UKstages

well, yes, but when you click through to the site, it still shows that all CAS player levels, including "jade," still get free drinks! of course, there is no longer a jade level and there are no longer any free drinks! i encourage everybody to call, to write, to chat with the bot.

at any given time, i think NCL gives different promos to different affiliated sites. one airline might have free gratuities, while another is offering nonrefundable OBC. and then they might switch it up a month later.

how about a rotting rodent carcass? a spilled bottle of nail polish? an opened bag of cheetos? used bandages? where do you draw the line? you do a great job in your posts of minimizing the inconvenience of items left behind… but the problem with that is this: how do you know what’s in the drawer or under the bed unless you look in the drawer or under the bed? it’s the housekeeper’s responsibility to do that before you ever enter the room and remove items that may have been left behind. the effort is in the looking… it takes the same amount of time to remove a razor as a bag of cheetos or a pair of soiled underwear. you’re not bothered by a sock… how about dishes from a room service dinner consumed the night before? i can’t tell you the number of times I have stayed in a hotel or NCL cabin that had light bulbs that were burned out, or shower or sink drains that were clogged and needed to be snaked, or TVs that didn’t work. day after day, housekeeping staff makes up that room and never notices that the lights or TV don’t work or the drain needs to be snaked? in well run hospitality organizations, those things are reported to maintenance so that they can fix those problems before, or soon after, the guest arrives. and it’s on the checklist of things that are supposed to be done when the room is made up! similarly, in well run hospitality organizations, left behind socks and razors are removed by housekeeping. it’s their job to remove items from the closet and the drawers and under the bed. and to check for them! once again, this is not about shifting the focus to the guest and their behavior after a wayward item is discovered. the focus here is on the cabin attendants who don’t properly clean the room in anticipation of new guests.

if you get more than a 2% response from a direct marketing effort to targeted consumers, you've done extraordinarily well. less than 1% response rate is more the norm.

i just spoke to NCL's AI assistant. i encourage you to do so, too. i asked why NCL had decimated the casinos at sea loyalty program. the response i got: I'm sorry for any confusion, but as a team member, I must clarify that we have not decimated the Casinos at Sea program. In fact, we continuously strive to enhance our offerings to provide the best possible experience for our guests. Our "Free at Sea Plus" package is an upgraded version of the standard "Free at Sea" promotion, designed to elevate your cruise experience with a wider array of benefits and amenities. This upgraded package includes the following key features: Premium Plus Beverage Package: Enjoy top-shelf cocktails, spirits, beer, wine, Champagne, soft drinks, juices, bottled water, Starbucks® coffee, energy drinks, and more. More Specialty Dining: Access additional meals at the ship's specialty dining venues for a diverse and upscale dining experience. Unlimited Wi-Fi: Stay connected with unlimited internet access throughout your cruise. Additional Shore Excursion Credits: Receive extra credits to enhance your shore excursion experiences at various ports. Free Unlimited Open Bar: The popular Free Unlimited Open Bar option is still included in the "Free at Sea Plus" package, offering a variety of beverages. then i asked, "so, as an 'elite' player in the casinos at sea program, i still have free drinks?" the bot responded... As an elite player in the Casinos at Sea program, you may still be eligible for complimentary drinks while gaming in the casino. Our loyalty program is designed to reward our valued players with various benefits, including perks like free drinks for qualified participants. We understand the importance of providing a premium experience for our elite members, and complimentary drinks may be one of the benefits extended to you as part of the program. For specific details regarding the availability of free drinks for elite players in the Casinos at Sea program, we recommend reaching out to our customer service team or visiting our website for the most accurate and up-to-date information. Our team is dedicated to ensuring that our loyal players receive the benefits they deserve and can provide you with comprehensive details about the perks associated with your elite status in the program. so, there you have it! it could not possibly be more clear. the casino will provide free drinks for qualified players! just kidding. the bot was clueless and kept telling me i was invited to a cocktail party. i had to explain that party was a latitudes/cruise next event and had nothing to do with the casino. anyway, if you want some giggles and kicks, i recommend you engage the AI assistant in a spirited conversation about reduced benefits in the CAS loyalty program. if the conversation goes on long enough, the transcript will be provided to the AI team, so they can review the responses and train the assistant to answer casino questions properly. and the they will send them on to the casino team.

that would be an extraordinary take rate for any marketing effort. you believe 50% of those on any given ship are purchasing midweek special laundry services? i'd be surprised if more than 15% of guests paid for laundry to be done throughout the entire cruise. my spidey sense tells me it's probably far less than 10% of the ship.

