Dine My Way - new MedallionClass enhancement

[cjmayes51]

2 hours ago, dreaminofcruisin said:

 

Since you booked in May, you should download the app and confirm that your dining was set up correctly. Due to your booking prior to the date the app was released with dining, you should be able to modify your dining if it is not correct. For Traditional Dining that people had already booked, Princess set it up for you to be the same each night. In my case, I had to correct it because Princess booked only my stateroom--3 of us and there are 7 of us in our party. I was able to add the additional people using their Booking Number. I then deleted the original reservations for a table for 4 and set up a table for 8 and included all 7 of us.

Downloaded app 10 days ago and have gone thru it twice, it will let me do a anytime dining at a table for 4 at about any time, but each time it’s in a different dining room, and doesn’t really feel like traditional, just possibly the same servers with different table mates possible each nite, IE the same old anytime dining. So I just close out the APP and hope something changes  Charlie

[AF-1]

2 hours ago, JF - retired RRT said:

Oh gawd no!! They can't make it work right with only one thing to do. Can you imagine them starting over?😵

They are in it for the long haul.  Good or bad.  We just Booked an Oct cruise today.  will let you know how the app works

[Cruzinnana47]

After thinking about my unresolved call to Princess for a few days now, I decided to shoot off an email to Princess Customer Relations (kbaldwin was mentioned here and on another thread).  

 

I asked the question about only one Specialty Dining Credit was applied under DMW on the app. while making a reservation for DH and myself, and having no proof our 2nd credit was applied.   Did add that some Princess phone reps have not been patient and/or helpful with folks calling with questions pertaining to their experiences with the app & DMW in particular.

 

Know this is a small problem, but have read many, like us, have experienced it.

 

Figured...what do I have to lose?  If I get any response, I will share.

[cruzrbachoua]

50 minutes ago, Cruzinnana47 said:

After thinking about my unresolved call to Princess for a few days now, I decided to shoot off an email to Princess Customer Relations (kbaldwin was mentioned here and on another thread).  

 

I asked the question about only one Specialty Dining Credit was applied under DMW on the app. while making a reservation for DH and myself, and having no proof our 2nd credit was applied.   Did add that some Princess phone reps have not been patient and/or helpful with folks calling with questions pertaining to their experiences with the app & DMW in particular.

 

Know this is a small problem, but have read many, like us, have experienced it.

 

Figured...what do I have to lose?  If I get any response, I will share.

I am curious to see what princess says in their response..BUT there are 2 couples on our October 2021 cruise us being one of them...we booked the specialty dining with it only showing the 1 credit, it shows us booked and as of today they have not charged either of our credit cards for the additional specialty dining.  The other couple on our cruise did it 2-3 weeks ago and I did mine about 1 week ago.  When i did the excursions they charged our card on file that night if not the next day.  

[Cruzinnana47]

I just got a call from Kimberly Baldwin herself from Princess, less than an hour after sending out the email to her.  She was very nice and seemed genuinely concerned about the problems we've encountered with the Medallion App (DMW, specifically).  We chatted about my issue with some of the Princess customer service reps' attitudes and responses (not all, some are quite professional and helpful) and she apologized.  She did agree that the functions within the Medallion app need to be improved and understands the frustration that we and others have been experiencing.

 

The upshot was she that would be sending me 2 emails regarding my request for proof that both dining credits have been applied.  Unfortunately, she can't do anything about having it show in the app itself, evidently.  BTW, we did not get a charge on the credit card yet for the confirmed specialty dining reservation in question...so that's a good thing.   

 

On our other booked Princess cruise, with NO dining credits, I also made Specialty Dining reservations.  Those charges have already hit my credit card.

