Hlitner

We were recently (May) on the HAL Westerdam when we encountered 5 consecutive days of seas up to 25 feet and winds in the 60MPH range, I would emphasize that this went on for nearly a week as we crossed the Northern Pacific from Japan to Alaska. The main preparation onboard was to drain the pools. We heard tonight that the Sunshine likely had to deal with swells of up to 17 feet! If true, those kind of seas are not normally a big deal for a vessel the size of the Sunshine. On the Westerdam, the Captain warned us of the upcoming bad weather and life went on. Perhaps the difference was that on the HAL cruise, we had mostly older folks who had decades of cruise experience. Some passengers stayed in their cabins (likely ill) while many others (including me) were out and about and just had to be careful when walking around the ship. But again, there was nothing sensational...we all viewed it as a normal cruise in some rough seas. The question I have about the Sunshine is why they had any flooding on the crew decks. They obviously had plenty of notice with more than enough time to "batten down the hatches." Unless there was some kind of breach of a hatch or a broken window, there is no reason why 17 foot (or even 30 foot) seas should cause flooding. It will be interesting to hear the real facts. Hank

I assume we are talking about the port of Naples, and from there you do have a few good options. Besides the usual cruise line excursion, you can book a private tour, take the train (on your own), use a local bus, hire a taxi, or even rent a car. The train (Circumvesuviania Line) or a bus are your best options. The train station for Pompeii is called Pompeii Scavi, and its a short walk to the main entrance. If you go on your own you can simply do it yourself, rent audio guides, or join an English speaking tour (with guide) that are organized at the entrance. As to how much time, it will be dependent on your own taste, the weather, and your schedule. We think 2 hours (inside the ruins) would be the minimum and the maximum will be somewhat dependent on your on taste and endurance :). The reason I say this is that you are talking about the summer, and Pompeii can be very hot (with little shelter in the ruins). Walking a few miles on a very hot day is not most folks idea of fun. If you really want to be "ruined" you could even combine it with a visit to Herculanium (which has a train station on the same line that runs between Pompeii and Naples). Assuming the weather is not overly hot, we would suggest most visitors will find 3 hours a good compromise. We once did both ruins on the same day, and to be very honest, were totally worn out. The two sites are quite different although both suffered the same fate from a single eruption. Hank

You are correct, that using US Dollars in most Asian ports is not very acceptable. As to how much local currency you need, that is a very personal matter since each person's spending habit vary in some major ways. We just returned from Asia (Japan, Taiwan and Korea) and have previously traveled in Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, and quite a few other Asian countries. In all cases, we simply depended on ATMs to get cash and always carried some US Dollars as a backup (in most countries it is possible to exchange currency...although you may not get the best rates). In over 50 years of extensive travel, we have never pre-ordered or purchased foreign currency at home. Hank

On the Westerdam, the excellent Lincoln Center group (who played to mostly full rooms) left the ship on April 8 (the end of their contract). From that moment, until we left the ship in early May, the Lincoln Center Stage remained completely dark. There was no indication (onboard) if and when there would ever be some kind of replacement. Hank

Truth is I would have no desire to have $1000 in cash. It is more useful to me on a credit card. Tis the new world and parts of it have become cashless.

Two things about that. When they owe you over $1000 they are not paying cash. and #2. If one wants to spend over an hour (typical on that last evening) waiting at Guest Services than that is fine. We actually used our onboard account on debarkation day since we were in no rush to get off the ship (in Seattle)l We stayed aboard to after 9:30, drank Bloody Marys and Mimosas, and relaxed as others waited in various queues to get off the ship. I also do not know how they can do cash since they must inventory the cabin mini fridge (we had ours emptied at the beginning of the cruise so we could not be charged for things we did not use). We have this silly habit of not wanting to spend our cruise time standing in line at Guest Relations. On our cruise we met one very nice elderly lady (President's Club) who spent many hours at Guest Relations because of various complaints. She became so frustrated she cancelling her two future HAL bookings....a full World Cruise and a full Grand South America cruise. We learned this from her at the Ocean Bar where she was drinking away her misery (of waiting at Guest Relations where she got no satisfaction). A very nice lady who told us all her future cruises would be on Oceania. Hank

