Now a charge for Cabin Selection?

[kitty2264]

Since when has Princess been charging for making a room selection?  I was just looking at the 2024-25 Caribbean cruises and found for me to reserve a mini suite costs $350 per person for a 20 day cruise.  I also looked at 7 day cruises and the charge was $182 per person.  To reserve a balcony cabin cost $88 per person for 7 day.  There is no charge if I let Princess select the cabin.  We like to decide where we want to be on the ship but now we have to pay for that luxury if one could call it that.

 

This all caught us by surprise.

 

They seem to keep finding ways to add to the total cost.  

1. Select your room type $$$

2. Do you want "Reserve collection" in that category $$$

3. Add Plus or Premium Package $$$

4. Pick your cabin location $$$

[CruiserN1]

Seems like "guarantee" cabins in every category have always been less expensive than choosing a specific cabin.

[Astro Flyer]

4 minutes ago, CruiserN1 said:

Seems like "guarantee" cabins in every category have always been less expensive than choosing a specific cabin.

Haven’t seen that on Princess although on Celebrity that was true in December.

 

Edited April 18, 2023 by Astro Flyer

[Astro Flyer]

31 minutes ago, kitty2264 said:

Since when has Princess been charging for making a room selection?

That started about a month ago and on many of the Guarantee cabin categories the deposit is non-refundable.

[Colorado Coasty]

Here we go AGAIN!

[voljeep]

2 hours ago, kitty2264 said:

Since when has Princess been charging for making a room selection?  I was just looking at the 2024-25 Caribbean cruises and found for me to reserve a mini suite costs $350 per person for a 20 day cruise.  I also looked at 7 day cruises and the charge was $182 per person.  To reserve a balcony cabin cost $88 per person for 7 day.  There is no charge if I let Princess select the cabin.  We like to decide where we want to be on the ship but now we have to pay for that luxury if one could call it that.

 

This all caught us by surprise.

 

They seem to keep finding ways to add to the total cost.  

1. Select your room type $$$

2. Do you want "Reserve collection" in that category $$$

3. Add Plus or Premium Package $$$

4. Pick your cabin location $$$

let's see - if I fly and want to pick my own seat - I get charged.  If I let the airline pick my seat, there is no charge ... seems fair to me

 

you can always book a 'get on price' - let Princess choose for you the lowest category and location on the ship - and still get the same dining, shows, etc as I get if I book a mid ship balcony

Edited April 18, 2023 by voljeep

[2 cruises a year]

This is a typical Princess mistake, they annoy people by charging you extra to get what you want.  If they quoted you a price for a cabin you choose.  Everyone is happy, no problem.  Then they could offer a discount to let Princess choose.  Bingo, everyone loves an offer for a discount.  You have the choice to take the discount or not.  It is a bonus discount, not an annoying upcharge.

Just because airlines have gotten away with it, doesn't make it a good idea.

[Kay S]

I thought I was immune to shock over what nonsense Princess will pull, but I have to say, this is a new one.  It makes no sense that a company would deliberately alienate customers so they could go out of business, but Princess is sure making it look like that's what they want to do.

[RD64]

1 minute ago, Kay S said:

I thought I was immune to shock over what nonsense Princess will pull, but I have to say, this is a new one.  It makes no sense that a company would deliberately alienate customers so they could go out of business, but Princess is sure making it look like that's what they want to do.

You have options - nobody is forcing you to book with Princess. Feel free to choose another cruise line with less restrictive booking options.

[Steelers36]

41 minutes ago, 2 cruises a year said:

This is a typical Princess mistake, they annoy people by charging you extra to get what you want.  If they quoted you a price for a cabin you choose.  Everyone is happy, no problem.  Then they could offer a discount to let Princess choose.  Bingo, everyone loves an offer for a discount.  You have the choice to take the discount or not.  It is a bonus discount, not an annoying upcharge.

Just because airlines have gotten away with it, doesn't make it a good idea.

Some folks just look at the Non-Ref GTY for $100 and the Ref Deposit selected cabin at $200 and say Princess is charging me $100 to pick my cabin instead of saying Princess is going to give me $100 off if I let them pick and I book a Non-Ref GTY cabin.  

[2 cruises a year]

20 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

Some folks just look at the Non-Ref GTY for $100 and the Ref Deposit selected cabin at $200 and say Princess is charging me $100 to pick my cabin instead of saying Princess is going to give me $100 off if I let them pick and I book a Non-Ref GTY cabin.  

Of course some folks say that, because that is exactly what Princess says.  YOU are the one twisting it to criticize folks for seeing it the way it is.  My point was that wording it your way in the first place would be a lot smarter.

[Colorado Coasty]

24 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

Some folks just look at the Non-Ref GTY for $100 and the Ref Deposit selected cabin at $200 and say Princess is charging me $100 to pick my cabin instead of saying Princess is going to give me $100 off if I let them pick and I book a Non-Ref GTY cabin.  

Some folks are just unclear on a concept that is not new. Some folks are just not happy unless they have something to complain about.

