Disappointed with Princess

[Two Wavers]

We’re travelling with Princess and I’m disappointed. Princess is always telling us to book early for the best prices. Well our cruise went down in price considerably after we paid our final payment. The lesson I’ve learned is to wait, book late and get a better price. 

[riffatsea]

Nope!

Can't count on that strategy either!

[startedwithamouse]

5 minutes ago, Two Wavers said:

We’re travelling with Princess and I’m disappointed. Princess is always telling us to book early for the best prices. Well our cruise went down in price considerably after we paid our final payment. The lesson I’ve learned is to wait, book late and get a better price. 

Drop and Go has been a thing for years, they are filling ships. 

[memoak]

8 minutes ago, Two Wavers said:

We’re travelling with Princess and I’m disappointed. Princess is always telling us to book early for the best prices. Well our cruise went down in price considerably after we paid our final payment. The lesson I’ve learned is to wait, book late and get a better price. 

You never know. I have several cruises booked and most have gone up rather than down. If it is a popular cruise it will never go down

[markkw07]

That depends on what ship and time of year for the cruise. Newer ships in the middle of summer, chances are pretty slim that it goes down, older ships...def a possibility of it....again just depends on when you're cruising and what ship...esp these days...but gotta roll the dice on this....if you wait...it's a 50 50 it goes down....but then could go up as well....which if it does, you can usually get a price 

adjustment.

 

Happy Cruising!

[waltd]

Book late and get whats left.

Book late and find out the airfare is higher.

 

[wcflats]

We prefer to book earlier because we want a specific cabin and deck as well as location on deck so we get what we want.   Ya just gotta make sure you tell them no upgrade because what princess considers an upgrade may not be an upgrade for you.

[Guest ldtr]

1 hour ago, Two Wavers said:

We’re travelling with Princess and I’m disappointed. Princess is always telling us to book early for the best prices. Well our cruise went down in price considerably after we paid our final payment. The lesson I’ve learned is to wait, book late and get a better price. 

Not unusual for prices to go down after the date for full payment.  It is the period between when you buy and the full payment due date where you have flexibility.

 

You can always wait until after fully payment and potentially find that the cruise is full or you can not get the cabin in the location you want.

 

Basically early payment gives you the best selection for cabin type and location. You can always re fare (to whatever the current terms are up until final payment date.

[GonzoWCS]

2 hours ago, Two Wavers said:

We’re travelling with Princess and I’m disappointed. Princess is always telling us to book early for the best prices. Well our cruise went down in price considerably after we paid our final payment. The lesson I’ve learned is to wait, book late and get a better price. 

Sorry to hear that.  Good luck as you sail along.

 

Cheers

[sunviking90]

Sorry it worked out this way for you. What you can try is if a better category is available for less than or equal to what you paid, you can try to be moved into it. This worked a couple of times for us a few years ago. Or they may give you OBC. It is worth a try. They can only say no. Really though, this is always the chance you take, whether airfare or cruises. 
We always watch prices and book ahead if we feel it is a good price, has good OBC, etc. Often now since we are retired though, we wait until after final payment particularly on less popular itineraries as we are flexible and always have points/miles for flights if needed. 

Edited March 1, 2023 by sunviking90

[mowogo]

13 minutes ago, waltd said:

Book late and get whats left.

Book late and find out the airfare is higher.

 

Those Alaska cruise deals seem great until you see airfare and hotel costs for Seattle 😉

[jwattle]

4 hours ago, Two Wavers said:

We’re travelling with Princess and I’m disappointed. Princess is always telling us to book early for the best prices. Well our cruise went down in price considerably after we paid our final payment. The lesson I’ve learned is to wait, book late and get a better price. 

Australia cruise and airfare are both going up, up, UP since we booked early last year for this November on Majestic. Glad we booked when we did.

[CapnCrews]

You hear reviews like this a lot from people who prioritize price almost exclusively.  Some people don’t even account for quality, choice, and advantages.   Not saying that describes this OP.   But when any commerce advertises they pitch price almost exclusively.  There’s a reason for that.   

[Happiest when cruising]

5 hours ago, Two Wavers said:

We’re travelling with Princess and I’m disappointed. Princess is always telling us to book early for the best prices. Well our cruise went down in price considerably after we paid our final payment. The lesson I’ve learned is to wait, book late and get a better price. 

Well, they have recently had the Canadian at Par pricing, which worked out for me, as I was keeping an eye on the Hawaii cruises this spring. Today they price went back up to what it was previously. So..I saved 500 p.p., but I wouldn’t have booked it at the rate they are charging now, which might be what happened in your case, as I see you are in Canada. You can certainly try calling Princess to see if they can adjust your cruise price, or upgrade your cabin. 

[sfaaa]

2 hours ago, mowogo said:

Those Alaska cruise deals seem great until you see airfare and hotel costs for Seattle 😉

Yeah airfares are the deal breaker these days.

