am i correct that the princess picks isnt really a sale?

[luckyinpa]

havent been on princess in a while but want to go in fall. i know most lines have continual sales which mean nothing but i wanted to confirm it's the same here

 

enchanted sept sailing i used 2 browsers for the same mini suite mid forward and got the following below. one time clicked on the ad for princess picks and the other time just a normal booking. 

 

i never buy any booze packages so it seems like it's best for me to just pay for internet and grats separately. correct? im happy with the free water in restaurants and the occasional soda. and will probably buy some water bottles for the cabin. 

[Valiamo]

oops misread your original post...  Ignore the rest.  You are paying the extra OBC +$5 for the 2nd item.

 

Princess plus is not a sale, but an add on to include the extras that most (not all) people get including  Tips ($~15 day), Wi-fi (~$9.99 day) and drink package. 

 

We never get the drink package, and always get coffee cards and use them up and cases of water for the stateroom, we have to occasional wine and some drinks during the cruise.   This time we opted for the extra package, as we do normally get Wi-Fi,  pay the gratuities, so it meant that the drink package was an extra $20 PP/per day cost for us.   

 

After our next cruise will tell if we made the right decision or not, but I am happy that we can basically have a no charge cruise.   Although I do have to keep the DW out of the Effy store.  🤪

Edited March 24, 2022 by Valiamo

[JimmyVWine]

If you truly, truly, and I mean TRULY do not intend to consume any or hardly any “for a fee” beverages ( cocktails, wine with dinner, espresso, cappuccino, lattes, sodas), then don’t get the Plus package. But as noted above, the package nets out to about 1 coffee drink and a few sodas or 2 adult beverages per day. Most people consume that amount but certainly not all. If you are in the latter category, skip the package. But even very modest beverage consumers come out ahead or break even. Less than modest beverage consumers will not. Only you can tell where your habits fall. 

Edited March 24, 2022 by JimmyVWine

[gvre]

Best deal for us otherwise we would go broke

 

[Nebr.cruiser]

For us, Princess plus just doesn't pan out, since we don't drink--ok, maybe 3 glasses of wine a year!--and don't even drink pop much.  A few specialty coffees for me, which I never buy at home anyway, wouldn't be worth it.  

 

I did buy the 12 pack of water, which is a great deal (for a cruise ship),  Since our cruise on Sunday is only 7 days, we don't see the need to buy an internet package either.  Possibly on a longer cruise that might be a consideration.

 

But, of course, if we did enjoy drinking, then it is a good deal.  

[caribill]

4 hours ago, Valiamo said:

 

 

Princess plus is not a sale, but an add on to include the extras that most (not all) people get including  Tips ($~15 day), Wi-fi (~$9.99 day) and drink package. 

 

 

 

100% correct.

 

Not a sale, but a great and successful marketing gimmick.

[deliver42]

It depends on ow much and what you drink.

[luckyinpa]

i just got off ncl and did have the "17 buck a day" booze pack. my gf enjoyed it more than me and liked trying other drinks.. i should have kept better track of what i had but i def only had 2 booze drinks. we preordered 6 bottles of water, by day 3 we realized it wasnt enough so ordered 6 more so i'm confident that i need 12 bottles just for the cabin. i have a drinking problem that way.

 

i had at least 1 or 2 mt dew a day as well.  maybe more on sea days. but if i was on a ship and had to pay cash at a  bar for soda vs water gotta admit id do soda if it's the same cost. (though i never really buy bottled at the venues, just drink the free stuff)

 

i did do an NCL cruise with no package before and drank much less soda because it wasnt 'free'. just was happy with the free water at each venue.  i paid for the occasional can, no biggie. 

 

so from the above math it seems like with internet and grats being a fixed cost for us, it would  be about 20 a day for the booze pack on princess if we did the plus thing. which was the same as our recent ncl cruise. i guess another way to calculate it is see how much she had to drink and if that balances out the equation at all.

Edited March 24, 2022 by luckyinpa

[Coral]

6 hours ago, Nebr.cruiser said:

For us, Princess plus just doesn't pan out, since we don't drink--ok, maybe 3 glasses of wine a year!--and don't even drink pop much.  A few specialty coffees for me, which I never buy at home anyway, wouldn't be worth it.  

 

I did buy the 12 pack of water, which is a great deal (for a cruise ship),  Since our cruise on Sunday is only 7 days, we don't see the need to buy an internet package either.  Possibly on a longer cruise that might be a consideration.

