We are elite on Princess and till now this has kept us faithful to them but there are now reasons to reconsider.

First we want to acknowledge the outstanding work of the staff on the ship. They are working under great pressure and difficult conditions and are unfailingly friendly and helpful. None of my complaints are about them.

The biggest problem is the entire Medallion system which is rife with system problems. We had many issues. Our shipmates were never able to do precruise preps with the app…it had to be handed over to the IT team. We were incorrectly charged several times for drinks in the dining room, I assume the charges were for tables that were in close proximity to us. The ability to order and receive food anywhere resulted in leftover food and dishes being left in the lounge areas for long periods of time. Definitely not an upscale look! In the IC coffee area you are expected to view the menu using the QR code when a simpler solution is the old school wall menu with prices included. On our cruise check in was delayed by an hour because the system did not work and they had to locate and set up laptops to check in the old way. Many had to go to guest services for new Medallions because they had stopped working. These are our experiences, I am sure there are many others. The Medallion system is our main reason for switching cruise lines in the future. Read more