NCL Mastercard FAQ

[mscdivina2016]

3 hours ago, jetact said:

Being new to the card (just got it last month) after reading the comments which are all great and I appreciate people helping others with these questions. To me it looks like you can't upgrade with points to Haven and your best best is an inner cabin to a balcony. I believe I read that you can still bid on an upgrade but not likely to get it. OBC isnt a good use of the card. I hope I have gotten this all correct. We are headed to NOLA and to the Western Caribbean our of there in January. I am currently looking for Panama canal as our next cruise but might mix in Alaska before that. I hope to use my points as I will be at 50,000 by the end of the year. Thanks for all of the great info. 

Correct on no haven. Also no suites, Aft balconies and any other room that does not have the same category starting from inside.

 Bidding is allowed but when you paid much less than another because of a meta, your chances are slim.

 

As far as your 50,000 points. Pay off a cruise, as you get triple. Or book another that totals over $3367 and pay it off in full. Once the points post, redeem, then I am sure you can figure what I would suggest you do.😲

[julig22]

7 hours ago, jetact said:

Being new to the card (just got it last month) after reading the comments which are all great and I appreciate people helping others with these questions. To me it looks like you can't upgrade with points to Haven and your best best is an inner cabin to a balcony. I believe I read that you can still bid on an upgrade but not likely to get it. OBC isnt a good use of the card. I hope I have gotten this all correct. We are headed to NOLA and to the Western Caribbean our of there in January. I am currently looking for Panama canal as our next cruise but might mix in Alaska before that. I hope to use my points as I will be at 50,000 by the end of the year. Thanks for all of the great info. 

I take a slightly different approach.  I book OV, so only use 30k points to get my balcony.  I have two fairly spendy cruises coming up and want a balcony for both.  Just upgraded the first one (upgrade value $2,500).  At current prices, the value on the second cruise (OV to balcony) will be over 6K, partially because prices on that cruise are WAY up. 

[mscdivina2016]

32 minutes ago, julig22 said:

I take a slightly different approach.  I book OV, so only use 30k points to get my balcony.  I have two fairly spendy cruises coming up and want a balcony for both.  Just upgraded the first one (upgrade value $2,500).  At current prices, the value on the second cruise (OV to balcony) will be over 6K, partially because prices on that cruise are WAY up. 

That is a good approach depending on the ship.  I sail Spirit, Sun, Sky, and Star so the amount of Balconies is much less than the newer mega ships and the difference between inside and outside can be $1500 or more. 

 I actually did the ocean view on the Encore because inside to ocean view was only a couple of hundred.

[jetact]

19 hours ago, mscdivina2016 said:

That is a good approach depending on the ship.  I sail Spirit, Sun, Sky, and Star so the amount of Balconies is much less than the newer mega ships and the difference between inside and outside can be $1500 or more. 

 I actually did the ocean view on the Encore because inside to ocean view was only a couple of hundred.

 

So spending more money on the OV do you get a better balcony room when you use points to upgrade?

[julig22]

2 minutes ago, jetact said:

 

So spending more money on the OV do you get a better balcony room when you use points to upgrade?

Have no clue how they assign cabins but balconies tend to only have a couple of eligible options anyway- they're not going to give you a studio if that's what you're asking.  I'm not necessarily spending more money, I'm getting 2 balcony upgrades for the cost of the ov on 2 cruises.

[mscdivina2016]

32 minutes ago, jetact said:

 

So spending more money on the OV do you get a better balcony room when you use points to upgrade?

Yes in theory. Always better to get the best OV because you should get a BA if you upgrade.  Best thing about having the best OV is because you can take a BB, BC, or even a BD. So you are assured of your balcony.

[zubee23]

NCL Rewards OBC Apply to Daily Service Charge?

Is this allowed?  I have NCL MasterCard points.  Can I apply them to OBC to be used for the DSC?  (Daily Service Charge)

[mscdivina2016]

4 hours ago, zubee23 said:

NCL Rewards OBC Apply to Daily Service Charge?

Is this allowed?  I have NCL MasterCard points.  Can I apply them to OBC to be used for the DSC?  (Daily Service Charge)

That's always been a yes and a no.

 

It seems to change over and over. To be safe, you should opt for a statement credit.

Steve

[zubee23]

1 hour ago, mscdivina2016 said:

That's always been a yes and a no.

 

It seems to change over and over. To be safe, you should opt for a statement credit.

Steve

Thank you!

[oteixeira]

Sorry if this has been asked before, so many pages to go through!  If I book an inside today, for a cruise a year from now, is there a time limit of when I have to call to do the double meta upgrade thing, or can I do it at any time before final payment?  How exactly does that timing work?  If this has been asked before please just tell me what post to go to!  Thanks so much!

