What is happening with NCL?

[amadeus289]

Ive only cruised twice, both times with NCL and loved both trips. I am an old hippie, jeans and Tshirts/sweatshirts are my staple; so NCL is perfect for me.

 

Im looking to book a third cruise for next year and am noticing a sharp cut back of cruises offered by NCL. Whereas there is an abundance of Caribbean Cruises, there are little for the Baltic area or Northern Europe, and much less for Alaska and NONE for Antartica.

 

Of course the economy requires a lot of companies to cut back, but this is a sharp decline (I think) from 2009 and 2010's offerings.

 

Anyone else notice this?

[SeaShark]

Ive only cruised twice, both times with NCL and loved both trips. I am an old hippie, jeans and Tshirts/sweatshirts are my staple; so NCL is perfect for me.

 

Im looking to book a third cruise for next year and am noticing a sharp cut back of cruises offered by NCL. Whereas there is an abundance of Caribbean Cruises, there are little for the Baltic area or Northern Europe, and much less for Alaska and NONE for Antartica.

 

Of course the economy requires a lot of companies to cut back, but this is a sharp decline (I think) from 2009 and 2010's offerings.

 

Anyone else notice this?

 

If you don't mind my saying so...you're all over the map (sorry about the pun) here.

 

I understand that you're looking to plan your third cruise, but you mention the Caribbean, Baltic, Alaska, and Antartica. I think Hawaii and the Mexican Riviera are the only ones you missed.

 

I would suggest that first you at least figure out WHERE you want to vacation...THEN start to look at the cruises.

[caribou9]

I noticed that most of their upcoming itineraries are rather unexciting. We love the caribbean, but we feel there are not that many choices for us. We just don't want to go to some of the places that NCL is sending its ships.

 

And I have been wanting to ask this for a while: WHAT IS WITH THE CRUISES TO FLORIDA AND THE BAHAMAS?

 

Obviously I realize that these cruises must sell well. NCL would not offer them if they didn't. We just don't get it. NCL is sailing not one but two large, newer ships with the same itinerary; Florida and Bahamas. What is the point of these itineraries? My best guess is that these must be affordable cruises for families; I have not checked the prices, however.

 

If we did take one of these cruises, we would spend a lot of time on the ship. We have no desire to go to any of the ports of call. Maybe that's the whole idea! A cruise line makes no money when a passenger gets off the ship.

[amadeus289]

Thanks for the response. My post is confusing, (not the most articulate person) but I do have my favorite spots.

 

I was looking to go back to the Baltics, OR a South American cruise.

 

When I noticed slim pickings (or none ) I started doing a search of the cruises NCL was offering for this year and realized they seemed to have cut back in many areas.

 

My post was not so much a lament that I couldnt find a cruise, rather a concern that NCL might be in trouble.

 

Sorry about not being too clear..it's brain fog :D

[amadeus289]

Caribou..yes, I agree.

 

Im not a beach type, I love history and historic/natural wonders sites.

 

I did notice a redundancy in a lot of their med/caribbean cruises as well.

 

Not sure what theyre doing, but you could be right, maybe they are aware of the financial situation and are trying to find the most affordable vacations for families.

[FLAHAM]

Caribou..yes, I agree.

 

Im not a beach type, I love history and historic/natural wonders sites.

 

I did notice a redundancy in a lot of their med/caribbean cruises as well.

 

Not sure what theyre doing, but you could be right, maybe they are aware of the financial situation and are trying to find the most affordable vacations for families.

 

Or, that a whole lot of potential cruisers just want to depart from a relatively close port for a few days of warm weather and relaxing by the pool.

[mtwingcpa]

My post was not so much a lament that I couldnt find a cruise, rather a concern that NCL might be in trouble.

 

I don't think that's necessarily the case. Many other lines have also cut routes, presumably in response to the economic situation, and noting that it can take a year or more for major itinerary alterations to be implemented.

 

I'm also having trouble finding interesting itineraries on NCL at the moment.

