NCL phone customer service.

[denas]

I have to say that NCL phone service (wait times, etc) is really awful. I know people will say “Covid” but we cruised RCCL in April, have a Carnival booked this summer and another RCCL for Christmas and never had to wait for hours and hours to get in touch with someone at any of those lines.  Last Friday called the air center as we are 28 days out from departure and still no air. That time received the call back option and an hour later called back and told it should be fixed by Monday and if not call again. 
 

Called twice on Monday spending 90 minutes on hold each time and never got through. No call back option. 
 

called Tuesday exactly at 8:30 when they opened (tried at 8:27 but told they were still closed). Finally got through after 65 minutes. Very nice lady said “yep it’s screwed up let me call the air department (apparently the air department just re-routes to the reservations department- not sure why it is a separate number). Nice lady spent 105 minutes calling the internal air department number. Finally goth through to be told “yep, huge problem we will escalate and if you don’t have air in 72 hours call back”

 

While I understand airlines are a mess, what I don’t h understand  is why NCL is half-heartedly staffing so many different call/chat/reservation centers when they can’t provide the service for the product they sold. Literally don’t have this problem on other cruise lines because. I  just call one number, wait 15-20 minutes and get someone who can fix it. I’ve tried the chat (either can’t help or give you the wrong info) waited forever on hold, etc. Tried various numbers (there are soooo many numbers). We’ve cruise NCL 5-6 times. Don’t think I will cruise NCL again after all of this drama. 

[Funky Fusion FoodsJ]

4 minutes ago, denas said:

I have to say that NCL phone service (wait times, etc) is really awful. I know people will say “Covid” but we cruised RCCL in April, have a Carnival booked this summer and another RCCL for Christmas and never had to wait for hours and hours to get in touch with someone at any of those lines.  Last Friday called the air center as we are 28 days out from departure and still no air. That time received the call back option and an hour later called back and told it should be fixed by Monday and if not call again. 
 

Called twice on Monday spending 90 minutes on hold each time and never got through. No call back option. 
 

called Tuesday exactly at 8:30 when they opened (tried at 8:27 but told they were still closed). Finally got through after 65 minutes. Very nice lady said “yep it’s screwed up let me call the air department (apparently the air department just re-routes to the reservations department- not sure why it is a separate number). Nice lady spent 105 minutes calling the internal air department number. Finally goth through to be told “yep, huge problem we will escalate and if you don’t have air in 72 hours call back”

 

While I understand airlines are a mess, what I don’t h understand  is why NCL is half-heartedly staffing so many different call/chat/reservation centers when they can’t provide the service for the product they sold. Literally don’t have this problem on other cruise lines because. I  just call one number, wait 15-20 minutes and get someone who can fix it. I’ve tried the chat (either can’t help or give you the wrong info) waited forever on hold, etc. Tried various numbers (there are soooo many numbers). We’ve cruise NCL 5-6 times. Don’t think I will cruise NCL again after all of this drama. 

Go to the RCL chats and you see many, many of the same complaints about spending hours trying to fix problems.  Not just an NCL problem......

[Vvanalstine]

3 minutes ago, denas said:

I have to say that NCL phone service (wait times, etc) is really awful. I know people will say “Covid” but we cruised RCCL in April, have a Carnival booked this summer and another RCCL for Christmas and never had to wait for hours and hours to get in touch with someone at any of those lines.  Last Friday called the air center as we are 28 days out from departure and still no air. That time received the call back option and an hour later called back and told it should be fixed by Monday and if not call again. 
 

Called twice on Monday spending 90 minutes on hold each time and never got through. No call back option. 
 

called Tuesday exactly at 8:30 when they opened (tried at 8:27 but told they were still closed). Finally got through after 65 minutes. Very nice lady said “yep it’s screwed up let me call the air department (apparently the air department just re-routes to the reservations department- not sure why it is a separate number). Nice lady spent 105 minutes calling the internal air department number. Finally goth through to be told “yep, huge problem we will escalate and if you don’t have air in 72 hours call back”

 

While I understand airlines are a mess, what I don’t h understand  is why NCL is half-heartedly staffing so many different call/chat/reservation centers when they can’t provide the service for the product they sold. Literally don’t have this problem on other cruise lines because. I  just call one number, wait 15-20 minutes and get someone who can fix it. I’ve tried the chat (either can’t help or give you the wrong info) waited forever on hold, etc. Tried various numbers (there are soooo many numbers). We’ve cruise NCL 5-6 times. Don’t think I will cruise NCL again after all of this drama. 