[julig22]

6 minutes ago, oteixeira said:

Sorry if this has been asked before, so many pages to go through!  If I book an inside today, for a cruise a year from now, is there a time limit of when I have to call to do the double meta upgrade thing, or can I do it at any time before final payment?  How exactly does that timing work?  If this has been asked before please just tell me what post to go to!  Thanks so much!

It probably depends on the cruise.  I just upgraded ov to balcony 3 months before my cruise, no problems.  But pre-covid I requested an upgrade and was told they only have a certain number of upgrades available (they did find one tho).

Keep in mind that once you upgrade using points you might be locked out of any price adjustments.  And you can't undo the points upgrade.

[mscdivina2016]

1 hour ago, oteixeira said:

Sorry if this has been asked before, so many pages to go through!  If I book an inside today, for a cruise a year from now, is there a time limit of when I have to call to do the double meta upgrade thing, or can I do it at any time before final payment?  How exactly does that timing work?  If this has been asked before please just tell me what post to go to!  Thanks so much!

Julig22 is correct.

Pre Covid ships were full sooner the better.

Also depends on old or newer ship as balcony cabins are more plentiful.

 

Always.....book IA because if there are no BA cabins available, you can still get a BB, BC,BD, ect.

Steve

[oteixeira]

1 hour ago, julig22 said:

It probably depends on the cruise.  I just upgraded ov to balcony 3 months before my cruise, no problems.  But pre-covid I requested an upgrade and was told they only have a certain number of upgrades available (they did find one tho).

Keep in mind that once you upgrade using points you might be locked out of any price adjustments.  And you can't undo the points upgrade.

I get that I wont get price adjustments but what if at the same exact price there is suddenly triple latitude points like they did this past year, can I get it added?  

[julig22]

56 minutes ago, oteixeira said:

I get that I wont get price adjustments but what if at the same exact price there is suddenly triple latitude points like they did this past year, can I get it added?  

Probably depends on how persuasive you can be LOL.

As to adjustments, I'm basically going on what my PCC said when I asked about timing.  That it gets complicated.  So I waited until my pricing options were locked (90 days because I took the bogo airfare).

I'm curious to see if I get an offer to bid!

 

Note: also hoping for a triple points bonus to show up soon.  There isn't a "past guest" offer at the moment so methinks something is afoot....

Edited December 3, 2021 by julig22

[mscdivina2016]

11 minutes ago, julig22 said:

 

I'm curious to see if I get an offer to bid!

When using points I have never won a bid, and I have used points on probably 20+ cruises with NCL.

 

I have bid Max many times to no avail. Now keep in mind pre covid, I did not do 7 night cruises, but 14-40 night cruises.

 I don't know if they factor your overall cost's. If inside is $1500 and a Balcony $3000, It would take a bid of $1500 to even get to where others in balcony cabins start their bid.

Steve

[julig22]

On 12/2/2021 at 4:37 PM, julig22 said:

I'm curious to see if I get an offer to bid!

So I did get an offer to bid on my upgraded cruise.  Highly doubt I'll get anything because the only upgrade I would want is an aft balcony, so put in a minimum bid. Probably my only chance would be because I got my bid in early, if that has any bearing on how they choose.

[mscdivina2016]

51 minutes ago, julig22 said:

So I did get an offer to bid on my upgraded cruise.  Highly doubt I'll get anything because the only upgrade I would want is an aft balcony, so put in a minimum bid. Probably my only chance would be because I got my bid in early, if that has any bearing on how they choose.

The highest bidder up to 2-4 days before sailing gets it.

 

What's considered highest bidder?

Total cash you paid for original cabin plus bid or just bid price?

Good luck.

I got my bid accepted today for Msc today. This is 2 times in 2 weeks I won.

[julig22]

1 hour ago, mscdivina2016 said:

The highest bidder up to 2-4 days before sailing gets it.

 

What's considered highest bidder?

Total cash you paid for original cabin plus bid or just bid price?

Good luck.

I got my bid accepted today for Msc today. This is 2 times in 2 weeks I won.

Doubtful that original price paid is a factor. Why would they care, they want to maximize income and they already have your original payment.  NCL hires a 3rd party for the process, how much they know is anybody's guess.

For my Oct 2021 cruise I won my last bid 2 weeks before I sailed, won another pre-covid at 95 days (I was in a sold-out category). So inventory is an important factor, bid awards are made whenever they want to shift availability.

For this one, inventory is limited on my bid category so no expectations on my part.  In fact I'd be shocked - my bid probably wouldn't even cover the salary of the butler so they'd be better off leaving it empty!

[mscdivina2016]

17 hours ago, julig22 said:

Doubtful that original price paid is a factor. Why would they care, they want to maximize income and they already have your original payment. 

Like you said, who knows what 3rd party has access to.

 

I have never on over a dozen tries ever won a bid with NCL for a max bid? Slide that lever all the way right.

Had friends who did not bid max win. They paid almost double for their original cabin. We both had Afts.

So getting back to original payment plus upgrade allows them to maximize dollars.