[jame_g]

My understanding is that NCL pulled out of South America because the itineraries were difficult to sell. Supposedly this was due to the high cost of airfare that often cost nearly as much as the cruise or more. (Not speaking from personal experience, but from what I seem to recall others posting here about this topic.) This would eliminate the Antarctic option, which is one I would like to eventually do.

 

However, they still have two ships doing Alaska itineries, and at least two doing European itineraries.

 

I would expect a lot redundancy in any area they cruise. They're going to try to do a repetitive itinerary so that people know what is available, and they can probably keep costs lower by having these established itineraries instead of constantly switching them.

 

I feel your pain though. This is what we are starting to run up against, limited options for cruises if we eliminate those that go to ports that we don't want to visit again. Although we do still have several places we haven't visited, those are itineraries that either require more vacation time and/or are more expensive, so they have to be spread out.

[RalphWiggum]

I noticed that most of their upcoming itineraries are rather unexciting. We love the caribbean, but we feel there are not that many choices for us. We just don't want to go to some of the places that NCL is sending its ships.

 

And I have been wanting to ask this for a while: WHAT IS WITH THE CRUISES TO FLORIDA AND THE BAHAMAS?

 

Obviously I realize that these cruises must sell well. NCL would not offer them if they didn't. We just don't get it. NCL is sailing not one but two large, newer ships with the same itinerary; Florida and Bahamas. What is the point of these itineraries? My best guess is that these must be affordable cruises for families; I have not checked the prices, however.

 

If we did take one of these cruises, we would spend a lot of time on the ship. We have no desire to go to any of the ports of call. Maybe that's the whole idea! A cruise line makes no money when a passenger gets off the ship.

 

It appeals to those in the northeast who don't want to fly for whatever reason (fear of flying, difficulty flying with kids, or overall hassle of flying today). While I prefer a seven day to Bermuda, you don't have many choices for a week long roundtrip from NYC if you want sunny weather. basically, it's just two. I've done it twice, back when the itinerary was Miami, Orlando, Nassau and Great Stirrup Cay, so a weeklong cruise with a visit to South Beach, a NASA launch site, Atlantis and a private island was really nice for the price. They have unfortunately dropped Miami but you can find some great prices with the the new itinerary. Again, I think it's appeals the most to those who like the concept of cruising from their backyard. My brother and his wife would rather to San Juan and catch a cruise there, with more exotic ports, and don't get the appeal either.

[Sauer-kraut]

Just done a quick search on NCL.com and from April '11 - Nov '11 there are 29 cruises listed. Some are the regular Med. but there is one that does the Med and Holy Land that looked quite interesting. There is a 24 day Baltics from Copenhagen/Transatlantic that would be spectacular. I don't think there are many cutbacks other than the South American runs that have disappeared.

[caribou9]

Flaham wrote: <<<Or, that a whole lot of potential cruisers just want to depart from a relatively close port for a few days of warm weather and relaxing by the pool.>>>

 

That has occured to us as well. We do wish we lived close to a cruise port. Airfare really adds a lot of dollars to our vacations. The ability to drive to a port in less than a day, would be great.

[debnjoe1438]

Or, that a whole lot of potential cruisers just want to depart from a relatively close port for a few days of warm weather and relaxing by the pool.

 

Close ports are great. Joe and I typically cruise in January and not liking cold weather, going south is good. (Of course living is FL cold is not a major issue). Any ports we can drive to is much perferable to plans and hotels added to the mix.

[electricron]

Im looking to book a third cruise for next year and am noticing a sharp cut back of cruises offered by NCL. Whereas there is an abundance of Caribbean Cruises, there are little for the Baltic area or Northern Europe, and much less for Alaska and NONE for Antartica.

 

Of course the economy requires a lot of companies to cut back, but this is a sharp decline (I think) from 2009 and 2010's offerings.

 

Anyone else notice this?

 

Yes, I see it too. I believe you can attribute this change to NCL's new ownership, Apollo Management.

