No Discounts or perks on Booking

We recently booked a 10 day Alaskan cruise on the Grand which will leave on June 25th, 2018. I was somewhat surprised that no discounts or perks of any kind were offered or available. They said if any promotions come up between now and the sailing we "May" be entitled to them but not guaranteed. I had just gone on the Crown a month prior to this. Is this the norm and should I expect to see any promotions which would lower our costs? I am a little disappointed so far. Thanks for the scoop on how this works.

Alaska is so popular, they rarely need to add enticements to fill the ship.

Someone recently posted about his Alaska cruise that there were 1800 blue cards with the other 200+ being Elite, Platinum, etc.

For many Alaska is a bucket list cruise and a first cruise.

BTW: if you're a veteran, send in your DD214. Buy Carnival stock if you can afford it. Both will get you OBC on every cruise.

You generally won't find many discounts or promotions on Alaskan cruises; they are very popular and fill up fast without many incentives.

As long as it is a refundable deposit I say to book it if it's what you want. If there is a promo later you can always either add it or simply call Princess or your TA and say you want to cancel and rebook under the promo. They will almost always just add it on instead.

Edit: I just looked at that sailing and balcony or higher categories have the Sip and Sail promo. Princess often has prom offers that are only for balconies and higher.

Alaska is so popular, they rarely need to add enticements to fill the ship.

Someone recently posted about his Alaska cruise that there were 1800 blue cards with the other 200+ being Elite, Platinum, etc.

For many Alaska is a bucket list cruise and a first cruise.

BTW: if you're a veteran, send in your DD214. Buy Carnival stock if you can afford it. Both will get you OBC on every cruise.

I know that Alaska is a very popular cruise but I thought that since we were just cruising with Princess they might give us a perk of some kind.

Keep checking for price drops. I have noticed that a lot of people don't like to cruise over Father's day. You may see a decrease in pricing.

As long as it is a refundable deposit I say to book it if it's what you want. If there is a promo later you can always either add it or simply call Princess or your TA and say you want to cancel and rebook under the promo. They will almost always just add it on instead.

 

Edit: I just looked at that sailing and balcony or higher categories have the Sip and Sail promo. Princess often has prom offers that are only for balconies and higher.

Thanks for the info. Question if you know. Does the all inclusive package offered in the sip n sail) include the coffee card products?

Don't hold your breath about anything coming out between now and your cruise.

As noted in other responses Alaska is very popular and as with most other Princess cruises it will be sold out as well, especially a r/t 10 day from Frisco. :D

I know that Alaska is a very popular cruise but I thought that since we were just cruising with Princess they might give us a perk of some kind.

Have you booked a balcony or higher cabin? If so, you should be eligible for Sip & Sale. Better hurry, it is only offered for a few more days.

Alaska, especially during the summer months, is so popular that no perks are needed by cruise lines to sell them.

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Thanks for the info. Question if you know. Does the all inclusive package offered in the sip n sail) include the coffee card products?

Yes it does... any beverage under $10 is included.

I know that Alaska is a very popular cruise but I thought that since we were just cruising with Princess they might give us a perk of some kind.

As far as I know they do not just give you a perk of some kind since you were just cruising with Princess. Any perk, if offered, is usually advertised and you would see it on the website under your sailing when you check out the prices.

We have an Alaska cruise tour booked for summer 2018 which we booked in Dec 2017. When the sip n sail came out it was offered on our cruise and the price did not go up. We contacted our TA and had them give us instead the OBC which was offered if you didn't want the sip n sail. So there are perks offered. Watch for the beginning of September to see what the next promotion is and if it applies to your sailing.

Thanks for the info. Question if you know. Does the all inclusive package offered in the sip n sail) include the coffee card products?

Absolutely! ALL drinks $10 and under are included. :)

Where is OP seeing no promo ? [emoji848] Currently Sip&Sale rates on OP's sailing . Rate codes N6D drinks or N6E OBC are available . Contact a good TA to transfer your booking for even more benefits .

