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Best Sale Ever Starts December 11th


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On 12/13/2019 at 3:30 AM, caddion said:

That would be great, thanks. 

Hey mate

 

Just an update that we do have that promotion down here

 

However I did not opt to refare that for my reservation - I have Majestic's 12-day South Pacific and the price difference is almost the exact amount for drink package + Wi-Fi for 12 days.... That is not a deal at all!

 

I'll probably wait for a better deal later on

 

However this is only for me - your trip might still be better off so check on PCL's website first before contacting cruise line or your travel agent directly (depending on how you booked your trip)


Hope this helps

 

Cheers,

Michael

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9 hours ago, jimmieg said:

 It will sort itself out with both TA's and direct Princess agents having clear answers at some point.  Might be hard to go back for frequent customers once the promo ends.

That's is a very optimistic statement.  The more I read on CC, the more I see that something is seriously broken at Princess.  I have never seen a company that has so much difficulty having their written policies and procedures being applied consistently across the fleet and land based operations.  The result is that you don't know what you'll be told at the call center, at IC (expired coffee cards being treated differently), I could go on but I'm sure you get the point.  The differences between what TAs and PAX are being told by Princess agents regarding the addition of perks under this promotion with some things completely different from what is written in the terms and conditions is a glaring example of poor training and supervision.  My optimistic thought is that Princess will replace whoever is in charge of operations with somebody who can assure a high level of consistency.

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53 minutes ago, Daniel A said:

That's is a very optimistic statement.  The more I read on CC, the more I see that something is seriously broken at Princess.  I have never seen a company that has so much difficulty having their written policies and procedures being applied consistently across the fleet and land based operations.  The result is that you don't know what you'll be told at the call center, at IC (expired coffee cards being treated differently), I could go on but I'm sure you get the point.  The differences between what TAs and PAX are being told by Princess agents regarding the addition of perks under this promotion with some things completely different from what is written in the terms and conditions is a glaring example of poor training and supervision.  My optimistic thought is that Princess will replace whoever is in charge of operations with somebody who can assure a high level of consistency.

Totally agree,  I was going to call my TA and have her add the codes to my existing booking but I have a casino discount so I’m gonna wait to see if they straighten this out before I tie up my TA’s time chasing something that may not be there.thanks to all of you !

 

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1 hour ago, Daniel A said:

That's is a very optimistic statement.  The more I read on CC, the more I see that something is seriously broken at Princess.  I have never seen a company that has so much difficulty having their written policies and procedures being applied consistently across the fleet and land based operations.  The result is that you don't know what you'll be told at the call center, at IC (expired coffee cards being treated differently), I could go on but I'm sure you get the point.  The differences between what TAs and PAX are being told by Princess agents regarding the addition of perks under this promotion with some things completely different from what is written in the terms and conditions is a glaring example of poor training and supervision.  My optimistic thought is that Princess will replace whoever is in charge of operations with somebody who can assure a high level of consistency.

Daniel, I think you have some good points there, but I wonder if part of this might be that initial terms get written and perhaps are found out later to not quite cover all circumstances once real life situations come up.  Now, this might be termed a failing as well, perhaps. 

 

Anyway, when things start happening in real life situations, so to speak, they have to react and adjust sometimes.  In my experience, at least dealing with Princess one-on-one, they really try to be fair and reasonable to the customer.  I also think (suspect?) that employees on the ships are given somewhat larger degree of latitude to put customer first and make them happy/satisfied.  This may result in resolving certain situations for the customer, while not necessarily throwing out "the book" or acceding to unreasonable demands.

 

It certainly appears that some TA's were confused or not informed (but not sure whose fault that may be).  And Princess reps were not fully trained and informed (again, did they attend training, participate, distracted, or was the training insufficient?).  Don't suppose we will ever know, but I try not to get worked up over these things and just try to work through it with my own sense of what is right and see if other side ends up agreeing or explains why not.

 

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I keep hearing about the casino rates. Since we're not gamblers anymore, I'm curious what kind of discount are you all getting that Princess is so apprehensive about giving you the add-on capability? I know my son, who is, recently got an email offering a free inside/window cabin, but the ship was sailing the following month.

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46 minutes ago, steelers36 said:

Daniel, I think you have some good points there, but I wonder if part of this might be that initial terms get written and perhaps are found out later to not quite cover all circumstances once real life situations come up.  Now, this might be termed a failing as well, perhaps. 

 

Anyway, when things start happening in real life situations, so to speak, they have to react and adjust sometimes.  This is precisely the reason there are written policies and procedures.  Supervisors should be making sure the policies are being followed so it doesn't fall on the employee to just 'wing it. In my experience, at least dealing with Princess one-on-one, they really try to be fair and reasonable to the customer.  I also think (suspect?) that employees on the ships are given somewhat larger degree of latitude to put customer first and make them happy/satisfied.  This may result in resolving certain situations for the customer, while not necessarily throwing out "the book" or acceding to unreasonable demands.  And this is the root of different customers being serviced differently.

