3 for Free Details - September 6 - November 19

[Coral]

Coral, got my 3FF promo finally worked out --- only took about 2 hours. :eek: After hanging on for about an hour I left and TA called me back. TA said that she gave up on Princess and called back --- that time she only waited 20 minutes. Princess and TAs are going nuts with this new promo; said cabins are being heavily booked.

 

 

Asked my TA about POLAR and she said that their company doesn't use it as they have a different system -- they are a big box TA.

 

Glad you got it settled. I figured I would call my agent this weekend.

[esper10]

Website states the deposit is refundable!

 

 

Thank you both

[cruzrbachoua]

Ok that is making sense although it is still shady as I don't believe anywhere on the site or my booking does it say my cabin is a "premium" but I will double check the site....and yes I do know that things change but now knowing that my cabin is considered special makes a bit more sense...

 

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[jajsmom]

When I checked first thing this morning, it looked like going from SnS to 3FF made our price go up about $50 net. Later, when I was more awake, I realized that I was using the amount that we still owe, rather than the price of the real total. The rates are actually better for us--we went from an obstructed oceanview to a balcony for only $50 net. Much better stateroom for minimal difference. We're happy!

[caribill]

Did rates go up due to 3FF?

 

 

Yes -

Yesterday morning when I looked the pricing for a cruise I have been looking at, it was the same as it has been for weeks. But when I looked at 2 AM today:

a) inside - up $241/person

b) oceanview - up $241/person

c) Balcony - no change

 

 

No -

But at 8 AM today, the rates had changed again, even lower than they had been for weeks:

a) Inside - down $40/person (down $281 since 2 AM)

b) Oceanview - down $40/person (down $281 since 2 AM)

c) Balcony - no change

 

 

Maybe-

Your experience may vary.

[Cairn Mom]

Just called, cabin price dropped considerably and we got free gratuities and $200 a person on board credit. Always my favorite promo.

 

 

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[nukesubsailor]

I checked on two cruises I have booked. The fares were lower for the 3 for Free promotion that what I booked for. On one cruise I could save over $1400 but would give up the value of the Sip and Sail beverage packages. On the other cruise I would save only $150.

[compozer]

I switched from SNS to 3FF today. It’s for a 7 day cruise. We switched because we just don’t drink enough to make SNS worth it. Even though the Premium Beverage Package Cost $400+ per person, we don’t value it as such. We typically get DH the soda and more package and myself the bottled water package.

 

By switching today, our fare for same cabin dropped by about $200 per person (including lower insurance), got $100 OBC per person, and prepaid gratuities (rounded to $100 per person). So that’s a reduction in net price to me of $400 per person or $800 for two.

 

If you think you’ll make use of the drink package, it might be useful for you on a long cruise, especially if it was something you were going to buy anyway.

 

Thanks for taking the time to explain your situation. There is no way the drink package is worth that much to us. In the past we have more than normal drinks the first week. A few less the second week. By the third week we skip all until pre dinner and in the fourth week I hardly drink anything. The first week I would mix an after dinner drink with a specialty coffee but I don't need all those calories more than once every few weeks. We do tend to gain a few pounds when we get the S&S package so not really fond of it, The package gets my dh out of the cabin. Otherwise he enjoys just relaxing on our balcony. We usually book suites and they never have been a deal with these promotions. And all of ours are sold out so no deal anyway.

Maybe I should look at a different cabin.

Thanks again.

[chamima]

Trying to figure out if it works for us.

14 day cruise.

We have S&S. Price went down $80 (total, not per person)

Gratuities worth $264 and we get $400 OBC.

 

 

We don't drink a ton but 4 bottles of perrier ($12-16), 4 drinks ($52) and 2 glasses of wine ($26) puts us at about $90 - $95/day for the two of us value for the drink package.

I think we come out about even or maybe slightly ahead for just sticking with what we have.

 

 

Have I calculated incorrectly?

[mackfam]

Deleted post as I found my answer.

Edited September 6, 2018 by mackfam

[kjg46]

Question:

Some of you are getting such great deals with this offer vs S&S. People are saying they are saving $600 - $750 plus OBC and more by switching from S&S to this promotion. Are you doing short cruises? One of mine is 29 days so our sip and sail promotion gives us a value of $2414 each for a total of $4828 value on drinks. There is no way we will drink that much, especially me. There is no way a cruise would go down that much.

