TN-Mountains

1 hour ago, voljeep said:

beer, wine, neat - that will 'solve' that problem

I’m not complaining.  My drinks were good.  I’m a light weight when it comes to drinking and I prefer mixed drinks not neat.  I was just surprised by how much I could drink.  Before going on my last cruise, I couldn’t fathom drinking enough to get any value out of Plus/Premier packages much less getting close to 15 drinks.  Turns out it was a decent value for me.  For what it’s worth, I watched the bar tenders prepare several of my drinks and it didn’t appear they were pouring light on the booze.    Maybe I’ve just developed a tolerance with age, because I never got drunk…not that I wanted to!  🙂

7 hours ago, roadster08 said:

Don't be concerned. You are more likely to go into diabetic shock from all the sugar in the drinks then from the miniscule amount of alcohol they put in them.

 

At home I can feel one standard old fashioned that I make myself with only 2 oz of bourbon in it. On my cruise I could have 6 mixed drinks  and not feel a thing.

I think you’re right.  I rarely drink at home, but when I do I’m drunk after 2 drinks.  I had several drinks on my cruise and felt a little buzzed on occasion, but never drunk.  

On 6/30/2023 at 6:06 PM, Ace_Caliente said:

If both people in the cabin have plus and then one gets charged for lets say 5 out of 20 drinks for the day (since you were using the app from one device) I doubt you'd have a hard time at guest services reversing the charge.

This happened to us. My husband ordered a lot of our drinks.   One day they charged them all to his account.  They let him order more than 15 drinks, but they charged $15+/- to his account for his 16th drink.  A quick visit to guest services and the charge was removed.  

15 minutes ago, FritzG said:

Did you try to order any of them?  In February they were all “out of stock”.  
 

No, sorry, I didn’t try to order any of them.  I just saw them on the menu.

1 minute ago, Steelers36 said:

Canada and USA are same market and "see" the same cabin selections, etc, and share promotion codes (except there can be region-specific offers that apply to some States and/or Canada).

I said USA, but I was thinking of areas outside North America. 🙂 When I met with the future cruise department on board the ship, there were different promotions for the North American customers vs. the European customers.   I realize a 4 day California Coast cruise probably isn't a bucket list item for folks traveling from Europe!  It just seems odd that there were lots of cabins available and then they ALL disappeared within a week without a big promotion.  

10 minutes ago, TN-Mountains said:

Since my kids are only 10, 12 & 13 I have to put one adult in each cabin.  I spent a lot of time researching where everyone should sleep and what would yield the best prices on this itinerary.  That includes 3 people in the interior & 2 people in a balcony and vice versa.  What you state is accurate about Princess holding some of the cabins for the larger group.  When I searched with 3 people I could see some of the D4 balconies that weren't available when I searched with 2 people.  I don't think that is the problem with the interior rooms disappearing.  Based on the pictures I've seen, the bunks in the interior rooms extend from the walls and protrude into the room even when they're stowed away.  This should make them less desirable rooms for 2 people. 

 

I've also seen on the boards where folks claim they put a hold on the cabin using 3 people and then call their TA or CVP and get the third person removed and book it for two. I wonder if they're still able to do that with all the changes Princess has been implementing like only doing GTY cabins for the lowest category???   

I'll also add that on my most recent cruise on the Sky Princess, we had a Deluxe Balcony D4 for just 2 of us.  We didn't do anything special to get it.  I searched with 2 people.  It was available and I booked it.  That was 6 or 7 months prior to the cruise.  Maybe they hold them for 3 people and then release them as it gets closer to the sailing.  

On 6/28/2023 at 4:55 PM, startedwithamouse said:

I was referring to the deluxe balconies, NOT any of the other categories. 

Since my kids are only 10, 12 & 13 I have to put one adult in each cabin.  I spent a lot of time researching where everyone should sleep and what would yield the best prices on this itinerary.  That includes 3 people in the interior & 2 people in a balcony and vice versa.  What you state is accurate about Princess holding some of the cabins for the larger group.  When I searched with 3 people I could see some of the D4 balconies that weren't available when I searched with 2 people.  I don't think that is the problem with the interior rooms disappearing.  Based on the pictures I've seen, the bunks in the interior rooms extend from the walls and protrude into the room even when they're stowed away.  This should make them less desirable rooms for 2 people. 

I've also seen on the boards where folks claim they put a hold on the cabin using 3 people and then call their TA or CVP and get the third person removed and book it for two. I wonder if they're still able to do that with all the changes Princess has been implementing like only doing GTY cabins for the lowest category???   

