US SDP promo just got worse.

[FraudBroad]

This is what is now posted on the website regarding the Specialty Dining Package:

 

The first two guests receive 3 meals on 5- to 9-night cruises and 4 meals on 10+ night sailings in our award-winning specialty restaraunts.

 

Would be great if they learned to spell....

[Trumpster]

Cruising should not be this hard.

 

Absolutely!

 

Simply to much clutter, to many promos, to many changes.

[LorraineP]

I am booked through a TA. Just called NCL and they were able to email me a copy of my Amenity Confirmation and it does state 4 Meal Specialty Dining for my September 7 night cruise.

[hawkeyetlse]

I am booked through a TA. Just called NCL and they were able to email me a copy of my Amenity Confirmation and it does state 4 Meal Specialty Dining for my September 7 night cruise.

Perfect! But I don't know why they don't just put all this information in the Vacation Summary in the first place.

[js]

In the unlikely case there is a discrepancy on board with the number of meals you booked, and the number of meals they think you are entitled to, I would want to be able to show them more than just the service charge amount. The people on board have zero knowledge/memory of past promotions and past prices (or they pretend to), and they are not good at math problems.

 

Call NCL and get your amenity confirmation. It will specify the number of meals in plain language.

 

I booked almost two years ago for our August 2016 Breakaway Haven sailing.

I did just as you said some time last year. I called and got my amenity confirmation since there are six of us in an H4, five of which are 21 and over for my family.

All 5 of 6 have UBP and all 6 of us have UDP, each night. I am very thankful I have that paper just to save myself hours of trying to get it taken care of and different visits to Guest Services.

[SuperCrewBear]

When I was researching and eventually booked my 10 day Alaskan cruise for this coming May the dining promotion simply said "Eat at our specialty restaurants throughout your cruise". To me that meant I could eat there every evening. I originally booked the cruise as a single passenger in a mini suite because I wasn't sure who would be going with me. A month or so later when I added the 2nd passenger I received a revised confirmation with an extra confirmation for the dining package that I hadn't received when I originally booked. It said I had five nights in the specialty restaurants. I *IMMEDIATELY* called back and was told it had never been anything other than five meals. Of course when I went back to their web page the promotions had then changed so I had no proof. I also had a very difficult time finding any specifics about the promotion anywhere on the NCL web site. I was fairly upset because I feel like this was sort of a "bait & switch" situation. I was going to make a big stink out of this because I mostly didn't like the attitude of the lady I spoke with - I asked for her supervisor and he was no different. I decided I was going to let it drop and remember this for the future - I'm also not going spend an extra dime I don't have to with Norwegian... Maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm not - this is my very first cruise EVER and I didn't want to ruin my time in Alaska or put a big check mark next my name so when I arrived at the ship they are "waiting for me"... I'll just make sure I eat as much as possible on my "free" meals... :D

[bean24]

We just rebooked. Yes we lost one nights specialty dining, but the prices on our cruise went down so much we upgraded our room and still saved over $600.

 

 

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[pspercy]

And most important that for uk eu you DONT pay their ridiculous "gratuities"

 

Maybe, how do UK prices compare ? I bet you're paying for it somewhere:eek:

[hawkeyetlse]

When I was researching and eventually booked my 10 day Alaskan cruise for this coming May the dining promotion simply said "Eat at our specialty restaurants throughout your cruise". To me that meant I could eat there every evening. I originally booked the cruise as a single passenger in a mini suite because I wasn't sure who would be going with me. A month or so later when I added the 2nd passenger I received a revised confirmation with an extra confirmation for the dining package that I hadn't received when I originally booked. It said I had five nights in the specialty restaurants. I *IMMEDIATELY* called back and was told it had never been anything other than five meals. Of course when I went back to their web page the promotions had then changed so I had no proof.

What was your booking date? They stopped offering the Ultimate Dining Package (which was good for every night of the cruise) last summer.

 

You cannot rely on the language in the promotional headlines to give you all the details of the offer. You should always be looking for the fine print. Again, if you tell us the date you booked someone can probably provide you with the detailed terms of the promo at the time, but if you booked in the last few months, 5 meals was the offer for a 10 day cruise.

[aenglish1609]

Cruising should not be this hard.

 

 

It's really not, people just overthink it way too much. If you are going to drink at least a couple a day, the drink package works for you. If you want to try out ye restaurants, the dining package works. If you won't do either, save the gratuity charges and pick the Internet or shore excursions. Pretty simple.

[hawkeyetlse]

Maybe, how do UK prices compare ? I bet you're paying for it somewhere:eek:

You can compare for yourself. You might be surprised, the prices are often the same or better than the USD equivalent.

