NCL has been a Pain and we haven't even stepped foot on the ship... Ideas?

[got2havefun]

I have found out it is best to book what you want originally and go with it.... It seems like stuff gets messed when later people touch your booking and no one wants to resolve it 

[Homosassa]

9 hours ago, Adam Packett said:

As far as I know it is pretty simple:

1. Room was booked with FAS packages.

2. Asked rep if we upgraded to a suite that we would still have FAS packages. Was told Yes...

3. Upgraded room

4. No FAS packages present

 

Rep screwed up... should have informed us correctly before we upgraded. No apology,  no help.... just what is your credit card number.... that will be $350... After we've given them 5 grand. That's my gripe....

Did you read and understand the NCL Ticket Contract on the NCL website before booking and upgrading?

 

The NCL policy on errors is similar to other cruise lines.

 

"(b) Upgrades/Errors: Carrier reserves the right to collect the fare in effect for the accommodations selected by the Guest. Carrier shall be entitled to, but not obligated to, upgrade any guest free of charge to higher priced accommodations, at the sole discretion of Carrier. Carrier shall not be obligated to honor any booking resulting from, nor shall be responsible or liable whatsoever in connection with, misprints or errors of any kind, whether in brochures, advertisements, on the Internet, during the booking process or otherwise, that result in Guest being undercharged for the cruise. Carrier reserves the right, prior to sailing, to collect the correct fare or cancel the booking and refund any payment made by Guest. Carrier reserves the right to cancel any booking and/or deny boarding to any Guest that maintains an outstanding balance in any amount owed to Carrier."

[cruiser2015]

42 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

OP stated: "The $350 is the cost of the upgrades that were removed without my knowledge. (Specifically told that they were STILL in the package actually.) And no, I did not pay them."

 

Op is insisting that the fee is the cost of the FAS upgrades.  However, there is no fee for  the FAS upgrades except for  the gratuities.  And, the FAS gratuities are of essentially the same amount as what OP is claiming to be the cost of the FAS upgrades.  

I am well aware of how the FAS works.

And, I suspect that you are correct in your analysis of the facts.

Just saying that when the OP responded to my post, he specifically denied that the fee in question was for FAS gratuities, which is why I asked the OP again to clarify that point (no response as of yet).

[graphicguy]

40 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

OP stated: "The $350 is the cost of the upgrades that were removed without my knowledge. (Specifically told that they were STILL in the package actually.) And no, I did not pay them."

 

Op is insisting that the fee is the cost of the FAS upgrades.  However, there is no fee for  the FAS upgrades except for  the gratuities.  And, the FAS gratuities are of essentially the same amount as what OP is claiming to be the cost of the FAS upgrades.  

OK....I see.

 

No hysteria required on the OP's part.  FAS was cancelled with the original reservation.

 

Just call your PCC and tell them to add the FAS package to the new reservation.  I don't know the cost as I don't know how many people are on your reservation.  But, whatever the tips are, pay them.  Confirm them on your on line reservation details before you hang up with your PCC.

 

Done deal!

[wil e coyote]

I understand this may be frustrating from the OP's point of view because of all the time spent on the phone and the misunderstandings. But if I look at it from the view of an NCL agent who gets the call, what will they see in the booking history?

1. OP had a booking (with FAS) that cost $XXXX.

2. OP upgraded to a new cabin (without FAS) that cost $YYYY

3. OP is now calling and asking to have FAS added, so the booking will now cost $YYYY+$350. But OP doesn't want to pay the $350.

The NCL agent in conversation #3 has no history of what was or wasn't said during the upgrade conversation. All he/she can tell is that the OP is asking to have something added onto their booking which costs $350. So they are not in a position to give it for free.

I think the OP's only hope is to go to someone who is empowered to override the rules - like an executive at NCL. But even then, the answer may be that FAS costs $350 and the OP must pay that to get it.

The other option is to downgrade back to the original cabin...

[wilmingtech]

Reading through this thread feels alot like talking to NCL customer support.

 

If the OP pays 

XXXX + GGGratuities for FAS

Upgrades the XXXX part by paying YYYY

 

What happens to the gratuities he initially payed for XXXX?  

 

 

[RocketMan275]

2 hours ago, wilmingtech said:

Reading through this thread feels alot like talking to NCL customer support.

 

If the OP pays 

XXXX + GGGratuities for FAS

Upgrades the XXXX part by paying YYYY

 

What happens to the gratuities he initially payed for XXXX?  

 

 

FAS was removed from the initial booking, ie, XXXX.

[KXZ1498]

2 hours ago, wilmingtech said:

Reading through this thread feels alot like talking to NCL customer support.

 

If the OP pays 

XXXX + GGGratuities for FAS

Upgrades the XXXX part by paying YYYY

 

What happens to the gratuities he initially payed for XXXX?  