What am I missing?

 

With the S&S don't try to cover the $ value of that promotion. Just consider what you would normally drink per day (maybe a bottle of wine at dinner and if you wish cocktails per day). That would no way come close to the perk value. However, that is the actual value you need to compare to 34Free.

 

On our New England Canada cruise we gave up the S&S for the 34Free. Iit was a better value to us than trying to drink 15 drinks a day to reap the full value to the S&S. We saved $894 on refare, $351 Tips and $400 OBC Total value to us $1645. vs S&S value of $1,761. We can use the OBC for shore excursion, spa etc. Can't do the same with any residual S&S drinks.

All the best

[mthomp5]

Thanks for taking the time to explain your situation. There is no way the drink package is worth that much to us. In the past we have more than normal drinks the first week. A few less the second week. By the third week we skip all until pre dinner and in the fourth week I hardly drink anything. The first week I would mix an after dinner drink with a specialty coffee but I don't need all those calories more than once every few weeks. We do tend to gain a few pounds when we get the S&S package so not really fond of it, The package gets my dh out of the cabin. Otherwise he enjoys just relaxing on our balcony. We usually book suites and they never have been a deal with these promotions. And all of ours are sold out so no deal anyway.

Maybe I should look at a different cabin.

Thanks again.

 

You’re very welcome! Totally understand gaining weight on a cruise. We tend to gain at least 5 lbs...and that’s without alcohol. :o

[Ombud]

Californian here .... I did a reserve on Australia to New Zealand next NOVEMBER!! That would be 11/24/19!! Never did one that far out but as a single cruiser my price point is $2500 cruise + $1000 air. So this works :) Plus tips covered, looks like no excursions actually needed, I bring wine from the winery down the block from me. So I've got $200 onboard credit and I'm thinking that I'm going to walk off the ship without owing anything! Waiting for my personal cruise planner to confirm tomorrow

[brt49]

Traded my $1,000 OBC for a nicer location, free gratuities ( I was going to use the OBC to pay) and a $370 pp reduction. Even with the $600 reduction in OBC I ended up saving $160.

 

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[Ombud]

Californian here .... I did a reserve on Australia to New Zealand next NOVEMBER!! That would be 11/24/19!! Never did one that far out but as a single cruiser my price point is $2500 cruise + $1000 air. So this works :) Plus tips covered, looks like no excursions actually needed, I bring wine from the winery down the block from me. So I've got $200 onboard credit and I'm thinking that I'm going to walk off the ship without owing anything! Waiting for my personal cruise planner to confirm tomorrow

umm ummm ..... my original quote was 2098 but I wasn't sure I wanted that cruise. Thought about maybe going from Sydney instead of Melbourne. So went back on. New quote from Melbourne is 2658! 590 more! And 3398+ from Sydney. So for 1300 maybe I'll just layover in Sydney. I think it's a fluke or misquote hoping they'll honor it

[Italy52]

I called my TA at 5 AM this morning (yes, my big box TA was open at that time) because I wanted to get the 3FF added to my B2B reservations and also try to upgrade my inside cabin to a better inside cabin. At 5 AM, I was told the promo was not available --- strange I thought as today was 9/6 and I knew the promo was to start today. When I called back around 9:30 AM, the promo was available --- TA said that it was loaded in their system around 6 AM. Persistence does pay off.

[ceilidh1]

I'm trying to refare my December cruise on Sky - price has dropped around $200 with 3FF. I will lose sip n sail but since the 2nd person is a minor, the sip n sail wasn't that great a deal for us (though I could certainly drink enough to make it worthwhile for me!) With 3FF we could get gratuities paid for all 3 of us, plus $300 onboard credit. We will come out ahead even if I buy a drink package for myself and soda package for the kids. Only issue is, Princess keeps hanging up on me! Every time I get through to the ring tone after all the messages and music, it disconnects!

