McGarrett5oh

We are doing just this with our adult children in September in a 2 bedroom H6 Haven suite. Comparatively, it was quite a good value.

I just finished a phone call with the Haven Pre-Cruise Concierge, Yvonne. Very professonal and helpful. I had a few questions that she was able to answer without fail. The one takeaway that I didn't completely understand, from previous research, was that the Pre-Cruise Concierge requests you can make for your suite are just for "Embarkation Day" In other words, if there are any requests related to later in the cruise, those should be directed to your Butler or the on-board Concierge. Of course, pre-cruise we can also pick from the pillow menu, empty the refrigerator & ask for extra hangers, which has been covered thoroughly in this thread. But to illustrate what I didn't know, I was told that we can choose up to 2 different drinks to be available in the suite upon arrival: Drinks: Orange, Cranberry, Apple, Lemonade or Iced Tea Snacks: Assorted Nuts, M&Ms, and/or gummy bears (didn't catch if we are limited to 2 of these) If we want anything different (that may be available) or to change things up after Embarkation Day, I was told to take care of that on board. We will use our Butler letter along with conversation with our Butler upon meeting him or her to make those requests. Our needs are relatively simple (e.g. no CPAP, or important medical or mobility requests that may be needed by other guests), so I thought I'd share this primarily to help reinforce the importance of the Butler letters provided by @Sthrngary and others, to focus on requests beyond the pre-cruise set up for Embarkation Day. Hope this is helpful.

Indeed! In our motorhome days we always had contingencies and backup plans depending on circumstances. In Le Havre we won’t know the weather, the ship being delayed etc so thinking large to begin and having the car reserved gives us the flexibility to make game time and in game decisions. I’ll let u know how it turns out. Thanks again.

We’re 14 days on the Prima in September plus 2 days early arrival. We’re budgeting for Haven laundry so we can pack less and save room for the layers we’ll need in Iceland and Norway.

Thanks for your input @Hlitner Good detail & thoughts to consider.

Hank - We have 16 hours in port. Subtracting an hour from each end, that leaves us with 14 hours to explore the area around Le Havre. I am used to long driving days from our RV experiences, We have EXTENSIVELY mapped out our driving & walking itineraries and are used to working within a "minute by minute" type agenda and know we have alot to accomplish with our plans (we're also used to "speed dating" an area on 1 day port excursions), but I thought I'd ask your opinion on this: We want to visit the American Cemetary at Normandy as well as visit Giverny, Vernon & Rouen. We know they are in opposite directions and trying to do it all means almost as much time in the car as visiting the sites, but we have 14 hours. We also know there are toll roads along the way, there could be traffic and/or weather and have built in some extra buffer just in case. There are now Ubers available in Le Havre which we plan to reserve in advance to get to Hertz and back (so not to rely on taxis). Is there anything we might be missing in planning this out or your experiences driving the French roads in this area? Thanks in advance! McGarrett

Thanks @Hlitner. We've read your posts and currently have a reservation at Hertz and Alamo. We believe Hertz is our best option as it allows for a late dropoff. Have you rented from either in Le Havre before? TIA

@RocketMan275

@alexgtp Thank you very much for the quick response & detail. One more question, how long did it take the ship once you entered Nordfjord to cruise to Olden or the other way around when departing? We are wondering how long we'll get those beautiful views cruising in the Fjord in daylight. Thanks again!

Thanks for offering to answer. Can you give me an idea of how long the bus ride took from the port to Loen Skylift base, how long the trip up and down takes and if you have a time limit up top so as to get a your bus back to the port? TIA

We have had a car reserved for several months at Hertz for a similar overnight in September. I don’t recall the specifics of my research last year, but I didn’t find anything negative for either Hertz or Alamo other than the usual “video the condition of your rental before driving off”, “get the car rental’s insurance even if your covered by your own or a credit card” and the obligatory primer on driving in Iceland which seems to be mostly focused on winter conditions. It’s a short taxi ride from the port to the rental facility.

