Jacster99

2 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

The only time we've ever ordered anything through OceanNow was when we were in isolation with Covid in 2022. And I am still in awe that they managed to get perfectly made single espressos to us still piping hot. 

 

Like you, if we do decide to use OceanNow on the world cruise we'll just activate one device.

Did you know there is a separate galley for room service? It is on deck 9?   I am not sure how far back it goes, but the entrance I saw was on the port side forward. Don't know if there are others, probably not, as deck 9 is centrally located. It is not a good idea to be near the door.

2 hours ago, resordanis said:

Just noticed on Medallion App it show my drinks price as $15  Hope it is an old listing and not AUD.

Mine doesn't say AUD.

1 hour ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

That sounds like the USD limit for the $65 Plus package. I've heard there is a bug in the app where it is quoting prices depending on whether that ship is operating in USD or AUD at the moment. 

It's in Australia, so operating in AUD.

2 hours ago, resordanis said:

Just noticed on Medallion App it show my drinks price as $15  Hope it is an old listing and not AUD.

Me too.  The carelessness & sloppiness is starting to annoy me.  No wonder people are confused.  As far as I know it has never been AUD15 so it must be USD.  Someone should tell them there are other countries that use dollars and it would make sense to use currency codes.

1 hour ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

In that case maybe Princess upgraded your booking to Plus. Nice one if they did! 😊

 

I think the Plus Fares came out early 2021. It shows in the 22/23 brochure which was published in February 2021. So if your 2020 cruise was moved to 2022, then to 2024 they may have added Plus as a bonus. 

They certainly didn't add it in to the fare, and it said compliments of my travel agent. There are separate amounts for the beverage and wi-fi. Anyway it is more than enough for my needs.

2 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

You may have unwittingly booked a Plus fare which includes the drinks and internet packages. When Princess introduced the Plus fare the online booking engine defaulted to that rather than the standard fare so your TA may have just booked that fare for you without saying anything about the difference. 

2 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

You may have unwittingly booked a Plus fare which includes the drinks and internet packages. When Princess introduced the Plus fare the online booking engine defaulted to that rather than the standard fare so your TA may have just booked that fare for you without saying anything about the difference. 

No, I booked my own fare, and they didn't have plus fares then.  It was November 2017, for the 2019 cruise.  I then took a move over to 2020.  What could go wrong, I thought lol.  And the system still defaults to the plus fare. I don't know when the package was booked. but I noticed it a couple of years ago.  It says compliments of my TA but he said he didn't know anything about it.  Same thing also happened with my other move over booking, also booked through him.  

26 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Thanks. That's an excellent summary. I hope I can get that on our upcoming world cruise. It's all very confusing but hopefully those who read this thread and the post I put on the world cruise toll call will at least be aware of the potential issue and check exactly what they are entitled to. 

Actually it was given to me by a senior staff member who asked if she could help as I was waiting at the service desk.  The leaflets were sitting on top of the desk for anyone to take. I have never had any idea what I was entitled to, as I didn't buy the package.  I think my TA gifted it to me.  But it would definitely be the old one.

3 hours ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Sorry, Jacster99, the way this forum works it's easy to miss a post.

 

Did you have to go to Guest Services to get that booklet? That's the sort of thing that should be in your cabin when you board. Many people wouldn't realise there was such a thing.

 

It's getting more and more confusing.

- Some people have been getting the $22 limit, others have been restricted to $16 - someone on Coral right now has experienced that.

- Some people have received emails confirming they will get the $22 limit but I just got a sales pitch to upgrade email and there is no way we'll be paying over $5000 to do that (we're doing the world cruise) given the poor quality wines by the glass. 

- there may even be some variance from ship to ship, or possibly even depending on the length of the cruise.

 

People can only report their own experiences but forget that curcumstances can change, often without notice, which is why I put up this thread. I'll find out for real in just over five weeks!

 

 

Yes, I wanted to know exactly what was included in my package and they gave me that.  I don't even know if it is correct.  It doesn't have a date on it, but you could use it to prove your case if you are charged the difference.  Note that there is no difference between the old and the new.  I don't know how much I was given, as I always asked when ordering if it was included and I was never charged.

6 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

No, I'm not going off half cocked. I had a discussion elsewhere with someone who is currently on Coral, who had booked the Plus fare before December 2022, and who is limited to $16 without paying extra. I didn't believe it at first then I checked the T&Cs on the website which, as shown in my original post, now have two different sets of conditions depending on when you booked your Plus fare. I don't know exactly when this changed but it wasn't like that last time I looked although that was probably a few months ago. 

 

However there seems to be some variation as to what people are experiencing. It may be ship-dependant. It seems like a total mess. Since we only paid $40pp per day, as long as we get our internet, bottled water, coffees, some of our favourite cocktails abd liqueurs, and 25% discount on wines by the bottle we'll have got our money's worth. I've given up expecting Princess to offer decent wines by the glass.

