CGYCruisingFamily

Two things... First love the Amsterdam. Second, have you checked out cruises departing from Vancouver? It's easy to take the train from Seattle to Vancouver and that would open up more options for cruising too.

My parents are taking our boys on the Zuiderdam on that cruise in a couple of weeks. I think from our experience on the Amsterdam what the pp's have said are pretty much spot on. HAL ships are not necessarily geared towards Disney characters, water slides or rock climbing walls but out kids 5&9 have loved Club HAL. We also prefer that the kids club is smaller (not the 600+kids we had on NCL a couple of years ago).

We are 1 day short of 2* :( . As others said another cruise is the only way. We looked at a 1 day cruise from Seattle to Vancouver to get us over the hump but decided it wasn't worth the expense (not enough difference between the two levels). Now for a higher level of Mariner status you might want to check to see if there is a short cruise convenient to your location to pick up. There are some 1 or 2 nights offered on the shoulder season of Alaska and maybe also on the east coast for repositioning?

 

Edit: just noticed you are in Australia so maybe there is a short one there but I fear not :(

I can't answer all your questions as we are also doing our first Mediterranean cruise this summer however I do have some thoughts after reading lots and online research.

 

First I agree with a pp about driving in England/Paris. Not sure as well if you want to have a right hand drive vehicle where everyone else is left hand drive? I have heard its super easy to take the Chunnel train from England to France. Maybe look at that? The train system in Europe is supposed to be excellent so you might want to look at that more closely too.

 

As for Barcelona, we are spending 3 days there before we get onto our ship. We did find hotels somewhat expensive however if your plans are a bit flexible, you might look at instead of a hotel, check out renting a short term apartment instead. The downside is many require a 3 night stay but the upside is they are more cost effective. We have a 4 bedroom apt (for 6 us us) rented for €175 per night. That is on the higher side but that's because there are 6 of us. I saw rentals in good neighbourhoods in the range of €100 for 2 people. You will find as you look at places closer to Las Ramblas the price goes up. Also by having an apartment we do need to eat out every meal (we plan to hit a market to get some breakfast items and maybe lunch items then eat out for dinner). We have ordered BCN transit cards for 3 days at they will cover all the transit needs we will have (except that we want a private transfer from the airport after our 14 hrs in transit). They were €18 per person per purchasing them online.

 

We plan to hit the major places after reading about BCN. Las Ramblas, Park Guell, la Sangrada Familia and la Boqueria. We also want to see the Magic Fountain as it isn't that far from our apt. We will see how time goes.

 

As for Naples from everything I read it is possible to rent a car but the question is whether you want to or not. Taking the ferry is likely better than driving (it's supposed to be a very winding narrow BUSY road). Personally we chose a private tour that day after reading about the roads. (Watching a Rick Steeves video swayed us because in the video he said for that one trip it's his preference to let a local drive for him). But that was our choice. I would just say if you choose that day to head out on your own plan for it to take longer to get too and from the ship. We are planning on renting and going on our own in a couple of places but in places we feel is more manageable for driving and the Amalfi Coast is just not one of them (however again taking a ferry might alleviate some of the traffic issues).

 

I think I have been driving my family nuts with the research but I would rather be prepared for this trip and know what is within our limits.

here are some answers from my parents who have cruised on the Prinsendam 65 days most recently just before Christmas. Their answers are in red.

 

Just a couple of last minute questions;

 

1. Is there a proper hair dryer in the cabin for someone with long hair? yes there is
   
2. Do they still provide conditioner? On the website it only states shampoo. yes they do. Shampoo, conditioner and body wash. My mom says though she doesn't like the conditioner
   
3. As there is no thermal suite are the steam room and saunas open to everyone? Are these unisex or his and hers? they don't use these but my mom thinks they are unisex. She says they have upped the price to use.
   
