dnl_in_Illinois

It came in handy to weight my luggage for the return flight home;):)

Now THAT is a good idea!

On the Jewell class ships, it normally goes as follows for the GV passengers:

 

- Embarking: escort for the GV is provided immediately after check in; for lower suites there may be some waiting time in the VIP lounge and for those suites the concierge may put some groups together when it is very busy (noon!), which is less nice;

- Disembarking: we always had both the butler and the concierge escort us to the terminal and the concierge even to the limo;

- Free limo: where you want to be brought is open for discussion with the concierge and he/she will ask you a few days before disembarkation; as long as your request is resonable; you should be aware that a limo does not always have to mean a stretch limo or similar, but rather a luxury sedan or - depending on the number of people in your group - a luxury van;

- Cagney's: is open for breakfast and lunch for all full suite passengers, but in the GV you really are tempted to eat in your room (or on your terrace, or in your large bedroom, or on your sun deck or in your jaccuzi, or in your steam room, if you really like this...}; frankly, we seldomly leave the GV...;

- Restaurants: all GV passengers will get 1 free meal in one of the speciality restaurants: your concierge will ask you during the long talk with you in your GV when you want to use this perk;

- Guests: you can invite guests to your suite, but they may not use the Haven facilities (but why would they, because the GV has everything), unless offered by the concierge;guests can eat in your suite and the butler will serve them; at one time on the Jade the concierge offered platinum key cards to 2 very dear non-suite family members, so they could easily come to the room, but this is something special you might get offered if the concierge is ware of the situation and if you are lucky and it will not happen with a fellow passenger you just met and want to show the GV.

 

Hope this helps, but your concierge will inform and help you as much as you want so don't hesitate to call her/him.

 

PS: never had Dom Perignon in our GV, "just" Moët.

Aladdin1968 -- An excellent brief on all my questions with all the answers! Thank you so much. We will be leaving in just shy of 3 weeks so your information is timely and most certainly helpful. Oh -- I think we can make the Moët work!

Happy cruising!!

Dave K.

I just want to note that as of several weeks ago RCCL changed their policy regarding children in CL during cocktail hour - they are now allowed with their parents. This was done based on the feedback of families who paid very large amount of money of the suite, but could not use that significant perk.

 

You might also be interested to see reactions of D+ and childless suite guests regarding that policy - fascinating reading.

That of course is the whole dilemma! Especially if the children were very young and cranky. I wonder if they will ever change their policy of allowing people to take their cocktails out of the concierge area?

Wow. Just wow. To save myself from an anxiety attack (is it the anonymity that allows people to say such presumptuous things or would you really say these things in person), I just skimmed over all these comments and I'll address the ones that stand out. I have a two year old so a sense of humour is a requirement but some of this stuff is hard to shrug off.

------------ snipped --------------

Ok now...be kind.

I started to type responses to your first discussion that, while I didn't agree with all that you said, I did relate to what you said. This time I followed through.

We have sailed on several cruise lines -- perhaps not as much as some but we have always had one of the better or best suites on HAL, Oceania, NCL and RCCL. While I gave our recent cruise on the Oasis a glowing review (where we had the exact same ATS as you had - 9330) none of the review had much to say about the extra perks or service we received as a suite guest. Bottom line -- there wasn't much.

We enjoyed free cocktails in the concierge lounge a couple of times so RCCL gets high marks for that. For what it's worth, while seated in the concierge lounge we did note that people with children were not allowed to bring the kids in during cocktail hour -- so for them the perk was not relevant. We were invited to cocktails on the heliport which was a special thing. And we were invited to cocktails in the early afternoon with the captain and other suite guests. All nice.

Our cabin steward also had responsibility for other cabins that, as you know, were not suites. He did an adequate job but frankly was not knowledgeable about "things" and always forgot to leave the dining room menus. This is only a comment, not a complaint. The point is, no special treatment.

