Prima TA too!

[dexddd]

First, I'm really surprised we made it to the ship with our luck flying to Europe in the past and everything else going on now.  However, it all went exactly as it was supposed to.  Delta's flights booked via NCL, not an issue.  We drove the couple hours to the regional then flew to DTW then to LHR.  All in from airport to LHR under 11 hours.  Was able to upgrade both flights.

 

Haven check-in at Horizon Terminal upstairs and to left.  No counter, they walk around with tablets, ask for same docs we just showed downstairs, take picture, give key card.  These key cards work tap and go for most things like door lock or Haven elevator.

 

I know there is already one thread on same subject and many, many CC folks on this trip so I'll probably stick to something I see of interest not already mentioned.

 

Pictures to follow once they make it through the ether.

 

Oh, not to forget, DW has said "Nice..", "WOW", "Nice" many times already.

[dexddd]

[dexddd]

The rumors are try, they have switched to Coke.  Now I have to track down some Coke Zero.

DD says the lamp looks like a hot air balloon.

[dexddd]

For you MKing

 

 

[dexddd]

Had a great dinner and night.  Bed, pillows, duvet all great.

 

We are skipping Scotland due to storm.

 

Lots of glass in room, too many switches to keep track of, reminds me of the Dawn OS.  Switches for drapes and blinds like some of the other ships.

 

Waves not that big today.

[mking8288]

20 hours ago, dexddd said:

For you MKing  ...

Yay, you made it board.  Thanks. A custom NCL remote, for my convenience, how nice. 

 

Enjoy Haven's suite life ,😁🤓 

[dmms]

Hi @dexddd

Thanks for posting - new ship with what I’m sure will lots of questions from all of us future passengers😎
The switches in the room sound a little interesting - a bit of a learning curve.

We will be sailing in an H5 in February- so very curious and excited.

How do the dedicated haven elevators work? I read they go to deck 6, assuming key card access?

I believe the minimalist decor will be a good fit in what appears to be a much larger haven space with more cabins/people occupying that space.

Looking forward to your thoughts and pictures.

Really hope you enjoy your suite life😊

[BermudaBound2014]

Very nice! Thank you for sharing. Wishing you an outstanding vaca. Will be following along 🙂

[kruiserkatie]

Thank you for this thread!  We sail next month in a Haven 2 bed….looking forward to following along.

 

One thing that has been bugging me…many Haven Lounge photos show a glass box like structure that appears to hold plants in the middle of the lounge.  Curious as to what that is 

 

Also would love to hear about the Haven theatre seating location.  I am sailing with my mom who will be using a scooter. I have not seen any information showing where the handicapped accessible seating is in the theatre area.

 

Thank you and wishing you an amazing trip!

[dexddd]

5 hours ago, mking8288 said:

Yay, you made it board.  Thanks. A custom NCL remote, for my convenience, how nice. 

 

Enjoy Haven's suite life ,😁🤓 

Did you want me to pack the remote and take it home to send to you so you can point it at your tv and see if it works?  I know you can make it work, for your convenience, of course.

[dexddd]

4 hours ago, dmms said:

Hi @dexddd

Thanks for posting - new ship with what I’m sure will lots of questions from all of us future passengers😎
The switches in the room sound a little interesting - a bit of a learning curve.

We will be sailing in an H5 in February- so very curious and excited.

How do the dedicated haven elevators work? I read they go to deck 6, assuming key card access?

I believe the minimalist decor will be a good fit in what appears to be a much larger haven space with more cabins/people occupying that space.

Looking forward to your thoughts and pictures.

Really hope you enjoy your suite life😊

See post below about decor.  Elevators in Haven areas just work, not Haven, you bump your credit card type card against it.  Also works for room entry and paying at bars.

[dexddd]

4 hours ago, kruiserkatie said:

Thank you for this thread!  We sail next month in a Haven 2 bed….looking forward to following along.

 

One thing that has been bugging me…many Haven Lounge photos show a glass box like structure that appears to hold plants in the middle of the lounge.  Curious as to what that is 

 

Also would love to hear about the Haven theatre seating location.  I am sailing with my mom who will be using a scooter. I have not seen any information showing where the handicapped accessible seating is in the theatre area.

 

Thank you and wishing you an amazing trip!

