NavyVeteran

1 hour ago, Rorolopollo said:

That’s really helpful thank you - I will ring Princess then because it was a travel agent who said we all needed to have the same! Appreciate you taking the time to reply.

If you booked with a travel agent, you may not get very far talking directly with Princess. You may need to make the change with the travel agent.

Alternatively, you can probably upgrade from Plus to Premier onboard. A few people have reported upgrades to Premier not being available on board because they sold out the number available, but most people are able to upgrade onboard with no problems.

1 hour ago, Rorolopollo said:

Hi everyone, please can I ask how the medallion system works when buying drinks outside your package? We are booked on plus but are likely to want to top up for the nice wines (We have 2 young children not worth it to spend the money on premier plus as we were told everyone had to have same package). Do we just hand the medallion over as normal and then get a bill at the end of our cruise for non inclusive items? Or do we put it on a card? I’m sure this is a stupid question which I’m sorry for, we are completely new to cruising! Wondering about getting revolut if we have to card stuff as it’s all in dollars.

It is Sky Princess if that matters.

Everyone does NOT have to get the same package. The first two passengers in a stateroom have to get the same package. If you book four in the same stateroom with the adults as the first two passengers, then the two adults can get Plus or Premier with the children not getting a package.

You purchase all drinks the same way with the medallion. You don't have to hand the medallion over - they can see it on their devices. If a drink is not included, it is charged with a 18% service fee. If a drink is more than the package limit, then the difference is charged with the service fee.

Do NOT wait until the end of the cruise to look at your statement. You can look at your statement at any time on your app, by printing it out a kiosk next to Guest Services, or by asking at Guest Services. They sometimes make mistakes, and it is a lot easier to fix them onboard than waiting until the end of the cruise.

Each passenger can only look at their own charges. However, if you all register the same credit card, then the owner of the credit card can look at everyone's charges.

3 minutes ago, canadarocks said:

So a BIG BALCONY and A BIG SHOWER.....is that attainable?

Yes - in a full suite.

50 minutes ago, threebluestars said:

Bumping this thread with a question ...

 

Our cruise begins Sept 12. So will I get to make reservations after June 17 for any of the three dining rooms for Sep 12 and 13 and then only for the reservation dining room from the 14th on?

No, it is for voyages beginning after September 14. They won't change in the middle of a voyage.

However, if you book a B2B, they may change for your second leg. If a cruise is bookable in multiple segments, they may change with a new segment even if you booked it as one segment.

3 hours ago, gonecampingfournow said:

I will disagree with your statement that they don't charge for excursions until you are onboard. My CC has the charge for the excursions we reserved for June. I cancelled one of them and hopefully will get money back not OBC.

Yes, Princess does charge your credit card if you don't have enough OBC to cover the excursion. However, your onboard folio shows the excursions as charges and the credit card payments as refundable OBC. If you cancel an excursion more than five days pre-cruise, you will receive a credit card refund - if you don't have a remaining balance for other excursions (even if they are covered by OBC).

You will get money back. If it is OBC, it will be refundable OBC which will be refunded after the cruise if you don't spend it onboard. 

My Travel Summary says "Your ship begins boarding at 12:30 PM on Sep 04 and sets sail at 08:30 PM on Sep 04." Your Travel Summary should have the exact times for your cruise.

The ship sails from Whittier - not from Anchorage. The train from Anchorage takes 2 1/2 hours; I'm not sure about the bus. Princess guidelines for embarkation in Anchorage (from my Travel Summary): "Latest flight arrival: 4 hours, 30 minutes prior to the ship's departure."

If you arrive in Anchorage early afternoon, you won't be boarding until late afternoon. The ship will be ready before you get there. In your case, I would definitely recommend a Princess transfer instead of trying to arrange transportation to Whittier on your own.

8 minutes ago, latebuyer said:

Thats ok, i should bring my refillable water bottle. Can you get ice at the buffet as well?

1 minute ago, Itchy&Scratchy said:

yes, ice and free water are available at the buffet.

Ice is also available from your cabin steward upon request. And the tap water from the faucet in your cabin is as good as some bottled water.

14 minutes ago, scooter6139 said:

I'm unsure why you have two Wifi quotes here, and I have no idea where that first price of $66.38 comes from for internet access. Prices start at $24.99 pppd for one device, and if you are Platinum or Elite, it's only half that.

-Zero Drink price only needs to be on one person if needed/wanted. The wife doesn't spend that much on drinks anyway, so it's not worth it to her. 

-Always pay Crew Appreciation.  That is a given for us. 

 

So, that leaves us with:

-$35.39 + $12:50 +$16 = $63.89 for me vs $60 for Plus (worth it as long as I want Internet/Wifi, which I don't really need as we mainly cruise Alaska and port Cell data works just fine)

-$16 = $16 for wife vs $60 for plus (not worth it for my wife)

-$63.89 + $16 = $79.89 for two vs $120 for two for Plus

 

So, in our case, Plus and Premier are not a good option.  It happens.  