On 6/28/2023 at 3:24 PM, andrewp said:

I just had a quick look.  There are 4 IA4 Inside Cabins available for that sailing for 3/4 pax.  IB-IE category are sold out, waitlist only.  Not sure if that helps.

 

Andrew

Thank you.  Do you mind sharing where you found the 4 available cabins?  When I checked last night using princess.com, I got to the screen where I can spend less $ and let Princess pick my cabin, or spend a few extra bucks and pick my own.  I selected choose a cabin and on the next screen, it showed "not available" under all 5 sections of the ship.  I was hoping this meant there was an IT issue as opposed to being sold out.  It seems odd they would sell out in 2 weeks when the prices have been steady for months.  Maybe there is a sale outside the USA that I can't see???

I was going through my photos and found a couple of screen shots I took of the Ocean Now menu.  These are the teas listed.  Hope it helps!

7 hours ago, PacnGoNow said:

Do not feel as though you have to tip extra.  I don’t see a lot of extra tipping. 
 

That is the whole reason for the daily gratuities added to your bill.
 

We always tip room service a couple

of dollars each time, because they are not part of the tipping pool. 
 

There are so many threads on this subject, that you’re going to get a lot of opinions, but it’s really a very personal decision.  No worries, enjoy your cruise.

I didn't realize they weren't part of the tipping pool.   Where did you learn this? 

7 minutes ago, memoak said:

The price of things like Manhattans and Martinis are dependent on the brand of liquor used. That’s why I always ask which brands fall under the Plus plan. As long as Woodford Reserve is included I am happy 

Very true.  I always specify Grey Goose when I order something with vodka.  Most folks aren't as picky as me.  Since @socmft didn't ask about a specific brand, I assumed they probably order a "martini" and are happy with it regardless of the liquor brand.  🙂    

10 hours ago, Thrak said:

Actually your first pic is out of date as Plus now covers drinks up to $15. Some staff may not be up on the recent changes but, if I ordered a drink listed at $15 and was charged for it I would ask to speak with the beverage manager and have the staff educated regarding recent updates to the package.

 

Note: I noticed Redbreast 12 year old Irish Whiskey listed on the "Premium" menu at $15. Of course, now that the price point has been increased I wouldn't be surprised to see the list price of that one go up.

To clarify...The pictures are not out of date. They were taken onboard Sky Princess on June 13, 2023.  To your point, the menus might be out of date, but they are still being used onboard the ship.  I did some quick spot checks against screenshots I took of the Ocean Now menu. 

     Jameson Stout & Black Barrel are both $15, 

     Jack Daniel's Rye $15,

     Glenivet 12YR $16,

     Redbreast 12 YR $15  

     Salted Watermelon Margarita $19

     Amaretto Manhatten $19

     Manhatten $10

     Margaritini $10

     French Martini $11

     24k Gold Margarita $12

     Ultimate  Patron Margarita $11

It looks like the prices shown on the menus above are still accurate, but the Princess Plus/Premier labels are no longer accurate.  As you noted, the $15 drinks should be shown on the Plus Menu instead of the Premier menu.  

And, a few more that show Margaritas, martinis and Manhattans…

I didn’t order any of the drinks you mentioned, but I took some photos of the plus vs premier drink menus while on Sky Princess a couple of weeks ago.  Hopefully these answer your questions.  If not, let me know.  I have several more photos. These just looked like the most comprehensive ones. 😉

We didn’t have an excursion booked in Reykjavík either.  We took the free bus provided by the port authority and walked around town.  It was still a fun time!  Here is a copy of the patter with more information on the free shuttle.  

We had that type of OBC a few weeks ago on Sky.  We didn’t book any excursions through Princess, but they still credited the OBC towards our other purchases.

We were in D730 on Sky Princess a couple weeks ago for a Norway/Iceland cruise.  Loved it!  We originally reserved an obstructed balcony, but decided to splurge and rebooked into D730.  I’m so glad we did.  Very quite cabin.  Wonderful panoramic views of the fjords!!!!  Very minor soot while leaving one port.  I wouldn’t have noticed it had it not got in my drink.  It was really too cold to spend a lot of time out there on most days in early-mid June.  I suppose in a warmer destination the soot might be more annoying because we would have been out there for longer times.  Regardless, The views out weighed the inconvenience of minor soot for Norwegian fjord cruising!!  As for the area between D730 & 731…It is some type of crew area, but I never saw or heard anyone going in that room.  There is a small sink next to the door and I never saw anyone use it either.  If cost was not an issue, I’d pick this cabin again in a heartbeat.