 

It certainly appears that some TA's were confused or not informed (but not sure whose fault that may be).  And Princess reps were not fully trained and informed (again, did they attend training, participate, distracted, or was the training insufficient?).  Professional trainers always test the trainees at the end of the session to ensure the training was effective.  Again this implies poor supervision and follow up.  A manager should always be a trainee in class to ensure the trainer is doing the training properly.  Ineffective or absent training could also be a major factor in these problems.  Don't suppose we will ever know, but I try not to get worked up over these things and just try to work through it with my own sense of what is right and see if other side ends up agreeing or explains why not.

 

I agree with just about everything you said and I believe what you said is part of the problem.  My biggest concern is that PAX who are similarly situated are treated differently.  It's not an equitable system they're running and that leads to disgruntled customers. See some of my comments in red above.

 

Anyone who is a shareholder in Carnival should be concerned by this.

Edited by Daniel A
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Don't go haten' … and I'm not completely 100% sure .. but at least 99.5% … but I called Princess this morning, and was able to add

the BSE package Best2DG to our Getaway cruise pricing sale in November 2020 … and the wild thing is since it was under the Getaway Sale - my part was $ 150 ( 5 at 30 pp pd ) and my wifes is … wait for it … $ 75 

 

for 5 days PBP and Grats ...

 

shows on booking summary

 

on Travel Summary showing Total Price .. but I understand that also changes after a couple of days

 

and this was on a Courtesy Hold Booking - which I have now immediately paid the $ 50 per person NON-refundable deposit which was due by Monday

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2 hours ago, Daniel A said:

That's is a very optimistic statement.  The more I read on CC, the more I see that something is seriously broken at Princess.  I have never seen a company that has so much difficulty having their written policies and procedures being applied consistently across the fleet and land based operations.  The result is that you don't know what you'll be told at the call center, at IC (expired coffee cards being treated differently), I could go on but I'm sure you get the point.  The differences between what TAs and PAX are being told by Princess agents regarding the addition of perks under this promotion with some things completely different from what is written in the terms and conditions is a glaring example of poor training and supervision.  My optimistic thought is that Princess will replace whoever is in charge of operations with somebody who can assure a high level of consistency.

Sadly, I have to agree with you. I, personally, am a huge Princess fan and choose them over most other lines. However, their customer service/reps has seriously gone downhill in the past several years. You have to remember that MANY of the folks you speak with on the phone are home-based agents and not based in an office with easy access to a supervisor or help. All they receive in way of "training" is the fliers and access to a "help" system (if they are really lucky they might get the option of a webinar, too). If these agents do not interpret the fliers and the terms correctly, then the info they give the customer on the phone is also incorrect. Many of these agents have never set foot on a ship. I'm not in any way justifying any of this, just trying to explain the problems (as I see them).

 

This can also be a similar scenario for travel consultants. The fliers we received were not complicated, in my opinion. However, if the consultant did not interpret the flyer correctly, then they are giving clients inaccurate information. If the consultant did not know how to directly refare or add the amenities in Polar, they would have called Princess - and may have been given more inaccurate info. In my case, one client had a situation that required a call to Princess and I got a rep that knew her stuff and did it all seamlessly. Chances are if I called back with the exact same scenario today, I might be told no, or given some completely different info...

 

As a consultant, this is my advice - FIRST, if you have a current booking go in and do a mock booking under BSE and see the fare difference. If it has increased, figure out if the additional cost is worth it to add the amenities while factoring in the loss of any amenities from a previous promo. For one client of mine that had no other promos, the fare was the same under BSE so I refared and got the amenities FREE for her.

 

If the above doesn't work out, factor in which of the amenities are value to you and call your TA or Princess and get them added on. No refare required. In Polar, the code BEST3 etc, is simply added in the offer code section. It takes one second. Fare is adjusted and the travel summary in personalizer shows the added amenities. It is still glitchy for guestsu nder 21 - still haven't got those drink packages showing yet....

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14 minutes ago, ceilidh1 said:

 

This can also be a similar scenario for travel consultants. The fliers we received were not complicated, in my opinion. However, if the consultant did not interpret the flyer correctly, then they are giving clients inaccurate information. If the consultant did not know how to directly refare or add the amenities in Polar, they would have called Princess - and may have been given more inaccurate info. In my case, one client had a situation that required a call to Princess and I got a rep that knew her stuff and did it all seamlessly. Chances are if I called back with the exact same scenario today, I might be told no, or given some completely different info...

