The NCL Haven Luxury VIP Experience "Secrets" REVISED for 2022

[pbenjamin]

Posting this here as it relates to Haven.

 

Unlike many of the participants on Cruise Critic, we don’t go on multiple cruises a year, in fact we have multiple years between cruises.  This was our fifth cruise, our first was in 1996.  This was our second NCL cruise, our second in a suite with a butler, but our first in the Haven. 

 

We chose an October Canada/New England cruise out of Manhattan, in hopes of seeing fall colors, and so that we could visit our son and daughter-in-law, who live about an hour north of the cruise terminal.  Having enjoyed the suite and butler on the Jewel on an Alaska cruise, the Haven in the Breakaway sounded right.  Like many people, we had 3 cruises cancelled on us in the last few years, and the discounts and future cruise credit associated with that made the Haven quite affordable and even made the Free at Sea Upgrade package doable.

 

We booked the cruise about 2 months before sailing, after the 130-day period for booking dinner reservations had started.  I emailed the Pre-Concierge desk and asked for the times that we needed.  There is a know-it-all poster on Cruise Critic who states frequently and vehemently that the Pre-Concierge is “totally useless”, that they can’t do anything that you can’t do yourself and can’t get you dinner reservations when requested.  That’s a bunch of flamingo poop.  On this cruise (as well as the previous one) there was a notice waiting for us in our suite confirming the changes that we had requested. 

 

Unlike most folks embarking at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal, we had a rental car to deal with.  We had picked it up from Avis at Newark airport 4 days earlier and would return it to Avis on West 43^rd Street just a few blocks from the terminal.  Not real excited about driving in Manhattan, but it was pretty painless.  Getting Lyft to pick us up worked well and we were soon at the terminal.

 

We had a 12-12:30 check-in time and that was when we got there.  After dropping our luggage, we were soon in a Haven waiting area where the wait was minimal.  Canada had just dropped the requirement of using the ArriveCan app and doing a test, which made the process much simpler than it might have been.  We got our key cards and were quickly led up to the Haven lounge.  We no sooner sat down when we were told that the staterooms were ready.

 

We had intended to use the American Diner for lunch but it is open air, and the weather was cold, rainy and windy so we had lunch from the Haven Restaurant in the Haven courtyard.

 

The suite was great as was Romel, our butler.  We had breakfast each morning in the suite.

 

The Haven restaurant was great, the non-repeating menu was not a problem as we had four restaurant credits.  We ate there twice for dinner and once had dinner in-suite with some of the food coming from the Haven restaurant.  The only criticisms were that the Tomahawk Pork Chop was a bit undercooked and that the lunch menu didn’t have much of anything we wanted to eat.  Our “go to” lunch place was O’Sheehans.  One sea day I went there for lunch and was told there was a 15-30 minute wait.  When I produce my key card and he saw it was Haven, he seated me immediately.  We did have lunch in one of the main dining rooms one day just to see a different menu, and in Halifax we ate in a local restaurant.

 

We had dinner in the suite from Le Bistro one night.  It was one of the best meals we had.  The Coq au Vin was wonderful.  We had really enjoyed La Cucina on our previous cruise but this time we were disappointed.  The food was nothing special and the service was awful. We ended up going to Cagney’s twice.  I wish that they didn’t use that gimmicky e-tablet wine list.  I had to ask for the real thing each time and the wine steward didn’t seem real knowledgeable.  The meats were great, but I’d advise against the Barley Risotto.  The service was mediocre, I guess we were spoiled by the service in the Haven.  At the table next to us, one person had the 5 oz filet and the other had the 8 oz.  They were delivered 15 minutes apart!

 

One of the best things about the Haven is the bar.  The bartenders are the best ones on the ship and very friendly.  Once they determined that we had the Premium Plus beverage package they went out of their way to make suggestions.  A negative was that there is something like 9 stools at the bar and there were people that seemed to take possession of them for the entire cruise.  I ordered the Smoked Manhattan one night, which is worth the experience.

 

The Premium Plus beverage package was a good thing.  There were some items that were not available due to supply chain issues (Hendrick’s gin, Zacapa 23 rum) but we were able to make liberal use of items such as Veuve Cliquot champagne, Whistle Pig rye whiskey and Remy Martin VSOP cognac, as well as nice bottles of wine.  Once when a particular bottle of wine was unavailable, they let us have another more expensive bottle not included in the package.

 

We had a fair amount of non-refundable on-board credit.  With the promotions there was little to spend money on.  Not caring about the spa, the only option was to spend it in the gift shop and duty-free shop.  It was closed for most of the cruise and when it did open on day 6 there wasn’t much there.  There seemed to be a lot of jewelry but there was not nearly as much liquor or gift items as we had seen on our previous cruise on the Jewel. A tee-shirt specific to the ship or the ports would have been nice, and a Breakaway Christmas ornament would have been perfect.

