New to NCL, A Few Questions

[pirate4me2]

Hi everyone!

 

I just booked my first cruise on NCL for September 2021, and I am hoping that you all can put my mind at ease and answer a few questions that I have. I have cruised quite a bit on Carnival, but I have decided to change things up once all my current bookings I currently have with them are sailed and branch out to try new lines. As much as I love Carnival, I need a change and figure this will make cruising "new" again, and who knows...I may fall in love with another line!

 

Anyway, we are booked for the Joy to Bermuda in a Haven room. The Haven looks amazing, but I have a few questions about it. First off, I see it has it's own restaurant...is that for a charge or included in our Haven booking? It also mentioned a mini bar in the cabin, is that included as well? We probably won't partake in it since we booked the drink package, but who knows. Also, the booking came with a specialty dining package with 5 meals at specialty venues...is that 5 meals per person or total? What venues would you recommend we try? What ones should we NOT try?

 

Another thing, the Haven room comes with a butler...I honestly don't know what the heck we will do with a butler...can someone give me examples of what they actually do? LOL I know that sounds crazy, but I really doubt we will need one!

 

The booking also has a $50 per port shore excursion credit...can we use that ahead of time booking shore excursions online thru NCL, or is it only useable once onboard? Heck since we are in Bermuda I really don't know if we will use it at all...this will be our third time there, and we usually do the bus/ferry pass to where we want to go, but who knows, maybe NCL will have an excursion that we really like so we may take advantage of that!

 

Any info you all can give me on the Joy and NCL in general will be so appreciated. I will be reading these boards and any reviews I see posted about Joy like crazy. I am super excited to try something new, but super nervous too...I don't handle change well and have gotten so comfortable with Carnival, but this could be a great adventure! I just feel like a fish out of water.

[Two Wheels Only]

4 minutes ago, pirate4me2 said:

First off, I see it has it's own restaurant...is that for a charge or included in our Haven booking?

 

The Haven restaurant is included for Haven guests for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. PLEASE do not ask about bringing a non-Haven guest to the Haven restaurant. 

 

5 minutes ago, pirate4me2 said:

It also mentioned a mini bar in the cabin, is that included as well?

 

No. The very highest Haven suites get some drink "extras" but most Haven suites do not get anything extra. 

 

6 minutes ago, pirate4me2 said:

Also, the booking came with a specialty dining package with 5 meals at specialty venues...is that 5 meals per person or total?

 

It would be 5 meals each for guests 1&2. The meals cannot be "given" to other guests. 

 

7 minutes ago, pirate4me2 said:

Another thing, the Haven room comes with a butler...I honestly don't know what the heck we will do with a butler...can someone give me examples of what they actually do? LOL I know that sounds crazy, but I really doubt we will need one!

 

There are many threads that deal with the same question. You will see extremes in every direction.  When it comes to tipping the butler (and concierge), you will also see extremes both high and low ($0). It's all personal and up to you. 

 

 

[pirate4me2]

Thanks for the quick reply Two Wheels! No worries on us trying to bring non-Haven guests anywhere, it will just be DH and I. That's pretty awesome about the dining package, looks like we won't be in the main dining areas too much! I am really looking forward to this change-up!

[JamieLogical]

For your shore excursion credit, it won't be applied to online excursion bookings and you get charged for those up front. You should book by calling into the reservation desk before your cruise or while on board. Also note that the $50 won't be credited to your on board account until AFTER you have completed the excursion, so don't panic if you see the full amount charged to your account before that. The credit is per cabin, not per person. Finally, I just want to point out that if you are in Bermuda for multiple days, the $50 credit is available for each individual day, but not combinable and you can't use two separate credits for two excursions on the same day.

[herdingdogmom]

1 hour ago, pirate4me2 said:

Also, the booking came with a specialty dining package with 5 meals at specialty venues...is that 5 meals per person or total? What venues would you recommend we try? What ones should we NOT try?

