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Ocean Medallion Question Thread - Part 1


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2 hours ago, ecs66 said:

Is Medallion internet available for wi-fi calling while the ship is docked?

yes, in cabo when i was in my room with cellular turned on, the wifi took precedent because it was a stronger signal, but when i moved to a place where wifi was less strong it would switch to cellular.  basically if you are on ship, the wifi is stronger so it will win unless you explicitly turn it off.  i had cellular coverage in mexico so i left both on and let which ever was stronger take precedence and it was seamless to me except when i was expressly watching to see which was being used.

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11 hours ago, vampiress said:

yes, in cabo when i was in my room with cellular turned on, the wifi took precedent because it was a stronger signal, but when i moved to a place where wifi was less strong it would switch to cellular.  basically if you are on ship, the wifi is stronger so it will win unless you explicitly turn it off.  i had cellular coverage in mexico so i left both on and let which ever was stronger take precedence and it was seamless to me except when i was expressly watching to see which was being used.

Thanks so much for that info!  It clears up some questions for us.

 

So no matter if you're on board or in port, the Medallion internet for wi-fi calling is always available ...?

 

I assume that includes texting as well as phone?

 

I'm a little torked off that we'll have to spend $20/day for internet for both of us to have 24/7 accessibility, and that we'll probably have to buy smart phones (hundreds of dollars).  With Cellular At Sea, we'd spend maybe $10 for the entire cruise. I've been told that CAS isn't available on Medallion ships.  The cost for this cruise certainly is adding up!  😞  (I don't think the kids in Princess' I.T. realize that so many of their customers are senior citizens who neither want, nor have, smart phones.)

 

Again ... THANK YOU!!

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i was in port onboard, once i got off the ship my phone switched to using the Mexican mobile provider.  so while you are on board the ship the medallion wifi is always working., they do not turn it off in port.  i am not sure about cellular at sea, i didn't try to use it.  i do have a smart phone, and my mobile package with tmobile does include wifi calling.

 

i don't fully understand your use case, cellular at sea is expensive and you can incur charges anytime your phone downloads data at all.  i've never tried to use it, but i have read horror stories of people who left their phone cellular on and incurred a bunch of charges.

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It is not necessary to have a smart phone. FWIW: I do and it's enabled me to 'retire' my computer. I rarely use / need my phone onboard and prefer to keep it that way since incurring a $800 cellular at sea charge on a 4 night cruise. YIKES!! That kid had a stern talking to as he insisted he could respond to texts for free (no charge to receive EXPENSIVE to send). The medallion will open the door when your hands are full, enable portals near every elevator, and work just fine in the casino while your phone is safely stored in your room. It will also let you find it (with the assistance of any bar crew member) like when mine was in the casino and I was at IC. Great little gadget

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5 hours ago, vampiress said:

cellular at sea is expensive and you can incur charges anytime your phone downloads data at all.

We've used it on many cruises, and love it.  You just have to know how to tweak your phone.  We turn off "automatic downloads", and click "turn off data while roaming".  We try to stick to texting with family back home -- 5 cents to receive, and 50 cents to send.  A phone call is $3/minute, but we've rarely used that -- maybe two or three times when it was important.  I don't think we've paid more than $25 on a 10-day cruise.  Small price to pay for peace of mind.  (Cheaper than $200.)

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5 hours ago, Ombud said:

It is not necessary to have a smart phone.

Thanks for that!  So Hubby's old flip phone might work for wi-fi calling?  Cool.  I've never done a deep dive into it to see about wi-fi features.  (Actually, I'm trying to talk him into a basic smart phone, because I think you need it if you want to communicate with others in the group while on board.  He's balking.)

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On 10/16/2019 at 8:24 PM, Ombud said:

I've got bad news for you if you are getting on in LA. There is NO priority line. You're in the same cattle call line as everyone else.

That's how it was the last two times we sailed out of Ft. Lauderdale, too.  Just one line for everyone.  It did move very quickly, though.  Before that, there was a separate door for Platinum and above, and we went there.

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On 9/22/2019 at 6:07 PM, OzPilot said:

on the bottom right hand corner of the cruise card, or what it meant. What does the "A" after the number mean

I'm not sure, but if the "A" is after your Captain's Circle number, it may distinguish you from your spouse.  Hubby and I have the same CC number, but I have a "B" after my number, and he has an "A".

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Just spent 15 days on the Royal Princess.    Picked up the Medallion at the port, was on the ship just as quickly as anyone who already had their Medallion.   Went up to our room....it unlocked the door but of course you still have to turn the handle to open the door.  It doesn't "open" your door.