 

An excursion was cancelled when we could not tender in Newport.  The money came back as (refundable) on-board credit which you had to receive on the ship as cash.  This was not made clear, and I found myself standing in line at guest services (the on board credit desk was out of cash) at 9:15 on disembarkation day to get the cash.  There were instances of passengers being held back from leaving the ship when this credit situation showed up when their cards were scanned.  This lumping together of on-board credit with the excursion refunds made for a confusing invoice.  I got the cash for the excursion but ended up losing $83 of onboard credit.  That $83 would have been a nice upgrade to the bottle of scotch I bought.

 

We booked the “deluxe” hop on hop off bus for Halifax.  They booked more passengers than they could accommodate.  We hopped off at one point and when we wanted to hop on there was no capacity.  Some people said that multiple full buses had gone by.  We had to walk back to the ship.  It was about a 20-minute walk, the weather was nice, we were OK with it, but there were people with less mobility who had to pay for rides back to the ship.  NCL and Gray Line Tours need to resolve this for future cruises.

 

Overall, I’d give the cruise a B-.  Remnants of Hurricane Ian made us miss Newport and gave my wife a sick day and a half.  Our Kennebunkport excursion was cancelled without any advance notice.  It was nobody’s fault, but the leaves were late in changing this year as we saw no fall colors.  The ship was estimated at 89% capacity.  Maybe it’s a COVID thing but we are somewhat uncomfortable with crowds.  The ship might just be too big for our tastes but the smaller ones don’t have a proper Haven.  The Haven area was great but we didn’t much like going below Deck 15.

[mconthehighseas]

14 minutes ago, pbenjamin said:

Posting this here as it relates to Haven.

 

Unlike many of the participants on Cruise Critic, we don’t go on multiple cruises a year, in fact we have multiple years between cruises.  This was our fifth cruise, our first was in 1996.  This was our second NCL cruise, our second in a suite with a butler, but our first in the Haven. 

 

We chose an October Canada/New England cruise out of Manhattan, in hopes of seeing fall colors, and so that we could visit our son and daughter-in-law, who live about an hour north of the cruise terminal.  Having enjoyed the suite and butler on the Jewel on an Alaska cruise, the Haven in the Breakaway sounded right.  Like many people, we had 3 cruises cancelled on us in the last few years, and the discounts and future cruise credit associated with that made the Haven quite affordable and even made the Free at Sea Upgrade package doable.

 

We booked the cruise about 2 months before sailing, after the 130-day period for booking dinner reservations had started.  I emailed the Pre-Concierge desk and asked for the times that we needed.  There is a know-it-all poster on Cruise Critic who states frequently and vehemently that the Pre-Concierge is “totally useless”, that they can’t do anything that you can’t do yourself and can’t get you dinner reservations when requested.  That’s a bunch of flamingo poop.  On this cruise (as well as the previous one) there was a notice waiting for us in our suite confirming the changes that we had requested. 

 

Unlike most folks embarking at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal, we had a rental car to deal with.  We had picked it up from Avis at Newark airport 4 days earlier and would return it to Avis on West 43^rd Street just a few blocks from the terminal.  Not real excited about driving in Manhattan, but it was pretty painless.  Getting Lyft to pick us up worked well and we were soon at the terminal.

 

We had a 12-12:30 check-in time and that was when we got there.  After dropping our luggage, we were soon in a Haven waiting area where the wait was minimal.  Canada had just dropped the requirement of using the ArriveCan app and doing a test, which made the process much simpler than it might have been.  We got our key cards and were quickly led up to the Haven lounge.  We no sooner sat down when we were told that the staterooms were ready.

 

We had intended to use the American Diner for lunch but it is open air, and the weather was cold, rainy and windy so we had lunch from the Haven Restaurant in the Haven courtyard.

 

The suite was great as was Romel, our butler.  We had breakfast each morning in the suite.

 

The Haven restaurant was great, the non-repeating menu was not a problem as we had four restaurant credits.  We ate there twice for dinner and once had dinner in-suite with some of the food coming from the Haven restaurant.  The only criticisms were that the Tomahawk Pork Chop was a bit undercooked and that the lunch menu didn’t have much of anything we wanted to eat.  Our “go to” lunch place was O’Sheehans.  One sea day I went there for lunch and was told there was a 15-30 minute wait.  When I produce my key card and he saw it was Haven, he seated me immediately.  We did have lunch in one of the main dining rooms one day just to see a different menu, and in Halifax we ate in a local restaurant.

