Medallion app

[Daniel A]

1 hour ago, Sea Hag said:

I wouldn't have an idea on this if I hadn't posted it to my roll call. I got arrival time on Jun 23 for an August 29 sailing. Final payment was June 30. So 9 weeks a some days. 

I just logged into the app and although my embarkation date is still far off, the app says now there's good news.  If I don't select a group arrival time, they will assign one based on the travel info which was entered into the app.  We'll see how well that works out. 

[Sea Hag]

9 minutes ago, Daniel A said:

I just logged into the app and although my embarkation date is still far off, the app says now there's good news.  If I don't select a group arrival time, they will assign one based on the travel info which was entered into the app.  We'll see how well that works out. 

Hope for the best is about all a person can do if that's the case. We have an early flight in on the 29th, so the first boarding group works well for that. We've got a cruise at the end of October of this year, and we'll be driving to the port for that one. Not sure what they would do with that. Figure we're local and can show up anytime and put us in last group? Who can say.

[JeremyK1956]

cruzsnooze, a US phone number is not a great help as I live in the UK. I am certainly not going to spend that kind of money on a transatlantic call that could be on hold for however long, thanks anyway. 

[wowzz]

2 hours ago, JeremyK1956 said:

cruzsnooze, a US phone number is not a great help as I live in the UK. I am certainly not going to spend that kind of money on a transatlantic call that could be on hold for however long, thanks anyway. 

Couple of things - you could make a Skype call to the US very cheaply,  or you could call Princess in the UK.

Priority boarding has gone by the wayside somewhat,  because regardless  of your status, you can't board until your negative test result comes through. 

[AF-1]

Pre pandemic you could show up at a cruise port, go through security checkpoints, and work your way to the Princess boarding area.  If they started boarding at 10am and you were elite status you got on first.  Now with assigned boarding times based on what deck you're on; you are given a boarding time.  Does not seem to factor in if you are in a suite or if you are elite.  Once you arrive at the port, you can get in the elite line.  Riddle me this; some people arrive at the port early so they could book the Sanctuary or other venues where it's first come first served mentality.  How do you think that will work now?

[AF-1]

On 8/13/2021 at 9:12 AM, Daniel A said:

How do they intend to honor the priority boarding commitment for Platinum & Elite?  Shouldn't they be getting first crack at selecting a boarding time?

In theory yes Elite guests should be given priority.  I guess Princess has not addressed the boarding system in their app.  The only thing I can say is elite will get priority treatment once they arrive at the port.  However, as far as getting priority slot times for arrival; right now, it is not possible.  This is something Princess will address within the app, sometime in the future.  They are trying to work with getting their ships up and running and are not concentrating on some of the trivial things; it's the trivial things that make a person's vacation.  I say hang in there; don't give up, changes will be made.  I think the cruise survey forms will be two to three pages longs; at least in the immediate future.

[Shone216]

We sail on 28th Sept and I’ve managed to book an arrival time today

[jojo1966]

we sail on12th october and have just booked our arrival slot 🙂

[Daniel A]

5 hours ago, AF-1 said:

In theory yes Elite guests should be given priority.  

I'm sorry, but in writing Platinum, Elite and Suites should be given priority.  Princess should have written these benefits into their program.

[Daniel A]

7 hours ago, AF-1 said:

I think the cruise survey forms will be two to three pages longs; at least in the immediate future.

Thanks for your well respected response.  The problem with customer surveys is that they only get opinions from customers who are mostly satisfied.  Did you ever get a survey from an entity that wanted to know why you decided against using a product in the first place?

[caribill]

9 hours ago, Daniel A said:

 Did you ever get a survey from an entity that wanted to know why you decided against using a product in the first place?

 

I once read about a survey that asked if you used their product or not.

 

If you said you did not use it, they then asked if you preferred not to use it from a tube or preferred not to use it from a jar.

