New to Suites, wondering about a Neptune

[MogeyMan]

We had our first Suite, a Signature, this last fall and loved it. So we're thinking about a Neptune for next year. The big selling point seems to us seems to be the lounge. However, we are not expecially gregarious people at all, preferring to read or watch a movie in our down time. So I doubt we'd use the lounge or the concierge. Would it be worth it upgrade even further?

[Wehwalt]

You don't have to sit in the lounge. You can use it to get snacks etc. And the concierge is where you go for services other people would use the front desk for, among other things. 

[sevenseasnomad]

The concierges can handle any reservations and smooth problems in addition to printing your boarding passes for the return trip home (if you're flying).  My husband (now deceased) and I were not particularly outgoing either, but we used the lounge several times a day.  The snacks are tasty.  We met some lovely couples.  It's impossible not to strike up a conversation.  Don't worry, if you don't start the conversation, someone else will!  Some of the most enjoyable moments of that cruise came from talking to other passengers in the Lounge.  Sometimes, we had the lounge all to ourselves.  

 

Don't forget you also have breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill, (unless on one of the Pinnacle Class ships where you're in CO) a real plus for us.  Granted the menu is the same breakfast as the main dining room (but you get free mimosas as a suite passenger); however, the experience is so relaxing, a nice way to start the day, and the service is impeccable.  You also get other treats along the way, which may or may not be worth the additional $$$ to you, such as the little foot towel at turn-down service on each side of the bed with the slippers so your bare feet don't touch the carpet.  I felt like Queen Elizabeth that first evening.

 

For us, it was a fabulous experience, one I'm thankful we took advantage of because up to then we'd only booked insides.  I haven't booked another suite since because I prefer to cruise several times a year, and the budget won't allow that splurge.  I keep searching for another rock-bottom price on suites similar to the bargain we received.  So far, no luck.

 

If you are truly second-guessing this decision, my advice would be to stick with the Signature, a tried and true experience for you.  If, however, you want to avoid contemplating what the suite life is like, go ahead, be adventurous, and book that suite.  Let us know what you decide.  Either way is a winner IMO.

[towhee]

I thought we wouldn't use the concierge either, but soon found that she was able to get us reservations that were difficult to get otherwise. 

Two years ago I fell on the stairs.  My DH contacted the concierge who came right away, assessed the situation and called the medical staff.  When the medical staff didn't show up as quickly as she thought was appropriate, she called a special number and the medical staff came within a few minutes.

[sevenseasnomad]

1 minute ago, towhee said:

I thought we wouldn't use the concierge either, but soon found that she was able to get us reservations that were difficult to get otherwise. 

Two years ago I fell on the stairs.  My DH contacted the concierge who came right away, assessed the situation and called the medical staff.  When the medical staff didn't show up as quickly as she thought was appropriate, she called a special number and the medical staff came within a few minutes.

Yes, those concierges are wonderful.  We had a problem with the dining room serving me mushrooms after having notified HAL months in advance of my allergy.  (This occurred several days into the cruise after everyone who dealt with us in the dining room had confirmed my allergy.)  We caught it before I ingested any, and our waiter couldn't have been more understanding or apologetic.  The chef cooked a made-to-order dish on the spot. 

 

The problem was with the assistant maître d' who came by the table and made some disparaging comments.  We complained to the concierge, who called us later to ask if we were free the next morning at 10 a.m.  She had called the hotel manage and the food and beverages manager, both of whom wanted to meet with us.  We agreed and she told us to come to the lounge at the appointed time.  DH and I started thinking about it and decided we didn't want to talk about this in front of the other passengers who might be in the lounge at that time; however, we couldn't get back in touch with her, as she'd gone off duty.

 

Next morning, we showed up.  We were surprised and shocked when she escorted us downstairs to the hotel manager's office, where not only was he waiting for us but the food and beverage manager, the maître d', and a representative from the ship's personnel relations office was there too.  We were floored at the attention we received.  The representative from HR explained to us that a negative report would be attached to the officer's file, something we asked them not to do.  The assistant maître d' apologized profusely that evening, but we also noticed that he steered clear of our table after that.  Another assistant would appear to ask us how everything was going.  

 

You can expect the same level of service, I believe. 

[Krazy Kruizers]

Also with the Neptune Suite you will get free laundry and dry cleaning.

 

We use the Neptune Lounge a lot for snacks.

[Caribbean Chris]

I love HAL and enjoyed the Neptune Suite experience this past April on the Nieuw Statendam, but doubt we will spend the difference in price very often. The SS stateroom on Zuiderdam was almost as large and very comfortable.

