New Unlimited Features Make Princess Cruises' Premier Package the Best Value in Cruising

[Astro Flyer]

5 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

I don't think you have captured all the scenarios.  Here's a typical one you may not be thinking of:

 

Elite level gets you 50% MedallionNet cost.  We get minibar with 10 alcohol of choice and 10 non-alcohol of choice.  Water package pre-cruise is $7.  I bring on wine and don't generally have to pay corkage for every excess bottle (even if I do, I am ahead of the game).   So, we do consume for than provided water/coffee/tea and breakfast OJ.  The net is we don't have enough extra bar drinks per day to create value with Plus cost.

You perfectly described my style of cruising being at the Captain’s Circle elite level & that is why packages are not cost-effective for me.
 

If as some have suggested the elite minibar will be eliminated due to JP saying it’s not being used that’d be another step towards cruising elsewhere. I understand that Princess doesn’t care about me moving on because I’m not as JP stated in a recent press release one of his most valued guests who are those who purchase packages.

 

"The Loyalty Accelerator Program gives our most valued guests even more reasons to sail with our industry-leading bundles."

 

[Teechur]

On 8/17/2024 at 8:03 AM, cruisinsince75 said:

A couple of years ago on Seabourn we had an Irish Priest who was the ships Chaplain onboard.  He was drunk all the time.  After he puked on one of the guests, they confined him to his cabin and put him off the ship in the next port.  

That's quite an unfortunate stereotype, LOL!

[Teechur]

On 8/17/2024 at 8:03 AM, cruisinsince75 said:

A couple of years ago on Seabourn we had an Irish Priest who was the ships Chaplain onboard.  He was drunk all the time.  After he puked on one of the guests, they confined him to his cabin and put him off the ship in the next port.  

Oops! Repeat post.

Edited August 18 by Teechur
double post

[cruising.mark.uk]

24 minutes ago, startedwithamouse said:

Will Princess just implement turn and burn restaurant table tactics to satisfy the number of guests going to unlimited specialty dining?  

 

It seems to me that it would make sense for them to do this / increase staffing levels in SD to increase the number of covers they can put through each SD venue per evening and also limit the number of new Premier packages they sell so as not to overwhelm capacity.  

 

I'm sure I've read on here before that the number of Premier packages is capacity controlled and varies by ship and by cruise.  If so, that should mitigate concerns many are expressing about the capacity of SD and whether it will be accessible in future to non-Premier package cruisers.  No doubt all will become clearer over the next few weeks as they start implementing the new Package in practice.

 

And (as I've just written on another thread) my initial impression is that the new Premier will be a no brainer for us on many cruises if they get the SD to work, because the price differential between Plus and the new Premier is very much less than the price differential between a standard mini suite and a Reserve mini suite or suite.  So, the new package will deliver us the upgraded dining at a time of our choosing that was our reason for booking Reserve, plus other benefits, at a much reduced additional cost.

Edited August 18 by cruising.mark.uk
to add the last paragraph!

[paddingtonbear]

9 minutes ago, cruising.mark.uk said:

It seems to me that it would make sense for them to do this / increase staffing levels in SD to increase the number of covers they can put through each SD venue per evening and also limit the number of new Premier packages they sell so as not to overwhelm capacity.  

 

I'm sure I've read on here before that the number of Premier packages is capacity controlled and varies by ship and by cruise.  If so, that should mitigate concerns many are expressing about the capacity of SD and whether it will be accessible in future to non-Premier package cruisers.  No doubt all will become clearer over the next few weeks as they start implementing the new Package in practice.

 

And (as I've just written on another thread) my initial impression is that the new Premier will be a no brainer for us on many cruises if they get the SD to work, because the price differential between Plus and the new Premier is very much less than the price differential between a standard mini suite and a Reserve mini suite or suite.  So, the new package will deliver us the upgraded dining at a time of our choosing that was our reason for booking Reserve, plus other benefits, at a much reduced additional cost.

Well they’ve shot themselves in the foot there! Making reserve suites less desirable!

