Speciality Dining VS Haven Restaurant

[phillyguy31]

We currently have the 3 meal package and was wondering if it pays to purchase another 3 days or just pay a la carte for 2 and eat at the have for 2. Where is the break even point for purchasing a 2nd plan? Can't discuss this with my wife since she doesn't know we are in the Haven. We are on the Getaway.

[TrumpyNor]

Last year we had one dinner at Le Bistro where we paid a-la-cart prices, and it turned out to be a quite expensive experience. We were two persons, and each had mushroom soup as a starter (I believe that is actually among the cheapest starters they have on the menu), and then we had the steak as main course, and no dessert. Including one glass of wine each the bill was a little over $80,00 for the two of us (including gratuity). So there is no doubt in my mind that it will be cheaper for you to purchase another 3-day dinner plan instead of paying a-la-carte prices for two dinners....

Edited November 30, 2016 by TrumpyNor

[js]

We currently have the 3 meal package and was wondering if it pays to purchase another 3 days or just pay a la carte for 2 and eat at the have for 2. Where is the break even point for purchasing a 2nd plan? Can't discuss this with my wife since she doesn't know we are in the Haven. We are on the Getaway.

 

Hi. I have done the Haven twice and have one booked for February (on Getaway too).

 

My last two Haven experiences came with the UDP for all nights. We ended up

staying in the Haven restaurant a few nights since the service is wonderful.

 

Like you, I have the 3 meal package for my February cruise and I have decided not to purchase the extra nights for the restaurants. You will be very happy to be in the Haven restaurant, where they will know you (from breakfast and lunch) and the service is top notch. It really wasn't even ever a consideration for me to purchase the extra nights and not because I didn't want to spend the money it was because I wanted to also dine for dinner in the Haven.

 

Enjoy and what a wonderful surprise for your wife!

[packman1029]

My wife and I are in the Haven in January and our promo package only included 3 nights of specialty dining, and we booked the illusionarium as well. So that only leaves us 3 nights, and I guess we will just do the haven for dinner :)

 

In your case...... it is absolutely cheaper to do the dining package than to do the a la carte.

[phillyguy31]

On the same topic, how do they decide which meals go on the plan and which do you pay for?

[ugagal07]

We were on the Epic and honestly preferred the Haven restaurant to some specialty restaurants. The service was MUCH better and the food was excellent. The specialty restaurants had great food too, but service was always slower.

 

Also, the Haven restaurant may be able to accommodate requests. The table next to us sat down one night and a guest said "I'd really like french onion soup. Can I challenge you to make that for me?" The waitress and maitre'd both said of course no problem.

[ryarger]

On the same topic, how do they decide which meals go on the plan and which do you pay for?

 

If you make reservations online, it will use up your SDP nights on a first-come-first-serve basis. If you don't want your SDP nights used on your first three (or however many) reservations, you have to call NCL and hope to get someone who can manually enter things the way you want.

 

OR you can take a chance and not reserve online at all. If you just show up you can tell the server if you're using a SDP meal or not.

[ryarger]

OP, I'm doing the same thing on my trip (10 days!). We have 4-day SDP + Haven. We're planning on eating in the Haven restaurant at least 2 of those remaining three days (we may try the Manhattan Room on one day).

 

Reviews of the Haven Restaurant put it equal to any of the specialties. They have a decently broad menu and I think have a rotating special that isn't on the menu.

[TrumpyNor]

On the same topic, how do they decide which meals go on the plan and which do you pay for?

 

On our last cruise (September of this year), we had a dining-plan for most nights and used a Platinum voucher for two nights, and the hostess at the restaurant entrance just asked what I would like to use that night... In your case it wouldn't really matter - it will be stated on your ship key card how many dinners you have a dining plan for (eg. UDP 6 if you have a total of 6 dinners).

Edited November 30, 2016 by TrumpyNor

[luckyinpa]

i have to say that i dont think i could live in the haven restaurant. i used it every day for breakfast but only had 1 dinner there and yes the sea bass was great. but due to the lack of variety id probably only do 2 or 3 dinners. which does fall in line with the OPs question of doing haven for the remainder of the week. you can always get room service free too :) i did love that pizza

[Vacationlover2]

I would just eat at the Haven. It's better than the specialty restaurants, except for Teppanyaki.

[Two Wheels Only]

Don't forget, while dining in the Haven restaurant, you can have items from anywhere on the ship delivered to you. It will take some time (so arranging it beforehand would be optimal) but you can actually "have it all" while dining in the Haven restaurant. (you won't get the Teppanyaki show, however) :p

[tombec1]

We were in the Haven last xmas on the Getaway. The matre'd, Kalai, made sure that if you wanted anything special, you got it. We loved the Haven restaraunt!

My daughter got strep throat on the cruise, and he made her milkshakes, soup, etc - without us asking.

 

We sail on the Epic in the Haven in a little over a week, and we plan to eat dinners mostly in the Haven restaraunt.

[17cruisesnsl]

My recommendation would be to not purchase additional meals and eat in the Haven. Yes it's the same menu but there are quite a few choices so look up the posted Haven menus and determine if there are items you would like to eat for 4 nights.

 

It's a matter of personal taste, but we found that we preferred to try different lunch venues (to eat lightly at lunch) and ate dinner at the Haven 4 nights. We actually cancelled our Cagney reservations to eat dinner in the Haven - by Friday night we just couldn't eat another big meal and if desired, the Haven prime rib or lamb were both excellent.

 

I told my DM we were in the Haven and couldn't wait for her to see the 2brm suite -- she didn't seem too excited and I was totally disappointed until later when she told me she felt self conscious because she needed a wheelchair assist to board and felt everyone in the lounge looked up when she arrived so she just wanted to get to the cabin. She is very shy. By the time lunch was served in the Haven Restaurant she was totally sold and I'll have a hard time convincing her to sail in a mini-suite again.

 

Enjoy your cruise! Let us know if you manage to keep the Haven a surprise until you sail!

[BirdTravels]

We currently have the 3 meal package and was wondering if it pays to purchase another 3 days or just pay a la carte for 2 and eat at the have for 2. Where is the break even point for purchasing a 2nd plan? Can't discuss this with my wife since she doesn't know we are in the Haven. We are on the Getaway.

 

The Havens restaurant is far better than the specialty restaurants. Enjoy your 3 specialty dinners (or even a trip to the Illusionarium) and enjoy the privacy and service in the Havens restaurant for the remaining 4 nights.

[carads]

We were on the Breakaway earlier this month and had the free 4 day UDP. We went to Cagney's twice and Le Bistro once and cancelled our second night in Le Bistro to eat in the Haven. This was our third year in a row in the Breakaway Haven and really don't care for the other specialty restaurants. We just find we prefer the Haven food and service.

 

 

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[ilsh75]

We stayed in Haven last time and we loved the restaurant. You can also choose to go to Moderno for the 4th night it's a fixed price of 30$. But I would go to the Haven on the first day and see if you like it if not you can buy sdp on board.

 

 

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[cruisetimeforme]

We found the best food quality and service to be within the Haven. Have tried all the specialty venues numerous times so no allure in trying them out anymore. You don't need to feel like you're missing out as you've got the best option onboard since you're paying for it to begin with. Enjoy