Alaska shorex must now be prepaid

[JimmyVWine]

FYI: I just charged about $1,500 worth of excursions for a cruise that won't happen until next June. I'm not at all worried about Princess getting rich off the interest, or me ending up in the poor house due to not earning it. It is well worth the lost interest to secure exactly what I want. :D

 

By the way, the interest I am losing that Princess is "getting rich on", is less than $9. Not much compared to the $7,000 this trip is going to end up costing when everything - transportation, cruise, excursions, etc. - is factored in.

BINGO!! Before people fly off the handle, they should take a moment to reflect on your post! That's $9 on $1,500 worth of excursions. For everyone out there who is booking half to a third that amount..., relax.

[Astro Flyer]

The OBC from a cancelled tour IMHO should be refundable because it is not a gift from Princess it is the customer's money. Hopefully they will clear that up.:)

That would be the proper way to do it but we may not know until the summer about what to expect & whether it's standardized fleetwide.

Thanks Astroflyer :)

You're welcome...in your Cruise Personalizer's "Payments & Credits" section if there's an asterisk * next to OBC it isn't refundable & states "Please enjoy using these credits onboard as they are not refundable".

[Astro Flyer]

In the new shore excursions' FAQs it states "You can book your shore excursion with Cruise Personalizer® from approximately 180 days before travel, and up to 5 days before you depart" which is earlier than their current 120 day statement.

 

http://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/pre_cruise/excursions.jsp?utm_campaign=SE6SX002_Agents_US&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua&utm_source=BRAND&utm_medium=EMAIL&utm_campaign=OTHER&utm_content=SE6SX002&elqTrackId=322dc87879ee42588c1fd7e69b247fe8&elq=fca66a4a92b64940b6ee11a5fd631190&elqaid=4768&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=5761

 

I've had tours available as early as 11 months & as late as about 2 months before sailing so I'm aware that those dates will vary.

[Colo Cruiser]

BINGO!! Before people fly off the handle, they should take a moment to reflect on your post! That's $9 on $1,500 worth of excursions. For everyone out there who is booking half to a third that amount..., relax.

 

 

X 18 ships X an average of 3000 passengers X many itineraries/cruises over an 8 month period.

No small amount. Pretty lucrative chump change. Do the math. :eek:

[JimmyVWine]

X 18 ships X an average of 3000 passengers X many itineraries/cruises over an 8 month period.

No small amount. Pretty lucrative chump change. Do the math. :eek:

No need to. You aren't the source of that total. Only an infinitesimally small portion of it. Why would anyone ever say: "Even though my share of the float is only $2, I refuse to play that game because Princess is earning $4,000,000 per year off of all of us collectively." People are rarely driven by the concerns of the collective.

[Colo Cruiser]

No need to. You aren't the source of that total. Only an infinitesimally small portion of it. Why would anyone ever say: "Even though my share of the float is only $2, I refuse to play that game because Princess is earning $4,000,000 per year off of all of us collectively." People are rarely driven by the concerns of the collective.

 

 

Sometimes one just has to look at the overall picture. ;)

[sloopsailor]

X 18 ships X an average of 3000 passengers X many itineraries/cruises over an 8 month period.

No small amount. Pretty lucrative chump change. Do the math. :eek:

 

Why should I "do the math"? How much the cruise lines make over a year on such interest is of no concern to me. MY concern is that it costs ME only a few dollars out of my pocket to book the excursions I want without having to worry about them being sold out. If I can't afford losing less than $9 dollars of interest for this convenience, I certainly can't afford the $1,500 cost of all those excursions for my family that $9 is reserving for us.:rolleyes:

 

Sometimes one just has to look at the overall picture. ;)

 

The "overall picture" that matters to me is securing those excursions so I don't have to scramble later to try to book something else because they are sold out. One of my excursion choices only had six spaces left - which is exactly how many of us I booked it for!

Edited November 3, 2016 by sloopsailor

[Colo Cruiser]

Why should I? How much the cruise lines make over a year on such interest is of no concern to me. MY concern is that it costs ME only a few dollars out of my pocket to book the excursions I want without having to worry about them being sold out. If I can't afford losing less than $9 dollars of interest, I certainly can't afford the $1,500 cost of all those excursions for my family.:rolleyes:

 

 

You missed the point entirely. :rolleyes:

[denatravels]

X 18 ships X an average of 3000 passengers X many itineraries/cruises over an 8 month period.

