I’m a firm pay as you go. Our goal on any cruise is to leave owing $0 . Specialty dining, is usually overpriced. We can easily go without wifi until we get into port.
I've never been on a cruise but I booked with princess for the Alaska cruise. I was skeptical if I needed these add-on dining options since I'm probably going to want to try the food in the port. I'm using the cruise mostly as a form of transportation so I might be a different type of customer than the typical cruiser.
Most ports are smaller tourists towns that are full of tourist traps that aren't looking for repeat business but want to make as much money off every customer as possible,in some cases they are seasonal and are only open during cruise season so their is some justified reasons for the higher pricesSo often high prices and low quality go hand in hand@@mostHumblePersonAlive
im 14. ive been on like 4 princess cruises since i was 9, and have another one booked in december. i like the simplicity and quality of the ship, because i find a lot of those ships with so many random activities to be a little bit tacky. i think that if you go on 1-2 princess cruises youll figure out what you enjoy. fyi if anyone going on the first cruise ever is my age, make friends on the first to second day. you get those memories early and create everlasting memories.
Just viewed the 25 princess cruises tips. But one tip I would like to know is where to eat lunch on the day of embarcation to the ship while waiting for your room. Are the upscale resturants open with no fee's ( ie alfredos, salty dog, planks etc.)
I watched this before our cruise last month. We had great time and this was helpful. Thank you. The regal was great and package was well worth it. Booked on sky for next year.
I wish this video was broken down into sections. What will a regular fare get you? What will princess plus get you? I feel like there’s lots of good info but it’s scrambled.
I never get the expedited boarding or whatever it's called and 10 minutes is all it takes to get the medallion and walk on. 4 cruises in 2023. Premier package is the way to go. Watch the mailings and email offers for deals.
Compared to Celebrity, just the classic drink package with a discount plus gratuity is $75 per person and that’s just drinks - $80 pp for all of those Premier perks is not a bad deal but we got lucky with getting premier free with our travel agent
@@dlsjr123The drink packages are a absolute rip off and the cause of many of the problems we read about on cruise ships like people falling overboard because they wanted to get ever penny's worth of that drink package.Real drinkers don't go out on New Years Eve because that's when the amateurs go out and act crazy, on a cruise ship every nite is New Years Eve.
If WiFi free for suite guests on Princess. I read the following on the Princess website. All Princess Cruise Suites come with a range of complimentary amenities, including 24-hour room service, spa-like services, in-room Wi-Fi and daily cleaning for a luxurious experience.
Just got off the discovery staffed under trained seem to be frustrated and grumpy. They couldn’t even make the same drink at different bars the same way there drink different ways. The food was either cold or soggy. The crown grill was really good though. the little nitpick charges they give you everywhere on your bill when you get back charge you for this charger for that charger for this and I have the premier package surcharge surcharge and when you upgrade they charge you more than you you agree to pay when you beid on it so watch out for that the crew was trying, but they were not properly trained and the people who shit over there helping them premium were too busy kissing, kissing everybody’s like to make yourself look good
Good video to watch for a second time. 👍🏼😜 I’m gonna suggest to my daughter on our next cruise, to do the first-day tour starting from the top to the bottom. Good to get the lay of the land. So glad we had pizza 🍕 at the casual venue on the Enchanted a few months ago. 👍🏼 My onboard account is already added up and I’m not even on a ship. Thank you for all these tips. ⚓️ Btw, we’re booked on the Sun for next August. 😃⚓️🛟🌴
Please let me know how you love the sun! I have lots of guest clients booked on to go before you and I'm looking at a few options right now for myself! Enjoy!
@@richiegill6098 I’ll make an alert to get back to you. I’m looking at doing Sky Princess in March with my friend. She plays in the casinos. Being from Hawaii, I thought I didn’t have to go there since we have the best beaches anywhere (IMO) but I’ll have most of the Caribbean covered with this 7th cruise there. 🏖️😜 Love cruising. 🩵
Sailed in the new Celebrity Ascent last December. The food was incredible, the design and decor of the shop was fabulous…so classy yet relaxed. Right now I’m sailing on Discovery Princess. There’s no comparison, IMO. Princess lacks the wow factor in every way. Even the staff seems pretty bored. Buffet is just plain sad compared to the Ascent.
@@terrysplace2566the drinks package alone costs more on other cruise lines, so yes, I fully expect to pay more than the cruise fare advertised on the website. Princess is not an all-inclusive luxury line so maybe go look at one of those?
We’ve been on many Princess cruises. Casual dining was included. It seems to me that Princess is saving money having cruisers eat pizza rather than going to the main dining room. They’re simply up charging to persuade customers to buy the $60-$80 per person per day upgrade. Our next cruise is booked on Viking where they don’t nickel and dime cruisers. All inclusive is not what it used to be on Princess.
I am on a 24 day cruise now with sky princess and cannot fault it one bit. They have made me and my missus very welcome. We have the plus package. Staff bend over backwards to accommodate you. 😊
Give it to next year -- Alfredo's will be back to free. It's always been very crowded and I'm sure they're trying to find a way to make the wait time shorter. But once it becomes a ghost town, they'll go back.
I booked a Princess cruise last week and so far the process has been a nightmare. I am unable to register my account and numerous call to service have been useless. Horrible customer service and I haven’t even step foot on the ship.
Thank you for the great video. I'm very excited for our Nov Voyage on Discovery. I'm thrilled that Princess is now including unlimited casual dining in Premier and upgraded from plus. These all-inclusive packages are some of the best deals I've seen offered by any line and we're the primary reason we chose Princess.