[Steelers36]

On 8/13/2021 at 9:12 AM, Daniel A said:

How do they intend to honor the priority boarding commitment for Platinum & Elite?  Shouldn't they be getting first crack at selecting a boarding time?

This is an outstanding question.  Princess HQ is well aware of the concerns of Elites and Suites that the current process does not truly give priority boarding.  There has been no commitment to provide advance access to Elites & Suites (Platinum as well, but should be later) ahead of regular guests.

 

On 8/13/2021 at 11:00 AM, billco said:

I don't see why. Princess is trying to smooth out the boarding process by assigning group arrival at specific times. I think I saw where Platinum/Elite were given priority within assigned time.

Yes, this has been the standard "party line' fed out over the phone, but it is bogus and doesn't really give priority access to Elites, etc.  

This issue was addressed directly with Jan Swartz on the first Majestic voyage and her response was for priority guests to show up early if they want and will be accommodated.  After check-in, they will wait in their own area (or "lounge") as before and then be boarded first when general boarding opens.  This is a workaround if cannot get Group A for some reason. 

Note that so far, the terminal has been opened for check-ins ahead of 11:30am.

 

On 8/13/2021 at 11:43 AM, JeremyK1956 said:

I booked this forthcoming cruise, (our first with Princess), for our 46th wedding anniversary, so I booked a Penthouse Suite, which, like the Platinum/Elite status, was also supposed to have priority boarding. When I spoke to Princess customer services they told me that I would have priority boarding, but only over the other people in the assigned arrival time slot that I was given. I was just told to go to the priority line at the terminal when I arrived, which is certainly not how other cruise lines I have sailed with do it.

Yes, you got the standard pablum fed to you.  This is a bogus claim by Princess because each Arrival Group is a mix of passengers and once processed, assuming 11:30am start, general boarding is open, so guests just head onto the ship.  So, the first handful of pax get some priority IF they setup priority lanes for Green & Blue.  But unless they held all non-priority guests in the terminal until all of the Elites and Platinums in that Arrival Group had been processed and boarded the ship, then you do not get any real priority unless happen to be first in line to enter the terminal.  

 

Did they have an Elite/Suite line outside the terminal and empty that line entirely before letting the Platinum line in and similar before letting the general guests in?  I don't believe so.

 

On 8/13/2021 at 12:11 PM, Daniel A said:

It's very simple.  If you're boarding non platinum, elite and suites guests first, then it isn't priority boarding.  P/E/S guests should have first crack at selecting arrival times.

Yes, we should have that crack.  They should open up Arrival Groups to Elites and Suites on DAY -2.  Then open up for Platinums on DAY -1.  Then open up for anyone on DAY 0.

Further, Princess should advise customers when DAY 0 is - 30 days ahead; 60 days ahead - whatever.  We should not have to be guessing and checking.  Perhaps when the App function is more stable, they will do this.

 

On 8/13/2021 at 12:35 PM, billco said:

I disagree. I don't know how you give first crack other than sending an e-mail to elite/platinum/suite guests a few days before opening it up for everybody else. There still are only going to be a given number of slots at a particular time. I  think if there are a lot of platinum/elite people it would disrupt the boarding process. Priority boarding is a thing that was ok pre pandemic. Not so much now.

 

I think the best way is for everybody to arrive at their assigned time. Then they can board within their priority status.

What's so wrong and difficult about sending out an email blast?  They manage to do it for other things - especially when they want to sell you something for your voyage.  Better yet, just make it a standard like the FP Date is so everyone knows. 

 

Fail to see how a lot of Elite/Platinum on a voyage it would disrupt the boarding process.  We are just guests like anyone else.  What's wrong with priority boarding now?

 

As I and others have tried to explain, there is no real priority boarding for a Group unless you happen to be among the first in the door as general boarding is open and non-status guests are not held in the terminal and just proceed on board when checked in.

