Non Refundable credits on NCL cannot be applied to daily service charge

[drafterdw]

NewMexico Neta posted that most cruise lines do not allow you use OBC for gratuities. We are on NCL in March with a small nonrefundable credit but in Feb. we are on Celebrity with a very large non refundable credit which we had planned to use for gratuties. We called Celebrity today and they said we could use it for anything on board including tips except in the casino. A lot of people have been saying go to casino play a little & cash out. She said nope won't work on Celebrity. Before anyone says call again & get a different answer. We called 3 times - different people all gave us the same answer. I say call NCL and ask the questions. I cannot fine the paragraph that is suppose to be in NCL documents in mine but like I said I don't really care about NCL OBC since it is small. If you have a question call...ask them to email you the answer so you have it to show on board.

[fshagan]

NewMexico Neta posted that most cruise lines do not allow you use OBC for gratuities.

 

She corrected that. As far as we can tell, NCL is the only cruise line that does not allow you to use your non-refundable OBC to pay for the daily service charge. HAL, Princess, Celebrity, RCL and Carnival all allow you to use it for their version of the daily service charge.

[Marjar]

Disagree. I for one am thankful for the head's up, because I (and perhaps others) didn't know about it. And the OP did begin their post with, "I just wanted to give the heads up to anyone who doesn't frequently sail on Norwegian..." so it was pretty clear who they were addressing.

 

Also, I don't think the OP was looking for a cash refund. They were hoping the non-refundable OBC could be used towards their DSC, just as refundable OBC can. That's not something that's common knowledge to all readers (especially newbies), and being informed of this quirk is and should be appreciated, IMHO.

 

Thank you, TexasCigarGuy. It was exactly my intent to let new NCL's cruisers know about this, because although I am a frequent cruiser, I still didn't know about it. Even though I read these boards, I never came across this info, although I have been informed that it is "old news".;)

[ray98]

Why is there a service charge?

The reason there's a fixed service charge is an important one: Our Crew (as are the crew from other lines) is encouraged to work together as a team. Staff members including complimentary restaurant staff, stateroom stewards and behind-the-scenes support staff are compensated by a combination of salary and incentive programs that your service charge supports. How much is the charge? Onboard Service Charges are additional.

 

 

What about Gratuities?

Unlike most other ships in the cruise industry, there is no required or recommended tipping on our ships for service that is generally rendered to all Guests. While you should not feel obligated to offer a gratuity, all of our staff are encouraged to “go the extra mile,” so they are permitted to accept cash gratuities for exceptional or outstanding service if you care to offer them. Also, certain staff positions (e.g., concierge, butler, youth program staff and beverage service) provide service on an individual basis to only some guests and do not benefit from the overall service charge. We encourage those Guests to acknowledge good service from these staff members with appropriate gratuities. Additionally, there is an 18% gratuity and spa service charge added for all spa and salon services, as well as an 18% gratuity and beverage service charge added for all beverage purchases and an 18% gratuity and specialty service charge added to all specialty restaurant dining and entertainment based dining.

 

Lol... So you are telling us the crew gets compensated from what the passengers contribute in exchange for the quality of services rendered?

 

Well gee...that is just like the other lines. Oh look...it follows the industry standard also. Imagine that.

 

Tip = gratuity = service charge.... It just depends on how the marketing department wants to word it.

[lainielove]

Nonrefundable OBC can be used for additional tips (over and above the DSC ) to the steward and others (butler, concierge)....correct?

 

Hmmmm... so isn't this a work-around?: figure out what you would be giving the staff acc to the required/suggested amounts... ask the concierge to put these OBC amounts towards gratuities for the staff and then graciously "remove" some of the pre-allotted gratuities to come up to the same amount otherwise.

In other words, if the cruise line puts a $500 charge on my room for gratuities, but I have $200 in OBC... can't I just tell the concierge to move my $500 gratuity amount down to $300 for the week and then assign my $200 OBC as additional gratuity? That would still be $500 in tips...

[don't-use-real-name]

After NCL has sent in the clowns to make this clear as mud ---

 

Then the lawyers are sent in to make sure it is absolutely clear as mud

and total bafflement is established as to why NCL could do without all

the falderal and balderdash by simply charging a fair fare without

further innuendo !

 

If you pay your fare by Friday the 13th in the same month there is a

'Blue Moon' you will get your cabin for 100 % off of the absurd non

refundable refundable wooden nickels and kewpie dolls pricing

provided you have paid the piper and jumped through the required

flaming hoops.

You will not qualify if you do this prior to the ides of March - et NCL !

 

Read the fine print - certainly after doing that one must throw in the

towel to understand there is no understanding of garble de gook !

[Mrs Cheech]

We have not cruised with NCL too much in recent years but did book 2 cruises with them in 2018. Thank you to OP for advising me that my OBC cannot be used towards DSC/gratuities as this is what I had planned to do. It is what we do on Celebrity or Royal. But this board has had conflicting information regarding using the OBC for booking excursions in the port. Does anyone know for sure? Can I book an excursion & use up my credit that way? If so, must I wait till on the ship to book? Any help is appreciated...

