Cruise Vacation Planner or Not??

[13cheermom]

So for those of you that sail with Princess, do you feel that having a Cruise Vacation Planner has any positive benefit or advantage as far as booking with them?

I have always done my own booking online and handled every aspect of my cruise details regardless of any line that we have sailed.  Since this whole pandemic and cancellation situation, I wondered if those of you that do use one has it been beneficial in any way in helping you get through this whole refund process.  I have had someone contact me several times since my cancellation, and am on the fence if their truly is any positive to having one versus continue to take care of the details of the booking myself.  Would greatly appreciate all experiences good and bad in any way.  Not interested in using a TA, this only pertains to Cruise Vacation Planner with Princess.  Thanks in advance!

[CC Rider 69]

I use one. She always seems to get me a little extra perk added, whether it be a couple bottles of wine, free wi-fi, or specialty dining. Plus she let's me know ahead if a certain promo is about to launch.

[Renmar]

2 minutes ago, CC Rider 69 said:

I use one. She always seems to get me a little extra perk added, whether it be a couple bottles of wine, free wi-fi, or specialty dining. Plus she let's me know ahead if a certain promo is about to launch.

I know that TA's will give those perks but was not aware that the Princess vacation planners are able to do the same. Good to know.

 

Theo

[memoak]

My PVP keeps an eye out for price drops promos etc

[Potstech]

Have tried three different ones over the years and will not attempt it again.  They were impossible to get ahold of and never provided the information I was looking for.  We now use a local TA and she has been outstanding.

[ProfMHC]

Our Princess PVP is terrific. So much easier to talk with someone who knows us and our likes and dislikes. And now you can’t seem to book a mini suite without calling Princess anyway. She answers emails promptly when we need to cancel or rebook or just switch things around; she makes it happen in a NY minute. Can’t recommend her highly enough. 

[Paula_MacFan]

I had a PVP call me not long ago asking if I wanted to book another cruise since our September one had been cancelled.  I initially thought 'this will be a great thing' but a few minutes into the conversation it was obvious they were either new or just didn't know much about Princess.  I asked about using my FCD and they didn't even understand the OBC amounts that come with the FCD.  I gave up and decided to keep doing my own thing.  Hopefully others have had better experiences.  

Edited August 11, 2020 by Paula_MacFan

[13cheermom]

52 minutes ago, Paula_MacFan said:

I had a PVP call me not long ago asking if I wanted to book another cruise since our September one had been cancelled.  I initially thought 'this will be a great thing' but a few minutes into the conversation it was obvious they were either new or just didn't know much about Princess.  I asked about using my FCD and they didn't even understand the OBC amounts that come with the FCD.  I gave up and decided to keep doing my own thing.  Hopefully others have had better experiences.  

Thats what I’m afraid of, this person only contacted us after our cruise was cancelled in May. She has called several times asking about re-booking, yet clearly didn't do anything to help us in getting our refund processed at all. That was all on me calling numerous times to get things done. With our new booking debating about turning it over to her, afraid she wont have the experience needed. Thanks!

[portiemom]

After I was first contacted by my Princess PVP, I was not too interested. After using multiple TAs in the past, I now prefer to book directly with Princess, as well. Just never could find a TA that suited me. This PVP was persistent and eventually she caught up with me on the phone. Turns out she is wonderful!! She is always there when I need her. I no longer call the 1-800 number when I have an issue. It's hit or miss with the reps at the call center. Now I go to my PVP. She's always available and sometimes it seems like she's reading my mind. I wanted to save an FCD that had been applied to a cruise that was cancelled and she was able to save it for me instead of it automatically being refunded. Then I put a courtesy hold on the new cruise I wanted to use it for, emailed her and she immediately took care of it for me.

[Renmar]

By the way, Princess is offering those items -cc-rider-69/ is mentioning to everyone at the moment so it is not something the PVP is doing as an extra? Now if they would offer a larger discount like the big box sellers and some TA's are doing than we might consider switching. As for now we will stay with our local brick & mortar TA.

 

Theo

 

[Katjoy]

I use a PVP.  She is awesome.  We always get a better price than what is listed online, since we have cruised with Princess quite a bit and like to spend some time in the onboard Casino.  If I see a price drop online I call her and she adjusts my booking to reflect to a lower price.  Often we get a little bit of OBC.  If I call her and she does not answer I leave a detailed message and follow up with an Email.  

 

In the past I had a different PVP I was very pleased with.  When she left I got a different one and am just a pleased with her.  I can't imagine going back to using a TA.

Edited August 11, 2020 by Katjoy

[Ombud]

My PVP got me 75 OBC extra on next August's cruise and an extr 100 OBCon the one the following April. These are coded as 'goodwill OBC' which should not disappear if refaring bc of a price drop. She also got my grandkids an extra 530 FCC because we can't get them to give A & me the other 50% FCC (537 each). 

