CruizCuz

With a drink package RCCL doesn't charge the taxes, with out one they do.

 

Back to OP. I would have went to guest services the first time, after that, I would have disputed the charges via my bank. Let NCL and the bank fight it out, I'm not ruining my vacation.

I agree totally! But you know what they say about "hindsight"?! ;) I guess I was just so shocked at the sheer amounts of the incorrect charges. IF this ever happened again, I would definitely wait until I get home.

Thank you for your concerns but we have never needed to check our account. We have never spent anything more than what has been included in our package

We were charged for our drinks AND taxes while at sea, despite having the drink package (UBP). Just trying to pass on information to help. I know there have been cruises where I didn't check my account. Now wondering if I should have? These boards are to relay our experiences both good and bad. I am trying to do so in an unbiased way as possible. I feel that if we only want to read about the good stuff, we could all talk with the cruiselines PR department.;)

The problems you had with your charges and drinks package is just crazy. Like you asked at one point, it almost seems like someone else had access to your cards to charge things to them. How could a bracelet you never bought be charged to the card otherwise?? So weird and dodgy. I can totally understand you being peed off and it making you not want to sail NCL again. I think most would feel the same if this happened to them.

 

On the Epic we had wonderful service on almost every meal in the MDR, but that was in Europe so I guess a different crew. Seated instantly every time, often at a 'romatic table for two by the window' as the girl on the desk would tell the waiter to give us! The service was prompt and the food hot and tasty. To be fair I usually took in my own drink from a bar and we just had water with the meal so I can't comment on that aspect. One time we had a grumpy waitress at lunch who took forever to bring us bread when asked but that was the extent of our bad MDR experience! So it's a shame the service was so much worse for you.

I would probably be willing to cruise NCL again, since we only cruised once with them, and it was a short cruise. But my expectations would be realistic, and I would definitely check my bill regularly. I think what would have helped would have been an apology from NCL or Guest Services. Or anything. Or it not happening on the second and third nights. I appreciate the responses, because I appreciate all perspectives and reviews. It certainly helps to continue reading positive ones. Thank you!

Thank you for this review! I will be sailing on the Epic at the end of April and plan on asking for a receipt with all drinks (we've received the bev package as a perk) but I still need to make sure they're not adding random things - I don't like surprises like that ;) You're right in saying that everyone makes mistakes, I didn't read this review as a bash to NCL, but rather a review on how you were treated. I don't care if it's 20 cents they add on by mistake, I'm not paying for it if I didn't drink it. Period. An apology may have gone a long way, I bet a simple "we're so sorry for this hassle" would have made you feel a lot better while standing in line (by no fault of your own) on your vacation.

Thank you for understanding and appreciating the intent of my postings. You are correct. I am not trying to bash NCL. I would have LOVED to have disembarked from the cruise, exclaiming that it was the best one yet. No one wants to go on ANY cruise and have to spend a lot of time at Guest Services. As mentioned in an earlier post, I have cruise RCL and CCL. I have spent time in GS with both lines. I have always received an explanation or an apology. One time, it was my error. We had forgotten to put a spending limit on our kids' S&S cards for the game room. It was on Radiance of the Seas, RCCL. I quickly went to GS's, after THEY called me to tell me of some high charges there. It was before the days of having apps, etc. I went and freaked out and was so very upset. I knew I had to put limits, but had forgotten. Not only did RCCL erase the charges, which I kept telling them that they TRULY did not have to do that....it was my fault. BUT, they also sent me a letter the following day apologizing for any confusion on my part. I wasn't expecting NCL to do any of that. Just erase the first set of charges, don't allow it to happen again, and apologize. It never happened. That's why I wrote.

I was thinking they must have been a large group. My wife and I (a party of two) always got in and out in under an hour and that includes the notoriously slow O'Sheehans on the epic. Even in the specialty restaurants we in and out in close to an hour.

 

BTW we ate at all different hours so it wasn't the time of day affecting it.

Nope, party of 4 and frequent cruisers. So we are VERY realistic in our requests. Thank you to the cruisers who mentioned the names of the dining areas. The first night, we ate in Taste. The second nights, we ate in the Manhattan dining room. We learned after night one, to get our drinks prior to entering the room. Bar service was almost non-existent. I'm VERY happy that most of you have had good experiences. To repeat myself, I am only writing this review to explain what happened to me and my cousins. To make some of you aware and remind you ALL to check your bills.

