Does NCL not need the business?

[maggiecatenjay]

JesterPlay, I say Bully. Bully!

 

Get slapped? Don't get in line for more (Thank you sir, may I have another?)

Customer service seems to be a convoluted concept for NCL - at least in my case with a substandard TA. Policy - who (NCL or TA) owns what piece of cyberspace... well I OWN IT. I PAID FOR IT.

 

Yea, well NCL policy is oakalie doakalie with p%#'d off customers (you and me) and NCL simply DOES NOT CARE. If I had the option I'd tell NCL to take a flying leap, as well.

 

Fifty bucks is NOT the issue... the issue is like falling into a hole NCL and the TA dug together: they're standing at the top (with you looking up) arguing over who's fault it you are lying down there muddied and bruised instead of one or both of them lending you a hand-up. Your TA tried but just didn't cut it because NCL put up their policy roadblocks.

 

My question is if the supermarket down the street or the dry cleaners or whatever treated you, a paying customer in such a fashion you (at least I) would never darken their doors again (yup - been there done/do that).

 

I love CC and appreciate all the things I've learned here but I just don't understand why so many of you cut NCL so much slack... Like they're the Dutch Uncle who's gonna die someday and leave everybody a million bucks so... be nice - just nod and hand over the cash... I just don't get it.

[Mooder]

JesterPlay, I say Bully. Bully!

 

Get slapped? Don't get in line for more (Thank you sir, may I have another?)

Customer service seems to be a convoluted concept for NCL - at least in my case with a substandard TA. Policy - who (NCL or TA) owns what piece of cyberspace... well I OWN IT. I PAID FOR IT.

 

Yea, well NCL policy is oakalie doakalie with p%#'d off customers (you and me) and NCL simply DOES NOT CARE. If I had the option I'd tell NCL to take a flying leap, as well.

 

Fifty bucks is NOT the issue... the issue is like falling into a hole NCL and the TA dug together: they're standing at the top (with you looking up) arguing over who's fault it you are lying down there muddied and bruised instead of one or both of them lending you a hand-up. Your TA tried but just didn't cut it because NCL put up their policy roadblocks.

 

My question is if the supermarket down the street or the dry cleaners or whatever treated you, a paying customer in such a fashion you (at least I) would never darken their doors again (yup - been there done/do that).

 

I love CC and appreciate all the things I've learned here but I just don't understand why so many of you cut NCL so much slack... Like they're the Dutch Uncle who's gonna die someday and leave everybody a million bucks so... be nice - just nod and hand over the cash... I just don't get it.

 

While I am an "NCL cheerleader" I don't defend their customer service. They have some serious issues on the phones. However, I don't have a problem with the policy itself. If the supermarket has a sale that is only good through Sunday, I don't expect to show up on Tuesday and get the reduced price. That's the nature of promotions. But what I will agree is an issue is that they should warn people of what they are giving up when they make a change. I believe that is true of the TA AND NCL. I had something similar happen to me last Fall. When I tried to take advantage of a new OBC promotion, I hadn't realized I would lose what I had. As soon as it happened, I called and it was reversed since the OBC wasn't worth it to me. I was fortunate I was able to reverse it so no harm done, but I do believe NCL should have made me aware. And my TA was totally useless so I have a new TA for my next cruise. I don't know if anyone would do any better in this particular situation, but we'll see. Of course, now I know better and hopefully won't get in that situation.

[sjbdtz]

JesterPlay, I say Bully. Bully!

 

Get slapped? Don't get in line for more (Thank you sir, may I have another?)

Customer service seems to be a convoluted concept for NCL - at least in my case with a substandard TA. Policy - who (NCL or TA) owns what piece of cyberspace... well I OWN IT. I PAID FOR IT.

 

Yea, well NCL policy is oakalie doakalie with p%#'d off customers (you and me) and NCL simply DOES NOT CARE. If I had the option I'd tell NCL to take a flying leap, as well.

 

Fifty bucks is NOT the issue... the issue is like falling into a hole NCL and the TA dug together: they're standing at the top (with you looking up) arguing over who's fault it you are lying down there muddied and bruised instead of one or both of them lending you a hand-up. Your TA tried but just didn't cut it because NCL put up their policy roadblocks.

 

My question is if the supermarket down the street or the dry cleaners or whatever treated you, a paying customer in such a fashion you (at least I) would never darken their doors again (yup - been there done/do that).

