NCL Mastercard FAQ

[MagnoliaBlossom]

Well, when I added my daughter to our card so she would have an emergency card when she left for college, it showed up on her credit report when she applied for a mortgage some years later.  Obviously things have changed.

Edited May 16, 2023 by MagnoliaBlossom

[julig22]

4 hours ago, mscdivina2016 said:

Absolutely not.  Its my account with just additional users. Her SS was never given.  No different than on a ship. My card is put down and I authorize the use for others and I am on the hook for it.

Whether or not an authorized user is reported to the credit bureaus is entirely up to the issuing bank.

[MagnoliaBlossom]

Julig22, thanks for that bit of information.

[karinad]

I'm down to 8 more days to book my cruise before my May points expire. I'm trying to decide if it we should book Oct., 2024 for the Mediterranean for our 50th wedding anniversary or book New England/Canada for this Sept. My question is, if I book one of these directly with NCL and call World Points to upgrade, can I transfer to another travel agent for better perks? If so, how long do I have to do it? Thanks! BTW, both of these cruises would be on the Escape. We've never been on her, just the Joy, Gem, Star, and Jade.

[mscdivina2016]

10 hours ago, karinad said:

I'm down to 8 more days to book my cruise before my May points expire. I'm trying to decide if it we should book Oct., 2024 for the Mediterranean for our 50th wedding anniversary or book New England/Canada for this Sept. My question is, if I book one of these directly with NCL and call World Points to upgrade, can I transfer to another travel agent for better perks? If so, how long do I have to do it? Thanks! BTW, both of these cruises would be on the Escape. We've never been on her, just the Joy, Gem, Star, and Jade.

Yes absolutely. You have 30 days to transfer it.

[alwalaska]

13 hours ago, karinad said:

I'm down to 8 more days to book my cruise before my May points expire. I'm trying to decide if it we should book Oct., 2024 for the Mediterranean for our 50th wedding anniversary or book New England/Canada for this Sept. My question is, if I book one of these directly with NCL and call World Points to upgrade, can I transfer to another travel agent for better perks? If so, how long do I have to do it? Thanks! BTW, both of these cruises would be on the Escape. We've never been on her, just the Joy, Gem, Star, and Jade.

I booked through a TA from the beginning and then called WP to upgrade my cabin.  No difficulties at all, except that certain cabins for the initial booking were not eligible for the group promotions that my TA had, so I booked a slightly lower interior and was given options of slightly lower balconies to choose from, but the one I really wanted was at the level offered.

[karinad]

3 hours ago, alwalaska said:

I booked through a TA from the beginning and then called WP to upgrade my cabin.  No difficulties at all, except that certain cabins for the initial booking were not eligible for the group promotions that my TA had, so I booked a slightly lower interior and was given options of slightly lower balconies to choose from, but the one I really wanted was at the level offered.

Thank you everyone for the answers! One reason that I'm hesitating is because the Sept 24 cruise will be coming up for final payment. I think the rate of the cruise is high for the inside cabin and I'd bet that it will drop. Since I have to make my decision with some of the points I feel pressured. I only have a little more than 60,000 for the double meta. I was thinking that maybe I should take a few of the months that the points will expire in a check and it would buy me some time but I'd only have the single upgrade as a choice. I noticed that one of the cruises the rate of the ocean view and balcony were almost the same. It wasn't the date that we need.

[alwalaska]

3 hours ago, karinad said:

Thank you everyone for the answers! One reason that I'm hesitating is because the Sept 24 cruise will be coming up for final payment. I think the rate of the cruise is high for the inside cabin and I'd bet that it will drop. Since I have to make my decision with some of the points I feel pressured. I only have a little more than 60,000 for the double meta. I was thinking that maybe I should take a few of the months that the points will expire in a check and it would buy me some time but I'd only have the single upgrade as a choice. I noticed that one of the cruises the rate of the ocean view and balcony were almost the same. It wasn't the date that we need.

That's frustrating.  I feel your pain. I hope it all works out great for you.

 

When I booked almost 2 years out, I decided that I would be happy no matter what happened with the price because I wanted to lock in a good cabin for this major bucket-list trip.  Now, we'll see if prices drop drastically if I will be able to convince myself that I really meant it and not get mad at my former self. 🙂

 

[karinad]

2 hours ago, alwalaska said:

That's frustrating.  I feel your pain. I hope it all works out great for you.

 

When I booked almost 2 years out, I decided that I would be happy no matter what happened with the price because I wanted to lock in a good cabin for this major bucket-list trip.  Now, we'll see if prices drop drastically if I will be able to convince myself that I really meant it and not get mad at my former self. 🙂

 

Have a great time on your cruise! If your cruise fare does drop I would at least try to call and ask for the new rate or OBC.

[karinad]

On 8/1/2022 at 5:14 PM, mscdivina2016 said:

Don't tell them about the MC points.

After you get a booking number then call world points yourself.

 

CN certs take away from the commission so here's a way around it.

Book direct with NCL using the CN certs then give the booking to a TA within 30 days for perks.

 

They have nothing to do but earn a commission and kick you perks.

I just reread this! Great advice! I hope others read it, too!

[julig22]

2 hours ago, karinad said:

I just reread this! Great advice! I hope others read it, too!

Timeline to transfer is 2 weeks now I believe. And I don't see how using CNs would have any effect on commission, as that is a payment, not a reduction in cruise fare??? But I don't use a TA, so only speculation on my part.

They don't give OBC for fare drops after final payment but they will give FCC if the price for the cabin you paid for ( not the upgrade) drops in price.  Just did that.

[karinad]

On 5/24/2023 at 1:37 AM, julig22 said:

Timeline to transfer is 2 weeks now I believe. And I don't see how using CNs would have any effect on commission, as that is a payment, not a reduction in cruise fare??? But I don't use a TA, so only speculation on my part.

