Neptune Suite - what should we know?

[cigloo]

We are getting ready to sail on the Westerdam in a Neptune Suite for Mom's birthday! What should we know, do, perks, for this suite?

 

We have heard breakfast in our room? What else or what should we know/do?

 

:confused:

[Linda&Vern]

Don't miss the Pinnacle Grill for breakfast. It's our favorite "suite perk." Wonderful way to start the day! Others will comment on their favorite suite perk.

[cruz chic]

Don't miss the Pinnacle Grill for breakfast. It's our favorite "suite perk." Wonderful way to start the day! Others will comment on their favorite suite perk.

 

I've really enjoyed that perk this week.

[OlsSalt]

We are getting ready to sail on the Westerdam in a Neptune Suite for Mom's birthday! What should we know, do, perks, for this suite?

 

We have heard breakfast in our room? What else or what should we know/do?

 

:confused:

 

All passengers can order room service breakfast so that is not just a Neptune perk. Just fill out a form before you go to bed, or call in the morning and order off the in-room dining menu and have it in your lovely, spacious cabin or on huge verandah. Ass mentioned you can use the Pinnacle Grill for a sit down breakfast in a smaller dining room where you will join other Neptune suite guests.

 

Or you can have a lighter continental breakfast in the Neptune Lounge itself - buffet style, which I what I liked best. Or you can pick things up there to take back to your room.

 

We had an Asian gentleman who would come down in his bathrobe over his pajamas and pick up breakfast items to take back to his cabin, but the expected dress is regular outer wear, even at that time of the morning.

 

Sometimes the Pinnacle Grill is an all indoors setting and sometimes it is along a wall of windows so this may affect where you want to have your breakfast. The Neptune Lounge is typically all indoors, but on the Prinsendam it looks like it has its own deck and has windows out to the sea.

 

You get special laundry and dry cleaning privileges, special evening receptions, the Neptune Lounge snacks throughout the day, all the special coffees the magic machine in the Lounge can put out, special daytime events just for suite passengers, and not have to wait for a scheduled time when boarding tenders, though you still have to stand in line once you get to the tender boarding.

 

You get a tiny corsage to wear for the first formal night which pumps up the event just a tiny bit but welcomed. A bottle of sparkling white wine greets your arrival to enjoy when you want. And a concierge who can solve most any cruise problems you can throw at him/her.

 

Your get to use the priority embarkation line which is shorter, and get your feeling of specialness for this extra perk right from the start. You will be sharing your time in the lounge and events with other well-seasoned cruisers who enjoy these extra privileges and have wonderful travel stories to tell.

 

I felt that I belonged more to the ship, recognized the key officers, and learned a lot from chatting with them at events when we had a Neptune suite and it was a very nice feeling. It was a special cabin for inviting friends in as well and the Neptune staff was happy to arrange appetizers for the event.

 

Typically we are in the verandah cabins, and ocean view when it is a really long cruise, because the travel budget can only go so far. But so glad we had the chance once to enjoy all those special perks which made that one cruise a uniquely memorable cruise.

 

The cabin itself is almost too big, if there is such a problem and there will be plenty of drawers you will probably never use. Can't even pack that much with today's airline baggage costs. :( Large closets, special dressing room area which we found to be an awkwardly planned space but it is there, and a large double sink bathroom.

 

Enjoy.

[jaspersmycat]

Two words - Neptune Lounge.

[Krazy Kruizers]

We love the breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill. The times for breakfast are the same times as for the main dining room and the menu is the same.

For the last few months, the Westerdam is the only ship that has had a problem with the Neptune Lounge not offering all the goodies like the other ships.

You will have 2 concierges who will do anything for you. They can make reservations for the specialty restaurants, spa, salon, shore excursions, etc.

If you want appetizers or afternoon tea in your suite -- they will arrange it for you. Just let them know before noon.

[kazu]

The coffee machine in the Neptune Lounge is pretty dam good too:D

 

Laundry, dry cleaning and pressing are all complimentary for these suites.

[thepoint]

We are getting ready to sail on the Westerdam in a Neptune Suite for Mom's birthday! What should we know, do, perks, for this suite?

 

We have heard breakfast in our room? What else or what should we know/do?

 

:confused:

 

The concierge is your best friend. If you want to have dinner on your balcony order through the concierge. You do not have to order early in the day. If you come back from a shore excursion and want dinner from MDR served in your room call the concierge. Otherwise, room service will put you on the list for whenever. Menus for MDR will be placed in your room every day. Breakfast in Pinnacle grill is great. Laundry service is great, most of time it comes back the same day. So, no need to pack a lot. Concierge can change your dining reservations and shore excursions and usually get you what you want.

 

Room stewards are especially accommodating. If you don't drink you can trade your sparkling wine in for something else. You will love being in the suite. Happy Birthday Mom. Enjoy your trip.

[Krazy Kruizers]

We have stayed in the PS and SA suites all the time.

Our laundry goes out before 9 AM -- usually at 8. We have yet to get it back on the same day.

[jackjoy1]

All the above especially breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill!

[DaveOKC]

On the Westerdam the Pinnacle Grill has oceanviews on a number of tables - what OlsSalt was referring to was that on the older ships, Pinnacle is an interior room lacking views.

 

To add on to the list - you likely will be invited to 2 cocktail parties - one in the Neptune Lounge the first evening, the second being the Captains VIP reception on another (this is by invitation only).

