New to NCL questions

[vawalkers]

We are considering an NCL cruise. Our recent experience has all been on Carnival. I have several questions I am hoping you can help with.

1. Does NCL have a program equivalent to Carnivals "Early Saver" program?

( lower rates for booking early and paying higher deposit but with price match guarantee)

2. How difficult is it for a first time cruiser to get reservations at the specialty resturants?

3. Do you feel that the specialty resturants are worth the extra cost?

4. Is there a feeling of differing classes of passengers based on the number of cruises or cabin level? Our experience on Carnival has been that once you are onboard that all passengers are treated the same regardless of the number of previous cruises. Not asking to be flamed here, but I have read about differing menus, special clubs for differing levels of previous cruises.

 

Thanks for your help. Your responses will help us decide about our next cruise.

[marelind]

We are considering an NCL cruise. Our recent experience has all been on Carnival. I have several questions I am hoping you can help with.

1. Does NCL have a program equivalent to Carnivals "Early Saver" program?

( lower rates for booking early and paying higher deposit but with price match guarantee) There are usually lower rates for booking early. The deposit amount does not change your rate. The deposits are completely refundable at least until 120 days out depending on the category you have booked.

2. How difficult is it for a first time cruiser to get reservations at the specialty resturants? Once on board the ship no one will know or care if you are a first time cruiser. Reservations are not prioritized except for the suite passengers.

3. Do you feel that the specialty resturants are worth the extra cost? IMHO, the MDRs are usually very good, but the specialty restaurants go above and beyond and are worth the extra cost. I think the restaurants are priced appropriately for what you get.

4. Is there a feeling of differing classes of passengers based on the number of cruises or cabin level? Our experience on Carnival has been that once you are onboard that all passengers are treated the same regardless of the number of previous cruises. Not asking to be flamed here, but I have read about differing menus, special clubs for differing levels of previous cruises. The differences would be based more on whether you are in a full suite or not. And I would say that for the most part you will not be too aware of those perks you are not getting if you are not in a suite. True, suite passengers have a designated restaurant for breakfast and lunch and an upgraded menu for room service, but you would never know that if you were not in a suite.

 

Thanks for your help. Your responses will help us decide about our next cruise.

 

I hope these answers help you.

[che5904]

#1 have no idea what "early saver is

#2,3 & 4 will agree with Mareline

 

But I will add to #4

In the public areas of the ships where you would meet all the other passengers you have no idea what cabins/suites they are in or how many times they've cruised unless perhaps you strike up a conversation with them.

[garycarla]

All passengers are pretty much equal - though full suite passengers get a few perks.

 

Speciality restuarants -some people love me. Other never use them.

[Azure Moon]

We are considering an NCL cruise. Our recent experience has all been on Carnival. I have several questions I am hoping you can help with.

 

1. Does NCL have a program equivalent to Carnivals "Early Saver" program?

( lower rates for booking early and paying higher deposit but with price match guarantee)

I don't know of a specific program like Carnival has. But the prices are lower the earlier you book and sometimes when the cruise is close to sail date and they want to fill the ship. If you watch prices after booking and they go lower, you (or your travel agent if you booked the cruise through one) can call to see about getting your price lowered, but you need to make sure you wouldn't lose any OBC or other benefit if you do have the price adjusted.

 

2. How difficult is it for a first time cruiser to get reservations at the specialty resturants?

 

Based on the category of room you book, you have the option to book 1 day ahead to booking all days at once. The higher the cabin category, the higher the reservations that can be made.

 

Hubby and I have sailed in Inside and Balcony and haven't had trouble booking a day ahead. A lot of times we go to the restaurant and put in a reservation shortly before dinner time or ask if they have any seating open right then. Only once we've had a long wait to get in. The rest of the time we've gotten in immediately, a half hour, an hour. When we've had some time to kill before getting in, we sit and listen to a piano player, people watch, get a drink.