We’re sailing in November too, for the week of thanksgiving. Then we come home for a week and then get back on the same ship again for the 15 day to Hawaii. Super excited!
These packages are crap! We don’t use most of the garbage they include on there. We don’t drink, don’t use the gym classes, don’t need Wi-Fi, don’t do specialty desserts, and usually don’t get photos. So this makes us pay MORE for what we used to get! Hate the Princess packages and even though I have ONLY cruised with princess in the past, we will be looking elsewhere in the future as obviously loyalty doesn’t mean anything to Princess!!😡 Very disappointed!!!
Great video!! I thought I watched just about every video needed for my September Princess cruise, but your video did give me some extra pointers. Thank you!
Definitely, Princess has changed and not for the better. Just having to pay for so much extra. It’s disappointing. I’ve just booked a half world cruise, so 55 nights. If I take the plus price I apparently get two free meals at a casual dining restaurant like Alfredo‘s pizza. And two of those enormous ice cream, sundaes a day. And the drinks package. And the Wi-Fi and the gym classes times two. Now I’ve just completed a three night Cruise on the plus package. So we got our two Alfredo’s pizzas which were nice. But I’d love someone from Princess to explain to me how you can pay enormous amount of money for a 55 night cruise, but still only get two shots at Alfredos. Even though we’ve paid the plus extra for 55 nights.. we were lucky to have three drinks a day, but that’s our choice, and didn’t use the Wi-Fi much and did not use the gym. And as for the ice creams well they looked pretty fancy, but you’d be like a bloated pig if you ate two of those every single day. So I would have to give that a miss. So actual fact for us the plus fair is not worth it. As the world Cruise is made up of segments I think you should at least get two meals at a casual restaurant for every segment that you’re doing. how can you do a three night cruise and get two cracks Alfredo… Cruise, and two times at Alfredo on a 7 night cruise… so on and so on. But how can you only still get two when you’re on such a long cruise that is in segments. You should at least get two for every leg that you do on a cruise. I know it’s only a small thing but I’m actually gonna cancel that plus and go back to a standard fair and I’ll put all the money I saved, which will be about 7 1/2 thousand dollars, as credit and I’ll spend it where I want to spend it and I’ll bet you I don’t spend anywhere near that amount of money.
That sounds like a better option for such a long cruise. It does make more sense to have the plus or premiere on short cruises. What countries are you visiting on the world cruise?
@@rustydog1236 i’m certainly not paying extra for a premium package for something that really I’m not gonna use. In actual fact I’ve cancelled that Cruise with Princess. When I originally booked it, the only cabin available was one right up the front. Couple of weeks later, I was looking at the availability, and there was some in my category exactly the same, but closer to the middle. But princess wouldn’t change it for me. I think with that inflexibility with the cabin and also the absolute crap about two visits only to a casual dining venue on a 55 night cruise. Just tipped me over the scales . so I have booked a Holland America Cruise. My first one with them stop they have a package which is $75 a night per person, and it gives the drinks package the Wi-Fi package on board credit, $300 towards our excursions, and three specialty dining meals all included. So will see how that is and I think it’s much better value
We just got off the Enchanted Princess. There was no afternoon tea that we were aware of. Kind of a bummer. On that ship, Salty Dog Café is the Salty Dog Grill. It's also a walk up and not an up charge.
Ordered our medallion in April before our July cruise. Then received an email that our medallion won’t arrive on time. So we will have to stand in the blue lane. Also our birding is in the green line. So Maybe because we didn’t upgrade our cruise package…..they didn’t send out medallions……?
We are platum princess members. We don't buy drinks. I am not happy with all the packages for extra charges they have. Princess does have the best itineraries.
I hear you. I felt the same when they announced these changes. My advice is to get yourself a good travel advisor who will reach out to you as soon as fare prices dip or offers and upgrades become available.
Platinum doesn’t mean what it use to mean to Princess. You will get the captain’s circle ⭕️ evening event with a free drink but not much more. Anything that might have been a platinum experience is gone unless you are booking a reserve level mini suite or above with a plus package it brings far more privileges that use to be part of the cruise. I was really surprised.
Please note that the gratuities are not included if you live in🎉Australia, very disappointing because we presumed they were as all youbtube say it is included. Got a shovk when we got charged.
Not impressed you used the same spin as Princess in making out the inclusion of casual dining, Ocean Now, and stateroom ordering when all these were include for EVERYONE until a few weeks ago. Explain what you get for sure, but don’t make out it’s a new benefit. The whole blog sounds like a sponsored ad.
Downloaded the Princess Medallion app... My booking number doesn't exist, so cannot do thing. The info shows up for me, but I cannot use it. Might be a good thing as I want to put my phone in the room safe on the first day and never use it until I am back on land.. this does not bode well for an enjoyable week.
@rampar77 yes, you definitely can. I work with Princess as a Cruise Vacation Planner and I work exclusively and directly with my guests. I help them with anything and everything. Even request, group bookings, flights, planning cruises, etc. I love it!
Good video! Does everyone in the room need to purchase the packages? Princess was the only of the major cruise lined that did not require all guests in a room to purchase a drink packages. My wife usually takes the soda packages- We don’t drink alcohol.-and I’m always forced to take it too. So from paying for my two lattes a day, I’m stuck to drink four or fives lattes a day so I can “get” my money’s worth…😉🇨🇦 Oh and, it’s the blue line (No shipping of the medallion outside the US) unless we purchase the premium package… or I presume book a suite?
The premier is $80 per day and the other is $60 per day. I don’t think I would eat $80 or $60 dollars worth of food and drinks 😳. Plan to disconnect from wifi as well. NO, NO, NO.