 

DaveOKC

[Randyk47]

We've been booking what are now called Neptune Suites off and on since the S class ships were launched in the early 90's. Initially it was all about the size of the cabin and verandah. There was no Neptune Lounge....I think that area was inside cabins and maybe service areas....and there was no Pinnacle Grill. There was some kind of priority boarding and tendering though I don't recall any special laundry benefits. Now we have those and we love the snacks and coffee machine in the Neptune Lounge. Breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill is wonderful, a treat we really look forward to. Have to say we're not much into eating in our cabin or on our verandah. That's like being home for us, we eat at home six nights a week and because of the relatively moderate climate here we're able have morning coffee, lunch, and evening drinks on our patio probably ten or more months a year. We cruise for a break, for something different, from our routine. But that's us, it works for us to have room service deliver "first breakfast" to our cabin....that's coffee, juice, and croissants....and then off to the Pinnacle Grill for "second breakfast". Lunch and dinner we want to be out and about, be that the Lido, Main Dining Room, or the Pinnacle Grill. My advice to somebody cruising in a Neptune Suite for the first time.....try it all. See what fits you and what you enjoy. It may be less than what we like, it may be more, but the bottom line is that it's all pretty darn good.

[QueenGlassHalfFull]

Question for recent cruisers - before our cruise in April on the Rotterdam in a Neptune Suite, I read on this board that the complimentary bottle of champagne and still water had been discontinued for Neptune Suite guests. Sure enough, we did not get either in our Neptune Suite on our cruise in April. Has HAL resumed providing the complimentary bottle of champagne and still water to Neptune Suite guests?

[JORAY]

We have stayed in the PS and SA suites all the time.

Our laundry goes out before 9 AM -- usually at 8. We have yet to get it back on the same day.

 

We have found puting laundry out before the bed turn at night it will be back the next afternoon

 

Ray

[thepoint]

Question for recent cruisers - before our cruise in April on the Rotterdam in a Neptune Suite, I read on this board that the complimentary bottle of champagne and still water had been discontinued for Neptune Suite guests. Sure enough, we did not get either in our Neptune Suite on our cruise in April. Has HAL resumed providing the complimentary bottle of champagne and still water to Neptune Suite guests?

 

I hope it hasn't been discontinued. We were on Noordam in September and we did get it after reading others didn't. Does it go by ship? Like you, I would love to hear from more people who cruised this year and name of ship. Thanks.

[George C]

I agree with the breakfast at Pinnacle as best perk, such I nice way to start the day, I do not think Neptune lounge is anything special

[RuthC]

We have found puting laundry out before the bed turn at night it will be back the next afternoon

In general, that's my experience, too. Sometimes I get it back as early as the morning service the next morning, other times it's as late as the night turndown the next night.

I just leave the bag on the bed when I head out for evening cocktails.

[Roz]

I enjoy the coffee machine in the Neptune Lounge, and I'm found the concierges to be helpful. And as others have mentioned, breakfast in the Pinnacle is such an elegant way to start the day.

 

I usually eat dinner late, so having a few things to nibble on in the late afternoon is nice. Keeps me away from having 2 slices of pizza in the Lido. :D

 

Roz

[zookiebird]

To us, the best Neptune perk is the concierge service. We're pretty independent folks but on our recent Alaska cruise we needed assistance with a couple of small problems, including a billing discrepancy. Everything was handled quickly and efficiently with no hassles, standing in line at the front desk or waiting for call backs. Made for a big difference in enjoying our cruise.

[Roz]

I won about $350 at bingo on my last HAL cruise, and ended up with a balance owed to me (nice!) on my shipboard account. The concierge was able to pay me in cash out of the Neptune Lounge's stash, which sure beat standing at the front desk on the last morning with a bunch of angry, unhappy people. :D

 

Roz

[Vict0riann]

We made some new friends from our roll call, and invited them in for drinks one evening before dinner. Our concierge organized everything, extra ice and buckets of beer and wine (we had to pay for those of course), and delicious hors d'oeuvres, hot and cold. Just had to tell her the number of people and the time! We really felt spoiled! :)

[Lauranne]

I hope it hasn't been discontinued. We were on Noordam in September and we did get it after reading others didn't. Does it go by ship? Like you, I would love to hear from more people who cruised this year and name of ship. Thanks.

 

Just off the Amsterdam today. Both a bottle of Sparkling Wine and the still water were in our suite on arrival.

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Question for recent cruisers - before our cruise in April on the Rotterdam in a Neptune Suite, I read on this board that the complimentary bottle of champagne and still water had been discontinued for Neptune Suite guests. Sure enough, we did not get either in our Neptune Suite on our cruise in April. Has HAL resumed providing the complimentary bottle of champagne and still water to Neptune Suite guests?

 

I wonder if this is one of those "different ships do different things" because on the Amsterdam both last December and this past June, sparking wine and water were in the Neptune Suite.

[oma&opa]

There's something really special about all that space in the cabin and on the balcony. We once spent the entire (sea) day in our cabin in our pj's with all our meals on the balcony. That felt really indulgent! Beware though, it's so hard to go back to "regular" size cabins!

[puppycanducruise]

We were upgraded to a Neptune Suite on the Eurodam in April - what a surprise!

The sparkling wine and water were there.

Thanks to the upgrade fairy - not sure if we can go back to an inside cabin.