What it was like to stay in the Haven - on the Bliss June 8-15

[erisajd]

What its like in the Haven – Bliss.  June 8-15, 2024.  RT Seattle – Alaska.

 

We booked a Forward Facing Penthouse cabin [12706] in late Feb 2024 for the above cruise.  Choices were forward or aft facing, or a two-bedroom suite in the Haven on Deck 17.  We had a choice of Deck 10, 12 or 13 for the FFS – we decided that because Deck 13 had the enclosed balcony , and Dec 10 seemed too low – 12 was good choice.  If we had to do it all over again, I would seriously consider paying extra for the cabin in the Haven proper – but – that said – its really not worth $3000 to be in the Haven proper and the Forward-Facing suites are much much bigger given what I saw through open cabin doors in the Haven proper.  We would trade space for walking – but then we’re both in shape and took the stairs up and down A LOT. 

Over all – we had a FANTASTIC time – the amenities were superb and we felt special in many situations that mattered.  I know many don’t like the existence of the Haven – please – leave your opinion at the door.  This post is about what it’s like to be there, and the little things not present in other posts about the Haven I’ve read.  What its actually like to be there.

 

Pre Cruise:
As I have mentioned before, our travel agent and her company were worthless.  When we discussed sailing in a premium category, she really really pushed Seabourn or Silversea.  I’m sure the commission rates were higher but for summer 2024 rates were almost double what we paid on the Bliss.  Our fare, after Free At Sea PLUS [thanks Nana for that upgrade] and the excursions was about $13,500 for two.  Yea – its A LOT.  But my bill when we walked off the ship was $47.  We pre-paid for excursions and ordered the second glass of Veve Cliquot without a care in the world. 

As I mentioned, we prebooked dining and excursions.  I will say that the concierge phone desk was spectacular.  I called them twice, both times for dining reservations, and we got what we asked for – even though those times were not bookable online or in the app.  Score one for Haven level customer service.  So even though we booked about 100 days out – well inside the 130-day Haven and Suite level prebook and inside the regular reservation time also – we had zero problem getting preferred dining times @ Le Bistro, Teppanyaki and Ocean Blue.  We saved a Specialty Dining for when we returned from an excursion – more on that later. 

While, Customer Service from the Concierge phone team was spectacular [call answered immediately by a human, no waiting either time I called] the email folks [even if they were from the same pool] stunk.  I sent two emails, one time about pillow choices and the other time about removing chargeable items from the suite – and NEITHER was communicated on board and the responses were very much perfunctory and implied I should have known better then to ask.  So we had sparkling waters and other chargeable items and no special pillow order.  This needed to be communicated to our butler on arrival. 

 

Finally, there is no longer a separate communication with the name of your butler, or concierge or any other information relevant to your booking.  You will receive an email upon booking directing you to the Haven page on the NCL website – but no pillow menu or anything like that and nothing specific to your reservation at any time concerning the Haven.  Our luggage tags were sent directly to our TA.  And you may need to go looking for them because as I said, our TA didn’t even know our luggage tags were sitting on her desk.  You are now required to use the website or the app to check in 21 days out.  You will need a full-face passport style photograph in jpg or pdf format to check in.  Nothing is sent by mail any longer.

 

Embarkation:

Here is where the Haven shines.  In Seattle there is an entry lobby where you line up and they scan your face to do face ID for check in.  You will not need ANY paperwork at this location except your face and your confirm bar codes.  However, as a Haven customer, there is no line.  As you approach the entry door stay to the right.  There is a sign at the but not in the winding queue outside the entry door – NCL will be directing you into the regular line – just use the magic word ‘Haven’ and they’ll direct you to the right.  DO NOT get in the regular line to the left.  Now, that said, we had a family of 6 in the Haven line in front of us who had old photos of their kids, no documents ready, and were disorganized as hell.  After a couple of minutes while the parents fumbled around looking for their paperwork a regular line person pulled us over and scanned our paperwork and our faces checked out and they let us into the security line which took perhaps 90 seconds.

