Havila Capella Ship Review
homer| September 7, 2024 11:27 amWe sailed on the Havila Capella from August 17, 2024 thru August 23, 2024. These are small but mighty ships so set your expectations right and they ships won’t let you down!
Our journey on the Havila would take us from Bergen to Kirkenes and many stops in between. According to the stats on the ship, it hold 640 passengers in 179 cabins but if the ship was full during our journey we don’t think we saw this many people.
The ship itself only has 9 decks as opposed to 15+ decks on large cruise ships. It’s fairly easy to find most of the main areas on the ship and as far as we know and experienced, there are only two main elevators near the center of the ship that provide access to the other decks. There are many stairways to get up and down in other areas.
We weren’t able to get into the short term passenger area as our key card wouldn’t open the door but I am told there are simply chairs to sit in there.
The gym is split into two rooms. One room (image below) contains the weight machines and the other contains the aerobic machines. We tried to use the gyms but as you might image, they were full each time we stopped by in the morning and evening. If you plan on using the gym, plan on being there very early in the morning, during the day or late in the evening.
The treadmills and other machines were full every time we went to use them.
There is a small cafe (image below) in the ship that we used a few times for coffee and pastries. We had one meal there as well because we had a tight schedule with excursions and opted to eat something rather than risk missing a meal. The main issue I have with this cafe are the hours of operation. It seemed to open late and close early. This was a big problem because if you miss the normal dining hours at the restaurants, you’re out of luck in terms of food. There is a bar in the upper deck but it only had snacks such as potato chips and peanuts.
The ship lounge in the promenade is nice and relaxing.
Things To Improve On Ship
There was an eighth to a quarter inch of water everywhere on the ship decks. Havila should have someone dedicated to sweeping the water off the decks. I know it’s a ship out at sea but the amount of water puddles everywhere was a bit annoying.
The aft of the ship, the deck covered in water.
The picture above shows a perpetual puddle of water on our balcony. I should have asked for a broom and I would have swept it myself but then again this was the “Presidential Suite” so why did we have to deal with this?
Laundry
We liked that the ship had washing and drying machines on board however there were only TWO washers and driers. Fortunately, we were able to wash and dry twice without waiting too long as most of the guests didn’t seem the need to do laundry. We had a fairly long stay across Europe so we needed the laundry. These washers supposedly come with their own laundry detergent built in but we used our own washer sheets just to be sure clothes were cleaned.
What needs improvement: One of the driers stopped working with a “clean lint” error message. I tried to figure out how to clean the lint but couldn’t so had to go get help. The staff I found to help said that I shouldn’t have to clean the lint, it should be done by the staff daily and I agreed.
Cabin Service
We had the “Presidential Suite” and while we were very happy with our cabin, some things need drastic improvement. We received a bottle of champagne and periodically had chocolates and nuts provided. We’re not sure if this was supposed to be daily or just random days, it was inconsistent.
What needs improvement: Our shampoo and body wash ran out in our shower. For the price we paid for the cabin, I expect the shampoo and body wash to be topped off every day or every other day, there is no reason for this poor level of service.
The shower in the bathroom only has one slit for water to drain. This works fine when the ship is level however as soon as the ship moves, water pools in all corners of the shower. Fortunately there is a small lip that keeps the water in the shower area but it does eventually overflow when the ship lists left/right up/down while moving. On two occasions, water spilled out onto the broader bathroom floor when it escaped the sunken lip area.
Patio Heaters – Some areas around the deck could benefit from some type of patio heaters. There are some by the bar near the jacuzzi but it wasn’t enough especially for a ship that sails in the cold most of the time.
Ship Needs Entertainment
While most people likely take this journey on this ship to see the northern lights, there really needs to be *some* type of entertainment beyond the majestic landscapes outside and possible northern lights.
Here are some suggestions that we think will fit well with the type and crowd on ship:
Piano bar – have a piano player / singer available in the evenings in the promenade. The promenade is a cool place to hang out but there is nothing to do except look outside or drink at the bar. I would have spent more time here if there were some type of live music.
Evening Lounge singer – I would have loved to hear some local music from local bands or groups. At one point we did have an excursion to meet the Sami people or northern Norway and they did sing a few songs. Why not have them on the ship for a song or two?
Library – If Havila is all about eco-tourism, hydro-power, history and exploration then perhaps add an extensive library where we can read about these things from historical genesis to current state of affairs.