[LibertyBella]

I'm guessing this isn't your first cruise.  The tension between booking in advance and getting exactly what you want, or waiting until the last minute and taking whatever is left has always been a part of cruising.  I have done both, and it just depends on how much I want a specific cruise itinerary and date, or if I am flexible and I just want to cruise.

 

If you have not yet made your final payment you can request a price adjustment, or cancel and rebook. However, sometimes you can negotiate for OBC or a better cabin after final payment.  The way I always look at it is I was willing to spend the money before the price dropped, so I suppose I thought it was a reasonable price at the time of booking.  Yes, later travelers are getting a better deal, but hopefully I have a better cabin!

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[Torfamm]

It’s always possible that you can book late and get a low price but it’s also possible that you’ll find higher prices or no availability. 
 

For people who can be very flexible, Drop and Go fares can be a terrific deal but if it means booking last minute airfare it can be tough to find that at a bargain price as well.

[cr8tiv1]

Also, by waiting for a Drop and Go fare, final payment is usually due immediately.  I lucked out.  Found a really good deal from my home port.  No air fare.  Wide open cabin choices.  

 

The cruise I booked almost a year ago is almost sold out.  My current category is costing $400 more (or about 33% more).  

 

It all depends on the risk you want to take.  

[teecee60]

8 hours ago, Two Wavers said:

We’re travelling with Princess and I’m disappointed. Princess is always telling us to book early for the best prices. Well our cruise went down in price considerably after we paid our final payment. The lesson I’ve learned is to wait, book late and get a better price. 

 

If your main concern is price, and you're flexible on cabin choice, booking early is your WORST option.

 

If getting the exact cabin you want regardless of price is paramount, booking early is your BEST option.

 

A perfect example is the 28 night "Pacific Tour" on Crown Princess leaving in just two weeks. You can get an inside cabin for only $1280pp... (with $185pp in port charges) but with $1,150 OBC!

 

($250 from FCD, $250 from shareholder, $250 from military, $400 from the travel agency.) 

 

MANY people would never consider an inside cabin for 7 days, let alone 28.

 

Use of airline credit cards with miles/points can negate the pain of late airfares.

 

 

Edited March 1, 2023 by teecee60

[cr8tiv1]

@teecee60I love bargain hunting!  Unfortunately, I would only get less than half of what you would get OBC.  Still a bargain.  Now, I just need to find a cabin mate who can leave at  a drop of a hat....and would put up with my OCD.....

 

It's like playing the airplane game.  The guy seated next to you could/would have paid $300 and you got it for $150.  Not a good opening conversation piece.  

 

Being retired and flexible is really wonderful.  I highly recommend it.  I told all my students that the sooner they got into the work force, the sooner they could retire!

[wowzz]

Princess prices always seem to be high when first released,  but do seem to drop about a year out from sailing. But, that is just a personal perpective, and by no means a scientific analysis! 

And, I really don't believe you can count on always getting good last minute deals.

We are sailing on Sky in four weeks time. Currently, the fare for our cabin grade is 30% more than the price we paid eight months ago.

[cr8tiv1]

@wowzz, I must pick popular cruises (mostly off season). I have never seen a drop or had a reason to re-fare.  Could also be because my stateroom category is usually sold out.  
 

The majority of my cruises are booked within the first week they open.  Location, location, location.  

[wowzz]

37 minutes ago, cr8tiv1 said:

@wowzz, I must pick popular cruises (mostly off season). I have never seen a drop or had a reason to re-fare.  Could also be because my stateroom category is usually sold out.  
 

The majority of my cruises are booked within the first week they open.  Location, location, location.  

That may well be the case. We book balconies or minisuites, so normally no problem with availability.

As a Brit, we can only refare once, at a cost, so have to be fairly confident about when to book.

We certainly aren't booking any Princess cruises for 2024. The prices are stupidly high already ! Bound to come down over the next few months, as they have in the last few years.

[justafem]

I'm a serial budget traveler.  I look several times a week for cruises at the price point I want.  I also get casino offers and utilize them numerous times.

 

7 of my 8 cruises last year were casino based fares.  And 5 of my 6 cruises this year are casino based.  I'm always waiting for the next great sale.

 

I always try to have numerous FCD for that onboard and bought stock when it fell to cheap.  Stock has paid for itself over and over again in OBC.  And I always book through a 3rd party for additional onboard.

 

Looking forward to being able to use onboard to pay for plus, that'll help with costs too!

 

Happy cruising!

[teecee60]

3 hours ago, wowzz said:

Princess prices always seem to be high when first released,  but do seem to drop about a year out from sailing. But, that is just a personal perpective, and by no means a scientific analysis! 

And, I really don't believe you can count on always getting good last minute deals.

We are sailing on Sky in four weeks time. Currently, the fare for our cabin grade is 30% more than the price we paid eight months ago.

 

The 14 night Sky Princess transatlantic is down to only $559pp inside and $659pp for a balcony.

 

Are Brits able to buy/use future cruise deposits? Can you guys get the Shareholder credit?