 

Another thing, the Haven room comes with a butler...I honestly don't know what the heck we will do with a butler...can someone give me examples of what they actually do? 

Are you sure, you get 5 meals with the dining package?  For a 4 or 5 night cruise, you get 2 meals per person and for a 7 night cruise you get 3 meals per person.  We like Cagneys steakhouse and want to try Food Republic.  On the Joy, we might also try Q Texas Smokehouse.

 

The butler will bring you afternoon treats and can also deliver a hot breakfast to have in your room if you don't want to go to the Haven restaurant.  

[pirate4me2]

Jamie, thank you for that wonderful info about the shore ex credit!

 

herdingdogmom, first off I have to say I love your profile pic, I have 2 Aussies myself. They are my kids. :) And your response about the dining package is why I am so glad we have CC, I thought I read 5 meals but I am sure you are right and it is probably 3! I was looking at too much info and got confused. Thanks for the info on Cagneys, with it being a steakhouse I am sure my DH will be right there wanting to try it! Same with the smokehouse.

 

I still am just in awe of a butler, but the thought of a hot breakfast in my room does appeal some to me!

[mscajackson]

I would book the shore excursions over the phone with an NCL rep ... I just came back home from my first cruise with NCL and also had the $50 shore excursion credit per port. When I booked it with an NCL rep, the excursions were added to my onboard account and the credit applied after each port of call was completed.

Edited June 25, 2019 by mscajackson

[pirate4me2]

2 hours ago, mscajackson said:

I would book the shore excursions over the phone with an NCL rep ... I just came back home from my first cruise with NCL and also had the $50 shore excursion credit per port. When I booked it with an NCL rep, the excursions were added to my onboard account and the credit applied after each port of call was completed.

 

Thank you for that info. 🙂 I appreciate it. 

[mistycruiser]

I'm also a longtime Carnival cruiser but we've done a few on NCL.  For restaurant recommendations I like the Teppanyaki because it's always  been an entertaining experience. JMHO

[pirate4me2]

6 hours ago, mistycruiser said:

I'm also a longtime Carnival cruiser but we've done a few on NCL.  For restaurant recommendations I like the Teppanyaki because it's always  been an entertaining experience. JMHO

Thanks for the recommendation. We love Japanese food so that is one I will make sure we check out! 

[GA Dave]

Haven treats delivered by the Butler:

 

[pirate4me2]

Thanks for the snack pictures. I’m not usually a snack-y person, but I won’t turn down a cheese plate or some M&Ms. 🙂

[jmh3791]

On 6/20/2019 at 3:38 PM, Escaper1 said:

Hi fellow cruisers.  We are so excited to join you on this cruise. It is our VERY FIRST CRUISE EVER! I would love to hear all you tips and tricks and would most certainly join you for  a meet and mingle event. 

 

On 6/25/2019 at 1:11 PM, pirate4me2 said:

Thanks for the quick reply Two Wheels! No worries on us trying to bring non-Haven guests anywhere, it will just be DH and I. That's pretty awesome about the dining package, looks like we won't be in the main dining areas too much! I am really looking forward to this change-up!

Make sure you make reservations for the specialty dining rooms early or you will be relegated to the 10pm slots.  

[CruisinKJ]

1 hour ago, jmh3791 said:

 

Make sure you make reservations for the specialty dining rooms early or you will be relegated to the 10pm slots.  

 

Even if you're staying in Haven as the OP is? If you get on the ship and ask the concierge to make reservations, will they typically accommodate the times you request? How early out can you book reservations for dinner at specialty restaurants?

[pirate4me2]

Jmh, thanks for that info. It says online it’s too early to book the dining, so I will keep an eye out for when we are able too! 

 

Question regarding the dining...do they charge us at the time we book or once onboard? Do I have to do anything special so they know we have a specialty dining package? 

[Wedgie23]

42 minutes ago, pirate4me2 said:

Question regarding the dining...do they charge us at the time we book or once onboard? Do I have to do anything special so they know we have a specialty dining package?

