THE SECRETS OF THE NCL HAVEN LUXURY EXPERIENCE

[complawyer]

rocketman275. i just commented that if you dont drink a lot (even the upscale champagne) it probably isnt worth the extra money.

and if you really think  my post was harsh, can you honestly say that you have any interest in someone else's drinking habits? once they used the term "blotto" i knew it was facetious, but i still believe  it was 

 

way off track for the original post. lets see what sthrngary thinks as he started this post.

sthnrgary:

do you think we're way of track from  "the secrets of the haven" and wasnt there a different track about whether or not to purchase the upgraded drink package?

[complawyer]

just some lady. fyi your post 100% did not ruffle any feathers. i just think we are really off track from the intent of this post. by all means if you plan on utilizing the upgrade that's great .i dont realy need a $100 bottle of champagne every night and i certainly dont condemn any one who does. if  that's the case the upgrade is certainly worthwhile.  personally, just like sthrngary, i try and book a haven. i have a glass of champagne with breakfast. a chivas or 2 with my lunch, if we're not on an excursion, a mojito at sugarcane and another chivas or 2 with dinner and finally, a glass of port wine and a latte for desert. that amount of alcohol does me just fine.

 

even in jest, i doubt very many people are really concerned with  your drinking habits.

[Sthrngary]

9 minutes ago, complawyer said:

sthnrgary:

do you think we're way of track from  "the secrets of the haven" and wasnt there a different track about whether or not to purchase the upgraded drink package?

 

This thread has been off track many times.  Lot's of reason for that.  When this topic of the Premium Plus Beverage Package came up in the past, I created a new stream on the subject.

 

 

The this topic can be justified in some ways because of the quality of spirits and bartenders in the Haven Bar.  Should it be a topic here, sure.  Should it become what this stream is all about, not really. 

 

Cruise well.

[Sthrngary]

19 minutes ago, JustSomeLady said:

I apologize for my poor humor, though. 

@JustSomeLadyDon't be silly.  "Blotto" was the perfect word.  No apologizing needed.

You are welcome for those pointers.  To be honest, I am much more appreciative to everyone that seems to enjoy them.  It lets me know I am not crazy. In my house, I am ignored as if I am some old man in the corner talking to himself. Wait, I am an old man in the corner talking to my self.  Scratch that.

This is social media.  The only social media that I participate in.  I deleted all my other accounts years ago. Why? Folks took things to seriously and just were not having fun posting.  Here, humor is welcomed and kind hearted banter is as well.

 

Cruise well.

[JustSomeLady]

7 minutes ago, Sthrngary said:

@JustSomeLadyDon't be silly.  "Blotto" was the perfect word.  No apologizing needed.

You are welcome for those pointers.  To be honest, I am much more appreciative to everyone that seems to enjoy them.  It lets me know I am not crazy. In my house, I am ignored as if I am some old man in the corner talking to himself. Wait, I am an old man in the corner talking to my self.  Scratch that.

This is social media.  The only social media that I participate in.  I deleted all my other accounts years ago. Why? Folks took things to seriously and just were not having fun posting.  Here, humor is welcomed and kind hearted banter is as well.

 

Cruise well.

Thank you! On topic, I will be taking advantage of your itinerary booklet idea for my family as well as the letter to the butler. 

[Sthrngary]

7 minutes ago, JustSomeLady said:

Thank you! On topic, I will be taking advantage of your itinerary booklet idea for my family as well as the letter to the butler. 

I am honored.  My therapist tells me I might have gone a bit OCD on it though. They are a great read if you can fall asleep.  Works every time, LOL.

 

Cruise well

[Sailing12Away]

At the risk of being that annoying fly buzzing around a certain grumpy person's head, I am vowing here and now that if I win my upgrade bid for the 3 bedroom villa on my next trip I will be inviting everyone I see back to our cabin for a game of "blotto".

 

I don't quite know the rules yet, but I'm sure I'll think of something. That's the joy of being on vacation - everyone can do what works best for them. So long as my fellow blotto's (and the aficionado's) keep their innards out of my grotto, we'll have all won the lotto while eating cheese and tomato's.

🐀

[BklynBorn47]

Just a thanks to the OP and all who commented about the Haven
We decided if we were ever going to try the Haven, this TA on the Escape as the 1st leg of 3 cruises would be a good choice.  
We bid on the Haven Courtyard Penthouse with Balcony at an amount that just got us just into the "good" category.  Yeah, probably more than the deals described in other threads for upgrades, but considering the cost of 38 days cruising plus 3 more getting to the port and home, a small percentage of the total.
Now I find I'd really like to get it.
Too bad I have to wait until almost the last minute to find out.
 