 

Go to the bottom of those T&Cs and you'll see the weasel clause which gives Princess the right to change as much as they like about the drinks package, with no notice, and whatever version of the T&Cs are in place when your cruise starts is what you're stuck with. 

I would have been interested to hear what you had to say about my comment, but nobody has even mentioned it. I notice this happens a lot when Princess puts out conflicting information. Most people cling to one or the other, saying it is right.

I was on the Coral from 12 to 26 February and the Service Desk gave me a pocket guide, which was clearer & more comprehensive than anything else I have seen on this topic.  It sets out exactly what you get on the old plus, old premier, new plus and new premier.  Old plus says $22, old premier $30, new plus $22, new premier $30.

Thank you for all your help in answering our questions.  You mentioned somewhere that it is important to have Covid cover.  Is that just your recommendation, or is it a requirement of some of the countries we are visiting?  I believe that Princess covers us on the ship, and gives us an FCC if we have to cancel. Any thoughts and advice appreciated.

8 hours ago, Pushka said:

It's not just cruises but travel in general. Everyone I know who has travelled overseas has come back with covid despite precautions. And all recovered quickly without antivirals. It's interesting reading the Viking cruises whose ships are starting to wind their way south to Australia. Suddenly after months of 'what is covid' life, they are facing testing and restrictions and given there are no covid testing requirements coming to Australia by plane, are finding it all rather ridiculous the requirements of cruise passengers.  I can't take the antiviral anyway as I'm on blood thinners. 

I know this forum is not supposed to be about medical questions, but do you have more information about what sort of blood thinners, and was it a doctor who told you that? Aspirin & fish oil thin the blood, and maybe Statins.

1 hour ago, buchhalm said:

There must be a sensible cut-off point somewhere. That disembarking early, masking up and hiding away business seens to me a panicky over-reaction. (Go ahead, slam me)

Responsible people are 4x vaccinated Do PERHAPS one pre-trip test if it is DEMANDED by the authorities or cruise lines.

Pre all this,  thousands of people were travelling with the flu or other infectious diseases. They had it and likely didn't know about it. Had people been tested, cases would have been found for sure.

 

Tell that to the Australian media, who get hysterical every time there are cases on cruise ships.  We all do our bit to stop the industry shutting down again.

7 hours ago, LC1950 said:

DH & I were on this 28 day cruise around Australia.  Due to changes in itinerary (as well as everything else onboard) we decided to disembark in Melbourne last Sunday.

 

We were extremely cautious and vigilant throughout the cruise.  Masked up indoors and mostly outdoors unless socially distanced.  Washy washy, sanitise at every opportunity.  Did not visit the theatre for the shows or lectures nor did we sit in the Universe lounge for performances by guest artists.  Rarely sat in any of the bars unless we could socially distance.  We didn't do any tours onland.  It was definitely not like cruising preCovid.  We did NOT contract Covid onboard and continually tested negative but .... at home at lunch time yesterday (Monday) we were feeling the onset of a cold.  Did a RAT and we were positive.

 

Fortunately we were home and our GP quickly organised antivirals for us (both in our 70s) and we are starting to feel a little better after our 2nd dose this morning. Thankfully we were home and not still onboard.

 

I'm not complaining at all, but I urge everyone if on a cruise - be careful and be vigilant.

Did the doctor organise it electronically after you called, or did you have to go in?

20 hours ago, gazpam said:

🤣. Complaining about a cabin that was banging and knocking on deck 8 Port aft. By 3am, and just the odd doze, it was time to complain. I prefer to do things in person if possible, so I walked down to services. After a little while, the lovely young man at the desk sorted things, He hopped into the lift with me to take me to check out a cabin on 12 Starboard forward. We were given it for 12 hrs, along with deck 8, so I walked back down to 8, grabbed a few things, hubby decided he wasn't wandering around the ship at that hour, so I walked back up to 12. Had a great sleep till hubby came in at 9am. So there you have it. My one and only ride so far in a lift on this cruise with a lovely young man at 2am. We are now enjoying the peace and quiet, not the port side, but great sleeping.

Did you find out what the noise was?

36 minutes ago, valantine80 said:

My husband always asks for a blanket as he finds the doona too hot. It was much worse when they went through a  period of only having a doona with no top sheet .We always asked for top sheet. At least they have come to their senses in that regard.

 

 On my last cruise the steward put the blanket inside the doona cover.

2 hours ago, Cbtours said:

That’s good. Real blankets or pool blankets? As Frank gets so hot under doonas (that he sleeps just under sheet) and if I could get doona replaced with a blanket I would.

I always ask on day one and have always had two blankets.