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Princess Cruise Lines Complaints Summary

18 Resolved
300 Unresolved
Our verdict: If considering services from Princess Cruise Lines with a critical resolution rate, extra caution is advised. Examine detailed customer feedback to understand the severity and nature of unresolved issues. Be prepared for the possibility of unsatisfactory responses and have contingency plans, including seeking assistance from consumer advocacy groups if necessary.
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8:46 pm EDT

Princess Cruise Lines very irresponsible cruise line

On February 9, 2010, my wife and I boarded the Diamond Princess in Auckland, New Zealand, bound for Melbourne and Sydney, Australia. Booking No. XT9Q3D

On the morning of February 18, 2010, while still at sea and on the Diamond Princess, I ate breakfast at the Horizon Court buffet, and I subsequently became ill, with a stomachache and diarrhea. I had eaten only food prepared and served on the Diamond Princess. Before eating breakfast I felt fine and I was in good health.

After I became ill my wife and I stayed in our state room, while I tried to recover, but I did not improve. Later on February 18th I reported my medical condition to the ship’s Medical Center. The ship’s nurse took down my information and treated me for Acute Gastroenteritis.

The ship’s nurse also instructed me to return to my state room, and to not disembark the ship even though the ship was to dock at Melbourne. She said I was strictly prohibited from stepping outside of my state room, and she said that if I did so I would be expelled from the ship at my own expense. I was confined by the ship’s nurse to my room for 24 hours until the evening next day, February 19th, after the ship left Melbourne.

The nurse did not make it clear to me why I was not permitted to go ashore in Melbourne, or why I was confined to my room for so long. As a result, the confinement felt like a kind of involuntary detention.

While I recovered, on February 18 and 19, my wife had to tend to me. She could not, moreover, go on shore alone while the Diamond Princess was in Melbourne. As a result, my wife and I both missed our only chance to visit Melbourne.

Melbourne was, for us, a dream destination and a key reason we paid for the Diamond Princess cruise. We spent thousands of dollars in air fare from the U.S., in addition to the cruise fees, to see Melbourne. Because of the food poisoning I contracted on the Diamond Princess, however, my wife and I were denied the opportunity to disembark and visit the city. Due to the cost and distances involved, we will not have another chance to visit Melbourne.

I have requested Princess either to give me a refund, or grant me the equivalent in credit toward a future cruise, as compensation for the loss that my wife and I incurred due to food poisoning directly caused by the Princess Cruises. However, Princess denied its responsibility and refused to compensate us anything. I and my wife will never take a cruise with Princess again in the future. There are a lot of cruise lines providing much better service and are more responsible than Princess. Why do we bother to travel with an irresponsible cruise line like Princess.

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stopcryingoldpeople
Visalia, US
Jan 02, 2013 1:03 pm EST

Did it ever occur to you that in fact it may just have been your lack of hygiene that caused you to be ill? If there aren't others on here complaining of "food poisoning" then maybe it was an isolated event. Others ate the same food as you yet you were the only one that became ill? Hmm does someone not wash their hands before eating?

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Idocare
Washington DC, US
May 25, 2012 5:51 am EDT

2010? Have you been battling them for over 2 years? That's sad. Sorry it all went horribly wrong for you and your wife. Melbourne is beautiful

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2:50 am EDT
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Princess Cruise Lines poor customer service/refusal of valid refund

My wife and I recently cruised on the Golden Princess to Alaska from Seattle.While the scenery was beautiful, the ship was lovely, and we received, for the most part, excellent service, unfortunately our vacation was marred by the following experience.

Upon arriving in our stateroom on Saturday, my wife looked through the excursion tickets that were left in our room. (We had booked the cruise and all of our tour excursions through our travel agent.) She mentioned that everything appeared to be in order except that there were no tickets for the zip line tour that I was supposed to be taking in Juneau with my brother and nephew. The steward suggested we visit the excursion/tour desk to doublecheck our plans and my wife said she wasn’t worried. She had the confirmation, information and printouts from our travel agent about ALL the tours. The steward said it was always a good idea to check in with the travel desk.

We decided the next day to visit the excursion desk to ask a few questions since we were first- time cruisers and there were some procedures we were not familiar with. For example, we had several vouchers in our room that said we had received several $100 credits for tours from our travel agent. However, we assumed that this money appeared as a credit until we actually went on the excursions. Still, we just wanted to doublecheck as it was Sunday, we were at sea and unable to contact our travel agent.

We spoke with a woman at the tour/excursion desk and explained our questions about the ‘credit’ appearing on our account as well as the zip line confirmation. This is where the problems began. She looked over the paperwork that my wife had from our travel agent and said several times, “The zip line tour is not confirmed.” She seemed confused by the printouts that we had. My wife pointed out several times that there was indeed a booking number for the zip line tour and asked if perhaps we would not get tickets for this particular tour as it was not affiliated with Princess. There were clear directions written on the printout for how to meet this tour in Juneau. The agent continued insisting that we were not booked for a zip line tour, suggested that perhaps the credit on our account was for this tour because for whatever reason it was not confirmed, and seemed to indicate that if we were, in fact, booked on any tour she would have record of it.

My wife and I did not make a decision at the time but went back to our room to discuss it and look over our paperwork again. We felt like our email confirmation was clear enough but were confused by the agent's inability to explain our ‘credit’ and by her insistence that our confirmation/booking numbers were not valid. We finally figured that the tour/excursion specialists on the ship dealt with these things all the time and that they would know what is and is not confirmed. I decided to go down to the desk and try again to clarify the situation. Because my 10 year old nephew was really excited about this zip line tour, I didn’t want to take any chances.

The same agent, again, insisted that the paperwork we had did not indicate any sort of confirmation on the zip line/canopy tour. Although I felt a little unsettled about it, I decided to trust the expertise of the tour/excursion professionals on board believing that they knew better than I and went ahead and authorized charges for the zip line/canopy tour. My wife in the meantime had sent an email to our travel agent asking about the credit and verifying that for whatever reason, our zip line tour had not been confirmed at the last minute.

The following day my brother, nephew and myself went on this tour in Juneau and had a wonderful time thinking the matter was resolved. However, during the tour my wife received a call from the other zip line company asking where we were. We had been double booked after all. The tour desk was closed when we got back to the ship that evening so there was nothing we could do at that point. The next morning (the previous day had been a holiday) my wife received a message from our travel agent saying that we were absolutely confirmed on the first zip line tour and that any credit on our account was for excursions we had already paid for.

Although irritated at this point, I thought that this was a very clear misunderstanding and that once explained this matter could be quickly resolved. Due to a translation or training issue, the tour desk agent had led us to believe that our paperwork was not valid and we were not booked on a tour when we were. Basically, we had pre-paid the zip line tour with our travel agent and then paid again on board for another tour. I stopped in at the tour desk that evening and asked for the manager.

When I was finally able to speak to the tour manager the next day he looked at my paperwork and “straight away” recognized that we were booked and confirmed on a zip line tour that was not affiliated with Princess. He agreed that his staff had made an error in telling us we were not confirmed and should have immediately seen it was not a Princess tour. He also confirmed that the credit that had appeared on our account was for tours booked with Princess. Why the other agent could not have seen and explained this was not addressed but he insinuated that there were language issues and said that sometimes things got "lost in translation". The manager said he would get back to me later that evening with some sort of resolution. However, he called and said he needed more time.

We heard nothing on until the very last day of our trip and I had to seek out the manager again which I knew wasn't a good sign. At this point, he claimed that although he understood the confusion he (Princess) believed that our travel agent was at fault for booking with a non-Princess company, suggested that this was rare, and indicated that Princess’s official position was that our travel agent should have ‘better explained’ the procedures to us. While he did credit us $200, he claims this was the ‘best he could do’ under the circumstances. (He did admit that he felt it was their mistake and we were entitled to a refund) He gave us the information to lodge a formal complaint with their customer relations department which we immediately did upon on our return.
Today after speaking to Customer Relations, they made it clear that a) it is our problem and we should have better understood our own paperwork and that b) we will not be refunded any money and c) they didn't agree with the tour desk manager giving us any refund including the $200 he gave us.