[nattie]

Wow, this is long thread!

Pretty sure answers to all my questions are within 55 pages somewhere, but I cant figure the search out, so forgive me if my questions have been answered before. Here they go:

• If we are in Haven category but part of our party is not, can they join us in the Haven lounge prior to boarding? Can we board together? It is the case on my preferred cruiseline, but dont know about Norwegian
• I know that other party wouldnt be allowed to hang out with us in the courtyard/lounge, but can they come visit in our suite?
•  How bad is motion all they way up and forward? I remember sailing on the Sun in the upper floor balconies years ago and it was pretty bad. But Breakaway is much newer ship.
• How accommodating are the butlers? We will have a septuagenarian with us (reason we are doing Haven in the first place) and she can get pretty demanding
• Can items be brought to Haven restaurant from buffet/other venues? 

Thank you!

[fox02554]

4 minutes ago, nattie said:

Wow, this is long thread!

Pretty sure answers to all my questions are within 55 pages somewhere, but I cant figure the search out, so forgive me if my questions have been answered before. Here they go:

• If we are in Haven category but part of our party is not, can they join us in the Haven lounge prior to boarding? Can we board together? It is the case on my preferred cruiseline, but dont know about Norwegian
• I know that other party wouldnt be allowed to hang out with us in the courtyard/lounge, but can they come visit in our suite?
•  How bad is motion all they way up and forward? I remember sailing on the Sun in the upper floor balconies years ago and it was pretty bad. But Breakaway is much newer ship.
• How accommodating are the butlers? We will have a septuagenarian with us (reason we are doing Haven in the first place) and she can get pretty demanding
• Can items be brought to Haven restaurant from buffet/other venues? 

Thank you!

I'm sure your answers are there somewhere too , but the one's I know of are

NO , only haven guest in Haven lounge prior to boarding 

Yes, they can come to your room , you need to make arangement and " pass " them into Haven

Yes, you can have things brought into haven restaurant , sounds like they need 24 hrs , so maybe arrangements ahead of time if there are dietary issues .

and the Butler is there to make your trip amazing ! if your Septuagenarian get a little cranky remember to tip a little extra ! Haven butlers are not included in the " pre-paid " gratuities 

[GeezerCouple]

6 minutes ago, nattie said:

Wow, this is long thread!

Pretty sure answers to all my questions are within 55 pages somewhere, but I cant figure the search out, so forgive me if my questions have been answered before. Here they go:

• If we are in Haven category but part of our party is not, can they join us in the Haven lounge prior to boarding? Can we board together? It is the case on my preferred cruiseline, but dont know about Norwegian
• I know that other party wouldnt be allowed to hang out with us in the courtyard/lounge, but can they come visit in our suite?
•  How bad is motion all they way up and forward? I remember sailing on the Sun in the upper floor balconies years ago and it was pretty bad. But Breakaway is much newer ship.
• How accommodating are the butlers? We will have a septuagenarian with us (reason we are doing Haven in the first place) and she can get pretty demanding
• Can items be brought to Haven restaurant from buffet/other venues? 

Thank you!

 

I'm confused.

 

I thought you got the answers to a lot of this in your other questions specifically about this situation (maybe not about the ship movement, but that's not necessarily a strictly Haven problem).

 

And I thought your Grandmother was in her 90's, not in her 70's??

 

 

For anything that is supposed to be "Haven specific", you should ask about including others, such as the pre-boarding area.  Ask!  The one time we wanted to do this was for "suites" (no Haven on that ship), we asked, and the rest of our family was welcomed to join us and board with us.  But that was a smaller ship, so there were fewer people who might be in that smaller waiting area.

 

Guests are always welcome in your own suite.  That's up to you.  But they are not typically welcomed in the Haven common areas.  Again, you'd need to ask.  It might also depend upon how many others.  Who are the others? A solo?  Or a group of 12?

 

As for her being "demanding", being polite is the most important thing.  And unless you are able to get someone in the Haven who speaks Russian, as already discussed... one of you will be doing the "asking" for her, so you won't need to be "demanding", right? 

 

Hope you all have a terrific time!

 

GC

[nattie]

1 minute ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

I'm confused.

 

I thought you got the answers to a lot of this in your other questions specifically about this situation (maybe not about the ship movement, but that's not necessarily a strictly Haven problem).

 

And I thought your Grandmother was in her 90's, not in her 70's?? 

