Best Ever Sale

[FiftyOnePlus]

I am very upset with Princess and the way they are dealing with the Best Ever Sale and our booking.

We are a couple taking 4 children on a cruise in the next few weeks and wanted to take up this offer, but, because we are taking 4 children and not 2.....we have to have 2 cabins......and 2 cabins mean one adult in each cabin.
So because  of that, we cannot take advantage of the Best Ever Sale.

We are paying adult fare for 2 children. We are paying adult fare for ourselves...........but still, we cannot have the Best Ever Sale deal.

If we were a couple taking 2 children in one cabin.......yes, we can have the deal

But spend twice as much money........have 2 cabins, not one.........buy twice as many soda packages............we cannot have the Best Ever Deal.

Its outrageous and I would love to know where to escalate my complaint to.........ordinary customer services is getting me nowhere fast.

[Orangefan]

email Jan Schwartz the CEO.   I did that a month ago  and I got a response from a staff member in her office. The response came back in days after she investigated my concern.

Sali

[FiftyOnePlus]

Ok, thank you....we will try that route........Do you have an actual email address?

It is so unfair what they are saying......

 

 

[jagoffee]

48 minutes ago, FiftyOnePlus said:

Ok, thank you....we will try that route........Do you have an actual email address?

It is so unfair what they are saying......

 

 

Good luck.

 

Just  to be clear, you are willing to pay the per day per person cost for all six people?  But they are not allowing you take advantage of the offer?

Does  noT make sense to me.

I assume you booked directOh with Princess?

Edited February 22, 2020 by jagoffee

[Colo Cruiser]

53 minutes ago, FiftyOnePlus said:

Ok, thank you....we will try that route........Do you have an actual email address?

It is so unfair what they are saying......

 

 

customerrelations@princesscruises.com

[AtlantaCruiser72]

If your sailing is before the 26th of March then the promotion does not apply to ANY bookings that sail before that date.  Onlly sailings departing AFTER that date qualify.  You state you are sailing "in the next few weeks" so if its 3/26/20 or earlier that would be why they are not offering the promo.

[MCC retired]

1 hour ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

If your sailing is before the 26th of March then the promotion does not apply to ANY bookings that sail before that date.  Onlly sailings departing AFTER that date qualify.  You state you are sailing "in the next few weeks" so if its 3/26/20 or earlier that would be why they are not offering the promo.

That could be the reason the OP is not getting the deal ?

Sailing date instead of “ in the next few weeks “ would help .

[FiftyOnePlus]

Let me clarify......
We are sailing at the required time.
I have spoken to Princess about this and am getting nowhere because they say they are unable to apply the offer because we are taking 4 children.

A couple sharing a cabin with 2 children can get the £35 pppn rate.
So the couple pay 35pppn each and the children pay for whatever they want....a soda package or nothing.
1st and 2nd person MUST take up the offer.

Fair enough.

But.........
We are taking 4 children.
As we are taking 4 children, and they are not allowed to book into a cabin without an adult, our booking is   1 adult and 2 children in each cabin.
But......Even though the 1st child in each cabin is paying full fare, becuase they are under 18, they cant apply the Best Ever rate to them.

And they will NOT allow me to have one and my husband to have one because we are not sharing a cabin.

It is grossly unfair.

We are paying for 4 full fares..........and 2 children.
We will buy 4 soda packages..........
However, they will NOT allow us to take advantage of the deal because of the technical Cabin make up.

Taking 4 children in 2 cabins = No offer
Taking 2 in 1 cabin and youre ok.

Edited February 22, 2020 by FiftyOnePlus
Added

[ceilidh1]

2 minutes ago, FiftyOnePlus said:

Let me clarify......
We are sailing at the required time.

A couple sharing a cabin with 2 children can get the £35 pppn rate.
So the couple pay 35pppn each and the children pay for whatever they want....a soda package or nothing.
1st and 2nd person MUST take up the offer.

Fair enough.

