Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

coondogg97

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    156

  • Joined

 Content Type 

Posts posted by coondogg97

    2023 Where are they now? Officers & crew.

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    On 4/8/2023 at 5:41 PM, CILCIANRQTS said:

    Officers encounter 100k to 250k people per year!!
    They won’t remember you, so why try so hard to keep track of them??
    All will gladly respond “I remember you!” after you remind them of the cruise you were on, but they don’t…

     

    Tell me you don't appreciate the crew members without telling me you don't appreciate the crew members. 

    2023 Premium Plus Beverage Package

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    On 2/18/2023 at 8:25 PM, Juncti said:

    Can't speak to what will be available, but you mentioned being in the Haven. That will give you the best shot at anything and everything you want that they have. Haven bar is typically best on the ship

    Except a good tequila. You can get Johnny Blue or Macallan Enigma but the best tequila in the Haven is Patron Anejo. They used to have Don Julio and Don Julio 1942. 

    In person Muster Drills changing 4/1/2023?

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    On 3/21/2023 at 3:52 PM, eileeshb said:

    On my first cruise I never actually spotted where the life jacket was stored in my cabin until I was packing which would have been far more useful info than anything in the Munster drill.  Turned out it was under the bed in the storage basket the steward used for the throw pillows. 

    Now that you mention it, I never actually saw my life jackets on the Encore. I saw the basket under the bed when I was looking for my luggage, but I thought it was just sheets for the bed. So the only thing the in person drill taught us was how to get to The Local. 

    2023 Where are they now? Officers & crew.

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    On 3/5/2023 at 12:20 PM, www3traveler said:

    ENCORE    Taken from Freestyle Daily posted 4 March 2023:

    General Manager:  Deepak

    Assistant General Manager: Mirko

    Cruise Director: Marzena

    Food and Beverage Director: Igor

    Assistant Food and Beverage: Vikram

    Executive Chef: Francis

    Restaurant Manager: Danijel

    Beverage Manager: Raj

    Guest Services Manager: Belkys

    Executive Housekeeper: Boni Facio

     

    The concierge is John D'Souza and Abby is backing him up. The Haven bartenders are Kai & Maria. The butler (17100) is Latilano. 

    Prima Cruise Director is:

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted · Edited by coondogg97

    On 9/27/2022 at 10:08 PM, WhenIsOurNextCruise said:

    I think I am correct in saying this is the first time since the Epic that will not have Adrian Bica as the concierge bringing out the new ship.  IMHO, Adrian was the best.  We sailed with him many times and he is amazing.  We wish him all the best in his new endeavors.  He will be missed.  His sister, Christina, is still in management in the casino department with NCL.  She is equally charming.  Hopefully she will be helping bring out the Prima.

    We had Adrian on the Escape in 2018, by far the best concierge we've ever had. We were just on the Encore and John D'Souza was the concierge with Abby backing him up. They did a good job, but you had to push for it a bit. It just came natural to Adrian. I am looking forward to meeting David on the Prima in a few weeks. 

    In person Muster Drills changing 4/1/2023?

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted · Edited by coondogg97

    We are just off the Encore and the in person drill wasn't that bad. At least we didn't have to walk around with the vest on like we used to. The elevators after the drill, that was a different story. They were packed and everyone was miserable. 

     

    We are cruising on the Prima April 9th. I just checked in and had to watch the eMuster drill video. That was new to me, I did not have to do that for the Encore a couple of weeks ago. 

     

    EDIT: I wanted to add that we did have to watch a mandatory safety video on the TV in our stateroom before we were able to use the TV. I think it was about 20 - 30 minutes?

    Norwegian Prima USB and Power Options

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted · Edited by coondogg97

    3 hours ago, BirdTravels said:

    From a cyber security perspective, you should never plug your devices into an untrusted USB port. That includes shopping malls, airports, and cruise ships. Cyber criminals have a lot to gain by paying people to doctor usb ports and infecting devices to steal information. 

     

     

    That gives you something to think about. I usually use one of these, but I will keep that in mind in the future. Thanks

     

    USB Charging Station

     

    • Like 2

    Monkeyland Taino Bay Puerto Plata

    in Dominican Republic

    Posted

    I couldn't find much information on Monkey Island in Taino Bay so I figured I would leave a post about the details. I've read conflicting reports about the tours and I think some people may be getting confused, I know I was. All we wanted to do was hang out with Monkeys. We weren't interested in zip lining or going on a two hour tour and trying Mamajuana. All we wanted was the time with the Monkeys and it couldn't have been easier. 