 

 

For anything that is supposed to be "Haven specific", you should ask about including others, such as the pre-boarding area.  Ask!  The one time we wanted to do this was for "suites" (no Haven on that ship), we asked, and the rest of our family was welcomed to join us and board with us.  But that was a smaller ship, so there were fewer people who might be in that smaller waiting area.

 

Guests are always welcome in your own suite.  That's up to you.  But they are not typically welcomed in the Haven common areas.  Again, you'd need to ask.  It might also depend upon how many others.  Who are the others? A solo?  Or a group of 12?

 

As for her being "demanding", being polite is the most important thing.  And unless you are able to get someone in the Haven who speaks Russian, as already discussed... one of you will be doing the "asking" for her, so you won't need to be "demanding", right? 

 

Hope you all have a terrific time!

 

GC

So sorry! English is my second language and for whatever reason septuagenarian registered as 90ish for me. Yes, she is 93.

I wanted to doublecheck on the embarkation part and it also wasnt clear to me on guests in the suites. No I get it. There are only two adults in the other party and while I think they will spend most of the time in common areas of the ship, it would be nice to invite them to hang out with us one evening.

I am planning to call "special services" ahead of time. Buy demanding I mean when she wants her tea and it isnt available within 20 min, she gets cranky 🙂 Planning to tip the butler extra for sure!

[complawyer]

well natie, while  i think its wonderful that youre bringing gramma along, the butlers are most accomodating, and all the ones ive had in the past were great. that being said however, remember that any given butler, has multiple cabins to service, so i suggest you keep grammas demands a little in check.  they are there to assist, not servants.   also, most (if not all) 2 bedroom suites are on the port or starboard sides of the ship and not really forward, so the motion shouldnt be to bad (if at  all)

[nattie]

10 minutes ago, complawyer said:

well natie, while  i think its wonderful that youre bringing gramma along, the butlers are most accomodating, and all the ones ive had in the past were great. that being said however, remember that any given butler, has multiple cabins to service, so i suggest you keep grammas demands a little in check.  they are there to assist, not servants.   also, most (if not all) 2 bedroom suites are on the port or starboard sides of the ship and not really forward, so the motion shouldnt be to bad (if at  all)

I might rethink asking for Russian speaking butler. That way if she is cranky, no one but me understands her. Works well everywhere else, just not for me 😜

[GeezerCouple]

13 minutes ago, nattie said:

So sorry! English is my second language and for whatever reason septuagenarian registered as 90ish for me. Yes, she is 93.

I wanted to doublecheck on the embarkation part and it also wasnt clear to me on guests in the suites. No I get it. There are only two adults in the other party and while I think they will spend most of the time in common areas of the ship, it would be nice to invite them to hang out with us one evening.

I am planning to call "special services" ahead of time. Buy demanding I mean when she wants her tea and it isnt available within 20 min, she gets cranky 🙂 Planning to tip the butler extra for sure!

 

Well, your English writing is excellent, so you fooled me! 😆

 

You could, if you wished, ask your Butler to set up a little cocktail party (or something else?) for you and your guests when they visit.  I think there might be an additional charge, but maybe not?  Or maybe depending upon what you requested.  Maybe crackers and cheese are one thing, but a big platter of shrimp... something else entirely.  Just ask (again!).  I'm mentioning this because you might not realize that your Butler can assist with entertaining.  But note:  They assist several suites, so for anything like this, try really hard to plan ahead.  They the Butler can schedule other tasks accordingly, or knows to ask another Butler for help.  DO tip generously.  That makes them happy, and makes you feel good. 🙂  They are not part of the regular pooled gratuities.

 

I am VERY glad that you decided on the Haven with your grandmother, especially for one of the larger ships.

 

GC

 

[Sthrngary]

55 minutes ago, nattie said:

If we are in Haven category but part of our party is not, can they join us in the Haven lounge prior to boarding? Can we board together? It is the case on my preferred cruiseline, but dont know about Norwegian

No, The Port Haven Lounge is only for Haven Guests with the exception to high-level latitude members.  Latitude is the frequent cruiser program with NCL.

 

55 minutes ago, nattie said:

I know that other party wouldnt be allowed to hang out with us in the courtyard/lounge, but can they come visit in our suite?

Yes, I was just in the H2 Haven Deluxe Owners Suite on the NCL Joy.  I met so many new friends on the ship and CruiseCritic.com I invited them to the suite.  Never an issue to do this.  The issue becomes when you want to order a meal from the Haven Restaurant to the suite.  Your guest have to have a approval and pay for the meals.  FYI only.

