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

[CDR Benson]

2 hours ago, McGarrett5oh said:

 

 

I agree with the fellows above.  For a "good enough" job, $500 is good enough.

[McGarrett5oh]

8 hours ago, Sthrngary said:

Again, I hope the rest of the trip has been pleasing.

Rest assured it has.  Interestingly, with the exception of our Butler AND the Concierge, the Haven staff has been over the top!

 

More on that later….

Edited September 29, 2023 by McGarrett5oh
Addition

[ltp579]

On 9/24/2023 at 8:05 PM, kasimir said:

Anyone who has seen the latest Youtube video from "Cruise with Ben and David" doing their first Haven cruise on the Viva? 

 

Quite an interesting verdict and I am curious how others feel about it that already been in the Haven on Prima/Viva? 

I watched this and didn't understand about the drink package charges. They said they had a drinks package but had to pay for soft drinks of they were brought to the room. I have a free at sea package and it says soft drinks are included. I didn't understand what was happening here. I'm booked on my first NCL cruise in the haven and would like to avoid a bunch of unexpected drink charges.

[ggTexasGal]

16 minutes ago, ltp579 said:

I watched this and didn't understand about the drink package charges. They said they had a drinks package but had to pay for soft drinks of they were brought to the room. I have a free at sea package and it says soft drinks are included. I didn't understand what was happening here. I'm booked on my first NCL cruise in the haven and would like to avoid a bunch of unexpected drink charges.

Simply stated, room service drinks, outside of very BASIC juice, milk, coffee, coffee, tea, can incur an additional charge, even in the Haven.

...Cans of soda, bottled waters, & Starbucks drinks are not BASIC.

[kasimir]

13 hours ago, McGarrett5oh said:

We met our Butler on Day 1, had a very nice chat, handed him the letter which included $500 up front gratuity (essentially 1/2 of what we budgeted to tip him - 2 weeks, 4 people or about $20 per person per day).

Wow that is quite a generous tip, not sure how you got to that butler tip calculation of $20 per person per day. But if every Haven guest would tip this generously, I would seriously consider a career change to become a Haven butler. 😂 

 

13 hours ago, McGarrett5oh said:

should we provide him with the remaining budgeted gratuity, some portion of it, or no more than he’s already received?  

My 2 cents, keep the remaining cash and tip other hard working crew members extra. Nowhere in my books does this kind of service (that you described) deserve a $1000 tip. 
 

Keep enjoying your cruise and I am very much looking forward to your final verdict and overall impressions. 

[Sthrngary]

22 minutes ago, ltp579 said:

I watched this and didn't understand about the drink package charges. They said they had a drinks package but had to pay for soft drinks of they were brought to the room. I have a free at sea package and it says soft drinks are included. I didn't understand what was happening here. I'm booked on my first NCL cruise in the haven and would like to avoid a bunch of unexpected drink charges.

@ltp579 The Haven is a wonderful place however to manage a guest expectations, there are some things to know.  One is about the drink program.  As you may or may not know, there is the drink program that comes with the "Free At Sea".  It is call the Premium Drink Program.  If you want some more benefits, you can upgrade to the Premium PLUS Drink Program.  Regardless of the program you have, all drinks brought to your suite from room service or butlers "Are Not Included".  Now if you go to a bar, or lounge is it included in your drink program, just not deliver to your suite.  

 

I hope that answers your question.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

[Daniel A]

31 minutes ago, ltp579 said:

I watched this and didn't understand about the drink package charges. They said they had a drinks package but had to pay for soft drinks of they were brought to the room. I have a free at sea package and it says soft drinks are included. I didn't understand what was happening here. I'm booked on my first NCL cruise in the haven and would like to avoid a bunch of unexpected drink charges.

I asked the pre-cruise concierge to arrange for the mini-bar to be removed from the cabin refrigerator.  I placed a nice advance tip for the Haven bar staff at the beginning of the cruise.  Knowing that my cans of beer were not included in my drink package if delivered by room service, I would stop at the Haven bar and get one or two unopened cans of beer and bring them back to the cabin and I put them in the 'fridge.  My drink package covered my in-cabin drinks and I never had to wait for someone to deliver a nice cold beer when I wanted one.

 

TAKE NOTE: If you drink any beverages which were pre-placed in your refrigerator, that is considered your in-suite mini bar and each drink you consume from that incurs a charge as well.  If you don't want the mini bar, make sure you ask the concierge/butler to remove the mini bar ASAP.

