Booking flights through NCL?

[Bandit2301]

We booked our cruise with the buy one get one free airline ticket.  Has anyone booked their flight through NCL? Do they tell you the itinerary so many days before your departure? We leave Oct 30 and I was thinking that is probably too early to know our flight information.  Also has anyone been able to do an upgrade after using NCL for tickets?  Thanks for any insight to my questions. 

[MeHeartCruising]

Please scan thru the last several pages of posts.  There are lots of posts that have already been posted on this topic.  This is a hot topic filled with many stories of dissatisfaction.  And a few satisfied ones. These will help prepare you what to expect. 

Edited April 28, 2023 by MeHeartCruising

[pete_coach]

There have been several horror stories about booking flights through NCL.

NCL does not do the bookings, they do not select the airlines nor the flights and, it seems, they do not back them up.

If flights are cancelled, it is your problem and if you miss the cruise, it seems that you are on your own. No compensation, a some have reported.

[9tee2Sea]

1 hour ago, Bandit2301 said:

We booked our cruise with the buy one get one free airline ticket.  Has anyone booked their flight through NCL? Do they tell you the itinerary so many days before your departure? We leave Oct 30 and I was thinking that is probably too early to know our flight information.  Also has anyone been able to do an upgrade after using NCL for tickets?  Thanks for any insight to my questions. 

Flight info is emailed approx 30 days prior to departure.  Once you get your flight info, go directly to the airlines website to purchase any upgrades ( example..choosing seats, upgrade seats, pay for baggage).  Pay CAREFUL ATTENTION to the baggage rules ( weight/size of carryon (s) and same goes for check in baggage).  I purchased a small hand held luggage scale that i take with me to make sure i am under the allowed weight limits.  Also, once you get your flight info, make sure the times are right.  I had mine come in, and the arrival flight had me arriving 1 day after the cruise left.  I immediately called, and they corrected the wrong date.

[Elkins45]

Can you see the cost of flights before you book or does this option only appear after you have a reservation? I’ve been trying to find info but it seems to be well-hidden on the NCL website. We’ve never sailed with them before.

[hallux]

24 minutes ago, Elkins45 said:

Can you see the cost of flights before you book or does this option only appear after you have a reservation? I’ve been trying to find info but it seems to be well-hidden on the NCL website. We’ve never sailed with them before.

When you are selecting the room, perks and 'gateway' airport the flight cost shows up on the right after the airport is selected.  It's plainly visible as 'airfare'

You can see it in this screenshot I just grabbed for a random cruise..

[cruiseny4life]

My husband and I had an excellent experience using NCL BOGO Airfare. We received our tickets about 60 days prior to our cruise (even the agent I spoke with in the Air Dept. was surprised we received them so far out). Generally speaking, expect to see your tickets, along with itinerary, approximately 30 days prior to your cruise.

 

The tickets provided were booked through Delta. As soon as I received the tickets I was able to add the tickets to my Delta account, book seats and upgrade to first class, if I chose. We didn't upgrade, but did select our seats at no additional charge. We did have to pay the $30 checked luggage fee.

 

Our flight was cancelled, leaving Fort Lauderdale after our cruise. I didn't have to pester NCL. At first, Delta assigned us a new flight, but we were able to select a different flight that got us to our home airport about an hour after the original flight. 

 

The only issue we had was an anomaly on our reservation which we quickly sorted out. When the air department makes changes, sometimes a random fee will be added to your MyNCL account. Be sure to look at your account every day after final payment. If the fee goes unpaid, your cruise will be canceled. In our case, it was a fee that should not have been added, so we were able to have the fee voided. Just be sure to watch carefully. 

 

You're going to hear a lot of bad experiences on NCL BOGO Air. There's a post that @DCGuy64 created with a lot of positive NCL BOGO Air experiences. Read that one as well as the negative ones. You'll learn from all the posts, but take each with a grain of salt (including mine). 