Unfortunately, I am a platinum cruiser on princess having over 110 see days on Princess. Restaurants like Alfredo used to be free now they’re charging anywhere dining used to be free now they’re charging room service used to be free now they’re charging so, unfortunately, Princess charges for things that used to be free, not good. However, that being said never ever ever buy the premium package or the plus package here is why. I’m about to take a cruise on Caribbean princess for 16 nights out of Southampton to Iceland and other stops. I have been allotted $500 by Princess on board credit and $300 on board credit by the booking agency totaling $800. In addition, I’m military retired so I get an extra $250 on more credit. Why on earth would I want to spend additional money for drink packages?? Drink packages are our big rip off! Why would I say that? to break even you would have to drink six or seven drinks every day just to break even, additionally if your spouse doesn’t drink, or your roommate doesn’t drink, it doesn’t matter, they charge both in the room mandatory $60 per person per day not just individual. So remember, you have to include your onboard credit in factoring, and whether or not you wish to purchase any “packages“. Which brings up my next point, short excursions. Never ever buy short excursions through the ship with rare exception. I’m about to go as I said before 2 cork, Ireland, Cornwall, England, Iceland, and Scotland, everyone of those places I was able to buy shore excursions for 30% less than the ship. Most shore excursions are geared towards ships movement and are fundamentally aware that they will guarantee you to return to the ship prior to departure. There are things that make sense like buying the bus from the port of Southampton to Heathrow airport. Uber would cost more and less reliable. So, in summary know your prices shop around to compare and get the cruise agency that will give you the best onboard credit for a specific room category. Factor this on board credit into your total cost benefit analysis before buying any drink packages. If you are both drinkers and drink a lot, then maybe the packages right for you. like most cruisers, I love to drink lots the first few days, but then I drink almost nothing the last few days, nothing near the minimum breakeven point.
You mentioned at 5:44 you can use the Medallion app while onboard without having Internet access. Are you saying the app will function on my phone without WIFI while onboard?
i wonder if you can answer a question for me pls. but not sure if you can. my dream has always been a world cruise. i have looked at many for 2025. and believe it or not. princess wc is what i am looking. hits almost all my bucket lists for areas to visit, like egypt and austriala and does not hit the one place i would never want to visit china. did you like princess enough to think it would be good for world cruise. i am talking the staff amenties etc??? it even love their world cruise has many sea days. i have no problem with this. i guess what i am trying to ask. it would be 114 days on their smallest island pricess ship. do you think it is a good idea hint i would do the deluxe balcony and premiere package if that helps
I'm not the owner of this UA-cam channel but I have heard of other people using a travel agent to help them piece together the best cruises to go all the way around the world. Of course it's less convenient because you'll have to change ships a few times but I've heard it can be more cost-effective because you can get the best value for that region and you can also hit all the ports you have on your bucket list.
A travel advisor is the same as a travel agent. There are several great advisors out there. Depends what you are looking for in support. You can check out our affilate Avoya Travels.
Cruising princess in april and we had already decided to take princess plus so dont mind the change execpt that we cannot be green lane as we are from canada and medalion is not avalable to deliverdo we are hopping bleu lane is not to long
I completed an Alaska cruise with my wife in August. There is a texting style communication capability that worked well as far as the messaging goes with one BIG drawback. There was no sound that a message was coming in! If your phone was in your hand there was a banner on the screen but if you weren't looking at the phone, there was no way to know you had a message. I asked the ship IT people about that and they said the banner was just added and, perhaps, sound is coming.
I just cruised with them and feel like I got ripped off by the bait and switch they pulled. When I booked several other restaurants now called casual dining were included but once I got on the ship they were not.. I won't be using Princess again because you don't get what you were promised when you booked. Really infuriating. I couldn't cancel because I had expensive flights booked.
I am doing my first ever cruise! And it is 34 days long! I prepaid the $16 per day gratuities charge. Now I have done some research, I have learned that the money goes to Princess and not 100% goes to the workers! I am not ok with that and now would like to pay the staff directly! Can I change at this point and get back the gratuity before I ship out or on board?
Where did you get that info from? The prepaid tips go to multiple people who serve passengers on the cruise in front and behind the scenes. Your research should have shown you that.
there is NO WAY that I am adding any more tips or gratuities for anything on board. END of story. Now if the cruise lines said, "well staff are demanding more money, we gotta pay them your fare is gonna be X% higher than last year" fine, I deal with it as I see fit, and tip accordingly. BUT they are attempting to be devious by advertising at "the best deal out there" base fares which are a lie because you can not actually get that fare with "obligatory" add ons like tips, called gratuities to sound fancy. Basically it is extortion and false advertising. I will not succumb to that and it leads me to question what else they are being devious about. The biggest mistake any cruise line can make is betray the trust of loyal customers and alienate potential loyal customers and push them to shop around every cruise
Princess is still a good value and provides a great cruise experience. Some naysayers just can't accept necessary change. If they're truly cruisers, they'll be back. They just have to complain.
@terrysplace2566 this is possibly true! 😅 but i considered a couple of special drinks @ $20, crew tip @$20, any random casual dining dish @20 plus deliver to me anywhere on the ship, plus the other benefits like wifi overall actually made it worth it. As some days we actually would have racked up some very hefty bills 😅 drinks, food, etc.
As I understand it, you can use the same medallion as long as you are on the same ship. For example, if you do three cruises on Regal Princess, you can use the same medallion, but if you do one on Regal, one on Royal, and one on Enchanted, you get new medallions for each trip.
I don't understand the shipping of the medallion. I live in South Africa but want to take a cruise in April I Fort Lauderdale. Why can't I just get my medallion when I get to the ship?