4. How do you access the seaview pool area? Must you go through the spa/fitness area? they said you come out of the elevator on deck 9 by the spa, you just walk by but don't have to go through- there is a hallway between the spa and exercise room. You must go up a small set of stairs or a handicap elevator
   
5. Is there an art tour on the ships similar to others in the fleet? they don't think there is because the ship is not big enough. There is a ship tour but not one specific to the art
   

 

Thanks for any input you can provide.

 

 

Rochelle

It is Canada Place the ship is sailing out of for sure. Its just a matter of some logistics as there has been an offer to park at a friends house on the North Shore (then take the Sea Bus over) - free versus paying for the week. It would be easier to drop the luggage then run over to drop the vehicle off and then come back to board.

The last HAL cruise we did with our kids they were 4&7. We never had issues with them finding something to eat and actually ended up ordering from the adult menu with them more often than. Not (we try to limit the "children's menu because I don't like the idea of pizza, hamburgers and chicken nuggets- but that's a totally different discussion not for here). Our son fell in love with Caesar salad on board HAL and are one almost every dinner meal.

 

We also took time to plan it out. On occasion if there was something they really wanted to do in Club HAL, we would take them for an early dinner at the buffet on the Lido then to kids club, then we would go for a later dinner. This didn't happen often but it was an option too so the odd night they didn't have to sit for 2 hours.

 

As for timing, we found it well paced. We did bring their iPads (***with headphones***), and also had a small bag with colouring stuff. However we found in most cases we didn't need either. Sometimes we would also run them up to Club HAL between dinner and dessert if they were done and starting to show signs if boredom.

 

Our kids are actually doing 2 cruises this summer so it should be interesting. They are going for 7 days with Grandma and Grandpa to Alaska then 2.5 weeks later the 12-night Mediterranean with G&G and us. They will have 19 nights on a ship in July and August.

Does anyone know what time you can start to drop bags off for a HAL cruise? And do you have to check in right away?

Probably. Do you have an ATM card? Maybe instead of exchanging go to an ATM and take enough money out that you need versus exchanging it. Other wise Visa might be the better option.

 

This might just be a stab in the dark too but are you a AAA member? Not sure if they would exchange money or not.

CIBC is a national chain so yes, they will also be in Vancouver. Just FYI, so are TD, Royal, BMO. BC only will be something like VanCity.

Despite what Mr. Grumpypants says, looking forward to Bumperoos review as my parents are taking our kids on this ship and this cruise in 5 weeks. Want to read as much as possible on this as possible before the leave.

 

P.S. Glad to hear you enjoyed my former home town :)

Chances are your mom may have to store her scooter at the front office.

 

When she returns to the cabin at the end of the evening, just call the front desk and someone will come and get the scooter. When she is ready to leave the cabin in the morning, call and they will deliver the scooter to the cabin.

 

The cabin schematic on the ship floorplan looks like it is a slightly bigger squarish room and if that is the case then likely it will fit in. It is not a huge scooter. We are just trying to see if someone who has been in this room can confirm that it is that shape.

 

They are also on a list for an ungrade (4* Mariners) so we'll see.

Hi there

 

We are searching for more info on room 6081 on the Zuiderdam. My parents are taking our kids on a 7 night Alaskan cruise in that room. In particular we are trying to find out the rough size of it. There will be 4 of them in the cabin but my mom usually travels with a mobility scooter. We are trying to ascertain the configuration as some inside rooms would have enough room some do not have the room to acclimate the scooter and others don't). So you have any insight into the layout of this room? Thanks

How much is the transfer with the cruise line? The airport is about 16 km (10 miles) from YVR. I read somewhere that it is about $35-40 for a taxi. You can also hop on the Canada Line (sky train transit) straight to the airport from the vicinity of the port. Not sure if the coast (heard its in the $3.75 range pp to Richmond but also saw somewhere that there is a surcharge to go to the airport which would push it closer to $10 pp). Don't quote me on that as I haven't lived in Vancouver for years. There are ample options though and that is what I am trying to pass on. It's easy to get from the port to the airport.

