Unethical business practices- refusal to refund port taxes for cancelled stops

Item: Norwegian Star
Rating: 4.5
Author: Jvail

Norwegian Star Cruise Review to Other (Asia/Africa/Middle East)

Jvail

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 2

Helpful Votes: 11

Overall rating:

4.5 out of 5

14 Night Antarctica & South America (Buenos Aires Roundtrip)

Sail date: January 07, 2024

Ship: Norwegian Star

Cabin number: 4001

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 4 months ago

Review summary

Our concern is post cruise. Our visit to Punta Arenas, Chile was cancelled. Totally understand due to severe weather. An ethical company would have automatically refunded the port taxes to all. Instead we had to wait in line and get a form. Their agent said that we were entitled to refund of taxes. We have sent form in twice and had numerous follow ups. They either get ignored. Say they never received or repeatedly send boilerplate responses that they don’t compensate for missed private tours. We never asked for this - just port taxes. They won’t even acknowledge our actual claim. Hearing from travel agents that they are hearing this from many NCL passengers. Sounds like a class action suit in the making. Sad because we actually liked the cruise and booked two others which we now regret!

Embarkation

2 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5

Onboard Activities

4 out of 5

Entertainment

4 out of 5

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Ship Quality

4 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5

Ports of call

Buenos Aires, Argentina

5 out of 5

Montevideo, Uruguay

5 out of 5

Puerto Madryn, Argentina

4 out of 5

Ushuaia, Tierra Del Fuego, Argentina

5 out of 5

Port Stanley, Falkland Islands

5 out of 5

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

6 Comments

Gwbigdog 4 months ago

Thanks for sharing

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willwork4cruz 4 months ago

You should know the port fees are probably less than $15. The amount of “Port charges, taxes, and fees” etc they charge are typically inflated to include the cruise lines own extra fees that they won’t refund. When we have missed a port and the cruise line decides to refund the port fees, it’s just been a tiny amount. NCL knows most people won’t bother going after so little.

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javawoody 4 months ago

Interesting port fees, refund claim. Hope you are successful.

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bubbles60 4 months ago

Wonderful itinerary! We have always had a great experience with NCL, sorry you were not pleased about port fees.

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BeachBums061314 4 months ago

If you live in the United States, you might want to consider your local TV station. Ours has a “Call For Action” segment. I’ve seen concerns like this take place with an airline regarding baggage fees. The customer got the news involved and they were refunded with just days after the segment aired. Sorry for your troubles.

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HeavySeas 4 months ago

Thanks for sharing your cruise experience

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