Will check.  If I don't post in a couple days, please remind me.

[dexddd]

Just over 24 hours on the Prima, overall this is one great ship, very luxurious everywhere and well decorated.  Things very well thought out and combines things to do with feel of home in places.  Even have probably 10 large books in our room and books in Haven areas.

 

Staff everywhere has been superb, friendly, and welcoming.  Service thus far excellent.

Front observation very busy with nice variety of snacks – Haven, have not seen any snacks like on previous experiences FWIW.  Pool area, as reported, very small.  Some things I think, IMO, not thought out well.  Haven should have had a covered area and sun deck like Escape (last, newest, NCL ship we’ve been on).  As I’ve said before from pictures, very little shad which will be issue in warm climates.  I was thinking this would be a great ship for cold climates but then the Haven outside area also not the best.

 

While we’ve heard how NCL is upscaling product, which on this ship, I’d agree they’ve done a great job but surprised to find out that Crown Royal not covered under the regular drink package anymore.  Told it would be $1.00 more.  O.K., so when you pay roughly $8,000 to $50,000 plus for a couple of two they want to charge you that extra $1.00 in the Haven??  Maybe this was new change as staff seemed confused if it was a premium item or not.  Speaking of drinks, they have three drinks on tap that are very good like a smokey one, peach one, margarita one etc.  Those are included in the normal package although they vary a bit by bar (even have them by the pool bar).

Have seen a couple people  do dry slides. 

 

Entertainment – tons of shows available.  Can book on tv for most, some don’t give any times, and the ones we could book only showed one day options so not sure if those are all booked but I suspect not.  TV, Haven probably near 100 free movies, some very current as in the past.  Regular TV, I’ll post current channels.

One other question we were thinking about for Latitudes dinners is what is the option for the Moderno since none on ship.  Told Los Lobos which is a total score which we hope to experience tonight. 

 

I’ve seen reports about the Haven looking toned down and not special.  I’d say it actually looks pretty good in person and better than pictures can express.  One thing I find interesting is that there was all the talk from NCL and the designers about how big the rooms were going to be.  That might hold true for the non-Haven rooms, but as far as an OS, square feet wise, this is one of the smallest in the fleet except for the oldest ship.  Is that a first world problem, yes, but when you are paying that much, you’d think they’d make Haven rooms bigger based on the premise they were making rooms bigger than prior ships yet the prices are higher.

 

Couple things I think are against the way they do business is having fitness center forward.  I love it as a guest, but I’d do like the Dawn and Star and make that area (and even the Observation Lounge) suites and move those places somewhere else.  I know this will be called out by some, but those are really prime spaces to have people spending time with low revenue vs. having people staying in rooms there for the view.

 

Internet has $3.95 activation fee, FYI.  Logging out, says to put logout.com in browser, but thus far, does not work.

[dexddd]

Staff old and new.  So first hour in, I see someone who looks familiar from 2012 on Star.  I didn’t have glasses on so could not see name.  Looked a couple more times, and asked, “are you Lucky”?  He said yes.  His hair only got a bit more gray than mine but I lost a lot more in ten years.  Lucky is a great guy, hard worker, and quiet.  I felt bad for him on the Star as he had us on 12 forward and he had suites 8-10 aft so he was running his tail off.

 

Our steward is Tomi – last for of his last name (he says to call him Tommy).  He is young but very good.  Our butler is Gary who has to be the one Gary I’ve heard over the years of how outstanding he is which he has been for us.

 

Veronica and Ravi at the Haven bar have been excellent, also trying to recall other names.

Rookie mistake but see if we can straighten out tonight, got Latitudes card (don’t know when it actually arrived) and had to be booked last night by 9 for BTS Tour which I’m not sure if they are still doing the BTS tour.  Tried calling Concierge Desk last hour and even stopped by and no answer.

[mking8288]

8 hours ago, dexddd said:

Did you want me to pack the remote and take it home to send to you ... make it work, for your convenience, of course.

Thanks but save the trouble, NCL using Samsung TV on the Joy and had an universal Remote App on the smartphone, couldn't bypass the menu/setup restrictions and override to switch to HDMI as input.  Just to deal with watching contents on the Chromebook ... Probably need to configure an USB stick with Linux OS to boot up, etc. etc. not worth the time & efforts.  Ask the butler or concierge for direct assistance, since you are upstairs in Haven ... for your convenience, of course - and see how they excel above & beyond, while waving that Vacation Hero Card around.  

