Carla3

Surprised today to find out my bid on penthouse suite was accepted. The ship has been sold out for weeks except for inside cabins. I bid the absolute minimum allowed. Unless someone in a suite canceled last minute (we departed in less than 2 weeks) AND no one placed a higher bid I assumed I wouldn’t be successful! We got the suite at about 50% off, so a great deal 

I have to say that I thought the rollout announcement was awkward and very difficult to understand. I must have read excerpts from multiple sources to get a full understanding of the changes. Still not convinced I’ve got it! I was a bit surprised that reserve class cabins and full suites did not include new additional perks though. You’d think there would be no room service charge in a full suite, even if you only had the standard package 

I misunderstood when the new pricing comes into effect. If you purchased your plus or premier package between Dec 15th 2022 and July 26 2023 your package includes the new “perks”

Help me with the math please. Cost for me and my husband to upgrade to the new plus package is $10 per person per day. We are going on an 11 day cruise. 11 x $20. = $220 or don’t upgrade and each pay 14.99 to activate Ocean Ready plus if we use casual dining at 14.99 each twice that a total cost of  (2 x $14.99) + (4 x 14.99)= $89.94. If my calculations are correct, it doesn’t make sense to upgrade. Am I missing anything?

35 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

There was at least a couple of threads discussing this telemarketing offer from a 3rd party company that may seem to some folks as directly from Princess.  Not so.  I seem to recall a couple of posters mentioning going for the offer program, but most seemed skeptical and were bypassing it.  You might find these threads, but perhaps not easily as it was a while ago now this deal was discussed.

 

I found one thread that didn’t give any insight to the hotel package part. Since the package has been available now for a few months, I was hoping someone had used ALL the benefits in the package and had some thoughts they could share

I’m trying to fully understand the benefits of the new future cruise package. Here’s my offer. For $7000 I get $6000 FFC plus $300 OBC plus $750 hotel credit. $6000 plus $300 plus $750 = $7050. So the first part is only really a $50 value. The second part of the package is 1 week stay certificate plus 2x 2 day certificates to be used at “highly rated hotel throughout the world”. I’m trying to find out the fine print on the “certificate” stays. Doesn’t seem realistic I could book a 5 star Honolulu hotel that’s $900 a night (7 x$900 = $6300) for “free” as an example. How is Princess or whoever the third party is making any money? My suspicion is the “stay certificate” is a time share property that’s hoping to reel you in

12 minutes ago, 1cruiselvr said:

 Nobody knows for sure. We only know what's discussed here. You'd have to work for Princess to know that. I'm guessing it's a corporate secret. 😆 

I thought maybe someone travel with friends/family who had booked the same cabin category might have some insight

Does anyone know if everyone receives the same upgrade offer. example. everyone in a mini-suite can upgrade to a full suite for the same starting minimum bid OR is the minimum bid tied to your profile and your original base fair? I am currently in a reserve mini and the bidding system is offering an upgrade to premium suite for $1290 PP, is that the same for anyone in a reserve mini?

You can ask for a tour almost anytime. I have found the staff very friendly and accommodating. If you are not on a very hot weather itinerary they will probably be a lot of availability. I have many times taking just one day here and there on Mexican and Hawaiian itineraries with no problem 

I have the same situation. Got offer to bid for a full suite and they have been sold out for months. minimum bid price was very expensive so I am not participating wither way. perhaps it is for  cabins that might become available if guests have to cancel

I know there have been a couple of threads with people complaining that they are unable to log into there accounts. Everyone seems to have a similar problem after logging in - getting the pop up that says information is missing and needs to be completed. but after trying to complete, getting another error that says your userID/email is already in use! Does anyone know what the solution is? Tried the chat function and emails, but no resolution so far. I get the impression from the chat employees that they have no idea how to fix. For now we are just using the "back door" booking feature with the booking number to view our reservation, but you can not look at booking additional cruises with any loyal discount prices showing. Medallion works fine and all our information looks correct on the App.

Do we need to "delete" our profile some how on Princess website and start over from scratch?

