Questions from a Haven newbie due to upsell

[Roadsofa]

I just scored a Haven courtyard penthouse today via an upsell offer that was accepted. Having never had the pleasure of a Haven experience I have a few questions, mostly due to the upsell.

 

1. I understand that I only keep whatever packages I had prior to the upgrade, i.e. the UDP etc... and do not get all of the packages as I would had I booked directly. What perks will I get, i.e. Haven reception etc...?

 

2. I have read a bunch of threads regarding tips for butler, concierge etc... I hate to ask a "how much" question but I have to. While I do not expect to ask much of the Haven staff I want to make sure I tip appropriately. Any recommendations would be appreciated.

 

3. Anyone ever bring their own pods for the coffee machine in the suites? I understand it is a Lavazza Blue?

 

Any other suggestions/tips would be helpful. Thanks much!!

 

Neil

[Sauer-kraut]

It might not be a Lavazza machine, you might have the cheap Nespresso one

[js]

Congratulations! Get the fresh pressed coffee from Haven restaurant. Enjoy!

 

 

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[TYSONBOXER]

The Haven perks start at check in at the pier. You bypass all the lines to check in. After check in you go to small lounge in pier with drinks and goodies. When ship is ready for boarding, you are first on escorted to haven lounge. You then get sliders and drinks and small briefing of what you get.

Other perks are concierge and butler. Concierge will get you reservations to any restaurant or shows you want. They got me in specially restaurants that told me they were full. You get special seating to all shows. You can even book excursions with them and avoid the lines. At he end of the cruise they take you off the ship first.

The butler will get you anything you need in your room. They will serve you breakfast in your room, also dinner if you want. You get afternoon snacks served everyday around 4pm. If you want something special just ask them.

Tipping depends how much you use them. We had breakfast twice and some small request, so I tipped my butler $100. I also tipped $100 to the concierge.

 

 

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[BirdTravels]

Most ships have switched to nupresso machines.

 

 

 

Butler: $10-$15 per person in room per days on cruise

 

Concierge: $5-$10 per person per day

 

Steward: $5-$10 per person per day

 

[luckyinpa]

is that new machine since october? i dont drink coffee but i gotta say, that lemon tea was fantastic and i didnt need any sugar etc. then again if they changed machines you dont have to hear all the 1000 noises a day it makes.

[Linda the Book Lover]

Get ready to feel spoiled! :D There will be a floral arrangement in the room which stays fresh for your cruise. The nice part is you have room service for what you would like including specialty restaurants (you can use your dining package or pay no worries). It is nice return from shore to an afternoon snack. Let your butler know if there is something you would not like and he/she will take care of that. I love the bowl of candy which we always order and it stays filled. My DH likes warm chocolate chip cookies and our butlers always insured he had some in the afternoon. Feel free to adjust what pillows you use and for me a reading wedge is always on my list. There is no need to bring anything as anything you would like and it is available on the ship you will have.

 

We cruise every other year to enjoy the suite/Haven life as for us retirees it is a special occasion. We tip up/down similar to BirdTravels according to how much we utilize the service.

 

Enjoy the Suite LIfe and prepare to want to enjoy it forever.

[Visigoth]

Most ships have switched to nupresso machines.

 

 

 

Butler: $10-$15 per person in room per days on cruise

 

Concierge: $5-$10 per person per day

 

Steward: $5-$10 per person per day

 

Gratuities always depend on your experience with each individual. On our last Haven cruise (15 day) we saw our butler 3 or 4 times and only for a minute or two as he delivered evening snacks. Conversely, our Concierge (Anoop) was always there and always helping. We over-tipped Anoop and the butler's gratuity was lower than usual.

 

On the Getaway, there are four Haven butlers. One butler handles the four Owners Suites while the other three will serve the other 24 haven suites (8 each). In a courtyard penthouse you will share your butler with 7 other suites. If you each tip $25 per day per cabin, these lucky individuals will receive $200/day in tips. The $25 per cabin is perfectly appropriate if you are in an owners suite but, unless you are receiving remarkable service, it may be a bit high for a penthouse.

