Premium plus vs Premier

[evelynw2]

Hi , we booked a suite on Discovery princess and we received an email  offering this upgrade . Has anyone purchased this and if so was it worth it ?

Thanks !

[Texter2]

I had the same question as I booked a cruise that included the Premier beverage package over a year ago when the “Premier” beverage package was part of the Princess Plus add on. I now see Princess Plus and Princess Premier as fare option package add ons. Princess Standard appears to be cruise only. I cannot find the Premium to determine what it includes. 

[smilesonfaces]

No one knows yet if it is worth it or not. It is not introduced until after 25/6.

it includes 2 speciality dinners for 2 worth $120,  photographs you may not actually want, the chance to maybe win a prize and drinks over $18 even though at present there are very few on the menu. Only time will tell if it is worth it or not. 

[memoak]

28 minutes ago, smilesonfaces said:

No one knows yet if it is worth it or not. It is not introduced until after 25/6.

it includes 2 speciality dinners for 2 worth $120,  photographs you may not actually want, the chance to maybe win a prize and drinks over $18 even though at present there are very few on the menu. Only time will tell if it is worth it or not. 

That should be up to $18 not over   The plus package gives you drinks up to $12. It seems like the upgraded drink package is only trsll useful for those who need to have super premium liquor like Woodford Reserve or Chopin. Or those who want a wider range of wines by the glass

[smilesonfaces]

19 minutes ago, memoak said:

That should be up to $18 not over   The plus package gives you drinks up to $12. It seems like the upgraded drink package is only trsll useful for those who need to have super premium liquor like Woodford Reserve or Chopin. Or those who want a wider range of wines by the glass

Sorry. Mis typed. I meant up to $18

Edited June 20, 2022 by smilesonfaces

[geoherb]

6 hours ago, memoak said:

That should be up to $18 not over   The plus package gives you drinks up to $12. It seems like the upgraded drink package is only trsll useful for those who need to have super premium liquor like Woodford Reserve or Chopin. Or those who want a wider range of wines by the glass

 

But with Princess Plus and the $12 limit, you can still order drinks that cost more and just pay the difference plus the 18% service charge on the difference. A $13 glass of wine will cost you $1.18. A $25 glass of Talisker would cost $15.34 with Princess Plus and $8.26 with Premier with its $18 limit.

[HaveDogWillTravel]

With the lack of decent dry non Chardonnay and rose wines lately I’ll be bringing my wine on board. Buy a coffee card and a few cases of bottled water pre-cruise. The OBC pays for corkage, internet and auto grats and an occasional crooners cocktail. 

[Steelers36]

9 hours ago, evelynw2 said:

Hi , we booked a suite on Discovery princess and we received an email  offering this upgrade . Has anyone purchased this and if so was it worth it ?

Thanks !

 

8 hours ago, Texter2 said:

I had the same question as I booked a cruise that included the Premier beverage package over a year ago when the “Premier” beverage package was part of the Princess Plus add on. I now see Princess Plus and Princess Premier as fare option package add ons. Princess Standard appears to be cruise only. I cannot find the Premium to determine what it includes. 

 

The former Premier Drink Package has been re-badged as the Plus Drink Package to match up with the PLUS Cruise Fare option.  Anyone who booked when it was the Premier Drink Package included in the PLUS fare will be getting the same package they booked with - it's just renamed.  

 

The new PREMIER Cruise Fare includes a corresponding Premier Drink Package, but this is not the former one.  It is enhanced and covers drinks up to $18 as posted by others above.

 

Princess STANDARD is the new name for Princess SAVER Cruise Fare.

 

Both drink packages are explained in detail on Princess.com.  

 

If you were already booked under PLUS, you should have been paying $40/pp/day.  The new upcharge is $50/pp/day.  PREMIER fare is an upcharge of $75/pp/day over Standard.  If you were previously booked under PLUS when the new fare plans come into effect, you can upgrade from PLUS to PREMIER for $25 (instead of $35).

[skynight]

Go to the Princess site. Select Find Cruises. Find your cruise. Select your cabin. The stand, plus and premier fares will show. Select view offer details for each plan and all is described there.

[geoherb]

9 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

If you were already booked under PLUS, you should have been paying $40/pp/day.  The new upcharge is $50/pp/day.  PREMIER fare is an upcharge of $75/pp/day over Standard.  If you were previously booked under PLUS when the new fare plans come into effect, you can upgrade from PLUS to PREMIER for $25 (instead of $35).

 

The regular price is $50 and $75 per day, but your mileage may vary. For my upcoming cruise to Greenland on the Caribbean, the cost of adding Plus was $900, which works out to $56.25 per day. Back when the regular price was $40 a day, I frequently saw cruises where the cost was a lot more, some even over $100 per day. The highest in the spreadsheet I did before my February cruise was $124.14 per day.

[Texter2]

10 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

 

 

The former Premier Drink Package has been re-badged as the Plus Drink Package to match up with the PLUS Cruise Fare option.  Anyone who booked when it was the Premier Drink Package included in the PLUS fare will be getting the same package they booked with - it's just renamed.  