 

 

 

 

[nreeder]

Ok, I tried a goofy workaround for the free dining credit for specialty restaurants and it worked.  The idea came from someone else on another thread.  I booked as “myself” a speciality restaurant and got it credited as you saw above.  I then logged out.  I then went in not using my usual login (my email address), but used our “booking number”.  Then at the top of the app, I selected my wife, and booked her and she got it free.  Now it doesn’t make sense, as we have two reservations, but both are free and I assume it would be worked out aboard ship when we both show up with reservations.  The $29 credit looks like it’s being carried by each of us separately I guess.  The whole thing became useless as our cruise got cancelled.  But you can try the workaround if you want.

Norm

[Steelers36]

1 hour ago, nreeder said:

Ok, I tried a goofy workaround for the free dining credit for specialty restaurants and it worked.  The idea came from someone else on another thread.  I booked as “myself” a speciality restaurant and got it credited as you saw above.  I then logged out.  I then went in not using my usual login (my email address), but used our “booking number”.  Then at the top of the app, I selected my wife, and booked her and she got it free.  Now it doesn’t make sense, as we have two reservations, but both are free and I assume it would be worked out aboard ship when we both show up with reservations.  The $29 credit looks like it’s being carried by each of us separately I guess.  The whole thing became useless as our cruise got cancelled.  But you can try the workaround if you want.

Norm

I will say the same thing I said when I saw the workaround previously.  You have just made two independent reservations and occupying two tables.  You will need to get the restaurant to sort it out on board. 

[skynight]

8 hours ago, cjmayes51 said:

Ok let me just as this straight out, is Traditional Dining on Princess dead. I booked a 26 day cruise on Regal for 2022 back on may 30th. Asked for late traditional dining and it showed on my confirmation and my online Princess account for a week, then it went away. I’ve read so much here and calling customer service, which was no help, most people on Cruise Critic are saying that TD is dead. The CS agent said I may be able to request it after I had paid foe the cruise, I’m not paying for a 26 day cruise early so I can book dining. So what is the real story or does anyone really know.

Traditional Dining as you know it is gone. It has been replaced by Dine My Way. Princess indicated they would transfer standing traditional dining requests to Dine My Way. It is possible that you do have a scheduled reservation time. If you have not done so download the Princess medallion class app. and sign in. You cruise should appear. You may find your reservations there. The standard practice for the future is that you need to reserve dining times for each evening of the cruise. You can do this by selecting same time each day or select it day by day. Passengers that are Captain's Circle platinum and elite may select dining times once booked. Other passengers must wait until final payment to select dining times. Passengers that are booked in club class mini suites or full suites do not require dining reservations for the dining in the club class section of the DR. This as in the past will continue to be walk in. These passengers would require reservations for specialty dining or to dine with other in a none club class section of the DR.

[joepeka]

6 minutes ago, skynight said:

Other passengers must wait until final payment to select dining times. 

Actually, we are not Platinum or elite and have not made final payment (it's months away) but just a couple of days ago were able to book dining times for the entire cruise via the MC app. 🤔

[Cruzinnana47]

We are not yet Platinum...after our upcoming cruise in Nov., we will be.  We booked the cruise well before June 7th (the "grandfathered" date), and were able to book dining reservations for the Nov. cruise and one in May, 2022 without making final payment on either.  At this point, we only have the deposits and FCC's applied to both.

[MissP22]

12 hours ago, skynight said:

Traditional Dining as you know it is gone. It has been replaced by Dine My Way. Princess indicated they would transfer standing traditional dining requests to Dine My Way. It is possible that you do have a scheduled reservation time. If you have not done so download the Princess medallion class app. and sign in. You cruise should appear. You may find your reservations there. The standard practice for the future is that you need to reserve dining times for each evening of the cruise. You can do this by selecting same time each day or select it day by day. Passengers that are Captain's Circle platinum and elite may select dining times once booked. Other passengers must wait until final payment to select dining times. Passengers that are booked in club class mini suites or full suites do not require dining reservations for the dining in the club class section of the DR. This as in the past will continue to be walk in. These passengers would require reservations for specialty dining or to dine with other in a none club class section of the DR.

