To Use FCC or take a refund - that is the question

[krittykat]

I was planning to get a refund and later booking a cruise in December. However,  just spoke with a PCC with Norwegian. She indicated that we could merge my daughter's FCC from her cabin with our FCC from ours - to  book a single, larger Haven suite. Taking advantage of the extra 25% FCC and 20% booking now bonus - it would leave us with a little less than $1000 left over - which she indicated we could  use as we wish (shore excursions, shopping, dining etc)

 

Sounds almost too good to be true.  

Needing opinions.....

[cruisekitty22]

We are taking the FCC.  Booking Encore tomorrow for 5 day February 24, March 1 2021.   I would do what you are comfortable with  . I am not the least worried NCL might go under  or worse.  Your deal sounds good to me.

[BirdTravels]

If you plan to cruise in NCL again in the next two years, take the FCC. 
 

If you believe that NCL will go bankrupt and take your money, take the cash and run. 
 

Those are the choices. 

[krittykat]

I just couldn't pass up the deal offered.  It cost me nothing out of pocket and we were going to cruise anyway. I am thinking that things will be better by December looking at trends (old nurse logic here) and daughter needs to burn vacation days by then.
So - we are cruising Dec 13 on the Breakaway, in an aft penthouse...never thought I would be so spoiled lol.
Might ruin me for life.

[Sxm13616]

I had a trip scheduled for May 3 leaving from Rome. Obviously it was cancelled.  At first I was going to take the cash, but after weighing the options I decided to book for January 2021.  With the extra 25% and the 20% discount I believe it was worth taking the FCC and booking a new cruise.

 

[dmdiver]

We took the FCC and re-booked our Alaska cruise for next year.  We booked the same type cabin & will use the remaining FCC to pay for the excursions.

[luv2kroooz]

Take the cash, unless you like to gamble. Lots of uncertainty and now there is talk about virus resurging next fall.

[phillyguy31]

If it works for you take the FCC, get travel insurance for the trip. From the  way my policy is written you are insured if the line goes bankrupt. Win Win????

[freeholdfriends]

We are taking the refund. There is too much uncertainty about future cruises. If things work out and we can cruise again, we will just pay for it  and be happy 

[10XCruiser]

Final payment for our 9/20/20 Canada/New England out of New York is in May.  Not sure if I should cancel before final payment or take my chances that it goes out in Sept.  Not sure how I feel about traveling out of NY.  Thoughts?

[krittykat]

6 hours ago, phillyguy31 said:

If it works for you take the FCC, get travel insurance for the trip. From the  way my policy is written you are insured if the line goes bankrupt. Win Win????

Always take out travel insurance. Have to use my airline credit prior to end of year also which is another reason I booked.

If the virus resurges....I guess it is a chance we will take. I refuse to live in fear...there is always something waiting in the wings.

[pokerpro5]

Take the refund.

 

Look at the high prices right now.  Do you think those will be the prices charged when cruising resumes, and almost nobody wants to cruise?

 

Absolutely not.

 

The "20% discount" is useless.  The fares will go far further down than 20%.

 

At the same time, NCL may cease to exist, and your FCC will end up worthless.  There is a good chance cruising will not resume in 2020, and NCL probably can't weather that much downtime.  You would be a fool to take anything but a refund right now.  The extra 25-50% you'll get in FCC isn't worth it.

[pokerpro5]

9 hours ago, 10XCruiser said:

Final payment for our 9/20/20 Canada/New England out of New York is in May.  Not sure if I should cancel before final payment or take my chances that it goes out in Sept.  Not sure how I feel about traveling out of NY.  Thoughts?

 

Cancel now.  Get your money back.  Fairly unlikely that the cruise goes, and if it does, you'll get a MUCH better deal than what you're booked at now, since everyone will be skittish about cruising again.

 

Plus, if it doesn't go (most likely), this would be around the time NCL would crash and burn, and you won't recover your money in all likelihood.

