Haven restaurant being built on Jewel class ships?

[Demonyte]

I think this is worth of it's own thread, in another thread (Upgrade? Are you serious) sjbdtz posted this as a reply:

 

During the re-fits, many of the older ships are getting Haven-exclusive restaurants as well. Haven guests will dine there, while Suite guests will have Breakfast & Lunch at Cagney's still.

 

Since the only four ships in the fleet that have Haven but don't have Haven restaurant are the Jewel class ships, and two of those have already been refurbished quite recently, this must be a very recent development.

 

I have not seen anything about this so when (if) has this been announced and where would the new Haven restaurant be located at – or – which restaurant would it replace?

 

NCL's page about Norwegian Edge program doesn't tell anything about this, but instead incorrectly states that on Gem they would have "Renovated The Haven Courtyard, Lounge and Restaurant to introduce a more modern and clean design" which can't be true as Gem does not have Haven Lounge or Restaurant - so that probably is just a copy-paste error from above (Epic's refurbishment changes).

 

I'm genuinely interested as if I were to book another NCL cruise someday, a Jewel class ship would be my preference as I've grown to like them most of all NCL ships I've sailed on.

[Kingmaker_inc]

I'd say you are right about the copy and paste error. I've just come off the Gem a month ago and three months after dry dock. The Haven Courtyard was refurbished, but that's it. Cagney's is still the restaurant for Haven guests and I don't see any possibility of additional space being given to the Haven experience on those ships.

 

I will say the Courtyard was very nice - indeed quite modern and clean (although I liked the big round couches that used to be in there); and the "cabanas" on the sun deck are a very welcomed addition.

Edited April 14, 2016 by Kingmaker_inc

[Leavethekidswithmom]

Where are they going to build this? They could take out one of the Garden Villas but there are only 18 Haven suites on the Gem and Pearl, 17 on the Jade and 16 on the Jewel.

[SeaShark]

Why not simply ask the person who made the claim to support it?

[sjbdtz]

When I spoke yesterday with Frank, at CAS, I was debating a Suite or a Haven Suite on the Jade.

 

I asked if access to the Haven was the only differentiator (for $1500 difference), and he said "plus the restaurant, which is new".

 

I asked if that meant that Suites would no longer have B & L somewhere, and he said...no...that will still be at Cagney's.

 

 

 

Stephen

 

 

.

[Demonyte]

Why not simply ask the person who made the claim to support it?

 

That is one of the points of this thread (I told about this thread in the original thread so that the unrelated discussion could continue here), but also to get other people to pitch in too if they know something. A tidbit about a possible change this big (hence the question mark in the title) would be buried in completely unrelated thread otherwise.

 

When I spoke yesterday with Frank, at CAS, I was debating a Suite or a Haven Suite on the Jade.

 

I asked if access to the Haven was the only differentiator (for $1500 difference), and he said "plus the restaurant, which is new".

 

I asked if that meant that Suites would no longer have B & L somewhere, and he said...no...that will still be at Cagney's.

 

Ok, so this all might just be a misunderstanding by a CAS rep (possibly after them reading the misinformation from Edge page) after all?

 

Any way you could try and confirm the accuracy of that statement? :)

Edited April 14, 2016 by Demonyte

[sverigecruiser]

I have no knowledge of this but I can guess!!!

 

If they should introduce a Havenrestaurant on the older and smaller ships it will probably be available to all suiteguests. Even if the Haven is too small for all suites, the restaurant can still be available for all suites.

 

I really hope that they will do that! We loved the Jewel and the Jade but have choosen the bigger ships because of the Havenrestaurant.

[time2cruise1]

This is the first mention of a supposed Haven Resturant on the jewel class ships. With all the post dry dock reviews and NCL releases not mentioned. I think it is wishful thinking. Other then turning the courtyard into a dining area at night. I can't think of any space available on those ships.

[old nutter]

This is the first mention of a supposed Haven Resturant on the jewel class ships. With all the post dry dock reviews and NCL releases not mentioned. I think it is wishful thinking. Other then turning the courtyard into a dining area at night. I can't think of any space available on those ships.

 

Great idea. Actually the courtyards on the Jewel class ships are pretty well dead in the evening and food is served at times from other specialist venues so it would certainly be possible to turn it into a very nice select restaurant in the evenings just for Haven guests. Still serving B and L in Cagney's for all suites would still make ll make sense in that case. The only issue would be storing the tables and chairs etc in the day, but that should be possible. It shouldn't even need a dry dock to implement that!

Edited April 14, 2016 by old nutter
added a bit

[sbt518]

I wonder if they would do something like Celebrity did when they added their suite restaurant and take a part of the main dining room and turn it into a separate restaurant with different décor and food?

 

I have not cruised in a suite on Celebrity but I think the restaurant has been receiving good reviews and non-suite passengers haven't been too inconvenienced by missing some of their dining room.

