NCL Horrific Hold Times/Customer Service

[shapatack0]

I'm with Denman. Now that Carnival has Your Time Dining, I'm sticking with them. I'm done with NCL and their price drop policies. Can't go to Royal again because set dining times are torture for me.

 

Royal has anytime dining as well now. You can choose set dining times or choose anytime dining, which works very similarly to freestyle dining.

[getupgo]

I didn't know that. I learn so much on this web site. Thank you very much. I'll start looking at their cruises again. It's been 5 years since we went with them.

[bwater]

facts straight ??? look at all the threads where people are seeing the doubling of fares on the kids promo- only to get "50% " off

 

thats great you saved $400.. WHO CARES

 

GO ON THEIR WEBSITE RIGHT NOW.. AN INSIDE ALASKA IS $629 FOR ADULTS.. AND $550 FOR KIDS ???- AT HALF PRICE OF $1100 FOR KIDS ON AN INSIDE ROOM ? THEY WERE $399 2 WEEKS AGO- THATS CALLED SCAMMING

 

AND BBB HATES THAT STUFF.. its blatant.. I don't particularly care- I am happy with my rate from COSTCO for my summer alaska cruise.. but the shenanangins pulled this weekend by NCL.. have me ( and obviously many other long time ncl cruisers- )looking elsewhere.. Holland America.. same itinerary- day prior..has 3+4 passengers at $$249 per kid- in a balcony !!.. NO scamming.. I will call them in morning

 

again- half price for a $1100 12 year old on an inside 7 day ( to get $549 ) defies credibility- and im sure other cruise lines are laughing at this

[jd1966]

When things get back to normal I will inquire as to why I was never assigned a "PCC". I had other issues to discuss when I called...not just

looking for an upgrade or whatever.

Don't get your hopes up!!! Some PCC's are great and others are horrible! I went from one of the best (he got promoted) to a total failure!! Eleven days to respond to an e-mail in which he told me to call him!

[Da-Painter]

About now, the NCL fan club should arrive and tell you are all wrong, and NCL is great.

How about it fan club, where are you at?????

[April7901]

My PCC (pulled from an old email) apparently doesn't work on the weekend so I experienced the crazy hold times as well. I certainly empathize with Denmen. Not everyone (new NCL cruisers) has or knows to call a PCC.

 

My former PCC quit, or was transferred or something. I booked last year with one, got notice of a different one a few months ago, and over the weekend learned that one was gone too. So even if I'd had a number, it wouldn't have done me any good.

 

Two hours on hold, and I have a $1500 refund and a free UBP - well worth the time, particularly since I just put the phone on speaker and did other things while I waited :)

[Out to sea!]

This weekend I experienced the longest hold times of my entire life trying to reach NCL regarding a price drop. Collectively, I spent 3.5 hours and then was refused so much as a token OBC due to the price drop or at least compensation for the poor service. I realize now that when NCL has your final payment, they're done with you.

 

I understand that this is the high-booking "Wave" season, but how much hold time can you tolerate before you move on to other cruise lines? I've never had this issue with their competitors. Carnival actually assigns you a specific "agent" and you have their direct extension when you need help. I just felt incredibly "out of luck" when trying to reach NCL this weekend. Their website was locked up at times yesterday and even their phone numbers gave a rapid busy tone when you tried to call them yesterday morning. These are the things I remember when I choose a line to cruise with. I can't say NCL scored any points with me this weekend. :confused:

 

Maybe NCL could answer the phones quicker if they weren't taking calls from people who know they are not supposed to be calling and asking for OBC but still call anyway? :rolleyes:

[Out to sea!]

facts straight ??? look at all the threads where people are seeing the doubling of fares on the kids promo- only to get "50% " off

 

thats great you saved $400.. WHO CARES

 

GO ON THEIR WEBSITE RIGHT NOW.. AN INSIDE ALASKA IS $629 FOR ADULTS.. AND $550 FOR KIDS ???- AT HALF PRICE OF $1100 FOR KIDS ON AN INSIDE ROOM ? THEY WERE $399 2 WEEKS AGO- THATS CALLED SCAMMING

 

AND BBB HATES THAT STUFF.. its blatant.. I don't particularly care- I am happy with my rate from COSTCO for my summer alaska cruise.. but the shenanangins pulled this weekend by NCL.. have me ( and obviously many other long time ncl cruisers- )looking elsewhere.. Holland America.. same itinerary- day prior..has 3+4 passengers at $$249 per kid- in a balcony !!.. NO scamming.. I will call them in morning

 

again- half price for a $1100 12 year old on an inside 7 day ( to get $549 ) defies credibility- and im sure other cruise lines are laughing at this

 

Buh Bye!! :D

[rolyasmatt]

My wait time was actually not that bad in the morning.