 

We were staying [thankfully free on points] across the street in the World’s Worst Marriott [tm] [don’t stay there – the rooms are ok but the amenities and service are horrible for a $450 - 600 / nt hotel] and left the hotel at 1015a – by 1030a I was sitting down in the Haven lounge and could have shaved a few min off that even if we had not encountered the aforementioned disorganized family. 

 

The security line is 6-8 airline style scanners – and they’re yelling at everyone the same way they do at the airport.  This is the LAST regular world experience you will have for a week.  We only travel carry on – I don’t want or need 3 different outfits every day and neither does my darling wife [as you say here] so we had one airline legal rollaboard and one airline legal backpack each.  We were through in seconds.  The benefit of the FAS+ is we can get premium glasses of wine everywhere and top shelf booze, water, soda etc – zero reason to carry anything except ourselves and our minimal stuff. 

Thereafter you go up an escalator and voila, are whisked into the Haven lounge.  Again, we needed to wend our way around a family of 14 in 6 cabins who were milling around waiting to get organized enough to check in but of course were blocking the entire entrance door to the lounge.  We scooted about to the right and walked right up to the counter.  I handed the bar codes and passports to a gentleman and after scanning both and photographing our passports, he handed us our Haven keycards in these nice little black card wallets that had the concierge and our butler’s business cards. 

At this point, we found seats in the corner of the lounge, and I had my first of a continuing round of identical disappointments on the cruise.  The coffee sucked.  Yes – it was horrible.  Not even Starbucks quality, which I don’t usually like [all hail Peets’ Arabian Mocha Java!] but this stuff was burned and tasted like it sat out since the last departure last week!!  There was fruit [which was running out and never restocked that I saw] and the infamous NCL cookies along with water and iced tea etc. 

 

Literally 3 min after I sat down at 1030a – Patrick the Concierge appeared and began yelling something – everyone settled down – and then he began again – the usual welcome speech and indicated the ship would likely be cleared for boarding by 1045a.  At 1047am he invited the first group [by Muster Station – Station A] on board.  A minute later, our group, Muster C, was called and by 1053a we had cleared muster station key card scan and we were in the Haven lounge.  Before we entered, Patrick was  standing outside and we asked if we could drop our two bags off in our Suite – and he sent a steward along with us to Deck 12, where, by 11am we had dropped our two heavy travel bags off in our room and wandered back upstairs to the Haven lounge on Deck 17.  Mind you we left the hotel at 1018a and by 11am we had cleared initial screening, security screening, Haven check-in, muster screening, dropped our bags in our cabin and were back upstairs in the Haven lounge.

By 1102, we had missed the Haven tour [not much to be toured about – pool, lounge, etc] for the first on boarding group and decided to meet ‘G’ [Guillermo] and Louis our Haven lounge bartenders.  By 1106, according to our bill, we had been charged sales tax for two Grey Goose Bloody Mary’s and were enjoying our first cocktails of the day. 

 

Some folks came and went-  and I left a $10 tip for our bartenders at 1130a when the restaurant opened ensuring the next time I appeared later that afternoon my name was soundly called out!  There is staircase [and dedicated elevator] from the lounge to the Deck 18 Haven restaurant where we saw the first great menu of the day.  We were seated right by the window [tables for two along the windows] and we ordered lunch without alcohol – we are not big drinkers during the day!  The food was very good – but – I [over 3 or 4 days] had all three soups offered and the Lobster Bisque was VERY salty, the Chicken consommé was an interesting preparation but tasty coming in from the cold on Sitka day, and the French onion was very pedestrian.  That said – the entrees were very very good – and that’s the answer for everything else we had in the Haven Restaurant.

