Mr Owl
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Posts posted by Mr Owl
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We always sailed in late Sept / early Oct. Twice in the last ten years, our cruise was affected - once we went to the Bahamas instead of Bermuda, and once the port was closed, so we had to reschedule for November. We rolled with it, and totally understood the risks (and bought insurance). But every year, I'd be checking weather two weeks out for when these things form off of Africa.
This year, because I am running for a local office, we cruised in May instead, and it was nice to not "check" for hurricane activity weeks out. We'll continue cruising in May.
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Three New England cruises here. Some observations:
Color is never what you want it to be: With stops in Portland, St John, Halifax, and Bar Harbor, the only really good color we saw was in Acadia. Otherwise, you're in more urban/built up areas on the shore. It's "ok", but nothing like an October drive on a back road in Vermont. I might be spoiled, living in upstate NY, but I felt a little sorry for folks who envisioned a magical New England fall.
Passenger demographic skews "older". This is not a party cruise like a warm weather / beach destination cruise would be. Pool area is pretty dead. This may be good or bad depending on your expectations. I'm in my early 50's, and I felt like I was on the younger side. I'm more bourbon and cigar than Bud Light Bro these days, so this was fine with me.
A little tough to pack for: In 2018, we stopped in Bar Harbor in mid October, and it was 88 degrees. Some people only had long sleeve shirts. I would advise to plan for both 40 degrees and 80 degrees.
We like this itinerary as an "every few years beach break". It's quiet, fairly scenic even without awesome color, and relaxing.
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47 minutes ago, worktocruise610 said:1 hour ago, Mr Owl said:
This cruise was my second time on the Escape, and the above has really started to annoy me. It happens far too often.
This had only happened to me one other cruise but was not nearly has many private functions as this cruise! It was so annoying, I felt like every night I wanted to go to Spice there was a private function. I get it, they paid, blah blah blah, but so did we & why use the popular outside venue? I had heard there were about 800 of them on the ship, so yes big group, but that still leaves over 3m more passengers wanting to use venues.
Indeed, it seemed like half the time my wife and I went to Spice or District Brewhouse, we encountered "private function".
I don't want to sound like I'm down on the cruise - it was great overall (as are all 10 cruises we've done), but things like this can become a bit of a problem.
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On 5/20/2019 at 9:38 PM, npater said:
Or you would go to a bar to have a drink and there was always a private function.
This cruise was my second time on the Escape, and the above has really started to annoy me. It happens far too often.
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The maltings bar has a Newcastle tap outside. Every bar has bottles of Lagunitas Sumpin Sumpin, which will satisfy any IPA fan. Pretty sure you can get a Sam Adams most places.
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Finally, on my last cruise the Conceirge got a call (while I was waiting in line for priority tender) from a Plat and he just flat out said that the Haven does not support non-Haven travelers and that said person should seek help on deck 6.
So, I would expect significant variation on this point.
Very interesting observations. We have rarely used the concierge (although the few times we did it helped, like Virginia getting us a free cabana on GSC in 2013), and we had no plans to this cruise - our dinner reservations were made months in advance by my wife, and we've seen all the shows, so the better seats had no allure. But your point is probably very valid, especially since you cite multiple instances. Good info for folks who rely on the concierge.
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You have Platinum which adds back some lost Haven perks when not in the Haven.
How was the cabin space, one vs the other? Going from 500+sq foot to less than 250sq.
This is a main issue for us in choosing the Haven....
I didn't find it a big deal. The room is still pretty decently sized. You *are* missing the table/4 chairs, and the bed and couch are in the same area, but otherwise, it was a non-factor. Again, no kids here, so maybe that matters.