Having cruised on the Epic last September, I really cannot understand why you would take over 2 hours for dinner. We dined in the MDR's on four of our 7 nights and were in and out in under an hour with no rush. Service was excellent. Are you slow eaters ?:)

No we are not slow eaters ;). The service and wait time between taking our orders, and the appetizers and actual meals, was VERY slow. This was the case twice, on 2 separate days, in two different dining areas. The service was very good in the steakhouse, which is an upcharge.

Day 2 evening, we met for dinner in the Manhattan Room. Nice room, beautiful decor. The food was the same. Service was the same. Decided we would try specialty dining tomorrow for our final night. We had reservations for Burn the Floor, and decided to walk around the ship until it was time. I prefer a ship with more windows and "openness" to it. But it was well kept and clean. I HIGHLY recommend Burn the Floor! By far, it was the BEST entertainment on any cruise ship. I loved it. My cousins loved it. There really weren't any bad seats that I could see. Afterwards, we decided to see the Beatles Show I had read about, but there was another group, and they were pretty good. The Beatles Show would be on tomorrow. The other couple in our group had gone onto the private island all day. They thoroughly enjoyed themselves. Their bill was fine, but they were paying per drink. No package. We returned to our rooms and got some much needed sleep. The sailing was smooth and we felt little to no movement. Tomorrow was going to be our last day and a sea day!

Day 3 my routine was the same. Dh likes to sleep in, while I get up early and have coffee on our balcony. This is one of the reasons why balcony cruising works well for us. I went back to the pool area and ate breakfast, which was good. I didn't try any of the food stations, but it seemed that people were enjoying them.

Today the quiet, adults only bar opened at 11:00 and on time. The servers were very good. While talking with other cruisers in the pool area, some felt that they were being "nickled and dimed" too much. I think if you go into any cruise armed with knowledge, you are less likely to feel this way. I knew going in, what was extra, etc. Everyone who had the drink packages were happy with them and were having no problems. It seemed that just those who added the packages on once on the ship, were having issues. That definitely needs to be fixed.

We ate in the Steakhouse for dinner. It was very good and we were happy to have a hot, well prepared meal. I found their wine selection nice for a cruise ship, and we enjoyed ourselves immensely.

I had read nightmare stories about embarkation and debarkation. I found doing both "self", we had no issues. I was off the ship by 7:30 and on the road. We parked at the port, because we like the convenience. There were no problems.

If you have any questions, I will do my best to answer them. It was only 3 days, and my first NCL cruise, so I don't have a lot of information. The main point of these postings is to warn people to always check their bills. We ended up our final evening on the cruise, at CS again. They SILL had not removed our taxes. Now I realize it was less than $20, but it was the principal. If everyone was overcharged like that, and there are over 3,000 people on the ship, it adds up. I will probably be told that it wouldn't have been worth the hassle of the $20. And if that was all that had happened, then maybe not. But it got to the point that I wasn't going to allow it. I even asked one of the CS reps, why there were not apologies offered? He responded that it wasn't his fault. You know what I'm going to write, don't you....he said "it was a glitch in the system". LOL!

Day 2 started out nicely. I had coffee delivered to the room and enjoyed sitting out on the balcony. I wanted to eat a good breakfast, so while dh slept, I went upstairs to the pool area dining. There were no "bacon police" like on CCL, and was able to get more than a couple of slices. I love bacon. ;p I decided to get a Bloody Mary, and again wasn't asked to sign anything. An hour later I checked my bill on the app, and it said that at that same bar, I had done a Tequila Tasting to the tune of over $40. Huh?! Back to Customer Service I went. To my surprise, my cousin was there too. He had noticed they were still charging his card for drinks. And taxes. Now when in an American port, you will pay taxes on drinks, even if you have the drink package. But there are no taxes while at sea. I noticed I was still being charged taxes as well. The very same CS rep that waited on us last night was there this am. Again he said it was a "glitch" in their system and the taxes would be removed. I said he needed to remove the Tequila tasting, and he said he couldn't and I would have to come back and speak with a bar manager. Huh?! I told him I didn't drink the tasting, and I am allergic to Tequila. In fact, I only drink vodka, beer or wine. I insisted on speaking with someone then and there. After waiting for over 30 minutes, a manager came and told me that "tastings" aren't on the drink packages and I needed to read the fine print. I told him that I didn't drink the tasting and he then asked me if I could prove that I hadn't done the tasting. :rolleyes: Ok, now I'm getting angry. Not only was this my SECOND time at CS in less than 24 hours about the same problem, but this guy wanted me to prove something I didn't do. I told him to prove I had done the tasting, and he immediately took off the charges. I suggested that maybe someone else had access to my and my cousin's cards, and again I was told there is a "glitch" in the system. He assured me it wouldn't happen again.

