Booked an AE, parents are in a oceanview. What about breakfast?

[petalpalz]

My husband and I are traveling with parents (disabled and in a disabled room, didn't want a balcony). With a disparity in our room classifications, is there a way to be able to include them in our breakfast and or lunch plans at Cagneys? I asked when we booked and the booking agent said the policy would not include our parents, but that we should inquire with our concierge because they can make exceptions.

Instead of going to Cagney's we could have room service for breakfast, but like to have a full egg/bacon/toast breakfast. Is the breakfast menu different if you are staying in one of the penthouse suites? We have booked an AE category room. We have traveled 3 times with NCL and have had mini suites each time.

[cruiseat50]

We just got off the Pearl from an AE aft suite and loved it! (our 1st cruise) We could have ordered whatever we wanted and had it delivered to our cabin by the butler (enough for 4, but then don't forget to give him/her a nice tip). :) We never did this as we enjoyed going up to see the view from up at Cagney's. Not that the view wasn't spectacular from the balcony but we spent a good amount of time there too so it was nice to go out. If your parents were to join you in the room you could just order theirs also. But, I really would recommend talking to the concierge first to see if you could just have them join you in Cagney's when you went to breakfast and lunch. I really think if you ask that they would probably accomodate you. Quite truthfully unless it was just unusual for the times we went there was hardly many in there at all and don't see why the mini-suites couldn't also have this priviledge (well, I don't actually know how many ms there are so maybe not). One thing you have to try is the crab cakes benedict. They are wonderful! I also tried the regular eggs benedict and didn't care for it. The ham they used was way too salty for my tastes. They also have a mini buffet of fruits, rolls and cereal that you can opt for before or as your breakfast.

 

We actually ate all our breakfasts there as I couldn't get DH to try the buffet with me. I usually do not like buffets but the Pearl has had such high praise for theirs I wanted to try. It probably wouldn't have worked well for us though as DH has coordination issues due to physical and sight abilities, but mostly he just doesn't do well in crowds. Oh, well I will try it next time when we go with friends or family.

[petalpalz]

Thanks for the response. We are booked in room 8132. Which room did you have? Did you find the balcony large enough? We are hoping it is large enogh to accomodate 4 chairs.

The more I consider it, the more likely it is that they will want to order in. I loved that on the last cruise, and the breakfast room service menu was just fine, as they are light eaters. I'm looking forward to a few memorable breakfasts at Cagney's though.

Do you by chance have pictures of your stateroom? You must have just returned from the Caribbean, right?

[terrymtex01]

A lot will depend on how many the Concierge thinks will be using Cagneys for breakfast and lunch, but I personally don't think you will have any trouble getting approval. The approval will have to come from the Concierge however.

 

As far as the balcony being able to fit four chairs, I think it will be some what tight, but doable. I do think you will have to ask the cabin stewards and/or butler to remove the lounge chair that will be out there and maybe even the little outdoor table. The balcony for the AE's Aft are nice sized, but huge they are not.

 

You will be able to have just about anything you want delivered to your stateroom for breakfast, or any meal, for that matter. You can have the butler deliver any thing being served in any restaurant for that meal. The only exception is Teppanyaki. Of course, as I am sure you know, any surcharge restaurant orders you will be charged the appropriate amount.

 

If you do dine in a specialty restaurant and if you choose Lotus Garden, which I highly recommend, you have got to try their steamed barbeque ribs that they serve as a starter. Next time we are on the Pearl if they still offer those, they are so good I am going to ask for a double order for my main course.

 

Hope you and your parents enjoy the cruise. 8-)

[cruiseat50]

Terry is correct 4 would be a squeeze but would work. But I am curious were we supposed to have had a lounge out there? I don't really think I would have wanted it out there as I really liked the two chairs with the little table was plenty. What ship are you going to be on? If it is the Pearl and Erika is still on as concierge she really is a sweetheart and please tell her Steve & Lisa send their best wishes. It was her first week as concierge on the Pearl and I cannot believe she hadn't been doing it for years! She said she really loves her job and it shows!

 

We were in 8632 and yes we just returned from the Carribean waaaaah! :( Came back to cold rainy weather (but apparently had a light dusting of snow that morning). On the other hand... we left Miami Tues and Miami's forecast for Thurs. am was to be in the 30's...

 

I will attempt to attach some pics of our cabin. I have the pics from my camera :D but DH had to take his newer fancier disk for his camera to see if the pics can be recovered. :rolleyes: Hope they can as he had quite a few and also some videos on it.

[cruiseat50]

Here are a few more... couldn't resist adding a couple of the sunset on my birthday. They really don't even come close to how beautiful it was... brought tears of tremendous joy to my eyes.

