What do you request from your butler for in the Haven? And other stupid questions.

[slugg]

15 minutes ago, gmbhardy said:

 

The Yacht Club is not half the price of the Haven. Maybe it was at one time but not now, in fact I’ve seen Haven Spa suites cheaper than YC suites. 

I just did a couple mock bookings on comparable cruises. If you don’t mind having an interior room, the MSC Yacht Club is essentially the same price as a Haven Spa Suite, plus or minus a coupe hundred bucks, ballpark. However, as soon as you jump to the cheapest possible balcony, the Yacht Club exceeds the cheapest Haven balcony room (again, spa suite) by a couple grand. 

 

All that said, I’m super impressed with the MSC Seaside and I’ll be keeping an eye on it for the future! 🙂

[gmbhardy]

20 minutes ago, slugg said:

I just did a couple mock bookings on comparable cruises. If you don’t mind having an interior room, the MSC Yacht Club is essentially the same price as a Haven Spa Suite, plus or minus a coupe hundred bucks, ballpark. However, as soon as you jump to the cheapest possible balcony, the Yacht Club exceeds the cheapest Haven balcony room (again, spa suite) by a couple grand. 

 

All that said, I’m super impressed with the MSC Seaside and I’ll be keeping an eye on it for the future! 🙂

 

I’ve sailed several times in the Haven and will be taking our first cruise on the Seaside in the Yacht Club next week. I will post a comprehensive comparison when I get back, so stay tuned.

[graphicguy]

44 minutes ago, perditax said:

Side question ... will we be able to get assistance from concierge/butler/anyone with disembark? Disembark from BA is apparently a nightmare right now, and we’d like to get out early. 

You can check with the concierge about walking you off the ship.  I’ve seen groups being walked off, but never done it myself.  Personally, I do the “walk off” option and leave whenever I want.

 

Only had one issue....and that happened only out of NYC on the GEM, and that was because customs didn’t have enough agents to check all the people off the ship.

[Two Wheels Only]

49 minutes ago, gmbhardy said:

 

The Yacht Club is not half the price of the Haven. Maybe it was at one time but not now, in fact I’ve seen Haven Spa suites cheaper than YC suites. 

 

It depends on what is being compared and when. NCL prices are more fluid and depending on whether the price is high or low can make a big difference. MSC prices are rising overall but they are more stable than NCL's. 

[Two Wheels Only]

8 minutes ago, gmbhardy said:

 

I’ve sailed several times in the Haven and will be taking our first cruise on the Seaside in the Yacht Club next week. I will post a comprehensive comparison when I get back, so stay tuned.

 

I sailed Seaside in the Yacht Club and will be back...probably a few more times. 

 

Enjoy. 

[NLH Arizona]

13 hours ago, xcell said:

I think the movies on the TV are free for Haven but it's been a while...so that might have changed.

They were free during my December cruise.

[fondtravel]

Both times that we’ve cruised in an NCL suite, the in-demand movies were free. The most recent trip was in February.

Edited April 1, 2019 by fondtravel

[fondtravel]

We’ve primarily used butler service for room service. We’ve tended to get most of our breakfasts via room service while traveling in suites. We’ve never asked to have the food formally served to us, but the buter has always set out all the dishes, cutlery, linens, etc the way one would expect in a full service room service meal. And the butlers have also brought the standard evening snacks, replenished ice in the room at night, etc.

 

On one cruise, our butler also enthusiastically offered her assistance with a number of other services that we would otherwise have looked to our concierge or steward to provide (or would just have just done without). That is, she made spa reservations, escorted us to the dining room or to shows (to ensure that we would get priority seating), escorted us off the ship (to ensure that we received priority disembarkation), and took our laundry and dry cleaning in and out. She was basically our point of contact for all our service needs (except for cleaning of the room by our steward), and we ended up tipping her very generously at the end as a result of that.

[janice2348]

19 hours ago, Greenpea2 said:

This is good to know, thank you. I don't see shrimp cocktail on the Haven Restaurant menu, so I'm not sure how they can get it from there...but if I can have it I will be happy!

 

We didn’t order it from the restaurant. I just put it on my list of afternoon treats that I wanted for the week.  If he got it from Cagneys ( no Haven restaurant on the Jade) he didn’t say.  It was after 4 pm, long after lunch time.  

It was on the menu, but again, it was Cagneys.  I would just request it and ask if there’s an upcharge. 

The reason that I requested specific items was to accommodate food allergies.  It’s a lot easier to plan in advance.  