On the Oasis the suite guests were advised that the Izumi specialty restaurant, located next to the Windjammer was reserved for suite guests. On the two occasions we tried to use it, it was overflowing with people who could not find seats in the Windjammer. I asked about that and was told "we are just trying to accomodate people". That is fine - in fact good - but don't tell me that I have a perk and then not follow through.

As to the special seating for the shows -- our experience was that the "special" area was not all that well policed. We really didn't care all that much except for when we went to the ice show we made it a point to get there very early, and the seats were mostly filled and not enough for the 6 of us. I make an assumption here -- but I did not think the people who populated those seats were suite guests. Again - no big deal but the follow though by the ships staff was incomplete.

My feeling is, that while my grand children 11 and 12 years, their parents and I had a great time - - the suite experience was not as good as I have had on other ships that tend to do a lot more for their suite guests. Although the memory is vague, we may have had a somewhat better experience on the RCCL Freedom where we had one of the Owner's suites. I do recall the suite itself was extra special and we were close to the concierge lounge.

Next time -- try the NCL Epic. Great family suites in the courtyard and we were treated very special -- kids and all! We're next in one of the Garden Villa Suites on the NCL Pearl and looking forward to that experience.

My thoughts and done.

Quote from that thread:

 

 

 

Regarding being escorted to your suite upon check-in: This is the case unless the cabins are not ready yet. On the Epic, this was the case - so we went as a small group (suite guests and escort) and took a tour of the suite complex - followed by lunch in the Epic Club.

 

I don't recall how far we were escorted off the ship on the Epic - not as far as luggage pick-up or customs.

 

Never having stayed in a GV, I can't say how flexible the limo driver would be. But my guess is that a detour (to a closer place than the airport) should not be a problem. Let me know how that works out!

 

Yes, suite guests are treated to breakfast and lunch in Cagney's (Epic Club on the Epic). This is a very nice perk!!

 

I have no idea regarding a free specialty dinner w/GV accommodations.

 

It would not hurt to clear guests coming to your GV prior to the event - thus showing that you respect the "rules" so to speak, though I am sure that many just have their guests follow them up.

 

Have a GREAT time! :)

 

Tom

Tom, thanks so much. You're a knowledgable contributor to the CC boards and I'm sure there are many who appreciate that! Me too. Dave K.

PS: If I follow through with inviting guests of any number I'll discuss with the concierge and provide a list if that is appropriate. Good suggestion.

You would need to navigate back to the first page of this thread, and copy the address. Then you'd need to go to the NCL page and click on NEW THREAD. At that point, you would make a title for the thread and post your initial comments. Within those comments you would need to paste in the copied address (from the first page of this thread) using the little "globe/paperclip" icon, making sure that anything which is in the pop-up box to begin with (http/.. etc) is fully replaced by the web address of the first page of this thread.

 

GOOD LUCK! :)

 

Tom

Tom, thanks for this. I will take a look. Can you help me with my questions here: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=30265459&postcount=55

The post is in this same thread - just buried among the "conversation".

Dave

As far as inviting non-suite guests to the GV, you just have to meet them somewhere so you can use your card to get the elevator up to the GV deck. You can have your butler bring snacks if you want but otherwise do not need to involve the butler or concierge. You can only entertain them in your GV, not in the Haven aka Courtyard.

Thanks. That's helpful and we will likely follow through with that approach. We have limited NCL experience but on the Epic they seemed strict about non-suite people coming into the area. We were in a Villa suite there. I am *totally sensitive* to not populating the "Haven" area as I would not appreciate that. I was thinking of a Meet and Greet kind of thing. Still thinking it all through.

We're sailing on the Pearl in January 2012 and have booked one of the Garden Villa Suites -- 14500. As I have done reading about the suite offerings that have been generously posted by past NCL suite users, particularly the GV suites -- I read a couple of things that I have questions about. Perhaps someone who has sailed more recently can answer for us:

• Embarking - it has been said that you are escorted directly to your suite. There was no boarding time connected with the comment. Is this still the practice - assuming one arrives at the pier around noon?
  
• Disembarking - NCL has the concierge escort you as far as the port permits. Still the practice?
  