 

55 minutes ago, nattie said:

How bad is motion all they way up and forward? I remember sailing on the Sun in the upper floor balconies years ago and it was pretty bad. But Breakaway is much newer ship.

 

You have Breakaway the ship, I will be on that in December 2022.  You have the Breakaway Class ship and the Breakaway Plus Class ship.  Everyone will rate the motion different.  Since I was just on a Breakaway Plus ship in the very front I can address my situation.  No issues on motion at all.  Loved it.  A little windy because we were the very front of the ship.  I heard a lot about the vibration in the suites on the back of the ship.  Some liked it and others hated it.  

 

55 minutes ago, nattie said:

How accommodating are the butlers? We will have a septuagenarian with us (reason we are doing Haven in the first place) and she can get pretty demanding

Butlers are hit/miss.  I write extensively on how to get the most out of your Butler.  The things I say get mixed reviews.  I write the Butler a letter pre-cruise outlining any special needs.  You Grandmother would fall into that .  I also provide the butler with their entire tip upfront.  The moment I started doing that strategy, my butlers were GREAT.  Not as good as a Luxury brand however better then average for a Mainstream brand.

 

55 minutes ago, nattie said:

Can items be brought to Haven restaurant from buffet/other venues? 

Yes, with a 24 hour notice and always be nice.  If you want something from a specialty restaurant, it will cost you the appropriate fee if you don't have the restaurant perk (two specialty restaurant booking perk).

 

Please let me be very clear.  I LOVE the Haven.  Love it.  It is not the same as a luxury cruise brand.  It is close but not the same.  The biggest different is personalized service with your butler.  Luxury brands have the market for Personalized Service.  You pay a huge premium for it.

 

Cruise well.

Edited February 3, 2022 by Sthrngary

[GeezerCouple]

3 minutes ago, nattie said:

I might rethink asking for Russian speaking butler. That way if she is cranky, no one but me understands her. Works well everywhere else, just not for me 😜

 

Please don't expect that IF you are able to arrange a Russian speaking hotel-staff member, it may well not be the Butler.  Of course, that would be ideal.  (But the night Butler position rotates, I think.  Maybe on the larger ships they have a dedicated "night staff"?)

 

If your grandmother has difficulties keeping her demands in check ("how demanding" obviously isn't clear from your posts 😱), then perhaps having one of the other family members "run interference" and make requests on her behalf would be useful.  And can you help her understand that these are not "servants", even though they are there to assist?  You can try to be preemptive, too.  If there are things you know she is likely to "want" (or that you discover after departure), then perhaps keep those on hand.  You'll probably have a coffee maker that could be used for tea.  (We never use coffee makers for tea; I'm always concerned there will be a coffee taste, so I'll probably "taste the coffee" even if it's the very first use of the machine! 😞 )

 

Our first Butler was in a non-Haven ship, and in retrospect, he was not good at all.  But we had no expectations, so the help he did provide was very welcomed.  After that, on NCL and other cruise lines, the Butlers have been phenomenal, but that doesn't guarantee anything in the future.  And if they are short staffed... that's a different problem.

 

We do give a portion of the tip up front, but it's a generous amount.  That is along with the letter.

 

GC

 

[lgdesign]

Forgive me in advance if I missed something obvious, but has anyone posted the latest Haven menus? I read that they had changed fairly recently and I can't seem to find them.  Trying to decide how many nights of a 21 day Panama Canal cruise that we might want to try specialty dining?

[Yinster]

1 hour ago, lgdesign said:

Forgive me in advance if I missed something obvious, but has anyone posted the latest Haven menus? I read that they had changed fairly recently and I can't seem to find them.  Trying to decide how many nights of a 21 day Panama Canal cruise that we might want to try specialty dining?

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2706584-all-haven-menus-with-every-food-item/page/7/#comment-62580009

[pbenjamin]

While we're looking for menus, does anyone know if the breakfast/lunch menus for the designated specialty restaurant on Jewel class ships have been posted anywhere?

[Sailing12Away]

19 hours ago, GeezerCouple said:

Our first Butler was in a non-Haven ship, and in retrospect, he was not good at all.  But we had no expectations, so the help he did provide was very welcomed.  After that, on NCL and other cruise lines, the Butlers have been phenomenal, but that doesn't guarantee anything in the future.  And if they are short staffed... that's a different problem.

 

Same with us... Our first experience on the Jade was vastly different from Epic & Encore.