 

3. Do you feel that the specialty resturants are worth the extra cost?

 

So far, yes, I do think they are worth the extra cost. I also pay to attend the special dinings they have, too. I like the Jazz Brunch where dishes from the different specialty restaurants can be selected from a menu and breakfast items are available on a buffet. They have musical entertainment while you dine. Very cool!

 

4. Is there a feeling of differing classes of passengers based on the number of cruises or cabin level? Our experience on Carnival has been that once you are onboard that all passengers are treated the same regardless of the number of previous cruises. Not asking to be flamed here, but I have read about differing menus, special clubs for differing levels of previous cruises.

 

So far hubby and I haven't felt that we've been treated in an inferior manner because of the cabin category we've stayed in. In fact, we are treated so nicely that it makes us want to continue sailing with the cruiseline. We don't focus on what other people are doing, and don't go looking for differences, so maybe those are other reasons why we don't feel like we are treated differently.

 

We've had an officer in a specialty restaurant surprise us by stopping by our table to suggest a particularly good menu item that night and we've had an officer push my mother's wheelchair on debarkation day, even though we told him we'd be okay doing it ourselves. He said he was going that way anyway, so he went ahead and did it. Very sweet of him :).

 

We've met so many friendly and helpful crew, staff, and officers on NCL, that they win compared to the other cruise line we've sailed - not that we didn't meet many fabulous crew members on that line, though, and had great cruises. But NCL's employees just shine on more levels and in some different ways.

 

Thanks for your help. Your responses will help us decide about our next cruise.

 

Hope this helped a little, and hope that you'll try NCL and let us know what you thought about your trip.

[Hikini]

On our first NCL cruise we were in an inside cabin and we were treated like royalty. As others have said, when you are out and about with other passengers no one will know what kind of cabin you are in or how many cruises you've been on, unless you openly talk about it with others.

 

We love NCL for many reasons - freestyle is wonderful. As the commercials say, "You are free to do whatever, whenever...."

[fridaythe13th]

We are considering an NCL cruise. Our recent experience has all been on Carnival. I have several questions I am hoping you can help with.

1. Does NCL have a program equivalent to Carnivals "Early Saver" program?

( lower rates for booking early and paying higher deposit but with price match guarantee)

2. How difficult is it for a first time cruiser to get reservations at the specialty resturants?

3. Do you feel that the specialty resturants are worth the extra cost?

4. Is there a feeling of differing classes of passengers based on the number of cruises or cabin level? Our experience on Carnival has been that once you are onboard that all passengers are treated the same regardless of the number of previous cruises. Not asking to be flamed here, but I have read about differing menus, special clubs for differing levels of previous cruises.

 

Thanks for your help. Your responses will help us decide about our next cruise.

 

No, NCL doesn't have an "early saver" program. They do offer discounts for 55+, resident, union and military. Check to see if your specific cruise has any of those discounts. I honestly don't like paying to go to a specialty restaurant unless it's for something "special". I personally feel the food is better than the MDR or buffet though.

[talyman2001]

We are considering an NCL cruise. Our recent experience has all been on Carnival. I have several questions I am hoping you can help with.

1. Does NCL have a program equivalent to Carnivals "Early Saver" program?

( lower rates for booking early and paying higher deposit but with price match guarantee) We booked our cruise a year and a half in advance, and did not get any special deal. We did book an aft suite, which are at a premium, which may explain the lack of deals or reduced deposits.

2. How difficult is it for a first time cruiser to get reservations at the specialty resturants? We were in a suite, and had no trouble at all. I did not see any times that the restaurants are full and unable to take reservations. This was our first cruise as well.

3. Do you feel that the specialty resturants are worth the extra cost? YES!!!! We only ate one night in the MDR in our two week honeymoon cruise. We decided that the MDR was good, and that if that was all there was to eat, we would not be unhappy or unsatisfied. Having said that, Le Bistro was simply fantastic, and easily the best $20 per person we spent on the cruise. La Cucina was just OK, but it is a steal at $10 per person.

