I miss the old Princess

[memoak]

1 hour ago, Snaxmuppet said:

I realise this is off-topic but I am gobsmacked at the amount of money some people spend on cruising. Totally stunned. I don't mean that as any kind of insult... just an observation 🙂 

And I am gobsmacked at the price of restaurants in London. Do people really ever eat out there ? 

[Guest Snaxmuppet]

1 minute ago, memoak said:

And I am gobsmacked at the price of restaurants in London. Do people really ever eat out there ? 

If you mean in the city and west end... not the locals no. They are primarily for the tourists... 

 

Having said that, there are a lot of really great restaurants that don't charge high prices but they are off the tourist routes. Some of the best asian food I have ever had, at sensible prices, is available in London but you'd never find it just sticking to the tourist areas... Brick Lane for example for Indian.

[IndyKid]

24 minutes ago, Snaxmuppet said:

Having said that, there are a lot of really great restaurants that don't charge high prices but they are off the tourist routes. Some of the best Asian food I have ever had, at sensible prices, is available in London but you'd never find it just sticking to the tourist areas... Brick Lane for example for Indian.

While we're off-topic, any good travel references for someone going to London for the first time? I'm taking the wife there next year, it will be our first journey across the pond...

[Cruisintimer]

8 hours ago, macaws2 said:

We also board with reasonable expectations and always enjoy our selves just was stating that for us noticing how much the cruise industry has changed and not always for the good that for us just not what we may be doing much of. Our daughter actually use to work for Princess many years ago, she was one of the pier operation supervisors in port everglades, the coral, and sea Princess were her main ships, she also did the grand princess occasionally, she does still have her connections at Port everglades and they have also mentioned that it's not as easy as it use to be even though the job wasn't easy to begin with. When she came to visit us and she had her ships out she literally had 2 phones on her, one direct to the ships cpt and the other to the second mate, whenever there were repairs etc that came up she would have to contact the next port and arrange repairs etc, she loved her job, she actually told us that when the ship was disembarking from the pier and you would see the land staff waving goodbye to you they're actually saying hurry, get going, we've been here since 4 a.m. 😆. So I'm a little familiar with a good part of how the cruise industry is run from a different point and feel privileged to been able to experience that through our daughter, so we're looking forward to this upcoming trip, we're celebrating our 50th anniversary and our second time in the Mediterranean, we have some friends that will be with us and really looking forward to it, revisiting some ports we've been to and ports we haven't and since it's a new ship, can't wait to see what she has to offer.

Happy 50th, congratulations!

[MacMadame]

8 hours ago, Snaxmuppet said:

removal of the turn-down service.

Are you sure about this? I've seen people who were sure they were going to stop doing it but not that they actually had.

[TheMichael]

47 minutes ago, MacMadame said:

Are you sure about this? I've seen people who were sure they were going to stop doing it but not that they actually had.

 

We were on the Regal in January and had twice-daily service. Not sure if it's what some would consider "full turn-down" (no chocolate on the pillow), but in addition to tidying, the decorative bed cushions and runner were stowed (then replaced during the next morning's service).

 

Edited April 1 by TheMichael

[Guest Snaxmuppet]

1 hour ago, TheMichael said:

 

We were on the Regal in January and had twice-daily service. Not sure if it's what some would consider "full turn-down" (no chocolate on the pillow), but in addition to tidying, the decorative bed cushions and runner were stowed (then replaced during the next morning's service).

 

Last time we were on Sky (November) the turndown service was not available and there was a once daily steward visit during the day. I suppose it could be different on other ships.

[Cruisemeister2002]

I fully understand your feelings. Cruising with whatever cruise line seems not to be what it was. I cannot really comment on any other cruise line than P&O as out of 17 past cruises 16 were with P&O and one with Princess back in 2004. P&O have changed significantly and whilst I have had comments in that others don't miss these things I do. When we first sailed it was back in 2002 on Victoria, a ocean going ship that P&O bought as it was no longer required for transatlantic crossings due to the Jumbo Jet coming into service. It was originally called the Kungsholm, then Sea Princess. When P&O bought Princess cruises Princess had their own Sea Princess so the P&O one became Victoria. A small ship holding around 700 passengers. The cabin we had was a sea view, if you could call it that as it had a small porthole which was closed going through the Bay of Biscay. With P&O on our early days you got a little bag with the P&O logo with ladies toiletries. Your bed was turned down at night and a chocolate on the pillow. Drinking chocolate and sandwiches after the late show in the theatre and an announcer describing ports of call as you sailed in. Steak wasn't available as the norm on the dinner menu, but if you didn't like anything on the main course you could request a steak and it was decent quality. Now they are available every evening, but not as good a quality. Stilton cheese came in a truckle and a good selection was available. Now it's pre- plated with very small pieces of cheese. The meals were all silver service, much nicer than today's where everything comes pre-plated.

