Sthrngary

@Suite Heart My next cruising adventure will be a test of the emergency broadcast system. 10-days in the Mediterranean. I will miss the Waterslides, Go Carts, Lasor Tag and Broadway shows. However I will hope to enjoy learning the culture of countries I have never traveled. After this next trip, as you have indicated, it might take me two years to cruise again. Retirement gives me the time and I wonder where all the money went. Cruise well and enjoy the Haven to its fullest.

@603NHCruiser Call me in anytime. Love engaging. I am in the process of doing my due diligence on my upcoming cruise. Unlike my posts on the Haven, Haven lite or Premium Plus Drink package; this research has much more to do with what to do at each port, what foods to eat when in a new country, how to get from the airport/hotel to the port. As you recognize, I get a little crazy when I do this stuff but enjoy the process immensely. So never hesitate to reach out. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@Sydneyberlin Your are more than welcome. It is not as much of a science as it is a pleasure. Take it one step at a time. Really. I wrote this stream because I wanted folks to get all the value they wanted when they paid a premium for the Haven. Also, to have realistic expectations when they finally sailed. You can guess, I might have had some less then great experience over a 44 year cruising life. I will suggest a couple of things to consider, if I might. I am sure, you might have read some of this on the stream but you kind words came at a very good time. Online Registration: Do it the moment you can. Get it over with. Remember, when in the Haven, you can board when every the ship has been cleared. I still request the earliest boarding time because I simply love the Pre-Cruise Port Haven area especially in the New NCL Terminal in Miami. Carry On Luggage: The escort from the Haven port lounge takes you to the Haven Courtyard. Drop off you Carry on luggage in your suite so you can explore. Your suite might not be ready but it is a very nice perk. Room Service: There is no service fee and your butler or a member of their team brings you room service. Let them know you prefer to order off the Haven Menu when doing room service as long as the Haven Restaurant is open. Prime Rib and Lobster Tails: My favorite prime rib is in Cagney's with the Haven Restaurant as a very close second. It is ok to ask for a Lobster tail with it. I know, I did it many times. Smoking Cocktail at the Haven Bar: Wait for a time when they are not busy and ask for a smoking cocktail. It is a show and worth seeing. Lunch when you Board: I always go to the Haven Restaurant except once. That was because I was outvoted by my family. The regretted that decision. They usually give you the choice of the American Diner as a perk day one lunch. If you choose the American Diner, do yourself a favor and order the milkshake. It will cost extra but worth it. Made my meal if I had to miss the Haven Burger. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@redmomof4 Here is the link to my Haven Lite stream. It is even easier to do now with the Free At Sea Plus and the fact you can (whiles supplies last) pre-book the NCL Vibe Beach Club. Is it the Haven? NO. But as my wife recently said, it is pretty darn great at a much lower investment. Thank you @hallux for suggesting it. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

I would do a think like this and have done it for years. Bravo I say, bravo. I love a person with Excel skills. Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 11:00:00 AM

Hello, you called. I am here. Ask me anything. Happy to help. I am so bored. I am currently working on my upcoming trip for a 10 day Mediterranean Cruise in November 2023. Love to focus on helping to make anyone's cruise better. Yes, if anyone wants my to respond, us the @sthrngary tag. Again, happy to help. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@js The Encore has a great Haven for one of NCL's largest ships. The Joy which I cruised twice also has a great Haven. The Joy as a ship is a bit different because of it's retrofit after originally being made for the Asian market. I have also stayed in the Haven Proper and outside the Haven. Pro's/Con's to both. Surprisingly, they balance out in the end. I want to caution those on this thread who have recently been upgraded using the NCL Bid process to the Haven. It is hard, not impossible, just hard to cruise on an NCL Ship any other way. I have tried. I hope one day in the not to distant future, all the people that provided posts on this stream could take over the Haven on a nice sailing. I don't think if that happened NCL would have enough lobster tails or Prime Rib left my mid-cruise. Cruise well everyone and enjoy every moment.