[maryisme]

Congrats on the upsell!!! Mind sharing some details? Sailing date? Category? Bid amount? When you received notification of acceptance, etc??? Whatever you would care to share would be helpful.

 

Thanks!!! Have a great cruise!!

 

 

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[ESBMommie2]

We typically tip our butler about $250 for a 7 day cruise but we use him a lot! The room steward around $100 and the concierge maybe $75 as I typically pre book everything myself in advance. I absolutely don't think a butler is a "lucky individual" they work LONG days and deserve a good tip if they give you good service. Out butler was on call from 6am to 11pm. Also several of the folks in our hall all upgraded (on the Epic we all got along great and did pre dinner drinks almost every night so we were all very friendly) and we had a final breakfast before disembarking. Many of them were shocked when my husband had to excuse himself to go tip the butler. They had no idea they were supposed to. And from sailing in the Haven several times we have found out that many don't...which is upsetting as these folks spend months away from their family and work hard to give you a vacation you will truly enjoy...so I will just say if they go out of the way to make your experience wonderful then tip when you find to be appropriate! Have a great Haven cruise. We took an upsell 3 years ago to the Haven and haven;t been able to book non haven since. NCL got us hook, line and sinker!

[dexddd]

Congrats on the upsell!!! Mind sharing some details? Sailing date? Category? Bid amount? When you received notification of acceptance, etc??? Whatever you would care to share would be helpful.

 

Thanks!!! Have a great cruise!!

 

 

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Based on posting and detail they sailed early Feb. on GA. Hopefully they can answer the upsell questions though.

[Bootman4U]

Sorry, but having been in The Haven on two different cruises DO NOT go to the pier EXPECTING the rather elaborate situation as detailed above. The most recent experience went like this: we got to the pier and checked in at the usual The Haven area. We waited around and then this individual basically dumped our group at the bottom of the gangway and she disappeared.

[VideoTech]

Sorry, but having been in The Haven on two different cruises DO NOT go to the pier EXPECTING the rather elaborate situation as detailed above. The most recent experience went like this: we got to the pier and checked in at the usual The Haven area. We waited around and then this individual basically dumped our group at the bottom of the gangway and she disappeared.

 

 

What ships were those experiences? I have to say that we've never had a bad experience like that with any Haven or Suite level cruise we've taken. The boarding experience is always fantastic, and the treatment on the ship is always wonderful.

[Linda the Book Lover]

What ships were those experiences? I have to say that we've never had a bad experience like that with any Haven or Suite level cruise we've taken. The boarding experience is always fantastic, and the treatment on the ship is always wonderful.

 

 

I have to agree.

[hateswaterloves2cruise]

I have never been in the Haven but have been in suites on the Dawn/Jewel ships and have found the "special" embarkation to be less than it used to be. Most ports don't have a separate room, just an area where they have you sit while waiting to board. Cookies, breads and drinks are available. On the last two suite cruises when they went to board us, they were also boarding the first group. Talk about confusing!!! We were trying to follow a little lady barely 5' tall and there was pushing and shoving. The time before that the butler bringing us onboard got us mixed in with the handicapped group and we lost him way before the gangway. Fortunately we were familiar with the ships and found our room then Cagney's for lunch. Maybe Haven gets even better service, but there were Haven people in with us in Tampa.

[Marine Mom]

What ships were those experiences? I have to say that we've never had a bad experience like that with any Haven or Suite level cruise we've taken. The boarding experience is always fantastic, and the treatment on the ship is always wonderful.

 

 

I agree! I have always had a great experience when staying in the Haven or a suite.

[karenj4546]

We're doing the Haven in May. We have stayed in a penthouse before, but this will be our first Haven experience. On our last cruise, we saw the butler for 1 minute a day if we were in the cabin when he delivered afternoon snacks. He began the cruise with, "I've got 2 back here and a LOT up front, so you won't see me much". He got what we'd put aside for the concierage. In reverse, the conceirage arranged all of our specialty meals and, when the Star ran into problems, made all of our arrangements for the hotel, refund of missed excursions, etc. Obviously, he got the butler's tip!