Cruise price dropped on fully paid cruise: can I receive an onboard credit?

[VPMJ]

 Hello, I see that the cruise price has dropped for our November cruise. It is already paid in full. I could swear that I read somewhere about people receiving onboard credit if their cruise and there room category dropped in price.  Can I call and receive an onboard credit?

 

 Also, what about the additional $50 excursion perk that has been recently offered? I see some people getting that added to their cruise, but wonder if that applies to us since we are already paid in full?

 

Thank you in advance! 

[Cruise4Twos]

I just received onboard credit from NCL since my room category dropped in price after I paid in full. Note that I booked directly thru NCL.

[Matman1215]

This recently happened to us. We called and NCL gave us 25% of the reduction in OBC. They will only do this once, so if you call today and receive the OBC and next week it goes down even more, they will not give you any additional. We booked directly through NCL.

 

We booked an H6 and there were 6 left when we saw the first reduction, so we waited. It was further reduced and we called because there were only 3 left at that time. It has since gone down again. The timing is usually a gamble and it's nice that they provide anything after final payment.

[Cruise4Twos]

Yes NCL gave us 25% of the reduction in OBC. They said they will only do this once.  It was further reduced. Tried calling again but it didn't work. I agree that the timing is usually a gamble and it's nice that they provide anything after final payment.

[VPMJ]

2 hours ago, Cruise4Twos said:

I just received onboard credit from NCL since my room category dropped in price after I paid in full. Note that I booked directly thru NCL.

 

1 hour ago, Matman1215 said:

This recently happened to us. We called and NCL gave us 25% of the reduction in OBC. They will only do this once, so if you call today and receive the OBC and next week it goes down even more, they will not give you any additional. We booked directly through NCL.

 

We booked an H6 and there were 6 left when we saw the first reduction, so we waited. It was further reduced and we called because there were only 3 left at that time. It has since gone down again. The timing is usually a gamble and it's nice that they provide anything after final payment.

 

1 hour ago, Cruise4Twos said:

Yes NCL gave us 25% of the reduction in OBC. They said they will only do this once.  It was further reduced. Tried calling again but it didn't work. I agree that the timing is usually a gamble and it's nice that they provide anything after final payment.

 

 Thank you all. We are 53 days out. Wondering if I should just go with this price drop or wait even longer?  At what point did you find the second set of further reductions? 

[shaun07]

Will they do the 25% if booked with a TA?

[ColeThornton]

29 minutes ago, VPMJ said:

 

 

 

 Thank you all. We are 53 days out. Wondering if I should just go with this price drop or wait even longer?  At what point did you find the second set of further reductions? 

 

 

Note to remember:   Prices can go up as well as down.  If you think you can get some compensation then take advantage of it at the time or you are taking a gamble.  Something is better than nothing.

[April42749]

2 hours ago, shaun07 said:

Will they do the 25% if booked with a TA?

I tried....my TA said something to the effect of "no".  It was only a $25 drop so I didn't really care, but I think he was just too lazy.

[zqvol]

2 hours ago, VPMJ said:

 

 

 

 Thank you all. We are 53 days out. Wondering if I should just go with this price drop or wait even longer?  At what point did you find the second set of further reductions? 

 

If you wait it could go back up. Don't assume that it will stay where it is today.

[LovinCruisin24]

So I noticed our cruise leaving Dec 7 dropped $100. I emailed my TA because I wanted to change decks (same room category) and see if she could get any type of response on the drop. She went online to change my cabin and the site allowed her the $100 discount so now I'm getting $100 refund to my credit card (which she and I were both shocked and happy about!)

[Cruise4Twos]

5 hours ago, April42749 said:

I tried....my TA said something to the effect of "no".  It was only a $25 drop so I didn't really care, but I think he was just too lazy.

I think that you're right.

[Cruise4Twos]

7 hours ago, VPMJ said:

 

 

 

 Thank you all. We are 53 days out. Wondering if I should just go with this price drop or wait even longer?  At what point did you find the second set of further reductions? 

I was at 52 days out. The price fell again later that day. I wish I would have waited but I didn't want to take that chance. On NCL if it's not a newer ship or a hot itinerary, the price tends to go down at 60 days or less vs. up. What's more likely is that the room category sells out. If it sells out, there's nothing to negotiate.

