Red-Sol

3 hours ago, Always Cruising said:

Doesn't seem like CAS values their loyal customers, and that things are really tightening up.

Yep.

22 minutes ago, Alegeeter said:

CAS was the only thing keeping me with NCL. Despite all the changes NCL has made recently to decrease service and guest experience, the discounts (while small) offered through CAS and the perks still made my cruises worth it. Now, with this new program all CAS will offer me is 10% off (which I can get by calling NCL directly) and no other perks even thought my play has only increased over my past cruises. I played less on Virgin Voyages in January and was offered a comped balcony up to 7 days, drinks in the casino included. You'll find me in Greece and Croatia later this spring, distancing myself from NCL.

 

I may do one more NCL since I have a Cruise Next and have been wanting to do South America but after that I think it's time to build loyalty elsewhere.

I hear you....I have one more cruise that I booked through CAS 12 day on Escape early next year. When I booked it in March I was already extremely disappointed in what the CAS offer to me was..but booked it anyways. 

Since then I have been pricing 10 or more day cruises out of NYC on MSC Meraviglia and Carnival Venezia both of those cruises are substantially less with more benefits than I am recieving now from CAS for Escape.

I will wait a little longer until the mad rush against CAS starts to slow down a little but then will call my casino rep and let him know they must do significantly better than what my current offer is from them or I will need to cancel.

I have always enjoyed NCL but what they are now doing makes them no longer worth it to me. All of their advantages and selling points to me (and others I'm sure as well) are sadly now gone.

2 hours ago, Belletora said:

Carnival has a program that is superior in every way. I know some people end up with drinks only in the casino but it is my understanding that is not the norm. My offers all have drinks everywhere on the ship for myself. My husband’s offers include drinks everywhere for him and a companion. 
 

attached is a sample of one of my current offers through carnival. 

Thanks for that...I was already in the process of applying for Carnivals program but this served as a reminder that I should sign my wife up as well which I just did.

I have also done a status match on MSC and will possibly sail on them as well.

The three main advantages that NCL always held for me were:

The CAS program

Onboard Entertainment

Many and varied cruises out of NYC

Well it seems to me that they are cutting all those things drastically so sadly it may be time to try other cruise lines The Carnival and MSC ships (Venezia and Meraviglia) that are sailing out of NYC both look very nice. And both very much appreciate their casino passengers.

12 hours ago, Russiamomm said:

Thanks for the update.  To me it’s unconscionable the way this has been handled.  I’ll reach out to my guy in hopes I’ll at least get the $100 OBC for my April trip, but I’m not hopeful.  I’m a regular cruiser/gambler, but not a Whale.  I guess I don’t count. 

 

It’s not about the money.  It’s about the way this has been rolled out and the utter disregard for their loyal customers.  I simply can’t believe how poorly this has been handled.  I’ve had high status with the airlines for years.  They would never treat their loyal customers this way.

 

This is spot on! It's not the fact that I can afford to actually buy a drink in the casino if I want one...but it is all about how they value people that are really keeping some of these cruise lines afloat (no pun intended) NCL is showing disdain for some of their most loyal customers and me thinks it is not going to end well for them.

12 hours ago, Russiamomm said:

Thanks for the update.  To me it’s unconscionable the way this has been handled.  I’ll reach out to my guy in hopes I’ll at least get the $100 OBC for my April trip, but I’m not hopeful.  I’m a regular cruiser/gambler, but not a Whale.  I guess I don’t count. 

 

It’s not about the money.  It’s about the way this has been rolled out and the utter disregard for their loyal customers.  I simply can’t believe how poorly this has been handled.  I’ve had high status with the airlines for years.  They would never treat their loyal customers this way.

 

6 minutes ago, skeeter195 said:

 

 

We did an MSC Meraviglia 9 day cruise from NYC in January and loved it.  While there was a status match for cruise line loyalty(think latitudes) there was no casino match for us.  We have been getting comped up through Haven on NCL for years with no rhyme or reason as to which comp we will get next.  We started at the lowest level in the casino on MSC.  We earned enough points for 10 day balcony on a future cruise.  We took it for January 2025 and upgraded to the Yacht Club in the best room for a total of $2520 for two.  This includes everything from taxes, fees, admin fees(if any) and even daily service charges.  To upgrade to a room like this on NCL from a balcony comp would be an additional $8-12 thousand dollars.  NCL seriously needs to look at what MSC is doing or they will be left farther behind then they already are.  I am still loyal to NCL for a little while longer but I will not be if they no longer take care of me as a bigger player.

