The NCL Haven Luxury VIP Experience "Secrets" REVISED for 2022

[RocketMan275]

3 hours ago, Daniel A said:

I think I left my laptop on a shelf in the cabin.  It may have been on a shelf the steward was using to store the extra decorative pillows and cloth runner.   I never thought to look on that shelf as the runner and pillows were still there when we packed.

 

Does anyone know how to find out if it was left there?

Wish  you luck.  I left a set of hearing aids on Breakaway last march. I found someone on the next cruise in the Haven who checked with the concierge. I filed a lost property claim.  No joy.

[RocketMan275]

8 hours ago, amygutman said:

Ran it by British Kate for an "official British response". She told me I was daft. 😂

 

Oh, well, look at the bright side.  Just think of the threads that will be started on how a cruise was ruined for lack of a 'proper kettle'.

[DMH15]

10 hours ago, amygutman said:

@McGarrett5oh and @DMH15 I always have a travel mug glued to my hand but it's apparently very important how one boils the water vs the water itself for British tea.

 

To put the tea discussion into perspective, on my first shift in the Bermudian ED ("A&E"), at precisely 1500 in the midst of a crazily packed department 1/2 the nurses handed off their patients to go to the breakroom. Curious, I followed them and was stunned to see 5 separate kettles, tea cups WITH SAUCERS labelled with staff names, sugar cubes and condensed milk and Dunkley's milk (local Bermudian farm) all laid out on the counter with McVitie's Digestives. 

 

The nurses showed me the tea choices and when I said that I would just microwave tap-water for instant cafe bustelo I thought my first day of work would be my last. Thank goodness the matron came to my rescue telling everyone to excuse my behavior as I was American "and you know they don't know any better". 

 

So...as much as a carafe may suit us American heathens for our afternoon pick-me-up, I think that even the glory of the Haven will not be able to overcome the potential lack of a kettle for my dear friend Kate. 

Warmest Amy

I love this post!!!  So cute!!!   Yes, I admit I am a coffee drinker (no Kcups) but my sis and niece love a proper tea.  
 

see, Cruise Critic is informative AND educational. 

[DMH15]

11 hours ago, amygutman said:

Ran it by British Kate for an "official British response". She told me I was daft. 😂

Love it.  I am hanging my head in shame.  LOL. 

[amygutman]

7 hours ago, Daniel A said:

I think I left my laptop on a shelf in the cabin.  It may have been on a shelf the steward was using to store the extra decorative pillows and cloth runner.   I never thought to look on that shelf as the runner and pillows were still there when we packed.

 

Does anyone know how to find out if it was left there?

@Daniel A Do you happen to have a "track my device" on your laptop? At the very least, if you do you could see the physical location of your computer. 

I am so sorry - what a miserable way to end your vacation. 

Warmest Amy

[Daniel A]

19 hours ago, amygutman said:

@Daniel A Do you happen to have a "track my device" on your laptop? At the very least, if you do you could see the physical location of your computer. 

I am so sorry - what a miserable way to end your vacation. 

Warmest Amy

No, I do not have a tracker.  It is a backup laptop I use for travel.  I always clean all of my personal data & documents and photos before leaving on a trip, but I will still feel more comfortable if I can get it back.

[Daniel A]

Well, we got home last night at about 10PM local time.  I think we were up for 24 hours.  DW & I are now experiencing symptoms similar to "Cruise Crud," but we just made appointments to be tested today for something else...🤒

[Cruzin64647]

I have read through most posts so sorry if I missed this but my question is other then the included Mini bar and size of the room is there any other perks to upgrading to the the Deluxe Owners Suite with Large Balcony? (Looking at Breakaway departing New Orleans) Thanks in advance 

 

[Sthrngary]

6 hours ago, Cruzin64647 said:

I have read through most posts so sorry if I missed this but my question is other then the included Mini bar and size of the room is there any other perks to upgrading to the the Deluxe Owners Suite with Large Balcony? (Looking at Breakaway departing New Orleans) Thanks in advance 

 

@Cruzin64647  The video link will give you all the amenities of the H2 Deluxe Owners Suite.  The difference is the video is for the NCL Joy.  I wrote this op-ed, so when I did the video I attempted to differentiate Haven and Owners Suite amenities.   I am also going to attach a excel that shows amenities SOME of which might have changed.  I hope the information provided helps you.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

 

 

Amenities JOY.pdf

[RocketMan275]

We did the DOSLB on Breakaway out of NOLA March 2022.

Never again would we book that cabin.  While some may say there are wind buffers on the balcony and the side balcony is always useable, that wasn't our experience.  We found all the balconies to be unuseable anytime the ship was under way.  Didn't matter if we were travelling south or travelling north. Unuseable due to strong winds.