Celildh1 - it sounds like you are speaking as a travel consultant who follows cruise lines and Princess. So someone who tries to be accurately educated and up to date on the latest promos at all time.

 

I am guessing the vast majority of cruisers go to "generic travel agents" who probably don't even get these promos. Or maybe the agency gets it but doesn't share it with everyone. They trust that the info they get from the first person at the cruise line is accurate, regardless if it is, as they don't know any better. They deal with all inclusives, hotels, air fare, land trips, Disney, trips to Yellowstone, etc... Difficult to stay up on every industries promos. I feel sorry for these agents who are given wrong information and for their clients.

 

 

Edited by Coral
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40 minutes ago, Daniel A said:

I agree with just about everything you said and I believe what you said is part of the problem.  My biggest concern is that PAX who are similarly situated are treated differently.  It's not an equitable system they're running and that leads to disgruntled customers. See some of my comments in red above.

 

Anyone who is a shareholder in Carnival should be concerned by this.

While this was several years ago, Princess advertised in a high school newspaper for summer phone reservation help. 

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11 minutes ago, ceilidh1 said:

As a consultant, this is my advice - FIRST, if you have a current booking go in and do a mock booking under BSE and see the fare difference. If it has increased, figure out if the additional cost is worth it to add the amenities while factoring in the loss of any amenities from a previous promo.   This is exactly what I did and it worked splendidly! :classic_smile:

 

Fare is adjusted and the travel summary in personalizer shows the added amenities. It is still glitchy for guestsu nder 21 - still haven't got those drink packages showing yet....

Just a caution that the Travel Summary will show the added amenities being included at the rack rate as if you ordered them separately through the personalizer.  It scared the h**l out of me at first.  The actual price paid is reflected in the Booking Confirmation.  Much better!

 

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On 12/13/2019 at 10:31 AM, RMMariner said:

We had two Getaway cruises booked long before this sale. Princess will not let me do an add on for either of them. They would let me re-fare at almost double the cost, but both the rep and our PVP were adamant that the Getaway Sale and the add ons were not combinable.


Hope you get it. If you do please post, because I will give it another try, if anyone here posts that they managed to combine the two.

got it … see post above # 683 and this was just from a direct call to the 1-800 # on a Saturday morning ...

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29 minutes ago, voljeep said:

got it … see post above # 683 and this was just from a direct call to the 1-800 # on a Saturday morning ...

 

I too, am not 100% sure, but it does look like I may have it as well. I had to walk the Princess rep through it, and wait for about 10 minutes while she worked on it, but it looks like we got it for both our cruises.

 

No mention of the half price for second, but she is sending me an email. 

 

I owe you one. If the November cruise you are going on is the 5 day to Mexico, we may well be on that one too. We thought about combining it with a longer cruise, but work (as always) may get in the way.

 

Thank you.

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4 minutes ago, RMMariner said:

 

I too, am not 100% sure, but it does look like I may have it as well. I had to walk the Princess rep through it, and wait for about 10 minutes while she worked on it, but it looks like we got it for both our cruises.

 

No mention of the half price for second, but she is sending me an email. 

 

I owe you one. If the November cruise you are going on is the 5 day to Mexico, we may well be on that one too. We thought about combining it with a longer cruise, but work (as always) may get in the way.

 

Thank you.

the add on is included in the new cruise fare … look for it there and compare to your previous booking before BSE

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55 minutes ago, ceilidh1 said:

You have to remember that MANY of the folks you speak with on the phone are home-based agents and not based in an office with easy access to a supervisor or help.

 

Yes, I am aware and I can often tell when I have a home-based rep OTP.  Your comments on their "training" are right on.  Sometimes experienced cruisers like me who also are used to making own travel arrangements of all types can be more savvy than the agent - or at least as savvy.  It is unfortunate when customers don't even realize they have been misdirected.

 

44 minutes ago, Coral said:

I am guessing the vast majority of cruisers go to "generic travel agents" who probably don't even get these promos.

 

I think this is more true than not.  I am sure you can tell as well as I can when you read some posters on here relate their issue or question that they have been working with a less than expert TA (I'm being kind here) and they figure something is not quite right, but they don't really know themselves.  I think no matter what a consumer is shopping for or buying, especially if a significant expense, they should be more informed.  OTOH, I think many people turn to a supposed "expert" and expect to be taken care of properly.  Unfortunately, be it TA's, MD's, dentists, auto mechanics, etc, there are the A's, the B's and most certainly some C's and D's and the occasional F.  For those who either are disinclined or just don't want to get engaged, they are the ones who need a reliable TA that can be trusted to do the right thing.  But it can take some work to find and interview one - and do they know the right questions to ask?

 

1 hour ago, Daniel A said:

I agree with just about everything you said and I believe what you said is part of the problem.  My biggest concern is that PAX who are similarly situated are treated differently.  It's not an equitable system they're running and that leads to disgruntled customers. See some of my comments in red above.

