Changes to Princess Plus, room service fees, Alfredo's and others. Fee changes. Etc

[no1racefan1]

27 minutes ago, cali-croozer said:

I guess I was thinking of the pay per item room service and late night options, although they are bringing back a small buffet for late night. Also,  I don't think they offer mdr breakfast and lunch daily, like princess.  O know they have lots of food stations/venues besides the buffet. 

Carnival definitely offers MDR breakfast daily. I especially enjoy Sea Day Brunch on sea days.

[Guest ldtr]

8 minutes ago, emeraldlake said:

What I find it hard to  believe is that in the beginning of the webinar Princess gave yesterday, Carmen Roig stated ..."we dont make changes without data, research and input, and we get it from our guests who are very critical".  I'd like to know which guests asked to pay for Alfredo's/Gigi's, Ocean Now, Room Service????  You can see video on Facebook but do not have to have an account.  Starts around 50 seconds in.  When it asks for sign in, just click on X to remove.

https://www.facebook.com/PrincessVPSales

I suspect it would be more of would you prefer to pay for Alfredo's and room service or have an X increase in base fare.

 

Though it is not an either or.  Additional price increases are coming.  Largely because the cruise lines consider themselves to be at a substantial discount to equivalent land based vacations.  Currently RCL puts that discount at 35%, up from 15 to 20%  pre shutdown.

 

Additional increases will contniue until they reach the limit of their pricing power.

 

 

[memoak]

1 hour ago, DRS/NC said:

I think it says that there is no charge for the breakfast if ordered from the door hang-tag (basically continental b'fast). 

 

Wonder if they'll charge me for the bacon that I always add?

I am pretty sure there will not be any free additions. What you see is what you get. Otherwise there will probably be an extra fee

[rmsmith]

More or added value?  I'm throwing the BS flag.  If they really wanted to bring added value they would have included unlimited lobster tails for the premier level on lobster night!

 

I'm not a fan of the tiering and changes, but it's the general way of the world with more a la carte pricing for so many things (cruises, air fares, etc) and apparently the people have voted that they are at least willing to play that game.  One reason I didn't like NCL a number of years ago was the feeling of being nickle and dimed, but really all the main stream cruise lines have gone that route.

 

It's a way for Princess to work towards increasing revenues and more importantly profits which they not only want to do, but need to do to remain in business long term.  In watching my base cruise fares, pricing really hasn't change much in 20 years, individual drink prices not increase an unreasonable amount so the more a la carte and packages are how they make up the costs increases they have incurred.

 

For my wife and I, I guess these changes are a better deal as we have paid for drink packages since they came out with them and for our next cruise we've already selected the premier level.  For us, it may or may not make sense financially, but it's vacation and we tend to splurge and enjoy ourselves as much as possible.

 

but down the road when we hope to be cruising 2-4 times a year, and my waistline and liver won't be able to take eating like a pig and drinking like a fish, the standard fares may make more much sense and the tier pricing may not be as fun as when we first started cruising 20 years ago.

[mtt]

44 minutes ago, dickinson said:

How do we know that Princess employee is right?  How many times has wrong info been given?  People who book suites will have to wait to see what happens in the real world.

I hoping shes wrong but she has always been honest with us, shes in the recent princess journey magazine

[rosevew]

I have reported to Advertising Standards Authority for misleading advertising since they claim that Ocean Now delivery and room service is New.

[spunks]

Frankly.....Princess at one time had the best loyalty program at sea. They would have been bypassed by others even if they kept up all the perks they used to have.However, since they keep taking things away they are not even in the hunt anymore. Sadly, they discovered that reducing perks was great policy for the bottom line. They now think of the most traveled guests as extra expense that they do not need anymore. Blue buttons buy more and spend more than black buttons.....simple as that.

[Scottyren]

23 hours ago, vampiress said:

this is disappointing.