 

But, of course, if we did enjoy drinking, then it is a good deal.  

I had a 10 night cruise in Dec and booked Princess Plus. I was trying to use my FCC. I don't drink alcohol. I did use the drink package and ordered some umbrella drinks and hot chocolate frequently and enjoyed not having to see every bill. 

 

On this next cruise - it is 21 days and Princess plus was $900. Tips are $300 and internet is $100. I couldn't justify $500 for drinks so I will just pay per drink. It is very port intensive and I will drink less.

[luckyinpa]

glad u mentioned itinerary. i forgot about mine. only one sea day on my canada cruise so i'm seriously doubting would drink much on the ship anyway. 

[Coral]

1 minute ago, luckyinpa said:

glad u mentioned itinerary. i forgot about mine. only one sea day on my canada cruise so i'm seriously doubting would drink much on the ship anyway. 

That was my thought. My 10 night was all about relaxing - this next trip is very port intensive. I couldn't justify the cost on this cruise.

 

 

[JimmyVWine]

2 hours ago, luckyinpa said:

it would  be about 20 a day for the booze pack

Don't overlook that it is not just a "booze" pack.  (I detest that word, but that is another issue entirely.) It also covers any type of coffee drink you can dream up, as well as tea and soda as well as "mocktails" that contain no alcohol.  Again, I don't know your consumption habits, but one large Chai Tea and one Cappuccino per day and you are already up to $10 after adding in gratuity.  Add in a soda or two or a single mocktail and you are close to the break even price.   Again, I'm not saying that everyone comes out ahead here.  But even moderate consumption of non-alcoholic beverages can add up to $20 per day on a cruise.

[skynight]

Best value as mentioned is not really a sale. It has become a normal pricing option. Plus fares are a good value. After subtracting the daily gratuity and wi-fi from the difference it takes around 2 alcoholic beverages per person per day to break even. Not very much for many passengers. You also will receive unlimited non alcoholic specialty coffees, brewed coffee, special teas, hot chocolate, fountain sodas, mocktails, and some other beverages. It's really up to you. Read the full terms of the beverage package at the site below. Around 95% of all alcoholic beverages are priced $12 or under.

https://www.princess.com/html/global/personalizer/ssv/beverages/disclaimer/

[voljeep]

even on port days - a couple of bottles of water to take off-ship, a couple getting back on, a couple of glasses of wine or an  after dinner drink(s).  Plus works for us, maybe not everyone if you want to carry wine onboard, pre-order water, or drink tap, or have lots of OBC that can cover the grats, wifi( if needed ) and the occasional beverage - alcoholic or not

 

stay safe ( still )

stay hydrated

[Coral]

14 minutes ago, voljeep said:

even on port days - a couple of bottles of water to take off-ship, a couple getting back on, a couple of glasses of wine or an  after dinner drink(s).  Plus works for us, maybe not everyone if you want to carry wine onboard, pre-order water, or drink tap, or have lots of OBC that can cover the grats, wifi( if needed ) and the occasional beverage - alcoholic or not

 

stay safe ( still )

stay hydrated

I trade my elite bar setup for water. I agree every one needs to decide for themselves. It made sense to me when I had a ton of sea days but not for a ton of port days. I don’t drink coffee so that maybe the difference.

[luckyinpa]

so i really do love my TA. asked for perk and non perk pricing. he was 225 (vs 280 for princess directly) more for perks per person than no perks . so unless my math is wrong, i get drinks for 47 for the week. figure based on 15.50 grats for the mini, 10 bucks a day for internet = 178 so no brainer for 7 bucks a day for drinks. 

 

will they give you unopened bottles of water with the package?  

Edited March 24, 2022 by luckyinpa

[capriccio]

2 hours ago, luckyinpa said:

will they give you unopened bottles of water with the package?  

The small bottles of water are included.

[luckyinpa]

10 hours ago, capriccio said:

The small bottles of water are included.

 

great then i dont have to buy it for the cabin. will just pick up some on the way back

[AF-1]

I like the all inclusive pricing. I go on vacation; I don't have to worry about paying for anything extra once onboard.  Makes vacation a little nicer.  Is there value in my choice.  Yes there is; I like ending a cruise with a zero balance.  That has been the norm on my last two Princess cruises.  Cheers

[miagirl]

This is what I love about these boards, I learn something helpful every time I stop by.  DH & I basically got the drink package whenever we cruised.  And I would occasionally feel uneasy that we were perhaps overspending by getting it. (There is no way on this earth that either of us could ever Come close to the 15 alcohol drinks per 24 hours.)  It's nice to know that it only takes a few drinks a day to make it "worth it" once you include coffee, sodas and waters. I also really do like that the package is paid, done, and no need to be concerned about a surprise bill at the end of the cruise.  (unless I've spent to much time shopping or in the spa.)

