wallyj

20 minutes ago, Traveller1212 said:

Sorry, I didn’t word this properly… I should have asked,  On Sapphire to Alaska is the cost for Crab Shack an option for the 2 casual dining meals included in the Plus package? Thanks

 

on the Princess website for Sapphire, Crab Shack is grouped with Alfredo’s & Trident Grill not under Specialty Dining 🤷🏻‍♀️

The cost of Crab Shack is NOT a casual dining option for Plus package. I believe the price was raised to $39, if you have Premier, it would be counted as one of your Specialty dining credits. I was on Sapphire for the March 18-April 5 2024 sailing and the couple of times Crab Shack was offered it was priced at $39 and not considered a casual dining venue for the Plus package.

18 minutes ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

Have never paid any attention to the color of my medallion.  On our last cruise DW gad a Grey medallion and mine was white.  Found out I had three loyalty numbers!  

Oh well.

So did you get your Princess account consolidated to only one number and know what number to use in the future? If you have the same Princess history as your DW, it matters in terms of access to reduced Princess Insurance and WiFi costs, in additional to priority boarding and access to the PES lounge. Having your individual account being correct insures it will be accurate in tracking to reach the next loyalty levels which has some worthwhile benefits such as free laundry and a one time mini bar setup per cruise segment.

Many times when you call a travel agent for a quote, they may generate a quote/hold so the fare quoted is locked in and without knowing, this may cause a ‘new’ Captain circle number to be allocated. If you never go further, this ‘new’ account will remain but with 0 cruises associated with it and the loyalty department now handled by Future cruise on board can easily ‘clean up’ your account or consolidate if for whatever reasons you have multiple loyalty numbers with cruises to be consolidated into one account.

Also, availability varies as many have reported the ship is ‘out’ of a wine on the list and there can be others available not on the list. Wines available under ‘Plus’ are generic and only give varietal such as Cab, Chardonnay, etc. You will need Premier or pay higher than Plus option if you want to know particulars like which supplier/winery.

Supplies can run out so even asking from current sailings can give inaccurate information. You can ask for screenshots from current ship/sailings to give you a general ideal if that will satisfy you.

If you are looking at what is available by the bottle, this also varies by venue, with some specialty restaurants having different selection as well if the ship has a ‘Vines’.

4 hours ago, kywildcatfanone said:

I've seen white on a lot of cruises. Was told it was either for the inaugural season or a group booking.

White with Blue Seawitch is now used for all 1st time to Princess. White with your appropriate Captain circle level color for Seawitch was previously used for Inaugural year sailing of new ships, but I think this policy has changed as I believe with this inaugural year of the Sun, the medallions were the normal as any other ship. I think I remember some passengers were hoping for a special ‘Sun Princess’ design. 
 

The APP is known to show/display the incorrect loyalty level, but if you order a medallion, in most cases, your correct color/medallion will be sent. This is true for me. The Princess APP shows me a new to Princess, but when I have ordered my Medallion, what is shipped is my correct level.

As Princess policy, if you are traveling on a friends and family rate, no matter what your actual loyalty level is,  previously you were issued a ‘blue’ cruise card, now you are issued the equivalent ‘blue’ new to Princess medallion which is white color background with Blue Seawitch.

Many times the passenger or travel agent did not communicate to Princess of past loyalty numbers, so the cruise card and now Medallion was issued with the incorrect level. I have seen either a ‘sticker’ placed on the existing medallion to reflect the appropriate color/level or the passenger is directed to Guest relations where they will either make new medallion or apply appropriate sticker.

I believe the ships do not carry any of the custom designs.

43 minutes ago, doghog said:

Do you know what they are doing (special lunch in one of the MDRs for example) for B2Bers on TAD? We've done a lot of B2B cruises but have never had that many B2Bers joining us. 

Princess normally has a MDR open for lunch on Embarkation day, so in all my B2B’s, have never had a ‘special’ lunch setup by the Cruiseline.
 