 

I will say however, NCL CSR staff are some for nicest people I have talked to. I have re-booked 3 times and each time is a breeze and they are very nice to talk to you and get it done in 2-3 minutes.

[triptolemus]

something tells me the BBB will be called a LOT this weekend... BAIT and Switch of the century- "

 

AND BBB HATES THAT STUFF..

 

Gotta love the BBB flag waivers! :rolleyes: I suppose you call when the line at the grocery store is too long?

 

People that work there must be on constant suicide watch...

[CasinoCruzGirl]

facts straight ??? look at all the threads where people are seeing the doubling of fares on the kids promo- only to get "50% " off

 

thats great you saved $400.. WHO CARES

 

GO ON THEIR WEBSITE RIGHT NOW.. AN INSIDE ALASKA IS $629 FOR ADULTS.. AND $550 FOR KIDS ???- AT HALF PRICE OF $1100 FOR KIDS ON AN INSIDE ROOM ? THEY WERE $399 2 WEEKS AGO- THATS CALLED SCAMMING

 

AND BBB HATES THAT STUFF.. its blatant.. I don't particularly care- I am happy with my rate from COSTCO for my summer alaska cruise.. but the shenanangins pulled this weekend by NCL.. have me ( and obviously many other long time ncl cruisers- )looking elsewhere.. Holland America.. same itinerary- day prior..has 3+4 passengers at $$249 per kid- in a balcony !!.. NO scamming.. I will call them in morning

 

again- half price for a $1100 12 year old on an inside 7 day ( to get $549 ) defies credibility- and im sure other cruise lines are laughing at this

 

 

Obviously I CARE and my sisters care who are traveling with me that we saved $400. You are a rude arrogant person and if you cruise ncl or royal I'll use your words WHO CARES

[allison0523]

NCL also assigns you a specific agent...called a PCC. You should have called him/her instead of trying the general 800 number.

 

That's not true when you book online via their web site. All I received was a confirmation, not a PCC and contact information.

[SeaShark]

GO ON THEIR WEBSITE RIGHT NOW.. AN INSIDE ALASKA IS $629 FOR ADULTS.. AND $550 FOR KIDS ???- AT HALF PRICE OF $1100 FOR KIDS ON AN INSIDE ROOM ? THEY WERE $399 2 WEEKS AGO- THATS CALLED SCAMMING

 

 

Perhaps your disappointment with the pricing is a result of the fact that you don't understand the pricing.

 

For example...NCL doesn't have one price for adults and another for kids..both pay the SAME.

 

4 adults in a room pay the same fare as 2 adults and 2 children would.

 

 

Understanding should always preceed judgment.

[SeaShark]

That's not true when you book online via their web site. All I received was a confirmation, not a PCC and contact information.

 

It most certainly IS true. Just because you took it upon yourself to book online doesn't change that. EVERY reservation is assigned to a PCC.

 

FWIW...Booking yourself isn't a wise idea. PCCs can save you a lot of money simply because they can do things that you cannot...for example, they can combine promos to give you better deals...you can only enter ONE promo code yourself.

 

All you do by booking yourself is save the PCC time...no benefit to you at all.

[Raleigh Traveler]

I am a US citizen but living in Africa right now so I do not make phone calls. I have gone thru several PCCs and now have one that is very responsive by email. Email is the only way we communicate and that communication resulted in four upgrades on our TA after final payment.

When I didn't like the one PCC, I requested another thru an email address found on their FB page. If you search on FB you can find that some PCCs even have their own pages.

[Out to sea!]

That's not true when you book online via their web site. All I received was a confirmation, not a PCC and contact information.

 

Actually, it is true even of online bookings. I was assigned a PCC after my first cruise which I booked online. Tried to call her twice and never could get through nor any responses to emails I sent so in effect, I fired her. But I still get emails stating she is my PCC (though I really don't care).

[Out to sea!]

It most certainly IS true. Just because you took it upon yourself to book online doesn't change that. EVERY reservation is assigned to a PCC.

 

FWIW...Booking yourself isn't a wise idea. PCCs can save you a lot of money simply because they can do things that you cannot...for example, they can combine promos to give you better deals...you can only enter ONE promo code yourself.

 

All you do by booking yourself is save the PCC time...no benefit to you at all.