[BlerkOne]

I see several comments about staffing levels and wonder where additional staff might sleep? Perhaps they could rotate through passenger cabins.

[cruising.mark.uk]

1 minute ago, BlerkOne said:

I see several comments about staffing levels and wonder where additional staff might sleep? Perhaps they could rotate through passenger cabins.

Additional staff for SD doesn't mean more staff overall.  If more passengers are eating in SD and less in the MDR, then staff can be flexed from the MDR to SD.

[cruising.mark.uk]

4 minutes ago, paddingtonbear said:

Well they’ve shot themselves in the foot there! Making reserve suites less desirable!

I guess they win either way - additional revenue from those who book Reserve and additional revenue from those who don't book reserve, but book the new Premier instead.  While the latter looks like it will work for me, that doesn't mean it will work for everyone who currently prefers Reserve.

[Teechur]

6 minutes ago, paddingtonbear said:

Well they’ve shot themselves in the foot there! Making reserve suites less desirable!

Not necessarily. If Reserve Suites transition to "Sanctuary Suites", fleetwide, some people will choose both.

[BlerkOne]

5 minutes ago, cruising.mark.uk said:

Additional staff for SD doesn't mean more staff overall.  If more passengers are eating in SD and less in the MDR, then staff can be flexed from the MDR to SD.

I'm not sure how many more passengers can eat is SD. I think it is more of a shift in revenue source.

[LACruiser88]

24 minutes ago, cruising.mark.uk said:

Additional staff for SD doesn't mean more staff overall.  If more passengers are eating in SD and less in the MDR, then staff can be flexed from the MDR to SD.

Another issue with more diners in the SD venues has to do with the ability of the galley to put out more meals.  This has been an issue in the past and cannot be remedied with more staff due to the smaller galleys in SD venues.  🤷‍♂️

[Mara4166]

2 hours ago, memoak said:

Yes the old plan was just for the production shows the new one adds on things like guest singers, magicians and comedians etc

 

Wow, on the UK website it will explicitly says production show only and is for the new package -  includes the unlimited dining and drinks.  I wonder what it will finally be once the dust settles.

 

[canadarocks]

3 minutes ago, Mara4166 said:

 

Wow, on the UK website it will explicitly says production show only and is for the new package -  includes the unlimited dining and drinks.  I wonder what it will finally be once the dust settles.

 

I posted the same info days ago after doing a mock Canadian booking. Production shows ONLY.

Edited August 18 by canadarocks

[Astro Flyer]

15 minutes ago, Mara4166 said:

 

Wow, on the UK website it will explicitly says production show only and is for the new package -  includes the unlimited dining and drinks.  I wonder what it will finally be once the dust settles.

 

 

12 minutes ago, canadarocks said:

I posted the same info days ago after doing a mock Canadian booking. Production shows ONLY.

It’s the same on the US site:

 

Reserved theater seating

Included

Special Premier reserved seating section for production shows
 

[Retired-N-Happy]

2 hours ago, kywildcatfanone said:

I'm not against packages, anyone who wants may buy a package, their choice.  My issue is they are going closer and closer to forcing you into a package to actually book a cruise. 

Why do possibly think they are forcing you to buy a package?  The new Premier was their response to the cruisers that were upset that you only got 2 SD meals whether the cruise length was 5 days or 21 days.  The unlimited drinks comes into play for such a small percentage that it really doesn't matter.  The unlimited specialty is the pull to purchase the new Premier.  Those that liked better wines or the new menus on the Sphere Class with many drinks in the 15-20 range were also those that would be drawn to pay the upgrade over Plus.

But there will always be those who have their Elite perks or who are happy not drinking much alcohol that will never buy a package.

[canadarocks]

I wish is was for ALL theatre shows. That would be be a great bonus.

 

UNLESS..... Special Premier seating is different than Reserved Theatre seating????? 

Edited August 18 by canadarocks

[memoak]

54 minutes ago, paddingtonbear said:

Well they’ve shot themselves in the foot there! Making reserve suites less desirable!

