bleacher04

We have seen people order buckets of beer and when it was delivered to their table, the waiter/waiteress would ask how many bottles they wanted opened.

Exactly my experience.

And in fact when you get two bottles of beer during Happy Hour, you can ask that only one bottle be opened, and take the other with you.

This is a terrific thread, especially post #6 by Copper10-8 and posts #8 & #10 by RMLincoln. Thank you both!

IMO this thread should be a sticky.

Here's another "like" for the OP! :D

We take Bonine (meclizine) if the day looks like it will be rough. We've had some days at sea where the motion was very pronounced -- staircases become challenging, the promenade deck is closed, the restaurants are half-empty, and the Lido pool looks like a wave pool -- and we've never experienced sea-sickness. But whether that's the Bonine or just lucky physiology, I don't know.

But if you are really concerned about it, the best advice is back in post #2 from KK -- go talk to your doctor.

Hi, Paul, Actually the herring was delicious!

Okay, I trust you Ann :D Or given your witty title, is it "Anna" for this thread? ;)

Diane and I really enjoyed reading your review and all of the pictures. We hadn't thought much about sailing on the Koningsdam before, but your report has made me re-consider!

Wondering what part of the ship would best for glacier viewings? If possible, less crowded.

They usually open up the bow of the ship for viewing in Glacier Bay. But by the time you anchor, it does get pretty crowded. We got out there early and claimed a spot along the rail; it was spectacular, just viewing the glacier (Margerie in our case) and waiting for another calving. But even when the sun is shining, it can still be cold, so close to all of that ice; I was wearing hat and gloves ands scarf and two jackets, the only time on the whole cruise.

I assume that you can also get good views from the aft pool deck and the upper railings on deck 10, but we stayed on the bow. We found it too cold on our balcony, because it was shaded. I assume that would apply to the promenade deck as well.

If you want to stay warm, then the Crows Nest would be the place to be. But the chairs by the window will be claimed long in advance.

Sorry Tony, but that looks less appetizing than anything we ate on the streets of Lima!

Thanks for your review and photos, Ann -- great to read! Hope that you and Pat had a wonderful time!

Would I be able to safely get a taxi at the port gate and then have the taxi take me to a specific hotel?

On our cruise last year, the answer would be No. Callao is an industrial port, and so our options were either to get off the ship and onto a HAL tour, or off the ship and onto the shuttle to the Plaza. There was no Option 3. In fact we received letters on board, telling us that no one would be allowed to exit the port gates on foot.

But that was last year; I can’t say what HAL, or the port authority, will do this time. But personally I would not risk it.

Plaza San Miguel is a large and relatively upscale mall, and we felt perfectly safe there. Could you arrange to meet your friend somewhere inside there?

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Besides checking prices regularly on the HAL website, I also ask our HAL PCC if the price has dropped, before we make our final payment. They won't volunteer this information, but if you ask they will check. Several times we have come out ahead.

Others are correct, you have to look at the whole cost of the package; sometimes you might have to give up a promo package to get the lower fare. But I have happily given up Explore4 in the past, to get more than its value in savings (to us) in the form of a lower fare.

We did this same itinerary on the N. Amsterdam last summer, and had a great time. We did whale-watching in Juneau, hiking and river rafting in Skagway, and sea kayaking in Ketchikan. But that's us; you really need to look at the excursions that are available and pick what's right for you. I would also suggest that you join the Roll Call for your cruise here on Cruise Critic and look into independent tours.

I would also agree with previous posters that you should try the Tamarind restaurant while on board, and that you should spend some extra time in Vancouver (unless of course that's your home...)

We took a water taxi from the airport to our hotel, and later from the hotel to the cruise terminal. It's not cheap -- I want to say about 75 euros (for 4 people) each way -- but it's a great experience and worth every penny (or euro) IMO.

We were on the Zaandam last April, with an overnight in Lima. HAL provided complimentary coach-style shuttle buses that ran from the ship to Parque Juan Pablo II beside Plaza San Miguel, an open-air-style shopping mall about 7-8 km from the port. As I recall this was a somewhat last-minute change, because we had to contact our tour operator during the cruise to meet us here, instead of at the Callao port gates. No one was allowed to leave the ship on foot or exit the port gates into Callao, even to meet a tour operator or pick up a taxi.

The shuttle worked extremely well, we used it on both days, and our tour operator (Haku Tours, they were fantastic, must give them a shout-out!) switched up and met us all at Plaza San Miguel and dropped us off there afterwards. It appeared to be a very safe area and on the first night, when we were dropped off at 9 or 10 pm after the Water Laser Show, there were crew members from the ship at the shuttle bus pick-up point to make sure that everyone stayed safe. On the second day, we walked over into the mall to do some shopping after the tour, and caught a later shuttle bus.

We took our two children on their first HAL cruise when they were 17 & 19, and they have been on four more with us since. The 17-year-old went to Club HAL (on that first cruise) and had fun. Neither of them have ever complained about being bored or refused to go again (and OleSalt, I love that quote from the Queen Mother!).

As others have already noted, Canada / New England is very port-intensive, so hopefully you will be spending a lot of time off the ship. And there's lots to see and do.

On-board the ship, our kids love team trivia (more than I do now, in fact). And other teenagers apparently like it too, because last summer a team of six kids on our Alaskan cruise won team trivia one day.

One other note -- your 18-year-old(s) will actually be of legal drinking age in Quebec.

