Well the good news is

[Peckishpixie]

5 hours ago, ontheweb said:

Thank you for answering right away; it looks like I just missed your answer as I was going off line at the same time.

 

I watched the replay of the webinar and saw one of the chat questions THAT THEY DID NOT ANSWER was how someone without a smartphone would know what their boarding time was. I also saw the reference to the polar program for getting more answers, but when I tried to find it, it seems it is only available to travel agents.

 

If the medallion without a smartphone is functionally the same as a room key, could we just ask for the normal cruise card and politely say no medallions for us?

I will look in to the boarding issues for you and post tomorrow. 

I know they are not offering room keys but they do have some for people with pacemakers. I'm probably not supposed to tell you that but if theoretically you had a medical reason for not having a medallion you could get one. 

Everything is linked to the medalion though. Even your muster station check. It seems like not having one would be a PITA

[LACruiser88]

47 minutes ago, Peckishpixie said:

Everything is linked to the medalion though. Even your muster station check. It seems like not having one would be a PITA

I agree, not having a Smartphone or the Medallion will be a major PITA!  Thank you for your updates, they have been very informative!

[ontheweb]

3 hours ago, Peckishpixie said:

I will look in to the boarding issues for you and post tomorrow. 

I know they are not offering room keys but they do have some for people with pacemakers. I'm probably not supposed to tell you that but if theoretically you had a medical reason for not having a medallion you could get one. 

Everything is linked to the medalion though. Even your muster station check. It seems like not having one would be a PITA

Thank you again. I will look for your answer tomorrow. (That is if there really is one.)

[Steelers36]

3 hours ago, Peckishpixie said:

I will look in to the boarding issues for you and post tomorrow. 

I know they are not offering room keys but they do have some for people with pacemakers. I'm probably not supposed to tell you that but if theoretically you had a medical reason for not having a medallion you could get one. 

Everything is linked to the medallion though. Even your muster station check. It seems like not having one would be a PITA

No big secret - they always had the card option for medical issue like a pacemaker.  They can ping the cards at muster and for port stops going off/on the ship.

 

[Thrak]

19 hours ago, Mary Ann 2 said:

I watched the Medallion Mondays presentation.  This week it went over dining.  I really recommend that you find that and watch it.  I finally understood how to change my week-long preference in the dining room to allow us to add specialty dining for just one day.  I had gotten an email yesterday saying our Alaska cruise's dining was ready to pick, but hadn't figured out how to add specialty dining.  I had already done the week-long fixed seating for 2 at 6:00 several weeks ago on the app, so I just had left to add some specialty dining.

 

I just checked and can add dining at 6:00 PM every night but the table size is wonky. First it gave me a table for 6 in a specific dining room. I tried again and it gives me a table for 2 in a different dining room. I'm not at all sure what to pick. Normally we have been doing Anytime Dining because we didn't like the time slots Princess provided. Since it looks like I can pick a time I like I would "normally" request a table for 8 and share with folks. I'm just really unclear on what Princess will actually give me if I select a table for 6...  Guess I'll wait for the September "update" and see if the options promised in the webinar actually materialize.

Edited July 2, 2021 by Thrak

[Tedferg]

1 minute ago, Thrak said:

 I'm just really unclear on what Princess will actually give me if I select a table for 6...

Are you unclear if it is same pax each evening or share with new pax. Which would you prefer ??? I'd go for the latter.

[Thrak]

35 minutes ago, Tedferg said:

Are you unclear if it is same pax each evening or share with new pax. Which would you prefer ??? I'd go for the latter.

 

In the past when I had Traditional Dining it was with the same folks every night. That worked for us and we met some really great people. Different people every night is more like Anytime Dining and often entails the same old "who are you" stuff over and over. Fixed dining at a table for 8 with the same people every night at 6:00 PM is something that my wife would go for. A table for 6 might suit her as well. It's just all "different" now so things are unsettled. I saw the promises about choosing your dining room, choosing where you want to sit in that dining room, etc. Only time will tell. It won't be a deal breaker for us. We aren't in the "that's it for us - goodbye Princess!" crowd. (I have certainly seen that many times over the past few years but I don't really think many people followed through on it.)  We'll just see how things go.

[Steelers36]

58 minutes ago, Thrak said:

 

I just checked and can add dining at 6:00 PM every night but the table size is wonky. First it gave me a table for 6 in a specific dining room. I tried again and it gives me a table for 2 in a different dining room. I'm not at all sure what to pick. Normally we have been doing Anytime Dining because we didn't like the time slots Princess provided. Since it looks like I can pick a time I like I would "normally" request a table for 8 and share with folks. I'm just really unclear on what Princess will actually give me if I select a table for 6...  Guess I'll wait for the September "update" and see if the options promised in the webinar actually materialize.

