howndder

Hello all, can someone let me know what the distance from the train to the terminal is? 

Thank you, Howard is sunny Fort Lauderdale

Good morning, just curious. If ports in Canada are closed till July1st, how can the Zaandam sail in April from Ft. Lauderdale to Montreal?

Thanks for a very well written review. I also found the ship too loud. Everywhere you went the music was blaring and when I requested them to turn down the music, they said certainly and did nothing. Check out my review which I wrote about yesterday, which covered the card players and the music. I was not as fortunate as you in Tuscan Grill. 

Howard in Beautiful Ft. Lauderdale

Hi everyone, I have loved Cruise Critic since the day I discovered it years ago. It has been and continues to be a font of information for all sailors. On this particular cruise there were over 100 hundred active participants on the thread. There were over 200 invited for Celebrity Connections Meet and Greet and the Sky Lounge was quite full. Since the thread first started there were many people offering many different games and activities and tours and this is one of the many reasons that I love this site. I participated in a couple of them. I always like to go to the Slot Pull. I also play Mah-Jongg and know that Celebrity now offers anyone the chance of renting a set by going to Guest Relations and for a $50.00 or $100.00 refundable deposit, they will give you a set to take to your cabin for the entire cruise. I was lucky enough to procure one of the 4 they had on board. We had a game on every sea day at 1PM for 2 , 2-1/2 hours. We had probably 10 players that showed up most days and we had 2 games going that I knew of. We would have also had a morning game but there were issues with the Event Coordinator, Patricia. On this cruise we had the excellent services of Cruise Director Rich (not the crazy sock Rich). At our Meet and Greet, he started telling all of us that we'd be able to use the port side of the main dining room for all of our many games and that in the mornings we could start at 10, which was the usual start time for game playing, especially at sea. Also at the M&G was Patricia, the event coordinator,  and that she had pre-arranged, with one of our group, different start times, (11-3) and went up to Rich to advise him of this new plan. Those of us that were active on this thread knew this before getting on board, but I, didn't like this and since this is my cruise,  I was offering other times to play with the others. This didn't sit well with some and rather than have an argument over something so trivial, everyone played their games where and when they wanted to. Unfortunately, since they had set up or rather stripped the entire port side of the dining room for the games players and not many showed up, they kept making it less and less tables to use. I must point out that over 100 people told everyone that they would be playing in the different games and you really shouldn't make those kind of plans if you're not going to play. On the first day so many said they were coming to all of the planned games is the reason the cruise line gave us so much space. At the 11AM start time, I showed up and found the Bridge Director (a passenger) and his partner were there and 2 people that were looking for the many that said they wanted LCR and there was me. That's all. Spaced for over 100 and 5 people showed up. In the afternoon we met at the card room that has 6 bridge tables and had a nice game of Mah Jong but that space was quickly eaten up by the hundreds of other passengers that were looking for something to do and as the weather got worse the playing areas got worse. We retreated to the dining room where the duplicate bridge players were, they had upwards of 14 tables. Occasionally a couple other tables of different games dropped in but quickly dropped out when they realized that the music in the dining room was never lowered for anyone. I tried every possible officer I ran into and guest relations and the Event Coordinator to get this music turned down to no avail, so we had no choice but to play with music. I don't know about everyone else, but this put a bad taste in my mouth for Celebrity. I am very sorry if some folk had ruffled feathers. 

Another issue I had was the exorbitant prices for the specialty restaurants. I took a 13 day package and did get a discount but except for the Murano and the Qsine, I was very unhappy with the food. NOT THE SERVICE, they were amazing workers. I made many friends with the staff on this trip and considering they work so hard, it wasn't their fault that the kitchens were poorly staffed. 

I love crossings. I have been on 25 Trans-Atlantics. I love sea days and meeting new people, and this cruise was no different, nor will the next and the next. Most people don't realize how many things there are that are scheduled for sea days and make plans they can't possibly keep, but that's ok because it's your cruise and you can do anything you want. We have many tireless passengers that go above and beyond to make their cruise even more special and I applaud you all and thank you for your generosity in taking on so much work for a fun time. 

Howard in Beautiful Ft. Lauderdale where every day is another in paradise.

Hello Michael and Michael. Glad to hear others have announced they're on board. I have met many German cruisers on the crossings and I guess the fact that it can be done in under 2 weeks is a big help for working people. The Martini Bar is the place to meet and I eat early so go around 730. I hope to see you there. 