I learned with my last NCL cruise if you have the dining package and it shows you able to book-and pay- for a restaurant on the NCL website this charge is in addition to one of your dining perks but it doesn't (or at least didn't then) say so at the time. I bought what I thought were tickets for the Supper Club dinner and a show for $30. Only found out at the end of the cruise it was $30 on top of my specialty dining perk, which was already on top of the regular fare. 

 

To use a dining package is very simple other wise. Simply make the reservation and the maitre d' will know when you arrive and show your card. On the menu you will see if there are any up charges on top of the dining plan which are not covered. Some restaurants are not included at all, Food Republic and Margaritavilla I'm not sure if there are others. Unfortunately the exact listing of what is covered, what is not and which ones carry an up charge are not listed in the dailies but if you go to guest services they can tell you which ones the dining perk is good for. If Joy has the Tapas place, Pinchos I believe is the name, it is a $7 up charge per person on top of the dining perk but I have to say it is well worth it. 

 

Edited June 27, 2019 by Wedgie23
typo

[JamieLogical]

7 hours ago, pirate4me2 said:

Question regarding the dining...do they charge us at the time we book or once onboard? Do I have to do anything special so they know we have a specialty dining package? 

 

If you have Specialty Dining and book a reservation at one of the flat rate restaurants (Moderno or Teppanyaki) the it assumes you will be using one of your specialty dining credits and does not charge your credit card at the time of your booking. For a la cart restaurants, there is no up-front charge, you just make a reservation. At ALL venues once on board, when you check in at the hostess stand, they will ask you if you want to use a specialty dining credit or pay for your meal.

[pirate4me2]

14 hours ago, Wedgie23 said:

I learned with my last NCL cruise if you have the dining package and it shows you able to book-and pay- for a restaurant on the NCL website this charge is in addition to one of your dining perks but it doesn't (or at least didn't then) say so at the time. I bought what I thought were tickets for the Supper Club dinner and a show for $30. Only found out at the end of the cruise it was $30 on top of my specialty dining perk, which was already on top of the regular fare. 

 

To use a dining package is very simple other wise. Simply make the reservation and the maitre d' will know when you arrive and show your card. On the menu you will see if there are any up charges on top of the dining plan which are not covered. Some restaurants are not included at all, Food Republic and Margaritavilla I'm not sure if there are others. Unfortunately the exact listing of what is covered, what is not and which ones carry an up charge are not listed in the dailies but if you go to guest services they can tell you which ones the dining perk is good for. If Joy has the Tapas place, Pinchos I believe is the name, it is a $7 up charge per person on top of the dining perk but I have to say it is well worth it. 

 

 

7 hours ago, JamieLogical said:

 

If you have Specialty Dining and book a reservation at one of the flat rate restaurants (Moderno or Teppanyaki) the it assumes you will be using one of your specialty dining credits and does not charge your credit card at the time of your booking. For a la cart restaurants, there is no up-front charge, you just make a reservation. At ALL venues once on board, when you check in at the hostess stand, they will ask you if you want to use a specialty dining credit or pay for your meal.

 

Thank you both for the info! 

[Wedgie23]

2 hours ago, pirate4me2 said:

Thank you both for the info! 

Quite welcome. FYI a poster in another thread informed me that as of a couple weeks ago Margaritavilla and Food Republic are now included in the meal package. I'd double check with the matri'd but sounds like there is now some good lunch options. 

[JamieLogical]

9 hours ago, Wedgie23 said:

Quite welcome. FYI a poster in another thread informed me that as of a couple weeks ago Margaritavilla and Food Republic are now included in the meal package. I'd double check with the matri'd but sounds like there is now some good lunch options. 

 

I wouldn't waste a specialty dining credit on Margaritaville. It's only a $14 flat fee per person to eat there. That's half as much as the flat fee for Moderno or Teppenyaki.