Plus Package Clarification

[Luv2CtheMouse9]

We are cruising in Feb/March 2024.  We will be adding the Plus package the day we arrive. 

To get bottled water, do we have to go get it from the bar each time and how often can we get it?  I ask because we need it for vitamins/meds. Are we able to get more than 1 bottle per person at a time so that we can keep it in our room or take it off the ship?

 

Does the Plus package apply for Princess Cay as well?

 

For the 2 casual dining options that are included, do those require reservations and what do you suggest?  PS - We do not like Sushi.

 

The people on the customer service line are very hard to communicate with and sometimes I cannot understand them.  If I get a drink, the gratuity is already included correct? 

• And if somebody is really great and I want to tip additional, that has to go on our stateroom balance, correct?  We cannot give cash? 

 

 

And then a separate question... one of our group prefers Dr Pepper. I looked up the policy and this is what I found, on their website:

 

• Guests are also prohibited from bringing water, sodas and other non-alcoholic beverages on board that are packaged in bottles. A small quantity of non-alcoholic beverages (i.e., sparkling water, sodas, juice, milk) packaged in cans or cartons may be brought on board on embarkation day, only if carried on in Guests’ hand luggage (not in checked luggage). A small quantity is considered a maximum of 12 sealed, unopened cans/cartons of 12 ounces each or less per person.  Guests will be asked to discard open beverages in plastic containers prior to boarding.

 

Some others in our group called and one Princess rep said as many as you want, another was told 1 per stateroom.  My dad called another time and was told that it was one 12-pack per person or 1 small case of water per person.

 

I told the others what Princess has on their website and they said they will go with the rep in the Philippines that said "as much as you want". How staunch is Princess security about this? Are they going to cause a stink? Maybe we do not want to go through security with them.  🤣

 

 

[Cruisintimer]

Tips are included with packages.  You can get bottled water at bars.  We order 2 cases at princess.com but only because of convenience as when we arrive it is there to stock in fridge.  Carrying bottles back and forth not our thing.  To each his own.

 

No you do not need reservations at casual dining.  We like Gigi's also known as Alfredo's on some ships.

 

Gratuities are included in package, we choose to tip anyway for services on-board (personal choice once again).  We tip room steward, waiters, etcetera cash.

 

Happy Sailing!

Edited November 2, 2023 by Cruisintimer

[wallyj]

What ship are you sailing? Not all ships have Sushi located usually at Ocean Terrace. 
 

You can get bottled water at any bar to take back to your cabin. Not problem getting 2 at a time per person. No problem giving a cash tip to anyone at any time.

 

 Casual dining is walk up, first come, first served. Check your particular ship for Casual Dining options.

[SCX22]

1 hour ago, Luv2CtheMouse9 said:

To get bottled water, do we have to go get it from the bar each time and how often can we get it?

 

Yes you must fetch the bottles of water yourself.  There isn't any specified limit on the number you can ask for.  I've asked for 5 at a time and the bar tenders never had a problem giving them to me.  I take extras to my cabin for consumption there.

 

1 hour ago, Luv2CtheMouse9 said:

And if somebody is really great and I want to tip additional, that has to go on our stateroom balance, correct?  We cannot give cash? 

 

Tips in excess of Princess' mandated Crew Appreciation are given in cash.  There's no way to charge those on your folio.

 

1 hour ago, Luv2CtheMouse9 said:

How staunch is Princess security about this? Are they going to cause a stink?

 

Never been stopped for carrying non-alcoholic beverages at embarkation or while in port.  My friends have carried 2, 12 pack cases of Diet Dr. Pepper and were never stopped.  When I don't have a package, I taped a 32 pack of water from the big box store, taped on a luggage tag, and it showed up at my cabin.  You can also restock while in port.  Ship/port security won't stop you.  They really only care about alcoholic beverages and even then many times they will slide.  YMMV on that one.

[2MellowCruisers]

I also need water in the cabin for meds/vitamins.  Before plus, we used to order the water on the Princess website and it would be in our cabin when we got there, or shortly after.  Now if we have Plus, we just get an extra bottle every time we get a drink at the bar.  We have had no problems getting two bottles when we asked.  We are OK with holding them or bringing them back to the cabin each time to stock up, but I do like Cruisintimer’s idea to also buy some online beforehand for the convenience.

 

I’ve not been to Princess Cay, so cannot comment on that one.

 

For the casual dining, it depends on what venues the ships have.  We usually go to Alfredo’s/Gigi’s.  You don’t have to make reservations but we just go by and if not busy will wait for a table or come back later if a line.  We have not tried other venues.