 

The unlimited laundry and dry cleaning is a terrific benefit, but of course, one can pay a minor charge for that in any category cabin.

 

Unlike others, I found service lacking when I needed help from the pair of concierges in the N. Lounge. I’m a fairly low-maintenance person and had just one rather simple, fixable issue that was never fixed. There was also never any follow up on their part (or by anyone else) to ask me whether it had been resolved. I left the ship rather disappointed in that indifference. We’ve experienced much more professional service, warm interaction, and special activities for suite guests by various concierges over recent years in Celebrity’s Michael’s Club.

 

That said, we did enjoy the dedicated Club Orange dining room service (decor needs an overhaul, but the staff were all excellent). Of course, that room is only in service on the two newest ships.

 

By the way, loved the mention of little foot towels by the bed at night. We’ve seen that in some European hotels. Didn’t happen onNieuw Statendam in April, though.

Edited December 7, 2019 by Caribbean Chris

[scubacruiserx2]

We really loved our aft wrap balcony in our Neptune suite on the Zuiderdam

 

 

[Floridiana]

We have had excellent concierges on the MS Amsterdam and Koningsdam. They are 80% of the reason we book Neptune suites. Free laundry is another reason unless you are a 4 o5 star mariner and get this perk anyway.

 

On the Amsterdam, the lounge was a nice meeting space with other passengers. On the Koningsdam, passengers were different, never exchanged a word with them, but we went to get snacks, coffee (which is better than elsewhere), cocoa, tea, books, the daily crossword puzzle. We didn't find the breakfast service in the Pinnacle better than in the main dining room, might be due to the fact that several passengers had lots of extra wishes fulfilled and kept the staff busy while we just ate what was on the menu.

 

On the Koningsdam, breakfast and dinner in the Club Orange were our savior. Excellent service. The large noisy dining room and busy Lido buffet would have made our wonderful cruise into a "never again on this ship" experience.

[Djptcp]

Our last five Holland cruises have been in Neptune Suites and we love them. We use the Neptune Lounge mainly to get snacks and lunch and I use the computer sometimes to check email. It's usually pretty quiet in the Lounge, so I wouldn't worry about feeling you would have to talk to anyone. The concierges are very friendly and helpful. We get the evening main dining room menu every afternoon, we select what we want and take it to a concierge to order our dinners for us and we eat in the suite. You also get free Mimosas for breakfast when you order room service breakfast (hot items, not just continental fare).

[MogeyMan]

Ok, a computer??? Using our wifi pkg. or what?? And books?? We get the free laundry, and honestly, although we had a card in our Sig. Suite with our "concierge's" name, we never saw or heard from the fella. 

 

Hmm, still pondering. But I do thank the people who have taken the time to respond. 

 

Oh, one other thing. i usually trek up to the Lido upon boarding to be sure to get a week pass for the hyrotherapy suite. Can they do that?? Oh, and one other one thing, is there alway ice available in the lounge? I sometimes suffer keeping enough ice in the room. 

[nuthut]

11 hours ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

We really loved our aft wrap balcony in our Neptune suite on the Zuiderdam

 

 

 

[nuthut]

Ok, I give up. Tell me the cabin number!

[MogeyMan]

The reason I ask about a computer, is although I take my tablet, my SO has an especially hard time using it, fumble-fingers. A laptop would be nice, but I don't want to schlep. 

[kazu]

19 minutes ago, MogeyMan said:

The reason I ask about a computer, is although I take my tablet, my SO has an especially hard time using it, fumble-fingers. A laptop would be nice, but I don't want to schlep. 

 

There has been a imputes in every Neptune I have seen,’

 

Before the days of my IPad, it was invaluable.  Reception in the Neptune Lounge is usually very good too 😉 

 

A suggestion - if you want to take a chance - book your SS and hope for an upsell.  That very much depends on availability, TA’s, HAL, etc but if you luck out, it will be cheaper and no one is the wiser 😉 

 

 

[sevenseasnomad]

1 hour ago, kazu said:

 

There has been a imputes in every Neptune I have seen,’

 

Before the days of my IPad, it was invaluable.  Reception in the Neptune Lounge is usually very good too 😉 

 

A suggestion - if you want to take a chance - book your SS and hope for an upsell.  That very much depends on availability, TA’s, HAL, etc but if you luck out, it will be cheaper and no one is the wiser 😉 

 

 

Excellent idea, kazu, as the OP has said that they enjoyed the Signature Suite.  If they receive an upsell, fabulous.  If not, fabulous.  It's a win-win.  My attitude: Any day on a HAL ship is 100% better than a day at work.  And I love my job.

