TN-Mountains

I took these speed tests on Sky Princess (Norway/Iceland June 3-17). The first was on June 4 @ 6:35 PM so we were at sea somewhere between Southampton and Bergen. The second was taken on June 6 @ 7:35 PM, so we were somewhere between Flaam and Olden. I'll be honest. These numbers look bad to me. My internet would be unusable if I had tests like these at home. Fortunately, the internet worked great on the ship. I was able to make/receive video calls using both FaceTime and WhatsApp. There were a couple of times there was a lag with the video, but it wasn't terrible and we were in the middle of nowhere between Norway and Iceland...possibly north of the Arctic Circle at that time. I had no issues checking email, news, etc. After reading how horrible the internet was on these boards, I had ZERO intentions of getting internet, Princess Plus or Princess Premier. The prices are too high for it not to work. I reluctantly upgraded to Princess Premier on day 1 because my husband needed his work phone in addition to his personal phone. I have no regrets and never felt the need to run any more speed tests. The ones I ran were purely out of curiosity and not because I was having issues connecting. I hope these are helpful to others!

My husband attended one class on the Sky a couple of weeks ago. I believe it was a stretch lab. He enjoyed the class and he rarely works out at home. Don't worry about being out of shape. My husband was the only person in the class, so he got one on one attention from the instructor.

Y I upgraded from standard to premier on the first day. I was able to use OBC to cover part of the price. It was the same price onboard as it was pre-cruise except, 1) I didn’t have to pay an increase in the insurance premium that would have been required pre-cruise; and 2) they gave each of us a $10 OBC because they didn’t mail our medallions pre-cruise.

What do you think Princess should have done differently? Aside from actually stopping in the planned ports shown on the itinerary, what would make you feel whole? (I'm assuming they couldn't stop at the ports.) I board Sky Princess this week for a very similar itinerary, so I can sympathize with how disappointing this must be for you. I've been on a Caribbean cruise where almost the entire itinerary changed due to a hurricane and the cruise was actually extended 1 or 2 days because all the ports in FL closed. There was nothing we could do to change anything, so hubby and I made the best of the situation. Even knowing it can and does happen, I will be very disappointed if a similar thing happens on this next cruise. We will still try to make the best of the situation, but it will be so much more disappointing!!! Norway/Iceland cruises are a lot more expensive.

Thank you for sharing your adventure with us. I leave next week on a very similar itinerary, so I've been closely following posts about your cruise. I saw where you posted that the internet was good, but I wasn't paying attention to where you were on the cruise. Was it good on the last 3 sea days between Iceland & Southampton? I need to make a Facetime/WhatsApp video call during those days to wish my son a Happy Birthday. I am curious if it will be feasible.

I was on my work computer, so I'll have to double check tomorrow, but I'm pretty sure it was in California.

I'm not familiar with this sale/TA, so I googled it. A youtube video came up that was posted a few days ago discussing this 3-day sale. I skimmed through it and noticed 23 mins+/- into the video they discuss Standard, Plus & Premier packages. The Plus & Premier Packages are showing up as an additional $65 or $90 pp/day! Aren't the current prices $60 or $80 pp/day? Is it a marketing shell game for this particular TA? A typo? Do you think Princess is getting ready for another price increase?

Thanks! I haven't read the terms of the policy. I read the bullet points on Princess' website, but I wasn't planning on reading the T&C unless I NEED to file a claim. 😉 We normally skip travel insurance, but given the price of Norway/Iceland itineraries and what we learned from the pandemic we purchased it for our upcoming cruise. We got it to cover the cruise fare...anything else is a bonus for us. I was mostly curious since I didn't expect the insurance to cover them. That said, after seeing what happened on your cruise, I am hesitant to book any more excursions in Iceland even if I find some available (most are already sold out).

Sorry to hear this! Do you mind sharing the name of the tour group? We are on a similar itinerary June 3rd and booked independent excursions. We are trying to find additional excursions at other ports, but after reading this maybe we shouldn't?!? Also, do you mind letting us know if insurance covers the excursions?

Yes, that was the plan. I thought I read in one of the other FCD posts that you could get a CC number by creating an account on Princess' website. Of course, as I'm typing this, I realize they might not allow minors to create an account and that might only work for adults. Just another reason why I presented this question now. I don't want to waste my vacation time learning these little details. 🙂

The rest of the story....we have plans to travel out west to see extended family. I was browsing a promotional email and noticed a deal on a 4-day cruise out of LA. It will fit nicely into our existing schedule. We wouldn't have to adjust flights. It falls in between the holidays, so the price is cheaper. We've already applied for the kids' passports. Everything is lining up, but I don't want to impulse buy a cruise! 😉 I planned on keeping an eye on it, but then I saw all the recent posts about FCDs and got to thinking. Our upcoming cruise leaves in 2 weeks, so I'll have to decide soon if I want to get FCDs. I wanted to make sure I had the facts straight about how they work, so I can make an informed decision. As for the other cruise lines, I agree they'd probably be better for the kids. I've priced them in the past. Disney is out based on prices. The others are still in the running, but I haven't found one that falls into our schedule as nicely as this Princess one. Although short, the Princess itinerary is one we like too.

