Princess Has The Worst Customer Service

[fleeflicker]

15 minutes ago, jmpsportsmom said:

We booked EZ air flights and cancelled them well within the timeframe to get a full refund. The date of cancellation was 2/8/23. Today is 3/19, and I have yet to receive a refund. My credit card is accruing interest doe to this increase in my balance. I’ve tried to call, spoke to one person, they transferred me to another, and I waited on hold for 45 minutes but had to hang up. This is not right. It states in the policy of EZ air you will get a full refund. We are Ruby members but this is making it doubtful we will book again with them. Their ships are beautiful, but this is maddening.

Wow

[ontheweb]

11 hours ago, jmpsportsmom said:

We booked EZ air flights and cancelled them well within the timeframe to get a full refund. The date of cancellation was 2/8/23. Today is 3/19, and I have yet to receive a refund. My credit card is accruing interest doe to this increase in my balance. I’ve tried to call, spoke to one person, they transferred me to another, and I waited on hold for 45 minutes but had to hang up. This is not right. It states in the policy of EZ air you will get a full refund. We are Ruby members but this is making it doubtful we will book again with them. Their ships are beautiful, but this is maddening.

I believe if you dispute the charge with your credit card company they will temporarily suspend the charge as they investigate. Make sure you have all the proof of what has happened including all attempts you made with Princess to get it resolved.

[Mike-Cruisin]

On 3/19/2023 at 9:14 PM, fleeflicker said:

We booked EZ air flights and cancelled them well within the timeframe to get a full refund. The date of cancellation was 2/8/23. Today is 3/19, and I have yet to receive a refund.

We cancelled our EZAir due to airline changing flight schedules on 3/5 and it was well in advance of refund deadline. We are still waiting for our refund.  After we canceled we waited patiently for 2 weeks and then called our TA to say we have not seen it. They call Princess, say it's resolved and refund will come in 10 to 15 days. After 2 more weeks of no refund we call TA and they call Princess again.  Princess has some excuse that the reservation was all messed up in their system and it took a lot more work to fix it but now we will see refund in 10 to 14 days.  We will see. Definitely not "EZ".

[GonzoWCS]

I like their customer service so far.  

 

Cheers

[Mike-Cruisin]

Getting no love from the Love Boat this week. So I just got off a 1 hour and 52 minute call with my TA to question why my cabin number was changed on our 5/27 Alaska cruise from Vancouver.  No notice from Princess of being moved, but when I was looking at more excursions today I noticed the cabin changed. What?????  We specifically requested "no upgrades" because we were thrilled with the 2 cabins we booked over a year ago.  They were next to each other on Deck 8, starboard side, about 6 cabins from the front of the ship and have balconies 3x the size of a normal balcony.  I figure they are designated BF because some people don't like being that close to the bow and on Deck 8. I am on the phone with TA and Princess and the Princess Rep says they changed the cabin on 3/14 because it has been designated as an isolation cabin in accordance with CDC requirements, yada yada. I say I am not happy getting moved to the Port side on a Northbound cruise and why we booked those 2 cabins. I get put on hold while my TA tries to escalate the issue with Princess. After long wait, my TA comes back and says I have been moved to B4 cabin with large balcony which is an upgrade but there are zero balcony cabins of any type available on Starboard side.  And since my Brother and SIL are traveling with us, Princess is moving them also and declaring their cabin an isolation cabin. I say don't do that, you are punishing them because I questioned my cabin change. No, too late, already done. They will now in the cabin next to you on the port side. Too bad if I don't like it I guess.

I guess it could be worse, the cabin is a nice balcony, but its definitely a downgrade in our minds being switched to port side and a smaller balcony than we had booked over a year ago. Definitely upset with Princess deciding to change this after final payment and without notice. 

Edited March 30, 2023 by Mike-Cruisin

[jmpsportsmom]

Today is 3/29, and we have not been refunded yet. I called again, waited on hold, gave all the information, they put me on hold again, only to come back and say I had to be transferred to guest services. I told the agent that guest services never picked up last time, and she said they there were 12 agents waiting to take calls. They never picked up. I stayed on hold for 53 minutes. I’m going to go to my credit card company and file a dispute. The amount is accumulating interest. We are sailing in May, and we have always had nice cruises with Princess, but this experience has been ridiculous and stressful. It’s difficult to stay on hold for extended periods of time and get nowhere. 

