Candy Apple 12

We will finally have platinum status on our upcoming cruise. Before I book the dinners I have a few questions. This is the fine print from NCL’s website: “Benefit is available on sailings 5 days or longer, and entitles each guest to an appetizer, one entrée and dessert of choice. Upcharges apply to certain premium menu items; Raw Bar Seafood Platter is not included. Bottle of Wine offered in all venues offering Complimentary Wine list, Palomar not included. In à la carte restaurants, coupon can be redeemed for 4 menu items per person (Sushi, Wasabi, Nama, Teppanyaki, Hasuki, Food Republic, Pincho Tapas Bar or Raw Bar). Additional entrées will incur supplemental charges. Dinner coupons are non-transferrable. Solo guests cannot claim two dinners. Coupons can’t be used for the same venue twice. 2 guests maximum. Dining options vary by ship.” There will be two platinum members in one stateroom. I assume that we get two coupons (one with wine and one without)? From the website: Dinner for Two with a Bottle of Wine6(per stateroom) Dinner for Two6(per stateroom) We will be traveling with a total of five people (only two are platinum). Can we take both coupons to the same restaurant at the same time to cover four of us and have the fifth person buy à la carte or using a SDP dining credit? We don’t plan on using it in any of the à la carte restaurants mentioned in the fine print. Which venues offer the complimentary wine list? It would be nice if they mentioned that in their fine print. The restaurants we will likely choose are Texas Smokehouse, Cagney’s, Le Bistro, and Ocean Blue. Thank you!

Thanks so much for pointing this out! It’s so annoying that they stopped making it easy to see the taxes and fees when doing a mock booking. Not only did NCL decide to observe truth in advertising by including taxes, fees, and port expenses in fine print, but they decided to do it in grey type on a grey background!

My favorite way to spend time on a sea day is in the Horizon lounge on the Bliss. I’ve done two Haven cruises on the Bliss, and your comment has me daydreaming about relaxing on the comfy lounge beds, gazing out the front, while enjoying the rocking of the ship.

Thanks to all who replied. My cruise had another price drop, so I called my TA today. She was not in the office today due to taking a long holiday break, but one of her partners got the price drop for me. Now, to start planning another cruise with the money I’m saving…

I’ve never seen a sign for Haven upon returning to the ship, but on future cruises I’ll be sure to ask before getting off.

Thanks for the advice. I will keep it in mind if need to find a new TA. I agree with you that it’s frustrating not to be able to openly discuss our experiences with TA’s here. I have an Escape cruise in February, or I’d be joining you on the Prima!!

If there’s another price drop, I will ask my TA to reprice both rooms. If she balks, you’ll have to let me know which cruise you’re taking next so I can book it and find out who your TA is so I can switch TA’s!

Thanks for the great TR and nice photos!

Is the shuttle process quick, or are you waiting a while before it fills up to take you to the terminal or back to the lot? Do you think the princess with Park Port Canaveral is quicker, or just less hassle?

Nice! What itinerary was this? Just curious since this was a March cruise. Was it during spring break, or was it the first week of March right before the spring break prices really hit?

Well this time I lost the double latitude points, but I’m saving $1000, as are my in-laws, so it’s well worth it. I just checked the invoice, and it’s the same reservation number, so not really a cancel and rebook.

I’m wondering if this is the case. I’ve been with the same travel agency for over 15 years, but my original TA retired a year and a half ago, and I really miss her.

I repriced my cruise today (before final payment), and my TA emailed me stating, “They said we are only able to reprice the booking once.” I still have some time before final payment, so I was planning on continuing to check for price drops. I thought that you could reprice before final payment multiple times. Does anyone have any experience with multiple price drops before final payment? Thank you!

Being rocked to sleep 😴

What do you mean by giving benefits across the NCLH brands?

What about a Haven spa suite? Category H9.

Maybe shoreside concierge can help with this? I’ve heard they can be hit or miss, but maybe it’s worth a call or email?

Yes! Thank you!

Link?

Do you recall if there was a separate entrance for Haven? What was your recent experience?

How much was the Uber? Was it a from the airport or a nearby hotel?

How do you do this? I did a test post using the web link, but it showed up as any other link, not how I’ve seen it done with a mini-picture of the thread. For example: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2858919-haven-bliss-trip-report—alaska-may-14-21-gluten-free/#comment-63665860 That’s not how I want it to look. Thank you!

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2858919-haven-bliss-trip-report—alaska-may-14-21-gluten-free/#comment-63665860

Thanks again! That’s the type of information I need but Google maps doesn’t provide.

@Bruin Steve Thank you so much! I know that the greater LA area is huge, and I want to stay away from the sketchy areas. I really appreciate hearing from a local that Santa Monica is the place recommended for tourists. I will definitely start looking at hotels in the area. If I might indulge you a little bit more, do you know how the drive from Santa Monica to Palmdale generally is? It looks like part of the drive is through a mountain range. I have an aunt and uncle that live in Palmdale, whom I haven’t seen in years. I would love to go visit them. I have two full days before the cruise, and I was thinking of taking a day trip to go see them. Do you think this would be feasible? I would be making this trip on either a Friday or a Saturday because the cruise leaves on Sunday.