HBDave

My situation is I can see the new perks related to the Plus-60 Package on the app, but they do not show up on the Cruise Personalizer Travel Summary or Onboard Services.

Also, I was unable to book any Specially Restaurant's through the app but, doing it as outlined above in the Cruise Personalizer worked. 

16 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Yep...same here.  IT Network Manager and I cringe every time an "update" is released...because it is painfully obvious that little to NO testing is being done.  Inevitably, an update breaks something!  Heads would have rolled if stuff like that had been released where I worked...

LOL, I had the same thoughts, no Quality Control or accountability. I think companies with Consumer Facing Apps are so busy trying to one up the competition, that it's quantity over quality.

3 hours ago, PacnGoNow said:

I screenshot the App reservation in DMW and you also have your CC charge as a receipt.  And no, you do not get an email confirmation. SMH

 

However, it really should show up in the travel summary, as there is a section for Special Dining reservations.  IT has not corrected that and continues to be blank.

 

I wouldn’t worry about it, mine have all shown up OB, no issues.

 

 

Thanks for the info.

I worked in IT for 40+ years and I'm amazed at the inconsistencies in the Princess Applications. 🙂

I booked a Specialty Restaurant on our upcoming cruise. They changed my credit card and now it shows up on the Princess Phone App under Restaurant Reservations. If I print the Travel Summary from their website, under Specialty Dinning Section, it does not show up. Should it have also sent me an e-mail confirmation? Is this normal or should I be concerned? Thanks!

On 8/25/2023 at 7:54 AM, Pickels said:

We've been on 16 cruises since 2003, and have cruised with RCL, NCL, Princess and Celebrity.  A [cruise] vacation is what you make it.  Some people have outrageous expectations and others go with the flow.  On some of our past cruises there have been some "hiccups", things went wrong, things were broken, things were cancelled but, in all honesty, we always had a great vacation. Some people will always complain about anything and everything. If you read all the reviews of a particular cruise, some will say it was great, others, on the same cruise, will say it was the worse. Who are you going to believe? Have cruised on the Regal Princess and next March on the Enchanted Princess; what we like about Princess is they have The Sanctuary, which we always reserve for the entire cruise.  Can't offer any insight on the Caribbean Princess because we never cruised on that ship.  My take on "Reviews",--- I've read reviews on Trip Advisor for vacation places, I don't go to the Excellent reviews nor the Poor reviews; I check the reviews right in the middle:  AVERAGE.  That gives you the "right in the middle" opinion. 

Traveler rating

• Excellent2,220
• Very Good356
• Average201
• Poor147
• Terrible191

 

 

You're spot on!

I had two coworkers go to Hawaii during the same week. One coworker had lots of money and stayed at the Four Seasons. For the other this was a trip that she had to save up for. She stayed at the Best Western. The coworker who stayed at the Four Seasons had nothing but complaints and the one who stayed at the Best Western said it was the best trip she'd ever been on. It's all about attitude. 

I booked a 25-day cruise that was also being sold as a 10-day and 15-day cruise. I have one booking number, etc., but Princess broke it down as two voyages, so I get credit for two cruises. I should also receive each of the Princess Plus Perks for each voyage.  

18 minutes ago, CynCyn said:

This happened to my brother.  2 cruises from 2006/2007 were missing.  He went to the Captain’s Circle desk onboard and it was fixed quickly!

Thank You!

Thank you everyone. I'll send an e-mail or give them a call on Monday and see what they can do. 

We're returning to Princess after a long hiatus (20 Years). We previously sailed a couple times on Princess before that. I'm not sure if Captains Circle was not an active program or if we just failed to sign up. We're currently booked for a Princess Cruise in the near future and are Blue Status. Is there any chance I could get credit for the previous cruises if I know the Ship and Dates? If so, is there a direct number for the Captains Circle I should call or a form to submit, etc.? Thanks!

PS: Unfortunately, I don't have any additional supporting documentation. 

19 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

I could be wrong, but I believe your B2B, even though booked under one number, will be treated onboard as two separate cruises and you will get your 2 alternative meals associated with the Plus Package on each leg just like you will get Captain Circle cruise credit for 2 cruises rather than for just 1 combined cruise.

Thanks, I hope so and guess we'll find out soon enough. 🙂

I'm sure this has all been said, but I just wanted to throw in my two cents.

