Princess Cruises has announced refreshed versions of its popular Princess Premier and Princess Plus packages, adding new perks for voyages departing from 2026.
The changes, which include enhanced dining benefits and shore excursion credits, aim to provide better value and more flexibility for guests while phasing out less-utilised offerings.
Pre-cruise pricing for the updated packages remains the same as before if you’re a UK guest – £75 per person per day for the Princess Premier Package and £50 per person per day for the Princess Plus Package.
For guests sailing aboard Sphere-class ships Sun Princess and Star Princess, the pricing will be slightly higher at £80 and £55 per person per day, respectively.
This isn’t the same for US guests though. Their prices are increasing regardless of which ship you’re sailing on.
For most ships in the fleet, the Plus prices are rising by $5 per night to $65, while the Premier prices are rising by $10 to $100 per night.
Again, the Sphere-class ships will have slightly higher prices – $70 for Plus, and $105 for Premier.
What’s New in the Packages?
The updated Premier Package now includes a shore excursion credit, based on voyage length:
- $100 for cruises lasting 6 to 9 days
- $200 for 10 to 20 day voyages
- $300 for sailings of 21 days or more
This new benefit joins a suite of existing perks such as the unlimited Premier Beverage Package, unlimited casual and specialty dining, four-device WiFi, daily crew appreciation, room service and OceanNow delivery fee waivers, unlimited professional digital photos, and reserved theatre seating.
The Plus Package, meanwhile, has been enhanced with two additional casual dining meals per voyage, bringing the total to four.
Other included benefits remain relatively unchanged: the Plus Beverage Package, single-device WiFi, room service and OceanNow fee waivers, and daily crew appreciation.
What’s Being Removed?
To accommodate the new additions, Princess Cruises has removed a handful of lower-usage features from both packages. These include:
- Premium desserts
- Juice bar access
- Fitness classes
- The Princess Prizes promotion
The cruise line says the decision to update the packages was “guest-inspired,” responding to evolving preferences and feedback from passengers.
Controversial Drinks Changes
While I said existing benefits were relatively unchanged, there is one major change that has gone unnoticed by some in the updated terms and conditions.
The Plus Beverage Package now has a 15-drink limit every 24 hours (from 6 am until 6 am the next day), but crucially it includes non-alcoholic drinks.
So if you’re someone who likes a few sodas during the day, that’s now going to impact how many alcoholic drinks you can also have without having to pay extra.
I’m not sure of any other cruise line that limits non-alcoholic drinks under a drinks package, so this change is likely to be controversial.
Guests are already unhappy about the removal of canned sodas from the drinks packages too, and this may spark another backlash.
Continued Value for Guests
Princess Cruises emphasised that these package changes continue to offer significant value over purchasing individual elements separately. For travellers who routinely dine out, use WiFi, and enjoy onboard beverages, the bundled packages can result in substantial savings.
These updates come as cruise lines across the industry, including within Carnival Corporation (Princess’s parent company), review and refine their guest perks to remain competitive and responsive to traveller expectations.
Princess Cruises has not announced any changes to current or 2025 sailings, so these new package benefits will apply only to bookings departing from 2026 onwards.
NEW DEALS JUST RELEASED!
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Hi on princess, what is the name extra 2 casual dinning?
I had this last year but didn’t know what it was for?