Pride of America suite question

[Kattus]

For those of you who recently sailed on the PoA and stayed in a suite, who are the current concierge/butler?

 

TIA!

[Mutante]

For those of you who recently sailed on the PoA and stayed in a suite, who are the current concierge/butler?

 

TIA!

 

Just off the POA on 1/23...James was the concierge and Peter was our Butler. Did not need or use James for anything because Peter was AWESOME and took care of everything for us. Not saying that James wasn't a good concierge - just saying I wouldn't know because we never asked him for anything and our interactions with him were limited to hello and goodbye during breakfast/lunch in Cagney's.

 

Cannot say enough good things about Peter and Norma (room Steward) - they were fantastic and the best we have ever had sailing with NCL!

[dexddd]

Just off the POA on 1/23...James was the concierge and Peter was our Butler. Did not need or use James for anything because Peter was AWESOME and took care of everything for us. Not saying that James wasn't a good concierge - just saying I wouldn't know because we never asked him for anything and our interactions with him were limited to hello and goodbye during breakfast/lunch in Cagney's.

 

Cannot say enough good things about Peter and Norma (room Steward) - they were fantastic and the best we have ever had sailing with NCL!

 

What room did you have? Do you know if that is the same James that worked for NCL on POA some time ago - I thought he no longer worked for NCL.

 

Oh, one more thing - did anyone say what was going on during the drydock more specific than what was in the press release?

Edited February 5, 2016 by dexddd

[slckac77]

We were just on the POA 1/30/16 sailing and James was the concierge and Marc was our butler. They were both very nice but we really didn't use either of them much as I had prebooked restaurants and excursions. We were in suite 13518 and Conrado was our steward. He was very good but we didn't see him much either (which is fine).

[gmazz]

We were just on the POA 1/30/16 sailing and James was the concierge and Marc was our butler. They were both very nice but we really didn't use either of them much as I had prebooked restaurants and excursions. We were in suite 13518 and Conrado was our steward. He was very good but we didn't see him much either (which is fine).

 

How did you like the suite? I loved it when we were in it. Worked out great for the 4 of us and the balcony was to die for. We had Susan for our butler and she was awesome. Saved the day a few times for us. She did get a pretty nice tip for all the scrambling she did for us. We never fussed over room service or anything special but she helped us get the name of a tattoo place to go to so we could all bring home a piece of Hawaii. I know that is different but we thought it was the best vacation ever and wanted to always remember it. She also go something left behind a tour retrieved for us and a replacement card for DH the last morning when he realized he left his room card in his pants pocket that was put out for departure the night before .

[slckac77]

How did you like the suite? I loved it when we were in it. Worked out great for the 4 of us and the balcony was to die for. We had Susan for our butler and she was awesome. Saved the day a few times for us. She did get a pretty nice tip for all the scrambling she did for us. We never fussed over room service or anything special but she helped us get the name of a tattoo place to go to so we could all bring home a piece of Hawaii. I know that is different but we thought it was the best vacation ever and wanted to always remember it. She also go something left behind a tour retrieved for us and a replacement card for DH the last morning when he realized he left his room card in his pants pocket that was put out for departure the night before .

 

We loved it, too! It was just the two of us and it was great. My only complaint would be that in most suites we have been in there is more counter space in the bathroom. Also, I wasn't crazy about how people could look around the partition and see right in to our balcony! It seems like they could have somehow designed that a little differently. These are small things, though and we loved the cruise! We have been on 16 and it is one of our favorites. We just didn't agree at all with the negative reviews because our whole trip was great!

[gmazz]

We loved it, too! It was just the two of us and it was great. My only complaint would be that in most suites we have been in there is more counter space in the bathroom. Also, I wasn't crazy about how people could look around the partition and see right in to our balcony! It seems like they could have somehow designed that a little differently. These are small things, though and we loved the cruise! We have been on 16 and it is one of our favorites. We just didn't agree at all with the negative reviews because our whole trip was great!

 

We only had 1 or 2 times that someone peeked around the partition but not enough to say it was not worth that huge room and balcony! This was one of our favorite cruises to and found the staff very friendly even outside the "suite experience" and the food was great!

[phissy]

We just returned from POA on Feb 7.

We had James Line as concierge and Peter was our butler.

We were in owners suite on deck 12 with hot tub on balcony.

As has been stated by others, James does not seem to do much. There is no priority section in the theatre , which makes seeing shows more challenging.

Peter did a great job for us and he was tipped to indicate this.

We never seem to have a good concierge and good butler on the same cruise. It is always one or the other.

