Just booked my first Princess cruise

[njkate]

I usually sail NcL but their pricing is nuts lately, checked Carnival and wasn’t liking the reviews sooo I booked British Isles 12 day cruise for July 2023. I’ve been trying to get to Le Harve since 2019 but those cruises were canceled. 
A similar cruise on NCL would of pushed me to platinum plus but the price difference and the fact there are actual laundry rooms on Princess won me over.

Any advice for a Princess newbie?

 

Now questions 

How is Princess air program, when can I book it and can I deviate as I’d prefer to fly in one to two days prior?

Edited August 1, 2022 by njkate

[skynight]

Any advice for a Princess newbie?

Military Vet.? Look up the Princess Military OBC benefit

Carnival Stockholder? Look up the Carnival Corp. Shareholder Benefit.

Plus fares are a good deal. You don't have to drink very much to make them pay, maybe two drinks or so a day.

[LACruiser88]

There are many current threads asking same question.  Below is one of them...

 

 

 

[njkate]

10 minutes ago, skynight said:

Any advice for a Princess newbie?

Military Vet.? Look up the Princess Military OBC benefit

Carnival Stockholder? Look up the Carnival Corp. Shareholder Benefit.

Plus fares are a good deal. You don't have to drink very much to make them pay, maybe two drinks or so a day.

Thank you. No vets but do have law enforcement coming with me 

Took the drink pkg but need to purchase for the third person

i booked a mini suite for 3 adults and one child, their minis look larger then NCL and I just did that on NCL for Alaska, yep it’s a tad tight but this cruise is port intensive we will be in cabin to sleep and shower and the privacy curtain is a bonus I didn’t have on ncl

[njkate]

3 minutes ago, LACruiser88 said:

There are many current threads asking same question.  Below is one of them...

 

 

 

Thanks I’ll check it out

[geoherb]

I'd check out to see the pricing for downgrading your cabin situation to a balcony and inside. It's better to have two bathrooms for four people.

When I looked at airfare on the Princess website for a cruise next summer, it said it was not available yet. We did get some great airfares for the three cruises we took from Southampton. We were able to pick our flights on the Princess website. We always fly in at least a couple of days early so we have time to get over jetlag. Plus there are so many things to do and see in London.

[njkate]

8 hours ago, geoherb said:

I'd check out to see the pricing for downgrading your cabin situation to a balcony and inside. It's better to have two bathrooms for four people.

When I looked at airfare on the Princess website for a cruise next summer, it said it was not available yet. We did get some great airfares for the three cruises we took from Southampton. We were able to pick our flights on the Princess website. We always fly in at least a couple of days early so we have time to get over jetlag. Plus there are so many things to do and see in London.

I tried that and played around it adds several thousand on to the cost which can be used towards air or excursions. We survived on an Alaskan cruise on NCL two weeks ago and Princess mini looks bigger than NCL, has two tv and privacy curtain.

I’ve seen families on an NCL trans Atlantic with 4 in an inside cabin. 

[Steelers36]

15 hours ago, njkate said:

Now questions 

How is Princess air program, when can I book it and can I deviate as I’d prefer to fly in one to two days prior?

When the time comes (it is early now), you will find there is a range of dates both prior to and after the voyage where you can book flights with EZ-Air.  You access EZ-Air via the Cruise Personalizer.  Flights are available about 330 days from voyage dates.  Note that if you are on a single voyage, the flights default to return and you will find them for sale 330 days from the END of the voyage.  EZ-Air pricing for overseas is great and you can find good deals.  Book as soon as you can and then keep an eye on the airfares.  You book Flexible option with EZ-Air and you can make flight changes (including airline) anytime up to ticketing.  For an example, we are flying in Business Class between Toronto and Rome with two different airlines (separate 1-ways in October & November) for about $850/pp/direction.

 

[nini]

** I believe you will be on the Regal Princess? We love that ship!

** If you are wanting to tour the Normandy Beaches; be sure to book ASAP with www.overlordtour.com

** It has been our experience that EZAir works fairly well and is typically a very good deal. Due to our current times, it can be challenging with flight changes and cancellations.

** There is no problem flying in early and/ or staying longer after the cruise when booking EZAir. We flew in 3 days early for our British Isles cruise this last May and stayed in London. We booked the Princess transfer to the ship which departed at the Victoria Coach Station for $59.00 per person. It took about 1.5 to 2 hours to Southampton.

** The laundry rooms are a wonderful convenience. It saves on the amount of clothing to pack. Just beware that it is VERY crowded on the first sea day, so plan accordingly.