Gonna give Princess a try. Their packages are a bit confusing though; included usually means you're not going to get charged for what is included. I got the Premier Package and was still charged for the 2 specialty dinings. Not to worry though, I was told I would be reimbursed in 7 to 10 working days, that was three weeks ago. As this is my first cruise with them I'm getting a little apprehensive. I've called numerous times and management seems to be as illusive as corrective solutions.
Sorry to hear about that. We haven't had any issues like that. Any time we have had a charging issue, the cruise line swiftly takes care of it. When is your sailing?
I didn’t find out about this stupid Medallion until I paid for my Dec 2023 cruise. I only used my phone for calls because I couldn’t get a regular phone any more. I never liked so call text or dumb apps and I couldn’t see the small text any way. I had hard time to find some one to help me with this crap and Princess customer service never answered my calls. It was not fair for us senior citizens. I will not choose Princess again on future cruise because of this stupid Medallion.
I just came back from St Thomas in Sky Princess.The stupid Medallion was most complicated and useless. I had no clue about Apps and it took me hours for customer service from princess to hep me. I only used it to open my cabin. I am not a drinker so any premium extra or plus was bull shit. I spent less than $3 on a diet coke in 7 days. I was good eating in Marker Fresh buffet and 3 Main restaurants. The best about Princes was no fking kids running around and no wild party animals.
As far as I'm concerned I don't care if they go bankrupt. I'm seriously considering sailing on other lines from now on. Totally annoyed at being gauged or feeling forced to upgrade which is a BIG waste for me. I don't drink alcohol or fancy coffees. Done with Princess.
Yes, I will not book with Princess again. I think a lot of the posts on here are from people who directly or indirectly work for Princess. This recent changes are clearly price increases that the line says are upgrades to ty and trick everyone. I was infuriated when I found out I wasn't getting what I had booked. Bad business.
We left other cruise lines for the same reasons but mainly because of the horrible food. The quality has really declined on other lines. Princess is still good.
@@terrysplace2566 Bye!! All cruise lines were shut down totally for more than one year. That was very costly and they ALL have had to be creative with upcharges and increases. Several ships were scrapped to reduce fleets and cut expenses. If you understand anything about accounting and finance, you'd understand. There's still no better value than cruising. Get over it!! Bon voyage!
I will never book another Italian liner they are too laid-back and don't care to run a tight ship. I've been on two of them and I've had trouble both times.
I'll give you another lesson on princess cruises. Princess cruises employ their crew on slave labour rates. For example I was employed as a bar steward with other passenger safety/security duties, working at least 12 hours a day. For this work I was paid 50 dollars A MONTH and expected to make up a decent wage selling cocktails of which I recieved 15%. Keep in mind when you cruise next that the service crew are slaves and are paid slaves wages. I'm speaking from experience.
So disappointed in Princess. Charging us for room service, pizza and changing things on us after booking. I have a 16 day cruise booked. $160 a day for my wife and I is ridiculous for drinks, WiFi and tips. #11 will be our last on to Celebrity.
Since the virus the cruise companies and many others need to make back money. Therefore everything is vastly more expensive. Also, for me why do I need technology onboard. This is supposed to be a vacation or getaway. I love getting away from mainstream everyone. Cruising can still be fun but costly.
I’m a firm pay as you go. Our goal on any cruise is to leave owing $0 . Specialty dining, is usually overpriced. We can easily go without wifi until we get into port.
I've never been on a cruise but I booked with princess for the Alaska cruise. I was skeptical if I needed these add-on dining options since I'm probably going to want to try the food in the port. I'm using the cruise mostly as a form of transportation so I might be a different type of customer than the typical cruiser.
Most ports are smaller tourists towns that are full of tourist traps that aren't looking for repeat business but want to make as much money off every customer as possible,in some cases they are seasonal and are only open during cruise season so their is some justified reasons for the higher pricesSo often high prices and low quality go hand in hand@@mostHumblePersonAlive
im 14. ive been on like 4 princess cruises since i was 9, and have another one booked in december. i like the simplicity and quality of the ship, because i find a lot of those ships with so many random activities to be a little bit tacky. i think that if you go on 1-2 princess cruises youll figure out what you enjoy. fyi if anyone going on the first cruise ever is my age, make friends on the first to second day. you get those memories early and create everlasting memories.
You sound like a bot 😂😂😂
You have another one booked? Or do you mean your parents have another one booked for you with them?
The Medallion fits in wearables made for the Apple AirTag, which are usually cheaper than the accessories Princess sells.
Good tip.
Amazon has as well, got one that attaches to my Apple Watch!
The lanyard and case for the medallion are now free, $1 for delivery to your home.
7/24/24
@@Tinrebel how. does the apple air tag work with your watch?
Just viewed the 25 princess cruises tips. But one tip I would like to know is where to eat lunch on the day of embarcation to the ship while waiting for your room. Are the upscale resturants open with no fee's ( ie alfredos, salty dog, planks etc.)
I watched this before our cruise last month. We had great time and this was helpful. Thank you. The regal was great and package was well worth it. Booked on sky for next year.
Love Princess Cruise! We just came back from Japan and the Diamond. It was simple and elegant and wonderful.
I wish this video was broken down into sections. What will a regular fare get you? What will princess plus get you? I feel like there’s lots of good info but it’s scrambled.
I never get the expedited boarding or whatever it's called and 10 minutes is all it takes to get the medallion and walk on. 4 cruises in 2023. Premier package is the way to go. Watch the mailings and email offers for deals.
