Revamped Tier Levels Coming Soon

[wallyj]

17 hours ago, TheRabbit said:

When I look at the plus up it is $50 a day without subtracting the gratuity bonus.

@TheRabbit, just did a quick check on the Crown Feb. 2023 sailing and every category showed the difference of $600 between saver/basic and ‘Plus’ fare so $40x15 days=$600, $50/day would be a $750 difference

[susancruzs]

I'm elite, single, usually sail inside cabins.  I've had one upgrade from inside to obstructed view balcony (Royal), found out at the pier.  I was surprised and so was my travel agent.  Over 30 cruises, more than half with Princess, 1 upgrade.

 

Years ago I got a nicer cabin, ssNorway because mine flooded, don't think that counts! 😄  It was for a crossing, longer cruise so more space was nice.  

 

I get casino emails but don't cruise to the Caribbean, so depends on offer.  Three Ruby cruises booked with a decent percentage off, plus $300. casino credit (Coastal April 2022).

[RRFan]

3 hours ago, generichandle said:

We are Elite and get all the perks that come with that, and it's great. But we never get free upgrades or move-over's offered. You know why?

 

The two biggest money makers for the cruise line are the casino and the drinks. We neither of us gamble, and we do not drink [alcohol, obviously]. Did you think they do not know what to do with this info, which they certainly gather? So; No upgrades or move-overs for us. 

 

I am not complaining! Love the perks of Elite  But i do not blame PCL for looking after their big spender. It is, after all, a business. We live happily with that.

 

We are just like you (don’t drink or gamble) and have 57 cruises with PCL. We have gotten several free upgrades and many upsell offers, some of which we took and others we didn’t. I have no idea what the formula is for if or when they make the offers. When we book, we always book the top tier of whatever category of cabin we want and that increases chances for upgrade (they don’t upgrade more than one category I don’t think). Also we always tell our TA to mark the box for Princess that we would accept an upgrade. Some people want a specific cabin and don’t want an upgrade.  

[memoak]

28 minutes ago, susancruzs said:

I'm elite, single, usually sail inside cabins.  I've had one upgrade from inside to obstructed view balcony (Royal), found out at the pier.  I was surprised and so was my travel agent.  Over 30 cruises, more than half with Princess, 1 upgrade.

 

Years ago I got a nicer cabin, ssNorway because mine flooded, don't think that counts! 😄  It was for a crossing, longer cruise so more space was nice.  

 

I get casino emails but don't cruise to the Caribbean, so depends on offer.  Three Ruby cruises booked with a decent percentage off, plus $300. casino credit (Coastal April 2022).

I was on the Pacific Princess a few years before it was sold and a passenger in a balcony got flooding out and the only thing available was a suite so they got the large space, mini bar setup and club class dining - then of course they complained when they were told they would have to pay to have the minibar replaced after they went through the whole thing in 3 days

[azbirdmom]

3 hours ago, Thrak said:

 

I would consider a free inside or balcony cruise to be an upgrade of sorts. It's an upgrade from the status of having no cruise or having to pay for a cruise.

 

It truly is.  We always got the casino discount but I never played enough to warrant a free cabin.  Lo and behold during the pandemic all of a sudden I got offers for free inside cabins on any cruise up to 20 days plus free play in the casino.  I took advantage of two of those offers for longer more expensive cruises and paid to upgrade to a mini suite.  The total cost of the upgrade was well under what they would have charged for the inside cabin alone so I was quite pleased with that offer.  When the world is normal again we probably won't get one of those offers again but I was happy to get it for a short while.

[suzyed]

On 6/27/2021 at 6:45 AM, vjmatty said:

At $25 per day difference for the drink portion of the PLUS fares, I don’t think you need to drink alcohol to make it pay off. Hubby with his coffees and bottled water covers that before touching a single drop of booze. I’m not sure where I found the breakdown of cost per PLUS perk, since it had to be in 2019 when it all started, but I remember noting that unless you’re only drinking tap water, juice, iced tea and the swill they pass off as non-speciality coffee, you’re going to get your money’s worth. 

I agree.   But I think that they should keep the internet option for those who don't book the "plus".

