Help with Princess Air-Experienced?

[mmsoko]

Friends and traveling companions booked Princess Air (the others of us booked independently)...the air they were assigned is totally unacceptable, 6 hour layovers,etc. TA says no changes can be made at this late date. We cruise on 3/13.

 

Has anyone had similar experiences? Is there a way to change their air w/o totally losing the fare $?

Your prompt response will be appreciated.

[Toto2Kansas]

Sorry to say with what we have seen, the TA is correct. We have booked Princess air only when cruising internationally leaving from one port and arriving back to another as it has always been less expensive then we can find on our own. But our last trip after a flight from Sydney to San Franciso we had an 8 hour layover before our next flight. Even though there were many flights on the same airline that left much earlier, they stuck us on the worst one. We had even paid the deviation fee but unless we wanted to pay hundreds more, could not do any better with Princess.

Princess stands pretty firm on the flights they book for you.

I doubt we will ever book air fare from the cruise line again, they always seem to give us the worst flights available. Sometimes it is just not worth saving a few hundred dollars for the terrible connections.

 

Sorry about your traveling companions, but there just isn't much they can do about it this late in the game. Once the tickets are issued, they are stuck. :(

[Coral]

If you book with the cruise line, you really better do the air deviation or else you may be stuck with bad flights.

 

I still would have the TA call Princess and complain a lot - it may not do any good but it would be worth a try. I have heard of a few isolated incidents in which flights were changed but most of the time, you are stuck with those flights.

[ciera123]

We always do the air deviation since our first experience with Princess air. We had a 3 hour layover that turned into 6 at La Guardia.(they hadn't arranged the New York to Barcelona flight) We took the World Airline and there was no room for knees and I'm 5'4". It's well worth the extra to get where you're going when you want to...

[jcruise67]

Unfortunately, any air booked through the cruise line is definitive, meaning any deviation would cost you. On our first cruise in 1998, Dw and I booked air through carnival for same day arrival as embarkation. Though we did not experience any conflict with the flight & the r/t transfers, other pax on our cruise were delayed and the ship didn't sail until midnight. After consulting other cruise savy pax, we were advised the best way to avoid any air and transfer conflicts was to do a pre-cruise stay, hailing a taxi from the airport to the hotel and then to the pier the day of embarkation. Since then, we have not booked cruise line air/sea packages. Now, I just grab a taxi to the hotel in the port of embarkation and avoid any travel related stress. Booking you air independently is the best method if you plan a pre cruise stay or even if you want to save $$$ and arrive in the port of embarkation early. Also, by booking pre cruise stays, you leave room for occurring delays or cancellations. You will find that this is the easiest process.

 

John

[BJS]

Unfortunately, any air booked through the cruise line is definitive, meaning any deviation would cost you. John

You are right it will cost the minimum of the air deviation service charge.

Other than the service fee Princess charges, $75 international, to do the deviation you might not be charged any additional.

We had even paid the deviation fee but unless we wanted to pay hundreds more, could not do any better with Princess.

Princess has only one class they can book on an airline for the cruise air price. If that class is available there is no additional charge besides the fee. If that class is not available they will tell you how much the additional charge will be for another class. We have done deviation for about 14 flights and only had an additional charge one time. The secret is to check into the air deviation as soon as the airlines release their flights so that class is still available.

Booking you air independently is the best method if you plan a pre cruise stay or even if you want to save $$$ and arrive in the port of embarkation early.

Not always true especially for international flights where you arrive at one airport and leave from another. We saved hundreds by booking ATN with Princess for our flights to Tahiti. Domestic flights are a different story because of the wide choices and fare specials available where you can save $$$.

[colin v]

We booked Princess Air from Toronto to Fort Lauderdale for the March 13 sailing of the Star. When the air schedule came out we were very unhappy with the times and connections. The only thing we could do was fly Air Canada direct. It cost $300.00 per person extra for business class, but will be well worth the extra$$$.

 

They also put us on a 10:40 AM return flight which I am hoping will help us miss the crowds on our departure.

