insighttoronto

Below is the FAQ section on Virgin Voyages' cancellation policy.  What are your thoughts on this policy?  

8 hours ago, resstation said:

I feel like they would make a TON of money on quality temporary tattoos. 

 

I think Virgin should offer temporary stick-on vinyl sun tattoos for those who don't want permanent ink.  It'd be cool if they had a Virgin logo tattoo in addition to other images like butterflies, hibiscus flowers, etc. 

How fast do Studio Rooms fill up? We are going next January and a friend wants to come, but have her own room. Should she book now or wait for a cheaper price?

I recommend placing a refundable deposit on a cruise/cabin you are interested in. If the price drops before final payment is due, then call NCL and ask for the better deal. It is possible that the studios will be sold out a year or more in advance. I booked a studio on the NCL Epic 10 day cruise in January 2019 and the studios were sold out 18 months before the sailing date! There are three single groups who are all booking that particular cruise.

I've always SEEN the charge but I don't pay the charge... I just call and politely ask my PCC or other agent if he's not available, to please remove the charge for the travel protection from my account. .. always done no worries... just call.

I called NCL back politely regarding the charges which were quickly removed in both cases without issue. Canadians are known for it is their unusual level of politeness and for apologizing when a situation is not their fault. Oddly enough when I called NCL back I said "I apologize but I think I've found a discrepancy in my confirmation email".

It was good for NCL to remove the charges and accept it as a matter of human error. If this happens again for the third time, then I'm going to have to ask if NCL agents have to 'uncheck' the option to remove travel insurance vs checking the option to add travel insurance.

One thing to consider is how many times flights per day an airline has to the embarkation city. I will book with an airline which has multiple flights per day vs an airline which only has one flight per day. I always arrive at least a day before, but if there is a mechanical issue with a plane, then I hope it would be easier to transfer to a later flight with the same airline.

Did you get any of the free perks? Could that $99 been the tax or gratuity on one of the perks?

I selected free shore excursions as my perk, which has no additional tax or gratuity. When I called NCL back, I spoke with a different customer service rep who confirmed there was a charge for book safe travel protection.

Palm Bay in Canada is called Palm Breeze in the US. There is a US store locator on the Palm Breeze website. I love the Key Lime Cherry flavour and wish NCL carried Palm Breeze on their ships.

Please note this thread is not for debating the pros and cons of travel insurance.

Has anyone else seen unexpected charges for Booksafe Travel Protection when booking with NCL? I've now had two bookings where NCL's travel protection was added without any discussion or my approval.

Today I called NCL's reservation line, put down a deposit on a specific cabin and received my confirmation PDF a couple minutes later. The PDF confirmation was marked 'no' for Book Safe Protection, however, the final amount owing was $99 higher than expected.

I'm wondering if NCL automatically adds their travel insurance to new bookings. Do you have to say you don't want NCL's travel insurance, even if the NCL representative doesn't ask if you want it?

I always purchase my own travel insurance, so I'm going to repeat this thread is not about the benefits of travel insurance, rather it is about unexpected charges being applied without consultation.

I hope my experience is an isolated situation and that's it simply human error. :confused:

I was in Roatan last week and saw 3 or 4 small pieces of plastic while cruising to and from the port. I noticed more garbage at the side of the road on our excursion. I was surprised we didn't see more plastic in the ocean. The cruise ship must be avoiding the garbage or it has floated away from the path of the cruise ship.

I also have an upcoming cruise to Tortola in about 85 and was wondering about NCL's lack of excursions. I suggest searching Google for "NCL" and "Excursion" and you will find an NCL's excursion website. You can find all excursions which are offered in each port. There are 18 NCL excursions in Tortola.

We booked our Escape cruise in CDN dollars about 9 months in advance. The price at the time was $864 CDN for an inside. Yesterday, that same cabin was $1164 CDN. Now I understand that the price may increase a little as cabins fill up, but really?? The CDN dollar is over $0.80 now and the cruise is not until February 2018, so I don't see the reason for the drastic increase other than to stick it a little harder to Canadian travelers. My plan is to keep my current CDN pricing in case the dollar falls drastically again, then rebook in US funds just before the final payment date. A few hundred dollars in my pocket is much better than in NCL's.[/quote

 

I like your suggestion of rebooking in US funds assuming NCL doesn't increase the price of the cruise and the CDN dollar continues to appreciate. NCL increased the prices today for inside cabins on the Escape in February 2018. For your information, you can find websites which provide future price predictions for cruises. All inside cabins on the Escape in February are expected to continue to increase in the short to medium term. Price may drop just before sailing, but that's never guaranteed to happen. Below is the price history for Escape inside cabins in February 2018.