 

Yes, when ordering a drink, the gratuity is already included when you pay for the package.  As for extra gratuities, if you want to give extra, that is up to you personally.  We bring extra $1’s, $5’s etc. for tips.  I keep them in an envelope in the safe in my room and carry some each day to give out when needed.  We also bring additional envelopes for the tips we give to the room stewards and waiter/assistant waiter.  You can tip in cash.  Again, this is what we do ourselves.  There are plenty of tipping threads with pros and cons. 😊  I’m not sure if you can charge extra tips to your cabin anymore since they have gone to the medallions and you have a package.  I have not tried so someone else may have an answer to that.

 

We have only brought wine onboard and will generally stick to what the written policy is.  I have heard stories about inconsistencies regarding written policy and what happens on the ship or at the port.

 

Have a great cruise!

Edited November 2, 2023 by 2MellowCruisers
Separating paragraphs.

[Rick&Jeannie]

@Luv2CtheMouse9 we always book Plus and lately we've been trying Premier...but we also pre-order the water package. It's really convenient to have 12 bottles of water just waiting for you in your cabin when you arrive. It's the best $7.08 bargain to be had on board! Just remember to pop several into the fridge right away so they can be cooling. 

[kywildcatfanone]

2 hours ago, Luv2CtheMouse9 said:

Some others in our group called and one Princess rep said as many as you want, another was told 1 per stateroom.  My dad called another time and was told that it was one 12-pack per person or 1 small case of water per person.

Have never seen them stop someone from carrying on more than one pack of soda or water.  I would suspect bring what you want.  

[RLK33853]

Princess Cays is included in the package.

[reedprincess]

Drinks on Princess Cays are covered in your package, same as aboard 

 

You can cash tio if you want to give extra.

 

You can get as many bottles of water as you want. While usually, most bartenders will give you 2 or three at a time, a very few are sticklers and only one at a time

You can also order bottled water for delivery via Ocean Now at no additional charges, or call room service and order bottles at no charge. The ON delivery fee and room service delivery fee is covered by your Cruise Package.

 

In theory, it's 12 bottles of soda per person. In reality - it's a reasonable amount - ie bringing a flat of soda would obviously be stopped; bringing 12 or even 24 is likely not even going to lift an eyebrow..

 

Casual dining have no reservations (exceptions being Planks and Steamers which do take reservations when aboard as they alternate nights in the buffet)

 

Which venues available to you depend on which ship. If you don't like sushi, don't eat at that venue, if it were one of the options aboard.

 

Any drink ordered under the Plus beverage package portion of your Plus Cruise Package has the gratuity covered - any drink up to $15usd per menu price..  

 

Happy sails. 

[memoak]

Any drink over the $15 limit will be charged the different plus 18% of the overage

[Cruisintimer]

1 hour ago, kywildcatfanone said:

Have never seen them stop someone from carrying on more than one pack of soda or water.  I would suspect bring what you want.  

Some people like to abide by the rules.

[kywildcatfanone]

3 minutes ago, Cruisintimer said:

Some people like to abide by the rules.

Go re-read the post I quoted, it will help you with the "rules".

 

 

[Cruisintimer]

26 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

Go re-read the post I quoted, it will help you with the "rules".

 

 

I have read Princess's rules 🙂 Bring what you want isn't included. 

Edited November 3, 2023 by Cruisintimer

[10cruise]

4 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

@Luv2CtheMouse9 we always book Plus and lately we've been trying Premier...but we also pre-order the water package. It's really convenient to have 12 bottles of water just waiting for you in your cabin when you arrive. It's the best $7.08 bargain to be had on board! Just remember to pop several into the fridge right away so they can be cooling. 

There is no reason to preorder water when you have the Plus Package. We are currently on the Regal Princess and all we do is order as many bottles of water we need and they bring them to your stateroom. Why waste the money when it’s simple to have them delivered any time you want. 

 

4 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

@Luv2CtheMouse9 we always book Plus and lately we've been trying Premier...but we also pre-order the water package. It's really convenient to have 12 bottles of water just waiting for you in your cabin when you arrive. It's the best $7.08 bargain to be had on board! Just remember to pop several into the fridge right away so they can be cooling. 

 

[JimmyVWine]

We bring on board a couple of large collapsable water bottles, fill them with tap water and stick them in the fridge. And we take them to the buffet and fill them up with water from the dispenser up there.  The water supplied by the ship is perfectly suitable for drinking and taking medicine. 
 

As for casual dining venues, not only are reservations not required, they aren’t even accepted. At least not that I have ever seen. 

[SCX22]

6 hours ago, Cruisintimer said:

Some people like to abide by the rules.

 

Call me rebellious, but some rules are meant to be broken.  Princess' rules in this case are guidelines but not set in stone.  No different than the "dress code" that isn't enforced on Princess ships.

