Returning to Princess after 7 years off

[ctemkg]

Hi. I have been a long term Princess cruiser with close to 30 sailings with them. I was fortunate to have most of those sailings in a full suite. While I have not cruised the past 7 years and I am ready to start up again. Things surely have changed since my last cruise almost 7 years ago.

 

What are the key things I should be aware of before I make my reservations?

Princess used to provide the Vacation Protection to long term cruisers at no additional cost. Is this still done?

Are there overall less offerings or level of service?

Have suite perks been reduced to almost nothing?

How is the overall atmosphere on the ships? Still as open or is it more regimented with having to schedule ahead of time to go see shows, etc?

 

Any tips on changes or what to watch for would be appreciated.

 

Thanks

 

 

Edited June 28, 2023 by ctemkg

[memoak]

 Aviation insurance is not free but elite cruisers get a free upgrade from regular to platinum at bio extra charge. Full suite perks include suite breakfast daily, club class dinner daily and club class lunch on sea days. You get free laundry and an extra mini bar. Canapés if you want. Champagne on embarkation. If you are one a Royal class ship you will have a suite concierge and lounge. Suite elite line at guest services. Priority boarding and priority tendering ship to shore only. What other perks are you lookin for ?

[snoozecrooze]

Two of the biggest things onboard that have changed since pre-pandemic: muster drill (now an independent responsibility) and dining room scheduling (now done using the Princess app and it eschews the "traditional" and "my time" dining presets by allowing you to choose your own desired times in whichever dining room). Also, no more trinkets (this means notepad, pen, blue bag, after-dinner mints, pillow chocolates, etc). Your elite bathroom amenities have also basically been eliminated. Minibar is still there.

 

And no more coffee cards and what not, because Princess has introduced new drink packages (along with the introduction of Princess Plus and Princess Premier!)

 

Staffing is a continued issue so we've all learned to pack more patience because institutional knowledge went out the window when a lot of veteran crew basically left the industry. It does not mean the current crew are any less hardworking, though. 

 

Princess is still relatively free-flowing in terms of vibe, but with the new Dine My Way dining organization, things are even more free-flowing than when traditional dining was a thing. It doesn't mean cruisers won't still find ways to clog the theater for shows or the buffet in the morning, but everything is still what you make of it.

 

And lastly, Princess is making as big a push as they ever have to reach out to families with kids and embracing even more multi-generational parties to cruise, as can be seen by the features onboard Sun Princess (debuts in 2024). The last thing you should do is not accept that that's the industry trend as that'll just put you in a sour mood before the cruise.

Edited June 28, 2023 by snoozecrooze

[memoak]

No need to schedule dining if you are in a full suite. In fact that option does not exist as you have no wait club class dining 

[PacnGoNow]

You’ll see that Club Class has been renamed to Reserve Class. 

[ctemkg]

My past Princess experience has been that sailings longer than 7 days seem to have a different crowd. Fewer families on a 10 day than the typical 7 day. Is this still generally the case?

[PacnGoNow]

1 minute ago, ctemkg said:

My past Princess experience has been that sailings longer than 7 days seem to have a different crowd. Fewer families on a 10 day than the typical 7 day. Is this still generally the case?

True, except for holidays when the kids are out of school.  We also do the longer cruises.

 

[KKB]

I cannot speak to most of your specific questions but I can speak to returning to Princess after a long absence.

Started w/ Princess 20 years ago--made us fall in love w/ cruising.

Sailed them the most for 10 years.

Then we discovered Celebrity--our new love & sailed them the most for 10 years.

Last spring Princess sent us a offer so thought we'd toss our hat in the ring again.

It was just as great as we remember!

So after 10 years off, have now sailed them 5 times in the last year with another booked for fall & one next spring already!

Food & service just as good as before overall, imo. 

Trivia & gameshows just as fun.

Sailed Caribbean, Discovery, Sapphire & Ruby in Caribbean, AK & MX Riv.

Next sailing Island in Europe & Grand Sydney to SF.

[Torfamm]

Here is the information on Suite benefits https://www.princess.com/learn/ships/staterooms/suites/

 

The only reserved seats for production shows are available to those who have the Premier package that included gratuities, internet and the premier beverage package. 

 

All ships now use medallions in place of key cards and some shops in ports accept payments with your medallion. The medallion functions in all the ways key cards did if you haven't used one before. They are quarter sized discs that come with a holder and lanyard, but wristbands and other holders are available. They are exactly the size of an Apple Air Tag.

 

Personal information, payment method, travel documents, security photos etc can all be uploaded to the app. There are no more paper boarding passes. When you arrive at the port, you can just present the medallion if you've already received it or your ID. Here is some information about how it works

https://www.princess.com/plan/oceanready/

 

Once onboard, the app allows you to order food and drinks to be delivered to wherever you are on the ship, locate your travel companions, see the deck plan, download and purchase photos, check the charges on your folio, book shore excursions, and chat with guest services if you have questions or concerns. It is very convenient.

