Princess World Cruise benefits

[islandwoman]

Are there any benefits that come with booking a Princess World Cruise, the whole thing? 

If I book it as segments, I'll get more internet minutes and more mini bar set ups for my Elite status.

[Heidi13]

We did a Princess WC in 2015 and received the mini bar and internet minutes each segment. Benefits of doing the full WC were minimal. From memory, we received a back pack, fridge magnet, glass coaster and lanyard.

[muggo11]

we just booked 2021 WC rt Sydney. Free gratuities and $1000 shipboard credit for each of us. 

[Heidi13]

5 hours ago, muggo11 said:

we just booked 2021 WC rt Sydney. Free gratuities and $1000 shipboard credit for each of us. 

When cruising from Sydney, the gratuities are always included in the cruise fare. Standard practice in Australia.

[muggo11]

19 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

When cruising from Sydney, the gratuities are always included in the cruise fare. Standard practice in Australia.

Wow. I had no idea. . .good to know. 

[islandwoman]

20 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

When cruising from Sydney, the gratuities are always included in the cruise fare. Standard practice in Australia.

 

Does that apply if you're a US resident and book your cruise out of Sydney in US dollars, on the Princess US site or through a US travel agent?

[Heidi13]

1 hour ago, islandwoman said:

 

Does that apply if you're a US resident and book your cruise out of Sydney in US dollars, on the Princess US site or through a US travel agent?

We booked the 2015 WC aboard one of the other ships, so direct with Princess and since it was P&O Australia, gratuities were included. We paid in US $. Can't provide a definitive answer, as we aren't from US, but best guess is they might be included.

[muggo11]

We booked direct with Princess in US dollars.  I normally would use a travel agent for the extra perks but the ship was selling pretty quickly, I am traveling in Europe now AND the Elite booking window was closing so I felt I needed to act quickly.  

[Aquadesiac]

We're booked on the 2021 WC on the Island Princess roundtrip out of Ft. Lauderdale. Here's the list of goodies we got:

 

Princess Captain's Circle Savings

• Past Princess Guests may enjoy up to $1,000 per person Extra Savings (Which we received)

Full World Cruise Early Booking Benefits when you book by November 30, 2019:

• Up to $1,000 Shipboard Credit per person (Check!)
• FREE First-Class Roundtrip Air when you book a mini-suite or above —OR— FREE Economy Class Roundtrip Air when you book a balcony (We booked a balcony, but plan to ask about paying to upgrade to First Class when the time gets closer)
• Complimentary Gratuities (Check! Of course we'll still give extra gratuities to our regular servers and room steward)
• FREE Wi-Fi (which is not the same thing as free internet evidently. Our TA ponied up for an unlimited internet package for us)
• FREE Room Location Upgrade (We got a BD balcony for the price of a BE)
• FREE Specialty Dining (4 times during the WC)
• FREE Wine (4 bottles valued at $32 a bottle)

Our Travel Agent kicked in another $1500 in OBC and we plan to be elites by the time we board so we'll get those perks as well. Gotta love free laundry!!!!

[islandwoman]

2 hours ago, Aquadesiac said:

We're booked on the 2021 WC on the Island Princess roundtrip out of Ft. Lauderdale. Here's the list of goodies we got:

 

 

Those are tremendous!  I asked my TA what we would receive for booking the Sydney to Sydney WC and he said $1,000 OBC per person and free gratuities.  That's all!  And since P&O Australia doesn't charge gratuities, the free gratuities doesn't seem like a benefit at all.

[Aquadesiac]

I guess it's never too late to switch. We were booked on a 2021 97 Day FTL to London WC on the Queen Victoria, but after we tried Cunard, we decided the formality was too much for us for an extended cruise. We switched to the 2021 Island Princess  WC in August and are very happy we did. If we'd stayed with Cunard, we'd have had to fly back from London, which I wasn't wild about. I'd rather confine my flights to domestic. 

Edited November 4, 2019 by Aquadesiac

[Go-Bucks!]

I love Princess (I'm on the Regal currently and have 2 more booked on the Island next year), but I did the Oceania world cruise earlier this year...I suggest you check them out. They included so many necessary things that would have to be purchased separately on Princess that the total cost was very similar and Oceania is a cut above Princess. The value of the Oceania perks were $22K - 25K.

[Heidi13]

8 hours ago, Go-Bucks! said:

I love Princess (I'm on the Regal currently and have 2 more booked on the Island next year), but I did the Oceania world cruise earlier this year...I suggest you check them out. They included so many necessary things that would have to be purchased separately on Princess that the total cost was very similar and Oceania is a cut above Princess. The value of the Oceania perks were $22K - 25K.

After 6 months on Oceania, it must be a challenge going back to Princess. Worked & cruised with them for 35+ years, but after Viking Ocean🙂, we won't be returning to Princess.

[Go-Bucks!]

10 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

After 6 months on Oceania, it must be a challenge going back to Princess. Worked & cruised with them for 35+ years, but after Viking Ocean🙂, we won't be returning to Princess.