[elruth]

petalpalz.. you wrote ....We are hoping it is large enogh to accomodate 4 chairs.

 

We stayed in an AE on the Pearl and I don't know how you could fit 4 chairs on that deck. We had a lounger, a small table and a chair and we couldn't have fit anything else on that deck. We didn't even eat out there as it would have been a tight squeeze.

[petalpalz]

Ok, now with the picture of the balcony posted here, I realize that there won't be room for 4 chairs. :) In fact, I'm wondering if we should revert back to a mini suite and save $800. It seems like the size of the room is not significantly bigger, and we can get a lot of nice meals and excursions for $800.00. I'm undecided now. I love being in an aft room, however.

Thank you Elruth for that perspective.

And cruiseat50... thanks SO much for the pictures. They are lovely. Do you have any pictures of the bath? I don't understand what the middle peninsula looking thing is. Is it a closet?

 

I'm so glad you had a wonderful birthday. Happy birthday, belatedly to you! and thanks again.

[beachchick]

We just got off the Pearl from an AE aft suite and loved it! (our 1st cruise) We could have ordered whatever we wanted and had it delivered to our cabin by the butler (enough for 4, but then don't forget to give him/her a nice tip). :) We never did this as we enjoyed going up to see the view from up at Cagney's. Not that the view wasn't spectacular from the balcony but we spent a good amount of time there too so it was nice to go out. If your parents were to join you in the room you could just order theirs also. But, I really would recommend talking to the concierge first to see if you could just have them join you in Cagney's when you went to breakfast and lunch. I really think if you ask that they would probably accomodate you. Quite truthfully unless it was just unusual for the times we went there was hardly many in there at all and don't see why the mini-suites couldn't also have this priviledge (well, I don't actually know how many ms there are so maybe not). One thing you have to try is the crab cakes benedict. They are wonderful! I also tried the regular eggs benedict and didn't care for it. The ham they used was way too salty for my tastes. They also have a mini buffet of fruits, rolls and cereal that you can opt for before or as your breakfast.

 

We actually ate all our breakfasts there as I couldn't get DH to try the buffet with me. I usually do not like buffets but the Pearl has had such high praise for theirs I wanted to try. It probably wouldn't have worked well for us though as DH has coordination issues due to physical and sight abilities, but mostly he just doesn't do well in crowds. Oh, well I will try it next time when we go with friends or family.

 

There are more than 130 mini-suites on the Pearl. That makes it a "maybe not" situation, IMO (and NCL's opinion too). I can't even imagine the little Cagney's room with 260+ more pax at breakfast and lunch.

 

I think your ideas for petalpalz are good. She should talk to the concierge privately and explain the situation. (I say privately because the last thing she wants is some other suite guest overhearing and then saying, "Hey, if they get an exception, I want one for the 12 family members traveling with me too." Then the line starts to be drawn as to what number of "extra" pax who are not technically entitled to the perk should be allowed.) This is what I would call an untypical situation based on physical needs and adult children trying to make the cruise special for their disabled parents, which is why I think it's likely that the concierge will make an exception for at least some of the time. That's probably especailly true if they agree not to dine there when/if the room is full or other suite guests are waiting. There were several mornings when Cagney's was packed between 7:30 and 8:30 because so many suite guests chose that time to dine. At other times, I suspect that the concierge will make sure that they all can dine together. (Many of you know I'm a big believer in following the rules, so I don't say this lightly. I'm not as rigid as you might think.)

 

Alternatively, having the butler deliver breakfast from Cagney's for all of them en suite might work. I'm not sure if that's available for all suites or just the CVs, OSs, and GVs, but it certainly couldn't hurt to ask regardless. In any case, the regular suite breakfast menu has plenty of options. It's always okay to write in requests for something special; sometimes it's not possible to fulfill a request, but the butlers are often miracle workers who make every effort to accomodate their guests.

 

beachchick

[cruiseat50]

Ok, now with the picture of the balcony posted here, I realize that there won't be room for 4 chairs. :) In fact, I'm wondering if we should revert back to a mini suite and save $800. It seems like the size of the room is not significantly bigger, and we can get a lot of nice meals and excursions for $800.00. I'm undecided now. I love being in an aft room, however.

Thank you Elruth for that perspective.

And cruiseat50... thanks SO much for the pictures. They are lovely. Do you have any pictures of the bath? I don't understand what the middle peninsula looking thing is. Is it a closet?

 

I'm so glad you had a wonderful birthday. Happy birthday, belatedly to you! and thanks again.

 

Well, I think I may have another picture of the balcony as I realize this one only shows about 3/4 of it plus the chair is not up against the dividing wall so there is more room than it looks like. As I said it wouldn't have a lot of extra room but would be enough if they are just the regular chairs and possibly the table removed.