On Royal Caribbean if there is at least a certain number of B2B and Celebrity, they will have B2B lunch in a MDR, which is not open to those passengers embarking as a MDR lunch option is not usually offered, except for those that have signed up/paid for ‘The Key’ on Royal  Caribbean.

7 minutes ago, Scotmay said:

Can we bring wine on board, other than the two allowed, pay the $15?dollars corkage and drink anywhere on board including dining room!

Yes, but have heard corkage fee has increased? IIRC correctly to $20, Princess website should have updated amount.

5 hours ago, Canuker said:

I recall, many years ago, going to a variety show at a (land based) theatre in which most seats were empty. Before curtain-up, the manger invited everyone to come to the front stalls to watch the show. All did; we moved from the balcony to the third row. We were surprised and very happy about that, and enjoyed the show the more for it. And, clearly, I remembered their good gesture after all this time*.

I'm wondering if a cruise line like Princess might operate on the same principal, i.e. if there are larger, higher-priced cabins available just before the embarkation date, they move people into them from smaller, lower-priced cabins.

From their perspective, the operating cost increase is virtually zero but in terms of goodwill towards their brand, the delight of those passengers and the post-cruise word-of-mouth publicity they may get, it seems a very good idea, not to mention the opportunity to perhaps perform needed maintenance work on a whole block of now empty cabins all at the same time (they are otherwise rarely empty).

As one who owned a business before retiring, exceeding the expectations of the customer - even in a just a small, but meaningful, way - is a great way to build customer loyalty and repeat business. They remember that*.

At the ‘restart’ in 2022, on some Princess ships that were very lowly booked, my experience was, Princess did complimentary upgrades. After a few months, I spoke to the Captain Circle host(function now moved to future cruises dept) and was told the Hotel Manager changed this ‘policy’ as they did not want Passengers to start feeling they could book lower categories and be complimentary upgraded. 
 

Now most ships are mostly fully if not over 100% double occupancy, meaning having many 3rd and 4th berths filled in addition to all doubles, so complimentary upgrades are more the exception, but do occasionally happen. With the implementation of the upgrade bidding system, complimentary upgrades seem to be rarer.

@cusematt4, have you discovered if the ‘transfer’ you have booked also includes the transfer from the hotel to the ship in Whittier which is quite a ways from Anchorage. How were you planning on getting from your Hotel to the ship?

9 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

Sure, but aren't those the same ones on Princess.com under Last Minute Cruise Deals?

No, the on board booking promotion is an EXTRA discount from the fare shown on Princess.com. So if one of the promo fares is also on a drop and go rate sailing and is discounted, the fare is further reduced 25-50%. 
 

I think people get confused when they see on the Princess website a promo advertising up to 50% off and think the on board booking promo is the same. If a sailing is on the on board list, whatever the Princess.com fare is, it will be further reduced by 25-50%. Before November 2023, all sailings on the list were 50% off, now it varies.
 

These on board promos take the Princess.com rate and reduce it further which is why I try and take advantage if one of the sailings fits my schedule.

Previously, there were some sailings with a small solo supplement showing on Princess.com that were on the 50% off on board promo list, so a solo traveler would not pay the usual 200% fare but only 50%.

9 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

If voyages are listed for sale on Princess.com, there is no need to book them on board.

 

PCL was offering some deep discounts on near-term voyages after the re-start, but since ships are sailing full again, I have not seen any of these kind of deals mentioned.

At the end of the 50% off promos last October 2023, there was a few months of very few on board promos. Just off Sapphire in April 2024 and Ruby earlier this month and future cruise has a list again with extra discount from Princess.com fare of 25-50% off. Most are sailings 90-100 days out, a few were further out.

@ccheng6401, future cruises currently has a list of sailings that are 25-50% the listed fares on Princess.com, so if one of these sailings would work for your schedule, then the savings are worth booking on board, as they can not be booked once you leave the ship. Most of these sailings leave within the next 90-100 days, but there are a few with further out dates.