[Cruisintimer]

33 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

 

Call me rebellious, but some rules are meant to be broken.  Princess' rules in this case are guidelines but not set in stone.  No different than the "dress code" that isn't enforced on 

I am not going to call you anything but instead repeat what I said earlier some people like to abide by the rules, some don't.  Personal choice is what it is, a choice.  Every choice has a consequence, I prefer to play by the rules.

[kywildcatfanone]

4 hours ago, SCX22 said:

Call me rebellious,

It's not rebellious at all.  He forgets you can have multiple people in a room and therefore everyone can bring their own drinks. 

Edited November 3, 2023 by kywildcatfanone

[Rick&Jeannie]

12 hours ago, 10cruise said:

There is no reason to preorder water when you have the Plus Package. 

To each his own. We simply prefer to have the water *already* in our cabin waiting on us instead of having to order "as we go".  

[Cruisintimer]

2 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

To each his own. We simply prefer to have the water *already* in our cabin waiting on us instead of having to order "as we go".  

Thank you!  We do the same, some people  just cannot grasp the concept of personal choice. 

[JimmyVWine]

10 hours ago, SCX22 said:

 

Call me rebellious, but some rules are meant to be broken.  Princess' rules in this case are guidelines but not set in stone.  No different than the "dress code" that isn't enforced on Princess ships.

"Set in stone" is an old euphemism born from a time when laws were actually etched on tablets.  Today we print them on paper.  And here is what Princess has printed in its "Passage Contract".  Emphasis on the word "Contract".  So this is very much the modern day equivalent of setting something in stone:

 

Guests are also prohibited from bringing water, sodas and other non-alcoholic beverages on board that are packaged in bottles. A small quantity of non-alcoholic beverages (i.e., sparkling water, sodas, juice, milk) packaged in cans or cartons may be brought on board on embarkation day, only if carried on in Guests’ hand luggage (not in checked luggage). A small quantity is considered a maximum of 12 sealed, unopened cans/cartons of 12 ounces each or less per person. 

 

I see nothing here that suggests that this is a rule that calls out to be broken, or is a "guideline" akin to the dress code.  The purpose of the liquids rule is two-fold.  The limitation reduces the amount of liquids that are brought on the ship which lessens the burden on the security team to monitor potentially dangerous substances.  (Do you think that the TSA rule against taking liquids through the security line is a "guideline"?)  And secondly, it is a revenue issue.  Princess wants you to buy stuff.  Their business model depends on it.  Dress code guidelines share neither of these concerns.    

[Citizenxnz]

Sigh, this is probably the sad underbelly of cruising - where the subtle, and not so subtle judging and opining goes on.  And it plays out on the forums as well - OP asks a question, people reply with their answers - generally through own experiences, and then the judgement starts after a bit - put downs, one ups, passive aggressive statements.  It isn't pleasant:(

 

It's like the TV show The Gilded Age - instead we are on a ship, and it's modern day haha.

 

Love, live and let live.  Some of the happiest times in my cruises is when I meet people and we take each other as they are and have an opportunity to share a lovely human connection.  Wish it could always be like this!

[azbirdmom]

37 minutes ago, Citizenxnz said:

Sigh, this is probably the sad underbelly of cruising - where the subtle, and not so subtle judging and opining goes on.  And it plays out on the forums as well - OP asks a question, people reply with their answers - generally through own experiences, and then the judgement starts after a bit - put downs, one ups, passive aggressive statements.  It isn't pleasant:(

 

It's like the TV show The Gilded Age - instead we are on a ship, and it's modern day haha.

 

Love, live and let live.  Some of the happiest times in my cruises is when I meet people and we take each other as they are and have an opportunity to share a lovely human connection.  Wish it could always be like this!

 

Completely agree!  FB or CC, I had to say that sadly the judging and not answering the specific question proliferates.  This sums it up 😀

 

[Cruisintimer]

Agree wholeheartedly, reporting people who disagree with your opinion is ridiculous as well. 

[SCX22]

24 minutes ago, JimmyVWine said:

I see nothing here that suggests that this is a rule that calls out to be broken, or is a "guideline" akin to the dress code.  The purpose of the liquids rule is two-fold.  The limitation reduces the amount of liquids that are brought on the ship which lessens the burden on the security team to monitor potentially dangerous substances.  (Do you think that the TSA rule against taking liquids through the security line is a "guideline"?)  And secondly, it is a revenue issue.  Princess wants you to buy stuff.  Their business model depends on it.

 

To the contrary, port security doesn't make a fuss as to not hold up the security line for embarking passengers. This would cause even more delays to embarking passengers.  If liquids were of concern, then Princess would not allow passengers to bring their own beverages on board at all.  It's not an airport.  Where I think you hit the nail on the head is the concession part; Princess can't sell you beverages or packages if you already brought them on board.  Having said that Princess is the most lax of all the cruise lines on the amount of beverages you can bring.  There are written rules, but they are hardly enforced.