[Burgmeister]

Maybe, how do UK prices compare ? I bet you're paying for it somewhere:eek:

This is probably true. We paid £2100 ($3039 at current poor pound rates) for 3 of us in a mini-suite on a 7 night cruise out of Barcelona during school holidays. This included the completely free UBP for 2 of us and the soda package for our daughter. Also included pre-paid gratuities, but no flights.

 

Seemed like a reasonable deal to me, but probably expensive compared to US customers?

[backsbanny]

My last getaway cruise was booked by the eu site it cost 600usd total less than booking on ncl usa..most of the sailing though are more expensive on the eu or uk site..i always check both eu uk and usa sites before booking

Edited March 19, 2016 by backsbanny

[janpo]

It's really not, people just overthink it way too much. If you are going to drink at least a couple a day, the drink package works for you. If you want to try out ye restaurants, the dining package works. If you won't do either, save the gratuity charges and pick the Internet or shore excursions. Pretty simple.

 

 

Yes, it is. I'm not just talking the ubp. It's when you bought the perks, or when,/if they were included at the time of booking. Its the udp also and how many meals, the a la carte pricing. Not easy like it was a couple of years ago.

[Arzeena]

How do I know what mine is? We booked back in January for 14 night and the NCL website just says:

 

Specialty Dining Package

Dining Package - Promo

 

Nothing about the number of nights included.

 

Could be a slightly different promotion than yours, but on our Feb Gem cruise we had SDP/C or Select Dining Credit to be more appropriate. It was specified on the amenities confirmation that NCL sent. We had $110 per person. It included gratuities. We did Moderno, Teppenyaki and Cagney's and would have had $21 left over, but on our last night in La Cucina (on the Platinum dinner)the waiter suggested one of us order the lobster or something from the paid menu, so we can use up the credit since the dining credit is non refundable.

 

The invoice specified upto to 5 nights, but I don't think we could have stretched it for 5 nights/times.

 

Ask NCL or your TA to email you an amenities invoice. It should be on there.

 

Now on a 14 day upcoming repo cruise that we booked more than a year ago, we chose the Unlimited Dining Package that was being offered at that time. It did not include gratuities and we paid $40 per dining package on that at the time of booking. That is a far better deal, but that promo is not offered anymore.

Edited March 19, 2016 by Arzeena

[SPB in da RVA]

Cruising should not be this hard.

 

It is only as hard as you make it.

[loxley]

When I was researching and eventually booked my 10 day Alaskan cruise for this coming May the dining promotion simply said "Eat at our specialty restaurants throughout your cruise". To me that meant I could eat there every evening. I originally booked the cruise as a single passenger in a mini suite because I wasn't sure who would be going with me. A month or so later when I added the 2nd passenger I received a revised confirmation with an extra confirmation for the dining package that I hadn't received when I originally booked. It said I had five nights in the specialty restaurants. I *IMMEDIATELY* called back and was told it had never been anything other than five meals. Of course when I went back to their web page the promotions had then changed so I had no proof. I also had a very difficult time finding any specifics about the promotion anywhere on the NCL web site. I was fairly upset because I feel like this was sort of a "bait & switch" situation. I was going to make a big stink out of this because I mostly didn't like the attitude of the lady I spoke with - I asked for her supervisor and he was no different. I decided I was going to let it drop and remember this for the future - I'm also not going spend an extra dime I don't have to with Norwegian... Maybe I'm wrong, maybe I'm not - this is my very first cruise EVER and I didn't want to ruin my time in Alaska or put a big check mark next my name so when I arrived at the ship they are "waiting for me"... I'll just make sure I eat as much as possible on my "free" meals... :D

Yeah, that will show them.

 

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

[luvtheships]

In the unlikely case there is a discrepancy on board with the number of meals you booked, and the number of meals they think you are entitled to, I would want to be able to show them more than just the service charge amount. The people on board have zero knowledge/memory of past promotions and past prices (or they pretend to), and they are not good at math problems.

 

Call NCL and get your amenity confirmation. It will specify the number of meals in plain language.

 

 

IMHO. It's not so unlikely but rather more than likely

 

Get an amenity confirmation

[Annmeat]

Yeah, that will show them.

 

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

 

And I am pretty sure that the original , unlimited UDP was not offered after last summer. We had it for a cruise we booked for this June which we booked last August. When I was researching in the fall for another date, the promo was gone

 

OP- when did you book?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[HowardK]

Are they going to know (or even care) in December that I booked for 4 or not 3? They should really be more descriptive in their confirmations.

 

I am glad I booked when I did as I did get decent promos

[Jasalth]

Just curious. Do promotions at other places always stay the same or improve? I've noticed that there are ups and downs when offering promotions; sometimes it is really good and other times it is much less of a value. I always book if I feel the promotion is a value to me, instead of waiting for a better one or hoping that it stays the same.

 

 

Depending on where you look, the promotions can be really hit or miss it seems and not always what they say on other lines.

