What does a butler DO?

[ArtsyCraftsy]

Bear with me, folks -- this may seem like a dumb question...

 

I’m taking my first Oceania cruise this summer -- a short 7-day trip to/from Alaska.  I travel solo, and I’ve booked a PH2.  I believe it comes with a butler.   By the time this cruise comes around, I will have taken a total of 4 cruises: 3 on HAL, and 1 on Regent Seven Seas, none of which have involved the presence of a butler (concierge, yes; butler, no).

 

So what, exactly, does a butler do?  I grew up in an environment and culture where butlers existed only in literature, so I have no experience with this.  I’m also fiercely independent, so things like helping with unpacking/packing won’t be needed.  

 

The only thing I can come up with is maybe helping me procure a bottle of decent red wine for consumption in my cabin in the evening or something like that.  Or possibly getting reservations in one of the specialty restaurants? (although truth be told, i’m perfectly capable of picking up the phone and making my own reservations).

 

Just trying to get some info and ideas so that I don’t make a complete fool of myself or unintentionally insult someone.

Thanks!

 

Lana in Bellingham, WA

[Noxequifans]

When you first meet your Butler let him tell you all the services he offers. Then ask questions.

[riffatsea]

We will also be on our first Oceania cruise and in a PH1 with butler.

We also do not require much service and don't even like our cabin to be cleaned every single day of a cruise. We really like our privacy!

It would be nice to hear how others have used the services of the butler. We definitely would NOT want help unpacking or packing our things!!

Edited January 30, 2019 by riffatsea

[LHT28]

The  butler  will be there to do what you want him to do (within reason)

It is  not mandatory that he unpack or pack your bags 

You can get dinner in from the Specialties  & the Butler will serve you course by course  should you wish

 

as above  when you meet  the Butler he will tell you what he can do for you & you can tell him what you require

[cruisingxpert]

The butler will tell you what he does but he doesn't know what you like if you don't tell him.

I had no idea what to ask for when I first started on O.  I learned a lot from other people telling me things they asked for.

 

There is a form to request canapes brought to your cabin at 5-6pm - you have to put the request out by Noon that day.

I never managed to know what I wanted or if I wanted anything at that time.  My butler asked what I liked and I said I like potato chips.  He brought potato chips and nuts(if you like them) every afternoon.  This last cruise I said that by 5-6 I'm probably getting ready for dinner and maybe he could bring some in morning and afternoon and he said why don't I bring a bag of chips and you can have them when you want them- great idea.  They stay fresher that way.

Rambling story but you get the idea.

 

  I also email the Special Services people and ask if they will stock my favourite pop - A&W Root Beer.  Had it every cruise but one.

 

I never get up at the same time, but I would like coffee, cappuccino and a croissant.   The butler said to put that on the breakfast request with no time on it.  Call when I get up and it would be there within 15 minutes.

 

Hope this gives you some ideas.

[Mura]

It's very true that you can make your own specialty reservations but when you are booking on board (as opposed to having made your reservations online well in advance) you may well get better results by having the butler make them for you.  Sometimes you are told nothing is available for the date and time you want but the butler can get it done.  That's not a guarantee that he can get them 100% of the time, but your odds of getting what you want can be better.

 

We started out not using a butler at all but gradually used them more and more ... not that we ever use a butler as much as some people do.

 

On our last cruise we had a glitch with our reservation for La Reserve which somehow got lost.  The butler handled the whole problem for us.  In fact, it was he who discovered there was a problem.  He heard us say that we were going to La Reserve that evening but he was pretty sure we weren't on that night's list, so he investigated.

 

We wouldn't use them for packing either!

 

Mura

[Andee]

We've only travelled in a PH once and couldn't figure out much to ask the butler to do.

We did like chocolate dipped strawberries at 5 every day. 

Had room service breakfast one morning, but his big show of setting it up just felt instusive. 

We asked to see a veranda cabin as we'd never sailed on an "O" ship before and he took us to a handicap cabin,  which isn't really comparable, so that was a fail.

[cbb]

BTW....Oceania lets you bring your own wines, etc on board so if you have wine that you particularly enjoy, bring it with you--as many bottles as you want. 

