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Haven Access for non-Haven Guests - Thoughts?


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1 minute ago, Norwegian Cruise Line said:

We are committed to providing exceptional experiences across our fleet for every type of traveler.  As such, we test a variety of opportunities to expand our offerings.  Recently, we explored making an extremely limited number of reservations for The Haven restaurant available to non-Haven guests. Given that this test has not been well received, we will continue to preserve The Haven experience exclusively for our Haven guests. With over 30 restaurants and lounges available across the fleet, serving a variety of delicious cuisines, we are confident our guests will have a satisfying culinary experience on board.

Thank you, NCL! I'll be seeing you in the Escape Haven in November, the Bliss Haven in December and the Encore Haven in May and November next year! ❤️

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Looks like the masses have been heard and peace will reign over the land (aka Haven)... at least until the next hullabaloo!   It was a horrible idea deserving a quick demise.

Edited by lgdesign
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2 minutes ago, lgdesign said:

Looks like the masses have been heard and peace will reign over the land (aka Haven)... at least until the next hullabaloo! 

And the question is after the bad month they are having, what’s next?  😳🤭😂

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On 6/15/2019 at 5:40 PM, FaithPlus1 said:

What a horrible ad. Had to reread this. Yeah I get why people would be annoyed. I don't really think there will be a huge demand though of people paying $50 per person. 

You would be shocked at the huge demand. I was totally oblivious until I read this posting, why my experience last week was the way it turned out. We paid $9071 for a this fiasco.

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8 minutes ago, Kingkonig said:

 

I have a feeling the idea was to offer a “Hey come see what you’re missing”.  But probably realized that the backlash was too much.  

 

I don’t know if the pricing is wrong (it sure is out of my budget - DW and I cruise 2-3x as often on a balcony instead of going to the Haven), but they might be over saturated.  The Haven “access” rooms that aren’t in that area should probably just be priced as mini-suites without access and they could charge more for the Haven

 

Part of my theory on the pricing being too high is that they had to introduce this whole “bidding” system to see how much people would cough up for Haven. It implies people weren’t coughing up enough money fast enough at MSRP.

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On 6/15/2019 at 5:40 PM, FaithPlus1 said:

What a horrible ad. Had to reread this. Yeah I get why people would be annoyed. I don't really think there will be a huge demand though of people paying $50 per person. 

Yeah, they are paying it and using it to the hilt, falling out of their chairs drunk and laughing hysterically on the floor of the Haven Restaurant.

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25 minutes ago, Norwegian Cruise Line said:

We are committed to providing exceptional experiences across our fleet for every type of traveler.  As such, we test a variety of opportunities to expand our offerings.  Recently, we explored making an extremely limited number of reservations for The Haven restaurant available to non-Haven guests. Given that this test has not been well received, we will continue to preserve The Haven experience exclusively for our Haven guests. With over 30 restaurants and lounges available across the fleet, serving a variety of delicious cuisines, we are confident our guests will have a satisfying culinary experience on board.

Way to go NCL!

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26 minutes ago, All-ready2cruise said:

Good call NCL and thanks for checking in.  You've made a lot of Havenly passengers much happier, I'm sure. 

Thanks for dropping by.

Cheers

They certainly made me happier! Now I am once again totally psyched for my February Haven experience! Yee haw!

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On 6/15/2019 at 6:49 PM, kochleffel said:

It sounds to me like the Haven dining room is underutilized. If the passengers for whom it's complimentary aren't eating there, why would anyone else want to pay $50 for it?

It is a place where Jake and Elwood Blues can go to irritate the high paying passengers. If it is so underutilized why did it take the chef over an hour to bring us our special order of broiled chicken breast, and grilled salmon every evening.

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3 minutes ago, rattanchair said:

It is a place where Jake and Elwood Blues can go to irritate the high paying passengers. If it is so underutilized why did it take the chef over an hour to bring us our special order of broiled chicken breast, and grilled salmon every evening.

 

That’s a normal dining time on these ships. 

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1 minute ago, perditax said:

 

That’s a normal dining time on these ships. 

 

Yeah, DW and I usually have to block off 2.5 hours when we eat at the specialties (which I think Haven is classified as, even though it’s included for the Haven guests)

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Just now, Kingkonig said:

 

Yeah, DW and I usually have to block off 2.5 hours when we eat at the specialties (which I think Haven is classified as, even though it’s included for the Haven guests)

 

Yeah, it took me a good 45 minutes to get a sandwich by myself at lunchtime in the Haven restaurant. 

 

This is is a reason I actually tend to be a buffet person, but if you get into the MDR right at opening you usually get pretty good turnaround time, especially solo. (Some will say that I should be happily savoring a nice long dining experience, but as much as I like food, there are things I’d rather do than sit in a restaurant for two hours.)

 

 

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6 minutes ago, perditax said:

(Some will say that I should be happily savoring a nice long dining experience, but as much as I like food, there are things I’d rather do than sit in a restaurant for two hours.)

 

 

 

 

No judgement here, but we actually do enjoy the long dining.  With a young kid at home we never really get that option.

 

Though there is always a lot to do on the ship

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On 6/16/2019 at 11:16 AM, GA Dave said:

Which is exactly why I said before that I will NOT pay $12,500 for my cruise if this is the case.  I do not think anyone at NCL is even bothering to survey their premium passenger base before they make decisions like this, so it may cost them dearly.  Particularly once the next recession hits and the bulk of their premium passengers have moved on to other lines, such as RCCL and MSC.

