Feel stupid didn't search for the fine print

[collectingcoke]

I've been getting NCLs latest emails reading 3 days only the pick 2 - 4 for suites AND 500.00 OBC. FLeetwide. I was excited jumped on the computer and booked our cruise in a suite for next February. Wondered why I didn't see my 500.00 OBC only to find out it's only for 2016 sailings. It didn't say that in the many emails they sent. Stupid me. From now on I'll search for fine print and never take their email promotions at face value.

Edited March 31, 2016 by collectingcoke

[Vacationdreamer<><]

Ugh. Oh OP. I'm so sorry. I had a "fine print" issue with a rebate thing recently. I have to wait three billing cycles... Different than other places and I'd counted on the money back. I feel for you.

[jimsig]

I got lucky and saw they were offering up to $500 OBC and was able to jump on it the day I had to make my final payment, we are in a mini-suite so we got $140. I was willing to give up one night of specialty dining to get it as well as when I originally booked I got 4 night of dining.

 

I told my dad about it and he said he was going to call to get it on his back to back out of NO next Feb. I had seen that it was only for 2016 sailings and had to give him the bad news. I caught it on the website though.

[Shawnino]

I've been getting NCLs latest emails reading 3 days only the pick 2 - 4 for suites AND 500.00 OBC. FLeetwide. I was excited jumped on the computer and booked our cruise in a suite for next February. Wondered why I didn't see my 500.00 OBC only to find out it's only for 2016 sailings. It didn't say that in the many emails they sent. Stupid me. From now on I'll search for fine print and never take their email promotions at face value.

 

There's been a lot more "fine print" lately.

[newmexicoNita]

There's been a lot more "fine print" lately.

 

more or not, it is always wise to read the fine print; most of us do not. Of course this is one reason I depend on my travel agent. She does this for me. she will often find more than one promo and advise me which is the best for our situation.

[NLH Arizona]

OP, thanks for the reminder that it is everyone's responsibility to read the fine print, so that they know the ins and outs of any offers.

[OttawaJohn]

I was just coming to vent a bit about something similar, figured I'd do it here instead of a new thread :)

 

Similar thing, I signed up for the promotions for 'free' drinks and dining. Then I get a new invoice saying I owe 200 more on the cruise that was paid in full.

 

Why?

 

Because though the drinks and dining are 'free' they still hit you with service charges and tips, which since they assume everyone will drink alcohol (which my wife and I don't), included 18% gratiuity for the bar staff.

 

Per day or per meal it seems.

 

Went back to the site, which is plastered with promotions for this stuff. Clicked every link I could find for more information, nothing EVER mentioned it. Finally had to google search NCL Ultimate Beverage Gratiuiruty to find the terms and conditions page where this was spelled out. And even there it's not really clear on if it's a one time thing, per day or whatever.

 

Funny thing, when I called in to NCL to talk about this issue, I was on hold listening to ads for these 'free' packages :) Put me in a fine mood.

 

I wonder how many people are going to walk on board, not realize they still owed and get caught on it.

 

NCL, BTW, was completley iuncaring and I had to fight hard through escalations to get any satisfaction. Poor customer service all around with my rep, another agent and the supervisors.

 

My wife and I have only cruised with NCL and only ever planned to. After yesterday, I don't care if I go on another NCL cruise after the one we have coming up. And if I could cancel it and get my money back, I might have.

[kdzkatz]

All the changes (most of them ones I do not care for) simply open the possibility of trying another cruise line. We did RCCL before and HATED it. We have enjoyed NCL so much we never looked elsewhere. With the large price increases for the cruises we take it opens up researching other cruise lines and we who knows, we may find something we like better than what NCL is becoming. If we don't, it may be time to look for another style of vacation.

 

It seems cruising has gotten much more popular over the last few years and I think the prices are based on supply and demand. If they can raise prices and sell out the ship then I certainly don't blame them. From what I have read all/most of the major cruise lines are making changes including raising prices as the demand has gone up.

 

I look forward to when the demand slows and they have all these ships they are scrambling to sell out. Maybe we can begin to return to better pricing.

 

Sorry if this post is off topic a bit. :o

[StolidCruiser]

I was just coming to vent a bit about something similar, figured I'd do it here instead of a new thread :)

 

Similar thing, I signed up for the promotions for 'free' drinks and dining. Then I get a new invoice saying I owe 200 more on the cruise that was paid in full.

 

Why?

 

Because though the drinks and dining are 'free' they still hit you with service charges and tips, which since they assume everyone will drink alcohol (which my wife and I don't), included 18% gratiuity for the bar staff.

 

Per day or per meal it seems.

 

Went back to the site, which is plastered with promotions for this stuff. Clicked every link I could find for more information, nothing EVER mentioned it. Finally had to google search NCL Ultimate Beverage Gratiuiruty to find the terms and conditions page where this was spelled out. And even there it's not really clear on if it's a one time thing, per day or whatever.

 

Funny thing, when I called in to NCL to talk about this issue, I was on hold listening to ads for these 'free' packages :) Put me in a fine mood.

