"Upsell" fairy was here! Question about the Haven

[seaotter15]

I am so excited! Just a few hours ago the fairy called and we paid the upgrade to a Penthouse Haven stateroom. So many questions now, but the big one is: how much extra does one normally tip the butler? Any other Haven hints are also greatly appreciated!

[triptolemus]

Tons and tons of threads here on this.

 

Use the search!

[seaotter15]

Yes, Ma'am! (or Sir!) Will promptly delete this thread...was excited so did not know where my mind was...;)

Edited December 17, 2013 by seaotter15

[tymike]

We sailed on the Breakaway last summer with a party of five in connecting suites. We had a PH and the DOS and we used the butler a lot...including a breakfast for eight in our room one morning and special request treats. I tipped $300 for the five of us, so essentially $10/pp/pd. The butler was truly fabulous and earned every penny in my view. She was always responsive, spot on with service, and the experience was wonderful! The butler is also not part of the DSC so they work for tips...and work she did!

 

We tipped the concierge considerably less as we didn't need much from her. What she provided was fine, but nothing compared to the value of what the butler did.

 

Enjoy your upgrade, your cruise...and your butler! :)

[Cubechick]

We sailed on the Breakaway last summer with a party of five in connecting suites. We had a PH and the DOS and we used the butler a lot...including a breakfast for eight in our room one morning and special request treats. I tipped $300 for the five of us, so essentially $10/pp/pd. The butler was truly fabulous and earned every penny in my view. She was always responsive, spot on with service, and the experience was wonderful! The butler is also not part of the DSC so they work for tips...and work she did!

 

We tipped the concierge considerably less as we didn't need much from her. What she provided was fine, but nothing compared to the value of what the butler did.

 

Enjoy your upgrade, your cruise...and your butler! :)

 

Was your butler Laine? If so that's about what we tipped her as well ($10 pp per day) because she was awesome. I usually tip less than that as we rarely ask butlers for anything (except for milk for cappuccinos). But she was the best butler we've ever had.

[mommyto2girls]

I can understand your excitement about being in the Haven it is the only way we sail. You don't have to "use the search". We always judge our tipping by our usage of the Butler. It usually works out to about $10pp per day sometimes less sometimes more. . We love to have our afternoon snacks tailored to what we like rather than just what they bring. We always have the fridge filled with what we drink, OJ, ice tea etc. At night my Butler knows to leave me a plate of Pretzel Rolls..lol I love those things. The Concierge we tip based on usage as well. We always wind up tipping the Room Steward extra.

 

We order breakfast from Cagney's almost very morning in the room, and sometimes even dinner from a specialty restaurant (surcharge for dinner applies) Lunch in the Haven on sea days is also very peaceful and relaxing. Different on the Breakaway we only cruse the Jewel class out of NYC.

 

Adrian is the Concierge on the Breakaway right now that will just make the cruise ben better!

 

Just relax and enjoy it, you will never go back to any other room.

Edited December 17, 2013 by mommyto2girls

[VideoTech]

What you tip is up to you. Seems to run anywhere from $5 per person per day to $10 or more. A lot depends on what you ask of them, and how well you feel they did.

 

Also remember that the concierge is not included in the DSC "tip pool." If you feel they do a lot for you, you should tip them as well.

 

Finally, on all our suite cruises, we almost always tip the cabin steward. Yes, I know that person is included in the DSC, but we've often found it's the cabin steward who goes above and beyond the call of duty.

 

What ship are you cruising on?

Edited December 17, 2013 by VideoTech

[tymike]

Was your butler Laine? If so that's about what we tipped her as well ($10 pp per day) because she was awesome. I usually tip less than that as we rarely ask butlers for anything (except for milk for cappuccinos). But she was the best butler we've ever had.

 

Yes, we had Lanie!! I can only hope she will be on next summer's Gem cruise and/or 2015's Pearl to Alaska (both of which are already booked!!:D). She was terrific and I know she wanted to move back to a smaller NCL ship. She ran (literally) around the Breakaway to provide excellent service and I hope she gets her wish!! I'm glad you enjoyed her as well!