• Free limo to airport is provided. Since I am traveling with my Florida siblings, we will drive and park off the cruise port grounds. I wonder if the limo would drive us to our car?
  
• Dining - it is said that suite passengers have access to Cagney’s at no charge for breakfast and lunch. Is this still the practice?
  
• Dining - it is said that GV suite passengers are provided dinner at one of specialty restaurants for one dinner. Is this still the practice?
  
• I assume that if we wish to invite non-suite guests to our GV during the cruise that we could make arrangements for that through the concierge or butler. Can anyone confirm that?
  

Those are my questions. I will greatly appreciate any and all information you may be able to provide. It will help with our planning and understanding of what to expect. Thanks!

I just wanted to share this list of amenities that my PCC was nice enough to email to me.....it's much more inclusive than other lists I've seen...so, here it is!!!

 

Garden Villa S1

Embarkation

Personal escort to stateroom

Metallic Color key card

1 Bottle of French Champagne (w/compliments card from NCL)

1 Floral Arrangement

1 Fruit Bowl *

2 Bottles of Spring Water *

2 Bottles of Sparkling Water *

6 Bottles of Liquor From Menu **

6 Sodas * (Variety of Pepsi/ Diet Pepsi/Sierra Mist/Tonic/club soda)

Whole Milk/Skim Milk for Cappuccino Coffee set up

Warm face towels, embarkation by Butler

Upon request, unpack guest suitcases by Butler

Guests are offered complimentary limousine service from pier to airport

(Not offered to guests on 1 & 2 night cruises)

 

 

** 1 & 2 Night Cruise Amenity - Set up in the Garden Villas and Owner’s Suites will not include full bottles of liquor, but will include one bottle of French Champagne. (Complimentary water and sodas are included as usual)

 

 

* Replenished upon consumption

 

 

Bath Amenities

Cotton ball & Q-Tip Caddie

Bath salts, presented in container, shell scoop

Loofah, cello wrapped, no logo

Elemis brand products presented on tray:

Pure Shine Shampoo 40ml

Pro-Vitamin Conditioner 40ml

Sharp Shower Gel 40ml

Vitamin Rich Body Lotion 40ml

Pure Zest boxed Soap 80g

Pure Zest boxed Soap 50g

Lip rescue 10ml

Cooling Eye Gel 10ml

Instant Refresh Gel 10ml

Shower Cap, paper envelope

 

 

Other

Butler and Concierge Service

Access to Star Bar day lounge

Daily Breakfast and Lunch in Cagney's

Pillow menu selection (tent card on night stand)

DVD and CD Player

DVD & CD Library, DVD Movie Library Binder

Deluxe Coffee/Espresso/Cappuccino Machine serving Lavazza coffee

China cups/saucers, espresso cups, teaspoons

Coffee/Tea pod dispenser accompanying Lavazza Coffee Machines

Bathroom Scale

Clock

Bath Robes (Plush Terry Robe-Waffle Design)

Slippers (matching to robe- plush terry waffle design)

Feather Pillows, Queen/Euro

Feather Duvet Insert

Upgraded linen - 300TC with Embroidery

Towels including oversized bath towel

Long stem barware, 6 each, space available.

Binoculars

Bar Utensils

Full Breakfast Menu

24 Hour Room Service Menu (Suite Menu)

Food Turn Down delivered each evening

Complimentary pressing for optional formal night/shoe shining

Priority restaurant reservations

Priority embarkation and disembarkation

Personal Laptop Computer - (no internet time included; each guest must purchase time as they would if they visited the internet cafe onboard).

