Fishbait17

Been a long time since I've posted here. Last NCL sailing ended 3/15/2020 and we caught the last flight home from Santiago before the world shut down from Covid... We've been trying to find time to sail again and I think we've found time.

Does NCL still offer "Bar Setup" for purchase for your cabin, where you can pre-purchase bottles of liquor for your suite? Tried a search and didn't find anything recent or helpful. 

Thanks!

Robin

Thank you, exactly what I was looking for!

Long time, no see!  Several years ago I helped compile a list of Breakaway cabins and suites, balcony sizes, etc.  Now I’m looking for something similar for Bliss (or even other newer ships). Specifically looking at booking an aft-facing Penthouse suite.  Cabin is very important to me as we are cabin hermits, looking to sleep in, and remain isolated as much as possible (we are in serious need of a break). Looking for the bigger balcony deck numbers and if any have the plan with the bathtub near the balcony rather than than the bed near the balcony.  For one sailing we only have the choice between decks 9 and 15.  We may change sailing dates based on the cabin information, it’s that important to us.  I’ve checked cruisedeckplans.com and there are very few photos.  Does anyone know if there’s a comprehensive list like the Breakaway has?  A personal experience as to the larger balcony decks?  Thanks for any assistance!

Robin

Robin,

Great review, we were on the Pearl for (12/14) 11 day southern in 15000, perfect weather, perfect cruise, loved the H2..

 

I got a question, are there 2 zones on the Bose with speakers outside?

 

Thank you,

Robert

Robert, I don't really remember. Most of the time there was live music poolside, so we wouldn't have heard our own music anyway, other times the prerecorded poolside music would be playing - I do remember hearing "Get Happy" at least three times a day lol. We also brought our small portable Bluetooth Bose speaker, just don't remember if we used it outside..

Robin

I didn't mean to start any major controversy. It appears the answer is anything from stiff him to provide him a retirement in a Park Avenue Penthouse when we arrive back in NYC.

 

If I don't ask him to do too much would $200 be a good tip for 2 adults and 2 young children?

Sounds very reasonable to me.. Our average tip is $150 for two people for the week including a few breakfasts delivered, and a few small requests. Enjoy!

Robin

how many people can the 2 bedroom suite reasonably accommodate?

 

2 in main bedroom.

2 in small bedroom

1 on couch

 

5??

Six total. Two in master bedroom on queen/King bed (it's somewhere in between to me). Three in small bedroom (two in lower full-size sofa bed and one in Pullman above). One on living room sofa (only a single, does not pull out). Three adults is pretty comfy. Two adults and two or three kids is comfy. Four adults is doable. Five or six adults is tight... Second bedroom is very small - on some ships if the lower bed is opened to a full bed, the bathroom door doesn't open all the way.

If you are hoping to upgrade your CAS comp, be sure to call CAS to check on pricing, it doesn't always correlate with online listed pricing. And as stated above, most big promotions are not combinable with a CAS comp.

Robin

And reading some of these responses is why I first posed the question. Last year on the Getaway in February, the restaurant was empty every time issued by....sounds like they've both dropped the price and made some improvements. It seems silly it's not part of the UDP....

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

From what I understand, Geoffrey Zakarian pretty much controls every aspect of OB - menu, portions, price, etc. And I'd assume the exclusion from UDP as well. At least that's what we were told on that sailing, that it was a venture he did much more than lend his name to. Makes sense with the quality of the food I guess. The hostess was definitely NCL staff, but I'm not even sure the kitchen staff was. Either way, go, enjoy! It was a tasty meal! :)

Robin

One thing I haven't seen mentioned here is that CAS often does not combine offers with comped cruises (as the OP stated he'd be using). With the CAS discount (not comp), many promotions are combinable. But with a comped cabin, very few promotions are combinable.. Sometimes some OBC is available (only for the cabin category you are comped, no matter how high you upgrade, you only get the OBC for the comped category), but not the bigger promos, hardly ever.. We have not been able to combine the KSF nor the 10% OBC nor any if the "freebies" (like UDP, UBP, Specialty Dinners/spa credit/etc) sales. YMMV.

Robin

When I took my Certified Pool Operators training, we were taught that spas are the filthiest of all pools. Depending on the usage, they should be drained and refilled 2-3 times a day, because the filtering system simply can't keep up with heavy usage. If you ever see one with foam in the water, do yourself a favor and stay out of it.

 

 

Have you ever seen the spas on board drained and refilled during a day at sea?

I've had the same training and yes, it is really quite disgusting! I am vigilant about maintaining our home spa..