 

The new PREMIER Cruise Fare includes a corresponding Premier Drink Package, but this is not the former one.  It is enhanced and covers drinks up to $18 as posted by others above.

 

Princess STANDARD is the new name for Princess SAVER Cruise Fare.

 

Both drink packages are explained in detail on Princess.com.  

 

If you were already booked under PLUS, you should have been paying $40/pp/day.  The new upcharge is $50/pp/day.  PREMIER fare is an upcharge of $75/pp/day over Standard.  If you were previously booked under PLUS when the new fare plans come into effect, you can upgrade from PLUS to PREMIER for $25 (instead of $35).

As we take the beverage package for the wine (NZ Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc and other wines now classified as Premier) and large sparkling water, we will no longer be able to get the same items under the Plus plan. Thus, Princess has made changes beyond renaming the plans. Princess has elevated items previously available under the former Premier (now Plus) beverage plan to the new (upgraded and repriced) Premier beverage plan. Is it a deal breaker? Probably not. We will most likely not upgrade, but check it out on our next cruise, upgrading our wine as needed, and pay the upcharge. What is more troubling is booking under certain assumptions and having the change applied retroactively. 

[memoak]

11 minutes ago, Texter2 said:

As we take the beverage package for the wine (NZ Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc and other wines now classified as Premier) and large sparkling water, we will no longer be able to get the same items under the Plus plan. Thus, Princess has made changes beyond renaming the plans. Princess has elevated items previously available under the former Premier (now Plus) beverage plan to the new (upgraded and repriced) Premier beverage plan. Is it a deal breaker? Probably not. We will most likely not upgrade, but check it out on our next cruise, upgrading our wine as needed, and pay the upcharge. What is more troubling is booking under certain assumptions and having the change applied retroactively. 

We really do not know if there will be any changes to the Plus plan at this time and no one will know till we get reports from passengers. Plus still gets you grats, WiFi and 15 drinks up to $12

[Texter2]

8 minutes ago, memoak said:

We really do not know if there will be any changes to the Plus plan at this time and no one will know till we get reports from passengers. Plus still gets you grats, WiFi and 15 drinks up to $12

Agreed. I will be happy if I can get the same quality of wines under the revised plan. I was going by the language on the Princess website describing the two plans. 

[memoak]

18 minutes ago, Texter2 said:

Agreed. I will be happy if I can get the same quality of wines under the revised plan. I was going by the language on the Princess website describing the two plans. 

The language really only gives the number of wines available under each plan and there were never many decent ones on plus anyway. We don’t need 4 device plans as we know how log off and on and haven’t wanted to have a photo taken in years 

[Steelers36]

2 hours ago, Texter2 said:

As we take the beverage package for the wine (NZ Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc and other wines now classified as Premier) and large sparkling water, we will no longer be able to get the same items under the Plus plan. Thus, Princess has made changes beyond renaming the plans. Princess has elevated items previously available under the former Premier (now Plus) beverage plan to the new (upgraded and repriced) Premier beverage plan. Is it a deal breaker? Probably not. We will most likely not upgrade, but check it out on our next cruise, upgrading our wine as needed, and pay the upcharge. What is more troubling is booking under certain assumptions and having the change applied retroactively. 

To date, Princess has stated there are no imminent increases to drink prices.  You can order any wine you want under either plan - either by the glass or bottle.  Bottles come at 25% off menu price.  If you order a $14 glass of wine under the PLUS, it costs you $2 + 18% grat.  If you order it under PREMIER, it is free.  There is speculation (based on marketing, so it is still speculation IMO) that Princess will add more listings as By-The-Glass from listings that are the more expensive labels and hence the per/glass prices will be higher.  They are going to have to manage this carefully, because the higher-priced labels may end up sitting around and deteriorate so I would be interested to know how they are dealing with those bottles (such as using inert gas, etc).

[prmssk]

4 hours ago, Texter2 said:

As we take the beverage package for the wine (NZ Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc and other wines now classified as Premier) and large sparkling water, we will no longer be able to get the same items under the Plus plan. Thus, Princess has made changes beyond renaming the plans. Princess has elevated items previously available under the former Premier (now Plus) beverage plan to the new (upgraded and repriced) Premier beverage plan. Is it a deal breaker? Probably not. We will most likely not upgrade, but check it out on our next cruise, upgrading our wine as needed, and pay the upcharge. What is more troubling is booking under certain assumptions and having the change applied retroactively. 

We actually have no idea if certain things covered under Plus will no longer be covered when this new package goes into effect on Saturday.  

 

To me the bigger problem is that so many wines I try to order on the Caribbean Princess right now are not in stock.  Servers seem hesitant to offer menus and often just ask if you want a Cabernet, Chardonnay, etc. with no reference to details of the wine.  I don't think Plus or Premier will be worth it to a wine drinker until they address the supply issue.  Are others experiencing the same on other ships right now?

[Texter2]

5 hours ago, prmssk said:

We actually have no idea if certain things covered under Plus will no longer be covered when this new package goes into effect on Saturday.  

