Princess Customer Service - Beginning to Second Guess My Decision

[Grego]

On 1/25/2022 at 3:24 AM, caribill said:

Many long time Princess customers are also very frustrated with the pre-cruise app implementation and the long wait times to reach Princess on the phone.

 

But most of these long time Princess customers continue to believe Princess is their favorite cruise line.

 

If you are worried about the on board experience, read several of the "live from" threads about current and recent cruises. All of them report many positive experiences on board and no one posted that they were sorry they took the cruise.

You are correct.  We have had nearly 50 voyages with Princess and yes we are very loyal.  I'm sorry for those that are having problems with the app.  I certainly had an issue at first, but that was my fault and it was soon fixed.

Since then we have sailed twice since the "pause" as lifted and both the November voyage and December New Year's voyage went perfectly.  The app was completed and without an issue and the upcoming 4 voyages this year are completed including a B2B and we are ''Green" with only the medical segment to be done before we board.

The onboard experience with our iPhone was flawless and there were so many really useful things we were able to do with it with more coming I'm sure.

I look forward to the day soon that all the bugs will be fixed so that everyone with any skill level and type of "smart device" can implement the app and get back to enjoying themselves on their voyage without having to complain.

 

[Coral]

Of all of my Princess cruises - my onboard experience was the best in December on the Grand. It was actually exceptional.

 

I use a TA so I don't have to contact Princess. My TA always responds to my emails/calls quickly. Even when she is out of town.

[PescadoAmarillo]

I have over 100 Princess cruises and nothing good to say right now about Princess Shoreside Customer Service. Not one thing. I have been lectured by some Princess fans over and over again about how there’s a pandemic going on (did I know that?) and the employee shortage. Oh, and about how every company is having this issue. But what I see goes deeper than that:  an app that should never have been released, or at least released without any kind of instructions for those less technically inclined, unkept promises about the return of a website check in process by November or December, a complete lack of employee training since so many phone agents seem to provide very different answers, or break things even further, and an unacceptable delay in processing credits and refunds. 
 

Saying that, the 4+ weeks of Princess cruises we’ve done since the start-up have been nearly perfect, the exception being Dine My Way.  That’s been a disaster, but that’s a shoreside thing too. I don’t blame Princess a bit for things like mask mandates and slightly diminished on board offerings. If a ship is sailing at only 25% capacity, it makes sense that services on board are cut back a little.  I think Princess ships in general feel a little crowded;  the reduced capacity, although clearly unsustainable, provides an unmatched level of service and feels very safe. The crew goes above and beyond all the time, and I love the feeling of being back on a Princess ship. 
 

My only piece of advice to anyone sailing right now is to not leave the ship with a single open issue. Resolve any on board charges discrepancies, use up all your refundable OBC, straighten out that laundry issue.  Getting anything resolved once you’re back home will require hours of frustration and weeks of waiting. 

[dog]

Good advice above  

[Clark W Grismond]

On 1/24/2022 at 11:03 PM, VibeGuy said:

There has never been a better time to sail with Princess, in terms of onboard product and execution, at any time in the last 25 years. 
 

The pre-departure experience is a feces-show right now - getting a human is impossible, the app doesn’t work well even on flagship devices, the help desk for app issues is buried in requests from people who aren’t sailing until June. 
 

I urge you to disregard all that.  We booked B2Bs for before and over Christmas.   Things on board were so good we stayed for New Years.   That was so fun we stayed past Epiphany and all the way into MLK Day.   That sailing was so good we’re back for another month in a few weeks. 
 

The crew is eager to please.  Nothing is overcrowded.  The ships are sparkling. The app actually works great once you’re onboard.  Princess is executing so well it scares me and the App makes them seem just one step away from psychic.  
 

I’ve got no dog in this hunt other than being a happy customer who has lots of vacation choices open to him.  I have millions of Marriott Bonvoy points and enough miles to buy a small airline.  I could go anywhere they’ll have me, and I’m choosing to spend more time on Princess right now. 

Your perspective is appreciated, VibeGuy.  Thanks.