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Unlike other lines, Princess allows TAs to discount fares. Not all do so you have to look for them. They're not allowed to promote or advertise lower fares but if you ask for a quote from a TA who does, you can save at least 10% or more plus get extra OBC. You can still take advantage of promotions. Check around for the high volume TAs. They get the best pricing to start with, give their clients group rates even if you're not in a group and then discount their commission as they work on volume and repeat business.

We recently booked a 10 day Alaskan cruise on the Grand which will leave on June 25th, 2018. I was somewhat surprised that no discounts or perks of any kind were offered or available. They said if any promotions come up between now and the sailing we "May" be entitled to them but not guaranteed. I had just gone on the Crown a month prior to this. Is this the norm and should I expect to see any promotions which would lower our costs? I am a little disappointed so far. Thanks for the scoop on how this works.

When I looked up this cruise I found that it is being offered under the Sip&Sail Promo. You are required to book a balcony category or higher to get the promo. If you booked an inside or ocean view you will not get this promo.This promo expires August 31st. Go to the Princess web site to read the fine print. If you qualify call Princess or your T.A. to get it straightened out. Past passengers may get some slightly lower fares, $50 or $100. Log into your Princess account before you look up the cruise. Not all voyages qualify for these lower fares. If you did not book with a T.A. suggest you check that route out. T.A.'s can and do discount fares as well as provide additional perks like OBC. New promos come up all the time. Watch for them. Also read all the fine print.

We recently booked a 10 day Alaskan cruise on the Grand which will leave on June 25th, 2018. I was somewhat surprised that no discounts or perks of any kind were offered or available. They said if any promotions come up between now and the sailing we "May" be entitled to them but not guaranteed. I had just gone on the Crown a month prior to this. Is this the norm and should I expect to see any promotions which would lower our costs? I am a little disappointed so far. Thanks for the scoop on how this works.

What you could have done was buy a future cruise deposit for $100 per person (2 people can use 1 each per cabin) when your were on the Crown. Then you'd at least have OBC for this cruise to Alaska and it would cover your deposit. Hoping you find something later that can bring the price down. We have had some luck in sales. We've also found the cheapest cruise prices when the itineraries first come out. Good luck.

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As far as I know they do not just give you a perk of some kind since you were just cruising with Princess. Any perk, if offered, is usually advertised and you would see it on the website under your sailing when you check out the prices.

 

We have an Alaska cruise tour booked for summer 2018 which we booked in Dec 2017. When the sip n sail came out it was offered on our cruise and the price did not go up. We contacted our TA and had them give us instead the OBC which was offered if you didn't want the sip n sail. So there are perks offered. Watch for the beginning of September to see what the next promotion is and if it applies to your sailing.

The OBC acronym does not jump out at me. Could you explain. Thanks so much.

The OBC acronym does not jump out at me. Could you explain. Thanks so much.

It stands for On Board Credit, a credit to your ship account. In this instance it is offered in lieu of the Beverage package

Since my Original post and took the advice of the Cruise Critic Crew and checked into the Sip n Sail Promotion.

I actually found out that we could get the full beverage package or an OBC. The OBC was only $150 each so we opted to stay with the beverage package at a savings of $563 each.

This is a good start and acceptable if that is all we get.

Thanks to all C.C. posters for your help.

To the OP: who are you working with that was unaware of the Sip and Sail promotion? That would remain a concern to me.

All the posts saying "no promotions in Alaska" .... "its popular" ... "no promotions!" then it turns out there is a promotion after all. People don't even check before responding. Seems like people just post to post...without adding anything substantive.

Fact is, I've sailed to Alaska and Vancouver 4 times, each time with a promo of one kind or another. The three most recent were all Sip & Sail promotions.

As has been proven by a few competent posters in thread, promotions are regularly available for Alaska sailings.

I have 2 cruises booked in Alaska for next August. I booked Sip and Sale, and on July 5th, when they had the extra promo of a free specialty dining. So plenty of promotions. We would normally sail inside cabin, but did a Suite for our 20th Anniversary a couple years ago and now don't want to go back (as I was told would happen)

 

This is a good start and acceptable if that is all we get.

 

Thanks to all C.C. posters for your help.

Surely you jest. On your second cruise you expect something special? I've been on over 100 cruises. What should I get? (Besides a great vacation at a great value.)