This matter could have easily been resolved while we were on board and our vacation would not have been tainted by this incident. To blame our travel agent for the incompetence of their employees is ridiculous and to take advantage of first time cruisers in this way is unethical. Basically they are saying that their cruise passengers cannot trust what they are told by Princess employees?

Our directions were very clear and we did not question them until we were told by the tour desk personnel that our confirmation/booking information was not valid. If this agent was confused or not clear about what she was seeing she should have consulted her manager for assistance. While we wanted to believe that this was an innocent mistake based on inexperience, it appears that Princess might be in the business of cheating its customers then having the audacity to blame them for following directions/advice given by its employees. We were only originally questioning procedures and did not question our confirmation until their employee told us our paperwork was not valid.

Do not cruise with them. We met a man later who had been charged 6X for a helicopter excursion rather than for an excursion for 6 people. He was fighting that. We are going to continue to fight this but at this point its not even about the $ anymore. They shouldn't get away with cheating their customers in this way. (We are blowing up twitter, facebook and my wife's blog with this story and I am posting in every place I can.)

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10:54 pm EDT
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Princess Cruise Lines baggage

My newlywed wife and I recently took a trip on Princess Cruise lines...neither one of us will recommend them to ANYONE in the future. Upon Disembarkment we didn't have our luggage and didn't receive it until the second day (evening) of our honeymoon cruise. We were on our own basically to get the clothes we arrived in laundered in order to have something to wear at our first port. At our 1st port we inquired as to if our luggage had been located and when we could expect it. (No answer). So in order to "enjoy" the first day of our cruise we did some shopping for swim suits, shorts, shirts, evening wear (just for that day) and spent close to $250 just in case we didn't get our luggage that day. We were given a $50 room credit for laundry service and to help cover some expense of our in town shopping for that days clothing.

We eventually got our luggage after dinner that evening. We were still upset with the situation but tried to put it behind us and enjoy the remainder of our trip. Upon returning home I made some inquiries as to additional reimbursement due to having to spend money just to have something to wear...because they didn't have our baggage. I was basically told that they (princess cruise lines) were not monitarily responsible for "delays" in baggage getting to our room. SERIOUSLY?!?! The luggage is put in your charge at the airport terminal and it never gets to the ship until our 2nd night on the ship and you are NOT responsible? WTF! So far they refuse to issue any type of monitary refund or cover our clothing expenses at our first port of call.

BTW...This is the third cruise line I have traveled with and it is by far the worst. Not that they were "bad" but the quality of food wasn't as expected, the wait staff wasn't as polite (esp. in the buffet areas) and overall just not as good of an experience as I have had on Carnival and Royal Carribean. Not to mention the whole luggage fiasco...and we weren't the only ones with issues of this type. I was in line with several dozen people who had no idea where there luggage was either. The was a mountain of unclaimed bags by the customer service desk that people were looking through to see if they could find there stuff on there own. How unprofessional is that?

Don't use princess...go with a different cruise line.

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6:07 pm EDT

Princess Cruise Lines we wouldn't recommend princess cruise lines to an enemy

Or, our cruise from hell...

We recently went on a cruise to alaska aboard the new ship star, princess cruise lines. We went with four other very good friends. We waited 3 years for what we thought would a really fabulous vacation. We had to reschedule from 3 years ago due to a death in the family. We were so looking forward to this cruise.

What a disappointment it was!

The star may be big and beautiful, but it is totally lacking in service and entertainment. The variety of entertainment wasn't great and the waiters in the dining room were for the most part rude! This cruise was soooo boring, people were walking around like we were all at a funeral!

The 3 day land tour at the end of the cruise was awful. They spend all the time herding you around like cattle or making you wait hours to be transferred to another location again. Things are not planned out well, not to mention they keep your luggage overnight at 2 locations and you don't have access to it.

By the time you get to the airport, you wonder has anybody gone through it? Not a good way to handle luggage!

The other two couples we traveled with are not happy either. We wouldn't recommend princess cruise lines to an enemy, if we had any that is.

Our advice... Cruise with another line!

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7:16 pm EST

Princess Cruise Lines they provided terrible service, applied illegal charges on my final bill

They provided terrible service, applied illegal charges on my final bill, and the long lines made it impossible to dispute them without missing my plane upon disembarking.

Also, they leave for the tours earlier than stated on the ticket. They stated 8:30 am. But even though we arrived at 8:20 am, they stated we missed our tour and refused to give us a refund.

Just awful public relations there. Go with Holland America or another great line. Leave this company behind.

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DanD77
, US
Jun 22, 2010 1:44 pm EDT

My Travel agent and I were looking for an Alaska cruise/tour for my husband and myself. Went through all the cruise lines and found that Princess was the deal that we were looking for.

My agent printed a detailed pricing quote for us and after rechecking to make sure that the price we were seeing was correct (past passenager), we agreed to book a balcony stateroom with Princess. My agent took our credit card and began the final booking process of making the deposit for the cruise. She was unable to complete the transaction and called Princess Reservations. The reservationist had the same price quote that we had printed and tried to complete the deposit but with no success. A total of 3 attempts (different occasions) were made and Princess would not accept our deposit. After several additional calls and speaking with a couple of supervisors, we were told that Princess was having problems with their computer - they had a glitch in their system and could NOT HONOR our pricing quote. A supervisor stated that they have a fail safe system that stops any error from going through. NOT TRUE, the errored detailed price quote went through just fine OR MAYBE IT WASN'T AN ERROR. That quote was not honored but I was told I could book the same balcony stateroom at the NOW GOING RATE -$1, 400 MORE!

I, as well as my travel agent, wrote to customer relations and I wrote to the CEO asking that they HONOR the original quote. They REFUSED.

I received a call from one of the same supervisors as before. He said that he was given authority, from Mr. Buckelew, to call me and explain to me that they would NOT HONOR the original quote and to never call or write them again concerning this matter. I told him that I NOW UNDERSTAND WHAT KIND OF CRUISE LINE PRINCESS REALLY IS AND THAT THEY NOT WORRY ABOUT ANY CALLS OR LETTERS REGARDING THE MATTER. SHAMEFUL TREATMENT OF POTENTAL CUSTOMERS.

PRINCESS DOES NOT HONOR WHAT THEY SAY/PRINT!

PS: I had ask that the CEO, Mr. Buckelew, please call me but was told that he would not be having any contact with me concerning this matter.

They did offer me a mini-suite at a discount of $500 per person. My question was: If you can give a discount of $500 PER PERSON on a mini-suite then Why not give the same discount on the balcony stateroom? The supervisors answer: The balcony is more popular and they can sell them easier. The mini-suite not so much. If they discounted $1, 000 off the balcony, it would have been about the same price as the original quote. GO FIGURE!

Princess refused to help and not so nice either.

PRINCESS DOES NOT CARE!

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CheckingOutCompany
Plano, US
Dec 03, 2011 2:04 pm EST
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I have heard a lot of good things about Princess. I have never traveled with them before. I have thought about using them to travel to Alaska. I have heard that they have great trips to Alaska.

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8:13 pm EST
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Princess Cruise Lines misleading practices

Grab your depends and set sail on the Grand Princess, my wife (41), two children 13 & 15 and I (41) took our second cruise this year and WOW what a mistake to have chosen princess to celebrate Christmas and New Years December 20 thru January 2, 2010-11. The same food was served for 14 days or re-cycled into a new dish and called something new; the hot food was cold and the cold food hot. The atmosphere on the ship bordered a retirement home and the nite life consisted of bingo.
The staff was adequate as long as you didn’t have an issue that required anything besides clean towels in your state room. One last negative before I mention the positive, if they mentioned Diamonds International one more time I was going to jump overboard.
(The chain of jewelry stores they own and have at least five of on every island and are so over priced it’s tragic that people would fall for this scam)

The islands we visited will leave a beautiful lasting memory for my family to remember and the majority of the island population loved the tourists. So if you are ok with using the ship as a floating hotel and want to be in bed by 9pm then this is the cruise line is for you.

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Princess Cruise Lines phantom charges

Stayed overnight in ships sick bay. Transferred to hospital in Panama. Received bill from Princess for hospital charges, with some duplications added as extra charge. Also received a bill from Norton Lilly through Princess for $3, 500.00 for me and $1, 000.00 for my wife for medical services. Absolutely no medical services were rendered through these people. I requested itemization of charges from the Norton Lilly bill and received no reply. Sent them registered letter later requesting this and was told that I would have to pay this bill, but they would not give me specifics of what they claim of service rendered.

