How is the new digital coffee package working

[jrzebird]

So, one of the elite perks WAS to be able to change your mini bar for TWO coffee cards. NOW, that there are no longer "cards" will you have 15 coffees "credited" to your ships card? Which expires at the end of your cruise, AND no one can any longer sell them. Do I have that correct?

 

 

 

This has been my question. I don’t drink but I do enjoy a cappuccino for breakfast and with desert. I usually give my second card to my roommate or Roland. Right now I have 2 half used cards and 2 never used cards. Hopefully I can get them to honor at least one. Or I’ll probably treat myself a few times and drink regular coffee the rest of the time. I will miss my specialty tea but I might bring my own.

[myfuzzy]

This has been my question. I don’t drink but I do enjoy a cappuccino for breakfast and with desert. I usually give my second card to my roommate or Roland. Right now I have 2 half used cards and 2 never used cards. Hopefully I can get them to honor at least one. Or I’ll probably treat myself a few times and drink regular coffee the rest of the time. I will miss my specialty tea but I might bring my own.

 

So, as a solo traveler, you would get "30" coffee credits on your card? To make full use of the credits, you would be drinking a LOT of coffee OR make a LOT of NEW friends. Can you imagine 30 cups of coffee on a 7 night cruise! You wouldn't need a plane to fly home.

 

P.S. Don't forget , when you get a chance, drop me a line....

[moki'smommy]

So, as a solo traveler, you would get "30" coffee credits on your card? To make full use of the credits, you would be drinking a LOT of coffee OR make a LOT of NEW friends. Can you imagine 30 cups of coffee on a 7 night cruise! You wouldn't need a plane to fly home.

 

P.S. Don't forget , when you get a chance, drop me a line....

It isn't 30 cups of coffee. It is unlimited brewed coffee and/or premium tea bags + 30 Starbucks type coffees or teas!

[Margo39]

We sailed on the Regal in May and my husband bought one. If I remember correctly, they put a small sticker on his card and electronically tracked how many he was using. The staff had no issue offering me brewed coffee when I was with my husband and he was using his card but that may have been an exception to the rule.

 

Have a great trip!

[myfuzzy]

It isn't 30 cups of coffee. It is unlimited brewed coffee and/or premium tea bags + 30 Starbucks type coffees or teas!

 

Maybe I should have broken it up by referring to 30 "paid" coffees' plus the brewed coffee.

 

So just above...a small sticker is put onto your ships card to indicate you have a coffee package, so by showing that you automatically get the brewed coffee, so you card isn't scanned to check if you do have the package?

[moki'smommy]

Maybe I should have broken it up by referring to 30 "paid" coffees' plus the brewed coffee.

 

So just above...a small sticker is put onto your ships card to indicate you have a coffee package, so by showing that you automatically get the brewed coffee, so you card isn't scanned to check if you do have the package?

I'll let you know in a while.....my understanding is that your card is scanned to get the "punches" which are not punches any more--the Starbucks drinks. Sounds like the sticker would save staff a lot of work--scanning cards for brewed coffee or for a tea bag could get old really fast.

[wheezedr]

I'll let you know in a while.....my understanding is that your card is scanned to get the "punches" which are not punches any more--the Starbucks drinks. Sounds like the sticker would save staff a lot of work--scanning cards for brewed coffee or for a tea bag could get old really fast.

There was no sticker when we were on the Sapphire in June and July. The staff scanned your cruise card as they do for other purposes. If you just wanted a brewed coffee or tea they sometimes skipped the scanning but that varied with who was working and how well they knew you. They always scanned for specialty drinks and could tell you how many “ punches” you had left if you asked. Did not really slow the process in any way.

[pilot]

No stickers on the Emerald last week. First two mornings the guy swiped both our cards for two large brewed coffees. Starting day 3 he just poured 2 large cups when he saw me, with no swipe. I did give him a dollar bill each morning. I had 2 lattes during the week and my wife had one. Wouldn’t have got our money’s worth if we bought the package. We don’t care for the HC sludge so the IC brewed coffee works for us. Note: we got the coffee package by switching out our mini bar.

 

 

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[kywildcatfanone]

It works fine, but I wish it told you how many punches you had on your personalizer so you didn't have to ask.

[BritinSoCal]

People are allowed to sell personal property that was freely given or sold to them with no strings attached. It is demonetising the existing cards, and devaluing a perk of Elite status, that I find alarming.

 

Alarming? I can think of many topics that might be classed as alarming, but I can safely say that Coffee Cards on Princess Cruises isn't one of them...

[OR_Cowboy_1952]

Are you aware you can share the 15 speciality coffees? Carefully read the New Grounds Coffee Package Terms & Conditions.

It states that the package includes a specified number of ‘specialty coffees’ (15 is typical) during the voyage of purchase, and complimentary brewed coffee and hot chocolate during the same voyage.

It clearly states the coffee package is valid only on the voyage for which it is purchased. If the maximum number of coffees pre-purchased are not used during the voyage, the remaining value will NOT be credited or refunded and is NOT transferable for any purpose.

But it also states that the 15 specialty coffees can be shared. However the complimentary brewed coffee, teas and hot chocolate are limited to the purchaser.

My husband is buying the package, but I am not. He drinks a lot of regular coffee during the day (4 to 6 cups). I drink a cup or two but am happy with an expresso etc. So he’ll drink the regular coffee and share the specialty coffee with me.

 

Buying nothing else, the coffee package buys 12.5 large expressos, 8.9 cappuccinos, or 6.2 speciality blends.

