Price Rises: Gratuities, Wifi, Medallion Shipping 🤑💰

[RD64]

2 hours ago, caribill said:

Yes

 

This is a $10 nibble.

 

Then there is the $2.50/day/person crew appreciation nibble.

 

Then there is the 50% cost increase nibble in daily Internet single device charge.

 

All these (and other) nibbles can add up to a significant bite to the vacation budget.

All valid points - but you also have the oppty to find an alternate vacation which does meet your budget, and does not involve so many nibbles. Nobody is forcing you to choose a cruise - or more specifically a Princess cruise.

[cruzin4us]

2 hours ago, caribill said:

Yes

 

This is a $10 nibble.

 

Then there is the $2.50/day/person crew appreciation nibble.

 

Then there is the 50% cost increase nibble in daily Internet single device charge.

 

All these (and other) nibbles can add up to a significant bite to the vacation budget.

 

Nibbling is what made me fat......just sayin'

 

 

[Guest ldtr]

3 minutes ago, RD64 said:

All valid points - but you also have the oppty to find an alternate vacation which does meet your budget, and does not involve so many nibbles. Nobody is forcing you to choose a cruise - or more specifically a Princess cruise.

Princess has added a few nickles and dimes, many land based hotels have gone up by many many dollars. Some resort hotels we have stayed at pre pandemic are now almost double compared to those days, with decreases in service in spite of the price increases. Then add on the now widespread resort fees layered on top.

[PescadoAmarillo]

10 hours ago, JF - retired RRT said:

We just got home from a B2B for 30 days and were debating whether to purchase more FCDs or not cruise any more. These changes (along with all the previous changes) have sealed the deal.

We have one cruise booked and will be requesting to cancel and return our FCDs that we used as a deposit.

We'll be watching the stock price and hoping that it will go up before we decide to sell. We won't lose $$, since we got our purchase price back in OBC several years ago.

Good bye, Princess...it was nice to know you. 

My personal belief is that the pandemic has killed cruising.

Same. We have no FCDs, but do still take advantage of $1 deposits. I still have hope that the experience and my feelings will change. 
 

As some have pointed out, cruise bookings are way up. Pent up demand is a real thing. COVID may not have killed cruising, but COVID, coupled with poor management decisions before, during and after COVID, has killed the Princess cruise experience we used to trust with a boatload (haha) of money every year. 

[AnyMajorCruiseDude]

16 minutes ago, PescadoAmarillo said:

Same. We have no FCDs, but do still take advantage of $1 deposits. I still have hope that the experience and my feelings will change. 
 

As some have pointed out, cruise bookings are way up. Pent up demand is a real thing. COVID may not have killed cruising, but COVID, coupled with poor management decisions before, during and after COVID, has killed the Princess cruise experience we used to trust with a boatload (haha) of money every year. 

So make the move!  You are not happy with how they treat (ed) you.  Easy peasy.

[jennybenny]

12 hours ago, SantaFeFan said:

 

Is $10 that important? Considering what the total cost of the cruise, including travel, cruise fare, excursions, souvenirs, etc., $10 is a small fraction of the total cost. Is it worth all the apprehension being expended for a few dollars? 

$10 is not

I travel for work, never home. I don’t want to worry about being home for a medallion delivery and now that they are charging for the “convenience” of home delivery, I’ll pick up at the port indefinitely ☺️

 

[dog]

20 hours ago, seachelt said:

Of course they only ship the Medallions to US customers. So they are expecting those of us from other countries to pay for a “benefit” that isn’t available to us? Really?

seachelt

GOOD point!

 

[dog]

None of these changes will stop me from choosing Princess. Like before, I do my over all comparisons and have no problem cruising with Celebrity, HAL or Princess- best itinerary for best fare. 
 

However, I had to put down $1000 pp -

(with penalty of $300 to cancel at  time of booking,)  deposit on my HAL TA, whereas my next and last 2 Princess cruises only required a $100 FCD or $1.00 deposit. Refundable.

 

 

[kywildcatfanone]

So, how do you prepay for gratuities, drinks and wifi (not plus package) before the 14th for a cruise after February 2023?  We have a booked sailing in March, and I want to purchase these separately as we do not drink alcohol so the plus package is way overpriced.  Do you have to have your TA add them, or are you supposed to be able to add and pay on the app for all of these individually?  Or the website?  I have not tried to do that before.

[JimmyVWine]

3 hours ago, dog said:

None of these changes will stop me from choosing Princess.

