Club class dining...who agrees

[pablo222]

Does anyone think Princess is going to a two tier class system? I'll be writing a letter of disapproval. There is power in numbers so if you disagree too I suggest you write a letter.

 

Your best course of action would be to skip booking

a princess cruise.

 

Write all the letters you want.

 

Somewhere, someone at princess is saying:

'look at the additional revenue we're getting for no cost'

 

If you and the other disappointed folks skip booking

princess, that will get their attention. A letter won't.

[deise17311]

Does anyone think Princess is going to a two tier class system? I'll be writing a letter of disapproval. There is power in numbers so if you disagree too I suggest you write a letter.

 

 

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How many of these posts do we need? Another post about a class system, really? I mean come on - do you fly on an airline because prices keep going up and space keeps going down as 1st and business and comfort get bigger - pay you play...

[deise17311]

No. There is a big difference.

 

Any passenger in any cabin can go to a specialty restaurant if they want to pay for it.

 

With club class, less than 5% of the passengers can go to Anytime dining and be sure of immediate seating.

 

Yes, club class mini-suite passengers get some wine in their cabin, but that does not take away from anyone else's experience. Just as the mini-bar setup for full suite passengers does not take away from anyone else's experience.

 

But reserving a section of tables that often remain unoccupied in a dining room does adversely affect non club class passengers. If it is an anytime dining room, there will be likely be passengers on line who cannot be seated even though tables are vacant in that special section. If it is in the dining room that is traditional and then turns into anytime, then come traditional diners may not get into the early extra traditional seating because of a lack of space for them.

 

I've never not seen line at ATD so I guess nothing will change -

[Corfe Mixture]

We are in a rather strange situation regarding Club Class dining in that we will be entitled to it, but probably not use it. As a result I just hope the introduction of the enhanced menu in the Club Dining area does not result in a drop off in standards elsewhere.

 

To explain and head of the obvious questions about why we won't use Club dining, we regularly cruise over Christmas and book a full suite.

 

However, Christmas cruises tend to be frequented by the same people which means we have tended to form a bit of a community. We don't all cruise on the same ship each year but there is always a number of members of the group on each ship and, in the past when two ships have been starting their cruse on the same day, we have met up for dinner the night before the cruises.

 

In the past this has worked well for our group as one of the unpublished benefits of being in a full suite is that, if you go for Anytime Dining, you can get assigned the same table for the whole of the cruise for the whole of the evening. This has enable us to book a table for our group of say six people irrespective of the grade of stateroom of our friends.

 

Certainly we will not have a problem eating in the non-Club dining area and foregoing the enhanced menu, in order to dine with our friends, BUT, whereas in the past it has not been a problem getting an assigned table in the Freedom dining area, I rather suspect that this will no longer be possible as the smaller Anytime Dining restaurant area would mean we were making an unreasonable demand by expecting to 'own' a table in that area, but such is life - there are losers in any change of arrangement.

 

NOTE: I am not complaining and will be content to develop my own workaround which might include dining as a group on our large aft balcony, but to repeat my opening point. I just hope the introduction of the enhanced menu in the Club Dining area does not result in a drop off in standards elsewhere.

[floridalover5623]

In my opinion this list is a lot about nothing.There is nothing on this list that suggest a two class system. Club class doesn't even have their own dining room. They are just seated in a different section. I don't see any difference between this and eating in a specialty restaurant. Most of the extras are just fluff and are offered in the room and if you didn't know about them you wouldn't miss them. How do you measure what a luxury bed is. It's not like the rest of us are sleeping on the floor. If there is a separate line for club class embarkation and disembarkation that only means that there will be less people in the steerage line. Canapés, terry bathrobe and wine set up are all room amenities and have nothing to do with segregation. If people are willing to pay for the extras then good for them. Personally there is nothing on this list that would entice me.

 

 

Exclusive area of the Main Dining Room- This as a cost of reserved space taken form the rest of the public.

Expedited seating with minimal to no wait- They don't have to wait longer- you do.

Expanded menu options- No biggie. There are always other options.

Dedicated waitstaff- Where do you think the waitstaff comes from? Certainly not from extra people they'll hire.

Uniquely-styled décor (Premium table linens only)- No biggie

Table-side preparations- Again no biggie

The Princess Luxury Bed

Priority embarkation and disembarkation at the beginning and end of your cruise- Longer lines for the rest of us for sure.

One-time complimentary wine set-up^

Evening canapés, upon request

Luxurious terry shawl bathrobes

 

See above

 

No. There is a big difference.

 

Any passenger in any cabin can go to a specialty restaurant if they want to pay for it.

 

With club class, less than 5% of the passengers can go to Anytime dining and be sure of immediate seating.

 

Yes, club class mini-suite passengers get some wine in their cabin, but that does not take away from anyone else's experience. Just as the mini-bar setup for full suite passengers does not take away from anyone else's experience.