** On the Regal, you will have Vines and Alfredo's!

Edited August 2, 2022 by nini

[pppatpc2]

One added tip on EZ air,  we usually add on 5 days in a city we haven’t been to and extend the trip.  You can choose a different city for the return EZAir and you just need transportation between disembarkation and that city, which is usually cheap. For example, we once had a cruise ending in Venice, we took the train to Rome and spent 5 days there, then took the EZAir home from there.

[njkate]

3 hours ago, nini said:

** I believe you will be on the Regal Princess? We love that ship!

** If you are wanting to tour the Normandy Beaches; be sure to book ASAP with www.overlordtour.com

** It has been our experience that EZAir works fairly well and is typically a very good deal. Due to our current times, it can be challenging with flight changes and cancellations.

** There is no problem flying in early and/ or staying longer after the cruise when booking EZAir. We flew in 3 days early for our British Isles cruise this last May and stayed in London. We booked the Princess transfer to the ship which departed at the Victoria Coach Station for $59.00 per person. It took about 1.5 to 2 hours to Southampton.

** The laundry rooms are a wonderful convenience. It saves on the amount of clothing to pack. Just beware that it is VERY crowded on the first sea day, so plan accordingly.

** On the Regal, you will have Vines and Alfredo's!

I've had 3 cruises with Le Harve as a port stop cancelled in the last 3 years and I was booked with Overlord as the reviews were stellar and except for a very small cancel fee no problem being refunded.

What I'm trying to muddle through now is the protocols for an unvaccinated 8 year old ( don't get me started grr but not my house not my monkey)

[Chasing Summer]

We were on Crown Princess to the British Isles in 2010. One of our most memorable cruises. Princess has a very different vibe from NCL. We're Sapphire on NCL (14 cruises) and just finished our 5th Princess cruise. The ships are more sophisticated in their decor and ship activities, but we like both lines. In Europe and Alaska I think Princess has an advantage with port relationships. In Alaska I noticed we had the most convenient berths and in Europe they seem to overcome last minute situations that other lines would struggle with. Sounds like you have your Overlord excursion figured out but I'd consider using Princess excursions for the other ports. We've mostly used ship excursions in the 39 cruises we've been on because they can get you in a priority line easier, especially if it's a busy location like Blarney Castle, Sterling Castle or Edinburgh Castle. I think for the small amount of time you have in port, you get the most out of the day. They also can't leave you if the transport bringing you back is late.

 

Laundry option on Princess is awesome. Not sure if this is fleet wide, but we were on the Discovery a few weeks ago and the laundry was free! Nice perk. We had to get to Platinum on NCL to get free laundry. They also have irons and ironing boards. Also very nice. As pp said, it does get busy. 

 

I wouldn't invest a lot of energy investigating protocols for the non-vaxxed kid at this point. You are a long way off in "covid time" and things could look drastically different by next summer. It's such a great cruise and you'll see some amazing place. So glad you are finally able to go. If you have another questions, just ask.

[nini]

We used NO Princess shore excursions and our tours were fabulous! Communications and tour guides were excellent. We booked privately and many others from our Roll Call were on our excursions.

[njkate]

Do you have to participate in formal night? I cruise to relax and decompress getting all decked out for dinner is not relaxing to me

[EDDY0827]

7 minutes ago, njkate said:

Do you have to participate in formal night? I cruise to relax and decompress getting all decked out for dinner is not relaxing to me

Absolutely not! You do you! Dress up or down, the choice is yours.

[skynight]

1 hour ago, Chasing Summer said:

Laundry option on Princess is awesome. Not sure if this is fleet wide, but we were on the Discovery a few weeks ago and the laundry was free! Nice perk. We had to get to Platinum on NCL to get free laundry. They also have irons and ironing boards. Also very nice. As pp said, it does get busy. 

All Princess ships have self service laundries. Most cost $3 wash, $3 dry. Irons are free. Recently some ships, yours, have not been charging for self service laundry. Elite loyalty level on Princess receive free laundry service. No limit. Usually turn around time is 3 days, but can be shorter. 

[Chasing Summer]

I wondered if the free laundry was just on Discovery. We've used it in the past on other ships and had to pay and buy soap. Maybe the desk got tired of selling coins or tokens. Just having a laundry to do yourself is nice, regardless of price. Most other lines do not have that.

[LACruiser88]

3 minutes ago, Chasing Summer said:

I wondered if the free laundry was just on Discovery. We've used it in the past on other ships and had to pay and buy soap. Maybe the desk got tired of selling coins or tokens. Just having a laundry to do yourself is nice, regardless of price. Most other lines do not have that.

Our experience has been that when the token machine is broken in a laundry room, they place a bowl of free tokens in the laundry room until the machine is fixed.