In Suite Dining

 

Back to Top

 

 

 

OWNER'S SUITES ~ SA, SB

Embarkation

Personal escort to stateroom

Metallic colored key card

1 Bottle of French Champagne (w/compliments card from NCL)

1 Floral Arrangement

1 Fruit Bowl *

2 Bottles of Spring Water *

2 Bottles of Sparkling Water *

3 Bottles of Liquor From Menu **

6 Sodas * (Variety of Pepsi/ Diet Pepsi/Sierra Mist/Tonic/club soda)

Whole Milk/Skim Milk for Cappuccino Coffee set up

Warm face towels, embarkation by Butler

Upon request, unpack guest suitcases by Butler

 

 

** 1 & 2 Night Cruise Amenity - Set up in the Garden Villas and Owner’s Suites will not include full bottles of liquor, but will include one bottle of French Champagne. (Complimentary water and sodas are included as usual)

 

 

* Replenished upon consumption

 

 

Bath Amenities

Cotton ball & Q-Tip Caddie

Bath salts, presented in container, shell scoop

Loofah, cello wrapped, no logo

Elemis brand products presented on tray:

Pure Shine Shampoo 40ml

Pro-Vitamin Conditioner 40ml

Sharp Shower Gel 40ml

Vitamin Rich Body Lotion 40ml

Pure Zest boxed Soap 80g

Pure Zest boxed Soap 50g

Lip rescue 10ml

Cooling Eye Gel 10ml

Instant Refresh Gel 10ml

Shower Cap, paper envelope

 

 

Other

Butler and Concierge Service

Access to Star Bar Day Lounge

Daily Breakfast and Lunch in Cagney's

Pillow menu selection (tent card on night stand)

DVD and CD Player

DVD & CD Library, with DVD movie library binder

Deluxe Coffee/Espresso/Cappuccino Machine, serving Lavazza coffee

China cups/saucers, espresso cups, teaspoons

Coffee/tea pod dispenser accompanying Lavazza Coffee Machines

Bathroom Scale

Clock

Bath Robes (Plush Terry Robe-Waffle Design)

Slippers, standard

Feather Pillows, Queen/Euro

Feather Duvet Insert

Upgraded linen - 300TC with Embroidery

Towels including oversized bath towel

Long stem barware, 4 each, space available.

Binoculars

Bar Utensils

Full Breakfast Menu

24 Hour Room Service Menu (Suite Menu)

Food turn down delivered each evening

Complimentary pressing for formal night/shoe shining

Priority restaurant reservations

Priority embarkation and disembarkation

Personal Laptop Computer - (no internet time included; each guest must purchase time as they would if they visited the internet cafe onboard).

In Suite Dining

 

Back to Top

 

 

 

PENTHOUSES ~ SC, SD, SE, SF, SJ

Embarkation

Personal escort to stateroom

Metallic color key card

1 Full bottle of Sparkling Wine (House) w/compliments of NCL card

1 Floral Arrangement

Fruit Bowl *

1 Bottle of Spring Water

 

 

* Replenished upon consumption

 

 

Bath Amenities

Cotton ball & Q-Tip Caddie

Bath salts, presented in container, shell scoop

Loofah, cello wrapped, no logo

Elemis brand products presented on tray:

Pure Shine Shampoo 40ml

Pro-Vitamin Conditioner 40ml

Sharp Shower Gel 40ml

Vitamin Rich Body Lotion 40ml

Pure Zest boxed Soap 80g

Pure Zest boxed Soap 50g

Shower Cap, paper envelope

 

 

Other

Butler and Concierge Service

Access to Star Bar Day Lounge

Daily Breakfast and Lunch in Cagney's

Pillow menu selection (tent card on night stand)

DVD and CD Player

DVD & CD Library, with DVD movie library binder

Deluxe Coffee/Espresso/Cappuccino Machine serving Lavazza coffee

China cups/saucers, espresso cups, teaspoons

Coffee/Tea pod dispenser accompanying Lavazza Coffee Machines

Bathroom Scale

Clock

Bath Robes (Plush Terry Robe-Waffle Design)

Slippers, Standard

Feather Pillows, Queen/Euro

Feather Duvet Insert

Upgraded linen - 300TC with Embroidery

Towels including oversized bath towel

Long stem barware, 2 each or 1 per person, space available.

Full Breakfast Menu

24 Hour Room Service Menu (Suite Menu)

Food turn down amenity delivered each night

Priority restaurant reservations

Priority embarkation and disembarkation

In Suite Dining

Bumping to the top of the thread.