 

one thing i liked about cruising is i didn't have to make a bunch of decisions.  they are seeming to do away with that and having all kinds of micro charges.  i always referred to cruise as vacation in a box, i didn't have to think much, i bought and paid upfront and then pretty much everything was included except drinks.  now if you don't choose a level of all included package, then you have to think about the drip of cost creep with each micro charge.  it isn't that the fees themselves are outrageous, it is that he concept of cruising is changing that irks me

 

they don't offer levels of the package that avoid the drink packages.  they include things not everyone wants like picture packages, exercise classes, ridiculous desserts.  they haven't managed to make a package level that interests me, so i'll either do ith out or just pay the individual surcharge.  but then i'll be annoyed by th surcharge cost creep.

 

 

 

 

i'm not sure i'm going to stop cruising, but it wil make me give other lines an eye, although i suspect this happens over there as well.

I would love to see a lower tiered drink package with five or six drinks a day at a slightly lower price point.  Never going to happen with a mainstream cruise line because theres no incentive for them to do it when people are buying the 15 drink per day packages.  
 

For me, this may be the nudge we needed to go over to Oceania. We don’t do room service and I like Alfredo’s- don’t love it, but the changes do reduce the number of complimentary dining options. And we just don’t love the idea of running up a bunch of charges to our onboard account.  

[suekel]

3 hours ago, Cruise frenzy said:

Sorry, on the above comment, we have the plus package already.  Thanks.

It states specifically that if you have a package, there is no charge

[Steelers36]

1 hour ago, cruzrbachoua said:

one would think/hope...online it shows i have all the new benefits if i do the upgrade look as suggested but my TA pulled the info off Polar (SP?) and it doesn't show any of the new items so which am i to believe?

I would say POLAR since it the the "system of record" for bookings.

[MissP22]

50 minutes ago, Jeter02 said:

Insert the laugh track 🤣 I personally find Carmen a joke, as I have not been a fan of her since prompted to this position. 

She reminds me of a car salesman but associated with cruise sales. 

Her attitude just rubs me the wrong way.

[suekel]

2 hours ago, cruzrbachoua said:

This is really sad we had a suite booked for June 2020 it has been kicked around and down now finally getting to go on the cruise this september and had looked forward to ordering from MDR and eating on our balcony watching the scenery now we will be charged for this..such a shame as that was touted as one of the perks of a suite...sigh

No one knows yet how suites are affected.  You'll still be able to order from the MDR.  

[Jeter02]

2 minutes ago, MissP22 said:

She reminds me of a car salesman but associated with cruise sales. 

Her attitude just rubs me the wrong way.

Yes could not agree with you anymore when it comes to her attitude and the way her tone of voice comes off! She just sounds fake and phony to me. Sell! Sell! Sell!

[AlibearNS]

Plus 50 should be grandfathered in not penalized for early booking. It's petty to those who plan ahead. Our cruise next year is sold out and likely to remain that way so they'll be no repricing for us, if indeed we cruise.
What's the point of budgeting your costs, booking over a year out, then finding you have to upgrade or pay more to get what was promised or what now comes with the package?

[Steelers36]

This thread is going to cross 1,000 posts in less than 36 hours from the first one.  Never seen anything like it on Princess forum.

[Steelers36]

Just now, Steelers36 said:

This thread is going to cross 1,000 posts in less than 36 hours from the first one.  Never seen anything like it on Princess forum.

Well maybe Covid protocols outdid or matched this pace.

[mtt]

29 minutes ago, suekel said:

No one knows yet how suites are affected.  You'll still be able to order from the MDR.  

Yes but at a $5 dollar charge if ordering by the phone

[Thrak]

9 hours ago, chamima said:

 

 

@Thrak - Can I ask what your Statement or invoice from Princess says to indicate Plus 50.

The reason I'm asking is that we originally booked a cruise (the 32 day Sapphire in Oct) with the Plus 50 but we re-priced it before final payment and now my "Paid in Full" page from the TA just says Princess Plus. So I'm wondering if I somehow got upgraded with the reprice.

(FWIW - we used the Medallion delivery feature on our last cruise a decent amount and it always worked great so I was looking forward to that again)

 

From the Personalizer under the Onboard Services tab. This is with the Plus fare - not the stand alone beverage package.