[psac]

On 9/28/2023 at 5:31 PM, McGarrett5oh said:

I promised to provide our honest impressions on the Prima Haven upon our return from our 14 day cruise - where we are still on board.  And I will.  
 

Before I get into the details, we are having a wonderful cruise and love the Haven, despite very poor weather and the narrative below. 
 

In the meantime, I have a question for this community.  
 

As @Sthrngary and others know, we prepared a concise, simple and specific butler letter for this cruise.  The requests were all within the standard Haven amenities and focused almost entirely on the types of snacks we prefer and what our on shore plans were so that our Butler could simply be aware of when we would be in the suite or on shore. 
 

While this is a real “first world problem” 🤨, after 12 days we have come to the opinion that our Butler, a nice fellow who has been very responsive to our simple VERBAL requests, either cannot READ English and/or has chosen not to be or is just not cognizant of the details of the letter.  His verbal English is passable.  
 

We met our Butler on Day 1, had a very nice chat, handed him the letter which included $500 up front gratuity (essentially 1/2 of what we budgeted to tip him - 2 weeks, 4 people or about $20 per person per day).  

The breaking points for us were that he would ask “Are you going on an excursion today?”, when the letter answered that question.  We also had to consistently remind him the types of snacks we had requested.  From what was initially delivered, it was apparent he was not following our requests.  
 

Furthermore, from the way that we have used his resource, he has basically just been a food delivery service for us. 
 

So here is my question.  Based on my disappointment, that I spent hours reading this thread, learning what to expect from our Butler (and not to), went to the trouble to think through and write the letter, which I thought would be as helpful to him as it would be to us, should we provide him with the remaining budgeted gratuity, some portion of it, or no more than he’s already received?   
 

We disembark on Sunday (10/1).  Thank you. 

 

Just agreeing with the others — not another dollar to that butler, and spread the wealth elsewhere.  What you gave already is way too much for the service it sounds like you’re receiving.  

Personally your experience is another reason why I (very respectfully) disagree with Gary on the idea of tipping up front. Tipping up front in no way guarantees good service. Personally I prefer waiting until the end of the trip to decide how much to tip.  Similarly, for the butler to keep track of your letter for two weeks might make their job harder as opposed to just communicating day by day what you need from them.  But of course many people have had great results from the letter and upfront tip!  
 

Enjoy the rest of your trip!

[Sthrngary]

39 minutes ago, psac said:

Personally your experience is another reason why I (very respectfully) disagree with Gary on the idea of tipping up front.

@psac In this case I would have to agree with you.  However, just like at a restaurant that serves one bad steak, the other 99 times the steak was great.  My approach to butlers is NOT perfect.  It has improved the quality I personally have gotten from a butler since using it.  

 

Sometimes folks say, Gary, I like the letter but don't like the tip upfront.  Others say letter good, 1/2 tip.  I never argue or debate.  All I want is something I can do to enhance my vacation experience.  This butler in question was bad and NCL has to know that.  

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[SaltyPawz]

On 9/27/2023 at 6:53 AM, CambsCruiser82 said:

I'm 36 days out and haven;t had an email for either the preferences or the pre-cruise concierge 😞

 

On 9/27/2023 at 7:38 AM, Sthrngary said:

@SaltyPawz NCL is consistently, inconsistant. The letter comes sometimes and not other times.  If you have some items you want to ask for, tag me back and I will give you an email address.  The things I ask for are rather basic.  Often, many are not done when I get onboard and I simply ask my butler and Bingo, done.  So, really not that important.

 

What I would consider important are Specialty restaurant reservations and changes.  If I did not get those done on 130 days prior to cruise, I handle them pre-cruise with the Haven Desk.  

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

Thank you both for the replies! 
 

A short update. With 59 days to go, I received the following email from NCL. From all the great advice on this thread, I booked our specialty dining as soon as it was available. And, I’m planning to print our luggage tags (using the NCL plastic tag covers from Amazon) after we check in online. 
 

“Your amazing vacation is on the horizon! Have you started the countdown? Now is a great time to check out all the exciting experiences and new enhancements on board and onshore that will make your cruise unforgettable. Visit your My NCL profile and start planning your shore excursions, specialty dining, onboard activities and much more. You're just one click away from selecting all your favorites, so go ahead and customize your cruise today.”

[McGarrett5oh]

On 9/29/2023 at 12:14 PM, kasimir said:

Wow that is quite a generous tip, not sure how you got to that butler tip calculation of $20 per person per day. But if every Haven guest would tip this generously, I would seriously consider a career change to become a Haven butler. 😂 

 

My 2 cents, keep the remaining cash and tip other hard working crew members extra. Nowhere in my books does this kind of service (that you described) deserve a $1000 tip. 
 

