Changes to Princess Plus, room service fees, Alfredo's and others. Fee changes. Etc

[Guest ldtr]

7 hours ago, whitecap said:

Princessfan20;  I hadn't given it much thought until a post, several pages ago, alluded to the strong possibility that some on this thread who are glorifying the new changes and charges, just might be Travel Agents.  So, if true, why would they do that?  Could pushing these packages result in hight commissions?  

Too funny. Have not seen anyone glorifying the new changes. Only putting them in perspective with the industry and other travel options.

 

Not a travel agent, nor have any vested interest. Just a retiree that travels between 120 to 150 days a year, doing both land vacations and cruises. Sail on several different cruise lines,  though more days each year on Princess than any other single line.

[kywildcatfanone]

16 minutes ago, getaway101 said:

Name me one cruise line who is concerned about loyalty.  I still feel Princess has the best loyalty program.  We are also Elite on Celebrity and Diamond+ on Royal.  We always take longer cruises and IMO the perks on Princess are way better for longer cruises.  Do they really care that we are Elite?  No!  But neither does any other cruise line.  It's a business.  Royal and Celebrity were the first to do away with the Shareholder benefit IF you have any other type of discount or OBC.  Personally I think all cruise lines should just go all inclusive and do away with the nickle and diming.

I never said they were, and my next sentence was they have that choice. 

 

Cruise lines have changed.   Years ago it was about the cruise experience and alternative options to land vacations, and they had to make it special to draw people.  That is no longer true. 

People are now conditioned to pay higher prices with little to no thought or concern of the true cost.  Sort of a credit card mentality. 

This was accelerated by the pandemic shutdown, and now they are looking to maximize profits in every way.  That's why things are changing every 3-6 months now on pricing and options.  They are just working to wring every last dollar out of you they can.

As long as you know that and are okay with it, everyone can make their own choices.

[cruising.mark.uk]

21 minutes ago, caribill said:

So cruise pricing is up and now, at Princess, will also include less than before.

I think you are describing 'inflation', which applies to everything which costs money.

[caribill]

On 7/27/2023 at 6:37 PM, Sailaweigh said:

 I'm a big believer in "user fees", and I guess that is what these are. People that use the amenities should pay for them. 

 

 

Other possible user fees so you do not have to pay for amenities you do not use:

 

o Attending a show in the Princess Theater

o Using a swimming pool

o Taking an elevator

o Watching MUTS

 

[kywildcatfanone]

13 minutes ago, kathy49 said:

I say "bake it" all into the cruise fare and end this maddness.

Would be great if all cruise lines agreed to do the same.  

[kywildcatfanone]

14 minutes ago, caribill said:

 

So people can still book future cruises and "know" these venues will be included free.....until they get on board and find they are not.

I think the same people that do marketing for the company I work for, also do Princess marketing. 🙂

[memoak]

15 minutes ago, kathy49 said:

I say "bake it" all into the cruise fare and end this maddness.

Then all the non drinkers and people who don’t sure alternative dining venues will complain the are subsidizing the rest of the passengers 

[caribill]

34 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

I agree 100%.  They really don't want me anymore.  We typically book I side cabins, don't frequent the casinos, and bring our own soda ansmd water onboard( we don't drink sugary drinks anymore and they don't offer zero coke products.  We also don't do ship excursions and typically have enough obc to pay tips.  They now hose me on internet, but I need it unfortunately. 

 

 

Coke Zero in cans is available on Princess ships.

 

(But not included with any beverage package)

[kywildcatfanone]

13 minutes ago, Steelers36 said:

takes a while for the memos to reach the Philippines due to PCL slow internet service.

Must be using starlink

[rideev]

2 minutes ago, whitecap said:

You may be correct but, it is fair to charge customers a "crew appreciation charge" leading passengers to believe their funds are being distributed to the crew of the ship they are on and yet it isn't?  You are paying into a Princess fund, that sits in their account, I'm sure earning some type of interest and it may be distributed to crews all over the fleet but your crew may never see a dime.  The answer to the question is No, you can't be assured that your crew members will get anything.  Ask for envelopes at Customer Service and take that gratuity money and distribute it yourself to those very deserving.   