 

[Thrak]

3 hours ago, cruzrbachoua said:

actually i did this and according to the personalizer it says i get all the new goodies, but when my TA looked in polar like they mentioned on the webinar all it showed was the old goodie and none of the new ones...cant remember if we booked it at the $50 or the $60 as it has been kicked around from 2020 and rebooked numerous times. 

 

Stop looking at the upgrade thing and look at the personalizer under the Onboard Services tab. That show what you actually have.

[cruzsnooze]

I am a full suite passenger that does not drink. I am booked and paid in full for a 28 day cruise this November. I am very unhappy with changes made when it is  too late for me to cancel my cruise. H*ll will freeze over before I tip the "suggested" $924 for 28 days and another internet $7.50  X 28 = $210  and pay for pizza too!   What am I getting for my standard cruise fare at over $12,000 per person plus $340 port fee PP and $$89 transfer PP  ? I'll be better off looking at a premium cruise line in a balcony cabin. So if I call room service for a bucket of ice is that $5?  What about the elite high tea in the suite? Will suites keep the specialty restaurant on embarkation night? Lots of unanswered questions.  Princess suites have been a poor value to begin with but this is the straw that breaks the camels back. Suite bathroom amenities are non existent along with most other amenities we've come to count on. 

   To my way of thinking Princess has priced itself to close to a more inclusive premium line but in a sneaky Nickle and dime way. 

[Guest ldtr]

2 minutes ago, cruzsnooze said:

I am a full suite passenger that does not drink. I am booked and paid in full for a 28 day cruise this November. I am very unhappy with changes made when it is  too late for me to cancel my cruise. H*ll will freeze over before I tip the "suggested" $924 for 28 days and another internet $7.50  X 28 = $210  and pay for pizza too!   What am I getting for my standard cruise fare at over $12,000 per person plus $340 port fee PP and $$89 transfer PP  ? I'll be better off looking at a premium cruise line in a balcony cabin. So if I call room service for a bucket of ice is that $5?  What about the elite high tea in the suite? Will suites keep the specialty restaurant on embarkation night? Lots of unanswered questions.  Princess suites have been a poor value to begin with but this is the straw that breaks the camels back. Suite bathroom amenities are non existent along with most other amenities we've come to count on. 

   To my way of thinking Princess has priced itself to close to a more inclusive premium line but in a sneaky Nickle and dime way. 

We are still more than 90 days out from Nov 1.

[PurpleTraveller]

As a passenger who only books Standard fare as I don't drink alcohol or coffee, don't use the internet (I used to use my free Platinum minutes for five minutes a day but that is now gone) and as an Australian don't have gratuities included in the packages, I am saddened by the introduction of the new charges but not surprised. I will continue to sail with Princess because I love the product, buy my drinks, buy an occassional day of internet, prepay my gratuities and now pay for an occasional meal at Alfredo's. What I don't like is that I booked and paid for a cruise with the items that will now have a charge when they were included. The Princess hype of how wonderful these changes are is possibly what annoys people the most, not so much the actual introduction of charges. Just another reason to consider all cruise lines for future cruises and take into account the itinerary, the cost and the value for money. My next cruise is with Princess (booked before these changes) and then the next two are with Celebrity. Who knows who the following ones will be with.

 

[dsukid]

It isn't the cost that bothers me it is the timeframe for the change. Within 90 day window is at minimum, unethical. 

 

They finally made a marketing post on their main Facebook page and they're getting battered. 

 

I'm not buying Plus or Premier till I have an option that doesn't include alcohol. I have zero desire to subsidize others intoxication. 

Edited July 28, 2023 by dsukid

[EDDY0827]

What if your RS order that you paid a service fee is delivered at room temp?

I had a real problem with getting hot food delivered hot, both for dinner and the write-in on the hang tag; Crown Princess, May 23rd - June 2nd.

[PacnGoNow]

13 minutes ago, ldtr said:

We are still more than 90 days out from Nov 1.

FP would be 120 days prior