Princess Plus

[Kennedy.Mitchell12]

I am desperate to get Princess Plus. My mom (who is in my room) does not want it. Is there any way to get around buying it for both guests? If I buy it on embarkation day can I purchase just for myself? Is it more expensive on embarkation day? 
 

thank you so much for your replies ❤️

[d9704011]

Not much leeway on getting around the requirement for guests 1 and 2 in same cabin to have same package.  You can purchase the package onboard at same price (must be done first or second day onboard) and conditions of same package for the two cabin passengers remains.

[karatemom2]

Welcome to Cruise Critic. Who is paying for the cruise? Are you and Mom splitting the cost? Since you really seem to want it so much, maybe you can cover the cost for the both of you and gift it to your Mom.

[BlerkOne]

45 minutes ago, karatemom2 said:

Welcome to Cruise Critic. Who is paying for the cruise? Are you and Mom splitting the cost? Since you really seem to want it so much, maybe you can cover the cost for the both of you and gift it to your Mom.

*Of course you can get charge her back for the gratuities and any other perk she uses.  🙂

 

[Sprocket]

Does your Mom drink at all?  Specialty coffees, bottled water, juices etc all included in the Plus package as well as the gratuities and wifi.  2 casual dinners also included as well as no extra charge for room service.   Cost breakdowns have been posted many times and 3 drinks puts her at about the break even point.

 

It can be bought onboard but both must purchase as stated above.  It is well worth it in my opinion to have the option to order whatever I want wherever I want and not have to worry about a huge bill at the end.

 

Good luck most people just focus on the included drinks and not all the other inclusions.

 

[Torfamm]

Maybe the solution is to offer to pay anything over and above what she actually spends. For example, if you deduct crew appreciation and internet, the Plus package is about $29 per day. Then subtract any drinks, medallion shipping, meals at casual dining. If she spends less, great. You cover the difference.

 

It might still be cheaper for you than paying crew appreciation, buying internet and getting a stand alone beverage package.

Edited October 26, 2023 by Torfamm

[mtnesterz]

Welcome to Cruise Critic. Answers to your three questions are no, no and no.

It sounds great taking a mother and daughter vacation. You surely don't want to begin on a disagreement, which could fester during the trip. If you care to state what this is about, we may be able to help. By not being specific, workarounds we offer are shots in the dark. 

Edited October 26, 2023 by mtnesterz

[kywildcatfanone]

If you want to share why you want it so bad and why she doesn't want it at all, you might get some helpful responses for moving forward.

 

Do you think it's a good deal?  Does she think it's not worth the money?

[PMGS247]

Interesting Dilemma.  I'm assuming you've done the math and figured out the package will save you money but it will cost her money.  If you're both paying your own portion, that is a really interesting dilemma. 

 

All I can think of is you somehow contributing to her portion such that it still saves you money in the grand scheme and she still feels like she's only paying for what she's using.  The math gets a good deal more complicated there.  If you pay $30/day of hers and all of yours do you still get $90/day of value out of the package?  It's a higher bar but you could do the math.

 

You can buy your own beverage package separate, but not the plus package.  Beverage package alone is a lot more difficult to get your money's worth than Plus but if your primary reason for Plus is for the included alcohol and you are likely to average 6-7 drinks a day it might still be worth it.

Edited October 26, 2023 by PMGS247

[LrdNorman]

So, after reading all of the discussions on Princess Plus / Premier, I now have a question:

 

If you purchase the Princess Plus (or Premier for that matter), are the drinks free (up to $15 each)?  Or is it $15 / pp / per day?

 

 

[Pine Man]

4 minutes ago, LrdNorman said:

If you purchase the Princess Plus (or Premier for that matter), are the drinks free (up to $15 each)?  Or is it $15 / pp / per day?

$15 per drink upto 15 drinks per day per person.

Edited October 26, 2023 by Pine Man

[LrdNorman]

Thank you!

 

Not sure why I cannot get my head around it:  I walk up to the bartender and order a drink (I have the Plus package).  He charges me $15 for that drink?

[UKWildcatCruiser]

No, you are not charged for any drink that is $15 or less - for up to 15 drinks per day.  If you order a glass of wine that is $17, you will be charged $2 plus tax on that.  If your wine is $14 - no charge.

[LrdNorman]

That makes sense!

 

I appreciate it!

[JimmyVWine]

1 hour ago, LrdNorman said:

I walk up to the bartender and order a drink (I have the Plus package).  He charges me $15 for that drink?