We then located the gym, which we accessed prob 5 of the 7 days, and after wandering decks 7 and 8 where the theaters, lounges and specialty restaurants were [basically empty since most guests had not yet boarded] we went to our cabin because we were not in the Haven and had not heard any ‘cabin ready announcement.’  This was likely due to us not being in the Haven at 1pm and were wandering the empty decks.  Being on Deck 12, we also would not have heard an announcement unless we went back to the Haven lounge.  So – we went to our cabin, which was ready and simply unpacked.  We had been to Anchorage and the Alaska RR to Fairbanks, driven to Denali, taken a flight to Seattle and had lived out of suitcases for 7 days – it felt great to unpack and have a place to live in for 7 days!

 

Our Butler was ‘Shree,’ which was short for Shreeranda and he was from India.  He had the English Butler patter down perfectly.,  We saw him around 4pm – and he spent a few min explaining his role and where things were and a few other bits of trivia we already knew.  We confirmed our request for coffee by 6am every day and reaffirmed what we asked for in our Butler letter. Yes, we drafted a Butler letter indicating our likes and dislikes and were told in no uncertain terms if we left the do not disturb on we would not get our morning coffee!  Never made that mistake!  We sailed early at 437pm and it was time for the obligatory ‘sparkling wine’ bottle pop as we pulled away.  For the life of me, NCL gave us some off brand sparkling wine in our suite – after $13500 you’d think they could have given us French champagne for the sendoff.  I would have also thought that for a base cruise fare in excess of $10k our travel agent would have upgraded our champagne to French.  Times have changed I guess.

Moments later Hemberto, our cabin steward arrived.  He was one who delivered the canapes NCL sent to the suite daily, we tipped him early figuring he was selected  for Haven duty and would be part of the specialty staff we would interact with.  We had dinner in the Haven and the steak and lobster were sublime. Also discovered they had Silverado Cabernet by the glass which became my go to the entire cruise for dinner! 

 

Day Two and Day 3 Sitka:

Day 2 was a sea day and seas were 8-10’ all day with a persistent NW swell which left many people feeling queasy.  They had sick bags out at all the stairwells.  I was fine, I don’t get motion sick, but my DW was not feeling well and had taken two meclizine which left her unconscious most of the day.  I took the opportunity to eat a solo breakfast and had two lunches [one alone and light bit with my dw when she came up for air early afternoon], workout, and tour the ship.

 

Hemberto left us two pieces of paper, one was the Haven restaurant breakfast times in the various ports.  If we got into Port early [6a for the early ones] then the Haven restaurant would be open from 6a-8a instead of 7-9, and the last sea day [Friday] it was open from 7a-10a.  The other was the priority debarkation schedule for the ports.  Once again, a place the Haven shines. During the hours set forth in the documents [and in reality, the entire time in port] you appear in the Haven lounge and ask the concierge you wish to depart, and they whisk you to the Haven crew elevators, with one dedicated to the passengers, and they take you down non-stop to the Haven debark line and after scanning your Haven keycard off the ship you go.  No line at all.  No waiting for the elevators. 

 

I will say that after almost two days of being in the Haven or taking the stairs, entering the main ship areas is a culture shock.  The elevators are packed.   You have to wait for them.  You often stop at every floor.  You see the lines to check off the ship and then the lines to return.  Lines for the Buffet, lines for everything. 

 

While as a Haven customer, when you approach the dock there is usually an employee holding a Haven sign.  You get back on the ship and they escort you to a Haven only embark line where they scan your card and whisk you back up the private elevator to the Haven lounge area and you’re back on board.   If you get on before they have the Haven employee with the sign, simply tell the regular staff you are Haven and they will escort you to the appropriate check in area and get you someone to escort you back upstairs.  There is usually a long elevator line to get on and off and getting on an elevator is a challenge.  When 300 or more arrive to go upstairs at the same timeoff buses and from excursions – you have a long long line.  Not so as a Haven customer.  Walk up – even with a line to get to the check in stations and be escorted directly to the metal detector and on you go to the Haven elevator.

 

Our night in Sitka we did Le Bistro. Note that we got a first port night reservation at 630p from the Haven concierge without a problem.  Others can review the restaurant itself, but, they have Veve Cliquot by the glass. . .  . order as many as you want with the FAS+ package. 