But.........
We are taking 4 children.
As we are taking 4 children, and they are not allowed to book into a cabin without an adult, our booking is   1 adult and 2 children in each cabin.
But......Even though the 1st child in each cabin is paying full fare, becuase they are under 18, they cant apply the Best Ever rate to them.

And they will NOT allow me to have one and my husband to have one because we are not sharing a cabin.

It is grossly unfair.

We are paying for 4 full fares..........and 2 children.
We will buy 4 soda packages..........
However, they will NOT allow us to take advantage of the deal because of the technical Cabin make up.

Taking 4 children in 2 cabins = No offer
Taking 2 in 1 cabin and youre ok.

Something isn't correct here

It should not make a difference of whether the 2nd guest is an adult or child in terms of getting the BSE applied. If the guest is under 21, they will get the coffee and soda package rather than the drink package. You will pay the same cost so, in that sense, it's not as great of a deal. If, what you are asking is "Can I get BSE for the adult guest #1 and not for child guest #2 then the answer would be NO. However, you can certainly get BSE for guest 1 and 2, pay the BSE rate for both, and the drink package is adjusted to coffee and soda packae.

 

I say this with certainty since I ALWAYS travel with two kids and I have done BSE this way for two upcoming cruises. I am guest 1 and get the drink package. My kids are guest 2 and 3 and get the soda/coffee package. The price worked out as a better deal than buying a drink package and two soda packages plus gratuties (wifi is a wash since we are all elite and get it anyways).

[AtlantaCruiser72]

As you are booking from the UK the terms of the offer are going to be different than for North American consumers. If they are not allowing you to book the promotional offer that is their choice.  Perhaps sailing with another line might better suit your needs if this going to upset you so much. 

[voljeep]

4 minutes ago, ceilidh1 said:

say this with certainty since I ALWAYS travel with two kids and I have done BSE this way for two upcoming cruises. I am guest 1 and get the drink package. My kids are guest 2 and 3 and get the soda/coffee package. The price worked out as a better deal than buying a drink package and two soda packages plus gratuties (wifi is a wash since we are all elite and get it anyways).

what happens to guest # 3 - who is also a minor - did you have to pay the full BSE for them also ?  and why not use the BEST2DG if you didn't need the wifi ?

 

and I just saw the 'booking from UK' , so just ignore all my postings as they may not apply

Edited February 22, 2020 by voljeep

[ceilidh1]

2 minutes ago, voljeep said:

what happens to guest # 3 - who is also a minor - did you have to pay the full BSE for them also ?  and why not use the BEST2DG if you didn't need the wifi ?

 

 

 

Yes, all guests pay the same rate for BSE or for add-ons. Guest 3/4 can choose not to take the perks.

 

In my case, the cost of BSE for one of my booked cruises (15 day Hawaii) for all 3 of us worked out at a similar price as adding BEST2DG . In fact, for this cruise, the additional it cost to refare to BSE was actually less than we would have paid for gratuities for 3 people over 15 days so it was a no-brainer.

 

On a different cruise booking, I did the BEST2DG add-on as my category was sold out and I couldn't refare. I added it for all 3 passengers (1 adult, 2 kids) at the same daily rate for each. Still a great deal, even though 2 of them will be coffee/soda package rather than beverage package.

[Astro Flyer]

44 minutes ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

As you are booking from the UK the terms of the offer are going to be different than for North American consumers. If they are not allowing you to book the promotional offer that is their choice.  Perhaps sailing with another line might better suit your needs if this going to upset you so much. 

Good point...in the USA we can only view the T&Cs for our BSE offer which might be different in the UK.  
 

The T&Cs on the Princess USA site states:

 

General Terms (applicable to all portions of the Offer) – ONLY available if all guests in a stateroom elect to participate in the Offer. Offer is only available to residents of 50 United States or D.C., Canada, and Puerto Rico.

Edited February 22, 2020 by Astro Flyer

[rocklinmom]

So in the UK you aren't able to book everyone with the BSE promo? As in booked with that rate, with beverage packages for all (regular one for the two adults and coffee/soda package for the four kids)? 