Most requests will be honored by your butler.  But it depends on the butler. On the POA, I paid for a shrimp platter.  I’m much more savvy now 😁

[CherWolf]

On 3/29/2019 at 5:47 PM, Two Wheels Only said:

6. Know that it can be addictive and that cruising without a ship-within-a-ship will be difficult in the future.

 

This is the truest.statement.ever!!!!  When I'm not in the Haven I walk by the card key entrance with longing in my eyes.  LOL

[Paphillyguy]

Hopefully you get a good butler.  Our last trip our butler was serviceable but not like past butlers.   However, our room steward was by far the best we have ever had.  

[Takoyaki]

Someone correct me if I am wrong, but in addition to room service fees being waived aren't all of the on demand movies free?

 

[Paphillyguy]

All movies were free and pretty good selection of very new movies.  3 weeks ago we had Greenbook, A Star is Born, If Beale Street Could Talk and many more.  

[DaisyGoldberg]

17 hours ago, perditax said:

Side question ... will we be able to get assistance from concierge/butler/anyone with disembark? Disembark from BA is apparently a nightmare right now, and we’d like to get out early. 

When I did BA Haven they walked us out in groups (separate exit, and oh, the looks you will get when you walk past the line straight to a dedicated key card checkpoint opened just for your group!)

 

The very best tip I got and was grateful I had was to grab a porter as soon as you find your bag. Even if you have to wait for him/her to fill the cart with other luggage, it doesn't take long, and when you see the lines of literally hundreds of people at customs/immigration and you just follow him/her to a dedicated customs/immigration line with a handful of people in it... PRICELESS (except for the $5/bag I gave him!)  They will wait on the other side  until you clear and push the cart as far as you need -- I took control of my bag fairly soon, but I saw other porters go as far as the street (It's quite a walk out to the street)

 

That $10 easily saved me an hour or more.

 

 

[gizfish]

On 3/31/2019 at 6:17 PM, Greenpea2 said:

This is good to know, thank you. I don't see shrimp cocktail on the Haven Restaurant menu, so I'm not sure how they can get it from there...but if I can have it I will be happy!

 

It was on the Haven's dinner menu this past week on Escape.

[gizfish]

21 hours ago, perditax said:

I feel like leaving a written “list” is a little impersonal, but at the same time I’ve read that some of the megaships are a bit understaffed right now, and you might not meet your butler at all the first day. I’m wondering if a simple note:

 

”Hi, we don’t need towel animals or afternoon canapés/fruit, but we’re a fan of cookies. Also please empty the fridge. Thanks!”

 

... would be reasonable, with a cash tip attached to the note?

 

Now that I’ve typed that out, I guess towel animals are the steward, not the butler?

The cash tip attached to the note is the unreasonable part ; )  The butler traditionally gets tipped at the end of the cruise.  Tipping the butler before they do something is more like a bribe and will probably be insulting to any good butler.  

[ampdude88]

On ‎3‎/‎29‎/‎2019 at 3:07 PM, Two Wheels Only said:

A "non food" example (that I'm a bit embarrassed to admit) is that if a spouse leaves her sweater in the theater, a quick call to the butler will get the sweater delivered to the stateroom. 😳

Don't be embarrassed, I have used them for the same thing. On another note, Nice profile pic. 

[janice2348]

20 hours ago, gizfish said:

The cash tip attached to the note is the unreasonable part ; )  The butler traditionally gets tipped at the end of the cruise.  Tipping the butler before they do something is more like a bribe and will probably be insulting to any good butler.  

Exactly right.  Tip at the end.  Go to guest services and you can put the tips on your onboard account.  They will give you vouchers to give to whomever the tips are for.  Much easier than carrying all that cash. 

[janice2348]

On 3/31/2019 at 8:57 PM, perditax said:

I feel like leaving a written “list” is a little impersonal, but at the same time I’ve read that some of the megaships are a bit understaffed right now, and you might not meet your butler at all the first day. I’m wondering if a simple note:

 

”Hi, we don’t need towel animals or afternoon canapés/fruit, but we’re a fan of cookies. Also please empty the fridge. Thanks!”

 

... would be reasonable, with a cash tip attached to the note?

 

Now that I’ve typed that out, I guess towel animals are the steward, not the butler?

I wish I still had the note I left for the butler.  I did write a nice note, not just a list. Also, call or email the pre- concierge ahead of time for pillow choice, tea and coffee choice, empty the fridge and stock with iced tea, etc.  They might not all be done but it gives them a heads up.  That’s why we left a note as turnover day is an extremely busy day.  You might not meet your butler at all the first day. 