We also decided last minute to go see Icons in the theater.  Walk on down.  They are saving Haven seats until 5 min before the show.  About 60 seats or so for every show.  No reason to reserve.  No reason to get there 30 min early.  There is a Butler with a Haven sign right at the entrance.  He will walk you up to the entry, you scan your card and walk on in and find a seat.  Yet another Haven perk. 

 

Day 4 – Juneau

We did not get off in Juneau.  It seemed like a city to us and we saw Bald Eagles from our balcony!  Yet again we were over a mile from the main part of town.  We went to exercise late morning and skipped lunch.  We took the Glacier Explorer excursion, prebooked and pre-paid.  We were required to show up with the rest of the excursion crew by 1245 in the Manhattan Lounge.  No specialty treatment as a Haven customer for this event.  There were perhaps 75 of us and the excursion was nice.  We saw whales breaching, 2 different species of seals, got up close and personal with the Glacier – they slowed down and grabbed a chunk of ice and smashed it up into cubes.  This was prob the highlight of the event for me – I grabbed a cup of ice as we exited and we had a fancy 12 year old scotch in the Haven lounge with 1000 year old glacial ice.  What a treat.  Getting back on board was simple and I was stunned how close a 1000’ long cruise ship with a 26’ draft got to the Glacier! 

 

We left a note for our Butler to have a meal from Q Smokehouse at 645pm – seeing the Excursion would back around 615p – and – the excursion was late returning.  We got back to the Bliss about 630 or so.  Got upstairs as fast as we could to the Haven lounge to grab our scotches with glacial ice and we walked up to our suite about 646 with our dinner waiting.  This is one of the great perks of the Haven – your butler will bring you a meal from any restaurant you choose and serve in on the table in your room.  What made the meal less than perfect was we forgot to order BBQ sauce for our meats!  Oh well, live and learn.  I was NOT going to send our Butler off half way through the ship to get us sauces!  The Brisket was perfect without it!

 

Day 5 – Icy Strait Point

There is no reason for this place to exist.  It’s a made-up port for 1000’ long cruise ships – I would have rather gone to Skagway.  But – once again – easy on and easy Haven off.  Meet in the Concierge lounge and off you go.

 

Day 6 – Ketchikan

We did the Lumberjack show because? Why not?  Kitschy, Kampy fun. But – the Bliss docks miles out of town and this was a disaster for many.  We were delayed leaving because the buses could not keep up.  Thankfully our excursion had a special bus that picked us up outside the Lumberjack show and dropped us back off at the ship.  Some folks waited 1hr 40 min for a 15 min ride.  But – there was a line to get to the check in stations to get on board but the Haven steward was waiting with the sign and 5 min from walking up you’re in the Haven lounge.  These places would be cold and wet if it were raining and nasty place to sit outside in the line to get onboard and then the elevator line.

 

Day 7 – At Sea / Victoria

We had no plans to get off the ship here at 830p on a Friday night.  We did go to the 3pm Jersey Boys Show – and once again just show up.  Find the Haven butler, and get escorted in to the reserved seats on the left side of the theater about half way up. There were even waiters to take a drink order.

There was a debarkation meeting with the concierge staff at 11am in the Observation lounge.  You received the same paperwork that everyone else got – listing times and colors but received priority debarkation tags for your bags.  If you wanted to get them off the ship you needed to have them out by 9p – unless you were doing something and needed more time – in which case you simply told your butler what time to come get them.  Yet another Haven perk -don’t have time to get the bags ready by 9p – tell them you will have them ready and they’ll come get them and put them in the priority queue.  YOU on the other hand, simply come to the lounge, and get escorted off by Haven elevator for the final time.

Haven restaurant to be open at 6am.