What would become of passengers who had previously selected a late time at the beginning of the cruise & then wanted to dine early one evening? The was you describe it is that they would have to wait until their time slot was available or use the buffet. Could I change to an earlier dining time & wait for an opening, even though it might be previously filled? 

[JF - retired RRT]

17 hours ago, Cruzinnana47 said:

After thinking about my unresolved call to Princess for a few days now, I decided to shoot off an email to Princess Customer Relations (kbaldwin was mentioned here and on another thread).  

 

 

What is the full address for kbaldwin?

I have some questions for her, too.

[Steelers36]

45 minutes ago, JF - retired RRT said:

What is the full address for kbaldwin?

I have some questions for her, too.

@princesscruises.com ... same for all of the employees.

[skynight]

4 hours ago, MissP22 said:

What would become of passengers who had previously selected a late time at the beginning of the cruise & then wanted to dine early one evening? The was you describe it is that they would have to wait until their time slot was available or use the buffet. Could I change to an earlier dining time & wait for an opening, even though it might be previously filled? 

Seems to me you try to reserve another time for that day from what would probably be a reduced amount of selections. You could also just be a no show and go to the buffet, order something in the app while you sit by one of the poolside tables, or grab one of the other options. According to the video you could also just show up and ask to be seated. While just show up looks good on the video, probability exist that limited if any tables would be available. 

[kjg46]

23 hours ago, cjmayes51 said:

Downloaded app 10 days ago and have gone thru it twice, it will let me do a anytime dining at a table for 4 at about any time, but each time it’s in a different dining room, and doesn’t really feel like traditional, just possibly the same servers with different table mates possible each nite, IE the same old anytime dining. So I just close out the APP and hope something changes  Charlie

I just wonder when they combine a table for two, four etc. with what is only available larger tables if indeed the Medallion app takes into consideration the "slow", "relaxed" and "fast" pace selections made by the various reservations. This I would like to see. 

[Steelers36]

Not sure that anyone had posted this before.  I was poking around in the FAQ section and under Dining & Nightlife", this new section for DineMyWay:

 

Dine when and how you want with this new offering that lets you customize every aspect of mealtime. Make reservations for the main dining room or specialty restaurants at your preferred time each day. Fit in a formal dinner before a show, or order food and drinks to your poolside perch with OceanNow®. The choice really is up to you.

Upon return to sailing, previous dining selections (including traditional dining) will be honored. Dine My Way replaces Traditional and Anytime dining.

 

Hmm, so far they have not honored previous dining selections as they put each cabin at a 2-top or next available size. 

 

How much can we read into the last sentence.  If it is a wholesale replacement, then the concepts of TD will be gone - same wait staff and dining companions for length of voyage.  The concept of booking Anytime without a table-size preference is also gone.  If they had written "enhances", rather than "replaces", it would carry different connotation. 

 

That said, when you link through to the detailed DMW webpage, it still promises same wait staff if you select same dining time each night.  And they are only promising dining with your same travel party each night.  No references to dining with others (but I think they had that before - unless it was just in TA Sales Presentations).

 

Dig a bit further and download the PDF file linked on that webpage with DMW FAQ's.....

 

FAQ #1 - This was a fail as they did not convert the pre-selected dining choices for those of us who had linked dining with travel companions and did not assign the preferred table size.

 

FAQ #3 - I think someone else referred to this info (could be another thread), but finally some clarity on what Princess DMW is considering Early or Late TD windows.  Early = 5:00, 5:20, or 5:40 pm.  Late = 7:00, 7:20, or 7:40pm.  Useful info, but late for me.  They assigned everyone they could to 5pm and 7pm by default it would appear.  Now I might consider a change to 5:40 from 6:00, but no 4-tops left for full voyage.