 

I love CC and appreciate all the things I've learned here but I just don't understand why so many of you cut NCL so much slack... Like they're the Dutch Uncle who's gonna die someday and leave everybody a million bucks so... be nice - just nod and hand over the cash... I just don't get it.

 

What a ridiculous post.

 

Have you ever bought a car? From a dealer?

 

 

 

 

Besides... the OP doesn't know for sure what NCL did or said, only what the TA SAYS NCL did or said.

 

I think that the TA screwed up, and is blaming NCL....who although the booking didn't qualify for any OBC, nonetheless made a courtesy offer of $100 OBC.

 

I think NCL was bending over backwards to help the customer, and the TA was ineffective.

 

 

I know that NCL have been responsive when I've had issues (I'm not saying they're perfect, but I've been impressed with how they resolve things).

[electricron]

I love CC and appreciate all the things I've learned here but I just don't understand why so many of you cut NCL so much slack... Like they're the Dutch Uncle who's gonna die someday and leave everybody a million bucks so... be nice - just nod and hand over the cash... I just don't get it.

 

How about looking at it from NCL's point of view for a change. Let's suppose a car dealer was selling you a car, as an example.

 

You initially bought the economy car, and got a discount sale for that model car because that model isn't selling well. But then change your mind a month later, instead wanting to buy a top of the line luxury car model they can't keep in stock because it sells really well. Does the auto dealer offer you the same goodies/ discounts?

 

The suite already gets extra goodies that the oceanview cabin doesn't. Goodies worth more than the $100 OBC.

 

Whereas you may take the simple point of view that they are basically the same, you're still buying/leasing different cars or cabins, at different times with different sales programs in effect.

[JesterPlaying]

While that's a good generality, it's not always true. I own a business, and I actively "fire" customers from time to time.

 

 

I can understand that if the customer was a pain in the ass. Do you actively "fire" customers who only decided to buy more from you at full price for the added quantity? If you do, can you please tell me what business you are in so I can capture those customers?

 

Have to admit it is the evil part of me that hopes NCL has to cut the price in half to fill the cabin I vacated. And even then it will a non-gambling teetotaler who only drinks water.

[Arwenmark]

I see nothing unusual in the OP's post, if you change your category you are in essence changing your booking and you lose any OBC that might have existed with the previous booking under whatever special was going on at the time unless the special, or another one is still on, nothing unusual about that. Now if they had just changed cabins in the same category this would not have happened, but what they did and the result is standard practice for most cruise lines.

It would have been nice if there TA had told them this prior to them making the change though.

[JesterPlaying]

How about looking at it from NCL's point of view for a change. Let's suppose a car dealer was selling you a car, as an example.

 

You initially bought the economy car, and got a discount sale for that model car because that model isn't selling well. But then change your mind a month later, instead wanting to buy a top of the line luxury car model they can't keep in stock because it sells really well. Does the auto dealer offer you the same goodies/ discounts?

 

The suite already gets extra goodies that the oceanview cabin doesn't. Goodies worth more than the $100 OBC.

 

Whereas you may take the simple point of view that they are basically the same, you're still buying/leasing different cars or cabins, at different times with different sales programs in effect.

 

 

Guess I am not done venting or justifying. The suite has not been sold this late before the sailing. There is a good possibility that NCL will have to offer an upsell offer to someone to fill it. It is easier for them to re-sell the Ocean View cabin I vacated at full price. I did not ask for or expect a deal for doing so. Anybody walking in off the street and paying the same price as I was going to for the suite would be getting the $150 dollar credit

 

So yeah, if I decided to buy the luxury model that wasn't selling as well as the economy one I first ordered. If the dealer, after taking my money then said oh by the way the floor mats I threw in with the other model will now cost you extra. If someone walked in off the street and was told they would get free floor mats with any model they bought. I would be upset and you can't tell me you wouldn't be upset too.

 

BTW, those goodies you mentioned were going to cost me an additional $3,000. Also, on the Majesty, because of it's size the Suite perks are significantly less than on the other ships of the line.

[JCrewz]

I'm with you, Jester. It surprises me how pointed some of the reply posts are when you were venting about NCL Customer Service. I simply don't buy that NCL has more business than they can handle based on the number of emails I get from them each week advertising sales. It would sure seem like the Balcony customers are harder to find than the Oceanview customers.

 

I swore that I would never sail NCL again because of a customer service issue two years ago when trying to book an Alaskan cruise.....they would not honor the price they emailed me saying it was a mistake. As time went on, I cooled down about it and we are sailing on NCL next month.

