complawyer

yeah, but who has that kind of time? to answer kodiak, with all the different ports and countries available, i would take the Mediterranean hands down. we took a b2b from venice a few years back, saw, dubrovnik, santorini, mykonos, and other ports. amazing!

bermudabound2014. the initial question posed was whether or not to consider a haven for a solo. my original response was if he can afford it, go for it, he seemed rather confused in a later post so i just suggested he skip the haven altogether and get a club balcony. you are correct that a balcony (not club) is more than enough for a solo traveler, but with that line of thinking, so is an ocean view or even an indoor. in this case, he was looking for something more upscale

we're always happy with the 2 bedroom. the extra bathroom is a terrific benefit, even if there are only 2 of us sailing

kkb WOW! do you sound confused! here's my final piece of advice. If you're so conflicted, DO NOT book the haven. book a club balcony suite. it's roomy, comfortable, and really, more than enough for a solo traveler. if it's just you, you probably wont need or really utilize the services of the butler or concierge. Save your money for when you can sail with a significant other, then splurge for the haven complex. whichever cabin you end up choosing, BON VOYAGE!

were we possibly on t he same cruise in april without knowing it? we were also in a 2 bedroom on the jade. qpril 8th through the 17th. if so we may have even been next door without knowing it. smallworld huh? but with the haven, you get the best of both worlds. you can escape to the privacy of the haven when you wish, and enjoy all the public areas as well. i certainly dont lock my self in the cabin for the length of the cruise, and other than the general; pool area, i wander the ship as well. we enjoy the bars, i frequent mdr. after many sailings with ncl, i dont really like osheehans, would prefer to stay away from le bistro, not overly excited about la cucina. love the waterfront on the getaway, make sure i eat at teppanyaki at least once during the cruise, and as i said before, if we were on the same cruise last april, our butler and the concierge were amazing

then go for the absolute best you can!!!!!

traveling man. at least you got a pin. we havent been able to get one in years, and the last time we did, we did the same thing. put it in a drawer, never t o be seen or heard from again. actually, through our slot host at paris, las vegas and casinos at sea, be we are getting a comped club balcony on the bliss this aug. im curious to see how much this cabin has changed from when it was a "mini suite"

keith jenner, you may have misunderstood. again, for me diamond status has no real value. the highest upgrade cabin wise is to club balcony suite i merely said that i wouldnt book a "balcony" category, just so i could upgrade to a club balcony. If I wanted to be in a club balcony, i would just merely book that category cabin. we've stayed in the club balcony in the past (although no one can convince me they arent just renamed mini-suites) they are nice, comfortable spacious and i have no problem booking one. we just prefer the extra amenities associated with the haven. if you look carefully, you can find very nice prices for some haven cabins on certain itineraries, especially if more than 2 people are in the cabin. by the way, contrary to what you may think, it was never my intent to brag about staying in a haven. i was just using that as a way to express my personal opinion to answer thespecific questions posed. my wife and i are 73 and 74 respectively, paid our dues throughout our lives, and if a haven cabin comes up and we feel affordable at the price and itinerary, we jump at it. on our last cruise we took a friend along (april 8 thru 17 from athens). she had never been in a haven complex, and was just amazed at the difference. she is again joining us in sept for 10 day cruise london to copenhagen. 2 bedroom to accommodate the 3 of us. in the end, maybe we should have never tried a haven or a suite, but when we 1st did it, the offer of goodies to book a haven ended up to be just slightly higher that the cost we would have paid in mini suite and had to pay for the extras. ok, you win, i concede, we're spoiled! having a butler and concierge may sound pretentious to you, but as they say "dont knock it, until you've tried it"

spanishguy1970 but wouldnt you do it if you could upgrade as a diamond from a club balcony to a haven cabin? ive never sailed because of points awarded, and only found some value when we reached platinum. by the way, how did you you manage to det to diamond from platinum + and bypass sapphire?

