JimmyVWine

Has the “new” Premier program even started yet? I thought the changes went into effect in February.

The thread title is a bit misleading. This isn’t “bait and switch” which is a term applied to circumstances where you actually buy something but receive something different. Here, you go through the booking process (or your TA does) and you can see the actual price and the choice is yours to book or not. If you don’t like the price, you pass. This is a systems failure, not an attempt to defraud. Disappointing? Yes. Dirty commercial tactic designed to dupe the customer? No.

Artist's rendition of people on the Lido Deck trying to use the App to reserve a spot on a lifeboat.

On Regal we have sailed in both B409 and C426, both of which appear on the Deck Plan to run the risk of extra wind given the way they face. Neither presented any extra wind that I could discern. On our next cruise we will be in a "414" cabin which would appear to be more protected and I can run a comparison. But so far, based on my experience, I would not hesitate to book any angled extended balcony. Since we usually travel as a family of three, those extended balconies are pretty much a necessity for us as it allows us to take a third chair out there where we could not do that in a standard balcony.

While I can see how Room Service was too busy, it now seems as if this guy named Stewart is even busier! 😁

Not unusual. The answer to your question was posted in the very next post after yours. So with the question thoroughly answered, people take the opportunity to editorialize and go off in different directions. Par for the coarse (misspelling intentional). I'd say: "Welcome to the wonderful world of CC", but you have been here a while!

Getting problems resolved over the phone appears to be a losing battle much of the time. I had a problem applying a Gift Card to my outstanding balance and I tried a number of times to get it resolved on the phone. The people manning the phones on the main Princess Line insisted that the resolution had to come from the Gift Card Department and the Gift Card Department insisted that the resolution had to come from the main Princess Customer Service Department. After numerous phone calls and telling the person in the CS Department that under no circumstances should she transfer my call to the Gift Card department because I had just finished speaking to them, she confessed that the people who respond to the customer service emails have far more power and authority (her words) to solve problems than the people who work the phones. So I send a detailed email to customerrelations@princescruises.com with attachments, files, screenshots and the like, and my issue was resolved to my complete satisfaction in 6 days. I offer this up only for the sake of "process." As for the substance of the OP's issue, I don't think they are entitled to any special booking privileges and don't expect them to get any. But they are entitled to the courtesy of a direct answer from Princess.

Same here. 10% across the board. And if AARP is not an option, "CardCash" has Princess GCs at 5.5% off. Occasionally the discount varies, but it is almost always 5.5% off. $472.50 for a $500 card.

You are missing the point of the OP. "Just having fun" and looking for more details. My assertion is that if you look at Lucy's video of Arvia and Ben and David's video of Iona, you'll get a pretty good sense of how Sun will be designed. I never said that Sun would be a "sister ship" or be exactly the same. But the videos of those other ships will provide an understanding of the changes to come, and as my last word on this, I stand by that statement.

I think you are focused too much on the location of venues and not enough on the overwhelming change in design. Sun will retire the Piazza that we have come to know and replace it with an entirely new Atrium...that will be exactly like the one on Arvia. Sun will retire the placement of three MDRs (one on 5 and two on 6) that we have come to expect and replace it with a two-story MDR open to multi-floor windows looking at the ocean...just like Arvia. Sun will retire the fully enclosed Specialty Dining Venue and replace it with a Specialty Dining Venue that is more open and airy, and even has tables that overlook the Atrium...just like Arvia. Sun will "introduce for the first time on a Princess ship" a glass-enclosed forward pool that will double as an evening entertainment venue with performances, shows and acrobats...just like Arvia. Sun will "introduce for the first time on a Princess ship" a ropes course up top...Just like Arvia. Sun will introduce infinity pools with swim-up bars and infinity hot tubs...just like Arvia. These are wholesale, big-picture changes that Sun will feature and that are already in operation on P&O, so watching videos of those ships will in fact give a clear indication of what the big picture changes will look like. Whether a particular dining venue is on Deck 6 or Deck 7, or whether it is port or starboard is largely irrelevant when compared to the overall design and function of the ship. As for reviews, the Editorial Board of this site has given Arvia 5 Stars. Iona has 4. At least the trend is in the right direction and hopefully will continue with Sun.

I think it is actually the reverse. Once they get around to filling in the blanks, we will see that it is more and more like the P&O ships. Those are getting very good reviews and press. Why change?

The placement of the buffet will clearly be different. The ship within a ship concept appears to be overblown based on recent promo videos. They mention a special area in the Sanctuary and some deck space for Cabana cabins. Not much else. Ben and David’s tour of Iona looks very, very similar to what Princess has shown us so far. The big changes in the Sphere Class are to the Piazza and the forward dome. Iona and Arvia look nearly identical in that respect.

There are a number of videos showing tours of P&O’s Iona and now Arvia. I would imagine that Sun will have far more similarities than differences. Certainly not exact. But those videos should give one a sense of what life on board a Sphere Class ship will be like.