 

Key items MSC does to make a player feel appreciated:

-no 3% charge to take money from slots or tables

-we only paid $400 total for all fees, taxes, etc.  as apposed to $1100 on NCL 

-no W-2's.  I hit a $1700 slot spin and there was no hand pay or paperwork.  We are all responsible for our own taxes, LOL.  

Thanks very much for that...all in all it sounds pretty sweet! 🙂

1 minute ago, Russiamomm said:

I completely agree.  The program has been denigrated a lot in the last few years.  This could be the final straw.  As much as I love NCL, other lines’ casino benefits are so much better.  

So true but also so sad. I really want to stay with NCL but the degrading of all the CAS benefits is making it very difficult. My first love is actually cruising out of NYC for many reasons (big one is not needing to fly) but I have already started to look at Carnival Venezia and MSC Meraviglia cruises out of NYC. Both lines do some form of status match.

2 minutes ago, goldmom said:

That really stinks.  If that's the case then CAS is making a very stupid change.

Stupid doesn't even begin to describe it....it would be interesting to see if whatever bean counter thought that would be a good idea is still still with the company once the fallout from this really takes hold. I believe this will really help cause a fatal blow to CAS entirely...their benefits were already on the low end and this convinces me to try other cruise lines now.

I must admit that if CAS eliminates comped drinks in the Casino then that is a game changer for us. We aren't very big drinkers anyways and never take the Free at Sea drinks package. Actually there have been cruises where we don't even get a drink in the Casino either. However with all the money we donate there having a comped occasional drink in the Casino shouldn't be too much to ask.

So my question for others is how do you do match your current NCL CAS status with other cruise lines and their casino programs? Is that even possible? 

16 hours ago, seemoreroyals said:

Do you have to use a specialty dinner or pay an extra fee to dine at Supper Club on Escape?

Normally No...the dinner and show are usually complimentary as far as I know.

10 minutes ago, Travelling2Some said:

Yes it was a different world and we had so much freedom.  That famous "generation gap" was very useful;)

My favorite saying from back in the day was "Don't trust anyone over 30" Now that i am over 70 might need to rethink that one! 🤣

All the mentions of Fleetwwod Mac and Stevie Nicks I need to post my all time favorite Stevie song...(although not done with Fleetwood Mac) OMG she has the voice of an angel.
 

1 minute ago, JamieLogical said:

 

I haven't sailed NCL since October 2022 so I doubt my Player's Club even has relevant/any data associated with it anymore. The other cruise lines I have sailed with since then have their own casino programs.

There's a good chance that you are right and may no longer qualify....but it still might be worth a call to find out for sure...you could start the conversation with them saying you just want to know that...as far as any qualifications from years past?

1-877-752-9625

Just now, JamieLogical said:

 

While I do pay tithes to the Casino Gods daily on every cruise, I apparently don't contribute enough to qualify for any comps.

Have you ever called them Jamie to verify?

6 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

Thanks for pointing this one out @Red-Sol! I'm going to keep it on my watch for now list and see what pricing does, especially once we get to late October/November after final payment. Thanks for plugging it! 

 

Like your most recent past cruise, I love the ports since I haven't been to any of them! 

I will be impatienly waiting to hear you say yes! 😉 I heard a little tip today that if you see insides drop in price to around $700.00 that there either will be or already are some potential savings to be had with specials.

43 minutes ago, JamieLogical said:

 

Man, you almost had me sucked in, because I do love the Escape, until I priced it out. For the two of us in a balcony, all in it comes out to $5,714.46+DSC. We will stick with our January Meraviglia 11-day where we are booked into a whirlpool suite (not Yacht Club, but we have our own hot tub on the balcony) and $650 of OBC for $5,594+DSC. The itinerary is pretty comparable.

