wallyj

You may have booked a ‘refundable’ First class ticket that does not have any restrictions regarding cancellation or changes. People need to be aware, ‘your’ booking rules may not be the same for them, Air2sea lists refundable fares, but there are terms and conditions attached to some of those which have ‘fees’. If you book with Royal Air2sea, make sure you know if you are allowed to make changes and up to what date, if applicable, and if you are subject to any ‘fees’. Policies are subject to change, I know a few years ago, Air2sea bookings were due and payable and ‘locked’ at time of booking, no grace period of waiting till cruise final payment date, now I know they are more flexible. Passengers need to understand booking ‘rules’.

Hi @ChrisB123, I am assuming you have sailed with Princess previously? If so, make sure you take advantage of their referral program since you say you are booking with 2 other couples who are ‘first timers’ Hopefully no one else has referred them to Princess previously. See the Princess website for more details, essentially for each referral that books and actually take cruise you and them get $25 OBC. You would receive on the cruise you are sailing together. So if you are referring 4 people, they each get $25 OBC and you would get $100 total. You need to do and get referral confirmation before ‘any’ bookings are done.

@Cruise a holic, good to hear you got a fare adjustment for your Air2sea reservation. I see your earliest cruise is not till December, so I assume you are still before final payment. There is a time limit associated with when you can take advantage of airfare price drops. Your comment just says prior to cruise, one needs to confirm with Air2Sea the exact date, when, if you wanted to make any changes, or price drops, you are not subject to any fees. For example, Princess EzAir will not charge for flights booked through them till your final cruise payment is due. If you booked a ‘flexible’ and not ‘restricted’ fare, you are allowed to cancel or make any changes up till 45 days before your first flight or start of the cruise, whichever date is sooner, keeping in mind many passengers fly in earlier than cruise start date, so the 45 days would be earlier. Royals Air2sea program is a little different so you need to confirm with them regarding this policy. I have not used Air2sea lately, I used it to book flights for last summer for sailings of the Adventure out of Nassau, but I know when they sold off Azamara, Air2sea portal changed and you could not use online and had to call to see flight options if you were not traveling on cruise start and end dates. I was told months ago it was to be updated but have not checked as I booked my flights for upcoming Brilliance TA for November 2022 on my own and it was a hassle to call Air2sea and since I am flying to Rome a few days early, I feel I have a cushion if there are flight disruptions.

Hi @little britainmeans you get back/make your way back to VCE/ Marco Polo airport. Where RCL has scheduled shuttle service for a fee to get passengers arriving that day to the Ravenna port.

Just looked at deck plan on Princess.com and it still shows Izumi , deck 15 aft.

Hi @Bxc53, for your big box TA booking, they do not participate and have opted out of the RoyalUp program so you will not be able to participate, but if you see a drop in higher categories you could ‘upgrade’ that why. Your thread title answer is NO, RoyalUp is open to TA bookings if they have opted into the program. There have been previous threads your big box TA and others have opted out of RoyalUp and you cannot participate.

Thanks for the quick reply Ken, @Ourusualbeach. It has only been a couple weeks since I emailed RCL shareholders for confirmation, but it appears I made the right decision to refare to WOW fare and get shareholders. I have appreciated reading your many posts offering advice and perspective on many threads.

Hi @Ourusualbeach, would you mind answering this question I recently sent to RCL shareholders but who knows if they will ever reply. i recently found a few Travel agencies using their online booking portal and found a fare description of TA F&F which I assumed means Travel Agency Friends and Family. This fare for me traveling solo is about $40-$50 less than the least available fare offered on the Royal website. When I read about price guarantee within 48 hours of booking, I see a notation, the fare must be available on Royal website which these fares are not. Anyone accessing the booking engine for these Agencies can book these fares, so not only for TA’s. If I booked the TA F&F fare, do you know if it is eligible for shareholder’s benefit/OBC? If so, I would consider booking this fare in the future. Also when I did book one and a few days later the fare dropped about $20 and still before final payment, I emailed the TA, and was told the TA F& F was applicable for ‘new’ bookings only and because I booked with NRD, to book at the now lower fare, I would lose the $100 NRD, so of course not financially prudent to lose $100 for a savings of $20. A week later, I asked my TA to refare me to the lowest fare on the Royal website which was the recent WOW sale with OBC which I am pretty sure I will get shareholders, and will be slightly better than if I stuck with the TA F&F fare and it turns out Royal does not allow shareholders with a TA F&F rate booking.