My oldest will be 13. He is mature enough and I could trust him to stay in the room, but I wouldn't want to deal with the fallout from my younger kids. My almost 12-year-old is immature and I wouldn't let him stay in a room without a parent even if Princess allowed it. We would all be miserable listening to him complain about how unfair it is.

I hadn't thought about them selling out of the cabins that sleep 3-4 ppl. I'd have to pass on the cruise. My kids aren't old enough to stay in a cabin by themselves unless it is a connecting cabin.

It has been a while, but my husband and I have cruised several times. We've never taken the kids with us. We (no kids) leave in a couple of weeks for a Norway/Iceland cruise and I was debating whether to purchase FCDs to take our kids on a cruise later in the year. I want our first cruise with the kids to be short since I don't know whether any of them will get seasick or die of boredom. 😉 Your second question is what I was trying to get clarification on as well. Based on what @sirclean is saying, there is no advantage to getting a FCD for guest 5 unless you get 3 cabins.

Thank you! I don't disagree. 15% is a good return, especially on something you're going to buy anyway. If I knew I was going to book the cruise, I wouldn't hesitate to get the FCDs for four of us. (Sounds like there is no upside to getting it for the 5th person.) I guess why I'm hesitating is I'm not sure we will be able to book the cruise and I'm debating if it is worth tieing up $400 on a "maybe". We are still waiting on the kids' passports. Mine took longer than the posted time and I spent the last couple of months stressing over whether it would be here in time for my upcoming cruise. I don't want to do that again! I didn't realize I could hold a cabin using only one FCD as the deposit. I thought I'd have to have one for the first 2 passengers. I suppose since I'm waffling on a family cruise, I could always buy FCDs for my husband and me. It would have been nice to have some to use our upcoming 14-day Norway/Iceland cruise.

I've seen a lot of talk about FCDs and everyone seems to think they're a nice deal. That appears to be the case on longer cruises in a balcony or higher cabin. What about short itineraries with inside cabins and passengers 3-4? It doesn't look like passengers 3-4 can benefit from FCD. Is that right? We are contemplating taking a short cruise as a trial run for my family of 5. It looks like I'd be tieing up $400 on FCD for a cruise I might book to get $60 OBC in the future. It doesn't seem worth it for the 4-day cruises w/ interior or OV cabins unless I'm 100% sure I'm going to book it. I mean I wouldn't turn down $60 if it is on the table! 😉 Am I missing something?

This is good to know. We have Verizon and I have lots of international day passes saved in my account. I've also been looking into GigSky. It looks like they have relatively inexpensive data plans that are supposed to work at sea. I'm still researching to see how well it works and how quickly the data is used.

You're right. There could be issues with cell coverage in ports. My husband travels extensively to Europe...he is there now & has probably spent at least half of 2023 there. Both his work & personal phones have service there. One is Verizon and the other AT&T, so we have some options. And, if we don't have coverage at a port, we will survive. We are used to not having cell coverage everywhere. We don't have it at our house unless we connect to the wifi.

Thank you for sharing. I'm so sorry you & your wife have experience w/ the phone due to such an emergency! I will try to pick up some internet days toward the end of the cruise if they're available. My kids are too quick to send a request for more 'screen time'. I could use a break from that 🙂, so I'm okay not being in touch 24/7 as long as there is a way to reach me if needed. Plus, I'm leaving them in good hands with my parents and my sister, so I know they'll be well taken care of while I'm gone. I'm more worried about the true emergencies/urgent situations that could arise.

I plan on downloading & testing WhatsApp this weekend. I hope they have single-day internet passes! (I've seen mixed responses to that question on these boards.) One of the sea days at the end of the cruise is my son's birthday so I really want to be able to call home that day. Will you be posting live from your cruise? If so, can you let me know how the internet/cell coverage is working?

Thank you for sharing your experience. I feel better leaving a phone number knowing it should work.

Thanks. I'm trying to avoid purchasing the internet plan. It is a long cruise and the price adds up quickly. I won't be platinum until after this cruise, so I don't get half off the price. I find it hard to justify considering I'll have cell service in port. I've never used WhatsApp, but I've read a lot about it on these boards. I'll likely download it in case they offer per day or end-of-cruise internet packages for the last few days since they are sea days.

I can see how this should work for 15 year old teenagers, but would this work for those of us with younger kids (10,11 & 12) without connecting rooms?

Sorry if I'm telling you something you already know, but given your screen name I'll say double-check what they gave you. The premier drink package does NOT include tips & wifi. The naming convention is confusing. There is a premier drink package that just includes drinks. Then there is Princess Premier which includes the premier drink package, tips, wifi, specialty dining, photos, etc. In my experience, some of the folks you chat with on the phone know this and others do not. As I said previously, I really hope they gave you and your spouse the Princess Pemier Fare and not just the drink package. This bodes well for me and my future family cruises. I'm also curious to hear if they'll include family pictures since your kids don't have the premier package. I would definitely consider upgrading to the premier package for hubby and me if they would give us family photos with my kids!

Wasn't planning to use it as a way to keep in contact. It would be for emergencies, in which case $18/ minute will be the last thing on my mind. I'll have cell service in ports to keep in contact.