Back to the quiet, adult on pool area, and now it's 11:00 am. I wanted another Bloody Mary and to just sit. And decompress. I had my ship paper with me, outlining the goings on and what times bars and shops opened. I went to the pool bar, where there were about 10 other people waiting. We all had read that the quiet area bar was to open at 11:00. At 11:30, after returning from my long walk to the other pool bar, I noticed this one still wasn't open. Someone came out of the bar door, and we all asked why the bar wasn't open? He said it wasn't going to open until after 1:00 pm. When we asked him why it wasn't open yet, he explained there was a "glitch" in the system. At this point, that word became very funny to our group. I figured that I guess I needed more exercise, and the further walk would be ok. Again, it wouldn't ruin my cruise, but this had never happened to me.

I am not going to beleaguer the point. To make a very long story short, the drinks issues grew bigger and bigger. I spent more time at Customer Service, than any other area. I never received an "I'm sorry", or any kind of apology. Over the next 24 hours, taxes continued to be charged, another tasting was charged to my account (this time a whiskey tasting), and a bracelet was charged then removed from my account. For those of you who have cruised NCL and never had a problem, I am happy for you. I have cruised two other lines, and some of those cruises had issues, but they were resolved professionally and quickly. This was only a 3 day cruise, and I spent an inordinate amount of time straightening out finances. The thing that concerned me most, was that they kept saying I was drinking more than I was. My husband too. While he had 6-8 beers/day and a couple of glasses of wine, NCL had him drinking many drinks of hard liquor. If I went to a bar and ordered a drink, my cousin and I started asking for the receipt. The bartender would explain it wasn't necessary. When they were questioned about why the tab was for 10 drinks, instead of the 2 ordered, I actually had one by the pool ask me why it mattered? He said it shouldn't matter since we were part of a package and weren't paying for each drink. This just sounded shady to me.

To be continued.....

We ended up being a party of 4 for the first night. Two of our party ate in the Manhattan dining room, using a reservation they had made a month earlier. We couldn't make the early 6:00 spot, so we showed up in the other dining room (so sorry to not remember the name) around 7:00. After only waiting 20 minutes, we were seated. But this was my least favorite part about the "freestyle" dining. Our servers were competent, but they didn't know our names, nor ask. Dinner took 2 1/2 hours, and that was ordering one appetizer and one entree per person. We chose no dessert, because we were tired of sitting. The food was cold, and really wasn't good. I am trying to be impartial here, because for me, any food I didn't have to fix is usually good for me. I am also not having to clean up the table or wash the dishes. But should I really set my standard so low? Just wondering. We decided to eat in the Manhattan DR the next night to compare. We did notice that the dining room seemed almost empty. So it didn't appear that the food being cold was because they were too busy. BUT, that certainly wouldn't ruin my cruise, and there was plenty of food to eat all over the ship.

We decided to go to the Comedy Club. We didn't have reservations, but managed to still get 4 seats together. I would highly recommend seeing at least one show in the Comedy Club. The comedian was really funny, as well as the woman who opened the act. While waiting for the show to start, we ordered drinks and I decided to check my NCL app. I had downloaded it prior to the cruise, and loved using the one on CCL, so wanted to give this one a try. I was just surfing around the site, and decided to check my cruise balance. To my utter shock, it was for over $1300!!! :confused: Obviously I knew it was a mistake, but I had a hard time relaxing and couldn't wait to get to Guest Services to have it corrected.

