NCL Prices have gotten out of hand!!!

[G-DawgMN]

1 minute ago, PaperSniper4 said:

Ah, if it's recent that would explain a lot. I went to NCL.com to try to do whatever to get credit for my military service, but I could find nothing there.

 

Doug

 

 This should take you to where you can sign up.

 

 https://www.ncl.com/military

 

[PaperSniper4]

1 minute ago, KSSS2013 said:

 

 

 I think it depends on the cruise, if you shop right it's still pretty affordable. We're booked on the Breakaway for a 7 day out of New Orleans. We went frugal and did an inside room, but for $2100.00 the two of get to cruise. This far included the drink package, dining (1), airfare, one way transfer, pre-paid gratuities, and $50.00 OBC from the travel agent. I think that's a pretty good deal.

 

 

Ha, reminds me of when we could just <barely> afford cruising in the 1990s! We sailed on the NCL Spirit from NOLA since we could save money by driving to the port. I remember booking the least expensive ocean view cabin for about $1700 total for the two of us. Those were 7 day cruises. I think sometimes the water was up about 1/3 of the way up the porthole; we were 'way down on some lower deck! But It was actually a decent porthole, maybe 3 sqft.

 

Back then they did not offer any perks like drink packages and other inducements. BTW, how are you getting pre-paid gratuities? We've never had that on our NCL cruises.

 

 Doug

[G-DawgMN]

Just now, PaperSniper4 said:

 

 

Back then they did not offer any perks like drink packages and other inducements. BTW, how are you getting pre-paid gratuities? We've never had that on our NCL cruises.

 

 Doug

 

 I found a good travel agent that had a special.

[MagnoliaBlossom]

14 minutes ago, PaperSniper4 said:

I must be blind. I just  went to NCL.com and could not find anything to do with a veteran's discount. I looked under My Account and tried the Help button. I wish all cruise lines would use the same method for determining military history. I've used ID.me and the one that HAL uses, I forget its name. Plus whatever Princess uses, which is the one I use the most often.

 

If you can send me a link to where that veteran's section is it would be appreciated!

 

 Doug

Wow, you’re right, it has disappeared fromthe website, but this address should take you there.

 

ncl.com/military

 

It was on the main web page just a few days ago because I was showing it to a neighbor.   The program is referred to as MAP - military appreciation program

[ready2cruzagain]

14 hours ago, PaperSniper4 said:

You're getting a military discount? Is it a special cruise that offers that? I'm retired military and cruise NCL about ever other March, but I've gotten a military OBC like many other cruise lines, nor a special 10% military rate as far as I know.

 

 We sail NCL out of New Orleans since we can drive to that port.

 

 Doug

 It is something new. We have booked 3 cruises with NCL since they started this. 10% is 10%!!! Here is the link  https://www.ncl.com/military?cid=PS_DIG_NA_NA_GOO_NA_NA_NA_NA_NA_NAM&gclsrc=ds&gclsrc=ds

Edited April 25, 2023 by ready2cruzagain

[PaperSniper4]

I just did it. When I look at my My Account now, I see Military Appreciation on the screen. However, I now need to see where I get my fare re-priced. I booked the cruise several months ago, but retired from the Navy over 20 years ago.

 

I asked my TA to check into getting the discount fare on my next cruise which sails March 2024.

[bkrickles1]

11 minutes ago, PaperSniper4 said:

I just did it. When I look at my My Account now, I see Military Appreciation on the screen. However, I now need to see where I get my fare re-priced. I booked the cruise several months ago, but retired from the Navy over 20 years ago.

 

I asked my TA to check into getting the discount fare on my next cruise which sails March 2024.

They should definitely reprice for you.

I'm using the discount for my sailing on Joy in July.

As someone else said here, once you're enrolled it just shows up automatically and provides the discount automatically.

I served almost 40 years ago and it could not have been easier to get this done.

[ready2cruzagain]

1 hour ago, PaperSniper4 said:

I just did it. When I look at my My Account now, I see Military Appreciation on the screen. However, I now need to see where I get my fare re-priced. I booked the cruise several months ago, but retired from the Navy over 20 years ago.

 

I asked my TA to check into getting the discount fare on my next cruise which sails March 2024.

Yay! Easy Peasy! Did it for dh then did it for myself as a spouse since spouses are also eligible for the discount. Either one of us can book that way. 

 

Since you booked with a TA they will have to call NCL and have it applied since you were already booked. Next time when you go to book it will show up automatically for the TA.  

 

[MagnoliaBlossom]

1 hour ago, bkrickles1 said:

They should definitely reprice for you.

 

Before they pull the plug on your old reservation, make sure it will actually save you money and that you will not lose any perks that might be important to you.  After we became MAP approved I had my PCC review our cruises and only one would save me money because the rates had increased more than the 10% savings.

[bkrickles1]

19 minutes ago, ready2cruzagain said:

Yay! Easy Peasy! Did it for dh then did it for myself as a spouse since spouses are also eligible for the discount. Either one of us can book that way. 

