Consierge Service

[mrtractor]

......mortysmommy, basswitche, the ever effervescent Jeanne and all the rest!

I hope your questions were answered, mm. Yes, we will be sailing the NCL Jewel the first week it arrives in Miami - November 6th. Are you on that sailing? If so, feel free to bring the brandy! I'll ask the butler serve it in snifters on a silver platter while wearing white gloves. If we sat on the veranda, would it be alright if I puffed on a contraband Cuban cigar? HAHHAAhahaha......

Shoreguy is on track here even though he may have mixed a couple of facts. The classes of cabins vary from ship to ship, line to line and fleet to fleet, but generally an AD is considered one of the "big kids" on a cruise. And sometimes even an AE. In the case of the Jewel the AD's get a bulter and so do the AEs. Some ships don't even have those designations. Others have cabins that on other ships that would be considered standard insides - but include concierge service. Go figure. Just check out the company website or a one like [url="http://www.cruisestateroom.com"]www.cruisestateroom.com[/url] and you'll likely be given the info you need.

As far as what a Hotel Director can do for you, the sky is the limit! OK, so maybe he won't let you steer the ship, but outside of that, he can really put a luster on a cruise. The best thing to do is [i]sincerely[/i] show your appreciation. You'll be amazed at how that can encourage them to take a shine to you. They have the complete "run of the ship" when it comes to amenities, food, beverages and privileges available to them. And they can really turn on the charm when they want to.

Just show your appreciation in a nice note and don't be too pushy. Let them do what they do best without browbeating and you'll likely be pleasantly surprised. After all, the Hotel Manager is the boss inside the ship. The concierge works for him. The butler works for the Concierge. All the positions not involved in navigating, propelling, securing or maintainting the ship fall under his perview. Wait staff, chefs, bottle washers, cabin stewards, entertainment, cruise director, purser, customer service, etc., etc. are in his domain. Be nice to him. He can be a real good person to know.

Here is a quick, "Qruise Quiz" for you all. Simply choose one of these sentences based on which one would most likely result in a positive response by the Hotel Manager or Concierge:

1) "Listen you SOB, I'm expecting to get a bottle of wine sent to my cabin and some flowers for my wife. If you don't do something nice for me, I'll puke in your shoes."

or

2) "Thanks for taking the time to talk to me and my (spouse, significant other, etc.) We were delighted to meet you and are having a marvelous time on board the SS (fill in the blanks). This is just the kind of experience we were hoping for and you and your staff are to be complimented for their excellent service. I look forward to seeing you again on board during our stay, and we hope we will be fortunate enough to sail again with you again soon.

Hmmmmmm.......that's a tough one!

I'm sorry I've been too preoccupied to post lately. This has been one of the best threads in ages. I'll get back on here soon and share some more ideas and tips on how to work with a butler. Hopefully, before I leave for Bermuda on the Horizon on May 28th. That's right, if any of you want to see 'ol MrT in action, that will the next place to see him! There is a thread over on Celebrity Roll Calls if you'd like to give me a jab! Haahhaahahahaaaa......

See you at Sea!!!

MrT<----------thinks that mandostan has found a place to hide - at least for a while............

[KLynnG]

Since My sister & I booked an AB on the Spirit which turned out to be a romance suite I was curious about the designation too. I finally decided that the romance suites all have queen or king size beds that don't separate into twins so they're designed for loving couples. This however means I sleep on the hide a bed in the living room. That's ok thats where the bar is.

[mortysmama]

Mr Tractor,
You compose the most wonderful posts. I appreciate what you say, but especially the WAY you say it. Unfortunately I will not be sailing with you. I sail on the Jewel on Oct. 21 for the 11 day NE/Canada trip. I was so hoping I could join that soiree you're planning. Oh well, maybe next time. I guess you'll have to get somebody else to bring the brandy.

Thank you for the education on the duties of the Hotel director. It appears he is quite an important person and one that it would be very nice to know. I got your message 'loud and clear'. I will definitely be sending him a nice "Thank You" note as soon as I get his card from the CC "Meet and Greet" aboard ship. I won't be exagerating when I tell him how much I'm looking forward to this vacation. I've been checking on the building progress of the Jewel since I got off the Dawn in February. It will be so exciting to actually board her. Heck, I'm excited just waiting for the first reviews. It is difficult reading all the wonderful posts of cruisers here knowing that I must wait until at least September to get a first hand account of this beautiful vessel. It just doubles the anxiety.

I hope you have a wonderful time on the Horizon. Bermuda is one of the most beautiful islands anywhere. We've sailed there at least 5 times...twice on the Horizon. Just thinking about the memories brings joyful tears to my eyes. I'm sure you will thoroughly enjoy it.

Please don't stay away from the boards so long. I miss your posts. Your humor is unique...you always bring a smile to my face.

