Unusual Concierge Service?

[david_sobe]

1 hour ago, Coastalbreezes said:

Quite true and sadly he has left NCL.

OMG.  That is a huge loss for NCL 😨

 

But I wish him well and hope he has a better job which I am sure is the case.  He should be working at 5 star exclusive resorts that pay big bucks.

[prwardii]

We just came off the Pearl back in June and had great concierge service with added/changing dining reservations. The problem we did have was the concierge cancelled dining reservations twice on us. I think he had us confused with other guests. Thank God for the app. After it happened the first time, as we were checking in... and we were told our reservation had been cancelled by your concierge two days ago... I started checking and it happened again - but I caught the second time early. We were turned away the first time it happened, we were not pleased!

So, keep an eye on your future reservations!

[goldmom]

Well, here's another trick one of our Concierges used.  We had made some dinner reservations prior to boarding but then changed some of them once onboard.  I kept seeing the old reservations still in my account so mentioned to the Concierge they were still showing and I wanted to make sure I wasn't charged as a no-show.

He said to not worry about it, he was keeping the reservations active in case one of his other guests wanted a reservation at that restaurant but he would be sure to cancel it for me before the reservation time.

I thought that was really clever of him.

 

And of course there was Concierge Alex Forbes whom I asked one morning if he could get me a table in Le Bistro for that evening to which he said, "If I can't get you a table, I'll build you one."  LOL!  Of course that was before the FAS dining package made reservations tougher to get.

[Paphillyguy]

22 hours ago, MoCruiseFan said:

No one can get reservations when NONE exist.  They can get reservations from the supply set aside for their passengers.

I would expect that the in the Haven they should be able to get you in somewhere.  Well at least that is what I have experienced in the past.  

[GeezerCouple]

1 hour ago, Paphillyguy said:

I would expect that the in the Haven they should be able to get you in somewhere.  Well at least that is what I have experienced in the past.  

 

I wouldn't be surprised if this was indeed possible, at least some of the time.

If one is asking for one of 10 (or one of 100/etc.) separate units of something, then once they are handed out, they are... gone for others.

 

However, with dining, there usually is some "play" in the timing.  Even if all tables are "allocated", I'm assuming that they schedule that so that most of the diners are finished by some approximate time.  And there are almost always a very few who linger and get to watch some of the re-setting/etc., get started, etc.

And except for banquets when everyone starts to eat at "the same time", they probably try to stagger the seatings a bit.  (I know of many restaurants that don't seat all of the tables right at 6 even if there are enough people wanting that.  They'll seat some more at, say, 6:30, and again, at 7, and after that, some tables will be starting to turn over.  But there's no strict schedule for any of those... (except for restaurants that strictly offer something like early and late seating, as some cruise ships still do, at least in some areas).

 

So, IF there absolutely HAD to be another reservation added, I'd assume that everything would "slip" slightly, and that "last table" might now be one of "two last tables", etc.

 

I assume restaurants deal with similar situations all the time.  There are no-shows (bad, bad, without calling!).  But which nights and how many?  So they probably build in an "extra reservation or two", so there isn't a table or two sitting completely empty during the last hour or two, etc.

 

GC

[lanceholt]

On 8/2/2022 at 12:53 PM, Imalismom said:

Has anyone had any problems with the concierge service not up to standards recently?

 

I have tried three different times to make reservations with our concierge to be told nothing was available - to go downstairs to guest services and booked what I wanted. 
 

Trying to figure out if it is just post covid changed standards or just the Getaway desk not up to standards.

 

I would speak with the General Manager should you run into him/her.  We had Armando on the Jewel to Alaska in April.  Saw him briefly when we embarked, not till 5 days later and he didn't remember our names.  We passed him on way off the ship and I didn't even recognize him and vice versa.  No tip for Armando.  We didn't complain as we had a fine time and saved the tip bucks....Armando missed out on $150 which would have been the tip should he have been good.  Daughter made all reservations and that was that.  All others were great except for half a cruse years ago.  

 

[dandelpino]

17 hours ago, GeezerCouple said:

 

I wouldn't be surprised if this was indeed possible, at least some of the time.

If one is asking for one of 10 (or one of 100/etc.) separate units of something, then once they are handed out, they are... gone for others.