I have waited on hold probably over 10 accumulated hours with NCL. I hear “I want to break free” in my sleep!

We had an awful time with our flights as well. We finally got our info 26 days before our flight. Our flight stuff had to be “escalated” as well. Not happy at all with what we ended up with, but that’s another story.

At this point, I’m not sure I would want to ever deal with NCL again either. I really hope the trip itself makes up for it!

I hope everything gets worked out for you soon!

[denas]

2 minutes ago, Vvanalstine said:

I have waited on hold probably over 10 accumulated hours with NCL. I hear “I want to break free” in my sleep!

We had an awful time with our flights as well. We finally got our info 26 days before our flight. Our flight stuff had to be “escalated” as well. Not happy at all with what we ended up with, but that’s another story.

At this point, I’m not sure I would want to ever deal with NCL again either. I really hope the trip itself makes up for it!

I hope everything gets worked out for you soon!

I know the flights may be terrible. Honestly the only reason I’m going on this cruise is the flights. I could have booked my own terrible flights to Venice (cheapest option was $1250, but cheapest option that allowed a carryon and the ability to reserve a seat was 1400) so spending 1388 for airfare was great. I only paid 1200 all inclusive for the cruise!  I just wish I didn’t have to spend hours on hold. Like disable the chat feature if they can’t do anything and put everyone on the call center. Or disable the airline call center and give me an email or chat just for that. But running multiple crappy customer service venues doesn’t seem great!

[SeaShark]

The comments on "being on hold" and "waiting for a call back" would seem to indicate that someone is simply calling the 1-800 number looking for help from whatever random agent the call is routed to.

 

What everyone should be doing is calling the person who booked the cruise (whether that be your Travel Agent or your NCL PCC) directly. When I call my PCC, if my call isn't answered, it is because the PCC is on another call and they promptly call me back when available. The TA or PCC is invested in the booking and really should be your POC to get anything done.

[denas]

3 minutes ago, SeaShark said:

The comments on "being on hold" and "waiting for a call back" would seem to indicate that someone is simply calling the 1-800 number looking for help from whatever random agent the call is routed to.

 

What everyone should be doing is calling the person who booked the cruise (whether that be your Travel Agent or your NCL PCC) directly. When I call my PCC, if my call isn't answered, it is because the PCC is on another call and they promptly call me back when available. The TA or PCC is invested in the booking and really should be your POC to get anything done.

Unfortunately I made the mistake of booking online. Like I literally do for every single cruise I’ve ever booked. So I don’t have a PCC. Biggest mistake I ever made. Didn’t realize that without a PCC I was going to spend hours and hours and hours on hold for simple things (like add a day early, upgrade my room,  Again, if NCL wants everyone to use a PCC they shouldn’t offer the option of booking online. I’ve never experienced this with any other cruise line. 

[SeaShark]

4 minutes ago, denas said:

Unfortunately I made the mistake of booking online. Like I literally do for every single cruise I’ve ever booked. So I don’t have a PCC. Biggest mistake I ever made. Didn’t realize that without a PCC I was going to spend hours and hours and hours on hold for simple things (like add a day early, upgrade my room,  Again, if NCL wants everyone to use a PCC they shouldn’t offer the option of booking online. I’ve never experienced this with any other cruise line. 

 

Yep...lesson learned I guess.

 

I would always recommend the use of a PCC or a TA. These people are trained and much more knowledgeable than you or I. It literally costs nothing to use their services, and when there are issues, they get to handle it instead of that task falling to you or I.

 

Self booking is really for those who simply want to book and expect no questions, issues, etc prior to the cruise. Not really something for most people, but it is an option for those who want to assume the responsibility of being their own booking agent.