We don't get expedited boarding either, but we agree the Premier package is a great value. When is your next cruise?
Compared to Celebrity, just the classic drink package with a discount plus gratuity is $75 per person and that’s just drinks - $80 pp for all of those Premier perks is not a bad deal but we got lucky with getting premier free with our travel agent
You get a lot for your $60, I think. At least compared to other cruise companies
@@dlsjr123The drink packages are a absolute rip off and the cause of many of the problems we read about on cruise ships like people falling overboard because they wanted to get ever penny's worth of that drink package.Real drinkers don't go out on New Years Eve because that's when the amateurs go out and act crazy, on a cruise ship every nite is New Years Eve.
If WiFi free for suite guests on Princess. I read the following on the Princess website.
All Princess Cruise Suites come with a range of complimentary amenities, including 24-hour room service, spa-like services, in-room Wi-Fi and daily cleaning for a luxurious experience.
Just got off the discovery staffed under trained seem to be frustrated and grumpy. They couldn’t even make the same drink at different bars the same way there drink different ways. The food was either cold or soggy. The crown grill was really good though.
the little nitpick charges they give you everywhere on your bill when you get back charge you for this charger for that charger for this and I have the premier package surcharge surcharge and when you upgrade they charge you more than you you agree to pay when you beid on it so watch out for that the crew was trying, but they were not properly trained and the people who shit over there helping them premium were too busy kissing, kissing everybody’s like to make yourself look good
Good video to watch for a second time. 👍🏼😜 I’m gonna suggest to my daughter on our next cruise, to do the first-day tour starting from the top to the bottom. Good to get the lay of the land. So glad we had pizza 🍕 at the casual venue on the Enchanted a few months ago. 👍🏼 My onboard account is already added up and I’m not even on a ship. Thank you for all these tips. ⚓️
Btw, we’re booked on the Sun for next August. 😃⚓️🛟🌴
Please let me know how you love the sun! I have lots of guest clients booked on to go before you and I'm looking at a few options right now for myself! Enjoy!
@@richiegill6098 I’ll make an alert to get back to you. I’m looking at doing Sky Princess in March with my friend. She plays in the casinos. Being from Hawaii, I thought I didn’t have to go there since we have the best beaches anywhere (IMO) but I’ll have most of the Caribbean covered with this 7th cruise there. 🏖️😜 Love cruising. 🩵
We're booked on Sun in July and I'm getting excited as it's my first cruise 🎉❤
Sailed in the new Celebrity Ascent last December. The food was incredible, the design and decor of the shop was fabulous…so classy yet relaxed. Right now I’m sailing on Discovery Princess. There’s no comparison, IMO. Princess lacks the wow factor in every way. Even the staff seems pretty bored. Buffet is just plain sad compared to the Ascent.
Great explanation video. I am looking forward to my upcoming cruise in September. The new changes are a non-issue for me.
Glad it was helpful!
Wow, I guess you don't mind being charged more than when you booked.
@@terrysplace2566the drinks package alone costs more on other cruise lines, so yes, I fully expect to pay more than the cruise fare advertised on the website. Princess is not an all-inclusive luxury line so maybe go look at one of those?
We’ve been on many Princess cruises. Casual dining was included. It seems to me that Princess is saving money having cruisers eat pizza rather than going to the main dining room. They’re simply up charging to persuade customers to buy the $60-$80 per person per day upgrade. Our next cruise is booked on Viking where they don’t nickel and dime cruisers. All inclusive is not what it used to be on Princess.
I am on a 24 day cruise now with sky princess and cannot fault it one bit. They have made me and my missus very welcome. We have the plus package. Staff bend over backwards to accommodate you. 😊
Give it to next year -- Alfredo's will be back to free. It's always been very crowded and I'm sure they're trying to find a way to make the wait time shorter. But once it becomes a ghost town, they'll go back.
I booked a Princess cruise last week and so far the process has been a nightmare. I am unable to register my account and numerous call to service have been useless. Horrible customer service and I haven’t even step foot on the ship.
Sorry to hear that. Did you book with a travel agent?
Can anyone please tell me is bottled still and sparkling water comes with the Princess Plus package?
Thank you for the great video. I'm very excited for our Nov Voyage on Discovery. I'm thrilled that Princess is now including unlimited casual dining in Premier and upgraded from plus. These all-inclusive packages are some of the best deals I've seen offered by any line and we're the primary reason we chose Princess.
Hope you enjoy it! Have a great cruise.
I'm booking with princess because of the new packages
Right, sure they are?
We’re sailing in November too, for the week of thanksgiving. Then we come home for a week and then get back on the same ship again for the 15 day to Hawaii. Super excited!
These packages are crap! We don’t use most of the garbage they include on there. We don’t drink, don’t use the gym classes, don’t need Wi-Fi, don’t do specialty desserts, and usually don’t get photos. So this makes us pay MORE for what we used to get! Hate the Princess packages and even though I have ONLY cruised with princess in the past, we will be looking elsewhere in the future as obviously loyalty doesn’t mean anything to Princess!!😡 Very disappointed!!!
Great video!! I thought I watched just about every video needed for my September Princess cruise, but your video did give me some extra pointers. Thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
Yaaaaas 4:13 you didn’t forget us 🫡
Definitely, Princess has changed and not for the better. Just having to pay for so much extra. It’s disappointing. I’ve just booked a half world cruise, so 55 nights. If I take the plus price I apparently get two free meals at a casual dining restaurant like Alfredo‘s pizza. And two of those enormous ice cream, sundaes a day. And the drinks package. And the Wi-Fi and the gym classes times two.
