Coffee Care Expiration Date

I don't think anyone really knows how this will play out as none of the cards with printed dates have expired yet....and if you ask 5 people working on the ships, you'll get 5 different answers.

What really bothers me is that Princess is trying to have it both ways. If the card expires on 12/31/18, it should theoretically be good for everything it covers until that date. This would logically include the fresh brewed coffee and tea. And the punches should be good until that date. To print an expiration date, but then say that the fresh brew has a different expiration (the end of that cruise) is just crazy.

I am annoyed they don't allow it to be used for ice cream on the Royal/Regal anymore. If there is an expiration date on the one I receive in 2 weeks I will use it on my December cruise and whatever is left on it just hand off to some nice person waiting to board. Thank you very much.

By "they" I'm saying the Food & Beverage director on the Royal at this time.

 

Oh, here's another great cutback since we last cruised in Dec.

Last night at the Captains repeater party there is no more ordering of any drinks other than what is offered. (with the exception of a glass of beer. Even the wine that they brought on the trays was limited to only that type- no substitutions. :(

No snacks either, as if that was a big loss.

This has been the case on more than one of our cruises, several different ships the last few years......except if you are the most cruised...anything goes...

I think they should just give E/P drink cards like I heard they did on some of these of our cruises for Ruby status. Wonder if they still do that for all "return" pax on 3&4 days.....haven't been on one recently.....

I got off the Caribbean Princess last Saturday and got 4 coffee cards, 2 for elite 2 for full suite. They were not signed with a ship nor did they have an exp date. I only needed one and usually sell my extra on Ebay. Most people don't sail several times a year so having any exp date, even one for Dec 2018 is useless. I just don't get why any business would want to short change their customers with this new coffee card policy.

How did you receive the 4 coffee cards? Did they just give them to you because you were Elite and because you were in a Full suite?

How did you receive the 4 coffee cards? Did they just give them to you because you were Elite and because you were in a Full suite?

If you are Elite, you get a mini-bar set up. If you are in a full suite, you get a mini-bar set up. If you are both, you get 2 mini-bar set ups. Each set up can be exchanged for 2 coffee cards.

Huh????

Because the person says right in her statement, that she sells her unused coffee cards on E-Bay. This could be a reason why Princess is now putting an expiration date on their cards

Because the person says right in her statement, that she sells her unused coffee cards on E-Bay. This could be a reason why Princess is now putting an expiration date on their cards

And a year+ ago people were selling and agreeing to buy them on 2 of my roll calls.......thank goodness CC mods put an end to that.....or have they?????

If you are Elite' date=' you get a mini-bar set up. If you are in a full suite, you get a mini-bar set up. If you are both, you get 2 mini-bar set ups. Each set up can be exchanged for 2 coffee cards.[/quote']

 

And if you have the Drink Package too...... what are you to do......

 

We like I am sure many others do

.......have entertained in our cabin and let others take the drinks, we have passed them out in the hallway, have taken beers and waters to the dining room and given them to our table mates...we have exchange for coffee cards and given them to people on our roll call, who are often first time cruisers....have left a note in our room stating we want the left over to go to our attendant......have exchanged for a bottle of wine and left that for the attendant.....etc...etc.....

Selling a perk given to me on e-bay for some reason just doesn't come to mind.....

How did you receive the 4 coffee cards? Did they just give them to you because you were Elite and because you were in a Full suite?

Because the person says right in her statement, that she sells her unused coffee cards on E-Bay. This could be a reason why Princess is now putting an expiration date on their cards

You think Princess changes a policy because a few people sell their coffee cards on ebay? Think of all those blue tote bags people are carrying in port with Princess' name and logo, it's to their advantage. Have you looked at how much cruise paraphernalia is on not just ebay but other auction sites? If that were case ALL perks and give a ways would have to discontinued.

The opposite is actually true. The reason many companies have their name and logo on things, think matches, ashtrays, t-shirts, slippers, shoe horns , pens , postcards, etc ..... is for cheap free advertising. All companies want name recognition. When I take my car in for service I instruct them NOT to change my license plate frames with theirs.

