Should Princess Rebrand Itself?

[Rick&Jenny]

Make that a “wine and cheese whiz cruise line.”

[loge23]

Based on our last few cruises, it would appear to us that the younger crowd - those still in the workforce - seem to prefer Celebrity over Princess. Obviously, a subjective take but it sure looks that way to us. The Celebrity ships seem to cater to the younger generation much more so than Princess does. Princess is playing catch-up for that demographic and that is causing their base clientele (older, retired folks) concern.  Thing is, most of that older base started on Princess when they were still in the workforce! Kind of a changing of the guard thing. 

The older crowd now prefer the longer cruises, naturally they have the time and resources for those trips - while the younger demographic are more likely seen on the 7-14 day cruises. 

But it does appear that Princess is going through a Marketing transition, trying to find their niche in the "post"-Covid travel business. Maybe, just too many mega-ships out there?

[cr8tiv1]

2 hours ago, caribill said:

 

The Princess Alaska cruises are nowhere near full per the "live from" threads.

 

I believe they are not full because most who are traveling now....ARE...the retired and couples/individuals with no children.  School is still in session.  This is my argument.  If Princess is moving toward the younger generation, who will fill their ships during the "off seasons" and longer cruises?  

[caribill]

6 hours ago, cr8tiv1 said:

 

I believe they are not full because most who are traveling now....ARE...the retired and couples/individuals with no children.  School is still in session.  This is my argument.  If Princess is moving toward the younger generation, who will fill their ships during the "off seasons" and longer cruises?  

 

At the same time as the not-so-full Alaska cruises, the Caribbean Princess is now in its second segment of being essentially sold out for a Caribbean itinerary.

 

Nothing to do with children being in school. May have a lot to do with too many large capacity ships having Alaska itineraries.

[Alcairns]

Once a great cruise line but they have cheapened the brand. No need to rebrand just merge with Carnival!! 

[RMS Olympic]

All cruise lines have cut back on the things that made them great. Princess has been my line of choice but how long that will be the case remains to be seen. In particular is the building of bigger ships. The new sphere class which I will sail on once will be in my opinion a mass market vessel. Too much of everything waters down the “product”.

Celebrity isn’t going huge, HAL isn’t building huge....even NCL who wants to go premium is building smaller ships. 
To me the mass market ship is one that tries to cater to everyone with everything.....thus drifting away from their core product. 
But only change is constant.....so I will have to accept the future changes with Princess or look elsewhere. Time will tell.

This Saturday it’s the Caribbean Princess.....it’s been 15 years since I sailed on her. Curious as to how I will feel about things on board especially if she is fully booked and inadequately staffed. 
My 92nd cruise.....hope it’s not time to beach myself.....

keeping my fingers crossed.

[Cruise Raider]

I just feel the need to add my two cents worth here …

cruising since the restart has been different … by different, I mean absolutely wonderful.  I prefer cruising with reduced capacity but, even the one cruise I’ve gone on at full capacity, it is so much better than before the pandemic.  Maybe I’m just so appreciative of being able to cruise again but, the things I’ve loved are:

 

the crew … absolutely top notch service;  they are so happy to be back at work and it shows 

the smaller portions … yes, I’m actually one that absolutely hates to waste food but just couldn’t finish the meals that were served to me in the past;  I’d oftentimes ask for an appetizer portion 

the cleanliness … I’m known to be a bit of a germaphobe but looks like everyone else is, too

the medallion app … now, I know I’ve had my occasional trouble with it as well but all in all, I love the capabilities it has 

expanded room service menu … I live being able to order some really wonderful dishes and even drinks from the beverage package right to my room … nothing better than that! 
no lines … we’ve been lucky enough to cruise on many itineraries and there are no lines for anything and seats available in just about every venue we’ve visited 

no extra paperwork for the trash can … so much more environmentally friendly than before; you can still get the latter and important notifications in your room if you wish 

once a day stateroom service … I love this change a lot;  we just ask for two extra bath towels at the beginning of the cruise and we are set whether we decide to take a shower in the morning or in the evening.  Our service has been beyond excellent!  

 

I know the reduced capacity won’t last forever and as a shareholder, I hope it doesn’t.  Just change your perspective and enjoy the wonderful aspects of what cruising has become.  Yes, we’ve had a couple of instances of poor service but nothing that wasn’t followed by an apology and everybody deserves a second chance to make it right.  Overall, we feel we’ve been so spoiled since the return … it’s cruising but better than before in our opinion. 
 

PS .. we are not new cruisers by any means.  

 

[JeffElizabeth]

On 5/24/2022 at 9:07 AM, mtnesterz said:

Princess isn't Premium. They are mass market.

What kind of premium line makes you do everything yourself?, ie. the Medallion 

Tipping is not indicated on premium lines. Pricing reflects that.

A check yesterday on a big TA site: NCL, MSC, Carnival, US$ 60/100 day

HAL, Princess 75/130 day.

Cunard, Celebrity, 130/200 day

Oceania, Azamara, 230 plus

Seabourn, Silversea,... If you have to ask how much, you can't afford it.

 

Illuminating post. I always thought I was too poor for Cunard but just went on a 28 day Oceania voyage. Might have to recalculate.  Going on a 16 day Princess in September.  I don't mind doing more things for ourselves and normal food offerings are a nice change from gourmet every night. Willing to mix it up. 

