ScratchTheRat

1 hour ago, Cruise_Ewe said:

Hi, Have been keeping an eye on Sky Princess this week as we are going on it Saturday for next weeks cruise! (Our first cruise) Thats a shame about the missed ports this week, how rough does it feel on a boat like Princess in the conditions currently around Iceland (looks pretty grim) as myself and partner getting a tad nervous now! Although I assume Norway/Denmark isnt quite as extreme as iceland normally.

We are too and it'll be fine, our weather is due to be beautiful 😄

8 minutes ago, Landon90 said:

Have a lovely time. I did this cruise last month on Ventura, 4 days Southampton to Amsterdam and back. I’m also in my 30s and went solo. I paid £318 for an inside room. 
 

I had a great time. The ship arrived in the evening, I got off and had a few beers at the bar directly to the right as you leave the cruise terminal. The staff were hilarious, had some good music playing and was a lovely sunset. In town I visited a few bars including one called Temple Bar. The next day I visited some more

bars, did a few tourist sites, tried some ‘Amsterdam tobacco’, had a lovely meal at a place I cannot remember and then got a taxi back to the cruise terminal. 
 

We left Amsterdam around midnight and the next day we were at sea so I had a good time at the casino and eating at the restaurants on the ship. 
 

Really enjoyed the cruise. 🙂

That’s amazing to hear! I got the same deal and upgraded me to a sea view 🙂

The case is packed, the clothes are ready, just the normal things now of having to wait til the morning to pack toiletries, chargers and all that kinda stuff!

I'm getting up bright and early to go to the gym at 6am (save me) and then I will be heading to Southampton on the train from Cardiff. I aim to get to the terminal for around 12:30 and hopefully be on the ship for lunch!

Look forward to providing you with updates! 

15 hours ago, Yorkypete said:

 Why is everyone still cruising with P&O?

 

Because it's cheap.

9 hours ago, nini said:

We sail on the Sky in a few weeks and DH ordered our Medallions. We booked with the Plus package in July of 2021. So, Princess has had our money/ deposit for nearly two years. DH said they were charging him $10.00 in shipping and I said that should not be. I checked in with our Roll Call and members said that had similar issues and that they called their TA and/or Princess and they would be reimbursed.

 

FYI- it is on a Princess website that you will NOT be charged for the Medallion shipping IF you have purchased the Plus or Premium package. It is #39.

https://www.princess.com/cruise-deals-promotions/plus-premier-cruise-packages/

 

I also know via the posts by our own @JimmyVWine that when onboard, the "old Plus" is honored the same way as the "New Plus".  The dealings with Princess were as follows:

 

In addressing the $10.00 charge for mailing the medallions to us, I called our TA. You will LOVE the response(s). The first response that they will give the fee back when on the ship. I asked how. So, his new response (Mario) is:

The second response is ............ wait for it...................... wait for it.....................

"You have the "Old Princess Plus" and therefore do not qualify to have the medallions mailed to you free of charge."

 

I told our TA that our "Old" Princess Plus is being treated just like the new one when onboard and I know that for a fact. Our TA told him this. His response was that, NO! We will have the limits of the "Old" one when onboard.

 

Thank you all for "listening".

 

 

Not quite, only the $ limit for drinks is being honoured, all new features and additions are not unless you upgrade (juice bar, desserts, classes etc...)

Just now, MissP22 said:

I still want one color of each of them for my collection.

Can probably buy some on ebay? 

I always keep mine as well as cruise cards etc

Just now, MissP22 said:

 

Exactly, YOU do these things for YOUR reasons. 

Likewise, people may like medallion colours for THEIR reasons. Thanks for proving my point.

1 minute ago, Nicole&Pete said:

Ah I see. Do you think it’s likely there would be a white and gold night on a 2 week cruise in June as well?

 

Quite a difficult colour to find, maybe a white shawl will do!

Yes, most likely!

It's purely optional though. 

10 hours ago, Doug R. said:

Probably the small, very small, percentage of "elites" who, prior to the medallions, would flash their black cards to prove their superiority over the rest of us peasants.

Why choose a nice colour for your car if its performance is the same regardless?

Why choose a nice looking house if its just as comfortable inside as any other house?

People like things you may not care about, but it matters to them and hurts nobody 🙂

7 minutes ago, Nicole&Pete said:

Out of interest how do you know there is a white and gold formal night? We are on the Sky in June and are not aware if one of the formal nights is white and gold?

You will get sent an email 1-2 weeks before the cruise telling you of any special nights, what entertainment to expect etc

I also have no response from the email, not even an auto response.

With Princess, I sent them an email and had my OBC confirmed the next day!

It's time for another....LIVE cruise blog and journal! This time, I will be detailing my first visit onto P&O Aurora on a short cruise to Amsterdam. My goal for this thread is to provide background on what I'm doing, when, where and how, as well as sharing tips, experiences, reviews, menus and pictures to (hopefully) entertain and inform you all.

So first of all, a little about me!

