No AIBP or Soda & More sith Ocean Medallion??

[chamima]

I know this is by no means even close to a scientific poll but no one on here seems to care about this new "order what you want, when you want and get it delivered" feature so why not just eliminate that and reinstate the AIBP , which people DO care about.

 

Is that too simple a solution? :confused::eek:

[Bill B]

I know this is by no means even close to a scientific poll but no one on here seems to care about this new "order what you want, when you want and get it delivered" feature so why not just eliminate that and reinstate the AIBP , which people DO care about.

 

Is that too simple a solution? :confused::eek:

 

Yes. The Here and Now™, There and Then™ features are fundamental to the Ocean Medallion system... to which they are 100% committed (they've started installing it on ships). So, they are not going to change the system, they are going to change the beverage packages.

[riclop]

It will be back.

[NavyVeteran]

Yes. The Here and Now™, There and Then™ features are fundamental to the Ocean Medallion system... to which they are 100% committed (they've started installing it on ships). So, they are not going to change the system, they are going to change the beverage packages.

Why can't they treat them the same way as room service. You can buy a drink in a bar or you can order it from room service. However, the AIBP or Soda & More Package are good in the bars and dining rooms only - not for room service. They could have Here and Now™ and There and Then™ features but treat them like room service (not in the packages). That would be easy to implement, and I think everyone would be happy.

[Thrak]

From another thread:

 

From Princess via their Facebook page :

"Hi Cheryl, our Ocean Medallion Class ships allow you to order what you want, when you want it – in most locations throughout the ship. In order to accommodate this great new way to order beverages, our soda and all-inclusive beverage package will initially not be offered onboard our Ocean Medallion class ships.

 

We will honor any packages previously purchased. Medallion Class voyages will be eligible for promotional offers that include a beverage package - like our popular Sip n Sail.

 

We look forward to welcoming you onboard!"

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=52971573&postcount=17

[GrammySpo]

I know this is by no means even close to a scientific poll but no one on here seems to care about this new "order what you want, when you want and get it delivered" feature so why not just eliminate that and reinstate the AIBP , which people DO care about.

 

 

 

Is that too simple a solution? :confused::eek:

 

 

That is what I care about. I like the ability to try different things and not worry about the bill at the end of the day.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[tinastanier]

we are booked on the Nov 17 cruise. the aibp was on offer I booked it into my basket but it has now been marked with out of stock. it is available to other passengers. yet when we rang customer services we were told it isn't available on the medallion cruises. this is therefore untrue. and I have just read on another review that it is available in January on this ship. princess are telling fibs, it is a available to some passengers and not others. we always book the aibp. it makes life so much easier. also I don't need to preorder a drink. I like to sit at a bar order my drink and socialise with others. that's cruising !. I am annoyed by the fact that I did have this in my basket yet princess are not honouring it. it was available but now it's not. I certainly won't be booking medallion cruises again if this isn't sorted. and will be looking at other cruise lines that offer these packages. sorry but no loyalty to me as an elite member then no loyalty to you princess.

[Bill B]

Don't worry... they'll work it out. They make too much money from beverage packages not to.

[skynight]

we are booked on the Nov 17 cruise. the aibp was on offer I booked it into my basket but it has now been marked with out of stock. it is available to other passengers. .

Don't understand what you mean by in your basket. Are you saying that when you booked the cruise you ordered and paid for the AIBP, and Princess since cancelled it and refunded the funds? I think it has been reported here that they would honor those that previously purchased the package, and also those that booked under the sip & sail promo.

[tinastanier]

in my basket as ordered but not yet paid for but we always do this and pay before we go.

[skynight]

in my basket as ordered but not yet paid for but we always do this and pay before we go.

Just so I understand. The AIBP was part of your booking along with fare, port charges which were due at final payment date? I didn't know you could do this. I thought all beverage packages required payment when ordered, even if ordered before final cruise payment was due and paid. This is what it states in my cruise personlizer: "Packages are not added to your booking until they are paid for. Prices include gratuity." By basket do you mean wish list?

[Scotraveller]

I'm booked on Regal on 05th November and noticed the other day that it is not an option on my one either! I e-mailed Princess yesterday so I'll be interested to see what they say. This is the final non-medallion cruise isn't it?

[luvstodance]

** With. Oops.

What the heck?? So, on Ocean Medallion sailings, the Beverage package or Soda & More package, etc is not available?? See conditions under the packages on Gifts and Services, etc. at website. "Packages not available for purchase on Ocean Medallion voyages" Just read this. This will definitely stop us from sailing on those voyages.... So they can track our movements, order food, etc - but they can't get the Beverage packages linked? No thanks.. We were looking forward to checking it out - not now... Yes, I realize I can pay as I go, but you lose the major convenience factor, set price factor, etc. No thanks.

 

Just talked to Princess, as we are booked on the Ocean preview for November back to back 6 nights total on the Regal. All ships will be phased into Ocean Medallion class across time and there will be no more Ultimate Beverage or Soda packages offered on this line.... At that time in will probably be Goodby Princess!

Edited May 4, 2017 by luvstodance

[luvstodance]

I find it hard to believe that people would cancel cruises because the all- inclusive drink pkg isn't offered. As these cruises haven't even started yet, how do you know that it won't be resolved or something new added?

I've only had this pkg once, and it was hard to break even everyday. As a Canadian, by the time you add 30% extra on, it's not worth it for me. My last cruise I had enough OBC to cover most everything, I think my bill was $178 at end of cruise.