[ceilidh1]

2 hours ago, Astro Flyer said:

 

The T&Cs on the Princess USA site states:

 

General Terms (applicable to all portions of the Offer) – ONLY available if all guests in a stateroom elect to participate in the Offer. Offer is only available to residents of 50 United States or D.C., Canada, and Puerto Rico.

This is what I was trying to say (not very well) in my post earlier. I am wondering if OP wasn't allowed to purchase BSE because they ONLY wanted it for the adult in the cabin, thinking it wasn't as good a deal for the child. If this were the case, then I understand why they were refused. However, there would be no reason to refuse if OP were willing to pay for BSE for ALL guests in cabin, regardless of age. The only thing that would be substituted is the drink package for the minors.

[FiftyOnePlus]

If me and my husband were sharing a cabin, we could get the deal at 35pppn......as the T&Cs say both people need to take it up........and the two children in the cabin (3rd and 4th guest)  do not have to take it up.....its only 1st and 2nd who have to take it.
Fine....no problem with that.

So taking 2 children.........great.....we both get the 35pppn deal.......and the kids get their soda package.

But...............taking 4 kids means we must have 1 adult in each of the cabins.
So if I wanted the deal, and my husband wanted the deal, we would have to pay 35pppn for 1st and 2nd in one cabin and 1st and 2nd in the other cabin....making 4 Deals......2 of which we do not want because they are children under 18 and not good value.

So.....I asked if we can just take out the package deal in one cabin for 1st and 2nd and they said no....because one of the recipients will be under 18.
So next question was.......well surely you can split the deal so that  the two adults can have the 35pppn deal and the children just get the soda packages.
They said NO!

So in order for me and my husband to take advantage of the 35pppn deal.....we would have to buy it for 2 children too, who do not want or need it.

Usually, just my husband takes out the drinks package as I dont really drink enough to make it worthwhile for me at 69.......but this includes wifi.....which I do buy....and coffee, which I do buy.....for half the cost of normal.....so is worth it.

But because we are taking 4 children and paying for 2 cabins, we cannot get it.
 

Grossly unfair.

[Coral]

41 minutes ago, FiftyOnePlus said:

If me and my husband were sharing a cabin, we could get the deal at 35pppn......as the T&Cs say both people need to take it up........and the two children in the cabin (3rd and 4th guest)  do not have to take it up.....its only 1st and 2nd who have to take it.
Fine....no problem with that.

So taking 2 children.........great.....we both get the 35pppn deal.......and the kids get their soda package.

But...............taking 4 kids means we must have 1 adult in each of the cabins.
So if I wanted the deal, and my husband wanted the deal, we would have to pay 35pppn for 1st and 2nd in one cabin and 1st and 2nd in the other cabin....making 4 Deals......2 of which we do not want because they are children under 18 and not good value.

So.....I asked if we can just take out the package deal in one cabin for 1st and 2nd and they said no....because one of the recipients will be under 18.
So next question was.......well surely you can split the deal so that  the two adults can have the 35pppn deal and the children just get the soda packages.
They said NO!

So in order for me and my husband to take advantage of the 35pppn deal.....we would have to buy it for 2 children too, who do not want or need it.

Usually, just my husband takes out the drinks package as I dont really drink enough to make it worthwhile for me at 69.......but this includes wifi.....which I do buy....and coffee, which I do buy.....for half the cost of normal.....so is worth it.

But because we are taking 4 children and paying for 2 cabins, we cannot get it.
 

Grossly unfair.

This makes sense. No, it is not unfair.

 

You can get it - you just have to get it for the kids also. The other lines also require both passengers in the cabin to buy it to get it. It is part of the promo that both have to get it. I don't drink alcohol or soda but got the promo. I will use it for bottled water, fresh squeezed OJ and Mocktails.

[FiftyOnePlus]

On 2/23/2020 at 12:19 PM, Coral said:

This makes sense. No, it is not unfair.

 

You can get it - you just have to get it for the kids also. The other lines also require both passengers in the cabin to buy it to get it. It is part of the promo that both have to get it. I don't drink alcohol or soda but got the promo. I will use it for bottled water, fresh squeezed OJ and Mocktails.