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Princess Cruise Lines failure to meet contracted obligations

Do not ever use princess cruise to book your air for a cruise. We paid princess ~$500 for a one day extension in auckland at the end of our cruise. Princess booked us on a 6:15a. M. Flight that day which required a 3:30 a. M. Transport to the airport. We tried to rebook ourselves so we could use the extention and princess said we would forfeit 75% of our air fare if we did. When we pushed them to rebook, they said there would be a $2200 "rebooking fee." I personally verified that there were multiple alternate flights available all the way up to our return which permitted princess to meet the terms of our contract. Even though we paid $351.66 for their "vacation protection", they have totally refused to refund for this un-met part of our contract. This was compounded by their using 4 separate flights both for departure and return (The return 4 segments took 36 hours). Our first connection during departure had an unmakeable connect time (Which we managed to modify ourselves with help from the airline). It is obvious that this is strictly a low cost bean counting organization which will totally disregard contractural obligations.

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thomas vaughan
Brockville, CA
Jan 13, 2013 5:12 pm EST

princess cruises is a waste of money. I just returned home from a cruise on the caribbean princess out of Ft Lauderdale.
My complaint was with the bed. My mattress was finished the pocket coils were blown out I would not let a dog sleep on it.When I lifted the mattress to look between the mattress and bed frame I was surprised to find a series of flat plastic diner trays laid out to help support the mattress, along with a bunch of towels and blankets folded up and packed in there . Is this some kind of joke!
I have two rods in my back from /92 when I broke my back I could not nor anyone else could have slept on this bed .
I complained only to get more rags and such stuffed under the mattress. I ended up sleeping on the floor for 4 nights.
I could not feel my legs after the first night and have been in considerable pain since. The room was d735 on the 9 floor dolphin on the caribbean princess. I will never sail with them again.

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chris64
Northampton, GB
Oct 17, 2010 6:02 am EDT

I totally agree with this and have had a similar experience. I started with an origional travel itinerary of a direct flight from London to Seattle and a connection to Fairbanks. I finished up going London-JFK-Seattle - Fairbanks. With the London Seattle portion taking 24hrs and the total journey over 48hrs.

Added to this was the cost of hanging around in Airports and a $40 additional luggage charge because my connection from Seattle to Fairbanks were over 12hours apart, which I didn't arrange.

Do Princess care? NOT ONE BIT. It's a "we've had your cash, shrug our shoulders and blame everyone else" company.

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Princess Cruise Lines wheelchair accessibility

We were on a 7 day cruise in the Caribbean, and being only 21 at the time, i had to carry my own personal ID around with me so i could get served drinks. Regardless of the "A" that they print on your tag (because they "could have messed up and printed an A"). When I sat down in a pub to have a cigarette, the bartender came up to me and yelled at me "you cant be in here!" when i asked him why he said "because youre not 21!" i said "actually, yes I am" i threw my id at him and walked away. I got decent service from just ONE employee on the entire cruise. There is hardly anyone on the outer decks to take drink orders. The dinner staff do not take the time to get to know their tables. There were 15 of us, with 3 different tables and 3 different waiters, we all had medioker service, no one went out of their way to make the trip extraordinary like they do on other cruise lines (I have been on 2 other lines prior to Princess).
Not to mention this cruise line was 100% NOT wheelchair accessible. Having a paraplegic with us on our trip, he had to be accompanied by one of us at all times as there were huge lips at the bottom of every door that he needed help with. Other cruiselines will have small lips on the outer decks, however inside the ship, they are all flat and have automatic doors. He could get over the lips himself, but with the heavy doors that you have to open as well, it was impossible for anyone in a chair to get around by themselves.
They did not have a ramp at the docking ports. They simpy had stairs that they threw a thick mat over. At the port that had too steep of stairs to throw a mat over they had the "stair climber" which is a complete joke. The sides do not come off so anyone in a chair cannot transfer over to it. They have to be lifted up by their "trained" wheelchair helpers. They are not trained for paraplegics. they are trained for elderly people and people with walking difficulties. When I asked them why they do not have a ramp they said "because the water is so shallow here, we would have to have 50 feet of ramp, " so i simply told them to get 50 ft of ramp! When we finally got through the hassle of the stair climber, not to mention the stares from every onlooker and employee... Royal Caribbean cruise line was parked beside ours, WITH 50 FEET OF RAMP!
They had not one wheelchair accessible excursion on any of the 6 ports that we stopped at. The theatre had stairs going down them, with wheelchair seating at the top. Which would have been alright, except for one it was a terrible view, and for two, there was a spot for a wheelchair, and then a permant seat... so if anyone in a chair wanted to go watch a show, they could only sit with one person. On every other ship we have been on (5 to be exact), the theatre had a slight incline instead of stairs, so one in a wheelchair could sit at the end of the aisle and still be able to have decent seating and watch the show with as many people as they wanted.
Princess is a joke of a cruise line. They did not have entertaining shows, or activities. They had ripped this ship in two and added 500 rooms, however they did not add more restaurants, make the theatre bigger (there were people standing every night), or add anything, besides the rooms. It was completely overcrowded. Just a joke of a cruise ship and cruise line. When you file complaints after the fact, not one person contacts you back or gives you the time of day. I would not recommend this cruise line to anyone, especially if they are travelling with a wheelchair!

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Princess Cruise Lines horrible service

here is a copy of the letter we sent to princess... just read it and see how they treat passingers, you wont believe the horrible trip we had...I hope this gets out to a lot of people and the word gets out there, because the company doesn't seem to care ... Dear Mr. Buckelew, Oct.25, 2009

My name is Randolph Lowery and my partners name is Gerardo DiTraglia. The purpose of this letter is to enlighten you as to the incompetents of your officers and crew onboard the Emerald Princess transatlantic voyage Sept.23, 2009 through Oct.11, 2009. As businessmen and frequent cruisers we can assure you that we know what to expect and what not to expect from the crew of a cruise ship!

This was, without a doubt, the worst experience we have ever had on a cruise. The ship its self was beautiful, however; the crew made it a terrible experience. Your cruise director, Lisa Ball, was very condescending making it clear she felt superior toward the passengers, forgetting that they make her job and salary possible. We were appalled.

On our first day aboard Emerald Princess, we toured the ship while waiting for our luggage to reach our stateroom, when our luggage arrived we unpacked, then we decided to go to the sauna and relax, as a gentleman was doing when we toured, however; when we arrived a girl at the desk told us it was not available to us, because all hands were delivering luggage and they were short staffed, She said it is never open until the second day of the cruise. I asked her about the gentleman using it when we toured earlyer, she kept insisting that no one was in there and it was closed.

Here are a few other reasons we were unhappy and had such a horrible experience with Emerald Princess

OVER CHARGED ; Next we tried to purchasing cigarettes from the store. What a fiasco, the computer was down, the clerk hand wrote our receipt, two days later a printout of our bill showed we were charged $1, 372.93 for the two cartons of cigarettes, their receipt was gone, lost, no longer attached to the other paperwork. When asked about it, we were told it was an error. We can understand someone making an error, but when you work in the store that sells cigarettes, you should know they don't cost $686.46 per carton! Why not fix it then and there, rather then have the passenger have to find out about such a careless mistake. We were assured that there was only a hold on the money, A call to our bank confirmed they had most definately debited $ 1'372.93 from our account to your cruise line! This took days to correct, and many costly phone calls and frayed nerves.

MUSIC; There was classical music playing thru out the ship, we can understand in the piazza, resturants and cafe's. Out by the pools on the deck was the same broing music, people were bored unmotivated, We asked the crew working on the deck about it, they said Lisa had changed it on the first leg of the cruise when some old guy had complained about the music. We were told by your staff (it's really killing us go make a complaint)And we could tell it really was effecting the moral of the crew on the pool decks, they were very unmotivated, there for not motivating us, not selling us. There for us not partying, having a good time and buying drinks. Isn't it all about making the sale ? So we went to the pursers desk they referred us to Lisa Ball, We asked if there was anyway for some variety in the music, she said she couldn't just change the music like that, it had to be uploaded and would take 5 days, and then says she caters to her larger demographics on the ship. (Well we all paid for a vacation)!

