Princess Shareholder question for Aussies

[windsor26]

Waiting for a while for my Princess obc and did not get a acknowledgement message and it was not shown non my a/c so did the live chat and Amber put it on immediately and it is now shown

[MicCanberra]

Not Princess but HAL and we applied for the Shareholder OBC for a cruise in December and next January they applied to OBC for both as HAL do not require the application within 3 months of sailing but do need it at least 1 month out..

[arxcards]

I have decided to join the Carnival shares crowd. Interesting to read back through the thread and prices are cheaper now than when the thread started, but that is purely for outlay as short term pricing means nothing when it comes to the reason for owning. At todays price, I will get a pineapple in change for $AU2000.

 

Now the question. We don't have any bank affiliation (bank with a building society), so are looking for an easy to use interface/webpage/app that provides the required holding statements to apply for OBC. Commsec is mentioned here a bit. Is that the way to go, or is there another platform that I should be checking out?

[arxcards]

On 9/23/2023 at 10:04 AM, OzKiwiJJ said:

Yes but only about $50. 

Hi Julie,

Curious as I figure you would know in regards to your world cruise next year. There is $250 OBC for long cruises. Is that $250 for your world cruise, or is it $250 per sector?

[Aus Traveller]

9 hours ago, arxcards said:

Hi Julie,

Curious as I figure you would know in regards to your world cruise next year. There is $250 OBC for long cruises. Is that $250 for your world cruise, or is it $250 per sector?

$250 for the whole world cruise unless you book the WC in sectors. I did it that way for the 2020 WC that didn't go ahead. I was going to have $250 per sector. However, when I booked for 2023, (after deciding 2022 was unlikely to go ahead) the sectors weren't all available and the shareholders OBC was $250 for the booking.

 

I suggest you compare the price of booking the whole WC against booking sectors (separate booking numbers), factoring in the extra OBC you will get. With booking separately, there is a slight chance you would have to change cabins between sectors unless you choose your cabin when booking and mark it 'no upgrade'. Free upgrades are unlikely these days anyway.

[Drumbeat16]

I bought ours through CMC Markets Invest https://www.cmcmarkets.com/en-au/login. I think it was suggested in this thread and the process was very easy.

[Relaxing Robbies]

I bought my shares through Stake (hellostake.com) a few years ago. Quite easy and no ongoing fees to worry about. Monthly holding report available online a few days after the end of the month.

[arxcards]

2 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

$250 for the whole world cruise unless you book the WC in sectors. I did it that way for the 2020 WC that didn't go ahead. I was going to have $250 per sector. However, when I booked for 2023, (after deciding 2022 was unlikely to go ahead) the sectors weren't all available and the shareholders OBC was $250 for the booking.

 

I suggest you compare the price of booking the whole WC against booking sectors (separate booking numbers), factoring in the extra OBC you will get. With booking separately, there is a slight chance you would have to change cabins between sectors unless you choose your cabin when booking and mark it 'no upgrade'. Free upgrades are unlikely these days anyway.

Thanks.
I have since read your info earlier in the thread, which I have half caught-up on now. We are already booked for half the world cruise in 2025, so one booking number instead of two sectors. I was curious how it works, as some benefits work by sectors, but not all.

 

I am looking at a Diamond Princess b2b (7 + 4 nights) which is also sold as a combined 11 nighter. It will work out $50 more OBC and an extra mini-bar to book them separately, but the fare will also cost us $160 more.

[Aus Traveller]

2 hours ago, arxcards said:

Thanks.
I have since read your info earlier in the thread, which I have half caught-up on now. We are already booked for half the world cruise in 2025, so one booking number instead of two sectors. I was curious how it works, as some benefits work by sectors, but not all.

 

I am looking at a Diamond Princess b2b (7 + 4 nights) which is also sold as a combined 11 nighter. It will work out $50 more OBC and an extra mini-bar to book them separately, but the fare will also cost us $160 more.

On the long cruises I have been on (including World Cruises), the mini bar is replenished every sector even if the booking is for the whole cruise.

[Ondine]

Is anyone having trouble obtaining the OBC with Princess at the moment?  I have emailed them several times over the past 2 weeks for a cruise in January but so far no reply. (within the 3 months)

I am using the "benefits@princesscruises.com.au" email address but have also tried the Carnival one.  I am not even getting the automated reply.

A month ago I got the OBC for my October Princess cruises and also the December cruise with Cunard without a problem.  P&O gave me OBC for a late January cruise several months ago but Princess seem to be unhelpful.

[arxcards]

48 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

On the long cruises I have been on (including World Cruises), the mini bar is replenished every sector even if the booking is for the whole cruise.

Correct, or at least it should be.

Just that if I book this Diamond cruise as the combined 11 night option I should only expect one setup. If I book the split 4 night and 7 night cruises separately, I should expect two mini bars.

[Aus Traveller]

Just now, arxcards said:

Correct, or at least it should be.

Just that if I book this Diamond cruise as the combined 11 night option I should only expect one setup. If I book the split 4 night and 7 night cruises separately, I should expect two mini bars.

That is probably how it would work on a fairly short cruise. Is it more expensive to book as two separate cruises? It sounds like you are thinking of buying shares. You would get $50 for the 4-night cruise and $100 for the 7-night cruise. Don't think about you and your wife both buying shares to get double the OBC unless you have different surnames. I have heard of couples who have different names both getting the OBC. I assume this is because Princess can't assume they are a couple rather than just good friends cruising together.

