Hlitner

The only "perk" with a signature suite is getting to pay a higher rate for tips (which HAL calls "Crew Appreciation"). Bottom line is when pay more money for a Signature Suite you should be honored to pay an extra $1.50 per person/day for tips. Do you get better or more service for that extra money? Nope. Hank

The norm is that you tour will end in Fira where you will ultimately be on your own to take the cable car down to the tender pier. The cable car lines can be quite long, but that is just the nature of the beast as that cable car can only move about 600 persons per hour (each way). However, lately we have heard of a few cruise ship excursions that will end back at the small ferry port of Athinios where folks are tendered back to their ship. We have never seen such a tour, but apparently a few cruise lines are providing that option. Hank

I think the nature of any ship excursion is that you do what you are told, when you are told. If your tour guide gives you the time you would certainly find many places in Eze Village, Nice and Monte Carlo where you could enjoy coffee, wine or a snack. Another option is to simply do things on your own which gives you lots of flexibility. Hank

We were on the Seashore (Yacht Club) in October and our cabin was serviced twice a day, The staff kept it spotless. Hank

As one who worked in government medical insurance for over 30 years, we salute your thought about reimbursing Medicare. Good luck with that effort which will likely fail due to Medicare's disinterest in dealing with a complex issue (for them). The reality is that Medicare fiscal intermediaries and Advantage Plans will usually have no interest in recovering a payment. Please come back here and post the ultimate resolution. But it is great news that you got a positive response from the Adjuster. Hank

Expecting HAL staff to enforce rules or decorum is simply a pipe dream. Consider that nobody enforces dress codes, saving of loungers, or just about anything else aboard a cruise. Most crew members take the path of least resistance which means avoiding any kind of confrontation with a passenger. Hank

More info is tough. We can look at their web site and one of my favorite cruise agents was to an impressive training session (including the use of Virtual Reality) and came back impressed. But the real proof will not exist until Explora I finally starts operating next summer. They have hired some decent management and company certainly has deep pockets and a strong commitment from the Aponte family (they are the major owners of MSC). I suspect that many of the early bookers (including me) are gambling on the cruise line based on having cruised in MSC's Yacht Club. They will need to improve on Yacht Club cuisine to compete in the luxury market. Hank

But we are only talking the tip of spear when it comes to the growing class system. Consider that Princess has Club Suites (which are simply some mini suites with additional amenities), HAL has Club Orange (additional amenities), Celebrity has long had Aqua Class, etc. Go back about 10 years and most cruise lines treated everyone alike be they in a suite or an inside cabin. Even with suites, you have different classes. So, for example, on MSC you can have a suite in the Yacht Club (with its separate venues) or a suite outside the YC. On HAL you have suites that come with Neptune Lounge access (and special dining venues) and you have suites with no Neptune Suite or special dining access. This is actually taking us back to the past when Ocean Liners had various classes with their own venues, decks, etc. And why not? Consider that one can cruise on some lines for under $100 per person day or cruise on that same ship for $1000 per person day. Why should folks in the low cost inside cabins get the same food and service as folks paying 10 times more. You are correct that the upper classes are a relatively small percentage, but MSC has taken it to a different level with their various "experiences." On that line one has many levels which each higher level coming with additional amenities and dining venues. And you might want to consider that MSC is the fastest growing cruise line which has now spun off another line, Explora Journeys, which is a new luxury line. Hank

If you want to add some coffee flavor to tequilia (which is what Patron XO Cafe did) you can do it by simply adding some espresso, Kahlua, or espresso powder to regular tequilia. Of course one would need to experiment with the formula, but the results should be fine. The fun of mixology is discovering great formulas. Hank

I do not think cruising is in trouble, but do think that some major cruise corporations are in big trouble. Cruising will survive the current financial mess, but there are going to be obvious changes. The mass market lines will continue their move to a class system, continue to increase prices, accelerate their campaign to maximize onboard revenue, and cut-back various services. The luxury lines will increase prices but maintain quality because that is what they are all about! I do not think we can over emphasize the trend towards classes. NCL (with their Haven Suites) and MSC (with their Yacht Club) have demonstrated that folks are willing to pay big bucks for luxury and amenities. Those that want to cruise on a tight budget will still be able to satisfy their cruise cravings, but will see numerous cut-backs (in service and cuisine) along with a lot more add-ons. The era of single class cruising, among the mass market lines, is over....dead....gone! Hank

