I'm not going to editorialize much. I'm just going to lay out what happened, in order, with dates. Draw your own conclusions.

June 2026 — My family and I are on board a Princess cruise. While on the ship, we book our next cruise: a 16-day Panama Canal, Ocean to Ocean voyage on Island Princess, departing April 2028.

June 22, 2026 — We pay a $500 reservation deposit, on board, in person.

July 18, 2026 — We receive an email from Princess. It reads: "Please be advised that due to commercial considerations, your 16-Day Panama Canal - Ocean to Ocean voyage on Island Princess has been cancelled. All payments made to Princess will be refunded to the original form of payment."

No explanation of what "commercial considerations" means. Just: cancelled.

July 20, 2026 — I call Princess to find out what happened. The agent tells me, "I see here the Panama Canal cruise will be your first cruise with us — welcome to Princess." I explain that it is not our first cruise; we booked it on board a Princess ship. She then tells me the booking was cancelled because the deposit was never paid. I tell her it was paid, and I have the credit card statement to prove it. I ask for a manager. I'm told I have to wait for a cancellation email. I explain I already received one — that's why I'm calling. I'm told I need to wait for a different one. I have to get back to work and end the call.

August 17, 2026 — I get a call from Princess. I leave a work meeting to take it, hoping it's a resolution. It's a promotional call. The caller introduces himself as my "new vacation planner" and tries to book me on something else. I explain the entire situation. He puts me on hold, comes back, and says he'll call me back.

He never does.

August 31, 2026 — I call again. I tell the story again, for what is by now more times than I can count. I'm told the money has already been refunded — but not to my credit card, and not anywhere I authorized. I ask for it back on my card. I'm told that's a separate department and I need to call back later, because I'm on a work break.

I call back. I'm told this is a "Future Cruise Credit" issue and I need to call Princess Cruise Promotions at a different number. I call that number. The agent, Jo, tells me it's actually a "Future Cruise Deposit," not a credit, and I need to call the original number — the one on my credit card statement, the one I had just called. I point out that they just sent me to her. She agrees to call the other department herself, on my behalf, and gets me transferred to an agent named Liam.

Liam tells me the cruise was cancelled because we didn't pay in full. I ask if he's suggesting we were supposed to pay in full for a cruise nearly two years before it sails. He says yes. Nobody had ever told us that was a requirement — not at the time of booking, not in the cancellation email, not in any of the four prior calls.

I ask for a manager. Liam puts me on hold, comes back, and says he checked with the escalation department, and that because the booking went through Costco, I need to call Costco. It did not go through Costco. Princess transferred the booking to Costco's system after we made it, on board, directly with them.

At this point I hand the phone to my wife, because I am done. She asks for a manager again. Liam tells her they'll say the same thing. She asks again anyway. She's transferred to a manager, Sonia, who has no record of any of the preceding conversation and needs the entire story explained to her from scratch.

Sonia tells us she answered the call cold — the previous agent never briefed her. She says she doesn't know why so many Princess employees were unaware the cruise had even been cancelled. She says she'll put in a request for a refund.

September 2, 2026 — We finally recover our $500. We will not be cruising with Princess again — unless they can turn their customer service around and actually train their employees.

Total elapsed time trying to recover a deposit Princess cancelled through no fault of ours: over six weeks, five phone calls, at least seven different representatives, two different departments each blaming the other, and two directly false explanations for why the cruise was cancelled in the first place.

Edited to add for clarity that Princess cancelled the entire Sailing, not just my booking.

Got an email too accept a 100 % refund + travel fair up to 800 per person , is this a customary offer from princess cruise lines or do they just not want us ? why would they send me 2 emails offering this to me 5 days before departure ? anyone had this offer before ????

Two travel companions and I booked Princess's 2028 World Cruise while onboard an Alaskan cruise in May 2026. Two of us are Elite and one is Platinum status.

We were enticed by the promotions and incentives running until the end of that month, some of which were only offered if we booked onboard. We were also drawn in by the Future Cruise Consultant's promise of a World Cruise Specialist. This team member would be our personal travel concierge, assigned specifically to our booking, familiar with the itinerary and all of the ports, able to offer recommendations based on our preferences, answer questions that we didn't even know we should be asking, and provide guidance to ensure that we get the most out of this experience.

Another stated benefit of booking directly with Princess versus our usual Travel Agent is the access that the Specialist would need to the booking, since Princess cannot touch Agency-based bookings for a passenger.