Howard in Beautiful Ft. Lauderdale

Good morning, Please be aware that the cruise director on the Nieuw Statendam, was very UNHELPFUL, with regards to LGBTQ and I wrote him up to Holland America. They used to be much better the last few years, but this cruise director, though hot as a man could be, was definitely not a friend of ours. The ship however is beautiful. Enjoy.

Good morning everyone, Putting this out onto the world wide web and seeing if there are any brothers and sisters going on this beautiful ship across the pond to Southampton? Starting from Ft. Lauderdale and visiting Nassau, Bermuda and Lisbon, with over night in Bermuda. I love those sea days and maybe getting a trivia team to take on the "others".

I always do specialty dining and hope to meet some fellow earlier dining partners as well. Hope to see everyone at the Martini Bar around 7-730PM. 

Howard in Beautiful and Sunny Fort Lauderdale

Well it certainly was nice to sleep in my own bed last night and get a wonderful nights sleep. All in all it was an excellent cruise vacation. Of course I have a unique respective of my own that most people did not. I will explain below. I was going to leave this review with CC but they didn't have this ship listed yet. I am Howard and I invite you to sit back and relax and enjoy the read,

I started booking this trip about 6 months ago as I was ready for another crossing and being on a brand new ship, was very appealing. Being single I have not choice but to swallowed hard and booked my single occupancy 200% room as I only want balcony or bette, I never gave thought to the single cabins. Actually I usually stay in a Neptune suite but they wanted $12,000 for me to stay there. Even I have a limit. I had wanted to use miles to get to Europe but that was successful, so I used Flightease from Holland and was quite surprised at the wonderful airfare. In business class I wound up paying under $1,200 from Ft. Lauderdale to Rome with a connection in NYC. And got double miles, thank you very much. Another important point for me is that I always fly in at least a day in advance for "JUST IN CASE". Having been to Rome many times, this is my 25th crossing, I ordered a private car service, 130 Euros, to meet me and take me to Civitaveccia. That was great. I stayed at the "Maison De Ville" on the waterfront, very near the city center. I took their shuttle the next day to the ship, arriving there around 1100. I must tell you all that the hotel was 68 Euros for a waterfront room and quite large and came with a full buffet breakfast. What a deal. That day as my room wasn't ready I wandered around town and had lunch and in the evening a outdoor dinner. Yes it was a bit cool for outdoors but, it was lovely. I suggest you check this town out as it's very near to the Etruscans for history and very close to the ship. I also picked up 2 very nice bottles of wine for my cabin. 

Check-in was a breeze. I am 4 star Mariner and that gets some small privileges. Most people on board were 5 Stars. and we were allowed to board around 1115, where we all went off in different directions to see this new ship. I went immediately to my cabin to drop stuff off and meet my stewards and to see my room. The cabin was spectacular for the category because it is wide instead of long, with my 2 beds together as a king there was still a huge space to the desk and further back was a comfortable chair and coffee table and the sliding doors, Plus I had a large window and my balcony was immense. This was category VH and I started there as a guarantee. I didn't get upgraded out of category but got that room. 4045. The ship has all new showers and they were fabulous.  Very large and great shower heads. Spoke to my stewards and gave them a tip,  as I like early cleaning and I like banana as my fruit and want them every day. (TIP) Do you want something extra? A couple of 20's go a very long way. 

The ship is stunning. The Lido pool area is huge and gorgeous . The sliding dome roof is still there and on one end there is a huge screen for movies in the moonlight. Service is accomplished by having a button on each table both outside and inside the Lido restaurant. Quick service sometimes. The Lido is on deck 9 and on deck 10 is the Panorama Bar and the New York Deli and Pizza Kitchen. They also serve breakfast and that will be a big draw, no one found it but I did. Great Rueben sandwich and actually quite good pizza. The sides of the upstairs deck itself is very difficult to get around especially if you use a walker or a wheelchair. There are many lounge chairs there, but not much used as the weather was cool for some. The crossing was very smooth though. Also on deck 9 is the spa and gym. I didn't use the spa and didn't go to the gym enough. But, it is well equipped. As far as the Lido Buffet Restaurant inside goes, very good for me and rather crowded for others. I made friends with one of the waiters there, named "IKA", she was Thai and very friendly and she brought me my oatmeal and juice every morning and a small tip for her was greatly appreciated. I never wanted for service on this sailing. I never ate other meals there, or in the dining room. I only eat at the specialty restaurants because I love great service and the food is better than the main dining room. I am willing to pay the extra and because I'm a 4 Star Mariner, I pay 1/2 off. The specialty restaurants are: Pinnacle Grill, steaks and seafood and my favorite; Rudi's Sal De Mar, brand-new fully on it's own (it used to be a pop up before ). I loved this too. They had the very best Coq Au Vin I ever had. Strange Object D'art glass sculptures that looked like teeth to me. Also available was 'The Tamarind" A Chinese / Indonesian beauty with wonderful spice flavors. Great location on deck 10 at the back of the ship overlooking the pool . For lunch on sea days the Pinnacle is open for the nominal amount of $10.00, so of course I go there as well. Remember the 1/2 off? I also took a 8 bottle wine package with fair to good wines that also got me 1/2 off. It really pays to become a 4/5 star Mariner. Thanks Holland America. 

