

We still cruise Royal a lot & periodically I will ask an officer about them coming back to the West Coast & they always say...NO.

It is a matter of $$ and they cannot fill ships there.

I know that is true because there are ALWAYS good last minute deals here !

The Royal Princess is being stationed on the West Coast. This is not a reference the RCCL.

I agree with those that feel safe at the ports of a Mexican Riviera cruise. Have taken this cruise several times and never felt unsafe at any of the ports. We love going to Mexico via cruise ship and would gladly go again with no fear for our lives.

Some good points in comparison though I think your point about the buffet would be different if you were on the Regal or Royal where the buffet is excellent and much better with more variety and changes to the menu than on Celebrity. We enjoyed out cruises on the Reflection and would definitely cruise on Celebrity again for the right price and itinerary but Princess just has more of the things we like on a cruise so they are our cruise line of choice. I am glad we cruised with another line though as we now have two really good options for cruising. We are considering Oceania next.

Thanks for your quick comparison.

We got a call from Princess last night advising us that they would not be doing anything more for the passengers on that ship

Totally appropriate in my opinion. Actually generous to even offer the $150 OBC. Your determination that somehow this was under Princess' control and therefore they hold some level of fault is absurd!

I'm sorry, I don't usually post negative thoughts. But I find this just another example of people blaming others for their actions (or lack of) and not wanting to take responsibility for same.

 

When you are told what time to be back, you should not only confirm that you heard correctly but should make certain that your watch is set the same as the tour guide's. This isn't kindergarten, they shouldn't have to come FIND you. It is YOUR responsibility to get back in plenty of time. Why should others on the tour waste their time waiting for you? That's plain inconsiderate to expect them to do.

 

I find it petty that you will sever ties with a particular cruise line that has served you well because of something that was your fault to start with. We have sailed with Carnival, RC, NCL & HAL and have taken excursions both ship sponsored and independent on each. I really don't think you will find any that will treat a similar situation differently.

Well said! But we live in a culture where very few people ever take blame for their mistakes and will look to put the blame elsewhere. Sad. Late is late, whether it's a few minutes late (whatever that is) or more than a few minutes late. The driver is under no obligation to wait for stragglers and shouldn't. Inconvenience the majority for a few? And because you were late, you blame Princess and may not cruise with them again? Wow. Take some responsibility here, learn from this and make sure you are not late, even a few minutes late next time.

We have sailed on the Coral Princess 3 times over a 3 year period. We have not been aboard the Coral in the last two years so I can't speak as to current conditions. We ate in the Bayou Cafe at least twice on each cruise. Our service was excellent each time but we always ate early in the evening when it was not crowded. At that time you could order an 8 oz lobster tail for $5 extra. We found the Cajun dishes to be very good and not overly spicy. The filet mignon is our favorite steak. It was always tender and juicy. The dress code is smart casual even on formal nights in the main dining rooms.

This was our experience. The lobster tail was huge and well worth the extra $5. It's been awhile since we were on the Coral though so things may have changed.

XBGuy, are experience was similar to your 3rd time. I pre-ordered it thinking that if I wanted to guarantee I get it on a certain date (our anniversary date), then I need to pre-order instead of waiting to get onboard. We had the voucher in our room with instructions to call to finalize the details. This was on the Regal. And if I remember correctly, we were directed to call the Dine Line, not Room Service.

nice but highly over-rated..spend your $$ on one of the specialty restaurants

Couldn't disagree more! Dinner in an intimate environment where you are the total focus of the dinner. The food is excellent as is the service. Not even comparable to a night in a specialty restaurant. To us, this is one of the things that sets Princess apart from other cruise lines and one of the many reasons Princess is our cruise line of choice over Celebrity. You should experience this at least once if you can. Well worth it!

We did the UBD on the Regal this past January and it was amazing! Unfortunately, due to high winds and rain, we ended up having it inside our balcony cabin but it was still amazing. Crazy amount of food but all well-prepared and excellent! It was our anniversary so they brought us extra desserts along with their birthday chocolate cake so we ended up putting much of the desserts in the fridge to eat the next couple of days. The only thing we really didn't like was the canapes so that was a waste but we did manage to pretty much finish everything else.

Well worth the $100. Planning to book it again on the Royal in January 2019 and going to purchase it for my son and daughter-in-laws honeymoon cruise this coming January.

Not knowing what we were getting into, we were invited to check out the Platinum Studio on the Sapphire Princess on our southbound Alaska cruise. We decided to go through the photo shoot and when we reviewed the 100+ photos taken, we absolutely loved them. There is something special about black and white photography! We were excited about purchasing some of them and then we got hit with the cost. At first, my wife and I looked at each other and were shocked at the prices. But we loved many of the photos and they really captured the love that we have for each other (we are celebrating our 37th anniversary this January on our 15-day Hawaii cruise) so we took a night to sleep on it. We decided to purchase something like 8 photos and the cd that had all of the photos taken, set to music. We actually got a total of 3 cds and were able to give a couple for parents. We paid about $1100 total. We had not planned to spend that much money but we figured this would be a once in a lifetime purchase and we are not disappointed that we did. We have all of our 8 photos framed and people that see them just love them. And every once in a while, we pop in the cd and watch as all 100+ photos are displayed with beautiful music in the background.

Yes, it is expensive but black and white photography is special (at least in our opinion) and it was worth every penny. Won't ever do it again, but we have very fond memories of our experience with the photo shoot and the purchase. The photographer was amazing and treated us like a very special couple. Probably the best customer service we have ever experienced. She had a way of posing us that just fit perfect for us. I think her initial interview with us to learn about us was key to her success in determining the best poses for us.

If you can afford it, it is worth the cost for the experience and the photos.