Princess (New) Ships Aren't "Game Changers", Why?

A vacant stateroom like a vacant hotel room is lost revenue forever. Whatever the fare, it is income. And whether you spend $20 or $500 it’s revenue

 

 

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You've got that right.

There's always the chance you might have a few drinks, eat at Specialty restaurants, play bingo or spin the wheel at the slots. ;)

You've got that right.

 

There's always the chance you might have a few drinks, eat at Specialty restaurants, play bingo or spin the wheel at the slots. ;)

The crowds of elite/platinum at BOGO + $1 show that a lot of long termers are spending some money as do the huge crowds at dining room sales. It’s all revenue.

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The crowds of elite/platinum at BOGO + $1 show that a lot of long termers are spending some money as do the huge crowds at dining room sales. It’s all revenue.

 

 

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I personally subscribe to BYOB.

We haven't gone to pay restaurants since the price rise.

When I do Hawaii and Fiji (cruise after the next)...

Sounds fun..Enjoy:D.

We're off today to go spend a couple of weeks on the Big Island.

They destroyed the promenade and shrunk the balconies. That was a game changer for me.

Agree!:mad:

Agree!:mad:

I thought it would be for me too but after watching the video on YouTube I realised it’s a bloody awesome ship.

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What game changing and unique layout? I really like the Regal and Royal, wasn't sure if I'd like the bigger ships but they suit me just fine. In your opinion they remain stale, for what reasons?

One problem with the "bigger is better" philosophy is that the larger ships have a limited number of ports they can go to. And many of the ports they can go to cannot properly handle the number of passengers on them.

This is why the Princess "award winning itineraries" are not as good as they used to be.

One problem with the "bigger is better" philosophy is that the larger ships have a limited number of ports they can go to. And many of the ports they can go to cannot properly handle the number of passengers on them.

 

 

 

This is why the Princess "award winning itineraries" are not as good as they used to be.

Yeah it’s a problem BUT at least Princess has maintained class whereas RCCL seems to have gone for big no matter what the cost. Their ships have a different market but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with Princess’ new ships.

Yeah they’re big but they’re half the size of RCCL ones.

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Would it be that expensive for Princess to change some of the decor in the cabins for merely interest sake instead of the same ole bed throw, couch & chair? Anything to appear fresh to repeat cruisers?? The colors are boring beige & cream.

What I would like to see as "game changing" is that Princess get into the 21st century with modern internet. Yeah, I know they are "working on it". I just hope by the time it gets rolled out, they aren't behind in technology again. ***** is very ambitious and if they can deliver on the original promise then it is pretty "game changing" for Princess.

Not only working on it, but it is being implemented as they roll out the ***** system. The internet on the Regal today is fast and the intranet features are quite good.

Not only working on it, but it is being implemented as they roll out the ***** system. The internet on the Regal today is fast and the intranet features are quite good.

I’ve never had an issue with internet on Princess. I also like that they’ve retained class that other cruise lines such as Carnival haven’t.

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Yeah it’s a problem BUT at least Princess has maintained class whereas RCCL seems to have gone for big no matter what the cost. Their ships have a different market but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with Princess’ new ships.

 

Yeah they’re big but they’re half the size of RCCL ones.

 

 

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The idea of cruising is to be on a ship to get to ports of call and enjoy the experience. The ship shouldn't be the destination. Princess opts to have ships with comfort and style to get the passenger to the ports of call. Other cruise lines choose to make their ships floating theme parks and small cities. It's a matter of choice......and yes, we choose to go the route of being on a Princess ship and enjoy what it brings to the voyage to our port of call.

The idea of cruising is to be on a ship to get to ports of call and enjoy the experience. The ship shouldn't be the destination. Princess opts to have ships with comfort and style to get the passenger to the ports of call. Other cruise lines choose to make their ships floating theme parks and small cities. It's a matter of choice......and yes, we choose to go the route of being on a Princess ship and enjoy what it brings to the voyage to our port of call.

Everyone has their preferences when travelling but for many cruisers the ship IS the destination. I know it is for me but I do enjoy some ports but I’m there for the ship. That’s why I cruise.

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Ports aren't always the be all and end all of a cruise to some people every time. We enjoy being on the ship more than some ports, especially ports we've been to before. I would be more than happy to have one cruise a year (on Princess) that just went around in circles somewhere warm for a week or so.

Ports aren't always the be all and end all of a cruise to some people every time. We enjoy being on the ship more than some ports, especially ports we've been to before. I would be more than happy to have one cruise a year (on Princess) that just went around in circles somewhere warm for a week or so.

Fully agree. On my first cruise I wasn’t sure about sea days but now I think they’re great. Ports are also great but the ship’s always the highlight for me.

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Fully agree. On my first cruise I wasn’t sure about sea days but now I think they’re great. Ports are also great but the ship’s always the highlight for me.

Look for repositioning cruises, they have plenty of sea days. We're doing Diamond up to Japan in March. Depart from Sydney, five sea days, Darwin, four sea days, Kota Kinabalu, and then it gets a bit busier with ports but still plenty of sea days. 22 nights and only 7 ports! Bliss!