 

They need to rethink their approach to customer satisfaction (and I am sure sympathetic to your complaint), but I hope you will give the freestyle cruising a try.....in my opinion, no other cruise line can offer as much relaxation and flexibility as NCL.

[khall]

No OBC is being offered now, so no, not anyone walking in off the street would get $150 OBC, they get nothing. Like what was posted before I think the $100 OBC was from your TA as an "oops I screwed up and don't want to tell you and don't want to be blamed"

[momofmeg]

I think you need to find another Travel Agent. I've been using the same on for 10 years now and have canceled a few cruises over the years. I've never been charged a cancellation fee.

 

I agree. We normally use an online agency, but we went with a local travel agent last year, because our friends who we had planned to cruise with used her. They backed out. Well we had never really wanted to take that particular cruise, they had picked it out, so we canceled also, and it cost us $150, $50 per person, for canceling. Needless to say when we learned that, we did not rebook with her, instead we rebooked with our old online agency.(Besides the fact that we saved several hundred using them)

[JesterPlaying]

No OBC is being offered now, so no, not anyone walking in off the street would get $150 OBC, they get nothing. Like what was posted before I think the $100 OBC was from your TA as an "oops I screwed up and don't want to tell you and don't want to be blamed"

 

 

Actually there is an OBC being offered now. The original was $150 for Ocean View and $500 for a Suite. The current offer is $150 for a Suite. If this was a cancel and re-book as some suggest, I should of been given the new credit. NCL originally removed all OBC without informing me at the time they quoted the price and only reluctantly offered the $100 OBC.

[momofmeg]

have you tried to go to a store and get the sale price a month after the sale is over. That is the same thing. You booked the cruise on a sale that offered the OBC and then upgraded so they set up a new booking and the OBC was not offered at that time.

I am going to bet the new company would do the same thing to you if you tried to upgrade after their sale is over as well!!:confused::eek:

 

He did not want to cancel and rebook, he merely wanted to upgrade-so yes NCL hurt themselves. They lost $8000 because they would not honor a $150 on board credit. I hate to say it, but you sound like a NCL cheerleader. BTW-most stores will honor their sale prices, if an item goes on sale within 30 days after you buying it, a few will honor this even after a longer period.

 

To the OP-Personally, I would have asked for a supervisor at NCL. I do believe they would have given you the credit. After all it is much harder to sell a suite than an oceanview.

[retiredonthesea]

JesterPlay, I say Bully. Bully!

 

Get slapped? Don't get in line for more (Thank you sir, may I have another?)

Customer service seems to be a convoluted concept for NCL - at least in my case with a substandard TA. Policy - who (NCL or TA) owns what piece of cyberspace... well I OWN IT. I PAID FOR IT.

 

Yea, well NCL policy is oakalie doakalie with p%#'d off customers (you and me) and NCL simply DOES NOT CARE. If I had the option I'd tell NCL to take a flying leap, as well.

 

Fifty bucks is NOT the issue... the issue is like falling into a hole NCL and the TA dug together: they're standing at the top (with you looking up) arguing over who's fault it you are lying down there muddied and bruised instead of one or both of them lending you a hand-up. Your TA tried but just didn't cut it because NCL put up their policy roadblocks.

 

My question is if the supermarket down the street or the dry cleaners or whatever treated you, a paying customer in such a fashion you (at least I) would never darken their doors again (yup - been there done/do that).

 

I love CC and appreciate all the things I've learned here but I just don't understand why so many of you cut NCL so much slack... Like they're the Dutch Uncle who's gonna die someday and leave everybody a million bucks so... be nice - just nod and hand over the cash... I just don't get it.

 

So why are you cruising with NCL if you have issues with them:confused: I'am just curious as you don't seem to like their product at all.

 

You may not get it---but I for one get a "bang for my buck" from them. We have had problems now and then but, nothing that would make me stop using the product. You can find every cruise line having customers saying they will never cruise them again. Look at RCCL boards :rolleyes: people claiming to jump ship right & left because of the changes they have just made.

 

CC has just a small % of the cruising population represented here that I'am sure the cruise lines arent going to miss these few. It would be wonderful if we could go through life with nothing to upset us---deals all going our way and paying what we want ect. ect. It's a good thing cruise companies are in abundance---don't like one try another!

 

It's a shame that customer service has gone down hill so much---I use to enjoy dealing with customer service face to face. Now you speak to someone half way around the world and then can't understand a thing they are saying. You just deal with it---go on and find something that works better for you!

