Soda Stickers***Please?

[jcruise67]

I read a recent thread that you can't get soda on board before 11:00 AM, even with the soda stickers. Does anyone who sailed princess know at what time soda becomes available? It would be a shame if I couldn't get a soda before 11:00 Am while I'm at the pool or at breakfast.

 

BTW...We are on the Golden in April

 

John

[Coral]

I have never heard of that. As recent as December, I personally have had a Sprite for breakfast in the dining room with my soda sticker.

[Colo Cruiser]

Never heard that either.

[jcruise67]

Well...thats a good sign then. No need to worry. Thanks.

 

John

[libbydic]

I was just on Caribbean Princess 2 weeks ago and that is not the case you can get soda or even an alcoholic beverage first thing in the morning if you want.

[KzooCruiser]

My wife and I were on the Grand out of Galveston Feb. 5 -12th. This was our second cruise, first was on Golden three years ago. We again purchased the soda sticker even tho the price had gone from $17pp to $25pp. On the first cruise we found the sticker to be a good buy and very convenient from a service standpoint. It was not the case on this last cruise. We tended to find our best sun and out of the wind spots on the aft part of the sun deck. For two days we had almost no deck servers on that area of the ship. The one time we did have one walk by he asked if we wanted cocktails and I received a very disgusted look when I said I just wanted our cokes refilled. The second day after about two hours of not seeing any deck servers at all I asked the bartender about it and he said he would make a call to "get someone back here". Admittedly there were not a lot of passengers in this area at that time - maybe about 40 and I don't how many were on the deck below by the back pool.

 

About 30 mins. later I noticed a guy that appeared to be a superviser talking to the bartender. I asked to talk to him and he explained that it was his call on where to assign deck staff and he didn't feel there were enough people in the area to warrant sending someone aft to serve them. He said we were all close to the bar and it would not be an inconvenience to make our own orders. I told him that we had paid $50 not only for the sodas but for the service. He just kept repeating that it was his call on where to assign the staff and there were a lot more people toward the front.

 

Please don't take this as a big thing that ruined our cruise. We had a great cruise, our cabin steward, Romeo, was super, the food was great and the only other problem was the snafu of tendering in at Grand Cayman that has been covered in other posts. My wife and I almost never complain about anything. However, Princess had no problem taking my $50 for the soda stickers but when it came to providing the service they came up short. I would not purchase the stickers again.

 

I cannot speak about the other days as the first day was too cold to sit in the sun and we had four days in port that limited our sun time. Just passing on the experience we had.

[Coral]

The price for the soda sticker on RCCL is around $42!

 

For me, I just go up to the bar and get my own drink. It is not a big deal.

[jcruise67]

Thanks Kzoo,

 

You handled that better than I or DW would have. I would expect that attitude from Carnival or maybe even RCCL, but not Princess. I feel sorry for the crew member or staff that skates on the service, especially if my wife has anything to say about it. I would have went bolistic after hearing that. Its not a question of money at that point, its principle. I couldn't phathom what I would do if a staff member or wait staff exibited that kind of response to my DW and I. I had an experience worth noting on RCCL Majesty of the Sea several years ago. I was in the casino, playing roulette for the third day in a row. I was very lucky my first two days out, winning nearly $1,300.00. On the third day I was at the roulette table and a girl from Holland was the dealer. The table was empty and people that saw me the previous two days began to gather around the table and watch me play. I began to bet somewhat heavy ($!00.00 per spin) and began to lose. I noticed that everytime I placed a bet, the dealer from Holland and the Pit Boss would begin whispering in each other's ear and then laugh. She would spin the wheel and I would lose. This occurred like three times before I respectfully asked her to stop doing it. She continued to whisper and laugh with the Pit Boss as I was betting, and I became very angry. The other pax that knew me couldn't believe she disregarded my request to stop the carrying on. I finally asked her to kindly show me her name tag so I could identify her. She suddenly took off her name tag and threw it at me, stating, you want my name, here, as the tag landed in my lap. Fellow pax couldn't believe what had just occurred. I then turned to her after regaining my composure and said real calmly..."I'll make sure you never work on a cruise line again". With that I lodged a formal written complaint with the head purser (Hotel & Casino manager). I had every intention of also lodging a formal complaint with coorporate headquarters when we reached our next port in the morning. By the next morning there was a letter under my stateroom door. It was a written apology from the cruise casino manager, also informing me to meet with him that evening in the casino. When I met with him I explained what transpired and he was very receptive. RCCL had fired the girl and she was left at the port to fly back home. I received complimenatry drink credits for the remainder of our cruise for the embarassment and humiliation in the casino. I didn't gamble again the rest of the cruise, but I sure left with their money. I was content with the result and the cruise line's handling of the situation. I received all my formal photos for free as well, and two hundred dollars was deducted from my shipboard account. I've been back on RCCL since then. I don't let isolated incidents on cruises deter me from sailing them again. I've always had a great cruise experience on every line I've sailed. One negative incident or moment does not define a cruise line.

 

John

[derf5585]

What is the approved method of removing the sticker from the "Sail and Sign" so I can use it on my nest cruise?

[cbutton]

Jcruise,

 

I guess you must feel proud of yourself for getting that casino girl fired. I don't see how a little laughing or whispering should be grounds for terminaton. I do believe that she was quite rude for ignoring your requests to refrain from whispering/laughing. Just my thoughts.