They probably don't need a hotel but it is an option (the cruise leaves Saturday but they will be driving Friday and stopping somewhere en route like Chilliwack or Abbotsford that night then into downtown Saturday). We're from Richmond originally so will have to check that out. Also interesting about the hotels downtown. Will have to check those out also. I know convenience wise Canada Place best option especially when they dock back in town.

 

On a different note as I am drawing a blank, how far is it walking from 1) the Canada Line and 2) the sea bus from the north shore?

Hi everyone. First I must apologize for not reading the full thread so this might already have been asked multiple times.

 

My parents are driving to Vancouver from Calgary for a 7 day out of Canada Place. Anyhow, besides getting a hotel in downtown are there any other convenient options for parking near the port? We know they can park at the port for about $190 for the week.

 

We are just trying to see if there are any other options. Thanks.

 

(Ps we are from Vancouver originally and know the city well just not the parking situation as none of our family have taken an Alaskan Cruise before).

 

 

 

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DLUT, they changed the times on our cruise according to port times. Some days it did one earlier if we docked earlier.

Thank you Katie333 and everyone else.

 

One last question. When there are the day $14 cruise charges pp, is that unlimited times in and out of town or each time? And it covers to and from the town right?

 

Thanks again for everyone's replies

 

 

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HAL provides the shuttle in Marseille, I think it was $15 charged to your account. That was good for as many RTs as you wanted. It was fine going into town but coming back in the evening there was a line about three to four bus loads long and the wait was about 45 minutes before we got on the bus.

 

Do you happen to know if that was pp or per cabin?

When we stopped in Corfu, there was a shuttle into town, but it was not free. I believe Taormina is a tender port, and the actual town is way up on a hill. Recommend you get a sopy of Rick Steves' Mediterranean Cruise Ports. He does not cover Sicily, though. EM

 

Was it a couple of Euro per person?

 

Also one other question - does anyone know if the fees are a flat amount for both adults and kids? Or is it a different amount?

 

Also if there is a fee, is it both directions?

 

Again thanks

I am just wondering if anyone who has recently taken a HAL Mediterranean cruise can shed some light on the shuttle situation (either at the port or from the port into town) in the following ports? We are wondering how many (if any) of the ports there are cruise shuttles offered and the cost. Does HAL offer shuttles? I have been reading that some lines do offer shuttles in certain places both on the docks and also from the port into town but am still a little unclear on how this works and the cost involved. Thanks for any advice or guidance.

 

Marsaille

Monte Carlo

Livorno (just at the port as we are likely renting a vehicle to go on our own that day)

Civitavecchia (just on the port - not into Rome as we have an external tour booked)

Naples (again just on the port again we have external tour booked)

Taormina

Corfu

Dubrovnik

Kotor

Venice

I also dont recall music anywhere like that on our last cruise. The library was quiet.

We are booked on the Nieuw Amsterdam out of Barcelona on Aug 4 (so the one right after the one you are looking at). We looked at the 11 night on the Noordam but liked the itinerary better on the NA. Haven't been on either ship so can't speak to the ships. We do tend to like the smaller ships so we will see how it goes.

Oh he won't be anywhere around the pool without us. That's a standing rule which won't be broken.

 

Thing is with our itinerary I have a feeling he won't be in Club HAL as much as other cruises.

 

I too have witnessed super poor behaviour and I do trust my son to know what is right or wrong. He's not a rule breaker (never has been).

 

 

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Hello

 

We have a one day stop in Corfu on our upcoming trip. I have glanced over other topics in this forum but thought I would throw this out there. We are in port (Kerkira) arriving at 8 am and leaving at 5 pm.

 

After a number of very busy days, we are thinking of maybe a beach day and are looking for recommendations for a beach which might be easily accessible and might be good for a family.

 

I looked up Paleokastritsa and it looks beautiful. It appears to be about 25 km away from Kerkira. Would a taxi be best? Or are there other options. It appears as well we could also look at renting a vehicle for about 50-60 Euro.

 

We would prefer sand and gentle seas if possible.

 

Does anyone have any recommendations?

 

Thanks