 

I wonder how many people are going to walk on board, not realize they still owed and get caught on it.

 

NCL, BTW, was completley iuncaring and I had to fight hard through escalations to get any satisfaction. Poor customer service all around with my rep, another agent and the supervisors.

 

My wife and I have only cruised with NCL and only ever planned to. After yesterday, I don't care if I go on another NCL cruise after the one we have coming up. And if I could cancel it and get my money back, I might have.

 

It's not really hidden but also not glaringly obvious. Here is one place I found it by simply clicking on "Terms and Conditions" below the promo(s). It's in several others but one screenshot is enough.

[AndyCapn]

I was just coming to vent a bit about something similar, figured I'd do it here instead of a new thread :)

 

Similar thing, I signed up for the promotions for 'free' drinks and dining. Then I get a new invoice saying I owe 200 more on the cruise that was paid in full.

 

Why?

 

Because though the drinks and dining are 'free' they still hit you with service charges and tips, which since they assume everyone will drink alcohol (which my wife and I don't), included 18% gratiuity for the bar staff.

 

If you don't drink, why didn't you choose the internet or shore excursion options instead? I get that you didn't realize you were responsible for gratuities, but if neither of you drink, what value does getting free drinks have for you anyway?

 

Regardless, is it too late to call up NCL to change to one of the other options?

[OttawaJohn]

If you don't drink, why didn't you choose the internet or shore excursion options instead? I get that you didn't realize you were responsible for gratuities, but if neither of you drink, what value does getting free drinks have for you anyway?

 

Regardless, is it too late to call up NCL to change to one of the other options?

 

We did call and make the change and it's done now.

 

As for why the dirnks, we both drink pop and this way it was free, in theory.

 

We didn't like any excurions on this cruise, so that promo was no good.

 

And we go away to get away from things, so internet defeats the purpose :) Though that is the one we took instead of the drinks.

[cdnsteelman]

I've been getting NCLs latest emails reading 3 days only the pick 2 - 4 for suites AND 500.00 OBC. FLeetwide. I was excited jumped on the computer and booked our cruise in a suite for next February. Wondered why I didn't see my 500.00 OBC only to find out it's only for 2016 sailings. It didn't say that in the many emails they sent. Stupid me. From now on I'll search for fine print and never take their email promotions at face value.

 

Did you book directly with NCL? If so, transfer your booking to a TA that incents customers by offering perqs like OBC and discounts and you'll get some or all of that perceived "loss" back. You can also cancel your booking and wait for the promo you want to come available for your sailing - obviously your risk losing cabin availability / selection in this case.

[ccc321]

d

I got lucky and saw they were offering up to $500 OBC and was able to jump on it the day I had to make my final payment, we are in a mini-suite so we got $140. I was willing to give up one night of specialty dining to get it as well as when I originally booked I got 4 night of dining.

 

I told my dad about it and he said he was going to call to get it on his back to back out of NO next Feb. I had seen that it was only for 2016 sailings and had to give him the bad news. I caught it on the website though.

 

Did you have to cancel and rebook to get the obc.. Or did the price of you fare change to the current fare?

[txagfan]

You can just cancel?

[sprint180]

Well OP that sucks. I hate it when I think I got something great and bam you find out you were wrong. Enjoy the cruise anyway!

[Demonyte]

NCL doesn't make the Terms and Conditions easy to find. They are there but in a link all the way at the bottom of the page.

 

 

Actually NCL does make them very easy to find. They are always linked or listed all the way at the bottom of the page (this is standard procedure in pretty much all marketing).

 

That is much better than having to search for the link by reading through all the marketing mumbo jumbo.

[CP3o]

Just a thought along the lines of hoping for reduced demand and cheaper prices, my guess is they would feel the need to cut back further on staff and other costs in that scenario.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[OttawaJohn]

Understanding the deal is Buyer's responsibility. NCL never said it is in the business to spoon feed anyone.

 

I don't think anyone here is saying that NCL is responsible for it as such.

 

That said, it's also clearly not going out of it's way to inform people of the full details.

 

In my example, when I booked it with my NCL rep, he told me about the promotions and how good they were and I booked them and at no point did he ever mention the gratuitues element.

 

And when I spoke to the Supervisor and pressed her to clarify and point to where in my invoices it showed that charge, she had to admit there wasn't a spot in any of the material I was sent.

 

Disclosure is part of the sales process and NCL seems to be a bit lax in that part.

 

I'm not annoyed with NCL because I think they cheated me. It's the fact that I had poor customer service and people attempting to blame me for not fully understanding the situation. Which some may think correct, it was my fault, that's fine. But the fact is, the poor service I recieved when trying to follow-up on this, and the general lack of information on what's what with it all, is why I am upset.

 

If you go to this link, https://www.ncl.com/cruise-deals/choice, and take a look at the details, it's all about how great it is and how click here to book, etc. Nothing directing you to the small link at the bottom for terms and conditions.

 

Yes, I know, buyer beware and all that, but the simple fact is, it's disingenuous at best to not have the smallest mention in the ads and links up top saying something simple like "Gratiuties not included, please see terms and conditions for more information."