The POA seems to be a unique ship to NCL.

Many suite perks we were used to and expecting were simply not available on this cruise. Very frustrating as this is one of the most expensive cruises on NCL.

[Kattus]

We just returned from POA on Feb 7.

We had James Line as concierge and Peter was our butler.

We were in owners suite on deck 12 with hot tub on balcony.

As has been stated by others, James does not seem to do much. There is no priority section in the theatre , which makes seeing shows more challenging.

Peter did a great job for us and he was tipped to indicate this.

We never seem to have a good concierge and good butler on the same cruise. It is always one or the other.

The POA seems to be a unique ship to NCL.

Many suite perks we were used to and expecting were simply not available on this cruise. Very frustrating as this is one of the most expensive cruises on NCL.

What suite perks in particular?

 

 

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[Imalismom]

We had Chris as our butler and James as our concierge.

 

 

We loved loved loved Chris... He went over and above each and every day.

[phissy]

Suite perks we were expecting , from previous experience , are as follows.

-escort by concierge to reserved section in theatee for shows.

-priority tender tickets for port

- letter informing us of priority disembarkation procedures for end of cruise.

-Cagney's breakfast delivered to Suite

-Cagney's lunch delivered in Suite

-tablecloth service with Speciality dinner in suite service.

 

Just some things we missed having.,this was just specific to POA.

 

YMMV

[punkincc]

Suite perks we were expecting , from previous experience , are as follows.

-escort by concierge to reserved section in theatee for shows.

-priority tender tickets for port

- letter informing us of priority disembarkation procedures for end of cruise.

-Cagney's breakfast delivered to Suite

-Cagney's lunch delivered in Suite

-tablecloth service with Speciality dinner in suite service.

 

Just some things we missed having.,this was just specific to POA.

 

YMMV

 

Unless NCL wants to change their list of suite perks to indicate that the POA is exempt, I will expect to get the same suite perks available to me on any other suite. In fact, I'm pretty sure I read on the board recently reports from POA cruisers who got dinners served in cabin by the butler.

 

I really don't care if there is a reserved section with escort to the theatre. I have seen these sections on other ships, and I would never choose to sit there. Not that difficult to just walk in and choose my favorite location.

 

We were Gold when we were on the POA the last time, and not in a suite, and we got Priority Tender tickets, so I would think the suite passengers would get them as well. They were in our cabin on day 1 along with a letter about Priority Disembarkation. We did not use it, as we were in no rush to get off. By the time we left, it was easy to just walk off.

[Kattus]

The only suite perk I know not to expect is priority seating in the theatre, and we didn't even use this when we were on the Gem in a suite last year. And aren't the shows not as well attended as in other ships? No biggie for us.

 

However, I do expect to have dinner one night on our balcony, a perk we didn't take advantage of last year BC it was a last-minute upsell and I've done my research since then!

[dexddd]

We had Chris as our butler and James as our concierge.

 

 

We loved loved loved Chris... He went over and above each and every day.

 

Did you go recently and did you get any of the perks phissy didn't get?

[ryarger]

We had La Cucina on our balcony in 2/2014 with no issues. Our butler George actually recommended the day (Kona, where we could watch the sun set over the ocean while we ate) and took marvelous care of us. When he found out my wife was a Riesling fan like himself, he brought a complementary bottle of his favorite brand for us.

 

Our Concierge was James Line then as well. He certainly didn't go out of his way for us, but when we went to him with an accessibility issue, he took care of us.

 

I'll say that if this is the least of NCL's Suite Life, I'm even more excited about our Haven trip on the BA this December!

 

 

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[Kattus]

Thanks for all of your responses! I have another question pertinent to the Pride of America suite life. Since we're leaving in May I'm starting to book transportation, and I see that Roberts Hawaii offers hotel pick-up times of 12, 1 and 2pm on embarkation day. Would we miss out on any VIP/suite perks by arriving at the pier at 1pm? I just don't want to skip Cagney's lunch. Starting to think it might be worth the extra $$$ to grab a cab at say 10:30 or 11am (early check-out from hotel) so as not to miss out on anything. Folks who've sailed the PoA in a suite, please keep in mind that I'm a New Yorker so everything is overplanned and rushed lol :p:p

[JustThinking23]

Just got back from the last cruise prior to drydock. We had James as concierge and George as a butler.

 

First, James got off the boat prior to it leaving for SF, and is starting a 2 month "off" time. He should be back on in 2 months, for another 4 month "on" stint.

