Did we set our expectations too high for our first taste of the suite life?

[LrgPizza]

Is disembarkation more complicated for suite passengers for some reason? I've never cruised in a suite, and I've never had any problems figuring out how to disembark, regardless of cruise line. This thread confuses me a bit.

[AF-1]

I have no status with NCL. This will be my first cruise with them. My question to all who have responded to this thread, would you sail NCL again; regardless if you book a suite or regular cabin? Do you feel that for overall they deliver on the promise of providing you with a great vacation experience? I ask this because I really have no preset notions of what to expect with NCL; and I will be cruising Europe which is a little different than cruising the Caribbean. Thanks for any all all responses

[gmasters]

We have always had a penthouse suite on Ncl, and have never needed to be "shown the door" to our suite.

We have Celebrity suites on Celebrity

And have owners suites on RCl.

We just find our own way when they announce all cabins are ready..

On all cruiselines.

I think you were expecting too much.

 

Ps..We book these cabins for the extra space, not to have a butler ...

 

same good point, if this was your first than maybe a GUIDE to the room would be helpful.

We have had the Owners and garden villa on the SUN. 1st was the owners suite that I really don't remember us getting guided to the room but could have...and they did walk us to our room for the Garden Villa... but when I made the plans with NCL the task was to get up to the Villa without her knowing...my wife didn't know until we walked in and he showed us around. Tears followed

But we as the couple above we get away from life when we cruise, but the butler was happy Im sure that we could run our own bath...

and how doesn't like cookies

[gmasters]

i have no status with ncl. This will be my first cruise with them. My question to all who have responded to this thread, would you sail ncl again; regardless if you book a suite or regular cabin? Do you feel that for overall they deliver on the promise of providing you with a great vacation experience? I ask this because i really have no preset notions of what to expect with ncl; and i will be cruising europe which is a little different than cruising the caribbean. Thanks for any all all responses

 

just relax

[perkydebrajean]

I have no status with NCL. This will be my first cruise with them. My question to all who have responded to this thread, would you sail NCL again; regardless if you book a suite or regular cabin? Do you feel that for overall they deliver on the promise of providing you with a great vacation experience? I ask this because I really have no preset notions of what to expect with NCL; and I will be cruising Europe which is a little different than cruising the Caribbean. Thanks for any all all responses

 

I've have one cruise under my belt but another one booked for this December. I enjoyed myself so much that by the second day I was sad because I only had 5 day left. Making my husband go on his first now and have an 11 day booked.

 

We really loved the freestyle dining because my daughter and I never ate at the same time twice. We went when we felt like it. And loved getting late night snacks at the Blue Lagoon. We just played each day by ear. I have spent so much time taking care of others over the past few years (my elderly parents) that the being spoiled and pampered on the cruise in a suite felt so good!

 

I think you'll have a great time!

[gmasters]

Is disembarkation more complicated for suite passengers for some reason? I've never cruised in a suite, and I've never had any problems figuring out how to disembark, regardless of cruise line. This thread confuses me a bit.

 

everyone gets the same info, unless maybe you got the Villa and limo back to airport. ( we walked our own bags off NCL had limo waiting.. don't remember them hurding us up. But I still think we have always just followed the color tag rule and walked off with our bags or sent them the night before. Balcony, PH suite, Owners, Villa...

 

NO one walks you off the ship

[GSLMOM]

 

We are not pushy demanding people.

 

Again, we had a great cruise and we did not let the glitches hinder us in any way.

 

We too, as DrNora, would love to sail with more people like you!!

 

In May, we will be sailing in a suite for the first time, and I honestly have wondered if our expectations are too high based on the posts I've read!

[gmasters]

We would love to cruise with more people who are not pushy and demanding....

Thanks for your thread starter.... Some very interesting comments have been made and all I can think is " wow!"

Have a great day, mianmike!,,,

 

I agree with you. There is no need to be "pushy and demanding" just because you are in a suite. I would not have interrupted the talking employees either...that is rude !! I do agree with OP that the suite experience he had was not quite what was "promised" on NCLs website. If my experience coming up in May on the getaway is similar to my experience on the POA, I will seriously consider getting a suite in the future (unless we can swing the Garden Villa again!!! That space was amazing and I wouldn't care if we never saw concierge or butler there because it was just so relaxing hanging out on the patios all day ;)!)

