Non refundable credit...what happens if you don't spend any $ when on ship?

[dbrown84]

13 minutes ago, UnbridledEnthusiasm said:

I like this idea but how would it work with the $50 off excursions promo that is automatically given? 

You would have to book once onboard.  They don't take $50 when booking.  You are charged for the excursion when you book, then refunded the credit amount afterwards.  

[ChiefMateJRK]

25 minutes ago, UnbridledEnthusiasm said:

I like this idea but how would it work with the $50 off excursions promo that is automatically given? 

They charge you full price for the excursion and then you get a $50 credit a day or two after the excursion is completed.

[laudergayle]

52 minutes ago, itsnotjustme said:

We also pay any (extra) tips at the specialty restaurants

The extra tip in specialty restaurants typically doesn’t work….occasionally it will.  It depends on the ship.  We usually do specialty dining the first night…add the tip and then review the next morning on the cabin TV (which breaks out OBC ).

[yakcruiser]

Just walk into the Mandara spa. $300 massage, $100 haircut and $50 boxes of seaweed will help relieve you of any credit.

[dbrown84]

37 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

The extra tip in specialty restaurants typically doesn’t work….occasionally it will.  It depends on the ship.  We usually do specialty dining the first night…add the tip and then review the next morning on the cabin TV (which breaks out OBC ).

I've never had a problem tipping with non-refundable OBC.  I thought it was commonplace.  Guess I'll have to keep an eye out.  Did they just ignore the tip you wrote in?

[itsnotjustme]

52 minutes ago, laudergayle said:

The extra tip in specialty restaurants typically doesn’t work….occasionally it will.

I've never had a problem but will check carefully next cruise.

[laudergayle]

1 hour ago, dbrown84 said:

I've never had a problem tipping with non-refundable OBC.  I thought it was commonplace.  Guess I'll have to keep an eye out.  Did they just ignore the tip you wrote in?

They charged my account but didn’t reduce my OBC on my recent Bliss cruise (11/23) as well as the Prima (5/23).  But I have been able to use it before (Breakaway 10/22 and Epic 2/23). Maybe it’s a more recent change.

[cruiser2015]

3 hours ago, laudergayle said:

They charged my account but didn’t reduce my OBC on my recent Bliss cruise (11/23) as well as the Prima (5/23).  But I have been able to use it before (Breakaway 10/22 and Epic 2/23). Maybe it’s a more recent change.

I thought it was only the DSC that was restricted - not any other tipping.

[Tcat999]

21 hours ago, dbrown84 said:

You would have to book once onboard.  They don't take $50 when booking.  You are charged for the excursion when you book, then refunded the credit amount afterwards.  

 

That is helpful. But is there an ordering rule on how the ship applies your OBC?  For example, if you now have $50 refundable credit, but still also have, let say, $100 nonrefundable credit left, if you buy something in the store, will they take it out of the refundable credit first -- or can you choose which credit is applied? 

[RocketMan275]

4 minutes ago, Tcat999 said:

 

That is helpful. But is there an ordering rule on how the ship applies your OBC?  For example, if you now have $50 refundable credit, but still also have, let say, $100 nonrefundable credit left, if you buy something in the store, will they take it out of the refundable credit first -- or can you choose which credit is applied? 

If the purchase is eligible for non-refundable, they will take it from their first.

No need to choose, it will just happen.

[dbrown84]

Just now, RocketMan275 said:

If the purchase is eligible for non-refundable, they will take it from their first.

No need to choose, it will just happen.

THIS :)

[ontheweb]

8 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

If the purchase is eligible for non-refundable, they will take it from their first.

No need to choose, it will just happen.

Yes, but just make sure the non-refundable credit has been applied to your account before making any purchase that you wish to use it for. It is not immediate.

[debenson0723]

19 hours ago, laudergayle said:

They charged my account but didn’t reduce my OBC on my recent Bliss cruise (11/23) as well as the Prima (5/23).  But I have been able to use it before (Breakaway 10/22 and Epic 2/23). Maybe it’s a more recent change.