That's where I am.  I think the real question, as I put on Hamlet's tights, is: "To cruise or not to cruise"  But the idea that the changes we see are unique to Princess and that moving to other cruise lines will be a panacea is shortsighted.  Even after the nickel and diming that is going on, Princess still has a beverage package that is on the low end of the scale, and as the article we were directed to yesterday portends, wi-fi is going to increase throughout the industry.  I don't think that Princess has done one single thing post-Covid that sets it apart from other cruise lines in terms of changing the atmosphere and pricing of cruising.  The rising tide is lifting all ships, as it were.  And I always have the option of turning my back on any and all of their new, fancy packages, which I suspect is going to be the norm going forward.  For me, the real question is whether there is fun and value in cruising generally, as opposed to assessing whether there is still fun and value in being a Princess customer.  I do not believe for a second that moving over to another line will solve my or anyone else's issues. But moving to another form of vacationing might.  I still have a cruise booked for the Spring and I intend to take it.  And we'll see where it goes from there.    

[chamima]

46 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

So, how do you prepay for gratuities, drinks and wifi (not plus package) before the 14th for a cruise after February 2023?  We have a booked sailing in March, and I want to purchase these separately as we do not drink alcohol so the plus package is way overpriced.  Do you have to have your TA add them, or are you supposed to be able to add and pay on the app for all of these individually?  Or the website?  I have not tried to do that before.

 

I was hoping someone else would answer you because I'm not positive but I would call Princess first. Sometimes, if you have booked with a TA they won't talk to you but sometimes they will. If they won't then contact your TA to add what you want.

BTW - you said you wanted to add gratuities, drinks and wifi. That IS the Plus package - did you mean just gratuities and wifi?

Either way make sure you get written proof of what you've paid for just in case there's a problem once you board. And print it out and bring it on the cruise.

Edited December 7, 2022 by chamima

[kywildcatfanone]

7 minutes ago, chamima said:

BTW - you said you wanted to add gratuities, drinks and wifi. That IS the Plus package - did you mean just gratuities and wifi?

Sorry, I meant to say non alcoholic package.  Might be that price isn't going up, just alcoholic ones now that I'm thinking about it.

[chamima]

24 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

Sorry, I meant to say non alcoholic package.  Might be that price isn't going up, just alcoholic ones now that I'm thinking about it.

 

You need to add up the price of all those separate things. You might find that the Plus package will cost less and still cover the non-alcoholic drinks you want.

Just do it before the 14th

[dog]

53 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

Sorry, I meant to say non alcoholic package.  Might be that price isn't going up, just alcoholic ones now that I'm thinking about it.

Go to your Personalizer. Select on-board services. You can choose beverage package, water, etc pre cruise & pay now- refundable up until a few days prior to cruise. Same place you book excursions online.  For wifi you do that in the app. 
 

you can pay crew grats by going to payments on personalizer, as well.

Edited December 7, 2022 by dog

[kywildcatfanone]

35 minutes ago, chamima said:

You need to add up the price of all those separate things. You might find that the Plus package will cost less and still cover the non-alcoholic drinks you want.

Just do it before the 14th

Plus for the 7 day was $350.  Tips, non alcoholic drink package and wifi (Elite) would be around $206.50 for the same stuff at the current price, not the updated price, which I guess would add about $50 or so.  Cheaper either way.  You have to drink a few drinks to have that package be worth the money, or if you simply want he convenience of having everything paid in one payment.

[Steelers36]

On 12/6/2022 at 9:24 AM, seachelt said:

Of course they only ship the Medallions to US customers. So they are expecting those of us from other countries to pay for a “benefit” that isn’t available to us? Really?

seachelt

You may be leaping to conclusion here.  Perhaps now that a fee is being charged, Princess is going to ship to other countries like Canada.  I think part of their excuse/reason before was additional cost.  I have seen where Medallions came in bulk to US from Singapore then were re-sent out.

 

Has anyone seen documentation or asked someone in-the-know at Princess if they are now going to mail to other locations if guest ponies up the $10?

 

In terms of the fare packages, I don't think one can ascribe much of any value to the shipping of Medallion from the $10 increase.  Perhaps that is your point - if a guest buys Plus going forward, they may not get the Medallion shipped.  

 

On recent voyages, many guests were rebated $10/day for no internet.  I guess one might ask for a credit if not getting shipping.  I guess we need to see full and final T&C to see what language they are going to use relative to Medallion shipping.

 

An American who doesn't receive Medallions is going to be looking for a compensation no doubt.

 

[cruzsnooze]

23 hours ago, SantaFeFan said:

 

Is $10 that important? Considering what the total cost of the cruise, including travel, cruise fare, excursions, souvenirs, etc., $10 is a small fraction of the total cost. Is it worth all the apprehension being expended for a few dollars? 

Yes it's important because it's one of so many nickel and dimes charged. By the time you add port fees and taxes, wifi, gratuities, and some people get a beverage package it's more per diem then the cruise fare per diem. It's changed from what has traditionally been a "mostly" inclusive vacation to an a la carte one.  Many of us seniors who have cruised for 50 years see too many changes coming too rapidly at a higher cost, with decreases in services.  Yes inflation has hit but not to the extreme  Princess is going. 