 

Joyce

[don't-use-real-name]

Exactly what I said before "I think it is a tip and I'm going to call it a tip so that means it is a tip". By your definition your cruise fare is a tip since it goes to compensate the crew. Mere segregating the incentive program funding into the DSC does not make it a tip. What portion of your cruise fare do you consider to be a tip since it goes to compensate crew members? LOL

 

IF you choose not to tip by all means don't, but at least own up to he fact that you are not tipping and do not hide behind the false claim that you already tip with the DSC.

 

 

NCL would do better to raise the fare the same amount as the DSC and shut the door - not charge a dime more -

and be a sort of all inclusive cruise line.

 

But NO NCL persists in this comical confusing of "What's in your wallet/purse"?

Never mind hand it over and 20% more just to make this more confusing than ever.

 

Someone needs to command a pirate ship and sail up the Miami cruise canal and launch a few cannon balls

in the direction of NCL headquarters to get their attention of such absurd business practices.

Give all these perks and promos and then turn around and charge it back !

And with a gratuity charge to boot !

Insult added to injury with no end in sight !

[ray98]

Exactly what I said before "I think it is a tip and I'm going to call it a tip so that means it is a tip". By your definition your cruise fare is a tip since it goes to compensate the crew. Mere segregating the incentive program funding into the DSC does not make it a tip. What portion of your cruise fare do you consider to be a tip since it goes to compensate crew members? LOL

 

IF you choose not to tip by all means don't, but at least own up to he fact that you are not tipping and do not hide behind the false claim that you already tip with the DSC.

 

Well....if I can give you one thing....you certainly hold on tightly to this little charade and mingling of words you post at least twice a day.

 

Tip....gratuity....service charge. All optional in the cruise world and all given by passengers in exchange for the expectation of quality service rendered.

[newmexicoNita]

NCL would do better to raise the fare the same amount as the DSC and shut the door - not charge a dime more -

and be a sort of all inclusive cruise line.

 

But NO NCL persists in this comical confusing of "What's in your wallet/purse"?

Never mind hand it over and 20% more just to make this more confusing than ever.

 

Someone needs to command a pirate ship and sail up the Miami cruise canal and launch a few cannon balls

in the direction of NCL headquarters to get their attention of such absurd business practices.

Give all these perks and promos and then turn around and charge it back !

And with a gratuity charge to boot !

Insult added to injury with no end in sight !

Not that I don't like your attitude or idea. I would be happy with it. In fact our next cruise I sorta consider it working that way because of our perks covering almost everything, but doing what you are suggesting would probably bomb out: you would have people complaining about NCL being too expensive. The same with land restaurants and raising the prices to offset the poor pay the wait staff gets. Even if tips were not incouraged you would havd those saying the food prices at XYZ restaurant were too pricey.

Edited January 23, 2018 by newmexicoNita

[lainielove]

Hmmmm... so isn't this a work-around?: If the cruise line puts the automatic $500 charge on my room for gratuities, but I have $200 in OBC... can't I just tell the concierge to lower my $500 gratuity amount down to $300 for the week and then assign my $200 OBC as additional gratuity to those who I eel like tipping? That would still be $500 in tips. Is that permitted?

[newmexicoNita]

NewMexico Neta posted that most cruise lines do not allow you use OBC for gratuities. We are on NCL in March with a small nonrefundable credit but in Feb. we are on Celebrity with a very large non refundable credit which we had planned to use for gratuties. We called Celebrity today and they said we could use it for anything on board including tips except in the casino. A lot of people have been saying go to casino play a little & cash out. She said nope won't work on Celebrity. Before anyone says call again & get a different answer. We called 3 times - different people all gave us the same answer. I say call NCL and ask the questions. I cannot fine the paragraph that is suppose to be in NCL documents in mine but like I said I don't really care about NCL OBC since it is small. If you have a question call...ask them to email you the answer so you have it to show on board.

you are right, and I posted yesterday an apology for my mistake.

[acctgtogo]

Thanks for this "old news" as I did not know this. We normally sail with Celebrity and always use our OBC towards the gratuities. I would never have thought to read the fine print to see if NCL's rules were different. The thought never crossed my mind.

[Ms. Lynn]

Thanks for this information. So glad I read this post. I had planned on using my OBC for the DSC as I have been able to do on the the other cruise lines I have sailed on. Guess I'll have to budget some more money.

[Iggy68]

Apologies if this has been asked before, but why is there a Premium All Inclusve fare for UK cruisers yet not for US cruisers? Presumably it all works out to be very similar in the end but the DSC seems to cause so much consternation.

[littlelulu01]

Apologies if this has been asked before, but why is there a Premium All Inclusve fare for UK cruisers yet not for US cruisers? Presumably it all works out to be very similar in the end but the DSC seems to cause so much consternation.