Ok, now this is where I am being completely fair and unbiased. I believe that everyone, everywhere makes mistakes. But for me, it's how you handle those mistakes in whether it's good customer service or not. My cousin kindly offered to stand in line with me, and checked his balance while waiting. Unbelievably, his balance showed over $1300 as well! After getting through the line, the CS rep told us that indeed we had been charged for the drinks we had as well as the drink packages. Now before anyone starts wondering how in the heck we had imbibed that many beverages.....we hadn't. I look at the individual drink charges. At the pool bar when I had ordered only ONE drink, that should have cost around $11, I was charged $42.00. There were many, many incidents like that. While the CS rep was removing the charges, I asked how and why? He said there was a "glitch" in the system. There was never an apology or reason. My cousin's charges were removed as well, and we went on to the Irish Pub.

The Irish Pub was fun and the wings were great. The fish and chips were good as well, and we enjoyed ourselves. We agreed to meet up in the am by the pool. While in the Irish Pub, I realized that I wasn't being asked to sign anything for my drinks. Anywhere. On CCL, I was asked to sign for each and every drink, even though the amount said '$0.00' It used to seem pointless, but now I'm thinking it's not such a bad idea.

BTW, I loved the rooms. I had a balcony room, and I liked the bathroom set up. I was prepared after reading so many reviews. We pulled the bed away from the headboard, after reading to do this here on CC. My husband is 6'4" and I'm glad I knew to do this, or the bed would have been WAY too short. It was comfortable, and the balcony was nice. There was more storage than we knew what to do with. The temperature was perfect and we love a cold, freezing room. We never met or saw our room steward which was a first on any cruise. But no complaints as our room was very clean and always ready and we always had ice waiting for us. He or she missed out though, because we always tip on top of our prepaid gratuities. I just never saw him/her.

To be continued......

haven't read the rest yet,but I do not think we flame when the review is fair and balanced. It is when people start by saying things like: worst cruise ever or they forget nothing is perfect. The only thing I will add, at this time might be: you can not judge a cruise or a cruise line based on a 3 day cruise.

Ok, actually I can judge a cruise by cruising 3 days. You will find out later. Sorry for the "tease", but I'm trying to remember the good and the bad. I am sure there will still be those who choose to cruise NCL. And those who don't. I doubt my review will have a place in those decisions. This review is just to give peeps a "heads up" on some concerns I had while on my cruise. And I have seen some unreasonable reviews. And some unreasonable flames. I guess it goes both ways.

I'm back. Ok, after standing in line for about 30 minutes, we met with the employee handling the drink package "add on" and giving new cards. I also asked him whether the drinks we had already paid for, would be included in the package. This is the way it has been done on CCL, and we were told it was the same with NCL. Off we went to the Adults Only pool area.

It was very nice. I liked how they had the bar on one side and the food on the other. The food section wasn't serving yet, so we went and got another drink. This section was aft, and I liked the small pool. I found out quickly that it was fresh water! I loved that! This area never seemed crowded and became our meeting spot during the day.

Once our rooms were ready, we dropped off our luggage and waited for the lifeboat drill. I never complain about these, because I know they are a rule and a necessity. However, our muster station was down several decks and in a room with no windows. Please bear with me, because this was the first time I cruised with NCL and don't know the names of most places. After watching a very funny employee describe the process, we were dismissed. We left to get ready for dinner. Even though this cruise and line are presented as "free style", I found the opposite to be true. Everyone on board had made reservations days, weeks and even months prior to boarding. If you didn't, there was a VERY long wait at each dining area, even the ones where you paid extra. In fact, most of those were already full, and never had space. That's ok. We learned from this and knew that if there was a next NCL cruise, we needed to book in advance. We would go to the bar and wait.

To be continued......

:( My dh and I returned from our 3 day Epic cruise last month. I have hesitated writing a review, because it seems that unless ALL goes well with a review, people get seriously flamed on some of the threads. But I will be honest and as objective as possible.

Background: We have sailed Carnival and RCL. This was to be our "try-out" on NCL, because the rate was good, and we wanted to see a different ship and cruise line. I know it was only 3 days, but it was a quick and easy get away. We sailed out of Port Canaveral after staying overnight at the Radisson at the Port. This is our "go to" hotel anytime we cruise out of Port Canaveral. We have found the staff to be friendly and the hotel to be clean and a nice way to extend our vacation by a day.

