RESERVED THEATRE SEATING WITH THE NEW PACKAGES

[shamrockace]

34 minutes ago, SantaFeFan said:

 

The very fact that you can buy your way to the front of the line is classism. On airplanes, they even call it "First Class". This rush by cruise lines to give preferential treatment to people who can afford it is an unfortunate trend. In the past, paying more got a person a better cabin, but all other aspects of the cruise was equal. Now, dedicated spaces and restaurants, priority seating in the theater, being moved to the front of the line for boarding and embarkation, has sprouted like weeds. Every year the few gain more amenities and benefits, while the average passenger sees more and more cutbacks and eliminations of what they enjoyed in the past. 

 

And of course, those of you who can easily afford it will defend this new trend and comment on how the rest of us should accept it. That in itself is a form of classism. 

Well said. We’ve always booked an inside room and whenever someone would say, “no way could I cruise in an inside room” I’d say, we get the same service as the suite people. Will we hear of reserved pool side chairs next?  Oh wait, the sanctuary…..never mind. If this was the titanic, I guess I’d go down with the ship. 

Edited December 8, 2022 by shamrockace

[dog]

1 hour ago, SantaFeFan said:

 

The very fact that you can buy your way to the front of the line is classism. On airplanes, they even call it "First Class". This rush by cruise lines to give preferential treatment to people who can afford it is an unfortunate trend. In the past, paying more got a person a better cabin, but all other aspects of the cruise was equal. Now, dedicated spaces and restaurants, priority seating in the theater, being moved to the front of the line for boarding and embarkation, has sprouted like weeds. Every year the few gain more amenities and benefits, while the average passenger sees more and more cutbacks and eliminations of what they enjoyed in the past. 

 

And of course, those of you who can easily afford it will defend this new trend and comment on how the rest of us should accept it. That in itself is a form of classism. 

And this is why many of us are open to doing a comparison with other cruise lines. Loyalty benefits no longer mean much with Princess.

I saw an article recently announcing NCL is increasing their crew incentive by 20%.  

[bjkTX]

1 hour ago, dog said:

And this is why many of us are open to doing a comparison with other cruise lines. Loyalty benefits no longer mean much with Princess.

I saw an article recently announcing NCL is increasing their crew incentive by 20%.  

Princess is increasing their "crew incentive" by a little over 10% next week.

[moodyb1]

2 minutes ago, bjkTX said:

Princess is increasing their "crew incentive" by a little over 10% next week.

You can go to Guest Services and modify the "crew incentive" and modify that amount to anything you want. My husband and I are going to leave it at the current value.

[bjkTX]

3 minutes ago, moodyb1 said:

You can go to Guest Services and modify the "crew incentive" and modify that amount to anything you want. My husband and I are going to leave it at the current value.

We have the "Plus" package on our two upcoming cruises so not really an issue for us.  We have never considered modifying the payment - the only thing we modify is the extra tips if we feel they were warranted.

[Cruise Raider]

3 hours ago, SantaFeFan said:

 

The very fact that you can buy your way to the front of the line is classism. On airplanes, they even call it "First Class". This rush by cruise lines to give preferential treatment to people who can afford it is an unfortunate trend. In the past, paying more got a person a better cabin, but all other aspects of the cruise was equal. Now, dedicated spaces and restaurants, priority seating in the theater, being moved to the front of the line for boarding and embarkation, has sprouted like weeds. Every year the few gain more amenities and benefits, while the average passenger sees more and more cutbacks and eliminations of what they enjoyed in the past. 

 

And of course, those of you who can easily afford it will defend this new trend and comment on how the rest of us should accept it. That in itself is a form of classism. 

As noted, the only cutback / elimination that I’ve noticed is the loyalty credit and I rarely buy the expensive rooms or the premier package because I can’t easily afford it.  Call it what you will but I call it working hard for what I’ve earned and what I choose to spend my money on.  To me, it’s all what I prioritize as having value.  

[PTMary]

2 minutes ago, Cruise Raider said:

As noted, the only cutback / elimination that I’ve noticed is the loyalty credit and I rarely buy the expensive rooms or the premier package because I can’t easily afford it.  Call it what you will but I call it working hard for what I’ve earned and what I choose to spend my money on.  To me, it’s all what I prioritize as having value.  

