Do we have to have the Medallion?

[anjo]

Hi Everyone,

The title probably says it all. Going around Australia in October 2023, on Coral Princess do we have to use the Medallion App? Prefer a card for our cabin, can walk to order drinks, don't need to know where my husband is, and don't  want all the other so called advantages. Just would like an old fashioned cruise experience. Can we do all the pre boarding paperwork on the computer before we go?

Thanks

Anjo.

[Aus Traveller]

You can have the medallion but not use it to order drinks etc. That is what we do. It is handy to have the cabin door unlock as you approach it. The medallion is scanned when we go to the dining room and obviously when we board the ship and disembark. We do all the pre-boarding paperwork on our PCs before we go and don't use a smart phone. The phone we have stays in the safe on board. I don't think you can use a card to unlock your cabin door as the system has changed although I have heard that you can ask for a card.

[anjo]

Thanks Aus Traveller, but do I need to have it at all?

Anjo.

 

[cruiser3775]

Yes, you have to have it for identification. It has your name on it.  When you order a drink, you hand it over to the waiter.  

Just look on it as a replacement for the old card. You don't have to use it in any different way if you don't want to.

[2022cruisey]

Having recently used the medallion on Princess and cruise card on Carnival, the medallion was much better.  I didn’t use it for any of the bells and whistles, just as a different type of cruise card.  It is much easier to carry, it opens your door automatically without having to stuff around and you don’t have to hand something over and sign every time you order a drink at a bar.  Much better experience.

[arxcards]

41 minutes ago, anjo said:

Thanks Aus Traveller, but do I need to have it at all?

Anjo.

 

Yes, you do. There are no cards to open your door, ding on/off the ship or make purchases.

However, you don't  have to link it to a phone at all if you don't want to pre-book restaurants or order food/drinks with it. Then it serves almost the same function as your cruise card, except it unlocks your door by proximity instead of inserting.

[Over from NZ]

Look at it this way - the medallion is your card. You don't have to use it for anything you wouldn't have done in the past with your card. Simply use it to open your room door and hand over to the barman when you buy a drink - the same as you did with your card. Hide it in your pocket or wear it on your lanyard the same as you did with your card. The only difference to you between the card and the medallion is the shape 🙂 

[yes!yes!yes!]

I keep mine in my handbag the whole cruise. I only take it out to ding on and off the ship. The signal is strong enough to open my cabin and show up on the drink waiters machine with my photo so no need to get out. I never use my phone for the app. You can do your pre boarding on the computer before you leave or ask your Princess rep to do it for you over the phone.

[anjo]

Thankyou everyone.