Yes, towel animals are the steward. 

 

 

Edited April 2, 2019 by janice2348

[hammermw]

Hi all. We are booked in the Haven for the first time this November and I would like to jump in on the stupid questions. My wife and I like to drink cocktails on our balcony. When I say cocktails, I don't mean one. We are in an aft facing suite far away from the rest of the Haven.

 

We were hoping this is where our butler could come in handy. I've seen mixed messages on if the butler will bring us adult beverages. Absent help from our butler, is there any other efficient way to get multiple drinks on the balcony without having to fetch ourselves each time? I know, first world problems, but we want to enjoy the large balcony as much as possible and frankly enjoy being lazy on vacation. Paying this much for a suite, might as well enjoy it. If we were near the actual Haven, it would be easy to get ourselves in the Haven lounge, but we are not close at all to the Haven lounge.

 

We've been on other lines where you could purchase liters of liquor in advance. It's not looking like NCL offers this. I'm hoping I missed it.

 

[graphicguy]

48 minutes ago, hammermw said:

Hi all. We are booked in the Haven for the first time this November and I would like to jump in on the stupid questions. My wife and I like to drink cocktails on our balcony. When I say cocktails, I don't mean one. We are in an aft facing suite far away from the rest of the Haven.

 

We were hoping this is where our butler could come in handy. I've seen mixed messages on if the butler will bring us adult beverages. Absent help from our butler, is there any other efficient way to get multiple drinks on the balcony without having to fetch ourselves each time? I know, first world problems, but we want to enjoy the large balcony as much as possible and frankly enjoy being lazy on vacation. Paying this much for a suite, might as well enjoy it. If we were near the actual Haven, it would be easy to get ourselves in the Haven lounge, but we are not close at all to the Haven lounge.

 

We've been on other lines where you could purchase liters of liquor in advance. It's not looking like NCL offers this. I'm hoping I missed it.

 

Butler can and will bring drinks.  But, his timing can be limited by the time of day.  I know when we were getting ready for dinner the first night we were sailing in the Haven, I called our butler and asked for him to bring us drinks.  He did, but he also asked (nicely)if we could let him know in advance if that was something we would be doing every night.  That way, he could plan and have the drinks delivered at that time.  I'll assume it was more for his planning than our drink punctuality.

 

That said, we had the drink package and ordered 2 drinks/ea at a time so we wouldn't have to bother the Butler to bring drinks every 45 minutes or so.

[tomservo]

1 hour ago, graphicguy said:

Butler can and will bring drinks.  But, his timing can be limited by the time of day.  I know when we were getting ready for dinner the first night we were sailing in the Haven, I called our butler and asked for him to bring us drinks.  He did, but he also asked (nicely)if we could let him know in advance if that was something we would be doing every night.  That way, he could plan and have the drinks delivered at that time.  I'll assume it was more for his planning than our drink punctuality.

 

That said, we had the drink package and ordered 2 drinks/ea at a time so we wouldn't have to bother the Butler to bring drinks every 45 minutes or so.

Did you get charged? My impression was that drinks delivered by butler were not covered by the drink package. 

[alisonslp]

On 4/1/2019 at 5:18 PM, DaisyGoldberg said:

The very best tip I got and was grateful I had was to grab a porter as soon as you find your bag. Even if you have to wait for him/her to fill the cart with other luggage, it doesn't take long, and when you see the lines of literally hundreds of people at customs/immigration and you just follow him/her to a dedicated customs/immigration line with a handful of people in it... PRICELESS (except for the $5/bag I gave him!)  They will wait on the other side  until you clear and push the cart as far as you need -- I took control of my bag fairly soon, but I saw other porters go as far as the street (It's quite a walk out to the street)

 

That $10 easily saved me an hour or more.

 

 

We learned this just before our first cruise years ago and it was such a time saver. We have a lot of luggage with 5 people in the family but it was still well worth not having to wait in line. I think the longest has been 10 minutes.

[pbenjamin]

3 hours ago, janice2348 said:

Exactly right.  Tip at the end.  Go to guest services and you can put the tips on your onboard account.  They will give you vouchers to give to whomever the tips are for.  Much easier than carrying all that cash. 

If you have OBC will that be used for this?

[tomservo]

Let’s say my wife wants to get lunch from Margaritaville, but I don’t want to eat there or pay the cover (or sit and watch her eat). Can the butler bring her lunch from Mville (and just pay her cover) and me lunch from the Haven restaurant?