Just off Celebrity and wow did I miss Princess!

[asctony]

If this was posted on Celebrity CC there would be reverse opinions.

What about Princess new ship Sun and its reviews. One example of what some are saying. 

 

'What's really surprising is all the changes they've had to made to a new ship. The whole "family area" is scrapped, and then all the restaurants moving around. It's almost unheard of in the first year of a sailing. Someone really messed up in planning Sun Princess. You can say it's the first in it's class, but you didn't see drastic changes in the Prima-class, Icon-class, or Lady-class. Add that to the multiple delays in getting the ship ready. The team leading this debut must be in really hot water. '

 

So, regardless of Cruise Lines, some love them & others hate them.

 

Opinions, experiences & tastes are very subjective.

[SCX22]

10 minutes ago, IndyKid said:

 

Edited September 12 by SCX22

[SCX22]

32 minutes ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

People pay a premium to have a choice. I don’t see how that is unfair to the cruise lines. Besides, the cruise lines set the rules. If they are unhappy, they can certainly change their policies.

 

21 minutes ago, IndyKid said:

Aww, da poor wittle cruise lines, making money hand over fist by fleecing us mean, old cruisers...🙄

Why do travelers find booking cheaper non refundable airline tickets acceptable?  It's the same concept.  Basic Economy is booming and even with higher fare classes one pays the difference in fare when it's the traveller that initiates the change.

 

I'd be for cruise lines making the deposits non refundable but giving a rock bottom fare.  In a way RC and X already do this.  
 

Also realize, North American bookings are spoiled with refundable deposits.  Most cruise bookings other places in the world have non refundable deposits.

Edited September 12 by SCX22

[TRLD]

13 minutes ago, asctony said:

If this was posted on Celebrity CC there would be reverse opinions.

What about Princess new ship Sun and its reviews. One example of what some are saying. 

 

'What's really surprising is all the changes they've had to made to a new ship. The whole "family area" is scrapped, and then all the restaurants moving around. It's almost unheard of in the first year of a sailing. Someone really messed up in planning Sun Princess. You can say it's the first in it's class, but you didn't see drastic changes in the Prima-class, Icon-class, or Lady-class. Add that to the multiple delays in getting the ship ready. The team leading this debut must be in really hot water. '

 

So, regardless of Cruise Lines, some love them & others hate them.

 

Opinions, experiences & tastes are very subjective.

More that they were trying to make a major change in direction with the cruise line culture, similar to back when Celebrity first started going to its class system. It appears that Princess has decided that the change was not getting the reception they were expecting so they have gone back to something more in line with the rest of the fleet with only minor changes with Sanctuary class.

 

Not sure if it was operational issues or customer feedback driving the change back to something more like the existing Princess practice.

[TRLD]

10 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

 

Why do travelers find booking cheaper non refundable airline tickets acceptable?  It's the same concept.  Basic Economy is booming and even with higher fare classes one pays the difference in fare when it's the traveller that initiates the change.

 

I'd be for cruise lines making the deposits non refundable but giving a rock bottom fare.  In a way RC and X already do this.  

As far as airlines the difference between refundable and not gives one a free flight out of every 4. If you do need to cancel you just take the credit and apply it to another flight. Only an issue if one does not fly much.

[IndyKid]

4 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

Why do travelers find booking cheaper non refundable airline tickets acceptable?  It's the same concept.  Basic Economy is booming and even with higher fare classes one pays the difference in fare when it's the traveler that initiates the change.

 

I'd be for cruise lines making the deposits non refundable but giving a rock bottom fare.  In a way RC and X already do this.  

Why do airlines & cruise companies play their games with the prices? Nothing infuriates me more than booking a flight or cruise, only to see the price drop afterwards. I'm glad that the cruise lines have been forced to include taxes and fees up front in their pricing. And when I search for flights, I want to see the price for a regular economy seat, that I select ahead of time, with a checked bag. If they want to offer lower fares without those options that's fine.  

 

[SCX22]

34 minutes ago, IndyKid said:

Why do airlines & cruise companies play their games with the prices?

 

To maximize revenue.  What goes on exactly behind the scenes isn't for consumers to know.  Consumers just have to play the game.

[IndyKid]

50 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

 

To maximize revenue.  What goes on exactly behind the scenes isn't for consumers to know.  Consumers just have to play the game.

Which is exactly why I don't feel sorry for them when we are able to game the system to get some leverage against them. 

[SCX22]

2 minutes ago, IndyKid said:

Which is exactly why I don't feel sorry for them when we are able to game the system to get some leverage against them. 