[tanyaewa]

10 hours ago, shaun07 said:

Will they do the 25% if booked with a TA?

Yes - have your TA call. Our drop was significant 

Edited September 12, 2019 by tanyaewa

[newmexicoNita]

14 hours ago, shaun07 said:

Will they do the 25% if booked with a TA?

Yes they will but you have to call your TA. As for waiting, This has got to be your choice and no one can advise you which way to go. Being me, I would be happy with the OBC and not wait. Anything is better than nothing. 

[imahistorygeek]

I also experienced a price drop after PIF.  I called Expedia to inquire about OBC.  Expedia reached out to NCL and the cruiseline gave me approx 25% of the price drop in OBC.  I did also ask for room upgrade, but that was a no-go.  I didn't think it would work, but tried anyway.  NCL stated that if I didn't accept what they were offering, I could try my luck again.  If I did accept the offer, I could not ask for any additional OBC for price drops. Expedia agent recommended taking the OBC. 

[tomk3212]

We had this happen several years ago; price dropped like a rock a week after we booked & paid through our NCL PCC (cruise was about 60 days out).  Our PCC got us bumped up to a balcony from our GTY/SA Inside cabin category with no additional $$ plus a $25 OBC for the cabin!  Woo for us!

 

Lessons learned: 1) Use a PCC whenever possible instead of the NCL website.  This way if the price drops you have an actual human being with a "real" phone# to interact with instead of the generic 866 customer service phone line and whomever picks up at the other end.  Our PCC also warned us then that this would be the ONLY compensation we'd get, even if the price dropped further. 2) TA's can be hit and miss; we used my dad-in-law until he passed and then had good and bad experiences with other non-family TA's.  We've been using NCL's PCCs with good results the past 3-4 years.  Unfortunately they turn over quickly (our current PCC is the 4th we've had) so keep that in mind.

 

As previous posters have stated if you placed your original reservation through a TA then you have to deal with the TA; NCL will NOT talk to you.  For that & other reasons we use NCL's PCCs.

 

Good luck & hope you have a great cruise!

 

[Cruise4Twos]

2 hours ago, tomk3212 said:

We had this happen several years ago; price dropped like a rock a week after we booked & paid through our NCL PCC (cruise was about 60 days out).  Our PCC got us bumped up to a balcony from our GTY/SA Inside cabin category with no additional $$ plus a $25 OBC for the cabin!  Woo for us!

 

Lessons learned: 1) Use a PCC whenever possible instead of the NCL website.  This way if the price drops you have an actual human being with a "real" phone# to interact with instead of the generic 866 customer service phone line and whomever picks up at the other end.  Our PCC also warned us then that this would be the ONLY compensation we'd get, even if the price dropped further. 2) TA's can be hit and miss; we used my dad-in-law until he passed and then had good and bad experiences with other non-family TA's.  We've been using NCL's PCCs with good results the past 3-4 years.  Unfortunately they turn over quickly (our current PCC is the 4th we've had) so keep that in mind.

 

As previous posters have stated if you placed your original reservation through a TA then you have to deal with the TA; NCL will NOT talk to you.  For that & other reasons we use NCL's PCCs.

 

Good luck & hope you have a great cruise!

 

Unfortunately the PCC did not work out for us. One day I happened to call while my PCC was out of the office. I spoke to another PCC who directed me to a room that suited our needs (most rooms were sold out) but our PCC needed to make the change. When he called me back, he said that the room category was not available. Unfortunately my computer was not acting properly at the time. He tried to talk me into a higher priced room. The call ended. Once my computer was fine I called him again. I read to him what was available through the website so he had to place me into the room I requested. There were two other minor issues that I had to force him to do.

 

This was our 2nd PCC. The 1st was neutral. When we booked this time, they didn't assign me one and I was happy. I've called several times for price reductions b4 final payment and OBC after final payment. I would rather have some good some bad customer service than get stuck with a bad PCC.

 

 

[tomk3212]

@Cruise4Twos One gimmick I learned from my prior PCC was a "courtesy hold".  If you can't contact your regular PCC then call the  866 reservations number & ask the customer service rep or whomever you get for this.  Unfortunately it's only good for 6-24 hours, depending on when you call (I think it expires at midnight).  This will "hold" your reservation at that price & cabin category.  I did that for our last TA cruise while I booked last minute airfare from London back to NY (successfully).  I then called her back before the hold expired & completed the booking.