No.  He hands you the drink and says: "Here you go."  You say "Thank you."  End of transaction.

If you order a $16 drink, the same thing happens.  Only, when you look at your billing statement, you will see a line item that shows the name of the venue where the drink was ordered, and you will see a charge of $1.18.  ($1 for the overage, plus the mandatory 18% gratuity.)

 

As has been noted, the breakeven point for Plus is around 3 drinks per day, but that assumes that one is going to get value out of most of the other features of Plus.  A very conservative approach to Plus would look like this.

 

• Wi-Fi (1 device per guest) -Value is $15 per day
• Crew appreciation-varies, but assume $16 per day
• Plus Beverage Package (drinks up to $15 each)
• Unlimited juice bar-Assume that there is no value here to you, but the Princess price spread over 7 days is around  $4.50 per day 
• Premium desserts (2 per day)-Assume that there is no value here to you, but the Princess price is $4.50 per day
• Fitness classes (2 per cruise)-Assume that there is no value here to you, but the Princess price is $4.50 per day
• NEW 2 casual dining meals per guest-Value spread over 7 days is about $4.50 per day 
• NEW OceanNow® delivery-Assume that there is no real value here
• NEW Room service delivery-Assume that there is no value here to you, but the Princess price is $2 per day

Grand Total of everything major (Wi-fi, gratuities and casual dining) is $35.  So if you pay $60 per day, you are paying $25 per day for up to 15 drinks priced up to $15 per drink.  On the other hand, if you plan to use most if not all of the features of Plus, your total value climbs to $51 and your daily drink cost goes down to $9 per day.  So let's assume both a best and worst case scenario simultaneously.  Best case for you, worst case for your mother.  You are going to knock it out of the park and use everything that Plus provides.  You mother is not going to utilize a single feature other than pay her gratuities.  Two Plus packages will cost $120 per day.  You are going to use $51 per day in non-drink offerings and your mother is only going to use $16 (for her gratuity.)  That brings you to $67 per day in non-drink expenses.  If you drink $53 per day (roughly 5 drinks) you are in the break even range.  From this best/worst case scenario model, just subtract out of the $67 per day the things that you don't think you will use--desserts?  fitness classes?.  Every dollar that you subtract out gets added in to the "how much do I have to drink" total and you will have your answer.  Skip desserts and fitness classes and you move $9 per day into the drinks column raising it to $62.  You now have to drink 6 drinks per day to come out even.  Conversely, every item that your mother chooses to use will cause you to add money to the non-drink expenditures and decrease your drinks total.  So if she will go to 2 casual restaurants, then you move $4.50 into the total and you lower your drink total by half a drink. 

 

Have fun doing the math! 😁 

Edited October 26, 2023 by JimmyVWine

[Sn0cruiser]

Remember that the 15 drink limit is only on alcoholic drinks.  Other drinks (specialty cocktails, bottled water, mocktails, gun soft drinks) are unlimited.  If your mother likes lattes, cappuccinos, mocktails, etc she may get some benefit beyond just gratuities.

[luv2kroooz]

You need to book 2 separate cabins. Maybe your sailing has a reduced solo supplement.

[LrdNorman]

2 hours ago, JimmyVWine said:

No.  He hands you the drink and says: "Here you go."  You say "Thank you."  End of transaction.

If you order a $16 drink, the same thing happens.  Only, when you look at your billing statement, you will see a line item that shows the name of the venue where the drink was ordered, and you will see a charge of $1.18.  ($1 for the overage, plus the mandatory 18% gratuity.)

 

As has been noted, the breakeven point for Plus is around 3 drinks per day, but that assumes that one is going to get value out of most of the other features of Plus.  A very conservative approach to Plus would look like this.

 

• Wi-Fi (1 device per guest) -Value is $15 per day
• Crew appreciation-varies, but assume $16 per day
• Plus Beverage Package (drinks up to $15 each)
• Unlimited juice bar-Assume that there is no value here to you, but the Princess price spread over 7 days is around  $4.50 per day 
• Premium desserts (2 per day)-Assume that there is no value here to you, but the Princess price is $4.50 per day
• Fitness classes (2 per cruise)-Assume that there is no value here to you, but the Princess price is $4.50 per day
• NEW 2 casual dining meals per guest-Value spread over 7 days is about $4.50 per day 
• NEW OceanNow® delivery-Assume that there is no real value here
• NEW Room service delivery-Assume that there is no value here to you, but the Princess price is $2 per day