 

 

we had the Villa on the SUN and we felt the same way,

 

 

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[RosieRoo]

I have no status with NCL. This will be my first cruise with them. My question to all who have responded to this thread, would you sail NCL again; regardless if you book a suite or regular cabin? Do you feel that for overall they deliver on the promise of providing you with a great vacation experience? I ask this because I really have no preset notions of what to expect with NCL; and I will be cruising Europe which is a little different than cruising the Caribbean. Thanks for any all all responses

 

I have sailed on almost all the major lines in suites and not in suites and to me NCL has the best suite perks of any of them. I sailed on my first NCL cruise in May of 2013 and again in January 2014 and I have two more booked, so obviously I think they have a good product. Don't worry about NCL, you'll be fine. I think the problems discussed here were more about what NCL advertises and what they actually deliver, which varies from ship to ship, sail date to sail date.

[B6ConMe]

I agree with you. There is no need to be "pushy and demanding" just because you are in a suite. I would not have interrupted the talking employees either...that is rude !! I do agree with OP that the suite experience he had was not quite what was "promised" on NCLs website. If my experience coming up in May on the getaway is similar to my experience on the POA, I will seriously consider getting a suite in the future (unless we can swing the Garden Villa again!!! That space was amazing and I wouldn't care if we never saw concierge or butler there because it was just so relaxing hanging out on the patios all day ;)!)

 

 

we had the Villa on the SUN and we felt the same way,

 

 

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We were in our 1st suite on the Pearl this past Dec. and we loved it, but we loved it b/c of the add'l space, the wonderful views, the quietude and the fruit bowl, j/k although the fruit bowl was great! :p

 

The embarkation I will admit was nice but necessary? No. To disembark we had booked an excursion b/c our flight was so late and that worked out great for us. We did have to meet up in the Stardust Theatre but it went very smoothly and we just listened for the announcement for our departure queue.

 

We had absolutely no complaints as far as our Concierge, Monica, our butler, Jocquin (pronounced Wahkeen) or our Steward, Sherton. Our butler complained about us though :eek: As far as he was concerned, we weren't very good b/c we were never in our cabin, we never asked him for anything, we never told him what to bring for our snacks, which were too plentiful anyway and he laughed when I said "on as a passenger, off as cargo" b/c of all the great food.

 

High expectations, sure and that can be a problem. I've read enough reviews on here to understand where that would come from. My advice, don't change how you act on your cruise just b/c you're in a suite, but don't sit back and expect your butler and/or concierge to read your mind either. Ask questions and if you want something accept that it's possible the answer may be no, although unlikely when within reason.

 

Also, make sure you read everything left for you in your stateroom, especially your freestyle daily.

[SMerritt]

everyone gets the same info, unless maybe you got the Villa and limo back to airport. ( we walked our own bags off NCL had limo waiting.. don't remember them hurding us up. But I still think we have always just followed the color tag rule and walked off with our bags or sent them the night before. Balcony, PH suite, Owners, Villa...

 

NO one walks you off the ship

 

Talk to your concierge a day or so before disembarkation

 

I sometimes have to book an early flight (11:00) - long story

 

During a few hours in the morning of disembarkation:

 

The elevators on disembarkation day are always full and sometimes people get "ugly"

 

We meet our concierge at an appointed time at his/her desk, with luggage in tow.

 

Escorted to the Express elevator

 

When we get downstairs, one of the concierges "team members" meets us, takes us to the front of the line and swipes our cards, thanks us etc., then we are on our own to proceed through customs.

 

If you have time, you can leave your bags out in the evening, and still be escorted off of the ship.

 

As for embarkation, we do not have to be escorted directly to our suite, but VIP Check-In is AMAZING! Worth the price of a Haven Suite alone :) Oh, and my Lavazza ;o)

Edited March 22, 2014 by SMerritt

[lisakoivu]

At the end of the day, suites just aren't for everyone. I read about them a lot on CC and so we splurged for one last March on the Jewel. Not haven or owners or anything, just an aft penthouse suite.