[fivefirsts]

As a family of 6 living in New England the airfare can add thousands. We love being able to drive to the port, and no luggage restrictions. We have done the NY Bahamas twice and loved it. We were disappointed when NCL pulled this itinerary before the April Spring Breaks in New England. I'm glad they have brought back the April cruises. We are debating for April 2011. I'm a little suprised at the overlap, basically the same itinerary is leaving on Sat and Sunday. Either way we are thrilled.:D

[polySeraph]

I was looking to go back to the Baltics, OR a South American cruise.

 

When I noticed slim pickings (or none ) I started doing a search of the cruises NCL was offering for this year and realized they seemed to have cut back in many areas.

 

I also noticed that there seemed to be a lot of "standard" itineraries currently listed. BUT if you look, there's also a few one-of-a-kind itineraries listed sprinkled among the more standard fare. Some of these were mentioned in an earlier post. (My up-coming Best-of-the-Med is one of those one-of-a-kind cruises since it calls in both Barcelona and Venice.)

 

Another option would be to combine a 7-day cruise (say, the Aegean or the Baltics) with a second week on your own in Europe. You could, say, fly into Copenhagen a week early and take the ferry to to Oslo, take the train to Bergen (a beautiful trip!) a boat up the fjords, another train back to Oslo, then on to Stockholm, etc, etc. Or you could do the same thing in Venice. Or you could fly into Paris and take the train to Venice. . . . (And so on.)

 

South America with NCL was special. The high cost of airfare may have deterred some but our particular cruise was pretty much booked to capacity. We heard this was an expensive itinerary for them - supply costs were high and port fees were going up. Perhaps in the future, circumstances will change and they'll start offering this itinerary again. Hey, I'd do it again in a heartbeat!

[Powriv]

All the cruiselines redeploy ships where the customer need is.

 

RCCL has moved alot of their fleet to Europe. At least 8 of their ships will be over there. RCCL will have their largest ships doing the same Caribbean Itinerary weekly. 12,000 people/week doing either eastern or western caribbean.

[Dolphins]

It appeals to those in the northeast who don't want to fly for whatever reason (fear of flying, difficulty flying with kids, or overall hassle of flying today). While I prefer a seven day to Bermuda, you don't have many choices for a week long roundtrip from NYC if you want sunny weather. basically, it's just two. I've done it twice, back when the itinerary was Miami, Orlando, Nassau and Great Stirrup Cay, so a weeklong cruise with a visit to South Beach, a NASA launch site, Atlantis and a private island was really nice for the price. They have unfortunately dropped Miami but you can find some great prices with the the new itinerary. Again, I think it's appeals the most to those who like the concept of cruising from their backyard. My brother and his wife would rather to San Juan and catch a cruise there, with more exotic ports, and don't get the appeal either.

 

NCL also offers 7 day round trip cruises out of New York to Canada/New England.

[Ms belp]

I see that they also offer a cruise going to Ireland ports. My sis did this and loved it!

[newmexicoNita]

Ive only cruised twice, both times with NCL and loved both trips. I am an old hippie, jeans and Tshirts/sweatshirts are my staple; so NCL is perfect for me.

 

Im looking to book a third cruise for next year and am noticing a sharp cut back of cruises offered by NCL. Whereas there is an abundance of Caribbean Cruises, there are little for the Baltic area or Northern Europe, and much less for Alaska and NONE for Antartica.

 

Of course the economy requires a lot of companies to cut back, but this is a sharp decline (I think) from 2009 and 2010's offerings.

 

Anyone else notice this?

 

I don't know what you are seeing or where you are looking, but NCL like all cruise lines have their ships scheduled for every single sailing except for the few weeks they might be in dry dock.

 

The Antaritca itinerary was not terribly successful because of the cost to fly to the embarkation or debarkation ports. In fact I have clients right now who would lvoe to do Antaritca but there are really not many sailings. Some of the very upscale lines offer more. As for the Baltic, pretty much the same. Ships are going to cruise where the traffic and demand is. You say many to the Caribbean, a few years ago people were bitching because there were not enough doing the CAribbean.

 

I don't know why you are saying there are less for Alaska?

 

Anyway, I think you might be imagining things. Yes, there may be one or two less, but not serious cut backs.

