Upset! Bev Gratuity more expensive for different category of cabin!? Advice please

[Viva_la_Vida]

I was very excited up until about an hour ago, because I had just called to upgrade my inside guarantee to a balcony guarantee. I was told I could keep my beverage perk and choose another perk as well (I chose wifi). I gave my payment and the change was reflected right away on NCL's website.

 

I just got a call from my TA that now my gratuity on my beverage package had gone up! I don't understand this at all! Why is the beverage package gratuity based on cabin category? I deserve to be charged more for what I drink because I'm now paying more to be in a balcony? How does that make sense? Can somebody please tell me if this is your experience? It seems very fishy to me! :confused::mad:

 

What should/can I do?

[KarenMF]

It's not the category of cabin - it's because the price of the beverage package has gone up so the gratuities have gone up.

 

It's possible that it is considered a new booking so you have to pay the gratuities on the new price.

[KeithJenner]

I'm just speculating, but perhaps they dealt with it as a cancellation and rebooking. The price of the beverage package has gone up recently, so the gratuity will have increased as well.

 

The gratuity is based on the cost of the package and isn't related to the cabin you are in at all (except for suites where it is zero).

[SeaShark]

I was very excited up until about an hour ago, because I had just called to upgrade my inside guarantee to a balcony guarantee. I was told I could keep my beverage perk and choose another perk as well (I chose wifi). I gave my payment and the change was reflected right away on NCL's website.

 

I just got a call from my TA that now my gratuity on my beverage package had gone up! I don't understand this at all! Why is the beverage package gratuity based on cabin category? I deserve to be charged more for what I drink because I'm now paying more to be in a balcony? How does that make sense? Can somebody please tell me if this is your experience? It seems very fishy to me! :confused::mad:

 

What should/can I do?

 

First off, you are paying your TA to take care of you and your reservation. You should INSIST that they take care of your questions/concerns/issues with your reservation. No reason they should make money and not provide you all of the service that you deserve.

 

That said...without seeing your booking details, it is going to be hard to say what happened and why. I suspect that your booking was made some time back and since then the price of the UBP has increased and your current re-booking means that you have to pay the new increased gratuity rate.

[Viva_la_Vida]

This was not a new booking, just a change in cabin. I am 46 days out, so I would have incurred fees to cancel and rebook, that's why I made sure it was just a "simple" upgrade in cabin.

 

So it is common when you change cabins to have to pay a different price on a pre-existing perk that was already paid in full?

[hawkeyetlse]

The others who responded are almost certainly correct: the gratuities did not go up because you changed cabin categories, but because you initially booked when the retail value of the UBP was lower. If you give us more details about your booking (how many days, your original booking date), we can confirm the exact numbers for you.

What should/can I do?

Nothing, except ask them to undo your upgrade and restore your original booking (and I'm not even sure if they will be willing or able to do that).

[KeithJenner]

So it is common when you change cabins to have to pay a different price on a pre-existing perk that was already paid in full?

 

 

No. That's why nobody has been able to say for sure why you have been charged more.

 

I have to agree with the earlier post. Why not ask your TA to explain why it's gone up. They will know far more than we do about your booking.

[CasinoCruzGirl]

I can't imagine that the change was more than a couple of bucks. How much was the difference?

[Viva_la_Vida]

I can't imagine that the change was more than a couple of bucks. How much was the difference?

 

They are saying I owe $199 extra because of the beverage package increase.

 

I booked in February of 2016 and had already paid the $176 in pre-paid gratuity for the beverage package. I think a $199 increase is crazy in that short amount of time.

 

They should have told me this when I upgraded, not after.

 

I'm on the phone now trying to sort it out.

[KeithJenner]

When you get through to them ask them to tell you what is really going on and to stop lying to you.

 

A $199 increase is not due to gratuity on the drink package.

[Theodorable]

My gratuities went up when I changed from an ocean view to a balcony guarantee purely because the cost of the beverage package went up. No matter what you say, your changing category equates to a new booking...hence the increase in gratuities. Also, if you have the dinner promo and had 4 dinners you will now have 3! This depends on the length of your cruise though.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

Edited April 23, 2016 by Theodorable

[CasinoCruzGirl]

They are saying I owe $199 extra because of the beverage package increase.