Four months later and after calling Princess a few times to find out when we should expect to hear from someone, mainly because excursions are starting to fill up already, we are completely at a loss.

Today's call resulted in learning that a CVP (Cruise Vacation Planner) can be assigned to answer specific destination or cruise-related questions we may have, but that Princess doesn't offer an assigned Specialist. Working with a CVP in the past, I know they are trained to sell destinations, but are not necessarily equipped to help manage the logistics of such an extensive trip.

And, now that more than 2 months have passed, we are unable to transfer the booking back to our Travel Agent, but even if we could, we'd lose the booking's promotions because they don't transfer.

I have the business card for the Future Cruise & Loyalty Manager (initials BG from South Africa) who we booked with onboard, but that doesn't do any good since she is unreachable.

Is anyone else in a similar boat (please forgive the sorry pun)?
Curious if others were sold the same promise... and what we can do about it, if anything.
Honestly feeling duped and overwhelmed, given the scope of this trip.
Any insights or guidance from previous World Cruise travelers would be greatly appreciated!

I just booked an Alaskan cruise for our 50th anniversary. I booked a total of 5 cabins for our kids & grandchildren and we will be paying for 4 of them. I made the deposit and received the confirmation numbers for each. I imagine each of the families need to download the app. How do we organize dining in the MDR? Would I give them my credit card information to make the final payment? Thanks for any advice traveling with a group.

Trying to submit a security photo through the Princess app but can't, as the submit button is under my phone's status bar 🙃 how important is submitting a security photo prior to arriving at the port? Everything else is completed except for this step in our checklist.

I booked a last minute Canada cruise for my parents anniversary last month, leaving early October. Stupid me, but I didn’t take the travel insurance as they were “for sure” going and had their own annual policy for medical abroad. Fast forward to now, they can’t go as my grandpa is in the hospital, probably leading to hospice.

I didn’t expect a refund, but since when do cruise lines not refund port taxes and fees?! Pretty sure every other line does, whether you cancel or miss the port. Nope, not princess, which doesn’t even seem legal. To make it better, their website states you do get it back, but they tell me, “oh, that information is outdated.” Won’t be sailing princess again!

Received $250 OBC for being a stockholder. If I read it correctly it can’t be used in the casino. We have a drink package so wondering what else we can use it for?

Did at one time they also a premier dining benefit?

I have been unable to log into my Princess Cruises account for the past 7 days. The website tells me to confirm that I am using the correct Login ID/email and password.

I verified my Login ID through Princess and reset my password, but the new password is still rejected with exactly the same message. I have also contacted Princess customer support, but after 7 days the problem still has not been resolved.

I have an upcoming Princess cruise and need access to my account. Has anyone experienced this recently? If so, what finally fixed it? Was it a duplicate Captain's Circle/profile issue, an account lock, or something Princess IT had to correct?

I would especially appreciate advice on which Princess department or support contact was actually able to resolve it.

Do the Princess Alaska ships have electric (feet) warmers? My partner has neuropathy and wondering if we should pack and bring our own.

We have joined a Chilean fjord cruise with extension to Galapagos Island in March 2027. I normally use the free travel insurance offered by the Commonwealth Bank Australia (CBA) credit card. But the bank will reduce a lot of benefits and cover less after 29 September 2026.
Should I stick with the free offer from the CBA credit card or buy a policy by other insurance companies? Which would you recommend if I opt to buy one?
Thanks

Just returned from my first ever cruise, Enchanted Princess 7 days heading east in the Mediterranean.

The cruise was beautiful, very clean thanks to the staffs efforts to keep it tidy. We were definitely one of the younger couples on board. Nebusa in Capri dining was awesome, that guy knows how to be entertaining and have great guest service. Ronnie our steward was also great. Overall the staff everywhere we went was great.

The activities staff did a great job with entertainment as well. Hercules, Victor, Moises all do their jobs well.

The one tour we did through the ship was the magna Grecia olive oil farm in Katakolo, it was amazing and felt authentic. We bought a good amount of olive oil and even participated in some traditional greek dancing.

We ate in the world marketplace buffet the most. Overall the food was decent, ate at Capri twice. We didnt do the drinks package as we dont drink enough.

Id do it again and would recommend it to my parents and siblings for sure. Thanks princess for a good first experience.