 

February 3rd Sailing

September 9, 2016 -> Cruise Listed = $629 USD

December 16, 2016 -> Increased price $100 USD = $729 USD

April 21, 2017 -> Increased price $20 USD = $749 USD

July 29, 2017 -> Increased price $80 USD = $829 USD

 

February 10th Sailing

September 9, 2016 -> Cruise Listed = $629 USD

March 29, 2017 -> Increased price $100 USD = $729 USD

July 29, 2017 -> Increased price $100 USD = $829 USD

 

February 17th Sailing

September 9, 2016 -> Cruise Listed = $649 USD

February 7, 2016 -> Increased price $100 USD = $749 USD

July 29, 2017 -> Increased price $80 USD = $829 USD

 

February 24th Sailing

September 9, 2016 -> Cruise Listed = $629 USD

July 25, 2017 -> Increased price $120 USD = $749 USD

July 29, 2017 -> Increased price $80 USD = $829 USD

NCL's definition of "at par" and our definition of at par is different that's all. Their "at par" pricing refers to par on a golf course which is usually 72 so we are getting their cruises priced at 72 cents on the dollar - "at par" :D

This comment made me laugh so hard tonight.:') I also tried booking a cruise "at par" and got the customer service run around. I went on that cruise without the promotion, however, I decided to only pay for things which really enhanced my vacation. I still love NCL cruises and have three more cruises booked, but now I spend as little as possible on their ships.

Is this a dinner show? Just want to be prepared!

It's a musical show held in the main theatre. It's not a dinner show.

If you show up early enough, you can order drinks from your seat prior to the show.

The website makes no mention of Canadian at Par as part of the 5 options of the Free at Sea promotion. There are some Canadian at Par select sailings to non-Western Hemisphere destinations, listed as a separate promotion.

Thanks Mechman1971 for clarifying that the Canadian at Par promotion is a separation promotion from the Free at Sea promotion. It’s still a mystery to me why the total cost of cruise using the Canadian at Par promotion exceeds the total cost when booking without any promotion. :confused:

The NCL supervisor called me back and offered no explanation other than to say the pricing on their website, despite being illogical, is what it is. NCL does not deserve my business after this episode. On the other hand, if I boycotted cruise lines for issues like this, then I wouldn’t be cruising much longer. :p

I have two NextCruise deposits, which can be used against one European 2017 sailing, so I've booked my cruise without the Canadian at Par promotion. I’ve always booked directly with NCL, but for the first time I’ve booked the through an independent TA. If NCL wants to waste my time by offering false promotions, they can now pay referral fees going forward. :rolleyes:

I'm happy to be booked on another cruise, but I’ve decided to minimize my onboard spending on this NCL cruise and future NCL cruises. I’ve sailed this itinerary twice before and my onboard account has ranged from $748.80 USD to $885.79 USD, usually plus a couple hundred in the casino. My goal will be to walk off the ship with less than $100 in total expenses. I’m going to enjoy my vacation, but I’m also going to make every effort to minimize my onboard charges on NCL ships. :cool:

I hope other Canadians have success with the Canadian at Par promotion, but be aware the math doesn’t always add up.

I'm glad to see discussion on this thread. I'd like to respond to a couple comments.

Before I start this, I will say that I am a Canadian. I do not see why a Canadian would expect an American company to give a 30% +/- discount to a Canadian because the Canadian Government does not have the economy to compete with the US.

CruiserGuyWPB - I agree the Canadian government has a lot of work to strengthen the Canadian economy, however, I don't see a direct connection to the topic of NCL's decision to offer pricing at par without actually offering the advertised pricing. The value of the benefit of pricing at par is equivalent to offering the Ultimate Beverage Package. I'd rather use those funds to pay for various expenses on board like a weekly thermal spa pass. NCL will be making a profit from me regardless once I'm on the ship. I'd be happy paying the fare in USD and have an OBC credit for the exchange rate difference.

