Norwegian

[Ondine]

OK so Princess have decided that Melbourne doesn't exist after December 2024.  However I now see that Norwegian Sun is scheduled to do 2 B2B (Melb to Auck and Auck to Melb) cruises after the Diamond Princess disappears over the horizon to Brisbane in December 24. Plus another Melb to Auck followed by Auck to Bali.  They have just published the return Auck to Melb itineraries.

Can someone enlighten me on Norwegian.  I know the Sun is an older ship and not all that large, 1900 passengers.  

Does Norwegian discount or have many sales?  What are the pitfalls?  It is all new to me only having looked into ships which have homeported Melbourne in the past.  Would like peoples thoughts and opinions. 

I just want to meander down to Port Melbourne get on a ship and return home same way.  Not interested in flying and hotels.  Too old and lazy.

[MicCanberra]

We enjoy NCL immensely.

It has Freestyle dining and no traditional dining but you can always book the same table and time each night if you wish.

There are several dining options outside of the MDR, some are free, some are  paid for specialty dining.

If you get the free at sea package that is usually offered, it is good value, drinks, specially dining, wifi, gratuities, obc and shore excursion money.

The entertainment is good and on the larger ships, it is great as they have full on broadway shows.

It also tends to be a younger crowd than Princess.

I would rank NCL better than Royal, on par with Princess and lower than X in terms 9f overall cruise experience.

[mum and son]

50 minutes ago, Ondine said:

Can someone enlighten me on Norwegian.  I know the Sun is an older ship and not all that large, 1900 passengers.  

Does Norwegian discount or have many sales?  What are the pitfalls?  It is all new to me only having looked into ships which have homeported Melbourne in the past.  Would like peoples thoughts and opinions. 

I've only sailed NCL once and it was a long time ago, but I enjoyed it. I think you'll find a lot more upselling and additional charges on top of the basics. I found the general quality of the "free" dining options to be a little lower than Princess, but that's subjective. There was a good selection of specialty restaurants.

The ship was definitely more lively than Princess as it probably attracts a slightly younger demographic, and more families. The bars were more fun at night.

The Free At Sea deals make it a very easy way to enjoy a holiday.

[Cruisers47]

1 hour ago, mum and son said:

I've only sailed NCL once and it was a long time ago, but I enjoyed it. I think you'll find a lot more upselling and additional charges on top of the basics. I found the general quality of the "free" dining options to be a little lower than Princess, but that's subjective. There was a good selection of specialty restaurants.

The ship was definitely more lively than Princess as it probably attracts a slightly younger demographic, and more families. The bars were more fun at night.

The Free At Sea deals make it a very easy way to enjoy a holiday.

Don’t know if is correct but read recently that although the Drinks are included you have the gratuities on top for each drink?   Can anybody advise?
 

eileen

[mum and son]

3 minutes ago, Cruisers47 said:

Don’t know if is correct but read recently that although the Drinks are included you have the gratuities on top for each drink?   Can anybody advise?
 

eileen

I have not cruised yet with the Free At Sea deal, but I understand that you do need to pay the gratuity on top for all "free" drinks. Someone here will chime in with the absolute correct info in case I've got it wrong.

[MicCanberra]

43 minutes ago, Cruisers47 said:

Don’t know if is correct but read recently that although the Drinks are included you have the gratuities on top for each drink?   Can anybody advise?
 

eileen

Grats have been included when we have done these  with the free at sea.

[yarramar]

I have sailed all 3 but not from Australia

In order of preference RCCL, Princess and a long way 3rd NCL. This is just my experience but I found that NCL continuously tries to "nickle and dime" their passengers

[arxcards]

We have enjoyed a couple of cruises on NCL. One attraction was that we often travel with a group of friends, and NCL handle groups well. We also liked the pub lunches at O'Sheehan's, with grilled sandwiches, chips, on-tap beers and sports screens. I don't know if that is a feature of Sun though.

 

Rather than seeing discounts, you are more likely to see bonus inclusions when they have a promotion - internet, drinks package, grats included, specialty dining, shore tour credits etc.