I was not a fan of the art on board as to me it looked if not cheap, inexpensive, and child like. The show rooms are interesting. The world stage is in the round almost, sightlines are fabulous but there no tables to rest a drink on, but that doesn't mean they won't try to sell you one. I don't and din't get to any shows so I can't give info there. I'm sure others will weigh in soon and you'll hear more there. Then on deck 2 there were a series of lounges that were in constant use due to great scheduling of acts. Unfortunately, for me it was so loud in those open room that they drove out. During the day and some evenings, at a venue that is labeled Lincoln Center Stage, or B.B. Kings at other times, they had a quintet of ladies that were fabulous and talented and fun to talk to and I love classical music. Friends that I spent time with , went to BB Kings and they loved that more. I do like Jazz but the sound level for me was too much. That room was also 2 story and had people standing up watching from there as well as sitting in comfortable chairs. Further up the hallway, was the Billboard lounge that served as 2 venues also. Either the "Rolling Stone or the Duo pianists". Rolling stone too loud, Pianists were playing a well rehearsed act and didn't hear requests very easily. However they were superb musicians. They are a married couple and lovely to talk to. The casino was on Deck 3. I'm sorry, but why are people still allowed to smoke in an enclosed room? There is not enough money to keep me there in that atmosphere. At the machines the customers were puffing away that I had to run out. Plus the room is open at both ends and that's just wrong. Also on deck 3 is the "Dutch Cafe". Didn't use this room too much because it's filled with rich tasty carby foods and a coffee bar as well,  with nice seating, (not enough) that is sometimes very busy. The dining room, that I never ate in, was absolutely beautiful. I was very impressed. I'm certain that people that ate there were thrilled with their surroundings. It is on decks 2 and 3 and the openness is very modern. We'll have to hear about the food from others. 

Activities. As I had been on our thread for a few months I had already arranged a Mahh Jong game on board with some wonderful people and the others that I met there. A big hello to Ellen, (brought her own set!!!), Susan, Sandie, Hoagie, Felicia, Paula, Mary, Molly, Carol and Pam. I could be found there after lunch every day. The problem with our game was it was always at the same time as the trivia games. Ellen was always running off for this activity because she is very good and loves them. I like them too but like Mahj better. I know there other activities but can't remember much about them. I know there were many activities planned from my thread. Our thread was very active which is always nice. 

There were many special interest groups on our thread. Mah Jong players, trivia players, friends of Bill W, knitters, singles, LGBT, veterans, brige players, etc. I say this because I feel one our groups didn't get a fair share and I want to bring it to Peoples attention. I have already filled out my report on their web site. I am a out gay man and in our group of about 60 men and women, we were treated poorly by, in my opinion the cruise director or the hotel manger. Either way, I am annoyed. On the 1st night in the program an LGBT event was being held at the Panorama bar on Deck 10 at 6PM. I was not very thrilled with that time, because on Holland America, the largest crowds are in 1st sitting and that time will cut a large percentage of our group from attending. I went to the office the next day asking for a 7PM start time and was told they would look into it. I also asked if they could give us a nicer space,  other than an open bar in a very public space. That didn't happen for the next 2 nights and since I eat at 6PM myself, I never got there much. I finally sought out Ross, the cruise director who did change the time for me but stopped announcing the change in time. I really don't know what had happened but I don't think he has the sensitivity for our group. He said to me a few days later that the company doesn't like to advertise special interest groups. Not company policy. Hence my opening. This is unacceptable to me, at this time in our lives and we should not have to take it.