 

However, with dining, there usually is some "play" in the timing.  Even if all tables are "allocated", I'm assuming that they schedule that so that most of the diners are finished by some approximate time.  And there are almost always a very few who linger and get to watch some of the re-setting/etc., get started, etc.

And except for banquets when everyone starts to eat at "the same time", they probably try to stagger the seatings a bit.  (I know of many restaurants that don't seat all of the tables right at 6 even if there are enough people wanting that.  They'll seat some more at, say, 6:30, and again, at 7, and after that, some tables will be starting to turn over.  But there's no strict schedule for any of those... (except for restaurants that strictly offer something like early and late seating, as some cruise ships still do, at least in some areas).

 

So, IF there absolutely HAD to be another reservation added, I'd assume that everything would "slip" slightly, and that "last table" might now be one of "two last tables", etc.

 

I assume restaurants deal with similar situations all the time.  There are no-shows (bad, bad, without calling!).  But which nights and how many?  So they probably build in an "extra reservation or two", so there isn't a table or two sitting completely empty during the last hour or two, etc.

 

GC

This is exactly the case. With restaurant reservations it's quite silly to say NONE are left. And it's quite naive to believe that overbooking doesn't happen all the time. Restaurant reservation allocation quantities are basically made up for all the reasons you mentioned. Hotels and airlines routinely overbook to get a high status customer a spot. Haven concierges do the same. They exist to give premium pax what they want. 

 

Some Haven pax may be naive and believe that none means none, but the rest will simple choose a different cruise line for their next vacation.  One where the concierge actually works.

[Slk1z]

On 8/2/2022 at 12:53 PM, Imalismom said:

Has anyone had any problems with the concierge service not up to standards recently?

 

I have tried three different times to make reservations with our concierge to be told nothing was available - to go downstairs to guest services and booked what I wanted. 
 

Trying to figure out if it is just post covid changed standards or just the Getaway desk not up to standards.

I was on the Getaway back on July 9-16th.   

The Concierge was brutal...    I spoke with the Assistant Concierge in the terminal prior to boarding asking some questions and he was very polite and answered everything.

When I boarded I went up to the Concierge desk to book a Villa on GSC.   Waited in line for 20ish mins only to be told by the Concierge to go book on the TV monitor at the end of the hall.....  I was dumbfounded.

When that did not work I returned to the desk for him to write it on a piece of paper and tell me " I will get to that later as I am very busy"

I can say without a doubt worst Concierge I have dealt with.     I have done the Haven on all Breakaway and Breakaway Plus and have never has an issue till now...

 

That being said, as I was leaving the ship I was informed Ivan the assistant Concierge was taking over.

 

[cruiseny4life]

28 minutes ago, Slk1z said:

I was on the Getaway back on July 9-16th.   

The Concierge was brutal...    I spoke with the Assistant Concierge in the terminal prior to boarding asking some questions and he was very polite and answered everything.

When I boarded I went up to the Concierge desk to book a Villa on GSC.   Waited in line for 20ish mins only to be told by the Concierge to go book on the TV monitor at the end of the hall.....  I was dumbfounded.

When that did not work I returned to the desk for him to write it on a piece of paper and tell me " I will get to that later as I am very busy"

I can say without a doubt worst Concierge I have dealt with.     I have done the Haven on all Breakaway and Breakaway Plus and have never has an issue till now...

 

That being said, as I was leaving the ship I was informed Ivan the assistant Concierge was taking over.

 

Oh Ivan....we thoroughly confused him on embarkation day. That poor guy...oh well, he figured it all out so we could get on the boat. 

 

Was it Omar? I thought he was helpful and he joked with us throughout the cruise. Perhaps a bad day? Also...the monitors are there to make your life easier, so you could have just used the monitor. Sorry you had to do a tad bit of work in your Haven experience.

[graphicguy]

44 minutes ago, Slk1z said:

I was on the Getaway back on July 9-16th.   

The Concierge was brutal...    I spoke with the Assistant Concierge in the terminal prior to boarding asking some questions and he was very polite and answered everything.

When I boarded I went up to the Concierge desk to book a Villa on GSC.   Waited in line for 20ish mins only to be told by the Concierge to go book on the TV monitor at the end of the hall.....  I was dumbfounded.

When that did not work I returned to the desk for him to write it on a piece of paper and tell me " I will get to that later as I am very busy"

I can say without a doubt worst Concierge I have dealt with.     I have done the Haven on all Breakaway and Breakaway Plus and have never has an issue till now...