 

8 hours ago, dexddd said:

Just over 24 hours on the Prima, overall this is one great ship, very luxurious everywhere and well decorated.  Things very well thought out and combines things to do with feel of home in places.  ... Internet has $3.95 activation fee, FYI.  Logging out, says to put logout.com in browser, but thus far, does not work.

Sounds cool and you got 12 more days ( ... okay, 11+ days based on local time ) to boot & shake things up before reaching NY and write it up here.  Gosh, CC'ers got the ship nearly covered from top to bottom in reporting and sharing findings ... everything except below the pax decks - are you sure they are doing BTS tours, cause they still won't do them onboard the Joy, not in May and not last week - spoke with CruiseNext and you know how that go >>>>>>> Miami HQ   

 

As for the internet fee to activate, oddly enough ... NCL fixed it onboard the Joy, never once dare to alert & warn me about dinging $3.95 to proceed.  For my convenience, of course, I would've just say go ahead and "make my day" but didn't nickel and dime us last time either.  Seriously, they need new leadership in the I.T. shop, pissing and annoying loyal supporters of their highly "acclaimed" satellite WiFi #cough #cough - infamous for its (poor) values and ROI - bring on Starlink quick as partners to catch up on the rat race.  That login dot com and logout dot com didn't quite work onboard the Joy either, luckily I figured out the easy workaround - didn't see the iCafe manager hanging around his/her lobby desk much of the time either (and, they cut back on # of desktop terminals vs. before) and put in more loungers ... better revenue ops from Starbuck and bar services.  

[steamboats]

On 9/23/2022 at 5:06 PM, dexddd said:

The rumors are try, they have switched to Coke.  Now I have to track down some Coke Zero.

 

They officially switched to Coke on Aug 26th. There was a press release too about the new partnership. During the christening cruise the Coca Cola Bear had a photo session on the Ocean Boulevard.

 

BTW we didn´t have a problem to get Coke Zero.

 

steamboats

[Karaboudjan]

18 hours ago, dexddd said:

One thing I find interesting is that there was all the talk from NCL and the designers about how big the rooms were going to be.  That might hold true for the non-Haven rooms, but as far as an OS, square feet wise, this is one of the smallest in the fleet except for the oldest ship.  Is that a first world problem, yes, but when you are paying that much, you’d think they’d make Haven rooms bigger based on the premise they were making rooms bigger than prior ships yet the prices are higher.

 

 

What type of room are you saying is smaller?  Comparing the sizes given on the web site to the Escape for example it looks like both the interior and balcony of the standard Haven Penthouses are larger on the Prima.  Same for the 2-BR Villa. 

[Sailing12Away]

21 hours ago, dexddd said:

Veronica and Ravi at the Haven bar have been excellent, also trying to recall other names.

Rookie mistake but see if we can straighten out tonight, got Latitudes card (don’t know when it actually arrived) and had to be booked last night by 9 for BTS Tour which I’m not sure if they are still doing the BTS tour.  Tried calling Concierge Desk last hour and even stopped by and no answer.

Veronica is amazing, we had her on the Encore and was excited to hear that she would be on Prima. We don't sail until next year, so I'm doubtful she'll still be on board but we can hope.

 

If you like refreshing drinks, ask her to make a cucumber special. I don't know what she put in it, but it was really good. She also knows how to make a frozen tiramisu as a dessert cocktail.

 

Essentially just tell her anything that you're in the mood for and she'll make something. We loved her!

 

Which of the OS are you staying in? We'll be in an H4 next year, so I'm curious to see more photos of the rooms and deck space. The renderings showed couches in front of the hot tubs, but I haven't seen any yet in actual photos.

[dexddd]

5 hours ago, Karaboudjan said:

 

What type of room are you saying is smaller?  Comparing the sizes given on the web site to the Escape for example it looks like both the interior and balcony of the standard Haven Penthouses are larger on the Prima.  Same for the 2-BR Villa. 

The OS.

 

I'll get to the questions when the internet is better - maybe tomorrow on cell.