 

Nita

[newmexicoNita]

I noticed that most of their upcoming itineraries are rather unexciting. We love the caribbean, but we feel there are not that many choices for us. We just don't want to go to some of the places that NCL is sending its ships.

 

And I have been wanting to ask this for a while: WHAT IS WITH THE CRUISES TO FLORIDA AND THE BAHAMAS?

 

Obviously I realize that these cruises must sell well. NCL would not offer them if they didn't. We just don't get it. NCL is sailing not one but two large, newer ships with the same itinerary; Florida and Bahamas. What is the point of these itineraries? My best guess is that these must be affordable cruises for families; I have not checked the prices, however.

 

If we did take one of these cruises, we would spend a lot of time on the ship. We have no desire to go to any of the ports of call. Maybe that's the whole idea! A cruise line makes no money when a passenger gets off the ship.

 

I agree but back to the same thing I just posted. They will go where the demand is. We are doing a family cruise in Feb, yes, we are having trouble finding new ports, but for those of us who have cruised many times what can we do? Unless ports are developed the ships can't go there and the larger the ships get, the less choices. Many ports can not handle the new idea in cruise ships. this no interesting ports isn't just NCL, I do this for a living and I see it with all lines.

 

One cut back for NCL is going to be the Mexican Riv, but again, the reason, it isn't as popular as it once was. It is probably the least popular itinerary for many. The biggest draw, people in Ca can get to San Pedro easily.

 

No, ships make no money when people get off at ports, but a lot of things close down when in port, so how do you think they will make money if people stay on the ship? I think your reasoning there is off base, big time. Duty free is closed, casinos are closed, some of the bars are closed, about the only thing open is a couple of restaurants (no money there) and the spa...plus the pool area.

 

Nita

[gigmann1]

I think one of the problems with South American ports is the rather limited ports that might be of interest to people. Rio is an exciting port, but the cost of a visa adds considerably to the expense. Caribbean cruises can offer an array of different ports, so one can take many sailings in the Caribbean and visit different ports on each cruise. Also, South American cruises tend to be two weeks or longer - which limits the people who can only get time for a one week trip.

[caribou9]

newmexiconita wrote: <<<No, ships make no money when people get off at ports, but a lot of things close down when in port, so how do you think they will make money if people stay on the ship? I think your reasoning there is off base, big time. Duty free is closed, casinos are closed, some of the bars are closed, about the only thing open is a couple of restaurants (no money there) and the spa...plus the pool area.>>>

 

Point taken; thank you!

 

I know that a ship, an itinerary and a cruise line are personal preference. All of them of very subjective.

 

That's why I never read restaurant reviews.

[sjbdtz]

I don't think I fully understand the question. It's not like they've parked a ship somewhere.

 

They have all the ships running back-to-back itineraries..... so I'm not sure how you see this as a cut-back.

 

If what you're questioning is the repositioning of the ships, understand that it can happen several times / year....if you are looking at a particular destination, try searching for it without dates, you may find it operates at different times of the year.

[newmexicoNita]

I don't think I fully understand the question. It's not like they've parked a ship somewhere.

 

They have all the ships running back-to-back itineraries..... so I'm not sure how you see this as a cut-back.

 

If what you're questioning is the repositioning of the ships, understand that it can happen several times / year....if you are looking at a particular destination, try searching for it without dates, you may find it operates at different times of the year.

 

yep, I thought the same thing when I read the Ops comments. Does he think the ships are not planning on sailing? I guess he meant they were cutting back on itineraries, but it really isn't the case except for a few that are not money makers.

 

Nita

[cdnsteelman]

While many have surmised the SA itinerary (Buenos Aires - Valparaiso or Valparaiso - Buenos Aires aboard the Sun) was cancelled due to lack of popularity resulting from high airfares - my experience is the opposite and the crew told me it ran mostly full. I would guess the biggest challenge is the fact that the casino is mostly closed on the Chilean half of the itnerary and that is a massive earning opportunity lost to NCL. Too bad - it was an amazing cruise.