"Group Rates" are somewhat overrated these days. Many of the various cruise/travel agencies now belong to various travel "consortiums" which are networks of agencies/agents. Our favorite two cruise agencies are part of the largest consortium (over 600 agencies) which generates more than $5 Billion in annual bookings (this is an old number and should be a lot higher these days). In fact, we have an upcoming cruise on a luxury line where we are not only getting a generous OBC from our cruise agency, but also an additional OBC from the large consortium (this is somewhat unusual). Consortiums give, even their smaller members, the power of volume (and the clout that comes from being part of a large powerful travel organization). Some of these Consortiums have been around for over 50 years, so it is nothing new. By the way, the entire issue of On Board Credits (OBCs) has become more complicated because OBCs can either be "refundable" or "non-refundable." Non-refundable must be used on the cruise and any left over dollars are lost at the end of the cruise. HALs app (and statements from Guest Relations) do show the amount of non-refundable and refundable and the system is designed to use the non-refundable first. All this varies from cruise line to cruise line. HAL currently refunds refundable OBCs to the customer's credit card (the one used for the cruise). Princess, on the other hand. usually mails a check a few weeks after a cruise ends. MSC generally makes all their OBC non-refundable, but it can generally be used in the casino (so one can work with the system to get non-refundable refunded :). I mention some of variations to point out another advantage of a good agency/agent...in that they work with nearly all cruise lines and generally know the ins-outs of each line. Consider that our next 3 booked cruises (Explora Journeys, Princess and Oceania) are all handled by a single cruise agency. It makes my cruise life simple, since a single e-mail or phone call is all it takes to deal with multiple lines. And a good agent can also advise their clients on many different cruise (ocean and river) and let them know of any complaints or praise they have heard from their clients on the various lines. Hank

We assume you are talking about April 2024! As one who routinely goes to Europe (from the USA) there are not any special documents you need if you have a US Passport. However, the Schengen counties (think...EU) is in the process of adopting what they call ETIAS, which is a new authorization process that will apply to US Passport holders (and many others) who plan to travel to the EU. They keep pushing back the implementation date (the latest info is sometime in 2024). Once implemented this should be a simple online form (and small fee) that must be completed (and approved) prior to traveling to most of Europe. Clearing EU (Schengen) immigration is really no big deal on a TA cruise. It will normally be done at your first EU port and may not even involve any kind of face to face. Hard to know what will happen in 2024, but you would likely need to clear Passport Control at your first EU Port, or this might be handled in the background by your ship (where you turn-in your Passport and it is handled by the ship's Pursers Office. But for you, the ETIAS is the only pre-cruise issue...if it is adopted. Currently, without the ETIAS requirement, there is nothing you need to do other than have a valid Passport (it should be valid for at least 90 days after your scheduled departure date from the Schengen area). Speaking of that 90 day validity rule, most experienced travelers like to have at least 6 months of validity on their Passport (from the time they plan to return home). Hank

Egads no! We truly enjoy being at the IC, the fact that the Atrium area has real life, and also have fun people watching and meeting folks. Even with access to the Concierge Lounge, it is unlikely we would go in the morning. Just not our style. DW and I have not been big fans of larger suites as we spend relatively little waking time in our cabin. On Princess, a regular mini-suite (or even a Deluxe Balcony) more than serves our needs. Nothing wrong with the big suites (or perks) but just not our thing. Hank

As others have said, post this on the Princess Board. That being said, we have done a little cruising on Princess (i.e. 36 cruises) and can tell you that you may or may not be able to get soda onboard at intervening ports. In our experience, the security folks will sometimes ignore things like cans of soda, and other times will seize the items (in theory they will be returned when you disembark the cruise. The dilemma is that you will not know, for sure, until you try to bring the items aboard. We agree with the others, that this has nothing to do with American ports or Americans. It is simply the cruise line dealing with their own policy. Hank

For me, the interesting fact about that 4 day cruise is that we never took another cruise that was less than 7 days. In fact, these days we consider 14 days to be our minimum and prefer cruises of 30-60 days. But that 4 day NCL cruise did create a true cruise lover :).