Twice crew entered our cabin to tie all the furniture down on the balcony to prevent if from being blown over board.  They even did this one night while we were sleeping.

We sailed Breakaway again last March in an Aft Haven Penthouse.  Great cabin.  

Our next Breakaway+, we've booked a two bedroom Haven.

Seriously, other than the larger room, the other amenities like the included bar are peanuts.  Pay for them out of pocket and get a room with a balcony  you can use.

This was our experience.  Your Mileage May Vary.

[Girr]

I’ve sailed in DOSs many time, and the only “official” difference is the three bottles of alcohol, soda/water and usually a better bottle in the chiller. With that said, with the beverage package we normally end up giving the bottles away.  On Jewel class ships there’s a reserved seating area in the theater, but the seating area isn’t good. Pre-Covid we normally got bridge tours and other little special treatment, but those days are gone. 

Edited September 17, 2023 by Girr

[Daniel A]

2 hours ago, Girr said:

I’ve sailed in DOSs many time, and the only “official” difference is the three bottles of alcohol, soda/water and usually a better bottle in the chiller. With that said, with the beverage package we normally end up giving the bottles away.  On Jewel class ships there’s a reserved seating area in the theater, but the seating area isn’t good. Pre-Covid we normally got bridge tours and other little special treatment, but those days are gone. 

I am just off the Breakaway, and there wasn't a reserved seating section in the theater.  The concierge would escort us to a theater back door, and we selected our seats before they opened the main doors to the theater. 

[Girr]

Yes, reserved seating is in the Jewel class ships. 

[Kauaijim]

The service on the Jewel ships were great we did suites for 3 long trips . About 20 suites one concierge so great service . We never have done the Haven and have chosen NCL for the itinerary which never seems to be mentioned on this thread 

[Cruzin64647]

14 hours ago, Sthrngary said:

@Cruzin64647  The video link will give you all the amenities of the H2 Deluxe Owners Suite.  The difference is the video is for the NCL Joy.  I wrote this op-ed, so when I did the video I attempted to differentiate Haven and Owners Suite amenities.   I am also going to attach a excel that shows amenities SOME of which might have changed.  I hope the information provided helps you.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

 

 

Amenities JOY.pdf 58.99 kB · 14 downloads

 

7 hours ago, RocketMan275 said:

We did the DOSLB on Breakaway out of NOLA March 2022.

Never again would we book that cabin.  While some may say there are wind buffers on the balcony and the side balcony is always useable, that wasn't our experience.  We found all the balconies to be unuseable anytime the ship was under way.  Didn't matter if we were travelling south or travelling north. Unuseable due to strong winds.

Twice crew entered our cabin to tie all the furniture down on the balcony to prevent if from being blown over board.  They even did this one night while we were sleeping.

We sailed Breakaway again last March in an Aft Haven Penthouse.  Great cabin.  

Our next Breakaway+, we've booked a two bedroom Haven.

Seriously, other than the larger room, the other amenities like the included bar are peanuts.  Pay for them out of pocket and get a room with a balcony  you can use.

This was our experience.  Your Mileage May Vary.

 

5 hours ago, Girr said:

I’ve sailed in DOSs many time, and the only “official” difference is the three bottles of alcohol, soda/water and usually a better bottle in the chiller. With that said, with the beverage package we normally end up giving the bottles away.  On Jewel class ships there’s a reserved seating area in the theater, but the seating area isn’t good. Pre-Covid we normally got bridge tours and other little special treatment, but those days are gone. 

 

3 hours ago, Daniel A said:

I am just off the Breakaway, and there wasn't a reserved seating section in the theater.  The concierge would escort us to a theater back door, and we selected our seats before they opened the main doors to the theater. 

Thank you for all of the responses! My last few cruises were on Celebrity which has retreat and then what I would call a retreat+ depending on your suite category and was curious if it was the same!

[Treasure Hunter]

The Have. Is better than the retreat ( we were on the Edge last winter in a Celebrity suite and a Royal suite. We didn’t like the menus in Luminae . The Haven has so many more perks. My favorite is the escort to shows.

[Daniel A]

9 hours ago, Treasure Hunter said:

The Have. Is better than the retreat ( we were on the Edge last winter in a Celebrity suite and a Royal suite. We didn’t like the menus in Luminae . The Haven has so many more perks. My favorite is the escort to shows.

