I tend to agree. For service nothing beats Star Class. Plus it includes the drink package, drinks delivered to room upon request, priority everything, specialty dining, WiFi and tons of special surprises. Hands down better than the Haven.
Personally, if I could not afford to book Star Class on a ship with Star Class, I would prefer booking a regular RCI suite on ships that do not have Star Class. Why? You get much better pricing and the suite areas are much less crowded. You still get to eat the suite breakfast in a specialty restaurant which has always been less crowded than the CK was on that last day. Granted, you must pay for the drink package, dining package and WiFi, but often there are good sales on those. Some of the smaller ships provide a more intimate service experience too. Our cruise on the Vision had excellent service and our concierge provided an amazing personalized experience. He’d make a great Genie.
NCL Haven tops RCI in the ship-within-a-ship category, the availability of wines and liquor brands, and the private areas - bar, pool, deck, hot tubs and restaurant. We never had to wait long for drinks or seating in the restaurant or bar area, and could always find a lounger on the sun deck. Both NCL and RCI allow children in suite areas so can’t compare that.
I must say, though, that the layout of the Harmony was much better than the NCL ships, especially the Prima. We never felt crowded despite the ship being full with 6000+ passengers. We could find seats at bars and shows (even if we were not in a suite just reserve and get three early). There were always open loungers, and the open areas like the Boardwalk and Central Park were never crowded. Even during the parties, the Royal Promenade had space to move around. I really enjoyed the layout of the Harmony. There were so many great venues to choose from with plenty of seating and space. Yes, the elevators sucked at times, but it’s the same on NCL.
A huge difference now, though, is the pricing. I can book a Haven suite on the Joy for 4 people for 9 days to Alaska for $12,000, which includes the premium upgraded package. On RCI the Star Class suite would be $20,000+ for a 7-day cruise during the same time. That’s a huge difference.
Would I book Star Class again? Absolutely if the price were right!