Future cruise deposits are now valid for only 1 year, meaning you have 1 year to book a cruise in the future and that cruise can be as far out as the schedule is released. You can request the FCD to be refunded early if you change your mind, or if not used within the year, it is automatically refunded to the original form of payment.

You would not be able to book a back 2 back sailing on the same ship that first does LA to YVR and then does YVR to SEA, this is a violation of the PSVA, not the Jones Act. The system might allow you to initially book these sailings, but eventually you will be contacted to cancel one of the sailings as you would not be able to sail both.

25 minutes ago, Cinerama said:

Anyone ever pick up one of these on your cruise? Just wondering if it is a regular bingo ticket or something else. 

It is usually one ticket for the last 4th game for a ‘Blackout/Coverall’ game meaning you need all numbers. In order to get the ‘jackpot’ you need to have the coverall in the allotted numbers of balls called, usually about 50, which is very unlikely. If no winner within 50 balls, the game continues till a winner but then the jackpot is greatly reduced. 

Plus should price at $60/day per person. If you added after initially booking standard, and have Princess insurance, then the price increase takes into account your total fare has increased, but still the amount seems off. Usually increased insurance is about another 9%. Plus package is considered part of cruise fare. Price your cruise using standard fare, add $60/day for plus then taxes and your total should be this, unless you also have Princess insurance which will be a percentage of the total cruisefare including the plus package.

Currently on the Sapphire, the on board booking discounted cruises will vary as demand has increased. Currently, they do have a one page list of selected cruises ranging from an additional 25-50% the current Princess rate. The furthest out are some sailings on the Emerald, Diamond and Enchanted in August 2024. @ 25% off. The majority of sailings listed are sailings in the next 90-100 days.

@TravMagic1, are you looking at May 2024 or May 2025? If 2025, most likely these will not be on the board promo listing and then maybe not till Feb 2025 if that sailing is not selling well.

7 hours ago, CruzinNoony said:

We will be going on the March 31st sailing on the Discovery.  Just wondering what, if anything, they do for the top 40 most traveled passengers.

Hi Meredith, it’s Wally, I believe for sailings 4 or less days, only the top 10 are recognized and given a voucher good for 2 passengers at a specialty restaurant. For sailings 5+ days, it is actually the top20 plus a guest if applicable to make a total of 40 passengers. Sometimes a solo passenger does not have a plus one to bring.
 

The top 3 still receive an amenity of Bottle of Wine or Stanley bear. #1 has higher price point for wine/champagne value.
 

On some short sailings all restaurants can be fully booked, so a discussion with either the lead Loyalty Future Cruise consultant or restaurant manager to get you a reservation might be needed. I have run into this situation a few times.

12 hours ago, kpauley said:

Has anyone had any experience of having to cancel a cruise after applying a gift card to their balance?  Would you receive "credit" of some sort from Princess?

My understanding is any refunds would be issued back to one/all of the gift cards used which is another reason to keep paper/digital records of all your cards until you know it was used and you sailed so refunding not likely.

58 minutes ago, Snaxmuppet said:

Not sure about the 18% added or whether it is included... to many conflicting reports here to be certain. I am just going to wait until the cruise to find out (April).

I believe Princess as of December 1, 2023 instituted the cover charge for specialty dining would not include the service charge and 18% will now be added to your bill.
 

If you are dining on a voucher/premier pkg, then no charges will be billed, unless you ordered additional mains, etc.

3 hours ago, ccheng6401 said:

The stockperk app didn't ask me about my cruise booking number. How does it know which booking to apply the OBC to? I just submitted my brokerage statement through the app but I am curious about the next step. What do you do after your shareholder status is confirmed?

Please see post #6. After you are ‘verified’, you open the APP again to ‘redeem’ and that will allow you to select ship and sail date.

Verification is valid for at least a few months, so if you book another cruise, you only need to open the APP again and ‘redeem’

Previous reports say they are only allowing applications for sailings within the next 6 months, whereas the previous system allowed for getting the OBC posted to your booking over a year out.