 

[julig22]

2 hours ago, mscdivina2016 said:

So getting back to original payment plus upgrade allows them to maximize dollars.

From a business standpoint, a $500 bid is $500 additional regardless of what you originally paid.  If you paid more originally because you had a more desirable cabin, then they might want to upgrade that reservation in the hopes of reselling it, so might take that chance and accept a lower bid. They might accept bids to redistribute capacity in certain locations. Nobody knows. Although doubtful, for all anybody knows it could be a random draw or FCFS😁.

[alpal1993]

On 12/2/2021 at 4:58 PM, julig22 said:

It probably depends on the cruise.  I just upgraded ov to balcony 3 months before my cruise, no problems.  But pre-covid I requested an upgrade and was told they only have a certain number of upgrades available (they did find one tho).

Keep in mind that once you upgrade using points you might be locked out of any price adjustments.  And you can't undo the points upgrade.

I guess I am lucky because I upgraded from Ocean view to BF balcony after final payment. Cruise is on Getaway Feb 2

[Thunderbird19]

Don't have an NCL Mastercard and just beginning to figure out if it is worth getting one which i would use primarily to pay for NCL cruises which would earns 3 points per $1.    Current promo for new cardholders offers 25,000 points.  

Still have to read the fine print for the card and understand what points can be used for - seems like recent comments in this thread indicate that NCL policy on how to apply points varies/changes and using points to book a cabin may preclude you from upgrading or being able to refare if new promos or sales come up. 

 I did a quick review of this LONG thread and didnt see anything that compared the benefit of getting points through using NCL credit card vs. paying for cruise with another credit card that offered 2% cash back on purchases or 3% on travel related costs (like COSTCO?).  

Are 10,000 points earned with the NCL credit card generally valued at $100 or does that vary?

Says points can be used for : stateroom upgrades, cruise discounts, onboard credits, car rentals, hotel stays, cash, gift cards   Do you get better value using points for upgrades than for getting OBC or other things?

 

[mscdivina2016]

3 hours ago, Thunderbird19 said:

Don't have an NCL Mastercard and just beginning to figure out if it is worth getting one which i would use primarily to pay for NCL cruises which would earns 3 points per $1.    Current promo for new cardholders offers 25,000 points.  

Still have to read the fine print for the card and understand what points can be used for - seems like recent comments in this thread indicate that NCL policy on how to apply points varies/changes and using points to book a cabin may preclude you from upgrading or being able to refare if new promos or sales come up. 

 I did a quick review of this LONG thread and didnt see anything that compared the benefit of getting points through using NCL credit card vs. paying for cruise with another credit card that offered 2% cash back on purchases or 3% on travel related costs (like COSTCO?).  

Are 10,000 points earned with the NCL credit card generally valued at $100 or does that vary?

Says points can be used for : stateroom upgrades, cruise discounts, onboard credits, car rentals, hotel stays, cash, gift cards   Do you get better value using points for upgrades than for getting OBC or other things?

 

I am a huge proponent of the card, but only for double meta upgrades on cruises longer than 7 days.

The value can be huge. I currently have a 2022 cruise that I saved over $5000 for 60,000 points.

Encore 21 day cruise.

I have saved over $10,000 on a sailing when they used to allow multiple cruises to be combined. No more.

[julig22]

8 hours ago, Thunderbird19 said:

Don't have an NCL Mastercard and just beginning to figure out if it is worth getting one which i would use primarily to pay for NCL cruises which would earns 3 points per $1.    Current promo for new cardholders offers 25,000 points.  

Still have to read the fine print for the card and understand what points can be used for - seems like recent comments in this thread indicate that NCL policy on how to apply points varies/changes and using points to book a cabin may preclude you from upgrading or being able to refare if new promos or sales come up. 

 I did a quick review of this LONG thread and didnt see anything that compared the benefit of getting points through using NCL credit card vs. paying for cruise with another credit card that offered 2% cash back on purchases or 3% on travel related costs (like COSTCO?).  

Are 10,000 points earned with the NCL credit card generally valued at $100 or does that vary?

Says points can be used for : stateroom upgrades, cruise discounts, onboard credits, car rentals, hotel stays, cash, gift cards   Do you get better value using points for upgrades than for getting OBC or other things?

 

30,000 is $300.  Depending on your cruise, a similar upgrade is significantly more - but you won't be able to pick your cabin.  If prices stay as they are, my potential upgrade from OV to balcony will be well over $2k for a cruise later next year.

You normally can't upgrade again after using points simply because of the value of the room.  To get an upgrade/refund if prices drop I believe they use what you originally paid, not the cost of your WP room.  You'd lose the value of the points and they aren't refundable unless the cruise is cancelled.

They also limit the number of upgrades, do if you wait too long, an upgrade might not be possible.

[Thunderbird19]

Thanks for taking time to comment.

….now off to research what a “ meta” upgrade is 😂

Edited December 20, 2021 by Thunderbird19