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I believe there is a reasonable chance of being upgraded to at least an oceanview stateroom. As the fleet's newest ship, there should be high demand. You can see with Sun Princess that most cabins are sold out until this coming fall. While I don't have inside information, I believe many people who got this deal will stay. With only 657 inside cabins, once people booking at regular fare choose their rooms, there may not be enough inside cabins left for us. Of course, this all depends on things going as planned. If the ship is delayed again, then discussing this now would be meaningless.

I believe it is actually the opposite. If it were not for the Greenland bookings, they might have cancelled the Star Princes bookings. The Greenland cruise is scheduled for August, so some passengers may have already bought non-refundable air tickets and hotels. Therefore, they have no choice but to honor at least inside cabins for those bookings to avoid reimbursing cancellation fees. The situation is different for the Star Princess as it is still very far off, but to be fair, they are treating it the same way.

I believe our offer has automatically been converted to an inside cabin? And if we take no action, it implies acceptance of their terms? But if I don't require an upgrade, do I still need to rebook? I am a bit confused now largely due to the poorly written Friday evening email.

I know a widow who cannot share a room with other people, so every time she is on a cruise, she has to pay for a single supplement, which usually ends up being double the amount. She doesn't gamble, so there is no way she is going to get a comped cruise. And she is just a regular working-class person; by no means is she rich, so she has never left North America in her lifetime. This was a blessing for her; now she can have a free room on the Star Princess and use the extra money to purchase an international air ticket and hotel in Barcelona. She is very happy that she finally has a chance to visit Europe. This October sailing fits her schedule very well too. It is in the middle of the off-season, so it's not difficult for her to get a week off from work. Air tickets are dirt cheap during that time frame as well. A round trip direct flight from LAX to Barcelona can be as low as $600. Without this "computer glitch," she may never have had this opportunity to have this life experience.

Yes, the Boston to Greenland cruise had been listed for $99 on my Princess account for quite some time. $0 is not far off from $99, so I assumed it was a legitimate price. Regarding the Barcelona cruise, it was not unreasonable for them to offer it as a comped cruise for their loyal customers. After all, the Sun Princess' inauguration was a PR disaster, and the delayed Star Princess added insult to injury by canceling its first few cruises. Given this history, it is understandable that Princess might want to try something different this time. Perhaps they are aiming for a soft opening for the first one or two sailings, so in case things are not ready, customers will not be as upset, especially since they are comped and may be more accepting of any deficiencies. Additionally, they may be trying to attract customers who might continue the journey on the next TA sailing as these itineraries typically do not sell well. Compensating for the first leg could significantly boost sales for the second leg of the TA.

I tried to remain optimistic, but my confidence in this company has dwindled significantly. A few months ago, my friend, who had been comped an unobstructed balcony, was bumped to an obstructed balcony on the Emerald deck. He only found out upon reaching the pier and was suddenly notified of the change. The decision was apparently made by the corporate office, and he was left with no option but to sail or lose his deposit. Additionally, I've heard stories of people who believed they were comped the premier package from the casino, only to have the package rescinded later, with the company claiming it was a glitch.

True, I frequently receive comped or heavily discounted cruises also. For instance, today, upon signing into my Princess account, I noticed the $99 16-day Iceland/Greenland and $49 Alaska with Glacier Bay cruises. Are these deals too good to be true? I'm starting to doubt because I can't determine if they're legitimate or just a system glitch. There's no indication that they're casino deals either. While I'm tempted by the Iceland/Greenland cruise, I'm hesitant to book it now. I don't want to receive an email days later claiming it was an error, making it a hassle to cancel. When I booked the Barcelona cruise last Wednesday, I even called Princess, and they confirmed my booking was valid. We all know what happened afterward.

There is really no reason to cancel the Barcelona cruise now. It is still far off and a lot can happen. The deposit of $200 is just a small amount, and with that, I am at least guaranteed an inside room. With tax, it's $285, which is only $40 per day, still a very good deal for solo travel on the newest ship. I can use the OBC to pay for gratuities, and I may still have enough balance to book an excursion. I can always bid for a better cabin closer to sailing if the pricing is good. If I cancel, Princess is the one who would be very happy because they can sell my room for more than $2,000 to other passengers. Of course, they want me to cancel, but I am not going to do that. They need to pay for the mistake they made.

I really couldn't determine if it was a computer glitch when I booked. I have casino status, and occasionally, I receive comped or heavily discounted rooms. On the same page, I also saw a lot of $49 per person cruises, such as Island Princess sailing out of NYC in June for 15 days. Now, I really don't know which one is real or if there's an error.

I typically opt for obstructed ocean view or inside cabins on deck 8, which are just one deck above the promenade deck. I find incredible value in these cabins due to their easy access to the promenade, main dining room, piazza, etc.

If you are seeking insider information, you can send a private message to "sfpd3000" (https://boards.cruisecritic.com/profile/5895-sfpd3000/). This member is an SFPD officer who is regularly assigned to the SF piers, so he may have insider knowledge. He is an active member in the roll call forum and often leaves welcome messages on threads for upcoming cruises docking in SF.

With Monterey being dropped, I would prefer to see it replaced with Santa Barbara or an extra day in San Francisco. I believe most people would prefer these options over replacing it with Catalina Island. The itinerary seems less appealing now. It just feels like a getaway cruise from Long Beach that Carnival regularly offers every week. However, of course, any cruise is better than no cruise.

I actually think that in addition to lowering the port fees, they should also reduce the fare a little bit. Generally, this 5-port itinerary is priced slightly higher than other similar 4-port itineraries. Now that the 5-port itinerary has become a 4-port itinerary, the fare should be adjusted accordingly. The issue is that Princess may not want to do that.

To be honest, I prefer the design of Grand-class ships over Royal-class ships. The wrap-around promenade deck makes a huge difference for me. On a Grand-class ship, I can stay in an inside cabin right above or below the promenade deck. This means that whenever I want to see the ocean, I can simply go up or down one deck, and I can comfortably spend the whole day sitting on the promenade. Unfortunately, Royal-class ships lack such a deck. The Lido deck is not a suitable replacement; it is too far up, and the fence obstructs the view of the ocean. If I were on a Royal-class ship, I would have no choice but to spend more money on a balcony cabin.

You might have a better chance of securing significant discounts through the casino rather than the future cruise department. Though I do not have insider insights, based on my experience and observations, you typically only need to spend about $500 in the casino to qualify for discounts on future cruises. It is not necessary to actually lose $500; you just need to gamble that much money. After a month or two, you may start receiving emails from the casino department offering you 25% off the public fare for a standard balcony cabin for yourself and a guest, often accompanied by $100 to $200 OBC. This deal can apply to most of the cruises Princess offers. For some last-minute deals on cruises that are not selling well, you might even find an inside cabin for as low as $149 per person for a 7-day itinerary.