Can you cancel discounted airfare after booking?

[andychris]

We booked the prima with the airfare perk, 2nd guest $199, arrive 2 days prior and also paid so our party all goes on the same flight. Have been reading not so great reviews of the ncl air and are rethinking to buy our own airfare. Would anyone know if I can get my money back? Is there any penalty?
thank you!

[julig22]

Depends entirely on how far in advance you cancel.  NCL air people pretty much stick fast to their terms.  You can ask for deviations 75 days out BUT when I tried to make a change to the gateway at about 90 days I was told no dice -this was when the FP date was 60 days but the airfare promo ends at 90 days. 

I appealed to their logic (I could still cancel the cruise and they hadn't booked my flight) and got the change but not without involving customer relations.

You most likely will have to pay a penalty if you are after final payment but I wouldn't count on getting all of your money back.

A few things to consider - if they won't refund you, you could always book your own airfare (refundable) and see what happens - you'll get your flight info about 6 weeks out.

Remember that people tend to complain way more often than post about good experiences.  Knock on wood, my NCL flights have been more than reasonable, some better than I was able to find.  I always check ahead of time to see what's available so I'm not surprised with the flights I get.

[Rick&Jeannie]

Short answer: We did exactly what @andychris suggested.  As long as final payment has not been made you can have them delete the air portion and the value of that (less than you would hope!) will be taken off your total booking cost.  We did it...it works!

[andychris]

Thank you!  We are not going until 2023 so we are aways from final payment. I hope we an find a great deal for air travel and then do not have to worry to wait to see if it’s a good flight. 
thank you again

Edited March 20, 2022 by andychris

[julig22]

11 minutes ago, andychris said:

Thank you!  We are not going until 2023 so we are aways from final payment. I hope we an find a great deal for air travel and then do not have to worry to wait to see if it’s a good flight. 
thank you again

Sorry, I assumed you were after final payment. Yes, you can cancel the airfare portion anytime before final payment.  I actually just did that for a upcoming cruise, after the promo fell off but before FP.  Prices went down so I got a better cabin plus a refund - cruise was close enough that the airfare wasn't that much of a bonus.

If you do cancel, make sure to cancel the transfer that is usually added with the airfare, unless that's something you want to keep.

[Uff da]

2 hours ago, andychris said:

Thank you!  We are not going until 2023 so we are aways from final payment. I hope we an find a great deal for air travel and then do not have to worry to wait to see if it’s a good flight. 
thank you again

Okay, before you make some rash decision to cancel NCL air, I hope you consider a couple things.

For one, if you bought insurance, you are for sure covered if something happens. Two, if your ship has a mishap like the Escape recently had, the people with NCL air fared much better than those without. 

 

I was rather terrified with the horror stories since I booked NCL air for my upcoming cruise and I can't control it, but after that incident, I am willing to chance it to make sure I am covered in any circumstance. Ultimately, it's also cheaper. There are tons of people booking that deal, it can't be as bad as the complainers make it out to be. 
 

I recommend you think this over a little more. There are good stories about NCL air too. 

[pghflyer]

The coverage for non-insurable risks by booking with NCL is nice, but so is picking my own carrier and flight............and being eligible for discretionary accommodations on price drops after final payment. I paid $2,300 (each) for a Balcony Guarantee which is now going for $1,500 each, and NCL says they can't do anything because the airfare makes them incomparable.  So $800 price difference, and I could buy better flights today for $570.   

 

Just depends on your priorities and how much you want to mess with it and do it yourself.

[andychris]

Thank you so much. We have a lot to consider. I appreciate all of the advice. We are flying in 2 days prior to sailing and on the same day as disembarkation. We are going from jfk to mco and would hate to be put on a flight with a stop or two. That’s the main concern. 
we would love an early flight going and a fairly early flight coming back. We will keep our fingers crossed. 
thank you again!

[pasto5]

I booked NCL air originally. I could only get a two day deviation for our flight to Rome. That left us with one day to tour instead of the two I wanted. So we booked our own tickets and we’re able to get a better itinerary than was was projected by NCL. Just an FYI- I am traveling with 2 teen granddaughters and this is a trip of a lifetime so didn’t want to miss a day.  All air charges were taken off our bill. 

[LMKakaThing2]

Haven’t cruised or flown yet, but purchased the air promo for my upcoming May 2nd Alaska cruise. After reading all the negatives about using NCL for flights, I was concerned. However, to my surprise, they’re getting me in hours earlier than I could book on my own and the return flight is one I would have chosen if booking them on my own. 
 

Before canceling, ask yourself how much would it cost you to book your own flights? Especially with everything going on in the world right now. Also, you can cancel the transfers to and from the port they automatically add to your reservation. Having NCL book my flights saved me nearly $1200. Granted, flights to and from for an Alaskan one cruise are pricey. 

[julig22]

1 hour ago, LMKakaThing2 said:

Haven’t cruised or flown yet, but purchased the air promo for my upcoming May 2nd Alaska cruise. After reading all the negatives about using NCL for flights, I was concerned. However, to my surprise, they’re getting me in hours earlier than I could book on my own and the return flight is one I would have chosen if booking them on my own. 

I've sometimes gotten better flights as well, especially international. Although sometimes they do cut the layover times a little close.  Most flights have been as good or better than what I found - sometimes it's just not possible to leave/arrive at a more convenient time.