4. Is there a feeling of differing classes of passengers based on the number of cruises or cabin level? Our experience on Carnival has been that once you are onboard that all passengers are treated the same regardless of the number of previous cruises. Not asking to be flamed here, but I have read about differing menus, special clubs for differing levels of previous cruises. Our suite did afford us a few nice perks, but most of which were unobtrusive and behind the scenes. We were certainly treated like VIP's. However, when we were just wandering around the ship, we could not tell who was and was not a latitudes member, or a suite passenger. Upon talking with a few people, we found they would let us know of any special perks they got, but that was only after getting to know someone. If you really want to spot a suite passenger, look for a "platinum" (it just looked silver to me) key card.

Thanks for your help. Your responses will help us decide about our next cruise.

 

No flaming so far... :D

[youngestof9]

No, NCL doesn't have an "early saver" program. They do offer discounts for 55+, resident, union and military. Check to see if your specific cruise has any of those discounts. I honestly don't like paying to go to a specialty restaurant unless it's for something "special". I personally feel the food is better than the MDR or buffet though.

 

just to clarify, NCL no longer offers a union discount. And I'm not sure if it's a published thing, but booking my cruise for 2013, I had a substantial discount to what the prices are even now (3 months after I booked) so the earlier, the better I think.

[fridaythe13th]

just to clarify, NCL no longer offers a union discount. And I'm not sure if it's a published thing, but booking my cruise for 2013, I had a substantial discount to what the prices are even now (3 months after I booked) so the earlier, the better I think.

 

Thanks for the heads up. :( That must be new as we got it for our upcoming cruise.

[agabbymama]

#1 have no idea what "early saver is

#2,3 & 4 will agree with Mareline

 

But I will add to #4

In the public areas of the ships where you would meet all the other passengers you have no idea what cabins/suites they are in or how many times they've cruised unless perhaps you strike up a conversation with them.

 

che5904,

 

"Early Saver" is a program that Carnival has started recently to hook passengers in. You get a 20% lower cruise rate, BUT you are locked in. Your deposit is non-refundable, non-transferable. I was just bitten by this to the tune of $200.

 

I had never heard of it either, and didn't know that when I called Carnival that that is what I was booking. Made the deposit for a December cruise. Now find I have to cancel, and was told it was non-refundable.

[mypleasure]

We are considering an NCL cruise. Our recent experience has all been on Carnival. I have several questions I am hoping you can help with.

1. Does NCL have a program equivalent to Carnivals "Early Saver" program?

( lower rates for booking early and paying higher deposit but with price match guarantee) Not that I know of but NCL does honour price reductions in the USA.

2. How difficult is it for a first time cruiser to get reservations at the specialty resturants? Very easy to do, you can make a reservation at various places on the ship or by phone. You can even just turn up and see if they have space but they may not. Teppanyaki needs to be booked as soon as you can as that has limited seats and limited seatings so fills up fast.

3. Do you feel that the specialty resturants are worth the extra cost? For me and Tony they definitely are, we love them and have booked 6 nights on our forthcoming Epic trip. For Epic only you can book up to 45 days before you cruise. Others will say they are not worth the money so this is a personal choice.

4. Is there a feeling of differing classes of passengers based on the number of cruises or cabin level? Our experience on Carnival has been that once you are onboard that all passengers are treated the same regardless of the number of previous cruises. Not asking to be flamed here, but I have read about differing menus, special clubs for differing levels of previous cruises.

Not at all, those in suites pay a lot more and get a slightly better cruise with their Butlers and Concierges and perks but I have never been treated differently from cruise 1 to cruise 5 (six and seven are booked) anywhere on the ship.

 

Thanks for your help. Your responses will help us decide about our next cruise.

 

 

Hope I helped you.

[vawalkers]

Thanks to all of you for your replies. We liked the looks of the NCL ships we have seen in port and they have some great itineraries, but we did have some concerns. Your answers have help to ease those concerns. So, we thank you and look forward to planning a cruise with NCL in the future. HAPPY CRUISING!!!!