I am not sure. We simply requested an OT1 to OT3 upgrade. Keep in mind that all the OT cabins are essentially the same and the only difference is in location. Getting a Diamond Status match from MSC can involve lots of waiting. When we got the match (about 4 years ago) we waited months and finally managed to get through to the right person (with a phone call to MSC) who actually found our application info and processed while we were on the phone. These days, I doubt if you can even get to the right folks. As much as we love MSC's Yacht Club, their land-based USA customer service is awful. Hank

Large groups can become an issue. With a music oriented group, they will certainly have some of their own entertainment groups which usually means that various public venues (like the theater and some lounges) can be taken out of service for "private events." In an ideal world the Group's entertainment would be open to anyone which can be a real plus. But if they keep their events "closed" than it, unfortunately, interferes with other non-group cruisers' use of various venues whenever they are utilized for the group booking. I do think that music cruises are terrific, but they work best when the group charters the entire vessel such as with the very popular Smooth Jazz cruise. Hank

DW is addicted to potato chips and loves having them as a bar snack. While on our most recent Princess cruise she was a little distressed to discover that they no longer served chips (or anything else) as a bar snack. But a favorite bar tender told us, "no problem" and said to simply order chips from room service (easily done on the Princess app). In less than 10 minutes a steward would appear at the bar/lounge with a large plate of chips :). Not very efficient, but quite effective. This has me wondering if it would be an option on HAL? Of course, Princess does not charge for room service (even delivered to lounges). The new trend, such as on Celebrity, to charge real money ($11.95) for every room service delivery would certainly put a damper on the idea. Hank

I think legions of travelers have fallen for the St Marks Square cafe cons. I recall sitting down at one of those cafes (over 30 years ago) and just having a cappuccino and croissant. I noted the cost of those two items which were not unreasonable, but as a much younger (and naive) traveler I did not reckon. on the "coperto" (cover charge" and another "entertainment" fee. These days those charges are required to be disclosed (somewhere) but you might need a magnifying glass to find it listed on the bottom of a menu. Foiks should certainly visit and enjoy St Marks Square, but we would suggest walking a few blocks and finding a cafe with reasonable charges. Surprisingly, we have found fair prices at a few outdoor cafes located near St Marks Square right along the Giudecca Canal (which offers amazing views). DW and I have grown to like Venice, but that has happened as a result of spending significant time staying in the city and exploring many of the smaller streets/canals. We also love to go out to Burano. which although still touristy, has a more residential feel. Hank

Just a note about the "powdered eggs" issue. This is not just on HAL but an issue with many cruise lines who use either powdered or boxed (pasteurized) eggs that come out of large milk-like cartons. Ordering omelets does not necessarily help since these commercial eggs mixes can also be used for omelets. If you want to be sure to get a real egg you need to order somethig with a visible yoke such as over easy or eggs benedict. On some ships we have also had luck by ordering an omelet in the Lido and specifying that they crack real eggs (sometimes we have been told no). Also consider that once upon a time, on HAL, you would get fresh squeezed OJ by simply asking. Now, in the Lido or MDR there is not telling what you are getting when you get OJ, but it is anything but fresh. Hank

We always use decent cruise agencies because they take care of that kind of stuff plus give us a generous On Board Credit (which you do not get when you book direct). Two days ago we booked a September cruise and our cruise agent said there was no problem getting the 2 category upgrade plus $500 OBC for the MSC Diamond promotion. Our cruise agent said she only had to enter our Diamond number onto the booking record (you may not be able to do this when booking direct). Our cruise agent can also get cabin assignments. Hank