 

If you don't like your particular PCC just call the regular 866 customer service number, ask for a supervisor & request a new one.  I've not had to do this but others who have done it can perhaps speak to this better than me.

[Cruise4Twos]

15 minutes ago, tomk3212 said:

@Cruise4Twos One gimmick I learned from my prior PCC was a "courtesy hold".  If you can't contact your regular PCC then call the  866 reservations number & ask the customer service rep or whomever you get for this.  Unfortunately it's only good for 6-24 hours, depending on when you call (I think it expires at midnight).  This will "hold" your reservation at that price & cabin category.  I did that for our last TA cruise while I booked last minute airfare from London back to NY (successfully).  I then called her back before the hold expired & completed the booking.

 

If you don't like your particular PCC just call the regular 866 customer service number, ask for a supervisor & request a new one.  I've not had to do this but others who have done it can perhaps speak to this better than me.

Good to know that you can switch PCCs. I may try a PCC again.

 

I'm not sure that I understand the purpose of a courtesy hold for me. I think that I've done this b4. If so, it's to hold a cabin b4 a deposit which wasn't my scenario. I had an inside cabin because everything else but an owner's suite was sold out. Someone recommended that I keep calling back to see if an outside cabin opens up. It did (several did since it was close to final payment), but my PCC said that it wasn't available when it was. He tried to place me in a higher priced oceanview.  Eventually I proved it to him so he had to book me in that cabin.

[DimSum]

On 9/11/2019 at 4:27 PM, shaun07 said:

Will they do the 25% if booked with a TA?

Yes, my TA just got me $125 OBC.  My November cruise dropped by $500.  My TA was busy at a conference when the priced dropped the first time and now that she's back in the office, the price dropped again.  So I'm glad she was away to get a bigger OBC.

[Budget Queen]

On 9/11/2019 at 4:03 PM, VPMJ said:

 

 

 

 Thank you all. We are 53 days out. Wondering if I should just go with this price drop or wait even longer?  At what point did you find the second set of further reductions? 

Nobody has a crystal ball.    Drops can happen right up to sailing.    You are extremely fortunate to get anything-  you have agreed to zero when you booked and past the final payment date-  per your contract.  

[Hrhbob]

My Joy Mexico cruise dropped $672 from when I booked it so I called my online TA who called NCL. We are 80 days out. She was told they would not give OBC as long as there were upgrades available which there were. We were upgraded from our BA to a B1 aft balcony. Not worth $672 but a darn sight better than nothing!

[Budget Queen]

17 hours ago, Cruise4Twos said:

I was at 52 days out. The price fell again later that day. I wish I would have waited but I didn't want to take that chance. On NCL if it's not a newer ship or a hot itinerary, the price tends to go down at 60 days or less vs. up. What's more likely is that the room category sells out. If it sells out, there's nothing to negotiate.

No-  there is NO predictability.   60 days is no magic number-  and cruises-  just as often go up.  

[Cruise4Twos]

14 minutes ago, Budget Queen said:

No-  there is NO predictability.   60 days is no magic number-  and cruises-  just as often go up.  

Sure the cruises that go up are the newer ships/hotter itineraries/top holidays. I spoke to that in my post above. I've seen this quite a bit. The ones I call the hidden gems go down. No, I'm not a magician.  If there was absolute predictability, I would have gotten the absolute best deal and I would be available recommend it to everyone.  

[Budget Queen]

11 minutes ago, Cruise4Twos said:

Sure the cruises that go up are the newer ships/hotter itineraries/top holidays. I spoke to that in my post above. I've seen this quite a bit. The ones I call the hidden gems go down. No, I'm not a magician.  If there was absolute predictability, I would have gotten the absolute best deal and I would be available recommend it to everyone.  

I'll  continue to disagree. :)   I've gotten on those "newer/ships/ hotter itineraries"  at give away rates.    The fact that those can be very costly to begin with,  allows for potential unsold space.   I'm open to any opportunity-  and have the great flexibility to take advantage.   I sail with a itinerary priority first and don't care about the ship.  I've been on 16 cruises already this year-   I gave up trying to predict anything a lot time ago.  :)