Princess Cruises announces that following approval to resume service in 2021, its entire fleet will feature "MedallionClass Experience" technology, offering a range of new features that leverage contactless technologies to significantly enhance and personalize the customer experience, as well as support new health protocols.
Onboard technology is expanding as the transformation of the ships themselves has continued during the hiatus. The Coral Princess, Diamond Princess, Emerald Princess, Grand Princess, Island Princess, Majestic Princess, and Sapphire Princess will return as MedallionClass ships, along with the new Enchanted Princess.
The OceanMedallion™ wearable device replaces the traditional cruise card and combines with innovative integrated IoT (“Internet of Things”) technology to significantly expand contactless options and personalization on board Princess MedallionClass™ ships, including:
• contactless embarkation and disembarkation
• keyless stateroom entry
• completely contactless shopping and commerce
• simplified safety training
• à la carte food, beverages, and retail items delivered anywhere on board
• room service requests via mobile chat
• location-based gaming and betting
• entertainment content via smart devices
Princess Cruises ships with MedallionClass technology also offer the best Wi-Fi at sea, called MedallionNet™. This technology allows guests to stay connected and easily share vacation memories. MedallionNet provides unparalleled connectivity that is fast, unlimited, and affordable, so guests can watch their favorite movies, shows, games, and music, as well as connect to social media and video chat from anywhere on the ship.
“Innovation is allowing us to combine guidance from public health experts with the OceanMedallion’s unparalleled contactless capabilities, honoring our commitment to health and safety as we continue to reinvent and simplify the experience together,” said Jan Swartz, president of Princess Cruises. “During this downtime, we’ve been working behind the scenes redesigning our operation to give guests maximum control over their cruise vacation, as well as activating the Princess MedallionClass experience across all our ships.”.
A remarkable advancement in the vacation industry, the OceanMedallion™ connects guests and crew to an experiential “IoT” platform through a network of sensors and readers that help recognize people in locations throughout the ship, facilitating extraordinary contactless capabilities including highly personalized service and interactive entertainment, while reducing contact between guests and crew both onboard and in ports.
“The same technology we’ve used to simplify and personalize the guest experience on our Princess MedallionClass ships over the past three years is now being further leveraged to safeguard our guests and crew,” said John Padgett, Chief Experience and Innovation Officer at Carnival Corporation. “That means the smartest ships at sea are now enabling intelligence-driven safety processes through OceanMedallion.”.
Touch experiences enabled for Medallion:
TrulyTouchless™ Arrival and Departure
Princess is transforming embarkation day by leveraging OceanMedallion technology to reduce friction, eliminate contact and avoid crowds, streamlining arrival and check-in, as well as completely reinventing the traditional emergency drill.
OceanReady
before leaving home, creating a contactless and expedited arrival and boarding experience. Customers will use the MedallionClass app to upload travel documents (passport information) and complete a health questionnaire in advance, as well as provide important emergency information, payment details, take a security photo, personalize their Medallions, and order accessories to be shipped to their home or ready for pickup upon arrival.
Simplified Emergency Drill:
A new approach to the on-embarkation emergency drill allows guests to view an important safety video on their mobile device at any time on embarkation day or from the comfort of their cabin via their in-cabin television. They can also verify their assigned emergency muster point with a quick, contactless check-in at their convenience anytime between embarkation and the following day. The OceanMedallion and the IoT provide the necessary verification by the ship's captain to confirm attendance at the emergency drill, while simultaneously strengthening onboard safety operations, protecting the health of guests and crew, and increasing operational efficiency.
Keyless Cabin Entry
: Access to cabins is a seamless experience where each guest is securely authenticated as their cabin door automatically unlocks upon approach. The traditional "Do Not Disturb" sign is also a thing of the past, as this option is configurable on the personalized display at the cabin entrance, allowing guests to request privacy or enable the cabin for room service simply by touching the screen or using the MedallionClass app.
Truly Touchless Commerce
MedallionPay transforms vacation shopping by eliminating the need to carry cash and credit cards, both onboard and in Princess Cays. MedallionPay enables easy payment for everything onboard: food, beverages, merchandise, excursions, even laundry tokens. Because the Medallion's proximity sensor links a guest's photo to their location, crew members can quickly process purchases without the need for the guest to touch, swipe, insert a card, sign, or enter a PIN.
OceanNow On-Demand Service™
Food, beverages, retail orders, and service are delivered directly to guests' locations. Guests can place orders using their smart device, their cabin TV, or directly with a crew member, as the Medallion ensures consistently excellent service wherever guests are.
Always-on Service:
Medallion's location-based capabilities are allowing Princess to completely reinvent onboard customer service. Instead of queuing at the customer service desk for help or support, guests sailing on MedallionClass ships can now request assistance from their mobile device, cabin TV, or by speaking to any crew member using OceanNow. Requests will be forwarded to a crew member to chat with or locate the guest needing personal assistance.
“Our customers have always loved the convenience of OceanNow, but because the pandemic has increased the demand for direct delivery, we believe even more customers will embrace the ability to order food, drinks, and more at the location of their choice, whether it’s a meal, a beverage, or any other request,” Swartz added. “It not only eliminates unnecessary lines but also elevates our service quality.”.
Contactless Experiences Accessible Through the MedallionClass App.
Aboard Princess MedallionClass ships and throughout their voyage, guests have access to exceptionally fun experiences, putting them in control. Contactless capabilities are accessible from guests' smartphones and tablets, including locating family and friends, watching new release movies, planning events, and participating in interactive activities, as well as gambling-based games and a variety of interactive entertainment.
• Locate travel companions and chat with OceanCompass™: The Medallion app helps guests easily locate and chat with friends and family onboard. • New Release Movies*: With OceanView™, guests can watch recently released movies and the world's most popular travel series from anywhere onboard using their smartphone or tablet at no additional cost.
• Book Events/Interactive Voyage Timeline*: An interactive timeline within JourneyView™ allows guests to view all scheduled events on board during their cruise and book activities they are interested in attending, adding them to their own personalized calendar.
• Gambling-Based Games*: With Ocean® Casino, guests can wager real money on games, including slots, poker, bingo, roulette, keno, and lottery from anywhere on board, as well as blackjack on in-cabin TVs.
• Interactive Fun: PlayOcean™ puts entertainment at guests' fingertips with interactive trivia, a ship-wide adventure, customizable avatars, and much more. PlayOcean also transforms guests' mobile devices into game controllers for interactive games on the massive Movies Under the Stars screen near the ship's main pool.
Experiences are also available on screens located throughout the ship and on in-cabin TVs.