     

    We walked off the ship and walked directly to the Monkey Island house. It is tucked in the corner of Taino Bay right by a bar and a bunch of retail shops. We walked up at 11:15am and after paying $25pp and filling out some paperwork we were hanging with the monkeys by 11:30am. We ended up going into the monkey house 3 times so we had a few different guides. They were all great guys and knew exactly how to get the monkeys to interact with their guests. Between the tours we walked around Taino Bay and did some shopping and grabbed some lunch. It may have been the easiest and possibly cheapest excursion that we've ever done and we all had a blast!

     

     

    They will also take pictures of you with the monkeys and you can buy them after the tour. Since we ended up doing three tours we just purchased one package and all the pictures were available to download, I think it was $30-$40 and we ended up with 77 pictures. Still cheaper than any excursion you would book through the ship and it was a memory that we will never forget. 

     

    • Like 4

    Encore Puerto Plata Port

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    On 2/21/2023 at 9:03 PM, SubSmithy said:

    The end of January beginning of February we docked at Taino Bay.  All the excursions seemed to be long distance so we hired a local cab, $60 for three people to see the some local sights.  At every stop like the cathedral, there were people who charged  to show you around. $5 seemed sufficient.  One stop was a local chocolate maker.  They called it a factory but it was tiny.  The gift shop sold more Mamajuana than chocolate. (hint, taste the chocolate before you buy it.)  The shopping area near the ship is pretty good.  Prices are more reasonable than other ports.  The pool area there looked very inviting I wish I had brought my bathing suit off of the ship.

     

    I don't remember the name of the concierge.  I never did get an email ahead of the cruise.  But he was amazing.  New reservations, changing reservations, account issues, getting us on and off the ship, he and his team were just super efficient and accommodating.  

     

    As for the bartender, his name was Kai and his underling was Maria.  Kai came off as snooty and arrogant and catered to a very loud and inebriated family group that was regularly dropping $50's.  After the first few days the Haven bar was not the hub that I have known it to be.  We found the bar at the forward observation lounge with a piano player late in the evening was a pretty magic place to hang out.  Also a shout out to the whiskey bar for their Old Fashions and Whiskey Sours.

     

    I heard from someone who was on the Encore, the following week and they said that Maria was the primary bartender and they never met Kai.  So good for Maria!  She is is friendly and competent and fun to be around.  

     

    Again, thanks for the information, I just got back and agree (to a point). I don't think Kai gave any special attention to anyone. I think he is a very technical bartender, but doesn't have the people skills to be a lead bartender in The Haven (yet). There is a lot more to a Haven bartender than knowing mixology and tossing an ice cube into the air and catching it in a glass. He was kind, but not so personal. He is also 25 years old and has only been in The Haven for a short time. Give him a few years and I think he will find his niche and be a solid Haven bartender all around. 

     

    I also agree about Maria being talented enough to take the lead. She is more well rounded for the position right now. I don't think she was head bartender, but I did see her behind the bar more often than I saw Kai. There were also two Haven servers, Michael and Jude who I saw helping behind the bar a lot. They were great guys too. 

     

    On our first sea day someone ordered a martini and asked how they could get it in the "fancy martini glass". Kai said something along the lines of "If I serve a martini in that glass this early in a cruise everyone would want that glass." There were only a few of the chiller glasses on the bar so maybe it was an inventory issue? Although I didn't see one martini served in those glasses all week. 

    Encore Puerto Plata Port

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    13 hours ago, SubSmithy said:

    The end of January beginning of February we docked at Taino Bay.  All the excursions seemed to be long distance so we hired a local cab, $60 for three people to see the some local sights.  At every stop like the cathedral, there were people who charged  to show you around. $5 seemed sufficient.  One stop was a local chocolate maker.  They called it a factory but it was tiny.  The gift shop sold more Mamajuana than chocolate. (hint, taste the chocolate before you buy it.)  The shopping area near the ship is pretty good.  Prices are more reasonable than other ports.  The pool area there looked very inviting I wish I had brought my bathing suit off of the ship.

     

    I don't remember the name of the concierge.  I never did get an email ahead of the cruise.  But he was amazing.  New reservations, changing reservations, account issues, getting us on and off the ship, he and his team were just super efficient and accommodating.  

     

    As for the bartender, his name was Kai and his underling was Maria.  Kai came off as snooty and arrogant and catered to a very loud and inebriated family group that was regularly dropping $50's.  After the first few days the Haven bar was not the hub that I have known it to be.  We found the bar at the forward observation lounge with a piano player late in the evening was a pretty magic place to hang out.  Also a shout out to the whiskey bar for their Old Fashions and Whiskey Sours.

