Bogo flights/$300? Really?

[tokidoki]

I know we’ve discussed the bogo many times, but I didn’t expect that for the first time, I was offered 2 flights for May whete the flight home is late and they want $300 just to secure these flights.  When did this start?  They offer the flights by the 100 day mark, but it seems quite ridiculous to me and it’s not even 100% guaranteed!  Has anyone who took bogo get economy seats where they could still book seats or did u pay to upgrade? Thx for any info

[julig22]

Think you're gonna have to be a little more specific. Are you past final payment? The BOGO offer was available through day 110 the last I'd heard. There have been a few posts where people were contacted by premium air with upgrade offers. Maybe post a copy of what you got?

[tokidoki]

It’s still 122 days, but this seems to be unique to those who took the Bogo air promo.  We were offered round trip flights and were told we could lock them in and get our info 100 days prior instead of 30.  Since the return flights late, it’s not worth it to us to add $300.  Maybe it’s new.  

[julig22]

New one to me anyway!  I just got back from a cruise and got my BOGO flight info for that trip shortly after final payment. Didn't have to pay anything extra.

[UKstages]

this sounds to me like a clever (or deceitful) way to market NCL premium air, or whatever it's called.

 

did they offer you a customized choice of carriers and seats and routing, as well, or did they simply say this was to confirm flights, which were rapidly booking up?

 

perhaps you have an over zealous PCC... or NCL might be trying something new. (horrible and new) to sell premium air arrangements, without calling it that.

[tokidoki]

1 hour ago, UKstages said:

this sounds to me like a clever (or deceitful) way to market NCL premium air, or whatever it's called.

 

did they offer you a customized choice of carriers and seats and routing, as well, or did they simply say this was to confirm flights, which were rapidly booking up?

 

perhaps you have an over zealous PCC... or NCL might be trying something new. (horrible and new) to sell premium air arrangements, without calling it that.

This isn’t premium air, they can’t help, it’s a way to lock in the flights they gave me.  Even with the fee, it’s not even guaranteed.  Makes no sense.  They r trying to dangle these flights saying we could end up with 1 stop, instead of a non stop.  

[UKstages]

27 minutes ago, tokidoki said:

Makes no sense.

 

yes, i agree, which is why i offered an alternate justification of what might be happening, i couldn't tell you if it was premium air or not... but it sure doesn't sound like BOGO air. in the absence of some sort of rationalization, i hypothesized that an agent or NCL itself could be misrepresenting premium air as the standard air deal with a $300 surcharge to guarantee your flights. 

 

that's all i got.

[MeHeartCruising]

18 hours ago, tokidoki said:

I know we’ve discussed the bogo many times, but I didn’t expect that for the first time, I was offered 2 flights for May whete the flight home is late and they want $300 just to secure these flights.  When did this start?  They offer the flights by the 100 day mark, but it seems quite ridiculous to me and it’s not even 100% guaranteed!  Has anyone who took bogo get economy seats where they could still book seats or did u pay to upgrade? Thx for any info

 

You say "to secure these flights" and then say "it's not even 100% guaranteed".  How did NCL word it?  What are they saying "secure" means.

 

If you're asking about seat assignments, it will depend on the rules of the actual airline that NCL purchases the tickets from.  Different Airlines have different rules for the different classes of tickets they sell.  Especially with economy seats.  If NCL buys you a ticket class that permits seat selection and/or paid upgrades to better seats, you can call the airline and get those.  Sometimes even on the website.  If your ticket class does not permit that then you won't be able to.  Not all airlines do this the same way.

 

Edited January 12 by MeHeartCruising

[Asawi]

9 hours ago, tokidoki said:

This isn’t premium air, they can’t help, it’s a way to lock in the flights they gave me.  Even with the fee, it’s not even guaranteed.  Makes no sense.  They r trying to dangle these flights saying we could end up with 1 stop, instead of a non stop.  

But isn't that kind of what Premium Air is? Regular BOGO you don't have any control, and now they are offering some control for a fee. If you don't want to pay the extra fee I guess you can still get the BOGO and get your info the usual 30 or whatever days before departure. 

[Sailing12Away]

Can you please just post a snippet of the email? What you are saying doesn't make sense to any of us who have used their air program in the past. If you are using the FAS B1G1 air promotion, you do not have to pay NCL any additional money.

[Asawi]

6 minutes ago, Sailing12Away said:

Can you please just post a snippet of the email? What you are saying doesn't make sense to any of us who have used their air program in the past. If you are using the FAS B1G1 air promotion, you do not have to pay NCL any additional money.

But then you have no control and will not get your fly info right away, right? What OP has been offered is earlier info and some control. As I understand not a "standard" BOGO.

[carohs]

NCL marketing likes to play games with their wording. I'm very confused by what OP is saying! A copy of the exact wording would certainly help us decipher the mystery.

[RocketMan275]

The simplest way to avoid this confusion is to book your own airfare and not mess with BOGO.

[tokidoki]

[tokidoki]

It’s a new program.  

[UKstages]

it's a sales pitch and a misleading or downright deceitful one, as i suggested upthread.

 

"eligible passengers... now can request..."

 

yes, you can request it... and pay more for the privilege.

 

the OP's initial post in this thread shows how misleading this can be. the OP describes it at first as plain old BOGO.

 

sounds to me like premium air... lite. and NCL is blurring the lines in their promotional pitch to make it seem like the up-charge is part of the BOGO program.

 

also, NCL is promising a direct flight, which is not always possible from many departure cities. what's unclear is if this email is only going out to people who live in major markets in which direct flights are possible.