[MISTER 67]

There are 8 mainstream cruise lines that cater to the American market based on Berlitz Guide to Cruising which I consinder the best guide you can buy. I will rate them from top to bottom, none of them are Premium. I think I can speak from experience as we have sailed with all of them except for NCL.

1 Tie Celebrity

1 Tie Holland America

1 Tie Princess

4 Royal Caribbean 

5 MSC

6 NCL (word of mouth)

7 Costa

8 Carnival

 

.

 

 

Edited May 29, 2022 by MISTER 67

[turquoiselake]

On 5/29/2022 at 2:28 PM, MISTER 67 said:

There are 8 mainstream cruise lines that cater to the American market based on Berlitz Guide to Cruising which I consinder the best guide you can buy. I will rate them from top to bottom, none of them are Premium. I think I can speak from experience as we have sailed with all of them except for NCL.

1 Tie Celebrity

1 Tie Holland America

1 Tie Princess

4 Royal Caribbean 

5 MSC

6 NCL (word of mouth)

7 Costa

8 Carnival

 

.

 

 

 I think NCL should be ranked higher. The new ships they have coming out (Prima, Viva) which look lovely plus The Haven would tie them with RCL to me. Definitely above MSC- in my opinion. 

[scooter6139]

On 5/29/2022 at 11:28 AM, MISTER 67 said:

There are 8 mainstream cruise lines that cater to the American market based on Berlitz Guide to Cruising which I consinder the best guide you can buy. I will rate them from top to bottom, none of them are Premium. I think I can speak from experience as we have sailed with all of them except for NCL.

1 Tie Celebrity

1 Tie Holland America

1 Tie Princess

4 Royal Caribbean 

5 MSC

6 NCL (word of mouth)

7 Costa

8 Carnival

 

 

Would love to find out how they classify/categorize cruise lines, but I am unable to find any information online without buying the book. which I will not do.  Can you share how and what classifications they use?  

[Daniel A]

24 minutes ago, scooter6139 said:

 

Would love to find out how they classify/categorize cruise lines, but I am unable to find any information online without buying the book. which I will not do.  Can you share how and what classifications they use?  

I would expect the rankings are based on the subjective judgement of their editors.  I doubt there are any empirical standards used.  Did you ever go to a restaurant that had great reviews and found it wasn't what you would recommend to a friend?

[MISTER 67]

2 hours ago, scooter6139 said:

 

Would love to find out how they classify/categorize cruise lines, but I am unable to find any information online without buying the book. which I will not do.  Can you share how and what classifications they use?  

The Berlitz guide has a rating system based on 6 catagories, they are Ship, Accomadations, Food, Service, Entertainment and Cruise Experience. They give each catagory a certain amount of points with 2000 points being perfect. The Europa 2 of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises is the highest rated ship as it garnered 1,852 points. Most of the Mainstream lines average around 1,400 points per ship.

Edited June 1, 2022 by MISTER 67

[AE_Collector]

On 5/24/2022 at 9:43 AM, Ombud said:

Can we get small bites, lattes, & premium tea at the Princess Live Cafe as well as International Cafe on new builds? Addition of sushi bar is another great touch

 

I think they're trying to expand beer selection in Salty Dog Gastropub  ..... heading back there in a month

 

 

Princess has always had Dos Equis beer but only the lager. Dos Equis has an Amber that is EXCELLENT yet it isn’t even available onboard to the best of my knowledge. Younger cruisers want better selection and this addition would seem SO EASY for them to accomplish.

Edited June 1, 2022 by AE_Collector
Typo

[AE_Collector]

On 5/25/2022 at 8:37 AM, caribill said:

 

The Princess Alaska cruises are nowhere near full per the "live from" threads.

At least with the Alaska cruises to/from Vancouver, a significant part of the problem this season is that Canada didn’t confirm that cruising was on again for certain here until March this year. Thus too late for so many cruisers to even consider booking this season. But that has created some hot deals for us locals!

[GiftOfTheSea]

On 5/25/2022 at 4:12 AM, caribill said:

I am not sure that the 25-40 year olds want:

 

a) Technology that does not work for many of its users both pre-cruise and on the ship (including not working for staff on the ship)

 

b) Bigger and bigger ships going to ports overcrowded with other Displacement Of The Seas type ships

 

c) Long waits to be seated for dinner even with reservations.

 

d) Very many minutes on phone hold when needing to speak with the cruise line pre- or post-cruise.

 

e) Smoke-filled casinos on ships.

I'm 42, and this is spot on.  Just returned from a week on Discovery Princess, and being tech savvy actually makes one even less likely to buy into technology that doesn't function.  Also, it was evident on the ship that Princess has changed its target market and general vibe from the days when my parents cruised with them a decade or so ago (they traveled with us and confirmed this).  We prefer a quieter, more classic cruise with some premium touches, and it felt like Princess is headed away from that, and more towards mass market.  We will give them one more chance because we did think the ship was beautiful and the service was still pretty good, but if they don't fix the app, and if the new sphere class ships start to turn more toward Royal Caribbean and Norwegian and away from Celebrity/HAL/Princess-past, we likely wouldn't cruise with them again.