 

 

I haven't looked it up, but what about children of military members? And I mean adult children.

TIA

[ready2cruzagain]

4 hours ago, bkrickles1 said:

I haven't looked it up, but what about children of military members? And I mean adult children.

TIA

No, not children. Just active, veterans and spouses or surviving spouses.

[stobe1]

On 4/23/2023 at 6:31 PM, expectthebest said:

That is a great price… I didn’t check how full the ship is.. or who the officers are that are on the ship so that may affect the price a bit as well

Legit question. Not trying to troll here but how would the ship's officers affect the pricing of a cruise? That just seems outrageous to me. Really...who cares who the officers are?

[wolft927]

16 minutes ago, stobe1 said:

Legit question. Not trying to troll here but how would the ship's officers affect the pricing of a cruise? That just seems outrageous to me. Really...who cares who the officers are?

Demand controls pricing! Usually about 4 months prior to the sails date you will see either price drops or price increases. Our cruise in January already started going up for balconies, started at $3500 for 2, now at $3850. So obviously bookings are going faster so they increase pricing to maximize profitability 

[stobe1]

11 minutes ago, wolft927 said:

Demand controls pricing! Usually about 4 months prior to the sails date you will see either price drops or price increases. Our cruise in January already started going up for balconies, started at $3500 for 2, now at $3850. So obviously bookings are going faster so they increase pricing to maximize profitability 

Thanks for the  attampt at a basic economics lesson but that has nothing to do with my question.

[wolft927]

4 minutes ago, stobe1 said:

Thanks for the  attampt at a basic economics lesson but that has nothing to do with my question.

Well speaking as someone who worked onboard ncl ships for 5 years, officers have absolutely nothing to do with ship pricing…. There is your answer 

[stobe1]

3 minutes ago, wolft927 said:

Well speaking as someone who worked onboard ncl ships for 5 years, officers have absolutely nothing to do with ship pricing…. There is your answer 

And I was posing a question based on the OP's comment. I already knew the answer.

[RD64]

Just find a price that you are willing and able to pay. If not - #Staycation. NCL is in business to make a profit - not to ensure that you get a champagne wishes beer budget vacation.

[PaperSniper4]

9 hours ago, bkrickles1 said:

They should definitely reprice for you.

I'm using the discount for my sailing on Joy in July.

As someone else said here, once you're enrolled it just shows up automatically and provides the discount automatically.

I served almost 40 years ago and it could not have been easier to get this done.

Thanks, I don't anticipate a problem. If there is, I will just cancel the cruise (March 2024), then re-book the same one, same cabin and request my military discount. That's substantial for a $3k cruise! I am glad to see NCL offering that inducement to us military folk; always good to be recognized for what we did. It's especially good for us since we can drive to New Orleans, and NCL has a nice ship there (Breakaway). Now if RCI would just do the same thing; starting next fall they are the other cruise line in NOLA besides NCL and Carnival. Carnival of course offers a military OBC, but we try to avoid sailing on Carnival cruises that are not overseas or over 10 days in length.

 

 Doug

[PaperSniper4]

8 hours ago, MagnoliaBlossom said:

Before they pull the plug on your old reservation, make sure it will actually save you money and that you will not lose any perks that might be important to you.  After we became MAP approved I had my PCC review our cruises and only one would save me money because the rates had increased more than the 10% savings.

Of course. I talked to my TA, and he sees no problem. He even gave me a link to check that I've gotten the discount. I'll take a look at that tomorrow.

 

 

[PaperSniper4]

8 hours ago, bkrickles1 said:

I haven't looked it up, but what about children of military members? And I mean adult children.

TIA

Sure, as long as those adult children were in the military.😎

[shadst]

10 hours ago, PaperSniper4 said:

I must be blind. I just  went to NCL.com and could not find anything to do with a veteran's discount. I looked under My Account and tried the Help button. I wish all cruise lines would use the same method for determining military history. I've used ID.me and the one that HAL uses, I forget its name. Plus whatever Princess uses, which is the one I use the most often.

 

If you can send me a link to where that veteran's section is it would be appreciated!

 

 Doug

NCL verifies military service through ID.me.  Instructions and details are on the NCL website at this link. I'm not eligible, but my co-workers get a discount on their NCL cruises! 

 

NCL Military Appreciation Program

[PaperSniper4]

14 hours ago, shadst said:

NCL verifies military service through ID.me.  Instructions and details are on the NCL website at this link. I'm not eligible, but my co-workers get a discount on their NCL cruises! 

 

NCL Military Appreciation Program

Roger that. I used ID.me a month or two ago for my HAL cruise this fall (2023) so I'm already verified, I apparently need to "apply" for the NCL discount; however, my TA told me that NCL will not allow me to take advantage of that military 10% discount for my existing March 2024 cruise. So I suppose I will cancel that cruise, then re-book the same cruise to take advantage of the discount. Seems cumbersome to me, but I can play the game if needed. Glad I got the refundable deposit on the cruise!