 

That being said, as I was leaving the ship I was informed Ivan the assistant Concierge was taking over.

 

Seriously?  I was on that same cruise.  All 3 concierges were delightful to me.  There’s nothing they would not try to do (and always successfully).  And yes, they do try to make things easier.  Sometimes they show you how to find what you’re looking for on the big screen you referred to because it’s quicker and easier to use that than to wait in line for them to do it.  And, I appreciated that.

 

I’ve never had a concierge who didn’t always try to make my wait quicker and my cruise easier.

 

OP…if the concierge couldn’t make it happen, then it truly couldn’t be done.  Sometimes that’s exactly what happens on a full ship, regardless of the magic they can usually pull off.  Best thing to do is to find an alternative dining venue or change your desired venue/time.

Edited August 5, 2022 by graphicguy

[KeithJenner]

6 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

OP…if the concierge couldn’t make it happen, then it truly couldn’t be done.  Sometimes that’s exactly what happens on a full ship, regardless of the magic they can usually pull off.  Best thing to do is to find an alternative dining venue or change your desired venue/time.

Alternatively, they could just go to ask someone else and get the reservation they wanted and apparently want available, which was what they said they did.

 

This point is still being missed.

[KeithJenner]

On 8/2/2022 at 5:53 PM, Imalismom said:

I have tried three different times to make reservations with our concierge to be told nothing was available - to go downstairs to guest services and booked what I wanted.

To everyone saying that the booking wasn’t available to anyone, read the original post again. There clearly was something available or it couldn’t have been booked.

 

Maybe the OP is lying, or there was some confusion, but if we are responding to what they are saying then arguments about whether the concierge can make bookings when none are available is irrelevant.

Edited August 5, 2022 by KeithJenner

[cruiseny4life]

10 minutes ago, KeithJenner said:

To everyone saying that the booking wasn’t available to anyone, read the original post again. There clearly was something available or it couldn’t have been booked.

 

Maybe the OP is lying, or there was some confusion, but if we are responding to what they are saying then arguments about whether the concierge can make bookings when none are available is irrelevant.

It's also possible that there was literally nothing available when the concierge looked, then someone cancelled a booking, and voila! it showed up when the guest went to guest services. I'm not sure why this hasn't been brought up yet.

[graphicguy]

5 minutes ago, KeithJenner said:

To everyone saying that the booking wasn’t available to anyone, read the original post again. There clearly was something available or it couldn’t have been booked.

 

Maybe the OP is lying, or there was some confusion, but if we are responding to what they are saying then arguments about whether the concierge can make bookings when none are available is irrelevant.

Never claimed anyone was lying.  AS mentioned, I was on the same cruise in the Haven and dealt with all 3 of the same concierges.

 

They all went out of their way to help with whatever I requested of them.  Once, when the concierge desk was really crowded, one suggested if I didn't want to wait in line, to write down what I needed and they'd get to it.  It was a billing issue and a dining reservation.  I wrote it on a sticky note and both were taken care of without me knowing it within an hour.

 

If they are busy, as the OP mentioned, they don't like to have people wait, and will either suggest an alternative to waiting (like using the screen literally 5 steps from their desk) or  to write down your request so they can get to it when they're less busy.  Sounds like the OP went to the restaurant in question to see if the host(ess) can help.  What they won't do is shove everyone else aside who is in front of you to help you.  Believe me, I've seen some passengers who've tried to do that to me personally.  

 

Again, not saying the OP did.

[ALKID]

Sounds like the concierge had the same attitude as the rest of the ship that the customers are a real bother, and only deserve the absolute minimum even if less than what is advertised and paid for.  I hope they go hull up!

[graphicguy]

BTW....didn't know Adrian had left NCL.  As others noted, huge loss to NCL.  He could go to any resort, restaurant, etc and probably become an exec manager and make way more money.

 

He had been with NCL for a long while and survived an internet hatchet job from some YouTubers and continued to provide some of the best service I've ever had on any vacation I've ever taken anywhere in the world.

 

I wish him nothing but the best.  He'll be missed.

[KeithJenner]

4 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

Never claimed anyone was lying.  

Just to be absolutely clear, im

not suggesting that anyone claimed anyone was lying.

 

I was the one that bought that up as a possibility.