Is that the minimum buy-in to play? I'm not much of a Bingo fan, but at that price I couldn't be convinced to play at gunpoint. I have to believe that they have run the numbers of "how much revenue will we lose by chasing people away with a price hike versus how much revenue will we gain from the people who stay?", but at that price, it seems that they have no chance of capturing the revenue of the "Bingo curious" and will be left with only the Bingo hard corps. And that latter group has to be demographically shrinking.

I see your point, but the truth is more nuanced than that. The opinions offered here are not from a random sampling of guests. Were that the case, you point would have infinitely greater validity. Rather, the opinions here are from dedicated customers who are experienced and concerned enough to make the time to share their stories. And in case there is any question about who is who, we can see the date that each poster joined the forum and how many posts they have made. Is the opinion of someone who has been a member here since 2010 and who has over 5k posts more valuable (to me) than the praise or criticism of someone who joined last month and who has 24 posts? That's a big "yes" for me. Perhaps it is not fair because a person on their first cruise could be served a shoe leather steak the same as someone who is on the 30th Princess Cruise. But the reality is that it is human nature to weigh and balance opinions and we all do it to some degree. And when you are here enough, you pick up pretty quickly whose opinions tend to align with yours. I'll use wine as an analogy because, why not? Robert Parker, Jancis Robinson, James Suckling and James Laube comprise an infinitesimally small percentage of wine drinkers/critics. But if I see their opinions on a particular wine, I can pretty much be assured of knowing what I will think of it, because I know how my palate aligns with theirs. And here on this Board I know who my functional equivalents are. I could pick out 3 people here who, were they on the same cruise of 3,000 people, would comprise 1/10th of 1% of people on that cruise. But their collective opinions would be close to gospel for me. I'll bet that is true for most people here.

Depends on the itinerary. Our only post-shutdown cruise was in the Med, so a good mix of US and European guests, with some Asia in there as well. And on Formal Nights we dined in the MDR, so I don't know what the people in the buffet or Specialty Restaurants were wearing. But in the MDR, the vast majority (and I mean that seriously) of men had some sort of jacket. There was a mix of tuxes, suits, blazers with ties and blazers without ties. And some long-sleeved collared shirts and some short-sleeved golf shirts. But I would by lying if I said that the jacketless men dominated. Far, far from it. If I had to estimate I would say the men were 10% tuxes, 20% suits, 25% blazers with ties, 30% blazers with no tie and the balance were jacketless. The women were mostly in dresses and pant suits. Yes, we did see a few (could count them on one hand) people who were sporting their finest t-shirts and well-worn jeans. But they stood out as outliers. All of this goes to show that there is a wide gap between what people can wear and what they do wear. Again, this was a European itinerary and not in the Caribbean or Mexican Coast.

On Regal, it was the latter with the bed made up so that the head of the bed was one end of the sofa and the foot was the other with no pulling out or unfolding of a mattress. I assume that Royal is the same but I admit that I am not 100% certain. On Grand Class ships the sofa is a pullout. With the bed extended and made up, you can still squeeze through and get to the balcony but it is tight.

How about bringing food (thinking cheese mostly) from a port onto the ship? We will be visiting the English Market in Cork and we’d love to bring back some local cheeses to enjoy on board with some wine. Will we be able to do that?

First, on what planet does 150ml = 6 Oz? That takes “rounding up” to a place it’s never been before. Second…$6 to $8 for a 5 ounce “cleanse drink”? Want to guess how many they will sell at that price? I’m thinking of a round number. 0. Third, where is the “Hangover Buster”, and the “I’m On Vacation and I’ve Just Given Up” options?

A+. I will transit the Panama Canal someday. Though I guess I better plan it soon before all the ships are so big that they will clog the canal and cause an international incident.

I think you are right. "One" assumes and understands, and it appears that you are the only ONE!

Either way, the people who are on ship excursions do not take the cable car up the mountain. So the morning line to board looks nothing like the afternoon line to return, as long as you get an early start to the day.

Absolutely allowed. Might want to board with it open and empty so that no one suspects you of smuggling on vodka or gin. But the container itself is absolutely allowed. We bring a couple every time.

I would think that the Princess excursions assemble and depart the ship on the early side. If you are up and ready that early, the line for the cable car won’t be terribly long so you might as well head there. All of the people on ship excursions are headed in a different direction. The morning lines for the cable car are nothing compared to the afternoon lines when even people who arrived via the excursion dock return via the cable car. I would save the money and just plan to get off the ship early.

You could delete the word “playing” and insert any number of things and the statement would be just as true, yet special rules do not apply. Smokers enjoy smoking when they’re: Dining Enjoying a comedy show Listening to a band Having sex Drinking at a bar Sitting on their balcony. There is no logic behind the idea that “pulling the handle of a slot machine” should be treated differently.