We showed up at the port early. We knew it was too early, but were ok waiting in the line. We didn't have to wait long at all, and were quickly through security and instructed where to check in. This is where the first difference in NCL and CCL/RCL occurs. NCL charges a $15 charge for each bottle of wine you bring aboard in your carry-on. It is called a "corking fee", even if you uncork the wine yourself, and in your cabin. We knew about this prior to boarding and were prepared. Afterwards, we were told where to sit and await boarding.

Boarding happened at the time we were told it would and it went rather quickly. We had our carry-ons with us and went in search of a nice place to get our first drink. We had looked at the drink packages on NCL and the prices seemed a little steep, as compared to what we wanted and received on CCL. NO FLAMES please. This is an opinion. So we decided to just pay as we went. That was until our first drink. Dh got a beer and I got a vodka drink. That's when we realized how much more the alcohol was than we were used to paying, and decided how quickly it would add up. We asked where we could go to add on the drink package and after asking 3-4 different bartenders and employees, found out that it was in the Comedy Club. I specifically asked if the drinks we had already been served would be included. I was told YES. We were traveling with my cousin and his wife, and 2 friends. My cousins called us and said after they ordered their first rounds, they were going with the package as well. We met at the CC and stood in line.

Stay tuned........

you are replying to a year old thread and I don't think the person needs the info anymore...

Thank you for bringing this to my attention. I'm sure that no one else could benefit from the information either.

So can I order a margarita and tell them I want it made with Patron with the cheers package?

Yes, you can! We sailed on the Valor this past December, with the new Cheers package. It was MORE than worth it for us. It was nice having specialty coffees and unlimited sodas for hydration. I love club soda, and I know I can bring the cans on board, but now don't have to lug them onto the ship. I upgraded all of my vodka drinks to either Grey Goose or Ketel 1. It was MORE than worth it for me to have a nicer vodka. The wines with dinner were standard wine selections, and I found the prices comparable to what I would have paid at a restaurant on land. It was nice not worrying about the prices. I hope this helps.

Does anyone know which deck we embark the Epic on in Port Canaveral? We have a member of our group with a mobility issue and I have read ALL reports about full and crowded elevators. Our cabin will be 9 forward. Just curious how many flights we will be climbing with luggage. Thank you!

So here are my thoughts on the shortening of this cruise. It stinks. I'm sure there will be those who "flame" me and give me the classics of "any cruise is better than none", "a cruise is what you make it", etc. HOWEVER, that said, my husband and I can make the best of anything. But there are several things that bother me. First off, this will more than likely be my parents' last cruise. We planned it to celebrate their 58th wedding anniversary. Carnival took the Fascination away from Jacksonville, and we loved that ship. It was easy for my parents to maneuver around, and was very close to us. The Elation has none of the upgrades, no balconies other than Grand Suites, so we checked into the next closest port, Port Canaveral. We booked 2 aft balcony rooms, next to each other on the Valor, because mobility is limited, and we felt my dad would love the aft view. This is going to be my parents' FIRST ever balcony room. Now there are NO sea days. CCL absolutely HAS to give us 25% back. They have no choice. They can not charge for a service or a day they aren't providing so this isn't a "gift". It's not really Carnival being "gracious" or "giving". CCL is giving a $25 OBC per person. That should cost them about $2/per passenger, maybe less. The markup on the ships is over 200% for drinks and gifts. So while I appreciate the effort, it's not that much of one. I think they should have canceled Freeport and at the VERY LEAST given us a sea day. But then they would have had to refund the Freeport port taxes and charges as well. We will make the best of things. We have no choice. What would have been nice, is to have been offered a place on another ship or sailing, at the same pricing as when I booked THIS cruise, over 9 months ago. The prices at the last minute are prohibitive at this time. That's my take on this whole thing. We will go and have a good time. But we will REALLY miss our sea day. We will REALLY miss our 4th day.

