Steelers36

Circling back, another poster mused whether you actually had FCC's that were used for a deposit and not FCD's. I am aware you typed FCD, did you really mean the ones that we buy for $100 each on board, or did you have some FCC on account from some past situation like a Covid cancellation? I do think you are talking about actual FCD's since the amount mentioned is $200 (2 x $100), but it removes any speculation on here if you confirm.

I am thinking not if you have booked the lead-in "F" category on a voyage that has this new scheme. Those cabins seem to now be designated as "E" cabins, so you won't ever see an available cabin on the deck plan in your booked category. Only after cabin assignment could you change to something else available.

FCC's do have expiry dates - or at least can have real expiry dates - and if not used by the expiry date, they are forfeited. A lot of guests had issues with this during Covid, but Princess did extend dates across the board at times as Covid lingered on. FCD is a special type of FCC and has been treated differently for certain.

I just tried by playing around a bit with the website of the agency that has a lot of little boxes and used to have the main summertime sale. I did find that if selecting the lowest category ("lead-in") - the "F" - that it only allowed a GTY booking. However, I didn't see anywhere where they disclosed a non-refundable deposit, so I am thinking their programming isn't aware or updated. Also, I can tell they are displaying all available fare codes, but they do not reveal what the actual 3-character fare code is while in the booking process. They do not ask for your Past Passenger Number (Captain's Circle ID for Princess guests), so that is a dead giveaway that their online booking engine is not going to be finding any other special fare offers that might apply to you. You would need to be asking one of their agents. Next, I took a look at the retail big box so many people on here write about. Ugh - didn't think much of their online booking. Seems very directed and doesn't at all reveal multiple fare types it appears. It also seems they are hiding the non-refundable option. Also, no reveal of Fare Codes. I didn't want to spend more time as I am not interested to dig into it. IDK where else you might have looked, but those two that are often mentioned here are not much use at all. I also looked at the website of one of the most popular and referenced independent TA's that many posters on here profess to use. Again, I saw no mention of the deposit being non-refundable when electing the "F" category. Also, I was not presented with all Fare Code options - including not seeing Plus and Premier. So, a fairly basic presentation, much like I saw at the big box store. I do note that with this new scheme in place, when I select and "E" category in able to select a cabin, I am shown what used to be the "F" cabins as far as I am concerned. IDK how to tell you where to look for the booking engine I like that has everything without naming a travel agency.

I seriously doubt a booking made with a refundable deposit can be all of a sudden changed to non-refundable. Not heard of this before and I really doubt that. Now, if a guest changed that res with a cancel/re-book, then subject to any new terms. But a FCD is always refundable. As for the change, when I dug into new Fare Code for Non-Refundable, it was listed as Dec 14/22 up to the sail date of the particular voyage. That doesn't mean Princess implemented that Non-Ref Fare Code that long ago. IDK if anyone knows and exact date and it could be they roll this out to various voyages over time. It is not something that is in place on ALL voyages - I have seen both the new and the old situation when shopping cruises.

Yes, they would because when a res is cancelled that was booked with FCD deposits, the funds go back as FCD if the FCD is still active or go back to original form of payment if the FCD is expired. The refund is scheduled for processing that night. I mention this as I was able once to get that killed and restore the FCD within a short time period same-day the booking was cancelled. I was doing a cancel/re-book with my TA as a re-fare wasn't possible in the situation for whatever reason. I forgot about that particular FCD expiry date and didn't mention anything. Of course, the Princess rep never says a thing and the TA didn't think about it independently, so there I was. Ooopsie!! But I managed to get it fixed (it isn't something automatic, so it may not work or be possible all the time - depends who you end up talking to). So, now I never forget to check the FCD expiry date before doing a cancel/re-book. If a guest is just cancelling, you are not going to be able to preserve the FCD. It gets cancelled and refunded. As I have mentioned before, the guest needs to get Princess rep to extend the FCD Expiry Date (TA can get this request done while doing the cancel/re-book as long as they know the situation). Then, do the cancellation and the FCD is available again for the new booking. Guests should be aware of their FCD status which is documented in our Captain's Circle profile.

So this is not a photo taken of you by anyone in your travel party at the airport? I suppose no cameras are allowed operating in the TSA area. More Princess IT incompetence it would appear. This presumes you have not touched the Princess App to update/replace your security photo.

My "Like" on your post is not because I like the situation - rather I like what you have postulated. The situation can be much like the impossibility of DMW being able to book a "Sharing" table consisting of the same guests. (That one would require recursive programming at the least to have even a chance of working). The situation you outline is probably very close to a bullseye, it not right on. I am not even sure if they could code their Princess App system to work as guests might need it to in the variety of situations involving all types of dining credits. Certainly we can presume they didn't consider it. Whether their IT is capable of doing it well or not is another question. I imagine if they attempted it, it would take a year to sort out the bugs and during that time, they would end up losing some of the fixes to-date while updating some other App features (this has happened more than once in the past 22 months).

