The Traveling Man Posted May 7, 2023 #26 Share Posted May 7, 2023 (edited) 7 hours ago, shof515 said: The Behind The Scenes Tour can now be booked online before the cruise. It can be found under Onboard Entertainment and Activities page. For my future cruises, the cost of the tour is 129 dollars. the tour is on the last sea day with 2 time slots. Latitude and shore excursion credit does not apply I'm a little disappointed that the $50 FAS shore excursion credit can't be applied. I guess that's because they manage it as an "activity" rather than an excursion. I wonder if the tickets that they issue for this tour look the same as shorex tickets. Even with a $50 discount, though, I wouldn't pay $79 for a BTS tour. The typical Latitudes BTS tour is shorter than the one they sell, and it usually only covers the laundry, I-95, backstage (usually just one of the entertainers' dressing rooms), and the main galley. Sometimes, though, they throw in an extra stop. We have taken the free Latitudes tour more than a dozen times on at least ten different NCL ships. On one tour or another we also have visited the crew mess, crew training rooms, crew nightclub, crew exercise room, crew lounge, bakery, butcher shop, walk-in freezer, print shop, and recycling facility. We even have been under the stage to see the mechanism they use lift stage props and performers up on stage. In addition to the free BTS tour, one other Latitudes benefit is the opportunity to have dinner with an officer. We have dined with more than 30 NCL officers, including the Captain on a couple of cruises. One of them invited his dinner companions to a private tour of the bridge the following day. As others have posted here, the bridge has not been a regular feature of any NCL BTS tours for many years, so it was a real treat to be able to spend a half hour with our Captain on the bridge. Edited May 7, 2023 by The Traveling Man 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiefMateJRK Posted May 7, 2023 #27 Share Posted May 7, 2023 (edited) 47 minutes ago, julig22 said: Actually, I had my first dinner on my last cruise. A very knowledgeable CN manager so got some good information, plus the ability to try to plant a few improvement ideas. But it is the luck of the draw. And the wine flows freely for anybody who doesn't take the drink package! Yeah, I'm sure many enjoy those. That's fine. I'm a survivor/victim/beneficiary of decades at MegaCorp. The "honor" of sharing dinner with people more important than me faded to oblivion many years ago. "I've already gone places. I just want to stay where I am." (bonus points to whoever can identify where that quote came from, I will be SHOCKED if anybody on CC knows🤣) Edited May 7, 2023 by ChiefMateJRK 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Traveling Man Posted May 7, 2023 #28 Share Posted May 7, 2023 46 minutes ago, BirdTravels said: The Sapphire tour is run by Cruise Next. The paid tour is run by ShoreEx. The Sapphire tour is not the same as what you see online. The Sapphire tour is shorter and less involved than the paid tour - does not include provisioning, bridge, or engine control room. When you embark, head to CruiseNext desk on embarkation day to sign up for the free tour, dinner with officers, and wines around the world wine tasting. Both will sell out. You are correct that the Latitudes tour does not include the bridge or engine room. Depending upon availability, though, it may include the provisioning areas. In my previous post I tried to remember all the places we have visited. I forgot to mention the provisioning areas. Thanks for the reminder. As I recall, it was included on just one of our dozen tours, so don't count on seeing it on any particular tour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChicagoBarb Posted May 7, 2023 #29 Share Posted May 7, 2023 11 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said: (bonus points to whoever can identify where that quote came from, I will be SHOCKED if anybody on CC knows🤣) Twin Peaks 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Traveling Man Posted May 7, 2023 #30 Share Posted May 7, 2023 12 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said: "I've already gone places. I just want to stay where I am." (bonus points to whoever can identify where that quote came from, I will be SHOCKED if anybody on CC knows🤣) Harry Dean Stanton 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Traveling Man Posted May 7, 2023 #31 Share Posted May 7, 2023 59 minutes ago, redmomof4 said: How did you get the shorex credit to apply. I just tried and went all the way to check out and it did not discount it by $50 at all. The $50 credit is applied to your on board account only after you have taken a tour. If you book a tour, pay for it, then cancel at the last minute (or miss the bus), you don't get the $50 discount and probably won't get a refund for the tour ticket if you wait too late to cancel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChiefMateJRK Posted May 7, 2023 #32 Share Posted May 7, 2023 11 minutes ago, ChicagoBarb said: Twin Peaks 11 minutes ago, The Traveling Man said: Harry Dean Stanton Very nice!!! We are now officially friends.😎 (Fire Walk With Me - who doesn't love Carl?) 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare eileeshb Posted May 7, 2023 #33 Share Posted May 7, 2023 16 minutes ago, The Traveling Man said: You are correct that the Latitudes tour does not include the bridge or engine room. Depending upon availability, though, it may include the provisioning areas. In my previous post I tried to remember all the places we have visited. I forgot to mention the provisioning areas. Thanks for the reminder. As I recall, it was included on just one of our dozen tours, so don't count on seeing it on any particular tour. from what I can remember hearing the free tour tended to be early in the cruise while the paid version was towards the end so it simply may not have been safe to bring people into the provisioning areas when it’s fully stocked. When I did the paid tours the freezers were significantly under capacity when I saw them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Traveling Man Posted May 7, 2023 #34 Share Posted May 7, 2023 1 minute ago, eileeshb said: from what I can remember hearing the free tour tended to be early in the cruise while the paid version was towards the end so it simply may not have been safe to bring people into the provisioning areas when it’s fully stocked. When I did the paid tours the freezers were significantly under capacity when I saw them. They weren't jam packed when we were there, but they were quite full. I've never seen so many gigantic tubs of ice cream in my life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLAHAM Posted May 7, 2023 #35 Share Posted May 7, 2023 19 minutes ago, The Traveling Man said: The $50 credit is applied to your on board account only after you have taken a tour. If you book a tour, pay for it, then cancel at the last minute (or miss the bus), you don't get the $50 discount and probably won't get a refund for the tour ticket if you wait too late to cancel. I have always received the $50 shorex discount at the time of advance booking. The ship tour does not receive the discount. