DaisyFire

3 minutes ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

I think the key to understanding this scenario is stated by the OP...(I) "have had my travel agent hold 3 cabins..."

 

These are not truly "on hold" from Princess' viewpoint...only the travel agent. I don't think that you'll have any problems completing the bookings on Monday. 

Yes - that is correct ... my travel agent is holding them (and I checked the Princess site - they are not showing as available there).  I guess then this is probably more likely a shadow booking vs. a hold - which also means the pricing at the time she 'booked' them will mostly likely still apply.

Thanks everyone for the input and helping me think this through!

Hello.

I am in the process of booking my first Princess cruise and have had my travel agent hold 3 cabins while I coordinated with the other people with whom I will be traveling. The cabins are held until 12/19 - but the current deposit promo seems to expire today.  I just sent a note to my agent to go ahead and move forward to book these cabins - but am not sure they will get/respond to this before Monday.  

Because we already have the cabins on hold - will the deposit promotion ($100 per person fully refundable) still apply even if we don't get things finalized before Monday?  I am playing travel coordinator for our group and I would hate to have to tell them that they now have to pay a higher deposit because I somehow messed up 😞

Yes .. it seems to have gone from bad to worse. I initially got results … but all were unavailable. Now I get nothing or a number but can’t see any of sailings. 
 

Apparently- they are having technical difficulties 🤨

Just noticed on the X site that ALL Infinity sailings are marked as unavailable … all the way through 2025. I know that Infinity is in or heading into dry dock … but I wouldn’t think that would impact sailing dates so far out. 

On 9/9/2023 at 9:10 PM, GottaKnowWhen said:

Best strategy is to sign in at 12:01am 45 days before departure (or within a few hours after that) and you will have pretty much a free choice of whatever time you prefer. The early time slots fill up fast. 
An alternate strategy is to book a 2-2:30 check in time, and at that point the lines are very short since so many people just go early.

Stan

12:01am in what time zone? 

22 hours ago, NeroliGirl said:

Hi Ladylemondrop - we’re on the same cruise, we’ll look out for you!

Sorry to hear you had a bad journey down - big accident on the A31 apparently which caused tailbacks back to Southampton. 
We’re enjoying the calm conditions across the Bay of Biscay. Here’s a picture of us (we’re the purple one) being closely followed by MSC Virtuosa which was docked behind us in Southampton. 
Enjoy your cruise!

@NeroliGirl  What app is this?  Definitely need this for our upcoming cruise.  My DH would love this!

4 hours ago, Wineaux007 said:

 

Both have to upgrade, so it would cost you $40 a day + grat unless you are traveling as a solo.

I know that if I upgrade via the app/website - or even calling into customer service pre-cruise, that both parties in the cabin would need to upgrade to premium.  However, I have been able to upgrade just myself by doing it onboard with one of the bartenders.  Is this still not an option?

On 9/7/2023 at 4:56 PM, normbieg said:

Daisyfire, would you post a copy of that screenshot, please.

I've been searching and cannot find it.

Thanks!

Sorry for the delay... my day got off to a late start and I am just now getting off work. 

This was a screen shot from during the Labor Day Flash Sale.  I don't think this is the current price offered for my cruise anymore.

7 hours ago, normbieg said:

Daisyfire, would you post a copy of that screenshot, please.

I've been searching and cannot find it.

Thanks!

I’ve got it on my computer. I’ll post it in the morning 🤓

3 hours ago, thebutlerdidit said:

Beefeater gin, Aperol, Cointreau, simple syrup, lime juice, and pineapple juice. You’ll see it on the Ensemble menu on the ship and in the app. I love the Ensemble Lounge, too. 

Ok … that’s does it! I’m now upgrading to premium on my November cruise 🤣🤣

It sounds like the zero-proof package is what you need. I have heard that Celebrity will swap the included classic pkg (from an AI booking) for the zero-proof package. And if you are planning to purchase a package, the zero-proof package is much cheaper. (List price $30 vs. $89).

