Today we share our Norwegian Cruise Line traps people are still falling for.
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There are lots of changes on NCL and we are here to share some with you that you may not be aware that they are a trap.
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32 Comments
And you get access to everything on Disney but did you forget Disney more expensive. That's nickel and dimeing don't you think? I save up for costs of things I want to do. So buy time I may by for everything on Norwigon I may cone closer to cost of Disney. Hmmm
I don't mind paying a tip for a drink served to me in a bar. I also was served great ice cream without charge on NCL Star in the Topsider Grill. But for some reason, the buffet closes down beverage stations (coffee/tea/water/juices) when the food areas are closed, which is frustrating. The buffet charges for fresh juices. The best tip about the thermal lounge is to go in the evening and fill your water bottle with lemon or cucumber water. At times, to get free water, I had to duck into the all-night bar "OSheehans." order a (free) french fries, ask for two waters and pour that water into my bottle.
My real ice cream not soft serve was included. Many things you are saying are same on many cruise lines
You’re charged for the gratuities, not taxes. And if you do the math and you don’t drink enough for it to be worth it, then take it off. Doesn’t seem like a trap.
I left our recent cruise having not paid for anything extra than was paid at final payment, aside from a photo we bought.
Wow ! Sounds like a lot of complaining. Research before buying your cruise on what is and is not included… the only thing I agree with is with was the hard sell at the spa…. Lesson learned I don’t need to use the spa.
I'm so sick of the constant NCL Bashing from you Cruise Vloggers. You all think everyone are idiots. Every damn Cruiseline does the SAME crap, but somehow it's always NCL is evil for doing what everyone else does.
Not a big deal.
Great video FREE at SEA is a waste if both dont drink at the least 7 to 8 drinks a day and the Wifi is a scam it burns your minutes 3 times faster than normal
While I agree with some of the things said, these issues are not NCL specific. You mentioned Disney and Virgin, those cruises are double if not triple the cost. As for the free at sea, everyone needs to evaluate their situation and determine if it works for them.
This is why I will never cruise again. I've done two with Celebrity Cruise line and find we were being two bit to death with everything. Everytime we turned around we were being charged for tips/services that we've already paid with the purchase of the cruise! Example; we used a specialty restaurant and we were charged for that! Why? We paid for meals, why do I have to pay again for a restaurant meal? What happened to my payment for a meal in the main dining room? Do I get a credit for that purchase? No, never! The upcharging on beverages is outrageous!! 98.00USD for a 30.00 buck bottle of wine is ridiculous. When we were departing for a port day in +30 degree, only passengers with a "drink package" were offered water to get off the ship with. They couldn't give each passenger a 0.50 bottle of water for free?!?! I just felt it was so cheap of the ship (company) and we felt like second class citizens which I guess we were. I'm going back to all inclusives in Mexico where they truly are all inclusive. I don't have to pull out a card every 10 minutes and I can reward great service for great service, not pay for gratuities for things that I don't even know I'm tipping for.
The truth about cruising these days is that it is anything but all inclusive, but you can come a lot closer. Obviously there is airfare and hotels and cabs before and after. They typically include port fees and taxes in the price these days, which does help. As for dining, we feel we get restaurant food in the dining room, at least on Celebrity and Holland America, so we don’t ask for anything fancier. For what it costs to pay the up charge for a fancy meal on board plus the double tip on top of that, we can have a nice meal out when we get home as well as that meal we ate in the main dining room. If you are going to drink enough to get your money worth out of the drinks package, you may not be sober enough to enjoy the cruise optimally, so just stay home and drink good stuff and be happy. All of those spa type things are also cheaper on land. Decide what if anything you want to splurge on and hold it to that. Don’t shop in the store, don’t get your hair cut, etc on board. And skip those silly raffles and art sales. The excursions can often be found cheaper on line if you aren’t spooked about missing the boat. Going private can mean you get to miss the massive crowds at the sites, and also the aggravating waits while Mrs Jones and her husband sleep in and don’t show up for the bus on time. Our cruise bill at the end of the cruise is often the base price plus tips and nothing else – and we have a terrific time.
If you can’t afford it, don’t go
I agree no drink package & the free wifi is a joke… not worh it!
This video is way off course
This video is only for US market, where people get ripped off by not including taxes in final prices. This doesn't happen in EU, all prices include taxes, we see the final price.
It seemsto me this is not the first time you have bad mouth NCL your opinions are worthless
Still monumentally cheaper than a drink package on other lines. Yes- you should consider if it makes sense but they arent traps lol
Hmmm.. not a great review nor an accurate title, as these are your preferences, its not a trap. If you like to eat and drink well then paying the taxes is just normal, buy one drink pay your taxes, buy one higher priced meal then pay your taxes etc. etc. so buy a package, pay your taxes on that package and have no dramas at the end of your trip because you paid out more than you expected, as for extras for using games rooms or premium ice creams is quite normal, you will think you are entitled to fee casinos next…! seems you have a downer on NCL and life in general.
By the way, the rest of the world tips for quality of product and service, USA has a tip culture because your employers do not pay a fair wage so consumers supplement their wages, so again another not so accurate comparison that US citizens are by far the best tippers.
Check your statement at the end and if you leave a £ debit card you will get about 1.06 for your £ when it should be a minimum 1.26 . A real hurter
Couldn't agree more with you both. Unless you are a big drinker then it's definitely not worth it. If you are traveling with someone in your cabin they also have to get the package. I'm not a big drinker so my taxes and tip money is basically a gift to them.
Their excursions are crazy expensive
I am surprised no one has Sued NCL or any of these other cruise lines on their Alcohol Drinks packages since they are wanting you to become an alcholic pretty much, they are encouraging you to drink heavily.
You aren’t paying “taxes” you are paying for gratuities!
Seems they're cheap.and whine about everything!
Expect a lot for as little as possible!
Extra tip line is for servers specifically that do a good job. and they're not paid well. the automatic grats are split into pennies among them all…. the additional tip goes straight to your waiter or bartender
A lot of servers and bartenders in us make as low as 2.13 an hour and the tip is what they live on. cruise lines pay their server staff pennies…. its awful
I look it at this way – cruise life is a luxury but these days the price of a cruise is so reasonable to get on the ship from cabin category/ammenties/extras. That you are able to choose the vacation lifestyle at your expense! So if it cost extra then so be it at least you know before getting on the ship from their website/bloggers/Cruise critics,etc.
After over 50 NCL trips… I don't fall for any of them. Just like service charges untop of more once on-board. Also, I give cash to the crew, as they don't even get the on-board service fees or write in tios. Very fraudulent practices they do. Always remove all service fees on next to last night…
Do a video on daily service charges. The crews DO NOT get these. It's part of their contract. These all go to NCLs bottom line.. I've had many many discussions regarding these with various levels of employees. They can get fired if they discuss, but some have become life-long friends over the past few decades of sailing NCL. Same when they add those fees to the packages. If people actually believe the bartenders are getting these……
Boy you all are whiney. Nothing you say here is unique to NCL. Why are you attacking them?
I just donot agree with all of your complaints.
There are too many Indians and Phillipinos on norwegian