[denas]

4 minutes ago, SeaShark said:

 

Yep...lesson learned I guess.

 

I would always recommend the use of a PCC or a TA. These people are trained and much more knowledgeable than you or I. It literally costs nothing to use their services, and when there are issues, they get to handle it instead of that task falling to you or I.

 

Self booking is really for those who simply want to book and expect no questions, issues, etc prior to the cruise. Not really something for most people, but it is an option for those who want to assume the responsibility of being their own booking agent.

Except in my previous NCL cruises or the other dozen cruises I have taken (to include four this year) this has absolutely never been an issue. Which is my point. NCL customer service is unacceptable. Should not take me calling for hours to simply add a day early or upgrade a room. I called Carnival a few weeks ago and literally 10 minutes on hold, got a representative, did a price adjustment (saved $1000) and changed an excursion. Easy. Called RCCL to change a room. Easy. Nothing at all like my experience on NCL. 

[SeaShark]

1 hour ago, denas said:

Except in my previous NCL cruises or the other dozen cruises I have taken (to include four this year) this has absolutely never been an issue. Which is my point. NCL customer service is unacceptable. Should not take me calling for hours to simply add a day early or upgrade a room. I called Carnival a few weeks ago and literally 10 minutes on hold, got a representative, did a price adjustment (saved $1000) and changed an excursion. Easy. Called RCCL to change a room. Easy. Nothing at all like my experience on NCL. 

 

Of course, "this has never happened before" is a logical fallacy. The fact that it hasn't happened before just means you were lucky. And I agree, you should have to call for hours...a simple call or email to your TA or PCC...who again, work for you for FREE...is all it takes.

[1975JEN]

I feel your pain, I spent two hours on hold the other day and never got to speak to someone who could answer my question!

 

Just as an FYI.  We just received our flight info this morning and we are 25 days out from embarkation and 21 days for our flights, if you count our deviation.

 

Good luck!

[deliver42]

I called last week for a price adjustment on an Alaska cruise, and it took 5 minutes to talk to someone and get a $400.00 reduction.

[Vvanalstine]

8 hours ago, SeaShark said:

The comments on "being on hold" and "waiting for a call back" would seem to indicate that someone is simply calling the 1-800 number looking for help from whatever random agent the call is routed to.

 

What everyone should be doing is calling the person who booked the cruise (whether that be your Travel Agent or your NCL PCC) directly. When I call my PCC, if my call isn't answered, it is because the PCC is on another call and they promptly call me back when available. The TA or PCC is invested in the booking and really should be your POC to get anything done.

Unfortunately even some PCCs can be rather lacking in the customer service department. I actually made another thread inquiring if all were as bad as mine. Never returned a message or chat request. I asked multiple times for a new one, but that never went anywhere. 

With the exception of a Disney cruise once, I have never dealt with a cruise line and this has honestly been really crappy thus far.

[SeaShark]

41 minutes ago, Vvanalstine said:

Unfortunately even some PCCs can be rather lacking in the customer service department. I actually made another thread inquiring if all were as bad as mine. Never returned a message or chat request. I asked multiple times for a new one, but that never went anywhere. 

With the exception of a Disney cruise once, I have never dealt with a cruise line and this has honestly been really crappy thus far.

 

Are you sure you're talking to a PCC and not a reservation agent? PCCs aren't available through the chat feature. When you have a PCC you will have both their direct email address and their direct dial phone number. You don't need to call the 1-800 number or use chat to get your PCC.

[Vvanalstine]

18 hours ago, SeaShark said:

 

Are you sure you're talking to a PCC and not a reservation agent? PCCs aren't available through the chat feature. When you have a PCC you will have both their direct email address and their direct dial phone number. You don't need to call the 1-800 number or use chat to get your PCC.

Yes, by chat I meant when a representative tried to contact her through a chat feature. Every time I have called they have insisted I use my PCC and they try to contact her through their chat. She once responded she would get back to me  (never did) and the other times no one has been able to reach her as her voicemail is full.