When staying in the Haven on the Jewel a few years ago, we did notice that they emptied and refilled the spa every evening. Timing wasn't the best for us, as that was the only time the spa was free of the two kids that were always in it (maybe 10-11pm). On other ships, I have seen Haven Spa closed/emptied much later (2-3am or so) and that seemed more reasonable. The GV spa was emptied at the end of each of our stays, and scrubbed by three maintenance guys, I was impressed. I wouldn't ever enter the spas on the main pool deck, just watching the usage reminded me of bacteria soup! Don't recall seeing them emptied from our DOS balcony overlooking them, but I wasn't looking either.. I'd assume they were also emptied nightly, but you know what they say about assuming..

Robin

Who told you no you could not have a vegetable? The waiter or the restaurant manager? Because I would have requested a meeting with the manager. Were there any vegetables served in the restaurant at all. Did you notice other diners with a vegetable? Your experience was rather strange, don't you think?

 

Three times $39 or $49 and you all left very hungry. Maybe you should have requested a refund. At the very least, let the manager know. Or maybe even the hotel director. Strange!

 

Harvey

The waitress informed us when we asked. At the time we sailed (only the second week that the Breakaway sailed with the then brand new restaurant) we were able to pre-book for I think $35pp, the pricing went up while we were sailing to $49pp. There were no real vegetables served with any meal we ordered (two Black Sea Bass (my favorite!) and one Scallops entree) My entree was a tiny fillet of fish, about the size of two, maybe three fingers, with a sauce and, in fairness, a garnish sized helping of something diced (a couple tablespoons at most? more decorative than anything) and with nothing else on the plate. Seriously. I have pictures of it somewhere. It was delicious, but the size of an appetizer at most fine restaurants (unless it's something rich or decadent). We often do tasting menus at fine restaurants (Guy Savoy is the BEST), and these were basically "tasting" portions. My adult daughter was served two scallops, with a delicious tiny piece of pork belly for her entree, with nothing else on the plate (we buy here right from the scallop boats and these weren't even very large scallops). We were permitted to order one appetizer, one entree, and one dessert each. I had a bread salad for app, maybe a half cup total? At one point we even asked for extra bread (the bread was delicious) and we were given an excuse about that as well, although they did end up bringing a bit more bread with dessert. Since I don't eat dessert, I asked about substitution (I wanted a beet salad :)) and was told no to that as well, so I ended up ordering the cheese plate for my husband. It's very rare that we eat a lot, especially my daughter and I - we have done the Chef's Table and couldn't even taste every course, way too much food - but this was seriously very little food.

It was a very strange experience - not terribly awful, just odd. Delicious food, nice ambience, but I was surprised that they raised the price so high that week considering our meal. There were two men dining in the restaurant next to us, and they were asking for more food as well, nobody else there. We wrote it off as being a new restaurant ironing out the wrinkles. The wait staff seemed apologetic but said there was nothing they could do - that it was all chef's policy or something like that.. We had reservations to dine there again later in the week and cancelled. Our hostess there was also working in the Haven and she apologized upon seeing us later in the week, and we hadn't even complained - I think she just knew. It was just early kinks I suppose, and I'm glad to hear they have added some (larger portions of) vegetables (I don't remember what the extra stuff on my plate was, probably vegetable, but really more garnish than a side). I'd try it again now that they've been up and running a while.

Robin

OP, you a bad butler, plain and simple, and it happens sometimes. It's a shame, and I'm glad you spoke to the HD and took care of it on the ship. It does sound like his contract was not renewed (likely for being unsatisfactory in the first place) and he was on his way home for good. I'm also glad you didn't let it ruin your vacation, but I am sorry for your poor experience.

OTOH, I keep reading here about how NCL butlers are not as professional ("glorified waiter"?) as butlers at other resorts, hotels, etc. Perhaps your limited experience with NCL butlers has left a sour taste in your mouth, but this is not my experience, not the experience of many others (and yes, I've had Sandals butlers, Four Seasons butlers, etc). I am almost always offered unpacking services, occasionally offered packing services, and a million things in between, and I know that even if not offered, all I have to do is ask. I have seen people on this board speak of many, many, many things their butler has done for them - pick up their child from the kid's club, bring them lunch and drinks at the main pool, hold seats for them at the theater, run them things from their cabin that they have left behind accidentally, serve drinks and snacks to friends they bring to their cabin, escort them to different places on the ship (dinner, theater, etc), going to the ship shop to pick them up something, carry their purchases back to the cabin, and I could go on and on and on. I do not ask any of these things from my butler as I am perfectly happy doing such things myself, but I do know that if I wished to, all I would do is ask and it would be done. I also recall that a few of the people who requested such things were boasting about their low tips for such services, and calling butlers "minimum wage service workers", but that's another matter altogether.