 

We had dinner in the suite from Le Bistro one night.  It was one of the best meals we had.  The Coq au Vin was wonderful.  We had really enjoyed La Cucina on our previous cruise but this time we were disappointed.  The food was nothing special and the service was awful. We ended up going to Cagney’s twice.  I wish that they didn’t use that gimmicky e-tablet wine list.  I had to ask for the real thing each time and the wine steward didn’t seem real knowledgeable.  The meats were great, but I’d advise against the Barley Risotto.  The service was mediocre, I guess we were spoiled by the service in the Haven.  At the table next to us, one person had the 5 oz filet and the other had the 8 oz.  They were delivered 15 minutes apart!

 

One of the best things about the Haven is the bar.  The bartenders are the best ones on the ship and very friendly.  Once they determined that we had the Premium Plus beverage package they went out of their way to make suggestions.  A negative was that there is something like 9 stools at the bar and there were people that seemed to take possession of them for the entire cruise.  I ordered the Smoked Manhattan one night, which is worth the experience.

 

The Premium Plus beverage package was a good thing.  There were some items that were not available due to supply chain issues (Hendrick’s gin, Zacapa 23 rum) but we were able to make liberal use of items such as Veuve Cliquot champagne, Whistle Pig rye whiskey and Remy Martin VSOP cognac, as well as nice bottles of wine.  Once when a particular bottle of wine was unavailable, they let us have another more expensive bottle not included in the package.

 

We had a fair amount of non-refundable on-board credit.  With the promotions there was little to spend money on.  Not caring about the spa, the only option was to spend it in the gift shop and duty-free shop.  It was closed for most of the cruise and when it did open on day 6 there wasn’t much there.  There seemed to be a lot of jewelry but there was not nearly as much liquor or gift items as we had seen on our previous cruise on the Jewel. A tee-shirt specific to the ship or the ports would have been nice, and a Breakaway Christmas ornament would have been perfect.

 

An excursion was cancelled when we could not tender in Newport.  The money came back as (refundable) on-board credit which you had to receive on the ship as cash.  This was not made clear, and I found myself standing in line at guest services (the on board credit desk was out of cash) at 9:15 on disembarkation day to get the cash.  There were instances of passengers being held back from leaving the ship when this credit situation showed up when their cards were scanned.  This lumping together of on-board credit with the excursion refunds made for a confusing invoice.  I got the cash for the excursion but ended up losing $83 of onboard credit.  That $83 would have been a nice upgrade to the bottle of scotch I bought.

 

We booked the “deluxe” hop on hop off bus for Halifax.  They booked more passengers than they could accommodate.  We hopped off at one point and when we wanted to hop on there was no capacity.  Some people said that multiple full buses had gone by.  We had to walk back to the ship.  It was about a 20-minute walk, the weather was nice, we were OK with it, but there were people with less mobility who had to pay for rides back to the ship.  NCL and Gray Line Tours need to resolve this for future cruises.

 

Overall, I’d give the cruise a B-.  Remnants of Hurricane Ian made us miss Newport and gave my wife a sick day and a half.  Our Kennebunkport excursion was cancelled without any advance notice.  It was nobody’s fault, but the leaves were late in changing this year as we saw no fall colors.  The ship was estimated at 89% capacity.  Maybe it’s a COVID thing but we are somewhat uncomfortable with crowds.  The ship might just be too big for our tastes but the smaller ones don’t have a proper Haven.  The Haven area was great but we didn’t much like going below Deck 15.

Thank you for this thorough review.  It gives a lot of good info, and lets me know what to watch out for.

Does anyone have a list of what wines and liquors are in which packages?

[Sundiego]

37 minutes ago, pbenjamin said:

We booked the cruise about 2 months before sailing, after the 130-day period for booking dinner reservations had started.  I emailed the Pre-Concierge desk and asked for the times that we needed.  There is a know-it-all poster on Cruise Critic who states frequently and vehemently that the Pre-Concierge is “totally useless”, that they can’t do anything that you can’t do yourself and can’t get you dinner reservations when requested.  That’s a bunch of flamingo poop.  On this cruise (as well as the previous one) there was a notice waiting for us in our suite confirming the changes that we had requested. 

What a thoughtful review. Thank you so much! I was thinking of reaching out to the "pre-concierge" about our dining reservations which are now a mess as we booked various shore excursions after booking the restaurants. I appreciate your encouragement to let them fix it all for us before we board! And I love your phrase "flamingo poop". I'm sure that phrase will come in handy for me at some point lol.

 

Densie

[ggTexasGal]

9 hours ago, mconthehighseas said:

Thank you for this thorough review.  It gives a lot of good info, and lets me know what to watch out for.

