Added fee to choose a cabin

[buffetking]

Today, wanted to book a cruisetour to Alaska, July, 2024.  Used Princess website.  Chose balcony category.  After choosing fare type, (another controversial topic), a window popped up with this choice:  Let Princess choose my cabin for the price quoted on the previous page, with non refundable fare.  Or I could pay $300 more per person to choose my cabin with refundable fare.  So Princess is now taking a page out of airlines' playbook with regard to consumer choice.  We have to pay extra to choose a seat on a plane... now extra to choose a cruise ship cabin.  Princess even alluded: Best cabins/locations reserved for those who pay extra.  Experienced cruisers:  What do you think?

And, what once included perk, will soon cost extra?

 

Thanks for listening (OK... reading) 

 

Edited July 29, 2023 by buffetking
incorrect word usage.

[voljeep]

not an added fee, but Princess is offering a discount for you letting them choose your cabin

[Guest ldtr]

Pretty much the same on other cruise lines.  Princess just a bit later to the game than their competition.

[buffetking]

Thanks for your input voljeep.

Letting Princess choose your cabin will stick you in an unpopular location, and the cruise fare is non refundable.  Princess will save the best cabins for those who pay the added cost.  If they didn't.. that would defeat the purpose.

So, you pick the option for Princess to choose the cabin.  After it's paid for, you see the location and don't like it.  When you complain... can't get a refund.

 It's not a discount.  If it was a discount, then Princess would price the cabin to the higher cost.  Then mention you can save $300 a person by letting Princess choose the cabin.  That's how it used to be with "guaranteed category" booking.  You got a discount by letting the cruise line pick your cabin.  I know because I've done this many times with different cruise lines.

Price for the balcony cabin was quoted when I picked that category. The next page then stated an increased price if I wanted to choose the cabin myself.  Also making me aware the original price was non refundable.  And best cabins/locations are available by paying the increased amount.  Additionally disclosing increased cabin cost was refundable.

[Guest ldtr]

It was a few months ago, about the same time the ONE took over the future cruise sales function on board that they made the change that made the lowest category (usually those at the very front and back) in each meta category guarantee/non-refundable only.

 

There was some discussion here on CC when that occurred. 

[buffetking]

Lately I've been taking charter theme cruises.  Just got off one last March.  So that's probably why I haven't seen the latest pricing schemes for regular cruises.

If that's the way cruising is trending.... then I'm not going.  Not because of the money...  Because they raise the cost, but cheapen the experience.  I've been on 37 cruises all over the world, on all the major cruise lines and some minor ones.  I've experienced first hand the steady decline of a once wonderful experience.  I'll go to a high-class resort instead.  Only thing missing will be the rocking of the sea.  

[Guest ldtr]

Take a look at what resort prices have done. Their increases have been even more and in many cases services reduced compared to  2019.

 

 

[SargassoPirate]

I look at it as a discount to let Princess stick you in some unsold cabin close to sailing - and there's a reason such cabins are available.

 

I prefer to pick my own perfect cabin with PAX above, below, and across the corridor, have my TA mark it no upgrades, and then check every morning to make sure I haven't been "upgraded" to a cabin under the Melanoma Deck.

[Guest ldtr]

1 hour ago, SargassoPirate said:

I look at it as a discount to let Princess stick you in some unsold cabin close to sailing - and there's a reason such cabins are available.

 

I prefer to pick my own perfect cabin with PAX above, below, and across the corridor, have my TA mark it no upgrades, and then check every morning to make sure I haven't been "upgraded" to a cabin under the Melanoma Deck.

The funny thing is the lowest categories in the bow and stern often book up pretty quickly. The that are now guarantee only. Not just unsold cabins that is what it used to be. Now it isl owest category in every meta category.

[SCX22]

36 minutes ago, buffetking said:

Thanks for your input voljeep.

Letting Princess choose your cabin will stick you in an unpopular location, and the cruise fare is non refundable.  Princess will save the best cabins for those who pay the added cost.  If they didn't.. that would defeat the purpose.

So, you pick the option for Princess to choose the cabin.  After it's paid for, you see the location and don't like it.  When you complain... can't get a refund.

 It's not a discount.  If it was a discount, then Princess would price the cabin to the higher cost.  Then mention you can save $300 a person by letting Princess choose the cabin.  That's how it used to be with "guaranteed category" booking.  You got a discount by letting the cruise line pick your cabin.  I know because I've done this many times with different cruise lines.

Price for the balcony cabin was quoted when I picked that category. The next page then stated an increased price if I wanted to choose the cabin myself.  Also making me aware the original price was non refundable.  And best cabins/locations are available by paying the increased amount.  Additionally disclosing increased cabin cost was refundable.

