Princess plus package cost questions

[fedexretiree]

My friend and I will be on the Emerald in a few weeks and I need some information about the Princess Plus Package. 

I was on the phone tonight with a Princess rep for almost 1 hour with a few questions about cost and never got a confirmed answer so I will ask the experts here.  Hopefully someone that just got off a cruise can help me here.

Here are the questions I ask the rep.

 

1. It shows on the Princess web site that the cost for the Plus package is 60.00 a day. Which is 1200.00 for 2 people.   Do you have to pay an additional 18% fee on top of that? Or is the total cost 1200.00.  

(Under the terms and conditions it states an 18% fee is added to the I package)

 

2.  Is that 60.00 cost a special deal that we have to purchase before boarding?

 

3.  If we purchase the package before boarding and for some unknown reason we have to cancel at the last minute do we get a total refund on the package?  (Rep told me if I purchase it now it goes into the total cost of my trip and no refund of package if we cancel.  Never heard of that before)

 

4.  Rep told me that if we wait to purchase the Plus package on embarkation day it will still be 60.00 and no 18%fee.  I'm not sure I believe that because he was so unsure of everything he was telling me.  Hopefully someone out here who has just gotten off a cruise can clarify this.

Reason I would like to purchase this package onboard is because we have some credits coming but they can only be used onboard the ship, can't use them before boarding.  

Please help 

[DallasGuy75219]

41 minutes ago, fedexretiree said:

1. It shows on the Princess web site that the cost for the Plus package is 60.00 a day. Which is 1200.00 for 2 people.   Do you have to pay an additional 18% fee on top of that? Or is the total cost 1200.00.  

(Under the terms and conditions it states an 18% fee is added to the I package)

 

2.  Is that 60.00 cost a special deal that we have to purchase before boarding?

 

3.  If we purchase the package before boarding and for some unknown reason we have to cancel at the last minute do we get a total refund on the package?  (Rep told me if I purchase it now it goes into the total cost of my trip and no refund of package if we cancel.  Never heard of that before)

 

4.  Rep told me that if we wait to purchase the Plus package on embarkation day it will still be 60.00 and no 18%fee.  I'm not sure I believe that because he was so unsure of everything he was telling me.  Hopefully someone out here who has just gotten off a cruise can clarify this.

Reason I would like to purchase this package onboard is because we have some credits coming but they can only be used onboard the ship, can't use them before boarding.  

Please help 

1. No. $60 for the Princess Plus package includes gratuities on the drink package plus the standard gratuities to the crew. If you buy the standalone Plus drink package, you do pay gratuity on that.

 

2 and 4. Same price on board, although Princess claims the quantity of Princess Plus packages for sale is limited and they may run out.

 

3. Not sure, but it does show like an addition to the cruise fare on your invoice. So it you're in the penalty period for cancelation, I can see how it might be nonrefundable.

[Torfamm]

5 hours ago, DallasGuy75219 said:

1. No. $60 for the Princess Plus package includes gratuities on the drink package plus the standard gratuities to the crew. If you buy the standalone Plus drink package, you do pay gratuity on that.

 

2 and 4. Same price on board, although Princess claims the quantity of Princess Plus packages for sale is limited and they may run out.

 

3. Not sure, but it does show like an addition to the cruise fare on your invoice. So it you're in the penalty period for cancelation, I can see how it might be nonrefundable.

3. The package is a part of the cruise fare. It can’t be cancelled and refunded separately.

[skynight]

1) $60/pp/day is the full cost and covers unlimited alcoholic beverages and up to 15 alcoholic beverages/pp/day menu priced up to $15. No service charge is added per drink. $15 covers around 80 to 90 % of all drinks. If you order a drink in excess of $15 you will be charged the difference + 15%. Example a $20 drink will cost you $5 + .90cents = $5.90. There are quite a few wines that are higher than $15.

2) Not a special price. The plus package can be purchased pre-cruise as part of the fare or you can wait until you board and purchase on boarding day where the charge will go to your on board account. When purchased on board you pay for all days of the cruise.

3) When the plus package is purchased pre-cruise it becomes part of the fare. It's the Plus Fare. If you cancel the entire fare which includes the plus package becomes subject to the cancellation terms in the passage contract as well as any travel insurance you have purchased. If you wait until you board then, of course, if you can not make the cruise you never actually pay for the plus package.