BUFFET; One evening they had appetizers of mozzarella balls garnished with cherrie tomatoes, then on top of the mozzarella balls anchovie paste and an anchovie. Gerardo asked if he could please have some mozzarella balls without the anchovies, they gave him some, we went to our table began to eat, Gerardo spits out the mozzarella balls they were spoiled ! we go to the chef to tell him, he says there fine I'm Italian I know, Gerardo says I don't care what you are I'm Italian too and I'm telling you they are spoied. The chef smells them says there fine, Gerardo insisted that he eat one, he did and you should of seen the look on his face trying to swallow it, as if it were fresh. Then he has the nerve to say (well things go bad on a 17 day cruise) Well we go and try to finish dinner after that, when done we passed thru the other dinning room both the chefs were sitting there and said, hey guys were sorry about that, but we weren't on that line in the kitchen. Well if you are the head chef aren't you over all the lines in the kitchen? Then he has the nerve to say in Italian to Gerardo ( Comunque sia, gli americani mangiano tutto!) which when translated means;( by the way you Americans will eat anything!) We were appalled. Later that same evening, being that we didn't really eat dinner, thought we would go get some cookies and tea, when we looked at the buffet they hadn't removed the spoiled mozzarella balls, they were still there for people to eat and get sick!

ICELAND; In port we always go do our own thing, we do not like being part of any tours. We were told by friends we had to go to the Blue lagoon. So we went to a travel agent in Iceland and got a bus and tickets to the Blue Lagoon. Later a tour buss from princess with all the elderly and some crew members shows up. Everyone was enjoying how wonderful the geothermal seawater was. We stayed out there until the last bus was leaving to take us back to town, we loved it. Well upon returning we were out buy the pool and one of your photographers comes up and says did you guys see the video ? I got you in it! Well first off we weren't on the ship, which we know on every ship we have been on they video the cruise. Also we weren't on an Emerald Princess Tour, any other line we have sailed with when videoing someplace in a port you are asked to sign a release form. We feel very violated of our rites, We do not want to be affiliated with Princess Cruise line whatsoever!
This matter is being looked into.

SAFTY DURING RUFF SEAS; We hit ruff seas, on any other cruise we have been on when we hit ruff seas you always would see an officer checking on the deck. Not so on your line.!There was the problem of constantly flooded decks and no one even trying to squeegie them off. I asked why doesn't any one squeegie the deck, never really got an answer. They just had the yellow cones out. Water was splashing two decks up out of the pool, no one seemed to care, the deck hands were just standing around with there arms crossed. Those same elderly people Ms Ball was talking about catering to were having to tred a river of water, most with canes and walkers trying to get to the buffet. Also there were pieces of wood just floating on the deck that had broken off of the wall, I watched that wood float out there for more then two hours, in all that time not one of your crew members stopped to pick it up, if one of those elderly people would of hit that it all would of been over for them .All of the people that smoked had to stay in one little corner on the deck, the water was two inches deep and actually going in the automatic doors that lead to the staterooms. I asked why didn't they drain the pool, no one seemed to know. So I asked who was in charge of the deck always getting told someone different. So again I go to the pursers desk they said it had to come to the bridge. Finally after that someone comes out and takes some pictures and then they drain the pools. Safety should of really been the priority being the ages of most of the passangers.

TINDER TO GREENLAND; We all had to get tickets and sit in the theater to wait to be called, they had only two running, it took almost two hours to get on one. While waiting there were two guys that were buddy buddy with Lisa Balls little side kick Hollywood. Well he comes up puts his arms around them wispers, then one follows him back to the white doors for staff only, then a few minutes later the other one. He snuck them out and put them on the tender, So I said to Gerardo screw this and went to see and it went rite down to the tinder. So I went up to Lisa and told her She said oh no! as if he would never do something like that, I said ok then why are there two empty chairs next to ours ? she didn't say anything . I told her I wanted to talk to someone she said I would have to go to the pursers desk and that they would just refer us to her. I told her I waned to speak to the Captian, she says in her condescending way ( I can assure you that you will never speak with the Captain) But Kuzan took us to talk with Martin Ford, he said he would follow up when we got to port, but unfortunately nothing could be done on the cruise it would have to happen at the home office on land.We told him we were going to follow up as well.

BARS CLOSED; The lounges were closed early, one evening at 12:30 the casino closed so we went up to the skywalker lounge, being it's the only bar you can smoke in. We were told upon entering they had called last call and were closed, looking over to the bar to the left where you could smoke was crew members sitting there drinking . We could understand if they had already locked the bottles, but they hadn't. We feel they should of said we have called last call we can serve you one drink but we are locking up. So again back to the pursers desk. The next day Tim the food and bev manager calls says he asked but no one in the bar could recall last night ( they all cover for eachother)

Mr Buckelew,
we feel the officers working under you are not doing there jobs, probably not to the expectation that you would want. Knowing its all about the passangers experiences. This cruise was the worst experience ever! With what Lisa said about catering to the larger demografic, we feel this cruise should of been advertised as a seniors cruise! We spoke with many people on the cruise who still had life in them and were totally bored and dissapointed with your staff, saying the same as us they would never cruise with Princess or any of your other lines.We can assure that we (WILL NEVER) cruise with any of your cruies lines ever! And there are other cruise lines out there.We also feel we were ripped off, lost 18 days, We would of rather stayed home and worked those 18 days. Just to think about the money we lost while held captive on your ship. It would of been better to of stayed home.As we said we are business owners, we are also in the service industry, we cater to a very extensive client base. Here are just a few so you can see the kind of clients we are used to catering to: Martine Rothblatt, Terence Witt, Tessy Princess of Luxembourg, Bobby Dall they can all be googled, along with attorneys, doctors, media, pilots and also captains of ships! So for us to of been treated and talked down to the way we were is unexcusable.
The reason we addressed this letter to you Mr. Buckelew is we feel you need to know whats going on underneath you. We hope this letter makes it to you, We would like to hear back from you personally in this matter ...Randolph Lowery & Gerardo DiTraglia

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San Diego, US
Dec 27, 2009 8:05 pm EST

Oh my, what a horrific vacation! lol

You need to learn how to relax Mr. Cranky-Pants.

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Princess Cruise Lines bad criuse

November 2, 2009

To: Mr. Alan Buckelow and Customer Relations
Princess Cruises

From: Miriam Gordon

Booking Number- XH3X2Q

This Letter is my complaint of everything that happen and the issues and problems that occurred on the Emerald Princess during my vacation from 10-18-2009 to 10-25-2009. I will go into complete detail about everything that happens from the first day to the last.

On October 18th, 2009 it was my birthday when I called princess cruise and also my travel agency told them more then once it was my birthday when my reservations was made it was noted, I even called so many times to make sure. Once on the ship I noticed that on everyone’s door but mine had balloons. I had No balloons, No singing Happy Birthday to me at dinner and No cake they forgot me but not everyone else. They did not even realize it until I complained. I was told that my room steward was the person that forgot. I’m going to blame where the blame belongs on Princess Cruise and David Pearce the executive housekeeper who is suppose to check to make sure everything is perfect and done correctly. This room steward is a hard worker, I feel she is over worked but in spite of this she always speaks “Hello I hope you have a nice dinner or enjoy yourself always with a smile. Always good morning with a smile. Long hours but she speaks always and that smile just makes you feel to smile back. She realized once I complained she felt so bad she was sorry it happened, and I understand why over worked and long hours and I can only guess how much you pay them shame on you these poor people. So once again I Blame princess cruise. By the way my room was always spotless, clean towels. Being the cruise send me flowers after they made a mistake that admits it was the cruises fault and flowers just does not get it when the problems continued. At the end of the cruise I received a make a difference card, I say my room steward made a difference to me for the reason she showed me how sorry she was about my birthday and she is a very very hard worker. This lady is the only one that said she was sorry out of all the other problems that I had not any of your staff on the ship said they was sorry that caused the problems.

