What happens if 1 passenger doesn't show?

[cherylandtk]

Princess Customer Relations acknowledged that had the passenger purchased PVP (where we could file a reimbursement claim), we could have actually waited until less than 14 days prior and the remaining passenger would have incurred NO additional cost.

This is an entirely different situation than your scenario #2. The relevant new facts here are that the pax has the Princess insurance AND that it was a covered reason.

[caribill]

Generally speaking, if she's booking an inside or oceanview cabin, the supplement will be 150 - 180% of the per-person fare.

 

Isn't the suplement 50%-80% of the per-person fare making the total with supplement 150%-180% of the per-person fare?

 

As stated, a supplement of 150%-180% would mean a total fare of 250%-280%.

[selfmedit8ing]

Well, I cannot argue with your personal experience, but can you clarify one thing? Did Princess actually credit the ~$500 forfeited by the cancelling passenger to the remaining passenger? So the additional amount due was actually $1075, but your passener only had to pay $575? Or was the total additional amount due $575 to begin with?

 

Hi cherylandtk,

 

Don't have the file here, but the per person total was about $1,400. Passenger number 2 will be getting a refund of about $700. The remaining $700 was left on the booking and with the single supplement, left passenger 1 with a balance due of about $575.

 

Passenger 2 was upset about getting half her deposit back, however, she had declined to take travel insurance. Had she waited any longer, the fees would have been much higher, so she is luckier than some.

 

Sometimes our clients mistakenly believe we strongly recommend travel insurance as a way of padding our commissions, when the reality is we have seen painful situations like this occur all too often . . .

[junglejane]

I am going to try to clarify my thoughts with this simplified hypothetical: Husband and Wife book the cruise together; the fare for each is $1000; they have no insurance of any kind; at the last minute one spouse "no shows" at the pier; the other, traveling spouse boards (and doesn't say anything about the no-show spouse); and this couple is happy to forfeit the $1000 paid by the non-traveling spouse. Thus, they pay the sum of $2000 for one to cruise, the same as if both had cruised.

 

Am I to understand that in this scenario the traveling spouse will be summoned to the purser's desk mid-cruise and forced to pay the single supplement? (say it's another $1000). What if he/she refuses?

 

And what is the logic of the result: If BOTH spouses cruise, they pay $2000. If NEITHER spouse cruises (both of them no-show) they pay $2000. But if ONE travels and one does not, they must pay $3000? That is fair because...?

[selfmedit8ing]

This is an entirely different situation than your scenario #2. The relevant new facts here are that the pax has the Princess insurance AND that it was a covered reason.

 

 

What I am attempting to convey, albeit clumsily, is that IF a passenger has travel insurance (and it is a "cancel for any reason" policy), they may wish to consider waiting (that is if they are financially able to wait) until the cruise is less than 14 days away before they cancel. This would avoid leaving the remaining passenger stuck with unanticipated trip costs.

 

The scenario was unrelated to the first one, but relevant information for those who may be facing a similar predicament, but had the foresight to purchase travel insurance.

 

By the way, regardless of having pvp or not, there would be NO additional charge for the remaining passenger IF the cancellation fees are 100% of the total fare.

[Jamiebearr]

My first cruise with Princess was back in 2005. I was with my parents, and my exBF was supossed to go with me. They were in one room and we were in another. When we broke up a month or so before the cruise, I asked if he still wanted to go (trying to give him an easy out, and make it a better cruise for myself). He said that he did still want to go, then with 2 or 3 days to go before the cruise he backed out. With only a couple of days to go I couldn't find anyone who could get time off of work with so little notice. My family & I went to Seattle, checked in for our cruise without him, and I was never asked to pay for him not being there. They didn't offer to give us any money back, we didn't ask for it, and they did not ask for additional money as a single supplement. Just my experience. (BTW, it was a great cruise where I fell in love with Princess!!)

[selfmedit8ing]

Isn't the suplement 50%-80% of the per-person fare making the total with supplement 150%-180% of the per-person fare?

 

As stated, a supplement of 150%-180% would mean a total fare of 250%-280%.

 

The single supplement can be up to 200% of the base cruise fare (not including government fees and taxes).

 

I have seen the 200% supplement occur most frequently when there is a good promotional price available.

[Pam in CA]

Isn't the suplement 50%-80% of the per-person fare making the total with supplement 150%-180% of the per-person fare?

 

As stated, a supplement of 150%-180% would mean a total fare of 250%-280%.

It all depends on how you do the math. :) When you travel as a single, most travel companies (not just cruises) put the single fare in terms of 100% as the per-person fare based on double occupancy so the fare is 150-200%+ of the per person fare. You are technically correct in that the "supplement" is the percentage over 100% but that's not the way it's usually expressed. At least in the brochures I read.

[sultan_sfo]

The cancellation has to be for a "covered" reason for the single supplement to be covered by the Insurance. (There is a quote from the actual policy in one of the earlier posts -- I think by JungleJane). The "Any Reason Cancellation" would ding the remaining pax with the single supplement. If this were not the case, no one would book single. Book with a "Dummy" person, both have insurance, one cancels for "any reason" and remaining pax will have paid for half the cabin + insurance costs and gets the whole cabin. To avoid this strategy is why the single supplement gets charged.