4 minutes ago, voljeep said:

what does your TA or Princess CVP have to say about cabin availability? - seems like P may be pushing hard to 'require' a TA or CVP to book specific cabins that only they can see and book - otherwise a non-refundable GTY may be the only option to book online - might vary by cruise

It doesn't give the option for a GTY cabin.  It shows everything below a balcony as sold out.  I haven't reached out to my CVP  yet.  She helped fix the errors on the balcony that the Future Cruise Dept onboard the Sky created.  When I mentioned rebooking the interior to get the "free" casino rate, she said I'd have to call the casino department.  I thought that odd since the offer has a promo code and specifically mentions calling the 800#, CVP or TA with any questions.  Do they not get credit if you book a casino offer?  

I booked two cabins for a 4-day cruise while onboard the Sky just under two weeks ago.  We booked one balcony (2ppl) and one interior cabin (3ppl) that are across the hall from each other.  At the time, there were lots of interior cabins available that would accommodate 3 people, but not necessarily across the hall from a lower-category balcony.  After booking, we received a "come back and play" offer from the Casino department for a free interior cabin but the offer wasn't available until 10 days after the cruise it was issued.  Now that we are 10 days out, I'm considering canceling and rebooking using the casino offer, but the cruise is showing as sold out of interior cabins that sleep 3 & 4 ppl.   Do you think they really sold out in the last 10 days or are they having IT problems again?  I've been following this cruise (Discovery Princess Dec 19, 2023) for several months and the pricing hasn't changed much.     

On 6/27/2023 at 11:46 AM, Amy G said:

If you are in a suite because you won a bid to upgrade, do you still get credit for two cruise points?  If so, that would put us on elite for our next cruise!

From the FAQ (#16):

Will I receive all the amenities of a Reserve Collection Mini Suite or a full suite if I am upgraded to such categories?
Yes! You will receive all the amenities of the upgraded stateroom category. However, you will not receive double cruise credits for a full suite with the upgrade.

58 minutes ago, kmw350 said:

Thanks for replying, but I meant how to book two cabins (and same dining table for both cabins) on the same cruise, as I wish to book for my Mum, who will be in the other cabin.

We are a family of 5, so we had to book two cabins.  It is best to call Princess, your CVP or a TA to book the cabins especially if you want them near each other or connecting cabins.  I haven't tried making dining reservations yet.  It is my understanding that once the cabins are booked, you can then use the booking numbers to make reservations at the dining room for the number of people in your party. You can add credit cards for onboard charges via the APP or website once the cabins are booked.

16 hours ago, startedwithamouse said:

Sorry, yes, it's coffee, but it's delicious. So delicious, we purchased the Monin Lavender syrup to replicate the drink at home. 

Thanks for clarifying.  I had a package, so I should have just tried the latte since it was included, but I hate to be wasteful.  Plus, I made the mistake of venturing out and trying one of their specialty alcoholic drinks.  It was terrible and the taste lingered for an hour.  I guess I was too scared to try much else after that!  🙂

1 hour ago, Ombud said:

I've got GOOD news (at least it is in my opinion). I can get hot water at IC to go with my premium tea that I pack from home. No Coffee Pkg needed. And I get EXACTLY the tea I like. 

I just got off the Sky on the 17th.  There was a water kettle in our room, so we could boil our own water and make tea without leaving the room.  My husband grabbed some peppermint tea bags from the buffet.  I know peppermint probably isn't the specialty teas folks are talking about in the post, but just in case someone cares, the brand was Eilles Tea.   I don't recall the brand of english breakfast tea that was provided in the cabin.  I only made the peppermint.

ETA:  We sailed out of Southamptom, so maybe the kettles are specific to that region???

1 hour ago, startedwithamouse said:

 

No, the QR code on your phone or Medallion is all you need. 

We didn't need the QR code when we boarded Sky on June 3rd.  They only wanted to see our passports.

1 hour ago, startedwithamouse said:

 

There's also a delicious Honey Lavender Latte.  

 

So this is a tea latte and not coffee?  I saw it on the menu when I was on Sky a couple of weeks ago.  I assumed it was coffee and thought coffee & lavender sounded horrible together.  I would have tried it had I known it was tea.