JimmyVWine

Isn’t there just one way to get from Vancouver to LA? Why would a larger ship sail on the west side of the island? Wouldn’t all ships leave Vancouver heading south to Victoria, then point west toward open water, and then sail due south to LA? That would put the starboard side away from the mainland and not facing it. Or am I missing something about the navigation to LA?

Thanks for your perspective. Lots of excellent thoughts and suggestions in your post. I agree that in some ways (likely the most important ones) Princess didn’t let the OP (or more importantly, the aunt) down. The story began at 4:00 a.m. and by 6:30 the aunt had been examined, taken off the ship and was headed to the hospital. Big picture, that is the most important part of the story and Princess did right here. And under current restrictions in Italy, there was no way that the OP was going to get to go to the hospital. Perhaps a more direct, less misleading conversation should have been had. But the stark reality is that no visitors were going to get in. Not Princess’ fault. But the portions of the story involving the lost luggage and the crude way the billing issue was addressed certainly count as letdowns. These made an extremely stressful situation even more stressful. Princess can do better in that regard. But big picture, taking into account the dire medical emergency, Princess appears to have handled that aspect well and that should not be overlooked. But neither should the human elements that need refinement.

I always choose the sunset if I can. So that would be starboard.

And you weren’t there, so you can “tell” exactly nothing. There is nothing about the OP’s story that suggests that the aunt could have met with the billing department to settle up, head to the MDR to tip out her favorite servers or go down to the IC for one last Latte. She was in severe medical distress. Imagine if you came upon someone who was all alone and who you found passed out in the hallway. If you acted as a Good Samaritan and brought them to the medical office, you wouldn’t expect to be billed for your good deed. Same here. The OP is related, but not legally or financially responsible for the aunt.

No it’s not. It is all the way forward. I am not sure if they actually restrict access while the ship is in motion but if you go out there then you would be facing a 20+ mph wind. Just like at the bow of a Grand Class ship that has a wraparound Promenade. Windy and loud.

I hear you. But you didn't pay $3,000 for the internet. You paid $5-$10 per day for it. So that's $35-$70 for a week, and if it worked half the time, you were cheated out of $17-$35. That is at most 1% of the money you paid. If I rented a product for a week and 1% of it failed half the time, I wouldn't let it raise my blood pressure. But most importantly, I have yet to read reviews of any cruise line where people are trumpeting the magnificence of the internet on board. A recent podcast by a group that was on the Disney Dream revealed that to a person, they all found the internet to be absolutely unusable and the onboard app to be a complete waste. Two wrongs don't make a right, but in this instance, cruising in general should be pilloried, not just Princess. As I stated earlier, great internet at sea is aspirational. The industry isn't there yet. Anyone who desires or needs top-notch connectivity while on vacation best look for land-based alternatives, at least for now.

It is like this on every ship. Two tables for two that are next to one another are really a table for four separated by about 10 inches. And three such tables in a row can be really troublesome if you are seated at the one in middle. The person seated closest to the wall cannot get up to use the restroom without the fear of knocking into the neighboring table. Whoever is more likely to have to excuse themselves for a minute during dinner should grab the "easy exit" seat. This is a common site on every ship:

Did you ask them what they were pouring and if so, were they able to answer the question?

I agree with the first part. The second is debatable, but you are probably right that they have created rules that are easily circumvented. In practice, it would take too much time to enforce and the servers/bartenders have no skin in the game as far as enforcement is concerned and don't need the aggravation of confrontation. The Terms and Conditions clearly state that: "Packages may NOT be shared and are NON-transferable..." So delivering two drinks to a person where one is going to be consumed by a person with a Package and the second will be consumed by someone who does not (a third guest who didn't buy a Package, or a friend who is visiting your cabin who does not have a Package) is certainly within the contemplation of enforcement, and the medallion system is supposed to be set up to verify who is who. But nothing is perfect. In the end, the 15 drink per person per 24 hour period is such that they probably don't care if there are irregularities.

But each person has their own 15 drink per day maximum. So if that is an issue, you would want to draw down each persons' separately. Also, if you travel with three adults in the cabin, the third does not necessarily have the package. Or the person whom you claim is going to get the second drink could be a friend you met on board who doesn't have a package. So you shouldn't be ordering two drinks, one for yourself, and one for the person who doesn't have the package. I don't know if they follow the protocol to the letter, but they are supposed to identify the other person who will be receiving the second drink by sight, match their profile photo with the person they are physically seeing, and confirm that the drink shouldn't be charged. Again, this is how the system was built out, but I don't really know if the bartenders so that.