 

this is a lot like when a magazine sends out a promotional piece via direct mail that looks like an invoice, but is actually a sales pitch. a small percentage of folks (or their assistants) pay "the invoice," thereby signing up for the magazine, not realizing that it wasn't an invoice at all.

Edited January 12 by UKstages

[rodndonna]

12 minutes ago, UKstages said:

it's a sales pitch and a misleading or downright deceitful one, as i suggested upthread.

 

"eligible passengers... now can request..."

 

yes, you can request it... and pay more for the privilege.

 

the OP's initial post in this thread shows how misleading this can be. the OP describes it at first as plain old BOGO.

 

sounds to me like premium air... lite. and NCL is blurring the lines in their promotional pitch to make it seem like the up-charge is part of the BOGO program.

 

also, NCL is promising a direct flight, which is not always possible from many departure cities. what's unclear is if this email is only going out to people who live in major markets in which direct flights are possible.

 

this is a lot like when a magazine sends out a promotional piece via direct mail that looks like an invoice, but is actually a sales pitch. a small percentage of folks (or their assistants) pay "the invoice," thereby signing up for the magazine, not realizing that it wasn't an invoice at all.

 

I'm not sure I see why it is deceitful or misleading?

 

It seems pretty straightforward to me - you have the option to keep the original program/pricing you booked with OR the option to upgrade to the option provided for the price stated.

[julig22]

5 minutes ago, rodndonna said:

 

I'm not sure I see why it is deceitful or misleading?

 

It seems pretty straightforward to me - you have the option to keep the original program/pricing you booked with OR the option to upgrade to the option provided for the price stated.

After seeing the offer, I have to agree that I don't see it as misleading.  Some people would gladly pay an additional amount for a guaranteed direct flight - not sure where the idea that it's not 100% guaranteed comes from, assuming your request is accepted.

Because of where I fly from, I never get a direct flight anyway...

[UKstages]

it's misleading because the "offer" is disguised as an air fare booking confirmation with a sense of urgency that includes foreboding of all the horrible things that can befall the passenger if they don't act now. i'd love to see tne top of the email to see what the wording is... does it say "confirmation" or does it clearly state that this is a new offer being made that requires an additional purchase? it's clear that the call to action is a button that says "get started" and not a button that says "spend $300."

 

here is your reservation number, the offer says, and now, to complete your booking process, it suggests, you will of course want to choose your direct flights. eligible customers can do that now! hey, you're an eligible customer, you lucky stiff! and, by the way, if you don't do this now, we can't guarantee you'll sit together or that you won't be on a flight with three connecting segments.

 

those conditions are ones that the guest has already agreed to as part of the BOGO air package the guest has already purchased, but they are barely discussed or they are minimized when booking that BOGO fare. NCL now turns around once the BOGO air has been purchased and uses the disadvantages of the BOGO program, which they glossed over previously,  as a sales technique to upsell another program.  and they are apparently doing it in a smoke and mirrors way by obfuscating and confusing their prey, er, i mean, guest.

 

that's why it's misleading and deceitful.

 

hey, i got no horse in this race. i live a short ten minute walk from my local cruise terminal and if i have to go to a distant city, i use frequent flyer miles to purchase my ticket. but i can smell a misleading sales pitch a mile away, especially one with a false sense of urgency.

Edited January 12 by UKstages

[tokidoki]

So the fact that I will probably get the same flights assigned, I won’t pay extra.  I fly out of JFK, so direct flights r no problem.  

[julig22]

Just now, tokidoki said:

So the fact that I will probably get the same flights assigned, I won’t pay extra.  I fly out of JFK, so direct flights r no problem.  

Please update us when you do get your flights assigned.

[carohs]

$300 for a guaranteed non-stop for all passengers in the stateroom might be worth it to some people. Even the getting flight details earlier than the 30-day mark (I don't see where it says how much earlier) helps when planning hotel stays and transportation. It's a fair offer if you see value in it. Now the real question is whether its combinable with flight deviation requests..

[julig22]

14 minutes ago, carohs said:

$300 for a guaranteed non-stop for all passengers in the stateroom might be worth it to some people. Even the getting flight details earlier than the 30-day mark (I don't see where it says how much earlier) helps when planning hotel stays and transportation. It's a fair offer if you see value in it. Now the real question is whether its combinable with flight deviation requests..

I would assume that the offer is based on the current request, as a specific flight is apparently listed. Maybe the OP can let us know if it's a same-day flight or they requested a deviation.

[Asawi]

I don't see it as misleading.

It seems it's what I thought all along. An offer that you can accept or decline. Decline it and don't pay the $300 and wait for flight info until around day 30. 

[zqvol]

1 hour ago, UKstages said:

it's a sales pitch and a misleading or downright deceitful one, as i suggested upthread.

 

"eligible passengers... now can request..."

 

yes, you can request it... and pay more for the privilege.

 

the OP's initial post in this thread shows how misleading this can be. the OP describes it at first as plain old BOGO.

 

sounds to me like premium air... lite. and NCL is blurring the lines in their promotional pitch to make it seem like the up-charge is part of the BOGO program.

 

also, NCL is promising a direct flight, which is not always possible from many departure cities. what's unclear is if this email is only going out to people who live in major markets in which direct flights are possible.

 

this is a lot like when a magazine sends out a promotional piece via direct mail that looks like an invoice, but is actually a sales pitch. a small percentage of folks (or their assistants) pay "the invoice," thereby signing up for the magazine, not realizing that it wasn't an invoice at all.

Nothing misleading or deceitful about what OP received.