Summary of my thoughts regarding this thread.....

 

* This thread prvented me from booking a room with NCL that would have not worked for me.

* At least three different families who beleived NCL decieved them where enlightened with the truth of pictures on this thread.

* The handicap community needs a bigger voice with the travel indusrty.

* A clear policy regarding booking of handicap suites does not exist.

* Even the hard to convince NCL cheerleaders have agreed to some point that NCL has a situation that needs to be corrected.

* This web site is the probably the single best source for obtaining up to the minute accurate information regarding crusing.

* I continue to be amaazed that NCL todated has not acknowledged this problem and it continues to exist today.

 

I hope everyone conitunes to follow and share information regarding how NLC is marketing the Epic Villa Handicap Suite.

 

Safe travels everyone.....

Good summary. It would likely benefit others if it were also posted on the new thread. What think??

Photos of Epic Courtyard Villa Suite 16029 (aka as the handicap suite) are here:

http://www.dwkoester.com/dwkoester/handi.htm

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1270226

 

Here is the link to continue this discussion on the NCL page here at Cruise Critic.

Will we be able to access the old posts on this thread? If not then the photos need to be copy/pasted to the new thread. Or maybe we do that either way?

Gary,

 

I completly disagree with you. This thread is not long enough or even begins to reveal the emotion associated with being mislead by NCL. I know you are a NCL cheerleader which I used to be too. But when you spend as I did $16,600 for a two week vacation plus air fare, tips, extras for meals, you should get what is advertised and not a surpise! How many people need to say the same thing over and over before NCL apologizes or makes some change to better inform the public of what this room is really about? NCL advertised a Villa with walls and seperate sleeping areas. The reality is far from what they advertised and continued to sell as of today! Beacuse this thread is alive there are two families that have posted this week that they too were mislead by NCL.

 

Hats off to the TA who has the floor plan! That TA has more informtion than you can get from NCL coroportate offices.

 

I spoke directely with NCL Corporate Offices as I previously posted and they admited that the information posted here was correct.

 

I hope this thread stays alive until NCL publicly apolpgizes and references accurate information on thier website and also trains thier sales force to accruately disclose the facts regarding this room.

I agree with Gigcruiser. This thread only begiins to illustrate the problem as well as the efforts people have gone to in their attempt to find accurate information. The inaccurate information that may exist (in this thread) surely isn't the problem of people making the posts. It rests with NCL who enables it by continuing to ignore the problem as evidenced by Yelobird3 and Indigo_Star's recent encounters. The people who book the cruises continue to mis-represent the suite. We all owe much to ascatsob for revealing the issue and NYSoccerMom for getting the photos.

Sorry I see a wall in the picture around the toilet, shower, bath area. A curtain like the balcony cabins that divides the sink area and blocks the light to the rest of the cabin if used at night :confused:

 

 

Wall and door clear in this picture

 

 

If you were familiar with how the Villa Suites are configured, you would know that there is no wall dividing the master bedroom from the living area nor are there walls around what is normally a second bedroom and bath area. That is what is being discussed here - not the bathroom area only. That is not the way the suite is represented by NCL.

 

Hope that clarifies the question.

I'm glad you agree and I didn't steer you wrong!

ascatsob -- I never really doubted that you were providing good info - but when the cabin stewards told me they were the "same as" - that really threw me. But upon reflection - I think we had a language misunderstanding. Note that I did post the photos provided by NYSoccerFamily. It is positive that we **finally** resolved this!

Here's a link to the long awaited photos of 16029. Many, many thanks to NYSoccerFamily who provided the photos!

http://www.dwkoester.com/dwkoester/handi.htm

Gigcruiser and Yelobird, I just emailed you the pictures. Let me know if you did not receive them or can't open them!

 

["other Dave" :) (dnl in Illinois), I'm sorry, but Mike has your email with him at work and I couldn't reach him, so I couldn't email the pics to you. If you still want me to send them (don't know if Gigcruiser or Yelobird can/will post them), I will, after I get your email from him--just let me know.]

