Cruise first $500 are back…

[TeresaJ]

Thanks for the heads up! Just purchased a $250 certificate. Now to start planning! 😁

[schmoopie17]

The strange thing about our CruiseFirst is that when I go into my account on my laptop, it shows no expiration date. But when I go in via the NCL app, it shows an expiration date of 12/29/2026.

 

Both of these things cannot be true.

 

Edited January 13 by schmoopie17

[JillK]

On 1/10/2024 at 9:11 AM, RedwingHockeyFan said:

So what are the primary differences between CruiseFirst and CruiseNext?  I've mainly used CruiseNext when booking.

I don't think there are many differences... they both do the same thing: offer a discounted way to deposit on a cruise.

 

I believe the primary difference is that the CruiseNext is purchased while on board whereas you can buy the CruiseFirst off-ship. 

 

A few conditions for the CF: 

- only valid on cruises book more than 120 out

- only valid on cruises of 6 days or more

- non refundable

- transferrable

 

It also appears that like the CN, there are no longer expiration dates on these certificates. When I bought a few last year, the CF had a 3 year expiration from date of purchase (sail by/cruise by).

 

 

Edited January 13 by JillK

[JillK]

On 1/7/2024 at 12:33 PM, victory2020 said:

I am totally ignorant about these certificates. If I am planning a 10 day cruise for neat October in an inside room, would I be able to use the $500? When do I have to buy it by? What happens if I cancel cruise? Thanks

Hi ya. 

 

Yes you can absolutely use a CruiseFirst certificate to act as your deposit. They are currently running the spend $250 for a CF valued at $500 so you are getting $250 "free." If you already know you are cruising, this is a great way to save.

 

What you need to know: 

1. Can only be used to book a cruise more than 120 out 

2. Can only be used on cruises of 6 days or more

3. Non-refundable

4. Are transferrable

 

You can buy them directly through NCL's website: 

- Click "Cruise Deals" toggle down (between Explore and Why Norwegian)

- Click "CruiseFirst" 

- Click "Purchase a CruiseFirst Certificate"

 

They are deposited to your latitudes account for you to apply if you are booking on your own online or you can direct a TA to apply it if you book that way.

 

Looks like NCL has eliminated the expiration date on these certificates. When I purchased one last year I had three years from purchase date to use and sail (use by/sail by dates were the same). 

 

Happy cruising! 

Edited January 13 by JillK

[victory2020]

28 minutes ago, JillK said:

Hi ya. 

 

Yes you can absolutely use a CruiseFirst certificate to act as your deposit. They are currently running the spend $250 for a CF valued at $500 so you are getting $250 "free." If you already know you are cruising, this is a great way to save.

 

What you need to know: 

1. Can only be used to book a cruise more than 120 out 

2. Can only be used on cruises of 6 days or more

3. Non-refundable

4. Are transferrable

 

You can buy them directly through NCL's website: 

- Click "Cruise Deals" toggle down (between Explore and Why Norwegian)

- Click "CruiseFirst" 

- Click "Purchase a CruiseFirst Certificate"

 

They are deposited to your latitudes account for you to apply if you are booking on your own online or you can direct a TA to apply it if you book that way.

 

Looks like NCL has eliminated the expiration date on these certificates. When I purchased one last year I had three years from purchase date to use and sail (use by/sail by dates were the same). 

 

Happy cruising! 

Thank you! Perfect explanation. The cruise I'm looking at just went up $100, ugh!

[MeHeartCruising]

I just purchased one as well.  I'm on an NCL cruise in one week and could have just bought CruiseNexts, but decided since this matched that deal financially, I'd just buy one now so I won't have to fill out paperwork on the ship or deal with a salesperson (who usually speaks in circles as they try to upsell you).

 

It showed up in my account in about 5 minutes.

 

Just make sure you notice it must be used for a cruise that is at least 120 days in the future.

[ChiefMateJRK]

2 hours ago, MeHeartCruising said:

I'm on an NCL cruise in one week and could have just bought CruiseNexts, but decided since this matched that deal financially, I'd just buy one now so I won't have to fill out paperwork on the ship or deal with a salesperson (who usually speaks in circles as they try to upsell you).

My last two cruises, I just walked up to the desk, told them how many I wanted to buy and signed a sheet of paper.  I didn't fill out anything.  It took about 60 seconds.

[galveston gal]

5 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

My last two cruises, I just walked up to the desk, told them how many I wanted to buy and signed a sheet of paper.  I didn't fill out anything.  It took about 60 seconds.

It all sounds great, but I want to travel Haven so i just can't convince myself this is a good deal.  I guess if I book as another category, it might be beneficial.  I spoke to my TA and he recommended the CruiseNext.

 

You guys go for it and enjoy all the perks!  

[mistertomatoe]

11 hours ago, galveston gal said:

Did yours ever post?  Just curious.

Nope. I emailed them and they didn’t see it either. I never got charged so I gave up on it. I ended up buying two $500 last night and those showed up minutes after ordering. The email confirmations came hours later.

 

Other things to note: for now, the credit card account shows the charges (each certificate had a separate charge) are coming from NCL Reservations. This could change in the future. (Important for those Amex Offers people.)

 

The app showed the certificates already expired exactly a year ago on Jan 13 2023 so it's clearly wrong. 

 

For those saying it's bookings 120 days out. It's sailings 120 days from when you bought the CruiseFirst not when you do the booking. NCL people have tried to tell me otherwise. Another example of NCL overcomplicating things to the point of confusing their own people.