 

FAQ #5 - Makes it clear Anytime is better as you can book in advance or walk-up.  DMW is terrific for AT fans, but not so much so far for TD fans. 

 

FAQ #6 - This is funny as the question is about not planning and response begins mentioning flexibility but suggests booking times prior to cruising as options may be limited when get on board.

 

FAQ #10 - Is trying to stick-handle the same DR and wait staff issue.  Since we cannot actually select the DR right now (it only offers once choice at the time we pick - as well as only one table size choice), this claim in the answer is not really true.  And they don't explain how we are guaranteed same wait staff - especially when the system books some nights at different table size than showed when making the res.  This is still an outstanding question in my mind.

 

FAQ #11 - Again about the same DR.  Since we are only offered a SINGLE choice thus far in DWM, we certainly cannot choose our DR.

 

FAQ #16 - This one finally addresses the situation where we choose to dine with our own party or dine with others.  I cannot copy text from the PDF.  But it states that DMW will offer a table size to fit the dining party or larger, depending on availability.  Well, maybe in the next release because right now, it only offers one table size at the time selected.  If there isn't a smaller table to fit party size, it states can expect to share.  Otherwise, try another time.  I will take this answer as expectations for a future release since is not the case at all right now. 

 

 

[Tedferg]

@Steelers36Restating my position, we have always been happy with Anytime and 7:00 - 7:15 is a good compromise with our traveling friends. We all like Sharing and enjoy meeting new people. We have on two or three occasions asked for same section in DR because of Waitstaff. Early TD was too early and Late TD too late for us. Did not see any other benefits.

 

You have explained the nuances of TD that are important to you and I understand. So, to my question, at long last. What percentage of TDners do you think value ALL the points you bring up versus people who simply want a fixed reservation each evening ?

 

My guess is a small percentage and so Princess feels DMW satisfies the majority and is more efficient use of space. This assumes the App works correctly and allows choice of table size.

[Steelers36]

16 minutes ago, Tedferg said:

@Steelers36Restating my position, we have always been happy with Anytime and 7:00 - 7:15 is a good compromise with our traveling friends. We all like Sharing and enjoy meeting new people. We have on two or three occasions asked for same section in DR because of Waitstaff. Early TD was too early and Late TD too late for us. Did not see any other benefits.

 

You have explained the nuances of TD that are important to you and I understand. So, to my question, at long last. What percentage of TDners do you think value ALL the points you bring up versus people who simply want a fixed reservation each evening ?

 

My guess is a small percentage and so Princess feels DMW satisfies the majority and is more efficient use of space. This assumes the App works correctly and allows choice of table size.

It's a good question.  All I know is lots of people select larger tables to dine with others and many CC members like that.  We prefer to dine with ourselves or with friends if cruising together.  So, I am fine if it offers me only the size of table for my dining party.  But, I know others want more. 

 

DMW most closely fits the previous AT model and less so for TD.  I think we all need to see what other changes come.  In general, I like the feature.  But I rail against sloppy IT and systems being released that don't meet the promises and cause a mess when they should have held it back or just released this "Alpha version" for the summer cruises until the kinks worked out.

 

If they toss TD altogether and forget same wait staff, I can live with it, but nice to have that and all get to know each other,  Things runs WAY smoother that way.

 

[skynight]

Steelers36. As mentioned anytime is gone for now. Hopefully it will re-appear a year or two. As of now anytime is really reserve a specific time if you can find one and that time may not be to your liking.

To me DMW is not an enhancement. It's a step that places more effort onto the customer and it should be the reverse.

[Thrak]

24 minutes ago, skynight said:

To me DMW is not an enhancement. It's a step that places more effort onto the customer and it should be the reverse.

☝️ This...

[Steelers36]

56 minutes ago, skynight said:

Steelers36. As mentioned anytime is gone for now. Hopefully it will re-appear a year or two. As of now anytime is really reserve a specific time if you can find one and that time may not be to your liking.