Keep enjoying your cruise and I am very much looking forward to your final verdict and overall impressions. 

There have been ongoing debates on how much to tip Haven Butlers.  I don’t recall if it was discussion on this thread or elsewhere, but $20 per day per occupant is the conclusion I came to for what I expected from him to enhance our Haven experience.  Our expectations were not met. 
 

So $500 for 4 adults for 14 days nets out to just under $9 pp/per day.   On a standard 2 person 7-day cruise that would be a total of $125 gratuity for a couple in a Haven suite.  Does that sound more reasonable or is that low?  Seems low to me for even average service.   I know & respect that everyone has their own opinion and tips what they want to.  
 

I DO plan to tip the bartenders, our steward and a couple of Haven restaurant staff with the Butler money I had budgeted.   

Watch this space. 🤔😀☹️
 

 

[psac]

6 hours ago, McGarrett5oh said:

There have been ongoing debates on how much to tip Haven Butlers.  I don’t recall if it was discussion on this thread or elsewhere, but $20 per day per occupant is the conclusion I came to for what I expected from him to enhance our Haven experience.  Our expectations were not met. 
 

So $500 for 4 adults for 14 days nets out to just under $9 pp/per day.   On a standard 2 person 7-day cruise that would be a total of $125 gratuity for a couple in a Haven suite.  Does that sound more reasonable or is that low?  Seems low to me for even average service.   I know & respect that everyone has their own opinion and tips what they want to.  
 

I DO plan to tip the bartenders, our steward and a couple of Haven restaurant staff with the Butler money I had budgeted.   

Watch this space. 🤔😀☹️
 

 

Now I get your math.  We usually tip the butler $150 (standard) to $200 (if they’re really good) for just the two of us for a 7 day sailing. And I consider us pretty low maintenance — we never do meals in the room, and usually our only request is a pitcher of ice water to keep filled, and cookies every afternoon, and sometimes they still mess that up.  🤷‍♂️ but overall we’ve been mostly happy with our butlers thankfully!  

Edited October 1, 2023 by psac

[66Olds442]

7 hours ago, McGarrett5oh said:

Watch this space. 🤔😀☹️
 

 

Cruising in the Haven on the Prima on Oct 23rd, so I'll be greatly looking forward to your full comments/review.

[McGarrett5oh]

We’ve just returned from 14 days in the Haven onboard the NCL Prima.  I’d like to share some thoughts on our 2-week experience, which arguably, gave us a lot of time to be in the Haven.

 

So as to make this digestible, I plan to share our thoughts in multiple posts:

 

1. The Haven at Large

2. Our 2 Bedroom Family Suite

3. The Butler and our Butler Letter

4. The Haven Concierge

5. The Haven Restaurant

6. The Haven Bar & Lounge

7. The Prima at Large

 

First, let me say that I (and we all should) respect that everyone cruises differently and may value different aspects of the ship, the amenities on board and within the Haven, the itinerary, etc.

 

This was our FIRST Haven experience.  I spent hours researching the Prima, the Haven, the ports and had what I thought were appropriate expectations based on feedback from other community members of this thread and other review sites.

 

Some perspective and background for my comments here and in future posts:

 

My wife and I are retired and in our mid-60s, have cruised only about a dozen times across multiple cruise lines and this is only the 2nd time we have cruised elsewhere than the Caribbean.  We have cruised the most on NCL (3 times on the Pearl), but have come to prefer Celebrity and Virgin.  We were initially attracted to NCL when they first introduced “Freestyle” dining years ago.  We shared the 2-bedroom "Family" suite with our son and daughter-in-law who are in their mid-30s. 

 

We chose this cruise for the European destinations (Roundtrip from Southampton with scheduled stops in Le Havre, Belfast, Iceland (3 ports) and Norway (3 ports), and to experience the Haven & the new Prima class ship.  Let me add that we also primarily value the restaurant/food, how we are treated and the ship’s ambience.  The entertainment, the bar, the pools, the shipboard activities are not as important to us and we rarely partake in the latter.  Typically, the bar is transactional for us (although the Haven bar became much more of a hangout for us than normal).  And, we do not seek to make new friends on board.