- Free laundry

- Never have to go to the front desk; Neptune Lounge concierge handles all of your concerns: dinner reservations, billing issues, etc.

- Breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill

- Advance MDR menus, so you can decide if you want to go to a specialty restaurant instead

- Oodles of space and a larger balcony

There's more, but those are the big ones for me.

Since CDC also strictly limited passenger self-serve for the buffet lines there have been a lot fewer reported Code Red incidents, which was the intent of this restriction as well.

And after observing some people's hygiene habits, I am completely in favour of this one!

We were on the RT Rotterdam Voyage of the Vikings in Aug/Sept 2017 and always have late fixed dining (around 8pm-Upper Dining Room) - we were in an out within an hour.

That's been our experience on previous HAL cruises; the courses come out bam, bam, bam, to the point where sometimes we felt rushed! But this past cruise in December there was a noticeable delay between ordering and service, and between each course. And in more venues than just the MDR.

So a lot can depend on when and where one chooses to dine on the Rotterdam.

We were in the Lower DR, but had the same assigned table and same fixed dining reservation (7:30 pm) each night. So not too different from you, except for the level.

Breakfast in the Pinnacle is available every day for those in Neptune Suites and above only. It is a Suite perk and there is no charge.

And the breakfast menu is the same as in the MDR.

That will be us in 40 days!

This may be a dumb question but it’s been several years since we’ve sailed with HAL....Are the menus the same throughout the HAL fleet or is it different for each ship? Has anyone recently sailed on the Rotterdam, and how was the food? Also, I’ve heard that ships often discount the specialty dining on the first night, is this true? Thanks!

I can only answer your second question:

We sailed on the Rotterdam over Christmas (9th HAL cruise), and I thought that the food quality in the MDR was very good. And on average I would say that the variety of selection was better than average. However the service was brutally slow. I suspect that this was a kitchen issue, not our servers (who were excellent), because others have complained of the same thing, and we had the same slow service in the Canaletto and in the Pinnacle for breakfast.

Food in the Lido market was very good for breakfast, just average for lunch (same as on all HAL cruises IMO). New York Pizza was great. Canaletto food quality was also very good, although a little salty for my taste.

Is it a-la-cart or fix pricing?

It is prix fixe, though there may be some premium price options like Pinnacle, but my recollection overall it was mainly prix fixe. With a great deal of variety -starting with very interesting appetizer options: Shrimp chips and various tasty sambals.

There's a $25 per person upcharge for dinner (Mariner discount applies), and then you order whatever you like. Go with a group and you can share and sample more appetizers and entrees.

The Tamarind is our favourite of the HAL specialty restaurants!

And yes, I agree that sushi as an entree, while beautifully prepared and presented, is just way too much sushi!

We had a stop in Sarande in 2016, after all of our Turkish ports were cancelled. I'm afraid that it was underwhelming. It's a seaside town on the Albanian Riviera, with a rock-pebble beach like you would find in Nice, and Soviet-era architecture. There's a boardwalk with shops and restaurants and bars running along the beach, and lots of people had set up stalls and stands because the cruise ship was in. One woman was selling some beautiful hand-made lace, but most of the items were trinkets like you'd find in a flea market or dollar store.

It's kind of interesting to actually go to Albania, because of its history and mystery in the 20th century, but there isn't a lot there IMO. The people we knew who went to the Blue Eye or the castle, either on a HAL tour or independently, were generally not that impressed. I don't know anyone who went on an archeological tour, to Burint or further afield.

Don't worry about Lek, Euros were accepted everywhere we went in town, and I believe that all of the restaurant & bar signs advertised prices in Euros.

Kudo's to that manager. If more of the rules were upheld then people wouldn't try to push the limits.

Agreed

We are booked on the Eurodam in October on a Mexican Riviera cruise. Planning to snorkel in Cabo and unsure which tour is better.

 

Chileno Bay Sail & Snorkel or the Snorkel & Sail to Santa Maria Cove?

My main concern is having calm waters. We had VERY rough water in Aruba last year and I am now a bit concerned about snorkeling in choppy water. Any help appreciated.

We did the Chileno Bay Sail & Snorkel excursion in Cabo last April, from the Zaandam. We try to avoid HAL excursions but this was a tender port with a 2 pm departure...

They took us around to an inlet south of Cabo. As others have mentioned, the snorkelling was not as good as some of the places we've been to in the Caribbean, mainly (IMO) because the water was not as clear. But there was a decent variety and number of fish. The water was not rough, and I can remember this because my wife stayed in the water snorkelling for the whole time; she doesn't like snorkelling in rough water either, and we've been on a few snorkel outings where she's decided to turn back to the boat due to waves.

Overall it was a good excursion; they took us around to see the Arches before it got too crowded with tour boats, the crew was friendly, and we also had a whale and calf swim past very close to the boat.

I didnt see these packages online. how much is the package? how much is just a bottle of gin?

Paul, you don't happen to know whether the price of a bottle ordered from room service is the same as a price ordered on line in advance.

I usually order it in advance but would like to option of ordering on board instead.

I believe that you can only see the packages when you log in and look to buy them for a current reservation.

Online advance purchase: Tanqueray $52.50, Bombay Sapphire $56.25. Which matches the prices that Crew News posted above in his link for the room service menu. So that also answer's Larry's question!

The Gin & Tonic package is only $46.25, but that's because they substitute the cheaper Bombay gin (not Sapphire). Which is maybe okay for G&T's, but not for martini's :D