Found my answer:

I’ve read consistently that, in Europe, tips in general are not expected on land. Anyone with a perspective on tipping the porters in Europe (e.g. Southampton)? TIA

We were on the Celebrity Silhouette at Christmas this year and while their "Retreat" is arguably comparable to NCL's Haven, we were in a standard balcony and didn't once feel a class difference since we weren't in the "Retreat". The "Retreat" guests have their own restaurant (oddly located right next to the MDR entrance and they have a private sundeck and bar in the front of the ship (which I accessed early one morning just to see). While there might have been early access for the guests to the 1 smaller venue onboard, it didn't bother us. We knew those guests were paying a premium for premium service. We are going to experience the Retreat for the first time next January on the Beyond, which will be an interesting comparison to the Haven experience we'll experience for the first time this Fall on the Prima. But I digress. The purpose of this post is to support the knowledge that I hope we all have, that people cruise for different reasons and value services differently. For us, and that's just us, the value we believe we will get from our Haven experience in Europe this Fall will be: 1. The "ship within the ship" (ability to avoid the crowds when we want to) 2. The escalated food and service in the Haven restaurant and bar 3. The ability to get priority disembarkation at the ports* 4. The enhanced service quality from a Butler and Concierge when and if needed 5. The enhanced service quality we have received from the Pre-Cruise Concierge personnel. Getting priority access to the entertainment is not a priority for us. * We are taking this cruise to see the areas in and around the ports on the itinerary. We have independent plans in each port and since there are just a relatively short number of hours to do so, thus forcing us (et al) to have to "speed date" that day's port, #3 above has incredible value to us on this cruise. Recognizing that everyone has their own opinion on what value is and what their priorities are, I offer ours as simply a point of reference.

My wife and I cruised on Virgin Voyages last year. Tipping is discouraged and not expected by the staff. To @Sthrngary’s point, we received exceptional service by being kind to the staff, making them laugh and feel appreciated. But what we found to be the most effective was asking the staff member if we could take a picture of their name badge so that we could remember their name to give them props in the post cruise survey (which we did without exception). On Virgin, they tell you the survey is the most important way to recognize the crew, who presumably earn their “tips” from the company in financial, promotions and other means. While survey compliments may not be quite as important for NCL & the Haven as it is with Virgin, calling out good service during and after the cruise never hurts. IMO

Hi @cruiseny4life Did you post a review of this cruise anywhere on Cruise Critic (or elsewhere). Thanks!

@CDR Benson Assuming your Regent review will appear in another forum sir, I hope you will post a link to it in this forum so we can find what I anticipate will be a well written and entertaining read. TIA.

Thanks for the replies @tcrandal, @ziggyuk & @dexddd. What time did you actually get onboard to drop your carryons? 🛄

I’m wondering if anyone in this this thread EMBARKED from Southampton and has any tips regarding the check in process for our upcoming Prima cruise in the Haven?

I'm wondering if any previous Haven guests have boarded the Prima in Southampton. I understand it moors at the new Horizon Cruise Terminal. My questions are: 1. Is there a Haven baggage drop before entering the terminal? 2. Experiences with the Haven waiting lounge in the terminal and if your check in is processed inside or is there a unique queue for Haven guest to check in before the waiting lounge? 3. What time were you able to actually board the ship? Thank you in advance for answers or direction. McGarrett

@Sthrngary A couple of reactions to this information: 1. I don't believe 99% of the participants in this thread believe you to be crazy nor insane. Based on the 2000+ replies in this thread and the number of people who now use a "Butler Letter", I say, "well done sir" 2. I have an idea of what I want to tip and to whom, but since you are an experienced "tipper", it would be helpful to know if these amounts are based on a 7 day, 10 day or an X day cruise? I like to divide costs (& extras) by the number of days (& per person) to get a true sense of value when shopping and/or booking a cruise, so it would be helpful to MY crazy insane method to know the denominator for the above amounts. Thank you in advance for your reply (is that a bribe?🤣) and for all you do! It is appreciated!

We would like to taxi from the Le Havre cruise port into town (Le Havre). Are taxis readily available at the port and do they require cash or is a safe credit card terminal available with the driver? Thank you

I've only had the opportunity to speak to 2 different pre-cruise Haven concierges (not Maria nor Robin). Both have been over the top professional, friendly, helpful and knowledgeable. When you spend the $$ it takes to enjoy the Haven, it's reassuring to know that you will get appropriate service in the lead up to your cruise. BTW, they have been responsive to a couple of non-urgent emails I've sent but there was a lag as I expected.

Question for @Sthrngary and any others: Once past the final payment date, if the stateroom in the Haven you've reserved and PAID in full, drops in price substatially, is there any opportunity to try to get the lower price from NCL? This is a direct reservation (no TA involved this time). Thank you,

How was Geiranger? Weather? What did you do on-shore? Thanks. Enjoy!!