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We found the regular pool to be mobed. Almost a fire hazzard How was your experience? we couldn’t stand the noise or crowds Loved the concierge service in the Haven Perhaps being Platinum gave you some perks. Also found regular cabins tiny. Only Junior suites were normal sized. We wouldn’t sail NCL unless Haven. Since the Haven is so expensive, we mostly sail Celebrity or Royal with family. The perks help make our vacation special. Perhaps if we sailed non peak periods, The public areas on the ship would be less crowded.
Well, we're not that into the pool area, so it's a non-factor for us, but to be honest, I didn't find any part of the ship mobbed at anytime except for the shopping area where they set up the $10 stuff in the hallway :)
We always cruise in October, specifically to avoid a ship full of families with kids. I realize that's not possible for everyone.
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Wait, is the new Haven area open on GSC?
You know, I'm not 100% certain. I just saw it and assumed it was, and didn't pay it any mind after that.
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I'm wondering a bit about this. It doesn't sound like you have been eating dinners in the MDR on your previous cruises and it also doesn't sound like you ate any dinners in the MDR on this cruise. What are you basing your opinion on?
We have done an occasional MDR (but no, not on this cruise) - more when we went with friends and that's where they wanted to eat. The difference is pretty noticeable.
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hmmm....you would think that wouldn't be an issue for haven stayers.
Yea, they do a better job of alerting you to your perks in the Haven. I'm really not counting that in my review, though, as that's simply a poor business practice. I did get everything I had coming/wanted, I just had to remind them on a few.
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Thank you for this detailed review. DH is a die-hard HAVEN person, but now that we are platinum, I am wondering if the perks will help offset the loss of HAVEN privileges. Just to try, DS and I opted to try a balcony (CAS invited inside, so we upgraded) for a Jan 18 cruise. Looking forward to checking out the differences. Hope I have as good an experience as you did!
The one thing I can offer as further advice is to make certain you get your Platinum perks. We kind of had to remind them a bit for some things... for example, nobody told us where to go for Platinum disembarkation - I will make sure to be clearer on that next time. We had to ask for the free laundry bag and free water (no biggie, but why make me ask?) We had to ask, and be clear in asking, where the Platinum line was during embarkation (nobody is holding a sign that says "Platinum" like they do for the Haven). We did have our meal coupons/etc waiting for us, though, so that was good.
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Look at the Haven prices for the Dec 9, 2018 Escape 12 day SC I am booking. You could have 3 cruises in balconies for the cost of one in a spa suite. Prices are just getting insane.
Yea, that's exactly how we felt - the price was just getting out of hand, and when we really thought about what we used and what we didn't, for us, it was prettymuch paying double for coffee and (so we thought) more convenient breakfast/lunch.
I would say if you will actually use the butler and concierge, and use that Haven area and bar a lot, it's worth it. But we didn't use those things.
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First world problems....
heh, yea, :)
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Hey all,
My wife and I have done 7 Haven/suite cruises, and always really enjoyed them (we always got an Aft suite with Haven/Suite privileges). However, the price has climbed higher, and combined with a higher health insurance deductible this year, we canceled our Haven room on this year's cruise (the Breakaway) and re-booked into a regular aft balcony.
I've always heard that once you go suite, going back is hard. So, how was our experience? I have to say, it was excellent. Let me break it down into several areas. I'll give each area a 1-10 score (and to make it easy, assume the Haven is a 10 for each.)
Disclaimer: My wife and I are Platinum, so that factors into things. Also, aside from the Restaurant, we also rarely used the actual Haven area (it always feels too closed in for us). One more thing: we are in our 50's, and we do not have kids. So all of my experiences/scores factor those in.
Embarkation:
This was an area of concern for me - I really hate lines. The Haven always made this easy. And yea, my heart sank a bit as we walked past that Haven sign, and I saw hundreds of people on that snake line in front of me... but wait!!! We were shown the Platinum line, which had three people on it, and we were given boarding group #2. Cool. We were on the ship about the same time as the Haven people. We then went to lunch at Margaritaville, where we had the place to ourselves. This was the only meal we paid for for the week.
