lordstark

22 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

Cruise Critic upgrade and week-long outage. 

Yeah, unfortunately... forums were down week before and into our cruise. 

Sorry we didn’t do the live review. After I realized the cruise critic forums were down for the first three days of our cruise, I abandoned the idea. However, I would be happy to answer any questions anyone would have regarding haven, casino, spa, specialty dining, etc. we had an amazing cruise. Won a ton of jackpots in the casino, but still gave more than I won.. lol. But, let me know of anything on your mind. 

That would be wonderful and much appreciated. We're casino at sea (and on land) people and love our Haven time.

To quote my 89 year old mother when I suggested we book a Disney cruise -- why would you expect me to travel on a ship without a casino.

Haha. Or a ship full of Kids!!?!

Yes, based on your play. They make it super easy though. Just use your CAS players card when playing to accrue points. After our first NCL cruise (we paid for) we haven’t paid for one since. We usually go on two a year that’s comped in the haven.

Awesome! Seems like there’s interest! I’ll make sure to to it then. Please follow the thread for further updates. My wife and I don’t do “cheap cruising” or vacations in general. Work hard, play hard, right? So, a lot of the reviews don’t help us because they’re people complaining about food in free dining rooms or nickle and diming of upcharge issues. Not that cost/value isn’t important - but we do all specialty dining, spa, haven and casino on our trips. So, that’s all we’ll be weighing in on.

My wife and I are loyal casinos at sea players - meaning we only cruise with NCL and spend a large amount of our time and money in the casino! I don’t see a lot of casino conversation and threads about experience, wins, losses, game types, etc and I was thinking about doing a live review during our Bliss sailing happening next week 10/13. Just wanted to see if there was any interest in this? And if others found it easy to do live reviews with photos via mobile? I won’t be bringing a laptop. :cool:

I've read some hilarious comments from the CC forum over the years, but this takes the cake. I read this aloud to my wife, and we were rolling. We love the haven - couldn't go back to life without it - but.. omg.. this post. The paragraph about "appropriate etiquette of morning breakfast interaction" was the best.

I must know - what does a "generous tip" look like?

Then you ask the Butler NOT to do that!

 

They will be happy to work within your own wishes, but you need to tell them what your wishes are.

 

We give a short note to our Butler the first time we meet him/her (ditto the Steward, but with fewer comments).

We give a very brief into, mention one food allergy, include what types of snacks we like - or do not like.

We got this idea from someone here on CC who posted about doing this and how helpful it was, to us and apparently to each Butler. Our experiences have been the same, on all ships, NCL and otherwise.

 

Because we do appreciate the pro-active services of a good Butler, we tell them that they can ignore the Do Not Disturb sign if they are delivering something. We ask that they knock/ring, and then they can enter. (We do NOT do this for the Steward.) IF we do not want to be disturbed, we'll simply bolt the door.

This works well if, for example, we don't want turn-down service, but we do want the dinner service we requested.

 

So we'll sometimes wake up as our breakfast is being set out. (If the minor sounds didn't do that, then the "whiff of bacon" would :))

This works well if there is a separate sleeping area/bedroom.

However, the Butlers are professionals, so even if we have something like a PH Suite, which is just one large room (not a real "suite"), we still do this.

They are remarkable in the way they can "avert their eyes" while being fully functional. If we are still in bed when they bring breakfast, we'll just stay there until they've set everything out and then left. And they can be so quiet, even with dishes...

IF we say "Good morning", then - and only then - do they say something like "Good morning, Ma'am/Sir", without looking. If we are up and around, then there is eye contact, etc., and conversation if it is obvious that we want to talk; otherwise, few or no comments.

It's amazing how a good Butler can pick up on even the most subtle hints (intended or otherwise!).

 

The Butlers are very discreet and do try to take their cues from the travelers.

Hence, our initial letter, so they don't have to "guess".

We hand the note with a brief comment something like, "We know this is a busy time, so here is some info about us, and we look forward to meeting you more, later."

 

Invariably, the Butler returns later the first day or early the next morning, with our note in one hand, and a pen/pencil in the other... thanking us for the information, and asking for clarification on a few things (like, "Would you prefer absolutely no candy other than chocolate...?" ;) Or, "Would you like any pastries or cake or such, or none of those, either?").

 

One thing we hate is to have lots of "treats" brought that will just sit there and be removed untouched later. That's wasteful, and also a waste of the Butler's time and energy.

 

We often have hot breakfasts and dinners served en suite also.

We let them know if there are time constraints, such as needing to be out early; otherwise, we let them know we are quite flexible and they can attend to other passengers if they are particularly busy.

Because our Butler usually spends a fair amount of time/effort on our behalf, we definitely tip generously. After all, they make a big difference in our enjoyment of the entire trip.

 

We've had some remarkable Butlers, and one "dud".

We've kept in touch with a couple of them by email, and hope to encounter them in the future.

 

GC

Not all over but in more than a few places but I'm quite a few different places

If you can get some specifics on the smoking situation in the casino - that would be awesome! I heard they were making a "smoking section" but maybe they just went back to the way it is on the other ships. I am hoping that they went back to allowing smoking in the casino, as that's really the only time I like to smoke, is when Im gambling - and I gamble a lot. lol

Thanks for the updates. Do you see any signs of the casino remodel, in order to provide a separate smoking area? Do they have a portion of the casino blocked off for it? How are the machines playing - winning anything?

Any UBP guests ever had the butler bring you cocktail setups for your room or deliver them via room service without a charge? My wife and I are definitely looking forward to having cocktails in our room, making the most of the UBP for our upcoming suite on the getaway. We'd love evening cocktails in our room while we get ready for the evening out. How do we go about having cocktails delivered to our room? Any success stories besides walking to the bar and bringing them back yourself?

Thanks! We leave on Friday@!! Can't wait.

anyone ever had the butler bring you cocktail setups for your room? My wife and I are vodka drinkers, and have the UBP for our upcoming suite on the getaway - and we'd love evening cocktails in our room while we get ready for the evening out. How do we go about having cocktails delivered to our room?

What drinks are over $11?

my thoughts exactly

Time 2 cruise, what cabin did you have? We will be in 12308 in August and cannot wait.:D

We will also be in 12308 in August - we're going on the 30th sailing!!! What date are you sailing? This is our first aft balcony (always done midship balcony before). We're excited to experience the "aft" view. We're going to ask for them to bring loungers down for us. Think they will accommodate that?