 

The $800 is quite a pill to swallow (although I'm not sure it was that much difference on ours) but one that I will gladly take to have the aft view that I fell in love with. The Pearl does have some aft mini-suites but then you miss out on the other perks. The only thing that I didn't care for is that unfortunately we seemed to have a lot of cigar smokers on the aft. It seemed that most times when we went out there it was there. We did however find a way to stop it once. DH went out there and was enjoying the view then the stench drifted down. He went inside to get away but decided he wanted to be out there for a bit longer as I was getting ready for whatever so he took his ipod and mini docking station with a great speaker system. He loaded up the Bette Midler album and turned it up a bit. Apparently the cigar smoker didn't care for Bette because about a minute later DH heard a door slam and the smell was gone! :D

[cruiseat50]

Ooops, forgot to preview and the see that the pic didn't attach so here it is. DH might have more pics on his camera disk once we get it back from the computer store that is trying to retrieve the lost pics. (mine never has this problem) ;)

 

If you are referring to the picture that looks like an island that is the view looking from the balcony towards the door yes that is where your closet will be. On the left side of the picture you will see where your bar set up is with the coffee maker/espresso/cappucino that DH loved. I never used it because I don't like coffee but I normally like the smell of coffee. To tell the truth I really didn't like the smell of it at all.

 

The closet is beyond the bar area and can be accessed from both sides which came in handy when we were running almost late a couple of times so that we could both dress quickly out of each others way.

[petalpalz]

OH! You are right. The other photo made it look deceptively small. I can live with that size!!

Does the room come with one of those awesome coffee makers? Can I actually steam my own milk? Your response just tantalized me with more questions.

 

Beachchick, thanks for the advice. I'm curious to see how the AE suite room service menu varies from the usual balcony room menu. We have always been able to have a filling meal for breakfast from the cold menu, but if I can start the day with eggs/ and WARM toast and or oatmeal in my room, I'll be happy cruiser and I'm sure our parents would appreciate it too. (The parents are our two mother's coming along, both unable to walk any long distances. my mom with a walker) I'm sure they would prefer to eat in the room than walk to the dining room. .. and altho I've always wanted to be able to enjoy BF and lunch at Cagney's, I certainly don't feel entitled to ask for special treatment. I'll definately discuss the situation with our concierge.

[cruiseat50]

It does come with the awesome coffee makers (lol) according to DH and he says that he believes you can steam your milk although he never did this. I do regret not making any tea with this to check it out. Oh well, next time. :D

[cruiseat50]

There are more than 130 mini-suites on the Pearl. That makes it a "maybe not" situation, IMO (and NCL's opinion too). I can't even imagine the little Cagney's room with 260+ more pax at breakfast and lunch.

 

I think your ideas for petalpalz are good. She should talk to the concierge privately and explain the situation. (I say privately because the last thing she wants is some other suite guest overhearing and then saying, "Hey, if they get an exception, I want one for the 12 family members traveling with me too." Then the line starts to be drawn as to what number of "extra" pax who are not technically entitled to the perk should be allowed.) This is what I would call an untypical situation based on physical needs and adult children trying to make the cruise special for their disabled parents, which is why I think it's likely that the concierge will make an exception for at least some of the time. That's probably especailly true if they agree not to dine there when/if the room is full or other suite guests are waiting. There were several mornings when Cagney's was packed between 7:30 and 8:30 because so many suite guests chose that time to dine. At other times, I suspect that the concierge will make sure that they all can dine together. (Many of you know I'm a big believer in following the rules, so I don't say this lightly. I'm not as rigid as you might think.)

 

Alternatively, having the butler deliver breakfast from Cagney's for all of them en suite might work. I'm not sure if that's available for all suites or just the CVs, OSs, and GVs, but it certainly couldn't hurt to ask regardless. In any case, the regular suite breakfast menu has plenty of options. It's always okay to write in requests for something special; sometimes it's not possible to fulfill a request, but the butlers are often miracle workers who make every effort to accomodate their guests.

 

beachchick

 

WOW! I didn't realize that there would be anywhere near 130 mini-suites! So, no that wouldn't work as would be way too many for the size of the restaurant. Although I still say that we really must have timed it right as there never were that many people in there for breakfast especially and we usually ate in the 7:30-8:30ish window. We must have been on a boat with really early or really late risers. :D The one day we didn't make it until 10ish there it seemed to be a little fuller.