 

I am so sorry it took me so long!!!! :( I know how eager you were to receive them. I really was trying to figure it out... besides chasing the kids to all their activities yesterday.

 

Hopefully you can post them from my email. If not, I am still working on learning how to post pics here.

 

If you or anyone has any questions, I would be happy to answer.

Hi Patti, I understand your dilemma. I can wait for Mike or if you have a moment send them to dwkoester@hotmail.com. Thanks so much.

Gee, sorry if I sounded impatient.??

 

Only was suggesting they post it publicly as it appeared they were going to email them to a few posters.

Sorry back. I don't mean to offend. I do agree that it would be helpful to have them posted. Just trying to recognize that I'm sure they are in "recovery mode" after just returning home.

You would help many,many more people of you can post them here, onrsomewhere like google picassa, or webshots so others can see them.

 

If you post your pictures here, but they have to be downsized to a small size. (.jpg must be just under 100k)

 

P.S. - you probably do not need the software that came with her camera. You can plug in the USB cabele and just copy the pictures to your computer, then do something with them from there.

Garycarla: Let's be patient. I agree that it would be helpful that they be posted to the boards - and if no one else does it I will be sure that we accomplish that. I'm sure you know that returning home from a 2 week vacation means there is a lot of catching up to do. So let's give them some time.

Sorry, one more quick off topic post...

Hi "other Dave" :)

We would love to see your video of "the plane." That was a memorable moment for us...painful, yet funny! :D Our video shows the sand and Mike's legs running away. Yes, Mike has your email. I am still deep in laundry and unpacking, but will get to emailing you soon. And yes, if I can't figure out how to post the handicapped room pictures, I will email them to you as well.

 

I agree the HC villa would be great for 2 and no opening and closing pocket door issues-if you know what I mean.

 

Sorry I didn't get to say goodbye, but I did get to see/hear you Fri. night at the Second City Show (advice skit :p--funny).

 

Pattie

Oh my gosh! You guys were in the crowd! He really caught me by surprise. Did you hear me for the very first opening question -- "Give me the name of a show that has never been performed". I said "Middle School Girls". I *was* of course thinking my my Kalie who started middle school on Thursday. She (and the rest of us) loved what they made out of it!!!

The sliding door! Yep. Mark (my daughter's husband) was the one who said we needed some duct tape. Oh -- and the "painful" sand blast! Yes for sure. Wait 'till you hear what one of my g-daughters says on the video. That was sure a fun day with Junior our driver for Benard's tours.

I cant believe I just did that again... Here I go again...

 

Hi Dave K,

I am the one who has pictures of the room and I will post them later today or send them to GigCruiser who I'm sure will post them.

 

First of all, I don't blame you for being upset about the whole situation. NCL was wrong. When we first booked our villa, (directly from an NCL rep), and we were trying to decide which ship/line to take, our NCL rep. read off a list of amenities we would receive as villa guests. I wrote them all down but did not receive them in writing. Unbeknownst to us at the time, he was reading off the list of the perks for the owners suite. He told us we would recieve such things as 3 bottles of liquor each week, water and soda restocked everyday, limo ride to the airport after the cruise... amongst other things. Although those perks weren't the only reason we chose an NCL villa, they were things that swayed us in our decision making. Of course, when we got on the ship, we discovered (and were told) that we would not be receiving that long list of perks. We felt a little annoyed at the misrepresentation made by the NCL rep, but we surely weren't going to let that ruin our vacation--and it certainly didn't.

 

I will say, I have seen the room and it is big and beautiful. Granted there are not divided rooms, but if it is just you and your wife, that may not be a problem for you. The one bathroom, although it is handicapped access, is very large. There is no door, only a curtain, but in the standard villa master bath, there is only a curtain dividing the master bath from the Master bedroom too and the very small bath in the little bedroom is a lightly frosted door with 1/8 inch gaps on each side of the door which you can clearly see in from.

 

I would echo dnl in Illinois's view. We just returned from a 2 week, B2B cruise and stayed in a courtyard villa, down the hall from where you will be.

