judithzuz

I know that I'm repeating some of what's been said here, but I think if we were all honest and checked our natural inclination to complain, we would have to hand it to Princess and their website. It is leagues ahead of the others in terms of ease of use. I love to check on price changes and availability of cabins and Princess makes it supremely easy for me to do so. A mock booking can be done in seconds, allowing you to check on many variables,: number of guests, type of cabin, location, packages, etc. IN SECONDS. The others feel like the Bataan Death March. And the app is getting better. Is all of it perfect? No. But is the design user friendly? Heck yes. Using other websites has me returning to Princess again and again. I just don't want to work that hard for my vacation.

On 4/14/2023 at 9:20 PM, HiCCCs said:

What about going through the Canal....did you spend more of your time on the aft balcony?  Or did you go to various vantage points throughout the ship all day? It's a long day through the full transit....the experience of being up front for a few forward encounters through the locks will be good to have...but then it might be nice to put our feet up and be in the comfort of the aft suite for the rest of it...especially with the heat!

We did go from place to place. Morning. not so hot, we were on the top deck forward. There are several spots, just have to hunt where there are fewer people. Then went mid ship above the pool deck, plenty of viewing on port or starboard. But after lunch and later, we did go to the aft balcony, shady and much cooler. There's so much to see, it's so busy there that really, there are no bad spots to take it all in.

On 4/11/2023 at 3:22 PM, HiCCCs said:

We're on an aft suite for Panama on Island Princess. How was the experience being in aft going through the Canal??? Any tips to share with another aft-resident for the Panama experience?

Well, it was smooth sailing until we we were coming into Cartagena, then leaving the next day. Woof! And I don't get seasick. We actually had to sleep sideways so my stomach could catch a rest. But other than that, I loved it. We had a huge balcony on the Ruby. I would do it again in a heartbeat. Nothing beats that wake view and the sunsets, Enjoy!

48 minutes ago, HiCCCs said:

Please keep in touch and let us know how you fare.

Will do. I'll give the bid a try. Sometimes it's just the luck of the draw so to speak. on my last two, I bid to upgrade and was a winner both times. On the Ruby for the Panama Canal, went from an inside to an Aft premium, first just a premium by bidding, then I went on chat to see if we could get changed to a wake view Aft as it was available. Sure!. On the Regal, we booked a week before sailing, inside guaranteed and bid for a balcony, and once again lucky. I'm just going to run this streak as long as it can. If it's a good price, I'll bid for both weeks in Alaska

6 hours ago, HiCCCs said:

If I understand how the program works, since you have two separate bookings you would be bidding for upgrades on each of the separate bookings.

 

I actually have one booking number, but I know that it is being treated as a B2B as I will be earning 4 cruise credits as a solo. Bidding doesn't come online until June, but I will give it a try then. But my concern was just the lack of availability showing for the 14 day as opposed to the two 7 days.

Good luck to both of us!!

I have a question and I did read several pages to check to see if it had been answered before: I booked a B2B to Alaska on the Grand in September, 2/ 7 days. I did a mock booking to check availability and there are plenty of cabins available on each leg, not so many for the 14 days. If I bid will it be on the 14 day or can I bid on either end of the 7 days? It won't bother me to move if I can snag a balcony. I am booked in an inside and going solo.

I just got off the Ruby on your embarkation day. I was on the December 2 full transit out of San Francisco. I had no expectations but truly enjoyed the sailing. Your cruise director has just joined the ship as Aaron left on the 18th, as well as the Hotel Manager Michael. What really set this voyage apart was the entertainment staff. They were so fully engaged with the guests. So many opportunities to interact. This made for a very happy ship. Yes, elevators were slow and some app orders took way too long. There were seriously rough seas in and out of Cartagena. But everyone seemed genuinely happy to be aboard. And can I say that the Jenga competition and its rematch were just epic. Guests won both, I'm proud to attest!!!

Last year, Princess also had a teachers' offer, I wonder if they will have that again. Any one have a clue?

I booked two cruises with the discount, one of which I was able to refare as I had booked that cruise last October. The one with the discount has to be the one that books. It is absolutely easy to see if the discount applies, just go as far as the summary page. That is just a couple of steps. And don't forget that the 25% applies to fare and the plus or Premier packages. The only things not discounted are the taxes and insurance.  That 25% amounted to significant discount and did compare favorably to HAL. One of my cruises is the Island to Iceland and Greenland, 16 days. As a solo, I only paid $2500 total for a balcony with plus, all fees included. I thought that was a deal. Without the discount, total would have been $3250.

