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

[e150club]

1 hour ago, mtrancher said:

Yes she can request you as a guest, when we sailed it was $50 per guest, but recently I believe the cost has risen. I made the request through the concierge, but she might also be able to make the request through the maitre 'd at the restaurant.

Thank you Mtrancher.

[photomikey]

Will we need reservations for the Haven restaurant, and are they difficult to get? Need i make them before we board, or can i wait until the first night? 

[RocketMan275]

5 hours ago, photomikey said:

Will we need reservations for the Haven restaurant, and are they difficult to get? Need i make them before we board, or can i wait until the first night? 

Haven doesn't do reservations.  We never had to wait more than five minutes.

[Sailing12Away]

6 hours ago, photomikey said:

Will we need reservations for the Haven restaurant, and are they difficult to get? Need i make them before we board, or can i wait until the first night? 

The only time I would say to speak with the concierge about Haven reservations is if you have a big group. Our last trip all of the Haven bar stool hogs were planning on joining each other in the restaurant for dinner the last night of the trip. For that someone spoke with the concierge to see if it would be possible, and how many tables could they reasonably squish together. 

 

But for just 2-4 people, just walk in when you're hungry.

[photomikey]

Oh, that's what I was hoping.  We were just suite class in Celebrity this spring and man we loved the experience.

 

For those who have done both, how does NCL compare?

[CruzinMel]

16 hours ago, Sthrngary said:

You hit pay dirt with Maria.  He helped me on all of our trips.  As a matter of fact, I called her for my next cruise on the Breakaway on December 4, 2022.  I am NOT in the Haven but she helped me anyway.  She read through my information and suggested I simply do the Free At Sea PLUS.  It ended up saving me money and I had no idea it even existed.  If you talk with here again, please say Gary said hello.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

I most definitely will say hi for you - I was not wise enough to get her direct number for a callback, but I'll find her if anything goes south.

 

I absolutely love my PCC, but it was fascinating to see the difference in what Maria could do vs Brandi.

 

[Sthrngary]

3 hours ago, photomikey said:

Oh, that's what I was hoping.  We were just suite class in Celebrity this spring and man we loved the experience.

 

For those who have done both, how does NCL compare?

I have done both.  They are very similar if you are talking about the Retreat compared to the Haven.  You also have to compare the newer ships.  Apex/Edge and Encore/Bliss/Joy.  The food is great on both however the Celebrity Suite Restaurant has a different menu every night. 

 

The layout of the Retreat and the Haven are different also.  Both have positives and negatives.  I choose NCL over Celebrity because I like the Entertainment on the NCL ships better.  If a larger newer ship with Celebrity was a lower investment than NCL Haven, for an itinerary I wanted to go on.  I would seriously consider Celebrity again.  

 

Ships like the Celebrity Equinox that has a retro fix Retreat would not be my choice.  Nor would the smaller NCL ships like the Pearl who don't have a full service Haven.  Do your research when spending a premium.  Watch ever video available.  You really can't go wrong. 

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[mtrancher]

5 hours ago, CruzinMel said:

I most definitely will say hi for you - I was not wise enough to get her direct number for a callback, but I'll find her if anything goes south.

 

I absolutely love my PCC, but it was fascinating to see the difference in what Maria could do vs Brandi.

 

Maria doesn't have a direct call back #. Hence if you want to contact her directly you either have to e-mail her or leave a message to have her call you back.

[Laszlo]

On 11/5/2022 at 2:43 AM, photomikey said:

Will we need reservations for the Haven restaurant, and are they difficult to get? Need i make them before we board, or can i wait until the first night? 

Wondering about Soy milk, is it possible to get a carton of it for your in cabin fridge?

 

 

[Sthrngary]

3 hours ago, Laszlo said:

Wondering about Soy milk, is it possible to get a carton of it for your in cabin fridge?

 

 

Ask the haven restaurant 

[Laszlo]

4 minutes ago, Sthrngary said:

Ask the haven restaurant 

After I posted the question I sent an email to the Concierge desk and ask them if a carton can be supplied. They said no problem they will add it to our reservation. We had asked for a few things the last time, when we got on board nothing was done but they did take care of it pretty fast

[bundtkate]

How strict is the check-in time for Haven guests? NCL had website maintenance last night so I ended up with a  11-11:30am window after completing check-in this morning. I understand that's about the time boarding normally starts  so I'd rather get to the pier earlier so that we can beat the crowds at security and be hanging out in the Haven waiting area by then. If we just roll in at 9:30 or 10, is anyone going to fuss us about that?