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redmomof4 Posted May 7, 2023 #36 Share Posted May 7, 2023 26 minutes ago, The Traveling Man said: The $50 credit is applied to your on board account only after you have taken a tour. If you book a tour, pay for it, then cancel at the last minute (or miss the bus), you don't get the $50 discount and probably won't get a refund for the tour ticket if you wait too late to cancel. That makes sense. Will it be a refundable OBC? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redmomof4 Posted May 7, 2023 #37 Share Posted May 7, 2023 4 minutes ago, FLAHAM said: I have always received the $50 shorex discount at the time of advance booking. The ship tour does not receive the discount. You know what? Me too. All of my previous and current bookings took the $50 off the top before I checked out 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hollandia Posted May 7, 2023 #38 Share Posted May 7, 2023 I booked the paid BTS tour for the first day of our TA on the Jade in November. I expect the provisioning areas to be fully stocked. 😁 The tour is available on all sea days of the TA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julig22 Posted May 7, 2023 #39 Share Posted May 7, 2023 24 minutes ago, The Traveling Man said: The $50 credit is applied to your on board account only after you have taken a tour. If you book a tour, pay for it, then cancel at the last minute (or miss the bus), you don't get the $50 discount and probably won't get a refund for the tour ticket if you wait too late to cancel. If you book online, the credit is applied at the time you book. If you book onboard, the credit is applied after you take the tour. But you still get your $50 credit if you miss the bus - they don't keep track of who shows up. You paid, doesn't matter if you don't show up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disneylover89 Posted May 7, 2023 #40 Share Posted May 7, 2023 1 hour ago, julig22 said: The $50 excursion credit applies. But apparently the latitudes discount does not. Ok, then a price of $79 is not too bad. But the original poster said the $50 credit cannot be applied, are you sure it can be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julig22 Posted May 7, 2023 #41 Share Posted May 7, 2023 2 minutes ago, redmomof4 said: That makes sense. Will it be a refundable OBC? Technically yes. But it just reduces the cost of what you paid for the excursion in the first place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julig22 Posted May 7, 2023 #42 Share Posted May 7, 2023 2 minutes ago, disneylover89 said: Ok, then a price of $79 is not too bad. But the original poster said the $50 credit cannot be applied, are you sure it can be? Read through the entire discussion... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disneylover89 Posted May 7, 2023 #43 Share Posted May 7, 2023 1 minute ago, julig22 said: Technically yes. But it just reduces the cost of what you paid for the excursion in the first place. Where are you getting your info from. When an excursion is booked, the $50 credit is applied at payment, not after you go on the excursion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julig22 Posted May 7, 2023 #44 Share Posted May 7, 2023 1 minute ago, disneylover89 said: Where are you getting your info from. When an excursion is booked, the $50 credit is applied at payment, not after you go on the excursion. Follow the bouncing ball. If you book onboard, you pay onboard and the $50 excursion credit is applied after you take the tour. Question was whether or not the $50 is refundable OBC. If you cancel something you booked online once you get onboard, then you get a refund, less the $50, to your onboard account. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare BirdTravels Posted May 7, 2023 #45 Share Posted May 7, 2023 17 minutes ago, FLAHAM said: I have always received the $50 shorex discount at the time of advance booking. The ship tour does not receive the discount. You get the credit onboard if you book onboard. And 100% of the people would use it to offset the cost of the tour charged to your room amount. If you book and pay in advance, the discount should be applied if applicable. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fastpitchdad Posted May 7, 2023 #46 Share Posted May 7, 2023 (edited) 17 minutes ago, hollandia said: I booked the paid BTS tour for the first day of our TA on the Jade in November. I expect the provisioning areas to be fully stocked. 😁 The tour is available on all sea days of the TA. When I read this I thought "they have a BTS tour? My middle daughter will be thrilled". Edited May 7, 2023 by fastpitchdad 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redmomof4 Posted May 7, 2023 #47 Share Posted May 7, 2023 24 minutes ago, julig22 said: If you book online, the credit is applied at the time you book. If you book onboard, the credit is applied after you take the tour. But you still get your $50 credit if you miss the bus - they don't keep track of who shows up. You paid, doesn't matter if you don't show up. I am trying to book it online and the $50 credit IS NOT being applied at the time of booking for the BTS tour. (As it has for all my other excursions I’ve booked through NCL) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julig22 Posted May 7, 2023 #48 Share Posted May 7, 2023 Just now, redmomof4 said: I am trying to book it online and the $50 credit IS NOT being applied at the time of booking for the BTS tour. (As it has for all my other excursions I’ve booked through NCL) Yes, read the entire thread. The $50 credit is apparently not applicable to the tour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Traveling Man Posted May 7, 2023 #49 Share Posted May 7, 2023 46 minutes ago, FLAHAM said: I have always received the $50 shorex discount at the time of advance booking. The ship tour does not receive the discount. We usually book tours on board, so I didn't realize that they were handled differently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare BirdTravels Posted May 7, 2023 #50 Share Posted May 7, 2023 2 hours ago, FLAHAM said: I have 3 cruises booked. One asks $129 for the tour, one asks $99 and one says not available until 120 days before the cruise. All 3 are further out than that. Shorex discount does not apply. We have an Escape and Encore cruise schedule with $129 as the price. We have an Viva cruise schedule and it is not offered yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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