@Sydneyberlin So happy for you. Lets of folks that know their Haven Stuff here. Read the original article on page one. Ask anything you want to know. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

Many airlines will change your flight the day of travel. Fine out the airlines policy.

Here is my story and I hope it makes sense and assists in some way. I was driven by the idea that I could upgrade my Oceania Air from Coach to Premium Coach for $299 (amount may vary) per one way trip. The fact that Oceania had coach fares from hubs to my Europe destinations was also attractive. Another words, the marketing was done very well. I then went on another social media site that has only video's, looked the all the brands Premium Coach offerings. What they had, was was not included. Very similar to the way I look at a new cruise brand like Oceania to me. The services and amenities were all over the board. Since you have basically no say in the brand, itinerary and sometimes seating (I know all about the deviation fee); it was hit or miss. That is when I did the math. How much would Oceania reduce my fair if I did my own air travel. I added the $299.00 per one way trip per passenger, I added the deviation fee. It became clear that with some advanced playing, one could control the brand, itinerary and seating at the same or very close to the amount they would have paid Oceania. As logic would tell you, waiting to soon to the final payment causes those airline prices if done on your own to go up. That has to be part of your due diligence. When a normal person who has done very little international travel thinks airfare, the naturally get a little scared. My suggestion is, fight the fear. Do some studying the moment you book or are going to book your cruise. The Fully Refundable fair I purchased for my friends joining us has gone up $500.00 per person. It is fully refundable because I wanted they to be able to cancel if they choose not to go on the cruise. What most folks don't know is many airlines, as the flight gets close will offer a cash upgrade for higher category seats. Does not happen all the time but has happened to me. Regardless of which strategy you take. The key to airfare, cruises, excursions and drink packages is to do your homework and have realistic expectations. Know what you are going to get or not get while you can still change your mind. To find out to lake and be angry about it is just a lack of preparation. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@MsMaybelline Wow, that is one heck of a question. No idea. You have to report back when you cruise. Good luck. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@DCGuy64 Wow, thank you. If any of us cruise enough we will have situation that will be less then perfect. The nature of the beast. I have had some of those situations. If I fell wronged, I took it up patiently with the cruise brand. I never gave up, I was always transparent and never ever did I threaten anything. In my online reviews I stated the blended the reviews comments with all aspects of the cruising experience. In each and every case, sooner or later my situation was resolved by the cruise brand. I will not go into details however in life, it is always best to deal directly and relentlessly with the party you feel has injured you. Not the world of public opinions. More importantly, it get much better results. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@brobin111 What is happening here on this thread is human nature. You expressed your personal experience and how it made you feel. You would have never done that unless it really bothered you. You used an OP-ED on a cruising social media site as your vehicle. The logic is if all a social media site is for is the good stuff, it becomes a marketing site that does not inform past, current or future clients on what is the current potential treads. You had to know that some brand loyalist would take issue with you. You are potentially rocking their option of a brand they really like. They feel their friend, in this case the brand, is being attacked in an area they believe is NOT accurate based on personal experience. Your opinion is in direct contrast to their opinion. As been stated, human nature and a reaction will happen as did here. Well, much feedback has been given from lots of sources. Some that supports your opinions and others that challenge it. The same thing happens on EVERY cruise brand site I read. It can and should be expected especially when the title says in all CAPS, "NEVER AGAIN". That clearly indicated contrary opinions would be given because it was a direct challenge. Take the feedback positive and negative in stride. If it gets personal, hit the ignore button on the poster. In most cases, other have done the same on some folks. In my humble opinion, any brand blog should allow all past, current and future guests to have that ability to make "Realistic Expectations" of their next cruise experience on the brand. Things like better than average crew personalized service or below average entertainment options. If for example a new client, such as myself, cruises the brand knowing this information, we reduce feeling disappointed. If a post focus on mainly on a horrible cruise or a cruise that everything was GREAT; it does not represent reality for everyone even on that cruise. All experiences are blended. Why I wrote this response? To kindly ask a favor to all involved. I have had some horrible experiences on social media. Expressing an opinion in a classy way is wonderful and appreciated even if we don't agree. Making comments personal or challenging a persons credibility is yet another. If you don't like the approach people take, hit ignore. Please attempt not to make a post away to attack. Say your piece with class and clarity, move on. It makes this and other blogs a kinder and gentler place to hangout. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@KimKM The key to CruiseCritic.com is to share real experiences. We all have expectations and all we want is for them to be met. If they are exceeded, well that is even better. When we feel those expectations are not met, we are disappointed and every right to be. I also have posted on disappointing cruises with another brand. I was also met with folks that made me feel badly for even speaking up. Just social media and many folks feel the need to protect their brand they love so much. All this to be water off a duck. Always be transparent. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