[Torfamm]

13 hours ago, TheMichael said:

This, Cruising is verifiably cheaper in today's dollars than it was 20-30 years ago, which is why so many do it, and also why it includes less service - you can't price things lower, pay your staff commensurate with 30 years of inflation, and expect to make money, even with the scale of today's much larger ships.

 

That means they have to do one of two things: 1) Charge you along the way for everything beyond being on the boat and eating in the MDR/buffet, or 2) Create a package that brings the price of the trip closer to the "real" cost of cruising.

I think you’ve stated the problem as clearly as possible. We can’t expect that we’ll get the same experience as in the past unless we’re willing to pay for it.

 

I’ve mentioned before that my first cruise - 7 days in a tiny cabin with a dinner-plate sized porthole to Cozumel, Grand Cayman and Jamaica from Miami on the Carnival Mardi Gras in 1982 cost over $1000 per person. That’s about $3,200 in today’s dollars.

 

That cruise was closer to the experience on luxury lines than to today’s mass market cruise lines and the price reflected it. 

 

The same has happened with air travel over time.

 

 

Edited April 1 by Torfamm

[Cruisintimer]

9 hours ago, MacMadame said:

Are you sure about this? I've seen people who were sure they were going to stop doing it but not that they actually had.

We have sailed on the Discovery twice in the last year and Crown/Ruby as well they all have had twice daily service/ turn down.  No chocolate anymore like someone else has mentioned.

[Cruisintimer]

19 hours ago, MacMadame said:

🤣 🤣 🤣 🤣

That show was my guilty pleasure in my 20s. 🤣

It is still our guilty pleasure, onboard we watch the old series on the stateroom t.v. 😁

[karatemom2]

7 hours ago, Snaxmuppet said:

Last time we were on Sky (November) the turndown service was not available and there was a once daily steward visit during the day. I suppose it could be different on other ships.

 
I wonder if that was just your particular room steward? We were on the Sky this past September and had turndown service daily. I’m certain if you find your steward not performing that service you can let him know that you want it. It’s still an expectation and if it’s not being offered it may just be because some stewards got in the habit of once a day service during COVID and now continue that pattern unless the passenger speaks up. 
 

On our Discovery cruise prior to that last April, our room steward did ask us on making his introduction if we wanted turndown service and we said we did. That was the first time we had ever been asked, so it did appear they may be modifying the practice based on preference. Some people may not want it and that’s fine too. But it definitely should be offered. 

[Guest Snaxmuppet]

2 minutes ago, karatemom2 said:

 
I wonder if that was just your particular room steward? We were on the Sky this past September and had turndown service daily. I’m certain if you find your steward not performing that service you can let him know that you want it. It’s still an expectation and if it’s not being offered it may just be because some stewards got in the habit of once a day service during COVID and now continue that pattern unless the passenger speaks up. 
 

On our Discovery cruise prior to that last April, our room steward did ask us on making his introduction if we wanted turndown service and we said we did. That was the first time we had ever been asked, so it did appear they may be modifying the practice based on preference. Some people may not want it and that’s fine too. But it definitely should be offered. 

Thank you. I am sailing on Sky at the end of the month (Norway) so I will ask. It is an almost insignificant thing but I do actually miss it. It makes the stay on board a bit special IMO.

[karatemom2]

Just now, Snaxmuppet said:

Thank you. I am sailing on Sky at the end of the month (Norway) so I will ask. It is an almost insignificant thing but I do actually miss it. It makes the stay on board a bit special IMO.

 
I agree completely. I love coming back to the cabin in the evening and having it neat and tidy with curtains closed and bed turned down. It’s such a welcoming way to end our day. I do miss those chocolates!

 

We are on the Sky again in June - also Norway, so I would love to hear about your experience when you return from your cruise. 

[TheMichael]

 

3 hours ago, Torfamm said:

The same has happened with air travel over time.