[Happiest when cruising]

24 minutes ago, Mike-Cruisin said:

Getting no love from the Love Boat this week. So I just got off a 1 hour and 52 minute call with my TA to question why my cabin number was changed on our 5/27 Alaska cruise from Vancouver.  No notice from Princess of being moved, but when I was looking at more excursions today I noticed the cabin changed. What?????  We specifically requested "no upgrades" because we were thrilled with the 2 cabins we booked over a year ago.  They were next to each other on Deck 8, starboard side, about 6 cabins from the front of the ship and have balconies 3x the size of a normal balcony.  I figure they are designated BF because some people don't like being that close to the bow and on Deck 8. I am on the phone with TA and Princess and the Princess Rep says they changed the cabin on 3/14 because it has been designated as an isolation cabin in accordance with CDC requirements, yada yada. I say I am not happy getting moved to the Port side on a Northbound cruise and why we booked those 2 cabins. I get put on hold while my TA tries to escalate the issue with Princess. After long wait, my TA comes back and says I have been moved to B4 cabin with large balcony which is an upgrade but there are zero balcony cabins of any type available on Starboard side.  And since my Brother and SIL are traveling with us, Princess is moving them also and declaring their cabin an isolation cabin. I say don't do that, you are punishing them because I questioned my cabin change. No, too late, already done. They will now in the cabin next to you on the port side. Too bad if I don't like it I guess.

I guess it could be worse, the cabin is a nice balcony, but its definitely a downgrade in our minds being switched to port side and a smaller balcony than we had booked over a year ago. Definitely upset with Princess deciding to change this after final payment and without notice. 

Why don’t you ask them to switch you both back and have those cabins on the port side for the isolation cabins? 

[Happiest when cruising]

21 minutes ago, jmpsportsmom said:

Today is 3/29, and we have not been refunded yet. I called again, waited on hold, gave all the information, they put me on hold again, only to come back and say I had to be transferred to guest services. I told the agent that guest services never picked up last time, and she said they there were 12 agents waiting to take calls. They never picked up. I stayed on hold for 53 minutes. I’m going to go to my credit card company and file a dispute. The amount is accumulating interest. We are sailing in May, and we have always had nice cruises with Princess, but this experience has been ridiculous and stressful. It’s difficult to stay on hold for extended periods of time and get nowhere. 

Try Twitter… it works. You will get their attention fast- likely within  a day. Ask me how I know.😉

Edited March 30, 2023 by Happiest when cruising

[Mike-Cruisin]

18 minutes ago, Happiest when cruising said:

Why don’t you ask them to switch you both back and have those cabins on the port side for the isolation cabins? 

 

I did ask, no dice. I believe their rationale is to group all the isolation cabins together in the front of the ship. They don't like having them spread out across several decks.

 

17 minutes ago, Happiest when cruising said:

Try Twitter… it works. You will get their attention fast- likely within  a day. Ask me how I know.😉

I just posted on the Princess page on Facebook but I will post on Twitter also if I don't get a response - thanks for the recommendation.

[Happiest when cruising]

56 minutes ago, Mike-Cruisin said:

 

I did ask, no dice. I believe their rationale is to group all the isolation cabins together in the front of the ship. They don't like having them spread out across several decks.

 

I just posted on the Princess page on Facebook but I will post on Twitter also if I don't get a response - thanks for the recommendation.

I am curious about these isolation cabins. I have now read three posts where people were not moved from their inside or window cabins, so why do they need them?  I read the website and it does say may be moved…

I should have read it closer, though. We are heading out soon for 22 days in an inside…but I think should we get sick, I’ll ask to change to a balcony cabin, since they are obviously holding some back. 

[Mike-Cruisin]

11 minutes ago, Happiest when cruising said:

I am curious about these isolation cabins. I have now read three posts where people were not moved from their inside or window cabins, so why do they need them?  I read the website and it does say may be moved…

I should have read it closer, though. We are heading out soon for 22 days in an inside…but I think should we get sick, I’ll ask to change to a balcony cabin, since they are obviously holding some back. 

I am not sure how Princess is handling passengers with Covid-like illness onboard. Last April on Celebrity, they had s specific large section of cabins on the lowest passenger deck set aside. There were a combination of Inside, Balcony and a couple Suites in that area. If someone tested positive for Covid, they were moved to the same type of cabin in that section and confined to the cabin.  If you had a Suite and all the Suites in the isolation area were full, you were moved to a Balcony. You were not moved to a higher type cabin, only the same or lower. I know because we were in a Suite (our one time to experience a Suite due to being able to use a lot of FCC credits) and my wife tested positive and was moved to a Balcony.  But that was their rules and I am not sure what the rules are for Princess.  If I were in an inside and had to move to an isolation area, I would certainly request a balcony, as it never hurts to ask. If you are hearing of people are not being moved out of their cabins, then this isolation area would seem to be unnecessary. 