[Toto2Kansas]

When we booked our air deviation from Sydney, as we were staying on an extra week with friends. All Princess would give us was one of two different flights home, and we booked as soon as the cruise was available. So, no matter what, we could only choose the lesser of the two evils and that one had a very long layover. So, the deviation was great for staying later, but not so great when it came to choosing the flights we wished to be on, Princess TOLD us which flights, we were not allowed to tell them anything or pick another flight.

[Genessa]

we had booked with air deviation and did not like the flights we were given (in 2003).

My dh called Princess directly, even though we had booked with a travel agent and raised holy heck. Princess did a three way call to the travel agent at one point, then only spoke to the travel agent, then she got back to us twice with alternatives.

Ultimately, Princess changed our air, reducing our layover from 4 1/2 hours in Minnesota (I think) to half an hour, making the same exact last leg connecting flight.

[Pam in CA]

Booking you air independently is the best method if you plan a pre cruise stay or even if you want to save $$$ and arrive in the port of embarkation early. Also, by booking pre cruise stays, you leave room for occurring delays or cancellations. You will find that this is the easiest process.

Not true. A couple of years ago, the RT air from Boston to Fairbanks and then Vancouver to Boston through Princess was far less expensive than if I'd done it on my own. I checked, my TA checked, and Princess was a lot less expensive. For my flights from Boston to FLL and Manaus then Rome to Boston, Princess is again a LOT less expensive.

 

In the past, my TA has been able to improve my Princess Air flight. So keep bugging your TA. It is possible without paying the air deviation.

[cactusrose]

I don't get the whole air deviation thing. If Princess is going to charge you the difference in cost plus $75 to get the flight you want, why wouldn't you just book it yourself? Am I missing something?

[Coral]

I don't get the whole air deviation thing. If Princess is going to charge you the difference in cost plus $75 to get the flight you want, why wouldn't you just book it yourself? Am I missing something?

 

When I was looking at flights to Copenhagen last summer - Princess' flights were at least $500 less than booking on my own for the days that I wanted to travel. When I paid the deviation fee - it was such a relief because I was able to get the flights I wanted when I couldn't get them on my own (this was in January for a July cruise).

 

Sometimes, Princess air with a deviation fee is more economical than booking on your own - you have to look at both. Domestically, I haven't found them cheaper in my cases but I know others who have. To say domestic flights are always cheaper on your own may be true for your region but not for other regions.

[Genessa]

I don't get the whole air deviation thing. If Princess is going to charge you the difference in cost plus $75 to get the flight you want, why wouldn't you just book it yourself? Am I missing something?

 

my husband is an on-line pricing nut. The prices we were originally quoted for Princess Air with deviation for our open jaw flights were better than any he could find, so we booked it and figured if we found cheaper, we would cancel the air.

We never found cheaper and he researched extensively, that's how we knew we could get better times than Princess assigned us.

[BJS]

When we booked our air deviation from Sydney, as we were staying on an extra week with friends. All Princess would give us was one of two different flights home, and we booked as soon as the cruise was available. So, no matter what, we could only choose the lesser of the two evils and that one had a very long layover. So, the deviation was great for staying later, but not so great when it came to choosing the flights we wished to be on, Princess TOLD us which flights, we were not allowed to tell them anything or pick another flight.

Was this because they only booked with one airline from Sydney? Have been looking at flights from Auckland NZ for Jan. 06 and don't see too many options. Will be interesting when I call Princess air department to see what they tell me.

[Toto2Kansas]

No, not really, as far as I know it had nothing to do with the airlines that flew out of Sydney as there are several that fly to the States. And since we have done this several times, we knew that Princess used many different carriers for this route.

What we were doing was attempting to stay for 5 days with friends that live in Sydney after our cruise. When our TA contacted Princess about the flights we wanted, we were told that there were only two that we could choose from without having to shell out hundreds of dollars more for the air fare. And we even told them that we could fly any of three different days home.