I used my NR OBC for an additional tip at Onda on the Viva 4 weeks ago so still happening on some ships. 

[laudergayle]

2 hours ago, debenson0723 said:

I used my NR OBC for an additional tip at Onda on the Viva 4 weeks ago so still happening on some ships. 

Well, it is NCL. (Not Consistent Leader).    I’ll keep trying …lol.  

[travelingfools]

On 12/31/2023 at 1:51 PM, laudergayle said:

The extra tip in specialty restaurants typically doesn’t work….occasionally it will.  It depends on the ship.  We usually do specialty dining the first night…add the tip and then review the next morning on the cabin TV (which breaks out OBC ).

When we sailed the Pride last year, we wrote the tip in at specialty restaurants and tipped some of the bartenders by adding it to our receipt .  Everything looked good when I went to Guest services.  We didn't owe a balance and had used all of our non-refundable OBC.  But when we got home I found that my credit card was charged for the total of the tips meaning we left that amount of OBC on the ship. Lesson learned. 

[laudergayle]

3 minutes ago, travelingfools said:

When we sailed the Pride last year, we wrote the tip in at specialty restaurants and tipped some of the bartenders by adding it to our receipt .  Everything looked good when I went to Guest services.  We didn't owe a balance and had used all of our non-refundable OBC.  But when we got home I found that my credit card was charged for the total of the tips meaning we left that amount of OBC on the ship. Lesson learned. 

Ouch!  I guess my method for checking whether the tip will use NR OBC is not a guarantee.  Thanks for the heads-up.

[dbrown84]

21 hours ago, travelingfools said:

When we sailed the Pride last year, we wrote the tip in at specialty restaurants and tipped some of the bartenders by adding it to our receipt .  Everything looked good when I went to Guest services.  We didn't owe a balance and had used all of our non-refundable OBC.  But when we got home I found that my credit card was charged for the total of the tips meaning we left that amount of OBC on the ship. Lesson learned. 

now I'm wondering if someone got screwed out of their tip when I did this.  I never place credit cards on file, so if they did eventually reversed the tip, not only did I leave OBC but more importantly the waiter did receive the tip I intended for him.  

[cruiseny4life]

14 minutes ago, dbrown84 said:

now I'm wondering if someone got screwed out of their tip when I did this.  I never place credit cards on file, so if they did eventually reversed the tip, not only did I leave OBC but more importantly the waiter did receive the tip I intended for him.  

Probably did. I've had multiple crew members, on every ship I've sailed, tell me that they do not personally receive the tip if it's left on the receipt. I choose to trust the crew. I know others don't. Based on what the crew members state, the money goes into a pool and is then given out based on reviews/hero cards/etc. 

 

I always tip in cash because of this. 

[RocketMan275]

46 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

Probably did. I've had multiple crew members, on every ship I've sailed, tell me that they do not personally receive the tip if it's left on the receipt. I choose to trust the crew. I know others don't. Based on what the crew members state, the money goes into a pool and is then given out based on reviews/hero cards/etc. 

 

I always tip in cash because of this. 

We only tip in cash too. Cash may or may not go into a pool, but if you add it to the bill, it almost certainly will be pooled. 

[dbrown84]

1 hour ago, cruiseny4life said:

Probably did. I've had multiple crew members, on every ship I've sailed, tell me that they do not personally receive the tip if it's left on the receipt. I choose to trust the crew. I know others don't. Based on what the crew members state, the money goes into a pool and is then given out based on reviews/hero cards/etc. 

 

I always tip in cash because of this. 

thanks.  that's what I'll do now.  I tip on my platinum meals since there is not already a gratuity charged for those

[sailingships]

On 12/30/2023 at 10:23 PM, Son of a son of a ... said:

No, it does not carry over to your next cruise or stay in your NCL account as OCB.  It disappears at the end of the first cruise. If B2B, then I don’t know.

Depends. We have had nonrefundable OBC roll over to the next cruise when doing B2B You can spend it on tips at the bars or specialty restaurants or for any type of services at the spa.