 

Sounds boring!  🤔  We spent a lot of the last 10 years traveling North America in our motorhome.  And while it was (some would say “luxurious”), it was a traveling hotel room for us.  We look at cruises the same way.  On a cruise ship, we really value sitting on our balcony, experiencing the ports and reading & relaxing at various spots on board.  

 

So, with all that said, for those of you already booked in the Haven on the Prima (or the almost identical sister ship - Viva) or contemplating the Haven on this new class of ship, the headline is that we cannot find any reason to suggest that you should be worried about your decision.

 

WE LOVED THE HAVEN and had a TERRIFIC cruise! 

 

And with that, I’ll add that there are some warts & disappointments (besides the Butler) as well as very positive things we observed that I’ll share in future posts over the next week or so, with the intention of helping you make the most of your Prima Haven experience based on ours.....and our opinions.

 

Watch the space…..

[McGarrett5oh]

We loved the Haven.  We felt like “rock stars”.  Somehow the restaurant maitre 'd and assistant maitre 'd remembered all 4 our names almost from day one and greeted us every time with enthusiasm and sincerity.  Same with some of the wait staff and at the bar.  Our butler and steward also addressed us by name (as they should).  I was referred to as “sir” more in 2 weeks than in the past 10 years 😀  

 

Everything was first class and you could tell that NCL puts mostly their best of the best staff in the Haven.  We found NO post-covid staffing issues.

 

There are 2 private elevators which run from deck 4 to 16.  Decks 6-8 are access to where most of the ship’s activities, bars, casino, atrium etc reside.  10-15 are Haven staterooms.  16 contains the Haven lounge, bar, restaurant, concierge desk and pool deck.  Steps to 17th sundeck.  

 

While the inside bar and lounge aren’t huge and despite the outside Haven decks really out of play on this cruise, due to the weather, there was rarely a capacity issue.  I was amazed at how the facility handled over 300 Haven guests and you rarely felt crowded or had to wait at all or very long for a table at the restaurant or to order a drink at the bar.

 

Since our weather was poor and the seas were rough, I never saw any Haven guests sitting outside on the lounges.  Only the infinity pool and hot tubs were occasionally being used so can’t comment much on that other than to say that all the  pools around the ship were reported to be “lukewarm”.  Good in the Caribbean but not so much in the North Sea.

 

Despite the really poor weather, 1 or 2 shivering bartenders stood at the ready at the Haven outside bar on port AND sea days, so if the Haven inside bar gets busy, don’t forget about that one.  No waiting.  Also there are two restrooms out there.  There is only 1 relatively small restroom in the Haven lounge that services restaurant, bar AND lounge guests and we found that one oftentimes to be occupied.

 

Unlike the Haven on other ships, there is no service elevator that is used for early debarkation.  They use 1 of the 2 Haven elevators as an express to take you down.  This puts a burden on the other elevator for those not seeking early debarkation but that didn’t seem to be an issue except on the final day.

 

Note that there is NO food service (e.g. continental breakfast bar), coffee, TV or entertainment in the Haven lounge.  The bar can get you a cup of coffee (or a coffee drink) only when the bar and the Haven restaurant are both open.  

 

Overall, before getting into specifics in future posts, I’d say the entire Haven area on the Prima is first class, well appointed, and has held up pretty well over the first year of use. 

 

Watch this space…

[CDR Benson]

1 hour ago, McGarrett5oh said:

We loved the Haven.  We felt like “rock stars”.  Somehow the restaurant maitre 'd and assistant maitre 'd remembered all 4 our names almost from day one and greeted us every time with enthusiasm and sincerity.  Same with some of the wait staff and at the bar.  Our butler and steward also addressed us by name (as they should).  I was referred to as “sir” more in 2 weeks than in the past 10 years 😀  

 

 

 

It has always impressed me at how swiftly the Haven staff learns to recognise you and by name.  We had the same experience with the Neptune Lounge staffers (sort of a Haven-lite . . . very lite) on our 2018 cruise with Holland America, including one remarkable bit of attention to detail.

 

The Haven staff's ability to remember faces and names is even more impressive when one stops to think how versatile their memories have to be:  at the turnover, they have to mentally jettison the names of the off-going Haven guests and learn those of the on-coming Haven travellers.  They appear to do it seamlessly.

 

I'm sorry your experience with your butler wasn't up to speed.  This was one of my concerns before our first Haven cruise last year.  Fortunately, our butler was remarkable.  As I related in my trip report, he sought us out in the Horizon Observation Lounge within a few hours after we boarded.  And that was before I gave him my butler letter with half his tip enclosed.  I didn't give him that until he presented himself again to us a couple of hours later in our suite.  After I did, he delivered remarkable service, going above and beyond.  (I suspect, though, that he was the sort of fellow who would've done so, anyway.)