 

I feel the amenities that a villa offered were worth the additional fee. Having priority embarkation and debarkation was great! We never waited in lines. We were greeted with snacks and drinks and immediately escorted right to the villas, with no lines. At every port as well, if we wanted to be among the first off the boat, we just let them know and they took us down a back employee elevator, and escorted us right to the front of the lines.

 

Another great perk was being escorted into all the shows early utilizing that back elevator. No lines! We always had the first pick of seats for every show. Even in the Cirque show, where we did not pay for priority seats, we were given the the the best upper level seats, which in my opinion, had an unbeatable view. (However, If you want to possibly be chosen to have a small part in the show, then you would want to have priority seating). (FYI, if you do go on Epic, book all the shows in advance. It's really not difficult to do, only takes a few minutes to plan it out and book it.)

 

Another villa perk that we believe was phenomenal was the (Courtyard) Epic Club restaurant (and Epic Grill)! The food was great and the service was UNBEATABLE!! You can even have any of the meals delivered to you in your room, by your butler. Also, there are nightly specials in the main dining rooms (Taste and Manhattan) each night (appetizer, main course, dessert), and the same ones (or sometimes one better main entree special), were offered in the Epic Club. After eating there for 2 weeks, we felt like family with the entire staff in there! They were so good to all of us and we had so much fun with them. Take the time to get to know them, because they are all GREAT!!

The Epic Grill has a smaller menu with some same and some different items from the Epic Club lunch menu, that can be ordered in the small, breezy restaurant or delivered to you by the pool or your room and were available till 5, after lunch at the Epic Club restaurant closed for lunch which was nice if you missed lunch or were hungry before dinner. They also had tea, orange juice, cookies, breads, M&Ms, gummy bears, etc. out there most of the day.

 

The use of the Courtyard private pool, private sun decks, private workout facilities, private spa facilities, steam room, sauna, etc. were great if you don't want to be amongst the masses on the rest of the ship (although I must say, we never felt like the ship was crowded--wherever we went).

 

Your room steward would probably be the same as we had, Michael, who is probably one of the hardest working members of the crew. He is WONDERFUL! (and so is his assistant, Maricel!) Unfortunately for you, you would not have our Butler, Putu, whom we believe is the BEST there is!!! I'm sure yours will treat you extremely well too and do everything to make your stay even better. (Including afternoon and nightly treats!)

 

The crew on the entire ship were so friendly and treated us wonderfully. There is so much to do on this ship...don't know how anyone could do it all in one week.

 

I think, despite the room configuration, if you were determined to have a good time and not let the deception factor bother you, you would have an amazing vacation on the Epic. As I said, the room is huge and beautiful. The villa staff was amazing, and the "perks" were great and really made you feel pampered and special!!

 

Just wanted to give you my opinion, based on our personal experience in the villas. Hope it helps!

 

Pattie

Hi Pattie, this is the *other* Dave who you met just across the courtyard. Boy, reading your comments just want me to go back -- at least to the Villa suites. Your point to Dave K - the fact that the room is still very nice, etc. was something I was wondering about. In fact - I can see it as *better* for just 2 people and not unlike what we experience on HAL in one of the SA suites -- just one big room.

I was working on the video's I shot along with my daughter's husband. It is hilarious as he starts running when the jet backflow started. I see glimpses of Mike and the girls and possibly you in the video - but it all happens fast. I do hope you guys send me an email and your snail mail address so I can share it with you. I'm sure it will bring a grin. Hello to Mike. If conveinent - please include me when you email the photos to Gigcruiser. Mike hopefully has the card with my email address (otherwise I can post it).

And to the rest - sorry for the off topic lapse here. Dave (the other Dave)

Dave K:

 

This is exactly the reason why I started this post. I know I would have been extremely disappointed and it would have destroyed my cruise had I opened the door and discovered 1 room instead of 3. At the very least, you now know what to expect ahead of time and can prepare yourself. I hope NCL can find you another room that you are satisfied with or at the very least, compensate you in some way. If you still plan to go and have any questions about the courtyard or the boat I would be more than happy to share.