 

 

 

It shouldn't make a difference. He pays for the difference between the two rooms. Room 1 + Fas Tax = Money Paid. Price of Room 2 subtracted by Money Paid = Room 2 Price. 

[boxedmoon]

1 hour ago, KXZ1498 said:

 

It shouldn't make a difference. He pays for the difference between the two rooms. Room 1 + Fas Tax = Money Paid. Price of Room 2 subtracted by Money Paid = Room 2 Price. 

Probably because NCL credited the account for the FAS gratuities when upgrading. So they paid the total upgrade cost minus the gratuities.

It also sounds like they called the regular phone reps and not an experienced PCC who could have better handled the cabin upgrade.

[cruiser2015]

On 12/3/2023 at 1:10 PM, wilmingtech said:

Reading through this thread feels alot like talking to NCL customer support.

 

If the OP pays 

XXXX + GGGratuities for FAS

Upgrades the XXXX part by paying YYYY

 

What happens to the gratuities he initially payed for XXXX?  

 

 

At this point, the OP indicated that they have not paid for the gratuities.

Do to a misunderstanding of a statement by this one rep, he thinks he was promised the FAS, and at a net price that was quoted for the upgraded cabin - which apparently did NOT include FAS (rep's error on that point.

Finally, the OP wants the FAS restored - but with zero fees attached because he thinks that is what the rep told him he was going to get.

This looks to be one heck of an uphill battle. If OP can get them to play the tape of that conversation and it went just as he recalls - maybe there's a shot at a higher-up giving the grats, or maybe a smaller OBC as  courtesy apology.

Better than casino odds that won't happen.

[hallux]

5 hours ago, cruiser2015 said:

If OP can get them to play the tape of that conversation and it went just as he recalls - maybe there's a shot at a higher-up giving the grats,

But getting a FAS cabin is more than just paying the grats/service charges for the drinks and dining package, the cabin itself often costs more...

[European_CruiseGirl]

I had kind of this happening (kind of)…but my PCC told me what to expect so it wasn’t a surprise. If it was I would have been upset too. 
 

We had a cruise booked and bought the FAS+ upgrade for it. After that we needed to change our cruise. Our PCC quoted us the new price and said ”please notice that the FAS+ does not automatically transfer to the new cruise; instead the money you paid for that will be considered as a payment towards this new cruise and your final payment is only xxx because of that. However please notice that if you want FAS+ also to your new cruise you have to pay for it again”. 
 

We were ok with this but I can imagine being truly upset if we’d been quoted a new final payment sum and only later found out that it was actually much higher but our previous FAS+ payment had been used towards the new final payment. I have noticed on several occasions that when you talk with NCL reps about changes they always just quote the new final payment sum. Tbh I am most interested in that anyway (knowing how much I still owe to NCL after the change I am thinking about making). 

Edited December 5, 2023 by European_CruiseGirl

[cruiser2015]

1 hour ago, hallux said:

But getting a FAS cabin is more than just paying the grats/service charges for the drinks and dining package, the cabin itself often costs more...

How do you come to that conclusion?

Nearly every cabin comes with the FAS offer, which is included in the price shown before you select.

[zanharst]

3 years ago, I had a similiar experience with NCL. The price quoted by the NCL rep, when making a change on a cruise during the call was not what my invoice stated. They forgot to include the FAS charges after specifically responding to my question during the call that they were included.  I called back and asked to speak with a supervisor. The supervisor returned my call and after explaining the situation, he was able to review the conversation (all calls are recorded).  It took several days but I did indeed receive a phone call back and the correct price that was originally quoted to me was granted. Perhaps try this route? Good luck and enjoy your cruise regardless of the outcome!

Edited December 5, 2023 by zanharst

[hallux]

6 hours ago, cruiser2015 said:

How do you come to that conclusion?

OP hasn't said, but maybe the rep booked them a 'sailaway' cabin when they did the upgrade instead of booking the fare with FAS...

[cruiseny4life]

So basically...if you make a change to your booking, insist on being emailed a confirmation immediately so you can compare the new confirmation to the old. Do this while on the phone with the NCL rep, even if it takes a few minutes waiting for the email. When you notice something out of whack, mention it immediately.

 

Don't come to Cruise Critic where you think you'll receive assistance. Everyone will judge you, cast aspersions, and tell you you're wrong. 

 

And, when the company makes a mistake, they will certainly, without a doubt, sucker you for the money they erred in collecting from you previously. 

 

Got it! Ahhh, I love all of us! 

 

@Adam Packett - I truly hope you are able to figure everything out, forget about the stress, and have a memorable (in an awesome way) cruise with your friends! Come back/don't come back to NCL? Well, I'd understand either way, but forget all this trouble you're having whilst on the cruise! 

[hallux]

3 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

So basically...if you make a change to your booking, insist on being emailed a confirmation immediately so you can compare the new confirmation to the old. Do this while on the phone with the NCL rep, even if it takes a few minutes waiting for the email. When you notice something out of whack, mention it immediately

See... we're on the same page, I made this exact suggestion back on page 1 but the OP complained that they shouldn't have to check the work of the agent.

