Ocean Medallion Question Thread - Part 1

[Astro Flyer]

23 hours ago, Host CJSKIDS said:

 

I was ocean ready  yesterday after months of issues and today I"m not and it needs the passports yet again.  I'm sailing on May 14.  

This did the same thing when I was on the Regal in January and honestly the app is just that glitchy!

 

Hopefully it will fix itself prior to your sailing.

When boarding the Royal on 4/27 everything in our OceanReady was complete.  However there was a problem with the passport function so they took our passports for about 5 minutes at check-in to correct they problem.

 

Overall everything went smoothly with OM but despite not having any type of notification for a Chat message they have a way to disable the nonexistent notifications.  Asked a Navigator who wonder the same thing but no answer why.

 

Using OceanNow for drinks worked well however the food ordering was limited.  The only food available was from the Trident Grill & Prego’s & we’re limited to the pool area.

 

Hopefully the OceanConcierge (same as Princess@Sea) intranet site accessed through your web browser will have those functions such as folio eventually included in OceanCompass.

 

It’s turnaround day in LA and relaxing before we begin our coastal cruise.  

[OceanDreamers]

19 hours ago, MGnut said:

What ship will you be cruising on?

We will be on the Grand Princess.. 

 

 

[Host CJSKIDS]

6 hours ago, Astro Flyer said:

When boarding the Royal on 4/27 everything in our OceanReady was complete.  However there was a problem with the passport function so they took our passports for about 5 minutes at check-in to correct they problem.

 

Overall everything went smoothly with OM but despite not having any type of notification for a Chat message they have a way to disable the nonexistent notifications.  Asked a Navigator who wonder the same thing but no answer why.

 

Using OceanNow for drinks worked well however the food ordering was limited.  The only food available was from the Trident Grill & Prego’s & we’re limited to the pool area.

 

Hopefully the OceanConcierge (same as Princess@Sea) intranet site accessed through your web browser will have those functions such as folio eventually included in OceanCompass.

 

It’s turnaround day in LA and relaxing before we begin our coastal cruise.  

 

Thanks for the update on the medallion and how it works on the ship.  

 

Hope you are having the greatest cruise!!

[MGnut]

1 hour ago, OceanDreamers said:

We will be on the Grand Princess.. 

 

 

According to the Princess website, the Grand Princess is not shown as getting the MedallionNet option in either 2019 or 2020. See link, below:

 

https://www.princess.com/ships-and-experience/ocean-medallion/medallionnet/

 

Sorry ☹️

 

 Edit: The link only shows up to June 2020, but for your April cruise, the Grand should not have it. It may get it after June.

 

Edited May 4, 2019 by MGnut
added info..

[SargassoPirate]

How much personal information is stored on the medallion and how hackable is it?

[SargassoPirate]

And, one more question for now.  How will this work for B2B cruises?

[Asquare]

We just got off the Royal Princess.  Our experience is as follows:

1) I got us Ocean Ready atone using an i-phone.  I just followed the instructions and went in order.  I ordered the Medallions at the end of the process.

2)  The Medallions arrived via FedEx about 2 weeks before our cruise.  They were engraved with our names and the correct color for our Captain’s Club level.

3). We used a Fitbit Zip wristband that we purchased on Amazon instead of the lanyards.  The doors opened fine without removing it from the band.  If we were sitting at the actual bar the bartender could see us on his register and we didn’t need to remove it.  The only time we actually had to hand it to anyone was the servers in the Piazza for some reason the Medallion had to be perfectly flat on their device.  Some servers would still ask for a room number as well.

4)  We left our phones in the room for the most part.  People were using their phones and the Play Ocean app to play interactive games by the pool and in Princess Live.

5)  Ocean Concierge is still a webpage not an app.  It still refuses to work on Android products.  But the big new screens by the elevators have all the activities listed and can give directions to any venue.

6) The best app is Ocean Compass.  You can set up your traveling companions and find them on the ship. 

7). Getting off and on the ship is a snap with the Medallion.  It really speeds things up,

In my opinion this was much easier than having to worry about a cruise card.  There is no need to carry your phone around unless you are really into the apps.  I didn’t feel like my privacy was invaded.  

