Princess Plus/Premier Experiences

[Guest Snaxmuppet]

Premier booked for our Norwegian Fjords in April and for our Canary Islands in November although that was Premier for the price of Plus so even better!

 

I do get that the packages aren't for everyone, and many people enjoy and prefer cruising without them, but no-one can suggest that they aren't good value at all nor can they say they are a conn or that they are being screwed. In fact, the Princess packages are amongst the best of all the mainstream premium cruise lines IMO.

[Lady Arwen]

3 minutes ago, Snaxmuppet said:

Premier booked for our Norwegian Fjords in April and for our Canary Islands in November although that was Premier for the price of Plus so even better!

 

I do get that the packages aren't for everyone, and many people enjoy and prefer cruising without them, but no-one can suggest that they aren't good value at all nor can they say they are a conn or that they are being screwed. In fact, the Princess packages are amongst the best of all the mainstream premium cruise lines IMO.

We were recently on a Celebrity cruise and paid much more without Crew Appreciation.  Two more booked on HAL with the Have It All package and more than Princess.
 

 Regardless, Princess offers fairly priced packages that suit most people, but certainly not all.  Everyone must decide if it works for them using numbers and information that is accurate.  I hope most people will read lots of different member’s posts and realize they have options.  We just have to keep debunking the misinformation.

[jagoffee]

10 hours ago, insidecabin said:

As DallasG  the benefit of the current plan were added when they started charging for things that were included in the base fare.

 

Passengers are just asking for what they booked.

 

Many lines grandfather these types of changes you get what was in place at the time you booked.

I understand your point. I believe  that approach would be impractical with all the cruise line changes.  You are suggesting that when Princess decided to add a surcharge for Casual dining, add a mandatory gratuity on the speciality dining fee, add a charge for Medallion shipping charge, increased the cost of internet, etc. that Princess should keep track by individual and implement the changes by individual booking dates?  No freakin way, especially given all the changes.  
IMO it is more reasonable to increase the price of individual optional extras, than increase the base price for everyone.  Some people do not want all those optional items.

 

The  fact that Princess allows you to pay an extra $10 a day pp to upgrade a package seems like a fair and reasonable approach. Customer’s decision. 

 

 

[Muffinz]

We've got the plus packace on our December cruise... for us it worked out more beneficial than not having the package and that's why we chose it plain and simple

 

some people don't drink much alcohol or speciality coffees like flat whites, or don't use wifi, so if you're one of those people then the package is not going to be beneficial to you

[coo359a2]

11 hours ago, louden said:

The "Plan" has always been promoted as "Princess Plus"  initially sold at $50 then increased to $60.  Last fall the press release simply stated that the "Princess Plus" plan now included the two casual meals with no reference to when one subscribed to the plan or any suggestion that if you wanted this "perk" you could upgrade.  The language was inclusive with no exclusion for early purchases.  Old Plus packages were included in the new provision for $15 drink limit but did not provide for the "Juice Bar".  We were on a 10 day trip.  Why would I pay a $100 upcharge to obtain a $30 meal promotion?

I had the Princess Plus 50 and knew it didn't cover the juice bar but had a senior moment and ordered a juice.  Server told me it wasn't included in my Plus so I had to play the "I Don't Remember" card and tell him I forgot.  That was my last Princess Plus 50 so no more problems now with the Plus 60 remembering what is included or not.

[mike&elena]

8 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

We even spring for the premier package on the Royal Class ships.  I find the unlimited casual dining venues to add so much value to our package.  While we love going to the MDR at lunch for the new small plate lunches and the pup lunch, most of our other meals are either at specialty or casual dining venues.  
Also, we get better wines, and unlimited photos.  I am a big fan of both!  

The premier package isn’t so much worth it for us on the older ships, as there is only really the one casual dining venue, the Salty Dog GastroPub (2 if you count the charcuterie board from Vines but I don’t really consider that to be a meal) and it is only open after 5:00 or 5:30 and now, draws a very big crowd.  

 

Cruise Raider,

We met you guys on a cruise last year.  Remember the great book-onboard sail we stumbled upon?  We are going to be on the Total Solar Eclipse cruise in April and we have taken your advice by booking the Premiere package to enjoy the better wine selection and casual dining options.  We hope you will share some tips regarding the best venues and wines to enjoy during the cruise.  You can email us directly at michaelpaules at gmail dot com if you like.  Looking forward to reconnecting onboard!

--Mike&Elena 🌴👫🌴

[rheathslc]

13 hours ago, louden said:

The "Plan" has always been promoted as "Princess Plus"  initially sold at $50 then increased to $60.  Last fall the press release simply stated that the "Princess Plus" plan now included the two casual meals with no reference to when one subscribed to the plan or any suggestion that if you wanted this "perk" you could upgrade.  The language was inclusive with no exclusion for early purchases.  Old Plus packages were included in the new provision for $15 drink limit but did not provide for the "Juice Bar".  We were on a 10 day trip.  Why would I pay a $100 upcharge to obtain a $30 meal promotion?