[Clark W Grismond]

On 1/25/2022 at 10:03 AM, CineGraphic said:

Clark,

 

The service on board will more than make-up for the cluster#$%& pre-cruise experience.

Don't waste anymore time on the app, and just bring all of the required paperwork to the port.

They know the app is quirky and have lots of agents at the port to check everyone in.

 

Once on board, put your check-in problems behind you otherwise you will not enjoy yourself.

I'm sure that you'll have just as good as a time as I had in Wally World.

 

(The remake of Vacation was filmed here in Atlanta, where I worked on a handful of scenes)

 

 

Thanks CineGraphic.  Love the shot with Walley!

[Clark W Grismond]

On 1/25/2022 at 11:02 AM, *Miss G* said:

I, too, am new to Princess and was beginning to question my decision as I kept running into issues.  Prepping for the cruise started feeling like a chore.  Then a miracle appeared (a responsive, reliable, and competent PVP — replacing the rude and incompetent previous PVP) and it has been smooth sailing ever since.  He warned me about the app and how to avoid its issues but I have not yet downloaded it so I don’t know how well that will work.  I almost don’t care, at this point, because I have been enjoying my cruise prep, which is how things should be.  I say all this to say, don’t sweat the tech.  It will all work out in the end.

Hi MissG.  Interesting your point about PVPs.  I'm on my 3rd; each of the others has left Princess.

[*Miss G*]

4 minutes ago, Clark W Grismond said:

Hi MissG.  Interesting your point about PVPs.  I'm on my 3rd; each of the others has left Princess.

 

Shhh.  You’ll scare him away.  🤫

[caribill]

Does anyone know if reaching a real person is quicker when calling Princess if you select the option to book a new cruise?

 

Do they really make someone who wants to make a new booking wait on hold for an hour or more? If so, maybe that is contributing to ships sailing at less that 25% capacity.

[dog]

2 hours ago, caribill said:

Does anyone know if reaching a real person is quicker when calling Princess if you select the option to book a new cruise?

 

Do they really make someone who wants to make a new booking wait on hold for an hour or more? If so, maybe that is contributing to ships sailing at less that 25% capacity.

No, has made no difference   

[MissP22]

On 1/26/2022 at 9:56 AM, PescadoAmarillo said:

My only piece of advice to anyone sailing right now is to not leave the ship with a single open issue. Resolve any on board charges discrepancies, use up all your refundable OBC, straighten out that laundry issue.  Getting anything resolved once you’re back home will require hours of frustration and weeks of waiting. 

This has always been the correct way of dealing with any problem. Even with Princess having sufficient personal to handle your concerns trying to explain the situation makes things 10 time harder once off the ship.

[Grego]

2 hours ago, MissP22 said:

This has always been the correct way of dealing with any problem. Even with Princess having sufficient personal to handle your concerns trying to explain the situation makes things 10 time harder once off the ship.

Exactly.  I'm surprised that anyone would not even consider doing this.

[geoherb]

Well, in my case on one cruise, I could not get a satisfactory answer on the ship. It was for an excursion that did not fulfill the description. I complained at the shore excursion desk and filled out a complaint form. The person said he would have to contact the vendor and find out what happened. A couple of days later (last day of our cruise), I received a letter from the shore excursions manager saying that he had not heard back from the vendor and couldn't do anything for us. Customer service back then was quicker to respond. I received a phone call about a week after filling out the support request form. The rep offered double what I would have accepted on the ship. 

 

More recently, I did not notice an erroneous charge while on the CB last month. One of the nine reps I spoke with last week said she could offer me a goodwill credit to make up for it. Unfortunately, another rep canceled that booking. I never saw if the credit appeared on that booking before it was canceled, and it's not showing up on my new booking. I'm waiting for customer relations to get back to me about this and several other things regarding my upcoming cruise. 

[HBCcruiser]

8 minutes ago, geoherb said:

I'm waiting for customer relations to get back to me about this and several other things regarding my upcoming cruise. 

I am still waiting to hear back from customer relations as well. I emailed and spoke to reps last week then again this week. 🤷‍♀️

[caribill]