Latitude Perk-Priority Tender Ticket, where to get it.

[Jagggg]

One of our latitude perks is the priority tender ticket. Where on the ship do you go to get the priority tender ticket? We have an early private excursion and would like to have the priority ticket. Or is this a perk that no one actually gets?

[Asawi]

On the ships I've been to that have had tender ports (Star and Dawn) you only had to show your keycard (where Latitude status is printed). I don't know if this is fleetwide though. 

Edited April 10 by Asawi

[CruiseMH]

As far as i know you only need your key card and show it to the crew. As your latitudes status is mentioned on your key they know whether you are entitled to use that service or not.

[www3traveler]

The only Prior Tender Perk that I know works is to purchase a shore excursion from the ship.  I think that Prior Tender Ticket is mostly a myth.

[laudergayle]

We used this service on the Bliss recently. They had all Latitudes with this benefit meet in one of the MDRs and they facilitated priority tender from there (although on our sailing this was total cluster.).

 

Also,,stop by Cruise Next desk when you board and ask them the procedure.

Edited April 10 by laudergayle

[FLAHAM]

1 minute ago, www3traveler said:

The only Prior Tender Perk that I know works is to purchase a shore excursion from the ship.  I think that Prior Tender Ticket is mostly a myth.

I have always gotten on first tender just by showing my card.  No myth.

[zqvol]

Just join the rear of the line whenever you want and show your room key. 

[debenson0723]

7 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

We used this service on the Bliss recently. They had all Latitudes with this benefit meet in one of the MDRs and they facilitated priority tender from there (although on our sailing this was total cluster.).

 

Also,,stop by Cruise Next desk when you board and ask them the procedure.

We had this on one of my recent cruises but we met in the comedy club. Only about 10 people showed up and we were escorted as a group to the front of the tender line. 

And I second asking at the Cruise Next desk for the information. They were very helpful.

[www3traveler]

7 minutes ago, FLAHAM said:

I have always gotten on first tender just by showing my card.  No myth.

I have never been able to do that and I have a fairly high Latitude status.

 

The OP was asking "where on the ship do get get a Prior Tender Ticket".  My question would be: are" Tender Tickets" issued at a specific place and time anymore?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Asawi]

35 minutes ago, www3traveler said:

My question would be: are" Tender Tickets" issued at a specific place and time anymore?

 

Different on different ships how it is done. Or even different on same ship, not far apart in time, if there has been staff changes. It has been early in the morning the last handful or so tender ports I visited 2023 and one this year.

[Middleager]

1 hour ago, FLAHAM said:

I have always gotten on first tender just by showing my card.  No myth.

That's right.  No myth.

 

Lattitude members who get priority tender, don't need to get tender tickets.

 

I usually ask the Cruise Next desk.  On different ship, sailing, things can be done differently.  Sometimes they tell you just to show up (probably because they know from experience there is not line up, especially if tender starts really early), and sometimes they tell you to go to a certain room and wait there.  NCL staff will then escort those, to the front of the line.

 

If you have a small group going on a non-NCL excursion, as long as one of them has lattitude for priority tendering, NCL had allowed all to go together.

[shof515]

1 hour ago, www3traveler said:

The OP was asking "where on the ship do get get a Prior Tender Ticket".  My question would be: are" Tender Tickets" issued at a specific place and time anymore?

 

the last time i went on a cruise that tender ports, your tender ticket is coded to your room key. on the breakaway class ships you use the kiosk or your room tv to book a tender time slot

[BirdTravels]

2 hours ago, Jagggg said:

One of our latitude perks is the priority tender ticket. Where on the ship do you go to get the priority tender ticket? We have an early private excursion and would like to have the priority ticket. Or is this a perk that no one actually gets?

Lots of wrong/bad responses on this thread.

 

Historically, Latitudes Priority Tendering has meant that you can join the back of the tender line at any time, without having previously received a tender group. 

 

More recently, at select tender ports, CruiseNext has had organized priority tendering where you show up at a designated time and place to be escorted to a tender. In the example below, Latitude members were asked to show up at 9:30 (in advance of our 10 am arrival time), and were allowed to enter the tender line before Group 1 tendering guest. 

 

That being said, Haven guests are escorted via crew elevators to the front of the tender line along with other priority groups (which is where we were). 

 

Check with CruiseNext desk on embarkation day for opportunities for Priority Tendering. 

 

[ppcox]

2 hours ago, debenson0723 said:

We had this on one of my recent cruises but we met in the comedy club. Only about 10 people showed up and we were escorted as a group to the front of the tender line. 

And I second asking at the Cruise Next desk for the information. They were very helpful.

That’s our experience too.

[CaptainBazz]

We are just off the Encore...we were told by Guest Services to join the line anytime we wanted and to join on deck 6 outside the Q Smokehouse...the line started on deck 7 in the theatre. We just showed our key card and were able to join the line. Check with Guest Services to make sure it is the same on your ship.