[Steelers36]

8 hours ago, wallyj said:

@TheRabbit, just did a quick check on the Crown Feb. 2023 sailing and every category showed the difference of $600 between saver/basic and ‘Plus’ fare so $40x15 days=$600, $50/day would be a $750 difference

Yes, you are right.  I was looking at same quickly and then saw your post.

[Thrak]

23 minutes ago, suzyed said:

I agree.   But I think that they should keep the internet option for those who don't book the "plus".

 

Definitely. I don't recall ever hearing them say the Platinum/Elite free Internet minutes were going away. People seem to be assuming that but I really don't think I've heard that stated by Princess.

[AtlantaCruiser72]

On 6/7/2021 at 1:23 PM, ceilidh1 said:

This was sent to TAs last week....

 

 

New exclusive benefits for Elite and Platinum members If Dine My Way dining perks weren’t enough, we’re also excited to announce new benefits for clients who are Elite and Platinum members: • 10% off spa treatments and photo offerings • An exclusive 50% discount on MedallionNet® Wi-Fi (With this fast, reliable internet now offered on all our ships, no need to limit your time worrying about minutes anymore!) • 10% off shore excursions for Elite members

 

19 minutes ago, Thrak said:

 

Definitely. I don't recall ever hearing them say the Platinum/Elite free Internet minutes were going away. People seem to be assuming that but I really don't think I've heard that stated by Princess.

the above from post #21 on this thread seemingly confirms the removal of fixed minutes being replaced by a discount on medallion net WiFi packages. It was also discussed in the most recent travel agent seminar about new perks and John Chernenko basically restated the above. My best guess is per minute options will no longer be available on Princess going forward.

[Thrak]

39 minutes ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

 

the above from post #21 on this thread seemingly confirms the removal of fixed minutes being replaced by a discount on medallion net WiFi packages. It was also discussed in the most recent travel agent seminar about new perks and John Chernenko basically restated the above. My best guess is per minute options will no longer be available on Princess going forward.

 

It's certainly possible. They really aren't good at actually communicating facts in a manner that make things clear. Hopefully this is just another case of them being too stupid to realize people want their free minutes and don't see a need to state plainly that they won't go away. They are in the throes of ecstasy over their "wonderful" new perk of a discount and pushing it for all they are worth.

 

It's entirely possible they don't understand that people don't want their new perk and can't even imagine that to be the case. If so, they will likely go ahead blindly and remove the existing free minutes people have come to expect and rely on. It would be just one more example of marketing people being absolutely clueless. It's always dangerous to let marketing people drive change. They never live in the real world.

 

  

40 minutes ago, AtlantaCruiser72 said:

New exclusive benefits for Elite and Platinum members
If Dine My Way dining perks weren’t enough, we’re also excited to announce new benefits for clients who are Elite and Platinum members:

 

I've said before that any time a marketing person uses the word "excited" it means trouble and likely a departure from anything even remotely desirable for the end user.

Edited June 29, 2021 by Thrak

[2 cruises a year]

52 minutes ago, Thrak said:

 

It's certainly possible. They really aren't good at actually communicating facts in a manner that make things clear. Hopefully this is just another case of them being too stupid to realize people want their free minutes and don't see a need to state plainly that they won't go away. They are in the throes of ecstasy over their "wonderful" new perk of a discount and pushing it for all they are worth.

 

It's entirely possible they don't understand that people don't want their new perk and can't even imagine that to be the case. If so, they will likely go ahead blindly and remove the existing free minutes people have come to expect and rely on. It would be just one more example of marketing people being absolutely clueless. It's always dangerous to let marketing people drive change. They never live in the real world.

 

  

 

I've said before that any time a marketing person uses the word "excited" it means trouble and likely a departure from anything even remotely desirable for the end user.

Another phrase that means trouble: "We are  pleased to announce..."

[vjmatty]

7 hours ago, suzyed said:

I agree.   But I think that they should keep the internet option for those who don't book the "plus".

Oh they definitely should not take away that perk. Not everyone needs unlimited internet every day either. 

Edited June 29, 2021 by vjmatty

[pms4104]

22 minutes ago, vjmatty said:

Oh they definitely should not take away that perk. Not everyone needs unlimited internet every day either. 

I doubt they care much what pax need ... fact is, Princess makes zero off free minutes ... but offering 50% discount does generate much-needed revenue

[pompeii]

29 minutes ago, vjmatty said:

Oh they definitely should not take away that perk. Not everyone needs unlimited internet every day either. 