There so many people that I met and enjoyed and that is why I like Trans-Atlantics. But I also made many friends with the great crew and want to give acknowledgment to them here. In the Pinnacle Grill, Managers, Denise and Hazel; on the staff, Leslie, Kathleen, Sylvia, Sara and sommelier Elmer. In Rudi's Sal De Mar, Managers Arlin and Agatha, staff Sara and (eek, I have forgotten) I think Irene ? , Tamarind , Mgr. Ponca and staff Ari and sommelier Phoebe. In my room Gedde and Harry. Thanks to all of you

My room had s few weird noises and I needed to have them checked. My window gave off a cricket like noise for most of the cruise and no one could find it. The bars that pull the drapes closed are metal, you  will need to separate them for a good nights sleep. My TV went off and on 1 night and I had to have that fixed and the ship accounting system didn't work much and the bill were always wrong. But,

I would recommend this cruise to anyone. Wonderful staff and beautiful ship and not too large and plenty to do occupy yourself on sea days. Hope to see you on the high seas,

Howard, from Beautiful Ft. Lauderdale

I have written a travelog of my last trip which was on November 25th on the Solstice. Since this was part of my regular eblast, that I send out, there may be some continuity issues. Please forgive an old man. I hope you enjoy and find use of my information.

Howard in beautiful Fort Lauderdale

Hello everyone,

Wee, I have accomplished my number 1 bucket list item for my cruises. I successfully, not terribly, completed my 24 day trip from Ft. Lauderdale to Los Angeles to Sydney to Auckland and San Francisco. Some ups and some downs.

• My flight wasn't until 10:30PM the next day,. Agnes, bless her heart volunteered for the drive to airport, which wasn't too extreme and dropped me off 3 hours in advance and I checked in for my flight. I then proceeded to the lounge to wait it out until called. I was in business class and got the Club for free. Since I always need the better wines, I had to pay extra 3 bucks for the Pinot Noir. Since they only took credit cards, I got out my wallet and lo and behold, no credit card. I called Agnes and asked her to call the restaurant and see if I dropped it there. , but no I had not. I then had my card company cancel the card, and they did and cancelled my card. It was about 5 minutes at the most, seriously, that I was paged by United and they had found my credit card. Too late to do anything at that point the card company told me. Luckily I had my debit card but that was all, they, the card company , said they'd send it to Sydney, the card. After all , I was going to be there for the next 5 days, right? Not when you cross the international date line.
  

2. SYDNEY. Arrival 0630AM 2 days later, but an easy as could be customs and immigration and off to my 5 star hotel, Shangrila. I immediate contacted the concierge about my card situation and he promised he would stay on top. He then led me to the spa and gave me a key and told me to make use of the facilities which included a pool showers and a full fitness center. How nice. I made use of the showers and checked out the pool and wasn't it lucky to have had my bathing suit with me? Of course I didn't. But I did check it out. Quite nice on the 5th floor overlooking the opera house. My room wasn't going to be ready for quite some time, it now being 10AM, it was time for a nice cappuccino, which I got at the water front. Unfortunately, one of the places I had hoped to go to, was in a construction zone and closed till after I left. It was a lovely day and a bit cool, but nice enough to spend a quiet day. The following day I went on an all day tour of Hunter Valley Wine Tour. Including lunch we got to taste 4 wineries and gallons of wine. Got home very late that evening to news that the card was in Sydney. But I wasn't going to get it. They wouldn't deliver it till Tuesday at the earliest. Quelle dommage.

The next day I bordered my ship for it was off to Melbourne , which is pronounced MEL-BAN. I took a lovely lunch and wine tram tour and it was 2 hours of bliss. This is called "The Colonial Wine Tram and Tour" or close to it. I took the lunch tour about 70USD (less than 1/2 as much as the ship). I walked around a lot of the central business district all decorated for the holiday, I took a look see at the Intercontinental Hotel, which is quite stunning. and then back to the ship. From there we went to Hobart Tasmania. I had also been here before in 1982 and when I was here the only high rise building was the casino. I asked about that and she said it's still there you just ca't see it anymore. I then went on another wine and food tasting tour. Are you getting the theme?