Two different things. Yes, they want to know where you WERE. They aren’t tracking where you ARE. They can’t follow 3,500 people at the same time in real time. And they were already doing this and will still do it even if you use a card instead of a medallion. It just makes it more difficult. If you buy a drink at a bar and tap your card to pay, they have a record of which bar you went to, what time you were there and how much you spent. If you buy cologne at the Princess Shop tapping with your card, they know where you were, when you were there and how much you spent. Unless you use cash on board (which is impossible) you are leaving a digital trail at every venue where you spend money. The only difference with the medallion is that they might be able to see which venues you visited where you didn’t spend money. It is mystifying why one would not care if Princess knew they went to the Outrigger Bar and bought a drink but would care if Princess knew that they went to the magic show and didn’t buy a drink. Why does the latter bother you but the former does not?

Princess isn’t really interested in where YOU are on the ship as much as they are interested in where passengers GENERALLY are on the ship. No one is sitting in a security booth watching your every move. They are collecting data in the aggregate. By the end of the cruise they might run a diagnostic to see which venues you visited and for how long. But no one on the ship is staking you out like you are a mob boss whose communications are being tapped. You can tell the bartender that the second drink is for your traveling companion and they can look up their account and charge them. Sometimes they might want visual evidence that the other person is in the area and a point and a wave will suffice. Other times they don’t care.

What else besides the AC is so troublesome that you would expect compensation? Don’t get me wrong. Malfunctioning AC that caused the cabin to be too hot is a big deal and justifies both complaining and remediation. But I haven’t really seen anything else in this thread that is a deal breaker. Bad internet and a wonky app are disappointments. But unless one started cruising within the last 5 years, we all managed to cruise without issue or complaint without either from 1910-2015. Having flawless internet is aspirational but I still consider it to be a nice “plus” but is not the breaking point for a good/bad cruise the way AC, plumbing, food and service are. Besides bad AC, any other operational issues?

Exactly. Before Premier was introduced one could order Rombauer Chardonnay, Dead Arm Shiraz and Silverado Cab all for $12 and under. I’m a wine snob and I would drink those all day long. Who am I kidding? I HAVE drunk those all day long. Now? Doesn’t look like any of those appear in the Plus program. For the record, I still voted for Plus, but plan to use up OBC (and buying extra) paying for upgraded wine. I can’t see my overage charges equating to the price of upgrading to Premier, especially on a port intensive itinerary.

I have stayed at the Virgin hotel in Chicago a dozen times and the shower setup is similar (only much, much bigger. Huuuge.). The housekeeping staff seems well trained to twist the wand so that it faces a wall!

Did you do this today? If so, you are inside the final payment window which seems to be a game changer even if you have elevated status and could book outside of that window.

And will they remember to wear gloves so as not to leave fingerprints on the stolen medallion.

My promotional credit showed up on the app immediately after the final payment window closed (90 days). Prior to that I was only able to make a SD reservation by paying. So I canceled the one I paid for and that payment credit will be returned to my credit card, and then I replicated the same reservation immediately thereafter. The process still goes through all the steps as if you are paying but the notification at the top of the DMW page of the app says that the credit will automatically be applied at checkout. There was no confirmation that said that my credit had successfully been applied. But when I closed the app and reopened it and went to the DMW page, the banner at the top that previously said I had a credit was gone. So I assume it worked. I will know better after I check my cc statement in a few days to confirm that the prior charge had been reversed and no new change has been applied.

This…becomes this…

This thread shows just how difficult it is for a company to build a desirable loyalty program. Everyone values different things. (That is an observation, not a complaint.) Some like OBC. Others are lured by soda machines. Some by veterans’ benefits. Or minibar setups. Fluffy towels. Canapés. Cocktail receptions. Ultimately the brain trust sits around a conference room table (or Zoom call) pontificating about what the company can provide that gives the appearance of caring but that doesn’t actually cost anything. Loyalty perks are often the Cracker Jack prize of the adult world.

You say that like it’s a bad thing! 😁

Personally, I think that Virgin's cabin set-up as "living room by day, bedroom by night" is genius and the way forward for all cruise lines eventually. Not saying that their current execution is perfect. But the idea of having a convertible cabin with a seating area during the day instead of a queen-sized bed taking up all the space is brilliant. In the afternoon I'd much rather have a living room than a bedroom. Especially if you want to congregate with others.

People who want to find clouds invariably can.

I have only tried to bring wine bottles on board and have never had them confiscated. (One at a time per port...never a big purchase.) And this has been the case even in circumstances where liquor bottles were being tagged and held. "Rum? Place it over there!" "Wine? Enjoy your bottle." But as noted, this is a very, very uneven policy and you could end up getting your beer on board with you or have it held. Be prepared for any result.

Have not tried. My assumption is that whatever wine they would agree to provide would find the drain.