Score: 10
The Room:
Truthfully, our aft balcony room was wonderful. Yes, we were missing the table/chairs, and didn't have that second bathroom, but all in all, it was still pretty spacious, with a good sized bathroom. Storage was fine. Plus, on the aft, all of the balconies are pretty big - we had 2 chairs, 2 lounges, and a table, so no downgrade there. I did miss the coffeemaker, though - the little drip pot they give is nowhere near as nice. But that's it.
Score: 8 (deducting 2 points for coffee).
Breakfast/Lunch:
I worried a bit about this as well. The Haven is great for Breakfast and Lunch. But you know, it wasn't a big deal. We frequented Savor for Breakfast and Lunch, and never had a problem getting a seat (and usually got a window seat). We went to breakfast at 8, and lunch at noon, and it was never crowded. I found the food quality for breakfast and lunch no different than the Haven, and the menu is actually larger. One thing: the service is a little better in the Haven. Just a little - I'll deduct a point for that..
Score: 9
Dinner:
We've always eaten specialty almost every night, and used the Haven to fill in the one or two nights we didn't feel like paying (I mentioned the Haven breakfast and lunch being the same as the free restaurants, but that's not so with dinner - the Haven is clearly superior to the free options). But for this cruise, we got 3 meals with the dining package, and another 2 for both being Platinum. That's 5 nights. We ate another dinner ashore in Florida, and our last night, we went to the Noodle bar (free and excellent.) Didn't miss this one bit. But again, we always do mostly specialty anyway, whether we have the package or not. YMMV.
Score: 10 (or N/A if you prefer).
Disembarkation:
In the Haven, we always got off the ship right away, carrying our own luggage. Always being homesick by day 6, we LOVED that. So again, I was a bit worried here. Shouldn't have been - it was a breeze. I even grabbed the wrong tags for Platinum, so we were sent to the "anyone who wants to walk off early" line, which, since we got there at 7:20, was not very long. In fact, we walked off right beside the Haven people (and I always remembered as a Haven guest that plenty of non-Haven people got off the same time as us.) The only downside here was no coffee while waiting. I like coffee, so I'll deduct one point for that.
Score: 9
Intangibles:
My wife and I are very "we'll do it ourselves" by nature, so we never used the Concierge (although it would appear Platinum gets access there too). We also had little use for the Butler. So we didn't miss those. Platinum also gets priority tender, so no issue there. Yes, we couldn't use the new private area on GSC, but whatever. As I mentioned earlier, the smaller room (and the fact that we didn't feel like "we paid so much for this we should use it") made us get out and explore more. We found so many quiet areas (hint: deck 8, outside of Cagneys... sit in the shade, watch the sea go by, and nobody is ever there.) We really enjoyed exploring the ship more. I also used to think having that Haven card mattered elsewhere on the ship. It doesn't - I noticed no downgrade in service anywhere.
Score: 9
Final Thoughts:
Our aft balcony was about HALF the price of a Haven suite. So, based on my scores above, I figure if I sacrifice a little coffee convenience, I can essentially get 2 cruises for the price of one. No brainer. The Haven was nice, but for us, it's now a pleasant memory. Aft balcony from now on.
I hope this review helps those in similar situations. If anyone has any questions, I'll try and answer.
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Just an update to this - sadly, there is NO baseball on the breakaway. Followed a bit online when I could, but it was a little disappointing. In fact, there's almost no way to even find out who won - the sports channel they have has no highlight shows or feed/crawl on the screen - nothing. Next cruise, if the Yankees are in the playoffs, I will spring for unlimited internet and stream it on my ipad. Then I'll park myself at a bar, and the Yankee fans will gather!!
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I've been on several cruises now.
I've never used the spa.
I've never ordered room service.
I've never played the pay-to-play games.
I've never mistakenly thought I can't drink something just because it isn't in my beverage package. You can drink whatever you want.