There is some discussion about overworked butlers being responsible for too many suites in distant locations on the ship, and I agree with this. It's ridiculous to expect a butler to service the GV, plus the OS's five floors below and half a ship forward, and several more in between. There is also usually discussion about butlers being more attentive to the highest level suites, and I agree with that as well - it does happen, and I expect it to (paying $20,000 for a suite does buy perhaps a bit more attentive service than someone who paid $3000). But that does not mean that you cannot receive excellent, attentive service in the $3000 suite, only that you maybe have to ask for it.

I have no problem with everyone deciding how much to tip - this is exactly how it should be. Tipping is discretionary based upon your requests and services, your own personal factors, and what the service means to you. But it should have NOTHING to do with how much you think the butler earns or deserves to earn from others for his services. Just because you did not ask for such services does not mean that they don't exist nor that others have not received them. Nor does it mean that others' vacations have not been greatly enhanced by their butlers' attention, just because yours wasn't. To repeatedly tell others that NCL butlers are NOT excellent nor worthy of a decent tip because of your limited experience is like telling people that the Four Seasons is a cheesy hotel based on the one time you stayed in the least expensive room and had less than divine service. Sometimes a butler is less than excellent, and occasionally they are downright bad. But you are telling people that it's how they ALL are - not providing any services that others have obviously been offered regularly - just because you haven't asked.. You have every right to tip for the services you requested and received, but you have no right to tell others that their tips are preposterous or they have NOT received services worthy of such a tip.

It's like everything else in life - you have to figure out who to believe and what's right for you. If you don't believe that NCL butlers provide such services, nor are they worthy of tipping well, so be it. But don't go around basically calling "Hogwash" about services offered, and telling people that NCL butlers do NOT do things that they obviously do. And most of all, don't try to manage the income of people you know little about. Just tip what you feel is appropriate, and let others do the same.

Robin

With what result? You can't actually complete the booking, or you are assigned something other than Haven when room is assigned?

Basically, you can't book a cabin that does not exist, so therefor you get an error message online (not completing the reservation) or the PCC says it is not available (on the phone). If I found I was able to actually complete the reservation, I'd expect a disappointing phone call shortly after. There basically is no such thing as a Haven guarantee...

Robin

Service in OB is extraordinary, food (and I've eaten there six times) is delicious (although I always find the roasted broccoli side dish extremely salty) and in my opinion worth experiencing.

 

Tracy

Good to know they are now serving sides. We enjoyed OB, but when we dined there (second sailing on the BA), the portions were ridiculous (entree was a piece of fish as big as two fingers with no accompaniments) and there were no veggies or sides or anything but the small protein on the plate. I don't eat sweets, so asked if I could have a small salad instead of dessert and was told no, asked for a vegetable, was told no.. We are used to small portions and fine dining, but all three of us left very hungry that night, and ended up having to eat a big snack a bit later (and I never eat anything after dinner). I'm also lucky that at home we can get fish caught today to cook at home every day, so nothing on the menu was a reach for us.. Food was delicious, service excellent, but portions/flexibility were a turnoff. Glad to hear they've at least added a veggie side.

Robin

I will warn you that often Haven suites show up on a test booking as "Guarantee", but they don't actually exist. I have called several times on these guarantees (we almost always book last minute), and have not found once that there is actually anything available.

Robin

For just the family, Le Bistro hands down. For a larger group, Moderno.

Robin

Could someone tell me if there is a bar setup for being in Haven that is complementary.

Thanks

If you are in an Owner's Suite or Deluxe Owner's Suite you will get three (one liter) bottles of liquor plus mixers included. In a Garden Villa (the three bedroom ones, not a Haven or Family Villa), six bottles plus mixers are included. Otherwise, its all pay as you go, except for a single bottle of sparkling wine in your suite upon embarkation, and a few free drinks at the Suites Cocktail Party one evening.

Robin

Thanks for responding. I was aware that when staying in the Haven you can request pretty much anything within reason from room service. Just wondered if there is an expanded printed room service menu in the Haven? The Haven amenities list leads me to believe this but I've seen differing posts from users about it. Can anyone verify? Not that big of a deal, just wondering. Guess I'll know in a few days...