dear mr jenner. all this means is that regardless of my point status, im not going to book a balcony cabin, just so i can use the diamond level to upgrade to a club suite. i was just saying that the diamond level will have no real benefit for me.

no, without trying to be argumentative, the point of the question was , was it worth it for the person asking. you dont think it is, i think he'd be really happy if he did. consequently, neither of us are right or wrong

without trying to sound like a complete snob, diva, or jerk, there is really nothing of any value for my wife and i to attain diamond status. at the very least i would book the club balcony, but normally try for a suite or the haven, so i really have no incentive to get to diamond status, other than bragging rights. I was very content to be platinum + and am just as content at sapphire> I've already come to the reality that I will never make it to ambassador, or if by a slim chance I do, I'll probably be to old to enjoy it. lol

nferr: I think you missed the point of the original question. it was posed as would it be worth it to book a haven suite if traveling solo. my response was if he could afford it to do so. While everything you've said makes sense and holds true, youre absolutely correct, if you're solo and dont care about the extra amenities, a balcony makes perfect sense. if you want the extra goodies (and apparently you dont) while i am not knocking your decisions, I stand by my original post. if he can afford to upgrade, "GO FOR IT"

no, actually i gave him $75 dollars total for the entire cruise, and it was my cabin steward not the butler. the butler got $150 at the end, and the concierge $100. in the end, i gave the cabin steward back the bottle of champagne as we never got around to drinking it. our loss, but i shows what you can expect staying in a haven complex.

1st off good buddy, it's good to hear from you again. actually, i must have been blessed with great butlers. never once have i been charged for a beer or a soda that they brought my cabin. just lucky i guess. on a prior cruise, i asked the steward if he could replace the sparking wine bottle with a bottle of proseco. 9my wife's favorite) he did with no problem. on my last cruise (this past april) i asked the steward for the same thing, and although he informed me he counldnt do it, he brought us a bottle of moet et chandon instead. and who thinks the haven isnt worth it?

you will definitely not regret booking a haven, especially if your ship has the designated haven pool area, bar and restaurant. i would also like to add, when we 1st meet our butler, (which is usually right after we get into the cabin) i request the following: bring a carafe of coffee, and a carafe of hot water for tea, sweet rolls, pastries and or croissants. but just enough to start the day, and i have him/her bring it at around 7:00 am. this really helps if you need to get off the ship for an early scheduled excursion. if i dont ask for a beer, i'll ask for a can or two of pepsi (i'm addicted). i also have him bring an assortment of meats, cheeses and crackers as an afternoon munchie finally, (and ive posted this many times before) at final disembarkation, everyone is trying to get off the ship. its like trying to check out of a hotel at the same time as a few thousand of your closest friends. the concierge has the ability to get you off the ship, to your luggage and on your way to a cab, within 15-20 minutes. no muss, no fuss, and no bother. all things being equal, to me that alone is worth the price of admission. again, if in any way you can afford the extra $$$ go for it. our last cruise (this past april from athens) we invited an old friend to join us in the 2 bedroom. i told her the 2nd bedroom was small, but would accommodate 1 person comfortably and she would have access to the rest of the cabin and all the haven amenities. she had sailed with ncl before, but never in the haven complex. needless to say, she came off the cruise spoiled as hell, and i dont think she'll ever book a lessor cabin on her own. by the way, she's joining us again in a 2 bedroom suite this sept on the star from southampton. the down side is the star doesnt have a haven, but the suite amenities are the same

just a pilot. even with no sea days, you can call the butler and have him bring you goodies when you get back aboard, you can chill out in the haven pool or jaccuzzi (assuming your ship has one) you can relax in the haven bar without the crowds and the noise, you can have the concierge reserve a seat for you in the show, or a table in the specialty restaurants,. i have asked my butler to bring me an ice cold beer after an exhausting day on an excursion and there's nothing like taking off your shoes, kicking back on your balcony and watching the sea go by. sometimes if the price works out, my wife and i book the 2 bedroom suite. it's the same idea (imho)as getting a haven suite solo. the extra bedroom is not utilized, but we're in the haven complex the questions was" is it worth it to book the haven if youre going solo". you would face the same dilemma in any cabin if the cruise was port intensive with no sea days. again, i believe the answer is simple. if you can afford it, go for it. the only downside with booking a haven, is that it will be difficult, if not impossible to be satisfied with anything less. do you agree sthrngary? ncl's personal haven expert

you received a number of responses, i believe the most simple and direct answer to your question is as follows "if you can afford it do it" you cannot lose with a haven cabin.