 

Not at all...I enjoy Princess. I'm on the Regal right now...beautiful, good food (I'm not a food snob, though) and great crew. Only drawback  is too many passengers...never see anyone twice. I still love Oceania the best, but instead of only being able to sail once a year on O, I can sail 3 times/yr on Princess. And they have some great itineraries. I plan to sail on both, as well as try other lines.

Edited November 8, 2019 by Go-Bucks!

[Aquadesiac]

Like Go-Bucks, I enjoy Princess. (Of course, any time a deck is swaying under my feet, I'm happy.) But we can afford to do more traveling on Princess compared to O or Viking. And frankly, with the perks we were offered for our 2021 WC with Princess (see my Nov 3rd post on this thread), it's almost as inclusive as the other lines. The only thing I notice we'll be missing is luggage service and help with securing visas. I know one of the O Life choices is an excursion in each port, but I'm not sure how often we'd be satisfied with the free excursion, so that's a wash. Viking and Oceania's itineraries do call to me, but the Princess WC is much shorter and 111 days is about our limit. We also enjoy the occasional formal night, which Princess offers. Love seeing the DH in his tux!

 

I guess it really comes down to what style of cruising suits you, what you can comfortably afford, and what makes you happy. 

[islandwoman]

1 hour ago, Aquadesiac said:

I guess it really comes down to what style of cruising suits you, what you can comfortably afford, and what makes you happy. 

 

As far as I've been able to determine, Princess is the only line that has a World Cruise that doesn't interfere with North America's ski season.

[Heidi13]

2 hours ago, Aquadesiac said:

Like Go-Bucks, I enjoy Princess. (Of course, any time a deck is swaying under my feet, I'm happy.) But we can afford to do more traveling on Princess compared to O or Viking. And frankly, with the perks we were offered for our 2021 WC with Princess (see my Nov 3rd post on this thread), it's almost as inclusive as the other lines. The only thing I notice we'll be missing is luggage service and help with securing visas. I know one of the O Life choices is an excursion in each port, but I'm not sure how often we'd be satisfied with the free excursion, so that's a wash. Viking and Oceania's itineraries do call to me, but the Princess WC is much shorter and 111 days is about our limit. We also enjoy the occasional formal night, which Princess offers. Love seeing the DH in his tux!

 

I guess it really comes down to what style of cruising suits you, what you can comfortably afford, and what makes you happy. 

Totally agree that style of cruising is one of our primary factors in deciding a cruise line and is why we switched from Princess to Viking.

 

With respect to cruise costs, Viking & Oceania may cost more when making the booking, but by the end of the cruise, in our experience, the difference is minimal. Just looked at the 2021 Princess prices, noting that when extrapolated for 119 nights, our Viking cruise is CAN $15,000 more pp for a similar cabin location. However we have $4,500 OBC pp and included Bus Class flights costing about $7K pp.

 

Our on-board spend from our 2015 Princess WC cruise (with almost similar benefits as you have) would easily make up the difference in cost.

[muggo11]

Style matters. When we compared pricing, we used our average daily spend on 41 Princess, MSC, Carnival, and Cunard cruises to do our math. I can easily handle our own visas, we organize our own excursions 90% of the time, first class air and hotels are nice but not critical. (And I have nearly 500K of Amex miles I have been hoarding for airfare!). And we don’t drink enough to make included liquor that valuable.

 

I understand the value—financially and psychologically—of the perks included by Oceania and Viking but those things aren’t as valuable to US. And we haven't had a disappointing Princess cruise yet. 

For 108 days (40 ports), We have budgeted 4K for Liquor, 2K for Sanctuary, $3K for specialty restaurants and off-the-ship food, $2K for souvenirs and gifts, $6K for excursions   With 3K for  Miscellaneous, putting our all-in costs at about $50K. 

 

Will I be right?  Ask me Sept 20, 2021 when we disembark in Sydney!  And start looking for a bridge under which to live. 
 

[Aquadesiac]

I neglected to say we are not drinkers either and I'm not a shopper, so our onboard spending is really negligible. One other thing to consider is trip insurance. We pay less than for an all inclusive because we aren't insuring our excursions (which can be cancelled) and all the other things that are built into the price of an all-inclusive.

 

We've never done the Sanctuary. Obviously you feel it's a plus, Muggo. Can you tell me a bit about your experience with it? We love to get into the thermal suite, but only if the ship has heated stone lounges, which the Island Princess doesn't ;-(.  I was thinking we'd try to buy a day pass when we go through the Panama and Suez canals, but it looks like you're booking for the full cruise. Care to share what you like about it? 

[Heidi13]

17 hours ago, muggo11 said:

Style matters. When we compared pricing, we used our average daily spend on 41 Princess, MSC, Carnival, and Cunard cruises to do our math. I can easily handle our own visas, we organize our own excursions 90% of the time, first class air and hotels are nice but not critical. (And I have nearly 500K of Amex miles I have been hoarding for airfare!). And we don’t drink enough to make included liquor that valuable.