There is no real "Haven Room Service Menu". Basically, you get the same limited room service menu that is in ither cabins (there should be a copy of this somewhere if you google it), plus you get doorknob hanging breakfast menus that are pretty basic. For breakfast, you can write whatever you want in addition to the simple things on the menu - I write things like "2 eggs over easy" or "bagel with lox and cream cheese"). For other meals, you would look at the menus from the open restaurants and order from there. As for snacks - there are standard pre-prepared snacks delivered each day - some days they are sweet, other days savory, etc. But you can also request additional snacks, as long as it's available on the ship - popcorn, chips, cheese and crackers, tea sandwiches, cookies, candy, etc. None of this is written down anywhere, although a lot of people use the O'Sheehan's or Blue Lagoon menus for snacks, or simply ask for "chocolate candy?" Etc. As for shrimp cocktail or anything like that, as long as it's being served in a restaurant (and preferably at that particular time), you can likely get it delivered.

Robin

I'll add that if you ever do a sandals AI vacation with a butler, you will laugh at what passes for a butler on a cruiseship. Not even in the same orbit. And they typical tip for a sandals butler is around $15 per day so these quotes of $150 for a cruise butler are really laughable. No way.

I have stayed at Sandals with butler service, although it was several years ago (2009). At the time, we had two butlers, and I believe we tipped approx $30-40 per day between the two (~$20-25 per day for the day butler and ~$10-15 per day for the evening butler) - the amounts were recommended to us by friends/previous guests. I also remember having different butlers during the week as they changed shifts.. Either way it was roughly $250 tips for the week, which is higher than I have given many butlers on NCL, who work alone until late evening.. I rarely use the night butler on NCL.

Robin

BS. Our butler did none of the things you mentioned. The first time we even met the butler was when I called for room service breakfast day 3. I was met with an annoyed sounding voice at the end of the phone. When he brought my food over an hour later ( which I didn't say a word about), he scolded me for not putting my breakfast order on the door night before. He never introduced himself. I opened the door, he said "good morning" and then launched into a tirade on how he "was busy and I should have put the card on the door". When I explained I didn't know I could use that for what I wanted ( items not listed on form), he told me in an annoyed tone to just write it in. The next day, we wrote it in, he didn't bring 2 items and then told my husband he didn't write it in right. Never put a tablecloth down, never put out ketchup, salt, pepper, etc on any of the occasions. Later in week, husband asked for a different snack and was again met with annoyance. An the potato chips were never brought that day or any other. Room attendant did ice, glasses, etc for us-not the butler. One day we had a fill-in butler deliver breakfast-he set up the table nicely, delivered correct items on time and chatted pleasantly about our day. He got a small tip at the time of the service. Rudeness, inattentiveness= zero tip.

I definitely agree he sounds like a bad butler - his attitude sounds terrible and his service certainly subpar. What I am saying is that this kind of service is rare in my experience. I have had one less than great butler (a little rude and definitely inattentive), but I understood why when I saw another cabin running him ragged daily. That certainly is no excuse for his behavior, more of an explanation. That said, he did provide us with some service, albeit not perfect, and he did receive a tip for services rendered, but less than half what I would normally tip. It's a shame that you had less than stellar service from one butler and hope that you have better service on your next suite sailing.

As for tip amounts, I feel my standard starting point of $10 per person per day is well worth the comfort and pleasure most NCL butlers bring to our vacations. I have had butlers on many other vacations (cruises and not), but none have made my vacation as enjoyable as some of my NCL butlers. Everyone must decide for themselves what the service is worth to them, and I'm quite happy with my decision.

Robin

I think the amounts quoted here for butler or concierge are way out of whack ( on the high end). Even if you had a good butler, what do they do for you? Deliver room service and bring you snacks? That's really the extent of their duties. Our butler a few weeks ago on BA was terrible. He brought snacks daily and room service breakfast 3 times. Every time we ordered the breakfast, he was rude and annoyed. One day, we asked for a different snack and were met with a visible sigh of irritation. Another day, we had no functioning toilet in the room so we called him to direct us. He expressed no empathy at all, telling us to call housekeeping. No tip for him.

 

Our concierge was a very nice man, but, again, what do they do? He helped us switch a dining time and show. Escorted us off the ship. The dining & show booking I could have done myself on the tv-I only asked him because he was there. To me, that does not warrant a $100+ tip. He got $50 from us.

I'm sorry you felt you had a bad butler, it happens sometimes, but he did, after all, serve you a full room service breakfast three times with no tip at all?