Does anyone have a list of what wines and liquors are in which packages?

You "should be able" to find these links in your reservation on My NCL.

PremiumBevPkg 9-22.pdf PremPlusBevPackage 9-22.pdf

Edited October 11, 2022 by ggTexasGal
added info

[rbxlady]

12 hours ago, pbenjamin said:

This lumping together of on-board credit with the excursion refunds made for a confusing invoice.  I got the cash for the excursion but ended up losing $83 of onboard credit.  That $83 would have been a nice upgrade to the bottle of scotch I bought.

 

Thank you for your review, as it is helpful to us— we are about a week and a half away from our Getaway cruise (although it’s a Caribbean itinerary).

 

Your comment about about the OBC concerns me. Does anyone know if refundable OBC can be cashed out or refunded to your card right away? We have $400 of non-refundable OBC, but let’s say that we cannot tender in GSC, which means the Silver Cove villa I booked will be refunded. I don’t want NCL using up our refundable OBC while our non-refundable sits unused. Can I either cash it out immediately or ask them to refund it to the card I paid for the excursion with? Or do they ensure that non-refundable is used up first before any refundable OBC?

[ggTexasGal]

13 minutes ago, rbxlady said:

 

Thank you for your review, as it is helpful to us— we are about a week and a half away from our Getaway cruise (although it’s a Caribbean itinerary).

 

Your comment about about the OBC concerns me. Does anyone know if refundable OBC can be cashed out or refunded to your card right away? We have $400 of non-refundable OBC, but let’s say that we cannot tender in GSC, which means the Silver Cove villa I booked will be refunded. I don’t want NCL using up our refundable OBC while our non-refundable sits unused. Can I either cash it out immediately or ask them to refund it to the card I paid for the excursion with? Or do they ensure that non-refundable is used up first before any refundable OBC?

Yes, REFUNDABLE OBC can be cashed-out.  Be sure to get that done before end-of-day on last day at sea ... NOT end of cruise!

[CDR Benson]

On 9/28/2022 at 11:29 AM, Sthrngary said:

@CDR Benson  Sir, Regent Seven Seas is a completely different animal.  Funny, I also considered a cruise November 2023 in the Mediterranean on Regent.  Our friends could not choose this cruise due to budget concerns. It was disappointing to my wife and I but we would rather be with them and chose Oceania.  

 

On to Regent.  Consider the service you got from the Haven on the entire ship.  It is the Haven on steroids.  The main dining room is better then the best Specialty Restaurant or Haven Restaurant from service to food quality.  I know that is hard to believe.  There is a much better crew to guest ratio making "Personalized Service" even better.  If you have a butler, they are much better trained is you can believe that.  They also have a lot more time to focus on their guest rather than behind the scenes work duties. 

 

That said, the size of the ship, they nature of port intensive approach, create a very hard to describe experience.  You deserve to be treated like "Rock Stars" and I assure you that is what is going to happen.  

 

The Good Mrs. Benson was so taken with our cruise in the Haven that she'd been hinting whether we shouldn't cancel the Regent Seven Seas cruise and do another Norwegian cruise in the Haven.  Because she knows I'm the cruise master for us, she never came right out and made an issue of it.  But I could tell our experience in the Haven had made a real impact on her.

 

So, last night, I assembled and played for her several YouTube videos providing in-depth tours of Regent Seven Seas Mariner and of the class of suite we'll occupy, along with good overviews of the Regent experience.

 

I could tell by the dazzled expression on her face that I'd made my point.

 

We won't be cancelling the Regent cruise.  (But we're still planning our next Haven cruise.)

 

 

[Sthrngary]

17 minutes ago, CDR Benson said:

 

The Good Mrs. Benson was so taken with our cruise in the Haven that she'd been hinting whether we shouldn't cancel the Regent Seven Seas cruise and do another Norwegian cruise in the Haven.  Because she knows I'm the cruise master for us, she never came right out and made an issue of it.  But I could tell our experience in the Haven had made a real impact on her.

 

So, last night, I assembled and played for her several YouTube videos providing in-depth tours of Regent Seven Seas Mariner and of the class of suite we'll occupy, along with good overviews of the Regent experience.

 

I could tell by the dazzled expression on her face that I'd made my point.

 

We won't be cancelling the Regent cruise.  (But we're still planning our next Haven cruise.)

 

 

@CDR Benson The Good Mrs. Benson has a great partner.  Please share with her, my personal envy of your upcoming cruise.  Because you and I have always been good communicators and dare I say have become friends, I would love to elaborate on your findings. 