I look at the NCL Cruise Critic blog daily for interesting topics. The more you do this, the more you read the same questions and answers. I also read other brands like Celebrity, Oceania, Regent, and HAL. The topic of airfare is done quite often. Two decades ago, it you did your due diligence, you could on occasion find a cruise deal. It was much harder than today. Today everything is part of the brands marketing approach. 50% off second passenger, 2nd person flies free, $299. per person upgrade to Premium Plus to Europe. I traveled for 4 decades mostly by air. For me, it is a no brainer however for most it is a stressful decision. The author was very clear on what information they were looking for. They knew that many would do the classic response of questioning why they even considered the Cruise Brand Airfare. The fact is, regardless of the experience any of us have had, in this or a situation like this in the past, the cruise brand will follow their written rules. If any of us want to know strategy, as this author has asked, social media can help however only the source can confirm. Cruise Critic blogs have saved me lots of money. I learned so much here from the members. Things like what the cruise line believes is a valid passport date, different countries covid requirements and the list goes on. Still, go to the source to confirm. Just my two cents. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

As a general rule, if you pay for a flight and don't use it NCL has no cost to them. The only cost is to you for the value of the flight not used. You paid for the flight which includes the transfers however only for the NCL flight schedules so you new flight may or may not be honored or even have availability. You might not have wanted the thread to take a turn to whether to use or not use NCL Air. However, you have made the point that those decisions need to be made with full knowledge of the good, bad and ugly. Being prepared and realistic is the key and I thank you as well a commend you on your attitude. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@ORV I would like to personally thank you for your ongoing review, attitude and efforts. Your cruise was not perfect you always was fair with your comments. You took the time during your vacation to allow all of us to join. You knew we all really needs to feel like we were right there with you. I hope you have a save journey home and remember this cruise with fond memories. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

Well it seems as if this thread has taken a turn from expressing the authors opinion on a less then positive cruising experience to brand bashing. Darn shame. If any guest has dissatisfaction with the product or service they have received, do a review, be honest and share your thoughts. It helps the brand do better and guest with varied opinions which is also good. When it becomes brand bashing, it is NOT helpful. It makes it feel like some folks have an axe to grind. I have no skin in this game. All I am looking for is honest evaluations of a brand I have booked for the first time. In my professional career, I studied survey systems, luxury client expectations and how to engage client so they can become brand advocates. When a client only has negative things to say or another client only has positive things to say; you toss those views. You go with the 80% in the middle. Thanks for everyone's feed back, opinions, experiences and comments. It was a interesting read. All points have been made and understood. I hope what ever cruise or other vacations we all go on next, it is something we truly enjoy. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

