New Luggage Tag Wording re: Wine

[Astro Flyer]

Sorry....but that is not the case. If you open a bottle in your room and carry to the dining room, you can be charged a corkage. It has nothing to do with who opened the bottle.

Exactly! ;)

 

My recent experience is that a bottle of wine purchased anywhere onboard outside of the MDR has a Princess Seawitch logo stamped on the bottle to indicate that it was purchased onboard & thus the corkage fee was included in the purchase price.

 

Talking to a Princess Customer Relations rep this morning she said prohibiting wine being brought onboard from ports of call is still just something being considered & that no final decision has been made about it's implementation.

[Amuse Bouche]

I would pay $150 to bring a bottle of rum aboard. The 375ml bottles they sell are a joke. Also the variety is lacking terribly.

 

I would love not to have to smuggle my favorite spirits just so I can have a pre and post dinner cocktail on the balcony.

 

To me the variety is the biggest problem from the liquor side.

 

As for the wine policy, love it. My wife is a wine snob. So we will be going to the store before our next cruise.

 

:D For $150, you could get 9 of those 375ml bottles, about 3 litres!

Of course, you only get white or coconut! (my two least favorite...sheesh!)

It's been said that you can buy the 375ml from the bars on the ship as well. I'm wondering if I can buy 2 white, and trade it in for 1 750 of the dark bacardi. They've GOT to be stocking a whole bunch of that!

[Texas Realtor]

:D For $150, you could get 9 of those 375ml bottles, about 3 litres!

Of course, you only get white or coconut! (my two least favorite...sheesh!)

It's been said that you can buy the 375ml from the bars on the ship as well. I'm wondering if I can buy 2 white, and trade it in for 1 750 of the dark bacardi. They've GOT to be stocking a whole bunch of that!

 

I like captain Morgan & blue goose or a nice bottle of glenlevit.

 

Depends on the ambiance.

[WarEagle76]

I made a few calls. If and when enforcement begins the process will be similar to as follows. As always, everything I get from sources is to be considered PURE RUMOR until confirmed officially.

 

You will be asked to 'declare' wine at embarkation. 1 bottle of wine per adult person will be free of charge (I raised the length of cruise question BTW and was told that was still being hashed out). Additional bottles will be charged $15. Each bottle, whether free or otherwise will get a sticker placed on it and will then be clear to consume anywhere on the ship without additional fees.

 

The ship management system will identify how many free bottles have been claimed on a cabin by cabin basis. This should mean that if there are 3 adults in a cabin, one of them can carry all 3 allowed bottles.

 

Checked bags determined by scanning to have wine will have the owners called down, if they have not claimed the allowance they can claim it then. As per current policy, alcohol other than wine or champagne will be confiscated. Scanned carryons will follow a similar procedure.

 

As to some of the reasons...

 

Obviously, economics are one. This is a revenue area for Princess in many ways, the corkage fee and possibly greater onboard sales.

Secondly, many passengers were flouting the intent of the original corkage fee by bringing glasses of wine to dinner from cabins. The other solution to this was to provide in-room different type/style of glasses, but that was considered not to be practical from a cost/execution standpoint.

Third, yes they have noticed people bringing cases of wine on. The new policy was designed to still permit this, while lessening the impact to Princess. The alternative was a strict one bottle enforcement with confiscation.

 

The following item is to be considered COMPLETELY AS RUMOR, this is one employee's educated GUESS

 

There is an expectation that if/when enforcement kicks in, there will be some enhancements to the wine packages to soften the impact, including ensuring availability across most if not all of the fleet in some form. They are still analysing the metrics of the current offering.

 

Loonbeam, thanks for the info. I don't understand how someone in the dining room would know where the glass of wine came from. On a number of occasions when using anytime dining, when there was a wait we would go to a bar in the atrium area, get a glass of wine, and when our "buzzer" went off proceed to the dining room with our wine. Additionally, try as we might, we could not get a bottle of wine when dining in Cafe Caribe on Ruby this past December. So while Princess may be complaining about lost sales, they need to get their own act together as they are losing sales now due to their own ineptness.

[Loonbeam]

I don't think it would be hard to figure out given that I have heard people talk about it at a table with us in front of the serving staff and headwaiter. I quote "This is a really great chardonnay. We have a couple of bottles back in the cabin", yet oddly enough they each arrived carrying one glass. Which they left to be washed and I am sure asked their steward for new ones.

 

A corkage on embarkation policy is fairer to the cruise line and a heck of a lot easier to manage.