Suites have nothing to do with specialty dining except for embarkation night dining and reserve minis have never had anything to do with SD. Can you explain your post

[memoak]

51 minutes ago, Teechur said:

Not necessarily. If Reserve Suites transition to "Sanctuary Suites", fleetwide, some people will choose both.

Questioning again what is meant 

by reserve suites. There is no designation like Sanctuary suites on non sphere class ships. There are Window, Vista, Penthouse , Grand and Owners suites and not all on every ship 

[rocker57]

Could it be possible that they would open the Specialty Restaurants to lunch as well? That way it would be opened to the extra people with the SD, and therefore getting useage out of the extra benefit.

we have the Premier fare for our booking next year. I’m not going to pay for the extra benefits, as we have RC, I’ve already booked my 2 SD, and I don’t think we need more. I’m hoping to get the enhanced wi-fi, but in reality, don’t need it, how much faster do I need Facebook to load lol.

[canadarocks]

1 minute ago, rocker57 said:

I’m hoping to get the enhanced wi-fi, but in reality, don’t need it, how much faster do I need Facebook to load lol.

The enhanced wi-fi is supposed to be for both Plus & Premier packages, so you'll have it. 😄

[Steelers36]

33 minutes ago, Mara4166 said:

 

Wow, on the UK website it will explicitly says production show only and is for the new package -  includes the unlimited dining and drinks.  I wonder what it will finally be once the dust settles.

 

 

30 minutes ago, canadarocks said:

I posted the same info days ago after doing a mock Canadian booking. Production shows ONLY.

 

17 minutes ago, Astro Flyer said:

 

It’s the same on the US site:

 

Reserved theater seating

Included

Special Premier reserved seating section for production shows
 

 

I suspect this may be a case of the typical PCL situation where they don't get all the website language updated when a change occurs. 

 

BTW, there is no Canada versus US website.  We share the exact same website except user profile and IP address location drives the displayed currency when checking pricing.

[memoak]

3 minutes ago, rocker57 said:

Could it be possible that they would open the Specialty Restaurants to lunch as well? That way it would be opened to the extra people with the SD, and therefore getting useage out of the extra benefit.

we have the Premier fare for our booking next year. I’m not going to pay for the extra benefits, as we have RC, I’ve already booked my 2 SD, and I don’t think we need more. I’m hoping to get the enhanced wi-fi, but in reality, don’t need it, how much faster do I need Facebook to load lol.

Would that be a different menu from dinner ?  I sure wouldn’t pay as much for a smaller menu but really don’t need to eat a big steak in the middle of the day. Plus what would keep this upgraded class of passengers from booking lunch and dinner for every day of a cruise ?

 

 

[Retired-N-Happy]

2 hours ago, Thunderbird19 said:

Would be interesting to have some college student do a study on the health status of frequent Princess cruisers before and after the Premium Package changes! 😂

Unless one has an incredible metabolism rate, lots of willpower, or exercises daily, the extra calories from unlimited fancier dining options and empty calories from unlimited alcohol can’t be a very healthy thing for cruisers!

What percentage of Premier package purchasers do you actually think will consume 16+ drinks a day?  SMH. 

 

All you need to do is make the 90.00 cost a value to you.  You don't need to consume 15 drinks when substantially less will do and the same goes with the SD inclusion.  You don't have to eat in a SD venue each night, just enough to make purchasing the package a value to you.

 

[hobo1937]

This is my personal opinion, but I would not be surprised if Princess limits SD to Premier Package guests only, or only offers a small number of reservations to non Premier guests. It will depend on how this rolls out and if Premier guests can't get into the SD restaurants they want when they want. 

[memoak]

1 minute ago, Retired-N-Happy said:

What percentage of Premier package purchasers do you actually think will consume 16+ drinks a day?  SMH. 

 

All you need to do is make the 90.00 cost a value to you.  You don't need to consume 15 drinks when substantially less will do and the same goes with the SD inclusion.  You don't have to eat in a SD venue each night, just enough to make purchasing the package a value to you.

 

$60 a day per person more than plus package is hard to find a value for me. My drinks all fit in the plus package sand if I eat more than a few specialty dinners per cruise would cause me to gain weight