[victory2020]

2 hours ago, mistertomatoe said:

Nope. I emailed them and they didn’t see it either. I never got charged so I gave up on it. I ended up buying two $500 last night and those showed up minutes after ordering. The email confirmations came hours later.

 

Other things to note: for now, the credit card account shows the charges (each certificate had a separate charge) are coming from NCL Reservations. This could change in the future. (Important for those Amex Offers people.)

 

The app showed the certificates already expired exactly a year ago on Jan 13 2023 so it's clearly wrong. 

 

For those saying it's bookings 120 days out. It's sailings 120 days from when you bought the CruiseFirst not when you do the booking. NCL people have tried to tell me otherwise. Another example of NCL overcomplicating things to the point of confusing their own people.

You mean you can buy the certificate now & use them on a cruise later on that is booked less than 120 days ahead? If I buy one today I can book a cruse in July that leaves on October?

[laudergayle]

6 minutes ago, victory2020 said:

You mean you can buy the certificate now & use them on a cruise later on that is booked less than 120 days ahead? If I buy one today I can book a cruse in July that leaves on October?

Yes.  6 or more days long.

[UKstages]

 

3 hours ago, victory2020 said:

If I buy one today I can book a cruse in July that leaves on October?

 

you can book a cruise in july that leaves in july!

 

the ship's sailing date has to be at least 120 days from when you purchased the cruise first certificate/credit. you can book a cruise for next week, provided you bought the certificate 120 or more days ago.

[n4w]

On 1/10/2024 at 6:11 AM, RedwingHockeyFan said:

So what are the primary differences between CruiseFirst and CruiseNext?  I've mainly used CruiseNext when booking.

 

Haven't seen it mentioned, I see that CF: are not combinable with Sailaway (categories: IX, OX, BX, MX),

whereas CN: is applicable to ALL Categories including IX, OX, BX or MX (Sailaway Categories)

[reveur15]

On 1/13/2024 at 10:50 AM, schmoopie17 said:

The strange thing about our CruiseFirst is that when I go into my account on my laptop, it shows no expiration date. But when I go in via the NCL app, it shows an expiration date of 12/29/2026.

 

Both of these things cannot be true.

 

I purchased one on sept. 2, 2023 and one on dec. 29, 2023.

On my laptop  both of them shows no expiration date.

on the NCL app : 

the sept. 2, 2023 shows expiration 12/31/99

the  dec. 29, 2023 shows expiration 12/29/26

Still very confusing !

 

[victory2020]

One more question, I'm sure it goes back into your account if you cancel cruise, but if I want price adjustment (if cruise goes down before final payment) can I do it without losing value of certificate?

[julig22]

6 minutes ago, victory2020 said:

One more question, I'm sure it goes back into your account if you cancel cruise, but if I want price adjustment (if cruise goes down before final payment) can I do it without losing value of certificate?

Yes. But if you cancel and then rebook the same cruise for some reason I think you lose the added value. Some people seem to have it in their head that they have to cancel/rebook to take advantage of a price drop.

[victory2020]

Just now, julig22 said:

Yes. But if you cancel and then rebook the same cruise for some reason I think you lose the added value. Some people seem to have it in their head that they have to cancel/rebook to take advantage of a price drop.

So if there is a price drop they will adjust price & you will retain full certificate price? I would be using a travel agent.

[julig22]

1 minute ago, victory2020 said:

So if there is a price drop they will adjust price & you will retain full certificate price? I would be using a travel agent.

Correct, AFAIK.

[victory2020]

3 minutes ago, julig22 said:

Correct, AFAIK.

Thanks. What does this stand for? 🙂

[julig22]

1 minute ago, victory2020 said:

Thanks. What does this stand for? 🙂

As Far As I Know

[MeHeartCruising]

4 hours ago, victory2020 said:

So if there is a price drop they will adjust price & you will retain full certificate price? I would be using a travel agent.

Yes. A CruiseFirst Credit never changes value.  And, no, you do not need to cancel and rebook in order to take advantage of a price reduction prior to final payment.  You just call and ask them to reprice it to the currently offered price.  They can do this in seconds and you retain the same Booking Number. HOWEVER, when you do this, you are also going to get the current  promotion benefits/perks offer/terms.  They may be different from the offer/terms in place at the time of your original booking.  So be sure you know what the current promotions are when repricing.  I also always ask them to confirm the CruiseFirst (or CruiseNext) credit is still applied. 

Edited January 15 by MeHeartCruising

[UKstages]

the $500 (for $250) cruise first certificates are back... this time for "valentine's day."

 

purchase by february 15, 11:59 ET.

[Waterfreak2009]

3 hours ago, UKstages said:

the $500 (for $250) cruise first certificates are back... this time for "valentine's day."

 

purchase by february 15, 11:59 ET.

Yip I got one.. then had to book another cruise. Darn

[Lionkingrichard]

Thanks! Just bought 2.

[Happycrafter123]

I've re-read the terms on the CruseFirst certificate a few times and read throught this chatter, but curious about the reference to non-refundable.  

 

I appreciate that once you buy it you can't call and get a refund/return to your credit card/payment method, that's fine.

 

What I am curious about, is if I apply this to a deposit on a cruise, and then decide i want to cancel that cruise/do another one (let's say a week later or a different ship etc).  does the $250 get returned to my account so I can apply it to another cruise, or is it forfeit?