[N-8]

On a NCL cruise last July, we aren't Gold yet but while waiting in line to get our tender tickets, the couple in front of me were Gold. When they asked the person how to get the priority ticket, they were told just show up and show your key card (the husband got a bit agitated because they stood in line for 30 or so minutes just to find out he didn't have to). Later that day while in line to get on tender, I saw others flashing their key cards and hopping in line. So go with the advice most are giving, think that you probably can just show your key card but get with Guest Services when you get on the boat and ask.

[schmoopie17]

17 hours ago, CaptainBazz said:

We are just off the Encore...we were told by Guest Services to join the line anytime we wanted and to join on deck 6 outside the Q Smokehouse...the line started on deck 7 in the theatre. We just showed our key card and were able to join the line. Check with Guest Services to make sure it is the same on your ship.

Ditto on the Jade last month  for the tenders to Cayman.  I seem to recall a blurb about this in the Daily for that day, as well.

 

YMMV on other ships. Seems like another case of NCL's "consistency" of being inconsistent.

[alwalaska]

On 4/10/2024 at 2:11 PM, Jagggg said:

One of our latitude perks is the priority tender ticket. Where on the ship do you go to get the priority tender ticket? We have an early private excursion and would like to have the priority ticket. Or is this a perk that no one actually gets?

On the Spirit this February, they didn't tell us until AFTER the pickup of normal tender tickets had been open for almost a day, that "Priotity" tendering would meet around 1 hour after tendering started in one of the dining rooms to be led off of the ship.  They would then escort us to the tenders by group.  It was a madhouse and the people who showed up last went before those of us who had been there longer. They had called up through tender group 4 BEFORE they started taking any of us.  The smart people had picked up tender tickets the morning before and walked out of the "priority" group to go and board the tenders sooner.  I was quite unhappy. 

[laudergayle]

12 hours ago, alwalaska said:

On the Spirit this February, they didn't tell us until AFTER the pickup of normal tender tickets had been open for almost a day, that "Priotity" tendering would meet around 1 hour after tendering started in one of the dining rooms to be led off of the ship.  They would then escort us to the tenders by group.  It was a madhouse and the people who showed up last went before those of us who had been there longer. They had called up through tender group 4 BEFORE they started taking any of us.  The smart people had picked up tender tickets the morning before and walked out of the "priority" group to go and board the tenders sooner.  I was quite unhappy. 

This was similar to our tendering experience.  In fairness to NCL it was the beginning of a new season and local authorities were running contracted tenders.  But it did cause s lot of frustration amongst Lat members and crew.

[purplecow15]

We were on 2 different cruises since September 2023. On the Dawn and the Gem. On the Dawn, we were told we could get on anytime, just show our cards with Sapphire status. On the Gem, we needed to go to the cruise next desk to get a ticket allowing us to board the tender with the second calling. There was no separate line for those getting tickets, so we had to wait until those folks buying cruise next vouchers were done which often takes a while. Not the most efficient process.  Seems each ship has its way of handling things. 

[alwalaska]

3 hours ago, laudergayle said:

This was similar to our tendering experience.  In fairness to NCL it was the beginning of a new season and local authorities were running contracted tenders.  But it did cause s lot of frustration amongst Lat members and crew.

Ours was using NCL's tenders.  The lack of information early enough to go and get tender tickets the morning before was the most frustrating. Hubby even asked if I wanted him to go and get tender tickets and I said, "No, we have our priority tendering."  Ooops.

[Seas2mountains]

3 hours ago, purplecow15 said:

We were on 2 different cruises since September 2023. On the Dawn and the Gem. On the Dawn, we were told we could get on anytime, just show our cards with Sapphire status. On the Gem, we needed to go to the cruise next desk to get a ticket allowing us to board the tender with the second calling. There was no separate line for those getting tickets, so we had to wait until those folks buying cruise next vouchers were done which often takes a while. Not the most efficient process.  Seems each ship has its way of handling things. 

This was our experience, too. 
 

Each ship had their own process. It was not consistent. 

[BirdTravels]

On 4/10/2024 at 6:10 PM, CaptainBazz said:

We are just off the Encore...we were told by Guest Services to join the line anytime we wanted and to join on deck 6 outside the Q Smokehouse...the line started on deck 7 in the theatre. We just showed our key card and were able to join the line. Check with Guest Services to make sure it is the same on your ship.

If  you had gone to CruiseNext, they would have given you a meeting point so that you would be escorted to the first tender leaving the ship. 

 

It is important to understand that CruiseNext runs the Latitude program, not Guest Services. 

Edited April 12 by BirdTravels

[CaptainBazz]

1 hour ago, BirdTravels said:

If  you had gone to CruiseNext, they would have given you a meeting point so that you would be escorted to the first tender leaving the ship. 

 

It is important to understand that CruiseNext runs the Latitude program, not Guest Services. 

But that is not what I wanted...if I have priority I want to be able to leave the ship when I want without having to line up...guest services gave me what I wanted.

[Jagggg]

Thank you everyone for all the information about this perk. I will definitely go to cruise next, for our cruise. We will be on the Star.