Daily suite life - how will it be different?

[CarleenD]

Hi all - as everyone knows by now I'm doing a solo trip in the Jade in November. This is my 9th cruise, but first 10-day and first suite (penthouse).

 

I get more & more excited every day! Can any suite veterans contrast what the daily differences are like between a standard balcony cabin and a suite? The little details are what I'm wondering. For instance, isn't the bed nicer? Are the toiletries nicer (and maybe bigger)? Is the room straightened more often? Will I ever be able to cruise any other way again? Lol

 

Carleen

[onlysister]

Daily breakfast and lunch in Cagneys. Delicious. Crabcake eggs benedict are to die for. Room will be sparkling and made up when you get back. Keep checking for envelopes from the butler or concierge. There will be invitations to cocktail parties, early entrance to the chocolate buffet. If there are some kind of treat you would like in the evening, let the buttler know and he will try to get them for you. Had my grandaughters with last april and we got lots of chocolate chip cookies. The chocolate covered strawberries are to die for also. Love them. I think I may request them a few times. I love the shampoo and conditioner they provide. Same that they use in the spa. Bathrobe and slippers to use. Enough room to do a very nice happy dance in. LOL

 

You are gonna love it. Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy. There will be a list of DVDs. Just call the butler and he will bring the one you want. Priority tendering, if one of your ports is a tender port.

[yoyocruiser]

You will spend more time in your room. Mornings are wonderful. If you like coffe the lavazzo machines are great. Great relaxing time with the deck and coffee. And then off to breakfast at Cagneys.

[rockabutzer]

Need someone to carry your bags? :rolleyes:

[puddles99]

You can also order a Cageny's breakfast delivered to your room & eat on your balcony in the breeze. The room always seems clean and tidy and definitely let the butler know what you're craving so he (or she) can customize your afternoon snacks. Take advantage of early disembarkation opportunities with your concierge and the previously mentioned perks of special cocktail parties, priority seating, and event previews.

 

If you're anything like me, you'll be ruined and find that the suite life is the only way to sail!

[MAMATAMA]

Ok been traveling for a bit with NCL and am very spoiled , BUt I did notknow that you can get breakfat from CGNEYS delivered... Love tis site..

 

As for origninal question... you will be so spoiled, We have not gone back to a traditional room...

 

We love the space and the bathtub.. Its usualy a jacuzi so you can soak inthe tub and it the boats rocks alittle you have te wonder full waves.. oh so cool... the huge bathroom is great... The service is amazing anything tht you would want is there if not just ask and it will be...

 

Once you have had one you will not go back...

[PenAimie]

yes, you probably need a traveling companion...

you know, just for safety and to help keep the many admirers at bay.

(I don't mind sleeping on the sofa bed) :p

[CarleenD]

Honestly, I think breakfast delivered to my room is the best thing I've heard so far!! I'm the type that's happy to be in the room anyway, which is why I wanted a suite. I figured for 10 days I might as well be as comfortable as I could afford. I didn't know about the extra perks until I started reading here!

 

I'm not a chocolate fan though. Is there a list that I order afternoon snacks from, or do I just think of something?

 

I thought I also read somewhere that the bed is different?

 

Carleen

[valleyvillage]

The bedding for the suites is much better. And the higher category suites (Like OS and above) may even have better bedder beds! :D

Chat with your butler the first day about what you prefer for snacks, they love to accomodate their guests!

Some ships have a pillow menu, try them all! Soft, firm, memory foam, down, etc.

Rarely I will hear a complaint about butler service. If you feel any pushback or lack of response, don't wait! Talk to the concierge immediately. You are paying a premium, don't be afraid to ask for good service.

You can usually ask for an appetizer from a specialty restaurant and your butler will deliver it at no charge. I hear tell that this can vary from ship to ship or even butler to butler, but it does not hurt to ask.

One night we got the mushroom soup AND the chocolate fondue from Le Bistro!

Have a great cruise!

[OnTheGoMom921]

We were in 10666 on the Gem, and the suite life was fabulous, you are going to LOVE it! Besides any in room breakfast, you can also order lunch from Cagney's and have it sent up to your room. We were particularly busy one afternoon and couldn't make it to lunch before Cagney's 2 pm lunch cut off, so we ordered off the menu and told them we would like our butler to bring to the room approx 2:30 pm, he was right on time, set up the table with the linens and dishes, and then stood there to serve our courses :eek: which really unnerved me, so we told him we would serve ourselves, but WOW I could learn to get used to that!!

 

The priority embarkation/desembarkation/tenders will spoil you forever!

 

Relax on your balcony with a lovely champagne flute of the sparkling wine that comes with your cabin while you lounge on the full size lounge chair in a cushy terry robe and slippers that will be in your room.

 

The bed is pillow-topped and extremely comfortable and you have a down filled duvet to keep you cozy. Pillows are chosen from a "Pillow menu" that you will get from your butler. There will also be a dvd list in your room if you choose to watch a late night movie and enjoy a midnight snack brought to your room.

 

The bathroom area has toiletries from the spa, from Elemis. Includes shampoo, conditioner, body lotion, shower gel and a shower cap. Cotton balls and Q-tips are also on the vanity in your dressing area.

 

You will get fun invitations from the captain/crew/concierge, along with the afternoon snack that is delivered to your room. Including the captain's cocktail party for suite guests, and an early invitation to the chocolate buffet. Both are a lot of fun.

 

Make any specialty reservations with your concierge. Ours was wonderful, and we had his phone extension, so anywhere on the ship we could contact him. He even gave us rain ponchos for an excursion day that looked rainy.

 

I am including a link to my review from the Gem, it should be very similar to everything on the Jade...

 

Enjoy your trip!!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1667955

[CarleenD]

Thank you SO much. That was a perfect description!!