A good butler can make your cruise spectacular, and you might hardly ever see him! It's the combination of all the little things that generally add up to amazing smooth service. Things like this: He notices you make martinis with your bar setup, so he makes sure you always have a supply of olives and extra martini glasses. He knows that you are taking a long port excursion (Berlin for ten hours?), so when you return there is a plate of sandwiches waiting for you. He sees that you use a LOT of ice (one of our "things"), so he offers a wine bucket and fills it with extra ice every day. He maintains the coffee supply, noticing that we use a LOT of decaf, so we always have an extra plate of decaf pods, and fresh cream (not milk, not half-n-half) since he knows we like it. He notices that your kids eat all the bananas out of the fruit bowl every day, so starting maybe day three you have double the banana supply. After he serves you breakfast, he keeps an eye on your suite to see when you leave so that he can arrange for cleaning up after your room service without intruding. On the night of the suites cocktail party, while he is serving drinks and canapés at the party, he arranges for someone else to cover any of your personal requests or needs. Every night, when you pour a glass of wine and take the glass from your suite, leaving it elsewhere on the ship, he refills your glassware for a supply gathered from all around the ship. Etc, etc, etc, etc, for each thing I mention there are dozens more I can't think of at the moment.. He anticipates, asks questions that might seem just small talk to you but are actually cues for him (like "Where are you going today?"), he notices the details, he is unobtrusive. It's truly a talent to supply great service without it seeming like any service at all, if that makes sense. And yes, attitude counts - on occasion a butler can seem snippy or annoyed, and that's not right - but I always assume they have more demanding guests in other suites putting them in that place, and I usually have empathy for them, and by being nice, their attitude generally changes.

Robin

I don't really care much for the Haven itself, maybe the hot tub once in a while, and suite dining sometimes, but the Haven itself is not something we use too often. My first choices in suite sailing would not necessarily even include the Haven - for example, my favorite suite is the DOS on the Gem for the suite itself, and the best service has been on the smaller ships like the Sun, which has no Haven at all. That being said, the Epic is probably our favorite actual "Haven" experience for two reasons. First, it is one of the newer ships, and so has a dedicated suite restaurant for all meals if one wishes, the older ships do not have a suites venue for dinner. Second reason is Posh. The Epic is the only ship which has the exclusive adults only sun deck included for Haven guests. I also prefer it to Vibe on the BA/GA because it overlooks the main pool area so that you can enjoy the atmosphere while being separated just enough for some quiet and much more space. I only wish that Posh had a hot tub..

Robin

For a larger group, I like Moderno.. It's almost like it's made for group dining. What's nice is that you're pretty much always being served something, people can pick and choose what they want every time a server comes over, and the kitchen does not have to coordinate serving eight entrees or apps or whatever all at the same time (which can lead to less than perfect food). Plus, there seems to be more time to linger and enjoy at Moderno and a lively group making friendly noise seems to bemuch better tolerated there. Not the best choice for vegetarians or vegans, but a great place for a group consisting of meat eaters.

Robin

Beware the bra thing if you wear skin lotion or sunscreen - I've had to have my card replaced over and over because the oil in these things wear off both the print and the encoded strip. The ink will also be deposited onto your skin...

Robin

Thanks for all the responses and especially Robin. I think we may forgo a cocktail party as it seems like a little bit of a pain. It was just going to be for family anyway. :D

Lol, I didn't mean for it to sound like a major PIA, but it can be when you go higher in numbers or if you plan to offer anything more extensive. Family can be easier than new friends, because you're generally more comfortable with them and telling them it's time to leave lol.. Hosting something like a BYOB for a port-of-call sail away is pretty easy, and can be very nice if you have a very large balcony, just ask your butler in advance to set up snacks and you're pretty much good to go. As someone said, it's very impractical/unrealistic to have the butler running back and forth to the bar, but if they BYOB it goes pretty smoothly.

Ps - we tried the "we have reservations" thing, but some people just don't really give a darn lol. They move at their own speed and often do what they want, even when you ask them nicely not to. Our largest party was in the GV at the end of a cabin crawl. While not a "cocktail" party (although we did end up going through six bottles of wine that we had brought onboard), that one had over 45 guests, and some were wandering the Haven upon departure (when we specifically asked them not to), some stayed until we literally kicked them out, and it took six of us to lead everyone in and out (the locked Haven stairway and elevators) for the duration - we even had a couple of "party crashers" that simply joined the cabin crawl while in progress lmao. Most people are excellent guests, but there's usually a few in any large crowd that don't "get the hint". It's for this reason that we will likely not host a M&G or another cabin crawl in the GV. It's just a lot of work to do during a vacation.

Robin

I have seen this happen on cruises that are reaching their limit on "extra" guests. Once, when looking at the GV, the third/fourth passengers were $1699 per person, and that extra person cost ran equally down all categories all the way to inside cabins, where the extra person rate was more than double Pax 1&2. This is especially true of Holiday sailings or last minute booking during school holidays.

Robin