CanadianCruiser21

Where did you see Iceland? I couldn’t find those port schedules for 2024 edit: found it! It’s there in June!

Board in LA so you don’t need to fly in the day before the cruise, don’t need to get a hotel, and don’t need to worry about delays or lost luggage.

Another random thing I noticed is that staff seem to be extra friendly/helpful/smiley on camera in Princess videos compared to VV videos. I watch a lot of the buffet tour videos and the staff seem to purposely look at the camera, wave and say hi with smile big, as if their manager is watching the videos. Maybe they are like that all the time though, in which case I feel bad for them because that is exhausting, but I’m probably just projecting because I have RBF. In VV videos, crew seem more relaxed and chill. I feel more comfortable in environments where the crew/staff are more like equals, versus environments where they act/feel like they are your servants and worried about losing their jobs or needing tips.

I was able to book it in advance using the dining credits in the app! That being said, as a Canadian, $39 USD per person (+ an additional $10 up-charge for a lobster tail) seems a bit high considering the MDR is included and also has similar food items. I know there is a whole thread about whether it’s worth it, which was a really interesting read. I don’t think I would upgrade from Standard to Plus or Premier in most cases, but this is my first Princess cruise and I am testing it out on a 3 night stay. I’m also sharing my wifi with my travel mates who got Standard in another cabin. also: hi GTA neighbour! Markham here 🙂

Well said Lustate! I love CruisingWalter and am surprised how few subscribers he has on YouTube. However, that doesn’t mean cruise lines don’t know about him. Cruise companies scour the internet, especially YouTube, for videos about their cruise line. Maybe they didn’t know about him the first time, but they certainly have him on a list now. That doesn’t mean Walter is biased or that he even gets anything special, but I think they would respond quicker to him if he had an issue. There is another YouTuber with about 10k subs who made a long video about not liking his solo experience on VV. What surprised me was that he showed up late to an excursion and missed it, and VV still gave him a refund, even though it was his fault. He cited confusion about how to get there and bimini food service staff not being able to give him directions, but everyone else made it on time. I wonder if it is because he was a YouTuber.

I’m on a 3 day cruise so the upgrade to premier was definitely worth it.

They just change the prizes and odds, and sometimes reset the prizes available in case someone already won the grand prize. It will reset with new dates as it has in the past.

To make matters more complicated regarding pizza on OceanNow, another thread here has reported that the pizza that was $3, and then changed to free, is being removed and replaced with $8.50 pizza with specialty toppings.

It was a recent change. I saw a screenshot from the Crown, but they only had cheese or pepperoni. Prof cruise made a post about it and their screenshot had more options https://profcruise.com/princess-oceannow-food-delivery-menu/ Photo from prof cruise’s post:

I am surprised it’s $12 a pizza. A whole pizza on ocean now delivery used to be $3, and recently changed to free (though with limited options). I wonder if Alfredo’s will now be treated like a specialty restaurant and listed in Ocean Now for a La carte delivery.

It’s an Austrailia requirement, not a Princess requirement. It actually works, because that is how I found out I had Covid the day I was supposed to board in Sydney. I ended up missing the cruise but Princess gave me FCC because of their Cruise with Confidence policy.

saw it a few places (screenshots). what gets me is that this isn’t just about food. You order towels through ocean now as well, which you can no longer use unless you pay the $15. I suppose you can just ask your stateroom attendant when you see them though.

I do not believe that has been addressed yet. Note: im not a TA, I just saw a bunch of screenshots from the presentation Princess gave them. is a mini-bar change out considered a room service order?

Yes there has been some clarification since this first came out to the TAs The $5 room service fee is only when you order from the phone. The $15 ocean now fee covers ordering from the app or TV to your cabin.

Thank you sooo much for posting and so quickly too. I would have totally expected the lobster Mac to be one of the more expensive items, not among least expensive. I might eat there twice considering it’s the only “casual dining” option available on the Crown Princess. Anxiously awaiting their new menus.

Ooh that’s interesting. I am trying to find the a la carte menu online, but the site only shows the $18 option.

I’ve always felt that way about Princess Premier and the 2 speciality dinners as well. I got the premier package, but only because it was a 3 day cruise, so I was getting $78 value for an additional $60.

I will correct my earlier statement saying that there is no additional or new benefit for Plus or Premier. Some of the casual dining restaurants that were previously not free are now part of the 2 free meals for Plus, and unlimited for Premier. I am anxiously awaiting the new menus with prices for these casual eateries. We can presume that it would be $15 for an app, entree, and dessert. However, prix fixe does not always mean that you can pick any entree on the menu. It could be a subset of options, usually the cheaper ones. Since there would be an a la carte menu, I wouldn’t be surprised if they had an upcharge for certain entrees that aren’t part of the prix fixe. For example, Salty Dog GastroPub (not grill) already had a prix fixe of $18. I doubt that this will go down to $15 with all the same options. I anticipate that the lobster Mac and Cheese would be a $3 upcharge.

This is just awful. You would think they would at least offer something more to make up for how much they are taking away. Princess Plus often means doubling the cost of the initial cruise fare. I think this might lead to less tips for room service too, as people who pay $5 for delivery may be less inclined to give an additional tip. People with the standard package might drink less instead if they don’t pay the $15 and have to wait in line at the bar for a drink, though I think most people who drink would just pay the $15. I do realize that a lot of delivered food gets wasted and can be resource heavy, but it’s not like they are passing any savings onto the cruiser.

Essentially, if you pay for Princess Premier, you get NOTHING more than you had before. If you pay for Princess Plus, you are now limited to free casual dining at Alfredo’s twice, so you get LESS than what you had before. If you are Princess Standard, you now have to pay a one time/voyage fee of $15 to get food or drinks delivered to wherever you are, a $5 delivery fee each time for room service, $15 each time for casual dining. That is insane considering they just increased their package rates, internet rates, and gratuities not long ago.

The days of flight compensation for cancelled cruises is over, with a few exceptions for cruises cancelled within a few days or weeks of the sailing date. I travel a lot and pretty much never get anything refundable because it’s so much more expensive. I’ve lost money a few times (e.g. snow storm), but overall far less than if I always paid for refundable fares. I also don’t get trip insurance. I get the health insurance in case I need to be air lifted, but not the kind that covers the cruise fare. Premium credit cards have some coverage.

Cool! What does the second screenshot show?

When you say “again”, do you know if it was removed before?

That is so interesting! So they have Oct 2024, May 2025, and Oct 2025 booked at Funchal, but not April 2024!!! Those bastards! Well then it’s May 2025 for me then.

Thanks Ulsteinvik, That’s what I was looking for. I guess I won’t be booking flights after all 😞