 

Travel companies can't give every passenger the lowest fare.  They'd go out of business if they did.  Look up how airline fare buckets work to get a general idea of airline pricing.  Cruise lines have the same

 

Sad when consumers feel resentment against a company.  One doesn't have to use their services if they don't want to.  One can take land vacations and drive.

[IndyKid]

3 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

Sad when consumers feel resentment against a company.  One doesn't have to use their services if they don't want to.

It's also sad when they play their little games. I get it, it's capitalism at its very best, squeeze the most blood out of the turnip as you can. All I'm saying is hooray when the customer finds a way to turn the tables on them. 

 

Right now the cruise lines are booking practically every cabin on their ships. Eventually, this travel bubble will burst, things will slow down, and cruisers will be in the catbird's seat.

[SCX22]

6 minutes ago, IndyKid said:

It's also sad when they play their little games. I get it, it's capitalism at its very best, squeeze the most blood out of the turnip as you can. All I'm saying is hooray when the customer finds a way to turn the tables on them. 

 

Right now the cruise lines are booking practically every cabin on their ships. Eventually, this travel bubble will burst, things will slow down, and cruisers will be in the catbird's seat.

 

I agree with you that it's capitalism.  Instead of feeling resentment, just go with the flow.  Travel companies have every right to take advantage of the market just like any other business.

 

Like I said before RC Group have non refundable deposits for the lowest fare and can fill their ships a year or more in advance.  Might have correlation with their high stock price?  Also despite the non refundable deposits, RC Group allows for re-faring without having to cancel and start a new booking when the fare drops up until final payment.  Princess used to allow this but now has some weird policy for some fare codes that make it so that they are only valid on new bookings.

[wish_I_was_a_mermaid]

On 9/10/2024 at 8:37 AM, geoherb said:

Our last Celebrity cruise was disappointing in food and service. I still look at the itineraries and prices that Celebrity offers, but I have not found any bargains tempting enough to get me to try one again.

It used to be that Celebrity was the affordable option as we cruised with them twice, both times is a smaller suite. Princess was beyond our reach back when. Now Princess is just within reach and do-able and Celebritys prices seem steep. We tried Enchanted Princess in August and we loved it, already booked our next trip and looking forward to it. The drink package was good, food was good to outstanding and we all loved the entertainment. I have no desire to rush back to Celebrity.

[PescadoAmarillo]

52 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

 

I agree with you that it's capitalism.  Instead of feeling resentment, just go with the flow.  Travel companies have every right to take advantage of the market just like any other business.

Agree completely. And guests have every right to book a cruise at a higher fare, hold it with a refundable deposit, and cancel if plans change before final payment. To do so is hardly unfair to Princess. If Princess was concerned, they could make all deposits nonrefundable and/or stop FCDs and $99 deposit promotions (and, even more, $1 deposit promotions). 

[TRLD]

1 hour ago, IndyKid said:

It's also sad when they play their little games. I get it, it's capitalism at its very best, squeeze the most blood out of the turnip as you can. All I'm saying is hooray when the customer finds a way to turn the tables on them. 

 

Right now the cruise lines are booking practically every cabin on their ships. Eventually, this travel bubble will burst, things will slow down, and cruisers will be in the catbird's seat.

The other alternative would be a fixed price that would be higher than the average charged under the current system. Since they wouldnot be able to adjust pricing for denand. Do not think most would like that either.

 

The system is pretty clear. Inital pricing is  what the cruise line expects to be lowest based upon their models, it then goes up as the ship fills. How much it goes up depends upon the booking rate vs projections.  The price might go lower due to a sale or if bookings are behind and empty cabins need to be filled after final payment date.  

 

These days prices are mustly going up after initial release.

 

 

[TRLD]

57 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

 

I agree with you that it's capitalism.  Instead of feeling resentment, just go with the flow.  Travel companies have every right to take advantage of the market just like any other business.

 

Like I said before RC Group have non refundable deposits for the lowest fare and can fill their ships a year or more in advance.  Might have correlation with their high stock price?  Also despite the non refundable deposits, RC Group allows for re-faring without having to cancel and start a new booking when the fare drops up until final payment.  Princess used to allow this but now has some weird policy for some fare codes that make it so that they are only valid on new bookings.

Except for airlines in an emergency situation at which point they might run into anti gouging laws.

[SCX22]

22 minutes ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

Agree completely. And guests have every right to book a cruise at a higher fare, hold it with a refundable deposit, and cancel if plans change before final payment. To do so is hardly unfair to Princess. If Princess was concerned, they could make all deposits nonrefundable and/or stop FCDs and $99 deposit promotions (and, even more, $1 deposit promotions). 