 

Loonbeam, thanks for the info. I don't understand how someone in the dining room would know where the glass of wine came from. On a number of occasions when using anytime dining, when there was a wait we would go to a bar in the atrium area, get a glass of wine, and when our "buzzer" went off proceed to the dining room with our wine. Additionally, try as we might, we could not get a bottle of wine when dining in Cafe Caribe on Ruby this past December. So while Princess may be complaining about lost sales, they need to get their own act together as they are losing sales now due to their own ineptness.

[luvseaside]

Currently waiting to board. There was no questions or mention of the 2 bottles of wine in our carry on. Nor did they ask about what was in our checked bags.

 

My guess is they are still working out logistics on how to enforce the new policy. Just wanted to report our experience.

[whitecap]

Currently waiting to board. There was no questions or mention of the 2 bottles of wine in our carry on. Nor did they ask about what was in our checked bags.

 

My guess is they are still working out logistics on how to enforce the new policy. Just wanted to report our experience.

 

Thanks, Please keep us advised after boarding. Have a great cruise!

[davekathy]

Currently waiting to board. There was no questions or mention of the 2 bottles of wine in our carry on. Nor did they ask about what was in our checked bags.

 

My guess is they are still working out logistics on how to enforce the new policy. Just wanted to report our experience.

 

Enjoy your Cruise. Bon Voyage.

[xavier]

It would be much easier to make a decision vis a vis bringing extra wine on board or not if Princess would post a current copy of their wine list. Perhaps they do & I just can't find it?

[5326jan]

Since you only had two bottles, it's hard to tell if anything has changed. I think they'll have to do a mass emailing project before full enforcement kicks in.... But, I do think it's coming!:(

[shepp]

A corkage on embarkation policy is fairer to the cruise line and a heck of a lot easier to manage.

 

If by "fairer" you mean "maximizing profits," then I'll drink to that.

[paradise4ever]

i will bring my bottle of merlot as this is the only one i like. it will last me the whole trip as i am not much of a drinker. we are 3 in the cabin so that lets us bring 3 bottles. i dont mind the 15 corkage. it sounds reasonable to me. so, lets have a hearty laugh and a large drink. enjoy, its later thank we think.

[Loonbeam]

I was going more along the lines of 'less easily abused' in the sense of a closer balance between profits and offering.

 

If by "fairer" you mean "maximizing profits," then I'll drink to that.

[Sunbreez]

It would be much easier to make a decision vis a vis bringing extra wine on board or not if Princess would post a current copy of their wine list. Perhaps they do & I just can't find it?

 

Go to the Princess site and type in Wine Cellars. This will bring you to the Princess Cellars. This should give you an idea as to what they have and the $$$.

[Insanityx4]

Have to jump in here! I really don't mind the corkage fee. We have sailed Princess before and never really knew for sure just how much wine we could bring on board without cheating or being "caught". On our first cruise with Princess we adhered to the 1 bottle per person policy, then saw many others bringing on much more. Second cruise we brought 6 bottles, no problem, but also spent a lot purchasing wine in the MDR. At least now there are guidelines and from my observations those who bring their wine on board will get what they like to drink, maybe save money, and not have to worry about their extra bottles being confiscated! My main gripe here is to Princess (if you are reading this Princess, listen up), please communicate to your customers what you are doing! Some passenger have contracts that say nothing about how much wine can be brought on board, my boarding pass says nothing about the corkage fee, others say the $15 per bottle corkage after the first bottle will be enforced. Too much confusion here! Also clarify whether you can bring wine on board in ports. Princess should have figured out the details before changing the luggage tags and boarding passed. Very frustrating!

[caribill]

Another thread about the Ruby says no problem with limits boarding Sunday.

[Astro Flyer]

Hope all of this will be cleared up before our next cruise.

 

The contract says "any alcohol found in violation of the one bottle policy will be removed and discarded" yet the luggage tags say "Additional wine & Champagne bottles are welcome for a $15 corkage fee each, per voyage".

 

Since the contract is legally binding then I don't understand the luggage tag statement welcoming us to bring additional bottles of wine or champagne by paying the $15/bottle corkage fee.

 

Such contradictions results in confusion by not knowing which 'rule' will be enforced. :confused:

[sminfiddle]

Such contradictions results in confusion by not knowing which 'rule' will be enforced. :confused:

 

Yep. Or "Neither" ?