You're right that the Press Release itself didn't detail the exclusions but it was shown all over the website and in other versions of the announcement. The Press Release was just the short and sweet version. I received an email on Dec 5th 2022 announcing the changes since we had a cruise booked with Plus at the $50 level and it clearly says you can choose to upgrade to the new package and pay difference or keep the old package at the $50 price.  It is also still listed in the package FAQ on the Princess website and it's very clear in the terms and conditions. I get that someone not paying super close attention could miss this info but that doesn't mean that there was no information about the new perks being excluded for people who paid the old price.

 

Edited February 25 by rheathslc
add pic

[insidecabin]

14 hours ago, jagoffee said:

I understand your point. I believe  that approach would be impractical with all the cruise line changes.  You are suggesting that when Princess decided to add a surcharge for Casual dining, add a mandatory gratuity on the speciality dining fee, add a charge for Medallion shipping charge, increased the cost of internet, etc. that Princess should keep track by individual and implement the changes by individual booking dates?  No freakin way, especially given all the changes.  
IMO it is more reasonable to increase the price of individual optional extras, than increase the base price for everyone.  Some people do not want all those optional items.

 

The  fact that Princess allows you to pay an extra $10 a day pp to upgrade a package seems like a fair and reasonable approach. Customer’s decision. 

 

 

They already manage 100s of items on a per booking basis.

 

A few more is not going to be a big problem.

 

The fare packages are already split into itemized components to  account for the different packages booked(and versions)

 

Some you identified(like internet cost rises) can be managed by giving pre purchase window to those that don't have it on their booking.

 

Other new charges OceanNow will already be managed on a per booking basis just grandfather those that booked when it was an included feature of Medallion class cruising.

 

 

[MissP22]

19 hours ago, Lady Arwen said:

This is false information for anyone who is considering purchasing the packages.  Other members would be happy to help you with your own personal breakdown.

No thanks, I've figured out my own way of making it very profitable.

[Cruise Raider]

10 hours ago, mike&elena said:

Cruise Raider,

We met you guys on a cruise last year.  Remember the great book-onboard sail we stumbled upon?  We are going to be on the Total Solar Eclipse cruise in April and we have taken your advice by booking the Premiere package to enjoy the better wine selection and casual dining options.  We hope you will share some tips regarding the best venues and wines to enjoy during the cruise.  You can email us directly at michaelpaules at gmail dot com if you like.  Looking forward to reconnecting onboard!

--Mike&Elena 🌴👫🌴

Of course I remember you both!  I think you mentioned you thought both @HaveDogWillTraveland I were actually male before meeting us.  😆  And yes, we booked everything that was half off out of SF and and a couple out of LA, too during that cruise.  I think we booked like 8 of them. 

I definitely would love to meet up on the cruise.  That would be so much fun!  I’m really hoping for some nice wines on our trip.  Odd as it seems, we found the best options were available at the Princess Live Bar last time but I know things change onboard at the drop of a dime.  Oddly enough, we had much better wine options on the Crown Princess just a few days ago .. one of our half off sailings.  It’s going to be so hard to have to pay full price for our future sailings.  The half off sale was only for cruises through April, I believe. 
looking forward to seeing you both again!  
 

[DallasGuy75219]

23 hours ago, jagoffee said:

I understand your point. I believe  that approach would be impractical with all the cruise line changes.  You are suggesting that when Princess decided to add a surcharge for Casual dining, add a mandatory gratuity on the speciality dining fee, add a charge for Medallion shipping charge, increased the cost of internet, etc. that Princess should keep track by individual and implement the changes by individual booking dates?  

Except that they already do this for the Plus and Premier packages.  And most changes are announced in groups, like when casual dining, ordering room service by phone or app, and medallion shipping stopped being free with standard fare.  So so every single element that has changed doesn't need to be tracked individually.

[cadien]

On 2/24/2024 at 8:02 PM, Muffinz said:

We've got the plus packace on our December cruise... for us it worked out more beneficial than not having the package and that's why we chose it plain and simple

 

some people don't drink much alcohol or speciality coffees like flat whites, or don't use wifi, so if you're one of those people then the package is not going to be beneficial to you

Yep. We had one cabin with Plus and one cabin without and it paid off in both cases.

[memoak]

2 hours ago, MissP22 said:

Some folks just can't comprehend that situation. 😄

Put the party people in one cabin the people who don’t want to drink or eat sushi or have coffee drinks in the other. Problem solved. You know which cabin I would be in

[20165]

Wow, glad i read though this thread because we would have definitely had an issue on our princess cruise in April. We werent aware there was a 15 drink limit on princess and when we order drinks, we usually only give the bartender 1 card, i guess medallion in this case, so we would definitely go over, especially sea days.  So it sounds like my wife and i need to order our own drinks which probably isnt that big of a deal, except for at dinner because they typically ask me for 1 card so we will need to make sure they take both of our medallions. 

Also, that 15 drink max per person its easy to find on the princess website. If you read through the plus/premium descriptions it doenst mention it. It is in the FAQ section though.