 

To me the bigger problem is that so many wines I try to order on the Caribbean Princess right now are not in stock.  Servers seem hesitant to offer menus and often just ask if you want a Cabernet, Chardonnay, etc. with no reference to details of the wine.  I don't think Plus or Premier will be worth it to a wine drinker until they address the supply issue.  Are others experiencing the same on other ships right now?

I found this under the (new) Premier Beverage Package description on the Princess website:

 

• Premier wines by the glass, including Cloudy Bay, Hartford Court, Grgich Hills and Freemark Abbey

 

At least some of these wines were available under the (old) Premier plan. I do hope you are correct and they are available under the new Plus plan. Our next cruise is in October, so I hope the issue of availability is also sorted by then. 

[JimmyVWine]

41 minutes ago, Texter2 said:

I found this under the (new) Premier Beverage Package description on the Princess website:

 

• Premier wines by the glass, including Cloudy Bay, Hartford Court, Grgich Hills and Freemark Abbey

 

At least some of these wines were available under the (old) Premier plan. I do hope you are correct and they are available under the new Plus plan. Our next cruise is in October, so I hope the issue of availability is also sorted by then. 

All of these wines can be purchased under the Plus plan even if prices are raised. If a $11 wine goes up to $13, you can still order it. You just pay $1.18. If you drink 15 glasses a day, you would pay $17.70–still well below the $25 upgrade fee. The extra Specialty Dinner is valued at $4 per day over the course of a 7 day cruise. So if you pay out of pocket for an extra dinner and 15 glasses of wine, you are still better off under Plus. 

This assumes that an $11 wine goes up to $13. This is far from certain. But even if there are price hikes, it is hard to envision an $11 wine being bumped up to $15 or more. We have to wait and see. 

Edited June 22, 2022 by JimmyVWine

[geoherb]

And even if some of the previously listed wines go up in price, Princess will have to add some that will fit the Plus criteria. I don't see Princess selling a drinks package and then telling passengers that there is no choice at all of wines that fit the package.

 

On my Regal cruise in February, there were 19 wines listed that came in at $12 or less on the dining room menu and only one that was $13. On the Vines menu, 19 wines were $12 or less and 6 were between $13 and $17.

[HaveDogWillTravel]

10 hours ago, prmssk said:

 

 

To me the bigger problem is that so many wines I try to order on the Caribbean Princess right now are not in stock.  Servers seem hesitant to offer menus and often just ask if you want a Cabernet, Chardonnay, etc. with no reference to details of the wine.  I don't think Plus or Premier will be worth it to a wine drinker until they address the supply issue.  Are others experiencing the same on other ships right now?

Yes see my post #7. It’s been getting progressively worse. I’ve sailed quite a bit since the restart. On my May 20-30 Ruby sailing there were only 2 bottles of Whispering Rose on board. Only 2 bottles Nikiara a nice Paso Robles red. I could go on and on. 
 

In all likelihood this is because they will completely change the inventory.   Then there will be no price comparisons. Can’t say the price went up when all the wines are different. 

Edited June 22, 2022 by HaveDogWillTravel

[Suite Susie]

Only two bottles of Whispering Angel - that is really bad. We would drink both those bottles on the first day. It is widely available in the UK - somebody in Procurement at Princess needs to get their act together. 

[prmssk]

10 hours ago, Texter2 said:

I found this under the (new) Premier Beverage Package description on the Princess website:

 

• Premier wines by the glass, including Cloudy Bay, Hartford Court, Grgich Hills and Freemark Abbey

 

At least some of these wines were available under the (old) Premier plan. I do hope you are correct and they are available under the new Plus plan. Our next cruise is in October, so I hope the issue of availability is also sorted by then. 

Cloudy Bay and Hartford Court were over $12 in February on the Emerald (around $15-$16).  I don't recall seeing Grgich Hills and Freemark Abbey on menus in February nor do I see them listed on any drink menus people have posted recently online.  Drink menus I'm looking at on the Caribbean Princess right now (before the new package starts on Saturday) appear to be identical to the ones I saw on the Emerald in February (except so much of what is listed they don't actually have).  Have you been able to get any of these wines for $12 or less since the restart?

[prmssk]

5 hours ago, HaveDogWillTravel said:

In all likelihood this is because they will completely change the inventory.   Then there will be no price comparisons. Can’t say the price went up when all the wines are different. 

I hadn't thought of this.  Maybe I will see some completely different wines next week.  No one can say they raised prices on something they didn't offer previously.

[smilesonfaces]

6 hours ago, HaveDogWillTravel said:
 

In all likelihood this is because they will completely change the inventory.   Then there will be no price comparisons. Can’t say the price went up when all the wines are different. 

This is exactly what I am sure will happen. The wines currently around $10/12 will disappear. They will be replaced by cheaper alternatives. New wines will appear which are over $12.  They will not increase the prices of the Plus wines, they will just change the selections available. Customers will not be able to say prices have increased as they won’t be able to compare. Very easy for Princess to do. With the medallion and QR code menus they don’t even have to do too much reprinting of menus.

[smilesonfaces]

Picked this up from Facebook from yesterday. If correct I guess the price increases have started already.