graphicguy

I thought the same. Made me chuckle.

If you want a recent Prima review...this is an EXCELLENT one....

Have made the low bid several times and have never won. I think it’s a marketing thing to get people to get into the “bid higher” thought process. If I find a really good Haven deal upon booking, I’ll book it then. If not, I don’t bid. Wait, I lied. It costs nothing to bid low. So, I’ll do that. But, have been totally unsuccessful.

That is true! Still, a really good fare.' I wouldn't have booked it without the coupon.

Henry....this one isn't as good as some of the others when it comes to perks. Plus, my TA left and went to bigger/better things. She sent a short email thanking me for my past business and then said "buh-bye!" Dining perks are 5 SDPs.....2 for Sapphire, 2 for FAS, 1 from Amex (with wine). No OBC from the TA, nor NCL. But, AMEX is giving me $200. Compared to what I've been able to drum up in the past, this is fairly puny! LOL!

Hmmmmm...I just booked the cheapest Alaska cruise I've ever seen as a solo on the Bliss...with FAS included. Date, itinerary, ship, when you book, etc all make a difference.

I wish I knew the "magic sauce" of how NCL (on any cruise line for that matter) determines who gets discounts, what the discount amount is, on which itineraries or ships get discounts, or when they determine the discounts to be valid. We just don't know. I just booked an Alaska cruise on NCL. It was a direct result of them sending me a coupon (if that's what you want to call it) for a significant discount for Alaskan itineraries. The discounts even change depending on the ship you are interested in. To further muddy the waters, not every one got the promotion/discount. So, only NCL knows. I'm sure they have the "bureau of NCL spreadsheets" working in a basement somewhere in the bowels of their Miami HQ who is generating reams of pie charts slicing and dicing analytics to those who come up with their promos. perks and pricing schemes.

I concur about booking "last minute". I understand why some don't want to. But, it's harder for any cruise line to make itinerary changes the closer the sailing date gets. There's a lot of planning, clearances and permits that have to be secured to accommodate a 150,000 ton, 4,000 guest ship. If there's one thing we know for certain, if a port is changed or skipped, it's a fair assumption that the cruise company would lose money from the changes due to the loss of all those payments to the localities in question. In short, they don't want to do that, unless they absolutely have to. As far as the rest, I agree about the "ignore" feature. I've only blocked one person, but my posting was imminently more pleasurable once I DID put him (or her) on ignore.

It it's available, you check the box for "55+" as one of the guests.

Agree. They’ve been “wooing” solo cruisers for the last 12 months, or so. Given I like to sail solo, I like the trend. Celebrity was doing that for a while, but they seemed to have curtailed their solo fares. NCL has always seemed to understand what’s becoming a larger solo community. Most of their most recent ships have solo cabins, solo cruiser coordinators (which do a very good job), etc.

🎶 I fEel PreTty…Oh sO pReTtY🎵 OK…I admit I’m a Basil Hayden on the rocks into Saturday Night! 😉

So my daughter gets on the ship as a child! She cost only $200 less then us to cruise on said ship. OK....she's the 3rd guest. So, according to NCL, she sails for free, even though she's a teen. Again, I am entering the "beating a dead horse" arena here. But, I still can't understand the complaint.

Was shopping before I booked this cruise. Looking at line for like on different lines.....similar/same dates, similar/same cabin type.... Royal -no drink package, no specialty dining, no internet minutes, no excursion credit 7 Night Alaska Glacier Experience Leaving from Vancouver, British Columbia onboard Brilliance of the Seas Apr 23, 2023Apr 30, 2023 View itinerary details Staterooms Room $3,302.00 1 Guests Balcony Aft Guest Info Dining & Options Payment Summary Cruise fare $3,302.00 Discounts $-1,185.00 Subtotal $2,117.00 Taxes & fees $237.75 Total price $2,354.75 USD Taxes & fees included Celebrity-Solstice (May)-all included, tips, drinks, internet) Veranda Stateroom First Guest Total$5,070.00 Discounts SAVOVERLAY NRD-$400.00 Non-Refundable 75% 2nd Guest Discount-$1,729.00 BONUS OBC NRD ($50.00 to spend Onboard) All Included Wi-Fi Drinks Tips Dining Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner included at select venues Main Dining Time - 08:30 PM Taxes & Fees Taxes, Fees, and Port Expenses$271.26 Trip Total$3,212.26 USD Carnival-Luminosa (older former Costa ship-May-no drinks, no internet, no specialty dining) Cruise Summary Itinerary:7 Days Alaska from Seattle, WA Thu May 25, 2023 - Thu Jun 1, 2023 7 Days Alaska from Seattle, WA from Thursday May 25, 2023 to Thursday June 01, 2023 Ship:Carnival Luminosa 1 Room 1 GuestChange Room 1: Balcony Super Saver (PSV) Guest 1: $2,358.00 Taxes, fees & port expenses: $266.70 Prepay gratuities $101.50 Add vacation protection $189.00 Room 1 Total:$2,624.70 Total :$2,624.70 Couldn't get dates close on other cruise lines. But, NCL is giving deals right now.