 

What I am attempting to convey, albeit clumsily, is that IF a passenger has travel insurance (and it is a "cancel for any reason" policy), they may wish to consider waiting (that is if they are financially able to wait) until the cruise is less than 14 days away before they cancel. This would avoid leaving the remaining passenger stuck with unanticipated trip costs.

...

[cherylandtk]

Hi cherylandtk,

 

Don't have the file here, but the per person total was about $1,400. Passenger number 2 will be getting a refund of about $700. The remaining $700 was left on the booking and with the single supplement, left passenger 1 with a balance due of about $575.

Thanks for the clarification. This is a new one on me, and definitely outside of the 'standard, normal operating procedures'. This is the first time I have ever heard of Princess crediting the penalty amount to the remaining passenger. Either it is something fairly new, or one of those rare, odd and goofy occurances that attains mythic proportion over time.:p Thanks for the info.

[selfmedit8ing]

Thanks for the clarification. This is a new one on me, and definitely outside of the 'standard, normal operating procedures'. This is the first time I have ever heard of Princess crediting the penalty amount to the remaining passenger. Either it is something fairly new, or one of those rare, odd and goofy occurances that attains mythic proportion over time.:p Thanks for the info.

 

Hi cherylandtk,

 

Happy to share my experience. Hopefully it is helpful to others.

 

Policies and procedures seem to change so frequently and I think this is where things can get muddy; even for cruise res agents.

 

That is why these boards are so great. I learn new things here all the time!

[selfmedit8ing]

The cancellation has to be for a "covered" reason for the single supplement to be covered by the Insurance. (There is a quote from the actual policy in one of the earlier posts -- I think by JungleJane). The "Any Reason Cancellation" would ding the remaining pax with the single supplement. If this were not the case, no one would book single. Book with a "Dummy" person, both have insurance, one cancels for "any reason" and remaining pax will have paid for half the cabin + insurance costs and gets the whole cabin. To avoid this strategy is why the single supplement gets charged.

 

Hi sultansfo,

 

If we are talking about a scenario where someone cancels after 100% of the total fees are assessed, whether the 2nd passenger has or doesn't have travel insurance would not impact the remaining passenger; the fare will only require additional payment if cancellation occurs before 100% of total fees are assessed.

 

 

As for a "Dummy" person, my basic understanding of travel insurance policies is (your experience may vary):

 

• The insurance policy must be purchased within a very short time of booking
  
• An insurance claim will never reimburse the cost of the travel insurance policy itself
  
• A cancel for any reason policy usually has a cap (say 70 - 90%) on the reimbursable amount
  
• A claim form must be filed in a legitimate person's name and will be scrutinized by the underwriter
  
• Many times the underwriter will want proof of airfare purchased, hotel reservations, etc. to demonstrate that there was legitimate intent.
  

Good people, I do not advocate or recommend committing fraud to reduce the single supplement fare. My intent was to illustrate to those that have travel insurance and find themselves in the unenviable position where one passenger legitimately needs to cancel, there may be an optimal time to do so.

[sultan_sfo]

Princess Policy with Any Reason Cancellation can be purchased right upto the final payment date.

 

While it is true that there will no cash refund with Any Reason Cancellation, the enhanced Policy (available to all Platinum Princess Cruisers at no additional cost) provides 100% Cruise Credit.

 

I also disagree with your premises in your first para but I do not wish to go into that.

 

And if you read my post carefully, I have already stated that Insurance Premium will be a cost to both pax.

 

Hi sultansfo,

 

If we are talking about a scenario where someone cancels after 100% of the total fees are assessed, whether the 2nd passenger has or doesn't have travel insurance would not impact the remaining passenger; the fare will only require additional payment if cancellation occurs before 100% of total fees are assessed.

 

 

As for a "Dummy" person, my basic understanding of travel insurance policies is (your experience may vary):

 

• The insurance policy must be purchased within a very short time of booking
  
• An insurance claim will never reimburse the cost of the travel insurance policy itself
  
• A cancel for any reason policy usually has a cap (say 70 - 90%) on the reimbursable amount
  
• A claim form must be filed in a legitimate person's name and will be scrutinized by the underwriter
  
• Many times the underwriter will want proof of airfare purchased, hotel reservations, etc. to demonstrate that there was legitimate intent.
  

Good people, I do not advocate or recommend committing fraud to reduce the single supplement fare. My intent was to illustrate to those that have travel insurance and find themselves in the unenviable position where one passenger legitimately needs to cancel, there may be an optimal time to do so.

[jayevee44]

According to other posts of this board, the person not cruising does not get Captain Circle credit for this cruise, even if they forfeit the entire fare.

 

Donna, here is your thread on this topic from February.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1147644&highlight=single+supplement

[selfmedit8ing]

Princess Policy with Any Reason Cancellation can be purchased right upto the final payment date.

