Steelers36

Love the Mounties in their dress reds!!

That photo reminds me of Ken Jennings.

Interesting .. same with my wife.

I would imagine you could count the TA's on one hand who are experts with Princess App and DMW. Not the place I would look for help.

Or summer for roses. I recall the roses (sort of as was a long time ago, but not in a galaxy far, far away).

LOL. Princess' own App, advertising this event, has the couple dressed in black.

Several of the above posts have reminded me that the numbered tickets have been replaced with group name tickets and PA announcements as to the next group. Most of us here will recall the meetings in DR and waiting for number range group to be called. We did not have many tenders on our trip last Fall. Anyway, it seems to work quite efficiently IMO.

Yes.

It's FCFS on Princess. You show up at a designated location and are handed numbered tickets. If Elite member level, you get priority tickets and move along faster. They call X number tickets for each run of the tender(s).

Not the least bit interested. Now, if they decided to do a Black and Gold (close enough to Yellow) night, I might be getting involved.

That is what I would like to see an answer confirmation for. I just turned off Wifi and Mobile Data and tried to send a WhatsApp msg to my wife's phone. It didn't go through until I turned mobile data back on. We are both at home.

Which - the audio out jack or a BT adaptor?

I have done various analyses over recent years comparing the cost of Princess wine list (plus the 18%) to same wines available from Total Wine and adding in the corkage (was $15 and now $20) and the value is there - no question. It isn't even worth doing it in future with the pricing Princess has now. At five glasses per bottle, the value holds versus the per glass cost of decent wine (not the no-name swill list). A bottle of wine lasts us two meals for sure as my wife doesn't drink very much anymore and never really had as much as I do. Might even have an extra glass beyond the two meals for in cabin. So, if we were going on as short a voyage as 7 nights, I would probably take only 3 bottles because we sometimes have beer with dinner instead. (Two of our free 10 in mini-bar after exchanging). My TW bill can vary, depending on what I decide to buy, but I would say the average would end up in the $20 - $25 range typically. Not considering any corkage. I really look at the bottle cost on the ship because I would be buying wine that way from Princess and not BTG. I do consider the corkage and it is just a bonus if I don't have to pay it on every bottle.

You did not understand my post. Please re-read it. I was saying that the distinct drink packages offered have no value to anyone and are artificially priced so high in order to indicate value for the Plus/Premier cruise fare packages. I do acknowledge that the cruise fare packages do provide value to many guests, but purchasing one of the drinks-only packages would be a financial mistake.

I don't see any value in any of the distinct drink packages offered by Princess. IMO, they are over-priced beyond making any sense to purchase so they can make it appear to guests that they are saving lots of money buying Plus and Premier fare options.

It will be the same risk with a crew member bringing you coffee.

I am sure the chefs have not forgotten how to make the NL CJ desserts, but the termination of the contract likely means they are not allowed (even though NL may not be making nor selling same thing). So, they make some adjustments in order to offer something similar and seems leaves most folks wanting.

I am thinking most all TV's have an audio out jack. Plug in a Bluetooth adaptor and then connect to it with BT headphones or ear plugs.

The cost of the cruise has nothing to do with a Medallion. The shipping of something and whether attracts duty or tax is based on the thing itself and its value. The item involved isn't worth much and I imagine would not attract charges in many countries. Certainly not for Canada as I don't see their value at anything close to $20/$25.

Did you calculate that commission rate off the commissionable fare? There is a non-commissionable fare (NCF) portion of every cruise fare that is normally hidden to guests. (I am aware that at least some Canadian agencies tend to wrap that amount in with the port taxes). Anyway, that amount used to generally be $25/day. It is now generally $29/day and may be less on the really longer voyages. It was probably increased along with the generally higher fares we see now. If a customer of an agency is getting a cash discount it will also be calculated on the cruise fare total, less the NCF. It is a more accurate way to determine your true discount rate and will be consistent across voyages from that agency. Note that booking an Inside cabin on a short voyage may well not attract the most generous discount rate since so much of the fare is taken up by the NCF leaving little commission for the agency and TA.

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The small discount you reference is most likely Group OBC that many agencies offer due to reserving blocks of cabins and you may get +/- $75, depending on cabin type and cruise length, etc. A small independent TA may not be doing sufficient volume with a particular cruise line to be able to offer the best discounting. That said, some will exist out there that have perhaps been in business for decades and have a huge client base to draw on as repeat customers. Larger volume TA's may be offering cash discounts off the cruise fare - which is what I go for. Some, like the infamous Big Box store chain, offer customer kick-backs in OBC or store credits. You would have the measure the value of those against an agency giving a cash discount. It helps if a friend can refer you to an good online agency with a great discount, or you can ask around on board a ship among fellow cruisers you meet. Some of these companies can be found by looking online as they offer to compete for your cruise booking business.

No more MD (now DRO) appointment hours on embarkation afternoon. That said, if you are on ship early enough for lunch that day, speak to DR Mgr or a Host and see where you are blocked in. Ask for what you want then or pop in ahead of 5pm and ask them as soon as they open up. Quite likely, you can be accommodated and have the same table every night - especially with your fairly early start. The DRO moves around all three DR's, but the individual DR Mgr's and Hosts can assist. I mention the Hosts as my observation is the Mgr may not be the one working the magic in the App, but he certainly has authority to make it happen.

Really???!!!

No. The pool is behind the Conservatory and you walk via a relatively narrow corridor on port or starboard side, so I did not notice chlorine in the middle area of the Conservatory. This was four years ago, however. I would smell if of course in the Hollywood Pool section and never stayed there.