But what Princess needs is to bring in more money, and a big way to do that is to push people to book the Plus fare by eliminating free internet and disguising the 50% discount as an exciting new perk.  That way, pax can no longer use the "I already get free internet" argument in deciding in favor of the basic fare over the Plus fare.

[cruzsnooze]

I personally will never use the plus fare since I don't drink. Princess can push it till the cows come home and it's still not for me. 

[voljeep]

10 minutes ago, cruzsnooze said:

I personally will never use the plus fare since I don't drink. Princess can push it till the cows come home and it's still not for me. 

at least 'everyone' can agree that Princess allowing us to have a choice is a beautiful thing, and not a 'push' thing 

[franktown]

New benefit page is out on Princess.com.  Can't post from phone.

[pompeii]

2 hours ago, voljeep said:

at least 'everyone' can agree that Princess allowing us to have a choice is a beautiful thing, and not a 'push' thing 

Choice is a good thing, which is why some of us are not pleased that Princess is taking away our choice of free vs paid internet by offering a discount in lieu of free minutes and trying to tell us we should be grateful.  Offer them both and everyone will be happy.

2 hours ago, cruzsnooze said:

I personally will never use the plus fare since I don't drink. Princess can push it till the cows come home and it's still not for me. 

I agree entirely.  Many say that the Plus fare difference of $25/day after gratuities is still worth it even if you don't drink because of bottled water and coffee,  but bottled water packages can be purchased delivered to your cabin for 58¢ per bottle and coffee for $36 for the duration of the cruise.  That doesn't add up to anywhere near $25/day, even if you add in some sodas.   I think some folks also don't take into consideration that obc would pay for some or all of their gratuities, and they just like knowing everything is paid ahead of time regardless of the bottom line.  It would be interesting if Princess would give a itemized account of a passenger's actual usage of the Plus package so passengers could see if they got their money's worth or not.  Since cruise lines are not in the business of losing money, I am pretty sure Princess feels they will come out ahead.  Or if they don't, the $40 will be a sort of introductory fare to get passengers used to the all-inclusive pricing model.  Then we will see increases in the future or tweaks to the package once Princess figures out how much it needs to be for them to profit and how much the market will bear.

Edited June 29, 2021 by pompeii

[pompeii]

1 minute ago, franktown said:

New benefit page is out on Princess.com.  Can't post from phone.

 

[voljeep]

4 minutes ago, pompeii said:

  Or if they don't, the $40 will be a sort of introductory fare to get passengers used to the all-inclusive pricing model.  Then we will see increases in the future or tweaks to the package once Princess figures out how much it needs to be for them to profit and how much the market will bear.

we just discussed this very thing the other night ... at what price point does "Plus" not work for us - and we do discount the current Plus at $ 25 pp pd

[azbirdmom]

Here's the PDF with all of the fine print including the cruise atlas... https://www.princess.com/downloads/pdf/cc/captains-circle-loyalty-benefits.pdf

[Gettingwarmer]

New Captains Circle Benefits

https://www.princess.com/downloads/pdf/cc/captains-circle-loyalty-benefits.pdf

Note discount on excursions is given on board ship.

[2 cruises a year]

Well after 3 weeks, and 325 comments, I don't see any truly earth shattering changes.  And especially a new tier.  The lack of a new tier disappoints me, even though I'll never know how it would have affected me.

[MamaFej]

18 minutes ago, pompeii said:

 

Thanks for sharing. 

Just as I reached new tiers on both Princess and Celebrity, everything shut down, then both essentially devalued or eliminated the benefits I was most looking forward to.

 

Oh, poor, poor pitiful me. 🙄

I’m one of a very, very small percentage of humans who can afford to cruise at all. I guess I’ll suck it up, buttercup, and be grateful for what I’ve got. 

[Thrak]

15 minutes ago, Gettingwarmer said:

New Captains Circle Benefits

https://www.princess.com/downloads/pdf/cc/captains-circle-loyalty-benefits.pdf

Note discount on excursions is given on board ship.

 

Well, that seems pretty definitive regarding the loss of the free Internet minutes. What a crock... Looks like you can have 50% off of their Internet package or zero Internet access.