 

Carnival changes theirs pretty often, but revolve around the same things of a small OBC, or $50 deposits, or free room upgrades. They aren't always reliable though, because I was thinking of booking something with the $50 deposits, but when I went threw the process for 2 people they actually wanted a $298 deposit for a 7 day cruise for 2.

 

What I have learned is a lot of the promotions can be misleading totally! I generally look at bookings for 4. During an RCCL promo where it was a BOGO 1/2 off rate, the price for 4 people in a room, came out to actually close to 175% of the price of 2 so it really was only a BOGO 12% off deal. But you wouldn't know it, unless you actually looked at the prices separately and went by what they say. In this case, it would have actually been cheaper for me to book 2 rooms, than everyone in 1 room which well, should never be the case!

 

Another good example of the NCL promo's, when it went up to 2 perks, the base price of the cruise went up by an average of $200pp for non-haven rooms, and $600pp for Haven rooms. This was even before they started tacking on that you had to pay the gratuities on the fare. Doesn't make the sale seem really good if you booked it really early.

 

In general I have seen promo's get worse over the years though. Some people keep good ones (I really like X's promo's idea where you KNOW you are paying more for the perks because you can pay more, and choose more for a pretty reasonable IMO fee).

 

I have started thinking that the promo's are really the last thing I am gonna be looking at when booking a cruise anymore!

[luvtheships]

I booked a great deal recently on the gem through my longtime online TA and just took his obc and the free wifi

 

Now Ncl is still selling my cruise at the same amount with the free wifi but is now offering $50 obc too

 

So if I call my TA I can now keep the wifi keep his $50 obc plus get $50 obc from Ncl

 

But I have to agree to a guarantee as oppose to choose cabin

 

I've done guarantees but for this trip I like the cabin we have so I'm staying put.

[Feelin' Nauti']

I am a little perturbed that NCL can change the amount of visits after you booked.

I started a new thread, questioning this. After the fact, I stumbled upon this thread.

 

Like to know exactly how many visits you are entitled to by the length of the cruise....

 

When I booked the terms as stated on this site -

https://www.ncl.com/termsandconditions/choicejan2016

Sail Length # of Dining Package Meals Guest Gratuities Per Person in USD

5-6 Nights 3 $10.62

7-9 Nights 4 meals $13.32

10-12 Nights 5 meals $16.02

13-16 Nights 6 meals $18.72

 

Now I see on this site

http://www.agents-uk.ncl.eu/freeterms.php

it changed for new bookings made between 11 April and 30 June 2016

Specialty Dining packages:

Sail Length # of meals 5-9 Nights 3 meals

10+ Nights 4 meals

Edited April 15, 2016 by Feelin' Nauti'

[LrgPizza]

I am a little perturbed that NCL can change the amount of visits after you booked.

I started a new thread' date=' questioning this. After the fact, I stumbled upon this thread.

 

Like to know exactly how many visits you are entitled to by the length of the cruise....

 

When I booked the terms as stated on this site -

https://www.ncl.com/termsandconditions/choicejan2016

[b']Sail Length[/b] # of Dining Package Meals Guest Gratuities Per Person in USD

5-6 Nights 3 $10.62

7-9 Nights 4 meals $13.32

10-12 Nights 5 meals $16.02

13-16 Nights 6 meals $18.72

 

Now I see on this site

http://www.agents-uk.ncl.eu/freeterms.php

it changed for new bookings made between 11 April and 30 June 2016

Specialty Dining packages:

Sail Length # of meals 5-9 Nights 3 meals

10+ Nights 4 meals

 

They've changed nothing for you after you booked. You will get whatever # of meals you were given with your particular promo. Current people who book today will get whatever number they are given with the promo today. Promos change all the time. You still get yours.

Edited April 15, 2016 by LrgPizza

[NLH Arizona]

I am a little perturbed that NCL can change the amount of visits after you booked.

I started a new thread' date=' questioning this. After the fact, I stumbled upon this thread.

 

Like to know exactly how many visits you are entitled to by the length of the cruise....

 

When I booked the terms as stated on this site -

https://www.ncl.com/termsandconditions/choicejan2016

[b']Sail Length[/b] # of Dining Package Meals Guest Gratuities Per Person in USD

5-6 Nights 3 $10.62

7-9 Nights 4 meals $13.32

10-12 Nights 5 meals $16.02

13-16 Nights 6 meals $18.72

 

Now I see on this site

http://www.agents-uk.ncl.eu/freeterms.php

it changed for new bookings made between 11 April and 30 June 2016

Specialty Dining packages:

Sail Length # of meals 5-9 Nights 3 meals

10+ Nights 4 meals

Did you call and NCL said the number of nights were changed for your booking or are you just looking at the new promotion details and figured they changed yours? How many nights service charge were you charged on your invoice?