I see a coffee card as something I use on that cruise, just like the drink package and soda package. I don't drink alot, maybe 5 alcohol drinks a day, but I have never asked to use the extra number of the drinks on my next cruise.

I know many people get coffee for others with the coffee card - regular coffee and some from the punches which is perfectly ok. Anyone that sits down by the International Cafè can see people return 5 or 10 minutes after a visit and order another coffee. No one can drink it that fast. The staff knows what is going on but they can't do anything at the moment and they hope to get tips. But they discuss it in meetings all the time.

Just like everything, people abuse the system, then things change and people get mad. I have heard people say they have gotten free coffee on 10 cruises with one card. That is not what it was designed for.

Maybe Princess needs to change the card and state it is only good on that voyage.

If it was your business, you would be looking to see how you could stop some of the cheating. Same as the drink package - so many people complaining that they can't get unlimited drinks everyday. Too many people figured out ways to cheat on it.

I see a coffee card as something I use on that cruise, just like the drink package and soda package. I don't drink alot, maybe 5 alcohol drinks a day, but I have never asked to use the extra number of the drinks on my next cruise.

I know many people get coffee for others with the coffee card - regular coffee and some from the punches which is perfectly ok. Anyone that sits down by the International Cafè can see people return 5 or 10 minutes after a visit and order another coffee. No one can drink it that fast. The staff knows what is going on but they can't do anything at the moment and they hope to get tips. But they discuss it in meetings all the time.

Just like everything, people abuse the system, then things change and people get mad. I have heard people say they have gotten free coffee on 10 cruises with one card. That is not what it was designed for.

Maybe Princess needs to change the card and state it is only good on that voyage.

 

If it was your business, you would be looking to see how you could stop some of the cheating. Same as the drink package - so many people complaining that they can't get unlimited drinks everyday. Too many people figured out ways to cheat on it.

You don't seem to have any idea how the card works. There are a set number of punches; when you're out, you're done. It is not possible to cheat when they punch the card every time you order a specialty coffee. Instead of penalizing those of us who are using the card as it was intended, to purchase specialty coffees, maybe they should get rid of the free brewed coffee.

You don't seem to have any idea how the card works. There are a set number of punches; when you're out, you're done. It is not possible to cheat when they punch the card every time you order a specialty coffee. Instead of penalizing those of us who are using the card as it was intended, to purchase specialty coffees, maybe they should get rid of the free brewed coffee.

For many, this would lower the value of the card. There are people who buy the card specifically for the fresh brew. There is no evidence that Princess intended the card only for the specialty coffees; if that were the case, they never would have included the fresh brews. On the other hand, they did get rid of the ability to use it for gelato (I was greatly disappointed on my first Princess cruise when I learned that they didn't serve gelato.....perhaps they need a "gelato card" on applicable ships. )

For many' date=' this would lower the value of the card. There are people who buy the card specifically for the fresh brew. There is no evidence that Princess intended the card only for the specialty coffees; if that were the case, they never would have included the fresh brews. On the other hand, they did get rid of the ability to use it for gelato (I was greatly disappointed on my first Princess cruise when I learned that they didn't serve gelato.....perhaps they need a "gelato card" on applicable ships. )[/quote']

The all inclusive fresh brewed coffee doesn't really make a lot of sense on the Royal & Regal since the Horizon serves it all the time anyhow. (which is just as good as the IC)

I agree that maybe it is time to have a punch card just for specialty coffees but that was not the intent of the current card. It really depends on the length of your cruise. Many people would not use all the punches up on a 7 day cruise but they definitely would on a 28 day cruise. The 28 day people are getting a much better deal. It might be cheaper on 7 day cruises just to buy the coffee especially if you don't drink one every day. If you purchase it mainly for specialty coffees for you and your spouse, then it can still be a good idea on a 7 day cruise if you have several a day.