[DCGuy64]

7 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

You're going to hear a lot of bad experiences on NCL BOGO Air. There's a post that @DCGuy64 created with a lot of positive NCL BOGO Air experiences. Read that one as well as the negative ones. You'll learn from all the posts, but take each with a grain of salt (including mine). 

Thanks for mentioning my post. I so often hear only bad things and people saying "never use BOGO air," which is why I did that poll and found, to my surprise, that most people actually liked it. It just goes to show, as you rightly point out, take each post with a grain of salt.

[Bandit2301]

I have always used the the cruise lines for air and never had a bad experience yet with other cruise lines.  I understand there are going to issues and some people won't be happy about it. Just crossing my fingers all goes well and I'm glad to hear about other's experiences.  

[hallux]

1 hour ago, Bandit2301 said:

I have always used the the cruise lines for air and never had a bad experience yet with other cruise lines. 

To be clear - NCL has two different air programs.  One is the BOGO airfare where you tell NCL how many days before the cruise you want to arrive and how many days after you want to leave and they take it from there.  You get no choice on flight times or carrier.

 

THEN there's the Premium Air program that doesn't force you to give up total control of your flight selection and NCL just passes along the flight cost, just acting as the TA for booking the flights.  This program is probably more like the ones you're used to with other cruise lines.

[RocketMan275]

55 minutes ago, hallux said:

To be clear - NCL has two different air programs.  One is the BOGO airfare where you tell NCL how many days before the cruise you want to arrive and how many days after you want to leave and they take it from there.  You get no choice on flight times or carrier.

 

THEN there's the Premium Air program that doesn't force you to give up total control of your flight selection and NCL just passes along the flight cost, just acting as the TA for booking the flights.  This program is probably more like the ones you're used to with other cruise lines.

Why would one use Premium Air instead of booking air directly with the airlines?

[hallux]

27 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

Why would one use Premium Air instead of booking air directly with the airlines?

Because NCL can get them a little better rate?

[RocketMan275]

6 minutes ago, hallux said:

Because NCL can get them a little better rate?

Perhaps.  I would check both Premium Air and the Airlines. 

Edited May 1, 2023 by RocketMan275

[Liljo22]

On 4/28/2023 at 3:10 PM, pete_coach said:

If flights are cancelled, it is your problem and if you miss the cruise, it seems that you are on your own. No compensation, a some have reported.

How is that any different than if you booked your flights on your own?  

[Bandit2301]

9 minutes ago, hallux said:

Because NCL can get them a little better rate?

I have never been able to get a better flight price that the cruise lines get.  I couldn't pass up NCL's BOGO.  We are paying around $1500 for round trip for two people to Asia.  Even though it's the cheap seats, the price was a great deal.  We'll see if we can do any upgrades when we get our flight detail.

[Bandit2301]

2 minutes ago, Liljo22 said:

How is that any different than if you booked your flights on your own?  

I know with Viking and Royal if you book air through them, you have a phone number to call if you have problems while traveling but that is with their travel insurance.  Not sure by itself what happens.

Edited May 1, 2023 by Bandit2301

[Candy Apple 12]

4 hours ago, cruiseny4life said:

My husband and I had an excellent experience using NCL BOGO Airfare. We received our tickets about 60 days prior to our cruise (even the agent I spoke with in the Air Dept. was surprised we received them so far out). Generally speaking, expect to see your tickets, along with itinerary, approximately 30 days prior to your cruise.

 

The tickets provided were booked through Delta. As soon as I received the tickets I was able to add the tickets to my Delta account, book seats and upgrade to first class, if I chose. We didn't upgrade, but did select our seats at no additional charge. We did have to pay the $30 checked luggage fee.

 

Our flight was cancelled, leaving Fort Lauderdale after our cruise. I didn't have to pester NCL. At first, Delta assigned us a new flight, but we were able to select a different flight that got us to our home airport about an hour after the original flight. 