 

TRUST ME EVERYONE, TAKE THE CASH REFUND NOW, AND CANCEL ALL BOOKINGS ON NCL UNTIL THIS ALL PASSES!

 

I can't stress enough what a mistake everyone is making by taking FCCs, booking cruises in 2020, or refusing to cancel.  It's like watching people toss money in the toilet and flush it down.  There is NO UPSIDE to having a booking right now.

[myk249]

14 hours ago, dmdiver said:

We took the FCC and re-booked our Alaska cruise for next year.  We booked the same type cabin & will use the remaining FCC to pay for the excursions.

This is when we're traveling to Alaska as well. When we look at rebooking, because of the uplift in prices any benefit of FCC is washed out.  

So now the decision for us is to take the refund or just pay for 2021.

[dmdiver]

That's odd.  We have quite a bit leftover between the 25% added to the FCC and the 20% off the new booked cruise.

[10XCruiser]

I just cancelled my 9/20/20 Canada/New England out of New York before final payment.  Glad to get my deposit refunded.  I will definitely return to cruising sometime later next year.  Now to get with airline on credit.  Thanks for everyone's thoughts. 

[sr71_1]

My crystal ball tells me that NCL will bounce back nicely  - people will want to cruise...period.

     

1. waiting for ncl to cancel our June alaska cruise so that we can get our haven cash back  

2. being a gambling sort I've bought enough ncl stock on the way down (5-1 odds) to pay for lots of future haven cruising.   I won't talk about it if I'm wrong but I may mention it every so often if I'm correct 🙂    

 

See you guys in Alaska in 2021.... and Antartica after that 

[pokerpro5]

51 minutes ago, sr71_1 said:

My crystal ball tells me that NCL will bounce back nicely  - people will want to cruise...period.

     

1. waiting for ncl to cancel our June alaska cruise so that we can get our haven cash back  

2. being a gambling sort I've bought enough ncl stock on the way down (5-1 odds) to pay for lots of future haven cruising.   I won't talk about it if I'm wrong but I may mention it every so often if I'm correct 🙂    

 

See you guys in Alaska in 2021.... and Antartica after that 

 

People may want to ultimately cruise again.  Memories can be short once a crisis passes.  However, with something like this, they won't be all THAT short.

 

Right now, a lot of people are terrified to even think about getting on a cruise ship.  For some, the idea of being confined to their staterooms for weeks at a time while their ship isn't accepted anywhere is even more unnerving than the fear of illness/death.

 

This forum isn't a good place to judge enthusiasm for cruising, because my definition, this is a forum for cruise enthusaists.  Among the general public, there is INTENSE FEAR regarding cruising.  This is a punch in the face to the industry from which recovery will take quite some time.

 

Anyone who is taking a FCC instead of a refund believing that things will be going back to normal soon (and that the "discounts" being offered right now are a good deal) will be getting a rude surprise in not too long.

 

I'm glad you are taking the correct approach with your June cruise, and letting them cancel you, so you can get a refund.

 

Regarding the stock, I have considered buying it several times, but I think it's going to sink much father down when the reality of "no cruising in 2020" smacks the industry in the face.

 

Long term, your investment might be very profitable, but prepared to wait a few years, and be prepared for it to possibly be worth zero.

[pokerpro5]

7 hours ago, dmdiver said:

That's odd.  We have quite a bit leftover between the 25% added to the FCC and the 20% off the new booked cruise.

 

Let's be honest here.  Do you think you got a good deal?

 

Do you think prices for cruises will be going up or down when it all starts up again?

 

I hope you understand that the "20% off" is nonsense, because the prices are marked up FAR higher than what will be charged when cruises sail again.

 

Do NOT compare them to pre-corona prices.  That's a different era which is now over.