 

The other thing I learned was that I can swap the elite mini bar out for bottled water!  I never knew/thought of that.  I knew about swapping it out for coffee cards, or more soda.  Just neve thought about it.  And one thing I really didn't like was having to drag  all those daily water bottles back to the cabin.  (I drink a lot of water.)

[JimmyVWine]

14 minutes ago, miagirl said:

DH & I basically got the drink package whenever we cruised.  And I would occasionally feel uneasy that we were perhaps overspending by getting it.

Keep in mind that the discussion regarding relative value on this thread pertains exclusively to "Plus" and not the Premiere Beverage Package.  Plus is $40 per day and includes gratuities and wifi as well as drinks whereas the PBP is roughly $71 per day but is only for beverages.  It is far more difficult to make the PBP pay for itself unless you have some sort of beverage in your hand at all times throughout the day.  Especially hard on a port intensive cruise, if you get off the ship. 

[luckyinpa]

1 hour ago, miagirl said:

This is what I love about these boards, I learn something helpful every time I stop by.  DH & I basically got the drink package whenever we cruised.  And I would occasionally feel uneasy that we were perhaps overspending by getting it. (There is no way on this earth that either of us could ever Come close to the 15 alcohol drinks per 24 hours.)  It's nice to know that it only takes a few drinks a day to make it "worth it" once you include coffee, sodas and waters. I also really do like that the package is paid, done, and no need to be concerned about a surprise bill at the end of the cruise.  (unless I've spent to much time shopping or in the spa.)

 

The other thing I learned was that I can swap the elite mini bar out for bottled water!  I never knew/thought of that.  I knew about swapping it out for coffee cards, or more soda.  Just neve thought about it.  And one thing I really didn't like was having to drag  all those daily water bottles back to the cabin.  (I drink a lot of water.)

 

how many bottles of water did you ask for at a time? id love to drag at least 2 back to the cabin each pass of the bar

[Buckeye10640]

1 hour ago, luckyinpa said:

 

how many bottles of water did you ask for at a time? id love to drag at least 2 back to the cabin each pass of the bar

We had no problem getting 2 at a time in November. Nor did we have a problem getting an alcohol drink or a soft drink AND a bottle of water. YMMV depending on the bar staff.  Earlier this month on Regal they were so busy they were not even scanning medallions for water and soft drinks much of the time at the pool bars. 

[nini]

BOTTOM LINE:

The Princess Plus is $40.00 per day per person.

For me:

15.00   in Crew Incentive

   9.99 for WiFi

   5.00 my yummy Espresso Drink

15.34  for my quality glass of Chardonnay or Zinfandel which includes the 18% gratuity

45.33

 

These are pretty basic and common expenditures. People say, Oh, I do not drink. Do you tip the crew, do you want WiFi, doe you drink bottled water? How about that espresso after a lovely dinner?

 

When you break it down after saying, I do not drink... this is not just about alcohol.

 

[bonsai3s]

1 hour ago, nini said:

BOTTOM LINE:

The Princess Plus is $40.00 per day per person.

For me:

15.00   in Crew Incentive

   9.99 for WiFi

   5.00 my yummy Espresso Drink

15.34  for my quality glass of Chardonnay or Zinfandel which includes the 18% gratuity

45.33

 

These are pretty basic and common expenditures. People say, Oh, I do not drink. Do you tip the crew, do you want WiFi, doe you drink bottled water? How about that espresso after a lovely dinner?

 

When you break it down after saying, I do not drink... this is not just about alcohol.

 

nini...thank you. 

We haven't cruised Princess since 2014 and trying to understand all the new rules and packages.

(We still have one of those coffee cards with punches left on them.)

 

Doing the math...and personal drinking habits...coffee, water, and alcoholic drinks...the $40/person/day sounds like a great value.

 

* For Elites...can't remember anymore, but what comes with the bar set-up?  I remember back in the day, one of the discussion was: If both husband and wife are Elite, why are they only given 1 bar set-up instead of 2?  Is this still true?