 

Regent Seven Seas Cruises in my humble opinion is the top of the line in every way.  My favorite part is it's all inclusive nature.  Some exceptions but easily understood.  I have also found a lovely couple that have done a great job on video's on YouTube.  I watch them just for the enjoyment.  That said, the difference between Regent and other luxury/ultra-luxury brands and NCL Haven significate.

 

• A RSSC entire ship is the Haven On Steroids.  It really does not matter which cabin you have, when you leave it, every one for the most part are equals. 
• Personalized Service is the key.  When in the Haven, just like the TV bar Cheers, everyone will eventually know your name.  When you leave the Haven, not so much.  Consider the entire ship is the Haven and add even more personalized service.  It this is important, you will not be disappointed. 
• Dining Experience.  The dining experience is a big more formal and the food is better.  This does not mean it is perfect.  You also can go to any of the specialized dining as part of your fare.  Their are a certain number of guaranteed reservations given then it is first come, first served.  My wife and I fell in love with on such restaurant on a recent luxury cruise and went back often.  Four us, that was a huge benefit. 
• Night Life and Entertainment In General: Not their area of expertise.  Good but not great.  The exceptions is the enrichment programs and speakers.  This is a different cruising experience and this is one of the ways.  I loved every single speaker I heard. So informative.  Yet I missed the Mr. Happy Legs party at the main pool.  When in the Haven, it gives you both the Luxury and Normal Cruise experience.  When on a luxury brand, it focuses on luxury and details. 
• Excursions:  They are mostly all complementary.  You do have to book them early so the popular ones don't sell out. Just a head up on that. 
• Business Class Airfare:  On RSSC, the business class is for your over seas flight.  It is coach from U.S. airport to U.S. airport.  That is why when I book, I tell the cruise line my airport is Atlanta which is a two hour drive from my home.  Also, if I went from home, their would be a surcharge.  Also if you want better control of your reservation, there is a surcharge.  Just be aware of this and take appropriate actions. 

 

I hope some of my past experience give you area's that will enhance your upcoming trip.  it will be a once in a life time experience.  Please tell all of us all about it.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[pbenjamin]

4 hours ago, rbxlady said:

 

Thank you for your review, as it is helpful to us— we are about a week and a half away from our Getaway cruise (although it’s a Caribbean itinerary).

 

Your comment about about the OBC concerns me. Does anyone know if refundable OBC can be cashed out or refunded to your card right away? We have $400 of non-refundable OBC, but let’s say that we cannot tender in GSC, which means the Silver Cove villa I booked will be refunded. I don’t want NCL using up our refundable OBC while our non-refundable sits unused. Can I either cash it out immediately or ask them to refund it to the card I paid for the excursion with? Or do they ensure that non-refundable is used up first before any refundable OBC?

 

I had assumed that refunds from cancelled excursions would simply go to my credit card, but that is not the case apparently.  For one thing they insist on paying you in cash.  This I learned on disembarkation day when the OBC desk was out of cash.  Worse yet my assumption that non-refundable OBC would be used before the refundable funds was wrong.  Examining the invoice it appears that only the duty free liquor went against the non-refundable balance.  Three things (NYC beverage tax, crab cake upcharge, t-shirt from gift shop) went against the refund from our cancelled excursion!  My advice would be to cash out any refundable OBC as soon as they let you.

[rbxlady]

2 hours ago, pbenjamin said:

 

I had assumed that refunds from cancelled excursions would simply go to my credit card, but that is not the case apparently.  For one thing they insist on paying you in cash.  This I learned on disembarkation day when the OBC desk was out of cash.  Worse yet my assumption that non-refundable OBC would be used before the refundable funds was wrong.  Examining the invoice it appears that only the duty free liquor went against the non-refundable balance.  Three things (NYC beverage tax, crab cake upcharge, t-shirt from gift shop) went against the refund from our cancelled excursion!  My advice would be to cash out any refundable OBC as soon as they let you.

Between your response and the response of @ggTexasGal, I will definitely cash out that refundable OBC right away if for some reason it comes up!

[pbenjamin]

On our 2019 cruise on the Jewel, I used a Nespresso machine for the first time and liked it so much that we bought a machine, which I use most mornings.  On our Breakaway cruise last week, the coffee didn't taste right, even with using the same brand and make of capsules (Nespresso Ristretto) that we have at home.  Now home, the difference is very noticeable.  Although it is possible that they are not cleaning the machines properly but I'm thinking that the more likely culprit is the capsules.  A sleeve of capsules has a production date and a "best before" date.  My guess is that they are using old capsules that sat unused when there were no cruises.  Next time I'm throwing a couple of sleeves in my suitcase when I pack.