     

    I heard from someone who was on the Encore, the following week and they said that Maria was the primary bartender and they never met Kai.  So good for Maria!  She is is friendly and competent and fun to be around.  

     

    Wow, thanks for an extremely informative post. I believe the concierge is John Dsouza. We've never had any experience with him, but I've read good things. I'm disappointed to hear about the vibe at the Haven bar, but I am looking forward to meeting Maria. Our Haven bartender on our last cruise was Branko Janezic who was fantastic. I was hoping to meet him again. 

     

    And thank you everyone else for sharing your experience and research. I will also assume that we will be in Taino Bay. Which is good because I believe Monkeyland is closer to that location. If not we will probably just do the taxi tour. 

    Encore Puerto Plata Port

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    12 minutes ago, Ruminant said:

    We are on the same cruise!  It's our very first.

    This site says the Encore will be at Amber Cove on March 7.

     

    https://www.cruisemapper.com/ports/puerto-plata-amber-cove-port-1936?tab=schedule&month=2023-03#schedule

    Hello neighbor! The Encore is a nice ship to start with. Is it your first cruise or your first with NCL? We were on the Bliss a few years ago and the two ships are almost identical. That's why I chose the Encore, the Bliss is a great ship. 

     

    That's odd because the calendar for Amber Cove has the Carnival Celebration & NCL Getaway listed.

    https://www.ambercove.com/Port-Schedule.aspx

    Encore Puerto Plata Port

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    We are sailing on the Encore 3/5 - 3/12 and was wondering if anyone had an idea what port the ship stops at in Puerto Plata. I looked at the Amber Cove schedule and it's not there. Also does anyone know who the concierge or bartender is in the Haven currently?

     

    Thanks

    Smaller ships with Suites instead of Havens?

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    We've been fortunate enough to have stayed in the Haven a couple of times on our previous cruises. We are looking at possibly going on a smaller ship (Sun or Sky) that doesn't offer a Haven area. From what I've read it sounds like all the amenities are the same, except without the Haven area. I'm afraid after being spoiled in Havens that we will be disappointed not having that separate area and bar. That being said, we've never been in a suite on such a small ship, so will we really miss the separate Haven area?

     

    Can anyone who has experience with both chime in and give me your opinion.

     

    Thanks!

    Looking for an all Inclusive Resort with NCL options and Haven service

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    2 minutes ago, ColeThornton said:

    Yea, you won't find a forum for All Inclusive land resorts since this is CRUISE critic.   (kidding).

     

    Go to websites like Fodors or Trip Advisor for helpful forums.

     

    Haha, I know but I've been here long enough to know you people know everything when it comes to vacationing. I will check out Fodors, thank you.

     

    3 minutes ago, Laszlo said:

    We have been to two, sorry can't remember their names. They were great. Trip Advisor is your friend! Your right their are a LOT to choose from Lol

     

    Are you Chester or Lancaster county? I'm in Montgomery county

     

    I am on the boarder of Chester County in the Phoenixville area. 

    Looking for an all Inclusive Resort with NCL options and Haven service

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    Hey Laszlo, thanks for the fast reply. I've Googled this topic a lot before and that's how we came upon Couples Resort. Which was nothing like a cruise. There are so many to choose from and I don't know what to look for. Top shelf alcohol, entertainment, restaurants, concierge service, aggghh! It seems like we're in the same area. I am a little less than an hour west of Philly. Do you have any recommendations? Recently I was looking at Valentin Imperial Maya, Mexico and I have read a lot of good things about the Zoetry resorts.

    Looking for an all Inclusive Resort with NCL options and Haven service

    in Norwegian Cruise Line

    Posted

    Sorry if this is posted in the wrong area, it is kind of an odd questions so I didn't know where to put it.

     

    We have been cruising for years and the last few cruises we have stayed in a Haven (Breakaway, Escape & Bliss). We are looking to take a land vacation and go to an all inclusive resort. We have only done this once (Couples Resort in Negril) and although it was fun, it didn't come close to a cruise. The food, the bar options and the entertainment couldn't compare. But my wife would like to try another land vacation so I have turned to this forum for advice. Does anyone have any experience with an all inclusive, or even a non-all inclusive that would come close to what an NCL Haven has to offer in terms of service and options.

     

    Thank you

×
×
  • Create New...