How is it not Unfair?
A couple taking 2 kids on a cruise can both have the deal and the kids dont have to take it
A couple taking 4 kids cant take the deal unless they pay for 2 for the kids as well.

They will not allow me and my husband to take the deal as guest 1 and 2 in one cabin because it has to be shown that there will be one adult in each cabin.

Its Grossly unfair

 

[voljeep]

fair - you're paying for the 2 'extra' kids - 2 adults and 2 'non-exempt' others who happen to be kids

[Ombud]

IMHO I think I'm reading about a difference between USA & UK/AUS. OP are you saying it must be 2 PBP and therefore must have two 21+? No Coffee & More option? In USA everyone in the stateroom must have BSE, it's just that those under 21 are give Coffee & More whereas those 21+ have Premium Beverage Package.  I am sailing with 2 minors so sailing under USA offer which is why I declined.  I'll pay for 1 unlimited internet, keep my minutes, + trade for my 2 free coffee packages. Did the math

 

I'm constantly wondering why in this day and age there's 2 policies depending on where it's booked. (Also happens with refaring & CFAR insurance)

[Thrak]

I'm confused. This makes it sound as if someone sailing solo can't get the promo as there would only be one adult in the cabin. I've never sailed solo and have also never booked in the UK but it sound's weird to me.

[Cruise Raider]

How old are the kids?  Maybe you are able to book at least two of them in an adjacent room?  Maybe not?  

Have you tried working with a personal cruise planner down at Princess?  They know all the ins and outs as far as what can be done and how you can make it work ... if at all.  

 

[Coral]

19 minutes ago, Thrak said:

I'm confused. This makes it sound as if someone sailing solo can't get the promo as there would only be one adult in the cabin. I've never sailed solo and have also never booked in the UK but it sound's weird to me.

Under Best Sale Ever - Passengers 1 and 2 both have to get it (not sure about 3 and 4 but this doesn't apply to this couple). Because the kids are younger, they would get the non-alcohol version. This couple doesn't want to pay for passenger 2 because it is a child and the child won't drink that much.

 

BTW - I don't drink alcohol or soda. I purchased the package as there are other things I can get (fresh squeezed OJ, hot chocolate, bottled water, Mocktails).

Edited February 24, 2020 by Coral

[FiftyOnePlus]

Our issue is because we have 2 cabins.

Cabin one.......Im in there with two children.
Cabin two......Husband in there with two children

Because we are separated as a couple, we can't get the deal as a couple.......
We can only get it if 2 children get it.

But.....
If we were to only book one cabin, and only take 2 children...........we can both have the offer and the two children dont have to take it.

We are paying 4 adults fares.
So therefore we should be allowed to take out 2 BES in one cabin but we cannot.
In order for me and my husband to have it........we have to take out FOUR of the offers.

So taking 4 children penalises us...........yet Princess are getting twice as much money out of us.

How anyone can look at this and see it as fair is beyond me.
 

[FiftyOnePlus]

16 minutes ago, Cruise Raider said:

How old are the kids?  Maybe you are able to book at least two of them in an adjacent room?  Maybe not?  

Have you tried working with a personal cruise planner down at Princess?  They know all the ins and outs as far as what can be done and how you can make it work ... if at all.  

 

The problem is because of rules, under 18s cannot be in a cabin by themselves on the booking form.
So one adult has to go in one cabin and the other in the other cabin.

And because the BES must be taken by guest 1 and 2.......Guest one is the adult and guest 2 is a child.  (even though we are paying adult price for them)

They will not allow us to take BES in just one cabin and let the two adults have them........because 'technically' it would be issued to an underage child.
And they will not allow us to book in the two adults in the same cabin......as they arent allowed to.

So we have to take out 4 BES's even though we dont want them for the kids..........

We pay twice as much money, paying adult fare for 2 children, have 2 cabins, will be buying 4 soda packages............yet we are denied the BES deal.