 

[stevenr597]

I thought that all the cruise lines, for quite some time, charged less if you let them select your cabin.  After all, at times, until boarding, one does not know where they are going to be located or even if they will have an upwards bump up in class  if they let the cruise line select for them. 

[LibertyBella]

Well, guarantees mean take the dice roll and see what appears.  If cabin choice does not matter, then why not?

 

Many times the cruise lines offer what they consider higher quality cabins for an increased price, but if you search enough you can find a cabin choice with a reasonable price.  Sometimes I find better choices and offers on travel agent websites rather than on the Princess website.

 

 

[stoneharborlady]

23 minutes ago, Colorado Coasty said:

Some folks are just unclear on a concept that is not new. Some folks are just not happy unless they have something to complain about.

 

I believe it is relatively new for Princess.  It would seem quite a few frequent cruisers are now surprised by it.  

[Potstech]

1 hour ago, RD64 said:

You have options - nobody is forcing you to book with Princess. Feel free to choose another cruise line with less restrictive booking options.

But they are as the customer selection of cabins is very slim pickings.

[Colorado Coasty]

2 minutes ago, Potstech said:

But they are as the customer selection of cabins is very slim pickings.

Huh?

[Colorado Coasty]

33 minutes ago, Colorado Coasty said:

Some folks are just unclear on a concept that is not new. Some folks are just not happy unless they have something to complain about.

 

I've been sailing Princess for over 20 years, I wasn't surprised.

I pay full fare for the cabin I want and don't take a chance just to get a $100 discount.

[OzKiwiJJ]

What they have done is block out the lowest category of cabins in each class ie IF, BF, and have made those only available under the 'Princess chooses" option at the fare those cabin categories would normally go for. The first category that is able to be selected is therefore one higher than the lowest and is also at the fare that category would normally go for, but the way it's shown makes it look like they are charging extra for cabin selection.

 

One other problem with this rather stupid idea is that some people prefer cabins in the "F" location but are no longer able to select those cabins. 

 

It's very deceptive and very annoying.

 

Posts 46 and 62 on this thread in the AUS/NZ forum show a couple of examples of the price breaks for the various fares.

 

Edited April 19, 2023 by OzKiwiJJ

[Potstech]

1 hour ago, Colorado Coasty said:

Huh?

Only a few cabins on the upper decks can be selected. Other complete decks, 8,9,10 are reserved for non refundable GTY cabins.

[Kay S]

3 hours ago, RD64 said:

You have options - nobody is forcing you to book with Princess. Feel free to choose another cruise line with less restrictive booking options.

I guess you haven't been following my adventure.  I am using up FCC and then telling Princess bye bye.  But thanks for pointing out the obvious.

[Steelers36]

3 hours ago, 2 cruises a year said:

Of course some folks say that, because that is exactly what Princess says.  YOU are the one twisting it to criticize folks for seeing it the way it is.  My point was that wording it your way in the first place would be a lot smarter.

I have not been the only one positing this glass-half-full-or-half-empty perspective and I certainly didn't do it because PCL says it one way.  I agree with you in terms of how it could be marketed.  The thing is, do we have a representative sample of fare grids from a variety of voyage types before and after this policy change in order to know it they significantly raised the fares for levels above the lead-in and left lead-in alone?  

 

For me, guests can still book GTY in any category as we could before.  I think the worst "feature" is the Non-Ref deposits.  I have not been aware of any guest booking an F cabin and hoping to get an F cabin.  I am open to fact that the price jump from F to E has increased to more than it used to be.  Actually, some casual observation indicates the price gaps as one moves through the letters to A level are certainly higher than traditionally pre Covid.

[hawk/hornfan]

And this why I have used my T/A for many years. I tell her what I am looking at on the deck plan of the ship I am looking at and she finds me a cabin at a great rate. She knows my parameters. Would never go GTY. I am picky about cabin location. And yes I will pay extra for better (aisle) airline seats, some hotel rooms, & concert tickets. 

[OzKiwiJJ]

3 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

 

For me, guests can still book GTY in any category as we could before.  I think the worst "feature" is the Non-Ref deposits.  I have not been aware of any guest booking an F cabin and hoping to get an F cabin.  I am open to fact that the price jump from F to E has increased to more than it used to be.  Actually, some casual observation indicates the price gaps as one moves through the letters to A level are certainly higher than traditionally pre Covid.

A lot depends on the length of cruise, the ship, and the itinerary. But is it really fair to compare today's fares with pre-Covid ones? Three years have passed since then and lots of things have gone up in price. 

[caribill]

4 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

 I have not been aware of any guest booking an F cabin and hoping to get an F cabin.  I am open to fact that the price jump from F to E has increased to more than it used to be.

I have often booked a specific cabin at the entry level for a category.

 

To me, it makes no difference if the same size cabin is forward, mid-ship or aft, lower down or higher up. There may be some specific areas I would want to avoid such as under the pool deck.

 

I am unhappy that I cannot book some specific cabins that I have liked in the past because Princess wants to make them only available to let Princess pick your cabin.

 

And the non-refundable aspect is a bummer.

 

o Find a sale and want to rebook the same cruise? Lose that deposit.

 

o Need to switch to the exact same cruise a week later? Lose that deposit.