Changes Coming to Plus/Premier Packages?

[memoak]

Just now, voljeep said:

late afternoon getting close to the 15 if counting waters (4-5) coffee (1) beers (3-4)  ... that's 10 and not even pre-dinner ...

Even just counting beers and cocktails I am at 6 or so before dinner add 2 specialty coffees and waters and I will be very thirsty by the time I hit the casino

[Ken the cruiser]

15 minutes ago, memoak said:

I would not make it into late night if they counted all drinks in the 15

From what I understand on NCL, you can drink until you drop as there is no limit! 😂

[jagoffee]

14 hours ago, disneyochem said:

Yes, we’ve started to book more cruises with HAL based on their package.  Booking HIA Early Bonus gives us upgraded drink package, WiFi, crew gratuities, shore excursion credits (varies based on cruise length) and specialty dining.  Add to that, we also get loyalty OBC, shareholders OBC, AARP OBC and Educator OBC.  Compare that to the Plus /Premier package on Princess.  Don’t want or need the desserts, exercise classes or the casual dining meals.  Also didn’t like that Princess didn’t grandfather in those of us who had already purchased a package prior to the roll out of the new and improved Princess Plus.

 

We love Princess (elite) and will continue to sail with them, but we’ve found better values with HAL.

My understanding was all you needed to do was pay the extra $10 a day per person (making it $60 a day instead of $50) and you have all the increased benefits of the $60 a day Plus package.  Is that not true?  Are you saying that you paid $60 a day pp and could not get the extra benefits?

[Guest Snaxmuppet]

36 minutes ago, voljeep said:

late afternoon getting close to the 15 if counting waters (4-5) coffee (1) beers (3-4)  ... that's 10 and not even pre-dinner ...

Edit: Just seen that is covered already - sorry 🙂 

 

Water and coffee doesn't count... they are unlimited. It is only alcohol that is limited to 15.

Edited March 30 by Snaxmuppet

[chamima]

10 minutes ago, Snaxmuppet said:

Edit: Just seen that is covered already - sorry 🙂 

 

Water and coffee doesn't count... they are unlimited. It is only alcohol that is limited to 15.

 

I think you're mixing up Princess and Holland.

On Princess it's 15 alcoholic, unlimited everything else.

On HAL it's 15 TOTAL. (We'd be close if we had to count water and coffee)

[memoak]

28 minutes ago, chamima said:

 

I think you're mixing up Princess and Holland.

On Princess it's 15 alcoholic, unlimited everything else.

On HAL it's 15 TOTAL. (We'd be close if we had to count water and coffee)

If I counted coffee, water and sodas I would be over or close to the limit by dinner

[Cruise Raider]

6 hours ago, carnabombers said:

I'm not apologising because all I hear from those people with packages are  "I have to get my monies worth " and 5 plus drinks every day is borderline. 

Re obc. The trick is to book the cruise with a FCC plus when they have specials on and book directly. E. G my sth American cruise next year -  we have $2100 obc. . 

Anyway, look at the stats re alcohol consumption pp on packages. You might get a surprise. 

I never have heard that or even feel that way about drinking when we get the package.  I bet I don’t drink anymore on a cruise than I do at home.  The only thing I order on a cruise that I wouldn’t make at home is a cappuccino and not even very morning.  One could say the same about people that are gluttonous with the food.  We ask for small portions because we don’t like to stuff ourselves silly.  

[Aggie83]

23 hours ago, msmoger said:

I'm guessing this post might be pulled by the mods.  They make it very clear that you're not supposed to share any parts of the surveys on social media.  I'm not trying to give you a hard time.  Just trying to give you a heads up.

 

To your point on confidentiality:

 

[victory2020]

21 hours ago, Astro Flyer said:

Last year Oceania created Simply More cruise fares that added tour only credits and a beer/wine package at lunch & dinner.
 

We don’t want those add ons however since they eliminated standard fares we likely won’t sail with them again. Of course prices increased by adding those things that we don’t want & I don’t want to see Princess to do something similar.
 

Same with us. Won't book again unless they have a Really good deal.

[Guest Snaxmuppet]

2 hours ago, Cruise Raider said:

I never have heard that or even feel that way about drinking when we get the package.  I bet I don’t drink anymore on a cruise than I do at home.  The only thing I order on a cruise that I wouldn’t make at home is a cappuccino and not even very morning.  One could say the same about people that are gluttonous with the food.  We ask for small portions because we don’t like to stuff ourselves silly.  

