Laundry Service on 15 day Cruises

[Lindy Sue]

First time on NCL and have booked a 15 day cruise.  We will be spending time in departure port ahead and staying on for a week after disembarking.  I have seen some comments about NCL offering an "all you can put in this bag," promo during some cruises.  Does anyone have any experience with how this might work on a 15 night cruise?  We will be traveling from the US to NZ & Australia, so limited on amount of luggage we will bring, thus limiting clothing.  Want to ensure we have plenty of clean personal items before we get off the ship for our week's stay in Sydney.  I have searched unsuccessfully for an answer to my question.  Thanks for any help and advice you can give.

[9tee2Sea]

41 minutes ago, Lindy Sue said:

First time on NCL and have booked a 15 day cruise.  We will be spending time in departure port ahead and staying on for a week after disembarking.  I have seen some comments about NCL offering an "all you can put in this bag," promo during some cruises.  Does anyone have any experience with how this might work on a 15 night cruise?  We will be traveling from the US to NZ & Australia, so limited on amount of luggage we will bring, thus limiting clothing.  Want to ensure we have plenty of clean personal items before we get off the ship for our week's stay in Sydney.  I have searched unsuccessfully for an answer to my question.  Thanks for any help and advice you can give.

during the cruise, there will be a " fill the bag" special ( I believe its 50% off regular price).  There will be an inventory list clipped onto the bag, which you fill out as you put your items into the bag.  The bag is very flimsy paper, so be prepared for it to tear.  To fit more into the bag, roll each item as tight as possible ( like a small log).  The bundle of clothes will be returned in about 1-2 days, neatly folded in a basket that is usually placed on the bed, or coffee table ( leave the empty basket for the steward t take away). I believe the Fill a Bag Special will be offered twice on a 15 day cruise, but you can always send out at regular pricing anytime you want.  IF you are staying a Haven category, the bags are much bigger, and not flimsy.  Once you get to Platinum level on NCL, you get a free bag of laundry.  In the shower, there is a pull out laundry line that can be used for hang drying anything that you may have washed out in the sink.  

[Asawi]

29 minutes ago, 9tee2Sea said:

I believe the Fill a Bag Special will be offered twice on a 15 day cruise,

I was on a 15-day ta and it was only offered once during that cruise. I don't know if that's the norm or not though.

[SoloAlaska]

From my experience on a 15 day TA the fill a bag promo was only done once. I did that and also hand washed clothes with my favorite delicate wash (Soak) and hung to dry in the shower. 

[Lindy Sue]

43 minutes ago, 9tee2Sea said:

during the cruise, there will be a " fill the bag" special ( I believe its 50% off regular price).  There will be an inventory list clipped onto the bag, which you fill out as you put your items into the bag.  The bag is very flimsy paper, so be prepared for it to tear.  To fit more into the bag, roll each item as tight as possible ( like a small log).  The bundle of clothes will be returned in about 1-2 days, neatly folded in a basket that is usually placed on the bed, or coffee table ( leave the empty basket for the steward t take away). I believe the Fill a Bag Special will be offered twice on a 15 day cruise, but you can always send out at regular pricing anytime you want.  IF you are staying a Haven category, the bags are much bigger, and not flimsy.  Once you get to Platinum level on NCL, you get a free bag of laundry.  In the shower, there is a pull out laundry line that can be used for hang drying anything that you may have washed out in the sink.  

 

Thanks for the information.  Hopefully they will offer the special twice on a longer cruise.  We are on the Sun, so no Haven is available and since this is our first NCL cruise, might take a bit to get to platinum. 🙂  Will definitely take some laundry sheets to handwash in the sink if necessary.  Thanks again!

[Lindy Sue]

14 minutes ago, SoloAlaska said:

From my experience on a 15 day TA the fill a bag promo was only done once. I did that and also hand washed clothes with my favorite delicate wash (Soak) and hung to dry in the shower. 

Thanks!

[mking8288]

On 3 of our recent TA, they're offered twice being 12 and 15 days (twice) - typically, about Day 4 or 5 for the first series and then about a week later.  If you don't see the flyer/insert, ask your room steward about it  - s/he can usually get you the "coupon" - currently priced at $34 per bag (good use of any non-refundable OBC) if not at Platinum/higher status & getting them done on a comp'd basis.  Bring 2 kitchen sized garbage bag to use as insert or liner for the ultra-thin paper bag (we just recycled those plastic Amazon delivery or clear plastic bag) 

 

If you have more items to wash than you could possibly stuff full into a single bag, get an extra coupon & include the inventory slip, send both out at the same time ... usually, it's a 24 to 48 hours turnaround time.  Alert the steward the day before or catch her/him in the morning first, so that it get picked up & sent down to below decks for faster turnaround.   