Do you mean in general (surely a lot of businesses have your banking for auto-debit of bill payments or credit card info for billing purposes)? Or, do you mean you wouldn't trust Princess' amazing (cough, cough) IT team with your information? They do have guest credit card info already with bookings and in CC Member profile data.

Princess does a terrible job of transparency and disclosure to guests. And they do a terrible job of keeping online documentation and FAQ's current and consistent in all locations for a topic. On another post, someone (I forget who or would credit them) stated that Princess (appears to) expend most of their energy on selling cruises. Well, I suppose that is very important. But making it an enjoyable and easy experience off the ship is important to keep guests interested in Princess and coming back.

Oh it has to be Refundable OBC, or guest is ripped off.

Perhaps not, but they suck bigtime.

Login to your Cruise Personalizer and use the URL link provided under where they suggest you download the Princess App from the Play Store. Once you have the URL, you can Bookmark it for future use.

I keep thinking this is a similar IT bug issue like the one where the system wasn't giving the MedallionNet 50% off. Now it isn't recognizing (or even aware??) that guest is on a Plus or Premier package.

Yes, I know about the inclusion in cruise fare packages. They are also available for a price if not on a package. Which prices did you mean - the lower or the higher?

No (see my CC avatar and I am from Ontario, Canada). Perhaps I am wrong, but thought I saw a photo of those ice cream sundaes with the prices I mentioned. I recall thinking if I was on the ship we might share one, but $12 is a lot for some dressed up ice cream or gelato. At $18, no way - I don't see the value over just ordering a dish or cone of gelato.

If you are meaning the Princess App, when using DMW (DineMyWay), it will warn you that making a new res cancels the existing one, but just checking for other availability does not cancel your existing. Nothing will be cancelled/replaced until you confirm something new.

Did you get the above menu from an Australian member, or? I am sure I saw one of these posted - or a partial menu - and the prices were $12 and $14.

And that was a dumb and unfair way (for both PCL and guest) to do it. Having the same number of coffees for a 5-night voyage versus an 18-night voyage doesn't make sense.

It looks like you finally realized per the post below that you had no need to cancel and re-book the cruise in order to change the flight option. It sounds like you were either totally misguided by Princess rep, or they didn't understand exactly what it was you wanted to do. This is along the lines of what you were advised. Login to Cruise Personalizer. Go to the Flights section and you can shop for new flights - including a different fare class. You will see availability and costs. On the final page, you either accept the changes or keep what you have. At such a late date, it is not surprising at all to find the airfare costing a lot more. You probably could have booked the higher class way back when for same price economy is now.

In another thread, this topic came up. Parents with kids can book as you said - but book Standard Fare. No one can make you book with Plus or Premier. Once you are on-board and swap the kids into their own cabin, the parents can order Plus package on board for their cabin (do it on first day). Kids can have nothing and you just pay as they go. If you think kids are going to consume a lot, just buy the Plus plan and they will get the Zero Alcohol package in lieu of the alcohol Plus beverage package. It is not economical to buy the drink package standalone for them.

Still nuts as the FCD is a cash deposit - a refundable deposit. At the very least - the very least - you were owed the deposit as cash back to you.

That is one of the most horrible things I have read about Princess lately. I'd be writing not only Customer Relations, but the President - PLUS Jan Swartz herself. That is just unconscionable. That is YOUR money and FCD's are always refunded if they expire. As for refusing to extend the date so you can immediately re-book, this is done all the time and you were smart to realize and ask first. But whoever at Princess told you the money is lost is obviously so so wrong it hurts me as a fellow customer and shareholder.

I would speak to the DR Manager the first night and see if you cannot be setup with same table each night and you just walk in. Most certainly some of the 5pm diners should be heading out after 90 minutes. You won't have a delay if you can get the "same table/same waiter" experience. Just ask and explain the timing issue for eating. There is no sharing of 2-tops. If you want to share a table, that would mean canceling your reservation and replacing with a sharing table. You can do that at the door on a whim I suppose and no doubt another couple will be happy to have your 2-top. That said, the sharing table needs to get filled before waiters start up with full service and taking orders and the larger the table, the slower the service.

I am not sure what you are trying to state. You do not need US Wifi to use internet in Ontario (not sure what you mean here). Second sentence: do you mean the Princess App (formerly Medallion Class App)? You should not have a physical Medallion yet as they don't ship to Canada. The physical Medallion is your Cruise Card to open cabin, identify yourself to ship personnel. GL with same-day travel - I hope it isn't during winter weather.