I too am righteously indignant about special fares being offered to Canadians! Next thing you know, they'll be offering special fares to people in the military, people who live in Florida, or even worse, members of the AARP. It's almost like they're trying to retain a market segment that may choose to spend their vacation dollars elsewhere.

Maddysdaddy - You hit the nail right on the head with your comment. NCL is trying to attract customers and it's up to NCL to determine what customer segments or geographical locations they wish to target. They just need to clearly communicate their offers and follow through when a customer says they want to book a cruise.

The website makes no mention of Canadian at Par as part of the 5 options of the Free at Sea promotion. There are some Canadian at Par select sailings to non-Western Hemisphere destinations, listed as a separate promotion.

Mechman1971 - This offer is appearing on select cruises when you go through the booking process. I think NCL could do a better job communicating this promotion. (Taxes and port fees don't apply). I recall seeing this offer will be discontinued at the end of November.

P.S. I haven't yet received a return call back from the NCL supervisor as promised today, so I will call her tomorrow.

I've called NCL again to speak to a different supervisor regarding the Epic sailing on May 28th 2017, which I mentioned in my previous post.

The Canadian at Par promotion only applies to the base fare and not the port fees and taxes. I understand and accept their policy.

I asked to book a studio cabin at par for $899 CDN plus the port fees and taxes of $108.97 USD (about $148 CDN) for a total of $1,047 CDN.

NCL will not book the cruise at that price.

The supervisor told me NCL has two fares called "travel to fare" and "easy fare". The "easy fare" is what you see on the NCL website.

In my case, the "travel to fare" is $1,199 USD, however, this price is not listed on either the US website or Canadian website.

I tried a different approach and asked to book the cruise at the "travel to fare" of $1,199 USD, but was told that I can't pay more than the "easy to fare".

I can only book the cruise using the "easy to fare" rate of $899 USD plus port fees, at an exchange rate of 1.35, which is equal to $1,360 CDN.

If I book the cruise on the Canadian website without any promotion selected, the price is $1,360 CDN. :confused:

In my opinion, there is no benefit whatsoever to the Canadian at Par promotion. I'm unsatisfied with this response from NCL.

I respectfully asked to escalate this matter and was told to expect a reply within 3 days.

I will post an update later this week accordingly.

I've been a Diet Coke addict for over 30 years and was on the Getaway last week. I was initially disappointed that Diet Coke wasn't available. I purchased a couple bottles of Diet Pepsi onboard and avoided purchasing Diet Coke in port. By the end of the week, I was drinking only ice water with a couple lemon and lime segments. I had my first glass of Diet Coke this morning and the taste changed! I dumped out the Diet Coke and had water with lemon this morning. I think the NCL ban on Diet Coke is helping me get over my addiction. :)

I just called NCL and they have added Canadian at Par as a choice in the Free at Sea promotion.

Unfortunately, the math doesn't add up when booking a cruise.

I'm interested in a studio cabin on the Epic on May 28th 2017.

The US price as of today is $899 + 108.97 port fees and taxes for a total of $1,007.97 USD.

This promotion means that I should be able to book this cruise at $1,007.97 CDN, but NCL wants $1,359.45 CDN when selecting the "Canadian at Par" option.

The NCL agent told me she is supposed to enter a "special phone number" for this promotion, but there was no effect on the pricing.

If I booked this cruise for $1,007.97 USD on my Canadian credit card, the cost would be $1,359.45 CDN.

There is no benefit to this promotion for Canadians. :mad:

I spoke to a supervisor and eventually gave up after 10 minutes of trying to explain what "at par" means. :confused:

If anyone has luck with this promotion, please let me know the name and extension of your NCL booking agent.

P.S. Does anyone know how to view US pricing when viewing the NCL website from Canada?

Hi everyone.

I'm going to start checking in on Thursdays. I'm down 1.5 lbs in my first week of tracking. My goal is to lose at least 25 lbs before the end of February. I was 25 lbs lighter when I did my first cruise four years ago, so my incentive is I'll book another Western Med cruise in June if I achieve my goal. I'm leaving for a Halloween cruise next week and hopefully I'll stay on track.

P.S. Great poem this week.

Graham

Hi everyone, I’m glad to have found this forum. I look forward to chatting with this group and checking in on Thursdays going forward. Reading the success stories on this forum is very inspirational. Hopefully you don't mind a man joining your group.