[myfuzzy]

Yes, the option to share is great to be able to use up all your "punches" during your cruise. We normally do a 10 nighter, so for us, it's kind of forcing us to have the coffee's to use up the punches, even though we might not want one that day, especially if your itinerary calls for a late night or two in port. So to make it worth our while, it would be nice if maybe a 10 cupper could be offered. Oh, at a lesser cost of course

[greenie082756]

It works fine, but I wish it told you how many punches you had on your personalizer so you didn't have to ask.

 

You just answered my question.

 

It would seem that if we can see our daily charges, then somehow they should be able to

implement the digital coffee card too.

[Pierlesscruisers]

We sail in 12 days! What medallions?

 

It's also electronically on your cruise card now also. Apparently, they've done away with the card itself. Any cards still in your possession expire at the end of this year or next year depending on when they were issued. I don't remember the exact wording of the new policy.

 

 

Tom

[Astro Flyer]

If you can see your personalizer, count the number of coffees that you purchased, subtract from 15 and the remainder will be how many you have left.

 

I’m guessing that you mean the onboard folio of purchases when you say to look at your personalizer?

 

I haven’t experienced the new electronic coffee program but it’s doubtful to me if each purchase would be displayed in the folio. Based on posts I’ve read the barista can see how many specialty coffees you’ve had & how many remain but haven’t seen any reports of that being available in our onboard folio of debits & credits.

Edited August 7, 2018 by Astro Flyer

[Ombud]

Got off the Royal June 30th. I had no problem using my old cards from Australia,where I got off in March. They wrote the new ship code on the back of the first card and just punched out most of the second one. So now I've got a card with 3 punches left and a card with a 15 punches left. I did double check with Princess and they state that Sapphire is not on The Medallion system yet. So when I go in March I will be able to use my two cards.

[RDC1]

People are allowed to sell personal property that was freely given or sold to them with no strings attached. It is demonetising the existing cards, and devaluing a perk of Elite status, that I find alarming.

 

Actually they did have strings attached. The people that got the cards just chose to ignore those strings.

[floridalover5623]

Actually they did have strings attached. The people that got the cards just chose to ignore those strings.

Those "strings" will be ignored right up to the last day when the paper cards are no longer being accepted.

Can your blame people for ignoring the new limitations since they were changed after people received the cards and Princess then decided to steal their money by cancelling coffee cards sold under different rules.

[Wehwalt]

Nothing prohibited the sale of the physical cards, gifting them, or anything else. They were obtained by following the same mutable rules now cited to justify Princess's disavowal of the cards. I gather that there are people who have discomfort with the idea of Ebaying the cards and are pleased to see the sale of them disrupted. As has been pointed out, on a one-night cruise, the card value adds up to a good discount, and may be a decider on whether to take the cruise.

[Woobstr112G]

Hasn't deterred me one jot and tbh it's one less thing to carry around onboard. I always max out even on a 5 nighter - espresso to kick start the metabolism every morning, followed by 1 (or 2) lattes later in the day - not forgetting the fresh drip. All that is going to happen is I need to get creative should Mrs SoCal fancy a nice cuppa or a drip coffee. I suspect we'd still have cards though if they hadn't of cropped-up with alarming regularity on Ebay and which gave the bean-counters at Carnival Corp an excuse...

 

Or if some hadn't bragged on CC on how they were gaming the system.....

Bob

[Wehwalt]

Or if some hadn't bragged on CC on how they were gaming the system.....

Bob

 

Only if their offices at Santa Clarita were in a cave. I have this vision of a Princess board with half-working TRS-80s in the background sitting and wondering how it is so many of their passengers already have coffee cards.

 

Of course they know. And it's not from us.

Edited August 8, 2018 by Wehwalt

[abbydancer2003]

I wonder what's going to happen next August when people who don't cruise frequently or aren't on Cruise Critic go to use their paper cards. When they bought them, they were told the punches didn't expire. They now find out that they did and Princess basically stole part of the 35.00 they paid.

[myfuzzy]

I wonder what's going to happen next August when people who don't cruise frequently or aren't on Cruise Critic go to use their paper cards. When they bought them, they were told the punches didn't expire. They now find out that they did and Princess basically stole part of the 35.00 they paid.

 

Which is the reason I started this thread. I wanted to know IF the "digital" was working pertaining to the usage of all 15 "punches" or are we giving Princess money's for product not used. Anything less than 10 nights, even sharing, is cutting it close and literally forcing you to take coffee's just so you don't lose the money. Unless you are a caffeine addict (sorry previous poster), I can't imagine having 15 coffees on a 5 or 7 night cruise.

 

I am trying to ascertain whether we are being forced to use all the "punches" and now don't forget about the brewed coffee, or whether Princess should look into packages based in cruise length. At this point any cruise less than 9 days, 8 coffee's , 10 - 14 12 coffees, and then over 14 nights make it the 15 coffees.

[RDC1]

Only if their offices at Santa Clarita were in a cave. I have this vision of a Princess board with half-working TRS-80s in the background sitting and wondering how it is so many of their passengers already have coffee cards.

 

Of course they know. And it's not from us.

 

The good news is that after 2019 we don't have to worry about it or discuss it. They will be gone gone gone.

[voljeep]

Noone forces you to purchase a coffee package...you know the terms now going in...and you should know by now that the terms are 'subject to change'...:cool:

 

simple solution now - pay as you go

 

 

now about after 8/2019 - well, at least have the popcorn on hand for those threads;p