 

 

I admit that when I saw the pricing I gulped! However we always book through Casinos at Sea and the fares are substantially lower than the published general fares. If you donate enough money to the Casino you can get different comps which usually cut approx. 25% to 50% or more off many of those published fares.

OK all you NYC Winter cruise enthusiasts.... time to step up and book the February 23rd, 2025 12 day Caribbean cruise (I know it's not 14 days but it may be the best we can hope for.) Officially booked it this morning and found out that it is selling very well. Posting another Pic of the Itinerary and after you look at it you will know for sure that you want to! 🤣

@JIMESOPUS MSC will need to be another time but I am sure sooner or later that will happen.

So who else wants to go? Many familiar people are already booked! 🙂

Edited to add...it doesn't hurt that the Escape is my favorite ship either

1 hour ago, PatJim said:

Thanks so much.
If you do book the Escape for February 23 next year, please get in touch.  Love to meet up for drinks or whatever.  We’re in cabin #17728.

BTW, just noticed from your signature that we were on the same sailing last November 4th😎 on the Getaway.

 

Yes the November cruise on Getaway was great fun! As I mentioned before we are always up for cruising out of New York for the Caribbean when it is cold here. (Although this winter has really been an easy and mild one...even in the Tundra of Western New York 🙂 ) 

I hope to know for certain about booking the cruise in the next couple days. We are waiting to hear from our daughter and granddaugher if either can help with watching our dog for 12 days. We also book all of our cruises through CAS (Casinos at Sea) so some of it may depend on what they can offer us.

By default though I am already excited for this...already signed up on the roll call!

34 minutes ago, PatJim said:

We’re looking forward to first time on the Escape.

The Breakaway is one of our favorites; we’re on her out of NYC February 2026

If you like Breakaway you will probably like Escape too. The Escape is similar but slightly bigger. If you like doing the spa it is in front of ship. There is also a very nice Spice H2O section in the back. Some of the newer builds after Escape no longer have that. Escape also has what is called the "Supper Club" where they have different types of entertainment along with dinner (Usually complimentary) While the food and entertainment may not be the greatest...still a fun way to spend an hour or two.

11 minutes ago, PatJim said:

Any cruise with  @JIMESOPUS IS fun!  But how about a 12-day Caribbean in February with NCL?  We’re booked for 2025 and 2026, to get to some warmer weather mid winter here.

We checked out MSC cruises, but their perks still don’t measure up to NCL’s re YC vs Haven. Though if the itinerary included Ocean Cay, it would be nice to experience Ocean House Beach, available to YC members.  NCL doesn’t offer anything at their private islands to Haven guests, except early tendering.  

Am with those who have no interest in going from FL., annd agree with those who don’t mind cold sea days sailing out of NYC.  We ❤️ sea days! 

Patricia

I totally missed this one...I believe you are referring to the Escape here. The Escape and Bliss are my 2 favorite ships so you have now really got my head spinning as to what to book. Truth be told I am now leaning towards this. 

28 minutes ago, Laszlo said:

Every cruise we have taken from there as far back as 2011 has been sold out

Yep! Something (probably multiple reasons) is happening to cause NCL to slowly leave cruising from NYC. Those cruises in past years were always sold out. Not sure if any of the other cruise lines are reducing sailings from NYC but my guess is they aren't...but I really don't know for sure.

1 hour ago, Sand and Seas said:

And, my favorite item from Moderno is that pineapple.....yum!

Don't you mean the yellow meat?!?! 😉

6 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

Agree!

 

I just can't find a fare on Royal that makes sense.  Lord knows I've tried.  Add in the drink package and  I have "Oh My" moments when figuring out how much the entire cruise will cost.

My beef (No pun intended) with Royal is that the passengers that were on the sailings I was on (and crew as well) all seemed very disinterested in even being there. People on NCL know how to make their own fun no matter what it is...as does the crew.

58 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

Chops was better than Cagney’s.  

 

That said, Park Cafe was my “go to” in Royal for both breakfast and lunch vs the Windjammer buffet!

I miss those roast beef sandwiches and fresh salads there! But still not enough to make me want to go back!

When we were on Getaway in November they would put cookies out in the Buffet every afternoon around 3:00 pm You could tell where they were based on the long lines! 🤣