 

Hope your cruise is enjoyable!:)

[daffodiliaz]

Jester, I completely understand your points. I'm not a "seasoned" cruiser, so when I called to upgrade from an OV to a balcony, I was suprised to learn I would be completely losing my OBC, even though I was giving NCL more money. Didn't seem right to me. If I didn't want the balcony so badly, I would've stayed with my original OV. Now I'm just going to spend less onboard out of spite. Just seems like poor customer service. Once they get your money, to heck with ya. But I like NCL so I won't cancel this cruise. Next time I will be sure to book directly with NCL. Live and learn. To me it seems like you should at least get to keep your original OBC, even if you don't get the higher OBC that you would've gotten if you'd booked the suite originally. I would've been happy with that. I wasn't asking for more OBC with my upgrade, but simply to keep my original. That seems fair.

[CruisnGram]

Have to admit it is the evil part of me that hopes NCL has to cut the price in half to fill the cabin I vacated. And even then it will a non-gambling teetotaler who only drinks water.

 

I hope the same Jester. There's only 2 suite's left on that sailing and I'm watching the prices like a hawk to grab one as an upgrade for my daughter in her family. So cutting the price in half would thrill me! :D

 

Not making light of your situation....just saying. :)

 

CG

[gtalum]

I can understand that if the customer was a pain in the ass. Do you actively "fire" customers who only decided to buy more from you at full price for the added quantity? If you do, can you please tell me what business you are in so I can capture those customers?

 

Not exactly. But I probably would "fire" a customer who returned the product, bought more product, then complained that they didn't get the earlier sale price for the product. I give those customers that I fire the number to my primary competitor. Then I enjoy the stories he tells me when he has the same troubles. Of course, he does the same to me, and it makes for fun times over a drink or two every time we meet up at conventions. :D

 

Have to admit it is the evil part of me that hopes NCL has to cut the price in half to fill the cabin I vacated. And even then it will a non-gambling teetotaler who only drinks water.

 

That's not evil, it's just human nature.

 

It's not just about the one cabin. It's about the fact that if they make an exception for you, they'll have to make it for other people. In the long run they will generally do better financially by adhering to their policies. And further, for every person that's angry at NCL and will never sail them again, there are likely 5 that say the same about CCL and 3 that say the same about RCI. There are always dissatisfied customers.

[CruisnGram]

This post is not directed to any one particular poster, but to several that have had the same problem.

NCL (and all cruise lines) have special sales or promotions that come out all the time. They are for a limited time and then they are gone. If you book during a promotion period and then change your reservation in any way, you are at risk of losing the promotion, be it on board credit, or 3rd person rate, or whatever it was.

So my advice is that the very first question to be asked when you go to make a change to your reservation is:

 

How will this affect my (insert OBC, 3rd person rate, etc)?

I'm not defending NCL or any other large corporation but they are in business to make a buck, and they have policies that they go by. And, they stick by those polices.

I've seen people wanting money refunded when prices drop after final payment...NCL says "no". I've seen people say that they didn't buy insurance and have to cancel a cruise when in the penalty phase..can they get their money back? NCL says "no". It's their policy folks and good, bad or indifferent, we as consumers have the obligation to know that policy to protect ourselves.

I agree it would be nice if NCL would make concessions to their policy, but if they won't, it's ultimately our responsibility to know those policies and use them to our advantage, not to NCL's.

CG

 

PS: For what it's worth, I completely blame the TA in the OP's case. That is what they are paid to do. This TA fell down on her job by not being informed and/or not asking the right questions of NCL. She was representing the OP and she should have made herself aware of NCL's policy and informed the OP as to his options.

[jaja]

this post is not directed to any one particular poster, but to several that have had the same problem.

 

ncl (and all cruise lines) have special sales or promotions that come out all the time. They are for a limited time and then they are gone. If you book during a promotion period and then change your reservation in any way, you are at risk of losing the promotion, be it on board credit, or 3rd person rate, or whatever it was.

 

so my advice is that the very first question to be asked when you go to make a change to your reservation is:

 

how will this affect my (insert obc, 3rd person rate, etc)?

 

i'm not defending ncl or any other large corporation but they are in business to make a buck, and they have policies that they go by. And, they stick by those polices.

 

i've seen people wanting money refunded when prices drop after final payment...ncl says "no". I've seen people say that they didn't buy insurance and have to cancel a cruise when in the penalty phase..can they get their money back? Ncl says "no". It's their policy folks and good, bad or indifferent, we as consumers have the obligation to know that policy to protect ourselves.