[Happiest when cruising]

18 minutes ago, Mike-Cruisin said:

I am not sure how Princess is handling passengers with Covid-like illness onboard. Last April on Celebrity, they had s specific large section of cabins on the lowest passenger deck set aside. There were a combination of Inside, Balcony and a couple Suites in that area. If someone tested positive for Covid, they were moved to the same type of cabin in that section and confined to the cabin.  If you had a Suite and all the Suites in the isolation area were full, you were moved to a Balcony. You were not moved to a higher type cabin, only the same or lower. I know because we were in a Suite (our one time to experience a Suite due to being able to use a lot of FCC credits) and my wife tested positive and was moved to a Balcony.  But that was their rules and I am not sure what the rules are for Princess.  If I were in an inside and had to move to an isolation area, I would certainly request a balcony, as it never hurts to ask. If you are hearing of people are not being moved out of their cabins, then this isolation area would seem to be unnecessary. 

Thanks, I have cruised a bit since the restart, and we  booked balconies. I remember when people were moved and parts of decks were shut down. I did believe that was not happening now, but felt they at least were keeping cabins open. I hope we don’t have to find out, but I’ll come back in May and update you, if we do get sick.  

[Vooshee]

I agree that the standard of customer service on Princess has declined since Covid 19. 

The post cruise surveys are. a total waste of time. Who's going to read ,say, 2000 surveys from a 14 day cruise [times multiple cruises per year]..Has anyone noticed the paper laundry bags that tear so easily? The content of the room service breakfast has "shrunk". My wife broke her nose as  a result of a fall in the dining room whilst awaiting departure for a shore excursion. The nurse attended to her on the spot. Unfortunately there was no subsequent follow up during the cruise on her condition. I handed the shore excursion tickets to the attendant who witnessed the fall explaining that we could not go on the excursion. Whilst cancellations are probably detailed somewhere in terms and conditions of sale, a refund would have been greatly appreciated.

[Iamcruzin]

On 3/16/2023 at 8:36 PM, JimmyVWine said:

 

I couldn't agree more.  Penny wise and pound foolish.  Everyone should use their post-cruise surveys to use the space provided for every question to say the same thing over and over, irrespective of what the topic of the question is. And they should pound on the customer service and the downward spiral at the Crown Grill.  "How was your check-in experience?"  Answer: "The customer service provided by 1-800-Princess is atrocious and the Crown Grill is so bad that I will never pay to eat there again until things improve markedly."  Soon, they will get the message.

 

 

 

I find it amusing that after all of your  experience cruising and your years here on CC that you actually believe that those surveys work to change things in our favor. 

[Abercrombie2019]

53 minutes ago, Iamcruzin said:

I find it amusing that after all of your  experience cruising and your years here on CC that you actually believe that those surveys work to change things in our favor. 

I stopped doing the after cruise survey when I realized that the cruise line was using it against us.  Oh, you like eating at Alfredo's, maybe you'll pay to eat there.

[Cruise Raider]

6 hours ago, Vooshee said:

I agree that the standard of customer service on Princess has declined since Covid 19. 

The post cruise surveys are. a total waste of time. Who's going to read ,say, 2000 surveys from a 14 day cruise [times multiple cruises per year]..Has anyone noticed the paper laundry bags that tear so easily? The content of the room service breakfast has "shrunk". My wife broke her nose as  a result of a fall in the dining room whilst awaiting departure for a shore excursion. The nurse attended to her on the spot. Unfortunately there was no subsequent follow up during the cruise on her condition. I handed the shore excursion tickets to the attendant who witnessed the fall explaining that we could not go on the excursion. Whilst cancellations are probably detailed somewhere in terms and conditions of sale, a refund would have been greatly appreciated.

Did she get billed for the visit from the nurse?  If there was medical care that was billed on your folio, you can request they stamp your tickets for a refund for the excursion.  
 

In terms of the surveys, we know they do have an impact on individual crew members as well as some policies that go into effect.  
We have been thanked by crew members and even some officers for our kind words on the survey.  I know they earn extra time off or other perks when they impress the passengers enough to include them in the commendations section of the surveys.  

