latitudes rewards dining question

[Budget Queen]

On 4/10/2019 at 8:47 AM, jakesnana said:

 

I will check with Guest Services and see if they will let us use the more expensive option (Le Bistro or Cagneys) for the less expensive one (Moderno or La Cucina). I know it states no substituting restaurants, but I'm offering to give up a more expensive option for a less expensive one, maybe they'll bite.

 

I don't care which restaurant we go to, it would just be nice to have a dinner together.

NO  you will not be able to do this.     And  Guest Services  has nothing to do with this.   It is Cruise Next.   

[Budget Queen]

On 4/8/2019 at 12:14 PM, jakesnana said:

 

Well that kind of stinks 😞  I know it's a "free" perk (not really, I sailed a lot on NCL to get to this level), but if a cabin only had one Platinum member in the cabin they would get the same perk as someone with 2 Platinum members in the cabin. Kind of devalues the second Platinum guest. Basically, as it turns out we probably won't use any of them. Our friends will not pay to eat in a specialty restaurant and it seems rude to abandon them 2 nights out of the week for us to enjoy our "perks".

The  old program was ONE Le Bistro  dinner for 2 per persons.    It is now 2 dinners for 2  with more choices.    

[yearsofcruising]

2 hours ago, KeithJenner said:

You certainly will want to book Moderno as one of the first three to avoid being charged on booking.

 

I would leave Bayamo until the end when booking. If you do it in the first three then I believe you will get charged the $10 upcharge when booking. If you leave it to the end then the system will not charge you that when booking, as it will assume you aren’t using the package for it. You can still use the package to cover the meal onboard and have the upcharge charged to your onboard account.

 

i would book in this order:

 

Moderno, Cagneys, Le Bistro, La Cucina, Bayamo

Bayamo on the Escape is one of the 5 specialties listed , but not listed as Lattitude perk..

Lattitude shows Cagneys OR Bistro  &  Moderno OR Cucina

[KeithJenner]

29 minutes ago, yearsofcruising said:

Bayamo on the Escape is one of the 5 specialties listed , but not listed as Lattitude perk..

Lattitude shows Cagneys OR Bistro  &  Moderno OR Cucina

No, it isn’t included in the latitudes perk.

 

I am talking about the order you book them. You will still use your Latitudes voucher for Le Bistro and La Cucina

[yearsofcruising]

Thxs , I have read your above link concerning the Specialties ( taking Teppannaki out - its too noisy )

Considering Bayamo is " a la carte " and Lattitude is a 1app 1entree  1dessert.

Guess what i'm asking is , does the on-line booking realize my 1st three choices are covered under the Specialty and the next two would be my Lattitude vouchers ?

Also, do my choices then have to be consecutive nites or once clicked on can then pick a " day/time

Moderno 1st choice but then pick a day & time

Cagneys  2nd choice     "                "

Bayamo  3rd  choice      "                "

 then the 2 remaining    "                "         Lattitude vouchers

maybe i'll call ...lol    I got time       marc b.

[KeithJenner]

23 minutes ago, yearsofcruising said:

Thxs , I have read your above link concerning the Specialties ( taking Teppannaki out - its too noisy )

Considering Bayamo is " a la carte " and Lattitude is a 1app 1entree  1dessert.

Guess what i'm asking is , does the on-line booking realize my 1st three choices are covered under the Specialty and the next two would be my Lattitude vouchers ?

Also, do my choices then have to be consecutive nites or once clicked on can then pick a " day/time

Moderno 1st choice but then pick a day & time

Cagneys  2nd choice     "                "

Bayamo  3rd  choice      "                "

 then the 2 remaining    "                "         Lattitude vouchers

maybe i'll call ...lol    I got time       marc b.

There is no relation between the order you book the meals and how you actually pay for them.

 

The system assumes the first three you book are covered by the SDP purely for deciding whether to charge you for them when booking. Once onboard you tell them how you actually want to pay for them.

 

Therefore, the order you reserve them should be guided purely by whether you want to avoid paying up front for them (I assume most people will want to avoid that).

 

You pick the day and time after you have selected the restaurant. You can book the last nights meal first if you want.

[yearsofcruising]

the  three SDP are already paid for ( included already when I booked the cruise as one of the promotions ).  And as Platinum , entitled to 2 more. Sorry to confuse.   marc

[podgeandrodge]

I see in my voucher that entrees up to $35 are covered. Have they upped it a lot since the $20 limit earlier this year or am I misunderstanding?

