Which is better? Book as a 20-day or two 10-day cruises?

[impartfish]

Hi all - I'm ready to book my first Princess B2B and am a little unsure about a few things.  I'm trying to figure out if it'll be better to book this cruise as one 20-day cruise or two 10-day cruises.  I think I've figured out the OBCs for FCCs and stock holders but I'm confused about these things:

 

1.  If we book this cruise as a 20 day cruise, we will get just 1 loyalty point in the Captain's Circle?  If we book it as two 10-day cruises, we'd get 2 points, right?

2.  How many bar set-ups will there be in a reg. balcony cabin for 20 days?  Will it be just the 1?  If we book as two 10-day cruises, we'd get 2 set-ups right?

3.  How many internet minutes would we get for a 20 day cruise - 250 each?  Would it be more if we booked two 10-day cruises?
4.  Will we get one Loyalty OBC for the 20-day cruise and two for the 10-day cruises?

TIA for the help!  🏝️

 

[CineGraphic]

What is your Captain's Circle status level? Platinum or Elite?

 

Nevermind....just saw your signature mentioning 25 sailings.

 

1 point for 20 day, 2 points for 2 10 day.

 

1 mini bar if booked as 1 sailing, 2 if booked as b2b, although some who have booked as a single sailing in the past will say that they've received an additional mini bar set up on turnaround day.

 

For internet minutes you will get 250 per passenger for the 20 day sailing, or a total of 500 per passenger by booking the b2b.

 

Edited April 17, 2021 by CineGraphic

[Sea Day Cruiser]

For the Captain’s Circle credit it’s one for each segment so two for the cruise. Same with the minibar set ups. I’m not sure about the Internet minutes. Sometimes depends on who’s in charge in the Internet Cafe. You only get one loyalty on board credit regardless of number of segments. 

[impartfish]

4 minutes ago, CineGraphic said:

What is your Captain's Circle status level? Platinum or Elite?

Elite, we've just never done a B2B with Princess (have with others).

[impartfish]

1 minute ago, Sea Day Cruiser said:

For the Captain’s Circle credit it’s one for each segment so two for the cruise. Same with the minibar set ups. I’m not sure about the Internet minutes. Sometimes depends on who’s in charge in the Internet Cafe. You only get one loyalty on board credit regardless of number of segments. 

Thank you!  That really helps.  Figured that was the case with the Loyalty credit but it's good to have it, and the other questions, confirmed.

[impartfish]

I'm confused.  

17 minutes ago, CineGraphic said:

What is your Captain's Circle status level? Platinum or Elite?

 

Nevermind....just saw your signature mentioning 25 sailings.

 

1 point for 20 day, 2 points for 2 10 day.

 

1 mini bar if booked as 1 sailing, 2 if booked as b2b, although some who have booked as a single sailing in the past will say that they've received an additional mini bar set up on turnaround day.

 

For internet minutes you will get 250 per passenger for the 20 day sailing, or a total of 500 per passenger by booking the b2b.

 

Just saw your post.  So this seems to be the opposite of what Sea Day Cruiser posted as regards to the 1 Capt. Circle point per segment.   That is the way it should be, but is it?

Wow - 500 mins. per person if booked as two 10-day cruises vs. only 250 mins. if booked as a 20 day cruise?  That's a huge difference.  I guess it really doesn't matter if we book it under the Princess Plus promo anyway since WIFI is included.

Edited April 17, 2021 by impartfish

[Astro Flyer]

23 minutes ago, impartfish said:

So this seems to be the opposite of what Sea Day Cruiser posted as regards to the 1 Capt. Circle point per segment.   That is the way it should be, but is it?

As you can see from my Captain’s Circle history for our Sky Princess cruise booked as a single 28 day cruise we got 3 credits because it could be booked as 7/7/14 days & also received 3 minibars. Thus you’ll receive 2 credits & 2 minibars whether you book as two 10 day cruises or one 20 day cruise.