From the Princess website...

 

All of the Crew Appreciation and Service Charge payments made by all guests on all ships in our fleet are pooled, net of credit card transaction fees. The pooled funds are distributed throughout the year in the form of compensation, including bonuses, to crewmembers fleetwide who interact directly with guests and/or behind the scenes throughout every cruise, including those in the Bar, Dining, Entertainment, Housekeeping, Guest Services, Galley and Onboard Revenue areas.

 

Looks like I will be tipping many areas I don't participate in.  I can't believe I have to tip the Art Auctioneer or the Fine Jewelry Salespersons.

 

[trafaelwyr]

I just saw a video about these changes that Princess is implementing.  Wow.  Talk about nickel and dimming people to death.  This November will be my party's first time sailing on Princess and we were surprised at the complimentary stuff this cruise line was offering.  Now, it seems like those on the basic package (such as my party) really won't be getting anything complimentary.  I'd read about Alfredo's pizzeria and how good it was, so I was looking forward to trying that...but now it's going to cost money?  Heck, Royal doesn't even charge for Sorrento's pizzeria!  And this REALLY, really fast implementation isn't doing Princess lines any favors.

[kywildcatfanone]

2 minutes ago, caribill said:

 

Coke Zero in cans is available on Princess ships.

Is this new?  If I could trade minibar setup for it would save me a stop at the grocery on my way to the port?

[Guest ldtr]

6 hours ago, PacnGoNow said:

How’s that?  Old elite bonus? FCC’s?  FCD’s? Just curious.

Just as an example on my recent 22 day transatlantic Elite benefits: Internet discount, minibar (swapped for softdrinks), laundry, excursion discount  saved us over $700 in out of pocket on board spend.

 

Usually on recent cruises Elite benefits save us about 30 to 35 dollars per day of cruise.  That savings adds up pretty fast. Last year alome we spent about 70 days on Princess.

 

In addition to Elite benefits the OBC we received on that same cruise for veterans and shareholder (which we will still get even after the recent changes since there are 2 of us 1 veteran, 1 shareholder) added another $700. $500 for the TA and 200 for the BI cruise.

[kywildcatfanone]

1 minute ago, trafaelwyr said:

I just saw a video about these changes that Princess is implementing.  Wow.  Talk about nickel and dimming people to death.  This November will be my party's first time sailing on Princess and we were surprised at the complimentary stuff this cruise line was offering.  Now, it seems like those on the basic package (such as my party) really won't be getting anything complimentary.  I'd read about Alfredo's pizzeria and how good it was, so I was looking forward to trying that...but now it's going to cost money?  Heck, Royal doesn't even charge for Sorrento's pizzeria!  And this REALLY, really fast implementation isn't doing Princess lines any favors.

While not the same as Alfredo's, the pizza by the pool is the best on a cruise I have ever had.

[trafaelwyr]

1 minute ago, kywildcatfanone said:

While not the same as Alfredo's, the pizza by the pool is the best on a cruise I have ever had.

At least  THAT still seems free.....for the moment!

[rideev]

Just now, trafaelwyr said:

At least  THAT still seems free.....for the moment!

Soon enough though, you will need to purchase a package in order to gain access to the Lido Deck, lol.

 

[Tedferg]

49 minutes ago, PacnGoNow said:

If you are buying one pizza, then no.  You can order a la carte, $12 a pizza.

 (I believe the new price)
Or, the 3 course for $14.99 for one meal. 
 

 

Excellent, though to clarify, we will have the Plus package, so I am asking about that, two per person - is a visit or is it an order??? Normally we will go to Alfredos twice, maybe lunch on Sail Day and once for an easy dinner. Our upcoming cruise is 21 days, so probably more visits on that one.

[c-boy]

37 minutes ago, caribill said:

 

So all the cruise lines have to do is raise the basic pricing for a cruise to cover these extra costs.

 

The major cruise lines are reporting to their stockholders that bookings are at record levels at significantly higher pricing.