If I were you, I would book the 6-top so you have the proverbial "bird in the hand" and then see what develops later as you may not even get that in time passing and others picking. 

 

[Steelers36]

56 minutes ago, Tedferg said:

Are you unclear if it is same pax each evening or share with new pax. Which would you prefer ??? I'd go for the latter.

I agree - it is not at all clear who else will be seated at the table each night.  Does it mean same people if picking a time slot in the "TD window" but different people if booking other times?  

 

I think my doubt comes from the fact that they have failed miserably on delivering working app, so who can trust something we don't see (table number and table mates) is working?

[caribill]

15 hours ago, MountainEER74 said:

One of the things I like about traditional dining is that you make new friends with your table mates. So far on the few cruises we have been on we have really enjoyed our table mates. I usually request a table for six so that we have a good chance of that happening. As Steelers36 (go Steelers) stated, table size is no longer a selection you make. If we pick a fixed dining time with DMW will we have the same table mates each night?

 

That is also one of the great benefits for us of traditional dining.

 

So far I have seen no evidence one way or the other if that will still be an option.

[MileHighAko]

21 hours ago, Peckishpixie said:

I know they are not offering room keys but they do have some for people with pacemakers.

What’s the deal with pacemakers anyway? Can’t someone with a pacemaker just put the medallion in their pocket and not around their neck? Or do they need to stay away from all medallions? How close can a pacemaker be to a medallion? 

[MileHighAko]

1 minute ago, MileHighAko said:

What’s the deal with pacemakers anyway? Can’t someone with a pacemaker just put the medallion in their pocket and not around their neck? Or do they need to stay away from all medallions? How close can a pacemaker be to a medallion? 

 

I found the answer to my question in the FAQ:

 

Is an OceanMedallion safe to use if I have a pacemaker, or other medical device?
The OceanMedallion includes magnets and RF technology that have been designed and manufactured to meet the radio frequency (RF) requirements set by the Federal Communications Commission of the United States. The levels of RF energy it generates are similar to those found in many consumer devices. Manufacturers of Implantable Pacemaker and Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillators (ICDs) typically recommend that you keep your medical device 9 inches (23 cm) away from RF transmitters comparable to the one found inside the OceanMedallion. However, as every device differs, so you should check directly with the manufacturer of your medical device and physician for guidance.

[Rick&Jeannie]

On 6/30/2021 at 4:28 PM, Peckishpixie said:

 So, if you travel soon and you are having problems you probably want to call or chat and make sure a ticket gets opened.

 

 

How/where can you do a chat with Medallion Support?

[ontheweb]

3 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

 

How/where can you do a chat with Medallion Support?

Call your TA, and have him or her do the chat to fix whatever problems occur. The thread did start with a TA being able to fix problems for her clients.

[Rick&Jeannie]

1 minute ago, ontheweb said:

Call your TA, and have him or her do the chat to fix whatever problems occur. The thread did start with a TA being able to fix problems for her clients.

No can do!  I booked direct with Princess. 

 

I can add that I just got off the phone (about 1.75 hrs) with a Medallion Support rep (1-844-525-0942) who then put me on hold for the majority of the time while *she* then contacted the "Medallion Class App Resolution" dept.  They (supposedly) were able to get my departure group selected (after MUCH time and effort) but even they could not get me placed into ANY arrival group.  According to the rep "middleperson" I was speaking with, the Resolutions group is aware that there are BIG problems with the arrival/departure groups section (along with others as well) and that they are absolutely SCRAMBLING trying to get everything working.

[Peckishpixie]

2 hours ago, ontheweb said:

Call your TA, and have him or her do the chat to fix whatever problems occur. The thread did start with a TA being able to fix problems for her clients.

Absolutely! If you have a TA call them! That's what we do!  We can get to the actually team too. If booked direct you can transfer your booking to a TA so they can help you. If you don't have a TA the fastest way to get help is click "live chat" on the bottom of the princess.com site

[Peckishpixie]

2 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

No can do!  I booked direct with Princess. 

 

I can add that I just got off the phone (about 1.75 hrs) with a Medallion Support rep (1-844-525-0942) who then put me on hold for the majority of the time while *she* then contacted the "Medallion Class App Resolution" dept.  They (supposedly) were able to get my departure group selected (after MUCH time and effort) but even they could not get me placed into ANY arrival group.  According to the rep "middleperson" I was speaking with, the Resolutions group is aware that there are BIG problems with the arrival/departure groups section (along with others as well) and that they are absolutely SCRAMBLING trying to get everything working.