 

I booked in February of 2016 and had already paid the $176 in pre-paid gratuity for the beverage package. I think a $199 increase is crazy in that short amount of time.

 

They should have told me this when I upgraded, not after.

 

I'm on the phone now trying to sort it out.

 

 

What????? $199 more than you already paid for UBP gratuity that cannot be right. Something is seriously wrong. Are you sure it's not $23 more?

[NLH Arizona]

They are saying I owe $199 extra because of the beverage package increase.

 

I booked in February of 2016 and had already paid the $176 in pre-paid gratuity for the beverage package. I think a $199 increase is crazy in that short amount of time.

 

They should have told me this when I upgraded, not after.

 

I'm on the phone now trying to sort it out.

Please let us know what you find out.

 

BTW, if you are on a 7 days cruise, I believe the 18% gratuity for two would be $199, so maybe they didn't noticed that you already paid the $176.

Edited April 23, 2016 by NLH Arizona

[Theodorable]

The $199 is not for 1 person. There must be a number of people included in this.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[CasinoCruzGirl]

The $199 is not for 1 person. There must be a number of people included in this.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

Right. There is no way the gratuity increase is $199. I hope she gets this straightened out

[Viva_la_Vida]

I ended up calling NCL directly and they were incredibly helpful. It was an error on their part. They said at the most I should just owe the difference, not the full 18% all over again. For the trouble it caused, they just wiped the balance completely. Go NCL!

 

The supervisor at NCL said my TA had hung up with her before she could tell him the $199 I owed was an error. :eek:

 

Thanks for helping assure me that an extra $199 was as crazy as I thought it was.

[LrgPizza]

Did you maybe book originally when there wasn't a gratuity on the beverage promo at all, and now there is one?

 

Like everyone else says, ask your TA. That's why you have one. We are all just guessing.

[cmdchiefthom]

I learned a long time ago never to deal with a TA when you have a PCC assigned to you and that's the only person at NCL you need to deal with. My guy had to separate an upcoming B2B on the Gem, with all four amenities and $500 OBC on each leg, but under a single reservation number. That left me unable to pay the fares online, nor book excursions and dining. He had to cancel the combined booking and re-book two individual bookings to set thing right, and actually found a $200 drop for each leg and gave me the better prices. Try and get a TA to do that for you.;)

[LrgPizza]

I learned a long time ago never to deal with a TA when you have a PCC assigned to you and that's the only person at NCL you need to deal with.

 

Right. Same answer. OP: Call your PCC or TA or whomever. :rolleyes:

[NLH Arizona]

I ended up calling NCL directly and they were incredibly helpful. It was an error on their part. They said at the most I should just owe the difference, not the full 18% all over again. For the trouble it caused, they just wiped the balance completely. Go NCL!

 

The supervisor at NCL said my TA had hung up with her before she could tell him the $199 I owed was an error. :eek:

 

Thanks for helping assure me that an extra $199 was as crazy as I thought it was.

Thanks for getting back to let everyone know what the outcome was. Glad everything worked out for you.

[ksmcdonald]

I did just recently do a fake booking to compare inside guarantee and a balcony guarantee. The tax and gratuity was around $12 more for the balcony than the tax and gratuity for the inside. I couldn't figure out why that would make a difference!

[Gershep]

Glad it got straightened out and it didn't cost you any more money.

[IsanTom]

Pay for the extra service charge and look forward to a wonderful cruise! And Yes, NCL

is nickel and diming you to death! Apparently this is their new logo!

[emcelh]

Pay for the extra service charge and look forward to a wonderful cruise! And Yes, NCL

is nickel and diming you to death! Apparently this is their new logo!

Did you not read OP's last post? The TA didn't have the correct information from NCL. OP got it straightened out and didn't have to pay anything more.

[AtlantaCruiser72]

I did just recently do a fake booking to compare inside guarantee and a balcony guarantee. The tax and gratuity was around $12 more for the balcony than the tax and gratuity for the inside. I couldn't figure out why that would make a difference!

 

My guess is that the balcony price included a second amenity such as the specialty dining package. That would be about the right amount for the service charge on the value of the dining package. Insides only get one amenity.