Free Cruise Prizes - My Experience, and your's?

[JoshPSU]

I just wanted to share our positive experience having won a free cruise through one of the games on NCL, and to ask if there are others out there and what their experience was with cashing in the free cruises.

 

I bought a pack of the crack-its (POPP-OPENS) from the lobby of the ship near the end of our cruise in January. We actually one the grand prize, which is a free 7-day Caribbean cruise for two. Here were the limitations:

 

 

1. Has to be a Caribbean cruise seven days in length.

2. If you don't want to do a Caribbean cruise, the certificate is worth $1000 toward any other cruise they offer.

3. It has to be cashed in within one year of the receipt date on the award certificate.

4. You have to book through a special phone number on the certificate that is actually the revenue department of NCL.

5. You don't get any special Latitudes priveldges, or credit, while on the ship.

 

I booked our cruise a few weeks back, a 7-day cruise on the Norwegian Sun, starting December 22, 2007 round-trip from Miami. I was prepared to pay for an upgrade, but our consultant actually gave us the best category inside stateroom (Superior Inside Stateroom). I was surprised at this, thinking that they would give us the worst possible room (hey, it's only fair that they would.) I didn't ask if I could upgrade, but I might call back and surprise the DW.

 

All told, the cruise would have cost about $2100 or so for that class of stateroom. We DID have to pay the taxes/port fees, about $500 or so.

Happily, there were no black-out dates, since our cruise is going over Christmas day.

 

Sooo, has anyone else out there won a free cruise with NCL? what has your experience been?

[cruise4kicks]

Josh, I had no idea you two had won a cruise! CONGRATULATIONS!!!

[Toyz711]

hopefully this will answer the questions: what is a crack-it? (i know, but other don't)

my next cruise is free...DH won it at work.

1 other cruise, 1 trip to hawaii, 1 to london, 1 to a resort in canada...were "supplied" by a sales incentive through a manufacturer.

even our trip to jamaica was a sales incentive that was cancelled and we got a travel voucher. fun to travel on someone else's money, huh?

[JoshPSU]

yeah, while the DW was shopping near the end, I bought abunch of the crack-its. Becky, when is your next cruise?

 

I showed what they are in the attached picture. they're like scratch off lottery tickets, but instead of scratching you just open the little windows (they make a cracking noise when you do). The sell them at the same time as bingo.

[SandRaven]

Congratulations!!!! I didn't win an NCL cruise, but I won a free cruise on Holland America Line through the ship lottery on Maasdam! The rules sould very similar:

 

1. It has to be a 7 day Caribbean Cruise.

2. It has to be used 18 months from the date it was won.

3. The certificate is to be given to my travel agent, who will work with HAL.

4. The cruise is for two people, airfare not included

5. The certificate is for the lowest category "MM" stateroom.

6. We still pay about $600 in port fees / taxes

 

We are cashing in this December with a cruise on Zuiderdam, and upgraded to a balcony guarantee for next to nothing. I'm really excited!

[cruise4kicks]

yeah, while the DW was shopping near the end, I bought abunch of the crack-its. Becky, when is your next cruise?

Hi, Josh! I was on the Victory in September -- your review was very helpful! I'm doing the Gem T/A in a few weeks, then DH and I are doing the Gem 11-day on 1/5/08. It would be great to see you guys again! Hope you have a blast on the Sun!!!

[JoshPSU]

Yeah, we had a great time on the Victory. I liked the mini-sushi bar they had near the casino before dinner. Great for appetizers, and it was free. That ship was a nice break/change of pace. It was nice to go back to the fixed dining for a time.

 

I'm SO JEALOUS that you are going on the Gem. I really WANTED to do that, but my DW's vacation schedule with the Coast Guard wouldn't allow it. Next December we'll be leaving from NYC again. I love just parking the car there and walking onto the ship.

[cruise4kicks]

I'm SO JEALOUS that you are going on the Gem. I really WANTED to do that, but my DW's vacation schedule with the Coast Guard wouldn't allow it. Next December we'll be leaving from NYC again. I love just parking the car there and walking onto the ship.

My DH's schedule wouldn't allow him to do the T/A, either -- that's why I'm going with my Dad. :D Don't know when we'll be able to sail out of NYC again... we're going to Hawaii in June and WDW in November/December, including a cruise. If all goes as planned, we'll be moving away 6/2009, so we'll have to make a NYC cruise our last official act. :cool:

[Lipton]

I won 3,700 after I hit a royal flush in video poker / fleet wide progressive on the Sun Dec/ 05 I was killing time until the free cruise draw...I never bought a ticket because I was waiting on my $$$ One of our fellow CC members won the free cruise from bingo about 30 Min later it was a raffle draw and she only had 3 tickets. Some people had piles of them.. well any way She did not have much for restrictions they gave her a long list of cruises to choose from. I think they were all 11 nights or less and she chose Alaska.

[Cruise_Monkey]

I just wanted to share our positive experience having won a free cruise through one of the games on NCL, and to ask if there are others out there and what their experience was with cashing in the free cruises.

 

I bought a pack of the crack-its (POPP-OPENS) from the lobby of the ship near the end of our cruise in January. We actually one the grand prize, which is a free 7-day Caribbean cruise for two. Here were the limitations:

 

1. Has to be a Caribbean cruise seven days in length.

2. If you don't want to do a Caribbean cruise, the certificate is worth $1000 toward any other cruise they offer.

3. It has to be cashed in within one year of the receipt date on the award certificate.

4. You have to book through a special phone number on the certificate that is actually the revenue department of NCL.

5. You don't get any special Latitudes priveldges, or credit, while on the ship.

 

I booked our cruise a few weeks back, a 7-day cruise on the Norwegian Sun, starting December 22, 2007 round-trip from Miami. I was prepared to pay for an upgrade, but our consultant actually gave us the best category inside stateroom (Superior Inside Stateroom). I was surprised at this, thinking that they would give us the worst possible room (hey, it's only fair that they would.) I didn't ask if I could upgrade, but I might call back and surprise the DW.

 

All told, the cruise would have cost about $2100 or so for that class of stateroom. We DID have to pay the taxes/port fees, about $500 or so.

Happily, there were no black-out dates, since our cruise is going over Christmas day.

 

Sooo, has anyone else out there won a free cruise with NCL? what has your experience been?

 

Congratulations!

 

I won a free cruise on one of the internet contests back in Jan 07. All I can say is make sure you read carefully the documents they send you (dates, restrictions, etc); mine were somewhat confusing as to exactly what I won; one page referred to a specific cruise, another referred to an oceanview cabin, etc.

 

Turns out that NCL has a monthly list of "promotional-eligible" cruises, and what I won is an oceanview cabin on any of those. The list, which is updated monthly, had a variety of sailings, ranging from 5 nights to the Caribbean to 32 nights around South America. The "value" of the trip is the cost of the highest category oceanview cabin, which you can use as a "credit" against higher categories, paying the upgrade difference in cash.

 

We're also paying taxes and port charges.

 

End of story; we're on the Pride of America sailing on Dec 15. Upgraded to a BA aft balcony for an additional $300, which we thought was definitely worth it.

 

Enjoy your cruise!