[jjjct]

Sailing on our second Haven cruise on Escape in January in a Forward Facing Penthouse. We cruised in the same stateroom in August on Joy. On the Joy I requested that all items in the mini-fridge be removed. I was checking today what the Haven Experience includes and this is one of them: 

• Mini-bar and deluxe coffee/espresso/cappuccino machine  - Does this mean that items are free in the Mini-bar?

[jpcdds6]

14 minutes ago, jjjct said:

Sailing on our second Haven cruise on Escape in January in a Forward Facing Penthouse. We cruised in the same stateroom in August on Joy. On the Joy I requested that all items in the mini-fridge be removed. I was checking today what the Haven Experience includes and this is one of them: 

• Mini-bar and deluxe coffee/espresso/cappuccino machine  - Does this mean that items are free in the Mini-bar?

I think just in the Owners Suite.

[Sailing12Away]

3 hours ago, bundtkate said:

How strict is the check-in time for Haven guests? NCL had website maintenance last night so I ended up with a  11-11:30am window after completing check-in this morning. I understand that's about the time boarding normally starts  so I'd rather get to the pier earlier so that we can beat the crowds at security and be hanging out in the Haven waiting area by then. If we just roll in at 9:30 or 10, is anyone going to fuss us about that?

It depends on the embarkation port and the folks working.

We sailed Haven on the Encore out of Seattle last year. Spent the night before the cruise at the hotel across the street. We had a 10am check-in time I think, went over at 9:30 to drop our bags off and get in early so we could wander the city some more before getting on the ship. They refused to let us into the building until 9:50 since our time said 10am.

 

So we literally sat on a bench staring at the security guard across from us and checking the time on our watch every 5 mins. Granted, no one else was lined up outside that we could see. He finally called us over and said we could start climbing the stairs to the check in desk when he got sick of us looking at him.

 

Other times, they never even looked at the time on our edocs. So it depends.

[bundtkate]

11 minutes ago, Sailing12Away said:

It depends on the embarkation port and the folks working.

 

I figured that may be the case. We're on the Joy out of Port Canaveral. We've never had anyone look at our check-in times before, but this will be our first time on NCL so who knows? Here's hoping they're as lackadaisical as everyone else.

[Sthrngary]

15 hours ago, bundtkate said:

How strict is the check-in time for Haven guests? NCL had website maintenance last night so I ended up with a  11-11:30am window after completing check-in this morning. I understand that's about the time boarding normally starts  so I'd rather get to the pier earlier so that we can beat the crowds at security and be hanging out in the Haven waiting area by then. If we just roll in at 9:30 or 10, is anyone going to fuss us about that?

Your boarding time for Haven is what ever you want it to be.  That is one of the perks.  You might have to wait in the Haven Port Lounge.  That is exactly what I do.  I have a coffee, start t meet some new friends then board with the first group.  No worries, go early.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment.

[Sthrngary]

14 hours ago, jjjct said:

Sailing on our second Haven cruise on Escape in January in a Forward Facing Penthouse. We cruised in the same stateroom in August on Joy. On the Joy I requested that all items in the mini-fridge be removed. I was checking today what the Haven Experience includes and this is one of them: 

• Mini-bar and deluxe coffee/espresso/cappuccino machine  - Does this mean that items are free in the Mini-bar?

No, the items in the Mini Bar are not free.  That is H1 & H2 and three bedroom suites.  Sad that as much as we all pay for the Haven, that Mini Bar is not a perk but that is the NCL policy.

 

Cruise well and enjoy every moment. 

[dmms]

Speaking of Port Canaveral Haven boarding, is there a separate line/security line for haven passengers? I saw a you tube video from 2020 of a separate haven security line/checkin that was up an escalator to the right at the terminal entrance.  Couldn’t find any other more recent info. My search skills are not stellar;(  I did try!

We are sailing on the Prima in Feb out of Canaveral and wondering if anyone had more recent experience or info.

Thanks in advance 😎

[RocketMan275]

15 hours ago, bundtkate said:

How strict is the check-in time for Haven guests? NCL had website maintenance last night so I ended up with a  11-11:30am window after completing check-in this morning. I understand that's about the time boarding normally starts  so I'd rather get to the pier earlier so that we can beat the crowds at security and be hanging out in the Haven waiting area by then. If we just roll in at 9:30 or 10, is anyone going to fuss us about that?

It really does depend upon the port.  For example, our last cruise in NOLA, Breakaway, Haven.  We arrived at about 9:45.  Everyone, including Haven are in the same security line.  We were in that line until about 11 before we got to the Haven check in.  Check in was smooth and we were immediately shown to the Haven waiting area where we didn't even have time for a cup of coffee before being escorted aboard.  Other ports have dedicated security lines for Haven.  IOW, waiting in the Haven waiting area depends upon the port.