[tymike]

I am so excited! Just a few hours ago the fairy called and we paid the upgrade to a Penthouse Haven stateroom. So many questions now, but the big one is: how much extra does one normally tip the butler? Any other Haven hints are also greatly appreciated!

 

As for Haven tips....we only used the Haven pools once. We went on the last evening of the cruise at around 5:30 p.m. and had the entire place to ourselves! It was Haven heaven!

 

If you use the spa for a treatment, don't accept placement in room 15; it's directly below the weight room and it seriously shakes and is loud.

 

Even with eating in many specialty restaurants, the best food I had during the cruise was the lobster roll and crab tostada from the Ocean Blu Waterfront stand. I have no idea how/if the BA does that in the winter (hours/days etc.) but I seriously recommend it!!!!

 

Again, have a great and suite experience! :)

[seaotter15]

Thank you all very much for your repsonses! (I tried deleting thread, but as pretty new to this - it did not work) :-)

[tymike]

I'm glad you didn't delete! This is a good thread to spread information and excitement! Most everyone loves hearing about upgrades and sharing their experience! I think you will have a great time and as others have said...get addicted to the suite life!

[kcwingwalker]

No need to delete it's always nice to hear good news:)

[maja651]

I can understand your excitement about being in the Haven it is the only way we sail. You don't have to "use the search". We always judge our tipping by our usage of the Butler. It usually works out to about $10pp per day sometimes less sometimes more. . We love to have our afternoon snacks tailored to what we like rather than just what they bring. We always have the fridge filled with what we drink, OJ, ice tea etc. At night my Butler knows to leave me a plate of Pretzel Rolls..lol I love those things. The Concierge we tip based on usage as well. We always wind up tipping the Room Steward extra.

 

We order breakfast from Cagney's almost very morning in the room, and sometimes even dinner from a specialty restaurant (surcharge for dinner applies) Lunch in the Haven on sea days is also very peaceful and relaxing. Different on the Breakaway we only cruse the Jewel class out of NYC.

 

Adrian is the Concierge on the Breakaway right now that will just make the cruise ben better!

 

Just relax and enjoy it, you will never go back to any other room.

 

When did Adrian move to the Breakaway? He was the concierge on the Epic in April. We LOVED him!!!! We tipped him a lot more than we had originally planned, mainly because his moto is "he doesn't do lines" and makes sure no one in the Haven will wait on any lines either! We never did have to wait in one single line the entire cruise! Loved Adrian! I hope he moves to the Getaway before next June! :)

 

We tend to tip a bit higher than suggested on here, but it is also based on usage. We bring our own wine onboard, and our butler brought a bottle every night to the restaurant we were eating at so we would not have to. It was great having it already done for us and waiting at the restaurant. He even took 2 bottles back to get the cork fee removed in the last day, and returned them by about 7 pm that night. It was another fabulous time saver and nice perk.

 

We also like to have breakfast in the room and sometimes an evening meal as well. We also like our snacks to be tailored to what we like, so the butler was great about doing that for us.

 

Another thing was we asked for an iron and ironing board every night, and it became a pattern after day 2, and then he started calling us asking if we wanted it sent to the cabin each evening. It is the little things like that that really make an impression on you (at least in my opinion.).

 

Our butler on the Epic was Leo. If he happened to move to the Breakaway, you ar lucky to get him!

 

Enjoy the Haven! Once you have cruised in the Haven, it is very hard to go back to normal cabins! :D. You have been wanted! :cool:

[DMH15]

I am another who is glad you did not delete. Here is a whoo hoo from me.

 

I budget $10 pp pd for butler and concierge. I tip steward extra, because I think they give suite pax great ones! I once tried to find servers from b&l thr last night and ever since I leave a $5 under my plate each time.

 

Live the NCL suite life. Enjoy!

