Extreme Last Minute Bookings (24-48hr in advance)

[SilentHill]

Does anyone have any experience with extreme last minute bookings and NCL? Are there any pitfalls I should know about or any positives that I should know about?

 

I'm thinking about going on the Oct 12th Sailing of the Breakaway, and there is a ton of cabins available, so I'm not worried about going cabinless, and will probably book a GTY anyway.

 

Thanks in advance!

Edited October 4, 2014 by SilentHill

[ECCruise]

Does anyone have any experience with extreme last minute bookings and NCL? Are there any pitfalls I should know about or any positives that I should know about?

 

I'm thinking about going on the Oct 12th Sailing of the Breakaway, and there is a ton of cabins available, so I'm not worried about going cabinless, and will probably book a GTY anyway.

 

Thanks in advance!

 

I am pretty sure that due to security regulations, the latest you can book is 96 hours prior to departure. The days of showing up a day or two before at the port and booking a crazy good deal are over.

[SilentHill]

I am pretty sure that due to security regulations, the latest you can book is 96 hours prior to departure. The days of showing up a day or two before at the port and booking a crazy good deal are over.

 

I'm pretty sure that is incorrect, based on the replies in this thread: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1768204

[cruisecrazy82]

Today I just booked 2 cabins for customers of mine leaving on the Epic tomorrow, so it definitely can be done!

[russianmom]

I think Biker@Sea does that frequently for Dawn Boston -> Bermuda. He's never reported any issues

[cruisecritiquer]

You can book a cabin online the day before sailing but not the day of sailing. I'm not sure what you can do over the phone on the day of sailing.

[HowardK]

In general, if there are really good discounts 14 days out, is it assumed they will likely remain 4-5 days out? This is for upgrading purposes. Would a sharp drop further out than a week be a good indicator that demand is not expected to increase between days 7-14 days out?

[cruisecritiquer]

In general, if there are really good discounts 14 days out, is it assumed they will likely remain 4-5 days out? This is for upgrading purposes. Would a sharp drop further out than a week be a good indicator that demand is not expected to increase between days 7-14 days out?

 

I've seen it go both ways. Plus keep in mind you have up sell fairies working behind the scenes to move people already booked, up in categories so if you wait too long you may not get what you want. Inside is almost always the last category to sell out because of Patricia and Jessica (the upsell fairies) working hard to fill higher categories.

Edited October 5, 2014 by cruisecritiquer

[biker@sea]

Does anyone have any experience with extreme last minute bookings and NCL? Are there any pitfalls I should know about or any positives that I should know about?

 

I'm thinking about going on the Oct 12th Sailing of the Breakaway, and there is a ton of cabins available, so I'm not worried about going cabinless, and will probably book a GTY anyway.

 

Thanks in advance!

 

Last minute bookings are mostly GTY's .

 

I have booked 12-hr's before boarding with only very minor problems .

 

If you have not received a cabin number before you get to the terminal you must have the stevedores call and get one before you can enter the terminal .

 

Your welcome aboard latitudes packet ,chocolates and champaign are usually late or you have to go see the onboard cruise consultant to get your perks .

 

Prices can be fantastic ! I just came back from a 7 day Canada cruise we booked a day and a half before sailing @ $199 p.p. GTY balcony . the down side was the returning B2B leg was @ $599 p.p. for an inside GTY.

 

You can get Bad cabins like inside cabin Dawn 8667 directly over Spinnakers dance floor that thumped till the wee hours of the morning . :eek We also receive an "upgrade " to the worst cat. OX cabin on the ship once.:(:(It is Dawn cabin 8562 next to the " hydraulic room " for the life boat . Pumps come on and off often , crew working outside your window most every day , cylinders smashing the wall at night Etc.

 

You just have to make the best if it ,after all your on a cruise .:D:D

[SilentHill]

Last minute bookings are mostly GTY's .

 

I have booked 12-hr's before boarding with only very minor problems .

 

If you have not received a cabin number before you get to the terminal you must have the stevedores call and get one before you can enter the terminal .

 

Your welcome aboard latitudes packet ,chocolates and champaign are usually late or you have to go see the onboard cruise consultant to get your perks .

 

Prices can be fantastic ! I just came back from a 7 day Canada cruise we booked a day and a half before sailing @ $199 p.p. GTY balcony . the down side was the returning B2B leg was @ $599 p.p. for an inside GTY.

 

You can get Bad cabins like inside cabin Dawn 8667 directly over Spinnakers dance floor that thumped till the wee hours of the morning . :eek We also receive an "upgrade " to the worst cat. OX cabin on the ship once.:(:(It is Dawn cabin 8562 next to the " hydraulic room " for the life boat . Pumps come on and off often , crew working outside your window most every day , cylinders smashing the wall at night Etc.

 

You just have to make the best if it ,after all your on a cruise .:D:D

 

Have you ever booked last minute on a cruise where there are a ton of cabins available? I'm trying to decide if I should book sooner for a chance at the upgrade fairy which seems unlikely since I book with a TA, or if I should just wait until a couple days before and book my GTY and hope for nice assignment.

[biker@sea]

Have you ever booked last minute on a cruise where there are a ton of cabins available? I'm trying to decide if I should book sooner for a chance at the upgrade fairy which seems unlikely since I book with a TA, or if I should just wait until a couple days before and book my GTY and hope for nice assignment.

 

NCL almost always sails full !

 

A good P.C.C. / TA will call you in the last 2 0r 3 days if you tell them you can sail any time . :D Mine has call 3 times with deal's .

 

I do see a lot that sell out at a moments notice so I miss out on a fare deal .:(

[HowardK]

My sailing is now offering one of the 10cash back promotions where there would be a $100 OBC. Would I be able to get this (given I have an existing booking?) or would I just be paying for the difference between the current and what I paid (which is still nice in itself). Edit: I just checked and the 10csh is only for new bookings - they said there were around 40 balconies left so I might just pay today later

Edited October 5, 2014 by HowardK

[cruiser1955a]

In mid August I noticed an aft penthouse suite available with less than 48 hrs before cruise (it was late Weds, for Friday sailing). I called our Cruise Consultant and was told that it was sold. He booked us a gty mini-suite at 4:00pm Weds. When we got on line at 5:00pm to do our check-in, they'd assigned us the aft penthouse suite that we'd originally wanted. We were pleasantly SHOCKED.

 

I think it's just something that nobody can advise you about. It's hit or miss. You never know what can happen when you book gty. But, a last minute booking of a specific cabin should be exactly the same as booking months ahead.

[cruisingcouple2010]

Gotta love people making statements like " Im pretty sure .....blah blah blah" That means you need to stay out of the casino lol.

To add my 2cents to the questions we have booked several cruises 24=48 hours before and never had a issue nor where we denied due to security issues ;)