Hi @RoperDK, I had Hip replacement surgery about 4 weeks ago on May 4th. When going through all the classes and the pre-op prep last year, it was recommended I plan on 3 months recovery. Fortunately for me, earlier this year my surgeon trained for the anterior approach and by the time of my surgery had a couple months worth under his belt. My understanding is the anterior approach was developed about 10 years ago, but it is taking awhile for many surgeons to adopt. I was told there are only 2 surgeons at Kaiser Sunset(Los Angeles, CA) that do the anterior approach. My sister had the posterior approach done 4 years ago, also at Kaiser facility, and she says she is amazed at my quicker recovery. No restrictions on crossing legs or bending. Physical Therapy released me/discharged me from needing further sessions at 3 weeks. Had 2 weeks of In Home PT that was 2x week, then 1 out patient PT during week 3. Everyone’s recovery will not be the same, but most report much better results with the anterior approach. I am a 62 year old male in average shape and was concerned how long my recovery would be. I feel I am about 90% percent after 4 weeks, so if you have 8 weeks, I think you have a good chance of doing ok, provided you have the anterior approach. Have a plan B and C and travel insurance, unless you are covered under CWC ? Discuss with your surgeon your concerns, but as you have said, they are doing posterior approach, time to find another surgeon? Scheduling may be an issue, if you need to find another surgeon, will they be able to fit you in with 8 weeks recovery before your cruise? Good luck and I hope your surgery is a success without any complications.

Hi @Dar & Bob, sorry, I typed Grand but meant Crown. My posts repeated mention see Crown Princess Alaska past, present and future, which should have been a clue and the dates for Juneau arrival were for Crown not the Grand. I do not think your Grand sailing has itinerary changes. Sorry about the confusion.

Hi @phabric, It seems to depend on which ship has supplies. I did B2B on Majestic in April, so only a couple months ago. First day, steward delivered ‘elite’ bathroom amenity kit that was in a mini blue ‘dopp’ like canvas bag. Had loofah pad, nail file, cotton ball and Q tips, and razor and tube of lotion. Got one for second sailing too. sounds like supply issue.

It may depend on which port and what they are doing for making ‘new’ Medallions. For San Pedro, my sister needed them to make her a medallion as hers was not delivered. They made a new one at the pier before boarding. Last September, my medallion did not arrive for San Pedro embarkation and instead of them making me a ‘medallion’, I was issued a ‘cruise card’ which they said take to the PSD to swap for a medallion. It makes sense so they do not need to have a medallion making machine at the pier since they know the ship has one to make or replace any ‘lost’ or ‘non functioning’ ones, usually because battery is low or died. Do not worry, either they make you a medallion at pier or give you cruise card to board and you get medallion at PSD. They will give you complimentary lanyard too, if you want.

Hi @Dar & Bob, please read my post carefully. Princess has only officially updated the sailings arriving to Juneau up to June 20th arrival. Your sailing in July has not be changed as of now. Please read the previous threads on the Crown and the , past ,present, future thread for more info.

See thread Crown Princess Alaska sailings, past , present and future, post #1. For Grand Princess Juneau stops on June 6, 13, and 20 they know the Grand will now be arriving at 5:30 pm. and I believe Princess finally updated the itineraries on the website for these sailings and I think booked passengers were to receive email notification opposed to some of the previous sailings where they were notified after embarkation or the day before. it is not clear if Princess plans on having the problem fixed for the following sailings or they only officially announced the Juneau revisions for the next 4 sailings and not more sailings beyond to not cause panic/cancellations? I think info from someone currently on board would be able to give an update as I think the Captain held a Q&A this sailing or the last as reported in the ‘live’ thread.

Hi @erber, thank you for the update. Nice to hear Barbara is in her new position. She is very personable as she was a circle host and then loyalty and events manager with Princess for many years.

Hi @kreese5, I see from post #3, you have confirmed you are on the Crown, which there have been a few threads already from past and future sailings. There is a current thread Crown, past, present and future sailings. I think there is a live from the current sailing. From my reading of the past threads, a recent engine/generator issue seems to be resolved, but the major one causing the ship’s reduced speed requires parts that are not readily available. Princess has announced the next 4 sailings of Crown with the greatly revised/reduced port itineraries and it has been unclear if the only compensation will be $100 OBC for the missed port of ISP that was supposed to be the replacement for Ketchikan? It appears a few passengers were able to switch to another Princess ship, but the latest reports are to switch, you would have to cancel and rebook which seems impractical for your party and the extra expense. The weather has been pretty good so far, but since you are still a few weeks away, I hope it nice for you too.

Hi @erber, would you pop in and see who is the future cruise consultant? When I was on the Grand last year for September, October and December. The loyalty and events manager was Barbara Z., and I have sailed with her many times. She was planning on switching positions to future cruise, by January/February 2022 but I heard they wanted to extend her contract. I see from previous posts, Liz has come on as Loyalty and Events manager. If future cruise is Barbara Z., please tell her Wally says hello. If you want to see her smile, stop by the international cafe in the morning and pick up a breakfast burrito with salsa and deliver to her. Last year they were not allowed, but I believe they can get food there now.