 

Day 8 – Debarkation

It seemed this was the entire reason for the extra cost of the Haven.  While we were carrying our own bags off, we packed that morning instead of the day before.  Left the cabin and went to have breakfast in the so civilized Haven restaurant.  It was peaceful.  It was quiet.  Staff was ready to get us off, but still provided the same level of service.  After breakfast [my 6^th edition of eggs benedict!] we simply walked out the restaurant, to the Haven internal elevator that goes to Deck 17, 18 & 19, down to Lounge on 17.  A steward was waiting for us.  Straight to the elevator, down to Deck 4 and off the ship for the last time.

 

Literally 5 minutes from the time we got up from breakfast we were in a cab to the airport.  Immigration was the usual long hallway where they activate the RMI in your passports – no visible immigration or customs check for guests on the way out.   If you understand that point . . . 

 

Final Thoughts

Would I do it again?  Yes – in a heartbeat.  The little things are what made the cruise special.  Everybody goes on the same excursions – but – its better to be 2 of 200 in the Haven on a ship of 4500, than 2 of 750 on a luxury ship where everybody is ‘special.’

 

The Haven Restaurant staff are obviously trained to a higher level of service.  This was visible in the specialty restaurants.  The staff was somewhat surprised to see Haven guests – and in Teppanyaki  they seated a group of us together all of whom were being cared for by Shree, our butler!  You could see the little elements of a service that were missing, or skipped in the rush or just not trained to perform at higher level.  Water not refilled, etc.

The meals taken in the Haven restaurant were very good.  The service was impeccable if not slow.  There was a ‘stateliness’ to the service that could not be rushed.  We told them we were trying to make a 630 show one night and no effort was made to speed things up.  So be forewarned, we never made the show!  You can get out of breakfast or lunch in 40 minutes but dinner always takes over an hour.  The menu does not change – I would think you should not ask for special items from other places.  What I found interesting was they had all the makings of bagels and lox for the morning – except for bagels! 

 

The rest of the ship was a madhouse.  People everywhere – we went into Garden Café a couple of times to get soft serve and it was crazy.  The main dining rooms were likewise nuts when we walked by to get to Teppy or Le Bistro – and The Local had a nice menu but quality was fast food level.  The Rueben sandwich reminded me of Arbys level food and the Fish and Chips was mostly breading for the fish and the chips were very much like Wendys.  Ordering a top shelf drink in many places required them to leave to find a bar that had it.  They often had not heard of what you were ordering Only place that had decent top shelf on site was Le Bistro.  It was those kind of things you noticed when out in the non-Haven parts of the ship. 

The Haven only amenities were special.  The pool area was generally populated by kids.  And the Hot tubs were lukewarm at best – not hot at all.  I can imagine the germ factory that it was with the kids in and out all day.  But, unlike the regular pool area no one saved lounge chairs, and the chairs were readily available all day – and – there were comfy cushions on the chairs.    The Observation lounge up front was a gorgeous space.  Lots of open area and very comfy lounge chairs to watch the world go by.  There was a waiter to bring drinks but you would need to go to the bar to get another realistically.  They had snacks [mostly the leftovers from the Haven breakfast] most of the day – non cured olives and gherkins and hummus and chips and fruit and yogurt in the Observation Lounge from about 11a to 5p. 

 

The coffee was horrible.  We got coffee in the cabin 6 of the 7 mornings we were there – and it was never the same twice.  Sometimes it seemed to come out of the Garden Café yuge urns, other times it was French press that sat in the pot waaaaay too long and was thick and dense and almost syrupy.  The coffee in the Haven was French press but still not very good.  I’ve had coffee in Ireland that was simply spectacular – this was always meh.  I skipped coffee most dinners and got a cappuccino because there it prob came out of a machine at least!  There is an airline lounge style coffee / cappuccino / latte / espresso machine in the Haven Observation Lounge – but – you have to leave your cabin to get it – maybe one of the ONLY reasons to book a cabin on Deck 17!!