We've been a loyal Celebrity Cruises Fan for the last 20 years. Our last Princess Cruise was on the Sea Princess 20 years ago. We're looking forward to our 25 Day Northen Europe and Transatlantic cruise in September onboard the Regal Princess. 

My biggest complaint is that they provide the same number of included meals (2) for the alternative dinning. It does not matter if it's a 4 day cruise or 25 days. I think they should have structured it to be x number of days based on cruise length. 

Also, the cruise we're on is simply a back to back that Princess sells as a single sailing to ensure you have the same cabin. It was also being sold as two separate cruises (10 day and 15 day). I could have purchased them separately and gotten double the benefits. I don't think the overall cost would have been much different. 

I think the fair approach would have been to delay the roll out based on the maximum number of days before final payments were due. I think some of the longer cruises are 120 days. This would have meant they would have announced the purposed changes to be implemented in 120 days. This way those who had already made their final payment would not be impacted. and those who had a booked reservation with a pending final payment could decide to cancel their cruise if they chose to. 

2 hours ago, chemmo said:

Sometimes there is a point when travelling you are better just gritting your teeth and getting it all done in one go…Totally agree with TeaBag.

 

You will get to Southampton, have a good sleep and be a short taxi ride from your ship the next day, you probably won’t need to set an alarm…you can sleep in…

Thanks for all of the input.

OK, let's assume I do the transfer to Southampton upon arrival to Heathrow. What are some of the Private Cars with drivers that would offer a reliable service at a reasonable cost?

53 minutes ago, Globaliser said:

 

 

There are, broadly, three options for the start of a cruise like this:

1. Transfer from airport to central London, stay one night, transfer to Southampton in the morning.
2. Transfer from airport to Southampton, stay one night, walk / transfer to the cruise terminal in the morning.
3. Transfer from airport to airport hotel, stay one night, transfer from airport hotel to airport, transfer from airport to Southampton.

 

In general, I reckon that option three only makes sense in limited circumstances, like an evening arrival at Heathrow, but is otherwise the least good of the three. If you're arriving on Delta, its schedules suggest that this is likely to be in the morning (perhaps quite early), or lunchtime or early afternoon at the latest.

 

But if you're going to do it, then I can't usefully add anything to what gumshoe958 has said.

Thanks for all of the input.

OK, let's assume I do option 2 and transfer to Southampton upon arrival to Heathrow. What are some of the Private Cars with drivers that would offer a reliable service at a reasonable cost?

Additional Information....

We're coming into Terminal 3 on Delta.

5 minutes ago, markeb said:

Suggest posting this on the British Isles/Western Europe board https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/148-british-isleswestern-europe/ and I suspect this will be moved there shortly.

 

You'll almost certainly get better feedback there.

 

What time to you get into Heathrow? Are you planning on doing anything in London? There are transport options directly to Southampton which could make much more sense.

We're arriving late afternoon into Heathrow and boarding the cruise the next day. So we're not planning on visiting London on this trip. I did consider booking a Hotel in Southampton and taking the National Express Bus or a Private Car.upon our arrival. It's a long trip the the US West Coast, so we we're thinking it might be nice to rest for the night in Heathrow and save the drive to Southampton until the next morning.

I'm planning at staying at a Heathrow Airport Hotel on Bath Rd for one night before a cruise out of Southampton. I'm trying to determine the best method to get from the Airport to the Hotel and back to the Airport in the morning to use a Princess Transfer to Southampton. We will have three suitcases with us, so I don't think public / city buses will work. I'm aware of the Hotel Hoppa Buses, but have heard stories of them being very late or not showing up on schedule, etc. Also I was considering a Taxi, but have been told they tend to not like the short trips and that it could be a problem. I'm looking for any first hand experiences and suggestions. Is a Taxi, Hotel Hoppa Bus or some other form of transportation best for our situation? Thank You for your suggestions / input. 

My current policy reads....

"Payments and Deposits or portions of Payments and Deposits satisfied by non-paid vouchers, non-paid certificates or discounts are not considered Payments and Deposits under this Policy"

I'm assuming Gift Cards you purchased are not considered non-paid vouchers or non-paid certificates.

I think they're trying to exclude payments like a Future Cruise Credit you received due to an issue you had on a prior cruise, etc. Something of value, but that you didn't pay for.