 

If your cruise begins in Seattle, then you can shop at your fave store at home; if your cruise begins in Alaska, shop there and bring on board. 

 

If you bring a case, well then your butler might be able to help you with storage!  Cheers!

[LHT28]

seems  a lot of people  do not want a butler so maybe O should  just use Butlers for the top suites  & save $$ on  Butlers for  PH cabins

Just a thought

[StanandJim]

16 minutes ago, LHT28 said:

seems  a lot of people  do not want a butler so maybe O should  just use Butlers for the top suites  & save $$ on  Butlers for  PH cabins

Just a thought

I've been  cruising long enough that I've heard that same argument about private verandas......and bathrooms in every stateroom before that!

Intimidation is a large factor here, but that would be true for any added amenity or service. 

As the Alka Seltzer people used to say "try it, you'll like it!".  😇

[CruisingIGo]

A few days into a cruise, my DH was feeling a cold starting and he wanted a pot of hot tea.  On his way to the executive lounge (the quickest & easiest place for him to get tea), our butler nicely encouraged DH to go back to cabin and said he would bring tea.  The butler very quickly brought a lovely tea set up......pot of hot water, several selections of tea, and a few cookies.  Nice service.

[Paulchili]

An example of non-essential but really nice service by a butler:

The day they served my favorite dessert at tea - Paris Brest - we were going to be out on a tour which meant I would miss it till next time (maybe a week later). I mentioned this to our butler and we had 4 pieces waiting for us in the cabin upon our return.

A very nice treat and another example of what a butler can do 🙂

Edited January 30, 2019 by Paulchili

[DOJO466]

2 hours ago, StanandJim said:

I've been  cruising long enough that I've heard that same argument about private verandas......and bathrooms in every stateroom before that!

Intimidation is a large factor here, but that would be true for any added amenity or service. 

As the Alka Seltzer people used to say "try it, you'll like it!".  😇

Hi Jim...wasn't that the Life cereal add with Mikey? Alka seltzer just plopped and fizzed.😜

[riffatsea]

Thanks for all the butler info. I love the idea of canapes in the afternoon and having the snacks you like in your cabin. I am sure we'll figure it out once on board!

[DavidTheWonderer]

Yet another topic for which different people have different opinions.  I have never found butlers to be useful and been somewhat uncomfortable with having one, but that is just me.  Our condo in downtown Toronto has 24/7 concierge service, and although they are sometimes very useful, I'm not comfortable with them either. Although I don't think I've ever met the original poster (Lana) I have seen a number of her posts here and would hazard a guess that she is more like me than the people who really like having a butler. But having a butler and never using his/her services doesn't do anybody any harm.

[kreastman]

We had our first experience with a butler in a PH1 on Sirena last year. He was great. We had breakfast in our cabin several times, and also enjoyed a few dinners there, both from the specialty restaurants and also from the GDR menu. After a long day of touring, it was nice to just relax in comfortable clothes and enjoy a delicious meal while watching the sunset. On a couple of occasions, when friends we met on board wanted to join us for dinner, our butler was able to get additional specialty reservations on short notice. 

 

Basically, your butler will do as little or as much as you desire—just tell him what you want. We didn't know if we would like having one, but now we are spoiled.

 

[warburg]

Greetings from South Beach, LHT28. We book PHs because we use the butler's services. If some PH passengers prefer not using the butler, that's their choice.

 

I am also very fond of the closet in Oceania's PHs. We had a PH on Regent's Explorer twice and loved everything about it except the closet. It was smaller and more of a stand in one place closet, rather than a walk in. Our large case was under the bed. In Riviera and Marina's PH closets, all of our luggage and everything else fits in the closet. It is almost a dressing room.

 

We board Riviera five weeks from today, and are looking forward to the voyage. When we lived in New York, QM2 was our ship of choice because she sailed from Brooklyn, 30 minutes from our place. Although we sailed Insignia in 2004, and Regatta in 2005,

the lure of at least avoiding the flight to Europe motivated us. Our first segment on every QM2 cruise was a TA. On two extended voyages, our last segment was also a TA back to New York. No flights!