Photo Gallery the next issue and problem that I had on your ship. I’m a person with a disability on this day that I walked to the photo gallery my ankles was very swollen it was very hard for me to walk when I reached the photo gallery they just closed it which I understand however when I tried to explain my situation to Lisa to please try to understand how much my feet hurt and that I had a very hard time to walk here she could look at my feet and ankles and see how big they was. I ask her to please show my pictures to me. Lisa made the choice not to be understanding and considerate and still said NO I ask her to call her supervisor more then once as she made me wait and wait sitting on my walker I got to the point I felt I was waiting to long and I ask Lisa what should I do? She responded back in a very harsh voice and her words not nice at all and her tone of voice was very disturbing to me she said you can wait if you want to or you can leave it was my prerogative in such a nasty tone of voice basically she was saying damn if you do damn if you don’t, her don’t care attitude. I was in tears for the reason this lady has no idea how I felt with feet swollen and the pain I was in I could not excuse her for talking to me like that I really think that she could have been more understanding and should have been nicer. Later I was near the purser desk and one of Lisa coworkers came over to me and told me how sorry she felt that Lisa did that to me. But how come Lisa did not come to me and apologize.

This is the third issue Amanda Coulter was sitting at the captain circle host desk on deck six near the purser desk. I walked over to Amanda asking if she could please help me. St. Thomas has a Jewish Temple that I would like to go see so I was asking her for help and ask her for information about the Temple, she responded “I don’t know” your staff famous words “I don’t know” then I asked Amanda since you don’t know please call someone that might know and can help me the phone was in front of her never picking it up not even a attempting to try to pick it up so I asked her again she just sat there and looked at me like I was asking to much from her or I was stupid for asking her to help me. I thought that your staff was here to help us or at least try I was wrong I guess on this ship we are on our own way not only this lady Don’t know anything but there was more then a few of your staff that I asked where is this place and the answer I heard was I don’t know. Amanda was not busy I was the only person there so it could not be that she was to busy. I then asked her if she had a problem with this Temple or my religion. I felt I gave her enough time if she was going to help me she never did instead she burst out in tears at the time I had No idea why and what did I say to her I had no clue I walked away from her because this was not normal way to act when that’s all I did was ask for help when she just sat there and did nothing I ask a question that’s all and I asked her nicely to please get someone else that maybe can help me she did nothing at all. She picked up the phone then and was crying to some one I was in the pursers line to cash a travelers check I was standing in line when I looked over at her and there was a man wearing all white she was talking to him and then I saw her leave before she left she pointed me out in the line and this man came over to me name unknown and this lady named Kusan was there also he said for me to go into this office now in a stern tone in his voice and so did Kusan Furrer get in the office Now! I said I will not until I finish cashing this check then I will go not before not before and that’s what I did as this man stood there and watched me like a criminal, embarrassed me in front of other passengers all because this Amanda lied and was untruthful about what was really said she added her own words in this what I never said to her and this man and Kusan believed her even before they ask me anything I was being treated like a criminal? This was handled in a wrong manner she told this man that I called her antis emetic and I never said that to her at all she added those words on her own, she lied. When I did go into the office I learned who Kusan was the senior assistant purser when I went into the office at that time I was asked what did happen and I told them the truth what I said to her. I will say this you allow your staff to lie about what passengers say I refuse to believe you allow this type of action to happen what kind of people you hire on your ship. Two days later I went back to speak to Kusan in the office my thoughts was this lady lied about what was said because I was her escape goat I feel she really did not want work at this area where she was so she lied about what I said to her to get out of there maybe she was bored. I’m wondering what is your policy on employees that lie and are untruthful and make up and turn something around such like she did here and use her own words that she added to this. And made Kusan and the other gentleman harass me and made me feel like a criminal. At this point I wished I never went on this cruise. It will be interesting how you are going to handle this and repair this to make me see different about your cruise line and this is not how your employees are and I can have a great time and stress free like I was suppose to.

When I was in the office talking to Kusan about the pool I was telling her that I could not get into the pool because of my knees I could not climb down or up the ladder but I would love to get into the pool however no one ever let me know that there was a lift there to get into the pool no staff let me know this, a passenger let me know this however I feel this should have been told to me by your staff.

There is one more thing that I and Kusan talked about in the office I have psoriasis on my legs and before I went on your ship it was clearing up a lot but when all this stress from your employees it caused me to have a bad out break that’s what stress does when you have this, ask Kusan she knew because someone in her family has the same thing I have, and we talked about it. I’m blaming Princess cruises for my psoriasis outbreak.

I and Kusan also spoke about the other issues that I had that’s all I got was they spoke to them and how sorry they are this happen that’s not good enough for me my 3 days so far I had problems 3 separate problems my cruise was ruined I told Kusan I’m not happy at all. I went on your cruise line in good faith I heard how nice it was I say they was wrong at this point I know there is better cruise lines out there that stand behind there name.

There is one more problem that I had on your ship I will tell you about after I tell you about the food the dining room that I was in the food was very bad did not enjoy it at all I have been on other cruises and I know that it could had been a lot better. Only two times I was sitting with other people to enjoy and have a conversations the other times I had to sit alone wish I did not enjoy at all. I went to dine at Sabatini’s the food was great but even there I had a problem I had to call over the head waiter I was finished with my hot appetizers I was left to sit there for 15 to 20 minutes just waiting I was going to get up and leave I paid extra $20 to get served not to sit there and wait and being over looked terrible service.
The production shows was greattttttttttt excellent. Make sure you keep them on it was fun, enjoyable keeps you interested to the end.

I mentioned this above there was several persons on your ship that when asked by a passenger where this is or where that is there famous words are I don’t know how can a person work on this ship day after day not know? Or is it that they don’t want to tell you so they say I don’t know. Really think you poorly train your staff they have no manners, they lie, they are dishonest, they are inconsiderate, they are not nice, your ship is very poorly run and most of all you have dirty nasty help that can’t leave there hands off of passengers and touch you without permission with that said I now will tell you about this issue like they say saving the best for last.

On October 24, 2009 between 8:15pm to 9:00pm I was at the dinner buffet come to find out they ran out of Prime rib because once again very poorly ran and really should of cooked enough or did they run out then you should of cooked something equal not pork roast cook something everyone eats give a choice. I myself do not eat pork all the time. I did complain to the head man wearing a suit walking around and to the head cook.

I was sitting to my table trying to eat this terrible food that I did not enjoy I was told if I did not like it to go get a pizza or a burger I did go without dinner that night the veggie burgers are so bad I throw it in the garbage. Back to when I was sitting to my table at the buffet one of your kitchen help was talking to me about the food matter of fact he was the one and told the cook I would like to speak to him about the food. As I was sitting in my chair picking at my food I noticed that your kitchen help kept touching my shoulder I did not get his name and that was my choice after he kept touching my shoulder and many times I tried to move my chair when he was to close to the back of my chair touching my back I tried to scoot my chair forward so he would not touch my back I tried my best to not cause a scene I have a bad temper at times. Yes I could of said no and to stop but knowing me I would had raised my voice or I could of hit him but then what I would be the one in trouble I thought about it and made the choice to leave when he left and before he came back I would be gone and that’s what I did I called the man with the suit over I complained again about the food he took my plate away and I left. That does not excuse your poorly run ship and your staff to do as they please and to touch the passengers without permission it is not ok and yes I could of complained but what would I get other then I spoke to him and I’m sorry just like all the other problems I had on your ship. If you would like to pursue this matter with this person that can’t leave his hands where they belong I would and if you would like to take this to a legal level I would do that to I guess we can find out his name if you like I remember his face and we could narrow it down to the staff working that time I was there, it was only one buffet open at the time I was there so it should not be so hard. I have plenty of time to take this matter to a legal level if you like it is your choice.

I really hope that this is all the complaints I hope that I did not forget anything if something comes in my mind believe me I will send it in writing via computer right away.