Now I’ve just completed a three night Cruise on the plus package. So we got our two Alfredo’s pizzas which were nice. But I’d love someone from Princess to explain to me how you can pay enormous amount of money for a 55 night cruise, but still only get two shots at Alfredos. Even though we’ve paid the plus extra for 55 nights.. we were lucky to have three drinks a day, but that’s our choice, and didn’t use the Wi-Fi much and did not use the gym. And as for the ice creams well they looked pretty fancy, but you’d be like a bloated pig if you ate two of those every single day. So I would have to give that a miss. So actual fact for us the plus fair is not worth it. As the world Cruise is made up of segments I think you should at least get two meals at a casual restaurant for every segment that you’re doing. how can you do a three night cruise and get two cracks Alfredo… Cruise, and two times at Alfredo on a 7 night cruise… so on and so on. But how can you only still get two when you’re on such a long cruise that is in segments. You should at least get two for every leg that you do on a cruise. I know it’s only a small thing but I’m actually gonna cancel that plus and go back to a standard fair and I’ll put all the money I saved, which will be about 7 1/2 thousand dollars, as credit and I’ll spend it where I want to spend it and I’ll bet you I don’t spend anywhere near that amount of money.
That sounds like a better option for such a long cruise. It does make more sense to have the plus or premiere on short cruises. What countries are you visiting on the world cruise?
Premier pkg. Is how I go.
@@rustydog1236 i’m certainly not paying extra for a premium package for something that really I’m not gonna use. In actual fact I’ve cancelled that Cruise with Princess. When I originally booked it, the only cabin available was one right up the front. Couple of weeks later, I was looking at the availability, and there was some in my category exactly the same, but closer to the middle. But princess wouldn’t change it for me. I think with that inflexibility with the cabin and also the absolute crap about two visits only to a casual dining venue on a 55 night cruise. Just tipped me over the scales . so I have booked a Holland America Cruise. My first one with them stop they have a package which is $75 a night per person, and it gives the drinks package the Wi-Fi package on board credit, $300 towards our excursions, and three specialty dining meals all included. So will see how that is and I think it’s much better value
We just got off the Enchanted Princess. There was no afternoon tea that we were aware of. Kind of a bummer. On that ship, Salty Dog Café is the Salty Dog Grill. It's also a walk up and not an up charge.
Ordered our medallion in April before our July cruise. Then received an email that our medallion won’t arrive on time. So we will have to stand in the blue lane. Also our birding is in the green line. So
Maybe because we didn’t upgrade our cruise package…..they didn’t send out medallions……?
We are platum princess members. We don't buy drinks. I am not happy with all the packages for extra charges they have. Princess does have the best itineraries.
I hear you. I felt the same when they announced these changes. My advice is to get yourself a good travel advisor who will reach out to you as soon as fare prices dip or offers and upgrades become available.
Platinum doesn’t mean what it use to mean to Princess. You will get the captain’s circle ⭕️ evening event with a free drink but not much more. Anything that might have been a platinum experience is gone unless you are booking a reserve level mini suite or above with a plus package it brings far more privileges that use to be part of the cruise. I was really surprised.
Please note that the gratuities are not included if you live in🎉Australia, very disappointing because we presumed they were as all youbtube say it is included. Got a shovk when we got charged.
Not impressed you used the same spin as Princess in making out the inclusion of casual dining, Ocean Now, and stateroom ordering when all these were include for EVERYONE until a few weeks ago. Explain what you get for sure, but don’t make out it’s a new benefit. The whole blog sounds like a sponsored ad.
Bye don’t let the door hit you on the way out
How does the Churchill's arcade work does it take coins or tokens you have to buy?
Downloaded the Princess Medallion app... My booking number doesn't exist, so cannot do thing. The info shows up for me, but I cannot use it. Might be a good thing as I want to put my phone in the room safe on the first day and never use it until I am back on land.. this does not bode well for an enjoyable week.
is it $10 per medallion or the same for 2 medallions shipped together?
I just had three shipped to one address for $10.
Just don't expect that MDR Menu on the ap to be accurate. On our TransAtlantic cruise it was accurate about twice out of 14 days. LOL
Hi, I am planning to book the Ruby Princess Cruise for next year. Which travel advisor do you usually work with?
What is it about the Ruby that you love the most? I've not been on that one yet.
I didn't know that I could book with Princess direct. The travel agency Princess sent me to I was crappy and provided very bad service.
@rampar77 yes, you definitely can. I work with Princess as a Cruise Vacation Planner and I work exclusively and directly with my guests. I help them with anything and everything. Even request, group bookings, flights, planning cruises, etc. I love it!
hi, where did she buy the silver medallion holder that looks like a watch, thin and not bulky, (see 6.27 minutes)
The Medallion can only be shipped within the U.S... not to Canada or otherwise.
Available now in Canada
Good video! Does everyone in the room need to purchase the packages? Princess was the only of the major cruise lined that did not require all guests in a room to purchase a drink packages. My wife usually takes the soda packages- We don’t drink alcohol.-and I’m always forced to take it too. So from paying for my two lattes a day, I’m stuck to drink four or fives lattes a day so I can “get” my money’s worth…😉🇨🇦 Oh and, it’s the blue line (No shipping of the medallion outside the US) unless we purchase the premium package… or I presume book a suite?
The premier is $80 per day and the other is $60 per day. I don’t think I would eat $80 or $60 dollars worth of food and drinks 😳. Plan to disconnect from wifi as well. NO, NO, NO.
We thought Plus was great!