[Nanny Bear]

We feel your pain.  We did check in & selected check in time of 10:00 from “drop down” options.  Today eDocs show boarding time of noon.  Tried Chat, # 68 in queue. After waiting for 15 minutes, 10 had cleared in the queue. Decided  we needed to call NCL for clarification since we were already checked in.  Two hours on hold & then rep could not answer or help with anything. She put us on hold 5 more times to ask someone else our questions. She was very sweet but this is not customer focused service from NCL . After 3 hours,  we hope everything is set but are skeptical & will be amazed if things go smoothly.   We have 5 cabins for family & have been trying to do this cruise for 2 years. They have had our $$ so no choice to change cruise lines. This will be last with NCL. 

[LGW59]

23 minutes ago, Nanny Bear said:

We feel your pain.  We did check in & selected check in time of 10:00 from “drop down” options.  Today eDocs show boarding time of noon.  Tried Chat, # 68 in queue. After waiting for 15 minutes, 10 had cleared in the queue. Decided  we needed to call NCL for clarification since we were already checked in.  Two hours on hold & then rep could not answer or help with anything. She put us on hold 5 more times to ask someone else our questions. She was very sweet but this is not customer focused service from NCL . After 3 hours,  we hope everything is set but are skeptical & will be amazed if things go smoothly.   We have 5 cabins for family & have been trying to do this cruise for 2 years. They have had our $$ so no choice to change cruise lines. This will be last with NCL. 

This will be last with NCL. OK but before you commit to no more NCL cruising perhaps you should go read posts re this subject on Celebrity, Royal, Carnival et al, you'll be having a lot of lasts...

[SeaShark]

39 minutes ago, Nanny Bear said:

We feel your pain.  We did check in & selected check in time of 10:00 from “drop down” options.  Today eDocs show boarding time of noon.  Tried Chat, # 68 in queue. After waiting for 15 minutes, 10 had cleared in the queue. Decided  we needed to call NCL for clarification since we were already checked in.  Two hours on hold & then rep could not answer or help with anything. She put us on hold 5 more times to ask someone else our questions. She was very sweet but this is not customer focused service from NCL . After 3 hours,  we hope everything is set but are skeptical & will be amazed if things go smoothly.   We have 5 cabins for family & have been trying to do this cruise for 2 years. They have had our $$ so no choice to change cruise lines. This will be last with NCL. 

 

You might give some consideration to the difference between the time you check in at the pier (check in time) vs the time you can actually walk onto the ship (boarding time). A boarding time of noon is perfectly normal.

[BirdTravels]

58 minutes ago, Nanny Bear said:

We feel your pain.  We did check in & selected check in time of 10:00 from “drop down” options.  Today eDocs show boarding time of noon.  Tried Chat, # 68 in queue. After waiting for 15 minutes, 10 had cleared in the queue. Decided  we needed to call NCL for clarification since we were already checked in.  Two hours on hold & then rep could not answer or help with anything. She put us on hold 5 more times to ask someone else our questions. She was very sweet but this is not customer focused service from NCL . After 3 hours,  we hope everything is set but are skeptical & will be amazed if things go smoothly.   We have 5 cabins for family & have been trying to do this cruise for 2 years. They have had our $$ so no choice to change cruise lines. This will be last with NCL. 

ALL edocs say boarding at noon. Nothing wrong with that. You are selecting a time to arrive at the port. NOT a boarding time. 
 

You have a specific time to check in at the pier. That time should appear on your edocs. You still have to checkin at the pier. 
 

Once you arrive at the pier, you have to go through security check. You have to check in with the port personnel, get your documents checked, get your passport scanned,  and get your room keys. You have to pass one last health screen. That whole process can take up to an hour. 
 

Suites boarding usually starts around 11:00. Priority boarding around 11:15. And general boarding around 11:30. Show up at your selected time. 