Premium all inclusive just rolls the gratuity/dsc into the fare. You can choose to have the cruise only fare for U.K. bookings and pay the voluntary dsc/tips separate, but NCL throws some goodies in to make the premium ai package desirable. I don’t think most have the debate on the dsc- just a few on these boards. If you want to give some extra cash tips on top of this nobody is going to complain and it will be very appreciated. But a couple posters on an Internet board telling folks over and over that a voluntary charge for service rendered isn’t a gratuity does not mean that the definition of gratuity is suddenly useless.

[gambit57]

Not that I don't like your attitude or idea. I would be happy with it. In fact our next cruise I sorta consider it working that way because of our perks covering almost everything, but doing what you are suggesting would probably bomb out: you would have people complaining about NCL being too expensive. The same with land restaurants and raising the prices to offset the poor pay the wait staff gets. Even if tips were not incouraged you would havd those saying the food prices at XYZ restaurant were too pricey.

 

Food is very important to me, so I actually find Norwegian expensive because I add up the cost of the specialty restaurants to the cruise fare. I see NCL just like the low cost air carriers. I find them expensive too because once you add in all the fees, I'm much better off with a Southwest/JetBlue who doesn't charge for all those extras.

 

I do wish the cruise lines would offer more "premium" all inclusive offerings to make it easier to compare apples to apples, but of course that's the entire point - to make things confusing and hard to compare. Luckily, the constant upcharges isn't the norm in the cruise line industry. It's still fairly mild in many other lines such as Princess, Celebrity, Disney, etc.

 

I'm not knocking NCL for doing it their way. I like it actually. Gives more choice. Lots of people get turned off Princess because they find it stuffy and too restrictive. So NCL is great. I just don't find them cheap because of how I prefer to cruise.

[tel2]

We usually have a lot of OBC because of being stock holders. And we were going to buy some NCL stock for the same reason, but if we are not able to use it for gratuities or excursions, why bother? We never really use it for anything else.

 

I am glad I saw this thread, thanks.

 

Just a clarification. It absolutely can be used for excursions. We do it all the time. Also, if you are in a suite, you can use it to tip the butler or concierge, which we also have frequently done with no problem.

[newmexicoNita]

Food is very important to me, so I actually find Norwegian expensive because I add up the cost of the specialty restaurants to the cruise fare. I see NCL just like the low cost air carriers. I find them expensive too because once you add in all the fees, I'm much better off with a Southwest/JetBlue who doesn't charge for all those extras.

 

I do wish the cruise lines would offer more "premium" all inclusive offerings to make it easier to compare apples to apples, but of course that's the entire point - to make things confusing and hard to compare. Luckily, the constant upcharges isn't the norm in the cruise line industry. It's still fairly mild in many other lines such as Princess, Celebrity, Disney, etc.

 

I'm not knocking NCL for doing it their way. I like it actually. Gives more choice. Lots of people get turned off Princess because they find it stuffy and too restrictive. So NCL is great. I just don't find them cheap because of how I prefer to cruise.

I am not quite sure what your comments have to do with OBC but I guess I am missing something. As for specialty dining, I don't know of any lines that do not charge extra for specialty dining. Certainly Princess as well as HAL and Celebrity do. Our daughter just got off Oceana, specialty D room, $65. Of course, as you can imagine the food was superior to all mass marketed lines, but so were the prices. Most mass marketed lines, even Princess have similar policies and costs involved. But, of course that isn't the point of this post, anymore than comparing food is.

[DZcreature]

One time during the past year while Maniacal Cruiser was on a cruise, some one asked ncl face book if the DSC was for gratuities. The answer from ncl face book was yes. Does any one else recall seeing this? Of course it is nice to tip extra in cash for excellent service received by any crew members.

 

Also, thank you to OP for pointing out that the nonrefundable OBC can not be used for the DSC.

[Square]

Thanks OP for the heads up! I'm used to Princess where you could use your OBC for the daily gratuity (or whatever they want to call it). I don't think we have a lot of OBC coming up but I'll make sure it gets used.

[lainielove]

NO they put a $13.99 per day per person on your account for the Daily Service Fee (Charge), gratuities are up to you to pay to whomever you want to tip.

 

But we can ask to remove them, can't we?

...and then give the amounts we wish as "tips" to the staff who helped us personally.

[LMaxwell]

But we can ask to remove them, can't we?

...and then give the amounts we wish as "tips" to the staff who helped us personally.

 

Yes, that's your choice.

[perditax]

I haven't clicked this thread before because I rarely have any OBC. But then I realized I might buy a future cruise certificate on this trip. Is that OBC non-refundable/can't be applied to service charge?

[adam_s_allen]

I haven't clicked this thread before because I rarely have any OBC. But then I realized I might buy a future cruise certificate on this trip. Is that OBC non-refundable/can't be applied to service charge?

 

Don't even think of that as OBC. Just subtract whatever "on board credit" they give from the total price of the future cruise credit.