Perhaps your beverage habits are different than others...while some people may use the casino or take shore excursions ...others may enjoy having cocktails. That is why the beverage package, casino play and shore excursions are optional. This takes the choice of a large majority away.

[luvstodance]

So basically Princess is telling me do not book any cruises at all unless it's a Sip and Sail promo. Unreal.

 

I pretty much agree. You can't even get a soda package...so full price for everything .

[cgard45]

Hopefully you made it abundantly clear why you were cancelling your cruise. I hope there is a flood of cancellations due to this issue. That is the thing that is most likely to get their attention.

 

 

I think this whole problem is just one more case of Marketing making promises that aren't realistic. It happens all the time. It's easy to promise that someone else will do something. Heck, the marketing people aren't the ones who have to provide the service or implement the process or whatever else it is they are promoting.

 

I called about my February 2018 10-day on the Royal. She seemed to be telling me, without actually 'telling' me, to rebook when sip and sail becomes available. I did tell her that I would be cancelling if it's not going to be available. I just wonder does that mean my price is going to jump up that much more? My current booking is under a 200/pp OBC and free specialty dining promotion.

 

Also, why can the AIBP work if it's part of your cruise fare, but not an added package? I don't get the disconnection there.

[likeadisguise]

in my basket as ordered but not yet paid for but we always do this and pay before we go.

 

I don't think I understand why having it in your shopping cart would make a difference? If I go to Amazon to buy something, put it in my shopping cart, and the price changes before I pay for it, I have to pay the new price. If it sells out, I can't buy it. That's kind of how online shopping works everywhere, isn't it?

[Bocagirl1]

I also spoke to Princess about my cruise on Caribbean Princess in March 2018 and was told the same thing about soda package. Not at all happy and will not book with Princess again if they continue with this when other lines are giving free drinks in their prices! Just means having to take loads of canned soda on board with us!

[Bill B]

I just posted this on the other 'Ocean Medallion'/Beverage Package thread.

 

Here's something to ponder -

Could it be they have planned all along to eliminate the AIBP and Soda & More packages as Ocean Medallion is introduced across the fleet? While I find this difficult to believe - the packages must be a huge revenue generator - perhaps they figure they will generate more without them.

 

Undoubtedly, they will lose some bookings; but they have demand management down to science and the ships sail full... so they don't care.

 

Nothing I have seen says they are working on a way to re-institute the packages on Ocean Medallion voyages. We have all assumed they did not take the unlimited beverage packages into consideration when planning the Ocean Medallion system. Perhaps they did!

 

Those who are waiting for another 'Sip & Sail' promo may be waiting... forever.

[PghCruiseGrrrl]

My feelings on what Princess is doing. I am going to use round numbers just to make the math simple and just deal with what Princess is charging the customer, not profit, loss, cost of goods sold, or anything else a company deals with. This also in no way reflects true prices.

 

Lets say the average person normally orders 4 drinks a day at $10/each. If they do not get the AIBP Princess gets $40. If they did purchase the AIBP for convenience sake (and for ease of math we will say the AIBP is $50/day), Princess would collect an additional $10. If the implementation of the medallion causes that person to order 2 more drinks a day since they can be ordered and delivered anytime anywhere, for a person that doesn't have the AIBP, Princess now has $60. If that same person had bought the AIBP Princess would lose $10 of what they could have collected. Princess is betting by making it more convenient for people to order drinks, people will order more drinks.After a reasonable period of time they will analyze the data from the medallion sailings and roll out a "New and Improved" AIBP that will take into account the new average number of drinks a person will order to make sure they are still getting the highest profit margin they can on drink sales. They just didn't want to take a chance on having lower profit margins while collecting the previously mentioned data.

 

But, in the words of Dennis Miller, that's just my opinion, I could be wrong.

[sonomaphil]

This is what happens when you put a marketing person in charge of a cruise line.

[RDC1]

It will be interesting to see if they also phase out coffee cards.

[NavyVeteran]

It will be interesting to see if they also phase out coffee cards.

It takes just as much crew time to deliver fresh-brewed coffee Here & Now and There & Then as it does sodas or alcoholic beverages. In my opinion, no unlimited package can work with unlimited Here & Now and There & Then at no charge per delivery.

[martin jenkins]

My feelings on what Princess is doing. I am going to use round numbers just to make the math simple and just deal with what Princess is charging the customer, not profit, loss, cost of goods sold, or anything else a company deals with. This also in no way reflects true prices.

 

Lets say the average person normally orders 4 drinks a day at $10/each. If they do not get the AIBP Princess gets $40. If they did purchase the AIBP for convenience sake (and for ease of math we will say the AIBP is $50/day), Princess would collect an additional $10. If the implementation of the medallion causes that person to order 2 more drinks a day since they can be ordered and delivered anytime anywhere, for a person that doesn't have the AIBP, Princess now has $60. If that same person had bought the AIBP Princess would lose $10 of what they could have collected. Princess is betting by making it more convenient for people to order drinks, people will order more drinks.After a reasonable period of time they will analyze the data from the medallion sailings and roll out a "New and Improved" AIBP that will take into account the new average number of drinks a person will order to make sure they are still getting the highest profit margin they can on drink sales. They just didn't want to take a chance on having lower profit margins while collecting the previously mentioned data.

 

But, in the words of Dennis Miller, that's just my opinion, I could be wrong.

 

why would a medallion cause you to order more drinks????

[RDC1]

why would a medallion cause you to order more drinks????

 

They are indicating that under medallion you can order anywhere on the ship and they will bring it to you. No more having to flag down a waiter or go to the bar. More convenient = more orders.