[boopsahoy]

January was our first suite cruise (LOVED IT). The butler was bringing us little canapes every night but we werent thrilled with them. We asked for cheese and fruit and pretzel bread for our snack. FANTASTIC! Then we were having a movie night one of the nights and told the butler (Timothy) and he brought popcorn chips and dip!

 

We had breakfast in the room a few times but we also enjoyed going to Cagneys to start the day. I think we had lunch every day there as well. We both loved the tuna burgers-to die for! We tried some of the other choices but we both kept coming back to the tuna.

 

We also requested iced tea in the fridge and creamers for the lavazza. We both only drink decaf so he kept us supplied with that for the lavazza as well.

 

I also loved the french press decaf for breakfast at Cagneys. DH wasnt thrilled with it but thats ok-more for me!

 

We had been skipping the chocoholic buffet becasue it was like a madhouse but because we were suite customers we got to go before they opened the doors to the general public. it was great to be able to take pictures before everything was destroyed!

 

You will love it and you will never be able to go back to non-suite life. We just booked out suite for january 18th on the Gem. YAHOO!

[CarleenD]

Thanks Boops! I think I may BUST before November finally gets here!

[boopsahoy]

My one complaint is that most of the movies we wanted werent available-we did get to see a few. We also brought our own dvds that DH got for Xmas which worked out well. Just to let you know its not a blue ray so dont bring blueray dvds if you want to take advantage of the dvd player.

 

Oh also forgot we were invited to a party in the Haven that was really nice. Drinks and little appetizers and lots of friendly people. I have to hand it to NCL to think of this-its a way to make the suite people happy AND a great advertising ploy to get regular suite people to upgrade to haven their next trip. Maybe my 25th anniversary cruise-hear that DH? LOL

[CarleenD]

Oh, and thanks for the cheese idea too - perfect snack with wine. I suppose I can buy one of the wine packages and the butler can bring some to me each day?

[CarleenD]

Hmm, I don't dare start thinking about Haven...

[runnerandme]

We were given a list of items to pick from. Chips, salsa, cookies, fruit, cheese, etc. The butler also brought chilcken fingers from the blue lagoon ( with ranch dressing) for my grandson. We were in a villa and the bed is wonderful.

[doberlady]

We just got back from the Star. DOS. We did not have a great experience with our Butler. We had a talk with Patrick and he just about blew us off. My parents were in a SF down the hall and their butler was amazing and thoughtful. Bringing extra treats knowing my kids would be in their room visiting etc

 

We asked about not getting certain snacks like the fishy stuff and were told they stick to a schedule so we got the fishy snacks 3 times.

 

Also every movie we wanted was always already taken. Next time I will remember to bring our own.

[DMH15]

We just got back from the Star. DOS. We did not have a great experience with our Butler. We had a talk with Patrick and he just about blew us off. My parents were in a SF down the hall and their butler was amazing and thoughtful. Bringing extra treats knowing my kids would be in their room visiting etc

 

We asked about not getting certain snacks like the fishy stuff and were told they stick to a schedule so we got the fishy snacks 3 times.

 

Also every movie we wanted was always already taken. Next time I will remember to bring our own.

 

Our butler was not great either. In fact I know 2 other couples who also complained to the concierge, as did we. But I understand the chap is no longer with NCL. We loved our concierge, Karin though. The butler issue did not hamper our trip though. We loved it so much we are booked same ship/suite for 3/2013.

 

OP, everyone has given you so much good info. I agree. NCL does a great job with suites. I am truly hooked. I hope you have a great cruise!

[doberlady]

We loved having a suite. It was awesome with or without the Butler. I never got tired of Cagneys Bfast or lunch menu. I think I will lay off of shrimp for a while though heehee

[palmyrafan]

DH and I love to cruise the Haven way, in fact we cruise less often so we can save up for cruising in the Haven.

 

You will enjoy your cruise, no need to worry there. As others have said, utilize your butler, they want to be there for you and are willing to get you anything whether late at night or very early in the morning.

 

Have a great time!

[coka]

Can any of the suite veterans contrast what the daily differences are like between a standard balcony cabin and a suite? The little details are what I'm wondering. For instance, isn't the bed nicer? Are the toiletries nicer (and maybe bigger)? Is the room straightened more often? Will I ever be able to cruise any other way again? Lol

 

Carleen

 

Hi Carleen!

The toiletries are nicer...I have seen them sometimes bigger but not always. For example, the Elemis lotion has little bottles but then I have seen them in bigger bottles (twice the size of the little ones) so not sure what you will get. Your room will be made up once and turned down once. Your last question...will you be able to cruise any other way...for me the answer is yes (one of my suite cruises was solo). A little detail for me...I tended to not leave the suite much as I kept thinking since I paid double for it, I was staying in it twice longer than usual, hahaha. Now do not get me wrong, if I could sail solo in a suite all the time, then I would. I choose not to pay that price all the time so I have gone back to balconies...and yes...even insides! My next one is an inside so that should get me out and about more often. Only you will know if you can go back to balconies or not...but I have read some of your posts...and you should be able to...so no worries there!

Have a great cruise!

 

coka

[Northern Bear]

Hi all - as everyone knows by now I'm doing a solo trip in the Jade in November

 

I didn't know! Why didn't somebody tell me????

 

:D

[Econom405]

 

I'm not a chocolate fan though. Is there a list that I order afternoon snacks from, or do I just think of something?

 

 

Carleen

 

We are not big chocolate fans either, so we told our butler that. On the day that chocolate was our afternoon snack, not only did we get the chocolate but we also got a nice cheese plate lol it took us 2 days to eat the chocolate plate.

[CarleenD]

I didn't know! Why didn't somebody tell me????

 

:D

 

Sorry for the presumption. I just started feeling repetitive. :)