vamom76

Love it - thank you!

I agree with Turtles06 and Sue Do-Over above.  You can book a NYC excursion at the end of your cruise. You can start here - you will have to filter your cruise info:  https://www.ncl.com/shore-excursions/search?destination=Bahamas+%26+Florida+Cruises,Bermuda+Cruises,Canada+%26+New+England+Cruises,Caribbean+Cruises,Panama+Canal+Cruises,Weekend+Cruises&port=NYC

Of course, the other option to do what Sue Do-Over said - or rent a car/driver for the day - to do on your own. That way you can store your bags in the trunk.

We have booked the Haven outright (sometimes for a pretty penny). I am also surprised when I see the prices people quote on CC, but we have loved every vacation - keep remembering that when you are soaking up the sun!

9 hours ago, sverigecruiser said:

 

But not for dinner.

Even when we were in the Haven, we add the majority (5 out 7 meals) in specialty restaurants.  And a few times, we did room service when we were tired after a long shore excursion.

3 hours ago, 2kruzers said:

Thank you both for sharing!  We will be on the Dawn in August to Florida and Bahamas and I am definitely in the planning process so a couple of questions.  Does anyone have copies of the recent dallies?  Any feedback on entertainment in the smaller venues?  What night is the Glow Party?  Is there a full size hair dryer kept in one of the drawers by the desk area?  Thanks in advance for your help.

Hello, 2kruzers.  I am saving the dailies and can upload in a few days when we are back home. There are 3 main shows that the cruise director says to go to: the 70s show (Soul Rocking Nights), the Showdown, and Elements. Elements is tonight, so no info yet, but we are looking forward to it. The 70s show was entertaining but we missed showdown.  The Glow Party was on Wednesday night. And there is a hair dryer (it's in our bathroom, but it could be somewhere else in your room.)

14 hours ago, THATGirl! said:

Food: Cagnies: we LOVED it!!!( must be hit or miss , La Cuchina we found terrible & Baymo was amazing. Favorite MDR is Manhattan Room and Oshean's is great too. I found the buffet great... my only complaint the chefs couldn't manage an Eggs Benedict with a runny yolk...they were all solid lol, l i was bummed but life goes on 🙂 

 

Turn down services: Our room steward was wonderful & he came 2x a day. We didn't know towel animals were cancelled so when we asked him for one he then continued to do them until the last day 🙂 Why discontinue?? We love them even as adults. 

They stopped doing towel animals because it increased the number of towels they had to wash (1 extra per room adds up.) We went on the behind the scenes tour on the Dawn and the number of towels, sheets, napkins, table clothes washed daily was insane!

I also found the eggs benedict in the buffet to be "cooked," I just assumed it was because they were below those heat lamps - and were cooked all the way through.

We are on the Dawn now and are really having a good time. They tell us that the ship is at full capacity, but after doing Mega Ships, we find ourselves saying, "where are all the people?" It absolutely does not feel full.  I would agree that Bamboo was just "OK", but we loved Los Lobos on the first night.

9 hours ago, teachberry said:

I know it's not a Haven room...but on the Sky, my daughter and son-in-law had a suite. We had the connecting balcony room. Much to our excitement, we got all the perks of the suite. Since we had the same last name, it was now considered a "family suite!"

I suspect you got this because the Sky is a smaller boat. On the larger boats the Haven facilities are controlled by key card access, butlers, maitre d's - and other people who know who has Haven access and who does not. 

We are currently on the Dawn - in the Deluxe Owner's Suite - we have a pillow menu, but I think it is only available for rooms with a butler.  (BTW, a body pillow was not one of the options, but the pillows are really long - about half my height and could double as a body pillow.)

39 minutes ago, yearsofcruising said:

Took family yrs ago. Grandkids had a cabin..paid steward xtra  just towels  why bother

Wow!  This room gives me a panic attack.  🙂  I wonder how messy the rooms get that the stewards have to clean.

On 6/20/2019 at 1:07 PM, JasonShen said:

The kids simply ran around the room by themselves.  Whether this was fun for the kids is not my point. When kids got a chance to run around in a group they are always excited. I am also not saying that the onboard activities need to be very educational. But I was indeed surprised that it was so un-educational and unorganized. Of course each cruise line and each ship is different, but I was deeply impressed that there was a volcano explosion experiment in our previous (also the very first) cruise and how much my kids loved going to the kids club every day, which made me wrongfully think that it was the norm. I know there will be defending members but I was merely stating my very limited but first-hand observation.

When our daughter was younger (now 16) we noted that it was more "free play" than structured.  They did stuff like make pizza, paint, etc. but for the majority they just played. We only have one child, so we didn't mind as she needs time to play with others her own age.  So lesson learned, now you know, NCL is more "free style play" (pun intended).

On 6/13/2019 at 10:26 PM, BirdTravels said:

I am not sure that I understand. The OP has access to the Concierge and entire concierge staff 16 hours a day. The OP had direct access to the Hotel Manager and Assistant Hotel Manager. But chooses to wait until they are off the ship, create a brand new CC account, and complain that they were robbed. 

 

If I were robbed, I would report the theft at the time it happened. Especially if it made me as upset as the OP seems to be. 

