Am I wasting my time asking for OBC?

[glentally]

My cruise which I paid in full several months ago has dropped by $75.  Is it possible they will give me OBC if I ask?

[kfnesq]

No idea.  But you definitely won't get it if you DON'T ask lol.  I always ask - worst they can do is say no.

[mitsugirly]

I always had luck with asking in the past...but that was post covid so who knows now. I definitely would give it a shot!

[zqvol]

to some degree it depends on when you are sailing. You never know until you ask. You have nothing to lose.

[Liljo22]

NCL gives FCC now instead of OBC for post final payment price drops.

[glentally]

Never mind they called me for a final checkin before I sail in 8 days.  Said it was too close to sail date.

[graphicguy]

1 minute ago, glentally said:

Never mind they called me for a final checkin before I sail in 8 days.  Said it was too close to sail date.

Yeah…I think there are some rules they have for fare drops to apply.  One of them is a time period before sail date.

[TrumpyNor]

Am I wrong in assuming that OBC for price drops are only 25% of the actual price drop (25% of $57 would then be less than $15).....??? Some times you can do a much better "bargain" than that by purchasing an upgrade directly instead if there has been a price drop in cabin categories above your original cabin category. As long as the new cabin category cost $1 more than the original one, they let you do that almost all the way up to sailing date...

[RocketMan275]

6 minutes ago, TrumpyNor said:

Am I wrong in assuming that OBC for price drops are only 25% of the actual price drop (25% of $57 would then be less than $15).....??? Some times you can do a much better "bargain" than that by purchasing an upgrade directly instead if there has been a price drop in cabin categories above your original cabin category. As long as the new cabin category cost $1 more than the original one, they let you do that almost all the way up to sailing date...

I had a price drop just about two weeks ago on a cruise that was a few days past final.  My TA was able to get NCL to award FCC, not OBC, in the amount of the price drop.

[Turtles06]

35 minutes ago, TrumpyNor said:

Am I wrong in assuming that OBC for price drops are only 25% of the actual price drop (25% of $57 would then be less than $15).

 

That used to be what NCL would do, and you'd also be able to use the OBC on that same cruise. NCL has changed its practice.  It is now giving (only once per reservation) an FCC in the amount of the price difference. The FCC is not issued until the end of the cruise with the price drop, and it must be applied to a cruise that sails within 12 months.   So, more generous in amount,  BUT with the 12-month deadline, some folks won't be able to use it.  Clearly it's intended to stimulate new bookings, and I understand that. 

[Turtles06]

30 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

I had a price drop just about two weeks ago on a cruise that was a few days past final.  My TA was able to get NCL to award FCC, not OBC, in the amount of the price drop.

 

Not something special your TA did, it's NCL's new practice.  See my comment immediately above.  (And be aware of the 12-month sail-by deadline on the FCC.)

[rraesh]

4 hours ago, Liljo22 said:

NCL gives FCC now instead of OBC for post final payment price drops.

I just called an hour ago and was denied FCC.  A few days after I upgraded, the price dropped.  Now it has dropped again.  I wasn't asking for a refund or OBC.  My cruise is 80ish days away and fully paid for.

[ChiefMateJRK]

10 minutes ago, rraesh said:

I just called an hour ago and was denied FCC.  A few days after I upgraded, the price dropped.  Now it has dropped again.  I wasn't asking for a refund or OBC.  My cruise is 80ish days away and fully paid for.

I would call back.  There have been reports of inconsistency among different agents.

[hallux]

6 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

I would call back.  There have been reports of inconsistency among different agents.

If the upgrade was awarded as a result of price drop after final then they got their one-time adjustment already.

[Liljo22]

33 minutes ago, rraesh said:

I just called an hour ago and was denied FCC.  A few days after I upgraded, the price dropped.  Now it has dropped again.  I wasn't asking for a refund or OBC.  My cruise is 80ish days away and fully paid for.

You mentioned upgrade.  Did you upgrade because of a price drop?  If so, you only get one chance to ask for compensation from a price drop.  

[julig22]

25 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

I would call back.  There have been reports of inconsistency among different agents.

They now have a special department that processes the FCC requests, it's no longer up to an individual agent.  Agent only submits the request, some will refuse if they can't check all the boxes, others just submit them.