The $66.38 was the total cost with drinks, wi-fi, and crew appreciation. I used the old wi-fi charge, since that is what showed on my booking, so it's more than that now - less if Platinum.

I agree that each person needs to do their own calculations. If you both want zero-alcohol or if one of you wants Plus, the fare package may be a good idea. If one of you wants zero-alcohol and the other one doesn't want any non-included drinks, then that is completely different. If you only need one wi-fi for the two of you and you're Platinum or possibly no wi-fi, that also makes a difference.

Princess answers this question in their FAQ:

"10. Can items in Princess Plus or Princess Premier be shared across guests in the stateroom, even if 3rd and 4th guests don’t have these packages?
For the Princess Premier package the following items can be shared across all guests: Wi-Fi for 4 devices per guest, the digital photo portion of the Photo Package and reserved theater seating. Free shipping for Medallion® devices and accessories can also be shared across all guests in the stateroom when shipped at once to the same address. Casual Dining or Specialty Dining meals cannot be shared with the 3rd and 4th guests in the stateroom."

The first two people get 1-device Wi-Fi. That is one device at a time. You can use one of their logins whenever they're not using it.

If someone calls room service from your stateroom telephone and gives one of their names, then there will be no charge for the room service delivery. If one of them uses OceanNow on their app to order food for the stateroom, there will be no charge; if you use your app, you will have the one-time charge.

16 hours ago, scooter6139 said:

OR just buy the Zero Alcohol Drink package for under half the cost and still get all that.  😁

2 hours ago, 555 said:

And you don't have to purchase that package for both people in the same cabin. 

Total cost if you want Internet access is $66.38 per person per day:

• Zero-Alcohol Drink Package: $35.39 per person per day
• Crew Appreciation (Mini-Suites and Below): $16.00 per person per day
• MedallionNet 1-device WiFi: $14.99

That is more expensive than the Plus fare package.

You will have two choices to dine together. They can join you in the MDR and not use their suite dining perk for some meals. Also they can order room service from the full MDR menu during MDR hours of operation. If they do so, they can order room service for all of you to eat in their suite. However, the room service delivers the entire meal at one time - not in courses. I would not recommend ordering ice cream for desert.

If you upgrade to a Reserve mini-suite, then you can have meals together. You would still not be able to join them for the special suite breakfast in Sabatini's or another specialty restaurant.

They will have a complimentary specialty restaurant meal on embarkation evening. You can join them if you wish, but you would have to pay for your meal (unless you have Premier).

3 minutes ago, ldubs said:

 

Aw, bummer!  Thx.  

The real trick is to drink 15 drinks on disembarkation day between 6:00 am and the time you leave the ship.😉

7 hours ago, memoak said:

I assume if they can drink they can stay in their own cabin. 18 in Europe 

The Princess age limits for booking a cabin and the Princess age limits for drinking on board have nothing to do with each other.

Onboard Experience FAQ: "The age for drinking on Princess ships is 21 years old*."

"*For cruises between Australia/New Zealand, China, Europe, Singapore and South America ports, the drinking age will be 18 years old. For cruises between Japan ports, the drinking age will be 20 years old."

Cruising with Family & Kids FAQ: "Guests under the age of 21 need to travel in a stateroom with a guest 21 years or older who will assume responsibility for them during the cruise. For family groups booking multiple staterooms, the minimum age for each guest is 16, provided they are traveling with a parent or legal guardian." Note that an 18 year old cannot book a cruise on Princess (anywhere in the world) without either someone 21 or older in the same stateroom or a parent or legal guadian on the cruise (not necessarily in the same stateroom). 

4 minutes ago, ldubs said:

 

You know, it might also depend on when a "package day" starts.  If it starts at one minute after midnight, then one could get a jump on the drink count!  Have a few before turning in, then a few more after the excursion.  Sadly, one loses out while sleeping (just kidding).  🙂

 

 

It is 6 am to 6 am. That is very clear in the description on the website.

On the ship, you will not see a refund for the cancelled excursion - you just won't see any charge for it at all. You will see charges for all your excursions and refundable OBC for the payments you made. You don't need to go to Guest Services to check - just look at your folio on your app or print out a copy at the machine next to Guest Services.

Princess does not actually charge for the excursions until you are onboard. If you cancel an excursion, they don't normally refund to credit card if you still have an excursion balance - even if that balance is covered by OBC.

To see your balance pre-cruise, log into the cruise on the Cruise Personalizer. Proceed as if you are buying a new excursion (don't worry, you won't actually purchase anything). Select any excursion that doesn't conflict with the time of one you already have, select all passengers in the cabin, and click on ADD TO CART. Click on PAY NOW. Click on PAY NOW on the new screen. Look at the EXCURSION RESERVATIONS SUMMARY. It will show Previously Made Reservations, Previous Payments Received (credit card), Onboard credits applied (including OBC applied to this new excursion), and Subtotal (amount owed) for each passenger. Subtract off the Reservations in Cart, and it will show your current balance. After reviewing, select Remove next to each of the excursions - you haven't paid for anything.

