Haven - which ship?

[Monica887]

How do I determine if the Haven in a particular ship is worth it? I'm eyeing the Escape. Do they have a "real" Haven area?

[fsa1155]

I've been in the Haven on two different ships.  Once, I was in a Haven suite but it was outside of the actual Haven area which we had to use our key card to enter.  The other time, we were actually in the Haven area.  If I had to do it again, I'd be sure to stay in the actual Haven area.  It's nice to be right by the Haven lounge, restaurant, pool, and Hot tub.   You just have to look at the deck plans to be sure.  I have not been on the Escape.  We enjoy the Haven.   It's like a ship within a ship.  A lot less crowded and the butler service is wonderful.  They are so kind to us. 

 

[www3traveler]

Just check NCL's website for deck plans for The Escape: YES there is a "true" Haven on Decks 17 and 18

[Monica887]

Thanks - I found the deck plans. I was eyeing an aft room for the balcony, but maybe I won't get the full experience if we aren't in the haven proper which is forward? 

[www3traveler]

4 minutes ago, Monica887 said:

Thanks - I found the deck plans. I was eyeing an aft room for the balcony, but maybe I won't get the full experience if we aren't in the haven proper which is forward? 

Looking again at the Escape's Haven deck plans, I think that everything is located forward.  Some of the newer ships since The Escape, do have "Haven cabins" in the aft area.  I believe that on the newest ship The Prima, all of the Haven complex is located aft.

[Two Wheels Only]

11 minutes ago, www3traveler said:

Looking again at the Escape's Haven deck plans, I think that everything is located forward. 

 

On Escape, there are Haven suites located on both ends of the ship. The OP is thinking of the HA staterooms for the Haven access and the large aft-facing balconies. 

[www3traveler]

3 minutes ago, Two Wheels Only said:

 

On Escape, there are Haven suites located on both ends of the ship. The OP is thinking of the HA staterooms for the Haven access and the large aft-facing balconies. 

Thank you  Looking at the deck 17 and 18 plans, I didn't see any cabin space indicated.

[Two Wheels Only]

22 minutes ago, www3traveler said:

Thank you  Looking at the deck 17 and 18 plans, I didn't see any cabin space indicated.

 

They're on decks 9-15

[BirdTravels]

2 hours ago, www3traveler said:

Looking again at the Escape's Haven deck plans, I think that everything is located forward.  Some of the newer ships since The Escape, do have "Haven cabins" in the aft area.  I believe that on the newest ship The Prima, all of the Haven complex is located aft.

About 1/3 of the Haven rooms are not in the Haven complex on Deck 17/18. 

[zgscl]

4 hours ago, fsa1155 said:

I've been in the Haven on two different ships.  Once, I was in a Haven suite but it was outside of the actual Haven area which we had to use our key card to enter.  The other time, we were actually in the Haven area.  If I had to do it again, I'd be sure to stay in the actual Haven area.  It's nice to be right by the Haven lounge, restaurant, pool, and Hot tub.   You just have to look at the deck plans to be sure.  I have not been on the Escape.  We enjoy the Haven.   It's like a ship within a ship.  A lot less crowded and the butler service is wonderful.  They are so kind to us. 

 

I just booked Encore for this summer and really struggled over the choice between a forward facing penthouse or the courtyard penthouse with balcony. I am going solo so I finally decided that the smaller room that was inside the complex would be better. Also, it looks like quite a long walk from the front of the ship to the forward elevators, so it seems like the convenience is worth the extra cost and sacrifice in space. 

[Coastalbreezes]

Your choice of Haven might depend on what you are actually looking for in your experience. Is it important that the pool, sundeck, bar and restaurant are close to your cabin? Are you the type who would enjoy relaxing in the beautiful Haven observation lounges? (available on the Bliss, Joy and Encore). Other factors might be the specialty restaurants on board. Not all ships have the same ones. I have friends who prefer aft suites because of the large balconies and myself prefer to be in Haven proper.

[FLcruisergrl]

We’ve done both aft suites and those within the Haven complex. Both are amazing and have the same level of service. If you love a huge balcony, get the aft. If you prefer close proximity to a bar, get the room within the Haven complex. The Escape is great-just got off a few weeks ago. We stayed in the Haven complex. I can honestly say that we barely saw the rest of the ship, though.