[Sailing12Away]

23 hours ago, pbenjamin said:

One of the best things about the Haven is the bar.  The bartenders are the best ones on the ship and very friendly.  Once they determined that we had the Premium Plus beverage package they went out of their way to make suggestions.  A negative was that there is something like 9 stools at the bar and there were people that seemed to take possession of them for the entire cruise.  I ordered the Smoked Manhattan one night, which is worth the experience.

 

We had a fair amount of non-refundable on-board credit.  With the promotions there was little to spend money on.  Not caring about the spa, the only option was to spend it in the gift shop and duty-free shop.  It was closed for most of the cruise and when it did open on day 6 there wasn’t much there.  There seemed to be a lot of jewelry but there was not nearly as much liquor or gift items as we had seen on our previous cruise on the Jewel. A tee-shirt specific to the ship or the ports would have been nice, and a Breakaway Christmas ornament would have been perfect.

 

An excursion was cancelled when we could not tender in Newport.  The money came back as (refundable) on-board credit which you had to receive on the ship as cash.  This was not made clear, and I found myself standing in line at guest services (the on board credit desk was out of cash) at 9:15 on disembarkation day to get the cash.  There were instances of passengers being held back from leaving the ship when this credit situation showed up when their cards were scanned.  This lumping together of on-board credit with the excursion refunds made for a confusing invoice.  I got the cash for the excursion but ended up losing $83 of onboard credit.  That $83 would have been a nice upgrade to the bottle of scotch I bought.

 

Absolutely agree about the Haven bartenders being the best of the bunch. We're notorious bar chair hogs, but in our defense we're rarely there during the day. And we're good about noticing folks who are waiting to place an order and helping them get noticed. The bar staff outside the bar (in the lounge area) is great too - so don't worry about sitting away from the bar, they still have you covered.

 

Our trip last month we had about $300 in unused credits. Hubby bought a bottle of Dom Perignon to share with the passengers in the Haven bar to use some of it up and celebrate the end to our trip.

 

No need to go to guest services - let the concierge help you with those things the day before you disembark so you can just walk right off the ship with them when you're ready.

[Sundiego]

1 hour ago, Sailing12Away said:

Absolutely agree about the Haven bartenders being the best of the bunch. We're notorious bar chair hogs, but in our defense we're rarely there during the day. And we're good about noticing folks who are waiting to place an order and helping them get noticed. The bar staff outside the bar (in the lounge area) is great too - so don't worry about sitting away from the bar, they still have you covered.

 

You sound like fun people so I'm not trying to be all cranky about this but what do you mean "in your defense" you're rarely there during the day? Most people aren't. We don't need help getting noticed and aren't worried about being covered by waiters. We enjoy the camaraderie of the bar and it's frustrating when the same people treat it as their own private section every.single.night and truly are chair hogs. Again, we'd probably enjoy each other's company but I just had toss out this other perspective. Cheers!

 

Denise

[Sailing12Away]

11 hours ago, Sundiego said:

You sound like fun people so I'm not trying to be all cranky about this but what do you mean "in your defense" you're rarely there during the day? Most people aren't. We don't need help getting noticed and aren't worried about being covered by waiters. We enjoy the camaraderie of the bar and it's frustrating when the same people treat it as their own private section every.single.night and truly are chair hogs. Again, we'd probably enjoy each other's company but I just had toss out this other perspective. Cheers!

 

Denise

Our last trip had a different bartender during the day then at night. We only saw the daytime one on embarkation day. Some folks like to lounge around the bar and lounge on sea days, during the day. We don't. 

 

At night when we would arrive around maybe 9pm, if there were seats available at the bar, we would take them. To us it was fun seeing familiar faces seated around us or in the couch area just past the bar. Never once thought 'ooh, I'll skip this open seat here and leave it for someone coming in after me'.

 

I dunno, maybe next trip I'll have to camp out and people watch more. There always seems to be groups who prefer bellying up right at the bar to keep the crazy cocktails flowing nonstop. Then there are folks who prefer the quieter areas just past the bar so they can chat easier as a group of 4 (rather than 4 in a row down the bar where person 1 & 4 can never really hear each other). Then there are folks who take whatever seat they see, and folks who stand and jump from conversation to conversation.

 

If we ever do sail together, you have my pull permission to tell me I'm being a bar chair hog and I will gladly give up my seat. Late at night it always tended to be the same group of 4-5 of us with at least 1-2 chairs still free, so it never occurred to me that someone else wanted in on our little group of belly-uppers.

[cruiseny4life]

17 minutes ago, Sailing12Away said:

At night when we would arrive around maybe 9pm, if there were seats available at the bar, we would take them. To us it was fun seeing familiar faces seated around us or in the couch area just past the bar. Never once thought 'ooh, I'll skip this open seat here and leave it for someone coming in after me'.