 Dear GA,  I am with you 100%. Though I found RCCL has the same problem with its NSPP ( non-suite pinnacle passengers) diluting your suite experience even worse. NSPP are totaling more demanding. The staff are more afraid of their jobs. The pinnacles wear lapel pins prominently , to intimidate the staff.

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On 6/16/2019 at 11:35 AM, Greenpea2 said:

GA Dave, I agree with you. Had a 4 year break from NCL and was really looking forward to the Haven on the Bliss next February. If this impacts the ease of eating at the “private Haven restaurant” or having a cocktail at the bar, I simply won’t book Haven again and will look elsewhere. It’s so expensive anyway and now doesn’t seem to be delivering on what they claim it to be. 

 

I think if people find thus to be an issue when Onboard, they need to express that to the Concierge, Hotel Director, etc. in a nice way of course, but in an honest serious way. Enough Haven guests voice negative responses, that will be communicated upwards. 

Dear Pea, I am swiftly becoming your devoted servant on these boards. I have voiced my concerns while on board the Breakaway.  They will not communicate upwards, they fear for their jobs. They have no union or US protections. Put your concerns on the comment cards, and hope , hope.

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11 minutes ago, rattanchair said:

Dear Pea, I am swiftly becoming your devoted servant on these boards. I have voiced my concerns while on board the Breakaway.  They will not communicate upwards, they fear for their jobs. They have no union or US protections. Put your concerns on the comment cards, and hope , hope.

I think if you were tell the Concierge, they would pass it along to their Supervisor, but if you told the Hotel Director, I think they would pass it upward to corporate.

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On 6/16/2019 at 12:25 PM, Outerdog said:

As a frequent non-Haven guest in non-Haven suites (Jewel, Pearl, Star), I have to agree with the Haven guests in this thread. Selling the Suite/Haven benefits to non-Suite/Haven guests is an awful idea for the reasons already stated (crowded, diminished service). 

 

Even in a non-Haven suite, I would never book this. I can't get past the notion that I would sit at the table in the Haven restaurant consumed with the feeling that I simply did not belong there. I think I would find it to be an uncomfortable second-class experience. 

Dear Out,  I totally agree with your first statement. Totally disagree with your second. I empathize with your second statement, feeling 'sour grapes'. I have felt the same way all my life. When you near the end of your life you do not give a hoot! You will find you belong more than anyone else in the room.

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1 minute ago, NLH Arizona said:

I think if you were tell the Concierge, they would pass it along to their Supervisor, but if you told the Hotel Director, I think they would pass it upward to corporate.

 

I think the other issue is that you’ve got a bunch of people in the Haven who have paid a lot of money to be there, each with a different view on what a perfect vacation is.  I’ve heard complaints on here that parents let their kids run wild in the Haven because “well I paid 15k to be here, I can do whatever I want”.  You’ve got people who drink too much, demand a specific type of vacation, etc.  I’m not sure NCL is communicating to the customer exactly what the Haven is.  I’m not sure they even know themselves.

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17 minutes ago, rattanchair said:

Dear Pea, I am swiftly becoming your devoted servant on these boards. I have voiced my concerns while on board the Breakaway.  They will not communicate upwards, they fear for their jobs. They have no union or US protections. Put your concerns on the comment cards, and hope , hope.

Wow! I have never had a servant before (for free no less) let alone a devoted one! Awesome. 😉 I thank you for doing my (suggested, not barked) bidding and voicing your concern. I do think the Hotel Directors listen and if it seems enough of a concern, they do pass it up to corporate. But since we now have heard they are trashing this garbage-y concept, I give YOU part of the credit. Job well done! 🙂

 

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1 minute ago, Kingkonig said:

 

I think the other issue is that you’ve got a bunch of people in the Haven who have paid a lot of money to be there, each with a different view on what a perfect vacation is.  I’ve heard complaints on here that parents let their kids run wild in the Haven because “well I paid 15k to be here, I can do whatever I want”.  You’ve got people who drink too much, demand a specific type of vacation, etc.  I’m not sure NCL is communicating to the customer exactly what the Haven is.  I’m not sure they even know themselves.

What is The Haven?  To me, it was just a place to relax, but to a family it is probably a place to have some fun.  I do believe that NCL is very lax in enforcing their rules or talking with passengers who are hindering another person's cruise, but I have to say that there are some, who have posted on CC, who take it to extremes.  It is kind of like a guy at my gym; he doesn't like noise.  Let me rephrase that, he doesn't like any noise, so when someone talks, he tells them to shut up or if someone makes the slightest noise with their weights, he makes ugly comments.  I think that someone who wants to relax can live with some noise/fun from children or other adults, unless they are causing them bodily harm, but then I'm a petty easy going person.

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3 minutes ago, NLH Arizona said:

What is The Haven?  To me, it was just a place to relax, but to a family it is probably a place to have some fun.  I do believe that NCL is very lax in enforcing their rules or talking with passengers who are hindering another person's cruise, but I have to say that there are some, who have posted on CC, who take it to extremes.  It is kind of like a guy at my gym; he doesn't like noise.  Let me rephrase that, he doesn't like any noise, so when someone talks, he tells them to shut up or if someone makes the slightest noise with their weights, he makes ugly comments.  I think that someone who wants to relax can live with some noise/fun from children or other adults, unless they are causing them bodily harm, but then I'm a petty easy going person.

 

Yeah that’s kinda my thought, I just don’t think I worded it right.  NCL’s “Freestyle” cruising is a “live and let live” kind of cruise, which I believe the Haven includes.  The service would be better (I believe the crew:passenger ratio is better than the rest of the ship?), but that doesn’t change the behavior of the other passengers.  Nor should it, in my opinion.

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