[cruiseny4life]

15 hours ago, Monica887 said:

Thanks - I found the deck plans. I was eyeing an aft room for the balcony, but maybe I won't get the full experience if we aren't in the haven proper which is forward? 

I've cruised Haven three times in the last year. All on the Getaway, so I can't provide Escape information.. Each of my rooms was outside of the Haven complex. Once on deck 14, so I just had to take two sets of stairs to get to the level the restaurant is on. The other two, we stayed in 13902, which is a Aft Haven with Master Bedroom and Balcony. It was lovely!

 

Having the living area is perfect for when the husband was sleeping and I was awake. The balcony is gigantic! The butler was phenomenal. We saw our butlers almost every day. When we didn't, we knew they had been by to restock the coffee, iced tea, water, and to deliver the afternoon (unnecessary) treat. 

 

I enjoyed having to walk the entire ship to get to the Haven, plus three sets of stairs, as the exercise was nice. I also enjoyed going out on the pool deck to get some fresh air before, and after, a meal. When we were really utilizing the Haven complex we packed our backpack so we'd have all we needed: bathing suits, books, laptop, headphones. Then we'd camp out in the Haven Courtyard to use the pool, hot tub, sauna, and sun deck. We'd have drinks delivered to us by the pool deck attendant and have a great lunch in the restaurant. 

 

Finally, probably six hours later (or so), we'd wander back to our beautiful balcony to enjoy the aft-facing views. 

 

I'm all for staying out of the Haven complex so you can leave when you want. On our last cruise, there were some over the top people we didn't appreciate. They were a wee bit too snobbish for us, so it was nice to escape them.

[Two Wheels Only]

52 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

All on the Getaway, so I can't provide Escape information..

 

52 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

The other two, we stayed in 13902, which is a Aft Haven with Master Bedroom and Balcony.

 

53 minutes ago, cruiseny4life said:

The balcony is gigantic!

 

Caution should be taken when it comes to the aft-facing suites as far as Breakaway/Getaway vs. the Breakaway Plus (Escape/Joy/Bliss/Encore) ships. Not only are the balcony sizes different between the 2 classes but the stateroom configurations are also different between the 2 classes. 

 

13 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

About 1/3 of the Haven rooms are not in the Haven complex on Deck 17/18. 

 

For Escape...

55 inside of the Haven complex.

40 outside of the Haven complex.

 

16 hours ago, Monica887 said:

I was eyeing an aft room for the balcony, but maybe I won't get the full experience if we aren't in the haven proper which is forward?

 

As you can see from the responses, some people prefer to be in the complex while some people prefer the aft-facing suites. Each has positives and "negatives". I'm one who prefers the size advantages of the stateroom and the balcony as well as the price advantage so count my vote for the aft-facing. I also book for 4 so the HF isn't an option. The H2, H3 and H6 on Escape are also options for more stateroom space/sleeping capacity than the HF.  

 

If you have any questions regarding the aft-facing suites on the BA/BA Plus ships, see below....

(the alphanumeric codes were different then but the info is still correct)

 

 

[cruiseny4life]

21 minutes ago, Two Wheels Only said:

Caution should be taken when it comes to the aft-facing suites as far as Breakaway/Getaway vs. the Breakaway Plus (Escape/Joy/Bliss/Encore) ships. Not only are the balcony sizes different between the 2 classes but the stateroom configurations are also different between the 2 classes. 

 

So true. That's why I be sure to mention that I sailed on Getaway, not another ship. I'll experience the Joy in March, but not an aft suite. Just a HJ Haven Suite. Alas, it'll be a marvelous cruise! 

[vacation44]

We stayed in a Joy Haven HI and absolutely loved the location.   It took us less than a minute to walk to the Haven entrance and that walk saved us a good amount of dollars.

[Two Wheels Only]

3 minutes ago, vacation44 said:

We stayed in a Joy Haven HI and absolutely loved the location.   It took us less than a minute to walk to the Haven entrance and that walk saved us a good amount of dollars.

 

For Escape, the "kind of close but outside" option could be the HD/H9/HI staterooms on deck 16 but I don't know how many people the OP will have in the stateroom. Those staterooms (other than the HD) will be small and there is only 1 HD on the ship. 

[JGmf]

Agree with some others that staying outside of "Haven proper" is a higher value experience: for the room sizes, the relative cost, and the marginal exercise you get from walking to the Haven deck/bar/restaurant, and also for not having to see the same people over and over. 