I still I’m very unhappy about the cruise it was ruined and it should of never happen I went on your ship as my intentions was to relax and have fun it did not happen like a planned I was under more stress on the ship it caused health problems with my psoriasis. I feel like you took my hard earned money that I had to saved for this cruise. You do not train your staff enough to handle problems that arise in a correct manner and I hope you settle this other then a letter of we are sorry I will not accept it as all I’m going to get. After all this was your fault due to your unruly staff. I was asked what I would like to make me happy I would like my money back I’m willing to except another cruise on another ship I’m willing to give you another chance to show me all of your staff knows how to act in a civil manner and since you ruined my cruise. There is one more thing that I and Kusan agreed upon is the pictures that I picked out was supposed to go to Kusan and she is supposed to send them to Santa Clarita, CA I have no idea who she send them to or what department they went to can you please find out for me, here is all her info Kusan Furrer Senior Assistant Purser, Princess Cruises, 24844 Avenue Rockefeller, Santa Clarita, CA. [protected] {661} 753-0000 who ever has the pictures please me Miriam Gordon Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Thank you,
Miriam Gordon

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van de merwe
maidenhead, GB
Feb 25, 2011 9:09 pm EST
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Your sad [censor]ing american trailer trash. I would have kicked you overboard.
A cruise ship is not a nursering home. Stay at home and put a bullett into your had your sick freak.

With love from Germany

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San Diego, US
Dec 07, 2009 9:32 pm EST

You can't be serious...

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Princess Cruise Lines smoking

Smoking on the Island Princess

Princess fails to protect non-smokers from the well-known negative health consequences of second-hand cigarette, cigar, and pipe smoke.

Princess makes no effort to enforce the minimal rules they do have. If you point out a violation of the rules to the Pursers office, they will listen to you and do nothing. Security people who are supposed to enforce the rules can see people smoking in non-smoking eating areas - and not say or do anything. I understand that Princess employees don’t want to hassle customers, but letting smokers pollute the air wherever they want is grossly unfair to non-smokers.

There is so much Princess and other cruise lines could easily do to make things better - like have all smoking cabins on the Port side and all non-smoking cabins on the Starboard side; and restrict smoking in public rooms to enclosed designated areas. Celebrity and RCI have taken a step in the right direction by banning smoking in cabins and on balconies, but more is required!

P&O Cruises Australia seems to be leading the way in limiting smoking on cruise ships. Their policy is: “In the interest of our passengers' health, safety and enjoyment during their cruising holiday, smoking is not permitted indoors, including in cabins, suites and on private balconies. This is in line with Australian standards. Outdoor smoking venues will be published in the Pacific Daily on board your cruise” (see www.pocruises.co.nz/AlreadyBooked/CruiseHandbook/Pages/SmokingPolicy.aspx).

The smoking policies of most cruise lines can be found at: http://www.shipdetective.com/ships/programs/smoking_policies.htm . Princess is not alone in catering to smokers and disregarding the health, safety and enjoyment of non-smokers.

Princess wants to pretend that sensitivity to tobacco smoke is just a matter of personal preference and opinion – not a real health and safety issue. You would think the Star Princess fire of March 23, 2006 would have made it abundantly clear to Princess management how dangerous smoking in cabins and on balconies is to the physical safety of passengers, crew, and the ship itself. See http://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=1576 for details of the horrific fire.

Princess once told us in a letter that cruise ships were not like airplanes, and that passengers could not be expected to wait for the next Port to smoke. I would respond that smoking is completely optional, and treatment options are available for those wishing to quit smoking. Breathing fresh air is not optional; in fact, it is an absolute necessity for people with respiratory issues like Asthma, and is generally necessary for everyone’s good health – including smokers.

Princess says that smoking is prohibited in dinning areas and theaters. However, when smoking is allowed in cabins, the clothing of smokers is saturated with the stench of stale smoke that goes with them throughout the ship. The stench lingers for a long time after the smoker leaves the area. This definitely affected our enjoyment of public areas.

Some public areas are divided into smoking and non-smoking sides. This ridiculous approach results in the whole area being filled with cigarette smoke. The only effective way to control the spread of cigarette smoke in public areas is to eliminate it at the source. Otherwise, you should label the public areas as Smoking Only.

Non-smokers pay the same price as smokers for a cruise. But smokers have the power to prevent non-smokers from enjoying most of the ship’s features by the simple act of smoking and polluting the air in an area. If cruise lines were fair, they would charge non-smoking passengers substantially less because they cannot enjoy the ship as much as smokers.

Cruise ships seem to be the last refuge of smokers. Smokers think nothing about lighting-up in the presence of non-smokers. They often seem to enjoy exposing others to their second-hand smoke. Cruise line management is extremely reluctant to offend the sensibilities of smokers. They don’t seem to realize how many non-smoking customers they are loosing after each trip. According to the CDC, only 19.8 of U.S. adults smoked cigarettes in 2007. Cruise management had better start being concerned about the sensibilities of the 80% of the population that don’t smoke, if they want to remain a growing industry.

Princess management doesn’t want to know what their customers think about their smoking policy. They could easily find out by including smoking in the things they put in their evaluation questionnaire, like:

v Should smoking continue to be allowed in cabins?
v Should smoking continue to be allowed on balconies?
v Should smoking continue to be allowed in bars and lounges?
v Should smoking continue to be allowed on the Promenade Deck?
v How effective is enforcement of the Smoking Policy of this ship?
v Does allowing smoking on this ship negatively impact your enjoyment of the cruise?
v Does smoking on this ship negatively impact your health?
v Does allowing smoking on this ship cause you to be concerned about the safety of cruising?
v What could we do to reduce the impact of smoking on you?
v How important is it for you to be able to smoke on this ship?
v Should smoking be banned on this ship?

Princess could easily ask these questions if they were interested in what their customers thought about smoking. The fact that they don’t ask any smoking questions tells me how desperate they are to allow smoking in spite of their fiduciary duty to the stockholders. They don’t ask the questions because they don’t want to know the results that would probably require them to take actions to limit or band smoking. By not asking any questions, management can pretend that everything is fine, and that they are not aware of any serious problem allowing smoking causes their customers. This is folly on steroids!

Princess needs to join the rest of the civilized world and highly restrict smoking on ships so that non-smokers are not continually subjected to the stench and health impacts of second hand smoke, the potential of spending many hours/days in a life boat, or worse - cancer from second smoke or death by fire.

I personally favor an absolute ban of any type of smoking on cruise ships – with violators removed from the ship at the next Port (like they do for drug possession or use). My wife and I have decided to boycott Princess until they completely ban smoking on their cruise ships. The perks of being Platinum means nothing compared to the stench of cigarette smoke.

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Princess Cruise Lines - waste of monies, bad cruise, staff rude

I went on a princess cruise Emerald princess it was terrible please don' t waste your money the service is terrible the dining room food is terrible they run out of food the staff is terrible the forget to celerbate your birthday and they have very nasty rude people on this ship and then they lie about things you said and never did and then they treat you...

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Princess Cruise Lines - poor service

I went on a Princess cruise this summer. Although these problems may seem minor, what upset me most about this cruise line is they did nothing to fix them or make me feel like I was a valuable customer. When I got home, I mailed this letter to the President of Princess and two other senior level people. I mailed this over a month ago and got no response. If...

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Princess Cruise Lines greedy people

Princess changed the entire itinerary for their Mexican cruise to include the coast of California. Offered no compensation, no shipboard credit, no ability to reschedule, nada. These guys are as greedy as they come.

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2no_or_not2no
Hoboken, US
Jul 18, 2009 1:39 pm EDT

dispute the charges on you credit card w/your card co. Dispute it for misrepresentation. Basically at the time of purchase(when you gave them your card #) they promised you one thing, but then they didn't follow through. The card Co. can do a chargeback for that, but you might have to furnish some evidence, like an itinerary or pamphlets and write a letter disputing the charge.

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Princess Cruise Lines what was supposed to be a three hour tour turned into a nightmare.

I went on a three hour tour with my friend Mary Anne, a professor, a skipper and a millionaire. The tour was fine at first, but then there was this big storm that blew us off course. We ended up stranded on an Island for several years before we were rescued. There we made our own hut and learned how to survive for 25 years before we were rescued. To our surprise the world changed. I considered writing you a letter but my friend told me about something called "email" where you can send a reply directly by email and not pay postage, which is good since the price of the stamp and everything else went up in the 25 years we were stranded.

I don't think that I will take your boat tour again.

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Update by Danny
Apr 16, 2009 7:42 pm EDT

check out my other comments. I have being making these fiction letters since i was 11.

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ACS1107
High Point, US
May 06, 2009 4:47 pm EDT
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Ahhhh ha ha ha ha haaaa!

I love it!