[arxcards]

10 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

That is probably how it would work on a fairly short cruise. Is it more expensive to book as two separate cruises? It sounds like you are thinking of buying shares. You would get $50 for the 4-night cruise and $100 for the 7-night cruise. Don't think about you and your wife both buying shares to get double the OBC unless you have different surnames. I have heard of couples who have different names both getting the OBC. I assume this is because Princess can't assume they are a couple rather than just good friends cruising together.

Yes, booking them separately is $160 dearer, so not worth it for the extra $50 of OBC. Both Barb and I have the same Captains Circle number with a different letter on the end so I don't think I would try to pull the wool over their eyes.

[Tranquility Base]

For those who qualify.

 

There is a new thread on the Princess forum that the military obc may once again be combinable with the shareholder obc.

That non combinable policy was only introduced about 6 months ago.

I don’t think anyone has had it confirmed yet, but for those interested keep an eye on that thread.

[Relaxing Robbies]

3 hours ago, Ondine said:

Is anyone having trouble obtaining the OBC with Princess at the moment?  I have emailed them several times over the past 2 weeks for a cruise in January but so far no reply. (within the 3 months)

I am using the "benefits@princesscruises.com.au" email address but have also tried the Carnival one.  I am not even getting the automated reply.

A month ago I got the OBC for my October Princess cruises and also the December cruise with Cunard without a problem.  P&O gave me OBC for a late January cruise several months ago but Princess seem to be unhelpful.

I recently applied for my late November and early December cruises to the benefits@princesscruises.com.au email address. I did not receive an automated reply, but the credits were applied about 10 days later.

[Sparky74]

My TA has applied for the OBC for us and it's been applied to our upcoming Princess cruise. I'm not sure how to check if it's been applied to our P&O cruises yet but they're not until next year. 

[Aus Traveller]

12 hours ago, Sparky74 said:

My TA has applied for the OBC for us and it's been applied to our upcoming Princess cruise. I'm not sure how to check if it's been applied to our P&O cruises yet but they're not until next year. 

For P&O you can check on your Cruise Control. It will show the amount of OBC. Compare that with your booking confirmation and you will see if the extra is now included.

[Zetta83]

On 10/18/2023 at 7:25 PM, Sparky74 said:

My TA has applied for the OBC for us and it's been applied to our upcoming Princess cruise. I'm not sure how to check if it's been applied to our P&O cruises yet but they're not until next year. 

As your cruises next year are in July and Aug. I doubt that they have been applied. Shareholder benefit can only be applied within 90 days?

[Ondine]

On 10/18/2023 at 7:00 PM, Relaxing Robbies said:

I recently applied for my late November and early December cruises to the benefits@princesscruises.com.au email address. I did not receive an automated reply, but the credits were applied about 10 days later.

 

I just got confirmation for my 8th Jan cruise.  Took 2 weeks.  However it is showing up as "Customer Goodwill" on this one.  One less thing to worry about before I go on Monday!

[arxcards]

On 10/19/2023 at 9:17 AM, Aus Traveller said:

For P&O you can check on your Cruise Control. It will show the amount of OBC. Compare that with your booking confirmation and you will see if the extra is now included.

Nice avatar update Evon.

 

I note you mentioning ANZ earlier in the thread. I didn't go with them, or so I thought, but note they are now CMC Invest linked to an ANZ savings account. The shares have dipped a bit, and I should be in the fold tonight.

 

Has anyone been able to apply their OBC within 2 weeks of sailing?

[Aus Traveller]

Just now, arxcards said:

Nice avatar update Evon.

 

I note you mentioning ANZ earlier in the thread. I didn't go with them, or so I thought, but note they are now CMC Invest linked to an ANZ savings account. The shares have dipped a bit, and I should be in the fold tonight.

 

Has anyone been able to apply their OBC within 2 weeks of sailing?

Thanks for your comment about my new avatar. It was a shot taken on the Coral Princess while we were in the Med during the world cruise.

 

Yes - ANZ share trading is now CMC Invest. I try not to think about the amount I paid for my shares pre-COVID.

[Sparky74]

2 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

Thanks for your comment about my new avatar. It was a shot taken on the Coral Princess while we were in the Med during the world cruise…

It’s helpful to me. I see it and say to myself, "Oh yes! I remember her." 
I have a very good memory, it’s just not very long! 🤣

[Aus Traveller]

4 minutes ago, Sparky74 said:

It’s helpful to me. I see it and say to myself, "Oh yes! I remember her." 
I have a very good memory, it’s just not very long! 🤣

We met on a Coral Princess cruise in either January (to Tasmania) or February (to NZ) this year.

[Sparky74]

7 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

We met on a Coral Princess cruise in either January (to Tasmania) or February (to NZ) this year.

I thought it was last year. We were on the Coral Princess for Auntie's birthday on 1st July. We sailed out of Brisbane in late June and ended up docking overnight in Cairns as they decided not to go to Port Douglas because of the wind. Were you on that one, Evon?

[Aus Traveller]

Just now, Sparky74 said:

I thought it was last year. We were on the Coral Princess for Auntie's birthday on 1st July. We sailed out of Brisbane in late June and ended up docking overnight in Cairns as they decided not to go to Port Douglas because of the wind. Were you on that one, Evon?

Last year we were on the Coral for a coastal cruise from 26th June. It could have been on that cruise and not the January or February ones this year.