[Ombud]

umm ummm ..... my original quote was 2098 but I wasn't sure I wanted that cruise. Thought about maybe going from Sydney instead of Melbourne. So went back on. New quote from Melbourne is 2658! 590 more! And 3398+ from Sydney. So for 1300 maybe I'll just layover in Sydney. I think it's a fluke or misquote hoping they'll honor it

clarification. The 2098 is just the room. By the time you add in taxes + Port charges + platinum cruise protection it's at 2500. I have no idea what the other fares would be with with the additions but hope the quote is real

[Steelers36]

Our friends have a BW under Landmark promo with $1000 OBC. They can book a BB now under 3FF and bottom line net-net (net invoice price, less OBC) saving $5 (total for two). So a better Balcony cabin for essentially same out-of-pocket bottom line and they greatly reduce OBC which goes into fare savings and gratuities savings. They - and we - prefer to have less costs and less OBC than a ton of OBC to try and spend.

 

We are on same cruise and will drop from IA to IB and do 3FF and save net-net about $140.

 

These are Baltic cruises on Regal.

[ceilidh1]

Finally got through to Princess and it was worth the hassle! Ended up saving more than I thought I would as the agent quoted me a lower price than was showing online! Saved $676 on cruise fare, kept my same premium balcony cabin, free grats for 3 people, $300 onboard credit. I lost the sip n sail but that was only a value of $636 for me and $140 soda package for kids.. I still come out ahead even if I buy those things anyway! (All prices in CAD)

[PoohUnderstands]

Our friends have a BW under Landmark promo with $1000 OBC. They can book a BB now under 3FF and bottom line net-net (net invoice price, less OBC) saving $5 (total for two). So a better Balcony cabin for essentially same out-of-pocket bottom line and they greatly reduce OBC which goes into fare savings and gratuities savings. They - and we - prefer to have less costs and less OBC than a ton of OBC to try and spend.

 

We are on same cruise and will drop from IA to IB and do 3FF and save net-net about $140.

 

These are Baltic cruises on Regal.

 

We are doing the Baltic Cruise next year from Copenhagen to NYC. Ended up saving over $1750 and after losing the $1000 OBC and taking the gratuities from that, we end up with $96 more on OBC. Best part as you said is that our OBC is now at a lower reasonable level and have actual better savings at final payment time! Now that I got my 3 for Free, I am hoping maybe to refare at least once because the fare price changed! One can hope can't one?!

 

And I guessed I lucked out. Called this evening after dinner and got right through to a Princess rep. I didn't wait at all!!!

 

Pooh

[caribill]

Now that I got my 3 for Free, I am hoping maybe to refare at least once because the fare price changed! One can hope can't one?!

If you see a lower price after the 3FF promotion ends, changes are you will have to give up your 3FF benefits to take advantage of it,

[bobby3334]

Like buying a new version of an iPhone I usually wait until kinks are worked out a month or two after the initial date of the sale. Usually but not always for the best. Mike

 

 

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[PoohUnderstands]

If you see a lower price after the 3FF promotion ends, changes are you will have to give up your 3FF benefits to take advantage of it,

 

Again, if you have a refundable deposit (that is the key to all this), then if the price goes down for your stateroom category, you can call and they just refare, NOT rebook you at the lower fare price. You do not lose any benefits that you already have. You just get the lower price. Now sometimes, these lower prices last literally 1/2 a day, so I am daily looking at the pricing and have caught some decent price decreases. I have done this many times and never lost any benefits I had. The only way I lost out in a way, is if I take an upsell and if I had initially bought that category would have gotten more OBC, but if you go higher category on an upsell, you keep only the benefits that you received with your intial booking.

 

Pooh

[ceilidh1]

Again, if you have a refundable deposit (that is the key to all this), then if the price goes down for your stateroom category, you can call and they just refare, NOT rebook you at the lower fare price. You do not lose any benefits that you already have. You just get the lower price. Now sometimes, these lower prices last literally 1/2 a day, so I am daily looking at the pricing and have caught some decent price decreases. I have done this many times and never lost any benefits I had. The only way I lost out in a way, is if I take an upsell and if I had initially bought that category would have gotten more OBC, but if you go higher category on an upsell, you keep only the benefits that you received with your intial booking.

 

Pooh

 

This is only true if the lower price is under the same promotion. If you see a lower price under a different promotion you DO lose the benefits - as has been seen from those that booked under Sip n Sail and now transferred to a lower price under 3FF (such as myself).