[Ombud]

Can a regular chain fit into the medallion. I have several so don't see as need to buy theirs

[Thrak]

1 hour ago, SargassoPirate said:

How much personal information is stored on the medallion and how hackable is it?

 

Absolutely nothing is stored on the Medallion other than a unique identifier. All info is stored on encrypted servers onboard.

[SargassoPirate]

23 minutes ago, Thrak said:

 

Absolutely nothing is stored on the Medallion other than a unique identifier. All info is stored on encrypted servers onboard.

Thanks.

[Pamster]

 

There is nothing to put a chain into on the medallion.  Their chains must have a type of locket to put the medallion into.

[Pamster]

1 hour ago, Asquare said:

We just got off the Royal Princess.  Our experience is as follows:

1) I got us Ocean Ready atone using an i-phone.  I just followed the instructions and went in order.  I ordered the Medallions at the end of the process.

2)  The Medallions arrived via FedEx about 2 weeks before our cruise.  They were engraved with our names and the correct color for our Captain’s Club level.

3). We used a Fitbit Zip wristband that we purchased on Amazon instead of the lanyards.  The doors opened fine without removing it from the band.  If we were sitting at the actual bar the bartender could see us on his register and we didn’t need to remove it.  The only time we actually had to hand it to anyone was the servers in the Piazza for some reason the Medallion had to be perfectly flat on their device.  Some servers would still ask for a room number as well.

4)  We left our phones in the room for the most part.  People were using their phones and the Play Ocean app to play interactive games by the pool and in Princess Live.

5)  Ocean Concierge is still a webpage not an app.  It still refuses to work on Android products.  But the big new screens by the elevators have all the activities listed and can give directions to any venue.

6) The best app is Ocean Compass.  You can set up your traveling companions and find them on the ship. 

7). Getting off and on the ship is a snap with the Medallion.  It really speeds things up,

In my opinion this was much easier than having to worry about a cruise card.  There is no need to carry your phone around unless you are really into the apps.  I didn’t feel like my privacy was invaded.  

 

We had similar experiences.  Check in was much, much faster for those who had the medallions.  I don't know for sure, but I thought that the reason that the Piazza waiters asked for our room number was because there were so many people in the Piazza, maybe they do that to be sure they have the correct person.  I did have to put my medallion on the reader in the Delectables shop, but that was the only place.  

 

As far as the apps, I LOVED OceanCompass for the deck plans.  OceanConcierge worked for my iPhone, so that was convenient.  I made lots of use of OceanNow to order drinks.  It was nicer than having to try to catch the attention of the busy waiters until they noticed that you were ready to order.  I didn't even download OceanPlay.  

 

Being able to open the cabin door without having to dig around for a cruise card, especially when my hands were full was great.  I felt like the medallion really added to my enjoyment of the cruise.

[Alaska05]

Looking for some clarification especially as it pertains to the Ocean Compass app and does it work before u get on the ship.

 

We were on the Regal in January and everything worked well for the most part. 

 

We are going to be on the Royal in June. Everything is completed and Ocean Ready shows check marks for both of us. Medallions have been ordered.

 

However when I open the Ocean Compass app and put in my booking number and birthdate I continually get error message that they were unable to match the combination of reservation number and birthday. Is this normal until I get on the ship?

[Jgpitts]

Alaska05, I have the same scenario with Compass, nearly word-for-word. Had similar situation when I first tried to set up OceanReady. Had to call the helpline to get OR sorted out.  

[richmke]

11 hours ago, Asquare said:

3). We used a Fitbit Zip wristband that we purchased on Amazon instead of the lanyards.  

 

 

Can you post a pic of the medallion in the wristband. Either $6 for the Fitbit Wristband, or $12 for the Princess one. I'm wondering if it is worth paying a few dollars extra for a nicer look. I assume that either will last for lost of cruises.

