Barbique00

Back on topic...I sent my shareholder request 2/3/22 and received confirmation and credit 2/8/22.

Happy Cruising everyone!

We have stayed in the forward facing penthouse, and it was very spacious...especially in the master bedroom . A word of caution, the crew bar is directly below those on the front of the ship. It can get a little rowdy, but never really bothered us...we were on a lower deck (maybe even 9 if that is possible?) You have a window in the master that looks forward which we really enjoyed.

I would also love to see some post remodel pictures...if you find any, please post. I am considering taking the nine day in November.

Thanks!

Barb

Just a minor pet peeve with this new program. I was hoping to upgrade and was offered three different options. I just confirmed that two are actually sold out and only one is available, even though it asked me to bid on all three. I bid on two different owner's suites (which according to the rep at NCL in the upgrade department) have been sold out for some time. I am not really sure about the logic of this, unless there were a last minute cancellation?

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2415638

This is a great thread of successful upgrade stories...

I am trying to upgrade on the Escape sailing 11/12. I had to ask for the invitation from the upgrade department as it was not sent automatically...hopefully I will be posting on this board soon!

Can I trouble a recent, well relaxed cruiser for a copy of the Splash Academy Dalies on Escape age 10-12?

Thank you!

Barb

So Sorry for the late reply. You may have seen from posts after this that you can sign up once on board. I honestly think you need to be a wine drinker to get the value out of it, although, I always make great dinner friends!!

1. This one is rough, but we do it anyway. We get up and hit the bar as soon as it opens each day. We do this to keep a routine. It's the only reliable way to avoid a hangover.

 

2. On warm sea days after a breakfast at Cagney's consisting of Bloody Marys and Crabcakes Benedict, we find two warm barstools on or near the pool deck. We commence to people watching and snickering under our breath. We try not to point. Usually will head back to the suite two-fisted for a nap.

 

3. On port days, we hit the bar first thing before leaving to go ashore. A nice calm buzz is best. We also enjoy a room service breakfast, and we make sure to finish any leftover cocktails in the room before heading out.

Awesome!

I have done both the Chef's table on Carnival and NCL. If you are a wine drinker, it is definitely worth the splurge. (They free pour all night). My only gripe is that NCL has not changed the menu in years. If you have never been, you will be delighted, but I have been going since 2013 and it is still the same. You do get a fantastic kitchen tour and a nice picture with you and all of your new friends at dinner. Enjoy!

I also was in the Haven on the Breakaway in February. I put in a pre-request with the concierge, but they did note that I it would not be confirmed until I was on board. If you have a party of 6, I would head straight away to the Haven concierge once you have boarded. They held the dinner in the Haven restaurant and the kitchen tour was another day. I have been twice now and the menu has not varied, but it was delicious!

For our last 2 cruises we flew in the night before. Used one of the online sites and had our Cliquot and favorite wine shipped to our hotel. It was waiting for us when we arrived, took it to the ship, paid the corkage fee. Even with the added 15 dollars we saved 40 dollars per bottle of champagne ( it is 100 plus gratuity on board- in this case the gratuity is the same as the corkage fee!)

 

It was no hassle at all.

 

when the kids were little we did the same thing with pampers and wipes.

Nora

Sorry Nora...I missed your post earlier and we offered the same advice. One time I actually wrapped the bottles in diapers for air travel (yes...I know...mom of the year). None of them broke (and if they had, my pampers would have absorbed it). Glad to be done with the diaper days!

Has anyone ever gotten onboard, then placed an order through room service to have a case of wine delivered to your room that same day...? Any reason we couldn't do this...? We know we'd be limited by whatever they stock onboard, but that's okay.

 

Because we are flying in, we don't want to have to transport the wine with us. Also, we know we would pay a corkage fee per bottle we bring onboard, so we're trying to weigh the convenience vs. the price.

 

We know that a UBP would NOT work for us, since we do enjoy a glass (or two) of wine in the room, and that's not included.

 

Any and all thoughts about this are greatly appreciated...