We recently completely a focused survey about the premier package a few months before the new inclusions went into effect.  The questions were centered around a more all inclusive type of experience.  
More recently, we were asked to complete a survey on the casinos onboard.  If we see nonsmoking casinos on Princess in the future, I will believe it is because of the feedback on the surveys.  I know much of this change had to do with the Star Princess fire onboard but I always wrote in my survey that it became useless for us to book a balcony cabin if we were smoked out from using it.  Perhaps it was a bit of both for changing that policy.  

 

[Iamcruzin]

8 hours ago, Abercrombie2019 said:

I stopped doing the after cruise survey when I realized that the cruise line was using it against us.  Oh, you like eating at Alfredo's, maybe you'll pay to eat there.

Having worked for companies that used mystery shoppers and customer surveys for feed back I learned a long time ago that these are only used against the associates when it came time for performance reviews and raises. Some feed back although negative was actually legitimate like not enough help in the store. Meanwhile the Bean counters were cutting payroll to improve the bottom line and to add insult to injury the customer service department would just provided lip service replying that they would inform the manger to add extra staff. Another complaint was self check out. Again we were told to cut cashiers so the customers were forced to use self check out. I would explain to the customer that they weren't taking away the the cashiers jobs because the cashiers have already been terminated. As you can see more and more self checkouts are being added in all retail environments even with the complaints.

Edited Thursday at 12:43 AM by Iamcruzin

[Vooshee]

I agree that the standard of customer service on Princess has declined since Covid 19. 

The post cruise surveys are. a total waste of time. Who's going to read ,say, 2000 surveys from a 14 day cruise [times multiple cruises per year]..Has anyone noticed the paper laundry bags that tear so easily? The content of the room service breakfast has "shrunk". My wife broke her nose as  a result of a fall in the dining room whilst awaiting departure for a shore excursion. The nurse attended to her on the spot. Unfortunately there was no subsequent follow up during the cruise on her condition. I handed the shore excursion tickets to the attendant who witnessed the fall explaining that we could not go on the excursion. Whilst cancellations are probably detailed somewhere in terms and conditions of sale, a refund would have been greatly appreciated.

[Vooshee]

In relation to a refund that never happened on the shore excursion after my wife fell and broke her nose whilst waiting with lots of other shore excursion passengers. It seems to me that no one can or wants to "step out of line" by going the "extra yard" for the passenger. Perhaps it's because of the different cultures that comprise the Cruise staff some of whom would be afraid to lose their job if they " spoke out" in support of a passenger. After our experience, my wife and I  came to the conclusion [as Platinum passengers] that the days of Princess being a friendly, folksy, caring Cruise line are over. We are of the belief that had my wife sought additional medical treatment whilst on the ship as a consequence of her fall, [ and paid a good fee for it] that she may well have received some additional 'loving" after care service. . 

[TRLD]

15 hours ago, Abercrombie2019 said:

I stopped doing the after cruise survey when I realized that the cruise line was using it against us.  Oh, you like eating at Alfredo's, maybe you'll pay to eat there.

There is one reason that people should completethe survey, if for no other. It is the best way to identify crew members that do an outstanding job. The recognition of crew members on the survey is used in deyermining bonuses, promotions, time off, etc

[mtnesterz]

Error.

Edited Thursday at 08:49 AM by mtnesterz

[dog]

2 hours ago, TRLD said:

There is one reason that people should completethe survey, if for no other. It is the best way to identify crew members that do an outstanding job. The recognition of crew members on the survey is used in deyermining bonuses, promotions, time off, etc

And I try to complete the survey, but I find crew get some immediate feedback and recognition when I write up a comment and place it in the box on Guest Services desk. They have found me to say thanks,

[TRLD]

40 minutes ago, dog said:

And I try to complete the survey, but I find crew get some immediate feedback and recognition when I write up a comment and place it in the box on Guest Services desk. They have found me to say thanks,

Princess used to have cards for recognizing crew at the CS desk, but dropped those when they started focusing their process around the survey.

[dog]

2 minutes ago, TRLD said:

Princess used to have cards for recognizing crew at the CS desk, but dropped those when they started focusing their process around the survey.

Well in February on Regal I asked for feedback pages and there was also one in my room. There was a box on guest service counter to put them in and also one staff took it from me, with a smile.  So, it can still be done.  

[TRLD]

28 minutes ago, dog said:

Well in February on Regal I asked for feedback pages and there was also one in my room. There was a box on guest service counter to put them in and also one staff took it from me, with a smile.  So, it can still be done.  

Maybe they are bringing them back. They have not had them when i have asked the last couple of years. Will ask on the Regal in 2 weeks.