 

You always resolve issues before you step foot off the ship. 

Exactly, we complained about a double-charge on the boat (once we noticed it).  Not only did they correct it, they removed the original charge and offered us free laundry service.  I've found them pretty accommodating, especially if you question them nicely with a amiable tone.

Hubby and I are going on the Dawn in less than 2 weeks! 

We were talking today and cannot remember if Bamboo is only open on Sea Days - and only for dinner?  Can someone help jog our memories?

Thank you - we're really starting to get excited.

20 minutes ago, TMO3CCO1 said:

Thank you for all of the great information.  We all booked a spa balcony for the pass.  I see us spending some time in the spa.

 

Do you feel the level of service is equivalent between Norwegian and Royal?  Did you have a favorite? 

 

We are looking forward to the ocean views on the Breakaway.  Is there an area or bar that is less popular  with the crowds?  Is there a must try this "food item or drink?

We've been on the Breakaway a few times.  The indoor bars are normally calm - we go to Mixx, Maltings, and Shakers.  The Atrium bar can get really busy during shows, but otherwise it is fine.  The outdoor bars are busy, busy during the day - especially on sea days.  For must try drinks, give the Rebellious Fish a try; it's an NCL specialty.

I know it sounds crazy, but I look forward to the NCL muesli on every cruise. I love it!

On 6/19/2019 at 2:13 PM, elwood_98034 said:

We are trying to get the best bang for our buck, and there are specific things we want to try. I want know if you need to trek around the ship for specifics, or if they are geared up to just bring it to you. I don't know. We have never done the Haven before. I'm not asking for special meals to be made, just regular stuff from different locations. That's why I am asking.

 

I guess it is a first world problem. If I wanted third world problems I would go back to doing road trips in Asia. Those problems were way more exciting.

My advice, set expectations with your kids. You may be able to get it or you may not.  The Haven restaurant does not advertise making meals from other restaurants - but the butler service can deliver.  If the Haven restaurant says no, order in MDR or through the butler.

23 hours ago, Sachmoe said:

 

We did not have any in a mini-suite room two years ago after the refurbishment.  I'd guess it's not likely in other cabins.

We are going on the Dawn in 2 weeks and bought some Cruise Approved chargers/USB adapters to give us more options, especially for our teenager. The older boats have limited outlets, specifically by the bed area.

Unfortunately, we've all had vacations that didn't live up to all of our planning; but overall NCL is a good cruise line. No cruise line, or product, is perfect with may variables taken into consideration. In our 20 years of cruising on NCL, some cruises were better than others.

I don't think there is anything wrong with telling the butler a few things.  The Haven advertises the Butler as an amenity, adding that they will do some of these tasks for you.  For example, we had our butler bring French Press coffee every morning, bring extra snacks when we decided to skip dinner one night, and empty the mini-fridge and place a pitcher of OJ in it - as well as milk. I really don't feel that these are unreasonable requests on a 7 week vacation where we are spending $10K+ (and we tipped him at the end).  

If memory serves me right, you can rent clamshells on the boat - at the Shore Excursion desk.

 

 

 

2

On 6/7/2019 at 2:00 PM, Navis said:

Ramona, our first butler, was amazing and would take care of things before we even knew it was an issue or was something we didn’t even know we wanted. For example, she noticed we were always back to the cabin early (around 9pm). Asked us if we were having fun and why we were back so early. We told her we like to relax at night with a drink and watch a movie. Next night, we return at 9 to find a huge bowl of popcorn and candies waiting on the table with some movie recommendations from her. Did we need that? No. Was it nice that she thought about us and how she could make our vacation a little more special? Absolutely.  We had similar exceptional experiences with Peter. Ramona I know for sure is gone from NCL and i’m not sure where Peter is now.

 

We had a butler like yours on the Escape, Oliver.  He was on top of it 100%.

 

 

 

On 6/6/2019 at 12:44 PM, Kfeldmar said:

I was wondering about that!! the room we were looking at was close to the spa, and it didn’t appear to be in a separate Haven floor but was a row of 8 or so rooms near the spa. They shared the level with other amenities so I was wondering if it was separated the way other haven rooms are. 

This is something to consider.  When we stayed in the Haven (on the Escape), we got a room near the lounge and pool.  It was so nice to walk out of your room and just cut through the lounge to get to the pool. From the lounge, you can take the stairs or elevator to the restaurant.  By staying on the same floor, it truly felt like "a ship within a ship."

Thank you for the great review.  We are going on this cruise (and the Dawn) in less than 3 weeks - in the Deluxe Owner Suite.  We've done the Haven, but are so excited to return to the small ship feel, and we are really excited for those days at sea towards the end of the cruise.

Hello all!

We already have a large cabana for our July vacation and are trying to decide on the upgrade to the Haven Villas - we're in the Haven on the boat.  The bathroom, AC, hot tub, and restaurant access are alluring.  Is it worth it?  Did you enjoy it?  My husband is not a "beach guy", so we will definitely use the cabana/villa.

13 minutes ago, C cruise said:

wow - thats crazy.. I won't book dinner there.

Definitely your choice, but (for us) it was probably the best meal we had on our last cruise - Dec 2018.