They don't give OBC for fare drops after final payment but they will give FCC if the price for the cabin you paid for ( not the upgrade) drops in price.  Just did that.

Thank you for the updated information!

[karinad]

I feel somewhat relieved. I just cashed in 10,000 points and it bought me two more months to see if a good deal comes up. I wasn't comfortable with any of the rates for the cruises that interested me. I might end up cashing in 20,000 more if something doesn't turn up. NCL Mastercard isn't my primary card card right now so I probably won't be adding to the points yet. At least getting the cash back was an option with it.

[McFins]

A bit confused on how to maximize benefits on the MC (new).  For example, if you have 20000 points is the vale you would get in cash the same as the value you would get in onboard credit or to put towards cruise payment or upgrade?    

[karinad]

40 minutes ago, McFins said:

A bit confused on how to maximize benefits on the MC (new).  For example, if you have 20000 points is the vale you would get in cash the same as the value you would get in onboard credit or to put towards cruise payment or upgrade?    

10,000 points gave me back $100. In cash. On the World Points rewards site there's a calculator to see what the points are worth. You can also cash in for gift cards or obc.

[McFins]

14 hours ago, karinad said:

10,000 points gave me back $100. In cash. On the World Points rewards site there's a calculator to see what the points are worth. You can also cash in for gift cards or obc.

Thank you so much.   
 

[MagnoliaBlossom]

On 6/3/2023 at 2:58 PM, McFins said:

A bit confused on how to maximize benefits on the MC (new).  For example, if you have 20000 points is the vale you would get in cash the same as the value you would get in onboard credit or to put towards cruise payment or upgrade?    

Your best band for the buck is cabin upgrade, one level upgrade (inside to OV, or OV to balcony) is 30,000 points, a “double meta” (2 category upgrade is 60,000.   Obviously, on most cruises an inside to balcony will cost you more than $600 (points are worth a penny a piece).  On cash, OBC or gift cards there is no difference in points required, it is a 1% cost.

 

if upgrades don’t interest you, then your best use is to go for statement credit.  Charge your onboard expenses with your card and you will receive 3 points per dollar spent, then once home you can use statement to pay your credit card bill.

[McFins]

9 hours ago, MagnoliaBlossom said:

Your best band for the buck is cabin upgrade, one level upgrade (inside to OV, or OV to balcony) is 30,000 points, a “double meta” (2 category upgrade is 60,000.   Obviously, on most cruises an inside to balcony will cost you more than $600 (points are worth a penny a piece).  On cash, OBC or gift cards there is no difference in points required, it is a 1% cost.

 

if upgrades don’t interest you, then your best use is to go for statement credit.  Charge your onboard expenses with your card and you will receive 3 points per dollar spent, then once home you can use statement to pay your credit card bill.

Thank you so much, very helpful!!!

[Tutone56]

I'm hoping people are still reading these because I could use some help.  I'm trying to redeem my points for OBC.  Each time I click on rewards and then the image with the palm tree that says "Redeem Now", it requires me to login again and doesn't take me to the page to redeem for OBC.  Any suggestions?  Thanks.

[julig22]

2 hours ago, Tutone56 said:

I'm hoping people are still reading these because I could use some help.  I'm trying to redeem my points for OBC.  Each time I click on rewards and then the image with the palm tree that says "Redeem Now", it requires me to login again and doesn't take me to the page to redeem for OBC.  Any suggestions?  Thanks.

It works for me, so not an issue with their system.  Do you have sufficient points to get OBC?  I seem to recall someone else having issues and it was because they didn't have enough points for anything but statement credit.

[kjquilts]

3 hours ago, Tutone56 said:

I'm hoping people are still reading these because I could use some help.  I'm trying to redeem my points for OBC.  Each time I click on rewards and then the image with the palm tree that says "Redeem Now", it requires me to login again and doesn't take me to the page to redeem for OBC.  Any suggestions?  Thanks.

 

To redeem Worldpoints for Onboard Credits, Cruise Upgrades, Discounts and More*  call Norwegian at 1-866-954-4077.  Usually when I call I ask if I've reached the Worldpoint Department because sometimes if they are very busy other NCL employees answer. 

 

To redeem Worldpoints for Cash, Merchant Gift Cards, Statement Credits and More* call Bank of America at 1-800-434-8313 (or log onto your account at bankofamerica.com)

 

*for a full list of available rewards, log onto your account at bankofamerica.com

 

 

[Tutone56]

So I called the number above and they were able to redeem my points into OBC.  Thanks for the help!

[alwalaska]

16 hours ago, Tutone56 said:

I'm hoping people are still reading these because I could use some help.  I'm trying to redeem my points for OBC.  Each time I click on rewards and then the image with the palm tree that says "Redeem Now", it requires me to login again and doesn't take me to the page to redeem for OBC.  Any suggestions?  Thanks.

Try using an Ingocnito window in Chrome or a private tab in Edge.  

 

Sometimes if a Cookie gets stuck, I get problems like this on other sites.  I also sometimes try a different browser or computer if that doesn't work.

[alwalaska]

NCL just canceled my cruise.  Any idea how long it will take to get my points back so that I can do the same double-meta upgrade if I find another cruise to move to?  They canceled 10 months of the Spirit 2025 cruises.

[julig22]

On 6/14/2023 at 8:19 AM, alwalaska said:

NCL just canceled my cruise.  Any idea how long it will take to get my points back so that I can do the same double-meta upgrade if I find another cruise to move to?  They canceled 10 months of the Spirit 2025 cruises.

You should be able to call the world points number and have the points returned to your account, shouldn't take very long.  I personally wouldn't just wait to see what happens.