 

 

Edited April 17, 2021 by Astro Flyer

[impartfish]

7 minutes ago, Astro Flyer said:

As you can see from my Captain’s Circle history for our Sky Princess cruise booked as a single 28 day cruise we got 3 credits because it could be booked as 7/7/14 days & also received 3 minibars. Thus you’ll receive 2 credits & 2 minibars whether you book as two 10 day cruises or one 20 day cruise.

 

 

Thank you!  Appreciate it!  That makes more sense.

[Astro Flyer]

Just now, impartfish said:

Thank you!  Appreciate it!  That makes more sense.

You’re welcome...that’s how it’s worked for all of our cruises. 🙂

 

I cannot find our final statement for that cruise but as I recall we received only one $50 loyalty OBC. Although we gained enough points so our next cruises will get $75/cruise. For us our best net price was booking as a 28 day cruise plus we had the same cabin for the entire cruise which sometimes isn’t possible when booking multiple consecutive cruises.

[caribill]

3 hours ago, impartfish said:

Hi all - I'm ready to book my first Princess B2B and am a little unsure about a few things.  I'm trying to figure out if it'll be better to book this cruise as one 20-day cruise or two 10-day cruises.  I think I've figured out the OBCs for FCCs and stock holders but I'm confused about these things:

 

1.  If we book this cruise as a 20 day cruise, we will get just 1 loyalty point in the Captain's Circle?  If we book it as two 10-day cruises, we'd get 2 points, right?   1 point for each segment no matter which way it is booked.

2.  How many bar set-ups will there be in a reg. balcony cabin for 20 days?  Will it be just the 1?  If we book as two 10-day cruises, we'd get 2 set-ups right?  1 setup for each segment no matter which way it is booked.

3.  How many internet minutes would we get for a 20 day cruise - 250 each?  Would it be more if we booked two 10-day cruises?  On a single booking number for two segments I have seen it both ways in the past. Some times the amount for each segment, sometimes the amount based on the total number of days.
4.  Will we get one Loyalty OBC for the 20-day cruise and two for the 10-day cruises?  1 loyalty OBC for each booking number, so if booked as a single cruise would only get it one time.

TIA for the help!  🏝️

 

 

See above in red.

 

Two other things to consider:

 

1) If booking as two 10 day cruises can you book the same cabin for both segments?

 

2) If there is a lower price for a single segment after you have booked, there may not be a lower price for the two segments booked together. Thus you may be able to take advantage of a single segment price reduction if booked as two cruises.

[JF - retired RRT]

10 hours ago, impartfish said:

Wow - 500 mins. per person if booked as two 10-day cruises vs. only 250 mins. if booked as a 20 day cruise?  That's a huge difference.  I guess it really doesn't matter if we book it under the Princess Plus promo anyway since WIFI is included.

That was incorrect information, as noted here:

You get 500 minutes for 21 or more days...not for 20.

[suzyed]

10 hours ago, Astro Flyer said:

As you can see from my Captain’s Circle history for our Sky Princess cruise booked as a single 28 day cruise we got 3 credits because it could be booked as 7/7/14 days & also received 3 minibars. Thus you’ll receive 2 credits & 2 minibars whether you book as two 10 day cruises or one 20 day cruise.

 

 

That's what I thought...we have gotten two credits for cruises that are two segments.
You would have to weigh the prices of each segment against what booked as one cruise would be.  For us the one difference was that we wouldn't get two shareholder credits if we booked as one, which made it a $250 difference, but the price point pretty much made it cheaper to book as one.

 

[CineGraphic]

1 hour ago, JF - retired RRT said:

That was incorrect information, as noted here:

You get 500 minutes for 21 or more days...not for 20.

 

No....when booked as two 10 day segments, you get 250 for each segment, for 500 total. That's what he was referring to.

