What's the best experience you've ever had with a Nowrwegian Haven staff memeber?

[Sprasa03]

I'm traveling on the Norwegian Breakaway to Bermuda with my family next August. Some of us will be first time cruisers, but none of us have ever had the pleasure of staying in a Haven room.

I hear wonderful things about the staff and the perks you get being in a Haven room.

If anyone would like to share their experiences, so we know what to expect and what to take advantage of, it would be very much appreciated.

[david_sobe]

The Haven area on the Breakaway class ships is very nice. We had great service on the Getaway but the BIG ships like Epic and Breakaway you don't get the extremely personal touch as you would get on the smaller ships.

So to answer your question.....the concierge gave us a bottle of wine at dinner one night at Cagneys and would visit us twice a day to check up on us and ask if we needed anything. This was on the Sky. On Epic the concierge allowed us to phone a dentist in St Maarten while we were at sea.

The Haven restaurant will provide excellent service. They will greet you by name every morning or evening.

Edited September 26, 2015 by david_sobe

[MrJoeBlack]

Our best experience so far was on the Sun, our Room Attendant was a magician, we knew he had been there but never was he intrusive or very long. The Suite was always perfect. Also our butler was above all expectations and treated his job like a passion. Really made the trip that much better with a solid team helping out a young family. To this day we are still in contact with the butler and his family, our kids will be old fashioned pen pals when they can start writing there own letters

[dexddd]

David touched on it for the larger ships. When we were on the BA I can't say anyone stood out. Our butler was nice enough as one of the others we met and we had some nice time talking about things. Concierge was of little use, chained to her desk. Saw her only once in the Haven pool area and never anywhere else other than when escorting people into a show or off the ship.

 

Jellyrose the bartender and the waitress were quiet at first but very pleasant. I guess if you are expecting people to be tripping over themselves to do things for you, that may not happen. Enjoy the Haven for the room and amenities plus the restaurant. There will be a few snacks by the pool area like sweet breads and candy. Two days they were roaming around with frozen ice and small smoothies.

[Boschmann]

I've had similar experiences as david sobe. On the Star there was a much closer link between suite guests and the concierge/butler. Our concierge was always making contact to ensure we were happy. On the Breakaway it seemed they had too many Haven guests, so service level seemed dependent on room class. I was in a lowly H9 Spa suite and had little direct contact with Anoop, the concierge. He did get me Bermuda transportation passes when asked and always knew our names. I made one LeBistro reservation request in the morning that went unfulfilled, but it was a sea day. Funny thing is that we ended up going that same night with a fellow spa suite friend who was comped (casino player) & ended up getting us in for free also. It wasn't that crowded either. Most of my BA concierge service was often provided in group form such as going to priority seating at cirque or at disembarkation, which were still nice perks.

[rfkeith10]

This might be a bit off the topic but I think it is worth sharing. We have stayed in the Haven several times over the years. All of our experiences have been wonderful. Our most recent trip was a Mediterranean cruise on the NCL Spirit. Karin was our concierge. We have never had a concierge that did more for us than Karin did. The needs of her "guests" were paramount. Throughout the cruise she took very good care of our needs and was genuinely interested in satisfying those needs. The last couple days of the trip I became sick. By debarkation day, I was so sick that I couldn't walk. Once Karin learned of my issues that morning, she made arrangements for special assistance in getting me off the ship to include help getting onto the shuttle bus to the Airport. I feel that she went above and beyond her normal duties to take care of us.

 

Thanks for letting me share a wonderful experience.

[NLH Arizona]

David touched on it for the larger ships. When we were on the BA I can't say anyone stood out. Our butler was nice enough as one of the others we met and we had some nice time talking about things. Concierge was of little use, chained to her desk. Saw her only once in the Haven pool area and never anywhere else other than when escorting people into a show or off the ship.

That can also happen on the smaller ships. On one of the jewel class ships, I was in a non-Haven suite (aft penthouse) and never saw the Concierge, she hung out all day in the Haven, I guess. Even upon disembarkation, she totally ignored anyone who wasn't in the Haven. I learned my lesson, because unfortunately I had already put her tip on the onboard account, something I'll never do again, I'll wait till we are ready to disembark. On the other hand, was on the Pearl in November and the Concierge was outstanding...always around even in the evenings at the specialty restaurants...she was awesome.

[watchdiva]

We've been blessed to have always had great experiences when sailing in either an AFT PH or a Haven suite. Great butler and concierge service makes a cruise special...whether in the Haven or an AFT suite.

[tmilak]

On the Epic 4 years ago the bartender would always have my favorite drink prepared just before dinner at 7pm at the Haven bar and our butler always had shrimp cocktail in the cabin when the kids came back from our day out at 5pm.

 

That type of service always has us coming back to NCL and the Haven.

 

We have two more Haven trips planed for the next 12 months and can't wait.

[Ericktina]

On the Epic 4 years ago the bartender would always have my favorite drink prepared just before dinner at 7pm at the Haven bar and our butler always had shrimp cocktail in the cabin when the kids came back from our day out at 5pm.

 

That type of service always has us coming back to NCL and the Haven.

 

We have two more Haven trips planed for the next 12 months and can't wait.