 

Bring an extra hanger or two, as you then hang it somewhere else with better air flow or circulation, drying is easier & faster with delicate, hand-washed items. 

 

 

[SoloAlaska]

4 minutes ago, Lindy Sue said:

 

Thanks for the information.  Hopefully they will offer the special twice on a longer cruise.  We are on the Sun, so no Haven is available and since this is our first NCL cruise, might take a bit to get to platinum. 🙂  Will definitely take some laundry sheets to handwash in the sink if necessary.  Thanks again!

Easiest if your laundry soap is a no rinse formula. Makes it a lot quicker. I usually fill the sink with laundry before I hop in the shower. When I’m done my shower I squeeze out as much water as possible and then roll the clothes in a towel to take out even more. Ask your steward for extra towels on day one. My clothes is almost always completely dry before the next day with this technique. 

[The Traveling Man]

1 hour ago, Lindy Sue said:

First time on NCL and have booked a 15 day cruise.  We will be spending time in departure port ahead and staying on for a week after disembarking.  I have seen some comments about NCL offering an "all you can put in this bag," promo during some cruises.  Does anyone have any experience with how this might work on a 15 night cruise?  We will be traveling from the US to NZ & Australia, so limited on amount of luggage we will bring, thus limiting clothing.  Want to ensure we have plenty of clean personal items before we get off the ship for our week's stay in Sydney.  I have searched unsuccessfully for an answer to my question.  Thanks for any help and advice you can give.

There will be at least one, and perhaps two days when the Freestyle Daily will list a "fill the bag" laundry special.  If you miss the notice, just ask your stateroom attendant.  Even if the offer is made only once during your cruise, you may have a steward who will accept your laundry on a different day than the advertised special, or perhaps even a second time during the cruise.  We occasionally have missed the announced day for the special, but asked our steward if we could slip it in a day later.  No problems.  YMMV. 

 

The cost has gone up a couple of times recently.  I think it is now about $30 for a bag.  That's still much less expensive than the per-item price that NCL charges.  There are some tricks to getting the greatest amount of clothing into the one-price-fits-all bag.  First, either bring a plastic bag to line the NCL paper bag or use some adhesive tape to strengthen the paper bag to keep it from tearing.  Next, toss loose items such as socks and underwear into the bottom of the bag.  Roll shirts and slacks tightly, stand them up like pickles in a jar and insert them in a bundle into the bag.  It's OK if they stick out of the top of the bag.  Since they are rolled up tightly, they shouldn't fall over or out of the bag.  Voila!

 

My wife and I usually can fit at least five or six days worth of clothing for both of us into one bag.  You'll need to submit your bag when you still have two days worth of clean clothes to wear.  That will get you through the day you submit the bag in the morning, plus the next day when your clothes are returned to you in the evening.

[JustAllie]

And you need to fill out the laundry form listing how many of each item you put into the bag! That's a lot easier to do as you fill the bag instead of having to pull everything out to count it again. 

 

You won't be paying by the piece during "fill the bag for a flat price" day, but they do use those counts to make sure none of your clothing was misplaced in the laundry. 

[1bighund]

On our TA in 2018 the offer was once.  However on our cruise last Dec., it was always in effect

[Lindy Sue]

Thank you ALL for all the helpful hints and comments!

[Sand and Seas]

5 hours ago, Lindy Sue said:

 

Thanks for the information.  Hopefully they will offer the special twice on a longer cruise.  We are on the Sun, so no Haven is available and since this is our first NCL cruise, might take a bit to get to platinum. 🙂  Will definitely take some laundry sheets to handwash in the sink if necessary.  Thanks again!

If you happen to be in a Club Balcony, you will get a free bag of laundry as noted below from this NCL page:

https://www.ncl.com/why-cruise-norwegian/cruise-accommodations/minisuites-and-balconies

 

Club Balcony Suites provide additional amenities and privileges at no additional cost. Amenities include the option to pre-book onboard entertainment as early as 21 days and dining as early as 125 days prior to sail date, complimentary treats delivered to your stateroom, a complimentary bottle of sparkling wine, and a choice of one valet laundry or pressing service.

[FLAHAM]

On my trip on the Gem in March, the laundry bag was a much stiffer material.  Did not rip and no liner needed.