[graphicguy]

50 minutes ago, KeithJenner said:

Just to be absolutely clear, im

not suggesting that anyone claimed anyone was lying.

 

I was the one that bought that up as a possibility.

Mea Culpa!

[cruiseny4life]

58 minutes ago, graphicguy said:

He had been with NCL for a long while and survived an internet hatchet job from some YouTubers and continued to provide some of the best service I've ever had on any vacation I've ever taken anywhere in the world.

I'm at work so can't actually watch the YouTube videos...well I could, but I'd feel a little weird. It's bad enough I post on here. I think I found who you're referring to. They look like an interesting couple! Definitely going to give them a few views (so a few pennies). Probably unfortunately the pennies, but I want to see what they say. 🙂

[graphicguy]

Just now, cruiseny4life said:

I'm at work so can't actually watch the YouTube videos...well I could, but I'd feel a little weird. It's bad enough I post on here. I think I found who you're referring to. They look like an interesting couple! Definitely going to give them a few views (so a few pennies). Probably unfortunately the pennies, but I want to see what they say. 🙂

It was a while ago.  And yes, interesting couple.

 

Synopsis...the couple tried to storm their way into the HAVEN when they did not have a suite there.  They said they were "travel professionals" and were only there to have a meal in the Haven Restaurant.  Allegedly they had permission to do so from someone who wasn't even associated with the Haven.

 

Adrian blocked them from doing so.

 

So, this couple went on a YouTube terror against Adrian, who was doing what he was supposed to do.

 

I've personally met Adrian and had him as a concierge a couple of times.  You won't find a better person, professional person, who is proud of the job he does.  He is (was) the cream of the NCL concierge crop.  And, that's high praise given how good NCL's concierges are.

[cruiseny4life]

1 hour ago, graphicguy said:

It was a while ago.  And yes, interesting couple.

 

Synopsis...the couple tried to storm their way into the HAVEN when they did not have a suite there.  They said they were "travel professionals" and were only there to have a meal in the Haven Restaurant.  Allegedly they had permission to do so from someone who wasn't even associated with the Haven.

 

Adrian blocked them from doing so.

 

So, this couple went on a YouTube terror against Adrian, who was doing what he was supposed to do.

 

I've personally met Adrian and had him as a concierge a couple of times.  You won't find a better person, professional person, who is proud of the job he does.  He is (was) the cream of the NCL concierge crop.  And, that's high praise given how good NCL's concierges are.

So I might have got bored at work and watched a couple of their videos regarding the incident you mentioned. I'm not often on NCL's side....in this case I am most certainly on NCL's side. Just wow, I hope I never meet them. And yes, I'm a guy married to a guy - they are just way overboard for me. Anyway, back to our regularly scheduled venting sessions. 

[Shidah]

I don’t believe the original OP has come back, but they didn’t actually say they were staying in the Haven.  Could they have been trying to use the concierge services based on latitude status?  Just curious.

[rbxlady]

3 hours ago, graphicguy said:

It was a while ago.  And yes, interesting couple.

 

Synopsis...the couple tried to storm their way into the HAVEN when they did not have a suite there.  They said they were "travel professionals" and were only there to have a meal in the Haven Restaurant.  Allegedly they had permission to do so from someone who wasn't even associated with the Haven.

 

Adrian blocked them from doing so.

 

So, this couple went on a YouTube terror against Adrian, who was doing what he was supposed to do.

 

I've personally met Adrian and had him as a concierge a couple of times.  You won't find a better person, professional person, who is proud of the job he does.  He is (was) the cream of the NCL concierge crop.  And, that's high praise given how good NCL's concierges are.

 

I found the video and noticed how the comments are turned off 😆

[cruiseny4life]

8 minutes ago, rbxlady said:

 

I found the video and noticed how the comments are turned off 😆

On both videos! If I had more time on my hands than I do, I'd scroll through their Facebook page for all the 400 comments or so. Alas, that much time at work I don't have...ok actually, I started, then realized how far I'd have to go back...no thanks. 

[ggTexasGal]

44 minutes ago, Shidah said:

I don’t believe the original OP has come back, but they didn’t actually say they were staying in the Haven.  Could they have been trying to use the concierge services based on latitude status?  Just curious.

I was wondering about that also!

If we aren't staying in the Haven, we would NOT bother the concierge.

 

However, I do feel that NCL probably should have this "gray area" cleared-up on each of the ships!