OK, we ALL have had issues with cruising. it is the Nature of the beast. It is so easy to continue on with our personal situations. Yet when it becomes a stream about how BAD the cruise brand is, it has reached it end for me. If anyone does not like a brand, or an experience, we all have the right to simply state our case openly and not cruise with them any more. Thank everyone for their stories. It really does help to know the good, bad and ugly. Point made. I hope everyone has a better cruise the next time around. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@edgee You are absolutely correct. You have NO control of the stateroom or location. They can put you anywhere from PH3 through PH1 in my case. Understanding the risk and willing to take what ever I get. I have been in some of the best suites and the worst suites on many brands. Some were better then other, but all were acceptable. Everyone has their own tolerance level. I call this realistic expectations and you will hear no complaints from me regardless of where the staterooms. I know the risks. Other have to have the same attitude if you do a Guarantee Stateroom. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@shepherd really, here is my situation. I booked a PH3 Guarantee as part of the Labor day sale. This allowed me to upgrade using the four category upgrade promotion. to the lowest PH category. In this case, my worse case situation is a PH3 which is sold out on this cruise at this time. In my opinion, that would be some what of a nice situation taking the promotion and guarantee together. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@PaulMCO We were old posting friends from Crystal prior to it being sold. If is clear, you are not a fan of Oceania. Please let us know, what is your alternative brand they you prefer? Hope things are well and glad so see your posts. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

@GregoryPaul Thank you for the kind words. The reality is, beside my horrible spelling/grammar, I sometimes write my post three times. The first time I get it all out. When I read it I realize I took what I call the "Low Road". I write it again. The second time I see area's I need to change to make the point. The third time I make a decision to post or not to post; that is the question. We all love to cruise. If we did not we would go to an all inclusive and lay by the sea. With the choice of a cruise, on water, in different countries, there is always a risk. Remembering back, some of my funniest memories are situation no one could have fixed on cruises. This unpredictability create dreams and dreams can sometimes be nightmares. The High Road is always the bast approach to approaching things on Social Media. Cruise well and thank you again.

I have been on both decks and also not in Haven Proper when I was in a Haven Spa Suite. I really did not feel anything different with the different suites. The one thing I will say is deck 17 is better for the Haven Two Bedroom Suites because it has an extended balcony. The Haven Spa Suite was nice because we got full access to the Thermal Spa and that made up for not being in the Haven Proper. Please remember, this is social media. Just because this is my opinion and feelings don't make it right. It is personal like our feelings on food in restaurants. Just my two cents. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

When the ships started to sail again after the height of Covid, my wife and I went on a Crystal Cruise. It was going to be what I call, a "Luxury Cruise Test Drive". I am sharing this story because I think it is relevant to this topic for several reasons. First, I was new to Crystal having only gone Main Stream Brands with an emphasis on the VIP areas; Second, because we miss lots of ports. When you are new to a brand as I will be to Oceania in November 2023, you don't really know what to expect. You hope, there will be a positive enhancement to your cruise vacation experience. The Personalized Service was everything I ever thought it would be. The Butler set a standard that I really don't think will ever be matched. The food was so good, we talk about it all the time. When the ports were cancelled, we were immediately given our excursion funds back and slight compensation for port charges. We did NOT enjoy the cruise. Crystal did everything they could to make up for the lost ports. We were still very disappointed. We knew it was not their fault, it was an act of god. We were still disappointed. We were happy we got our money back for lost excursion and a bit of compensation. We were still disappointed. Did this effect our willingness to cruise Crystal again, even though we knew it was not their fault. The answer even thought it is unfair is, YES. I know, Crystal went out of business and now has been purchased by another company. Do I feel my emotions are fair knowing what I know about weather and cruising, NO. Does it change the way I feel, NO. As a newbie to Oceania, I look forward to my upcoming cruise on the Riviera in November. I would be lying to say, streams like this one don't make me a little uneasy. Not fair, different itinerary, different situation, but human emotions are not always logical. I am sorry to the author of this stream for their disappointment. I know they get it was bad timing more than anything. Yet, the disappointment is still their. Like with my situation, it was the luck of the draw. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.