3. THE SHIP. This 14 day cruise was on, Celebrity Cruise Lines, "Solstice". She holds 2,800 passengers and approx 1,200 crew, so all in all a city sized ship. I was on a rather closed schedule and even though I was able to meet many lovely people I did dine alone rather often. This however does not bother me one iota. I enjoy going at my speed instead of the tables. When I dined with new friends it was another story but when I was alone, and I ate in only the specialty restaurants because of the great deal they offered, I dined beautifully and at a nice speed. Since the premium beverage package and all gratuities were included, my final bill was for me, very small. I seemed to be on a different timing than most of the passengers. I had dinner most nights around 630 - 7PM. Most others were at 830-9PM. However the ports and the sights were everything I wanted. Perhaps the only down note for me was that I learned more about Lord of the Rings than one needs. I did, as I say meet some wonderful new friends.

4. The Ports of Call. The first 2 were mentioned earlier so I won't rehash. The remainder of the ports were all in the South and North Islands of New Zealand. The South Island is also known as "The Southern Alps", with good reason. We had scheduled 2 sea days getting from Australia and 1 day of cruising the "Sounds", as they call it. They are really fjords. The surrounding mountains are very, very high and quite sheer going straight up from the water. The tops were misted and waterfalls came from everywhere. It was also quite cold. Very beautiful though. The passengers were offered an option of getting off in Milford sound, the first of 3 sounds that day, and going on an overnight tour to Dunedin on the east side of the Island. I took this adventure and it was. The only issue for me was the timing of some events. Like dinner that night at 9PM for which you had to take a steamer for 45 minutes to get there,which was followed by a working dog show followed by a sheep shearing show, which brought everyone back to the hotel around 1230AM and we had a start time that day of 8AM, so a very long day of bus riding. I chose not to participate in that part as I was quite pooped. Instead I went to Queenstown which was walkable, for a nice dinner and a couple of glasses of wine, naturally. The next day was also quite filled with a wine tasting, but at 10AM. They could easily have fixed it for a more proper time for both of the last 2 adventures. But we did see Southern New Zealand and learned it's history in depth. We finished up in Dunedin which is modeled after a Scottish city as this place as this place is settled by the Scots. Those 2 days cost me $875.00, which include everything except the extra dinner and wines I had. Not their fault. Our next port of call was , Akaroa, which is the jumping off place for Christchurch. I chose not to go there as it was still recovering from a major earthquake a couple of years ago. And it was a 2 hour journey each way. I opted for a walk around and a great lunch. We then went on to Wellington where Jim & Jo and I went to the cable car. The shuttle drops you off 1/2 block away. Then you can go round trip or one way, which we did and walked down through the Botanical gardens. This is very steep, be fore warned. Jo absolutely had to shop or she would go into a coma by this point, and there is great shopping in this town. So she disappeared and later we joined up and went back to the ship . a love day for us. Bay of Islands , another wine and foodie tour. not as memorable as the next. Tauranga, The was a taste of the Bay of Plenty, with a wonderful guide and wonderful flavors. Her name is Kathryn. she works for Taste of Plenty. Excellent. And more Lord of the Rings stories. There are other tours to take but, you know me.

5. Auckland. I stayed at the 5 Star Hilton and since I knew I was only coming through here once, I popped for the King Deluxe Premium Water View. I had a big full corner room with a large balcony over looking the entire bay and all the islands one could see. Spectacular. The Hilton is exactly where the shipped was docked and so I picked up my bags and walked around the corner and voila' there it was. I was checked in and on the ferry in 45 minutes. Since New Zealand has become a great wine producer and Waiheke Island is only a 45 minute ferry boat ride away, I went to try to book a "Wine Tasting of Waiheke Island" tour. All sold out for the next 18 days. Christmas holiday time of course. But the ticket agent said I could do this all on my own with their HOHO and that's what I did. I did only 2 wineries and lunch . The bus drops you off near the winery but not at the door. Mostly up hill. Next time or for you, I would hire a taxi and let them take you everywhere. It couldn't have been too much more than the wine tour as that was $200.00 NZD $140.00 USD. Some super delicious wines out there. T. For those that are interested, the HOHO bus on the island takes all of 1 1/2 hours to hit all the main sights and if you want the last ferry back to Auckland, it doesn't leave to 945PM. When I returned, I went to my room and had a 45 minute shower. Then I went 2 1/2 blocks away to the restaurant district, on a water front marina. Oh, BTW around the corner from the Hilton is a whole bunch of restaurants. Including a faboo BBQ place. We went to the marina where the concierge at my hotel told me about a fabulous place called, Soul, a wonderful fish restaurant that squeezed us in and a great time was had by all. I was with my new friends the Donavans. I think by the time they get this will be in Spain. The remainder of my time was sightseeing and eating and drinking and enjoying, but ready to get home.