 

Oh yes! Just last week I was watching a 1984 TV broadcast on YouTube, with an ad for Western Airlines' discount fares:

 

- Seattle to Honolulu for $400 RT - $1200 in 2024 dollars - right now I can book for $400 RT.

- Seattle to LA for $300 RT - $900 in 2024 dollars - right now I can book for $175 RT.

 

Of course, the flying experience has degraded much further than the cruising experience, in part because it's become so cheap to fly.

 

I'd go on about circa-1984 car dealers' "low" 17% financing, but that would be off topic. 😀

[mizLORInj]

On 3/30/2024 at 2:45 AM, Iamcruzin said:

I keep reading posts like this on Celebrity and Royal Caribbean as well and I haven't returned to cruising post covid yet because of this.  I think I'm going to try Virgin for my next cruise. It's a different experience and I won't have any expectations or past experiences to compare it to.

We tried out Scarlet Lady late 2022 and it was fabulous!   We'll be going back.   But we still cruise other lines too. 

And it is true that Royal and Celebrity have changed noticeably since pre-c too.   Sadly. 

[MacMadame]

4 hours ago, Cruisintimer said:

It is still our guilty pleasure, onboard we watch the old series on the stateroom t.v. 😁

So appropriate! 😄

 

It sounds like there is still 2x a day cabin service but what most of us think of as "turn down" might not be part of it. i.e., the bedclothes turned down with the chocolate on the pillow is not exactly happening 100% of the time.

 

It's been *so long* since we cruised that pretty much everything is different! No more set serving times for dinner, a 24/7 buffet, gratuities automatically added to the folio, non-alcoholic drinks not included, and many, many more add-ons such as specialty dining, extra food in the MDR, and special activities.

 

Some of these changes did throw me for a loop but some are welcome. None of them are going to stop us from having a good time but they are going to make cruising more like a regular vacation where you have to think more about your choices.

Edited April 1 by MacMadame

[555]

23 hours ago, Snaxmuppet said:

So we are to just enjoy being on holiday are we regardless of what the experience is?

 

Being charged now for things that were free (included at no extra charge), no longer having the option to have extra courses in the MDR without extra charge, reduced range of sushi in the sushi restaurant, Alfredo's no longer included, OceanNow no longer included, room service no longer included, Churchills removed, rubbish evening entertainment, exorbitant excursions, exorbitant Wi-Fi, exorbitant Spa treatments, no longer any dress code for dinner, significant increase in package prices, reducing the number of drinks in the included mini-bar set up, removal of the turn-down service. All things that have gone or changed significantly recently... I am sure there are others if I thought about it.

 

The next thing will be ditching the standard fare and forcing everyone to take a package. 

Other than the additional lobster tail I have to see those extra charges yet, unless your referring to the special items at extra cost?

I hope that plus package stays as it is & never becomes mandatory. If so, we're done cruising on Princess for sure. 

 

[Guest Snaxmuppet]

18 minutes ago, 555 said:

Other than the additional lobster tail I have to see those extra charges yet, unless your referring to the special items at extra cost?

I hope that plus package stays as it is & never becomes mandatory. If so, we're done cruising on Princess for sure. 

 

It used to be that a well-known thing about the MDR when cruising was that you could order extra courses without additional charge... want 2 starters? want to try 2 or 3 mains? What about extra desserts? 

 

I have done this a few times but generally I don't because I don't like waste and I'd only order a 2nd of a particular course if I knew I would likely eat it. It was a great way to try out different culinary delights.

 

I have read on the forum that this is stooping and that additional mains will now carry an extra charge (not just lobster). 

 

If I have got this wrong then I apologise but I remember it very clearly when I read it as it rather disappointed me.

[Ken the cruiser]

31 minutes ago, 555 said:

Other than the additional lobster tail I have to see those extra charges yet, unless your referring to the special items at extra cost?

I hope that plus package stays as it is & never becomes mandatory. If so, we're done cruising on Princess for sure. 

 

When we were on the Sapphire a couple months ago, our server told us a story about 2 guests that had a contest to see who could eat the most lobsters. One guy ate 21 while the other guy could only eat 18. Obviously, this was before PCL implemented the extra cost items on the MDR menu and probably helped lead to the adding of the extra costs to specific menu items.🤔

 

Edited April 1 by Ken the cruiser

[macaws2]

18 hours ago, Cruisintimer said:

Happy 50th, congratulations!