Cooking class – The meals on board were delicious and many dishes we’ve never had before so how about a cooking class, recipe book, and local beer/liquor tasting? Hey Havila guys, you can charge for this and we’d pay money. It’s another missed opportunity.
Conference Room – There is a conference room where one of the guides gives lessons and overviews, we loved it and wished there were more of this but barring that this room was mostly empty, it’s a huge waste. The Conference room can easily double as a “movie” room to showcase documentaries about Norway. It can house cultural events from local people like the Sami.
The whole ship feels like a quiet library and I felt like someone is waiting around the corner waiting to “shhh” me for being too loud.
Internet
Like all cruise ships, this one suffers from poor internet connectivity. To be fair, the internet mostly worked but we wonder if this was due to the fact that we hugged the Norway coast the entire time we were on the ship. We did notice that when we were further out at sea, the internet slowed or stopped working altogether. Below is an image of the typical speeds we got during our trip. I tested it almost every day.
Excursions
The irony of Havila is that it’s an “expedition” vessel and while it does a great job of sailing to the destination, most of the time is spent on buses getting to those field locations. Norway is all about the great outdoors: seas, fjords, lakes, fishing, mountain hikes, mountain climbing, etc. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to do any of those things from this cruise as far as I know except see the fjords on some occasions.
I would have loved to do a fishing excursion but for some reason most cruise lines that sail on waterways don’t offer it. Baffling!
The excursion highlights on the trip for us were meeting the Sami People, the North Cape, Gerainger, and Tromso but we enjoyed all our of stops.
Havila Capella Report Card
Staff: A-
The staff on the ship was amazing, helpful and always had a smile. Perhaps Norway is truly the happiest place on earth? We deducted a few points solely because the ship was short staffed. We mostly ate in Fine Dining on the cruise and the same person, attended to us the entire time. At times, service was slow but acceptable and easily fixed by adding more staff.
Entertainment: C-
As mentioned in this review, Havila needs to do better in the entertainment area. The key here is to be creative and not try to replicate the noise chaos on larger cruise lines. I think a piano player at the bar would be a great addition. Using the mostly empty conference room for feature documentaries or films about Norway would be a good use of this wasted space.
Excursions: B+
The issue with excursions isn’t the availability, I think the constraint is Norway’s geography and infrastructure. For example, our first excursion required us to sail to the port, board a bus, take a couple of ferries to make the trip excursion. Perhaps I’m too futuristic or fancy but flying drones or low cost helicopters may make the whole thing better for tourists. We were surprised there were no helicopter ride options for such a beautiful mountain and countryside.
Services/Amenities: B-
We enjoyed the use of the free laundry room however note that there are only TWO washers and TWO dryers for 600 people on the ship. We did laundry the first day we boarded because we had already spent a few days in Oslo and Bergen and wanted to start with a clean slate of clothes. The “Gym” is a bit small but there is only so much you can squeeze into a small ship. There was no massage spa as far as we know and didn’t see any services advertised.
Dining/Food: A+
The food was excellent but if you’re the type of person that expects burgers & fries, pizza and chicken nuggets then you should probably just skip this cruise. We truly enjoyed how Havila sourced local ingredients from the areas we visited to create amazing, delicious, nutrient rich meals. The food alone is worth returning on this cruise for so we’ll be back at some point. We did however tire of the same menu so we’d like to see more options next time around.
Infrastructure: B+
We never got more than 2 mb of internet and it worked great in most places but became spotty as we headed out to sea. The puddles of water all over the deck were annoying and could easily be remedied by having a deck swab, swab the deck! I think that’s why they are called deck swabs!
Our bedroom cabin had plenty of USB charging ports but we would have liked to see some of those same ports at other parts of the cabin like near the sofa in the living room, dining room table, sky lounge chairs, and our personal Jacuzzi.
Epilogue
We had a great time on the ship but the value proposition is out of whack. For the price we paid for the Presidential Suite on Havila we would have had a much higher level of service and amenities on other larger ships. For contrast and comparison the Norwegian Epic during a Mediterranean cruise, we had our own private butler for our cabin, saw Cirque de Soleil shows, had lounger singers, piano bar and many fine dining options.
The Havila is a unique experience and a unique ship. We did like the change of pace of being on a smaller ship and not disembarking with 3000+ other people like the larger cruise ships so there are pros and cons to every proposition. If you plan on traveling on the Havila, be aware of these trade offs and set your expectations accordingly.
You can book your voyage at www.havilavoyages.com.
