Norwegian Cruise Line Pulled One on Guests

I just booked a 7 day cruise with NCL. It was very last minute, as I decided to tack it on to my current Europe travels. All I was looking for was a relatively cheap cruise that fit into my schedule, and this one did, so I picked it, not really caring about itinerary, etc. As it happens, it is from Barcelona to Lisbon, and there will be several ports I have never been to before (Palma de Mallorca, Gibraltar, Tangier).

This will be my first NCL cruise. It is one of the older ships in their fleet, but I don't really care about that. I tend to like older ships anyway - I'm not one for go kart tracks, aqua parks, rollercoasters etc. However, I am aware that NCL has a reputation for canceling ports, more than most lines it seems. I have the Free at Sea which means I got $50 USD off of one excursion as I understand it. Surprisingly I found the excursions quite expensive, but I only plan on going on two. Rest of the ports I plan on exploring on my own.

In any case, I don't really have any expectations and am just going to enjoy it for what it is.

Whenever possible I book excursions independent of the wildy overpriced cruise line costs.

We have taken many private shore excursions with this company and never been disappointed.
https://www.shoreexcursionsgroup.com

They changed their policy. I understand you are unhappy with the change. I don’t consider their actions fraudulent. Cruise lines pulling back on some of their frequent customer perks is common across the industry.

I think bostonphil's complaint is that Norwegian Cruise Lines did this without notifying guests of the change.

Hello Carol NR and Cala

I do not consider what NCL did fraudulent but I am just unhappy that they did it.

I think they should have notified guests but still I would have been unhappy.

I would not have known that NCL changed their policy but that another guest posted on a facebook page.

Otherwise I would have found out when I went to book my excursions.

Even if NCL notified me, I would be unhappy as are other guests.

No surprise there. Companies are forever changing their programs and seldom does the customer receive any benefit. Just think how often airline loyalty programs change making frequent flier miles worth less.

Hello GregW

I have taken 10 cruises with Norwegian.

NCL offers great itineraries which attracts but yes, they do cancel ports, sometimes several. And they also change ports sometimes after final payments and sometimes just before sailing. It has been suggested that Norwegian posts great itineraries to attract and then changes ports after final payment,

My next cruise is September 2027. I will be sailing Iceland, Norway, Amsterdam and Bruges. Norwegian has had to substitute Bergen giving us Maloy instead which has made some guests very unhappy a year before we even sail. Bergen no longer accepts large ships. I am sailing on a. very large ship.

I have sailed the smaller ships which I now prefer. I do not need what I call "the gimmicks" ie the water park, the laser guns, the racing cars, etc. I like a quieter ship with an older crowd.

I have done a Mediterranean sailing and it is a great sailing. I sailed from Southampton to Lisbon and another time from Barcelona round trip. Wonderful, beautiful and interesting ports.

But be prepared for maybe rough weather. On one of them, we had quite a storm in Spain and had to skip the port. it was actually two storms butting heads. It was rough and we were up all night dealing with the storm. The next day, we were sliding all over the Garden Cafe and we were giggling because we were sleep deprived.

Excursions are often shockingly expensive so I sometimes have to do my own thing but that presents challenges due to age and mobility issues. I am very bad with maps and directions. Level 2 excursions are becoming too difficult for me and Level 1 do not offer me enough.

I may be at the end of my cruising life but not my traveling life.

I would love to read a TR when your cruise is over. If you have any questions about your ship or Norwegian or any of your ports, I am available. Maybe I can help but maybe not.

hello geovagriffin

I have heard many many good things about Shore Excursions but I have been faithful to NCL because of their policy that they will hold the ship if your excursion should be late.

And the $50 off along with 10% additional off because I am now platinum with NCL is a help. My budget has been tight but I am able to loosen up a bit more presently.

I want to use my $50 off amenity.

BigMike

NCL excursions are sometimes shockingly expensive.

If I had booked an excursion every port on my Japanese cruise with NCL, the cost of the excursions would have been more than the cost of the cruise.

My next cruise is Iceland, Norway, Amsterdam and Bruges. Iceland and Norway excursions are once again very expensive making Amsterdam and Bruges look "cheap". However in Iceland and Norway, it is easy to just walk off the ship and do your own thing.

Hi jaimee ....

Thanks for your input and you are right.

I have a lot of miles with both Delta and American but not enough for an international flight. Not even close. I may try miles and cash next time.

But two months ago apparently Norwegian changed their policy without
notifying guests. You only find out when you try to purchase some of
the excursions.