So, even paying the deviation fee didn't give us a lot of choices. And with the fares high to begin with, we just were not wanting to spend hundreds more. Although, we learned it would have been worth it. Nothing worse than rattleing around the SF airport after a flight of 14 hours trying to kill another 8 before we could catch our next flight home.

[ssbeagle]

We have found that if we are flying international it is better to fly to one of the major cities on our own (LAX, NY, DC, ATL) and then use the Princess air for the overseas portion. This is what we did for our two Tahitian cruises. We usually fly in the day before as we come from a long way. On the way home we booked a return that left LAX about 5 hours after but changed at the airport to an earlier flight for just the change fee of $25 per person just to get home a couple of hours earlier. If we would have stayed in LA on the return I wouldn't have had a change fee.

 

In November we are flying out of Mobile on Princess air schedules to Rome Italy and we already know what the schedule is. We would like to leave out of Pensacola but Princess doesn't have a fare out of there. I have checked airfares and Princess does offer the better deal especially since we are flying to Rome and then have to fly home from Galveston as we are doing a repositioning/transatlantic cruise.

[cactusrose]

I guess the thing to do is book the air with the cruise line and then check around. If you can get better fares cancel with the cruise line and book your own. If you can't but find a better fare, but can find better flights, then pay the deviation and stay with the cruise line. The other thing I don't like about booking with the cruise line, is you don't know what flight you are on until a few weeks before you leave. That's sometimes too late to get decent seats.

 

Cruising can be a lot of work, but well worth it:D

[Cruisin' Chick]

About 10 years ago we had TA book our travel (along with hotel room that Carnival was supposed to provide if we took their fly and sail offer - or whatever they were calling it). When I got the tickets I raised holy you know what with the TA: they were for red eye flights LA to Miami, getting in the morning of the cruise. I told them to change it and make sure we had the hotel room for the night. They do without extra charge and we got into Miami at 8pm the night before. Since then we've only done two cruises away from San Pedro but we made our own pre-cruise travel arrangements ourselves (with a day's padding, of course).

[mmsoko]

Doesn't sound good for our friends. A lesson learned.

 

The way I read all these posts is the time to use Princess Air is:

1. If you're not flying into and out of the same airport.

2. If you flying international flights.

 

And...use and pay the deviation charge.

 

Is that how you read it?

[Pam in CA]

Doesn't sound good for our friends. A lesson learned.

 

The way I read all these posts is the time to use Princess Air is:

1. If you're not flying into and out of the same airport.

2. If you flying international flights.

Actually, not quite. Check Princess Air if you have "open jaw" flights, i.e., arriving at one airport and leaving from another. Princess Air was a lot less-expensive to fly from Boston to Fairbanks and then from Vancouver to Boston. While we flew from Canada, I don't strictly consider this "international" since you go through U.S. Customs right in the Vancouver airport.

[mmsoko]

Isn't "open jaws" the same as #1?

NOT flying into and out of the same airport?

 

Think we're on the same page!;)

[Crowsie]

We're using Princess air MSP to Sydney the Bangkok to MSP home.

 

The prices were far better than any that I or my travel agent could get.

 

When we got our flight schedule the return trip has us on Cathay Pacific from Bangkok to Tokyo to LAX to MSP...arriving home at 10pm.

 

We inquired about the air deviation and Princess charged us an extra $200.00 (this includes the $75.00 fee) to fly on NW from Bangkok to Tokyo to MSP....arriving home at 10 AM (not pm).

 

We all have to work the next day so we felt the $200 was well worth saving 12 hours of flight time.

 

As long as our initial flight schedule had not been ticketed, and NW had the seats....we were good to go. Made the decision to do the change about a week after the original flight schedule was posted.

 

Also....if you're coming back all on one airline, I'd recommend asking when you check in if the airline would be willing to reticket you on an earlier flight. If an earlier flight has lots of availability they may do it without charge.

 

I always follow the motto: "if you don't ask...you don't get!"

[Pam in CA]

Isn't "open jaws" the same as #1?

NOT flying into and out of the same airport?

 

Think we're on the same page!;)

Yep... my bad. I wrote that before I'd had my coffee.