 

So cruise pricing is up and now, at Princess, will also include less than before.

..... BRILLIANT ! .....

 

 

 

I wish it were that simple 

 

[Sailaweigh]

6 minutes ago, caribill said:

 

Other possible user fees so you do not have to pay for amenities you do not use:

 

o Attending a show in the Princess Theater

o Using a swimming pool

o Taking an elevator

o Watching MUTS

 

Funny.  That would be an idea.  But that wouldn't bother me. We go to maybe 2 shows a cruise (seen all the production shows and many of the guest entertainers are repeats). We never use the swimming pool (heck, we have a pool that I rarely use), never take the elevator (I prefer the exercise of walking) or have watched a MUTS (we prefer to watch them in my own cabin).  Now, I'm wondering to myself what I Do I do?  

[Guest ldtr]

1 hour ago, whitecap said:

So I'm gonna break my rule and engage just once:  Question:  Yes or no, when last you cruised on a Princess ship and paid the automatic gratuities, do you know for certain that your room steward receive any of the money you paid?

I know for certain that the money paid as part of the daily gratuity fee was fully paid out to members of that pool.

Failure to do so would be a violation of US accounting rules and a violation of SEC rules  based upon their 10k and 10Q filings. Under those accounting rules the only portion that a business can retain is the amount needed to cover credit card processing fees applicable to the transaction. So as an example if Princess pays a 2% fee on credit card transactions then it would  be allowed for them to  subtract 32 cents of the $16 dollar gratuity to cover those costs. Do not know if they do or not, only that it would be legal for them to do so.

 

Note that does not apply to the 18% service charge applied to drinks since that is a fixed service charge that cannot be removed. Those fall under different accounting rules.

[caribill]

On 7/27/2023 at 5:50 PM, rpbanks said:

Get ready for the package price increase coming soon

 

 

On 7/27/2023 at 7:19 PM, Thrak said:

Seems likely but they did make a point of stating that this is not going to be the case.

 

Just as they said beverage prices would not be raised when they moved the Plus limit to $15/drink.

[kywildcatfanone]

6 minutes ago, rideev said:

Soon enough though, you will need to purchase a package in order to gain access to the Lido Deck, lol.

 

Sadly, can see that coming.

 

Chair by the pool - $5

Elevator -$1

Buffet entry - $5

Movies under the stars -$5

Popcorn to go with it -$3

[Guest ldtr]

1 hour ago, kywildcatfanone said:

I agree 100%.  They really don't want me anymore.  We typically book inside cabins, don't frequent the casinos, and bring our own soda and water onboard( we don't drink sugary drinks anymore and they don't offer zero coke products.  We also don't do ship excursions and typically have enough obc to pay tips.  They now hose me on internet, but I need it unfortunately. 

 

They really do want me gone.  I'm okay with that.  They can get thousands of more dollars from someone else taking my spot.

So if you need internet would you have been able to get by on the old 15 ro 20 minutes free per day?  If not then the new Elite benefit would be a considerable savings.

[kywildcatfanone]

Just now, ldtr said:

So if you need internet would you have been able to get by on the old 15 ro 20 minutes free per day?  If not then the new Elite benefit would be a considerable savings.

In the last year the 50% discount has doubled in price.

[Guest ldtr]

1 hour ago, rideev said:

From the Princess website...

 

All of the Crew Appreciation and Service Charge payments made by all guests on all ships in our fleet are pooled, net of credit card transaction fees. The pooled funds are distributed throughout the year in the form of compensation, including bonuses, to crewmembers fleetwide who interact directly with guests and/or behind the scenes throughout every cruise, including those in the Bar, Dining, Entertainment, Housekeeping, Guest Services, Galley and Onboard Revenue areas.

 

Looks like I will be tipping many areas I don't participate in.  I can't believe I have to tip the Art Auctioneer or the Fine Jewelry Salespersons.

 

They do not. The art auctioneers, and fine jewelry sales people are contract and not part of the employee sales pool. Not sure about Casino employees.