4) Yes, $60/pp/day. The rep is correct. If you have lots of OBC the cost of the package will be netted against the OBC amount. You also will not be charged any insurance premium for the package cost. 

[DallasGuy75219]

26 minutes ago, Torfamm said:

3. The package is a part of the cruise fare. It can’t be cancelled and refunded separately.

That's what I thought.

[FancyPants21]

Princess makes the packages very confusing IMO.

 

There are three types of cruise fare... Standard, Plus and Premier. These are cruise fares and include the appropriate beverage package (see below) and other extras like gratuities, wifi, meals etc.

 

So, if you book a Plus or Premier cruise fare when you first make your booking the package cost becomes part of your ticket cost and so it is included as far as cancellation and insurance is concerned. Consequently, if you book a Plus or Premier cruise fare you cannot cancel the package without cancelling your entire cruise as it is an integral part of your fare.

 

If you book a Standard fare you will then have to pay on top for all your drinks, wifi, speciality and casual dining meals, crew appreciation etc. This works well for a lot of people that won't want to use these extras. 

 

But for those on the Standard fare that may be only want the drinks, without the other extras that are included in the cruise package fares there are several optional add-on packages which you can purchase on board or before boarding through the app.

 

So, if you get the Standard fare (which remember, doesn't include anything) but you still want to have drinks included, but not the other extras that are included in the cruise package fares, you can add the Plus or Premier beverage package. This is different to the cruise package fare in that it does not include the extras like wifi, gratuities meals etc. Just beverages.

 

If you don't drink alcohol and you are on the Standard fare you can add the zero-alcohol package which just includes Sodas, Fruit juices, Smoothies, Mocktails, Hot chocolate, Premium and speciality coffees and teas, Bottled water, San Pellegrino, Evian and Red Bull.

 

So, at the time of booking, you have to decide which cruise fare you are going for... Standard, Plus or Premier... and with Plus and Premier you get the wifi, meals, gratuities etc etc. With Standard you get nothing but you can then add the Plus or Premier beverage package or the zero-alcohol package after booking or when on board.

 

It is very confusing because they use Plus and Premier as names for the cruise fare packages as well as the add-on beverage packages but as you can see they are different.

 

There is also a classic soda package for those on the standard fare that just want sodas, fruit juices, mocktails and smoothies.

 

Confused? Yup... so was I. I think I have all this right. If not then please say.

[p.pete]

1 hour ago, skynight said:

4) Yes, $60/pp/day. The rep is correct. If you have lots of OBC the cost of the package will be netted against the OBC amount. You also will not be charged any insurance premium for the package cost. 

We are expecting OBC via the site that we booked through, but I don't think it's visible to us yet - we are assuming that it appears once we are onboard and I think I have seem messages here saying this is standard for some types of OBC.  If we still can't see it by the time we're onboard and looking to purchase Plus is that important with regards to one being used to pay for the other?  If the package is netted against the OBC is that just something that happens at the end of the cruise, so we don't really need to think about it until the last day - ensuring that we have managed to identify (and leave intact!) the OBC by then - at which point they will balance against each other?

[p.pete]

3 minutes ago, FancyPants21 said:

Princess makes the packages very confusing IMO.

 

There are three types of cruise fare... Standard, Plus and Premier. These are cruise fares and include the appropriate beverage package (see below) and other extras like gratuities, wifi, meals etc.

 

So, if you book a Plus or Premier cruise fare when you first make your booking the package cost becomes part of your ticket cost and so it is included as far as cancellation and insurance is concerned. Consequently, if you book a Plus or Premier cruise fare you cannot cancel the package without cancelling your entire cruise as it is an integral part of your fare.

 

If you book a Standard fare you will then have to pay on top for all your drinks, wifi, speciality and casual dining meals, crew appreciation etc. This works well for a lot of people that won't want to use these extras. 

 

But for those on the Standard fare that may be only want the drinks, without the other extras that are included in the cruise package fares there are several optional add-on packages which you can purchase on board or before boarding through the app.

 

So, if you get the Standard fare (which remember, doesn't include anything) but you still want to have drinks included, but not the other extras that are included in the cruise package fares, you can add the Plus or Premier beverage package. This is different to the cruise package fare in that it does not include the extras like wifi, gratuities meals etc. Just beverages.

