ronjoh

We are using Vancouver. In the past there were no green vs blue. You were allowed to pick an arrival time. We pick the first group (11:30 to 12:30) and when we arrived the line was about 80 yards long and after 20 minutes (before we moved up) the line had snaked out the doors. There was no priority line for Elite until customs and security had been cleared and then we were sent to the priority area. This took about 45 minutes to one hour from the time we arrived (probably due to customs clearance). This was in Vancouver. On this (Vancouver) cruise we completed all the required information and were assigned a green priority. When we were able to chose an arrival time (about 60 days pre cruise), we choose 11:30 - 12:30 and the app showed Group A. This information remained on our app until yesterday when I received the Princess email advising me of the changes. My green was changes to blue with no information about groups or times. My understanding now is that green goes first (two lines) (regardless of status). We have cruised out of LA numerous times and yes, there were no long lines.

My beef is a little different from the majority here. We are booked on a cruise next month. Our status with Princess is Elite and we have booked a suite to celebrate an anniversary. We thought loyalty was highly important to Princess as there are a few perks associated with this level. As both my wife and myself don't drink, the beverage packages was not worth the value to us. We don't care about the extra charges for Alfredo's, room service or medallion delivery, etc., although we do find it annoying. What I don't understand is that our boarding priority has been changed from green to blue. At our age, the slow boarding process is the most unpleasant part of the holiday. What has Princess gained by removing this perk from its most dedicated customers? These changes were made after the last day for cancellation. Also after flight and hotel bookings were finalized. When we booked the cruise we had certain expectations of service and costs and possibly would have cancelled if we had been made aware of these changes. After 30+ cruises, we know there are many other options and changes should not be made once cancellation charges kick in.

First a little background. As Elite member (in the past) we were allowed some free internet each day. It was good enough for us to receive and send a few emails each day. The last Princess cruise, earlier this year, we were on a new ship and wanted to experience all the new technology so we purchased the full package (medalion, free internet and gratuities. This was great, although me wife doesn't drink and the price seemed good (lower than what is offered today) however we didn't need the full internet package, and my wife did enjoy some of the specialty coffees. I tried my best to get some value out of the beverage package. Because we're elite members we also had a free bar set up each. My question is that we really didn't need the package we purchased, we don't understand our options (for the next cruise we are looking at). Following are my questions. 1. Do you still get medalion if you don't purchase the full internet package? 2. We understand the elite free internet perk is gone. Can we purchase internet by the minute (hour) to satisfy our needs on sending and receiving emails? 3, Do Elite passengers get a discount on internet? 4. What are the current internet packages and their prices? 5. Is medallion internet or blue tooth based. Do I need it? Thank you and I appreciate all the help and clarifications that I seem unable to get from the Princess website.