We over-indulge on a cruise. It is generally our only, or main, vacation for the year so we set out to enjoy it in every way we can and as we are not big drinkers at home, nor do we eat out much, we tend to do both in excess when we cruise. We cruise for the time on board and the ports are just semi-interesting interludes to the sea days. 

 

This seems to be in direct opposition to many people that cruise especially when they cruise a lot. I could imagine that if I cruised 4,5, 6 times a year, or for 30, 40, 50 days a year, that I would then want to make my time on board much more akin to my everyday life at home. 

 

So I make no apology for how much I eat and drink when on board. It lasts 8-14 days for us and then it is back to the real world of everyday life at home for another year.

 

What I do apologise for though is if our attitude to cruising upsets you or annoys you. That is not my intention. I believe that everyone should enjoy their cruise in whatever way they want... there is no right or wrong.

[chamima]

5 minutes ago, Snaxmuppet said:

We over-indulge on a cruise. It is generally our only, or main, vacation for the year so we set out to enjoy it in every way we can and as we are not big drinkers at home, nor do we eat out much, we tend to do both in excess when we cruise. We cruise for the time on board and the ports are just semi-interesting interludes to the sea days. 

 

This seems to be in direct opposition to many people that cruise especially when they cruise a lot. I could imagine that if I cruised 4,5, 6 times a year, or for 30, 40, 50 days a year, that I would then want to make my time on board much more akin to my everyday life at home. 

 

So I make no apology for how much I eat and drink when on board. It lasts 8-14 days for us and then it is back to the real world of everyday life at home for another year.

 

What I do apologise for though is if our attitude to cruising upsets you or annoys you. That is not my intention. I believe that everyone should enjoy their cruise in whatever way they want... there is no right or wrong.

 

You have NOTHING to apologize for.

Your hard earned vacation is yours to enjoy according to what pleases you.

As long as nothing you do impinges on others feel free to do what works for you.

 

 

[Cruise Raider]

11 minutes ago, Snaxmuppet said:

We over-indulge on a cruise. It is generally our only, or main, vacation for the year so we set out to enjoy it in every way we can and as we are not big drinkers at home, nor do we eat out much, we tend to do both in excess when we cruise. We cruise for the time on board and the ports are just semi-interesting interludes to the sea days. 

 

This seems to be in direct opposition to many people that cruise especially when they cruise a lot. I could imagine that if I cruised 4,5, 6 times a year, or for 30, 40, 50 days a year, that I would then want to make my time on board much more akin to my everyday life at home. 

 

So I make no apology for how much I eat and drink when on board. It lasts 8-14 days for us and then it is back to the real world of everyday life at home for another year.

 

What I do apologise for though is if our attitude to cruising upsets you or annoys you. That is not my intention. I believe that everyone should enjoy their cruise in whatever way they want... there is no right or wrong.

It certainly doesn’t offend me .. I think if you pay for your cruise, how you choose to enjoy it, that is definitely your prerogative.  I was simply responding to the post that said that anyone that drinks more than they think is socially acceptable is an alcoholic.  It’s just not true!  Indulge all you want, I will not judge you .. not even for one minute!  

[carnabombers]

OK, I apologise for my earlier post. Back on this topic. Anyone that thinks that Princess is going to give away something for free is kidding themselves. If anything, they might restructure the packages with a price increase. That is, remove things that aren't being used and replace with others so it appears to be a benefit. 

Reality is that Carnival is still losing money even after record pre bookings. They have massive loans to repay and the interest is huge. 

Anyway, dreams are free. 

[AtlantaCruiser72]

21 hours ago, nasa1974 said:

The elite beverage package reads like it is limited to 15 beverages a day including alcoholic and non-alcoholic. So, any combination of alcohol, soda, water and coffee your limit is 15. Am I reading that right?

Incorrect regarding the Holland America packages
 

The ELITE beverage package includes 15 alcoholic drinks per day up to $15/drink menu value and unlimited non alcoholic beverages.

 

The SIGNATURE beverage package includes 15 total drinks per day combined between alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages up to $11/drink. 
 

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en/us/onboard-packages/beverage-packages

 

Edited March 31 by AtlantaCruiser72

[Retired-N-Happy]

8 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

From what I understand on NCL, you can drink until you drop as there is no limit! 😂

And the same policy holds true on RCI, Celebrity and MSC.  It's only the Carnival Corporation lines (Carnival, Princess, HAL) that have the 15 limit.  Don't know about P&O, Aida and the other Carnival Corporation cruise lines.