I agree that it is a bit confusing when you don't see that the discount WILL be applied, but if you are registered on the site, it will show up.

1 minute ago, Coral said:

Did you upgrade from an existing booking? Or did you do a new booking?

Existing, seriously, it was so easy. I did take screen shots of my two mock bookings so I knew if was getting what I expected as far as price goes.

Thanks to all of you good folks here for explaining the math to me.  I went, as suggested, and did a mock booking for my original cabin with the plus and Princess' numbers were correct. And then, for poops and giggles, did one for a mini with plus. Only $170 difference per person. I got on chat and 10 minutes later had my new cabin. Thanks everyone for being kind enough to share your ideas. 

just checked, I've got nothing

Just now, Coral said:

Email just went out.

To school email or personal? I'm feeling lazy and only want to check one 😄

1 hour ago, KKB said:

Interesting...mine was off the Plus fare

Well, looks like Princess will be getting another call!

Ok, here is my experience and it has a happy ending. I had a booking from a while back on the Sept 2 Enchanted Transatlantic. Cancelled that yesterday as the discount was for new bookings only, anticipating the email with the coupon code. No such email. Contacted Princess to rebook on the 31st and hoped that they would apply the code. No luck but kept the booking. Had to call again this morning, June 1st, took a while, but the code was applied to the booking I made yesterday. The 25% came off the lowest fare for my category cabin, but it was fine. They do not include Plus in the total before the discount. So it's off the most base fare for your category, but again, good. At least it's done. Bottom line: call. I guess they will apply the code while you wait.

6 minutes ago, Coral said:

I spoke to my agent and the rate code is in her computer.

Agent, as in Santa Clarita? Are they open? 

Just now, HBCcruiser said:

Figures...

something, something, it was a holiday yesterday.

32 minutes ago, HBCcruiser said:

Neither have I ..yet. 

 

On with them now, they don't have a code on their end either. Oh, brother

I'm booked on the September 2 TA and need to change my booking from an inside to a balcony or minisuite. I really don't want to lose my EZair as the price on flights have gone up. Does Princess allow for some version of the Lift and Shift? How do I best approach them to make this happen? I qualified to the Teacher discount of 25% and need to have them apply it the booking without losing my flight. That discount is to good to pass up.

On 5/11/2022 at 10:09 PM, HankaM said:

Judith - did you go to Berlin?  I lived in Germany 89-91 and was in Berlin the day the Wall fell. I absolutely plan to take my family to Berlin and rewalk history for my daughter. How did you do it and how did it go?

Yes, we made the 8:30 am train, barely, and were able to have a wonderful day in Berlin. We had plenty of time to walk around and take in a few of the sights. Not hard at all and definitely worth the effort. And so much more affordable the the ship's tour.

1 minute ago, capriccio said:

I'm not on the Sky Princess but have been on two other Princess cruises since the beginning of the year.  I can't see them discounting any swag at the end of a cruise since within hours those embarking on the next cruise will be customers willing to pay full price.  I also experienced lack of inventory on my January cruise when I was looking for the silver bracelet (they only had it in one instead of 3 different sizes) that the staff said wasn't unusual.

Thanks for the quick response. I changed my mind as to what I wanted and the bracelet, which is what I would like, won't reach me in time before my next cruise. But yeah, I'll just check to see what they have on board.

Hoping to hear from someone on board. Does Princess offer Medallion swag at a discount on board or at the end of a cruise? Just wondering if I can upgrade from my all too long Sports lanyard.

14 minutes ago, Jadn13 said:

Golf, Ping Pong and Volleyball. (Volley uses the same sports court) 

Thank you so much. I couldn't find a definitive list of the site.

I'm trying to find out what sports and activities are available on the Enchanted. I'm trying to organize a Sports Day on board and need a list for the sign up. If anyone has been on the Enchanted recently, could you please let me know. I know there is a basketball court and pickle ball is available, but what else? Ping Pong, shuffleboard, that sort of thing. I would so appreciate the information. We have a lot of Sea Days to fill.

On my particular sailing, April 9th and April 23, the prices had dropped as we approach sailing. I called and tried chat and the princess number to see about an upgrade. Initially, the agents said that I couldn't upgrade at the new promo price. But I kept trying. I got lucky with one particular agent on chat and first changed one cabin, then the other, I had booked the two cruises separately. I was more than willing to pay the difference since it wasn't much. Both times, ( kept going on chat to get the same agent,) he couldn't see the promo price for my booking, but that's what copy and paste is for. Words of advice, keep trying, you'll get there. Moved from a lower category balcony to a mini suite for less than $200.