I'm a man in my 30's and have been cruising now since 2010, where my first cruise was a 7 night Caribbean cruise on Carnival Dream from Orlando Florida. Since then, I have completed many cruises on Carnival where I am now Platinum status, I have cruised on Princess, MSC and Norwegian and have sailed with P&O on Iona, Britannia, Ventura (and this one will be on Aurora!), I was also lucky enough to be invited on to the Arvia test cruise before it was unleashed on the fare paying passengers! So needless to say, I think I know quite a bit about cruising and I think I have a rather unique voice on cruising as I am a bit younger than the average cruise guest and have some different ways of doing things!

So why this cruise?

Well, I recently got myself a new job and as I have another cruise booked (Sky Princess the following week!) my start date at work is in June. I left my old job earlier and was given garden leave so I figured...what should I do with that extra week off? Of course! Last minute cruise! Now, with the cruise being SO last minute (I booked 6 days before sailing), I couldn't bring any of my friends and family along as they couldn't get time off work at short notice and so, undeterred, I booked to go solo! 

Cabin and Itinerary

I booked a very cheap rate for an Inside cabin on a saver fare with a guarantee cabin, so I wouldn't get to choose my cabin in advance. Lo and behold, the next day my cabin has been confirmed and to my surprise, I was given a Seaview single cabin. There are only 4 of these cabins on the ship and I was quite happy to get it as it's rather unique!

Itinerary wise, this is a 4 day cruise from Southampton with an overnight stay in Amsterdam. Now, as a young (ish) solo traveller, I was glad to see the overnight stay was a Saturday so I can experience some of the fun of Saturday night city nightlife in Amsterdam, hit up some bars and see the party atmosphere.

I hope you will all enjoy my posts regarding this cruise as I know I often enjoy reading trip reports from others. If there's anything you want to see or know, please let me know and I will do my best for you!

Thanks all 🙂

Some people just like to have a new colour as they go up the tiers, nothing wrong with that.

2 minutes ago, wowzz said:

To be fair,  they should have picked up on the potential problem. Perhaps you should have a word with them !

I hardly expect a TA to examine my passport, I added those to the medallion app, my TA never sees them.

Just now, memoak said:

Everyone needs to look very carefully at the FAQ pages for themselves and not trust a 3rd party

Which I appreciate and have now done.

I booked with a very reputable TA. I don’t blame them, it’s my own fault I guess! 

Just now, Lady Arwen said:

Actually, yes we all need to read the terms and conditions because if we don’t we run the risk of missing out.  Each of us is responsible for making sure we have our ducks in a row as soon as we decide to book a cruise.  If we aren’t responsible then who is?  All cruiselines are exactly the same.  They make their rules, it’s their ship and it’s up to us to get it right.  I know you’re frustrated, but you cannot blame Princess for this one. 
Glad you’re able to get an emergency passport and I sincerely hope you have a wonderful cruise.

Thankyou!

yeah, I made a silly mistake it seemed but fixed now hopefully!

thanks for the well wishes!

2 minutes ago, memoak said:

The 6 month rule has been around for years. And yes it is up to each passenger to know what is needed to be able to cruise. I was on a Panama cruise that stopped in Colombia a few months ago and a passenger actually tried to say that Princess did not require vaccination or tests to sail. It was up to them to find out what was required 

Yes, but the 6 month rule doesn’t apply to EU locations or those agreed such as Norway. So my passport was valid for this cruise, it’s the cruise line who is making the rule, not the countries visiting. Yes I should have maybe been more vigilant but I feel if the countries accept my passport the cruise line should also.

12 minutes ago, wowzz said:

You should have checked Princess t&c's. Sorry.

Really helpful, thanks. Cos we all read every term and condition. How about trying to actually help or at least empathise rather than state the obvious? There’s no help in what you’ve said, no use, no addition, nothing.

5 minutes ago, wowzz said:

You should have renewed earlier.

Why? It’s valid Til November so I was gonna renew after the princess cruise. It’s princess decided to not accept it, the countries were visiting  both only require three months which is what I was following!

Just now, wowzz said:

No, the OPs passport expires in November. 

I’ve just had to book an emergency appointment for a renewal, bloody expensive but I guess better than losing my cruise.

1 minute ago, memoak said:

If you are not sailing till November why not renew now and not take the risk. I have always made sure my passport has at least 6 months left when I travel

I’m sailing in two weeks!

1 minute ago, memoak said:

If you are not sailing till November why not renew now and not take the risk. I have always made sure my passport has at least 6 months left when I travel

4 minutes ago, wowzz said:

Renew it now. Why risk it ?

There’s a 6 week waiting period and I’m on another cruise before then so where’s the time? 😞

1 minute ago, david63 said:

This is an issue that comes up from time to time and some will say that Princess are wrong and others will say their cruise line, their rules.

 

I would suggest that you email Princess, that way you will have some proof of what is said should there be a problem. On the other hand if you have time then I would renew it - you are going to have to in any case in the not too distant future.

My plan was to renew after the princess cruise as currently it takes 6 weeks 

1 minute ago, david63 said:

There is also the added complication that your passport expiry date may not be valid. If you are going to one of the Schengen countries then your passport needs to be valid for 10 years from the date of issue - any additional months that were added when you renewed no longer count.

Yes my passport is valid as it’s less than 10 years on issue date so that’s not an issue, it’s not the Schengen issues I worry about. The countries I’m visiting accept my passport, but princess may not.