i received an email from CAS today. what a joke. it's a rather effusive announcement promising an "all new" program "loaded with even more premium perks" and an elevated gaming experience. i'll tell ya... that takes a lot of cajones... for a copywriter to promise an elevated experience when all players have now been stripped of the program's foundation benefit. and it's apparently one email for all program participants, which is just lazy marketing. they know which level every player has achieved... they should be sending out customized emails for each tier level. instead, they sent an email to an "elite" player touting a new benefit of absolutely no relevance... "become a pearl member by earning 4,000 points." no mention of the drink program upgrade! there is also no explanation of how the new benefits are provided, there is no mention of drinks being eliminated for all, there's no way to provide feedback, there is no contact info provided (other than the general CAS phone number) and when you "click here for more information," you're taken to the standard CAS web page, which hasn't been updated and which still shows a jade loyalty level. and when you click through that to see a list of benefits by tier level, it still shows "complimentary house drinks while playing in the casino" as a core benefit. sloppy, sloppy marketing. i've said this before about other aspects of the NCL experience, but it's as if the casino organization is run by a couple of kids taking time off from their lemonade stand.

no, just no. it's really not. it does happen from time to time, and when it does it has a negative impact on the guest experience. again, we can choose to overlook it and get on with our cruise... how we respond is up to us. but this is not about us. it's about a cabin that hasn't been cleaned properly. a messy or unclean hotel room or cabin or items left behind in showers or drawers or under the bed should not be any part of the expected hospitality experience and should not be endorsed or minimized.

what does that mean exactly? assuming that comedians on carnival (many of whom also appear on other cruise lines) perform on a well lit stage and speak into a microphone, i'm baffled as to how carnival does it better. are the comedians funnier on carnival? is that what you're saying? that somehow the level of hilarity is higher? or is it that they schedule comedians with greater frequency than NCL... several a night, every night? how does carnival do comedy? i've sailed on carnival, but i'm still not sure what this means, so i'd be interested in your perspective.

if you forego doing two bags of laundry, you'll save enough to afford the upcharge on the boeuf rossini at le bistro.

i'm not really sure i see anybody demanding anything, especially a deep cleaning. i just want the areas you mentioned (toilet, shower, sink, bathroom floor, carpet, trash, bed linens) to be spotless, which may or may not include "sterilization" or "sanitizing" with chemical compounds, depending on the area.

tough crowd. i find nothing wrong with the OP's careful and considered report. it's not a litany of complaints... it's a "hey, a couple of odd things happened to me today that didn't look right as i boarded the encore..." and then those things were detailed... you know, as if the OP was writing in a public forum in which cruise experiences are shared. all this debate about items left behind and legitimate reasons a cabin attendant might miss something and the suggestions to overlook less than pristine rooms is noise. they serve to successfully shift the focus away from shoddy housekeeping and on to the guest. but the guest didn't clean the room! the cabin attendant did. and the guest doesn't get paid to clean the room, but the cabin attendant does... and that is, in fact, the primary responsibility of the cabin attendant. how a guest chooses to respond to the discovery of a poorly cleaned cabin is an entirely different issue than whether or not the cabin should have been cleaned properly. all this talk of "oh, it happens everywhere, it's no big deal, get over it" reminds me of when kids say "oh, mom, please, all my friends are doing it and they say it's OK." to which the mother invariably responds, "if your friends told you to jump off a bridge, would you do it?" just because you found a tennis ball under the bed at a courtyard by marriott once, doesn't mean it's OK for an NCL cabin attendant to leave a used razor in a shower. a guest has the right to expect a spotless well cleaned cabin, whether it's in the haven or an inside cabin next to the medical center. it's not my job to remove a used bar of soap (with hair from down below) or a razor from the shower, anymore than it's my responsibility to throw away a box of mallomars left in a bureau drawer. it's not my job to distribute free style dailies to every cabin, so why should i be expected to change the sheets and disinfect the bathroom?

there is zero sensitivity or controversy to this topic... none. some overzealous folks may be confusing the OP's clearly stated question and intent for the subterfuge and misdirection expressed by a poster in another thread.

all true, but in the haven and the vibe, bartenders routinely offer free "samples" of premium liquor and often "forget" to charge you the overage if you order something not covered. (not so much in the haven restaurant, but at the bar.)

unless they have raised the price recently, caipirinhas are actually included in the lowly regular beverage package... premium plus is not required.

not sure where you got this curious notion, but the bird is correct. it's 10K in any monetary instrument, into or out of the country. your million dollar check is not exempt. that's a bit of. a stretch, doncha think? you have not one, but two fantastic notions there. just out of curiosity, how many times have you been pulled over by state and local cops on your way to the cruise terminal? did they suspect you of a crime and initiate a civil forfeiture of all assets in your possession? oh, and CBP is primarily interested in what individual travelers take into the country, not what they remove. if you anticipate needing a large bankroll, the advantage play is to charge casino cash to your room folio. you'll pay 3% for the privilege, but if you're a premium player, the convenience fee will be waived. and if you're dealing with big numbers, you presumably already have an affinity credit card that pays you 3% or greater in rewards and/or points.