ontheweb. while i think your 2nd question was answered (look up your account on the website), in the alternative, if you can remember the cruises you have taken, and the amount of days, it's really simple. you get 1 point per night per cruise (7 night cruise, 7 points) 2 points for suite or haven (club balcony is not a suite for points purposes) 7nights in a suite, 14 points. a few years back, you got an additional point if you booked 9 months or earlier in advance. unfortunately, those days have ridden into the sunset, never to be seen or heard from again.

there is nothing really that i would care to discuss with this imaginary person. your questions, could probably be answered by any number of people on this site

personal experience. we got an offer from cesars entertainment for a free cruise in 2010. we needed to book through casinos at sea. i did this type of booking for about 6 years when i get an unsolicited call from an ncl cruise consultant. since i'd been booking cruises (may i add rather successfully) for 6 years, i asked what the pcc could so for me that i couldnt accomplish for myself. Actually there wasnt much, but i decided to give them a chance. while i concede everything worked well, i looked at the cruise i wanted, the category cabin, then i called up and the only thing pcc had to do was confirm the booking, and take my credit card. only problem is that my wife gets 20% off on a cruise, and my numbers and those of the cruise consultant were always different, and obviously in favor of ncl resulting in a higher price. one day i got particularly frustrated and decided to once again call casinos at sea. i found out that i had a free club balcony suite, and all sorts of coupons and goodies that the cruise consultant never told me about. needless to say i never called them again. I did discover they work on commission which is obviously not going to result in many extra benefits to the traveler my advice (and this is only my opinion) is to go to the ncl website, and book it yourself. or in the alternative, decide what you want, where you want to go and what cabin (price) you want to choose. armed with t his information, then (and only then) contact the pcc. if you still get snubbed, "DEMAND" another one,or ask for a supervisor. as any job that works on commissions, you will find they fall over each other to do a booking. by the way, i found a person who works directly for casinos at sea, and she is a godsend, and saved us a boatload of money (forgive the intentional pun) i would be delighted to give you her name and phone number, but alas and alack, this site forbids such activity.

yes, she can you the excursion, you get a voucher and show it to the person on the tour bus. ncl doesnt care. and if there are 2 excursions am and pm. if they are different you can get the $50 discount on both. my wife gets the discount, but i usually do the shore excursion bookings, and the tickets are always in my name

with all the people massing in disneyworld, it would probably take at least an hour to get to the front of even one ride, forget about trying for 2. also, you need to make a reservation to enter the park, and my sister told me, that the trams dont go to any specific park anymore. so you need to park and it takes at least 15-20 minutes to get from the parking lot to the gate. this is a very ill-planned idea. additionally, with transportation, entrance fees, food/drinks, and depending an the amount of people in this persons party that want to go, this could be a $1,000 day visit. ironically, its actually cheaper take a 10 day cruise then to spend a week in disneyworld (depending of course on cabin choice). we live in los angeles, and for a while we were actually yearly passholders for disneyworld. airfaresvwerevcheap, hotel rates were low for passholders, you could park hop with no problems. unfortunately, these days, it aint happening

graphic guy: collared shirts are only required in le bistro. consequently i avoid this restaurant at all costs., i also think its a bit pretentious

generally this is a mucho "BAD" idea unless port canaveral is the last port on the cruise. my sister lives in orlando, and says its a pain to go there, and they're season pass holders.