Norwegian Cruise Line
Reviews and Complaints

Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) has proven to be a disappointment, leaving many passengers stranded and furious over its deceptive practices. My holiday travel plans were ruined due to NCLs confusing, incomplete, and delayed communication about documentation requirements.

This isnt just poor customer serviceits a potential violation of federal and Florida consumer protection laws.
The Problem
I booked a closed-loop cruise with NCL, a type of trip where U.S. citizens can travel using a birth certificate instead of a passport. During booking, I explicitly confirmed this requirement, yet NCLs communication failed to provide clear or accurate guidance. The invoice ambiguously recommended passports without addressing exceptions for minors or explaining alternatives for closed-loop cruises.
Shockingly, just 30 days before departure, NCL notified me of additional documentation requirements.

This left insufficient time to obtain a passport, which typically takes 68 weeks. The result? Unnecessary stress, confusion, and a canceled trip.
Not an Isolated Incident
Numerous other passengers faced similar issues, indicating a systemic problem in NCLs operations. This isnt a simple mistake; its a pattern of ambiguous policies and inadequate communication that mislead customers, causing financial losses and emotional distress.
Legal Implications
Under the Federal Trade Commission Act and Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, businesses must provide clear and truthful information.

NCLs failure to disclose essential documentation requirements violates these laws, constituting deceptive and unfair practices.
The Bottom Line
If youre considering booking with NCL, beware. Their lack of transparency and accountability can derail your plans and cost you time, money, and peace of mind.

Companies like this must be held accountable for their actions to protect consumers. Share your story if youve been impactedtogether, we can push for change.

Sept. 29, 2024, my husband and I had a cruise book to enjoy the fall foliage on the northeast coast.

Our flight was cancelled due to mechanical issues that morning with no follow up flight that would reach NY before the ship left. Immediately upon learning of cancellation I called Norwegian's travel dept. They kept me on the phone for almost 45 minutes only to tell me to pickup my checked in luggage that they couldn't help me. We purchased the AON Platinum insurance because we believed it would cover basically anything you could imagine.

No I am finding flight cancellations aren't covered and my claim has been denied. I called American Airlines and they tell me they will not refund my flight expense because Norwegian Cruise Line booked it. Norwegian says American must refund it even though I paid that ticket expense to Norwegian. We are sitting her January 22, 2025, no refund or no trip credits for plane fare or cruise.

NOTHING, ZIP!!! This trip cost close to $5K. I have nothing to show for it.

AON Travel Insurance responded that Norwegian is responsible and there has been no response from Norwegian. This booking has been my worst nightmare.

Absolutely the worst cruise line i have ever had the displeasure of dealing with. Just got off the ncl joy today 11/23/2024 and by far the worst experience of my life. From start to finish they had 0 redeeming qualities. I highly recommend you do not sail this cruise line ever in your life.

first to start my mother in law who was suppose to be cruising with us passed away 9 days before the cruise was to set sail. When I called to speak with NCL, they told me I was *** of luck and fined us $3000 for her not coming on the ship.

Second we asked if it be possible to do a memorial service for her on the ship while we were there first they said yes which quickly turned to no because you have to have a minimum of 12 people and 14 day notice she didnt even die 14 days before the ship was to sail.

Third the food quality is lacking deeply.

Fourth the service is *** Dont expect to be able to get drinks before the shows one sever who I tried to order with told me basically to *** as he had to many orders.

Fifth they lost our bags we put out for them to take down to the cruise terminal on the last night of the cruise. Then said they get back to us in 10 business days about the missing bag.

Sixth the internet hardly worked and for 2 full days didnt work at all.

Seventh we booked our flights through NCL which left us with 10 hours to sit in the airport.

Eighth we were pulled aside during disembarkation and told to go speak to facial services, they told us we owed money. I showed them my invoice with a negative balance they then replied oh we owe you money. Then went back and forth repeatedly till we were told we had a $0 balance.

Lastly nothing was done to make anything right.

Over all terrible experience

WARNING to Future Cruisers

If youre considering booking with Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL), read this first. Our recent experience on the Norwegian Epic was a nightmare, and NCLs response to our complaints has been nothing short of disappointing.

We spent months planning our vacation, only to find that NCL sent us on a ship with known issues.

This wasnt just a minor inconvenience. Due to mechanical problems, we missed two scheduled ports, meaning less time enjoying the destinations we paid for.

The response from NCL? After paying a significant amount for this cruise, all we got was a refund for the port fees which, of course, we didnt use because we never went there. No compensation for the time lost, no apologies that felt sincere, just a statement that they were done handling our complaint.

Their guest relations team assured us this was a global decision and there would be no further compensation, as if that should be enough.

The lack of accountability and the dismissive attitude from their customer service is appalling. Once they have your money, it seems they stop caring about your experience or making things right when they go wrong.

I feel obligated to share this so that other travelers think twice about booking with NCL.

If youre considering NCL, please be aware of what youre signing up for. My experience showed me they dont put their customers first, and I hope this message helps others avoid the same disappointment.

#NorwegianCruiseLine #NorwegianEpic #TravelWarning #CruiseConcerns #NCL

The ordeal started on a day when we couldn't access our room until almost 9 p.m., with people sleeping on the steps. The bathrooms in the common areas were absolutely filthy throughout the entire trip.

The toilet in our room stopped functioning on the morning of the third day. After contacting customer service, someone came to the room three hours later and informed us that we would have to wait our turn. Despite numerous trips to check if the issue was resolved, it wasn't remedied until 8 p.m. The housekeeping was grossly understaffed, only visiting our room once a day, sometimes as late as 7 or 8 p.m., and the cleaning was poorly done at best.

A vacuum cleaner sat idle in the hallway by our room throughout our trip, and the hallway hadn't been cleaned probably since the past two voyages. We had another cruise booked for the summer of '25 to Ireland, but Norwegian can keep the deposit.

I don't even want to start about the extremely displeasing evening shows. Norwegian, never, never again!