 

In my opinion, way overrated. If you get to the terminal by 10:30 in a regular room, priority embarkation is a matter of minutes ahead of just regular embarkation. For us, the early walkoff people in regular cabins got off way earlier than we did in the suite - by the time the concierge "escorted" us off (it was John D'Sousa) there were 100 self walkoff people in line already - not impressed. I just got off the Breakaway last week, regular aft balcony, no suite, and was in my car by 7:34. I lined up at 7 by the elevators and was about #10 in line at customs, that's what I'm talking about (we have to drive 9 hours home to Ontario and work the next day)

 

The suite perqs- butler - not for us. He only brought treats twice because we kept forgetting to change the sign. That's not his fault, just to say, we're kinda too dense to take advantage of the perqs, I guess. We never had him bring dinner in the room - not interested. We don't dine at specialty restaurants. We ate at the Haven for breakfast once or twice, but thought it was kind of silly, because the same food was available exactly in MDR or Garden Cafe, so we felt it was kind of dumb to scramble around to get out of bed to make sure to get to Cagney's at a particular time. We didn't want to clock watch. When we ate in Haven, John stopped by our table to say hi, but he did not interact with us in any other way. So we tipped him $100, but in hindsight, I'm not sure why we did - he didn't do anything but disembarkation.

 

Again, I want to stress that these problems aren't necessarily NCL's - they're probably us. We just don't have enough of a drive to seek out and utilize the perqs and maybe the OP is the same. The perq most important to me - to be FIRST in line at disembarkation - didn't work out.

 

After that experience, we did an inside on Dawn, loved it, and then just last week, a regular aft balcony on Breakaway, also loved it. I'm just thinking some people aren't suite people. Planning on insides on Breakaway in August (of course, hoping for upgrades :D)

 

If you don't know what you want from the suite experience and/or don't get excited by the things on the list, then you probably shouldn't bother. I'm happy I tried a suite once, but I would never do it again, ever.

[ksimpso3]

I have no status with NCL. This will be my first cruise with them. My question to all who have responded to this thread, would you sail NCL again; regardless if you book a suite or regular cabin? Do you feel that for overall they deliver on the promise of providing you with a great vacation experience? I ask this because I really have no preset notions of what to expect with NCL; and I will be cruising Europe which is a little different than cruising the Caribbean. Thanks for any all all responses

 

I absolutely LOVE NCL. I have only sailed NCL and Carnival but really have no desire to sail any other line except NCL. Freestyle dining is what hooked us but the whole experience on NCL is what keeps us coming back.

 

Sent from my SPH-D710 using Forums mobile app

Edited March 22, 2014 by ksimpso3

[AF-1]

At the end of the day, suites just aren't for everyone. I read about them a lot on CC and so we splurged for one last March on the Jewel. Not haven or owners or anything, just an aft penthouse suite.

 

In my opinion, way overrated. If you get to the terminal by 10:30 in a regular room, priority embarkation is a matter of minutes ahead of just regular embarkation. For us, the early walkoff people in regular cabins got off way earlier than we did in the suite - by the time the concierge "escorted" us off (it was John D'Sousa) there were 100 self walkoff people in line already - not impressed. I just got off the Breakaway last week, regular aft balcony, no suite, and was in my car by 7:34. I lined up at 7 by the elevators and was about #10 in line at customs, that's what I'm talking about (we have to drive 9 hours home to Ontario and work the next day)

 

The suite perqs- butler - not for us. He only brought treats twice because we kept forgetting to change the sign. That's not his fault, just to say, we're kinda too dense to take advantage of the perqs, I guess. We never had him bring dinner in the room - not interested. We don't dine at specialty restaurants. We ate at the Haven for breakfast once or twice, but thought it was kind of silly, because the same food was available exactly in MDR or Garden Cafe, so we felt it was kind of dumb to scramble around to get out of bed to make sure to get to Cagney's at a particular time. We didn't want to clock watch. When we ate in Haven, John stopped by our table to say hi, but he did not interact with us in any other way. So we tipped him $100, but in hindsight, I'm not sure why we did - he didn't do anything but disembarkation.

 

Again, I want to stress that these problems aren't necessarily NCL's - they're probably us. We just don't have enough of a drive to seek out and utilize the perqs and maybe the OP is the same. The perq most important to me - to be FIRST in line at disembarkation - didn't work out.