 

 

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[seaotter15]

Thank you again to all that have posted! Your tips / advice have helped a great deal!

[Rummblestrip]

We stayed in the Haven on the Epic. All comments about Adrian are 100% true. We decided that we wanted to skip our shore excursion, we let Adrian know and thought nothing else about. Did not plan on what happened next. A note was place in our state room that our account was credited almost $200 for the refund of the excursion. I have been told that this never happens. I account this to Adrian. The haven is worth every penny! We ended up tipping $100pp for Adrian, Jonathan(butler), and Wekiki(Stewart). Sounds like it is a lot of money, but the service is better than any 5 star hotel I have stayed in. Every thing seemed to appear just before we knew we wanted it! Enjoy, take advantage of all the perks. On disembarkation, we went to Adrian and he took us to the "private" elevator and we walked out of the ship via the Galley! No lines, straight to our bags and imagination. Off the ship and into a taxi in 2 min!

[maxwellito]

You should tip according to use and service

Unfortunately in the USA people look at a tip as a given

I look at it as an extra

[woodmews]

Thank you again to all that have posted! Your tips / advice have helped a great deal!

 

seaotter15 did you join our roll call, we are having a meet and greet, here is the link if you are interested. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1639523

 

I am also travelling on that date in the haven. You will love it.

[LOVEMYMO]

I am so excited! Just a few hours ago the fairy called and we paid the upgrade to a Penthouse Haven stateroom. So many questions now, but the big one is: how much extra does one normally tip the butler? Any other Haven hints are also greatly appreciated!

 

That is great! Congrats!! Can I ask what type of cabin you had before you were upgraded? Thanks!

[Cretia]

I too am glad you didn't delete this as I'm going to piggyback onto your topic.

 

I have looked at the older threads and have never seen my question answered. Of course, my eyes glaze over when the bickering about amount sets in.

 

My question is: Does anyone know if the staff have a preference on *how* they are tipped? Obviously for staff you don't see regularly (like the wait staff/bartender) cash is probably easier, but what about those off the DSC, like the butler/concierge, or those you might want to tip extra like the room steward. Is tipping with credit card (I'm not sure how to phrase that. I want to say adding the tips to your shipboard account but I'm not sure that's clear enough) acceptable or is cash greatly preferred?

 

On the Celebrity boards, people seemed fairly divided on the question, so I'm curious if the NCL regulars had insight on the NCL staff.

[DMH15]

You should tip according to use and service

Unfortunately in the USA people look at a tip as a given

I look at it as an extra

 

You are correct. If a job is done well they deserve a tip. If not it goes down. When in Rome and all that.

 

 

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[Twinzma]

You should tip according to use and service

Unfortunately in the USA people look at a tip as a given

I look at it as an extra

 

I disagree with you. Tips should not be considered "extra" in certain lines of work when visiting the states. Lets take waitresses and waiters, the Federal Minimum wage is only $2.13 per hour (some states pay 'considerably' more Florida is $4.65/hr) The jobs are considered tip dependent thus the wages are so low. Tipping a waiter, waitress or bartender SHOULD NOT be considered 'extra'. Please if the service is absolutely horrible, still leave a little something on the table just not the customary 20%. We all have bad days at the office, but could you imagine having an off day and only getting $17.04 for a full days work?

[DMH15]

You are correct. If a job is done well they deserve a tip. If not it goes down. When in Rome and all that.

 

 

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I am quoting myself because it is ambiguous.

 

Tip should be given for service. If the job is done. If exceptional then maybe more.

 

However, if not up to par, maybe not their fault... Chef error or such.

 

I can't remember the last time I did not tip 20% or more.

 

 

 

 

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[seaotter15]

That is great! Congrats!! Can I ask what type of cabin you had before you were upgraded? Thanks!

 

LOVEMYMO ~ we had a "Guaranteed Balcony" (GTY). Had read thread about advising against GTY staterooms, but this one worked for us.