When it was introduced and even now, I thought the advertisements state "the card could be used throughout your voyage". That is your cruise, not two and three years later. I suppose people complained that they did not use all the punches, and Princess was nice and allowed it to be used on later cruises.

I bought a card last summer for the brewed coffee. I knew I was not going to use more than four punches and thought about giving it away on our next cruise but decided to use the extra punches to buy specialty coffee for the customer service crew. I have the drink package on my next five cruises.

The all inclusive fresh brewed coffee doesn't really make a lot of sense on the Royal & Regal since the Horizon serves it all the time anyhow. (which is just as good as the IC)

Often the wife and I will get something from international cafe and want brewed coffee so that feature works for us

Hope they go back to the old system.

Hope they go back to the old system.

Don't hold your breath.

We are sailing in two weeks, have a suite. Was going to switch out the mini bar for two cc, but not now. We don't cruise multiple times a year, or even every year, so in my way of thinking, this policy only benefits those that cruise a lot, and lives close to ports. I understand not allowing the unlimited coffee, but they should honour the punches. Or as other have said, maybe I will get the cards and give one away.

This is exactly how they should handle this. I'm OK with buying a card that has 15 punches and has free brewed coffee on the cruise you are on. But punches should work on all future cruises till used up. You paid for that.

This is exactly how they should handle this. I'm OK with buying a card that has 15 punches and has free brewed coffee on the cruise you are on. But punches should work on all future cruises till used up. You paid for that.

I really think they don't care one way or the other.

It'll be years before some cruisers find out they've been screwed.

I really think they don't care one way or the other.

It'll be years before some cruisers find out they've been screwed.

Regular cruisers should not be affected but those that cruise once a year will have a very unpleasant surprise if they do not read the fine print.

Regular cruisers should not be affected but those that cruise once a year will have a very unpleasant surprise if they do not read the fine print.

Regular cruisers that cruise multiple time in a year know the system & how it works.

It's the people who only take a cruise every year or so that will feel it.

I've only over heard a few sales pitches on our current cruise & I don't believe I heard them mention anything about the expiration date.

I'll let one of the crew give me a sales pitch later today to see what they now say. I will be shocked if they do tell me about the card expiring in Dec.

Regular cruisers that cruise multiple time in a year know the system & how it works.

It's the people who only take a cruise every year or so that will feel it.

I've only over heard a few sales pitches on our current cruise & I don't believe I heard them mention anything about the expiration date.

I'll let one of the crew give me a sales pitch later today to see what they now say. I will be shocked if they do tell me about the card expiring in Dec.

Very dishonest if they skip over that rather important change

Very dishonest if they skip over that rather important change

It appears that they just don't care about the people who will be furious about it when they find out.

I'm sure they'll be some people that just shrug off the lost of a few dollars & don't say a word.

We got a brand new card on Ebay last December and took it on our cruise in January. One of the servers at the International Café wrote CROWN on the back and did not put a voyage date, but the voyage number (3803). We used a different card mostly so this one only has 3 punches used. I am assuming we can use this on our next cruise in Feb. 2019?? We like to use it for the non punch coffee so we get a decent cup. I have an idea: WHY NOT JUST SERVE NON SYRUP COFFEE in the MDR And Buffet? The coffee in those places is undrinkable. So i guess this is definitely a marketing ploy. If you want decent coffee you must buy the card even if you don't use ANY punches for the sugary coffee drinks and specialties. Something is wrong here for the passengers. I am trying to figure it out. With this new system they should at least let you use the punches for Gelato like they did last year on the Regal.

I am trying to figure it out. With this new system they should at least let you use the punches for Gelato like they did last year on the Regal.

Surely you jest.

Last week the gelato activity from what I saw were nowhere near what it was in Dec.

I suspect it had a lot to do with no more gelato with using the cards.

The idea is to make more money & not give away anything of value for free. Even at the games they don't give a bottle of champagne any more. It's either a wine stopper or plastic coaster. :D:D

It won't be long before the first place winners receive a Princess pen.