Sometimes. I price it out on the internet. Sometimes, ordering direct from Lavazza is the best deal and other times you might find a better deal from one of the online coffee companies. The bags are vacuum packed (I only buy whole beans). Since I have a "superautomatic" expresso machine (this type of machine grinds the beans as well as making the beverage) I need to be careful to only use beans that are not overly oily on the exterior. Brands like Starbucks Expresso beans are big trouble for superautomatics since they leave an oily deposit which eventually jams the machine. The Italian brands, such as Lavazza and Illy, do not have that problem since they do not overroast their beans. When buying in bulk it is usually possible to get the price under $10/pound. Hank

We have been cruising since 1977, and for most of our cruises (far more than 100), the ships have been full or near full. The period right after the COVID shutdown, when many of us were on pretty empty ships (we were on the Enchanted with only 1800) were just a blip in the cruise continuum. These days things are getting close to normal, which means if you want less crowded ships you should consider spending the bigger bucks and booking a luxury cruise line (i.e. Regent, Seabourn, Silverseas, etc). Hank

The morning crowd scene varies and it also depends on the time you are at the IC. Even with more folks having the Plus package, many will sleep late, order room service, or go to the Lido/MDR for breakfast. We are "IC Rats" and that is where I "live" in the morning (while DW sleeps-in). I plant myself at one of the available tables (in the Atrium) and simply use the App to order my capucinno. For pastries or egg sandwiches I generally walk over to the counter (there is not usually much of a line to get those treats). As one who cruises many different lines (including some luxury lines) I would simply point out that Princess is a "mass market line" who puts a lot of folks on their ships. When you have over 3000 souls and a single IC, you are going to have some waiting time. The alternative is to cruise on a line like Seabourn, where you seldom have any queues. On the other hand, to go on ships without queues means paying a lot more money per passenger day. When we are on a Seabourn ship and go to Seabourn Square for our morning capuccino, we seldom need to say a word :). The barista sees me coming and will usually start preparing my drink before I say a word. It is one of those situations where you get what you pay for. Hank

Started with NCL's Sunward II in 1977. We did a 4 day Bahamas cruise (the ship alternated between 3 and 4 day itineraries.

We have been pretty lucky with TAs. About 30 years ago we stumbled on a Florida agency and a fantastic TA. About 12 years ago the TA retired (to go cruising) and we started using a new, young TA with the same agency.. Now, she is one of their top performers and has grown into a terrific agent who has been working on various Agent professional certifications. That particular agency is family owned and what most would consider a high volume agency part of a major travel consortium (which gives them more clout). We also use two other agencies since there are times when a different agency might have better deals on certain cruise lines. I have stressed, online, that our "loyalty" to an agency and agent is only as good as the last booking. We always shop around and take our business elsewhere when it is in our best interest. Whenever we book a cruise, we compare deals with at least 3 different agencies and than compare it to what we get by booking direct with the cruise line. In far more than 100 cruises we have NEVER found a time when it made sense to book direct with any cruise line. Hank

We do not take 7 night cruises, but since OBCs are generally based on a percentage of the cruise fare you are not going to get that on a short cruise. A basic rule of thumb would be to expect 7-10% of the cruise fare in OBCs. Somebody recently posted they routinely get 10% in store credits from a big box store...which I guess is in lieu of an OBC. We generally get the most generous OBCs with HAL and Princess bookings....and somewhat less with lines like Seabourn. If your TAs are not giving you a reasonable amount of OBCs that might be a good hint to look for a different TA :). Hank

There are periodic trains (all day) between Florence and Livorno.; You can find the schedule on several web sites although the most reliable would be to use the Trenitalia site. The biggest hassle is getting a taxi from the Livorno train station back to the port since there are a limited number of taxis at the station. We always suggest that folks be among the first off the train, head directly (and quickly) to the front entrance/exit of the station. It is also wise to allow plenty of extra time (in case you must wait for a taxi) so do not take the last possible train back to Livorno. Florence is a lovely city with more than its share of museums, shopping, good food, etc. Keep in mind that you can pre-purchase times entry tickets to some of the most popular museums. Entrance line can be long (during the high season) so many consider this a good idea. When DW and I stay in Florence we love to take long walks along the Arno River. Florence has some excellent restaurants and folks can find places in all price ranges. One of our own favorites is called Osteria Della Tre Pancha (I think they recently opened a 2nd location) which specializes in everything "truffles." But we only suggest that restaurant for true truffle lovers. If you do decide to stay overnight, we strongly recommend you spend some fun time (while at home) researching Florence restaurants and book your choice prior to the trip. Hank