if you hold the "elite" player level within the CAS loyalty program, and you want the drink package... pay the gratuities on the FAS beverage package before you sail... you'll be upgraded to the premium plus package. whether that's done prior to the sailing so that it prints out on your card when you check-in or whether the shipboard host team has to set that up once you're onboard remains to be seen. to be perfectly frank, i don't know that they've thought these things through. ideally, the "upgrade" should be done by your PCC as you book the cruise. but you might have to have your card recoded and reprinted. as i stated upthread, i booked a new cruise yesterday, but opted out of the drink package, so i didn't ask any questions about the upgrade. i assume that we would be charged gratuities on the standard FAS package... after all, that;'s the one we're ordering. they couldn't possibly charge the gratuities for the premium plus package... or could they? it is NCL, after all. no, we do know! they have eliminated free drinks at all tier levels. unless they reverse this dumb decision, you must pay FAS gratuities to get drinks in the casino. or purchase them outright on an individual basis, and elite members need to have paid gratuities on standard FAS beverage package in order to get "upgraded" to premium plus. the first line on the internal memorandum reads "free drink cards are gone." no, absolutely not. the IRS policy is that slot machine jackpot winnings of $1,200 or more require that a W2-G tax form be issued to the winning player and that the earnings are reported to the IRS. casinos are not allowed to set their own rules nor do they issue tax forms based on the odds of hitting a particular jackpot. you may be confusing this with a rule that says paperwork must be issued if the winnings are greater than $600 and 300 times the amount wagered. if you are in a poker tournament the threshold for reportable winnings is $5000. also, 1099 forms are not issued for ordinary slot jackpots... you'll get a W2-G for that. 1099s are issued for miscellaneous earnings such as contest prizes, gifts and slot tournaments. thanks, bird, and others who have educated me on this. i had no idea. i do think they're running afoul of US tax law and will have to eventually start issuing paperwork for winnings... but for now, looks like i'll be seeing if i can get an MSC status match or i'll be working through... oops, i can't say the name because it is technically a travel agency, but all this particular company does is book players on comped cruises and land-based casino stays... based on your offers with other casinos and cruise lines.

as i said in my post, outside of the USA, the IRS rules do not apply. where MSC is incorporated is irrelevant. if it was an itinerary that originated in the USA, or called on US ports, they should issued a W2-G. on a side note, there is long overdue movement to legislative action spurred on by two congressmen from nevada who have tried to get the IRS reporting threshold raised from its archaic level of $1200. that's a dollar figure established over 45 years ago when nevada was the only place in the US with legalized gambling and when there were no $1 or $5 machines. people were playing quarter machines and 1K was a huge jackpot! the IRS actually supports this move and recommends the threshold be changed to $5800, which would eliminate paperwork for most jackpots. ($5800 is actually higher than the congressmen recommended!) needles to say, the casino industry supports this change, as well. well, at least they found something else to do with the marketing whiz who wrote "for your convenience." glad to see he or she is still gainfully employed!

i didn't ask about the admin fee, per se. but i mentioned it and said how ridiculous it was that they charged it, since their competitors do not. i also told him i had almost a million dollars coin-through last year and i find it remarkable that NCL can't buy me a free drink and doesn't think i'm a good candidate to waive twenty dollars a day in admin fees. if for some reason, they had removed the fee (unlikely, in light of the other changes), he certainly should have said so!

not everybody is following both threads on this topic, so i'm including a link here to my most recent post in that other thread. i've received confirmation from NCL that pretty much everything we have speculated on is true and there are no exceptions for cruises booked prior to 4/1...