[odblnt]

I'm curious to see how the AE suite room service menu varies from the usual balcony room menu. We have always been able to have a filling meal for breakfast from the cold menu, but if I can start the day with eggs/ and WARM toast and or oatmeal in my room, I'll be happy cruiser and I'm sure our parents would appreciate it too. (The parents are our two mother's coming along, both unable to walk any long distances. my mom with a walker) I'm sure they would prefer to eat in the room than walk to the dining room. .. and altho I've always wanted to be able to enjoy BF and lunch at Cagney's, I certainly don't feel entitled to ask for special treatment. I'll definately discuss the situation with our concierge.

 

The nice thing about the breakfast menu is that you can write in anything they make. If you have a favorite from the Cagney's breakfast menu (salmon fritata, steak and eggs, excellent french toast), just write it in even if it doesn't appear on the "hang it on the door" card. Also, you can talk to your butler about what he can bring.

 

 

 

It does come with the awesome coffee makers (lol) according to DH and he says that he believes you can steam your milk although he never did this. I do regret not making any tea with this to check it out. Oh well, next time. :D

 

Yes, although it did take some trial and error, you can steam milk on those machines for a great latte. We also stopped at a grocery store before boarding and bought Smuckers Caramel Topping (like for ice cream) to make caramel lattes.

[brunolvr]

I'm curious to see how the AE suite room service menu varies from the usual balcony room menu.

 

Here's the suite room service menu for breakfast:

http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/2317368300101666721eYilnl

One morning we felt like eggs Benedict and wrote it on the menu, and we got them. Also we wanted apple juice & cranberry juice and had no problem in getting them.

[petalpalz]

Ok Old Dog.. I'm liking these extra perks. I'm bringing my own coffee beans, vanilla and ghirardelli white chocolate syrup to make my special recipe awesome white chocolate mocha's. Hubby's fave. This will be GREAT!

 

Does the fridge have soda's and stuff in it? I will need it empty as I have PLANS!

 

Should I bring my own steaming pitcher?

[Arwenmark]

Sorry mistaken post

[petalpalz]

Brunolvr,

Thanks for posting that. It's fun to read all the freestyle dailies, too!

You are all awesome.

[Arwenmark]

Beachchick, she has a suite booked not a minisuite so I don't quite understand your post, only suite guests are allowed to use Cagney's for breakfast not mini suites. Mini suites and balcony cabins get to use the smaller regular dining room [forget the name at the moment] for breakfast and all other guests can use the main dining room.

It appears there are only 34 suites all Categories included on the Pearl.

Perhaps I misunderstood what you were saying?

[brunolvr]

Brunolvr,

Thanks for posting that. It's fun to read all the freestyle dailies, too!

You are all awesome.

 

You'll have a great time on the Pearl to Alaska, petalpalz! ENJOY!:)

[beau4]

Ok Old Dog.. I'm liking these extra perks. I'm bringing my own coffee beans, vanilla and ghirardelli white chocolate syrup to make my special recipe awesome white chocolate mocha's. Hubby's fave. This will be GREAT!

 

 

Does the fridge have soda's and stuff in it? I will need it empty as I have PLANS!

 

 

Should I bring my own steaming pitcher?

 

Your coffee drink sounds amazing! Have to try that sometime; what's not to like about ghirardelli chocolate?

The machine uses those little

"pods' - you know the ones for the single servings. I don't know if it will take anything else.

The fridge is stocked with sodas and those litle bottles of alcohol. Ask your butler to arrange to have it emptied. We found that even with it stocked, there was enough room for what we needed to store.

 

There was a little pitcher for steaming milk in the cabinet under the coffee machine.

 

Have a great cruise.

[beachchick]

Beachchick, she has a suite booked not a minisuite so I don't quite understand your post, only suite guests are allowed to use Cagney's for breakfast not mini suites. Mini suites and balcony cabins get to use the smaller regular dining room [forget the name at the moment] for breakfast and all other guests can use the main dining room.

It appears there are only 34 suites all Categories included on the Pearl.

Perhaps I misunderstood what you were saying?

 

Yes, I think you misunderstood me. If you look at cruiseat50's post where I bolded within the quote, you'll see that I am specifically answering a "question" about how many mini-suites are on Pearl:

 

"Quite truthfully unless it was just unusual for the times we went there was hardly many in there at all and don't see why the mini-suites couldn't also have this priviledge (well, I don't actually know how many ms there are so maybe not)."

 

I am well aware that petalpalz is in an AE and I responded to her OP as well.

 

beachchick

[runnerandme]

Petalpalz,

The coffee maker we had in our room used coffee pods. No beans. You could steam milk also. They have a variety of tea also in pods.

[tiggerfan616]

Like other posters have stated it will depend on the Concierge and the amont of people on the ship. I had an AB booked and had my parents in an oceanview they were unable to accomdiate allowing them in Cagneys with us. The ship was full for our sailing.

It never hurts to ask though but dont be upset if they cannot accomdiate the request, I wasn't at all.