It is quite likely that somewhere in your original reservation materials there is a blanket statement by the company that says the policies for excursions, itineraries, etc. can change at any time. That's their notice to you. Just because you have future credits does not mean you owe them your future business.

Amsterdam - like many cruise lines NCL are docking at Ijmuiden to avoid paying the Amsterdam tourist tax and also avoid paying to use the canal.
However there is a public bus every 15 minutes from Ijmuiden direct to Harleem.

Likewise Bruges from Zeebrugge- all cruise lines make it look harder than it is to get there independently taking you to a distant station. Admittedly there are also train capacity problems.
But you can walk from the ship to Zeebrugge station (or very short taxi ride) for direct trains to Bruges.

If I docked at Zeebrugge I would be far more interested in exploring the Kustraam route for the day- the longest tramway in the world. Lots of interesting places on its route to visit. Not that mainstream cruise lines will even mention it.

Norwegian Cruise Line didn't pull anything. Your title is misleading. You keep complaining about the company, yet you keep giving them your business. They've sucked you in with their so-called loyalty program.

Every company I do business with changes their terms and policies constantly. NCL is no different.

I hope you can look past this and enjoy your cruise next year.

Thank you jeanm

Actually AI completed the title. I began the title by typing in Norwegian Cruise Line and "pulled one on guests" was one of two choices that popped up. I was not required to use either one but I felt that pulled one on guests was right for how I was feeling.

You are correct. I have been sucked in by their rewards program. Probably should have considered other cruise lines a couple of cruises back.

I want to or even need to stick with this one because I purchased one Cruise Next coupon which cost me $250 out of pocket and then I was given a Future Cruise Certificate for over $600 because my previous cruise went down so much after final booking.

I may be at the end of cruising due to age and mobility issues but if there is to be another cruise, I might consider looking at other companies.

I went to Paris for one week in May, no cruise just land, and will be going to London one week in October, no cruise just land. Really enjoyed my week in Paris but I also miss being on a cruise.

Thank you CL

yes, I have sailed NCL many times and am fully aware of the contract that says anything can change at any moment even while we are on the cruise and they owe us nothing.

In fact, they could go to no ports the entire cruise and too bad for the guest. You could spend a whole week going round and round in the ocean without porting.

After this next cruise, if I decide to cruise again, I may compare NCL to other cruise lines.

isn31c

It is best for me to stick with an excursion even if it is nothing more than transport.

Thank you for the information.

We don't sail much anymore after doing 21 ocean cruises.
Our favorite was Celebrity we also did ROYAL CARIBBEAN and NCL.
Toward the end of our cruising, we always compared these three, since we had loyalty benefits for each. ROYAL CARIBBEAN seemed to always come up with the best price.

NCL was great with its entertainment, but we hated their very expensive alcoholic drinks plans.
I recently wanted to book a Western Caribbean cruise from Tampa to see some ancient Mayan sites.
ROYAL CARIBBEAN had the best deal by far. They still provide us with 4 alcoholic drinks a day which is plenty for us. Celebrity had modified its loyalty program to not provide the same. We had 12 Celebrity cruises and 7 on NCL.

Also, Royal's entertainment is as good as NCL.
Celebrity was best for dining.

geovagriffith

I have heard that Celebrity and Princess are a step above Norwegian but that Royal Caribbean is about equal to Norwegian.

I went to Cruise Critic and searched for a cruise equal to the one that I am on and the only result was the one that I am on.

I have friends who sailed many times and stuck with RC. They had very good experiences with RC

wondering if I should change the title since some members do not seem to care for it.

I was going to title this discussion "Norwegian Cruise Line has made me unhappy Again!" until Ai gave me "pulled one on guests"

Consider what happens if you dont pay the overinflated price of a Bruges shore excursion. Instead you take a taxi for the 6 km ride to the train station. Then a 15 minute ride on the next train to Bruges ( hourly. €6). The train station is only a 10 minute walk to the bus plaza where your cruise excursion bus would drop off. Reverse that to return to the ship. Even with the taxis, I will bet it's a whole lot cheaper than that excursion. And the risk of being left behind is awfully low, providing you have a functioning time piece. Who knows, you might find a fellow passenger or 2 to share the taxi.

NCL has always been notorious for nickel and diming. This is only the latest example. If you need to change the title, how about a less pejorative " NCL changed excursion policy"

I support title change. It is fine for you to express your displeasure with the way this was handled. No so great to make it sound like the cruise line was purposefully defrauding you.