 

I know all business is like this. It doesn't make it right.

 

And the 'blame the customer' attitude that the NCL people had when I followed up on this is why I am so annoyed with them. It's bad service.

 

Just my thoughts.

[DrNora]

d

 

Did you have to cancel and rebook to get the obc.. Or did the price of you fare change to the current fare?

 

I called and they simply added the 300 OBC to our suite. Sailing in September. No re- booking or anything

[nkwoman]

In the situation you described, where you were told about the promotion and did not book online ABSOLUTELY the NCL rep should have told you about the gratuities. If it wasn't on your invoice than shame on them for not notating it.

 

When I was booking my cruise my TA told me upfront that the FREE offers weren't really free, you needed to pay the gratuity. That is how it should be done.

 

I ended up booking the Haven for 5 of us, and my TA at first told me that he thought all the guests got the Free At Sea promotion. When I checked out the vacation summary I noticed that wasn't the case. I was a little annoyed but mistakes do happen and I'm not going to let it ruin my cruise. I hope you have a great time as well. :) In the future I'll make sure to read all the fine print before I call my TA!

 

Nancy

Edited April 1, 2016 by nkwoman

[OttawaJohn]

That's the thing, he didn't tell us, and our invoice didn't show it, so I just hapened to check the NCL site for something and saw a 200 charge suddenly there.

 

It's just poor service.

 

We're not going to let it ruin our cruise for sure. Not the fault of the people who give great service on the ship, and not the fault of the ship itself :)

 

But the corporate culture just seems to be shifting a bit, at least in my interactions, and it's making me think, for the first time, of trying a few other lines now.

 

Basically, they've lost my loyalty, as I didn't get any sense from the rep or supervisor they cared about keeping it.

[renata102]

That's the thing, he didn't tell us, and our invoice didn't show it, so I just hapened to check the NCL site for something and saw a 200 charge suddenly there.

 

It's just poor service.

 

We're not going to let it ruin our cruise for sure. Not the fault of the people who give great service on the ship, and not the fault of the ship itself :)

 

But the corporate culture just seems to be shifting a bit, at least in my interactions, and it's making me think, for the first time, of trying a few other lines now.

 

Basically, they've lost my loyalty, as I didn't get any sense from the rep or supervisor they cared about keeping it.

 

 

It's been my experience with NCL that they are sneaky. I can empathize with you on this point. Just becasue its deep in the internet doesn't mean it's ok. Was it in the contract you signed or was it disclosed by the TA?

[rvsullivan]

I don't think anyone here is saying that NCL is responsible for it as such.

 

That said, it's also clearly not going out of it's way to inform people of the full details.

 

In my example, when I booked it with my NCL rep, he told me about the promotions and how good they were and I booked them and at no point did he ever mention the gratuitues element.

 

And when I spoke to the Supervisor and pressed her to clarify and point to where in my invoices it showed that charge, she had to admit there wasn't a spot in any of the material I was sent.

 

Disclosure is part of the sales process and NCL seems to be a bit lax in that part.

 

I'm not annoyed with NCL because I think they cheated me. It's the fact that I had poor customer service and people attempting to blame me for not fully understanding the situation. Which some may think correct, it was my fault, that's fine. But the fact is, the poor service I recieved when trying to follow-up on this, and the general lack of information on what's what with it all, is why I am upset.

 

If you go to this link, https://www.ncl.com/cruise-deals/choice, and take a look at the details, it's all about how great it is and how click here to book, etc. Nothing directing you to the small link at the bottom for terms and conditions.

 

Yes, I know, buyer beware and all that, but the simple fact is, it's disingenuous at best to not have the smallest mention in the ads and links up top saying something simple like "Gratiuties not included, please see terms and conditions for more information."

 

I know all business is like this. It doesn't make it right.

 

And the 'blame the customer' attitude that the NCL people had when I followed up on this is why I am so annoyed with them. It's bad service.

 

Just my thoughts.

 

Instead of going to the NCL website I just used the link you provided and looked. The first thing I noticed right away was the UBP description has an asterisk on it, for most companies that means look for the details. The next thing that shows up going down the page is a FAQ about the gratuity charges for the UBP. Following all that is the terms and conditions which again clearly lists the 18% charge. How many places should they show it? The other thing you mention is the charge showed up on your bill? So well before final payment you know the charge is there?

[wdsted]

Net of it for me is that I don't think NCL is trying to cheat anyone. It's more than fair to charge $100 (7-day cruises) to each UDP passenger drinking for nada to tip the crew who's made those free drinks. My husband and I typically spend updwards of $800/cruise + tips for our booze during a 1-week cruise and this deal saves us a lot of money. Reading the fine print aside, what alcohol-consuming, having-a-good-time-on-a-cruise kind of person doesn't tip $14 a day for top shelf hooch served by some great folks? If it doesn't add up for you, choose the lousy internet access, shore excursion credit, or UDP. Each, by the way, has its own terms and conditions.

Edited April 2, 2016 by wdsted

[swedish weave]

With all the changes NCL has made recently, it seems that they also changed the meaning of the word FREE without notifying anybody.