Hi @cruzin4us, originally the 4 restaurants mid ship served slightly different menus to go with the theme of the restaurant. Savoy was your traditional steak house decor, dark woods, Santa Fe was Tex/Mex, Pacific Moon was Asian, and Vivaldi was typical Princess MDR. They just split the normal deck 5 and 6 midship MDR’s into two different restaurants with their unique decor. Eventually, all the restaurants would serve the same menu, except each had a specialty dish which you could actually order in any of the restaurants. Savoy had a special pork chop, Santa Fe had Fajitas, Pacific Moon had a Seafood noodle dish, and Vivaldi had Osso Buco. When I sailed Sapphire in Feb 2020, just before shutdown, the specialty dishes were no more, but some would make an appearance one night on the MDR menu. The international dining room is regular MDR decor located deck 6 aft. As to decor preference, you can decide after viewing to see which decor best fits your mood. The Diamond is also a little different as it has a Japanese style bath that is an upcharge to use and usually rotates between sexes for use. So one day will be women only and then men only. I believe you can find YouTube videos for more info.I think it is called Izumi?

Hi @riffatsea, another thing to keep in mind is customs and immigration since the cruise is ending in Canada. I know in the past, some passengers were told yes it can be done, but there will be a ‘fee’ to have customs official be present to ‘clear you’. I am not sure which itinerary, but makes sense, since cruise does not officially end till the next day and customs not expected till disembarkation. I know pre Covid, when I did some sailings from LA to Vancouver with a stop in Victoria before reaching Vancouver, some Canadians who lived in the Victoria area, were allowed to disembark. I know permission and paperwork needed to be done beforehand, do not remember if they had to pay fee, I think not, because the cruise line knew their nationality so no immigration issue, but would be for US citizen who maybe wanted to stay in Victoria post cruise and not want to trek back after getting off in Vancouver? Is your friend Canadian and traveling domestically? If US and trying to fly back to US they will need Covid testing no more than 1 day before flight. Has person booked cruise and just trying to figure out flight home or just doing research for options ? My sister and friends who are US citizens are booked on the August 31 sailing NY to Quebec, and mentioned to me there were flights available disembarkation day early morning at lower fares so she was tempted to also see about leaving ship early. She decided to book the more expensive air ticket leaving normal disembarkation day.

Hi @Itried4498, this was my experience when I did a few B2B on the Navigator this past January. You will not receive your ‘new’ room keycards till you checkin at the in transit lounge on turn around day. The Navigator menus are set for 7 day cruise, but since you are doing a 3 day and 4 day, Day 1 - 3 will be exactly the same menus, so Day 1 on your 3 day cruise will be the same menu as Day 1 of the 4 day cruise, etc. The only new menu to you will be Day 4. The main shows are Showgirl, past present future and the Ice Show. It has been reported some of the mid May cruises and later, they did not do the shows, possibly because crew were I’ll. I heard they did do a short ice skating ‘skills’ presentation , which is a disappointment if you have seen the normal show. Hopefully for your sailing they are back to doing the regular shows. In addition, RCL will bring on guest entertainers, comedian, jugglers, singers, etc. Depending on the contract, some will stay on and repeat, or you may get a new set of guest entertainers, just depends on rotation and availability. On a recent 3 day cruise, it was reported a passenger was told the ship was at FULL capacity with over 3000 passengers. You should expect similar numbers with summer and the 3 day sailings are normally more popular.

Hi join the roll call for this sailing. Some of us are passengers originally on the Diamond LA to Tokyo sailing that was canceled and were offered this Sept 2022 sailing as a replacement. See you on board.

Hi @erber, if you get a chance, would you stop by and see who are the Loyalty and Events Manager and Future cruise consultant on the ship currently. Their offices are located just left next to Crown Grill.

I have read on another thread regarding recent shareholders OBC requests. Some passengers have reported they received the benefit for cruises booked into next year, 2023. While others have posted if they submitted more than 3 months from sailing, their request is denied and were told to resubmit within the 3 month period. since your cruise is sailing in less than 3 months, you should be able to submit, without worry of being told you are too early.

I have heard, it is possible to be denied adding passenger2 because your cabin is located in a section where max passenger capacity for that lifeboat section has been reached. Think of families with more than 2 passengers in cabins. If sailing not full, you could be moved to accommodate lifeboat allocation.

Sometime during February this year on the Navigator, they decided to not have alcohol available at the bar in WJ. Previously, I could get canned Truly’s, beer, or glass of champagne to make my own mimosa. You still have your D, D+, and Pinnacle vouchers on disembarkation morning, but your selections are now limited to coffees and non alcohol. I have not heard if the dining room was still serving mimosa’s and bloody Mary’s, etc. You have till they close out the current sailing which probably varies. I was doing a B2B and while waiting in the lounge to be walked off, my internet plan became inactive as they closed out the sailing and us B2B passengers were still on board, so the passenger count had not gone to zero yet. On my last night, I went to a bar at about 12:30 am to see if the vouchers had reset and I was told No, so I went to sleep and got some canned soda after morning breakfast at WJ. Not sure if this is a last night thing or new policy or just a glitch on that sailing as I have heard the vouchers are suppose to reset at midnight.