Recently returned from a HAL voyage and a few days later, HAL put over $1300 credit onto our credit card. Why? Because we used a decent cruise agency that gave us so much On Board Credit (refundable) that we could not use it all on a 42 day cruise. Not only did that OBC cover all of our on board account, but the $1300+ that was remaining came back to us. If we had booked directly with HAL, we would not have had that money. I have no idea what "keeping control" means, but I do know the meaning of cash. Hank

With over 50 years of international experience we always have a "Plan B," especially if flying-in the day of a cruise. The good news is that if your flight is late, and you miss the cruise, you should be able to get to Marseille to play catch-up. I have no clue as to NCL's transfer arrangements, but if you cannot connect with your shuttle folks it is easy to grab a taxi from BCN to the port. Hank

Since your ship is doing an overnight, you might want to consider spending the night in Florence :). This will give you more time that first day, and you can enjoy a nice dinner in town, Hank

There is a reason you get good deals that time of year. There will still be some shops and restaurants open. I would not be too concerned with the cable car in Santorini, unless there are a few large ships in port. With one ship, the tender process does a fair job in controlling the number of folks that can get to shore and the cable car can move about 600 an hour (one way). As to Kusadasi, you can still visit the usual historical sites and there will plenty of local places open in town. Mykonos? That time of the year you will still find places open in town. But no reason to head out to any of the beaches. Hank

Neither is a Scottish accent 🙂

It now seems likely that we will book a 35 day Vista cruise. Not sure "love" is the appropriate word, but the only line we have recently cruised that rises close to that level is Seabourn. But, we are looking at a TA cruise and Seabourn only has an itinerary similar to what we did less than 2 years ago. TheeVista itinerary is a real winner. For us it will be two new cruise lines in 6 months (Explora Journeys and O) which should be a lot of fun. We truly appreciate the constructive advice posted here and even have a mild tolerance for the cheerleaders :). Hank

All you say is true and is somewhat similar to consolidator airfares. That being said, it is all legitimate, done with the airlines full cooperation, and generates some amazing deals (especially with international business class). But nobody is holding a gun to anyone' s head and folks are free to do their own thing. If you cannot find what you want using the inventory available through cruise/air you can simply book through other means. As an example, on our recent flight from Washington DC to Tokyo (for a cruise) we paid about $2100 for Business Class (all Lay Flat Seats) on British Air connecting to a JAL flight. Those same flights, booked through normal means, would have cost slightly more than $10,000 (we checked). I was able to find less desirable deals, directly with some other airlines, for about $3600. Since we needed two tickets, using the cruise/air option meant we saved $3000 over the best available airfare (with less desirable airlines) or nearly $16,000 (over booking direct with BA) by using the cruise air option instead of booking direct with BA/JAL. Looking today (using Orbitz) we could buy pretty decent one-way tickets for about $6000 or about three times what we paid. The thing is that folks are free to look at the cruise line's offerings, compare it to booking direct with the airlines (or using sites like Orbitz). I should add that the fare codes used by our cruise line also got us the usual Frequent Flyer miles.es We have an upcoming cruise, late this year, out of Florida and will need air. Since it is a Princess cruise we were able to lock-in a decent deal (with AA) using their Flexair options. Once Southwest opens up our dates we will check their fares, and if they are better we will book Southwest (direct with the airline) and simply cancel the Princess cruise/air deal. In a since we get the best of both worlds because we have locked in a fare with the cruise line but also keep our options open to book direct (with any airline) if something better becomes available. Hank P.S. There is nothing special or unique about cruise air. Millions of cruisers have used cruise/air over many decades. The problem with NCLH is that they do not even offer the option in an easy to use online system.