 

If you don't drink alcohol and you are on the Standard fare you can add the zero-alcohol package which just includes Sodas, Fruit juices, Smoothies, Mocktails, Hot chocolate, Premium and speciality coffees and teas, Bottled water, San Pellegrino, Evian and Red Bull.

 

So, at the time of booking, you have to decide which cruise fare you are going for... Standard, Plus or Premier... and with Plus and Premier you get the wifi, meals, gratuities etc etc. With Standard you get nothing but you can then add the Plus or Premier beverage package or the zero-alcohol package after booking or when on board.

 

It is very confusing because they use Plus and Premier as names for the cruise fare packages as well as the add-on beverage packages but as you can see they are different.

 

There is also a classic soda package for those on the standard fare that just want sodas, fruit juices, mocktails and smoothies.

 

Confused? Yup... so was I. I think I have all this right. If not then please say.

Hmmm - this is not the understanding that I had built up in my head!!!  I was aware that there were 'drinks packages' with the same name - but actually what you're saying is that if we buy Plus onboard the *only* option is the drinks-version of the same-named package.  So there is no way to purchase 'Plus' onboard and for that to include wifi and gratuities?  [but it costs the same per day as if you had purchased it in advance as a Plus cruise fare - which is doubly sneaky if they make it sound like you're upgrading to the same thing for the same price, but actually it's of far less value]

[FancyPants21]

8 minutes ago, p.pete said:

Hmmm - this is not the understanding that I had built up in my head!!!  I was aware that there were 'drinks packages' with the same name - but actually what you're saying is that if we buy Plus onboard the *only* option is the drinks-version of the same-named package.  So there is no way to purchase 'Plus' onboard and for that to include wifi and gratuities?  [but it costs the same per day as if you had purchased it in advance as a Plus cruise fare - which is doubly sneaky if they make it sound like you're upgrading to the same thing for the same price, but actually it's of far less value]

I am not saying they are the only option... you might be able to convert your Standard cruise fare into a Plus or Premier cruise fare, including the extras, gratuity etc, when on board... that I am not sure of... perhaps someone else can confirm this for us.

 

But what I am saying regarding the beverage packages I believe is correct. 🙂 

[p.pete]

3 minutes ago, FancyPants21 said:

I am not saying they are the only option... you might be able to convert your Standard cruise fare into a Plus or Premier cruise fare, including the extras, gratuity etc, when on board... that I am not sure of... perhaps someone else can confirm this for us.

 

But what I am saying regarding the beverage packages I believe is correct. 🙂 

Cool.  I think the confusion is around the Plus package including the Plus beverage package - as you rightly point out they are not the same thing.  I'm comfortable that if I'm switching to 'Princess Plus' then that is multiple things that I'm purchasing, one of which being the beverage package.  If someone tries to upsell me something that just claims to be a 'beverage package' I'll say that's not what I want 🙂 

[skynight]

It makes no sense to purchase a stand alone beverage package. The stand alone plus beverage package is $65/pp/day and the premier stand alone package is $85/pp/day. Stand alone packages do not cover wifi, daily housekeeping & food service gratuities as well as the other items.

The cost for stand alone beverage packages are higher than the $60 and $80 costs for the full plus and premier packages. 

[FancyPants21]

3 minutes ago, skynight said:

It makes no sense to purchase a stand alone beverage package. The stand alone plus beverage package is $65/pp/day and the premier stand alone package is $85/pp/day. Stand alone packages do not cover wifi, daily housekeeping & food service gratuities as well as the other items.

The cost for stand alone beverage packages are higher than the $60 and $80 costs for the full plus and premier packages. 

I agree... the beverage packages are poor value when compared to the cruise package of the same name.

[p.pete]

5 minutes ago, skynight said:

It makes no sense to purchase a stand alone beverage package. The stand alone plus beverage package is $65/pp/day and the premier stand alone package is $85/pp/day. Stand alone packages do not cover wifi, daily housekeeping & food service gratuities as well as the other items.

The cost for stand alone beverage packages are higher than the $60 and $80 costs for the full plus and premier packages. 

Good info - the only way of coming even slightly ahead by getting just a drinks package would be to cancel gratuities and then sit at the bar and not want smoothies / coffee / wifi etc - I wouldn't be in a rush to serve that person!

[fedexretiree]

Thank you so much for all the replies.  So let me be sure that I totally understand this.  