 

But reserving a section of tables that often remain unoccupied in a dining room does adversely affect non club class passengers. If it is an anytime dining room, there will be likely be passengers on line who cannot be seated even though tables are vacant in that special section. If it is in the dining room that is traditional and then turns into anytime, then come traditional diners may not get into the early extra traditional seating because of a lack of space for them.

 

Those that can't see that might be surprised by the longer waits involved in dining. I'll never pay for CC as it doesn't seem to be worth the extra expense but I do agree with Thrak- "I could sail in a balcony instead and afford to eat in a specialty restaurant every night for less than the cost of a club class mini."

 

For now we'll wait it out to see how badly it affects the rest of us.

[PrincessLuver]

No. There is a big difference.

 

Any passenger in any cabin can go to a specialty restaurant if they want to pay for it.

 

With club class, less than 5% of the passengers can go to Anytime dining and be sure of immediate seating.

 

Yes, club class mini-suite passengers get some wine in their cabin, but that does not take away from anyone else's experience. Just as the mini-bar setup for full suite passengers does not take away from anyone else's experience.

 

But reserving a section of tables that often remain unoccupied in a dining room does adversely affect non club class passengers. If it is an anytime dining room, there will be likely be passengers on line who cannot be seated even though tables are vacant in that special section. If it is in the dining room that is traditional and then turns into anytime, then come traditional diners may not get into the early extra traditional seating because of a lack of space for them.

 

We are just off a 10 day Ruby Princess cruisel which had Club Class dining.....I could not for the life of me see where it made any difference in us getting into the ATD any different then any other Princess cruise we have been on....I would much rather them not allow RESERVATIONS in the ATD dining room then Club Class....I do not think they should have two types of ATD....Anything Goes Dining (Reservations) and ATD (No Reservations)! :rolleyes::rolleyes:

[greenie082756]

We are just off a 10 day Ruby Princess cruisel which had Club Class dining.....I could not for the life of me see where it made any difference in us getting into the ATD any different then any other Princess cruise we have been on....I would much rather them not allow RESERVATIONS in the ATD dining room then Club Class....I do not think they should have two types of ATD....Anything Goes Dining (Reservations) and ATD (No Reservations)! :rolleyes::rolleyes:

 

Agree. Anytime dining to me is the same as going to a public restaurant that does not take reservations. It urks me to no end that Princess allows this.

 

As far as what the OP has stated, no I will not send a letter to Princess because its a choice and like others have said, "No skin off my nose".

[mafig]

I haven't cruised on Princess in quite a while.

 

However, with the new Club Class I'd be willing to cruise with Princess again. I'm willing to pay more for a restaurant where I know I'll get a table for two and not have to wait.

 

We're probably going to book Aqua Class on Celebrity to get Blu, we've been in MSC's Yacht Club and have done smaller suites on NCL in the past. Princess is behind these lines in offering an upgraded experience.

 

So I will not be writing any letter.

[RedEarth]

As someone who has booked their first Princess cruise for this summer and selected a cabin which was subsequently designated as Club Class, I have no objections to it whatsoever and will be very much looking forward to it! :D

[Cruise Junky]

That breakfast did not exist before it became a full suite benefit and thus did not take away something from any other passenger.

 

Club Class dining does take away from other passengers any time there are empty tables that others could have used.

 

It didn't exist but Skywalkers did or what ever other lounge did that holds the Elite/Suite Platinium evenings. It's taking away space from others. It's been happening for years, this really isn't anything new.

[Iamcruzin]

I've never not seen line at ATD so I guess nothing will change -

 

 

How true. People are crying about a few reserved tables, how about all of the traditional dining passenger who book one of the 2 early seatings or the late seating and decide on a whim that they would rather eat prime time in the anytime dining room. I think the fact that you have to pay to be seated upon arrival and the fact that people are willing to pay speaks volumes of how poorly operated anytime dining is managed.

 

 

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[Kamloops50]

On our last cruise. Club class had there own section in the Anytime dining room. They also had a separate entrance.

 

 

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[caribill]

It didn't exist but Skywalkers did or what ever other lounge did that holds the Elite/Suite Platinium evenings. It's taking away space from others. It's been happening for years, this really isn't anything new.

 

But it does not matter how much you pay for your cabin to be eligible for the e/s/p hour. If eligible by having been on a number of Princess cruises, you can be in the least expensive inside cabin and still attend.

 

And I have been on cruises where 1800 of the passengers were eligible to attend the e/s/p hour, hardly making it an exclusive benefit.

[Kamloops50]

How true. People are crying about a few reserved tables, how about all of the traditional dining passenger who book one of the 2 early seatings or the late seating and decide on a whim that they would rather eat prime time in the anytime dining room. I think the fact that you have to pay to be seated upon arrival and the fact that people are willing to pay speaks volumes of how poorly operated anytime dining is managed.

 

 

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They check for that at the door. I've seen people turned away and asked to go to their proper dining room. It also shorts the anytime dining room staff of their gratuities.