 

Not always true.  I aways book guarantee.  On the several cruises I've taken since the restart, my I've always had at minimum a location upgrade.  I've been paying for an F location and have been assigned in at least a C location (sometimes B or A) and nothing lower.  A handful of times, I've been given a a full category upgrade.  

 

[bemis12]

1 minute ago, SCX22 said:

 

Not always true.  I aways book guarantee.  On the several cruises I've taken since the restart, my I've always had at minimum a location upgrade.  I've been paying for an F location and have been assigned in at least a C location (sometimes B or A) and nothing lower.  A handful of times, I've been given a a full category upgrade.  

 

Same here.  We've been delighted with the categories they've assigned us to.

[Ken the cruiser]

If you want to choke at the fee a cruise line is now truly charging for a refundable deposit, go check out Celebrity. The two refundable deposit bookings where we had the option of booking with a nonrefundable deposit, the additional charge is over $1100 per person! 
 

The funny thing is we booked them with the refundable deposit when they first came out, as we always want the option of canceling prior to final payment although we rarely do, and now the nonrefundable deposit price for each of those cruises is more that what we originally booked them for. 😂

[Bedruthen]

You guys across the pond have had it too good for far too long. Here in the U.K., we never get refundable deposits, whatever type of booking we make. Welcome to our world! 

[Guest ldtr]

1 hour ago, Bedruthen said:

You guys across the pond have had it too good for far too long. Here in the U.K., we never get refundable deposits, whatever type of booking we make. Welcome to our world! 

On the other hand you have a number of consumer protections that we do not.  Different countries, different competitive environments, different terms.

[trbarton]

4 hours ago, buffetking said:

Today, wanted to book a cruisetour to Alaska, July, 2024.  Used Princess website.  Chose balcony category.  After choosing fare type, (another controversial topic), a window popped up with this choice:  Let Princess choose my cabin for the price quoted on the previous page, with non refundable fare.  Or I could pay $300 more per person to choose my cabin with refundable fare.  So Princess is now taking a page out of airlines' playbook with regard to consumer choice.  We have to pay extra to choose a seat on a plane... now extra to choose a cruise ship cabin.  Princess even alluded: Best cabins/locations reserved for those who pay extra.  Experienced cruisers:  What do you think?

And, what once included perk, will soon cost extra?

 

Thanks for listening (OK... reading) 

 

Welcome to the news. This has been happening for quite a while. As was mentioned a discount & you let them choose your stateroom or pay the regular price & you decide. 
 

My balcony on the Emerald Princess, December 9, 2023 for a 14 day cruise on the Princess Website for a BD Balcony is $3,995 for selecting your stateroom. Through my agent I have a balcony on the Caribe deck for $3,898.65 & I picked out my own stateroom.  Both prices will all of the fees. I saved around $96.00. 
 

Let us know what you decide. Through my T/A my fare has always been less than booking directly through Princess. 
 

Tom😀

 

[SargassoPirate]

10 hours ago, trbarton said:

Welcome to the news. This has been happening for quite a while. As was mentioned a discount & you let them choose your stateroom or pay the regular price & you decide. 
 

My balcony on the Emerald Princess, December 9, 2023 for a 14 day cruise on the Princess Website for a BD Balcony is $3,995 for selecting your stateroom. Through my agent I have a balcony on the Caribe deck for $3,898.65 & I picked out my own stateroom.  Both prices will all of the fees. I saved around $96.00. 
 

Let us know what you decide. Through my T/A my fare has always been less than booking directly through Princess. 
 

Tom😀

 

Tom,

 

I always compare the price between booking online with Princess and booking online with my warehouse club.  More often than not, the price with Princess is less, so I pick out the perfect cabin location and book it online with Princess.  A week or so later I transfer the booking to my warehouse club.  I then get their cash rebate gift card at the end of the cruise, and when I pay for the cruise with their affiliated credit card I garner another 3% cash rebate.

 

 

 

 

[Projunior]

Booked a guaranteed cabin on the Sapphire for this Wednesday's sailing in Alaska. Four days ago I finally received my cabin assignment. From the time I made the booking, I expected to be assigned a lousy cabin and, lo and behold, I was! I just knew they wouldn't let me down! So to all you naysayers who complain about Princess not meeting your expectations, take that.

 

And just to remove any doubt that they care about this Captain's Circle Platinum member, they decided to treat me to experience the inaugural charges for pizza in Alfredo's on this very same cruise, two weeks before any other ship. How did they know this is the favorite lunch of this Captain's Circle Platinum member? It's magic, I tell you.