1.   If I wait to purchase this plus package on board all I get is the drinks no Wi-Fi or gratuities included for $60.  Total will be 1600.00 for 2 people.

 

2.   If I add the plus package 3 days before departure it is still $60 but I will get the wi-fi and Gratuities and the drink package. Total will be 1600.00 for 2 people.

 But I will also need to increase my insurance coverage Because then it becomes part of the cruise fare.  

 

 This is becoming so confusing and unfortunately the Reps at Princess don't tell you the whole story.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[FancyPants21]

2 minutes ago, fedexretiree said:

Thank you so much for all the replies.  So let me be sure that I totally understand this.  

1.   If I wait to purchase this plus package on board all I get is the drinks no Wi-Fi or gratuities included for $60.  Total will be 1600.00 for 2 people.

 

2.   If I add the plus package 3 days before departure it is still $60 but I will get the wi-fi and Gratuities and the drink package. Total will be 1600.00 for 2 people.

 But I will also need to increase my insurance coverage Because then it becomes part of the cruise fare.  

 

 This is becoming so confusing and unfortunately the Reps at Princess don't tell you the whole story.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is confusing.

 

No, I think you can still upgrade your cruise package to Plus or Premier, either before the cruise through the cruise personalizer or on board on the 1st or 2nd day of the cruise.

 

This is why it is so confusing... because you can also buy the Plus or Premier Beverage Package on board instead... they are different as they don't include all the extras.

 

Why anyone would just add the to just the Beverage package instead of upgrading your cruise package I don't know.

 

It is kinda explained here but it isn't clear is it.

 

https://www.princess.com/en-uk/cruise-deals-promotions/plus-premier-cruise-packages#:~:text=Yes.,second day of your voyage.

 

 

[karatemom2]

Here is an entire thread on this topic. I think there is some unnecessary confusion here - per my understanding you can purchase the regular fully loaded Plus or Premier package onboard within the first day or two and this includes the full package with all benefits (drinks, Wi-Fi, gratuities, etc.) 

 

The advantage in waiting is that you can use OBC and it won’t impact your cruise fare or insurance costs. The downside is the price could go up and some have reported that they have “sold out” if Princess limits the number available - this is highly suspect as I am sure Princess will be happy to sell as many packages as they can. There are significant financial advantages to them as a corporate entity selling them in advance and collecting those dollars upfront though, which is likely why they push so hard to get people to wrap them with their cruise fare. But from all information shared here - you can wait and purchase the same packages onboard. 
 

 

[skynight]

No. No matter if you pre-purchase or wait to purchase on boarding day you get the entire package either way, beverage, wifi, grats, casual meals, free sending of the medallion, the ocean now access, the no charge telephone ordering from room service and some other stuff. Of course if you wait you will have a charge to have the medallion shipped to your house or you can elect to pick it up at the pier.

Edited April 16 by skynight

[karatemom2]

3 minutes ago, skynight said:

No. No matter if you pre-purchase or wait to purchase on boarding day you get the entire package either way, beverage, wifi, grats, casual meals, free sending of the medallion, the ocean now access, the no charge telephone ordering from room service and some other stuff.

Yes, agree. This has always been my understanding. 

Edited April 16 by karatemom2

[FancyPants21]

5 minutes ago, skynight said:

No. No matter if you pre-purchase or wait to purchase on boarding day you get the entire package either way, beverage, wifi, grats, casual meals, free sending of the medallion, the ocean now access, the no charge telephone ordering from room service and some other stuff. Of course if you wait you will have a charge to have the medallion shipped to your house or you can elect to pick it up at the pier.

Correct... if you buy the full package.

 

But what you forget is that there is another package you can buy... the Beverage package. It is called the Plus Beverage Package or the Premier Beverage package... they are different to the full cruise packages you are talking about.

 

The full Plus Package... the one that includes the wifi, CA etc... is not the Plus Beverage Package. That is why it is so confusing.

[PMGS247]

1 hour ago, skynight said:

It makes no sense to purchase a stand alone beverage package. The stand alone plus beverage package is $65/pp/day and the premier stand alone package is $85/pp/day. Stand alone packages do not cover wifi, daily housekeeping & food service gratuities as well as the other items.

The cost for stand alone beverage packages are higher than the $60 and $80 costs for the full plus and premier packages. 