 

We had pre-planned all of our excursions and dinners, so we did not really "use" James. He did escort us on board to the Napa wine bar at about 11:00. In the bar were representatives from Shore Excursions, dining, spa, etc. We bought a wine selection package then. I was able to adjust the times on some of our dining reservations.

 

We then went to Cagney's for lunch. Love that.

 

We did not go to any of the entertainment on board. Had not planned to either. James was very available at Cagney's breakfast every day. He has been on that ship for 10 years, so he was able to offer us advice on every port. Answered any question we had. He did offer at breakfast priority tendering at Kona, but we had a ship excursion that day. We did get a letter about disembarkment and James did discuss that at breakfast on Friday. I met him in the lobby Saturday morning, and was wisked past the lines on my way out.

 

My wife and I had planned for a balcony dinner in Kauai. George got that all together for us and delivered it do us. There was not a white table cloth, and all the food was delivered at once, and then he left. I actually would have preferred this versus him staying and serving each course. We were very happy with the dinner, except that it rained and we ended up eating inside, but still good! We were very please with George!

 

I did remember reading on one of the welcome letters that Cagney's was not available for room service for breakfast and lunch.

[JustThinking23]

Thanks for all of your responses! I have another question pertinent to the Pride of America suite life. Since we're leaving in May I'm starting to book transportation, and I see that Roberts Hawaii offers hotel pick-up times of 12, 1 and 2pm on embarkation day. Would we miss out on any VIP/suite perks by arriving at the pier at 1pm? I just don't want to skip Cagney's lunch. Starting to think it might be worth the extra $$$ to grab a cab at say 10:30 or 11am (early check-out from hotel) so as not to miss out on anything. Folks who've sailed the PoA in a suite, please keep in mind that I'm a New Yorker so everything is overplanned and rushed lol :p:p

 

Kind of up to you. We enjoyed Cagney's for lunch and had spent a few days with very active sightseeing in Oahu, so it was kind of a rest day for us. There was a fairly long wait for the rooms to be ready, and there was not any priority given for the suites. Rooms were available as the floors were announced over the loudspeaker. Floor 13 was one of the first called, because there are so few rooms there.

 

We were off the ship every port day, so the only other day we made it back to Cagney's for lunch was Friday, leaving Kauai.

Edited February 23, 2016 by JustThinking23

[slckac77]

We were on the 1/30 sailing and James escorted us to the Napa Wine Bar around noon and we ate at Cagney's shortly after. Our room was on deck 13 and those rooms were some of the first ready. Our luggage was outside our door when we went to our room.

[punkincc]

Just got back from the last cruise prior to drydock. We had James as concierge and George as a butler.

 

First, James got off the boat prior to it leaving for SF, and is starting a 2 month "off" time. He should be back on in 2 months, for another 4 month "on" stint.

 

We had pre-planned all of our excursions and dinners, so we did not really "use" James. He did escort us on board to the Napa wine bar at about 11:00. In the bar were representatives from Shore Excursions, dining, spa, etc. We bought a wine selection package then. I was able to adjust the times on some of our dining reservations.

 

We then went to Cagney's for lunch. Love that.

 

We did not go to any of the entertainment on board. Had not planned to either. James was very available at Cagney's breakfast every day. He has been on that ship for 10 years, so he was able to offer us advice on every port. Answered any question we had. He did offer at breakfast priority tendering at Kona, but we had a ship excursion that day. We did get a letter about disembarkment and James did discuss that at breakfast on Friday. I met him in the lobby Saturday morning, and was wisked past the lines on my way out.

 

My wife and I had planned for a balcony dinner in Kauai. George got that all together for us and delivered it do us. There was not a white table cloth, and all the food was delivered at once, and then he left. I actually would have preferred this versus him staying and serving each course. We were very happy with the dinner, except that it rained and we ended up eating inside, but still good! We were very please with George!

 

I did remember reading on one of the welcome letters that Cagney's was not available for room service for breakfast and lunch.

 

 

Thanks for confirming that dinner served in your suite is still being done. Looking forward to a couple of those. We've always had a white tablecloth and napkins on other ships, but I can live without it.

[Kattus]

We were on the 1/30 sailing and James escorted us to the Napa Wine Bar around noon and we ate at Cagney's shortly after. Our room was on deck 13 and those rooms were some of the first ready. Our luggage was outside our door when we went to our room.

OK, sounds like I'm going to need to schedule a hotel pick-up closer to 11am. So Roberts Hawaii is a no-go to the pier. Already spoke with the hotel and confirmed early check out around 10-10:30 was feasible.