 

i agree it would be nice if ncl would make concessions to their policy, but if they won't, it's ultimately our responsibility to know those policies and use them to our advantage, not to ncl's.

 

cg

 

ps: For what it's worth, i completely blame the ta in the op's case. That is what they are paid to do. This ta fell down on her job by not being informed and/or not asking the right questions of ncl. She was representing the op and she should have made herself aware of ncl's policy and informed the op as to his options.

 

 

 

well said :)

[swedish weave]

Back in December we booked a cruise our first NCL cruise for June on the Majesty out of Baltimore. We chose this cruise primarily because it did go out of Baltimore. We knew at the time it was an older smaller ship, but the convenience of just driving to the ship was what sold us. At the time we booked there was an On Board Credit promotion of $150 for Ocean view and $500 for a Suite. We got one of the largest Ocean Views and the $150 On Board Credit.

 

My wife became concerned about the size of the cabin so we decided to upgrade to a Suite. This was not an upgrade offer , but us paying the full difference between what we paid for our existing booking and the current Suite price. The cost was $3,000 but worth it if it stopped my wife's panic attacks about being in a small room.

 

We made the change which was under the same booking. I asked my TA about the OBC, kind of hoping the additional $350 would help offset the pain of the switch. When she contacted NCL they told her I had no OBC, that when they upgraded they removed the OBC. This is something they didn't inform her at the time they processed the upgrade.

 

I really didn't expect to the get the increase, but to be denied my original credit after paying full upgrade price? After further discussion by the TA and being told I would consider taking my business elsewhere, they reluctantly agreed to give me an OBC of $100.

 

So I looked elsewhere and found a sailing 5 days later on another competing cruise line out of Baltimore for an even larger Suite for $2,000 less. So even with the cancellation penalty the trip was $1,500 less than NCL.

 

So for $50 NCL gave up $8,000 in revenue (cabin, onboard spending and casino) and sent me to a competitor. Doesn't seem to be the way to run a business in this economy. I wanted to try NCL, but not if this is how they treat their customers.

 

 

If they saved me $1500 on a cruise, I would send a thank you note to both the TA and the cruise line. I would probably also include a note describing their mental deficiencies...

[garycarla]

NCL does do some stupid things.

 

But at the same time, why do people not understand that an OBC is part of the pricing. Sounds like NCL should just offer the new cabin at a higher price and then give you an OBC. comes out the same, but then people would not be upset.

 

$2,800 with a $400 OBC is a lousy deal compared to $2,100 with no OBC, but it appears that some people would prefer the higher price, just do not take my OBC away.

 

Now, if only NCL could figure out which sort of person is on the phone, they could make the right offer.

[BananaAnna]

I truly understand where the OP is coming from - my first cruise with NCL, when I called them directly to book the cruise, the phone person gave me a price $400 higher than I'd been told earlier and what was online. I couldn't get her to believe she was incorrect and double check. I declined to book the cruise with her, immediately called a travel agent and booked the cruise for the correct price!

Currently booked cruise - booked thru NCL, later saw a promo being offered, called in to ask if the OBC being offered would apply to my booked cruise. Lady called me back, all atwitter, and YES, she was able to get me the $200 OBC!!! Alas - when I received my updated email confirmation - the price was $700 higher. It took two days and a supervisor to straighten out her 'helping' me!

Yes, I'll continue to sail NCL (and Carnival and Celebrity), but I watch NCL more closely.

[Don Haynes]

I recall whenever a display had a scratch during a sale, the sale price being our loss leader for the week; battle axes would ask if they could have the display for another $10 off the sale price. Never mind we had hundreds of the item in our inventory. The answer will always be no. We have no intentions of assembling another display or selling the display until all of the rest of the product has sold. The answer no is not always bad customer relations.

[Budget Queen]

In response to few of the above posts. The On Board Credit was a promotion to book on that cruise in December. I was still booked on the same cruise. Upgrading, was not a cancellation and re-booking. In fact there is a current promotion, that if I did cancel and re-book would of entitled me to a $150 On Board Credit for a Suite.

 

True OBCs are promotions, but they are part of the price. For my original $2,300 I was to receive a cabin and an additional $150 of goods and services. When a price quote was requested I should of been informed that I would not be receiving those additional services before I made my decision to pay the higher price.

 

In this instance the price for the Suite was even higher than it was in December. I was paying a higher full price. There really is no justification on NCL's part for removing the credit. But even if there was, reducing the value of what I was purchasing and not informing me of that fact prior to taking my money is not acceptable.