 

Then you are clearly not paying attention. Food quality in the regular MDRs has dropped, while exclusive restaurants with higher quality choices are being added so the wealthy can eat away from the masses. Public areas of older ships are being walled off for expensive suites, denying the peons access to areas that were open to all. Newer ships are increasing the percentage of public space for exclusive use by the wealthy, while reducing the percentage of space for the lower classes.

 

I work hard for my money as well. Not all of us have high paying jobs that allow more discretionary spending on luxuries. Some of us need to carefully budget to be able to afford even a basic cruise on a mainstream cruise line and cannot justify spending even more for higher levels of pampering. That is why we book on mainstream lines instead of luxury lines. I would bet that I work just as hard, if not harder, than people who can afford suites and higher levels of service. So don't use that false "I work hard for my money" to justify you getting benefits at the expense of the rest of us. We work hard too.

[Cruise Raider]

1 minute ago, PTMary said:

 

Then you are clearly not paying attention. Food quality in the regular MDRs has dropped, while exclusive restaurants with higher quality choices are being added so the wealthy can eat away from the masses. Public areas of older ships are being walled off for expensive suites, denying the peons access to areas that were open to all. Newer ships are increasing the percentage of public space for exclusive use by the wealthy, while reducing the percentage of space for the lower classes.

 

I work hard for my money as well. Not all of us have high paying jobs that allow more discretionary spending on luxuries. Some of us need to carefully budget to be able to afford even a basic cruise on a mainstream cruise line and cannot justify spending even more for higher levels of pampering. That is why we book on mainstream lines instead of luxury lines. I would bet that I work just as hard, if not harder, than people who can afford suites and higher levels of service. So don't use that false "I work hard for my money" to justify you getting benefits at the expense of the rest of us. We work hard too.

You took that out of completely out of context … but it is what it is.  I am also a bargain traveler and choose what I spend my hard earned money on very carefully .. that was my point.  I would challenge anyone to call me wealthy.  
I have been paying attention to the direction of cruising and I can appreciate it. The food and service on my last few cruises has been phenomenal and I wasn’t booked in a fancy cabin.  I didn’t have the premier package but was treated just as well as anybody else on the cruise … those are my impressions.  
 

Envy is not in my playbook!  It can rob you of what you would be able to currently enjoy while lamenting over perceived reductions of the days long gone.  I choose to find enjoyment in the here and now .. something CoVid really taught me how to do.   

 

[MissP22]

1 hour ago, PTMary said:

 

Then you are clearly not paying attention. Food quality in the regular MDRs has dropped, while exclusive restaurants with higher quality choices are being added so the wealthy can eat away from the masses. Public areas of older ships are being walled off for expensive suites, denying the peons access to areas that were open to all. Newer ships are increasing the percentage of public space for exclusive use by the wealthy, while reducing the percentage of space for the lower classes.

 

I work hard for my money as well. Not all of us have high paying jobs that allow more discretionary spending on luxuries. Some of us need to carefully budget to be able to afford even a basic cruise on a mainstream cruise line and cannot justify spending even more for higher levels of pampering. That is why we book on mainstream lines instead of luxury lines. I would bet that I work just as hard, if not harder, than people who can afford suites and higher levels of service. So don't use that false "I work hard for my money" to justify you getting benefits at the expense of the rest of us. We work hard too.

Death by a thousand cuts. 

[Musky Ike]

19 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

Of course, another challenge will be that some number of folks will prefer to sit elsewhere than their special "cage".

I had the same thought. Peoples idea of the "best seats" may not be the reserved section. So they have a reserved seat that may sit empty but sit elsewhere thus taking up 2 seats? 

[Wishing on a star]

Well, it seems that this might come as a surprise to some, but cruising, as a whole, from the dining in the MDR to the service, and all of it, has changed over last 10 - 20 years.

Part of that is the fact that cruising on most of the mid or mass-market lines has become far more mainstream.   And, cruises are now being designed to provide a far more varied experience than it ever has.  Including the experience available on each ship.

 

Prices go up.

Cruise fares have gone up nowhere near overall prices of fuel, food and service.