What port are you leaving out of? If you are staying one night before, you can always buy from the local wine shop and take with you to the port? We are leaving out of NY next month and I found a place that offers free delivery to the hotel. I still get a reasonable price and I don't have to worry about airplane travel. It will be a considerable savings for us! Have fun :)

Barb

This is our first NCL cruise, so I just had a quick question. I noticed in the FAQ section, that it says you're allowed to bring wine or other alcohol on board. It doesn't say that there's a limit to the number of bottles you can bring. Then it mentions that when you consume the alcohol in a dining room, public area or STATEROOM you will be charged a $15 corkage fee.

 

How in the world do they know when you're drinking it in your room? Is this like a fun sleuthing game where they check your bags, your garbage and your hidden spots while you're not there, to see what was there before and then after? :) Can someone clarify their policy for me?

 

Thank you!!

I find it so difficult to pay the wine prices on board, that I usually pay a corkage. I can get a good bottle of wine here (California) for 7 dollars. They charge 34 dollars for the same bottle on the NCL wine list. That does not count the 15% tip on top of that! In my younger days...I used to sneak it on board, but now that I travel with a child...I have no interest doing the walk of shame when they catch me. I used my foodsaver to seal the bottles before I traveled last time in case of spills. While this was great for travel, it held up the corkage line because they wanted to unwrap and place a sticker on each bottle (so sorry other passengers behind me in line!!). I am considering shipping the wine to our pre-night hotel this time...I just need to see if the state laws allow it. I am still not convinced it is worth the hassle...but the mark up seems slightly obnoxious to me...especially after the mandatory gratuity.

I find tipping to be somewhat uncomfortable. I don't mind supplying the money, but the whole process of handing it over feels (to me) as though it's demeaning to the recipient.

 

I don't mean room service, or pizza delivery... and I'm quite fine with "just make it $15" when exiting an $11 cab ride.

 

But the idea of sticking money in an envelope, and making a point of locating the person and handing them this envelope feels really alien to me.

 

Instead, I go to the Guest Services desk the night before disembarkation, and have them add a gratuity for each of the concierge & butler. I then leave a thank-you card or note, in the cabin for them.

 

As for how much, it varies... we seem to get far more benefit from the concierge, than from the butler.... so we wind up leaving $100 and $50 respectively on a typical 7 day cruise.

 

 

But we barely ask for anything. On my last cruise, my butler kept having the concierge ask me if I needed anything, because he never heard from me.

 

 

Remember, SNOB comes from

 

Seeking

Notice

or

Better

 

(that's not at all true, I just made it up). :)

yes....a lot of different opinions on tipping. Even when I did not have a butler, I would always tip the steward if exemplary. Also...the kids club gets a nice tip from me. Not sure how I will handle it on board, but I have to admit I am very excited about the haven......thanks for the tips :)

Hi there, just an FYI, I received a complimentary bottle of Merlot on the Epic just last month, and I don't drink reds. They give me headaches. I took it myself to the barkeep, courteously asked for and got an exchange, without a hitch. I must be misunderstanding the story you're telling about Mr. Up the Food Chain dude. What a donkey! Oh, and I wasn't in the Haven, either, and still got my Chardonnay...

This is one of the better threads in CC, for folks who will be in the Haven the first time (like me and my friends this coming September 2013 [Pearl RT Seattle Alaska]) and are not polished in the Butler-Concierge-Steward-Pool Boy Department. We're all well-seasoned travelers, just not B-C-S-PB Dept types.

We used to smile at and look every employee in the eye that we met in our travels, ask them their names and where they're from, tip them immediately, just because, look for opportunities to fork over more dollars to these hard-working good souls, ask questions with kindness, be happy and grateful to see them when we made requests, and tip them when we said farewell.

But now, we're all scared!!! So we're all scrambling to be more classier and stylisher than we have been in our lives up till now. One of us is taking lessons on looking down her nose. Doug is practicing saying, "Hey!" real loud and such. Me and my BFF? We rehearsed singing, "You Missed That Spot," until we found out it's not really a song. Whatever. We're getting the Haven hang of things. Sure we are.

 

:D

Hilarious....and easy to relate to. It is our first time in a suite(with services) and I am just now figuring out the message boards. We cruise a lot, but I have never splurged on the Haven...so I am really on this board to figure out the etiquette and what I should be tipping.