 

I'm following your trip report avidly, as I do all reviews of the Haven experience.  I appreciate the way you get into the details of your experience.  And I'm glad you had a superb vacation, despite the hiccoughs.

 

 

 

[Angela.Estep2019]

On 9/30/2023 at 7:47 PM, psac said:

Just agreeing with the others — not another dollar to that butler, and spread the wealth elsewhere.  What you gave already is way too much for the service it sounds like you’re receiving.  

Personally your experience is another reason why I (very respectfully) disagree with Gary on the idea of tipping up front. Tipping up front in no way guarantees good service. Personally I prefer waiting until the end of the trip to decide how much to tip.  Similarly, for the butler to keep track of your letter for two weeks might make their job harder as opposed to just communicating day by day what you need from them.  But of course many people have had great results from the letter and upfront tip!  
 

Enjoy the rest of your trip!

We have found that if you send your letter, preferences and plans to NorwegianConciergedesk@ncl.com email address prior to your cruise, your changes are better that they will be honored. FYI 

[Angela.Estep2019]

9 minutes ago, Angela.Estep2019 said:

We have found that if you send your letter, preferences and plans to NorwegianConciergedesk@ncl.com email address prior to your cruise, your changes are better that they will be honored. FYI 

chances

[Daniel A]

I was surprised that there were Haven crew members who knew me by name even before I ever met them.  I think they must post a board in the crew work area with our photos and names.  (Probably only first names as they would be easier to remember.)

[McGarrett5oh]

Two quick addendums to my last post. 

 

1)  At the forward end of the Haven lounge is a secret door that takes you out to the (general public) Aft elevators which is an alternate route to the lower decks or the quickest way up to the Surfside Cafe (buffet), Palomar Restaurant, Food Republic, the Galaxy Pavillion, the main pool deck and the Observation Lounge on Deck 17.  Your key card gets you back into the Haven there and from the Aft elevators on Decks 12-15.

 

2)  The only wart in the Haven Lounge is the placement of window washing equipment that creates an obstructed view out the large windows at the forward end of the Lounge and in two of the window panels in the smaller of the two Haven dining rooms.

 

 

[GALSews]

56 minutes ago, McGarrett5oh said:

Two quick addendums to my last post. 

 

1)  At the forward end of the Haven lounge is a secret door that takes you out to the (general public) Aft elevators which is an alternate route to the lower decks or the quickest way up to the Surfside Cafe (buffet), Palomar Restaurant, Food Republic, the Galaxy Pavillion, the main pool deck and the Observation Lounge on Deck 17.  Your key card gets you back into the Haven there and from the Aft elevators on Decks 12-15.

 

 

We were on deck 14 and mostly used the stairs. The only thing about the door is that it reminds me of the original doors in the student union at the college I attended. The door is quite sturdy!

Edited October 4, 2023 by GALSews
Moved my text outside original comment

[McGarrett5oh]

A little bit on our 2 bedroom haven family suite.   Ours, 13914, was fine albeit a bit worn.  From what our butler told us, these H6 suites oftentimes have children in the 2nd bedroom.  Ours had some stains on the rug and some damage to the wall, but overall was in more than acceptable condition.

 

I was concerned about how it would accommodate 4 adults, a lot of suitcases (clothes and accessories for 14 days in weather that could swing from below freezing  Farenheit to the 70 or 80s in Paris the week we traveled.  Surprisingly, it all worked with a pre-concierge request for additional hangers and asking the butler to store 3 of our large suitcases in his pantry.  There are 2 underbed drawers on both beds as well as a storage area large enough to accommodate 2 of our largest bags (with the carry ons inserted inside).  The master closet design leaves a lot to be desired.  Many complain that a long ladies dress won’t hang because of the height of the rail.  Which isn’t really a sliding rail.  Hangers need to be lifted and moved, not slid.  

 

As previously noted elsewhere, the interior walls of the  Prima cabins are not magnetic.  We brought plastic suction cup hooks that we attached to the long mirror in the master closet and on the mirror in the bathroom for more hanging capability.  We also had the butler remove the inordinate amount of coffee table books in the cabin so we had more table space.  The living room area is just a sofa, 2 chairs, a table and two small coffee tables.  Probably just fine when you can use the outside deck (which we really couldn’t except on port days due to weather), but it was a bit cramped for 4 adults trying to eat breakfast, snack or congregate.