Dropped off luggage, went down to Guest Services turned the Medallion off.....got a cruise card and went about my regular routine on the ship.   Touched the cruise card to the screen outside my door.....it unlocked.....you still have to turn the handle to open the door.   Used the Cruise Card in the casino......used it to get off and on the ship in port ....... just like the Medallion.

Don't have any smart devices so, no apps.....no ordering of Medallions in advance......none of the frustration that I have read about with the apps.... 

 

Oh, and I didn't have to wear that thing around my neck, on my arm or clipped onto my clothes.    

 

Didn't really see what the benefits for using the Medallion, in my case.

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Has anybody traveled with family where they need access to a second cabin? In the past, we've gotten an extra key card at Guest Services. Wondering if the Medallion can be programmed to open two doors or if we will need a card for the "other" cabin. 

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So we have not cruised a Princess Medallion cruise, nor have i been on the Princess boards for a long while as we did a RCL cruise the last time (gasp) but we have one coming up and I have question. This thread is 56 pages long so excuse me if I didn’t get to posts that answer my questions.

What is the ability of this thing to track a passenger. My DH has a brain tumour (yes he is able to travel and we do have insurance) however as a result of the tumour he suffers from memory loss and can get lost if say he was to go to bed, I head to the casino and then for some reason he gets up to go look for me. Can I get the crew to track him down if necessary? I’m aware this is neither their job or responsibility but is the technology capable of that? 
Also, we’re Platinum, we still get complimentary wifi right?
Thanks for the help. I thought I’d be simple booking a last minute cruise then bam, hit with all this Medallion class stuff. 

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Hi SueandKent: you can track his medallion so I recommend that he keep it clipped to him at all times. And he can track yours. Just put your medallion on any portal (or use your smart phone if you have one) and it'll tell you where his medallion is. If you do not get one b4 they will make it at the pier. If it's misplaced, PSD will make another 

 

Yes, you still get 150+ internet minutes. And it's much faster now

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36 minutes ago, Ombud said:

Hi SueandKent: you can track his medallion so I recommend that he keep it clipped to him at all times. And he can track yours. Just put your medallion on any portal (or use your smart phone if you have one) and it'll tell you where his medallion is. If you do not get one b4 they will make it at the pier. If it's misplaced, PSD will make another 

 

Yes, you still get 150+ internet minutes. And it's much faster now

Thank you so much for the response. Looks like Princess may have unknowingly solved my problem. 

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9 hours ago, Notonboard said:

Journey View is supposed to be loaded with events 60 days prior. My first cruise is less than 40 days and no information is loaded.

 

Our cruise begins in less than 2 weeks but no events are listed in the Journey View except for showing which days are at sea & which are in ports.

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On 10/20/2019 at 7:50 PM, sueandkent said:

Also, we’re Platinum, we still get complimentary wifi right?

 

On 10/20/2019 at 8:36 PM, Ombud said:

Yes, you still get 150+ internet minutes. And it's much faster now

 

On 10/20/2019 at 9:14 PM, sueandkent said:

Thank you so much for the response. Looks like Princess may have unknowingly solved my problem. 

 

Check the number of free minutes you’re issued because myself & others have been shortchanged with them.

 

We booked B2B 7-day cruises which should have been 300 minutes (2x150) however as

MedallionClass cruises it was considered a 14 day cruise with 2 booking numbers.  Thus they only provided 250 minutes for a 14 day cruise but passengers who contacted the Internet Café manager had the missing 50 minutes added.  We didn’t request the missing minutes because it was a port intensive cruise & we had free data, text & calls in ports.

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On 10/20/2019 at 7:45 PM, cattolica said:

Just spent 15 days on the Royal Princess.    Picked up the Medallion at the port, was on the ship just as quickly as anyone who already had their Medallion.   Went up to our room....it unlocked the door but of course you still have to turn the handle to open the door.  It doesn't "open" your door.

Dropped off luggage, went down to Guest Services turned the Medallion off.....got a cruise card and went about my regular routine on the ship.   Touched the cruise card to the screen outside my door.....it unlocked.....you still have to turn the handle to open the door.   Used the Cruise Card in the casino......used it to get off and on the ship in port ....... just like the Medallion.

Don't have any smart devices so, no apps.....no ordering of Medallions in advance......none of the frustration that I have read about with the apps.... 

 

Oh, and I didn't have to wear that thing around my neck, on my arm or clipped onto my clothes.    

 

Didn't really see what the benefits for using the Medallion, in my case.

I like your approach as it mirrors what I am planning for my next Princess cruise. No pre-cruisr angst and frustration trying to get a wonky app to work for something I don't need anyway.

 

What I do need is my barrel chair, but that's another topice.

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2 hours ago, 1965 said:

How do you use the medallion on the kiosks that print your account statements? Thanks. 

You put it on the little blue lit circle which then turns green. Touch the printer icon on the screen.

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