Background: I’m a 37 years old man who is 6’0 tall and 232 lbs. Four years ago I took my first cruise around the Western Mediterranean. At that time I weighed 207 lbs, which is 25 lbs less than my current weight. My maximum weight was 245 lbs and I have since lost 13 lbs in the last three months. I have a Halloween cruise booked from October 30th to November 6th. I'll attempt to not gain weight on this upcoming cruise.

Target: I will only book a Western Mediterranean cruise if I achieve my weight loss goal of 25lbs over the next 4.5 months. The cruise I’m interested in has a sailing date of May 28th 2017. I will set an additional goal of being below 200 lbs on the cruise. If I don't achieve my weight loss goal, then I won't book the cruise.

Graham

I haven’t had a full search conducted at an airport, but I’ve had customs agents ask questions about why I’m travelling alone. I have a funny story about being questioned by customs about a pair of shoes after a singles cruise.

Before my singles cruise, I mentioned on the single cruise FB page that I found a great pair of shoes for the cruise, but they cost $70 more in Canada than in the US after the exchange rate. A woman in California offered to pick up the shoes and I offered to buy her a drink on the ship as thanks for the favor. I paid her for the shoes and took her out for lunch in Naples Italy, where we shared a bottle of wine.

When returning to Canada, the customs agent noticed the receipt for my shoes was from a location which I hadn’t declared as part of my trip. The customs agent couldn’t understand why a woman would bring a pair of shoes, half-way around the world, for a man she didn’t know. After showing him the single group's FB page, he finally let me go.

Carnival Vista from Miami, 5 nights, inside cabin on December 11th 2016 is $802 including tax and port fees.

I'm going to watch the price and consider doing a back to back cruise after the Getaway December 4th-11th, 7 night cruise for $522 including tax and port fees.

Lois R - Thanks for the reminder about the cruise critic policy, so I won't answer Single_dreamer's question. :o

Single_dreamer - I'm sure you will find the answer to your question. I encourage you to consider joining an organized solo travel group which are a lot of fun, with group dinners, group excursions, theme nights and at least one open bar event per cruise. :D

maywell - I have found that TAs will match prices if you ask. I'm paying the same price and will receive the same OBC credit if I had booked directly with NCL for my March 6th 2016 solo group cruise.

Thanks to this message board, I'm booked on the Getaway for December 4th to 11th 2016. :) I'm already booked on the Getaway on March 6th 2016 for the VTG 20's, 30's & 40's solo cruise with a different itinerary, but one week is not enough time to do everything on a big cruise ship. I wish could book both weeks in December as a B2B cruise. I look forward to seeing you all onboard in 593 days.

The August 24th 2014 sailing of the Allure of the Seas has balconies priced lower than insides. I found this deal on the website with the 90 day ticker.

The single supplement rate is only 13% for balconies, compared to 50% for insides and ocean-views. :eek:

I tried a test booking on RCCL's website, but it isn't showing up. I'm not sure if the promotion is still available or not, but hopefully someone can take advantage of this deal.

I wish I had available vacation time for some of these great cruise deals posted on this thread. :)

A guarantee balcony for a solo passenger on the Celebrity Millennium departing May 17th 2013 sailing round-trip from Vancouver to Alaska (Juneau, Skagway, Hubbard Glacier, and Ketchikan) is less than the price of an guarantee inside cabin! :eek: A guarantee balcony on the Millennium may have a partially obstructed view on a lower deck near the lifeboats, but I'm willing to take that risk.

The price is $799 with a 35% single supplement for a fare of $1,081.00. Taxes and fees are $147.51. Early or late dining times can not be assigned, therefore, gratuities of $11.50 x 7 = $80.50 have to be pre-paid. Total cost is $1,081.00 + $147.01 + $80.50 = $1,309.01 or $187 per day which I think is a good deal for any balcony on an Alaskan cruise.

I booked this cruise yesterday since I'm going to be in Vancouver on a business trip and the plan was to fly back to Toronto on May 17th. I asked if I could take some vacation days to stay in Vancouver at my own expense and then fly back on the following Friday. Since my flights and pre-cruise hotel will be company paid, I'm estimating I'll spend an additional $700-$800 on excursions and spending money for a total cruise cost around $2,000.