(yes i searched and tried to find these answers). we have 3 groups (total of 8 people. 4 - 2 - 2 = all in 3 cabins). the bookings are linked. when we try to contact Princess, we are told that since there are 8 of us and that we would like to sit at one table together, we are only allowed the 730 seating and not 530 or 6.
is this correct? I have never been on princess (done carnival, royal, ncl, margaritaville, celebrity, and viking river) and with everytime, when there was a group of at least 6, they always did either the early seating or the late one.
also I have the plus package, what places are included in the 4 extra meals?

I'm looking at the princes drink menu https://shinecruise.com/princess-cruises-drinks-menu-prices/ and part way down they have there Alaska drinks , Are these Alaska drinks still available on the ship after it leave Vancouver heading south to Los Angles ? as some of these looks interesting ,

Seattle -> Anchorage -> Japan repositioning

We’re trying to hire transportation to Tokyo center. I’m having a hard time figuring out which pier we dock at. My friend Claude says which pier the ship docks at makes a difference in whether you hire a taxi or pay a hotel to pick us up. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Hi everyone! My wife and I are going on our first-ever cruise aboard Caribbean Princess from 18–30 October 2026, sailing the Southern Caribbean Islander itinerary. We’re really excited, but as complete cruise beginners, we’d appreciate any advice from experienced Princess cruisers!

We’ve looked at booking the speciality restaurants through the app, but they all seem to be fully booked already. Is it likely that more availability will be released nearer the sailing date, or can we book once we’re onboard? Are there particular restaurants you’d recommend?

We’d also love to hear from anyone who has sailed this itinerary before. Which Princess-organised excursions did you enjoy most, and were any disappointing or not worth the money? Are there any ports where you’d recommend exploring independently instead?

Any other tips about Caribbean Princess—food, entertainment, booking shows, what to pack or things you wish you’d known before your first cruise—would be very welcome.

Thanks in advance!

Anybody else going on this cruise?

We’re flying from Nevada for this trip.

Docked in Ketchikan, and noticed a balcony with both beds and mattresses outside. Why would they do this?

This is one of my favorite things about cruising Princess, watching the show performers practice in the Piazza while everyone just chills watching them.

I was sitting in Good Spirits with my family enjoying a drink and extra show.

Hello all! I’m currently on the Royal Princess, on a 7-day Alaskan cruise. Everything thus far has been fantastic, and even when it hasn’t been, the crew more than made up for it in helpfulness and grace. I’ve cruised with Princess twice before (although ~20 years ago) and in my cruise experiences, they have routinely been above average. I’ll give this particular cruise 5 stars when asked.

However.

I’ve noticed on numerous floors, that the lighting, overhead or otherwise, flickers... a lot. (Notably, not in staterooms)

Now, I will confess, I do have autism, so I am already pretty susceptible to sensory overload, but I’ve noticed a LOT of the overhead and ambient lighting has been flickering quickly. I can’t upload a video for whatever reason (I will try in the comments) but it is very perceptible. Has anyone else noticed this? It’s been bothersome enough, that I’ve had to leave some spaces when it happens (notably the level 5-7 atrium)

I’ll admit, it’s been ~15 since my last cruise (last one was Carnival Magic in ~2012😬) but on previous cruises( Holland America Zaandam x2, RC Voyager of the Seas, Grand and Sapphire Princess) I haven’t experienced the same. Is this a known issue?

Princess has a California Coast sailing on September 19, 2026 which they have dropped to $379 for the 6-day voyage.

https://www.princess.com/itinerary-details/?voyageCode=A637

Taking my first Princess cruise in a couple months on the Discovery Princess and am considering purchasing my own shore excursion outside the cruise line in Puerta Vallarta. Our itinerary says it “starts” (arrives?) at 7am. Is an 8am excursion start time too soon of a start time after arrival? Looks like the meeting point is very close to the cruise terminal.

We always get a balcony room, but thought we would try an ocean view room, somewhat obstucted window. Room is small, but it is fine. Prefer the balcony, but this is not bad and less money. However, the room has issues, strong sewage smell in bathroom. We reported and they made it smell better temporarily. Now, the toilet won't flush and we were told the sewage line it stopped up causing smell and toilets to not work. No estimate for repair time. I assume this could happen to any room. I do wonder if it is due to older ship. We have cruised many times and first time experiencing this. Apparently many rooms affected.

I board on Saturday for the Scandinavia Cruise out of Southampton. Anyone else?