Thanks to a post on another page - I saw that the Classic pkg description that is available in the 'manage your cruise' page does list 'premium coffees' and non-premium bottled waters as included - so I took screen shots for both my upcoming cruises and will take the document with me - just in case. 

As for alcohol in your coffee - I think it depends on what the alcohol is.  Classic pkg spirits can be added to coffee and still be covered under the package.  Though Baileys is not on the classic pkg. - however Kahlua is.

Not sure which terminology is correct. It looks like X uses both terms interchangeably… “premium coffee” in the premium drink pkg description and “specialty coffee” in the zero proof pkg.

Al Bacio calls coffee plus alcohol a “coffee cocktail”  As I stated earlier - there is no reference to coffee at all at this point for the Classic pkg. Which is weird/unsettling. 
 

3 hours ago, WatchHill said:

I would like to see a few repositioning cruises origiinate/terminate in Boston instead of NY or NJ. Second wish is for a 10+ day west coastal cruise, maybe San Diego to Vancouver or the reverse, with focus on wine country. And third, a British Isles intense [14 night] with a few overnight experiences in Dublin/Belfast/South Queensferry. 

 

Darcy

Ditto on the British Isles with overnights!!

3 hours ago, kittyraptors said:

Just got off the Equinox. I got flavored lattes and an Americano at Al Bacio every day with the Classic package and it was included. 

Thanks kittyraptors!  Crossing my fingers that this holds until we cruise in November!  My fear is that they are changing the online docs in preparation for another policy change. Their wording is very specific on the premium package that it is with THAT package that you can enjoy your favorite specialty coffees  - which makes me believe that there is a change coming - it just hasn't hit the ships yet.

This looks like a good spot to post a request for clarification on what non-alcoholic beverages are included in the Classic pkg. I know on my previous cruises the Classic pkg included soda, basic bottled water, and specialty coffees. However,  I’ve seen some recent posts questioning whether or not specialty coffees are or aren’t included - with references to pkg descriptions that seemed to differ (maybe on the cookiegate thread?)

I know some folks on recent cruises affirmed they could still get coffee at Al Bacio on the Classic pkg but I’m wondering if perhaps this is another new change about to be sprung on us?

I checked  both planner and website, searching for and reading all descriptions for classic pkg and none currently include any references to specialty coffees, teas, or waters. Plus the comparison doc for the packages seems to have been taken down. (I think it was this doc that folks had included as evidence that specialty coffee is included). 

If it turns out to be the case, I guess I’ll need to upgrade our drink package to premium for our upcoming November cruises. 

 

53 minutes ago, smokey7722 said:

 

Yup, the staff I encountered took it to the extreme… 

 

And don't get me wrong, I went onboard with likely the entire worlds supply of lactaid pills just in case!

Yes. This happened to me as well. I can eat butter and they were always trying to take it away from me 🤣

And definitely had lots of Lactaid with me as well! 

I am also lactose intolerant… and found most waiters and staff to be very accommodating on my Feb ‘23 cruise. However, it did take me a while to figure out what to say or ask for. 
 

Butter is not an issue for me so it wasn’t too bad. I just asked if an entree had any milk or cheese and generally could gauge from the menu description or personal knowledge. Vegan labeled entrees were always safe - but there aren’t many of these. 
 

Lactose free milk is available on the ship - but never shown. You must ask for it - even in the buffet. 

And desserts are the biggest challenge. There’s always sorbet - but flavor changes every night and I didn’t always like what was on offer. There are sometimes vegan options in Cafe Al Bacio so I’d usually skip the offering in MDR and grab coffee and dessert later. 
 

The one exception was our dinner in Murano. They bent over backwards to make sure I had a delicious dessert and cappuccino - without milk. 

2 minutes ago, vickykay said:

Having difficulty finding link to cancel excursions.  Appreciate help.  Thanks

I’m sure there’s probably more than one way. I’d go to the My Calendar and select the day if Ty’s excursion, locate the excursion and click on it … then select Manage Reservation. There you will find a link to cancel. 