 

The only issue we had was an anomaly on our reservation which we quickly sorted out. When the air department makes changes, sometimes a random fee will be added to your MyNCL account. Be sure to look at your account every day after final payment. If the fee goes unpaid, your cruise will be canceled. In our case, it was a fee that should not have been added, so we were able to have the fee voided. Just be sure to watch carefully. 

 

You're going to hear a lot of bad experiences on NCL BOGO Air. There's a post that @DCGuy64 created with a lot of positive NCL BOGO Air experiences. Read that one as well as the negative ones. You'll learn from all the posts, but take each with a grain of salt (including mine). 

 

4 hours ago, DCGuy64 said:

Thanks for mentioning my post. I so often hear only bad things and people saying "never use BOGO air," which is why I did that poll and found, to my surprise, that most people actually liked it. It just goes to show, as you rightly point out, take each post with a grain of salt.

Link?

[DCGuy64]

7 minutes ago, Candy Apple 12 said:

 

Link?

Here you go

Edited May 1, 2023 by DCGuy64

[cruiseny4life]

7 minutes ago, Candy Apple 12 said:

 

Link?

Here ya go: 

 

At least I think that's the link you're looking for. 

[Candy Apple 12]

2 minutes ago, DCGuy64 said:

Here you go

 

2 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

Here ya go: 

 

At least I think that's the link you're looking for. 

Yes! Thank you!

[pete_coach]

1 hour ago, Liljo22 said:

How is that any different than if you booked your flights on your own?  

If you booked your flights with the airline, the airline has responsibilities to get you to the destination next available flight.

There are federal laws.

If you book thorough one agency (NCL) that passes you on to another (travel agency booking your flights) that books the flight you become the 3 or 4th party. Airlines will take care of their customers first.

[cwtravel]

7 minutes ago, pete_coach said:

If you booked your flights with the airline, the airline has responsibilities to get you to the destination next available flight.

There are federal laws.

If you book thorough one agency (NCL) that passes you on to another (travel agency booking your flights) that books the flight you become the 3 or 4th party. Airlines will take care of their customers first.

This is not true. The airlines responsibility is to get you on the next available flight with seats available. It does not matter if you did the airline booking or NCL did the booking.

 

I am amazed at the amount if mis-information there is about the cruise booking your air and specifically with NCL’s BOGO program.

https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/flight-delays-cancellations

[RocketMan275]

5 minutes ago, cwtravel said:

This is not true. The airlines responsibility is to get you on the next available flight with seats available. It does not matter if you did the airline booking or NCL did the booking.

 

I am amazed at the amount if mis-information there is about the cruise booking your air and specifically with NCL’s BOGO program.

https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/flight-delays-cancellations

Yes, that is the airlines responsibility.  However, the airlines prioritize who gets on the best/next flights.  Passengers booking full fare direct with the airlines are at the top of the lists.  Passengers who booked cheap 3rd party are at the bottom. And, yes, I've seen it happen.

 

 

[pete_coach]

47 minutes ago, cwtravel said:

This is not true. The airlines responsibility is to get you on the next available flight with seats available. It does not matter if you did the airline booking or NCL did the booking.

 

I am amazed at the amount if mis-information there is about the cruise booking your air and specifically with NCL’s BOGO program.

https://www.transportation.gov/individuals/aviation-consumer-protection/flight-delays-cancellations

OK. Good luck.

I have just read too many horror stories on Cruise Critic regarding cruise lines booking airline flights. You are not number one on the airline priority list.

Edited May 1, 2023 by pete_coach

[julig22]

59 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

Yes, that is the airlines responsibility.  However, the airlines prioritize who gets on the best/next flights.  Passengers booking full fare direct with the airlines are at the top of the lists.  Passengers who booked cheap 3rd party are at the bottom. And, yes, I've seen it happen.

 

 

I think that kinda depends.  Possibly true if the airline is being proactive and rebooking everyone.  But if I'm in line/on the phone with the airline they are dealing with me, not putting me on hold while they take care of all "their" passengers first.