Unfortunately, I am a platinum cruiser on princess having over 110 see days on Princess. Restaurants like Alfredo used to be free now they’re charging anywhere dining used to be free now they’re charging room service used to be free now they’re charging so, unfortunately, Princess charges for things that used to be free, not good. However, that being said never ever ever buy the premium package or the plus package here is why. I’m about to take a cruise on Caribbean princess for 16 nights out of Southampton to Iceland and other stops. I have been allotted $500 by Princess on board credit and $300 on board credit by the booking agency totaling $800. In addition, I’m military retired so I get an extra $250 on more credit. Why on earth would I want to spend additional money for drink packages?? Drink packages are our big rip off! Why would I say that? to break even you would have to drink six or seven drinks every day just to break even, additionally if your spouse doesn’t drink, or your roommate doesn’t drink, it doesn’t matter, they charge both in the room mandatory $60 per person per day not just individual. So remember, you have to include your onboard credit in factoring, and whether or not you wish to purchase any “packages“. Which brings up my next point, short excursions. Never ever buy short excursions through the ship with rare exception. I’m about to go as I said before 2 cork, Ireland, Cornwall, England, Iceland, and Scotland, everyone of those places I was able to buy shore excursions for 30% less than the ship. Most shore excursions are geared towards ships movement and are fundamentally aware that they will guarantee you to return to the ship prior to departure. There are things that make sense like buying the bus from the port of Southampton to Heathrow airport. Uber would cost more and less reliable. So, in summary know your prices shop around to compare and get the cruise agency that will give you the best onboard credit for a specific room category. Factor this on board credit into your total cost benefit analysis before buying any drink packages. If you are both drinkers and drink a lot, then maybe the packages right for you. like most cruisers, I love to drink lots the first few days, but then I drink almost nothing the last few days, nothing near the minimum breakeven point.
I agree
You mentioned at 5:44 you can use the Medallion app while onboard without having Internet access. Are you saying the app will function on my phone without WIFI while onboard?
I should have listened to the rest, the ship offers a "Medallion Net WIFI". Interesting... ;-)
Just a ship internal wifi only for using the ship s apps
No outside web connection with the ship wifi
i wonder if you can answer a question for me pls. but not sure if you can.
my dream has always been a world cruise.
i have looked at many for 2025.
and believe it or not. princess wc is what i am looking. hits almost all my bucket lists for areas to visit, like egypt and austriala and does not hit the one place i would never want to visit china.
did you like princess enough to think it would be good for world cruise. i am talking the staff amenties etc???
it even love their world cruise has many sea days. i have no problem with this.
i guess what i am trying to ask. it would be 114 days on their smallest island pricess ship. do you think it is a good idea
hint i would do the deluxe balcony and premiere package if that helps
I'm not the owner of this UA-cam channel but I have heard of other people using a travel agent to help them piece together the best cruises to go all the way around the world. Of course it's less convenient because you'll have to change ships a few times but I've heard it can be more cost-effective because you can get the best value for that region and you can also hit all the ports you have on your bucket list.
How do you find a trip advisor is that different than a travel agent
A travel advisor is the same as a travel agent. There are several great advisors out there. Depends what you are looking for in support. You can check out our affilate Avoya Travels.
Cruising princess in april and we had already decided to take princess plus so dont mind the change execpt that we cannot be green lane as we are from canada and medalion is not avalable to deliverdo we are hopping bleu lane is not to long
❤🎉
Did i miss this in your video? Can I use the app to communicate with my partner on the ship?
I completed an Alaska cruise with my wife in August. There is a texting style communication capability that worked well as far as the messaging goes with one BIG drawback. There was no sound that a message was coming in! If your phone was in your hand there was a banner on the screen but if you weren't looking at the phone, there was no way to know you had a message. I asked the ship IT people about that and they said the banner was just added and, perhaps, sound is coming.
In a nutshell RIPPOFF!😮
I just cruised with them and feel like I got ripped off by the bait and switch they pulled. When I booked several other restaurants now called casual dining were included but once I got on the ship they were not.. I won't be using Princess again because you don't get what you were promised when you booked. Really infuriating. I couldn't cancel because I had expensive flights booked.
Bye!!
@@caseytcat888 you are rude and disrespectful and represent Princess makes sense perfect match. Good luck with that, jerk! Bon voyage
I am doing my first ever cruise! And it is 34 days long! I prepaid the $16 per day gratuities charge. Now I have done some research, I have learned that the money goes to Princess and not 100% goes to the workers! I am not ok with that and now would like to pay the staff directly! Can I change at this point and get back the gratuity before I ship out or on board?
We suggest leaving the prepaid gratuity and bringing extra to tip in addition. That is what we do.
Where did you get that info from? The prepaid tips go to multiple people who serve passengers on the cruise in front and behind the scenes. Your research should have shown you that.
there is NO WAY that I am adding any more tips or gratuities for anything on board. END of story. Now if the cruise lines said, "well staff are demanding more money, we gotta pay them your fare is gonna be X% higher than last year" fine, I deal with it as I see fit, and tip accordingly. BUT they are attempting to be devious by advertising at "the best deal out there" base fares which are a lie because you can not actually get that fare with "obligatory" add ons like tips, called gratuities to sound fancy. Basically it is extortion and false advertising. I will not succumb to that and it leads me to question what else they are being devious about. The biggest mistake any cruise line can make is betray the trust of loyal customers and alienate potential loyal customers and push them to shop around every cruise
@@paulbunion6233the changes make me more willing to try princess
Why? I thought the prepaid gratuity was so no one had to worry about tipping.
Cant wait to try princess. What a great deal for the drinking crowd
I would have to drink WAY more than is healthy for me to make it worthwhile.