3 minutes ago, paulbluk said:

My wife, 10 year old and I are going on our first Princess cruise. We're on Princess Standard. I was trying to understand the charging for the OceanNow service.  If we just use say just my account/App for the whole cruise to to order through the OceanNow service, will we just be charged one $14.99 fee ? or is the fee charged to all passengers in the stateroom ? Thanks

Yes, you will be charged only a ONETIME $14.99 activation as long as you always use your login on the APP to order via Ocean Now. Keep in mind there are items that are complimentary and items that have a fee/charge. You can login on different devices. 

57 minutes ago, katmigordon said:

But it looks like all maki are up for grabs?

I am not sure. CA roll is very similar to the Set menu tuna roll without the seared tuna on top. Veggie roll is a simplified CA roll without imitation crab. I did not see any other allowed substitutions, so you can ask, but I did not see many orders that were not within these choices, except where I heard they were ordering ala carte and out of pocket.

I am on the Enchanted May4-18, so I will ask what is the policy on that ship.
 

YMMV.

2 hours ago, reedprincess said:

Nope. Similar decor, same menu, same kitchens, same service standard, etc. It's loca8a d slight decor differences. 

I believe the mid and aft deck 6 MDR’s share the same kitchen and the deck 5 MDR has it’s own. Menus are the same except for ‘Reserve Class’. Some people take into consideration location and walking distance required. 

3 minutes ago, katmigordon said:

And I assume that the stuff listed on the menu under special is out of pocket?

Yes, included at no additional charges at no limit are items from the set menu or allowed ‘substitutions’ such as all ebi, so no salmon or tuna, CA roll instead of Tuna roll. Other items such as Octopus, scallops, etc would be at menu price.

2 minutes ago, katmigordon said:

If we have premium and therefor can order as much as we want can we order than one meal at a time?

Yes, of the set menu items or substitution items they allowed, such as they did for me on the Discovery. I noticed a passenger ordered ‘double’ and saw him multiple times and it was verified he had the Premier pkg.

10 minutes ago, katmigordon said:

How does this work?  Do we have to get the fixed price set menu or can we order up to a certain amount?  Specifically I'm looking at sushi, we only like certain kinds of sushi and I'm wondering if we can use our premium here or we'd have to pay out of pocket?

Currently it depends on the ship and its facilities. This has been my experience on the Sapphire, Majestic and Discovery.
 

On the Sapphire, the sushi is not made to order in front of you. You are not allowed to customize in any way and your only choice is the ‘set’ menu. Of course you can choose to omit any items. You cannot ask for only one type of nigiri, you get ebi(shrimp), salmon and tuna. The maki(roll) is the spicy tuna roll.

I believe they have changed the menu to the ‘set’ menu on the Majestic, as I originally was able to have a ‘choice’ of maki rolls, but believe it is the ‘set’ menu only now.

My last experience on Discovery in February 2024, I could customize what type of nigiri I wanted which was usually all ebi(shrimp). I could also request California roll instead of the spicy tuna roll and others have reported they will do veggie rolls too. If you wanted any other items not on the set menu, you would have to pay ala carte.

I am not sure if the sushi place on the Sun is considered a ‘casual’ dining as I believe ‘Kai Sushi’ on the Diamond is not.

So it depends on what are the policies on your particular ship. I think the Sapphire is the most restrictive because the sushi is not made in front of you at Ocean Terrace like most Royal Class ships and no substitutions allowed.

27 minutes ago, red4u2 said:

Hi everyone!  just found out about usuing AARP Princess gift cards.  Can you please tell me about how long it takes to have them emailed to me from AARP once purchased?

 

thank you!!

When u purchase Princess gift cards thru AARP, you get ‘virtual’ cards not physical cards and are usually emailed the link for the card numbers and pin within a few minutes of purchase on the website. There have been a few times with a longer delay, but most have reported you will receive within a few minutes. 
 

My recent experience on March 5, I received the email link in less than 5 minutes.