 

@nattieAs for the demanding traveler, if there's a schedule they tend to stick to you could always share that with the butler on day 1 too. So if every day at 7am and 2pm she wants her tea, he'll bring it around then without having to call for it along with any snacks to go with it she may want. The more info you give the butler, the better the experience will be.

 

Our next Haven experience isn't until September, but I'm going to print out a copy of my booked excursion times. No sense having them bring sandwiches at 11 if I don't plan on being back at the ship until 3pm. That way they can adjust the times of the snacks to when we'll actually be there to enjoy them instead of sitting around all day (except for cookies and candy - they can be stocked 24/7 for all day grazing...). 

[Sthrngary]

I am the OP and this thread it huge.  Also, the original post though most of which is still accurate, my most recent experience might help this butler question much better.  I will attempt to be as transparent as possible. 

 

My example is from the NCL Joy, Sailing November 27, 2021, 7-day, stayed in the Haven.  For years I have written a letter to my butler and the Haven Concierge pre-cruise.  What I request has changed over the years.  The list is very personal to what would make my families cruising experience better.  Yes, I also put the entire weeks gratuity in the letter.  That gratuity issue is where more folks debate me every time I mention it.  I really don't want to debate this issue anymore, it has been hashed out many time. Instead is the results of the letter and gratuity should be the focus.

 

Everything I asked for was handled without another word.  Unlike on a luxury cruise where you see your butler every day, they serve you drinks in the room, run down the hall just to say hi and push the elevator button for you.  The Mainstream Cruise butlers are less present.  They also have lots of suite to handle so somewhat over worked.  Most of what they do is behind the scenes.  They are less intuitive.  

 

All that being said, since the use of the letter and gratuities, we have been quite satisfied.  Funny story.  Many of the crew on the ship the butler included, have English as a second or third language. On our last cruise on the Joy, my daughter whom is 31 called the butler for a very specific small plate.  When it showed up, it was nothing like she ordered.  I called the butler and is was a language issue.  10 minutes later the right plate was delivered.  

 

On butlers, look up the many articles on what butlers on cruise ships do and don't do.  Remember they can't read your mind.  Be crystal clear on your request.  Don't be offended if some of the requests have charge, just ask to know first to approve.  Be nice, smile and don't think you our these hardworking folks.  The do work their respective tails off.

 

Cruise well.

[complawyer]

since i value your input, and more often then not we agreed, i'd like you to chime in on this.

 

there are posts about letting ncl pick your hotel, and/or travel  back and forth from the ship.

 

i suggested the op going online (google) and try either booking or hotels.com to get a great many more choices and prices. i also advised that by going onto google, it will also give you a number of shuttle choices to make your own arrangements.

 

i personally think it's much better to do this yourself, then rely on ncl. all it takes is a little homework.

 

i know you do a great deal of research vis-a-vis your cruise and cabin, do you have any thoughts on the above. if so i'd love to read your take.

 

 

[Sthrngary]

1 hour ago, complawyer said:

since i value your input, and more often then not we agreed, i'd like you to chime in on this.

 

there are posts about letting ncl pick your hotel, and/or travel  back and forth from the ship.

 

i suggested the op going online (google) and try either booking or hotels.com to get a great many more choices and prices. i also advised that by going onto google, it will also give you a number of shuttle choices to make your own arrangements.

 

i personally think it's much better to do this yourself, then rely on ncl. all it takes is a little homework.

 

i know you do a great deal of research vis-a-vis your cruise and cabin, do you have any thoughts on the above. if so i'd love to read your take.

 

  

On air travel, in 43 years of cruising; I have never used the cruise line.  Not once.  I always come in the day before and been booking airfare for business for over 40 years.  I use my Airline Points whenever possible. 

 

On hotels.  I also have never allowed a cruise line to book a hotel for me with the exception of Oceania on a Europe cruise. That was a bargain and included transfers.  All other hotels my favorite site was Priceline when you could bid.  Now that that is gone, I use all the sites you suggested.  

 

I hope that answers your request.

 

Cruise well.

[complawyer]

i hope the original op reads this. they seem to think booking and getting to a hotel in a foreign country is  difficult as well as dangerous.

 

thanks for your input, again it confirms that great minds think alike.

 

btw: we are booked into a 2 bedroom suite april on the jade and a 2 bedroom next november on the star. i am aware that the jade doe not have a dedicated bar a restaaurant, and the star has no haven, but the extra perks are the same, and im looking forward to finally get back to cruising'

 

9 have been canceled since march 2020