 

Anyone who is a shareholder in Carnival should be concerned by this.

What I did not say is that sometimes, clarifications on a roll-out do get reflected in policies/procedures via updates.  I think there is a feedback loop in place as it has happened before. 

 

I also don't think it is possible for any organization like a cruise line, airline, or hotel to cover every circumstance in a policy.  I think front-line service staff and supervisors/managers have to have some discretion to react and resolve customer situations given particular circumstances.  That said, a sales promotion should be well enough understood to have the basics correct - such as applying the new Add-Ons.

 

As for treatment, I think you are probably referencing the application and eligibility of promo codes to different booking types.  But I don't think all customers will ever be treated the same as people are different, approach issues differently, and can have some different nuances in complex situations.  Imagine Customer A and B with an issue and Customer A is very aggressive and demanding versus Customer B who explains the situation calmly and asks for or suggests a reasonable resolution.  Who do you think is going to come out of it with the best end result?  BOTH parties can affect the outcome.

 

Yes, I am a S/H and do not like it when companies I invest in misstep.  Princess could be doing a better job, but sitting here in Ontario, IDK how to advise them.  I can figure out an obvious thing or two, but I am not aware of their situation and challenges either.  I'd love to participate in a customer focus group.  😉

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3 minutes ago, steelers36 said:

Sometimes experienced cruisers like me who also are used to making own travel arrangements of all types can be more savvy than the agent - or at least as savvy.  It is unfortunate when customers don't even realize they have been misdirected.

agree 100% 

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2 minutes ago, steelers36 said:

 

  Imagine Customer A and B with an issue and Customer A is very aggressive and demanding versus Customer B who explains the situation calmly and asks for or suggests a reasonable resolution.  Who do you think is going to come out of it with the best end result?  BOTH parties can affect the outcome.

 

 

 

100% agree. I was a CSR for a summer while I was at university. It was a very hard job. Being polite is the way to go.

 

That was the case today. The Princess rep was great, but it took some time for her to understand exactly what I wanted. 

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I just noticed on my son's BSE refare booking of their 21 day Med cruise in July 2021, their 14 year old's beverage package was missing in the Personalizer while the free grate and WiFi are there. Do you think this is just a computer glitch which will subsequently be corrected or should we contact our TA to get the oversight corrected?

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I know I learned a whole lot ( and also saved a whole lot ) by reading this thread and understanding EXACTLY what to ask for when calling about the BSE "add-on" 

 

Many thanks to all that have posted with the codes and how to evaluate the add on, refare, or rebook depending on THEIR situation and previous , on not, booking and promotions included ...

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22 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

 

I'm just curious ... did your Getaway cruises have a non-refundable fare when you booked them?  The reason I ask is that I read this on a travel agency website:

 

Please note that this promotion is NOT COMBINABLE with any of Princess' non-refundable fares.

 

Now, that could all change depending on who they get in touch with on the other end.  

 

I was able to do the add on's for 5 of my cruises which had all been previously booked with limited time offer, 3 for free plus, 3 for free, and two of them had no sales at all.  Was able to just add on for all of them.  My cruises are Alaska(July, 2020), Mediterranean(August/September, 2021), Caribbean(March,2021); Norway/Iceland(June,2021); and S. America(Feb., 2022).

 

Pooh

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Just of the phone with Princess.  Talked to a rep. 

She seemed to understand and applied the add on codes for my 2 upcoming cruises.  I did have the PDF (posted  here earlier) in-front of me and gave her the codes.  

For me BEST2DW  drinks & WFI  for one cruise in July 2020 ;  and BEST2DG(drinks & gratitudes) in May 2020 for the other. 

 

Thanks everyone!  

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3 hours ago, milolii said:

Just of the phone with Princess.  Talked to a rep. 

She seemed to understand and applied the add on codes for my 2 upcoming cruises.  I did have the PDF (posted  here earlier) in-front of me and gave her the codes.  

For me BEST2DW  drinks & WFI  for one cruise in July 2020 ;  and BEST2DG(drinks & gratitudes) in May 2020 for the other. 

 

Thanks everyone!  

 

Just to clarify ... did you originally book your cruises directly with Princess or are they able to apply add ons if you booked through a travel agent.  

I think I already know the answer ... just double checking.  My travel agent went on a vacation in Europe before taking care of this for me.  I just want to get everything in place!!  

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Can someone who booked under the sale let me know if the prepaid gratuities show on their online booking.   My drinks and WiFi show up, but my gratuities are not showing as paid.  I called and the rep said it was there and sent me a special services email showing it.  However online still shows I need to pay it.  Since I do,not want an issue on board, thought I would check to see if it is just a temporary website issue with everyone.  Thank you.

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