 

Sure there are benefits. It's faster booking online. I can ensure my info is inputted without error. And for anything else, a standard person who answers the telephone has dealt with any problem I've had just fine. No need for a PCC, especially one that refuses to respond.

[allison0523]

Actually, it is true even of online bookings. I was assigned a PCC after my first cruise which I booked online. Tried to call her twice and never could get through nor any responses to emails I sent so in effect, I fired her. But I still get emails stating she is my PCC (though I really don't care).

 

Where was this information listed? I guarantee you I have not been given any contact information for a PCC. And I have booked 2 cruises online through them. Whether I was supposed to get that or not is another story. Actually, I emailed one I found on social media yesterday and modified my reservation. Then today I had a question, so I pulled up the confirmation to call the PCC and there was no contact information listed. Just the booking information and the generic 1-800 number.

[Sunset Lover 1971]

Where was this information listed? I guarantee you I have not been given any contact information for a PCC. And I have booked 2 cruises online through them. Whether I was supposed to get that or not is another story. Actually, I emailed one I found on social media yesterday and modified my reservation. Then today I had a question, so I pulled up the confirmation to call the PCC and there was no contact information listed. Just the booking information and the generic 1-800 number.

 

I was not assigned a PCC on my first cruise. After the cruise, I received advertisements that had a PCC listed, but I booked online myself. Again, no PCC listed on any documentation. I wanted to change my cabin so I called the PCC on the ads twice and never received a call back. Also called two additional PCCs that I found listed on FB. No call backs were received, so I completed the call me back form on NCL.com yesterday morning. Still no call. Called again this morning and waited on hold for a bit. Good news is that I was able to switch my cabin. Still no PCC assigned on new confirmation or on my online account. It's all good, but I just wanted to share that for some reason not all are assigned a PCC.

[rpb718]

NCL also assigns you a specific agent...called a PCC. You should have called him/her instead of trying the general 800 number.

 

Between my wife and I, we originally each had a different PCC. I haven't tried mine lately (she's still there as we get her emails every month or so), but that's because we are currently very happy with my wife's PCC (and DW has been doing the planning lately) - who engineered our upgrade to a suite a couple months before a sailing and we still were able to receive the extra suite Latitudes points (triple) because we originally booked very early. Not only that, one time when her PCC was not going to be available we were sent the number of another one that turned out to be just as good - we saved over $1K on our next sailing in a balcony. Now we have 3 we can choose from.

[pnerissa]

I have to say that I too, having booked online twice now, have never received contact information for a PCC. I have scoured the emails, which are nothing more than generic confirmations sent from the donotreply address, and there is nothing there. I have tried using the contact me option on the website several times and no one ever calls me back. The only reason I have a number for a PCC at all is that one of my friends gave me their number. I kind of feel like I 'stole' a PCC, but a girl does what a girl has to do.

 

It really would make it easier if they assigned each passenger a PCC. Clearly not everyone is lucky enough to get their own.

[justhere]

I'm with Denman. Now that Carnival has Your Time Dining, I'm sticking with them. I'm done with NCL and their price drop policies. Can't go to Royal again because set dining times are torture for me.

I am aware of one policy. Price drops before final payment, you can get the new price and promotions. Price drops after final payment, you may or may not be able to upgrade within category, etc but no guarantees (as in promises, not cabins) depending on a number of factors.

 

What other price drop policies does NCL have that I'm missing?

[Denman]

The issue is not so much price drops for me as it is customer service in general and hold times in the hours. Regardless of policies and contracts, this service is unacceptable in so many ways. I've heard about lots of other issues in this thread that just boggle the mind as well. I'll forget about all this when I board the ship, but I'll remember it when I'm ready to book the next cruise. I'm sorry we've all had to experience this. I think it's important to communicate openly in this type of forum so that NCL knows how their service is affecting their customers opinions of them. And I know they pay attention to CruiseCritic based on how attentive they have been in the past to Meet and Greets, etc.

Edited February 3, 2015 by Denman

[LrgPizza]

We put a cruise on hold yesterday online during the awesome promo. We planned to call our PCC today to see if we could get through in order to finalize the booking, simply so he'd get the credit. Before we had a chance, he called us out of the blue! He said he was reviewing his clients and noticed we had placed a hold. He asked if he could help with anything, and we simply made our deposit with him to lock in our reservation. It was a piece of cake. Thanks to NCL for the excellent customer service.

Edited February 3, 2015 by LrgPizza

[MCAT48]

I'm quite confused as to why the anger? What amazing promo is ending today that cannot be extended? The one I see is for all of February.