[jpcdds6]

On 11/5/2022 at 9:09 AM, Sailing12Away said:

The only time I would say to speak with the concierge about Haven reservations is if you have a big group. Our last trip all of the Haven bar stool hogs were planning on joining each other in the restaurant for dinner the last night of the trip. For that someone spoke with the concierge to see if it would be possible, and how many tables could they reasonably squish together. 

 

But for just 2-4 people, just walk in when you're hungry.

They need to make the haven bar bigger. The same people hogging the stools is really annoying. An outdoor bar wouldn't hurt.

[rbxlady]

14 hours ago, bundtkate said:

I figured that may be the case. We're on the Joy out of Port Canaveral. We've never had anyone look at our check-in times before, but this will be our first time on NCL so who knows? Here's hoping they're as lackadaisical as everyone else.

We just cruised on the Getaway in the Haven out of Port Canaveral 10/22-10/29. Nobody checked our appointed check-in time, which was honestly useless because instead of giving us an option to check in together, my husband and I had one check-in time, our 11-year-old son had a later one, and our 9-year-old son had one a couple of hours later, all because that's what was left when we finished check-in. (The NCL site went down mid-check-in, then went back up, then down, etc., for the rest of the day, so I was checking us all in piecemeal.)

 

My advice, though, which I shared a few pages ago, is to be vocal about the fact that you're in the Haven. We, along with the people in front of us, were sent to go through the first security checkpoint apart from other passengers where we didn't have to wait. After that, we followed the other people to the main check-in area, and nobody said a word to us about the Haven, just sent us to wait for a rep to be available to check us in. Apparently that is not where we were supposed to go. Nobody was shepherding us or asking us if we were Haven passengers.

 

When we got to the check-in desk, the lady went through all the questions about illnesses, etc., then disappeared for a few minutes. She said she couldn't find our keycards, so she printed some "fresh" ones for us. I then asked where the Haven waiting area was, and she pointed to the priority boarding area (non-Haven passengers can pay for priority boarding), showed me it was full, and told us to go sit over in some other area.

 

Shortly thereafter, they started making announcements, but we couldn't hear jack from where we were sitting, so we went up to ask a lady about the Haven waiting area. She said it was full, so we should go back to where we were. My husband and I were looking at each other, like, this doesn't sound right, so he specifically said something like, "We are Haven passengers, and we've heard that there's a Haven waiting area with coffee and pastries and such." The lady looked at our keycards and told us we were not Haven passengers. I told her that we are definitely booked in the Haven and gave her our cabin number, and she got confused and grabbed someone else to help us. He realized what happened and took us back to the Haven waiting area, where they told us we should not have gone to the main check-in desk and that the check-in rep had messed up by doing what she did. They took the new keycards and gave us the original ones, which gave us no trouble on board (I was waiting for that to happen). We had coffee, pastries, and cookies until they started letting Haven passengers board the ship starting a little after 11AM.

 

I think some of the port staff just have no idea what to do with Haven passengers, and I felt bad being all insistent that we were entitled to special treatment, but we should have been more vocal so we got routed properly from the start.

 

ETA that I guess the best way to explain it is, when you get into the big room after the initial security checkpoint, go all the way to the back left. There will be a couple of people probably trying to redirect you, but just tell them you're in the Haven, then you'll get to the Haven podium where they'll check your names and bring you to the concierge desk at the Haven waiting area. They need bigger signs.

Edited November 14, 2022 by rbxlady

[rbxlady]

2 hours ago, dmms said:

Speaking of Port Canaveral Haven boarding, is there a separate line/security line for haven passengers? I saw a you tube video from 2020 of a separate haven security line/checkin that was up an escalator to the right at the terminal entrance.  Couldn’t find any other more recent info. My search skills are not stellar;(  I did try!

We are sailing on the Prima in Feb out of Canaveral and wondering if anyone had more recent experience or info.

Thanks in advance 😎

I think I shared that video from 2020, and it was different when we were there a few weeks ago. Just don't be shy about telling every employee that you are in the Haven so that you get routed properly. I just responded to someone else right above this comment with the story of how we got misrouted and how the Haven concierge had to fix it, plus we lost precious cookie-eating time.

[dmms]

@rbxlady

Thanks for the info - good to know that it’s apparently not as easy as it used to be!

We will plan to be vocal and head to the back left of the terminal - and watch for haven signs!

Don’t want to lose any cookie time 😏

[RocketMan275]

23 minutes ago, rbxlady said:

I think some of the port staff just have no idea what to do with Haven passengers, and I felt bad being all insistent that we were entitled to special treatment, but we should have been more vocal so we got routed properly from the start.

Had something similar checking in as Suite Guests on Princess in Fort Lauderdale.  The port staff just want to handle you as quickly as possible.   We had to demand to speak to port staff supervisor to get our suite access.