Should I insure my trip for cost of cruise minus port charges, I think port charges are refundable if I have to cancel.

[coscab]

I am getting ready to insure my trip, I have done it many times for full amount I paid for cruise, I am thinking maybe I should minus the port charges when requesting a quote, I have read recently that you should only include non refundable amount of trip.  Anyone have any info on this?

[gabbygal99]

18 hours ago, coscab said:

I am getting ready to insure my trip, I have done it many times for full amount I paid for cruise, I am thinking maybe I should minus the port charges when requesting a quote, I have read recently that you should only include non refundable amount of trip.  Anyone have any info on this?

Norwegian is one of the few cruise lines that does NOT refund port taxes and fees when a port is cancelled. I was on Escape in August and they cancelled Corfu AND Mykonos, replaced with extra sea days, and we didn’t get a dime back. 

[Turtles06]

21 minutes ago, gabbygal99 said:

Norwegian is one of the few cruise lines that does NOT refund port taxes and fees when a port is cancelled. I was on Escape in August and they cancelled Corfu AND Mykonos, replaced with extra sea days, and we didn’t get a dime back. 

You’ve misunderstood the OP’s question. They are asking about the situation in which *they* have to cancel  the cruise – – what would NCL refund?

 

OP:  I asked my PCC about this exactly for the reason you are asking — what is not-refundable and therefore needs to be insured?  My PCC said that if you cancel the cruise at the last minute (in other words, in the full penalty period), NCL *will* refund the taxes and port fees, gratuities on the beverage and dining packages, and (if you’ve pre-paid them) the daily grats.   So no need to insure those expenses with your third party travel insurer. 

[vacation44]

11 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

You’ve misunderstood the OP’s question. They are asking about the situation in which *they* have to cancel  the cruise – – what would NCL refund?

 

OP:  I asked my PCC about this exactly for the reason you are asking — what is not-refundable and therefore needs to be insured?  My PCC said that if you cancel the cruise at the last minute (in other words, in the full penalty period), NCL *will* refund the taxes and port fees, gratuities on the beverage and dining packages, and (if you’ve pre-paid them) the daily grats.   So no need to insure those expenses with your third party travel insurer. 

This is a very informative answer.  Thank you for sharing your information.   

[ChiefMateJRK]

1 hour ago, Turtles06 said:

gratuities on the beverage and dining packages,

Are you sure about this part?

[RocketMan275]

20 hours ago, coscab said:

I am getting ready to insure my trip, I have done it many times for full amount I paid for cruise, I am thinking maybe I should minus the port charges when requesting a quote, I have read recently that you should only include non refundable amount of trip.  Anyone have any info on this?

It may not matter.  Insurance rates are determined in increments of $500.  If the port charges do not push you above the next $500, then it won't affect the cost of insurance.

[vacation44]

59 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

It may not matter.  Insurance rates are determined in increments of $500.  If the port charges do not push you above the next $500, then it won't affect the cost of insurance.

Not on my pricing with a third party insurance broker.     My estimated insurance has gone done with every price drop since we booked.  I am waiting to purchase the insurance until a few days before final payment to get the lowest price I can.   

[Turtles06]

2 hours ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

Are you sure about this part?

My very experienced PCC told me this 

[ontheweb]

3 hours ago, RocketMan275 said:

It may not matter.  Insurance rates are determined in increments of $500.  If the port charges do not push you above the next $500, then it won't affect the cost of insurance.

OTOH, if they push you into the next $500, then it will affect the cost of insurance.

[MagnoliaBlossom]

Call Steve at Tripinsurancestore.com and get a totally accurate answer.  He doesn’t even care if you buy your insurance elsewhere, he just wants everyone to be as informed as possible.  

[Turtles06]

5 hours ago, RocketMan275 said:

Insurance rates are determined in increments of $500

 

Not necessarily true, and not for every insurer

[bluesea777]

In July 2019 I had to cancel our cruise a week before the sail date due to a severe medical condition. We had NCL insurance. Upon cancelling the cruise NCL refunded all taxes, grats, pre-paid DSCs, excursions, and the insurance refunded the cruise fare.

 

 

[DaisyGoldberg]

We canceled a week out and NCL refunded the port fees, etc pretty rapidly. The NCL Insurance refund of cruise fare took about a month, but a lot of that was getting all the medical information/releases, etc.  A very smooth and efficient claims process -- was expecting a nightmare. 

[victory2020]

On 11/14/2022 at 1:57 PM, MagnoliaBlossom said:

Call Steve at Tripinsurancestore.com and get a totally accurate answer.  He doesn’t even care if you buy your insurance elsewhere, he just wants everyone to be as informed as possible.  

He's the best!

[MagnoliaBlossom]

8 hours ago, victory2020 said:

He's the best!

Yes, he is.  He has a great blog sorta on the insurance thread.

[jennjess]

We had to disembark early due to a medical emergency and all port fees, pre paid gratuities, excursions and drink packages were reimbursed.  We didn't have NCL insurance but a third party insurance which covered the cruise cost without the extras.