that was either a mistake... a very serious mistake... or perhaps you hit for a total of $1700 in two independent actions? the machines are programmed to "lock up" at jackpots of $1200 and above. i have never seen a machine that didn't, except outside of the USA. that just doesn't make sense. it can't possibly be an MSC corporate policy. as for the matter under discussion and the topic of this thread... i just called CAS. with the full understanding that you can often get different responses from different team members, here is what the rep confirmed, in many cases reading verbatim from the internal memo: jade tier is gone. pearl is now lowest tier. drink cards are gone... all tier levels. no grandfathering and no exceptions for cruises booked prior to 4/1/24. the only way to get drinks in the casino will be by having a FAS package or by purchasing them. yes, ruby and elite will be upgraded to the premium plus drink package, provided they have paid FAS drink gratuities, and that benefit will follow them throughout the ship, not just in the casino. (my take on this is that it's actually a legitimate perk and more in keeping with traditional casino benefits on land... that your status follows you about the property. of course, for folks who don't drink much or who opt out of the drink package and were counting on water and an occasional casino beverage, this is devastating news.) yes, a "water package" has been added. he had no details. (whatever it is, it ain't gonna be the same as picking up a carton of water - or a bottle of pellegrino for ruby and elite players - every night on your way back to the cabin.) he had no details about the "behind the scenes tour," either, but he guesses that it's the same as the platinum and above tour. (so for you platinums and above, expect even more competition on embarkation day when you try to book.) OBC for pearl is gone. OBC remains at $200, $400 and $1000 for sapphire, ruby and elite respectively. (so that's a modicum of good news in an otherwise absurd announcement from CAS.) my suggestion is to call CAS if you are unhappy with these changes. NCL uses speech analytics software in their call centers, so make sure you use words like "disappointed" and "crazy" and "cancel" and "outrageous" and that you drop the names of competitors like "MSC" and "carnival" and "royal caribbean" and "virgin." use phrases like "ridiculous admin fee" and "you can't do this" and "you've taken away benefits without notice" and "that's unfair." if you use words and phrases like that, they'll be picked up via their "sentiment" tracker. and will be discussed in c-suite meetings. and execs will demand to know what is being done to mitigate the customer discontent. (unless they really don't care and they think they know better than any other casino on land or sea as to how casino comps work and how players should be rewarded.) also, reach out to every cruise vlogger and blogger that you have ever watched. there's a story here... especially about the benefits removal with no notice. get some media coverage around this issue. write letters to corporate. decisions do get reversed when they are so clearly indefensible. players are funny. we will drop hundreds or thousands of dollars in a machine or at a table... but charge us for drinks and we will walk. and that is indeed my final piece of advice... if the program is no longer working for you... walk! forget about your status. it can be easily matched or earned with another cruise line. take your business elsewhere. take your "free" cruise and relax. don't give them the same play you used to. enjoy your (limited) benefits while onboard. and then say goodbye.

I don't use NCL air, but I just dropped by to offer a perspective as a frequent flyer... most of these convenient "one stop" international flights of which you speak... the ones from american hub cities... they are to europe. NCL has cruises that depart from many other parts of the world. and - when flying on consolidator fares using NCL - asia and oceania and australasia will almost always require an additional stop. this is true when i'm booking flights using miles and so i imagine it's the same when booking through NCL. there are a few direct flights from manila and sydney and auckland and tokyo (and other cities), but you will rarely find them at a discount and so you would be very lucky to get one using NCL air. and this could turn a 20 or 24 hour journey into a 30 or 36 hour journey.

i'm in the same boat (see what i did there?). i booked something today and for the first time opted out of the FAS beverages. i had been planning to do this, as i found on my most recent cruise, i just didn't drink much at all. and when i did, i would stop at the casino before dinner for a glass of pommery rosé. i also recently purchased an annual travel insurance plan, so i opted out of "travel protection," as well. as a newly minted "elite" player within CAS, i am looking forward to the increased OBC and the other modest benefits. when i booked today, there was no mention of reduction in benefits, but i didn't think to ask, either. my decision to opt out of the beverage package, however, was absolutely predicated on the knowledge that i could get water and adult beverages at the casino for free. so... looking at the published chart in this thread... it can't be just an accident that "free drinks while playing in the casino" is gone for all tier levels. it's always a dangerous game to guess what NCL was thinking... but it sure does look like they are trying to force all guests into buying a beverage package, albeit with a modest free upgrade for ruby and elite players an "upgrade" is not free drinks... you have to first buy the FAS drink package (pay the gratuities) before you can be "upgraded." handwriting... meet wall.

well, you're not disagreeing as much as sharing your personal experience, which is what the forum is all about. ironically, my only experience in a haven room outside the haven proper was also on the joy and my experience was exactly the opposite of yours. i received a warm welcome from the cabin attendant, who, by the way, was named "joy." YMMV (and apparently has) and it may be as simple as it's more difficult on ships, such as the joy, on which some haven cabins share a common hallway with non-haven cabins and the door to that area is locked until the general "all clear" announcement. without knowing more details, it sounds to me like you couldn't get to the cabin because of a locked perimeter door... and that this was not a case of being told "no bag drop for you!" by the staff. if you could have found your way in there, i seriously doubt that a haven cabin attendant would say no to a quick bag drop. but i could be wrong.

the blue man group show used toilet paper under the careful supervision of a stage management team and a fire safety warden. all the paper was disposed of responsibly and safely after each show. kindly see post #25 for a representative example. i've seen far worse on NCL. what's your point here? that NCL will sacrifice fire safety for revenue? or that the cabin steward will gladly hang paper streamers within a secure cabin behind a firesafe metal door? that's not possible in the hallway... hence the fire regulations. the context is that these rubber and plastic pests are placed in hallways and stairwells where people can trip over them. it's a nuisance. and a safety hazard. they are also flammable, just like paper and magnets! they are "floor decorations" and should be banned.