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mrsquigles
North Platte, US
Apr 16, 2009 7:45 pm EDT
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haha, i was just checking out your "store does not sell quidditch supplies" complaint at pissedoff consumer. I didn't even know trolling complaint web sites even existed. This is great. You, trevor, and jason tillo are all over the place.

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mrsquigles
North Platte, US
Apr 16, 2009 7:32 pm EDT
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Nice.

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Princess Cruise Lines bad service

Recently, my wife and I took a cruise on the Ruby Princess. This is a new ship and this was it's fifth cruise. We have cruised before, four times with Carnival. We thought we would try a more "upscale" cruise line. WOW, what a total disappointment! Our state room was much smaller than a comparable level selection with Carnival. No spa bath tub, Top sheet on the beds are attached to the blanket so you can't cover up with just the sheet. The balcony was not private as advertised. People have a full view of the balconies of the lower decks. Had to pay extra for ice cream, juices and pizza. (all free on Carnival) Soda "cards" cost $40.00! WORST of all was the food. Cold coffee, warm juice, warm milk, dripping wet sandwiches, stale bread, dried out meat, slimy gooey scrambled eggs, paste like oatmeal, very greasy sausages, nearly rotten slimy fruit (reused)dried out pastery, etc. Very little menu change from day to day. The food on all of our Carnival trips was of a much better quality and freshness. Believe it or not, the meal we had at McDonalds on our way home was much better than 90% of anything we consumed on the ship! We never dreamed that this "upscale" cruise line would serve such low quality meals. I believe most of the food is saved and reused for many days. Also, My wife left behind some clothing. She contacted them and we never got any reply. We also complained about the above mentioned problems to Princess lines and got no response. NEVER AGAIN!

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Princess Cruise Lines Poor service afer cancelling my wedding

In short, my wedding dreams have been shattered!

Through no fault of my own, I now find my wedding plans have been cancelled. Countless preparations organising this event have got to be rectified. Friends and family have to rearrange their plans. Printed stationery has got to be discarded. Booking fees have been lost. All this and more because your company has let me down at a time that should of been one of the happiest in my life. I am of the opinion that your company has shown no remorse what so ever for cancelling our wedding and shattering our hopes and dreams of our perfect wedding day onboard the Caribbean Princess Ship.

It is my understanding - though I have still not received any written conformation from you - that our cruise of 5th April 2009 it is cancelled, ending my plans for marriage on 13th April 2009.

I am very disappointed and feel deeply distressed that you have cancelled what should have been the happiest day of our lives.

When organising a wedding it is very stressful and expensive, trying to ensure that everything has been considered and arrangements are made, and in ample enough time to ensure that you can arrange exactly what you want. This is an arduous enough task for most weddings, but when a cruise is added and dates and travel are involved, this stress is multiplied tenfold.

Therefore, having achieved what we felt was a monumental task in organising family and friends to join our holiday cruise wedding; we were devastated when your company cancelled.

Can you imagine the inconvenience? The changed plans? The spoiled stationery? The lost purchases and irredeemable expenses?

As I am from an Italian background, I am including some of the Italian traditions in our wedding. When our plans were set, we had our wedding bands designed and made. Within these are engraved our names and wedding date. These are now worthless.

It has always been my dream to get married on a cruise ship so we did a lot of research and contacted various companies to get information and prices for the cruise and wedding. After many recommendations and reviews for your company we decided to book our wedding and cruise with you. We had been told your service was better than other cruise companies.

As you had exactly what we wanted on offer we decided that we would book with your company.

Obviously at a wedding, planning for family members is critical. As my brother is studying for his A-levels and is unable to take time off school during term time we had to ensure that we booked our cruise during set and published school holidays. Therefore we decided to go Easter 2009.

We spoke to our other family members who were joining us to ensure that the time was convenient for all and as you can imagine, this took some organising, especially as a number of them run their own companies and time away is for them very difficult to plan for.

Eventually everyone confirmed that they were available at our desired time and we decided to book November 2007.

Unfortunately things didn’t run smoothly. Looking back at the whole experience of booking with your company the first time I became unhappy with the service I received form your company was to do with our departure flights from the UK. We were given the option of flying from Manchester or London Heathrow to Miami for an over night stop, as we live in the midlands area and have 2 members of the party that are over the age of 70 we decided that Manchester would be the best option for us as the travelling time would be less that travelling to London. I contacted yourselves to find out which airline you would be arranging our flights with so I could find out their baggage restrictions for transporting my wedding dress. I was advised that you would be using American airlines having contacted them I was told that they do not fly direct from Manchester to Miami. So I contacted your company again to find out what flights we would be taking to arrive in Miami. I was then advised that we would be taking the following route Manchester to London Heathrow to Chicago to Miami. With waiting times at the transfer airports our journey time would have taken approximately 27hrs to fly from Manchester to Miami although if we had flown from London Heathrow to Miami which does have a direct flight journey time would have been approximately 9 hours. At no point were we made aware of this and had I have not requested details of which airline we would be using, we would not have been informed until closer to our cruise date when we would have been unable to cancel. I don’t understand why an option of flying from Manchester instead of London Heathrow is offered if the first part of the journey will be a flight from Manchester to London Heathrow.

Our evening wedding reception for when we returned to the UK for all of our family and friends that are unable to make the cruise had been arranged and payments made. As we are now looking at possibly changing the cruise to the following year we are going to incur additional costs due to the hotels annual price inflation. The hotel can not confirm the additional costs until 12 months prior to the event date.

We had designed and produced our own evening wedding invitations and save this evening card’s, as we wanted them to be unique to us and in keeping with our wedding theme and colour schemes. Our save this evening cards had already been given out to most of our family and friends which we have had to contact and tell them that it is cancelled.

Our grandparents that are within this party will also be incurring additional costs for their travel insurance, they are still awaiting a response as to whether they will loose the money that they have paid for the April 2009 cruise and to get travel insurance for the following year will have an increased premium as their age will have increased as they will be 71 and 76.

The cancellation itself, if it has indeed actually occurred, has been very poorly conducted. Despite the fact that I booked the holiday and a contract therefore existed between your company and myself, I was NOT the one who was notified of the cancellation. It was my mother who was told the cruise was cancelled, even though my mother is not essentially a part of the contract agreement between ourselves. I find this lack of professionalism particularly disturbing, especially when – as already stated – I have yet to receive written confirmation of the cancellation.

Fortunately my relationship with my mother is a good one and I trust her word. It’s easy to imagine that in some other families bonds between family members are not so strong and that messages could be misinterpreted, forgotten or even withheld. I genuinely hope this practice of contacting uninvolved third parties is not a standard one within your company.

The whole experience has been extremely stressful and has had an affect on our health. We are finding that we are having sleepless nights; the matter is always on our minds and we are unable to concentrate on things and, frankly, it doesn’t look like this stress will ease any time soon. I had to miss an afternoon off work, which I was unpaid for, due to the fact that I was absolutely devastated that our wedding, the day I had been planning and was so excited and looking forward to have been cancelled. We are having to ensure that we have cancelled all arrangements for April 2009 and looking to rearrange for the following year. Which we are now finding will incur further costs to ourselves, which we had not previously budgeted for.

Therefore I feel that your offer to price match our cruise price of what we would have been paying for April 2009 and a $250 onboard spend for each couple is not acceptable as this is nowhere near the costs that we will incur due to you cancelling our cruise and wedding. My brother will have finished his A-levels, when we are looking at other cruises, therefore we will not have to stick to school holiday times and we are finding that the prices that we are being quoted are less that that of what we would have paid for April 2009, therefore the price matching is of no advantage to us as we will not save any money.

I appreciate that I am certainly very emotionally involved in this matter but then weddings are an emotional subject – and holiday companies do attract us with their offers. So when these services are cancelled (or not, as only third party conveys this message to date, not a letter), when arrangements need to be undone, when money is lost and people are disappointed and inconvenienced, the matter cannot help but be an emotional one.

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Princess Cruise Lines refused to refund our deposit!

Mid 1998 I contacted a local travel agent to book a Princess cruise for 4 (my fiancé and I and my two daughters) to celebrate the Millennium -- i.e. New Years Cruise 1999. I was told that no brochures had yet been printed but that the details -- dates, ports, and so on -- were available, and that we could make a booking for a deposit of $500 per person (total $2,000 US) to hold two specific staterooms.