6. San Francisco. I lived in San Francisco in 82, for 2 years and the only thing one can say now is, HOLEY MOLEY ANDY! What happened to my city by the bay. Of course it was holiday time and I was staying only 1/2 block from Union Square (Times Square in NY). My hotel which was a deal because winter isn't the best time to see ESS EFF, did not have a room for me after my 12 hour flight, but for a 25.00 upgrade, he could give me a room right away. The room was fantastic and huge. great shower and I was very pleased. I went out shopping and eating and drinking and because it was on the cold side, went back to the hotel for some R&R. I then discovered why this room was available . It is directly on Powell street which is home to the cable car trolly, which goes until 1AM and starts up again at 430AM. Plus my floor was a dogs allowed floor and I had a Bernese Mountain Dog who when his owner left, barked with a rather gruff voice. I then fell asleep and the next day I changed rooms for one in the back. The following day I went to see my friends Shirley and Margaret for lunch on the Fishermans wharf area at a famous place called Alioto's. Great view of the water and lovely food and tintalating conversation. It was also nice to hear they still read my blog religiously. Later that day I was accused of groping a late 30's asian woman and she slapped my arm. I tried to explain and she accused me of being a dirty old man. I couldn't wait to go home.

Howard.

Hello "Tasmanians". I hope that's what they call the people that live there. And not the animals. I was in Hobart almost 40 years ago and I bet it has changed a bit. I will be stopping on a cruise in late November and heard about a "Bruny Island Gourmet Tour". Does anyone have info on this and is it worth it? Thanks.

Howard in Beautiful Ft. Lauderdale

Good Morning to all my fellow travelers on this cruise. I sure hope there's many more on board than just the 4 of us. Of course, I know there will be, but this is the first thread on this sailing. We are 2 singles and 1 couple traveling together on this beautiful voyage. Sign on and say hello.

Howard in beautiful Ft. Lauderdale.

If you have questions regarding FTL, please ask away.

Hello my darling brothers and sisters. Well, where is everyone, already? I mean, it is less than a year away!!! Time to wake up everybody. I hope my fellow Dorothy's will be in attendance. I really do!

Howard in beautiful and sunny, yet dark now, Ft. Lauderdale

Hello all,

Due to the fact that my travel agent is not playing fair with the pricing of this trip. I have had to cancel with them and when the dust settles and I have received my refund from them, I will try to rebook this trip. I may not be able to, but then I'll be on another crossing. I have friends on this trip though and will want to be on board.

Howard in Beautiful Ft. Lauderdale

Hi Mark, you're going to love Amsterdam, and for the best tulip watching you'll need to go to Kuikenhoff (sp?) Gardens. They're a bit outside of town but def worth visiting. There's also the flower auction market in town that is also worth a visit. I've heard good things about Banks Mansion. FYI, definitely make red as early as possible for Anne Frank's tour.

Howard in NYC for the thanksgiving holiday.

Welcome Greg and Emanuel, it will be a lovely crossing. Any question you need answered about our starting point of Fort Lauderdale, ask away. I've also been to this area many times, with the exception of "Brugges". A bucket list item. Plus this will be first cruise with boyfriend (maybe more by then).

Howard & Michael in dark but lovely Ft. Laudedale

Hello ladies and gentlemen, Calling all my brothers and sister, let's have some fun and make a wonderful cruise an even better time.

Howard and Michael in beautiful Fort Lauderdale

Yes.

The no-visa exemption for cruise passengers is only for those arriving & leaving (within 72 hours) by ship.

You need a visa to fly in or out.

 

JB :)

Hello, I just found out that we might need Turkish Visa's . We are cruising out of Athens and have 2 stops for the day . One in Kusadasi and the other in Mamaris. We leave the same day we arrive. Does that qualify us for a no-visa-exception? Many thanks for your help.

Howard in Sunny and warm, Ft. lauderdale

"Non-working toilet" can mean anything from a delayed flush to no flush to over-flowing. For a few minutes, hours, days. Doesn't pay to get into a dither until there are more details.