 

The new reality of the cruise industry is:

 

1) Good chance no cruising in 2020

2) Several lines may fail, and if NCL is one of them, your FCC will be gone

3) When they do return, there will be DEEP discounts to return

 

Repeat the above to yourself before you are tempted to make future bookings, or before you talk yourself into believing you're getting a "good deal" or a "discount" by taking FCCs and rebooking today.

[dmdiver]

Yes, I feel we got a good deal.  Then end result was a fare that was about half of the fare we had originally paid for the 2020 cruise.  I do realize the risk if the cruise line goes under, but I am trying to stay optimistic.  But yes, I am SOL if that happens. As far as deep discounts being offered when sailings do start up again, that could certainly happen.  I look at it like this.  When I book a vacation, I have decided that I am willing to pay x amount to go on that trip.  Now, if prices drop, I can always press the supplier for some sort of credit for the difference.  Maybe I will get it, maybe I won't.  Bottom line is that if I felt the cost was reasonable when I booked, than that's what I'm okay with having paid.  So if a year from now Alaska cruises are $400, I may think I should have waited.  But as it stands, at least I have the cabin I want on the itinerary I want, so I'm satisfied.  

[graphicguy]

I’m praying I can get my refund on my 3/28 cruise on the Escape.  NCL was all over sending me emails, snail mails, etc about my FCC and 20% off a future fare.  But, they’ve raised prices so high, I’d be lucky to get an inside for what I paid for a Haven Spa.

 

I just gave them a free 90-day loan.  Let’s hope they pay it back.

[Roger88]

Its not a question at all. It all depends on the refund procedure. If its not worth the time, then just take FCC and wait for your next cruise. In all other situation you should pick money over any virtual offers. I mean the company may go bancrupt tommorow and your virtual credits will dissapear. I always say money is the best way to go. When you have money you can travel the vacation yourself and not rely on anyone.

[vswan]

NCL canceled our cruise so was eligible for a refund or 125% FCC. Our total cruise credit at 125% was just over $2300. Not a huge sum to lose if NCL went under and I can't get 25% on my money anywhere else so decided to check and see what we could book with the $s at the 20% off sale.

 

Sent an email to my PCC asking him to look at 2 longer cruises and also what I could get for the $s that I had - basically a swap. The longer cruises he priced I felt were still too high and I was not willing to put more money into an unstable situation. Ended up booking a similar itinerary - different port - on the same ship for Feb. 2021 for my FCC. My original booking was an OV, but when the prices dropped I called and was upgraded to a balcony at no cost. This booking was for a balcony. I will get $200 onboard credit with this promo, so overall I've come out a bit ahead of what I originally spent. Keep in mind that to do this swap I had 25% more $s to spend so the prices overall are quite a bit higher. I also asked and yes you can still call for an adjustment if prices drop, but will be rebooked at current promo, etc....

 

The formula used was totaling up the full cost of the cruise including taxes, port fees, gratuities on promos, etc. (not sure about service charge since I don't pre-pay those, but doubt they were included). Then 20% was subtracted for both tickets, then the FCC was applied.

 

Chances of this cruise happening? Who knows. Until there is a vaccine or treatment I don't see cruises starting anytime in the future, but we love to cruise and for us the $ total wasn't huge. If I had $10k invested I would be after a refund....

 

 

[FLcruisergrl]

We got 150% FCC. We went from a 5 day cruise on the Sun in an owner’s suite to a 7 day cruise on the Jade in March 2021 in a 2 bedroom Haven suite. We paid for the entire cruise for 4 with pre-paid service charges, upgraded the WiFi and still have $2300 left over. 

[sr71_1]

1 hour ago, FLcruisergrl said:

We got 150% FCC. We went from a 5 day cruise on the Sun in an owner’s suite to a 7 day cruise on the Jade in March 2021 in a 2 bedroom Haven suite. We paid for the entire cruise for 4 with pre-paid service charges, upgraded the WiFi and still have $2300 left over. 

Nice ...that 2300 will be pretty easy to use up with a shore excursion - have fun !!