2 hours ago, Purplsmurf said:

No….water is not water. Different brands taste different. My daughter has a friend that is allergic to all water other than Ice Mountain.  Hoping that whatever they have tastes good. We are used to Evian or Aqua Panna on Celebrity.

Interesting, on my last two Celebrity Cruises with the Classic Drink Package.. It was water in a can that tasted awful and I think it was branded Celebrity. Evian was available in the Premium Package and not the Classic. You may want to upgrade to the Princess Premier Package to get the better water.

23 minutes ago, AnnieCt7 said:

You don’t have to be a Costco member to buy this insurance.  It is available at a higher price.  All you need to buy this insurance is one component of your vacation booked with Costco.  We booked rental cars.  That said, I have concerns and cancelled this morning until I can decide.  There is a 21 day window to cancel.  The agent was very nice and is processing my refund. We aren’t going until next March so I have time.  
I agree however, no one wants to pay out claims.  

Just remember with most insurance companies in order to get the Pre-Existing Conditions Wavier, you'll need to purchase the insurance within a certain number of days your initial deposit. The number of days is based on the specific policy.

My cruise is in September / October, so if for any reason I have to submit a claim, I'll provide a review of the process with CoverMore on this site.

4 hours ago, AnnieCt7 said:

I spent some time looking for reviews. Most were from Australia, or people traveling overseas and were claims related.  Trust Pilot rated them 1.5  of course those people with complaints leave reviews so they aren’t always objective. I would love to find more ratings and I haven’t found them. 

I took my chances as well with a CoverMore Policy (Costco Travel). I did the same research and had the same concerns. The way I see it is...  They have an exclusive agreement with Costco. I believe the only way you can purchase the policy is with a trip booked through Costco or call them and provide your Costco Membership information. This means all or the majority of their US customers are coming from Costco. If they begin to provide bad services, etc., I don't think Costco will continue there relationship with CoverMore. That would be a signification loss for CoverMore.

PS: If you research any Travel Insurance Policy, you'll see that they all try to get out of paying claims.

1 hour ago, skynight said:

Newer does not equate to better. In my opinion the layout and lower passenger load are a big plus. And, don't forget the full promenade on the Ruby. Something I missed on the Royal Class ships. I'm also scheduled for a 24 day b2b on the Ruby in 2024 which includes a 14 day Circle the Caribbean itinerary. 

She is scheduled for month long dry/wet dock starting the end of September. As of this posting I have not seen a summary of the scheduled maintenance and changes, if any. A month is long for just regular scheduled operational maintenance. I thinking that there are some additional deck plan adjustments in the works, but it is just speculation.  

I heard they're going to be replacing the outdoor Promenade Deck with addition cabins and are increasing the passenger capacity north of 3,500. Just a rumor at this time. 🙂

This is the verbiage from my CoverMore Travel Policy (Costco Travel Insurance).

"Payments and Deposits or portions of Payments and Deposits satisfied by non-paid vouchers, non-paid certificates or discounts are not considered Payments and Deposits under this Policy."

This sounds like if I paid for the Certificate / Gift Card it would be covered. At least I hope so, since I paid $9,000 towards my final payment using AARP Gift Cards. 🙂

11 hours ago, So_Tweetie said:

We just booked a cruise on the Regal Princess in a mini-suite, and were only given the option of a guaranteed cabin. After confirmation, I decided to run through mock bookings to gauge availability, but from mini suites to penthouse suites I was only offered guarantees. Is this normal for the Regal, something new Princess is trying or, maybe the website is going through an update...? The cruise is over 120 days away so I would be surprised if it's close to sold out. 

I wouldn't be surprised if the cruise is nearly sold out in specific categories. Cruise lines are sailing at full capacity now and are doing better than pre-pandemic.

7 hours ago, knbcruisers said:

Delta fully cancelled the flight, and so did not provide service I paid for.  The insurance for the additional charges is really separate issue in my mind. Delta claims to have given me refund with eticket #, but when I call I am told to contact Princess.

It sounds like Delta has refunded your fare as a future flight credit. If you have a Delta logon, check if the credit is available in your Delta Account.

Note, I did book about a month ago but if needed, I imagine I could cancel and rebook. 

Be careful with this approach. Many of the policies state that in order to have the pre-exisiting wavier, your booking must be the first. I think they caught on to the cancel and re book trick.