I don't know of any mid mass-market line, such as Princess, which hasn't cut back.

It is what it is.

If one wants to sail on these lines, instead of the more luxury lines, and have the experience they they feel that they used to have and deserve.  That isn't going to come without paying more for it.

And, the more luxury lines are still there.  With fares that reflect what some feel Princess did offer, or should offer, at the price point that is necessary to provide that increased level of food and service.

 

It isn't some sinister plot to take away from everyday cruisers to keep the 'masses' in their place.

It simply is what it s.

 

But, let the arguments and complaining continue.

They just never do anything like they used to.  You know, back when we all walked to school every day, five miles each way, in the snow!

 

[SantaFeFan]

36 minutes ago, Wishing on a star said:

 

They just never do anything like they used to.  You know, back when we all walked to school every day, five miles each way, in the snow!

 

 

You had it easy. We had to walk five miles each way in the snow and UPHILL both ways!

[Wishing on a star]

Ohhh yeah!!!!   My old memory must be starting to fail me!!!! 

[MissP22]

1 hour ago, Musky Ike said:

I had the same thought. Peoples idea of the "best seats" may not be the reserved section. So they have a reserved seat that may sit empty but sit elsewhere thus taking up 2 seats? 

The only time I saw Princess reserve whole rows of seats was on the Enchanted last March. It was for the parents and friends of the performers and they were on the first level up, center - just above the railing. I would say they were pretty good choice.

You couldn't choose a better seat. 

[dockman]

And how about the crew that will have to handle the implementation of reserved seating, the changes, the questions, the phone calls, the i can't reserve on the app,  the complaints, the double bookings, the no shows, etc etc which no doubt will require a lot of planning and additional work in an environment where staff is already stretched thin.....perhaps princess might want to wait til things return to semi normal after covid to change/add additional challenges for the crew?

[LibertyBella]

Took my first cruise in 1973, so I have seen it all.  From my perspective, those on a cruise may not be wealthy, but they are certainly not poor.

 

Yes, cruise lines have to make a profit,  Covid knocked out some cruise lines forever, inflation is here, prices have increased around the world for issues like employees, construction, goods, but cabins and ships have also become very luxurious and chock-full of many glamorous activities like hot tubs, pools with slides,  televisions in rooms, and much more.

 

Those foodies who criticize cruise ship food probably forget the poor chefs are feeding thousands, not a few like in an exclusive restaurant.  All those specialty restaurants on ships now allow for more focus on food preparation (hopefully). 

 

I think this discussion about classism is silly--we are all just deciding whether to pay for more perks or less perks--the real class differences are those who cruise versus those who have never cruised, and probably never will, due to true poverty.

[windsor26]

On 12/8/2022 at 8:13 AM, Cruise Raider said:

 Not meaning for any disrespect, but I certainly hope they wouldn’t release the seats for the show.  It defeats the whole purpose of paying for the perk.  If you have a reserved section for seat, you should be able to show up right at the beginning or even in the middle of the show if you choose.  
The same goes for when Club Class is not full … they don’t open it up to others just because there are a lot of empty tables.  
I would be fine if they reduced the section based on the number of passengers with the premium package.  That seems like the sensible thing to do.  
 

but you are right, too many questions to speculate.  

No I disagree  Punctuality is STILL a politeness and cruisers coming in late and faffing abut trying to find their friends or a seat are disruptive to the audience and the entertainer  not cool at all.  Reserved seats should be released at least 7/10 minutes before the show commences

[cr8tiv1]

Reminiscent of Traditional Diners that had a set reservation and then showed up in Anytime.  Their original table sat empty because they wanted a different time for the night.  Let the party begin!

 

9 hours ago, Musky Ike said:

I had the same thought. Peoples idea of the "best seats" may not be the reserved section. So they have a reserved seat that may sit empty but sit elsewhere thus taking up 2 seats? 

 

[bjkTX]

17 hours ago, SantaFeFan said:

 

You had it easy. We had to walk five miles each way in the snow and UPHILL both ways!

Our pain was real!!

[Rick&Jeannie]

On 12/6/2022 at 2:53 PM, Steelers36 said:

Ed Sullivan fan?  😉

 

It was a REALLY BIG SHOE...