 

 Doug

Edited April 26, 2023 by PaperSniper4

[RocketMan275]

34 minutes ago, PaperSniper4 said:

Roger that. I used ID.me a month or two ago for my HAL cruise this fall (2023) so I'm already verified, I apparently need to "apply" for the NCL discount; however, my TA told me that NCL will not allow me to take advantage of that military 10% discount for my existing March 2024 cruise. So I suppose I will cancel that cruise, then re-book the same cruise to take advantage of the discount. Seems cumbersome to me, but I can play the game if needed. Glad I got the refundable deposit on the cruise!

 

 Doug

I had the same issue.  I had Prima booked for March 2024.  NCL told my TA that they wouldn't allow us to take advantage of the military discount.  We cancelled Prima March and rebooked Prima Feb 2024.  The discount was applied to that cruise.   We choose Feb because TA had a promo for that cruise that included paid DSC.  

Late I booked another cruise for 2025 and the discount was applied.

[Bluewake]

On 4/23/2023 at 7:12 PM, expectthebest said:

Hello Cruisers,

It’s been 3 1/2 years since we last cruised on NCL.. and boy have these prices gone sky high!! I know all things must go up in price… but a club balcony out of San Juan next March for $8100 for my wife and I along with our 2 children…is insane… it’s not even a suite or the “Haven” then we add airfare out of Philly and it tops out at just over 11k…. Not a typo… $11,000 Dollars… was hoping to book a club balcony and then upgrade  to the Haven with a little luck.. but now.. I think this cruise is off the table… Am I the only one who thinks these prices have made cruising out of reach for most families??

 

Thanks for listening,

 

I share the sentiments in your initial post. Since I first began cruising many years ago, it seems to me that NCL's rates have risen disproportionately.  However, that seems to have been an intentional decision based on both practical need and marketing for, if I am correctly recalling, when Frank Del Rio took over from Kevin Sheehan several years ago, one of his first pronouncements was in regard to his intention to raise base prices on NCL. His stated rationale for doing so was two-fold: (1) the obvious goal of generating more revenue and (2) he implied that low pricing sends a message...pricing something at a discount rate suggests it's a "bargain basement" line and he wanted to nullify any such perception that NCL was in the same class as some other cruise lines.

 

As others have noted, we've found ways to sail NCL, or any line, without breaking the bank but it always comes down to personal choice in class, cabin, amenities, etc.  Also, if one has flexibility in timing and  itinerary, I've noticed that the rates for some NCL cruises tend to drop significantly a few weeks prior to the sailing date. Of course, others rise so waiting is always a bit of a mystery and gamble.

 

In reading through this thread, I was a bit surprised (although I probably should not have been!) by the condescension and snarkiness of some posts.  Is that a reflection of our current socio-political divide where ad hominens instead of polite discourse seems to have become the norm or is CC inevitably heading the way of other social media?  It's unfortunate...

[Bluewake]

On 4/23/2023 at 7:12 PM, expectthebest said:

Hello Cruisers,

It’s been 3 1/2 years since we last cruised on NCL.. and boy have these prices gone sky high!! I know all things must go up in price… but a club balcony out of San Juan next March for $8100 for my wife and I along with our 2 children…is insane… it’s not even a suite or the “Haven” then we add airfare out of Philly and it tops out at just over 11k…. Not a typo… $11,000 Dollars… was hoping to book a club balcony and then upgrade  to the Haven with a little luck.. but now.. I think this cruise is off the table… Am I the only one who thinks these prices have made cruising out of reach for most families??

 

Thanks for listening,

 

I share the sentiments in your initial post. Since I first began cruising many years ago, it seems to me that NCL's rates have risen disproportionately.  However, that seems to have been an intentional decision based on both practical need and marketing for, if I am correctly recalling, when Frank Del Rio took over from Kevin Sheehan several years ago, one of his first pronouncements was in regard to his intention to raise base prices on NCL. His stated rationale for doing so was two-fold: (1) the obvious goal of generating more revenue and (2) he implied that low pricing sends a message...pricing something at a discount rate suggests it's a "bargain basement" line and he wanted to nullify any such perception that NCL was in the same class as some other cruise lines.

 

At the risk of repeating what others have noted, we've found ways to sail NCL, or any line, without breaking the bank but it always comes down to personal choice in class, cabin, amenities, etc.  Also, if one has flexibility in timing and  itinerary, I've noticed that the rates for some NCL cruises tend to drop significantly a few weeks prior to the sailing date. Of course, others rise so waiting is always a bit of a mystery and gamble.

 

In reading through this thread, I was a bit surprised (although I probably should not have been!) by the condescension and snarkiness of some posts.  Is that a reflection of our current socio-political divide where ad hominens instead of polite discourse seems to have become the norm or is CC inevitably heading the way of other social media?  CC still remains a tremendous resource where those less experienced in cruising can pose questions that may seem obvious to the more seasoned cruisers and where even those of us who've cruised numerous times can seek guidance and information. It would be a shame to regress to the level of some other social media site where one must expect to be mocked or ridiculed for asking a question...