The ship only stays one day in Greenock. The 2:00 am departure time for an August cruise is to allow for excursions to the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. Excursions to the Tattoo get back to the ship a little before that departure time. If you book privately to the Tattoo, you need to make sure you get back by the departure time - or at least get back before the last ship excursion returns.

Even though the Tattoo is in Edinburgh, Princess normally has Tattoo excursions from Greenock instead of from South Queensferry because South Queensferry is a tender port. They don't want to be running tenders back to the ship at 1:00 in the morning.

10 hours ago, HotRoot said:

Curious what breakfast options you have seen?  The only breakfast food options I have found on the app is the Egg McMuffin.

30 minutes ago, capriccio said:

Here's the food and drink menus from last year to give you an idea (items may have changed and prices - for those that are extra - may have also):

 

https://profcruise.com/princess-oceannow-food-delivery-menu/

 

https://profcruise.com/princess-oceannow-beverage-menu/

It depends on your definition of breakfast food options. Some people may want a hamburger for breakfast. I just wanted to point out that there is more available from room service than just what is on the door hanger card.

6 hours ago, LittleTinker said:

But cant you have this anyway without paying extra?

Pretty sure you can have room service breakfast in with the standard cruise package?

 

26 minutes ago, capriccio said:

You can but you have to pay extra since the delivery charge isn't included in the standard package.  Get Ocean Now for a one time fee of $14.99 per person to cover delivery anywhere on the ship.

 

Here's the food and drink menus from last year to give you an idea (items may have changed and prices - for those that are extra - may have also):

 

https://profcruise.com/princess-oceannow-food-delivery-menu/

 

https://profcruise.com/princess-oceannow-beverage-menu/

You do not have to pay extra for breakfast room service from the door hanger menu. You only have to pay extra if you order by phone or OceanNow.

I was replying to @OTrailwho has the Plus package, so telephone and OceanNow room service do not extra with that package.

7 minutes ago, HotRoot said:

Yes, you can have breakfast delivered each morning, but it is a very limited menu.  Juices; coffee; tea; milk; water; fresh fruit; yogurt; cold cereal; bread; pastries; pepperoni, ham, cheese pizza muffin; egg, bacon, cheese muffin; butter; jelly.

In addition to the room service breakfast menu you hang on your door, you also have free access to the OceanNow menu (from your room or elsewhere on the ship). It will have additional options.

Get a CVP if you don't use a travel agent. Book another cruise before the expiration using the FCDs. Then when the booking you want is available, ask the CVP to cancel the old booking and transfer the FCD to the new one. This has worked in the past, but I haven't tried it recently - so no guarantees.

4 hours ago, memoak said:

That is why we have to tell bartenders not to put all the drinks on one account. We also use 2 different credit cards so our accounts are separate. If you weee to combine the drinks one person could have 30 drinks a day. That would not be a pretty sight

If you have separate credit cards, then your folios are not linked. You cannot see the other person's folio from your account. If one person has unused OBC, it doesn't go to the other one.

If you use the same credit card, then they are combined at the end of the cruise. If one person has OBC left over (even nonrefundable OBC), it is used to pay the other person's expenses. The owner of the credit card can see both people's onboard folio's. The other person can only see his or her own folio.

A formal night is never on the first night or the last night. It is usually on sea days but not always. If it's on a port day, it's usuall a port day with an early departure. 

4 hours ago, Tinknock50 said:

I booked just one excursion for my Alaska cruise and got the discounted price.  I have no idea what the price was in the past so don't know if that is a "scam" price.

What I did find interesting is the price varied on departure time and high availability for the best discount. The lowest priced time was the best one for me anyway, so it worked out.

It is not unusual to see a different price for a different departure time. Most of the time, it's the same. They know in advance which departure times are more popular, so having a different price evens out the demand - instead of selling one out.

6 hours ago, voljeep said:

I just filed my claim yesterday for a pre-cruise (5 days prior to sail) slip and fall. Medical reason - should get refund of cruise fare at the very least, right? - what else?

If you have adequate documentation from medical professionals that you are unable to sail for the medical condition, you should be covered. A slip and fall should not be considered a pre-existing condition. With Princess Vacation Protection, you should receive a refund for everything you paid Princess except for the cost of the insurance. You will not receive anything for any non-refundable expenses you paid directly to airlines, hotels, or excursion operators not through Princess.

I have three Alaska cruises currently booked. Some of the excursions show the "Price reflects discount" notation and some do not. None of the excursions are priced lower than what I paid months ago, and a couple are priced higher even with the discount. Since I did not look at the prices last month, I don't know what they were charging then.