[spanishguy1970]

On 4/6/2019 at 4:27 PM, Deb and Jack said:

There is no charge but you are limited to choice by $25 entree limit along with 1 app 1 desert per person. I give my server a cash tip as there is no gratuity on the perk.

well is no longer free anymore if you go above 35 dollar entree. We usually go to Le Bistro ( we don't like Cagneys) and they charge us 4 dollars because my friend ordered the sole which costs 39 dollars...So pick wisely.

[Paul Bogle]

On 4/25/2019 at 4:28 PM, yearsofcruising said:

the  three SDP are already paid for ( included already when I booked the cruise as one of the promotions ).  And as Platinum , entitled to 2 more. Sorry to confuse.   marc

 

I hope I can reduce this to a simple solution. Basically you have five specialty dinners on your cruise. Three are the SPD promo and two are Platinum rewards. If this is correct continue to read. If this is wrong please ignore what follows.

 

When you book your reservations you want to book the fixed charge venues like Moderno and Teppanyaki first. The system will not charge you as you have three SDP credits. After booking the fixed price venues (if any) book the ala carte venues. Since the system doesn't know what you will order you will not be asked for a pre-payment.

 

When booking the reservations in advance the system is blind to your platinum rewards and only sees your SPD. Once on board you can pay for each dinner with either option, just let them know when you go to dinner.

Edited November 15, 2019 by Paul Bogle

[Deb and Jack]

10 minutes ago, spanishguy1970 said:

well is no longer free anymore if you go above 35 dollar entree. We usually go to Le Bistro ( we don't like Cagneys) and they charge us 4 dollars because my friend ordered the sole which costs 39 dollars...So pick wisely.

Yes, more enforcement of limits.

[spanishguy1970]

1 minute ago, Deb and Jack said:

Yes, more enforcement of limits.

which tells you that the latitudes party where they say they appreciate loyal customers, that we are family is a bunch of .......I stop going to those. I am now selling my cruise next certificates ( last 2) and moving on to newer pastures.

[Deb and Jack]

1 minute ago, spanishguy1970 said:

which tells you that the latitudes party where they say they appreciate loyal customers, that we are family is a bunch of .......I stop going to those. I am now selling my cruise next certificates ( last 2) and moving on to newer pastures.

I also stopped those awhile back,  nothing but a sales pitch for CN. 

[mugtech]

On 4/8/2019 at 12:14 PM, jakesnana said:

 

Well that kind of stinks 😞  I know it's a "free" perk (not really, I sailed a lot on NCL to get to this level), but if a cabin only had one Platinum member in the cabin they would get the same perk as someone with 2 Platinum members in the cabin. Kind of devalues the second Platinum guest. Basically, as it turns out we probably won't use any of them. Our friends will not pay to eat in a specialty restaurant and it seems rude to abandon them 2 nights out of the week for us to enjoy our "perks".

So what you do is put one Platinum member in each cabin and get twice as many meals, more wine.  Just because they are booked one in each cabin does not mean you have to sleep in separate cabins.

[KeithJenner]

59 minutes ago, podgeandrodge said:

I see in my voucher that entrees up to $35 are covered. Have they upped it a lot since the $20 limit earlier this year or am I misunderstanding?

Yes, the limit has been increased.

[mugtech]

39 minutes ago, KeithJenner said:

Yes, the limit has been increased.

So have the prices.

[Starry Eyes]

1 hour ago, KeithJenner said:

Yes, the limit has been increased.

 

20 minutes ago, mugtech said:

So have the prices.

Yes, entree prices have risen so much the old voucher would no longer cover any entree at Le Bistro and few (if any) in Cagney’s.

 

Also, this month in Cagney’s on Sun, they are adding $5 surcharge for crab cake appetizer for both latitudes and SDP.  Seemed odd because (a) surcharge is just wrong and (b) since higher priced appetizers do not have surcharge.  One more reason to avoid Cagney’s.

Edited November 16, 2019 by Starry Eyes

[spanishguy1970]

On 4/8/2019 at 12:23 PM, KeithJenner said:

A solo gets two meals for one (unless they find someone to share with), so the second person in your room does get an extra benefit.

 

Basically, it works out as two meals per platinum member. Some people, due to specific circumstances can end up doing better, but good luck to them. I’m certainly pleased that NCL aren’t going out of their way to make sure that someone doesn’t get a little advantage.

It does not work out two meals per platinum that’s the way it used to be. Each platinum used to get two dinners and two bottles of wine now is two dinners and one bottle of wine per stateroom. In my case since i travel with another platinum we each pick the voucher we prefer and use that. In my case i like Bistro and my friend likes Moderno , we eat at different times. I only get one dinner for free.