 

Shore excursions and spa services are still booked on the website but everything else - check in, dining, etc has migrated to the Medallion Class App.  The app can be downloaded to any mobile device and there is also a web-based version. The link can be found at princess.com

 

Traditional dining with set times at assigned tables with the same group of strangers each night has been discontinued. The current Dine My Way option works just like land based restaurants.  You can make reservations ahead of time using the app, or using your stateroom TV once onboard, at whatever location you want, at whatever time you want, on the days you want. If you are traveling with others, you can add them as travel companions in the app and make reservations that include them.

 

You can also just arrive at the door and be seated when a table is available.  It's possible to make reservations at the same dining room for every night at the same time, but if you want to be seated at the same table each evening, you would have to request that once onboard.

 

 

Edited June 28, 2023 by Torfamm

[memoak]

22 minutes ago, Torfamm said:

Here is the information on Suite benefits https://www.princess.com/learn/ships/staterooms/suites/

 

The only reserved seats for production shows are available to those who have the Premier package that included gratuities, internet and the premier beverage package. 

 

All ships now use medallions in place of key cards and some shops in ports accept payments with your medallion. The medallion functions in all the ways key cards did if you haven't used one before. They are quarter sized discs that come with a holder and lanyard, but wristbands and other holders are available. They are exactly the size of an Apple Air Tag.

 

Personal information, payment method, travel documents, security photos etc can all be uploaded to the app. There are no more paper boarding passes. When you arrive at the port, you can just present the medallion if you've already received it or your ID. Here is some information about how it works

https://www.princess.com/plan/oceanready/

 

Once onboard, the app allows you to order food and drinks to be delivered to wherever you are on the ship, locate your travel companions, see the deck plan, download and purchase photos, check the charges on your folio, book shore excursions, and chat with guest services if you have questions or concerns. It is very convenient.

 

Shore excursions and spa services are still booked on the website but everything else - check in, dining, etc has migrated to the Medallion Class App.  The app can be downloaded to any mobile device and there is also a web-based version. The link can be found at princess.com

 

Traditional dining with set times at assigned tables with the same group of strangers each night has been discontinued. The current Dine My Way option works just like land based restaurants.  You can make reservations ahead of time using the app, or using your stateroom TV once onboard, at whatever location you want, at whatever time you want, on the days you want. If you are traveling with others, you can add them as travel companions in the app and make reservations that include them.

 

You can also just arrive at the door and be seated when a table is available.  It's possible to make reservations at the same dining room for every night at the same time, but if you want to be seated at the same table each evening, you would have to request that once onboard.

 

 

There are no reservations possible if you are in a full suite. You are automatically booked into club class dining which is a no wait area of the MDR

[Torfamm]

Just now, memoak said:

There are no reservations possible if you are in a full suite. You are automatically booked into club class dining which is a no wait area of the MDR

I'm pretty certain that those in suites can chose to eat in another dining room if they want to.  For example, they might want to dine with other members of their party who are not in a suite.  I am sure that they are allowed to go to other MDR's. They also would need to make reservations in the app for specialty dining.

[ctemkg]

Suites used to have breakfast in Sabatini or Crown Grill. Has this been replaced by breakfast in the main dining room? And the breakfast used to be where the chef would cook up most special requests. Has this changed?

[Torfamm]

3 minutes ago, ctemkg said:

Suites used to have breakfast in Sabatini or Crown Grill. Has this been replaced by breakfast in the main dining room? And the breakfast used to be where the chef would cook up most special requests. Has this changed?

Specialty dining breakfast is still listed as a benefit.

  https://www.princess.com/downloads/pdf/ships/PrincessSuite_eFlyer.pdf

[memoak]

26 minutes ago, ctemkg said:

Suites used to have breakfast in Sabatini or Crown Grill. Has this been replaced by breakfast in the main dining room? And the breakfast used to be where the chef would cook up most special requests. Has this changed?

No suite breakfast is still there and wonderful 

[memoak]

31 minutes ago, Torfamm said:

I'm pretty certain that those in suites can chose to eat in another dining room if they want to.  For example, they might want to dine with other members of their party who are not in a suite.  I am sure that they are allowed to go to other MDR's. They also would need to make reservations in the app for specialty dining.

If they want reservations with non suite parties they would need to have one of the non suite passengers make the reservations for non club class dining. The system will only allow suite customers to reserve specialty restaurant’s however I have never ever had a problem making reset once on board at the venue 

[ctemkg]

2 minutes ago, memoak said:

29 minutes ago, ctemkg said:

Suites used to have breakfast in Sabatini or Crown Grill. Has this been replaced by breakfast in the main dining room? And the breakfast used to be where the chef would cook up most special requests. Has this changed?

Expand  

No suite breakfast is still there and wonderful

Is it still in the specialty restaurant or in the main dining room as the Princess Suite Benefits list?

[startedwithamouse]

One of the best changes, other than the muster drill on your own, is no bin full of useless sales flyers at the end of the day and an overflowing mailbox outside your cabin door. 

[ctemkg]

8 minutes ago, startedwithamouse said:

One of the best changes, other than the muster drill on your own, is no bin full of useless sales flyers at the end of the day and an overflowing mailbox outside your cabin door. 

That's good. With all the promotional materials, it was a lot of wasted paper.

[memoak]

1 hour ago, ctemkg said:

Is it still in the specialty restaurant or in the main dining room as the Princess Suite Benefits list?

Still in a specialty restaurant for full suites

[ctemkg]

Thanks for all the comments. Good information.