[arxcards]

3 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

Grats have been included when we have done these  with the free at sea.

Same here. The T&C's are a bit jumbled, but I can't see anything around the drinks package that would suggest that you are paying overs.

 

NCL does do something weird with local taxes though. It started on cruises in the EU where certain countries charge VAT, many of the cruise ships add that charge as required by law. On our NCL Aussie cruise, we were charged GST on top of our drinks while we were in port in Sydney. I don't know if that was a tangled-up arrangement, or if they are actually liable for the tax. This is now around 5 years ago, and I have no idea on what the T&C's of today are.

[MicCanberra]

Some ports have weird rules for ship's services. While in Australian and most other ports, there is no shops, casino,  etc. However in Greek ports, and a few other countries,  they cannot sell drinks either, which means if you haven't got a package, you cannot get any drinks, or buy a package while docked.

[Ondine]

14 hours ago, mum and son said:

I have not cruised yet with the Free At Sea deal, but I understand that you do need to pay the gratuity on top for all "free" drinks. Someone here will chime in with the absolute correct info in case I've got it wrong.

 

The current deal does not seem to include grats.  I see on their webpage that grats are US$20 per standard ocean/balcony cabin and more for the suites etc.  A bit pricey but you just have to allow for these on some lines.  I don't drink and couldn't care about internet so I might just have to wait for a different offer.  Current offer is a Black Friday thing.

Thanks for all the contributions.  Just what I need and I know you will all pass on good info.

[Sparky74]

2 hours ago, Ondine said:

 

The current deal does not seem to include grats.  I see on their webpage that grats are US$20 per standard ocean/balcony cabin and more for the suites etc.  A bit pricey but you just have to allow for these on some lines.  I don't drink and couldn't care about internet so I might just have to wait for a different offer.  Current offer is a Black Friday thing.

Thanks for all the contributions.  Just what I need and I know you will all pass on good info.

Anytime I’ve looked at Norwegian they’ve seemed too pricey for me. Then again, we often sail in interior cabins anyway. 🤷‍♂️
 

The gratuities can be a bit of a trap for unwary Aussies as most of the lines include gratuities in the price when sailing out of Australia.

We got caught on this with our trans-Pacific on the Carnival Splendor last year. As we sailed from Seattle it was classified as a USA cruise so a daily gratuity was added to our account. Fortunately the cruise was as cheap as chips for start with.
 

We're currently considering a return to Alaska for 2025 but I’m factoring in the added expense of gratuities. 😁

[MMDown Under]

2 minutes ago, Sparky74 said:

Anytime I’ve looked at Norwegian they’ve seemed too pricey for me. Then again, we often sail in interior cabins anyway. 🤷‍♂️
 

The gratuities can be a bit of a trap for unwary Aussies as most of the lines include gratuities in the price when sailing out of Australia.

We got caught on this with our trans-Pacific on the Carnival Splendor last year. As we sailed from Seattle it was classified as a USA cruise so a daily gratuity was added to our account. Fortunately the cruise was as cheap as chips for start with.
 

We're currently considering a return to Alaska for 2025 but I’m factoring in the added expense of gratuities. 😁

I was just thinking why do I hate paying gratuities on cruises so much, because you just count the number of days x $US to get total amount you have to pay,  I then realised it is more than the money  It is the principle.  Cruise lines know Aussies and Kiwis don't tip, yet they charge gratuities on top of our weak dollar and don't care.  I love to take small thoughtful gifts or buy things like fridge magnets which they collect en route. But then they are gifts, that is the difference.  Two local bakeries give me a scone or a small pizza bread when I shop there and it makes my day.

[arxcards]

18 minutes ago, MMDown Under said:

I was just thinking why do I hate paying gratuities on cruises so much, because you just count the number of days x $US to get total amount you have to pay,  I then realised it is more than the money  It is the principle.  Cruise lines know Aussies and Kiwis don't tip, yet they charge gratuities on top of our weak dollar and don't care.  I love to take small thoughtful gifts or buy things like fridge magnets which they collect en route. But then they are gifts, that is the difference.  Two local bakeries give me a scone or a small pizza bread when I shop there and it makes my day.