To me DMW is not an enhancement. It's a step that places more effort onto the customer and it should be the reverse.

 

32 minutes ago, Thrak said:

☝️ This...

I hear you guys and cannot disagree.  Pre-DMW, we rarely got exactly what we wanted in terms of time and DR location after arriving on the ship.  So, it was always on my embarkation afternoon list of to-do's to visit the MD in the DR in order to put in our optimal TD request and we usually/always got a 95% - 100% ideal from that.  I expect I will be doing the same next October. 

 

After lunch, while my wife unpacks and sets up the cabin, I run around taking care of main dining, specialty dining, WM dinner (if applicable) and setup the internet package.  Sanctuary is already done - if applicable - immediately upon boarding.

 

ETA - When I step back and re-think, I can say I do disagree in some ways.  I don't see that AT is gone at all.  Instead of standing in line, guests can make a booking at desired time-frame (within 20-minute windows), assuming available space.  Guests can also just show up and wait for a table as before.  Seems like best of both worlds for AT.  You can make the res much easier than before as had to phone DINE line morning of in order to try and book something and not all that easy as I understand it to get something wanted.  Assuming you have smart device or use cabin TV it seems convenient.  As to whether available DMW times suit the AT guest, well you could also show up pre-Covid when you wanted to dine and find that you had to wait for seating.  In the end, not dining exactly when wanted to.  I think we need to wait and see how this works when cruises begin and we get reports.  But let's keep in mind that the early cruises are only partially sold out.

 

I agree there is more effort right now as we have to keep checking and see if more times open or more DR's - assuming did not get desired choice in first place.  The AT diner can opt to ignore the whole thing and just show up as before.  The additional work is guest-choice.  I think there is more work for the TD guest than the AT guest overall.  Depends on what one wants for ideal dining. 

 

If DMW worked as documented, we'd know where we stand.

Edited July 1, 2021 by Steelers36

[Tedferg]

Steelers the reason I made my comment was because I wondered if Princess, especially the IT responsible for the App, did not appreciate that TD was more than fixed time / fixed table. Interesting too that skynight feels At has gone away - sand that might be true if 90%  of people have made reservations, walk ups might be left with the crumbs.

 

Does Princess use Focus Groups ?

[Steelers36]

1 hour ago, Tedferg said:

Steelers the reason I made my comment was because I wondered if Princess, especially the IT responsible for the App, did not appreciate that TD was more than fixed time / fixed table. Interesting too that skynight feels At has gone away - sand that might be true if 90%  of people have made reservations, walk ups might be left with the crumbs.

 

Does Princess use Focus Groups ?

IDK, but it sure seems that there was a disconnect between business analysis/specifications and what IT thought they needed to build.  That disconnect seems to continue as business/sales side of Princess doesn't seem to think anything is wrong - or just not admitting it. 

 

IDK about focus groups, but a customer focus group sure would have helped in this case (MC App update from Personalizer and DMW).  IDK if most of their TA's could have helped as a focus group.  Seems like they figure things out based on customer feedback and their own intuition.  

 

Was it right a couple of years back to make all the dining times earlier or find a way to offer more early TD seats?  One solution was to move times earlier and that "encouraged" many to book the now-earlier late TD.  Problem solved for Princess, but some dining is really early now relative to all-aboard. 

 

Perhaps they will always hold back some % of inventory for tables.  It certainly isn't all available now on all cruises - far from it.

Edited July 2, 2021 by Steelers36

[NavyVeteran]

Maybe the DMW "improvements" are a way to get more people to book Club Class.

[wowzz]

4 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

The AT diner can opt to ignore the whole thing and just show up as before. 

In the past, as an ATD, one was allocated a specific dining room for the duration of the cruise.

As it stands now, it appears that if I want to just turn up, I'll have to make a tour of all the MDRs on the ship, to find which one has any availability. 

Edited July 2, 2021 by wowzz