[cruiseny4life]

1 minute ago, hallux said:

See... we're on the same page, I made this exact suggestion back on page 1 but the OP complained that they shouldn't have to check the work of the agent.

Oh, we definitely are!! And I did see your suggestion which was struck down quickly by OP. I agree in principle with OP that double checking work shouldn't be necessary, but lord knows we need to double check everything. NCL and others! Mistakes do happen. 😞 

[sanger727]

One idea you might explore if you want what you originally had. Given that the rep made a mistake in the quote - would NCL downgrade you back to your original room with the original perks for the original price? 

[RocketMan275]

55 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

Oh, we definitely are!! And I did see your suggestion which was struck down quickly by OP. I agree in principle with OP that double checking work shouldn't be necessary, but lord knows we need to double check everything. NCL and others! Mistakes do happen. 😞 

If money is involved, always double check.  

[RedwingHockeyFan]

I'm totally confused.  It shouldn't be that difficult to check your original confirmation to see if you paid for Bev Srv Charge and Din Serv Charge.  My guess, like the rest, is when they gave you the delta for the upgrade it was for a room that did not include FAS so when you asked for it you needed to cover the cost for those two service charges.  

[cruiser2015]

3 hours ago, hallux said:

OP hasn't said, but maybe the rep booked them a 'sailaway' cabin when they did the upgrade instead of booking the fare with FAS...

Now I understand your comment.

That's why I said nearly every cabin can have FAS.

One problem with the theory in this case, is that the OP was apparently offered the FAS if the 20% was paid. 

[rbxlady]

If I'm understanding what happened correctly, I had a similar experience last year. I booked a club balcony cabin for our family of four on our first NCL cruise. When I first booked, I didn't know much about the Haven, and honestly the price probably would've turned me off right away, but over time I warmed to the idea of the perks and saw the value in it.

 

About two months before sailing, I bit the bullet and upgraded our booking to a 2BR Haven suite. Note that I had already purchased Free at Sea Plus (FAS+) for me and my husband somewhere in the $600-$700 range. If it matters, we don't do the airfare promotions because we are within reasonable driving distance of the port, so I wasn't worried about losing promotions.

 

I did not have a TA at the time (I do now), so I called NCL about the upgrade. The rep quoted me, and it was a good bit less than I thought it was going to be based on a mock booking. I expressed my surprise, and he confirmed it and booked it when I gave him the go-ahead. That should've been a red flag, but I was so pleased that I stupidly ignored it.

 

I got the updated cruise summary but didn't look at it too closely. A couple of days later I took a close look at the updated cruise summary I'd received, and FAS+ had disappeared.

 

Long story short, they had taken the money I had paid for that and applied it to the Haven upgrade, thus removing FAS+. I felt like I had been improperly quoted the upgrade price because the rep did not ask if I also wanted to keep FAS+.

 

I spent about four hours on the phone with NCL before they could determine what had gone wrong and why FAS+ wasn't showing up. Eventually, they admitted that it is something with their computer system that can easily be overlooked, like not checking a certain box when quoting the upgrade, and they could see how I found the upgrade price to be misleading and wanted to make it right. I had to wait for a call back from a manager, who agreed to split the difference as a gesture of good will. In short, they had me pay for it in full again but gave me half the value back in non-refundable OBC. When we got on board, we put that money toward a thermal spa pass, which, admittedly, was a risk because I believe those can sell out before embarkation.

 

All in all, it was a total PITA, but now I know that you have to be very careful when upgrading an existing reservation to make sure your other perks are unaffected, of course not counting anything that would automatically be included in the your upgrade, e.g., almost all the perks of Priority Access that already come with booking in the Haven. As was recommended above, stay on the phone while you wait for your updated cruise summary and look at it to make sure everything is correct before you let the rep off the phone.

 

What ultimately happened is that we had a great cruise and had forgotten about everything by our sailing date, and we're sailing again with NCL in the spring. Every one of these cruise lines has issues like this, so I wouldn't write off NCL just yet. See how you like your cruise, and go from there. Also, I would recommend finding a solid TA for these sorts of things so you don't have to deal with them. I wish I had done that the first time around.

[cruiser2015]

1 hour ago, RedwingHockeyFan said:

My guess, like the rest, is when they gave you the delta for the upgrade it was for a room that did not include FAS so when you asked for it you needed to cover the cost for those two service charges.  

This sentence does not make sense.

If the cabin does not have FAS as an option, then it's not an option, period.

In all cases, if FAS is available you must pay for the gratuities.

FAS is not "included" - it is accepted or declined.

[cruiser2015]

To rbxlady

Well told.

One difference in this current case is that the OP says they asked the rep if FAS was included and was told that it was.

The same advice about checked the new confirmation still applies and could have revealed the issue right away.