Not positive about upgrades, but I think their system lets those go through.

[SunshineGal2022]

4 hours ago, Turtles06 said:

 

That used to be what NCL would do, and you'd also be able to use the OBC on that same cruise. NCL has changed its practice.  It is now giving (only once per reservation) an FCC in the amount of the price difference. The FCC is not issued until the end of the cruise with the price drop, and it must be applied to a cruise that sails within 12 months.   So, more generous in amount,  BUT with the 12-month deadline, some folks won't be able to use it.  Clearly it's intended to stimulate new bookings, and I understand that. 

This is good to know.  I was looking at booking a cruise for 2024, but would make sure it is either on the same dates or slightly before the 2023 cruise so I could use this credit.  Thanks!

 

Is it 12 months from the last day of your cruise or 12 months from the first day of the cruise?  

[Sthrngary]

6 hours ago, glentally said:

My cruise which I paid in full several months ago has dropped by $75.  Is it possible they will give me OBC if I ask?

I am assuming that you paid full when asked to do so.  In that case, you have a 50%/50% shot.  Some posters say yes, other say no.  Now if you paid in full early, the answer is yes.  Or you can simply rebook it. Price reductions happen the closer a cruise is to leaving.  

 

Hope that makes sense. 

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[ontheweb]

5 hours ago, Turtles06 said:

 

That used to be what NCL would do, and you'd also be able to use the OBC on that same cruise. NCL has changed its practice.  It is now giving (only once per reservation) an FCC in the amount of the price difference. The FCC is not issued until the end of the cruise with the price drop, and it must be applied to a cruise that sails within 12 months.   So, more generous in amount,  BUT with the 12-month deadline, some folks won't be able to use it.  Clearly it's intended to stimulate new bookings, and I understand that. 

It does seem to be a win/win situation for NCL. If the passenger uses the FCC, they get a new booking. If it is not used, they are not out any money.

[pghflyer]

What about those who pay in full BEFORE 120 days?  Weird loophole they don't really address in their cancellation fee schedule https://www.ncl.com/about/cancellation-fee-schedule

 

My TA required "final" payment 2 weeks early (presumably to give them time to  harass people before the REAL due date).....and I just got a price drop today and not in the 120-day window yet.

 

Seems like I should actually be able to get it adjusted and difference refunded, one would think.  Guess I will just call and see.

[RocketMan275]

2 hours ago, rraesh said:

I just called an hour ago and was denied FCC.  A few days after I upgraded, the price dropped.  Now it has dropped again.  I wasn't asking for a refund or OBC.  My cruise is 80ish days away and fully paid for.

When my TA first asked for FCC, NCL claimed my cabin category was sold out so they could be no FCC.

When I pointed out that NCL was still advertising my category for sale on their website, my TA went back to NCL and they said they would check.  

Three days later, NCL approved my request for FCC in the amount of $1500.

[ChiefMateJRK]

1 hour ago, julig22 said:

They now have a special department that processes the FCC requests, it's no longer up to an individual agent.  Agent only submits the request, some will refuse if they can't check all the boxes, others just submit them.

Yes.   That was my point.

[ChiefMateJRK]

23 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

It does seem to be a win/win situation for NCL. If the passenger uses the FCC, they get a new booking. If it is not used, they are not out any money.

You are assuming that the cruiser doesn't already have another cruise booked within the next 12 months.  I believe that the FCC can be applied to any cruise within the next 12 months that hasn't reached final payment date.  I may be mistaken.

[Turtles06]

25 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

You are assuming that the cruiser doesn't already have another cruise booked within the next 12 months.  I believe that the FCC can be applied to any cruise within the next 12 months that hasn't reached final payment date.  I may be mistaken.

 

No, I believe you are correct. My point about some folks not being able to use the FCC within the deadline period is that if they don't already have a cruise booked that sails within that period, they may not be in a position to book one.  (My wife and I, for example, tend to book cruises and plan other travel well in advance.  And we prefer longer cruises.)

[Turtles06]

 

54 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

It does seem to be a win/win situation for NCL. If the passenger uses the FCC, they get a new booking. If it is not used, they are not out any money.

 

No, as I noted above, I am virtually certain the FCC can be applied to an existing booking within the deadline window.  But not everyone has one nor is in a position to make one.