 

100% agreed the only technicality, and the math would come out correct for only a VERY narrow group of passengers, is that you can buy the stand-alone for just one person and are not forced to buy it for both passengers.  So, one drink package for $65/day instead of two plus packages for $120.

 

Needless to say once you start adding in the a la carte prices for some of the inclusions you've given up by not doing plus, you get back to that $120/day REALLY quickly but I'm sure the very specific situation where one person drinks like a fish but as a couple they remove gratuities and/or don't indulge on any of the other services they would receive under plus, the math could work.  It would be a really unusual situation but I'm sure it's >0%.

[rodndonna]

apologies for a tangent question - relating to Plus fares for Casino players (discounted fares)

 

Does anyone know if the additional cost to Plus (say $60/pp/pday) is discounted by Casino rate at the same level of discount against the fare?

 

For example - if one received Casino discount of 15% against cruise fare - would they effectively get that 15% discount against the added Plus charges - so essentially $51 instead of $60pp/pday? 

 

I ask because that is how it works with HAL and Casino discount fares. With HAL and their "Have it All" or HIA fare pricing, there is an advantage in booking with the HIA fare as that add on cost is reduced. HIA can generally be added later, but no Casino discount would be applied if not included as part of the fare.

 

We have only sailed Princess once (last week) and not really expecting a Casino discount offer - but  - I am curious 🤔

[karatemom2]

15 minutes ago, rodndonna said:

apologies for a tangent question - relating to Plus fares for Casino players (discounted fares)

 

Does anyone know if the additional cost to Plus (say $60/pp/pday) is discounted by Casino rate at the same level of discount against the fare?

 

For example - if one received Casino discount of 15% against cruise fare - would they effectively get that 15% discount against the added Plus charges - so essentially $51 instead of $60pp/pday? 

 

I ask because that is how it works with HAL and Casino discount fares. With HAL and their "Have it All" or HIA fare pricing, there is an advantage in booking with the HIA fare as that add on cost is reduced. HIA can generally be added later, but no Casino discount would be applied if not included as part of the fare.

 

We have only sailed Princess once (last week) and not really expecting a Casino discount offer - but  - I am curious 🤔

 
We always book through our various casino offers and have not noticed any special casino pricing on the packages. Once in awhile they will include the package as part of offer, but that seems quite rare these days as Princess appears to be tightening up on their Casino perks. So we haven’t noticed a price discount on packages via casino pricing but we don’t purchase the packages, so it’s possible that maybe we just haven’t noticed? We get some of the benefits the packages provide onboard from our casino host generally - free drinks in casino, comped specialty meals, etc. 

[reedprincess]

47 minutes ago, PMGS247 said:

 

100% agreed the only technicality, and the math would come out correct for only a VERY narrow group of passengers, is that you can buy the stand-alone for just one person and are not forced to buy it for both passengers.  So, one drink package for $65/day instead of two plus packages for $120.

 

Needless to say once you start adding in the a la carte prices for some of the inclusions you've given up by not doing plus, you get back to that $120/day REALLY quickly but I'm sure the very specific situation where one person drinks like a fish but as a couple they remove gratuities and/or don't indulge on any of the other services they would receive under plus, the math could work.  It would be a really unusual situation but I'm sure it's >0%.

And kwst we forgot, the Plus and Premier Beverage Packages attract the 18% gratuity on the cost 

This, that $65 per night becomes $77 per night real fast.   Or $85 per night for Premier Beverage Package becomes $100 real fast.

 

Yes, the standalone packages can work for a small set of people.. that's why they're offered...

[Torfamm]

3 hours ago, p.pete said:

Hmmm - this is not the understanding that I had built up in my head!!!  I was aware that there were 'drinks packages' with the same name - but actually what you're saying is that if we buy Plus onboard the *only* option is the drinks-version of the same-named package.  So there is no way to purchase 'Plus' onboard and for that to include wifi and gratuities?  [but it costs the same per day as if you had purchased it in advance as a Plus cruise fare - which is doubly sneaky if they make it sound like you're upgrading to the same thing for the same price, but actually it's of far less value]

You can add the Plus or Premier package at any time after booking or during the first day or two onboard for the same $60 and $80 as at booking 

[fedexretiree]

And doing that 60.00 on the 1st day on board you get wi-fi gratituties casual meals with that too....correct?