Grand Total of everything major (Wi-fi, gratuities and casual dining) is $35.  So if you pay $60 per day, you are paying $25 per day for up to 15 drinks priced up to $15 per drink.  On the other hand, if you plan to use most if not all of the features of Plus, your total value climbs to $51 and your daily drink cost goes down to $9 per day.  So let's assume both a best and worst case scenario simultaneously.  Best case for you, worst case for your mother.  You are going to knock it out of the park and use everything that Plus provides.  You mother is not going to utilize a single feature other than pay her gratuities.  Two Plus packages will cost $120 per day.  You are going to use $51 per day in non-drink offerings and your mother is only going to use $16 (for her gratuity.)  That brings you to $67 per day in non-drink expenses.  If you drink $53 per day (roughly 5 drinks) you are in the break even range.  From this best/worst case scenario model, just subtract out of the $67 per day the things that you don't think you will use--desserts?  fitness classes?.  Every dollar that you subtract out gets added in to the "how much do I have to drink" total and you will have your answer.  Skip desserts and fitness classes and you move $9 per day into the drinks column raising it to $62.  You now have to drink 6 drinks per day to come out even.  Conversely, every item that your mother chooses to use will cause you to add money to the non-drink expenditures and decrease your drinks total.  So if she will go to 2 casual restaurants, then you move $4.50 into the total and you lower your drink total by half a drink. 

 

Have fun doing the math! 😁 

Incredibly beneficial -- thank you!

[LrdNorman]

58 minutes ago, Sn0cruiser said:

Remember that the 15 drink limit is only on alcoholic drinks.  Other drinks (specialty cocktails, bottled water, mocktails, gun soft drinks) are unlimited.  If your mother likes lattes, cappuccinos, mocktails, etc she may get some benefit beyond just gratuities.

That's good information -- my wife loves the non-alcoholic versions, so that's a plus!

[Steelers36]

19 hours ago, Kennedy.Mitchell12 said:

I am desperate to get Princess Plus. My mom (who is in my room) does not want it. Is there any way to get around buying it for both guests? If I buy it on embarkation day can I purchase just for myself? Is it more expensive on embarkation day? 
 

thank you so much for your replies ❤️

So, what do you think after reading previous posts?  Why doesn't Mom want it?  Not going to drink enough?  Does she want internet or not?

 

I am with the others who suggest your Mom pays at least $16/day for her Crew Appreciation.  Also, put any beverage or casual dining she does in her column.  You pay the difference.  You are going to be well ahead of booking Standard, plus one standalone all-inclusive Plus beverage plan.  You seem to have justified value for you in going Plus.  Once you know that, it is easy to get it for both rather than standalone.

 

[JimmyVWine]

5 minutes ago, LrdNorman said:

Incredibly beneficial -- thank you!

You're welcome.  And I do need to correct (or explain) an anomaly with the math I did.  I assigned a cost of $4.50 per day for the desserts.  That assumes that over the course of the entire cruise, one is going to order two of those monstrosities.  But in fact, a Plus guest is entitled to 2 per day!!  If one maxes out the value of Plus and really does order and eat 2 per day, the real value of that "perk" is closer to $24 per day.  Every day.  So one can achieve full value of Plus without ordering a single alcohol-based drink.  But were one to do that, it would give new meaning to the term "Plus guest".  

[LrdNorman]

One more dumb question (and yes, as a teacher, there are dumb questions)...

 

Do you just go up and get your dessert / drink / fitness class with your medallion?  How does the actual process work?

 

How do they check that you have the Plus? 

[Steelers36]

2 minutes ago, LrdNorman said:

One more dumb question (and yes, as a teacher, there are dumb questions)...

 

Do you just go up and get your dessert / drink / fitness class with your medallion?  How does the actual process work?

 

How do they check that you have the Plus? 

Scanning the Medallion tells them all they need to know. 

[JimmyVWine]

21 minutes ago, LrdNorman said:

Do you just go up and get your dessert / drink / fitness class with your medallion?  How does the actual process work?

Not positive, but some popular fitness classes might have a sign-up process due to capacity control.  But other than that, as noted above, the Medallion is embedded with all the information they need to know that you will not be charged.

Edited October 26, 2023 by JimmyVWine

[BamaVol]

1 hour ago, JimmyVWine said:

Not positive, but some popular fitness classes might have a sign-up process due to capacity control.  But other than that, as noted above, the Medallion is embedded with all the information they need to know that you will not be charged.

Yes, the fitness classes have sign up sheets.  You print your name and cabin number.