 

 

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[tntfox]

While we will have Club Class because of our mini location, one of the other couples sailing with us will not have that same "upgrade". I understand that they will be unable to dine with us if they're not Club Class. True? If that is, in fact, true, we won't be taking advantage of that option.

 

 

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[Iamcruzin]

They check for that at the door. I've seen people turned away and asked to go to their proper dining room. It also shorts the anytime dining room staff of their gratuities.

 

 

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It's been my experience that after a few days into the cruise they stop checking. I hope it's changed.

 

 

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[nukesubsailor]

But there is already a class system for laundry. Suites get laundry back in one day even if elites take three or four because of the number of elites on the cruise. And laundry is a zero-sum game. Prioritization of suite laundry could potentially be one of the things delaying elite laundry.

 

We cruise in full suites when we can afford it and have made use of the laundry service many times. We have never gotten our laundry back in one day.

[floridalover5623]

If things do get bogged down from the CC diners I suppose we'll just have to resort to making reservations in the AT dining room (which we never do).

[nukesubsailor]

Does anyone think Princess is going to a two tier class system? I'll be writing a letter of disapproval. There is power in numbers so if you disagree too I suggest you write a letter.

 

 

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Will your letter also suggest to Princess that their loss of revenue by doing away with Club Class benefits be made up by raising fares for all passengers? Will you also ask that Platinum, Elite, and Suite benefits be done away with as that appears to be a class system?

A society that has a class system base class upon what segment of society a person was born into, not upon what a person is willing to pay for.

On Cruise ships people who get benefits that others do not get do so solely because they spend more with Princess. That extra revenue keeps fares down which benefits those who cannot or will not pay the extra for the benefits.

I call that a distribution of wealth which should please all socialists, progressives, liberals, 98 per-centers, or what ever term is in vogue these days.

[pablo222]

how about all of the traditional dining passenger who book one of the 2 early seatings or the late seating and decide on a whim that they would rather eat prime time in the anytime dining room.

 

How many are there?

[Eagle_and_hawk]

We cruise in full suites when we can afford it and have made use of the laundry service many times. We have never gotten our laundry back in one day.

 

Do you check "same day", and give it to the room steward by 9:00am? We are not elite and used this suite benefit the last two times we sailed in a suite and the laundry was back in our room after we returned from dinner.

[mellon1]

Agreed 100%. Although I probably wouldn't get it (at the current price point) I don't think that others should try to hinder people who are willing to pay for such benefits (maybe I have a too simplistic view - you pay for more you get more) . Besides the bottom line is how well it's selling - basically like everything else in life. After all it's not like it's a staple in life and they are price gouging. But after saying this I also agree with writing a letter voicing your feelings on it (if one feels inclined to do so) and letting Princess do what they will with it (which is probably nothing)

 

Ditto. No one is forcing anyone to buy it.

[dtb55]

I'm getting tired of people complaining about Princess offering extras to people who are willing to pay for them....

 

 

 

I think CC needs a whiners' board.

 

I don't think I would pay extra just to sit in a separate DR and have a few extra amenities, but I'm not concerned that others do.

 

 

 

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Edited January 19, 2017 by dtb55

[Sea Hag]

Club Class doesn't bother me as long as they don't cheapen the basic product. No matter where you go, somebody who's paying more is getting more. Unless you buy at the highest possible level, this is unavoidable. Airlines, hotels, whatever. But if they move more in the direction of taking away things that we've had in the past, then I'll probably get pretty ticked.

[Elpcoltman]

No. There is a big difference.

 

Any passenger in any cabin can go to a specialty restaurant if they want to pay for it.

 

With club class, less than 5% of the passengers can go to Anytime dining and be sure of immediate seating.

 

Yes, club class mini-suite passengers get some wine in their cabin, but that does not take away from anyone else's experience. Just as the mini-bar setup for full suite passengers does not take away from anyone else's experience.

 

But reserving a section of tables that often remain unoccupied in a dining room does adversely affect non club class passengers. If it is an anytime dining room, there will be likely be passengers on line who cannot be seated even though tables are vacant in that special section. If it is in the dining room that is traditional and then turns into anytime, then come traditional diners may not get into the early extra traditional seating because of a lack of space for them.

 

So you're upset that you MIGHT have to wait for an ATD table? How can you blame that on CC when there are so many other potential reasons for the delay at that moment and CC has nothing to do with it. The transportation industry has downgraded our experience for years. It is simple economics, you want to keep paying less for your cruise experience and loose nothing in return. Cruise prices has been stagnant for years. Realizing that cruise passengers, like airline passengers, are reluctant to pay more for a ticket, the industry is just giving the passengers what they want. Pay a minimum price and add what is important to you. This is all about entitlement, once it's been given, it can not be taken away. Not true in a free market.

 

The other way to think of it is, as an infrequent cruiser, this is a way for me to buy into some of the benefits of elites. I don't mind paying the price for it. I figure the elites have been accumulating equity by cruising. I do not agree with not allowing passengers who are willing, to buy what they want to pay for. To try and take away that ability is just socialism at its best. Last I checked we do not live in a socialist state.