[Astro Flyer]

49 minutes ago, suzyed said:

That's what I thought...we have gotten two credits for cruises that are two segments.
You would have to weigh the prices of each segment against what booked as one cruise would be.  For us the one difference was that we wouldn't get two shareholder credits if we booked as one, which made it a $250 difference, but the price point pretty much made it cheaper to book as one.

 

We always compare both ways (single or multiple) before deciding which way to book a cruise. For us it’s been about 50/50 for which way provides our lowest net cost. Our Sky’s cruise had expensive 7/7 Med cruises but even when considering $250 SOBC, $250 military OBC & Loyalty OBC the lowest net price was by booking for 28 days. I also exchanged the 500 Internet minutes for an unlimited package for about $120.

Edited April 17, 2021 by Astro Flyer

[geocruiser]

This is something to think about.  If you book it as a 20 day cruise or two B2B, is watching for price drops.  Sometimes one segment might have a price drop and not the other.  Now I don't know if that price drop would also show up in a price drop for the 20 day cruise.  But if only on 10 day cruise has the price drop, you might be able to get the price reduced for that cruise.  (Am I making any sense?)

[coo359a2]

1 hour ago, geocruiser said:

This is something to think about.  If you book it as a 20 day cruise or two B2B, is watching for price drops.  Sometimes one segment might have a price drop and not the other.  Now I don't know if that price drop would also show up in a price drop for the 20 day cruise.  But if only on 10 day cruise has the price drop, you might be able to get the price reduced for that cruise.  (Am I making any sense?)

 Yes you are and I have had the price drops where it has only been on one segment.  

[skynight]

7 hours ago, geocruiser said:

This is something to think about.  If you book it as a 20 day cruise or two B2B, is watching for price drops.  Sometimes one segment might have a price drop and not the other.  Now I don't know if that price drop would also show up in a price drop for the 20 day cruise.  But if only on 10 day cruise has the price drop, you might be able to get the price reduced for that cruise.  (Am I making any sense?)

Yes, it has happened to us and we have been able to take advantage of the lower fares on one of the legs when originally booked separately. One thing to notice is the way Princess allocates cabins, reserved for either each leg or the b2b's. 

[johnmik1]

20 hours ago, impartfish said:

Hi all - I'm ready to book my first Princess B2B and am a little unsure about a few things.  I'm trying to figure out if it'll be better to book this cruise as one 20-day cruise or two 10-day cruises.  I think I've figured out the OBCs for FCCs and stock holders but I'm confused about these things:

 

1.  If we book this cruise as a 20 day cruise, we will get just 1 loyalty point in the Captain's Circle?  If we book it as two 10-day cruises, we'd get 2 points, right?

2.  How many bar set-ups will there be in a reg. balcony cabin for 20 days?  Will it be just the 1?  If we book as two 10-day cruises, we'd get 2 set-ups right?

3.  How many internet minutes would we get for a 20 day cruise - 250 each?  Would it be more if we booked two 10-day cruises?
4.  Will we get one Loyalty OBC for the 20-day cruise and two for the 10-day cruises?

TIA for the help!  🏝️

I am confused.If you are Elite,why would the loyalty points matter?

 

[Astro Flyer]

25 minutes ago, johnmik1 said:

I am confused.If you are Elite,why would the loyalty points matter?

Cruise credits matter for the amount of Loyalty OBC received for cruises beyond the 15 cruises/150 days to reach the Elite level.

 

21 to 31 is $25

32 to 41 is $50

42 to 51 is $75

52+ is $100

[johnmik1]

We have booked longer cruises with segments,as one cruise and always gotten cruise points for each segment.

[vjmatty]

23 hours ago, skynight said:

One thing to notice is the way Princess allocates cabins, reserved for either each leg or the b2b's. 