I think the ones complaining about bar hogs are those that want to be belly up to the bar, hogging it from others and can't, because someone beat them to it. Granted, I've only cruised twice, but I never saw the bar so full that it was impossible to order a drink. Perhaps it happened in the before times, but in full capacities Havens, I've never seen it. 

 

Hog that chair, enjoy your cruise, and don't think anything of it!

[CDR Benson]

In my trip report, I made mention of the perpetually occupied seats at the Haven Lounge bar.  It was intended as merely a wry observation.  I understand some folks enjoy the camaraderie of the bar, but it's never been a thing for the Good Mrs. Benson or myself.  

 

As noted, the lounge waiters are almost always Johnny-on-the-spot to take the orders of the folks who occupy the nice comfortable couches and armchairs in the rest of the Haven Lounge or the Horizon Observation Lounge, so we preferred that seating.  A couple of times we met interesting couples, leading to entertaining conversation.  Most times, it was just the GMB and me, and we were fine with that.  We wouldn't have enjoyed the sociality that is imposed by sitting at the bar.

 

For those who do, but never get the chance, because they're always beaten to the barstools, I think the answer is to add another bar, in the Horizon Observation Lounge.

 

 

[Sthrngary]

Hello folks.  Yes I have experienced full bar seating at the Haven on every Haven Cruise I have been on.  Yes it seems to be the same people every night.  Like a crew.  The issue is not those folks at the bar.  The issue is the size of the bar and the number of the stools.  

 

You will notice NCL has taken focus on this issue and Haven bars in the future will be expanded.  To the folks at the bars all the time.  You are not a chair hog.  Chair Hogs reserve a seat all day long and never show up.  You just like sitting at the bar and when a seat becomes available you take it.  Then the only time you leave is to us the rest room and if you fall off your stool, LOL.  

 

My approach with a filled bar is to make everyone laugh and get invited to the group.  Would it be nice to let other have a seat, sure.  Would it matter, nope.  The next person will do what you are doing, enjoying the conversation and atmosphere. 

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

[Sundiego]

1 hour ago, Sailing12Away said:

I dunno, maybe next trip I'll have to camp out and people watch more. 

 

If we ever do sail together, you have my pull permission to tell me I'm being a bar chair hog and I will gladly give up my seat. Late at night it always tended to be the same group of 4-5 of us with at least 1-2 chairs still free, so it never occurred to me that someone else wanted in on our little group of belly-uppers.

NOOO! I don't want you to give up your seat 🙂 I really didn't mean to put you on the defensive. I was just tossing out some food for thought and trying to explain it's not about the access to the alcohol. For us, we enjoy sitting at the bar from time to time, watching the bartender shenanigans if that makes sense. I honestly don't pay that much attention to the seating or drinking habits of other people in the bar. We just like to kick back and enjoy, meeting awesome people along the way. 

 

Happy and safe travels to you!

 

Denise

[pbenjamin]

We enjoyed sitting at the bar.  We would head down there for a drink prior to dinner.  We would sit there no more than a half hour and then move on.  As often as not the seats would all be occupied and the same people would always be in them.  One time we arrived to see a guy get up and take his drink with him, leaving his seat and the one next to it vacant.  We went to sit down and were told by one of the regulars that someone was sitting there, that he just had to make a phone call.  We retreated to the lounge seating.  He came back about 15 minutes later.  When we came back from dinner he was still sitting there.  Seems like in a polite society people should be more considerate and share what is clearly a limited resource.

[scooter6139]

Sorry if this is the wrong spot, but has anyone embarked from LA recently that stayed in the Haven?  It was a nightmare pre-pandemic for regular embarkation in 2019, so wondering what it's like now.  

[Homeport5]

3 hours ago, Sthrngary said:

Hello folks.  Yes I have experienced full bar seating at the Haven on every Haven Cruise I have been on.  Yes it seems to be the same people every night.  Like a crew.  The issue is not those folks at the bar.  The issue is the size of the bar and the number of the stools.  

 

You will notice NCL has taken focus on this issue and Haven bars in the future will be expanded.  To the folks at the bars all the time.  You are not a chair hog.  Chair Hogs reserve a seat all day long and never show up.  You just like sitting at the bar and when a seat becomes available you take it.  Then the only time you leave is to us the rest room and if you fall off your stool, LOL.  

 

My approach with a filled bar is to make everyone laugh and get invited to the group.  Would it be nice to let other have a seat, sure.  Would it matter, nope.  The next person will do what you are doing, enjoying the conversation and atmosphere. 