 

Perhaps in future when Princess may open up earlier Arrival Group times and people have to wait in the terminal for boarding to start, it will resemble pre-Covid in that they will board the Elites & Suites first who were waiting.  In the "old days" if an Elite chose to arrive at the terminal at 12:30pm, say, they would have access to a priority check-in line, but general boarding would be well underway for some time and the first passengers aboard would consist of Suite, Elite, Platinum, and "regular" who had checked in ahead of general boarding.  

 

I think for the time being, the best thing is to follow on what Jan Swartz stated on Majestic - show up early if you want and are Suite/Elite/Platinum and you will be accommodated and be ready to board when the ship is ready.

 

On 8/13/2021 at 2:04 PM, caribill said:

 

Based on posts by people so far on the Alaska cruises, there is no priority line.

 

There are three color coded lines (green,blue,yellow) depending on how far you got with info pre-cruise in the app.

 

It was posted that those Elite/Suite who arrived too early for actual boarding did get to sit in a separate room (no refreshments) until boarding started. But, like in the past, once boarding is in process once you check-in you can go directly on board no matter what your loyalty status.

Yes, your last paragraph is correct, but unless those Suites & Elites who want to board early are able to get into the first group, they lose out.  So far, the only reason there has been some waiting in the terminal, is they opened up early and started processing passengers well ahead of 11:30am.

 

[Steelers36]

11 hours ago, Daniel A said:

I'm sorry, but in writing Platinum, Elite and Suites should be given priority.  Princess should have written these benefits into their program.

They did write it into their program.  Unfortunately, they are falling short of that by not understanding the impact of Arrival Groups on the guest experience.  But the boss of bosses knows it now.

[billco]

5 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

They did write it into their program.  Unfortunately, they are falling short of that by not understanding the impact of Arrival Groups on the guest experience.  But the boss of bosses knows it now.

I think the priority is an efficient boarding process that ensures the health and safety of the crew and passengers during these pandemic times. If that means suspending priority boarding for platinum, elite, and suite guests I am fine with that. It seems hard enough to manage people arriving that have their medallions, app, vaccinations and covid tests in order and those who don't without also sorting those with and without priority and those who show up outside of their assigned times.

 

How many people adhered to the process that assigned people by the deck their cabin was on? 

 

OTOH, a process that opens Arrival Groups early to those groups seems reasonable if it restricts boarding to within the assigned arrival times and doesn't adversely affect the process. I think that will happen down the road as Princess gains more experience. For now, I think people should put up with a little inconvenience and just enjoy their cruise.

[Daniel A]

7 minutes ago, billco said:

OTOH, a process that opens Arrival Groups early to those groups seems reasonable if it restricts boarding to within the assigned arrival times and doesn't adversely affect the process. 

This has been my point all along.  Princess should have been mindful of their priority boarding commitment and worked it into their boarding procedures in the first place.

[billco]

4 minutes ago, Daniel A said:

This has been my point all along.  Princess should have been mindful of their priority boarding commitment and worked it into their boarding procedures in the first place.

Just thinking that right now the number of people with priority status is much higher than normal. According to Pescado Amarillo on the current Alaskan cruise, "The cutoff for the top 40 most traveled passengers was 455 days, which is insanely high for Alaska, where it’s not unheard of for people with fewer than 150 Princess days to get invited." "We are #4 with 1230 days; the top 3 are about 3000, 2000 and 1400 days." Even with that, the boarding process seemed to go smoothly and there was an Elite Lounge.

[Daniel A]

10 minutes ago, billco said:

Just thinking that right now the number of people with priority status is much higher than normal. According to Pescado Amarillo on the current Alaskan cruise, "The cutoff for the top 40 most traveled passengers was 455 days, which is insanely high for Alaska, where it’s not unheard of for people with fewer than 150 Princess days to get invited." "We are #4 with 1230 days; the top 3 are about 3000, 2000 and 1400 days." Even with that, the boarding process seemed to go smoothly and there was an Elite Lounge.