 

I would say that if you don’t like walking stay in the Haven itself.  Two floors that take up the lounge and restaurant.  But – the cabins are generally smaller – and more expensive.   We had no problem going from our very spacious and less expensive suite up front up and down the 5 flights of stairs to the Haven Lounge – and if going to the restaurant getting an up elevator was usually not that long a wait.  It would be nice if they let Haven guests use the forward stair case.  But – you’re eating and drinking a lot more than your normal diet – take the stairs! 

The other thing we noticed when in Le Bistro on Deck 8 was lots of vibration from the screws.  Don’t know if that’s feelable in the aft facing Haven cabins higher up – but it was very noticeable in the restaurant. 

 

PM me if you have any other specific questions but this gives you a good flavor for what its like in the Haven for a week. . .

[ChiefMateJRK]

19 minutes ago, erisajd said:

We did not get off in Juneau.  It seemed like a city to us

???

[erisajd]

16 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

???

Plus we woke up late, ate breakfast late and had to be at a pre excursion meet at 1230p. 

[cruiservictor]

Thank you for taking the time to write up this interesting review. You say the concierge was Patrick. Was his last name Berido?  We had him as our concierge a number of times on the Breakaway, Gem and Escape out of NY. And we will be on the Bliss in September for the Latitudes cruise. Would be great to sail with our Patrick again. 

[erisajd]

11 minutes ago, cruiservictor said:

Thank you for taking the time to write up this interesting review. You say the concierge was Patrick. Was his last name Berido?  We had him as our concierge a number of times on the Breakaway, Gem and Escape out of NY. And we will be on the Bliss in September for the Latitudes cruise. Would be great to sail with our Patrick again. 

Yes. It was. Patrick Berido. 

[ChiefMateJRK]

2 hours ago, erisajd said:

Plus we woke up late, ate breakfast late and had to be at a pre excursion meet at 1230p. 

I'm confused.  Either you have never been to Juneau or you've never been to Tucson.

2 hours ago, erisajd said:

We did not get off in Juneau.  It seemed like a city to us

 

[9tee2Sea]

I always enjoy Juneau.  Been there 4 times so far.  I always make a point to take the bus to Mendenhall Glacier, and just walk the trails.  It interesting to see how far the glacier has receded from the previous time.  I enjoy the shopping at the big Alaska Store just under the tram.  That's where I always buy sweatshirts to take back home

[erisajd]

12 hours ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

I'm confused.  Either you have never been to Juneau or you've never been to Tucson.

 

Not sure how you can be confused - but 'We did not get off in Juneau"  and "we live in Tucson" as set forth in my avatar . . . 

[CruisingSince1982]

We love the Haven. I just wish the dining room menu changed. It doesn't stop us from booking though. Glad you enjoyed your trip! 

 

[ChiefMateJRK]

3 hours ago, erisajd said:

Not sure how you can be confused - but 'We did not get off in Juneau"  and "we live in Tucson" as set forth in my avatar . . . 

Yes.  I know.  So why did you state:

18 hours ago, erisajd said:

We did not get off in Juneau.  It seemed like a city to us

What did you mean by "seemed like a city to us?"  I was having flashbacks to the other thread where a person refuses to sail from MCT (even for all the money in the world) because it is located in one of those awful cities. Tucson is like Juneau without Bald Eagles, but with road runners.

[Laszlo]

3 hours ago, erisajd said:

Not sure how you can be confused - but 'We did not get off in Juneau"  and "we live in Tucson" as set forth in my avatar . . . 

It's a shame you did not get off. The drive thru the town is about 10 minutes. With a population of 30K its not a city in my book

[RocketMan275]

50 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

Yes.  I know.  So why did you state:

What did you mean by "seemed like a city to us?"  I was having flashbacks to the other thread where a person refuses to sail from MCT (even for all the money in the world) because it is located in one of those awful cities. Tucson is like Juneau without Bald Eagles, but with road runners.

Isn't MCT the code for Muscat International in Oman?  

[ChiefMateJRK]

1 hour ago, RocketMan275 said:

Isn't MCT the code for Muscat International in Oman?  