Fingers crossed for you.

So, chalk this up as one for the good guys. Was looking at my booking. They made a mistake (I think) in my favor. If I make a mistake, I’ll own up to it. If they make a mistake, I expect the cruise line to own up to it. In this case, I think it was in my favor. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander. I had to go directly to NCL for this booking. My TA moved on to greener pastures. So, I’m hunting for a new one. For now, NCL it is. My fare was $2,495. Minus the promo 20% for the Bliss Alaska promo is -$499. That brings the fare to $1,994. This is before all the FAS costs. NCL deducted $1,104. That’s not 20%. That’s more like -51%, which is close to the discount for the smaller ships, not the Bliss. Told my NCL PCC this. She said it’s be a glitch in their systems and that this promo was creating a bit of chaos internally. But, once booked, they can’t raise the fare and that she was happy it worked in my favor. OK…I tried.

If you've cruised for a while, we all know that ALL cruise lines overcharge for a la carte drinks and specialty food. $70/pp for essentially a meal similar to Benihana's is pretty crazy. But, as part of the dining package, it's a good deal. Daughter was considered A) not a child because she was 15, and B) not part of the dining package because her parents didn't buy it for her. Ergo, she paid the inflated price. The reasons she wasn't included in the dining package (she wasn't that hungry, she could share her parents meal, her fare was "only" $200 less than her parents, she wasn't allowed under the children's menu because she was 15 y/o, she was upset, she's a nice person, she's shy, she's pretty, etc) are superfluous. They wanted a free dinner for her. They didn't get it, for all the reasons discussed here, ad infinitum. Resort hotels are the same. Ever try to buy a can of soda from a mainstream hotel..even those with lobby self serve areas? We all know they're all of 50¢, max...even with profit rolled in. You'll be lucky to get a can of soda for $2. Burger at a hotel restaurant? $18-$20...maybe more. Same Burger at Five Guys (and it's way better)...$9...and that's with bacon. Cruise ships are resorts. They just happen to be floating on water that take you to places you can't ordinarily go. They give you a nice room to stay in. They feed you (in the buffet every day if you don't want to pay extra). They entertain you (most, if not all shows are free). I guess you could go to McDonald's and ask for a Happy Meal if you're a teen. But, don't ask for free orders of burgers or fries because your daughter is a teen and doesn't eat much, because you paid for your double qtr pounder with cheese and bacon as well as a large fry and a large shake. You ain't gettin' it.

Here's my invoice......GTY fare, so won't have a cabin # for a bit. But, it's a Club Balcony INVOICE DATE: 2-Mar-2023 BOOKING DATE: 2-Mar-2023 SHIP: NORWEGIAN BLISS SAILING: 22-Apr-2023 to 29-Apr-2023 ITINERARY: 7-DAY ALASKA ROUND-TRIP SEATTLE: GLACIER BAY, SKAGWAY & JUNEAU CATEGORY / STATEROOM: MC / GTY EMBARKATION: SEATTLE 1 xxxxxxxxxx GUESTS BOOKING COMPONENTS PER GUEST IN USD Total Guest Fare 2,495.00 Gov Tax/Port Exp/Fees 324.73 Savings -1,104.00 Bev Srv Charge 152.60 Din Srv Charge 17.80 Gross Total 1,886.13 DISEMBARKATION: SEATTLE CLIENT TYPE SAPPHIRE AIR CITY OUT PRE HOTEL / DEVIATION # OF NIGHTS PRE BOOKSAFE GUESTS AIR CITY RETURN POST HOTEL / DEVIATION TRAVEL PROTECTION AGE xx CLIENT ID / LATITUDES # xxxxxxx * LATREW promo code, is automatically applied to Latitude members’ reservations. This code gives Latitude members their specific tier level discounts/benefits onboard. RESERVATION:xxxxxxx PROMO CODES: xxxxxxx AKFCC20S ALL4CHO DISC50 EASYFARE LATDBLX LATREW* SHX50 CONFIRMATION GUEST COPY PAYMENT SCHEDULE FINAL PAYMENT due on 2-Mar-2023 10:47 am Eastern Time PAYMENTS APPLIED PAID by AMEX# xxxxxxx on 2-Mar-2023 TOTAL PAYMENTS APPLIED 1,886.13

I forgot to include my Mil ID. Probably not going to get the discount now since I've already booked and past the final payment date. 😞

I’m not sure if we need to get a life since we know these things, or that we’ve cruised WAY TOO MUCH!!!! 😉

Nice catch….and good history lesson. Just to add, “O’Sheehans” was named after Kevin Sheehan (or maybe his idea). I know he was fired/forced out of NCL leadership under weird circumstances, which to this day are still somewhat murky, at best. But, he was an innovator. He wasn’t afraid to try different things to appeal to guests. A few other observations… -Spice H20 allows smoking -one of the unintended issues with the “678 Ocean Place” Atrium area is that smoke indeed clusters up those decks because the casino is right there, too. I’m sure given the issue they’d have rethought it. I still expect sooner than later, all smoking areas will be limited to outdoor venues. The newer ships are using an sub section enclosed glassed in area for smokers in the casino -Every ship in the Breakaway+ class owes design cues from Epic (only ship in the NCL fleet that incorporates everything you see in the recent ships) and the “-Away” ships.