This is one of the reasons having a TA is awesome. It costs you nothing and you never ever have to wait on hold. It'd what we do! 

[ontheweb]

14 minutes ago, Peckishpixie said:

This is one of the reasons having a TA is awesome. It costs you nothing and you never ever have to wait on hold. It'd what we do! 

Yes, not spending close to 2 hours on hold is another perk when one has a TA. 

[ontheweb]

2 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

No can do!  I booked direct with Princess. 

 

I can add that I just got off the phone (about 1.75 hrs) with a Medallion Support rep (1-844-525-0942) who then put me on hold for the majority of the time while *she* then contacted the "Medallion Class App Resolution" dept.  They (supposedly) were able to get my departure group selected (after MUCH time and effort) but even they could not get me placed into ANY arrival group.  According to the rep "middleperson" I was speaking with, the Resolutions group is aware that there are BIG problems with the arrival/departure groups section (along with others as well) and that they are absolutely SCRAMBLING trying to get everything working.

Sounds like they have a real mess on their hands.😒 The wonders of technology.🤣

[ontheweb]

On 7/1/2021 at 12:15 PM, Peckishpixie said:

I will look in to the boarding issues for you and post tomorrow. 

I know they are not offering room keys but they do have some for people with pacemakers. I'm probably not supposed to tell you that but if theoretically you had a medical reason for not having a medallion you could get one. 

Everything is linked to the medalion though. Even your muster station check. It seems like not having one would be a PITA

I was waiting for an answer. When I saw that you had quoted me, I looked forward to finding out what you had learned. Then I saw you were quoting a different post of mine.

 

Does this mean that they have no answer to the boarding question without a smartphone?

[Steelers36]

20 minutes ago, Peckishpixie said:

This is one of the reasons having a TA is awesome. It costs you nothing and you never ever have to wait on hold. It'd what we do! 

IDK if you are a discount TA (offering cash discounts off the fare), but I would not want to abuse my TA's who give very generous cash discounts and I think there is an expectation of not a lot of hand-holding.

[ontheweb]

3 hours ago, Steelers36 said:

IDK if you are a discount TA (offering cash discounts off the fare), but I would not want to abuse my TA's who give very generous cash discounts and I think there is an expectation of not a lot of hand-holding.

How is asking them to do part of their job, represent your interests, abusing them?

[Steelers36]

5 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

How is asking them to do part of their job, represent your interests, abusing them?

There is an expectation built in when getting significant discount that the service level required is lower.  I believe I have read that and it makes sense to me.  I handle all of our travel arrangements and only use the discount TA for the discount.  Otherwise, I would book direct with Princess.

 

So, I try to keep requests related to things they must handle and deal with flights or Princess questions on my own.  Maybe I am being overly thoughtful, but I want to continue to get the same great discount and not be informed it has to be reduced due to all of the servicing time I require. 

 

Call me crazy, but my loyalty to a TA was such that after she had made three price reductions for us - which means reducing her income, I sent her an Amazon gift card.

 

[Peckishpixie]

55 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

There is an expectation built in when getting significant discount that the service level required is lower.  I believe I have read that and it makes sense to me.  I handle all of our travel arrangements and only use the discount TA for the discount.  Otherwise, I would book direct with Princess.

 

So, I try to keep requests related to things they must handle and deal with flights or Princess questions on my own.  Maybe I am being overly thoughtful, but I want to continue to get the same great discount and not be informed it has to be reduced due to all of the servicing time I require. 

 

Call me crazy, but my loyalty to a TA was such that after she had made three price reductions for us - which means reducing her income, I sent her an Amazon gift card.

 

I have no idea who would expect that if they give you a discount you don't deserve good service. Fixing problems is our job and I for one do it joyfully 

[Peckishpixie]

4 hours ago, ontheweb said:

I was waiting for an answer. When I saw that you had quoted me, I looked forward to finding out what you had learned. Then I saw you were quoting a different post of mine.

 

Does this mean that they have no answer to the boarding question without a smartphone?

I'm so sorry. I still don't have an answer for you. Right now they are still sending emails with your boarding time. If you are traveling soon you will get an email. I think I remember you saying though that you aren't traveling before September, and they do get the ap fixed by then they don't know I'd they will be sending an email. I can look at your specific boarding time on your account (or your TA can) of you want to message me. I am happy to help