 

More info:

 

So finally talked to Concierge and no BTS tour and no wine tasting.  O.k., I kind of expected that but they went on to blame it on the CDC – give me a break.  Now if someone can show me on the CDC site that BTS tours and wine tasting are not allowed, I’d love to see it and stand corrected.  The VIP cocktail with Captain party was a go though and packed.

 

Ate at Los Lobos last night.  I’ve been wanting to try this forever and maybe it got over-hyped.  I can literally say that we live in Po Dunk, USA and we have at least 6 other equally or better Mexican restaurants by us. Don’t get me wrong, the food was good but nothing knock your socks off.  The quac they don’t make table side anymore, but I’m fine with that.  It came out nice and cold in a cold bowl.  Probably makes more sense to prepare ahead than waste time at the table.

The chips and salsa, well, it was like salsa from that commercial they joked about years ago coming from “New York City”.  Not a big deal, just interesting.  The desserts were good.

 

Went to Syd’s and it was packed.  Great band.

 

Today went to Indulge around 2.  Place packed, no seating.  This is going to be an issue when the outside seating can’t be open due to weather.  Finally got a bar counter seat (note, if you sit at a chair say at the Greens restaurant, you can only order from that restaurant on the tablet).  It would help if they opened that up to all so the mostly empty bar seats at a restaurant could be used.

We ordered and some things you can customize like a salad.  We were just placing order and in a minute 2 of 5 dishes arrived – WOW.  Then within the next couple the rest.  Food was good.  The other issue here, people were lingering after eating.

 

Tried a couple items in the buffet.  Today was the puffy pizza, yesterday was thin crust which looked good but didn’t try.  The puffy is mostly dough.  The Surfside Grill is about ½ the size of the buffet on Escape – so basically just one side.  In the back you go through a door and there is grilled food and salads.  Seemed people lingering in buffet too.

Dinner sounds like Haven. 

 

O.K., most important question out there, NFL Games – 6:00 p.m. Chiefs vs Colts, 9:30 Packers vs Bucs, channel 18, The Local, Deck 8 mid.

 

More pics when internet is better.

[steamboats]

12 hours ago, dexddd said:

This is going to be an issue when the outside seating can’t be open due to weather. 

 

Actually there is not much outside seating anyway - meaning tables and chairs where you can eat. Yes, you can lay down on one of the bed type loungers or sit on a sofa but there´s only a small table where you can´t eat. I haven´t seen any tablets outside either.

 

steamboats

[Sailing12Away]

18 hours ago, dexddd said:

The OS.

 

So finally talked to Concierge and no BTS tour and no wine tasting.  O.k., I kind of expected that but they went on to blame it on the CDC – give me a break.  Now if someone can show me on the CDC site that BTS tours and wine tasting are not allowed, I’d love to see it and stand corrected.  The VIP cocktail with Captain party was a go though and packed.

There are 4 different types of OS on the Prima. Can you share the cabin category or at least how many bedrooms yours has?

 

The wine tastings were brought back on some of the other ships, so not sure why it isn't available yet on yours. But the BTS tour is still suspended. Based on my most recent cruise on the Joy, it's because there's still a ton of guests on the ship walking around with Covid and they don't want to expose their crew in those tight quarters. Behind the scenes you've got 1,000's of crew in a smallish area, whereas with a wine tasting you've got 2 crew members in a bigger more open room.

 

Simple fix for that is to mandate guests wear a mask the entire time they're in crew only areas. No mask, no tour. Or, Prima is still a work in progress so they don't want folks seeing it yet until it's 100% done.

[dexddd]

More about the room compared to other ships, same category.  No special Bose radio or like to hook up phone or play music.  Things like QTips, puff, shower keep hair dry deal thing yes, lotions, yes.  Shower/bath is in one area behind one door, DW keeps saying it’s the biggest she’s seen – shower & bath combined that is.  Wow it is great, I’m a bit worried it causes extra work for steward to clean/swipe off water that gets splashed around. 

 

We’ve managed to get all 7 jets working – 4 as body hits, the one from top, shower wand belly button level but removable, and one from bath tub side body shot.  Top does not have much water when running the other 5 on same console.  One of the best setups we’ve seen.