[alikaalex]

Great idea. Actually the courtyards on the Jewel class ships are pretty well dead in the evening and food is served at times from other specialist venues so it would certainly be possible to turn it into a very nice select restaurant in the evenings just for Haven guests. Still serving B and L in Cagney's for all suites would still make ll make sense in that case. The only issue would be storing the tables and chairs etc in the day, but that should be possible. It shouldn't even need a dry dock to implement that!

 

I seem to recall that on our last Norwegian Jewel cruise we had brunch in the Haven courtyard one day. If memory serves, even though Haven traffic is minimal, there are always a few tables set up for dining, though I'd say it would be a bit of a stretch for NCL to call it a "restaurant" proper.

[drhry]

This is the first mention of a supposed Haven Resturant on the jewel class ships. With all the post dry dock reviews and NCL releases not mentioned. I think it is wishful thinking. Other then turning the courtyard into a dining area at night. I can't think of any space available on those ships.

 

Totally agree with your thoughts , would be great if they could find the space.

[dporter]

We were on the Jade in January and there is an extension to the Star bar that I only saw used once for the Suite/Haven welcome reception, they could use the main part of the bar for that and turn that other part into a full fledged restaurant for Haven.

[Demonyte]

We were on the Jade in January and there is an extension to the Star bar that I only saw used once for the Suite/Haven welcome reception, they could use the main part of the bar for that and turn that other part into a full fledged restaurant for Haven.

 

 

That is the place where Moderno has or will be moved on all Dawn class and Jewel class ships to make room for O'Sheehan's on deck 8.

[old nutter]

One option for the upcoming Jade drydock that could be tried would be to leave Moderno where it is on Deck 8 rather than move it up to Deck 13. I must admit it is OK where it is. Maybe the Blue Lagoon that is currently opposite Moderno could be changed to be a bit more "Pub-ish" still with 24hr snacks.

 

A bit of juggling with the stairs that currently head up from by the elevators to the Haven would have them redirected to give them access from the Haven directly down into what is now the Star Bar. That "outer" part of what is now the Star Bar could remain as an area for the Concierge plus a "Suites Only" bar. Access for suite guests would remain via the door opposite Cagney's (it actually already has a card access lock on it anyway!). The inner area of the current Star Bar would then make a superb area for a "Suites Only" restaurant. The rear of that area could have direct access to the current Cagney's servery. :cool:

 

The beauty of this plan is that the new Deck 13 "Suites Only" bar and restaurant area would be able to serve all of the suites thus making it more viable for staff utilisation and more used than now whilst also retaining exclusive access up to the Haven suites and courtyard. Also, the actual changes needed to complete this new masterplan would be minimal and not very costly either - probably less than the one tried on earlier Jewel Class ships associated with the unnecessary moving of Moderno upstairs.

[hawkeyetlse]

I understand the appeal of a Haven restaurant (especially for dinner service), and I'm all for it in the design of new builds. But as someone who doesn't book suites/Haven, I would not like to see public space taken away from the rest of us when older ships are refurbished. And the idea that they should add a Haven restaurant and a non-Haven suite bar/restaurant on Jewel-class ships (i.e. create two new venues out of nowhere) is even worse.

 

IMO Cagney's works great as an exclusive breakfast/dinner venue on these ships. If they need more space (and if they are not increasing the capacity of the Haven/suites on these ships, why would they need more space?), Moderno, Le Bistro, and the Asian restaurant are also sitting empty all day long, most days. (As a more general point, I wish NCL would either start opening the specialty restaurants for lunch on sea days, or find more ways to use these spaces in the daytime.)

 

Again, I understand why it would it would be nice to offer Haven and suite guests an exclusive dinner option. But since some of these guests will go for a specialty meal in the evening anyway, maybe it would be sufficient to set aside a small section of one of the MDRs for this purpose, along the lines of what sbt518 said that Celebrity does.

Edited October 16, 2016 by hawkeyetlse

[tonytone68]

We're sailing on a 9 day cruise on the NCL Pearl in November and staying in the Haven. We've sailed in the Haven on the Epic and the Getaway and loved the Haven Restaurant. This was especially great for dinner after a busy excursion day. The restaurant was convenient and centrally located.

 

Do any other past Haven guests who have sailed on the Pearl know if there is a dedicated dinner restaurant for for Haven guests?

 

We stop in 6 ports on our sailing and we're more than likely going to have a few nights where we will just want to pop in for a nice quiet dinner and not be bothered by the buffet or a specialty restaurant.

 

Cheers,

Tony

[asubaru]

No, unfortunately. The Pearl and Jade are undergoing refurbishing now/soon so, although it's possible they could add one, I think it's highly improbable.

 

We're sailing on a 9 day cruise on the NCL Pearl in November and staying in the Haven. We've sailed in the Haven on the Epic and the Getaway and loved the Haven Restaurant. This was especially great for dinner after a busy excursion day. The restaurant was convenient and centrally located.

 

Do any other past Haven guests who have sailed on the Pearl know if there is a dedicated dinner restaurant for for Haven guests?

 

We stop in 6 ports on our sailing and we're more than likely going to have a few nights where we will just want to pop in for a nice quiet dinner and not be bothered by the buffet or a specialty restaurant.

 

Cheers,

Tony