Edited June 16, 2022 by BirdTravels

[Phanatic08]

My wife is a travel agent. The wait times on every line is terrible. I have to  listen to hold 

music for hours which is not pleasant.  She loves her clients but it is very frustrating for her. Also she gets different answers depending who she talks to

it is obvious their agents are relatively new and not trained very well 

2 hour wait is normal 

she loves her job and clients so she deals with it

Good 

luck.  We love cruising 

 

 

[ontheweb]

14 hours ago, Phanatic08 said:

My wife is a travel agent. The wait times on every line is terrible. I have to  listen to hold 

music for hours which is not pleasant.  She loves her clients but it is very frustrating for her. Also she gets different answers depending who she talks to

it is obvious their agents are relatively new and not trained very well 

2 hour wait is normal 

she loves her job and clients so she deals with it

Good 

luck.  We love cruising 

 

 

I truly feel for the plight of TAs. First they had no income as no ships were sailing. And at the same time they had a lot of work doing cancellations. Now they have to deal with the horrible customer service of the various cruise lines.

 

Here is hoping things improve for them.

[Jac199]

On 6/15/2022 at 10:02 AM, SeaShark said:

The comments on "being on hold" and "waiting for a call back" would seem to indicate that someone is simply calling the 1-800 number looking for help from whatever random agent the call is routed to.

 

What everyone should be doing is calling the person who booked the cruise (whether that be your Travel Agent or your NCL PCC) directly. When I call my PCC, if my call isn't answered, it is because the PCC is on another call and they promptly call me back when available. The TA or PCC is invested in the booking and really should be your POC to get anything done.

I have been attempting to change my booking from a balcony to a spa club balcony since last Friday. My TA is experienced and extremely responsive but she has been having problems with NCL too. She spoke to 7 different people and twice NCL booked the wrong category. It takes days for them to get back to her. I finally got the correct category booked today.

[SeaShark]

17 hours ago, Jac199 said:

I have been attempting to change my booking from a balcony to a spa club balcony since last Friday. My TA is experienced and extremely responsive but she has been having problems with NCL too. She spoke to 7 different people and twice NCL booked the wrong category. It takes days for them to get back to her. I finally got the correct category booked today.

 

Sounds like your TA has a lot of excuses. However, as long as you are happy...

 

All I know is that I don't have these issues. Which begs the question: why?

[denas]

On 6/16/2022 at 4:01 PM, LGW59 said:

This will be last with NCL. OK but before you commit to no more NCL cruising perhaps you should go read posts re this subject on Celebrity, Royal, Carnival et al, you'll be having a lot of lasts...

Maybe I’ve just been lucky but we did Harmony of the Seas in April, have Carnival to Alaska booked in July and Oasis booked over Christmas and I have not encountered any of these problems. I admit I was complaining about Royal (because until this experience I’ve always thought Royal was a pain and the only reason we did Harmony is it was a fourth reschedule if a cruise originally booked in 2018 for 2029). but the 20 minutes I spent on hold every time I called them because their website sucks. Is absolutely nothing like my NCL experience. Wee decided to do Oasis not Breakaway over Christmas.  

[tombli]

I have two back-to-back cruises scheduled in October out of New York. Scheduled them with help of my PCC and now trying to set up hotel between them. Have waited over an hour on the "hotel & transfers" number twice with no answer, also asked to be called back.  My PCC isn't the best. If I leave him a voicemail he never calls back. If I manage to catch him live he refers me to the other numbers for hotel reservations. I DID manage to get hold of him once to rebook my Prima cruise at a lower fare and save $600 total. But that seems all he is willing to help with.  I will probably end up booking hotel myself like I did pre-cruise. Transfers in New York don't appear to save much money over two people in a cab, so "convenience" is probably the only benefit. 

 

And yeah, I'm so tired of "I want to break free..." that I want to BREAK FREE.

Edited June 19, 2022 by tombli

[Jac199]

23 hours ago, SeaShark said:

 

Sounds like your TA has a lot of excuses. However, as long as you are happy...

 

All I know is that I don't have these issues. Which begs the question: why?

She is actually a great agent and responds immediately to my emails. The first time she tried to contact NCL, the hold was over 6 hours. The NCL rep told her all spa club balconies were sold out. She had to go back to them 3 times to get a straight answer.