One thing I was questioning before hand, made one post, no replies on CC was about the OS drink options like in the past.  Is unlimited in room water and soda included in the room plus the 3 bottles of booze, plus the Champagne?  I requested that via Miami Concierge (who I have not had good luck over the years but have acknowledged how good they have been the last four trips).  They sent an email that said only H1-H3.  Well, Prima OS got downgraded to H5 due to the newer, bigger suites.  There are 13 H5 on this ship.  Have gratefully found those benefits still included (sans Champagne but we did get a Prosecco – not complaining in any way – just reporting the news).  Great job keeping things as they should be.  Have not seen Latitudes wine unless the CDC is restricting that as well.

 

Out last 5 sailings have been MSC YC in three classes all made by Finicatari (I know I spelled wrong) as where Prima made.  I’m used to Meyer Werft on NCL and DCL.  I’d say overall it is like a Ferrari vs. Porsche with the Porsche clearly we’ll better engineered and functional with the Ferrari more glitzy.  I’ll get some specifics later with some pictures.

One thing I’d be worried about is the plumbing fixtures.  The ones in the Haven look very much like what we’ve seen in MSC YC and we’ve been on 3 MSC over 5 ships, some very new, where the handles don’t work well and the temperatures are not very controllable.

The doors are extra thick,like 3” maybe 1/2” more than normal we’ve ever seen – fire protection or some other reason? 

 

Had dinner in Haven and again, excellent, not too crowded.  Walked around, then watched NFL games in room – around ½ time ordered quesadilla and pepperoni pizza from RS and it was quick and very good.  We don’t normally get to stay up late and enjoy not having to do anything all day and then get drinks and RS to watch NFL, that was super relaxing.  We watched the whole game.

We’ve been eyeing menu in Commordore Room especially the crab wontons for weeks.  We decided to go today and got two of those, one ribs (basically the pork belly you see elsewhere on the ship), and DW got artichoke dip.  All enjoyed by the three of us.

 

For mains, DW got Ahi Tuna salad (she said was tough – the tuna that is), DD got the steak thingy with the sauce which she enjoyed, I got the advertised 8 oz cheeseburger that as advertised says it comes with pickle and choice of cheese – American, Cheddar, Swiss.  In reality it was overcooked burger about the size of 2/3 of the circumference of the bun with onions and no pickle (I’m o.k. with no pickle but if I had noticed it said onions, I would have declined those).  Fries were soggy, greasy, and cold.

 

The Commordore Room is beautiful and bright with an fairly large menu (for lunch and dinner that we’ve seen and the service was good overall).  So maybe on a different day things would have been better.  Pictures to follow.

 

We walked around a bit then finally ventured up to the vast sports area, darts, mini golf, slides, and go karts.  It was fairly cool out – 50 degrees – but DW and DD did the Rush Slide and then DD did the Drop so all were working despite one report of the demise of one of the slides.  I’ll do later.  Staff bundled up and not many takers but I do appreciate that they kept opened for use.  FYI – mini golf also been reported that it was a charge.  Maybe it was, will be, but large sign saying – complimentary – just ask for ball.  I will show picture of that for those who doubt I’m telling the truth.

They had a German themed buffet until 3.  They had German pizza which is a brown pretzel as crust – I thought that was funny bud did not try.

 

Later went to Haven lounge, always busy in cool weather.  Able to go to Observation Lounge to grab Monopoly to play – concierge did have playing cards.

Dinner, up in the air.  We did see what appear to be FR open for lunch despite Daily saying start 5:30.

 

Quencups - saw your thread, but the dialup internet on the ship was so slow it was burning my minutes up.  We wanted to book a DOS or better but they were already sold out.  Go to YT and Harr has some videos.

[bobby3334]

Do I understand correctly 2 days in Iceland if weather permits landing?   My weather report has rain, wind, and cold for season there.  I have been there in September when fairly nice.  Halifax is recovering from very unusual cyclone.    Mike

Edited September 27, 2022 by bobby3334
Clarity

[dexddd]

15 hours ago, bobby3334 said:

Do I understand correctly 2 days in Iceland if weather permits landing?   My weather report has rain, wind, and cold for season there.  I have been there in September when fairly nice.  Halifax is recovering from very unusual cyclone.    Mike

That is correct, we even got here early due to missing  Scotland.

 

Today was 47 and overcast and walked into town.

 

someone mentioned the storm and worried we might miss it so if anyone has insight let us know.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[dexddd]