 

I’ll leave this post here as you may not be in this type of cabin, but I will point out that the ship does “creak”.  I’ve read that it is a persistent issue when the seas are even just a little rough.  The biggest negative I’d say on our cabin was the outdoor furniture cushions, which are tethered to the lounge chairs, are all showing rusty snaps on the tether and the condition of the cushions are pretty worn for a new ship.

 

Watch this space....

[kasimir]

On 10/4/2023 at 8:38 AM, McGarrett5oh said:

We loved the Haven.  We felt like “rock stars”.  Somehow the restaurant maitre 'd and assistant maitre 'd remembered all 4 our names almost from day one and greeted us every time with enthusiasm and sincerity.  Same with some of the wait staff and at the bar.  Our butler and steward also addressed us by name (as they should).  I was referred to as “sir” more in 2 weeks than in the past 10 years 😀  

 

Everything was first class and you could tell that NCL puts mostly their best of the best staff in the Haven.  We found NO post-covid staffing issues.

 

There are 2 private elevators which run from deck 4 to 16.  Decks 6-8 are access to where most of the ship’s activities, bars, casino, atrium etc reside.  10-15 are Haven staterooms.  16 contains the Haven lounge, bar, restaurant, concierge desk and pool deck.  Steps to 17th sundeck.  

 

While the inside bar and lounge aren’t huge and despite the outside Haven decks really out of play on this cruise, due to the weather, there was rarely a capacity issue.  I was amazed at how the facility handled over 300 Haven guests and you rarely felt crowded or had to wait at all or very long for a table at the restaurant or to order a drink at the bar.

 

Since our weather was poor and the seas were rough, I never saw any Haven guests sitting outside on the lounges.  Only the infinity pool and hot tubs were occasionally being used so can’t comment much on that other than to say that all the  pools around the ship were reported to be “lukewarm”.  Good in the Caribbean but not so much in the North Sea.

 

Despite the really poor weather, 1 or 2 shivering bartenders stood at the ready at the Haven outside bar on port AND sea days, so if the Haven inside bar gets busy, don’t forget about that one.  No waiting.  Also there are two restrooms out there.  There is only 1 relatively small restroom in the Haven lounge that services restaurant, bar AND lounge guests and we found that one oftentimes to be occupied.

 

Unlike the Haven on other ships, there is no service elevator that is used for early debarkation.  They use 1 of the 2 Haven elevators as an express to take you down.  This puts a burden on the other elevator for those not seeking early debarkation but that didn’t seem to be an issue except on the final day.

 

Note that there is NO food service (e.g. continental breakfast bar), coffee, TV or entertainment in the Haven lounge.  The bar can get you a cup of coffee (or a coffee drink) only when the bar and the Haven restaurant are both open.  

 

Overall, before getting into specifics in future posts, I’d say the entire Haven area on the Prima is first class, well appointed, and has held up pretty well over the first year of use. 

 

Watch this space…

 

Thank you so much for your detailed review and balanced point of view of the Prima Haven experience! We are looking forward to read the remainder of your posts. 

 

I am mostly happy to hear that the Prima Haven doesn't have the same staffing issues as what we heard from the first couple of Viva cruises. 

 

Since you were on a "low season" cruise outside of the school holidays, can you also provide some feedback how many kids were in the Haven and if they were an "issue"? 

[McGarrett5oh]

3 minutes ago, kasimir said:

Since you were on a "low season" cruise outside of the school holidays, can you also provide some feedback how many kids were in the Haven and if they were an "issue"? 

There might have been 4-5.  Never saw them but remember the weather was not conducive to the pool area.  If they were in the restaurant we didn’t hear them.  
 

As a matter of fact, the only time I saw “children” on the ship was when we attempted to go to the speedway and games & they were likely not from the Haven.  
 

The Butler did say that children in the Haven tend to be more time consuming for the Butlers. Another reason we were disappointed in OUR Butler’s performance.  

[RocketMan275]

2 minutes ago, McGarrett5oh said:

There might have been 4-5.  Never saw them but remember the weather was not conducive to the pool area.  If they were in the restaurant we didn’t hear them.  
 

As a matter of fact, the only time I saw “children” on the ship was when we attempted to go to the speedway and games & they were likely not from the Haven.  
 

The Butler did say that children in the Haven tend to be more time consuming for the Butlers. Another reason we were disappointed in OUR Butler’s performance.  

How can 4-5 children cause you to be disappointed?