Again, people in North America don’t realize how spoiled they are with refundable deposits.  I do think that Princess and Carnival, for that matter, do care about non-refundable deposits because they have now created categories with non-refundable deposits—for Princess, it’s the lowest location category (usually the F location) and for Carnival it’s the Early Saver and Super Saver Fares.

[Iamcruzin]

4 hours ago, SCX22 said:

 

Why do travelers find booking cheaper non refundable airline tickets acceptable?  It's the same concept.  

 

I'd be for cruise lines making the deposits non refundable but giving a rock bottom fare.  In a way RC and X already do this.  Those opening fares aren't rock bottom when they offer OBC and Kids sail free after you already booked.

Because nobody is booking a flight 2 years in advance, There is a huge price difference in booking a refundable flight vs a non refundable flight, the airlines don't play games offering   credit or deals to entice new bookings which forces you to rebook in order to get the added perks and if push came to shove you can change a flight. 

[SCX22]

15 minutes ago, Iamcruzin said:

Because nobody is booking a flight 2 years in advance, There is a huge price difference in booking a refundable flight vs a non refundable flight, the airlines don't play games offering   credit or deals to entice new bookings which forces you to rebook in order to get the added perks and if push came to shove you can change a flight. 

Not being able to refare without cancelling and rebooking a new reservation on certain fare codes is a Princess thing and a recent change at that.  With RC and X you can refare up to final payment no problem.

 

 No one says that the opening fare will be the lowest.  Princess has threatened to not lower fares closer to final payment, but if you look at long voyages, this doesn’t seem to be the case.  The 21 day TA on the Regal departing Southampton on 10/06/24 had 3 price reductions prior to final payment, probably due to low bookings.  I was on the 30 day Pacific Crossing of the Majestic this past April; I booked that around 60 days prior and Princess had a 40% price reduction and gave me a resident promo of a $500 EzAir credit.

 

When one books a non refundable flight and one wants to change their flight, rarely is there not a fare difference the has to be covered.  If one has to cancel one can be given vouchers depending on the fare, but as has been stated by @TRLD, travel vouchers are only useful if one can use them.  If the fare drops, the airlines don’t allow for refares.  There’s a game with airline fares too with dynamic pricing; depending on the day you’re checking fares might yield different fares.  Case in point I did a land trip to Turkey recently.  I purchased tickets directly with Turkish Airlines to Istanbul.  I started checking fares last December for an August 2024 trip.  They seemed awfully high, in the $1200s.  In February 2024 Turkish had a Summer Sale.  When I checked on at Saturday for the dates I needed, the fare was $979.  When I checked again on a Tuesday for the exact same dates, the fare dropped to $897.  I snagged it.  Case in point, it’s not only cruise lines that play games, but also airlines.  Had I booked a higher fare earlier on, Turkish wouldn’t have refunded me the difference.

[TRLD]

3 minutes ago, SCX22 said:

Not being able to refare without cancelling and rebooking a new reservation on certain fare codes is a Princess thing and a recent change at that.  With RC and X you can refare up to final payment no problem.

 

 No one says that the opening fare will be the lowest.  Princess has threatened to not lower fares closer to final payment, but if you look at long voyages, this doesn’t seem to be the case.  The 21 day TA on the Regal departing Southampton on 10/06/24 had 3 price reductions prior to final payment, probably due to low bookings.  I was on the 30 day Pacific Crossing of the Majestic this past April; I booked that around 60 days prior and Princess had a 40% price reduction and gave me a resident promo of a $500 EzAir credit.

 

When one books a non refundable flight and one wants to change their flight, rarely is there not a fare difference the has to be covered.  If one has to cancel one can be given vouchers depending on the fare, but as has been stated by @TRLD, travel vouchers are only useful if one can use them.  If the fare drops, the airlines don’t allow for refares.  There’s a game with airline fares too with dynamic pricing; depending on the day you’re checking fares might yield different fares.  Case in point I did a land trip to Turkey recently.  I purchased tickets directly with Turkish Airlines to Istanbul.  I started checking fares last December for an August 2024 trip.  They seemed awfully high, in the $1200s.  In February 2024 Turkish had a Summer Sale.  When I checked on at Saturday for the dates I needed, the fare was $979.  When I checked again on a Tuesday for the exact same dates, the fare dropped to $897.  I snagged it.  Case in point, it’s not only cruise lines that play games, but also airlines.  Had I booked a higher fare earlier on, Turkish wouldn’t have refunded me the difference.

Though if the fare drops on the major US airlines you can cancel, book the new lower fare, then use the voucher on a different flight.

[commodoredave]

9 hours ago, SCX22 said:

 

I agree with you that it's capitalism.  Instead of feeling resentment, just go with the flow.  Travel companies have every right to take advantage of the market just like any other business.