[Retired-N-Happy]

8 hours ago, chamima said:

On HAL it's 15 TOTAL. (We'd be close if we had to count water and coffee)

That's the deal breaker for us.  Besides having their largest ship at 99.5 K tons, 15 drink max including non alcoholic would be a non option.  

[Retired-N-Happy]

3 hours ago, Snaxmuppet said:

We over-indulge on a cruise. It is generally our only, or main, vacation for the year so we set out to enjoy it in every way we can and as we are not big drinkers at home, nor do we eat out much, we tend to do both in excess when we cruise. We cruise for the time on board and the ports are just semi-interesting interludes to the sea days. 

 

This seems to be in direct opposition to many people that cruise especially when they cruise a lot. I could imagine that if I cruised 4,5, 6 times a year, or for 30, 40, 50 days a year, that I would then want to make my time on board much more akin to my everyday life at home. 

 

So I make no apology for how much I eat and drink when on board. It lasts 8-14 days for us and then it is back to the real world of everyday life at home for another year.

 

What I do apologise for though is if our attitude to cruising upsets you or annoys you. That is not my intention. I believe that everyone should enjoy their cruise in whatever way they want... there is no right or wrong.

There is no right or wrong answer.  We are retired and cruise around 70 nights a year.  We don't drink at home but we do enjoy it while cruising.  We usually cruise for the ship, sailing on the newest and largest that various lines offer.  Princess is currently our favorite line and have 35 nights on the Enchanted, 28 on the Sun and 28 on the Star currently booked.

[nasa1974]

1 hour ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

Incorrect regarding the Holland America packages
 

The ELITE beverage package includes 15 alcoholic drinks per day up to $15/drink menu value and unlimited non alcoholic beverages.

 

The SIGNATURE beverage package includes 15 total drinks per day combined between alcoholic and non alcoholic beverages up to $11/drink. 
 

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en/us/onboard-packages/beverage-packages

 

What you stated would have been my guess.

I can't get the link unless I log into Holland.

But my statement was made in regard to what is written below for the Elite Beverage Package.

It doesn't say 15 alcoholic beverages. It says, "Elite Beverage Package has a daily limit of 15 beverages, which includes all beverages priced at $15 or less..."

 

[Z0nker]

On 3/29/2024 at 3:02 PM, kywildcatfanone said:

You guys realize new "benefits" will include a price increase,  which is the goal, right?

There's also the possibility that Princess will take something away from the non-package customers to incentivize the purchase of Plus or Premier. Like when they make Alfredo's an upcharge,

[Z0nker]

On 3/29/2024 at 12:42 PM, cr8tiv1 said:

 

Yes, I can see the benefit of upgrading to Premier for a short cruise.  All the advantages without breaking the bank.

 

YES, YES, YES....bring back the $50 Plus without the extras.  Call it Economy Plus or Basic Plus!

Totally agree. We're being charged $10/day for fitness classes that we don't use, specialty desserts that we don't eat, and the upgraded dining is limited to the Wheelhouse Gastropub on the ships that sail from our homeport of SF.

[memoak]

44 minutes ago, Z0nker said:

Totally agree. We're being charged $10/day for fitness classes that we don't use, specialty desserts that we don't eat, and the upgraded dining is limited to the Wheelhouse Gastropub on the ships that sail from our homeport of SF.

You also get Vines

[rideev]

On 3/30/2024 at 11:26 AM, phabric said:

I talked to a Beverage Manager, I asked him why not have a package with the same perks for soda or coffee as a lot of people don’t drink alcohol.  He thought that was great idea and said he would bring it up

I put this on every end of cruise survey I receive.

[kywildcatfanone]

33 minutes ago, rideev said:

I put this on every end of cruise survey I receive.

Yep, they could do a soda and coffee package with those and wifi for $30-35 and people would buy it.

[memoak]

1 minute ago, kywildcatfanone said:

Yep, they could do a soda and coffee package with those and wifi for $30-35 and people would buy it.

Then there would be some that would say I don’t like coffee I want just soda and charge me less.  This could go on and on and on

[Ken the cruiser]

3 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

Yep, they could do a soda and coffee package with those and wifi for $30-35 and people would buy it.

Let's see, Wi-Fi is currently $25 per day and the cheapest daily gratuity charge is $14.50 per day (for balcony and below) or combined, $39.50, without adding any beverage option. At the current rate of $60 per day that means the beverage option costs $20.50 per day. So what do you think a fair price per day would be for canned soft drinks, specialty coffees, and don't forget bottled water.