 

Acceptable for me (after many ships and many varying similar experiences) delay flush, no flush for a few hours, over-flowing once or even twice if it is a long cruise.

 

NO toilet flush at all for a whole day would obviously a NON-WORKING TOILET. But there is a lot of latitude in-between that we simply have gotten used to when on board any ship.

 

For me, the term "non-working toilet" needs qualification since it means all things to all people.

The night before I had put in 3 phone calls to Guest relations, I went to the bathroom at about 3 AM, and as I am an old man, I sit down as not to fall. I sat down onto a full toilet of water and immediately caused overflow. I was immediate soaked. So, please be kind enough to tell me if that qualifies it for you.

I do not care who the HD is, when I ask to see him because the Guest Relations Manager says to me she can't help me and that's she is the last link in this chain, I sort of do a boil and I believe I deserve to able to ask to see HD whoever he is. Call me crazy, but I am used to better service whether I'm on Carnival or Silverseas.

I would like to also point out that with 2,000 passengers, some will have a great time and some will not. I was most interested in the couple that was on the same cruise, not those of you that weren't there. I met many wonderful people on the trip, but was not prepared for poor service in any department. Just me, I don't write for other people.

When I complained about the way I was being treated by the "Loyalists", a number of years ago I was banned for 2 weeks. Can't understand how so many of have not been banned. Just saying. Play nice children.

Howard in magnificent Fort Lauderdale.

Good morning everyone. I always find it amazing that, the people that respond to anyone here, whether me or anyone else for that matter, that defend everyone and everything in his/hers post that he/she found wanting. Not a single responder was on this cruise. Not one! Just to simplify things for you all, I have 158 days on Holland, not my first time. I have over 1,000 points on Celebrity, Platinum on Princess, Gold Star on Seabourn, so I think I can objectively give a review of a ship in need. The Oosterdam was just such a ship.

When I told the executive chef that Tuna, Egg, and Chicken salad would be a good addition to the "Salad Bar", and he suggested that I do his job and make it myself, well, I don't believe that his position should be given any credit or for that matter even be allowed to keep his job. Yes, it was on pre-made sandwiches. Does anyone realize how many of them I would have had to scrape the salad part out of? 6. Yes 6 sandwiches would have been necessary to make a single scoop of any of the above salads. Does anyone feel that is coast affective? Really?

Do you really think I didn't visit the "Guest Relations Department" first? I was told by manager, "Annie", that they didn't know there were problems happening. Really? And I am not allowed to ask for the next link in the chain? "Annie" told me that she was the one that would be handling my problems and I'm just to supposed to smile and go on my merry way. I think not!

It would have made anyone's argument, if they had been aboard my cruise. Not the same old, same old. I was 4 stars once and demoted when they changed their star system, and because of that I switched to Celebrity, I gave Holland another try because I took 2 of them last year and liked them again, but this cruise was a fiasco for me. Just me. It's back to Celebrity for me now.

Thanks for taking my side so nicely and making me feel wanted on these boards.

Howard in beautiful Fort Lauderdale

Good Morning All,

I just returned from my Trans-Atlantic cruise on the extremely poor lady, "Oosterdam" Yes she was going into Dry-Dock, but hardly an excuse for everything that went wrong.

But, first I must give congratulations on all of the people that made this cruise for me. The room stewards, fabulous. I asked for an early cleaning and got it in spades. Thanks gentlemen. The bar staff, especially at Ocean bar and Observation lounge, wonderful. At least I remember their names, Bong and Santos. The casino, even thought they were unable to find other Craps players, they allowed me to win enough to pay for my entire bill. Thank you, ultra. Great Cruise Director, "Shane", AKA, Shawn! The super wonderful passengers that I now call friends. At least we were there to commiserate with each other. Then there were the ones that didn't. Special mention to James in the Piano bar. Fantastic man. Wonderful in getting everyone to sing along. The "Fly Boys" an amazing act of Acappella with music and phenominal arrangements. They'll go far.

Special thanks for the Check-in people that bent over backwards to help me find my lost phone. Above and beyond, they were outstanding. Yes, I got my phone back.