 

Like I said before RC Group have non refundable deposits for the lowest fare and can fill their ships a year or more in advance.  Might have correlation with their high stock price?  Also despite the non refundable deposits, RC Group allows for re-faring without having to cancel and start a new booking when the fare drops up until final payment.  Princess used to allow this but now has some weird policy for some fare codes that make it so that they are only valid on new bookings.

It’s fine to feel resentful for a short period of time. But eventually it’s smarter to get over it and learn from it.

[Scottdalfonso]

On 9/10/2024 at 12:37 PM, The_Big_M said:

 

Not about saving as they'd be producing the food the same. They're just trying to increase discretionary revenue, from someone who's willing to shell out extra for the comfort/convenience of having popcorn for the movie experience.

 

Of course, it still cheapens their product overall, which turns others off. But they're currently getting enough new bookers and repeats that they're not worried about that, so are just eyes on the short term aim of increasing onboard revenue.

They do it to try and prevent kids from dumping it all over. They told us that on the cruise last year... if parents pay for it, they're more likely to make sure the kids eat it and don't throw it at each other and leave it all over the floors. 

[Cruise a holic]

On 9/9/2024 at 3:22 PM, kaerofan said:

My adult daughter and I just got off the Celebrity Reflection and were really disappointed.  Princess is usually our favourite line but we were just wanting a short getaway out of Florida.  Lack of entertainment and things to do, price gouging at every turn, mediocre food (terrible pizza) and an overall dark and dismal vibe made us really appreciate Princess.

Wow, we had the opposite experience.  Found Princess to be "carnival like" .  It was very crowded, no room in theater for all guests wanting seats- and shows blah.  Very poor buffet.  Restaurant hurried and not relaxed.  

 

No nice pool areas-  We were on two princess ships and never again. We do appreciate the announcements on celebrity that are very limited and non-intrusive. We live in NY and get the best pizza IMO in the world- so wouldn't even consider pizza on a cruise ship. Love cafe al Baccio and the Lawn Club grill on the reflection.  

 

 But that is why so many cruise lines are available-  I think you might have had a one off experience on Celebrity-  Try the edge class ships.  I would also highly recommend Royal Caribbean Oasis Class ships if entertainment is important to you. 

[FLAlaska]

On 9/12/2024 at 11:16 PM, TRLD said:

Though if the fare drops on the major US airlines you can cancel, book the new lower fare, then use the voucher on a different flight.

Right. Airline fares while non refundable, do give you trip credit that you can use later. Cruises do not..

[judithzuz]

On 9/10/2024 at 9:21 PM, suzyed said:

I bet you could have asked for some other sides.

 

Have to pop in to add that on Princess I have always had good luck asking for add-ons. My love for Italian spinach knows no bounds and after my first night ordering it as a side, I was always able to get it. And yes, I can eat spinach every night. Spinach has never met a food it doesn't compliment. See what I mean about no bounds? Our waiters have said that you can always ask for a side that comes on any other entree. And one more, olive oil for bread dipping instead of the butter. 

[ldubs]

On 9/10/2024 at 8:28 AM, jaspersmommy said:

Seriously???  Food is a somewhat subjective thing, but to say it’s mediocre on X, or Reflection specifically, isn’t even close to accurate. I don’t think that being the best at sea for pizza is quite what X is striving for, but overall their food is as good as can be expected for a mainstream cruise line. You are right about the entertainment, it isn’t outstanding - but it doesn’t seem to be a top demand for the typical X cruiser. 

 

Show me a cruise line that isn’t price-gouging. They are all trying to maximize profits. I just booked two Princess cruises and am annoyed with having to add packages with numerous unwanted extras I don’t need or want just to get the few things I do need and want. Princess can claim no moral high ground on pricing. 
 

If you booked X for pizza and entertainment, then no wonder you’re disappointed. There are a ton of other things they do extremely well and it’s unfortunate you weren’t able to allow yourself to enjoy any of them.  But, saying the food is mediocre and that the ship is dark and dismal is very inaccurate and sounds like maybe you were determined not to enjoy yourself because it wasn’t what you are used to. If Princess’ pizza and entertainment are your cruising priorities, you should stick with Princess in future.  Or, do your homework before sailing with another cruise line to get a feel for what they do and do not do well.

 

You don't have to add the package on Princess.  Only add one if it will result in a savings compared to purchasing the items you want.

 

I have an enjoyable history with both Princess and Celebrity.  I like them both.  I have not been on Celebrity since the pandemic.  I am somewhat dismayed at how negative the Celebrity boards were not so long ago after the re-start. There were a lot of very unhappy people.   I sure wouldn't have booked with them then.  I think I would now if they have the itinerary and price I like.