Look for repositioning cruises, they have plenty of sea days. We're doing Diamond up to Japan in March. Depart from Sydney, five sea days, Darwin, four sea days, Kota Kinabalu, and then it gets a bit busier with ports but still plenty of sea days. 22 nights and only 7 ports! Bliss!

I’ve got the Majestic booked and I’m planning to do the Sun in April (it’s booked but that one may change). I really want to do the Hawaii/Tahiti one next year in August but I also want to go on the Golden before it goes to P&O in 2020 so I’m planning another short local one as well.

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I love being on the ship, love sea days, many positioning cruises, I've never cruised just for the warm weather factor even though I'm in the Midwest. Looking at pictures of other ships, I'm happy with Princess, the style of their ships, works for me!

Princess is going through an identity crisis -- Moving away from 'Premium' cruise-line status towards 'mainstream' cruise-line status.

 

They are taking a reactive approach to modernization rather than a proactive strategy. AKA - They are trying to follow the herd, instead of leading from the front. Concepts like club-class(w/ no real value), skywalks, glowing fountains = smoke & mirrors.

 

Princess is desperately trying to replenish its aging loyal customer base w/ the next generation of cruisers, but they have fuddy duddys at the helm that are failing to figure out what is 'cool' & 'hip'. Princess would like to bill itself as Nordstrom,Macy's or Kohls, w/out the understanding that Amazon is crushing them all.

Yes, excellent analysis. I have felt for some time now that Princess has lost their way. Overall, it is still a good line but I think they overbuilt and were unable to avoid falling into the price trap. Being just one of a conglomerate collection of brands has clearly diluted the differentiation aspect. It will be interesting to follow this industry over the next decade.

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I like Princess' ships but saw a video of the MSC Seaside and like the out-of-the-box arrangements of the public areas, like buffets and pools. It made me wonder why most ships are laid out very similarly. Changing that around makes them more memorable if nothing else.

If replacing the 50's & 60's music with more modern music includes hip hop or rap music then that would be a game changer for certain. More passengers jumping overboard. More fights on board. More vacant cabins on cruises, more profit for other cruise lines. The 50's & 60's were the last two decades that produced consistently good music. Nothing newer can compare to classics like "The Witch Doctor"; "One-Eyed, One-horned, Flying Purple People Eater"; and "Puff The Magic Dragon".

With that cruise ship that has a go-cart race track in mind------Princess could build a ship with a track but in order to minimize noise, have no go-carts. Instead let passengers race scooters. Now that would be a game changer.

I hope that the different cruise lines each tries to appeal to a specific demographic. That is the only way that a cruiser can pick a ship that has more that appeals to them and less of what they find unappealing.

I’ve never had an issue with internet on Princess. I also like that they’ve retained class that other cruise lines such as Carnival haven’t.

 

 

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Other cruise lines have high speed internet which Princess does not offer on most ships yet. The difference is quite amazing, last RCCL ship i was on had near land-like internet speed. Also on a recent MSC cruise their internet was much faster than on my previous Princess cruise.

Which Carnival ship were you on that you did not like? They have a lot of ships of different design, the newer ones are more sedate than some of the older ones.

Other cruise lines have high speed internet which Princess does not offer on most ships yet. The difference is quite amazing, last RCCL ship i was on had near land-like internet speed. Also on a recent MSC cruise their internet was much faster than on my previous Princess cruise.

 

 

 

Which Carnival ship were you on that you did not like? They have a lot of ships of different design, the newer ones are more sedate than some of the older ones.

I haven’t actually been on Carnival but I have seriously looked at them. Like P&O they look cheap and tacky. RCCL just seems like a floating theme park filled with children. I wouldn’t rule them out but I’m happy with Princess and they have the things I want.

Princess actually targets a different market and has it right.

I can’t comment on MSC or NCL but their ships are too small for my liking.

I’ve found the internet fine on Princess but I’ve never been one to whinge about internet speeds anyway on land or at sea.

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I can’t comment on MSC or NCL but their ships are too small for my liking.

 

 

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Actually the last 2-3 NCL and MSC ships are larger than anything Princess has in its fleet. You may want to look at their newer ships but if you are just looking at the Australian home port market, your options are limited.

Having been on 7 different cruise lines, IMO they are all offering the same basic product and all have more in common than they have for differences. Glad you enjoy Princess but its good to try other lines. Sometimes you are pleasantly surprised, I didn't think I'd like RCL but it was great. And sometimes not, thinking of a recent experience on the Divina :(

Actually the last 2-3 NCL and MSC ships are larger than anything Princess has in its fleet. You may want to look at their newer ships but if you are just looking at the Australian home port market, your options are limited.

 

 

 

Having been on 7 different cruise lines, IMO they are all offering the same basic product and all have more in common than they have for differences. Glad you enjoy Princess but its good to try other lines. Sometimes you are pleasantly surprised, I didn't think I'd like RCL but it was great. And sometimes not, thinking of a recent experience on the Divina :(

There is such a thing as too big. I’m pretty picky. I travel around Australia and NZ, Pacific and plan to do Hawaii next year or the year after.

I’ve looked on the websites of other cruise lines and while I’m sure they’re great for what they are, they aren’t for me. I don’t need silly water slides etc. If I wanted that crap I would go to a theme park. I want a traditional cruise experience with some new things.

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