[Steelers36]

IMO, I think most PVP's are of little added benefit to experienced Princess customers (like Platinum/Elite).  Despite what is written above, I am not sure a PVP is getting customers anything different than what is currently on offer.  If so, this is news to me and would be useful to know how and what this is about.  Otherwise, I can imagine an experienced one being helpful to a new customer or cruiser as there may be lots of info and Q&A.  

 

I prefer to do my own thing and I prefer to use my discount TA who I also do not rely on for cruise info - just great prices and great service.  I can get the info I need from the Princess call center reps and most are quite nice and knowledgeable (although I can always tell the newbies!).

[voljeep]

I've "fired" a couple of PVP's, and I "got fired" by a PVP

 

currently, our PVP has helped us out on a potentially upcoming cruise 4/2021 ... it is "on hold" pending receipt of FCC's

from a previous cruise cancelled 7/22 (phase 4) ... she was able to extend the 'deposit due date' by a month, and stated she could do that again (we'll see) if the FCC hasn't posted to our account.  She also contacted 'whoever' and stated the we wanted double deposit and did not have to wait until the default date of 8/31 to get that "in process"

 

she got our NON-REFUNDABLE deposit on the cancelled cruise as OBC when we changed promotions and paid an additional $200 refundable deposit

 

she just got us $200 OBC for "rebooking a caribbbean cruise when your booked caribbean cruise was cancelled - we didn't get the email, but someone had received the email and posted the code in another thread and she was able to contact "CR" and get it for us

 

we've used TA's before on our 10 day cruises, but doesn't seem "worth it" on our little 4-5-6 day "long weekend" cruises that we can take by just driving down to PE/FLL

[Tak8]

I'm using one now.  She is very quick to return calls and provide information.  Given the current situation, I figure it can't hurt to have an additional person to talk about issues/concerns.

 

[13cheermom]

Thanks everyone for all the responses!  Will have to think about it and decide which direction I want to precede. Havent had one since a Mediterranean Cruise back in 2013, she was helpful at the time. Just never know who you might be getting,  and how competent they might be lol. 

[BabySarge]

As others have said, we have had mixed results with PVP's.  Had one who was extremely responsive and able to provide additional benefits and better cabin selection for lower price; unfortunately for us she was moved to Cunard.  The next one we were assigned was so terrible (never answered e-mails, phone calls, cancelled a booking that should not have been cancelled, etc) I wrote the company and complained.  After that I managed my bookings on my own for the longest while.  Our latest PVP reached out to us and convinced me to give him a try and I have been very happy since I did.  Super responsive and calls me back very quickly.  He also sends me advance e-mails or calls about upcoming sales at least a week before the elite e-mail comes out.   He does seem to get me better cabin locations and prices than appear on the website and will hold the booking for a longer period of time than the standard.  

[voljeep]

11 minutes ago, BabySarge said:

   He does seem to get me better cabin locations and prices than appear on the website

"flash sales" ??

[BabySarge]

Just now, voljeep said:

"flash sales" ??

Maybe?  Doesn't matter if they are because I couldn't see them and he could with the bottom line being I get a better cabin at a lower fare.

[Abercrombie2019]

We have never used a PVP, but we had one that was trying to entice us with OBC.  The PVP said that they could get us OBC on select voyages (above and beyond whatever Princess was showing on their website).

We select our cruises based on itinerary and time of year that we want to be in those ports.  I wouldn't book a random cruise just because I could get some additional OBC.  We decided to pass on using the PVP.

[bubbapuck]

I am luke warm on a PVP. I like the idea of having someone to go to because I am fairly new to cruising. Since I  booked my cruise last December,I have had two different planners. Neither responds to email very well. I have sent both multiple emails and th soonest I ever get a response is 5 days later. Neither have ever returned phone calls either. It has been hit and miss trying to get ahold of them but once in a while, I am able to reach one. Very frustrating. 

[Potstech]

That is the main reason we found a TA we like and trust.  Ask around to those you know who travel and talk with people on your cruise.  It takes awhile but worth it to find the right TA for your needs.

[susancruzs]

I like using a TA, same one 20 years, she is awesome.  I was pricing a cruise yesterday and her savings over what Princess offered is significant.  

[coco2/27]

Based upon respondent’s positive feedback in some, but admittedly not all instances, I decided to reach out to PVP that has reached out to me in the past.  She  responded promptly, completed follow up as promised, and saved me $1,400 without losing any other additional benefits of specialty dining, and also answered other questions with further information that I hadn’t known with my previous independent Princess interactions. 
I’m adding my positive vote / feedback for at least giving a PVP a try!

[Potstech]

Never hurts to try.  Much