Mary229

I don’t get this. How hard is it to find a glacier in Alaska? That is like guaranteeing snow and ice in Greenland

I can’t speak with a lot of certainty but from all I have read and experienced I would stick to deck 1 and deck 10 interior cabins. There are a few others scattered about which may be spacious. I don’t like deck 4 on HAL ships. They tend to be above public and potentially noisy venues.

No, I have never had my luggage lost on a cruise ship. I always use a marker to embolden the room number.

Have a safe journey home and thanks again.

Additionally there have been long threads about when to cancel or whether to cancel if there is insurance. You may want to start a new thread and ask if it is better for the person to just not show up or should they cancel.

It is hit or miss with umbrellas. I bring my own but only for sun protection in the tropics. I use a rainslicker or poncho for rain.

It is much improved. The now have port to table on some sailings where chef will shop with local fishermen and serve those fish soon after. The salmon dishes have become quite creative and delicious

I did a family cruise on Princess with 40 people of all ages. It was just noisier and more crowded for us. However it does have more active shore excursions, or at least did but one can always do excursions with private tour operators which abound in Alaska. I think your most important choice will be itinerary. If you have lots of new cruisers and children I would go with the cruise which has the fewest sea days and longest port visits.

The FTC has written an article on Native Alaskan Art purchasing. It may help you https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/buying-alaska-native-art#identifying

IMHO. They really want us to use a TA, they don’t want to have to deal with retail. I simply wish it was easier to buy the add ons like shore excursions, dinners and so on

It is my go to at lunch. Hint: if available add some goodies from both the taco bar and the Asian stir fry station. I spend as long assembling as I do eating 😉

It depends on where you are going. My first thought was she sounds like she would enjoy river cruising but that would depend on where you are going

Of course, it is all opinion. I traveled for a living and our failsafe was “there is always Walmart”and yes twice we forgot the luggage so three weeks and the road with a Walmart wardrobe (unfortunately was not tax deductible except for the donation to the goodwill)

I have gotten that message for excursions I never took😁

My first question is where do I want to go and who is really great in that area? Then I narrow it down from those ships

I think many overestimate how much time people put into researching their travel plans. Just this week I helped someone who has sailed the Med, the Caribbean, the Baltics and Hawaii. They called me since they are sailing HAL. I was stunned how little they knew and they had been quite happy on all of their other cruises. The first thing they didn’t know was they could pick their room! Their room was above the galley so I called their agent, a mutual friend, and had her change them to a better location at no cost. That was the start of their lack of information and it went on from there. Now they will have a great experience but they would have had a really good experience without knowing. I have people who I know are status sailors, platinum, 5 star and so on and they usually corner me when they see me and ask me for tips. My tips are nothing that i didn’t learn on cruise critic, nothing special at all

The best case for a passport is if for some unfortunate reason you do not reenter the US on that ship. Perhaps you are hospitalized, maybe you get in drunken brawl and are thrown off😂, whatever happens be sure to have documentation that will get you home by any transportation mode including driving, bussing or flying.

Besides my passport, phone and a few diverse credit cards I carry a fully charged battery pack for said phone. My phone has all of the info I need. I can pretty much go anywhere with those items. I only worry about the bad outcomes, I worry now, figure out a protocol and go have fun

Warning😁 I carry my first night/first day necessities in my carry on in case my luggage goes missing. The canister of Metamucil created a stir. I will leave it in the checked bags from now on and find a drug store if my luggage goes missing.

I use TMobile and usually do have coverage in the towns.

They have changed oils. I use olive oil every day on my salad and it is definitely a large step down as is the bleu cheese. Maybe the butters is a lower grade also

I had quit the escargot about 5 cruises back as it was not good but actually had very good escargot at DH’s insistence on the Koningsdam. Lots of inconsistency on HAL since the startup. I will be sticking with 21+ day voyages where the quality seems to be more consistent

As to towel animals it may be just luck of the draw as to cabin steward. Just like the origami animals in the MdR. There is no requirement for them but if one of the guys gets good at it he will share his talent. (Reminder to self get origami papers as gift for next cruise)

We have highly mineralized water at home and even though we have an extremely healthy diet on ship, even healthier than at home I have issues. As a friend who is a food industry chemist explained : Ship water is devoid of minerals and is not all that hydrating as it has been stripped of all mineralization. First thing upon rising is a cocktail of powdered vitamin/electrolytes and Metamucil. Every morning.

What’s the difference? I think it is the same company, isn’t it? What if they say they used a special shampoo in your hair ? I have always used the salon but the last time there was a lot of pressure to buy, buy, buy.