This was the deciding factor for me. We booked a 28-day during BSE and it looked like the cabin we wanted E736 was already taken, so we chose a different cabin. Then later, after BSE was over and the PP promotion started, I realized the sailing could be broken into segments, meaning double group amenity OBC and double military and shareholder OBC.  The price increase from BSE being over negated the extra OBC, but I checked to see if the room I'd originally wanted was available on either segment. Turns out it was available for both segments, but the booking program wouldn't let me book it for the single 28 day sailing. I called Princess to see if I could change our cabin for the 28-day booking to E736 since I now knew it was available. The Princess rep said like you said, some cabins are only available for the segments and others are only available for the single sailing. I tried starting a bunch of dummy bookings, changing the cabin back and forth to see if there was a pattern and it looks like Princess sections off parts of the ship for the segments and others for the single sailing. As to why, nobody seems to know. In any event, I switched to the two segments so I could have the cabin I wanted. It did cost a little bit more but to me the cabin is worth it. 

Edited April 18, 2021 by vjmatty

[memoak]

As far as the mini bar is concerned we have always gotten a 2nd mini bar regardless of which way we booked it. The room service department doesn’t know how you booked it. All they know is that an elite passenger is in that cabin for that cruise. 

[Astro Flyer]

When on consecutive cruises near the end of a segment we call room service to let them know our minibar preferences. That way they only need to deliver it once or to simply add two coffee programs to our accounts if that’s our preference.

[Kamloops50]

Its actually cheaper to book a 20 day versus two 10day B2B. The 20 day is usually a couple of hundred dollars cheaper per person. I book a B2B , then I can book EzAir separately for each segment.

 

[RSS from SF]

1 hour ago, vjmatty said:

. . . I checked to see if the room I'd originally wanted was available on either segment. Turns out it was available for both segments, but the booking program wouldn't let me book it for the single 28 day sailing. I called Princess to see if I could change our cabin for the 28-day booking to E736 since I now knew it was available. The Princess rep said like you said, some cabins are only available for the segments and others are only available for the single sailing. I tried starting a bunch of dummy bookings, changing the cabin back and forth to see if there was a pattern and it looks like Princess sections off parts of the ship for the segments and others for the single sailing. As to why, nobody seems to know. In any event, I switched to the two segments so I could have the cabin I wanted. It did cost a little bit more but to me the cabin is worth it. 

 

I had the same issue with my cabin that was available for the 2 segments, but not for the full 25-day sailing.  In my case, booking the 2 segments separately would have been significantly more expensive than booking the single 25-day sailing. 

 

Perhaps I was lucky, but I was able to get the cabin allocated to the 25-day sailing. (The rep gave awesome customer service; I did tell the rep that this sailing was for a very special occasion -- my milestone birthday that happened to occur within the [bucket-list-for-us] sailing dates.)

 

==> When I called to request the allocation, it was first thing in the morning when Princess opened up its customer service line -- but before the group that handles overrides had arrived for work at 9:00 AM PST.  We could see the block of cabins which were blocked from the single 25-day booking, and adjacent cabins in the same category which were available to be booked for the 25-day as well as 2 individual segments.

 

To get the cabin from the blocked section:

• First, the customer rep booked an available adjacent cabin in the same category; this gave the override person a booking to work with.
   
• Then, the rep spoke to a supervisor; the supervisor sent an email to the group that did the allocation override.  (This email was sent before group's work hours.)  
   
• The rep cautioned that this type of override is not always approved, so that I could be prepared for an "No" answer.  The rep said that if the answer was "No", I would get a call. 
   
• A couple of hours later I received email with an updated booking for the cabin I wanted. 

 

BTW the cabin I could only book for 2 segments separately was only 2-3 doors away from the closest available cabin available for the 25-day booking.  After I received the successfully allocated cabin, I also confirmed that other cabins in this 2-segment-only section still were blocked from the single 25-day booking.

 

---

NOTE:  The day before I called Princess, my TA requested the same allocation override from Princess for the exact same cabin.  Princess told my TA that the allocation might be possible, in 24 to 48 hours.  [This is a popular cabin to book early, so it's very possible that the cabin might have been snapped up if we waited 24-48 hours.]

 

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Edited April 18, 2021 by RSS from SF