Medallions to replace cruise cards?

[bUU]

Hard to guess without doing a study but my best guess is that for every HQ person they can probably eliminate at least one position at the pier, maybe up to two since this would make embarkation quicker overall as compared to properly credentialing 43,000 physically queued passengers at the pier each week.

 

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[pablo222]

Will never happen.

 

The check-in time will be reduced, but you still have to prove you are the person who is supposed to be on the cruise.

 

Of course.

 

And, even if you have entered all your passport / visa information in advance,

princess will have to verify that you actually have the documents when you board.

[PescadoAmarillo]

"You can customize your Medallion with a choice of colors."

 

So, everyone can have a black one I suppose.

I had a conversation today with someone from Princess who has actually experienced the Ocean Medallion demo in a warehouse in Doral, Florida that replicates the ship experience. According to him, the Medallion is color-customizable EXCEPT for black. Only Elites can order it in black (but don't have to). To which I say, "Bring on the pink Medallions!"

 

 

He did not know if Platinum, Ruby and Gold Medallions would be available and if they are would they be limited to passengers with that status.

 

Also, he confirmed that traditional cards would be available for those requesting them but would be fairly discouraged and would ultimately be phased out.

[Astro Flyer]

I received another video with John Chernesky (Vice President, North America Sales Princess Cruises & Cunard Line) to extol the benefits of Medallions & didn't like one function he said was a cool feature. From the Princess Theater he says "I'm actually gonna sit in the seat that I reserved, using the Ocean Compass, before I even got on the cruise. So this is a pretty cool feature".

 

That's not cool for me & it's the first time I've heard about an option for passengers to reserve Princess Theater seats before sailing. Being able to pre-reserve seats is not a good option & I much prefer the current first come, first seated situation. Currently there are announcements in the theater that the holding of seats is not allowed but with the Ocean Compass those seats can be booked well in advance & be held for late arriving passengers.

 

This is a big step backwards for my cruise experience & I'm very disappointed that Princess will allow theater reservations resulting in some passengers arriving early to stand in line in hopes of seeing the show.

Edited April 21, 2017 by Astro Flyer

[floridalover5623]

I received another video with John Chernesky (Vice President, North America Sales Princess Cruises & Cunard Line) to extol the benefits of Medallions & didn't like one function he said was a cool feature. From the Princess Theater he says "I'm actually gonna sit in the seat that I reserved, using the Ocean Compass, before I even got on the cruise. So this is a pretty cool feature".

 

That's not cool for me & it's the first time I've heard about an option for passengers to reserve Princess Theater seats before sailing. Being able to pre-reserve seats is not a good option & I much prefer the current first come, first seated situation. Currently there are announcements in the theater that the holding of seats is not allowed but with the Ocean Compass those seats can be booked well in advance & be held for late arriving passengers.

 

This is a big step backwards for my cruise experience & I'm very disappointed that Princess will allow theater reservations resulting in some passengers arriving early to stand in line in hopes of seeing the show.

 

I truly hope that isn't so. I can see literally many dozens of people fighting in the isles because someone is sitting in their reserved seat. Unless they reserve a complete section I can't see how it would be feasible.

[MrMan]

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[Westskip]

Posting these things out could be quite interesting especially as we will be travelling for quite some time before joining our cruise. Additionally if they do post them to Australia I hope that they remember the length of time for delivery.

[ccruisequeen]

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I'm sorry. You must be using invisible ink

[beg3yrs]

...

 

This is a big step backwards for my cruise experience & I'm very disappointed that Princess will allow theater reservations resulting in some passengers arriving early to stand in line in hopes of seeing the show.

 

Seems that people standing in lines or getting into the theater an hour early aren't available to play in the casino, buy drinks or spend money in the shops. As one of our most popular CC members likes to say, "Follow the money".

[Thrak]

Given the "fantastic" track record of Princess IT staff I can just see them reserving the same seats for multiple people. Wouldn't that be "interesting"... :eek:

 

I found this to be the case at the local theater. There is a multiplex and one of the theaters has reserved seating for some shows. I reserved seats because I was going to the movie with my son and he needs handicapped seating where there is a space for a wheelchair and seating beside it. When I arrived I found that someone else had the spot and had reserved it several days prior to my doing so. There were a number of people in the theater with the same issue. Some had reserved through Fandango and some through Cinemark. Multiple reservations for the same seats at the same time.

[Astro Flyer]

Seems that people standing in lines or getting into the theater an hour early aren't available to play in the casino, buy drinks or spend money in the shops. As one of our most popular CC members likes to say, "Follow the money".

Yes...the bottom line is to always "Follow the money" which certainly applies to the Medallions system.

 

Princess is promoting better service but that's unlikely to happen without additional crew to run around the ship to deliver drinks & food which may require a fee. They're promoting Medallions as a free system to use however there are no statements that I've found saying if services are free. Princess marketing is making guarantees that their IT staff may not be able to accomplish because even their less functional Princess@Sea intranet system took years to work out the bugs.

 

Just like the theater reservation system not being initially reported, we're only now becoming more fully aware of this change because of his FB video about his cool feature....wonder what else they're not telling us about.

 

Yes...follow the money & also nothing is completely free and Princess will need to either greatly increase onboard spending or to have higher cruise fares to offset the cost of the free Medallions system.

Edited April 21, 2017 by Astro Flyer

[floridalover5623]

Given the "fantastic" track record of Princess IT staff I can just see them reserving the same seats for multiple people. Wouldn't that be "interesting"... :eek:

 

There going to have to number the seats. It should provide pre-show entertainment at the least. :D

[JimmyVWine]

Seems that people standing in lines or getting into the theater an hour early aren't available to play in the casino, buy drinks or spend money in the shops. As one of our most popular CC members likes to say, "Follow the money".

First off, I agree with your assessment. The Medallion system only makes sense if people free up time to spend $$$. That said, consider the irony of implementing a system that takes people out of line and out of the theater and placing them in revenue generating venues when for years Princess has disallowed putting a jacket down to save a seat. Person #1 who saves a seat with a coat at 6:30 so that he can go out and spend money commits a mortal sin. Person #2 who uses his in-room touch screen at 6:30 to reserve a seat so that he can go out and spend money is maximizing his vacation experience.

[Murray's Pop]

Interesting to see lots of paranoia in this thread. Evil "data gathering" or "big brother" stuff.

 

Will the new system provide them with more, better data? Of course it will. What's so wrong with that? They already gather data.

 

Will it also benefit and/or enhance the cruise experience? For those who want it, I believe it will. For those who don't want it, use the regular cruise card.

 

Now, back to my popcorn! :D:D