 

No small amount. Pretty lucrative chump change. Do the math. :eek:

 

 

Good for them.... I don't care about the interest. The thing I liked about princess cruises was the ability to prebook and then use OBC. I wish they'd meet in the middle-- half deposit upfront, half on board!!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[sloopsailor]

You missed the point entirely. :rolleyes:

 

So, explain it to me better than your first attempt. :D

[cruzsnooze]

So, explain it to me better than your first attempt. :D

 

The problem is the inability to use on board credit for shore excursions. When you have a lot of OBC from military, shareholders, FCC, loyalty and you don't shop in the boutiques what are you now going to do with it all. I have over $1500 OBC for my Hawaii cruise in Jan (thankfully I can use it until the change over in summer 2017) but that's to much credit if I can't use it for shore excursions. I will never buy a future cruise credit again since I can't use the obc from it.

[RDC1]

As far as I am concerned Princess just lost one of its major competitive advantages. We have spent over 70 days on Princess ships during the past year. That includes over 40 port days where we have taken Princess excursions. We have always picked them out well in advance to make sure we get the ones we want (Europe, South America, Norway, Iceland). We have taken Princess excursions because we have been able to pay a reasonable percentage (30-40%) using OBC.

 

Based upon this change the value of the OBC to us has just dropped substantially (we use it mostly for excursions).

 

While we will still probably continue to cruise to the Caribbean and Alaska and other places where we do not care that much about excursions, the major trips to Asia, Europe and South America will now be up for grabs between Princess, other cruise lines and land tours.

 

Basically if I take a cruise from Hong Kong to Singapore (as I currently have scheduled for November) I would want to lock in excursions in advance. With the prepay requirement, and the inability to use OBC. That trip will be done in a different manner than currently scheduled.

 

I believe the major reason Princess is making that change is to reduce the ability to use OBC for excursions and force the money to be spent on ship where they have higher margins.

Edited November 4, 2016 by RDC1

[Cruise Junky]

The problem is the inability to use on board credit for shore excursions. When you have a lot of OBC from military, shareholders, FCC, loyalty and you don't shop in the boutiques what are you now going to do with it all. I have over $1500 OBC for my Hawaii cruise in Jan (thankfully I can use it until the change over in summer 2017) but that's to much credit if I can't use it for shore excursions. I will never buy a future cruise credit again since I can't use the obc from it.

 

But you can use it, you just have to wait until you board.

[RDC1]

But you can use it, you just have to wait until you board.

 

Of course then you run the risk of not being able to book the excursions you want. Especially in areas such as South America, Asia and some European locations where the many excursions sell out.

 

A considerable change from now where you can lock in the excursions and pay with OBC.

[Cruise Junky]

Of course then you run the risk of not being able to book the excursions you want. Especially in areas such as South America, Asia and some European locations where the many excursions sell out.

 

A considerable change from now where you can lock in the excursions and pay with OBC.

 

Oh I agree it's a change and a change you could see coming from a mile away. They either cut back on the OBC stacking or put policies in place to reduce usage. But everyone now is going to be in that situation. There will be tons of onboard bookings.

[RDC1]

Oh I agree it's a change and a change you could see coming from a mile away. They either cut back on the OBC stacking or put policies in place to reduce usage. But everyone now is going to be in that situation. There will be tons of onboard bookings.

 

And a lot more passengers upset when there are no choices available.

I, for one, will not wait. In the travel value calculations Princess has reduced their value compared to their travel competition. So I am less likely to select Princess for future travel then I was prior to this change. Just switched a Princess Hong Kong to Singapore cruise next year to a Celebrity Hong kong to Singapore (Celebrity is a little cheaper and has better dates).

[dieselmama]

As a first time Princess cruiser, I am just thankful we were able to get the excursions we wanted and that we didn't have to finish paying for the cruise before we could reserve them! I had enough saved up to cover the excursion costs, and will be fine saving up for final payment date. Since this is a trip of a lifetime (cruising up one week, one week on land, and cruising back one week, celebrating our 35th anniversary and our special needs son's 21st birthday when he wasn't even supposed to be born alive) we are just going to enjoy the trip! Looking forward to learning more about Princess, as our previous cruising was a long time ago on DCL. Cheers!

[caribill]

 

Had Princess not opted to go this route, I know that most, if not all, of those days WOULD HAVE been spent on Princess excursions, which would have amounted to close to couple of thousand dollars each for me and my cruise buddy.