I'm guessing since you asked you already know the answer.  Since I don't care, I'm not going to fall into your trap and Google it.

[RocketMan275]

59 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

I'm guessing since you asked you already know the answer.  Since I don't care, I'm not going to fall into your trap and Google it.

Don't have to guess, I told you the answer.

[ChiefMateJRK]

12 minutes ago, RocketMan275 said:

Don't have to guess, I told you the answer.

I wasn't guessing about the acronym.  I was guessing that you already knew the answer.  I must have guessed right?

[RocketMan275]

2 minutes ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

I wasn't guessing about the acronym.  I was guessing that you already knew the answer.  I must have guessed right?

You didn't have to guess.  I said: "Isn't MCT the code for Muscat International in Oman?"

 

No guessing involved.

[ChiefMateJRK]

I need a drink....

[Captain-John]

Crikey, some crossed wires in this thread. Thanks very much for the detailed review OP, really useful account of your experience.

 

I took the Juneau comment to mean - yes you left the ship, but it was on a boat tour of the glacier and you didn't go into town (city?!), but still had a good time.

 

MCT = Manhattan Cruise Terminal, in reference to another thread with bad vibes.

 

Will do an Alaska itinerary one day but too far for just the week so will hold out for something longer but thanks again for the review.

 

 

[ChiefMateJRK]

46 minutes ago, Captain-John said:

MCT = Manhattan Cruise Terminal, in reference to another thread with bad vibes.

Yes.  "Everybody" on the forum knows that.  @RocketMan275was just being clever.

 

The drinking does help....

[NW Pacific]

? about coffee, was there not a Nepresso coffee maker in your haven cabin?  or you prefer regular coffee.

[Seas2mountains]

2 hours ago, NW Pacific said:

? about coffee, was there not a Nepresso coffee maker in your haven cabin?  or you prefer regular coffee.

I wondered the same thing. Why get bothered to have the butler bring bad coffee at 6am when the Nespresso maker produces decent, consistent coffee on demand? 
 

[ChiefMateJRK]

12 hours ago, ChiefMateJRK said:

Tucson is like Juneau without Bald Eagles, but with road runners.

ETA: Bald Eagles are majestic.  Road Runners are just, plain, COOL!!  I love those guys! 😎

 

I've named our local Ralph.  I see him about once a week on the way to the pool in the morning.

Edited June 19 by ChiefMateJRK

[Laszlo]

6 hours ago, Seas2mountains said:

I wondered the same thing. Why get bothered to have the butler bring bad coffee at 6am when the Nespresso maker produces decent, consistent coffee on demand? 
 

Because the butler can bring French press. I'm not a coffee drinker but my wife prefers French press over any of the Nespresso coffee.

[RocketMan275]

6 hours ago, Seas2mountains said:

I wondered the same thing. Why get bothered to have the butler bring bad coffee at 6am when the Nespresso maker produces decent, consistent coffee on demand? 
 

IMHO, the Nespresso makers should be tossed overboard and replaced with decent coffee makers such as Keurig.

[erisajd]

12 hours ago, NW Pacific said:

? about coffee, was there not a Nepresso coffee maker in your haven cabin?  or you prefer regular coffee.

Yes, of course there was a nespresso Espresso maker.  I find I can get a 6oz cup of coffee if I press the machine twice.  As I said, I'm a spoiled coffee drinker - nespresso is nespresso, if you like it - great, if not, then not.  

 

Keurig stinks also - in the hierarchy you have press pot, percolator, drip, keurig and then everything else - including nespresso and massive urns.  The Nespresso Vertuoline are not bad since you can get a 14 oz cup of coffee or a 2oz espresso.  I have that at home for pm espresso.  

 

We ASKED the butler to bring us french press but it was so thick as to be not drinkable.  Only decent coffee were the after dinner latte / cap since they came out of the machine!  

 

We just wanted a decent cup of coffee. . . . 

Edited June 19 by erisajd