[Laszlo]

I've been on a 14 day and a 12 day. Laundry specials were offered twice on those cruises 

[Russiamomm]

3 hours ago, 1bighund said:

On our TA in 2018 the offer was once.  However on our cruise last Dec., it was always in effect

I agree with this.  I may be a skeptic, but I think it’s always available and there’s no need to wait for a “special”.  As long as you don’t abuse it, I think if you ask your steward for additional bags they will accommodate.

 

I also agree with the recommendations to roll stuff as tightly as possible and to line the paper bag with plastic.  The laundry bags in hotels work well,  they’re the right size.  Grab them from the pre-cruise hotel and put them in your luggage.  
 

the inventory is also important.  They do pay attention.  I had a call from Housekeeping once because I said it was a pair of socks but they only saw one sock in the bag. I told them it must have been my error, that the sock must be lost in the cabin somewhere.  😂

[Lindy Sue]

2 hours ago, Sand and Seas said:

If you happen to be in a Club Balcony, you will get a free bag of laundry as noted below from this NCL page:

https://www.ncl.com/why-cruise-norwegian/cruise-accommodations/minisuites-and-balconies

 

Club Balcony Suites provide additional amenities and privileges at no additional cost. Amenities include the option to pre-book onboard entertainment as early as 21 days and dining as early as 125 days prior to sail date, complimentary treats delivered to your stateroom, a complimentary bottle of sparkling wine, and a choice of one valet laundry or pressing service.

Oh thank you! We are in fact, in a club balcony!

[TrumpyNor]

16 hours ago, mking8288 said:

On 3 of our recent TA, they're offered twice being 12 and 15 days (twice) - typically, about Day 4 or 5 for the first series and then about a week later.  If you don't see the flyer/insert, ask your room steward about it  - s/he can usually get you the "coupon" - currently priced at $34 per bag (good use of any non-refundable OBC) if not at Platinum/higher status & getting them done on a comp'd basis.  

 

 

I have a different question that you may know the answer to:

We have the "Latitude comp'd" laundry bags (one each offered on a regular cruise), that we use whenever needed without awaiting the "bag promotion day", without any coupon/voucher, simply by writing Latitude number and status on the bag.

 

My question is:

If they offer the regular "fill the bag"promotion twice during a longer (10+) cruise, do they then sometimes also offer one extra "comp'd" laundry bag for the higher Latitude status? I know I am not "entitled" to more than one free laundry bag per cruise, just wondering what your experience has been on longer cruises.

Edited Thursday at 07:49 AM by TrumpyNor
Adding information.

[mking8288]

4 hours ago, TrumpyNor said:

... have the "Latitude comp'd" laundry bags (one each offered on a regular cruise) ... My question is:

If they offer the regular "fill the bag"promotion twice during a longer (10+) cruise, do they then sometimes also offer one extra "comp'd" laundry bag for the higher Latitude status? I know I am not "entitled" to more than one free laundry bag per cruise, just wondering what your experience has been on longer cruises.

We've been able to do 2 bags of comp'd laundry on longer NCL cruises, i.e. 11, 12 days, 15 and even 16 days.  It's not "offered" but go to the Latitudes/CruiseNext Desk and ask, and just ask ... It's one of the those unspoken, more of unwritten rules (once confirmed by the laundry master, asked while on a BTS tour as he's the person "charging" for the services from below deck).   No coupons needed & just write on the slip & the bag. We always try to avoid sending it down on their regular promo bag special day.  

 

On our 12 days Prima TA, we did 3 free bags in total with DW and I, as we had clothes from 4 days pre-cruise. On Epic 16 days TA and 16 days Caribbean cruise, 2 bags ... and most recent 16 days TA, did 4 bags with 2 per room as we split book the cabins - all free & returned within 1 to 2 days. 

 

One of the Asst Guest Services Manager told us over DWO that if there's ever an error in charging, don't be upset, go to the desk and explain nicely and they will review & promptly reverse the charge for wet laundry, well within their discretionary authority.  The niece accidentally send one of her outwear down & it was dry cleaned, and billed - our mistake and I just let the OBC offset it, didn't made any fuzz about it.  We've gotten thousands worth of laundry over the years, be happy we disembark with plenty of freshly clean clothes. 

 

BTW, just read that the assistant manager is currently acting as Asst General Manager - she's been with NCL for years and earned, worked her way. 

 

Regards, happy planning and cruising ahead.