[memoak]

5 minutes ago, 20165 said:

Wow, glad i read though this thread because we would have definitely had an issue on our princess cruise in April. We werent aware there was a 15 drink limit on princess and when we order drinks, we usually only give the bartender 1 card, i guess medallion in this case, so we would definitely go over, especially sea days.  So it sounds like my wife and i need to order our own drinks which probably isnt that big of a deal, except for at dinner because they typically ask me for 1 card so we will need to make sure they take both of our medallions. 

Also, that 15 drink max per person its easy to find on the princess website. If you read through the plus/premium descriptions it doenst mention it. It is in the FAQ section though.

Just tell the waiter to put one on each account they can see the 2 accounts

[HotRoot]

27 minutes ago, 20165 said:

Wow, glad i read though this thread because we would have definitely had an issue on our princess cruise in April. We werent aware there was a 15 drink limit on princess and when we order drinks, we usually only give the bartender 1 card, i guess medallion in this case, so we would definitely go over, especially sea days.  So it sounds like my wife and i need to order our own drinks which probably isnt that big of a deal, except for at dinner because they typically ask me for 1 card so we will need to make sure they take both of our medallions. 

Also, that 15 drink max per person its easy to find on the princess website. If you read through the plus/premium descriptions it doenst mention it. It is in the FAQ section though.

Also, you do not give them the medallion or even show it to them.  They might ask for your cabin number.  Their "machine" can read your medallion.  It will show your picture so they will verify they are charging it to the correct person.

[hersheyhughes]

Since this is our 1st cruise with Princess and having booked the Princess Plus, good to know how to navigate.  When adding all the costs for grautities, drinks, specialty coffees, it seemed like a great deal.

Looking forward to experiencing Princess. Will be on the Aug 28 Canada and New England itinerary.

Thanks for all the tips!

Kimberly & Phil

[Thrak]

On our last cruise(s) I often started my day with a large Vanilla Latte ($4) with two extra shots of Espresso ($2). I then had two fresh squeezed juices ($8 each = $16) and a shot of Bulleit Bourbon straight up ($9). That totals $31 so, by the time I sit down for breakfast, I have pretty much covered my cost above Internet access and Daily Gratuity. Trust me, I had many more drinks during the day. I definitely didn't have to "consume my full allotment" in order to come out ahead.

[memoak]

14 minutes ago, Thrak said:

On our last cruise(s) I often started my day with a large Vanilla Latte ($4) with two extra shots of Espresso ($2). I then had two fresh squeezed juices ($8 each = $16) and a shot of Bulleit Bourbon straight up ($9). That totals $31 so, by the time I sit down for breakfast, I have pretty much covered my cost above Internet access and Daily Gratuity. Trust me, I had many more drinks during the day. I definitely didn't have to "consume my full allotment" in order to come out ahead.

Dude some people just like to raise Caine

[20165]

14 hours ago, Thrak said:

On our last cruise(s) I often started my day with a large Vanilla Latte ($4) with two extra shots of Espresso ($2). I then had two fresh squeezed juices ($8 each = $16) and a shot of Bulleit Bourbon straight up ($9). That totals $31 so, by the time I sit down for breakfast, I have pretty much covered my cost above Internet access and Daily Gratuity. Trust me, I had many more drinks during the day. I definitely didn't have to "consume my full allotment" in order to come out ahead.

Its not a matter of coming out ahead for us but rather not having to stand in the guest services line every days to get charges corrected like we did on MSC who screwed something up pretty much daily.  If there are ways to avoid that on princess, we are all for it.

[cnice515]

2 hours ago, 20165 said:

Its not a matter of coming out ahead for us but rather not having to stand in the guest services line every days to get charges corrected

 

Completely agree, this is the last thing I want to do on my vacation time.

[Suncitycruiser1925]

On 2/24/2024 at 10:58 AM, Cruise Raider said:

Let’s see .. 
$60 a day pp for the plus package: 

Crew Appreciation:  $16 a day pp

WiFi: $25 a day per device ($12.50 for elite status) 

Specialty Coffees x 2:  $8-$10 a day pp + 18%

Drinks x 3:  $30 - $45 a day pp + 18%

 

+ free medallion shipping, room service fee waived, 2 casual dining meals, and other things I don’t use regularly such as the juice bar, premium desserts, exercise classes 

 

One would have already gotten value from the package by doing simple math!  

 

 

 

Thanks for the pricing breakdown.  That helps to evaluate if plus makes sense.  Can you still buy a coffee card for a limited number of coffees?  That was a good deal for us. 

[20165]

I dont think the original poster was questioning the value of the package but rather some of the challenges they were having with charging multiple drinks to one person, drinks that were over the limit, etc. I think its a no brainer that the packages make sense, even for light drinkers. 

[Cruise Raider]

45 minutes ago, Suncitycruiser1925 said:

Thanks for the pricing breakdown.  That helps to evaluate if plus makes sense.  Can you still buy a coffee card for a limited number of coffees?  That was a good deal for us. 

No more coffee cards available.  😔 

[Suncitycruiser1925]

42 minutes ago, Cruise Raider said:

No more coffee cards available.  😔 

Thanks for letting me know.  They were a good value.