Deposit Requirements Upped--Considerably!

[Uncle Sugar]

Just booked a 14-day European cruise aboard Sky Princess for next year and have placed on temporary hold status pending a deposit payment due in just a couple of days. Noticed that a deposit payment of $800 is required, instead of the normal $200. Since we’ve exhausted our available FCDs (and can’t purchase replacements), it looks like we have to cough up the extra dollars. Called a Princess Customer Service rep earlier today and was advised that as of mid-February, just a couple of weeks ago, Princess, as a matter of policy, had indeed increased the deposit amounts needed to nail down a booking. In our case, however, that was a four-fold increase! Just curious, have others encountered the same situation involving drastically increased deposit requirements?  Sounds to us that Princess has done this (if our situation isn’t unique and applies across-the-board) to improve their cash flow position.  

[oskidunker]

They need cash.

[jennybenny]

Heard that happened on February 16th. Suspect you are correct, they need cash flow, and bigger deposits will help.

I agree, The problem with not cruising is no FCD! I have 4 people to book for. I don’t want to put out more money than I need to. If they release West Coast December 2022 I will likely cancel our next 2021 cruise and use those FCDs for that instead. I’m just not comfortable with the start dates getting pushed out over and over. Once cruises start I’ll be willing to fork out that amount of cash without a FCD. My current bookings are all I’m comfortable with, we’ve already handed more cash over.

Edited March 2, 2021 by jennybenny

[suekel]

I ran across this yesterday but my TA was able to track down a FCD that was floating around out there.  I would have paid it but it was a surprise.  

 

[Croooser]

We experienced this too. With no FCDs in play, we booked a September 2022 Enchanted TA on 12/29 with $200 down. On 2/1 we booked a November 2021 Sky TA with $800 down. 

 

As a point of reference, our March 2022 Oceania Riviera TA (see a pattern here?) required a $3000 down payment for an admittedly more expensive cruise in a higher category.

 

We intend to watch carefully (read daily) and will pull the plug and cancel if we do not see the steady improvement in the reduction of the pandemic effect that we anticipate. We will sail if the ship sails and we will be permitted to do our own thing in ports of call. Masks and distancing are acceptable to us. Ship's excursions are not.

 

Our best guess is that our November Sky either will not sail or will be restricted to the point that we will cancel. But we will hold until final payment and then make the call. 2022 is too soon to tell.

 

 

Edited March 2, 2021 by Croooser

[clarky213]

Current deposit on UK site is £50 pp.

[2 cruises a year]

I also think that cash flow is the main cause.  But I also think that all cruise lines need to limit people holding frivolous cruises that they are not positive that they are going to take.  People will not generally put down a larger deposit unless they are pretty serious.

[dog]

Don’t do it. Call like I did. Dropped it 200/ cabin as past passenger. 

[USN59-79]

Just as a reference we booked a B2B2B  (three 14 day) on Holland America starting February 2022.  They required a $1200. deposit per cabin for each leg.  

[tillys mom]

Check with a good Travel Agent- mine has a $100 deposit deal.

[AtlantaCruiser72]

Princess has been running multiple reduced deposit offers on selected sailings for quite some time.  It is possible that some of the sailings that just opened for Aus/NZ do not qualify for the reduced deposit offer, and/or that it has expired for other destinations.

 

Standard deposit requirements are changing March 29th 2021.  The big change is for cruises of 6-9 days going from $200pp to $250 pp for Mini Suite and Below and from $400pp to $500pp for Suites.  Also deposits will now be required for 3rd, 4th, 5th guests in the room when before there was only a deposit for 1st and 2nd guests.

 

 

Below is the information my company has provided me on the deposit changes :

 

 

 

 

[AtlantaCruiser72]

Additionally - if you are logged in to your princess account and have FCC that can be used as deposit ( depending on which "pause" it came from and cruise departure date) it will auto apply the FCC as a discount on the booking and no additional deposit will then be required.  That may be why some cruises show $0 deposit and others are asking for actual cash.

Edited March 3, 2021 by AtlantaCruiser72

[patrickmoran]

Just wait. The deposit requirement will probably go down again. P raised deposits last Fall for about a month then reverted to the usual amounts. This seems to occur just as promotion ends and before a new one takes hold. 

[capriccio]

We just made bookings (4 cabins for a total of 8 passengers) yesterday through our TA for a 28 day Australia cruise in 2023 and the deposit was $100 per person.  Two cabins had FCD returned from a cancelled cruise that would have expired before the cruise but our TA worked with Princess to extend them and two cabins just paid the fully refundable $100 per passenger deposit.

[DHP1]

I too booked a 12 days cruise (courtesy hold) and my deposit is $1,008 (Canadian). I phone Princess today and explained your new deposit doesn’t take effect until March 29th. I then spoke to a Princess Supervisor and she said she is unable to change the deposit rate. 

Edited March 3, 2021 by DHP1

[susancruzs]

My travel agent has $100. deposit, too and I won't book unless it is $100.  I have 6 cruises booked between Nov. 2021-Sept. 2022, all for $100 each.

[dog]

3 hours ago, DHP1 said:

I too booked a 12 days cruise (courtesy hold) and my deposit is $1,008 (Canadian). I phone Princess today and explained your new deposit doesn’t take effect until March 29th. I then spoke to a Princess Supervisor and she said she is unable to change the deposit rate. 

Find a TA to book with or call back and try a different agent. No way should we pay that much deposit. Just make sure you get a refundable deposit. 
those using FCC might be ok with it but not those paying by credit card for deposit. It will come down if they don’t get the bookings. 

[DHP1]

Update:-  yesterday I contacted Princess “Live Chat” and provided her with all the information (chart) in above comment 11 and she saids (I have it in writing) that she agrees with me that the effect date is March 29th and will correct my deposit, which is due tomorrow (Friday). 

I check this morning and the correction has not been made. 
 

[nini]

Funny- I started virtually the same thread 1 minute before this one.

Can someone combine them?

[DHP1]

mini - just add your notes to this thread. 

[DHP1]

From Princess website today.
Our cruise is 12 days and our deposit is $1,008 (Canadian). In the meantime, Princess has not changed our deposit to reflect the below. Our deposit should be $400 (USA). 
 

 

[dog]

1 hour ago, DHP1 said:

From Princess website today.
Our cruise is 12 days and our deposit is $1,008 (Canadian). In the meantime, Princess has not changed our deposit to reflect the below. Our deposit should be $400 (USA). 
 

 

That is ridiculous. Book with someone else. 

[iancal]

We would not give them a dime.

[dog]

On 3/3/2021 at 3:52 PM, DHP1 said:

I too booked a 12 days cruise (courtesy hold) and my deposit is $1,008 (Canadian). I phone Princess today and explained your new deposit doesn’t take effect until March 29th. I then spoke to a Princess Supervisor and she said she is unable to change the deposit rate. 

Did you book a full suite?  Deposit shows $1000 for that. $520 for balcony or mini suite in CAD $

[DHP1]

We booked a balcony. Deposit payment is due today and Princess still hasn’t change the deposit rate. They told me they would and I have it in “writing”. Princess has changed for the worse.  I have notice this the last 5 years.