Happy cruising....and thank you again.

[superflyjeff]

MrTractor: I'd love to hear your comments on how to get more from your buttler. Our buttler on the spirit was good, but you can't even compare him to our conceirge. I'd love to hear how you can get more out of them. Please fill me in!!

Thanks, Jeff

[Jeanne S]

Mr. T:

Have you been to Bermuda before? Hopefully this will then lead you to a British ship - I have QM2 in mind. You mentioned the Hotel Director may not let you steer the ship, but on Cunard, the Captain (also fond of those notes) may let you ring the noon horn and steer the ship.

Am pleased you are going on the Horizon. Having been on her twin the Zenith last year (and am booked for October to Bermuda), I think you will love this ship. Yes the cabins are small, but well configured with lots of closet room. I will go over to Celebrity to see what you are booked in.

Jeanne

Susean Jean, Jeanette and Shoreguy - there are still bargains to be had on the November 13th RCCL cruise to Bermuda.

[mrtractor]

.....thinking in terms of working with your butler, not trying to "get something out of them." Don't make it an adversarial situation, that is, you trying to squeeze as much as possible and him or her doing their best to prevent you from getting it. They will do just about anything you ask if you are reasonable and specific. And a lot of things they will do on their own, depending on the line you are using. Bring you breakfast, afternoon canapes, etc. But here are some things I sometimes ask them to do:

1) Rearrange the furniture. Yep. If I don't like the layout of the room or the furniture, I'll ask them to move it. It's not bolted down and it's my room for the week. I'll even have them remove some if I think it's unnecessary or in the way, particularly on the balcony.

2) Set up for a private party. On our recent Spirit cruise, we invited 40 people to our suite. The butler set up a ton of food on skirted tables, put Champagne on ice in silver buckets and set out all the glass wear, mixers. Then he was there to serve them in white gloves. He arranged the furniture to make room for all the people. Of course not every suite is big enough for this. Our last one had a full stand up bar just inside the foyer. It also had a separate half bathroom just for guests.

3) Serve dinner en suite for you and whoever you invite. The other couple doesn't have to be in your suite or even another suite passenger. We had dinner served for six in the suite because we wanted to eat and watch the Steelers game. (That's the "Stillers" game for you folks from The Burgh). The butler laid out all the white tablecloths and silver and served right from the menu just like we were in the dining room and we didn't miss the game! (Although the outcome wasn't what we wished for :( ).

4) Afternoon tea. I had a cold and asked him for a cup of tea. He suggested a full tea service and brought me a spjecial ginger tea concoction that really helped my throat. Then every day after, he brought another cup for me.

5) Any additional glass wear you may want for drinking wine or spirits in you cabin. We asked for 6 extra martini glasses so we could have drinks at our bar with friends before dinner. No problem.

 

These are only a few examples of what you can do with a butler's assistance. Maybe some of the other nice folks on the board can tell you about their experience. The more you ask them to do, the more generous you should be with your gratuity. That's only fair. For info on the concierge, see previous posts. Hope this helps!

 

Jeanne,

Yes, we've been to Bermuda before. Last fall on the same ship! But don't expect us to be in the Celebrity Suite - we'll be in steerage this time. The difference between an inside GTY and even a Concierge Class cabin was almost $2,000! (To get a butler, you have to pay almost $4,000 more!). Heck, I'll be your butler for that kind of money! Also, until you get to the Horizon Suites or Celebrity Suite, all the cabins are identical in size. Only the amenities like towels and rugs are better in the CC cabins. The outsides have a window or porthole but they are identical in layout and amenities to the insides. All are right at 172 SF. Oddly enough, there is one balcony on the ship. It was an experiment that they decided didn't work, no others were installed and the one balcony was never removed. You can see it in some pictures. It's on the 10 Floor starboard aft. I think someone said it was 1076?

 

We had a Concierge Class last year to Bermuda and frankly it didn't seem worth the extra money, even though we didn't pay but a few hundred dollars more for it. The CC cabins are too small (also 172 SF) to host a party and honestly, the conceirge is really not a lot of help on a Bermuda cruise. We had a chat with him and he seemed nice enough, but unless you were planning a private party there wasn't much he could do for you. There are NO rental cars on the island, there are no alternative dining rooms on the ship. Due to the fact that the ship stays overnight, you can book shore excursions yourself and not have to worry about missing the ship. And save a lot of money in the process. Even if you missed the ship when it left St. George at 7 am, you could take the bus to Hamilton and catch up with it there! So, what's the extra money for? So we'll sleep and shower in our lowly cabin, get regular room service and just spend more time on deck and at the Martini Bar! Who knows, maybe we'll end up partying with the folks in the Presidential Suite. HA!

 

MrTractor<--------has fun no matter where he is on the ship...........