Thank you so much,,as far as taking a vacation in how ever your comfortable with, either means, cruising, staying in one location at a hotel etc, as long as I'm not cooking and cleaning during the time period I'm totally happy and content 😀 😊 

[JimmyVWine]

32 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

One guy ate 21 while the other guy could only eat 18

I was having an off day.  What can I say.  😁

 

As for the persistent view that Princess has taken to nickel and diming its guests, I guess I don't see it that way.  On my last three cruises, our combined folio charges were less than a total of $100.  About $30 per cruise.   Instead of nickel and diming, I am paying hundreds.  Up front.  For packages.  And once I have my package in hand, I literally spend nothing else on board the ship. Maybe I am using a different definition of nickel and diming, but I take that term to mean paying for extras a little bit at a time once on board the ship.  I don't find myself doing that.

 

And as for changing cruise lines,  I look at it like this...

 

The people moving left to right are people who were loyal to Princess leaving for Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, etc., and the people moving right to left are people who were loyal to Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, etc. leaving for Princess.   

[ArizonaStorm]

I've sailed on Holland America for past cruises.  I've scheduled two cruises with Princess for the latter half of this year.  These will be my first cruises with Princess.  If I like my experiences, I have plans for several more next year.  

 

I truly don't care about what Princess "no longer offers".  My cruises will set the bar for my future cruises.  I have enough years left in me to whine and moan about how Princess no longer provides the services that I grew to love in late 2024.

 

Still, I've Googled the various immigrant ships my ancestors took to America in the mid to late 1800s.  There were no flush toilets, and certainly no showers or bathtubs.  The two meals per day were, um....lacking by today's standards.  Sure, you could smoke where you wanted -- the smell of the smoke was probably preferable to the stench from your loved ones.  Stabilizer bars?  Who needs 'em?  There was plenty of opportunity to hurl over the side of the boat.  And, there was a good chance that you'd survive all the way to Ellis Island -- about 75% to 80%.  Yes, the theatre performances were subpar, telegraph service was spotty, the variety of cocktails was a tad limited, and room service was poor for those without rooms.  On the plus side, unlimited laundry was provided for those willing to stand out on the decks during hard rains.  And there was a VERY good chance that your long-time family name would be forever changed by ignorant and lazy clerks either before the sailing, or in the immigration office -- making genealogy searches aggravating for future generations.  Of course that's not anywhere near as inconvenient as a 2024 Princess Medallion App occasionally making an error in a dinner reservation.  

 

The next time you disembark from your "disappointing" cruise, count the number of body bags that are carried off behind you.  None?  All in all, the days I spend on a cruise are WAY better than how I would have spent the same time at home!

[Iamcruzin]

3 hours ago, mizLORInj said:

We tried out Scarlet Lady late 2022 and it was fabulous!   We'll be going back.   But we still cruise other lines too. 

And it is true that Royal and Celebrity have changed noticeably since pre-c too.   Sadly. 

I am happy to hear that you had a great experience.

[Iamcruzin]

On 3/30/2024 at 12:38 PM, macaws2 said:

I just came upon this roll call and started reading out of curiosity, well, the last time we cruised princess was way back in the 2000's before there were any specialty dining or packages to purchase, you paid as you went along and there was only the MDR and the buffet which to be honest for us was just fine, not complicated and personally we liked it that way, not having to try and book any special dining and formal nights were nice evening where everyone dressed up and the dining room was full of passengers that were looking forward to what was on the menu that evening and what entertainment was going to be performed by the dining room staff, and whether you preferred early or late dining etc. We've cruised before and after covid on other cruiselines, the last this past New Years and noticed such a change, on formal nights, individuals were walking in wearing jeans, men with hats on etc, plus we only ate in the MDR and even though we were setted at a table for 6 we were the only ones that showed up every evening. We are booked on a 21 day Mediterranean this coming Aug on the new princess sun and with all the changes, costs etc this may by our last cruise, we're retired and at this point because of all the changes may look at other travel alternatives. We've lived in the pacific when my husband was active duty so had the privilege to experience different cultures and live it. Yes, I know there are alot of individuals that don't mind the changes but I guess we're just old school and like the simple way things use to be. 

I am all for changes for the better. In the cruise industry that doesn't seem to be the case.