19 minutes ago, ghstudio said:

Keep checking the princess site multiple times a day…..don’t rely on the waitlist.  You need to catch a cancelled room when it happens

I agree, log in early mornings. I was able to recently get a mini suite booked the had shown unavailable for weeks. category then sold out immediately after I booked. Just place a courtesy hold and then call and confirm. 

Had this issue a few months back. I was using the “auto-fill” feature my tablet has to quickly populate the CC information. Once I deleted and manually typed in the information my payment was accepted.

Also make sure you don’t add any blank spaces after CC number

8 hours ago, Bob1956 said:

Am i reading all the information correctly? For Holland we need a COVID test within 72 hours of embarkment and Canada doesn't require a COVID test if we are fully vacinated? Delta airlines requires it within 72 hours of departure.

You don’t need a COVID test to FLY into Canada, but you do need a COVID test to get on a cruise ship that departs from Canada

Just read a question on another platform asking if HA still does the self guided Art Tour around the ship. Apparently you check out an airpod from the library and listen to narration as you toured the ship and viewed the various Art displays. What a great idea! I’ve only done one HA cruise. It have another coming up soon. This would be great on sea day. Do they still offer this?

Getting on early is usually just a logistical issue for us. We always arrive the day before departure and stay in a hotel. Hotel check out is usually before noon so we have to decide what to do to for a few hours if our embarkation time is later in the afternoon. Sometimes there’s lots to do that nearby, other ports there’s not. We’ve never had to wait very long even when we arrived at a crowded time. Just excited to get on the ship! 🤗

I have an upcoming sailing next week from Vancouver. I was able to upload all my information easily on the VeriFLY App. Next step is to add my negative COVID test. Instructions state 2-3 days before sailing, however In Canada if you are using a rapid test it can only be taken one day before sailing. Does anyone know if the app will allow me to add test results with only one day before sailing?

What if my test is scheduled one day before sailing? Can I not use the App?

3 minutes ago, FlorenceItaly said:

Are you on the 18 day cruise?

Yes. Getting very excited. First cruise post COVID. First time on Hal

3 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

There is no way, unless you have inside info, to know officially how many cabins are available. Some websites may list "available " cabins, but you can't tell how many unassigned guarantee bookings there are. For example,  if a travel agency shows 10 cabins available,  but there is 9 guarantee bookings in that category,  all it takes is one additional booking to fill that category. 

 

Frequently asking for an upgrade gets you a rack rate offer.

That’s a good point about the guarantee cabin option, I didn’t think of that. I am curious how many people booking a Neptune suite would request only a guaranteed cabin. It’s a lot of money to be disappointed in your eventual location. Still keeping my fingers crossed. 🤞

3 hours ago, FlorenceItaly said:

I suspect you will receive an upsell offer early this week.  Good luck, and let us know!

I called the toll free. Current cost of upsell is $1100 each! I’ll be patient and keep my fingers crossed for a better price in the coming days

You can’t enter any information into the arrive can App until 3 days before your arrival. The calendar on the app is blocked. This information you are getting from HA is not accurate I believe.  I Have a cruise departing from Vancouver in two weeks and am unable to enter any information for when we return home

My up coming cruise is in just two weeks. I have noticed that they are still 21 Neptune suites available.  I am currently booked into a signature suite and of course would be delighted to be offered a complimentary upgrade or even a reasonable  upsell. does anyone have any experience since cruising has restarted how the upgrades/upsells are happening? Does HA just let the cabin sail empty or do they offer them up.  I did try and call and enquire. but eventually hung up after 30 minutes on hold.

From the FAQ page on Princess website.

9 hours ago, Thrak said:

Great news for our Canadian friends. Now if only all the borders would open and allow cruise ships maybe the bills to continue skipping Canadian ports will die. It would be a massive hit to the income of the port towns if the current temporary waiving of the PVSA for Alaska cruises became permanent. It would also greatly peeve me and my wife as we like visiting Canada.

Border opens to fully vaccinated on November 8th 2021. Also some of the Alaska cruise itineraries for spring 2022 have included Canadian ports of Vancouver and Victoria