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0106, I'm with you on minimizing our footprint on the world and support your post #7. But if there is already a paper charge slip but you will not sign...how does this stop the charge slip from being printed? It won't be signed and the bar tenders deal with it but it does not eliminate the paper printed. Hopefully HAL will figure this out. Cherie

LAFFNVEGAS - when will we next be invited to your dinner table? Such a fun thing to look forward to. Cherie

We're like you and were able to bring some nice wine on in Chile for the cabin. I think the question has been asked if you can substitute so many drinks a day for a bottle of wine. Can't remember what the answer was, I'm not 35 any longer. Have a great cruise. Cherie

I don't remember. All I remember are posts about how horrible it is so we just put it in the closet. It might have been fine for adding to OJ in the morning for a mimosa. But, in a Neptune Suite, the mimosas are complimentary. Sorry I cannot help you more. I think on our next cruise we will request a white, rose(not sure if this is an option), or red. Cherie

I have read that we could request this but with the HIA we just left our sparkling wine in the closet when we left. Next time we'll do that. Cherie

0106 - I respect both of your reasons for not signing. I hardly ever carry a purse, if it doesn't fit in a pocket I don't have it. And a good solution for not using a common pen is putting a plastic glove in your pocket. This comes in handy in many situations on a cruise ship. The HAL staff, including the bar staff, are always happy to accommodate passengers' preferences. It is amazing how wonderful they are. Cherie

We did a drift snorkel on Taha'a and loved it. Are you close to the coral? Yes. Should you just float and enjoy the ride, yes. I think a very large person may have to be careful. Just our experience. Cherie

It wasn't a big deal to us in January. Sometimes we signed and sometimes we did not. It just wasn't a big deal. And as previously posted this inconsistency has been talked about so we were prepared. If I didn't want to sign with a "common" pen I would have had one in my pocket. Inconsistency was just part of the cruise for us. Cherie

But...if your goal is to be invited into the President's Club your free or discounted cruises apparently do not qualify. They may give star status but not President's Club status. Cherie

I understand that, but if it's a goal to achieve why worry about why or how anyone else has it? Just enjoy it. If it's a casino cruise and HAL is benefiting somehow from this and makes your cruise price more reasonable, who cares. Let them lose money in the casino and benefit everyone else. As has been said on this thread numerous times... casino freebees are not really free for most. As has also been said, why would you know how much someone pays for their cabin? Cherie. p.s. I agree that free laundry is HUGE.

I just read this interesting thread. There was also a recent thread about passengers who were not invited to join the President's Club because their days were not fully paid HAL days. Apparently casino and other discount fares did not qualify. I also thought the casinos were another company, like the spa and art store, and all money spent there does not go to HAL. VMax1700 There are also slot tournaments that are organized by passengers and are not $25,000. Yikes, that's serious $. mcrcruiser I have two coffee mugs from the Sands Hotel that my parents brought home when I was a child. Las Vegas was really a glamorous place. I don't really care what someone pays for their cabin and I think we overpay because we want specific cabins. But we also get the same benefits of those with 5 star status without 5 star status. Who cares who is a 2, 3,4, or 5 star? JMO. Cherie

Thank you 0106. Love your great photos and personal report. I think we all would expect fresh fish to be resting on ice. I had scallops one night in the Pinnacle so they may offer other fish, but others may be considered shell fish. I really should have tried more fresh fish options. Cherie

RuthC, If you do not get a pass for the entire cruise can just one in the cabin purchase a day pass? I understand if you do not know the answer. Thank you, Cherie

Is this case if they do not cancel, just don't show. I assume no notice given to HAL prior to the cruise. I have no idea. Cherie

The only time I noticed a long line for the MDR was on port days where everyone came back from a fun day, changed for dinner, and showed up for later dining. Early fixed diners who had missed their dining time were now in this line. If you are on a port intensive cruise I think that early dining may become a problem. We never had a problem with anytime dining getting a nice table, but we did not go to the dining room before 7:15. Doesn't anytime dining mean that you do not want to commit to a certain time for the entire cruise? But some want to confirm dining reservations for whenever they choose for the entire cruise? I never thought of choosing Anytime dining and asking the dining room to give me a table for my entire cruise for the time I want. Awesome. Cherie