Maybe that is why my cruises are much happier than the OP's. It sucks that the decisions they made led them to a crappy experience. I'd hope they try again some day with better research and better decision-making.
Yup. That whole "I work hard for my money and blah blah blah" attitude prettymuch assures tons of disappointment in many situations, not just cruising. Most of us think we work hard for our money (and a few of us actually do ;) )
As most of you know, successful cruising is largely a matter of your mindset. Even with taxes/gratuities/etc, cruising is easily the best bargain out there. Yes, you learn a few things: don't expect too much from the buffet, the free dining rooms are a little slow, etc. My wife and I go all specialty, all the time, and even paying the cover every night and leaving an additional small cash tip, it's still an awesome bargain compared to any other vacation. For our cruise this week, we have the UBP and UDP for the first time, and two additional specialty meals for Platinum. Will be a cheap cruise - think I'll spring for a massage this time!
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Link to schedule:
Oh good, I certainly won't miss any soccer!
sigh... Here's hoping one of the bars shows the games.
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They'll show the game in bar's and possibly outside by the pool, but most likely not in your room
That's fine.
Good replies everyone, even the "Yankees will lose" ones. That's what makes it all fun.
I remember cruising and watching baseball playoffs and football years back, but I have a nagging feeling they weren't showing baseball the last time I cruised (2 years ago, during playoff time.) Here's hoping - it would make the cruise that much better.
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Ok, anyone know if baseball playoffs will be shown? Hoping for a fan-fueled Yankee cruise out of NY this Sunday! Nothing like watching the games with a bunch of fellow fans.
I do recall baseball playoffs being shown on past cruises, but I realize the network is everything. Games are on Fox and Fox Sports 1 (FS1) - anyone know if these channels are part of the abysmally small channel lineup?
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Thank you to everyone for your insights. It is much appreciated! I think we will plan to tip a little each time we get a drink if the service is good :)
In six cruises with NCL (three on the Dawn), I have found this to work very well. While the service is always acceptable no matter what, it's clear to me that another "dollar per drink" goes a long way in getting you better service.
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I'm for anything that keeps the cheap, complains-about-everything cruiser and their loud kids out of the specialty restaurants.
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Just back from the Dawn. This is our sixth cruise, across three ships (Dawn 3x, Jewel 2x, and Breakaway once). For my wife and I, it's specialty all the way.
We love going out to eat, and enjoy the entire experience - service, ambiance, and (of course) food quality. And all three are vastly superior at the specialties. It's simply not close.
To me, the buffet is awful. Even worse than the "$10 all you can eat" place many towns have. And the MDR's are, at best, equal to food you get at a budget-conscious wedding. Whereas the specialty places are equal to the best restaurants in most US towns. I'm not saying it's NYC 5-star food, but they are as good, if not better, than that fairly pricy place you go to when you leave the kids at home. If I had to guess, the typical specialty experience is a $100 - $200 (per couple) meal locally.
But that's us. To each their own. Cruise and eat how you like.
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If the ship isn't going to Bermuda this week it will almost certainly be going to Florida/Bahamas, so packing isn't going to be an issue...the same clothes will work for both itineraries. It's unlikely the ship will be going to Canada, because that would require it to sail in the same general direction as the storm will be headed after it hits Bermuda.
I've heard of lots of these going north in the case of a storm.
The storm is predicted to be pretty far out from the coast. While they can't predict the exact path it'll take, they are really good in a "general idea" sense. From what I can see, it looks like a Canada jaunt is very do-able. Since it's leaving from Boston, and those ports are sure to be fairly empty, my money would be on a Canada trip if Bermuda was impossible.
First time cruiser on NCL, any advice on avoiding crowds when getting a drink?
in Norwegian Cruise Line
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Us too - we've always tipped for drinks (because I've done such in any bar, ever), and by day two or three, we have bartenders who recognize us and get us drinks quick. It's human nature.