 

While it is true that there will no cash refund with Any Reason Cancellation, the enhanced Policy (available to all Platinum Princess Cruisers at no additional cost) provides 100% Cruise Credit.

 

I also disagree with your premises in your first para but I do not wish to go into that.

 

And if you read my post carefully, I have already stated that Insurance Premium will be a cost to both pax.

 

 

Hi sultansfo,

 

Not sure how we got off on the wrong foot, but I understand that you disagree with what I have stated about cancellations and single supplement. Hey, no hard feelings. Let's agree to disagree.

 

You are correct about Princess Vacation Protection. It may be purchased up to final payment due date. No doubt, a great benefit for people like yourself, that have attained Platinum and Elite Captains Circle status. Unfortunately, some of my clients are not eligible for the free upgrade from Standard (cost: 8% of the base fare) to Platinum (cost: 12% of the base fare).

 

I was speaking more of the Cancel For Any Reason coverage from 3rd party travel insurers, like TravelGuard and TravelSafe, which tend to be a bit more affordable, where the cancel for any reason reimbursement is a refund (though not 100%). This seems to be more attractive to my clients than a future cruise credit that expires after a 1 year period.

 

In a perfect world, every traveler would see the value of protecting their travel dollars investment and the decision to purchase trip insurance wouldn't be based primarily on cost. It just doesn't always happen . . .

[Pam in CA]

In a perfect world, every traveler would see the value of protecting their travel dollars investment and the decision to purchase trip insurance wouldn't be based primarily on cost. It just doesn't always happen . . .

In a perfect world, no one would ever need insurance but since it's not perfect, there are as many different types of insurance and coverage as there are situations and the need for insurance. There's no perfect insurance or "one size fits all."

 

Usually, the need for insurance arises out of an unexpected "event" whether it's medical, job, family, etc. so there's really no way to anticipate what type of insurance you'll actually need (except for tragic situations where a friend/relative is mortally ill and it's just a question of when.)

 

Insurance is always a gamble and you better your odds by analyzing what you are most likely to need and going with that type of insurance. The most important thing, to me, is that passengers are educated before blindly purchasing insurance and expecting it to cover a multitude of potential circumstances. That's kind of what we did when we purchased Princess insurance for our cruise earlier this year but as it turned out, it was the right kind for us given what happened and our expenses.

 

The best advice I can give is: educate yourselves and make an informed decision. Don't let someone else do it for you.

[selfmedit8ing]

In a perfect world, no one would ever need insurance but since it's not perfect, there are as many different types of insurance and coverage as there are situations and the need for insurance. There's no perfect insurance or "one size fits all."

 

Usually, the need for insurance arises out of an unexpected "event" whether it's medical, job, family, etc. so there's really no way to anticipate what type of insurance you'll actually need (except for tragic situations where a friend/relative is mortally ill and it's just a question of when.)

 

Insurance is always a gamble and you better your odds by analyzing what you are most likely to need and going with that type of insurance. The most important thing, to me, is that passengers are educated before blindly purchasing insurance and expecting it to cover a multitude of potential circumstances. That's kind of what we did when we purchased Princess insurance for our cruise earlier this year but as it turned out, it was the right kind for us given what happened and our expenses.

 

The best advice I can give is: educate yourselves and make an informed decision. Don't let someone else do it for you.

 

Hi Pam,

 

If I could find a way to bottle your comments without feeling like I was capitalizing on such a sad time for you, my clients would be so much the better for it. I ached for you when I read the chronicle of your recent cruise.

 

You are wise and gracious; it's always a pleasure to find your comments.

 

Thank you, Pam.

[sultan_sfo]

Actually, I liked your informative post and wish there were more posts like that. I look forward to future posts from you because obviously you put a lot of thinking in your posts. My concern was the many posts that showed no understanding why a single occupancy rate should be charged if the second occupant has to cancel.

 

Hi sultansfo,

...

Not sure how we got off on the wrong foot, but I understand that you disagree with what I have stated about cancellations and single supplement. Hey, no hard feelings. Let's agree to disagree.

 

. .

[KruzPrincess]

We didn't get insurance for this cruise :eek:. We're not looking to get a refund or anything like that. I'm just curious really about the tips. Personally I think it will remain as tho there are 2 people but I'm not really sure.

 

I was cruising with friends once on the Island Princess. My cabin mate couldn't come due to a family emergency. She didn't want me to miss the cruise, so she forfeited her fare. Actually, I think she got a refund from insurance in the end. I had the cabin to myself and I only paid gratuities for one person. Hope that helps.

[KruzPrincess]

I was cruising with friends once on the Island Princess. My cabin mate couldn't come due to a family emergency. She didn't want me to miss the cruise, so she forfeited her fare. Actually, I think she got a refund from insurance in the end. I had the cabin to myself and I only paid gratuities for one person. Hope that helps.

 

I wanted to add that my friend had non-Princess insurance. Also, I was never asked to pay any different amount. No one even spoke to me about. She tried to get her Captains Circle credit, but Princess refused to give it to her. This happened a few years ago, so things may have changed since then.