Booking so far in advance of travel I was concerned about cancellation policy, but my travel agent was assured by her Princess Cruises contact that the same cancellation policy would apply in December 1999 that was in place for all other Princess cruises -- that is, NO PENALTY would apply until 6 months prior to the travel date. I went ahead with the booking, paying the $2,000 to Princess, assured that our deposit was fully refundable up until June of 1999.

Early in 1999 (well in advance of the ‘6 month’ penalty date) I advised my travel agent that circumstances were such that the four of us were not able to travel together at the Millennium and that she should cancel the cruise and, of course, refund our deposit. A few days later she advised me that our booking was cancelled but that Princess had REFUSED TO REFUND OUR DEPOSIT citing a ‘new’ policy, which was added to the Millenium brochure on printing, prohibiting any and all refunds for cancellation of Millennium cruises.

Princess was adamant on the point, and refused to even negotiate. It mattered not to them that they had changed their policy AFTER we made the booking, nor that they would quite likely resell the space to other passengers.

Needless to say, many letters and phone calls were made to Princess. I told them that I was a repeat customer, a member of their Captains Circle (“where loyalty means rewards and recognition”… according to their literature) offered to allow the $2,000 to be credited towards future travel, and so on -- but nothing moved them. They simply confiscated our $2,000 which, in my opinion, was an immoral action on their part.

As you can imagine, I have not forgotten or forgiven this mistreatment by Princess and believe that the $2,000 (plus interest) is still owed to us. Of course, we would never consider doing business with Princess again.

My husband and I have been on three cruises since our unpleasant experience with Princess and I think I can fairly say that Holland America, Celebrity and Seabourn have each profited well in excess of the $2,000 Princess wrongly confiscated, and we would be delighted to travel with any one of them again.

We are often asked for cruise line recommendations -- and at every opportunity we advise potential passengers not to trust or travel with Princess.

There are many fine cruise companies who treat their passengers honestly and with respect. Unfortunately, I do not believe Princess is one of them.

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Leila Devine
, US
Feb 26, 2024 9:20 pm EST
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On Feb 2, 2024 I had lunch at the salad bar in the Buffet area located on Deck 16 and felt ill with vomiting and diarrhea. What a way to end the cruise. I included this info on their survey and received no response.

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Sherri Hunt
, US
Jan 28, 2024 10:08 am EST
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I was sent an email that stated I needed to order my medallion by 1/22/2024. It is now 1/22/2024 and they are telling me that I was supposed to order it by yesterday which is a contradiction to the email which I relied on as accurate. This is our first time sailing with Princess and this is not a good situation to start a relationship off with.

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Rita Grunik
, US
Dec 06, 2023 8:36 am EST
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I paid in full over 7100.00 approx 29Nov 23 that's over a 100 days before departure for 17th Mar 2024. A Melb to Melb cruise, Am I guaranteed a Balcony room ?. Please reply as My Partner and I are worried not getting a confirmation back yet.

Booking Number ; 5MMV7N

Yours sincerely

Rita Grunik

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Peter Burgan
, AU
Sep 23, 2023 3:45 am EDT

I am going on a cruise in November and are no sure of the current data re covid vacinations on a cruise from Australia,I keep being re directed back to the same useless Princess website. Do I need to show a negative test result when boarding in Sydney and what web site do I go into to speak online with a rep

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Barry Labovitz
, US
Aug 05, 2023 6:36 pm EDT
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I was told at the service desk that there are two types of credit. One for spending on the ship which is use it or loose it. The second is use it out we will send you a check. I have never received those unspent dollars and when I call them they deny the policy.

This was on a British Isles cruise I took in 5/23.

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Johnson Chao
Kuching, MY
Jul 01, 2023 12:24 pm EDT
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On my Visa card statement a amount USD109.90 is charged under ref no [protected] Princess cruise passage on4/26/23

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JPP1
, US
May 10, 2023 1:33 am EDT
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We're currently on a waiting list on one of the shore excursion, however, customer support couldn't tell me in what order or my current position. He stated there's no way to determine.

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Princess Sucks
The Villages, US
Mar 12, 2023 3:54 am EDT
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We have an upcoming cruise on Princess in Great Britain and they refuse to get back to us or answer any of my questions regarding the trip. Their customer service after you book is non existent. Emails, texts and phones are not answered. I will never cruise with them again. They take your money and run.

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Mstandel
Harpers Ferry, WV 25425, US
Dec 12, 2022 6:40 pm EST
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You stated that you would respond to my complaint within 48 hours, well it been over 48 hours.

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M Roosevelt
, US
Dec 06, 2022 7:00 am EST

The Recruiter stole from me and does not want to send me my money back . And he does not want to send me paper work to for me to start working

My name michael R . [protected]

Princess Cruise Lines In-depth Review

Overview: Princess Cruise Lines is a renowned cruise company with a rich history in the industry. Offering a wide range of services and amenities, Princess Cruise Lines ensures a memorable and luxurious experience for its passengers.

Destinations: Princess Cruise Lines takes you to some of the most breathtaking destinations around the world. From the Caribbean to Alaska and Europe, their itineraries cater to diverse preferences. Popular ports of call and well-curated cruise options make every journey unforgettable.

Fleet and Ships: With a sizable fleet, Princess Cruise Lines offers a variety of ship types to suit different needs. Each ship boasts impressive features and amenities, ensuring a comfortable and enjoyable voyage. Notable ships like the Royal Princess and Regal Princess offer unique offerings that set them apart.

Onboard Experience: Princess Cruise Lines provides a range of accommodation options, from cozy cabins to luxurious suites, all equipped with top-notch amenities. The dining options onboard are exceptional, with high-quality food that caters to various tastes. Entertainment and activities, spa and wellness facilities, and family-friendly amenities make for an unforgettable onboard experience.

Customer Service: Princess Cruise Lines prides itself on its responsive and helpful customer service representatives. The booking and reservation process is seamless, and the onboard staff is known for their friendliness and professionalism. Customer complaints and issues are handled efficiently, ensuring passenger satisfaction.

Value for Money: Princess Cruise Lines offers competitive pricing and excellent value for money. The price of their cruises includes a wide range of amenities and services, ensuring a hassle-free experience. It's important to consider additional costs and fees, but Princess Cruise Lines stands out in terms of affordability compared to its competitors.

Safety and Security: Princess Cruise Lines prioritizes the safety and security of its passengers. Stringent safety measures and protocols are implemented, along with comprehensive emergency preparedness and response procedures. The company adheres to industry regulations and standards, ensuring a secure voyage for all.

Reviews and Reputation: Customer reviews and ratings speak highly of Princess Cruise Lines. Previous customers have had exceptional experiences, praising the company for its top-notch service. Princess Cruise Lines has built a strong reputation in the industry and has received numerous awards and recognition for its excellence.

Sustainability and Environmental Initiatives: Princess Cruise Lines is committed to sustainability and implements various environmental practices and initiatives. The company actively partners with conservation organizations and programs, contributing to the preservation of the environment.

Accessibility and Inclusivity: Princess Cruise Lines ensures accommodations for passengers with disabilities or special needs, making their voyages comfortable and accessible. The company also promotes inclusivity initiatives, catering to diverse groups of passengers. Facilities and services onboard are designed to be accessible to all.

Loyalty Programs and Benefits: Princess Cruise Lines offers loyalty programs that reward frequent cruisers. With perks and rewards, loyal customers can enjoy exclusive benefits. Earning and redeeming loyalty points is made easy, enhancing the overall cruise experience.

Conclusion: Princess Cruise Lines is a top choice for travelers seeking a luxurious and unforgettable cruise experience. With exceptional customer service, diverse destinations, and a commitment to sustainability, Princess Cruise Lines caters to a wide range of preferences. Whether you're a frequent cruiser or a first-time traveler, Princess Cruise Lines is sure to exceed your expectations.

Recommendations: For those seeking a family-friendly cruise, Princess Cruise Lines offers an array of amenities and programs that cater to all ages. If you're a nature enthusiast, consider exploring their Alaska itineraries for a breathtaking experience. For a truly luxurious voyage, the Royal Princess and Regal Princess are highly recommended.

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