CruizCuz ~ I think our disappointment is legitimate. We have decided to still go and squeeze in all the fun we can. I hope you and your parents will be able to do the same and make the most of that awesome anniversary....58years, congrats to them!! I'm sorry to hear about the loss of your brother and the other problems your family has faced. Hopefully this quick get-away can offer a little stress relief. Happy sailing.

Thank you for your kind words and compassionate understanding, IslandSliderGirl.

I am also VERY disappointed. We also booked an aft balcony for the sea day. Oh well. Carnival is compensating for the loss, but it's still a disappointment. I hate losing a day of cruising, especially with it being a short cruise to begin with. My parents are going on this cruise. It will be their first Christmas/Holiday cruise, and their first ever balcony. They will be celebrating their 58th wedding anniversary on this cruise. We will definitely make the most of it, but it wasn't a great way to wake up this am. And please don't flame me. I understand there are much worse problems. This past year has been a tough one with severe medical problems within the family, and the unexpected, untimely loss of my brother last month. So we will make the lemonade, but really wish we didn't have to :(.

Thank you for passing on the information. I too have enjoyed the Cheers program in the past, and at least break even every day. It isn't because I drink everything I purchase, but it's fun to be on vacation and try new things. In the past, there were wines I couldn't get, so I'm glad to know the wines that are now available due to the price limit increase.

I recently cruised out of Jax and did not get FTTF. From the time i parked my car to walking on the ship, it took a total of about 45 mins. There was a separate FTTF line to get thru the XRAY scanners, I would say that saved about 10-15 mins. My room was ready so was able to drop my luggage. There wasn't a separate FTTF line at Guest Services, so people with FTTF had to wait in line with the rest of us commoners (there was a separate Diamond and Platinum Line). We went to Half Moon Cay and required a tender, there wasn't any "priority" boarding on the tender. As far as debarkation, we did the self assist, and it was based on what deck you were on, not your "status"

When I cruised out of Jacksonville, last year on the Fascination, the FTTF people waited in the Diamond and Platinum lines at Guest Services. There was a note left in our cabin reminding us of what our benefits were and how to use them. There is also a designated phone number that FTTF peeps can use to call with any issues, questions or problems. We were also told that if you boarded before 1:00 pm, then you couldn't go to your room early, UNLESS you were FTTF, Diamond, suite or Platinum guests. We consider the first day as one of our days, so always want to board as early as possible. We are mostly unpacked and eating on the Lido deck before most people board. We travel with seniors, so this is an advantage before the crowds come rolling in. But it's a personal preference. For us, it was well worth it.

We used FTTF twice with cruises out of Jacksonville. I had asked the same question, and the consensus was that most felt it wasn't needed. I felt we definitely got our money's worth and here's why. We LOVED getting on the ship at around 11:30. I realize that there will be people who tell you they were on the ship shortly afterwards, and didn't have to pay. BUT, did they get to go straight to their rooms and drop off their carry-ons? We did. We dropped off our luggage, changed into our suits and were on the Lido deck enjoying lunch by 12:00. We also used Guest Services quite a bit. There were issues that popped up, and it was awesome not having to wait in any line. Whatsoever! Debarkation was a breeze, and that was also well worth the price. For me, I loved it. If you are traveling with small children, the elderly or disabled, it will be even more worth it.

Quick question, and hope I'm not hijacking your board ;). Is there any additional charge for Guy's Burgers or the Blue Iguana? I haven't sailed on a ship that has these places, but will be on the Valor in December. Thank you!

For families traveling with small children or seniors with physical disabilities, FTTF is definitely worth it. I use GS's a lot when traveling with teens. Everyday I went to put a "cap" on their S&S cards. It was VERY helpful to have our rooms ready, put our carry on's in there, unpack earlier when the luggage arrived and debarkation was a breeze.

I have been on the Fascination twice, and have another cruise planned soon on this ship. I have also cruised other Fantasy class ships, the Sensation, Elation, and Imagination. I don't personally participate in the activities onboard the ships. I don't when I cruise on a smaller or larger ship. I love the Serenity area, waterworks and ease of moving around the ship. For us, living in Jax, this is a great way to get away, at a decent price and CRUISE!

I would love to see the FunTimes as well. I hope I'm not being too intrusive in your posting, but we are going to HMC and Nassau, 5 day, and would love it if anyone has those FunTimes. Thank you!