I share <ascatsob's> sentiments. There has been so much discussed about this room and even mis-information offered by the cabin stewards (although now I wonder if there was a language issue with the question/answer - but 2 of them said the same thing!!). I will say this - even if you end up in the room, there is so much more about the Courtyard Villas -- the concierge, Epic Grill and Restaurant, the Courtyard itself, the escorts to the shows etc. - you will still enjoy the cruise. I am NOT sticking up for NCL as I think it's awful that they can't get their act together re: this. I *am* attempting to assuage some of your concerns. I too will be happy to answer any other questions you may have re: the Courtyard Villa's as we just returned from sailing on the Epic a week or so ago.

When are you sailing on the Epic? Where are you located in Chicago?

I am currently on the Epic and have peeked into the handicapped suite twice (while my cabin steward was making up the room.) No walls, just a large curved curtain to close off the bathroom. I'll try to take a picture today or tomorrow before I leave the ship.

Hey Mike or Patti, thanks for looking into this! Didn't know you were doing 2 weeks on the Epic. How lucky you guys are. I was great to meet you and your family. Dave

We booked 17035 on September 25th and are anxious to hear any and all about the room and the suite life on board. Also I heard we may hear noise from above, any thoughts.

We just returned from staying in 16010. Can't comment on the noise issues on Deck 17 although there are several posts about that here and elsewhere on the CC boards. As to "suite life" I will mention:

• We found staying on Deck 16 - the same level as the Courtyard, Epic Grill and Club restaurant, lounge and concierge had many convenience advantages. There were absolutely no noise issues and we were by one of the door entrances to the Courtyard and very close to the pool.
  
• The concierge will escort you to the BMG, Ledgends and Cirque performances to assure that you get the first choice of seats in the theater. Very nice perq. They will take you down through the service elevators of the ship, not the public elevators. We had front row seats for all the performances for the 5 of us. Yes, we wore the plastic ponchos for the BMG performance because we were so close. We made our reservations for these shows when they became available on line at the NCL website. Don't assume that the concierge can get you into the shows if they are booked.
  
• If you wish to go to either the Taste or Manhattan restaurants ask the concierge to call ahead and you will avoid any waiting time and may get a preferred seat. We were seated immediately while others had about a half-hour wait.
  
• The concierge will print your boarding passes at the end of the cruise.
  
• Don't miss the shrimps in the Epic Grill at lunch time. All the lunch items were good as among the 5 of us I think we tried most all of them.
  
• Some of our best dinners were in the Epic Club restaurant. The rack of lamb and the braised short ribs come to mind as I type. Others had different menu items that were very good.
  

If the room had Walls... I am now really #$%@ with NCL for not being honest.

 

If the room was doubled booked... I am now really #$%^# with NCL for not being honest.

 

I still am waiting for a written relpy from NCL. I wrote to the President and every VP I coul find on thier web site and annual report.

 

Not one person has responded.... AMAZING!

It took 4 weeks for them to respond to my letter.

 

Take a deep breath, before you talk to them..... the first time you called, they told you it had walls. YOU called back & insisted it didn't. So they agreed with you.

 

Maybe the people who had it booked 'for months' had a guarantee, or maybe they got an upsell, or maybe they had the cruise booked for months, and changed rooms when you vacated this one.

I did not receive the impression that the people who had booked "for months" received any of the aforementioned. Now that I reflect on the conversation there may have been someone with special needs traveling with the party - a "mother" who was seated behind us. There were at least 4 people, perhaps 5. I stood with them as we listened to the life safety discussion.

NCL is not a public company. It is owned by GENTING Hong Kong Limited and Apollo Management, L.P. (“Apollo”). Genting was formaly known as Star Cruises. The Chairman is Tan Sri Lim Kok Thay. Where did you find an NCL annual report? I have been looking for one. It appears that the NCL 'sub' is experiencing some financial issues as it has in the past: http://*******.com/28rn5cp and http://*******.com/2vdngqn