 

I understand the value—financially and psychologically—of the perks included by Oceania and Viking but those things aren’t as valuable to US. And we haven't had a disappointing Princess cruise yet. 

For 108 days (40 ports), We have budgeted 4K for Liquor, 2K for Sanctuary, $3K for specialty restaurants and off-the-ship food, $2K for souvenirs and gifts, $6K for excursions   With 3K for  Miscellaneous, putting our all-in costs at about $50K. 

 

Will I be right?  Ask me Sept 20, 2021 when we disembark in Sydney!  And start looking for a bridge under which to live. 
 

Your on-board spend budget is very similar in total to our actual spend on the 2015 WC R/T Sydney.

 

However, once everything was included, our total spend for both of us when adding Bus Flights, hotels for a couple of nights pre-cruise, Visas, etc was about $100K when using US$. Our cabins alone were about US $35,000 pp, even with all discounts applied for booking on a previous cruise. Being Elite we had no internet or laundry costs and the bar fridge was refilled 4 times (each segment).

[muggo11]

10 hours ago, Aquadesiac said:

I neglected to say we are not drinkers either and I'm not a shopper, so our onboard spending is really negligible. One other thing to consider is trip insurance. We pay less than for an all inclusive because we aren't insuring our excursions (which can be cancelled) and all the other things that are built into the price of an all-inclusive.

 

We've never done the Sanctuary. Obviously you feel it's a plus, Muggo. Can you tell me a bit about your experience with it? We love to get into the thermal suite, but only if the ship has heated stone lounges, which the Island Princess doesn't ;-(.  I was thinking we'd try to buy a day pass when we go through the Panama and Suez canals, but it looks like you're booking for the full cruise. Care to share what you like about it? 

We have been on 17 Princess cruises and I can’t recall when I first experienced Sanctuary—probably on our Panama Canal cruise (we booked the full day during the passage). We generally book 1/2 days on sea days.  I think my love for Sanctuary boils down to why I vacation and why I cruise. 
**I have an unencumbered view of the ocean. Which I can stare at for hours on end

**it make sense financially, e.g. an interior plus Sanctuary is cheaper than a balcony

**I have a guaranteed comfortable chaise with 3-4 waitstaff responding to food and beverage needs; my husband and I can come and go as we please and not worry about our stuff 

**Tea and scones show up like clockwork every afternoon

**I am blissfully alone in a quiet space—no music, no kids, no loud pool activities. I can read, nap, listen to music on my headphones, go to the small pool/hot tubs 1 floor down. 
In the mornings, we sleep in, have sit-down breakfast, walk the decks, play trivia, go to the gym  (we never go to the buffet).  BUT at 1 pm?  Booking Sanctuary for afternoon sea days is now an integral part of my perfect Princess cruise that defines relaxation for me. 
 

[Aquadesiac]

Sounds good, Muggo. But I'll never get the DH out of a balcony cabin. He's hooked on having a private outdoor space. We will, however, book the Sanctuary for both the canals on our WC. Thanks for painting a picture for us!

[Go-Bucks!]

On 11/11/2019 at 3:41 PM, Aquadesiac said:

I know one of the O Life choices is an excursion in each port, but I'm not sure how often we'd be satisfied with the free excursion

 

It's not like some cruiselines that give you a free excursion and it's that or nothing...on Oceania you get to choose from all available tours in any ports you want.  And you can include any that are priced up to $199 each.  We got 36 for each of us, so they are theoretically worth up to $7,164.  The ones I took were very good...and when you have 90+ ports, paying for private tours can get really pricey!!

[Go-Bucks!]

On 11/11/2019 at 6:20 PM, Heidi13 said:

However we have $4,500 OBC pp

 

But didn't you once say that this was some type of error on their part and others aren't going to get $9,000 obc per couple?

[Go-Bucks!]

On 11/11/2019 at 8:11 PM, muggo11 said:

I can easily handle our own visas

 

Have you done this by yourself before?  India?? China?? It was a huge hassle even with the visa company helping!  I definitely wouldn't be dismissing the advantage of having a company helping with visas...we had 5-7 of them to apply for and provide documentation. 

 

we organize our own excursions 90% of the time

 

We had 90+ ports...even if you can find excursions that cost $50 each ($100/couple), that would cost $9,000! And not many good tours are that cheap.  The excursion benefit isn't a big deal for a short cruise, but definitely a huge help for a very long cruise.  And why else are you spending so much time and money to do a world cruise if you don't want to see the sights of the world and not just wander around a port?

Quote

 

we don’t drink enough to make included liquor that valuable.

 

I don't drink either...Oceania isn't all inclusive...liquor isn't included so you aren't paying for others drinks.

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2K for Sanctuary,

 

Oceania is small and hardly anyone was out sunbathing...you'd have the deck to yourself, including a waiter for drinks. And the Waves grill is right there.

 

 

Edited November 20, 2019 by Go-Bucks!