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

Love that  NCL is expanding the bar stool quantity/space and sees the need for everyone to have a seat at the table/bar!!  One of the things we loved about the Celebrity Reflection Suite class - huge bar with lots of stools.  Then tried Celebrity Millennium and they had a small suite bar area...bummer.  The Reflection had a fantastic atmosphere and I still remember how much fun we had meeting other folks on this cruise.  I think we met most of them because the bar tender encouraged folks to use the bar stools.  I tend to be shy and retreat to my little corner table but the conversation at the bar, and the bartender's welcoming worked.  We kept returning to that bar as we had so much fun meting folks.  I hope NCL can expand the bar space and number of stools moving forward.  

 

The other thing that Celebrity did well - self serve drinks out of a wall of refrigerators.  I could grab a beer or a cider or coke or anything bottled all day long.  Loved that feature in their "suite" club.  Wish NCL would consider.

[Sthrngary]

1 hour ago, Homeport5 said:

Love that  NCL is expanding the bar stool quantity/space and sees the need for everyone to have a seat at the table/bar!!  One of the things we loved about the Celebrity Reflection Suite class - huge bar with lots of stools.  Then tried Celebrity Millennium and they had a small suite bar area...bummer.  The Reflection had a fantastic atmosphere and I still remember how much fun we had meeting other folks on this cruise.  I think we met most of them because the bar tender encouraged folks to use the bar stools.  I tend to be shy and retreat to my little corner table but the conversation at the bar, and the bartender's welcoming worked.  We kept returning to that bar as we had so much fun meting folks.  I hope NCL can expand the bar space and number of stools moving forward.  

 

The other thing that Celebrity did well - self serve drinks out of a wall of refrigerators.  I could grab a beer or a cider or coke or anything bottled all day long.  Loved that feature in their "suite" club.  Wish NCL would consider.

@Homeport5 One of the nicest times I had on a Celebrity Cruise Ship was in the Michaels bar.  When you were in a suite, at the time it was the "Celebrity Suite"; you had assess to this relatively small private lounge.  Full bar, very quiet, with view of the ocean.  Daily had snacks to have with your drink. 

 

For what ever reason, this was "My Place".  I found the same quiet place in the Haven Horizon Observation Lounge yet it had no bar.  No issue to me, I got a drink from the Haven bar and walked the very short walk to Horizon.  Another lovely place for quiet luxury was the Haven Library which was part of my morning routine.  

 

All cruises have issues that we all may not like.  The art of cruising is to go with the flow.  There is always an strategy to make every situation work out.  Sometimes it is outside the box and sometimes it is right under your nose.  As important as a nice adult beverage is to me when cruising and it is important; it is but one aspect of my overall experience.  

 

A credit has to go to NCL for making their Haven Bar the place most people want to hangout.  It has a certain classy flavor to it I must say.  Glad I had that experience so many time.  Really can make a trip.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[Kauaijim]

It’s been fun following this thread . We have a suite on the spirt next week and I understand  the difference of a no haven ship.  We’ve done over 100 days on seaborne so this will be different but fun . 

[Sailing12Away]

10 hours ago, Sundiego said:

NOOO! I don't want you to give up your seat 🙂 I really didn't mean to put you on the defensive. I was just tossing out some food for thought and trying to explain it's not about the access to the alcohol. For us, we enjoy sitting at the bar from time to time, watching the bartender shenanigans if that makes sense. I honestly don't pay that much attention to the seating or drinking habits of other people in the bar. We just like to kick back and enjoy, meeting awesome people along the way. 

 

Happy and safe travels to you!

 

Denise

No offense taken, so don't worry. I'll continue to bar stool hog, but honestly do encourage anyone traveling with us to belly on up next to us. Believe me, if you're on a sailing with us, you'll know who we are.

7 hours ago, scooter6139 said:

Sorry if this is the wrong spot, but has anyone embarked from LA recently that stayed in the Haven?  It was a nightmare pre-pandemic for regular embarkation in 2019, so wondering what it's like now.  

I'll be sailing out of LAX in February. Not sure if that's too far away to help you.

[Justmekaren918]

On 9/30/2022 at 2:00 PM, CDR Benson said:

 

Thank you for your kind words.

 

Aye, 14178 and 14778 are the hidden gems of Norwegian Joy's Haven.  As I mentioned above, even if money were no object for me, I would not want any other Haven suite on board Joy other than one of those two.  The mid-ships location was especially handy the last full day of our cruise, an at-sea day when the ship was buffeted with heavy seas and high winds.  My wife and I barely felt it in 14778, but you can bet the folks in the Haven staterooms forward and three decks up sure did.

 

 

 

TY 4 the info & I picked 15126 which is the last suite in Haven closest to middle! I hope it's not bad on my N.E./Canda trip! Why, I'm not upgrading! 

 

Cruise Awesome