Gem Upsell Advice

[beachys]

Thermal suite was VERY relaxing. Loved it. But keep in mind it is directly below Spinnaker and you hear all the bass and noise from that.

[mrrobby]

Wow, thanks for everybody's thoughtful advice!

I called the upgrade line yesterday afternoon and the price was still the same, and they said they wouldn't accept counter offers, so I think I'll stick with my balcony for now.

Has anyone used the thermal suite before? Sounds like a nice touch, but not sure how I feel about the $199 PP.

 

Hey Mark, I was one of the people Vinegar Joe mentioned about having a suite on deck 10 aft.

 

This is something you should know. I cruise critic member on our cruise got a Penthouse Suite on deck 8 for 500 per person or a $1000 total about 4 or 5 days before the cruise started. That is a fair price for the Upsell. I would not pay more than that for a balcony to a Penthouse Aft suite.

 

You may have to wait it out, but don't give up hope. You have a very good chance imho. Call every couple of days. The suite life is very sweet.

 

Have a great cruise

Rob

[Linda the Book Lover]

I would wait until NCL is ready to lower the price. I called right before closing years ago and I was able to get the price I wanted. Now we are addicted to aft suites and we really love the end wrap suites because of the extra room - 10th deck if possible. We now book about year out for a great price. My retired sailor loves watching the wake with me.

[NUPDCOP]

Let me start off by saying I have found the most useful information, thoughtful reviews, and best advice here on Cruise Critic! I am new to cruising (sort of, I'm in the Navy, so I have my fair share of time at sea) and I have booked my first cruise on the Gem sailing March 12th. I booked a balcony room, (Room 9054) with the UDP, and 5 specialty dining meals for my wife and I.

 

This will be the first real vacation since my wife and I have been on since our honeymoon, which was only about 3 days long since I ended up in the hospital. lol.

 

On cruise critic, I have learned about this famous "upsell line". Which is awesome. I called today, and was offered an aft facing penthouse suite for $2000 more, or The Haven Penthouse for $3000. Given there's still a bit more time till my cruise, I think I can hold out a little longer and get a little better deal based off of what I've read, but I'm curious, should I stick with what I have, or go all out? I think NCL really doesn't do their self any favors with their website. Everything is really broad. I'm kinda curious of what booking a Suite or The haven entitles me too, I know the Haven has the fancy courtyard, and the Butler, but what is special about the suite that make's it so much more with the exception of it being a little bigger?

 

On everybody's past experiences, did you find the upgraded rooms worth the expense? I don't want to sound like money isn't an issue, it is, but I would love to surprise my wife with the best of the best, provided it's worth it. After all, we haven't gone on a serious vacation in 3 years.

 

And on a tangent, how fast does the parking garage fill up at the Manhattan Pier? I hear lots of great parking advice, but I have to be back at work the next day (I'm stationed about a 2.5 hour drive away) so I'd like to park in the garage at the pier for convenience. Just curious as to how early I should show up, my arrival time is scheduled for 11AM, and we get underway at 4PM.

 

I appreciate all of your advice, and I'm looking forward to providing a thoughtful review when we're back!

 

Just for fun I once called the "upsell" department and asked for "down-sell":cool:

[Paddy41]

Could you please tell me how to find the number for the upsell line for NCL?

Thanks!

 

Upsell for NCL: 1-800-625-4309

[mark10197]

Well, I called the upsell department today. For $500 PP, I got into an aft suite on deck 10! I figured it was worth it, haven't heard of NCL offering a much better price.

 

And thanks to cruise critic, I knew Deck 10 aft has the best balconies, so I made sure it was deck 10!

 

Thank's for everybody's help!!

[Linda the Book Lover]

Enjoy your aft suite...you will certainly be hooked now:D

[Vinegarjoe10]

Well, I called the upsell department today. For $500 PP, I got into an aft suite on deck 10! I figured it was worth it, haven't heard of NCL offering a much better price.

 

And thanks to cruise critic, I knew Deck 10 aft has the best balconies, so I made sure it was deck 10!

 

Thank's for everybody's help!!

 

 

Mark10197,

 

Enjoy that Aft Suite. In January we were in 10166.

 

Ryan was the cabin steward for all the deck 10 Aft Suites during our cruise. He mentioned to us that he was leaving to go to the Breakaway. If he is still onboard, he will take very good care of your cabin.

 

During our cruise, Cruise Critic members were in 3 of the 4 Aft Suites and 1 of the 2 Aft Balconies on deck 10. We all met in our cruise Roll Call here on CC, and it was nice to know almost all of our neighbors.

 

Although it was a balmy 26 degrees during our sailaway, we hung out on our balcony because the views of lower Manhattan, the Statue of Liberty and the Verrazano Bridge were great.

 

Take advantage of the ability to dine within your suite. The butler will bring you meals from any restaurant, and as you have the specialty dining package, you can ask the butler to bring you the menus from any of the specialty restaurants and you can order and have the meal in your room or eat out on your balcony once you get into warmer waters if you wish.

 

Also, if you haven't already done so, you can call the pre-concierge phone number ( 855-625-4283, M- F, 0900-1900 hrs) and make dinner reservations. You can also put in special requests, i.e., if you want the mini-fridge emptied prior to boarding, if you have a preference for a specific type of pillows to be in your suite, they will put in the requests for you.

 

You can now also take advantage of the Concierge on board. (During our sailing it was Francesco) He can assist you with making dining reservations, and he will deliver priority tender tickets to your suite if during any of your port visits the Gem runs tender operations.

 

If you wait until you are on-board he can also make any dinner reservations that you may want ( specialty and non-specialty).

 

As suite guests you can now have breakfast and lunch daily at Cagney's. The Concierge usually is at the entrance to Cagney's during lunch time, so if you have any requests that is where you can find him or you can call him directly, his extension will be provided to you when you check in.

 

On embarkation day, make sure you let one of the reps know you are a suite guest, as after you get checked in you will wait to board in the (for lack of a better term) VIP area, and then you will be escorted onboard by either the Concierge or one of the ship staff.

 

If you do want to do the walk off when the Gem gets back to NYC, The Concierge will meet you at the Stardust theater at 0745 hours and walk you off with the first group and you will be on your way by 0830- 0900 hours.

 

Enjoy your cruise !

 

Regards,

 

Vinegarjoe