 

After that experience, we did an inside on Dawn, loved it, and then just last week, a regular aft balcony on Breakaway, also loved it. I'm just thinking some people aren't suite people. Planning on insides on Breakaway in August (of course, hoping for upgrades :D)

 

If you don't know what you want from the suite experience and/or don't get excited by the things on the list, then you probably shouldn't bother. I'm happy I tried a suite once, but I would never do it again, ever.

 

I like your honesty; thanks for posting your feedback

[AF-1]

ok, i have one more question. With freestyle dining is it possible to have the same waiter every night in MDR?

[ksimpso3]

ok, i have one more question. With freestyle dining is it possible to have the same waiter every night in MDR?

 

On our last cruise we requested the same waiter on 3 occasions and were seated with him. We had to wait for 15 minutes one night but other than that, it wasn't an issue.

 

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[Medtech2]

---------

 

Okay, no one has asked the most important question:

 

Just how do you work the Lavazza machine? What are the coffees like?

 

I can find my way around the ship but I really need to know how to work that darn machine, lol!

 

Any on line instructions or can someone give me the lowdown?

 

-----------

[isdoo]

Ask your butler :)

 

 

 

 

.

Edited March 22, 2014 by isdoo

[AF-1]

On our last cruise we requested the same waiter on 3 occasions and were seated with him. We had to wait for 15 minutes one night but other than that, it wasn't an issue.

 

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thanks for the info.

[meatball_nyc]

Ask your butler :)

 

 

 

 

.

 

 

Now THAT'S a great post :)

 

 

 

Robin

Norwegian Breakaway July 2014

Every Day at Sea is a Great Day

[rvsullivan]

I will say this about disembarkation. On five consecutive cruises on 4 different ships the only person that ever was let of before suite guests was a few departing crew members. Two years ago when Customs closed disembarkation for a ships inspection, the concierge went to the HD and got permission to walk all suite guests off the ship. A two hour delay is what we were told by fellow Meet and greet members later. Even my least favorite concierge, Patrick, got us off the ship within minutes, security held early walk offs up until all suite guest were at customs.

[lisakoivu]

I will say this about disembarkation. On five consecutive cruises on 4 different ships the only person that ever was let of before suite guests was a few departing crew members. Two years ago when Customs closed disembarkation for a ships inspection, the concierge went to the HD and got permission to walk all suite guests off the ship. A two hour delay is what we were told by fellow Meet and greet members later. Even my least favorite concierge, Patrick, got us off the ship within minutes, security held early walk offs up until all suite guest were at customs.

 

I'd be interested - were any of those in New York? Because that wasn't our experience, so I'm wondering if it's port related.

[B6ConMe]

On our last cruise we requested the same waiter on 3 occasions and were seated with him. We had to wait for 15 minutes one night but other than that, it wasn't an issue.

 

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Not to throw cold water on your hopes but this is the exception, not the rule, so as I said in a previous post, by all means ask, but please don't be disappointed if it can't be done.

 

The wait staff is moved around to different restaurants plus they do have times when they aren't available. We've enjoyed meeting all the different wait staff and they've all gone out of their way to ensure we get good service.

 

Relax and enjoy your cruise,

[DMH15]

same good point, if this was your first than maybe a GUIDE to the room would be helpful.

We have had the Owners and garden villa on the SUN. 1st was the owners suite that I really don't remember us getting guided to the room but could have...and they did walk us to our room for the Garden Villa... but when I made the plans with NCL the task was to get up to the Villa without her knowing...my wife didn't know until we walked in and he showed us around. Tears followed

But we as the couple above we get away from life when we cruise, but the butler was happy Im sure that we could run our own bath...

and how doesn't like cookies

 

Garden Villa on the Sun? Where is that one hidden?

[DMH15]

Is disembarkation more complicated for suite passengers for some reason? I've never cruised in a suite, and I've never had any problems figuring out how to disembark, regardless of cruise line. This thread confuses me a bit.

 

No, it is actually a lot less complicated. At least on the Sun. Suite guests meet in Windjammer. Have comfy couches to sit while waiting for other suite guests. Concierge walks group down and out a hallway off the beaten path. With only 20 suites the Concierge offers pax a choice of the time they want to leave. Easiest disembarkation ever. This works for me with my 80 year old mom who is a blast to travel with but has a few health issues and I am glad she can rest and have it easier.