I am surprised they accommodate us for our local cruises as is. In principle, we are taking holidays aboard floating US resorts. Whether paid in the fare or as a per day service charge, it is just the way it is being presented.

[MMDown Under]

1 minute ago, arxcards said:

I am surprised they accommodate us for our local cruises as is. In principle, we are taking holidays aboard floating US resorts. Whether paid in the fare or as a per day service charge, it is just the way it is being presented.

I understand, but still don't like it.  Why not use their imagination on Black Friday with no gratuities?

[arxcards]

3 minutes ago, MMDown Under said:

I understand, but still don't like it.  Why not use their imagination on Black Friday with no gratuities?

Sometimes the "free" grats is part of the promo, this time they aren't. Maybe next time.

[stki]

2 hours ago, Ondine said:

 

The current deal does not seem to include grats.  I see on their webpage that grats are US$20 per standard ocean/balcony cabin and more for the suites etc.  A bit pricey but you just have to allow for these on some lines.  I don't drink and couldn't care about internet so I might just have to wait for a different offer.  Current offer is a Black Friday thing.

Thanks for all the contributions.  Just what I need and I know you will all pass on good info.

If you book a NCL cruise from Australia (even if travelling overseas), the tips are included in the price (both daily gratuities and on the drinks package)

 

That has been our experience for the past 3 NCL cruises.

 

Tanya

[mr walker]

14 hours ago, arxcards said:

One attraction was that we often travel with a group of friends, and NCL handle groups well. We also liked the pub lunches at O'Sheehan's, with grilled sandwiches, chips, on-tap beers and sports screens.

Wow. Lunch in a pub with friends with beers and sports - sounds perfect. Count me in next time Geoff - doesn't even need to be on a ship 🙂 

[mr walker]

7 hours ago, MicCanberra said:

Some ports have weird rules for ship's services. 

I recall reading about issues on sailings out of Galveston, where non-Texan beer had to have Texan sales tax added to the price until the ship reached 'international waters' & then some other rules applied. Caused a lot of complaints by the early onboard drinkers. 

[MicCanberra]

2 hours ago, stki said:

If you book a NCL cruise from Australia (even if travelling overseas), the tips are included in the price (both daily gratuities and on the drinks package)

 

That has been our experience for the past 3 NCL cruises.

 

Tanya

That has been our experience 

[MicCanberra]

1 hour ago, mr walker said:

Wow. Lunch in a pub with friends with beers and sports - sounds perfect. Count me in next time Geoff - doesn't even need to be on a ship 🙂 

Love the pub on NCL ships, it is also open 24/7

[arxcards]

34 minutes ago, MicCanberra said:

Love the pub on NCL ships, it is also open 24/7

A nice grilled Rueben with chips, a pint, sport on the TV and good company. The pubs on Royal & QM2 are great, but the all day menu sets NCL apart.

[MicCanberra]

I liked that, along with the soup of the day, and a Rueben, I would get a pint of Blue Moon

[Ondine]

Thanks for the info about grats/service charges.  I was under the impression that because the ship charges in USD that I  would have to pay them but it appears that this has been altered over the years.  Still charged on drinks, spa etc but that won't worry me.

[Jean C]

21 hours ago, MMDown Under said:

I was just thinking why do I hate paying gratuities on cruises so much, because you just count the number of days x $US to get total amount you have to pay,  I then realised it is more than the money  It is the principle.  Cruise lines know Aussies and Kiwis don't tip, yet they charge gratuities on top of our weak dollar and don't care.  

I too hate paying gratuities as a daily on board account charge. I like everyone to get decent remuneration for their work and happily pay whatever they factor that in as a component of the cruise fare. I've never had them removed and in fact also tip the steward and MDR waiter at the end of the cruise. However, my gripe is that the daily gratuity per person added up is more than I would have chosen to tip. I  just suck it up 🥴 As regards our weak dollar against the US, I think that's just tough luck for us 😪