[Guest ldtr]

11 minutes ago, cruzsnooze said:

Yes it's important because it's one of so many nickel and dimes charged. By the time you add port fees and taxes, wifi, gratuities, and some people get a beverage package it's more per diem then the cruise fare per diem. It's changed from what has traditionally been a "mostly" inclusive vacation to an a la carte one.  Many of us seniors who have cruised for 50 years see too many changes coming too rapidly at a higher cost, with decreases in services.  Yes inflation has hit but not to the extreme  Princess is going. 

I have been sailing on Princess for over 20 years and it has never been an mostly inclusive experience.  Drinks,excursions, gratuities, pictures have always been separate. if anything the move to packages is making it more of an inclusive environment, for those that choose to purchase them. 

 

 What has changed is that over time new things have been added that one can choose to.pay for, such as specialty dining. the thermal spa, etc.

 

What Princess is doing is to make some changes that it's competition has made already with the package fares, and the move to more ship within a ship (class) concepts.  people can change but the competition is even further down that road.

[SantaFeFan]

25 minutes ago, cruzsnooze said:

Yes it's important because it's one of so many nickel and dimes charged. By the time you add port fees and taxes, wifi, gratuities, and some people get a beverage package it's more per diem then the cruise fare per diem. It's changed from what has traditionally been a "mostly" inclusive vacation to an a la carte one.  Many of us seniors who have cruised for 50 years see too many changes coming too rapidly at a higher cost, with decreases in services.  Yes inflation has hit but not to the extreme  Princess is going. 

 

Getting the wifi or beverage packages is optional. These were never included in the base fare on Princess, which is the cruise line we are discussing here. No one has to buy these items, so how can they be counted as "nickel and diming"?

 

Cruising on Princess has NEVER been inclusive. People always had to pay extra for many things, either al-a-cart or in a package when they became available. You are not convincing me at all with your hyperbole. 

 

Edited December 7, 2022 by SantaFeFan

[Shelly97060]

On 12/5/2022 at 7:46 PM, Knickearth said:

I am a little confused with the changes.   I have booked a cruise for August 2023.  I took the Princess Plus package at the time.  So my crew appreciation is covered.  Will it still be covered with the new increase?  We, like so many of you, are finding this nickel and diming stuff for loyal customers is very frustrating.  We will start looking into alternate cruise lines.

You booked the Plus fare which includes the beverage package, 1 device internet per person and daily gratuities.  These benefits will remain in tact after the price goes up.  You don’t need to pre-pay tips or do anything  unless you want to upgrade to a 4 device Internet plan at the current price or unless you want to upgrade to one of the other fare packages. 

[Shelly97060]

On 12/6/2022 at 11:57 AM, chamima said:

 

And then they say

So if I just  have a deposit on that future cruise does that constitute pre-paying? Or do we have to pre-pay a part or the whole of the cruise?

We've been cruising for a long, long time and I don't ever remember language that was so unclear.

The pre-paying only relates to people who booked the Standard fare who want to pre-pay gratuities or purchase internet and avoid the cost increase.  If you have a cruise booked and deposit is made prior to 12/14, whether via future cruise deposit or cash, your current fare package and benefits remain intact.  So if you booked Plus your current beverage package, 1 device per person Internet, and daily gratuities are still covered.  
 

 

[cruzsnooze]

1 hour ago, ldtr said:

I have been sailing on Princess for over 20 years and it has never been an mostly inclusive experience.  Drinks,excursions, gratuities, pictures have always been separate. if anything the move to packages is making it more of an inclusive environment, for those that choose to purchase them. 

 

 

Soda and soft drinks were included once upon a time in the dining rooms with meals.  They send a lovely bound small notebook with your boarding pass and itinerary and ship information to your home FREE a month or so before sailing. The only extra used to be an envelopes you used for tipping the cabin steward, your waiter and his assistant. Now they ask for tips to everyone from entertainment to their revenue generating dept AND Princess keeps and admin fee which could be high, it's their secret. 

By attrition they removed included items and made them charged items.  

 It's now a vacation that has to be scrutinized and added up and compared to other styles of vacation to know if the value is worth while to each individual.  

[Shelly97060]

On 12/6/2022 at 1:31 PM, Level six said:

How do we get FCD's refunded, I want to do the same. Thanks. 

If you have a TA there’s a form they can fill out for you to request a refund. If you don’t have a TA call Princess and the Rep can fill out the request form on your behalf.

[Shelly97060]

On 12/6/2022 at 12:06 PM, riffatsea said:

My January cruise is paid in full

I am communicating with my TA now to have her clarify the situation for my May cruise

I don't think we need to.prepay the total

to keep the price the same but I'll let you know what she says

You do not have to pre-pay the total. 

[Shelly97060]

On 12/6/2022 at 1:34 PM, jennybenny said:

Well crap, now I hope it is clear as day when I do all my app-crap that I find a way to confirm that I don't want the medallion shipped, pick up at pier only. Pardon the language, the app has me a bit frustrated. 

When you place the order you make a selection of whether you want mailed to home ( or another address) or pick it up at the port.  No worries it is clear,