Bon Voyage everyone sailing soon!

Mary

 

 

 

[pinotlover]

One’s Butler also oversees their cabin stewards. Since Oceania has continually increased the number of cabins each steward is responsible for , about 21 on our last cruise, for those of that spend little of the day in the cabin, one’s Butler is the best way to arrange any services for their cabin. Finding a cabin steward can be a search. Getting in contact with their Butler is quick and easy.

[pinotlover]

Just now, pinotlover said:

One’s Butler also oversees their cabin stewards. Since Oceania has continually increased the number of cabins each steward is responsible for , about 21 on our last cruise, for those of that spend little of the day in the cabin, one’s Butler is the best way to arrange any services for their cabin. Finding a cabin steward can be a search. Getting in contact with their Butler is quick and easy.

 

I believe on our last cruise each Butler had 16 cabins each, and the room steward had 21 cabins each. So for those that don’t wish to utilize their Butler you won’t hear complaints from those of us that do. 

[tgg]

3 hours ago, DOJO466 said:

Hi Jim...wasn't that the Life cereal add with Mikey? Alka seltzer just plopped and fizzed.😜

The "try it, you'll like it, ad was about a guy in a New York City restaurant who asks the waiter about something being served. The waiter tells him several times "try it, you'll like it.  The guy finally tries it and says "thought I was going to die." He then takes 2 Alka Seltzer. Classic ad from the 70's I think.

[Paulchili]

3 hours ago, kreastman said:

Basically, your butler will do as little or as much as you desire—just tell him what you want. 

This is spot on - although there are some limits 🙂

[ArtsyCraftsy]

12 hours ago, cbb said:

BTW....Oceania lets you bring your own wines, etc on board so if you have wine that you particularly enjoy, bring it with you--as many bottles as you want. 

 

If your cruise begins in Seattle, then you can shop at your fave store at home; if your cruise begins in Alaska, shop there and bring on board. 

 

If you bring a case, well then your butler might be able to help you with storage!  Cheers!

 

Oh, this is good to know!  I'm used to HAL which allows only one bottle of wine per passenger for consumption in the cabin only, unless you pay a corkage fee.  And with Regent, there's no need to bring my own as drinks including wine are included in the fare and I like to experiment and try new things when I'm cruising.

 

The cruise starts and ends in Seattle, and I can easily tuck a bottle of my favorite red in my carryon (I'll be taking the train to Seattle, then a taxi to the terminal), then see what the ship has to offer if I need another one.  Thanks!!

 

Lana

[Mura]

Lana,

 

It can Depend on how much room you have ... when I bring wine on I usually have 2-3 bottles in my luggage, maybe a bottle of vodka.  If we're in a "super suite", I don't bother.  But if in a PH or lower, I'll bring a few on with me.  Since you are traveling alone you may not want that much anyway!  I get that.

 

It also can depend on the length of the cruise.

 

I have no problem buying a bottle from the wine list, as overpriced as it is.  That's no different from a nice restaurant, after all.  And if you have OBC, you can apply it to such purchases.  And if you don't finish the bottle, they will store it for your for your next restaurant visit.

 

There are protective casings that you can purchase online if you are worried about bottles breaking in transit.

 

Mura

 

[ArtsyCraftsy]

Thanks, everyone, for sharing your experiences with butlers.  The Oceania website is rather vague about what they do so I figured reading the experiences of others would help put things into perspective.  I've gotten some great ideas, though, especially the "chocolate-covered strawberries in the afternoon."

It's not really a case of my not wanting a butler, but rather I don't want to make any major mistakes.  I'm sure after I board in Seattle, I'll be able to meet and discuss things with the butler to find out what will work for me.  But for sure that strawberries idea will come up in the conversation. 😉  

 

Thanks again ...

 

Lana

[cbb]

If you bring your own wine into the dining room there is a corkage fee--I believe it is now $25.

 

  There is also Happy Hour where the drinks are 2 for 1 but sometimes it is nice just to be in your own space with a drink of your choosing.  Hope you have a great cruise--we love O!