 

I'm sure a LOT of people will make this change on who they book tours with, especially once the word gets out among Princess fans. Maybe Princess will find they shot themselves in the foot with this, if the income for tours drops.

 

 

On the average, about 50% of passengers on a Princess cruise are new to Princess.

 

If they have sailed on other cruise lines, then pre-paying of Princess does not sound wrong to them. If they have never cruised before, they will think is is normal.

 

Only those who have previously cruised with Princess will realize this is a monumental change, but with all the people new to Princess on a typical cruise, the shore excursions will still be pretty full.

 

Best bet -- everyone who is unhappy about this should send a letter to Princess management and explain why this is a bad idea.

[caribill]

is the remaining balance at the end of the cruise refunded to the passenger as cash in hand or a check mailed to the person or refunded to the credit card?????

 

Supposedly they will send a check--

 

Remember, the refunds go to the on board account of the names the tour tickets are for, not to the person who paid for the excursions.

 

So checks may go out to people who did not pay for the excursions in the first place.

[caribill]

 

I won't mind paying up front. I understand why.What I do mind is that I most likely will not be able to use the OBC to pay for it ??

 

Guess there's going to be a lot of OBC checks sent out.:eek:

 

 

Remember that most OBC is not refundable if not used during the cruise, so there will be a lot fewer checks sent out than you might expect.

[caribill]

 

This doesn't seem to "unknown" to me.

Cancellation of Pre-Paid Shore Excursions:

 

If there is no shore excursion balance for the guest named on the reservation being cancelled then the pre-paid amount will be refunded to the credit card used to pre-pay the shore excursion. Refunds in this instance will be made within 24 hours of cancellation.

 

 

Think of all the many posts in past Cruise Critic threads from people who have been told there would be a quick refund to their credit card and weeks later still do not see it on their credit card account.

 

The explanation I have been given in the past is that while charges to credit cards can be done automatically, all refunds had to be hand processed at Princess HQ. Now maybe they have finally automated credit card refunds, but I won't believe it until I see it.

Edited November 4, 2016 by caribill

[caribill]

FYI: I just charged about $1,500 worth of excursions for a cruise that won't happen until next June. I'm not at all worried about Princess getting rich off the interest, or me ending up in the poor house due to not earning it. It is well worth the lost interest to secure exactly what I want. :D

 

By the way, the interest I am losing that Princess is "getting rich on", is less than $9. Not much compared to the $7,000 this trip is going to end up costing when everything - transportation, cruise, excursions, etc. - is factored in.

 

You (and many others) are lucky enough to be able to pay $1500 on excursions 9 or more months before a cruise. However there are a large number of cruisers who do not have that money available so far in advance. It is not a matter of lost interest on the money, it is a matter of not having the money available in the first place.

[flamomo]

For me, prepaid prebooking will bring another problem beyond not being able to use OBC to pay for excursions.

 

I travel with a friend and, with her input on choices, handle making all of the arrangements, including pre- booking our excursions. My booking for both of us means we can be assured of being on the exact same tour and on the same bus. Once onboard, we have always been able to go to the tour desk and have her excursion charges removed from my account and put on hers.

 

Under the prepay system, the charges would all go to MY credit card, which would not be acceptable to me, even though I know she would reimburse me.

[skynight]

We could anticipate this move was coming. Princess' limited testing was in a market that has a) a high number of first or second time cruises, b) a high rate of ship sold shore excursions and c) a developing private shore excursion availability. Believe their test sample was flawed. Their experience in other itineraries may be a lot different than what was tested in Alaska.

The policy change can be good news for the private shore excursion business. I don't believe it will increase Princess' business at all.

 

Regarding the excursion guarantee, I can't see this as a selling point. In my 20+ years of experience in the Caribbean, Australia/South Pacific, Hawaii, Europe, we have found in most cases that privately run shore excursions beat ship's excursions. Even if the two are exactly the same the private ones normally, but not always, use smaller vans with more flexibility as opposed to full bus loads with time restraints.

[cruzsnooze]

You (and many others) are lucky enough to be able to pay $1500 on excursions 9 or more months before a cruise. However there are a large number of cruisers who do not have that money available so far in advance. It is not a matter of lost interest on the money, it is a matter of not having the money available in the first place.

 

If you don't have $1500 for a cruise then maybe you are living above your means and should put that money in a savings account for a normal expense like a car repair or appliance replacement.

The prepayment isn't about affordability, it's about using OBC that would go to waste.