On 12/31/2022 at 3:55 PM, Barwick Cruiser said:

And I think that’s where the confusion lies…the planner says one thing but the website says something else 🤷‍♀️  And the newest info seems to be that you only get the non alcohol beverages with the Premium package, not the classic. The smoothies from Aqua Spa have a lot more in them than just fruit, including lots of antioxidant ingredients. A few I can’t stomach but a couple were actually quite tasty. 

It looks like they may have updated both planner and website now. I’ve done a thorough search of both and all descriptions for classic pkg do NOT include any references to specialty coffees, teas, or waters. And the comparison doc for the packages seems to have been taken down. 
 

I’m thinking they know that the high-end drinkers automatically just opt to get the premium package while the rest of us just aren’t as motivated - so they are using the non-alcoholic beverages as bait to reel us in.
 

I know whether coffees are/aren’t included in Clsssic was debated  on at least one other thread (perhaps cookiegate?) and folks on recent cruises affirmed they could still get coffee at Al Bacio on the Classic pkg … However I wonder if they are just now sliding into this change. I guess I’ll find out in November on my cruise. I may need to model costs based on exchanging Classic for Zero Proof vs. Upgrading to premium. We really don’t drink much alcohol these days, so I’m thinking paying ala carte for one drink per day would be cheaper than ala carte for the non-alcoholic drinks, but the upgrade price may be so close that I’ll do that just for the convenience. 

10 hours ago, MandL said:

Wow!  You scored!  Ours is still at the old rate.  I will keep watch now.  Thanks for posting.

 

Be sure to check your reservation on the website as well. I see different prices in the app than on the website. 

Another oddity... I booked the wi-fi one device upgrade via the X app this morning for $7.99 per day and $6.99 per day (two different cruises). I only upgraded my husband because we could make do with only one of us having the extra speed - and I didn't feel like spending twice as much 🙂

But then when I was logged in via the Celebrity website later as I talked to the Captains Club rep, I checked the wi-fi upgrades and it was offering it at $3.99 per day for one device.  I quickly cancelled my original bookings and rebooked for both of us with the new price.  It cost me the same for two on the one cruise and just $1 per day more on the other.  It is definitely my morning... maybe I should go buy a lottery ticket! 🤩

Well - that was confusing, but beneficial in the end.

2 of my excursions were sold out - but yet showing the 45% discount price that I could not take advantage of without risking losing my spot by cancelling and then rebooking.  

I called X Captains Club number (30 min wait - they called me back, all in all pretty painless) and was told that they had no magic to book with new price without cancelling first and then rebooking so there was risk and they advised to just keep the current reservation due to the risk - so I would not be able to take advantage of the price drop.  I had 2 cruises - each with a sold out excursion - so I had her check the second one as well - same situation.  However, magically after verifying the second one could also not be repriced - she offered me the cost difference in OBC.  It took her a while to work with a supervisor - but in the end I was given the cost difference in additional OBC (original bookings were paid with OBC) - therefore giving us the 'SALE' without actually changing our price on the excursion.

Not sure what motivated the change in approach  ... from 'sorry, nothing I can do' to 'I can give you OBC for the difference'. Perhaps it was because I was nice to her and didn't complain or yell?

Just canceled and repurchased 2 excursions on 2 different cruises - but was unable to do the same for 2 others as they are showing sold out - but with a better sale price than I paid previously. I’ll call X tomorrow to reprice them. 

Also excited to see multi-night dining pkgs with a decent discount. I cancelled my chefs table reservation and purchased 5 night specialty for only about $50 more. For us, I think we will get far more enjoyment over 5 dinners than just the one super fancy one. 😁

For folks looking in the app … you do not see the same options there for many things … dining pkgs, wi-fi and drink upgrade - etc. so you’ll need to login to the website. 

I’m pretty sure that Celebrity just needs better quality control and copy editing for their web site and collateral materials. 
 

There is much that is confusing and misleading.