Princess is still a good value and provides a great cruise experience. Some naysayers just can't accept necessary change. If they're truly cruisers, they'll be back. They just have to complain.
@@caseytcat888 you are ignorant and work for Princess so that’s not smart Princess good luck 👍🏼 with that PR great marketing. Bon voyage
@terrysplace2566 this is possibly true! 😅 but i considered a couple of special drinks @ $20, crew tip @$20, any random casual dining dish @20 plus deliver to me anywhere on the ship, plus the other benefits like wifi overall actually made it worth it. As some days we actually would have racked up some very hefty bills 😅 drinks, food, etc.
Can you use the medallion on future princess cruises? Or is it only for the current cruise?
Unfortunately it is only for that cruise. Princess sends you a new one for every cruise.
As I understand it, you can use the same medallion as long as you are on the same ship. For example, if you do three cruises on Regal Princess, you can use the same medallion, but if you do one on Regal, one on Royal, and one on Enchanted, you get new medallions for each trip.
I don't understand the shipping of the medallion. I live in South Africa but want to take a cruise in April I Fort Lauderdale. Why can't I just get my medallion when I get to the ship?
Henceforth, and in light of their current costs expenditures dumped on cruisers, we will avoid whenever possible this cruise line...
Gonna give Princess a try. Their packages are a bit confusing though; included usually means you're not going to get charged for what is included. I got the Premier Package and was still charged for the 2 specialty dinings. Not to worry though, I was told I would be reimbursed in 7 to 10 working days, that was three weeks ago. As this is my first cruise with them I'm getting a little apprehensive. I've called numerous times and management seems to be as illusive as corrective solutions.
Sorry to hear about that. We haven't had any issues like that. Any time we have had a charging issue, the cruise line swiftly takes care of it. When is your sailing?
can on board criedits pay for speacaluity restarnts
yes, anything you purchase on the ship.
I didn’t find out about this stupid Medallion until I paid for my Dec 2023 cruise. I only used my phone for calls because I couldn’t get a regular phone any more. I never liked so call text or dumb apps and I couldn’t see the small text any way. I had hard time to find some one to help me with this crap and Princess customer service never answered my calls.
It was not fair for us senior citizens.
I will not choose Princess again on future cruise because of this stupid Medallion.
I just came back from St Thomas in Sky Princess.The stupid Medallion was most complicated and useless. I had no clue about Apps and it took me hours for customer service from princess to hep me. I only used it to open my cabin.
I am not a drinker so any premium extra or plus was bull shit. I spent less than $3 on a diet coke in 7 days. I was good eating in Marker Fresh buffet and 3 Main restaurants.
The best about Princes was no fking kids running around and no wild party animals.
Thanks for the info on princess I hate the tech so I am out
As far as I'm concerned I don't care if they go bankrupt. I'm seriously considering sailing on other lines from now on. Totally annoyed at being gauged or feeling forced to upgrade which is a BIG waste for me. I don't drink alcohol or fancy coffees. Done with Princess.
We were surprised, too, with the changes to casual dining. We didn't see that coming.
Yes, I will not book with Princess again. I think a lot of the posts on here are from people who directly or indirectly work for Princess. This recent changes are clearly price increases that the line says are upgrades to ty and trick everyone. I was infuriated when I found out I wasn't getting what I had booked. Bad business.
We left other cruise lines for the same reasons but mainly because of the horrible food. The quality has really declined on other lines. Princess is still good.
@@terrysplace2566 Bye!! All cruise lines were shut down totally for more than one year. That was very costly and they ALL have had to be creative with upcharges and increases. Several ships were scrapped to reduce fleets and cut expenses. If you understand anything about accounting and finance, you'd understand. There's still no better value than cruising. Get over it!! Bon voyage!
@@caseytcat888 "they ALL have had to be creative with upcharges " - Azamara and Windstar haven't. Stop justifying bad corporate behaviour.
Not happy with packages
I will never book another Italian liner they are too laid-back and don't care to run a tight ship. I've been on two of them and I've had trouble both times.
Best tip is not to go on a Princess cruise, so many better lines out there.
I don't see a check in arrival time for embarkation...have they done away with this?
Yes
@@rachelmorris9296 thank you
I'll give you another lesson on princess cruises. Princess cruises employ their crew on slave labour rates. For example I was employed as a bar steward with other passenger safety/security duties, working at least 12 hours a day. For this work I was paid 50 dollars A MONTH and expected to make up a decent wage selling cocktails of which I recieved 15%. Keep in mind when you cruise next that the service crew are slaves and are paid slaves wages. I'm speaking from experience.
So disappointed in Princess. Charging us for room service, pizza and changing things on us after booking. I have a 16 day cruise booked. $160 a day for my wife and I is ridiculous for drinks, WiFi and tips. #11 will be our last on to Celebrity.
160 a day for 2 gets you wayyyyy more than that
@@jojosadventureagency sure WiFi, tips, and desert. If I buy those it’s $70 a day.
Good luck finding a premium cruise line that offers the same extras for that price. It’s $90+ per person for the drink package alone on Celebrity.
Booking with a travel agent gets you a Premier package for significantly less than what you are quoting.
I completely agree with you I am moving on.
Since the virus the cruise companies and many others need to make back money. Therefore everything is vastly more expensive. Also, for me why do I need technology onboard. This is supposed to be a vacation or getaway. I love getting away from mainstream everyone. Cruising can still be fun but costly.
Totally disgusted with these changes. Mo more Princess for me.
We were surprised by the changes to the base fare as well. Very atypical of Princess Cruises.
Bye!!
@@caseytcat888 go away princess employee bad pr for them!
Junk cruise don't bother