Almost none of these experiences do not say the name of the crew member. I have noticed that is done very rarely on these boards--wish it were done more !!

[dexddd]

This might be a bit off the topic but I think it is worth sharing. We have stayed in the Haven several times over the years. All of our experiences have been wonderful. Our most recent trip was a Mediterranean cruise on the NCL Spirit. Karin was our concierge. We have never had a concierge that did more for us than Karin did. The needs of her "guests" were paramount. Throughout the cruise she took very good care of our needs and was genuinely interested in satisfying those needs. The last couple days of the trip I became sick. By debarkation day, I was so sick that I couldn't walk. Once Karin learned of my issues that morning, she made arrangements for special assistance in getting me off the ship to include help getting onto the shuttle bus to the Airport. I feel that she went above and beyond her normal duties to take care of us.

 

Thanks for letting me share a wonderful experience.

 

Looks like you were on the Spirit in April? We are going in December and haven't heard who we will have. Hope it is still Karin - had her on the Sun and yes, she is wonderful. Saw her all over the ship - she must put on a ton of miles each day and always full of energy.

[GeezerCouple]

That can also happen on the smaller ships. On one of the jewel class ships, I was in a non-Haven suite (aft penthouse) and never saw the Concierge, she hung out all day in the Haven, I guess. Even upon disembarkation, she totally ignored anyone who wasn't in the Haven. I learned my lesson, because unfortunately I had already put her tip on the onboard account, something I'll never do again, I'll wait till we are ready to disembark. On the other hand, was on the Pearl in November and the Concierge was outstanding...always around even in the evenings at the specialty restaurants...she was awesome.

 

We probably had the same Concierge on the Pearl in December.

Although she was occasionally in the Haven area, we mostly saw her at breakfast and lunch at Cagney's, and of course, that's for *all* suite passengers, not just for those in the Haven.

That seemed right.

 

For anything special, like dining reservations, we phoned her, and she then later updated us on the status.

 

Our Butler was amazing (much better than the previous Butler on the Dawn, which doesn't have a Haven area).

 

One trick we learned here on CruiseCritic:

 

Each time, we prepared a typed letter that introduced ourselves briefly, and then we mentioned some special needs (which should have been in our records, but we wanted to make it easy for everyone), plus a list of the types of treats we preferred, and a few things we did not like.

 

We also gave permission to enter at any time without ringing (in case we were inside and sleeping in the bedroom), and that if we wanted privacy, we'd deadbolt the door in addition to a "do not disturb" sign.

(That wouldn't work in a Penthouse Suite type setup, with one big room, obviously.)

 

And if we knew what time we planned to be back from an excursion, we left a note for the Butler and Steward.

 

They were both amazing on the Pearl Haven.

The fruits we preferred were always waiting, still nicely chilled. It's almost like they knew when we were waking up before we did :)

And "refills" magically appeared just about the time we wanted them.

 

It was a holiday cruise, with lots of "action" and children, so the peacefulness of the Haven was treasured. (The few children there were very well behaved, even though they were still having fun in the pool and hot tub.)

 

It's really the Butler who can make the trip magical.

 

Another suggestion about dining: In both the MDR and in Le Bistro, we had the good fortune to get terrific waitstaff.

So we made a point of asking to be seated where they'd be serving.

That was easier in Le Bistro because of the reservations, but we were able to get a table in the MDR with the waitstaff we preferred with only a minor wait.

(On a previous cruise, we brought along another family with a toddler, and the waitress almost instantly had something he liked to eat in front of him, before we even ordered. That made *everyone* happy: the toddler, his parents, us, nearby diners, and of course the waitstaff, too!)

 

GeezerCouple

[rfkeith10]

Looks like you were on the Spirit in April? We are going in December and haven't heard who we will have. Hope it is still Karin - had her on the Sun and yes, she is wonderful. Saw her all over the ship - she must put on a ton of miles each day and always full of energy.

 

It was in April that we were on the Spirit. Unfortunately, I don't think that Karin is still on the Spirit. I don't know where she is but I don't think she is there. You are right, she was always full of energy and very caring about her guests...

[2015cruisenewbie]

OH MY! Jelly the bartender on the Breakaway Haven never left her post. We speculate that she is either a twin or a cyborg! We hit the beginning of a hurricane the last day on the way home and it was pretty terrible! She gave us all ginger ale and ginger candy as well as telling us to ask our butler for cold cloths. She was amazing.

[dexddd]

OH MY! Jelly the bartender on the Breakaway Haven never left her post. We speculate that she is either a twin or a cyborg! We hit the beginning of a hurricane the last day on the way home and it was pretty terrible! She gave us all ginger ale and ginger candy as well as telling us to ask our butler for cold cloths. She was amazing.

 

Was Rowena still working there?

[Kingmaker_inc]

I mused that I liked Jambalaya when having a conversation with my butler about the MDR's and the next time I was there - he had the chef make it for me as a surprise. I ordered something else, and the waiter arrived with a delicious plate of Jambalaya.

 

The second best was when we were returning to the ship from Nassau, soaking wet and cold from the rain. I called ahead and asked him to prepare something for the kids. When we got to the cabin, there was a hot bath drawn, hot towels from the towel warmer, and hot chocolate for all.

 

It sold me on butlers.