Yeah...it was crazy. I booked it (YC Seaside). Paid for it ($250 deposit as final payment at the time wasn't due). MSC came back and said there was an error in the booking. I understand. That stuff happens. But, they were going to raise my fare by about $1,000. That, I don't understand and I wasn't OK with it. In brief, I booked and they put me in a YC Balcony Cabin but (according to them) charged me for a YC interior Cabin. OK....not my error. To me, I shouldn't even have been contacted about their error. I booked through my TA. She sent me all the emails back and forth between them and MSC. MSC admitted the error but didn't really seem to care as they weren't changing anything. For about a week, I actually was communicating with MSC Customer Service Center, where at different times, they said they'd "work with me" once I was on board and to just pay the additional monies. I have no idea what they would do to "work with me". But, I do know that if you don't have everything sorted out before you board, there's no chance of getting any sort of financial renumeration after you've set foot on the ship. I told them to just cancel the booking. They said they were going to keep my deposit as it was for the YC. And, that unless I ponied up another $1,000 in addition to the original fare, they would cancel my booking. Not about to argue with them. I sent the emails, the booking, a copy (screen shot) of the charges for my particular cabin number (the YC Balcony), my TA's invoice (which mirrored MSC's fares), etc to AMEX. AMEX refunded the original deposit. Haven't heard a peep out of MSC since. Maybe I'm barred from cruising them, again. No issues if that's the case. I've sailed MSC before. They aren't bad, but something always seemed to really dampen the vacations I took on their ships.....irritating and not inconsequential things...some of them financial, others just bizarre. I chalked it up to them being mainly a European Cruise line, where things are a bit different. But, they've been sailing out of FL for a few years, now. These types of faux pax and general lack of customer service shouldn't still be happening. I know I have some CC friends here who love MSC. Not besmirching them, at all. I'm a veteran cruiser. I know how pricing works. I know how the perks work....on several different lines. I try to be understanding. But, trying to change my fare after I have already booked.....that's not a good thing.

Well.....offers are indeed combinable, plus 2X Latitudes points. So, I jumped right in the deep end on this one. As I'm want to do, last minute. Going to Alaska on the Bliss, departing April 22. Figuring since I've sailed at the end of the Alaska season before (end of Sept) with nice weather surrounding me, let's see if I can do the same at the beginning of the season. Really good deal...actually cheaper than the deals found after the COVID restart!!!!!! Haven was sold out (although those deals aren't nearly as good as other parts of the ship). So, got a great deal on Club Balcony. Once again, solo (but that's always subject to change). Never sailed the Bliss, so that's also something to look forward to. As it gets closer, I'll do a live review thread with pics. PS...this will replace the MSC cruise that I had booked but MSC tried to raise the fare on my reservation AFTER I booked it.

Ya know...I usually let this kind of stuff slide. But, I'm getting smeared here. So...let's recap. -Parents wanted teen daughter to eat with them in Teppanyaki for free under the "children eat free" policy because NCL let them do that when daughter was younger (and still perhaps not a child) -Parents were angry because teen daughter, on this occasion, was not allowed to be considered a child and offered a free dinner -Teen daughter cried but after complaining, was seated and took up an alleged paying customer's seat at Teppenyaki to "watch the show" (which I took to mean a theater show, my apology), and perhaps share parents' meal because there was so much food, but teen couldn't possibly eat that amount of food -Parents are angry because they feel entitled given they've stayed in the Haven -Parents are angry because they showed up at Teppenyaki but daughter did not have a reservation and (this is where it gets sketchy again) was not allowed to sit at their table? Was allowed to sit and watch the chef prepare a meal at the table? Was charged for a burger? Trying to extrapolate the story here, but it's difficult as the facts (or lack thereof) are hard to separate from the complaint.

Hmmmm....I'm lost, too. OP...are you saying your teen daughter was trying to eat off the kids menu? NCL said as much? She did eat off the kids menu (Burger), but was charged? So, she went to the buffet, but watched "the show"? I'm going to make some assumptions. Let me know if I'm right. Daughter ate off the Speciality menus on previous cruises when she was younger. She's now a teen and not allowed to eat from the child's menu. I get that. She's 15. I wouldn't expect they would allow a teen to eat off the child's menu, regardless of how much food you were served. That's skirting the intent of the rule. But, where did she get the burger? At Teppanyaki? I've never heard of them offering burgers, but then again, I've never ordered one there. Were you trying to share your food with her? That's skirting it, too. The show part is what puzzles me. What show are we talking about? "She stayed for the show"? What show?

Have sailed her 3 times…..from a solo cabin to the Haven. Loved the experience every time. Away and Away+ ships are ny favorites in the entire NCL fleet. Great combination of entertainment, service and beautiful ship.