[GHDPeter]

Princess posted this in answer to a question on fb about bringing wine on board at ports of call

 

Princess Cruises wrote: "I apologize I am just now addressing all of your concerns. We will begin monitoring and enforcing the above policy in the coming weeks and months as we introduce this new policy. We recognize that purchasing wine or champagne ashore can be an enjoyable aspect of shopping and exploring our ports of call. Passengers are able to bring 750ml bottles of wine and/or champagne onboard to enjoy during the cruise as well as at embarkation. Please know that anything above and beyond the one bottle per adult per voyage will incur a corkage fee of $15 per bottle, regardless of where consumed. Currently there is no limit to how many bottles can be brought onboard but again additional bottles of wine or champagne above the one bottle per adult per voyage will incur the $15 per bottle corkage fee. Please know that customs will have their own regulations in regards to large quantities of alcohol (wine and any other spirits) being taken off the ship. To find out customs regulations please contact customs for the port you will be disembarking in."

[caribill]

Princess posted this in answer to a question on fb about bringing wine on board at ports of call

 

Princess Cruises wrote: Please know that anything above and beyond the one bottle per adult per voyage will incur a corkage fee of $15 per bottle, regardless of where consumed.

 

Including, the way this is worded, wine you purchase at a port and will consume when you get back home.

[CanCruzer]

Including, the way this is worded, wine you purchase at a port and will consume when you get back home.

 

It does say "to enjoy during the cruise", so presumably if you brought wine aboard and had Princess hold it for you, you wouldn't be enjoying it during the cruise and it wouldn't incur the corkage.

 

It is really sad that a huge corporation can't create a clear policy with a consistent message vs the contradictory policies and statements.

[Texas Realtor]

Including, the way this is worded, wine you purchase at a port and will consume when you get back home.

 

I would assume you could have them take it and deliver it the last night without charging a fee.

 

These are things they probably did not foresee. I would assume that enforcement of the policy would likely be at least 90 days from the initial announcement.

 

It would be bad pr to charge for those that made final payment prior to the announcement.

[Astro Flyer]

Including, the way this is worded, wine you purchase at a port and will consume when you get back home.

 

It does say "to enjoy during the cruise", so presumably if you brought wine aboard and had Princess hold it for you, you wouldn't be enjoying it during the cruise and it wouldn't incur the corkage.

 

It is really sad that a huge corporation can't create a clear policy with a consistent message vs the contradictory policies and statements.

That's what I was thinking...I'd rather have them take bottles from me until the last night so we can bring home a few bottles of wine without paying $15/bottle merely to take home.

 

It is surprising that they make statements that are contradictory & that it's their customers who have to bring that up to them to seek a clarification. :(

[vjmatty]

Princess posted this in answer to a question on fb about bringing wine on board at ports of call

 

Princess Cruises wrote: "I apologize I am just now addressing all of your concerns. We will begin monitoring and enforcing the above policy in the coming weeks and months as we introduce this new policy. We recognize that purchasing wine or champagne ashore can be an enjoyable aspect of shopping and exploring our ports of call. Passengers are able to bring 750ml bottles of wine and/or champagne onboard to enjoy during the cruise as well as at embarkation. Please know that anything above and beyond the one bottle per adult per voyage will incur a corkage fee of $15 per bottle, regardless of where consumed. Currently there is no limit to how many bottles can be brought onboard but again additional bottles of wine or champagne above the one bottle per adult per voyage will incur the $15 per bottle corkage fee. Please know that customs will have their own regulations in regards to large quantities of alcohol (wine and any other spirits) being taken off the ship. To find out customs regulations please contact customs for the port you will be disembarking in."

 

I figured they had to maintain a way for people to enjoy wine bought in ports.... otherwise why market a sailing as a "Wine Country Cruise"?

[doreen22]

Here is the reply I just got from Princess Customer Relations (we are beer drinkers and Princess liberal alcohol policy has been one of the reasons we choose Princess). Hopefully we don't get sent to the "naughty room":(.

 

"Thank you for your email regarding our wine policy.

The policy remains the same in terms of passengers being permitted to bring one bottle of wine or

champagne onboard per adult per voyage. If this bottle is opened in a public area (such as the dining

room) a $15 corkage fee will apply, however if the bottle is consumed in the privacy of the passenger's

stateroom, no corkage will apply. What has changed is that we recognize some of our passengers have

preferences for particular wines or champagnes and we will now be allowing passengers to bring additional

bottles of wine or champagne onboard our vessels at embarkation. Each bottle in excess of the one bottle

per voyage per adult will receive a $15 corkage fee irrespective of where this will be consumed. Princess

will begin monitoring and enforcing the above policy in the coming weeks and months as we introduce this

new policy.

 

Our policy regarding other forms of alcohol (such as beer or spirits) has not changed and we will not

allow beers, spirits or other alcoholic beverage outside the stipulated 750ml bottles of wine or champagne."