MtnClimber1101

Thank you everyone.  Great replies.  

2 minutes ago, ggprincess2004 said:

Vaguely remembering what it is like to be a 12 year old girl, and with the staterooms accommodating only 3 people each, I might suggest the ladies in one stateroom and the gentlemen in the other. 

A good idea that had escaped my thought process.  I assume we can do that even though that isn't how our bookings are planned?

Grandson is 9.  She is 12.  The icruise site states room accomadates 3 passengers.  But I thought it was possible to sleep 4, although that would be crowded.  

I booked two cabins on the Royal Princess.  My wife/granddaughter/myself in one.  My son/his wife/grandson in the other.  

But now the granddaughter wants to stay with mom, dad and brother, which would put 4 in their cabin (BE category).

I talked to my cruise planner, and she said she couldn't change the booking, as the cabin only accommodates three passengers.

Can I wait until I board and ask the room steward to put her into the room, or is there nothing I can do?

I'm sure this has been discussed, but I couldn't find a thread.  Could someone please explain what a partial obstructed balcony view means on the Royal Princess?  Does that mean we still have full use of the balcony?  What blocks the views...lifeboats, webbing, ropes?  I don't mind the partial obstruction, as long as we can still use the balcony and be able to see outwards.  

Please help...I have some family members that are concerned with this issue. 

Yes they will. You will have paid a $17 corkage fee for any 750ml bottles that you consume in public places. You are allowed 1 - 750ml bottle per passenger per stateroom that are over 21 that will be consumed in your stateroom.

I didn't think there was a corkage fee for the first two bottles of wine brought on board. Will I pay a fee if I have the PG hold one of our bottles until we have our dinner there?

Tomorrow is the second gala night? I thought they were on Sunday and Friday?

Thanks for your updates. We embark the day you disembark, June 2. Your updates have me even more excited!

We are thinking about booking the George Inlet Lodge crab feast while in Ketchikan. Just the feast part, not the exploration boat tour. Is there a shuttle from the pier to the lodge? Also, are drinks included in the price?

Has anyone done this?

Help me. Our Alaska cruise is less than a month away. We are booked in room V5090 on the Nieuw Amsterdam. I've read some posts that state the verandah rooms on deck 5 are blocked (partially) by the life boats. We upgraded to get a balcony room, and would hate the idea of not having decent views. Can anyone out there put my mind at ease?

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Thanks everyone. I accepted the upgrade. We are now in room V5090. Hope it's a good one.

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We are sailing on Nieuw Amsterdam Alaska cruise, rt from Vancouver. I just received a room upgrade offer. Currently we are on C level (window, no balcony). The upgrade moves us to deck VQ/VH (room depending on availability) for extra $129 pp.

Thoughts?

We will probably spend a night before the cruise at a hotel near the airport. We would want to go downtown Vancouver for the evening, using the Canada Line. Then, we would need to use it again in the morning to go to the cruise pier. We would need to use it a third time a week later after returning from the cruise.

I couldn't tell from the website. What would be the cheapest way to buy Canada Line tickets. Day passes...or another option? If it goes according to plan, we would use it for 3 separate days.

Thanks.

I posted this in another forum, and was advised I might have better success here.

We are driving to Vancouver for a week-long Alaska cruise. We plan to arrive the day before the cruise, and will need long-term parking until we return. Most of the downtown hotels charge to much for extended parking (at least, too much for me). Seems like my best bet would be in the Richmond area, or near the airport. Rooms are reasonable, and some offer free or low-cost parking. I've been looking at the Holiday Inn Express, and the Radisson airport hotels. Does anyone have first-hand experience with these, or any other that could be recommended?

We would probably use the SkyTrain to get us to the pier. Is it doable with the luggage we'd be carrying? How close to the cruise pier does Canada Line run?

We are driving up to Vancouver to begin our week-long cruise. Most of the downtown hotels don't offer extended parking, or charge a too-high amount (at least for me).

Seems like hotels near the airport are much cheaper, and offer long-term parking at affordable rates. I've been looking at Holiday Inn Express, and Accent Inn. Does anyone have any experience with either of these hotels, or can offer advice on another one?

Also, has anyone used the Canada SkyTrain? It looks like that is the best way to get from airport area hotels to the downtown pier. Is it easy to figure out? I'm not sure how much luggage we'll be carrying, so not sure if using the SkyTrain would be a problem?

First time cruiser headed to Alaska on Holland Nieuw Amsterdam. My SO has a spa service booked. She wants to know if she should leave a tip afterwards? Or is there another way to handle it?

Also, what about everything else you normally tip for...bar service, food, etc?

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While in Juneau, we plan to take a whale watch/glacier excursion. The ship is supposed to dock at 1 p.m. Tours begin at 1:30 and 2:30. Should I book the 1:30 and have to worry about making it on time? Or, should I book the 2:30 and be able to relax and take my time? (Guess I kinda answered that one myself.)

It was recommended to me by someone to do the whale watch part of the tour first, then finish with the glacier afterwards. Agree?

Thank you for the help.

Our PCC contacted us a few weeks ago, and we accepted an offer to upgrade to one of the beverage packages. By looking online at our account, I haven't been able to confirm that this has been done. Is there somewhere on the HAL web page that should show this? I know I can contact our PCC for confirmation, but she already told me it has been done. Just would like to verify online.

Thanks.

We are sailing on HAL's Nieuw Amsterdam, leaving Vancouver on June 2, 2018. The usual stops in Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan. We plan on booking excursion on our own, not through the cruise line. Last time I checked, most of the vendors don't have next year options available yet. About what time of year will they make excursions available for 2018? Thanks.

As first-time cruisers, this board has helped answer several questions that DW and I have asked. Now, another one. When I filled out my online registration, I needed to give HAL a credit card that would be charged $60 per day for incidentals. Whatever I don't use would then be refunded to the card at the end of the cruise. Isn't this the same thing as OBC's? I had a $$ figure in mind for my OBC, but now I should probably make it less due to the credit card charge?

And, it appears that each of us need to set up the charge? So, that would be $120 per day? Seems like that might cover nearly everything we would use.

Thanks for helping me understand this.

We're driving to Vancouver. Arriving the day before our cruise. Are there any hotels that offer extended stay parking? Even better if they offer the parking, and a shuttle down to the pier.

Thanks for your quick replies! We're really excited about our first cruise!!

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I've really enjoyed this board as my wife and I prepare for our first cruise on the Nieuw Amsterdam to Alaska. I've got some questions regarding Onboard Credits.

1. How do I purchase the OBCs? Is there a spot on the HAL website? Or, do I let my PCC know? Can I purchase the OBC at any time before sailing?

2. Can the OBC be used for everything on board? Dinners at the PG and Tamarind? Wine and alcohol purchases? Tips? HSC charges? Excursions?

3. Is there a limit of how much OBC I can purchase?

4. If I don't buy a Signature Beverage Package, do I get receipts for every drink I buy? And then, will these (plus tips) be deducted from the OBC?

5. Can I check at the main desk while cruising to stay updated on my OBC account?

6. I I don't use up the OBC total, is the difference refunded to me upon disembarkation?

Thanks for the help.

Thank you for the replies. I'm really looking forward to it.

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This will be our first time cruising with HAL. Can I purchase the Signature Drink package for just part of the cruise. Thinking I might like it for the sea days, but not so much on port days.

Also, do I understand correctly that a bottle of liquor can be purchased onboard and taken to your room? That way, I could just mix my own drinks?