[voljeep]

10 hours ago, Pamster said:

 

We had similar experiences.  Check in was much, much faster for those who had the medallions.  I don't know for sure, but I thought that the reason that the Piazza waiters asked for our room number was because there were so many people in the Piazza, maybe they do that to be sure they have the correct person.  I did have to put my medallion on the reader in the Delectables shop, but that was the only place.  

 

As far as the apps, I LOVED OceanCompass for the deck plans.  OceanConcierge worked for my iPhone, so that was convenient.  I made lots of use of OceanNow to order drinks.  It was nicer than having to try to catch the attention of the busy waiters until they noticed that you were ready to order.  I didn't even download OceanPlay.  

 

Being able to open the cabin door without having to dig around for a cruise card, especially when my hands were full was great.  I felt like the medallion really added to my enjoyment of the cruise.

Ocean Now for drinks - does it just have a drop down menu of the different beers for you to pick from?

[jamcq1943]

My question is when will the Grand Princess have the Medallion program?  I heard it was installed in April while in dry dock but won't be active for a while.

[Thrak]

9 hours ago, richmke said:

 

Can you post a pic of the medallion in the wristband. Either $6 for the Fitbit Wristband, or $12 for the Princess one. I'm wondering if it is worth paying a few dollars extra for a nicer look. I assume that either will last for lost of cruises.

 

Fitbit "clip" and wristband. Works but they aren't designed for a round device.

 

 

Edited May 6, 2019 by Thrak

[PMGS247]

29 minutes ago, jamcq1943 said:

My question is when will the Grand Princess have the Medallion program?  I heard it was installed in April while in dry dock but won't be active for a while.

I recall seeing in the documentary of the grand's dry dock something about all the new cabling they had to install for new technology, I remember it looked like miles and miles of blue ethernet cable, but nowhere on the internet can I find anything about Medallion launch for that ship. There's plenty of lists out there listing current & future planned ships, but Grand isn't anywhere to be found.  My guess is you're probably looking at 2020, but I'm with you, it did seem like there was something done in the drydock based on the documentary.

[richmke]

Thanks for the pics. Since I don't have a fitbit, I'll buy the Sports Band on the ship. Hopefully Princess doesn't change the size of the Medallion, and I can use it again on future cruises.

[Pamster]

12 hours ago, voljeep said:

Ocean Now for drinks - does it just have a drop down menu of the different beers for you to pick from?

 

Essentially.  It's not a drop down menu, but a screen with a list of beers and a beer-bottle cap for a button to select what you want.  

[CruiseVA]

3 hours ago, richmke said:

Thanks for the pics. Since I don't have a fitbit, I'll buy the Sports Band on the ship. Hopefully Princess doesn't change the size of the Medallion, and I can use it again on future cruises.

I doubt the size will change, give the cost of development of the tech. 

[OceanDreamers]

On 5/4/2019 at 4:09 PM, MGnut said:

According to the Princess website, the Grand Princess is not shown as getting the MedallionNet option in either 2019 or 2020. See link, below:

 

https://www.princess.com/ships-and-experience/ocean-medallion/medallionnet/

 

Sorry ☹️

 

 Edit: The link only shows up to June 2020, but for your April cruise, the Grand should not have it. It may get it after June.

 

 

[MGnut]

13 minutes ago, OceanDreamers said:

You were right ...Princess web site did say that... but I Just saw this post on facebook.. will have to see I guess...

https://cruisefever.net/princess-cruises-expanding-medallionclass-to-six-more-cruise-ships-in-2020/?fbclid=IwAR1Gy-ypCXGuV6yO4Jx5FQYg6l15rrDMBP_Sz1h0e6jqB2BbugvfeTUaihE

 

Thanks ....

 

 

Yes, you are correct. I found a link this morning, saying the Grand Princess is due to get the Medallion 

Class on March 29, 2020. Here is the link:

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/princess-cruises-continues-activation-medallionclass-090500135.html

 

It gives a list of 6 ships which will get the MedallionClass in 2020.

[krmatlock]

Has anyone used the medallion with young kids? I have a 3 and 5 year old. Do they need the medallions for the kids club? If so does anyone have experience with the easiest way to keep them on the kids without them loosing it?