[KeithJenner]

5 hours ago, spanishguy1970 said:

It does not work out two meals per platinum that’s the way it used to be. Each platinum used to get two dinners and two bottles of wine now is two dinners and one bottle of wine per stateroom. In my case since i travel with another platinum we each pick the voucher we prefer and use that. In my case i like Bistro and my friend likes Moderno , we eat at different times. I only get one dinner for free.

You have quoted an old post and I think that we have discussed this on another thread. I’ll say what I believe I said last time.

 

Yes, in some circumstances the new rules don’t work as well. My response above was to a post suggesting that they aren’t fair because another group (solos travelling alone who don’t want to find someone else to eat with) are now doing better. My view is that I am pleased for them.

 

Your situation is different, and I believe I have already acknowledged elsewhere that it doesn’t work out as well for you. However, I would say that your circumstances are a little unusual. If I was putting together these benefits I have to admit that I wouldn’t necessarily be considering those people who book a shared room, but would rather forego a free meal rather than eat together. Unfortunately, because there are so many different circumstances it is impossible to cover all bases.

[KateQ22003]

7 hours ago, spanishguy1970 said:

It does not work out two meals per platinum that’s the way it used to be. Each platinum used to get two dinners and two bottles of wine now is two dinners and one bottle of wine per stateroom. In my case since i travel with another platinum we each pick the voucher we prefer and use that. In my case i like Bistro and my friend likes Moderno , we eat at different times. I only get one dinner for free.

This is true. I traveled solo a couple of months ago on the Gem; I only got two free meals plus a bottle of wine. I asked the question; they said no.

[KeithJenner]

28 minutes ago, KateQ22003 said:

This is true. I traveled solo a couple of months ago on the Gem; I only got two free meals plus a bottle of wine. I asked the question; they said no.

Your situation is very different to spanishguy. He only gets one meal and they have to fight over the wine.

 

I'm not sure what it was that you asked for, but when travelling solo you get two meals and a bottle of wine, as you stated. A platinum couple travelling together get two meals each and a bottle of wine to share, so you are doing better than us anyway, so I don't see any reason why they should then bend the rules to make it even better for you.

 

You actually have another advantage over the rest of us, as there is the possibility that you could combine with another solo in order to get 4 meals for yourself.

[newmexicoNita]

13 hours ago, podgeandrodge said:

I see in my voucher that entrees up to $35 are covered. Have they upped it a lot since the $20 limit earlier this year or am I misunderstanding?

That's correct: it has been raised to $35. That is a positive move on the part of NCL.  

[newmexicoNita]

13 hours ago, spanishguy1970 said:

well is no longer free anymore if you go above 35 dollar entree. We usually go to Le Bistro ( we don't like Cagneys) and they charge us 4 dollars because my friend ordered the sole which costs 39 dollars...So pick wisely.

It is still free if you stay under $35. This is made very clear. As for the extra $4 some waiters over look this, others don't but regardless, if one chooses to go over they may be charged. This doesn't mean it is free for most. 

[KateQ22003]

4 hours ago, KeithJenner said:

Your situation is very different to spanishguy. He only gets one meal and they have to fight over the wine.

 

I'm not sure what it was that you asked for, but when travelling solo you get two meals and a bottle of wine, as you stated. A platinum couple travelling together get two meals each and a bottle of wine to share, so you are doing better than us anyway, so I don't see any reason why they should then bend the rules to make it even better for you.

 

You actually have another advantage over the rest of us, as there is the possibility that you could combine with another solo in order to get 4 meals for yourself.

Sorry; my mistake. I read the comment incorrectly! I thought it said that a solo could use each coupon twice, which of course is not allowed. So when traveling solo, you get two meals. If you are traveling with somebody, you get four. Hope that makes sense.

[KeithJenner]

12 minutes ago, KateQ22003 said:

Sorry; my mistake. I read the comment incorrectly! I thought it said that a solo could use each coupon twice, which of course is not allowed. So when traveling solo, you get two meals. If you are traveling with somebody, you get four. Hope that makes sense.

Yes it does.

 

I think one of the problems is that under the old rules, a solo would just get one meal for two. If they didn't have someone to share with then that just meant that they got one meal, whilst a couple would get two meals each. As a result, many ships would let people split the vouchers to give them two meals for one.

 

Now, the coupons are fairer for that solo person, as they get two meals regardless. Allowing them to be split would mean that they got double, and I assume that this is why the ships have stopped allowing it. As people are now being told they can't split the vouchers they feel they aren't getting something which they used to get, whereas in reality it just isn't needed any more.