DW only wants to use cruise line excursions.  The promise to wait is worth the extra money for us as she doesn't worry about traffic delays.  On private excursions, she worries so much that she doesn't enjoy the excursion.  That being said, I liked the priority disembarkation for the ship's excursions.  If you left your excursion tickets for the following day with the Concierge, the Concierge would collect our stickers, meet us in the Haven lounge and escort us to the bus giving us first shot at seat selection on the tour bus.  That made a big difference as well as the shows.

[SteveGill]

Good morning all.  Longtime follower, first time poster.  We are booked on the Prima in a Haven room for our first NCL cruise on 2/23/24.  I see that special dining reservations are best made 130 days in advance; however, our final payment is not due until about a week after that.  Do need to make that payment prior to making those reservations or will they accept reservations before making the final payment?  Many thanks for all the good info I've received from these pages.

[GALSews]

1 hour ago, SteveGill said:

Good morning all.  Longtime follower, first time poster.  We are booked on the Prima in a Haven room for our first NCL cruise on 2/23/24.  I see that special dining reservations are best made 130 days in advance; however, our final payment is not due until about a week after that.  Do need to make that payment prior to making those reservations or will they accept reservations before making the final payment?  Many thanks for all the good info I've received from these pages.

One of the Haven perks is that you can make dining reservations at 130 days out and no, full payment is not required. For completeness, without any perks, people can book dining reservations 120ndays out, Latitude members platinum and above can book at 125 days out, as well as those staying in Club Balcony Suites. 

Note that if you want to book the same site twice, you need to call as online your are only allowed to pre-book at a restaurant once.

[Treasure Hunter]

Also on Celebrity retreat, once you are off the ship it’s goodbye Charley. On Haven disembarkation the Haven sends someone with you to the front of the line past 100s waiting at immigration.

[Traveling Fools]

2 hours ago, GALSews said:

One of the Haven perks is that you can make dining reservations at 130 days out and no, full payment is not required.

Recently made some on-line reservations for our Jan 7th sailing.  I had to complete the transaction before the reservations were made and recorded.  I didn't get charged, but still had to complete the transaction

[FindYourFun]

Hi All, couple questions. We are sailing soon on the NCL Jade in the 3-bedroom garden villa. Does anyone have the list of alcohol we can choose? Also as there is no Haven concierge desk or Haven lounge, where do we meet to be escorted off the ship while in ports? Thanks for any help. 
 

Also a quick complaint, did not realize when I booked this cruise on a previous ship, the Joy, this is a seriously abbreviated Haven experience, especially where dinner is concerned. Anyone else feel the same way? If the restaurant is not provided, the guests should not have to pay for the additional specialty dining beyond the two free when booking the room. 

[cruiseny4life]

37 minutes ago, FindYourFun said:

Also a quick complaint, did not realize when I booked this cruise on a previous ship, the Joy, this is a seriously abbreviated Haven experience, especially where dinner is concerned. Anyone else feel the same way? If the restaurant is not provided, the guests should not have to pay for the additional specialty dining beyond the two free when booking the room. 

The lack of a Haven Restaurant is the primary reason we will probably (notice I don't say never) not book a cruise on the smaller NCL ships. You will receive breakfast and lunch in one of the specialty restaurants and it is the same Haven menu. But, for dinner, the main dining room, buffet or additional paid specialty dining has to suffice. I don't mean to be rude, but next time you really need to do more research before booking a cruise. I hope you're not inside the 120 day final payment period so you can cancel, if you desire. 

[bluestar1]

Pier 66 Haven check-in question, in reviewing this video, at 46 seconds in you see a Haven Check-In sign, would we pass up the long line he shows prior? Or do we stand in that line and once we hit the doors we go right while everyone else goes left?

[McGarrett5oh]

19 hours ago, SteveGill said:

Good morning all.  Longtime follower, first time poster.  We are booked on the Prima in a Haven room for our first NCL cruise on 2/23/24.  I see that special dining reservations are best made 130 days in advance; however, our final payment is not due until about a week after that.  Do need to make that payment prior to making those reservations or will they accept reservations before making the final payment?  Many thanks for all the good info I've received from these pages.

@SteveGill  We are currently on the Prima in the Haven. I plan to post sometime after we return with a full rundown of what we experienced.  We’re only 2 days in but so far everything has been excellent.  There are several differences however from what I read in this forum and others about how the Prima does things in the Haven vs. others classes of NCL ships.  Not bad at all.  Just different.  
 

We booked our specialty dining 130 days out with no problem before payment.  Even booked 4 seats before we had bought the other 2 persons’ dining packages.  Also was able to make changes afterwards with the pre-cruise concierge.  Don’t hesitate to call them!

 

Enjoy the planning. For me it’s a big fun part of the entire experience.  Cheers!