That's an interesting point.  I semi-expected this type of thing to occur.  I think many of the people chafing at the bit to get back onto a cruise ship right away (I don't mean the priority boarding, I mean so early in the restart) would likely not be casual cruisers but people who need to get back on a ship.  I think a large number of the elites are in that category.  As time goes on, I would expect the high numbers of P/E/S guests to decrease.  This is why I want Princess to factor in priorities to their embarkation procedures.

[manunia]

choices for Arrival Group is Not available for Sept 25th cruise from LA on Grand (40 days before departure). for Alaska cruise on Majestic it was available much earlier (i think it was about 2 month prior to departure date)

[caribill]

11 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

 In the "old days" if an Elite chose to arrive at the terminal at 12:30pm, say, they would have access to a priority check-in line

 

 

True, but that priority line often was longer than the line for people without status and it could be quicker to check-in on the shorter non-status line.

[caribill]

On 8/13/2021 at 3:37 PM, Daniel A said:

I just logged into the app and although my embarkation date is still far off, the app says now there's good news.  If I don't select a group arrival time, they will assign one based on the travel info which was entered into the app.  We'll see how well that works out. 

 

Some thread does have the e-mail posted with the arrival time by cabin deck.

 

It is basically like the old "suggested" arrival times. If you booked your cabin on the "right" deck, you checked in early. Otherwise, you might be assigned the latest possible check-in time.

[Steelers36]

On 8/13/2021 at 4:37 PM, Daniel A said:

I just logged into the app and although my embarkation date is still far off, the app says now there's good news.  If I don't select a group arrival time, they will assign one based on the travel info which was entered into the app.  We'll see how well that works out. 

I don't see it as good news at all.  Arbitrary assignment by deck is hardly fair.  Them attempting to assign a group by arrival time is fraught with more issues for them.  Look at all the people who are already in town the day before sail date so all of them are available for the earliest arrival time.

 

I think the best thing will be when they no longer need worry about folks waiting in the terminals and arrivals and check-in can begin early like it used to.

[AF-1]

4 hours ago, manunia said:

choices for Arrival Group is Not available for Sept 25th cruise from LA on Grand (40 days before departure). for Alaska cruise on Majestic it was available much earlier (i think it was about 2 month prior to departure date)

Let us know when you get your arrival slot?  Thanks

[AF-1]

22 hours ago, Daniel A said:

I'm sorry, but in writing Platinum, Elite and Suites should be given priority.  Princess should have written these benefits into their program.

Daniel A;  I hear what you're saying.  Hopefully things will get better as more ships start sailing and Princess get the boarding process working correctly.  We will wait and see

[Daniel A]

32 minutes ago, caribill said:

 

Some thread does have the e-mail posted with the arrival time by cabin deck.

 

It is basically like the old "suggested" arrival times. If you booked your cabin on the "right" deck, you checked in early. Otherwise, you might be assigned the latest possible check-in time.

 

27 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

I don't see it as good news at all.  Arbitrary assignment by deck is hardly fair.  Them attempting to assign a group by arrival time is fraught with more issues for them.  Look at all the people who are already in town the day before sail date so all of them are available for the earliest arrival time.

 

I think the best thing will be when they no longer need worry about folks waiting in the terminals and arrivals and check-in can begin early like it used to.

I saw that message in the app section for arrival and departure groups.  Today it now says "We've got you covered" instead of "Good News."  Since my cruise is still pretty far off, I wonder if they sent the boarding by decks e-mail out to people close to their cruise date in case they are having technical problems with the app.  It might be that they are planning to add a feature that will automatically put guests into a group based on travel arrangements but they haven't gotten that far yet.

[Steelers36]

4 minutes ago, Daniel A said:

It might be that they are planning to add a feature that will automatically put guests into a group based on travel arrangements but they haven't gotten that far yet.

If so, and it is pure speculation, it's just more about fixing something that wasn't broken.