The interesting thing is that some crew were terrific and then some were completely incompetent. The Guest Relations Manager, shouldn't be . The Hotel Manager, a coward for not letting me meet him with my complaints about his departments. The Executive Chef should be fired, for suggesting to me that I could make my own chicken salad with the available ingredients, The non-existant PA system. The non-working internet, with a completely unecessary IT guy who obviously wasn't, the constant state of repairs while everyone was on their vacations, My over-flowing toilet on 4 occasions. The non-working water in my cabin, The closing of some areas of the ship, The Observation Deck for one instance, in order to get the retro fit started, (not on my vacation, thank you very much), If you were going to give away the cabins for free, then maybe it would have been OK. The absolutely dreadful Tour Department and lack of info their wizard, "Tom", gave out.

OK, in depth. When I first noticed that the internet was beyond slow, I spoke to the Guest Relations people and they credited me 30 minutes extra and their apologies. Why so quick to give back? Probably because they already knew there were issues. If it wasn't for a fellow passenger named "Shane", who helped countless people with their issues, as opposed to the fellow that was working in the Explorations Lounge, who knew nothing but the basics, (his own words). I have never used a full 250 minute package before this cruise and I had to buy 2 of them. yikes!

My cabins toilet over flowed 4 times and each time a plumber came, he asked if this was the first call to my cabin. NO, I told him. Then I guess for good measure, he turned off the water to the sink and bath. It took them 8 hours to get it turned on. It also took 4 phone calls to Guest Relations.

The Executive Chef, when I asked him why there wasn't any, Chicken Salad, Egg Salad or Tuna Salad, he told me, and I quote, "It cheapen the display of the Salad Bar. Really? If I wanted to make my own, the ingredients were there. Really? I should make my own? OH, BTW, they had tuna and egg salad at the explorations café, hmm, there they weren't looking cheap, I guess. The dreadful service in the upscale, "Cannaletto", where they had to give me a free meal because they took too many reservations, Really? My problem? I don't think so. 45 minutes between courses? Give me a break. The dining room food was below par. Big changes needed there.

The PA system needs to be replaced. No one could understand anybody that spoke into it. Including the Captain, who seemed very nice, but I couldn't hear.

I don't know about all the other cruisers on this site, but I for one did not like that my vacation was infused with the constant repairs going on prior to drydock. Ceilings were opened and G-D knows that was inside them. The cables lying everywhere, that we all had to step over. The pulling out of the entire Observation deck in preparations for all the new cabins they were installing.And plenty more on that score.

The tour department should be fired in it's entirety. Not telling your passengers that there is a "FREE SHUTTLE" in Funchal to the City Center was despicable. The Guest Relations Manager "Anny", told me they didn't know that. Really? Fire the lot of them.

The Hotel Manager for not meeting me and sending the "Company" girl Anny, instead. COWARD!

It will be a very long time before I set foot on Holland America again. So that's why I tell you that Buyers should be wary of this line. Going to the Mariners luncheon, and seeing all the 4 and 5 star sailors, I can't imagine why, since they don't take care of their frequent passengers, like, Celebrity does. I guess I'll go back to them in the future.

Howard in beautiful and happy to be home , Fort Lauderdale.

Due to the fact that no one signed on to this cruise, I have cancelled and jumped onto the Oosterdam for March 21st.

Howard in Beautiful fort Lauderdale.

Thanks very much for your responses, but neither of the 2 listed possibilities allows the traveler the option of booking their own air. Not nearly as good as Choice Air. Surprisingly so, given the size of Carnival Corp.

Howard in beautiful and yet raining Ft. Lauderdale.

Hi, I'm sure this has probably been covered before, but, perhaps someone can help an old man out and answer please.

Does Holland America have anything similar to RCL's "Choice Air"?

Howard in beautiful Ft. Lauderdale

Good morning to all. Letting everyone know we now have a thread for this wonderful ship on the Gay Board, formerly known as, "The Dorothy's". I'm very happy that we are now more up to date. I think everyone can identify with LGBTA. Right? I think yes.

Hopefully we'll have a big group as we usually do on Holland America.

Howard in beautiful Fort Lauderdale

I'm coming, I'm coming, on the cruise that is!;). I just booked today, thanks in part to the lowering of the fares and making it more affordable for me. As I travel as a single usually, I need them to be kind to their "Elite's". I know, who is this Queen? I am Howard from sunny Fort Lauderdale and this trip, my 20th transatlantic on Celebrity, I'm hoping to have a room mate, don't ask me why. He suggested it and I said yes, that's why.

Has anyone decided to stay in Civitavecchia before the cruise? How about a transfer from Leonardo Airport?

Hope there's more of us. There's certainly a huge group on the other board.

Howard:)