I post this again and again and here goes again :). If you have to cancel a cruise and lose 100% of what you have paid, you are no worse off (financially) than if you had taken the cruise. In other words, you will hurt because of the lose, but it will not change your life. But your potential liability for a major medical issue is essentially unlimited! One of the major reasons for personal bankruptcies (at least 59%) are because of medical issues. Nobody goes bankrupt because they lose their payments for a trip, but a serious medical/evacuation issue can truly mess up your life. I mention this because some policies, especially those sold by cruise lines, do not generally provide sufficient medical and medical evacuation insurance. Personally, I would feel underinsured unless I had at least $100,000 of medical coverage and $50,000 (some would argue for at least $100,000) of medical evacuation insurance. Most cruise line policies only provide $10-$20,000 of medical and I would argue this is not enough! Folks will pay a lot of money in premiums to insure a few thousand of cruise cost and not be concerned with the unlimited liability from medical. Hank

Pizza? Perhaps HAL could send some of their folks over to Princess to learn how to make decent pizza 🙂

Agree with Marazul that the idea is completely nuts! Keep in mind that the train journey is pretty long, trains can run late, and Cinque Terre is actually 5 different villages (connected by train and/or ferry or a very long hike). Cinque Terre should be considered a full day place. And keep in mind that using trains will waste a lot of time in Pisa, since you will still need to get to and from the Tower from the train station. And then there is the matter of working with train schedules and hoping that the trains are not running late. Once upon a time we did manage to go to Cinque Terre and Pisa on the same port day, but we only did this at the request of another couple who were making their first visit (we have been to the region many times on both cruises and driving trips). But we had a very long port day in Livorno and used a rental car. The car meant we did not need to deal with getting to/from train stations, waiting for trains, etc. We drove directly to Riomaggiore (which takes less time than the train from Florence) and parked in the large pay lot. We than spent about 5 hours in the area visiting 3 villages. Then back in the car and a quick stop (about 30 minutes) at Pisa's Field of Miracles so our friends could have a photo op. Hank

While we are not big fans of St Marks Square (it is just too darn crowded) we have really enjoyed walking over to that place in the evening after all the day-trippers are long gone. Without the hoards (which seem to be unending from about 9-5), St Marks Square is actually a very attractive area. But we always warn folks to avoid sitting down at any of the cafes/restaurants located on the square unless you want to spend over $10 for a cup of coffee :). Hank

We have been to that port more than a dozen times, although not with NCL. But I do not think there is much variance with the cruise lines. The Italian authorities generally do a good job getting ships quickly cleared, and there are no formalities once you are off the ship. If you use the express debarkation option (which means you must carry off all your own luggage) you would likely be able to leave the ship by 8. Otherwise, the timing is dependent on how long it takes to get your luggage off the ship and your debarkation priority. Also keep in mind it will take at least an hour to drive into Rome. When we have arranged to be met by a driver, we have always used express debarkation to reduce the uncertainty of the timing. Hank

I recently posted (on another thread) about how much DW and I enjoy the Sunday morning market at Isle sur la sorgue. Whenever we are staying in the region, if the weather is good, we will drive over to that fabulous outdoor market. On a Sunday we would strongly recommend the tour to that market, Fontaine and Rousillon. Aix will always be there and one can visit any day of the week, But the market at Isle Sur La Sorgue is one of the best outdoor markets in France and it is located in a charming town. Hank

That will vary depending on the ship, cruise line, and sea conditions. On some cruises, when conditions were favorable, we have seen crew help folks with light weight wheelchairs, onto tenders. On other ships it will be required that folks be able to physically walk onto a tender. The reason I mention it all varies is because some ships do not have any way to get to the tender area without walking down steps (which can be narrow). On other ships it is possible to get down to the tender area on an elevator. Another issue is the nature of the tender pier ashore. As to scooters, I do not think one can generalize since there are many types of scooters from relatively lightweight 3 wheeled models to very heavy models (especially electric wheelchairs). Any device would need to be lifted on and off tenders so you can imagine the difficulty and safety problems. Having tendered in literally hundreds of ports (over more than 50 years) I can say that there is always some risk of injury, even for folks that are fully mobile. We have seen folks with lightweight scooters able to walk onto tenders and then the crew will load the scooter (usually the last thing to be put aboard. Hank

We agree that it is wise to not book before noon. A noon or later flight should be OK from either MIA or FLL (about 45 min from the Port of Miami). Is it possible to make an earlier flight? Yes, but it does add to one's anxiety. Hank

I guess the quick answer is because we do drink, both adult and other beverages. We also like having some kind of Internet plan. Is it truly worth the cost? Ask me in a few months. Hank