[jcruise67]

I guess she should have thought twice about humiliating me when she threw her name tag across the table into my lap. No...I'm not proud of it. It was not my choice to terminate her, it was the cruise lines. All I asked for was a written apology from the girl for the embarassment, and her behavior at the table. Let me tell you something cbutton, no staff member in any casino wants to see you win, especially on a cruise ship. I was respectful and polite as can be. Anyone at the table could see that. Oh...whispering and laughing with the Pit Boss was completely uncalled for. I guess you had to be there. Many of the other pax around the table agreed with me. Your entitled to your opinion, and I have no problem with that, but don't make an inuendo that I was proud to get her fired. This certainly wasn't the case.

 

John

[derf5585]

no staff member in any casino wants to see you win,

 

I would think that if someone is winning one would give better tips.

 

INHO

In My HAUTY Opinion

[jcruise67]

Derf,

 

Your absolutely right. The first two nights I won at the casino I tipped the dealers $100 a piece.

 

John

[Nitemare]

What is the approved method of removing the sticker from the "Sail and Sign" so I can use it on my nest cruise?

I pulled one off my last cruise card with my teeth, derf. Where should I send it to you?

[jcruise67]

I pulled one off my last cruise card with my teeth, derf. Where should I send it to you?

 

Doesn't the cruise line change the color or code from one cruise to the next. It wouldn't make sense to maintain the same exact format for the soda stickers if they can be removed and given to a pax on the next cruise. If this is the case, someone send me a soda sticker. (LOL) I'll be mnore than happy to give someone my address if the soda stickers are identical from cruise to cruise.

 

JOhn

[bjboothman]

Yes, the color and shape of the sticker varies. I'm sure derf was joking.

[Paracroz]

...no staff member in any casino wants to see you win, especially on a cruise ship...

 

John

Forgive my naivete here - I'm not much of a gambler and have never been on a cruise before (first one coming up). I could half-way understand the cruise line, itself, not really wanting to see someone win (win big, anyway) but why would it matter to any of the staff? Do they get a bonus based on how much there table "wins", or something?

 

I agree, though, the "whispering and laughing" would have, at the very least, prompted me to leave and then avoid the casino (ending the "house's" earnings) - the girl was most likely dismissed for her rudeness to you, and rightly so...

[ahracer]

I read a recent thread that you can't get soda on board before 11:00 AM, even with the soda stickers. Does anyone who sailed princess know at what time soda becomes available? It would be a shame if I couldn't get a soda before 11:00 Am while I'm at the pool or at breakfast.

 

BTW...We are on the Golden in April

 

John

 

 

That is not true at all. I am a diet coke addict and I couldn't make it to 11:00 if I had to. I know in the morning the lobby bars and Calypso bar are open early.

 

Scott

[jfond]

The only issue that I had with my soda sticker was on the last morning of the cruise when we were about to disembark. In the morning I wanted to get a diet coke. I went to the open bar and showed them my card and they said that they could no longer honor it. I know that I could not charge anything to it any more but the sticker should be honored until you walk off the boat. There is no cost involved. They were willing to sell me a soda for cash. I argued with them and eventually got them to honor the card. This was the only issue I had with the soda card.

 

To answer the question - they are honored 24 hours a day - you just have to find a bar that is opened or somewhere where fountain drinks are sold.

[rosej]

This was a couple years back, so I don't know if it applies now. We were up early in Horizon Court and DH wanted a soda with his meal. He asked the waiter and was told all the bars were closed, except for the one down on Plaza. The waiter ran all the way down there to get his soda. Needless to say we were more than pleased. I took his name and filled out one of those "you made our cruise special" cards for him at the end of the cruise. Unfortunately, I don't remember the time most of the bars around the ship opened.

[ahracer]

I've never had a problem getting a soda on the last day.

 

Scott

[derf5585]

What is the approved method of removing a soda sticker so I can use it on my next cruise?

[ahracer]

Take $25 and put it on top of your cruise card. Then boil a pot of water. Once boiling carefully hold the card and cash over the water for 5 minutes to steam it. Then quickly remove the cash and card and put it in a sealed envelope. When you get to the ship open the envelope and remove the cash, then proceed to the nearest bar. Give them the cash and they will give you a new soda sticker. ;)

 

Scott

[kpcruise]

To answer the casino question, The casino's are actually owned and operated by a seperate company than the cruise line. I am sure that the company pays for it's "leasing" of the ship's space, and is supervised by both the casino company and the cruise line. But the winning or losing goes into the pockets of the casino company.

 

The dealers are paid a wage, and earn tips from the gamblers. So you are correct, if a player is winning, hopefully he/she is tipping as well. If the dealer or casino employee isn't being nice, friendly, helpful, they probably won't get many tips. One would hope that when someone is winning, they are tipping as well, like the gentleman in this thread. Unfortunately, many gamblers on cruise ships are inexperienced and don't tip the dealers appropriately. This leads to less than professional service from casino employees. Still not acceptable though.

 

I agree with the way that the situation was handled, and obviously the casino manager did as well, or they wouldn't have fired the employee, and made such generous compensation offers.

 

Best of luck to all the gamblers on future cruises!