 

Plus, depending on time of year or cruise, the main Haven pool/sundeck and lounge and, yes, even the bar can be loaded with kids....just saying it's not always an oasis of tranquility.

[Monica887]

3 hours ago, JGmf said:

Agree with some others that staying outside of "Haven proper" is a higher value experience: for the room sizes, the relative cost, and the marginal exercise you get from walking to the Haven deck/bar/restaurant, and also for not having to see the same people over and over. 

 

Plus, depending on time of year or cruise, the main Haven pool/sundeck and lounge and, yes, even the bar can be loaded with kids....just saying it's not always an oasis of tranquility.

That's actually a good heads up. I'm leaving my kids home for this trip (hence the haven splurge and wanting the full experience), so it's helpful to brace myself for the fact that it won't be tranquil adult-only silence. 

 

I just went on another ("fun") l cruise line over winter break and the kids running up and down the halls at all hours was just too much.  I'm hoping for a more relaxing experience this time!

[dexddd]

Escape has a great Haven.  Prima, don't waste the money.

[wolft927]

We have Cruised the BA twice in the Haven and liked it alot. Our next cruise in April we are on the Joy also in a Haven Suite (Aft facing Haven Penthouse) We opted for this becasue of the Balcony space and we will have our 16 year old stepdaughter as well as her 17 year old friend. 

[Sailing12Away]

Any ship with a Haven area is lovely. We just adjust our expected price range and expectations accordingly based on the ship and the room we end up with. For a full Haven experience (Joy, Encore, Bliss, etc) - we expect to pay around $500/pp/night for a 'regular' (courtyard) Haven room. Anything less and it's a bargain, anything more and it needs to be an awesome itinerary that we love. Owners suites or garden villas are a class in themselves, so those prices would be higher of course. If I find those rooms at the $500 price point, I book first and find companions later.

 

For the jewel-class ships that lack a 'full' Haven (no restaurant, no bar, no lounge) we would be comfortable paying about $350/pp/night. Otherwise a non-Haven suite to us is perfectly fine. We don't need that small pool area for an extra 2K, for us it's not worth it. 

Those are our price points based on our DINK budget and way we like to vacation. Other folks may scoff at paying more than $300/pp/night for any trip regardless of the ship or cabin.

 

For a first time Haven guest, I would definitely suggest going for the cheaper rooms that are outside of the Haven area. Everything about Haven will be new to you anyway, so you get to work out the kinks and find all the tricks and secrets of what makes the trip better for you - without spending a LOT of money in case you find out that the butler and other Haven perks are not a value add for you. We don't like the aft rooms, they're enormous and the balcony is amazing, but for us on a full Haven ship we like to spend a lot of our time in the Haven area. So for us, the walk is too far from aft to front to do it often, and we prefer to be closer. Other folks don't care and like the walk to burn off calories - so that's for you to judge.

 

The best hidden gem we've found are the HH, HI, and HJ rooms on the Joy. They're outside of the proper Haven area (so cheaper), and much bigger than those courtyard rooms. So cheaper, bigger, and it's midship so barely any inconvenience go get into that proper Haven area = win win for us.

[fsa1155]

On 1/16/2023 at 12:50 AM, zgscl said:

I just booked Encore for this summer and really struggled over the choice between a forward facing penthouse or the courtyard penthouse with balcony. I am going solo so I finally decided that the smaller room that was inside the complex would be better. Also, it looks like quite a long walk from the front of the ship to the forward elevators, so it seems like the convenience is worth the extra cost and sacrifice in space.

We are booked on the Encore for September.  I'm really looking forward to it.  We reserved the Haven  Courtyard Penthouse Cabin.  

[scooter6139]

IMO If you want to "try out" the Haven to see what it's like, stick to the Joy.  Has a full Haven complex, plus a lot of Haven cabins to choose from, especially outside the Haven complex itself.  When they moved the Joy from the Asian Market to the US, they revamped most of the ship.  So a lot of those "concierge suite" cabins on desk 14 and 15 were changed to new Haven ones.  Usually they are the best deals on Haven cabins.

[laurabegorrah]

All ships that have Haven suites have a real Haven area.  However the Jewel class ships (Jewel, Gem, Pearl, Jade) are the only ones that do not have a lounge or restaurant.  They also have the smallest courtyard area, but on the flip side, they have the fewest Haven cabins.