 

 

QUOTE]

 

This is NOT with NCL< your AGENT, is the one getting the pricing and FULL details. Were you in a three way conversation with your agent and NCL??? Otherwise, I don't see how you can "blame" NCL for this. Your agent probably dropped the ball here.

[WhansaMi]

 

 

 

This is NOT with NCL< your AGENT, is the one getting the pricing and FULL details. Were you in a three way conversation with your agent and NCL??? Otherwise, I don't see how you can "blame" NCL for this. Your agent probably dropped the ball here.

 

I'm Jester's wife. While it wasn't a three way conversation, he was holding, and getting information a bit at a time. If I recall correctly, it went something like this (and I'm sure he'll let us all know if I got something wrong!) :-)

 

1. We call TA to upgrade.

2. She calls NCL, (with DH holding) and they give her a price. We accept, and upgrade is effected, and paid for.

3. As we are waiting for all the stuff to be entered and confirmation to come through, we ask (hopefully, but not expecting it) if the higher OBC ($500, as was offered in Dec. for suites) would apply. TA calls NCL, where she is told that, not only wouldn't we get that one, but the OBC of $125 had been taken off.

4. He asks for booking number ... confirms it is the same, so not rebooked. He complains, she puts him back on hold, and comes back saying they've reluctantly offered $100 OBC.

 

I'm not sure how the TA can be at fault here. The booking number was the same.

Yes, I suppose she could have confirmed about the OBC at the first go around, but I don't think she could have made any difference with the offer.

 

As they say on all the "judge shows" during the day, it wasn't the $50... it was the principle of the thing. :-)

 

Someone brought up the analogy of cars. Car dealers do things differently, of course, but I know of several that, if you want to, you can return your car within a certain time (usually 3 days), and put the money down toward a more expensive model. And, that is with a product that, usually, depreciates over time, or, at best, stays the same.

 

In this case, the price of the suite had gone up since December. So, in fact, this product didn't depreciate over time.... it appreciated. We didn't flinch at that... we understood we'd have to pay the full price TODAY -- that totally makes sense. But, to expand upon the analogy above, if I bought a car from the dealer and he offered to include 12 free car washes over a year, returned it two days later (as per his policy), and bought a car that cost over twice the original one, I'd wonder if he said "and by the way, no car washes for you!". Even if the carwash promotion had expired, you'd think he'd want to make this customer, who has now demonstrated a greater willingness to spend money in his establishment, happy.

 

If NCL had said "Sorry, Charlie. No upgrade/upsell. You take the room you have, or cancel (with the appropriate fees) and rebook", then I could understand the OBC thing. But, that isn't their policy -- and they don't want it to be, because they WANT to book the higher price rooms. We were told that it didn't require rebooking, so I would think that one would resonably assume that the price that was quote was for an upgrade.... not a rebooking.

 

It added insult to injury that, when the TA called to cancel, they didn't even ask what was going on (which, given that we'd upgraded less than 20 minutes earlier, you'd think someone would have questioned).

 

All in all, it turned out fine, and it is water under the bridge. But, given that NCL just published an annual loss of over $200 million for the second year in a row, you'd think they'd look at how to keep customers who have demonstrated a willingness to spend more money with them, rather than alienating them.

 

Sheila

[BruceMuzz]

I don't see how it is a seller's market at all. Yes NCL is sailing at or near capacity, but that is only because they are selling their cruises at some of the lowest rates I have ever seen. It is all with Supply and Demand. They would sail no where near full if they were charging top dollar for their rooms. They must lower the cost in order to fill the beds.

 

A "Seller's Market" occurs when demand is higher than supply. It really doesn't matter why that is happening. Sometimes it's price, sometimes it's quality. Other times it happens for other reasons.

 

The only issue here is that there are more potential cruisers than there are beds to put them in. This situation has existed in the cruise industry for over a decade. All the polls and expensive market research tell us that it is very likely to continue that way for at least 2 more decades.

 

We live in a free market economy.

When I have a product and too many people are begging me to sell it to them, I get to decide if I want to sell it to the guy who wants to pay me more - or to the guy who wants to pay me less.

I would make the same decision that NCL - my least favourite cruise line - made.

 

The OP also had a decision to make. He could pay more to NCL or he could pay less to somebody else. He also made the same decision I would have made. I believe that NCL did him a huge favour.

 

I promise never to complain on this board when I find the same product for less money.