Edited December 8, 2019 by sevenseasnomad

[bennybear]

We really enjoyed the aft wrap in a Neptune.  Huge deck space was lovely.   We enjoyed the pinnacle grill for breakfast but now that seems to be changing on some ships. Good bang for your buck on the Signature Suites, as they are spacious and more reasonably priced.

[nuthut]

On 12/7/2019 at 8:50 AM, scubacruiserx2 said:

We really loved our aft wrap balcony in our Neptune suite on the Zuiderdam

 

 

Do you know the cabin number? Have a Neptune aft wrap booked for Canada and would change to this if availablee. Thanks

[3rdGenCunarder]

25 minutes ago, nuthut said:

Do you know the cabin number? Have a Neptune aft wrap booked for Canada and would change to this if availablee. Thanks

 

I would guess deck 5. Those are the deepest.

 

[3rdGenCunarder]

On 12/7/2019 at 7:43 PM, MogeyMan said:

Ok, a computer??? Using our wifi pkg. or what?? And books?? We get the free laundry, and honestly, although we had a card in our Sig. Suite with our "concierge's" name, we never saw or heard from the fella. 

 

Hmm, still pondering. But I do thank the people who have taken the time to respond. 

 

Oh, one other thing. i usually trek up to the Lido upon boarding to be sure to get a week pass for the hyrotherapy suite. Can they do that?? Oh, and one other one thing, is there alway ice available in the lounge? I sometimes suffer keeping enough ice in the room. 

 

You have to use your wifi package on the lounge's computer.

 

I think the sig suite has a "telephone concierge," which seems to just connect you to the front desk. 

 

[Caribbean Chris]

On 12/7/2019 at 8:50 AM, scubacruiserx2 said:

We really loved our aft wrap balcony in our Neptune suite on the Zuiderdam

 

 

 

Very nice!

 

[kazu]

On 12/7/2019 at 8:43 PM, MogeyMan said:

Oh, and one other one thing, is there alway ice available in the lounge? I sometimes suffer keeping enough ice in the room. 

 

Yes, there is ice available.  The concierge can fill your ice bucket if you take it or you can call and they will see that the stewards take care of it for you.

[RocketMan275]

11 hours ago, nuthut said:

Do you know the cabin number? Have a Neptune aft wrap booked for Canada and would change to this if availablee. Thanks

That's 5191 on the starboard side.  It's mirror image is 5190 on the port side.

Be advised that cabins like these are only available on deck five on Oosterdam, Westerdam, and Zwuiderdam.

While aft wrap suites are available on other ships or on other decks, they are not as expansive as these on those ships.  And, yes, I realize that Noordam is also a Vista class ship but Noordam deck five Neptune cabins are not like those on the other Vista ships.

Suggest you examine the photographs on:  https://halfacts.com/vista-class/

 

We've been in one of these on Oostedam and Westerdam and love them.  We've got a 2020 cruise scheduled in Zwuiderdam in 5090 for the Panama Canal.  

 

Several posters have pointed out that these cabins are far from the Neptune Lounge and maybe slightly smaller than other Neptunes.  They may also suffer from more motion and wake noise.

Edited December 15, 2019 by RocketMan275

[Roz]

I've had a couple of Neptunes that weren't on the Neptune Lounge deck.  This was probably good, because it's too easy to slip into the Lounge for snacks if you're close by.  

[3rdGenCunarder]

2 hours ago, RocketMan275 said:

That's 5191 on the starboard side.  It's mirror image is 5190 on the port side.

Be advised that cabins like these are only available on deck five on Oosterdam, Westerdam, and Zwuiderdam.

While aft wrap suites are available on other ships or on other decks, they are not as expansive as these on those ships.  And, yes, I realize that Noordam is also a Vista class ship but Noordam deck five Neptune cabins are not like those on the other Vista ships.

Suggest you examine the photographs on:  https://halfacts.com/vista-class/

 

We've been in one of these on Oostedam and Westerdam and love them.  We've got a 2020 cruise scheduled in Zwuiderdam in 5090 for the Panama Canal.  

 

Several posters have pointed out that these cabins are far from the Neptune Lounge and maybe slightly smaller than other Neptunes.  They may also suffer from more motion and wake noise.

 

All of the minuses you point out are true. But for me it's a fair exchange for an aft wrap balcony. I don't need to have the enormous one on 5, although it was great for the canal. Any aft wrap will make me happy.