localady

I was also on the Nieuw Amsterdam when it missed Livorno because of a storm. The Capt. explained that the port of Livorno is a very difficult port to navigate in and out of in stormy conditions. He indicated that missing this port in the Fall was not all that uncommon.

I too would be careful about checking on the weather before debarking Rome, but it could be a lovely overnight adventure. Of course, notice needs to be given to the ship of your intended overnight itinerary.

This unfortunately happens on the Hawaii run, thank God for the Coast Guard! We were a day late returning on the Oosterdam to San Diego as we had to turn around to medevac 3 passengers once back in range of the Big Island.

I pray that she recovers quickly and fully.

We should have followed you that day. I lined up for the Public one, which turned out to be a gleaming brand new stainless steel unit with a hole in the floor.

I remember the first time I encountered a "gem" like that, stand on the porcelain part and aim at the hole in the groundl!:eek: (Thank goodness my aim was pretty good! ;) )

I remember the event fondly because it was a real reminder of how "out of my element" I was, which is one of the reasons why I love to travel. :D

Can never be enough time for Oia but we were there 90 minutes to 2 hours and enjoyed it very much. Would have preferred maybe 3 hours for a nice lunch. The gondola cars were no problem at all on the return. What a great day that was.

 

Gary

I agree with Gary, the time alloted on our shore excursion (Oia and Mt. Elias) was not nearly enough time to really enjoy Oia. Our guide lost us half way through the walking tour and we spent a good part of our time trying to locate our group again. She was a fast walker, and although many in the group had mobility issues, she took off like a sprinter and never looked back. :eek:

If I were to visit Santorini again, I would arrange to go to Oia privately. That way we could really have time seeing the town and enjoying a meal or a coffee rather than having to try to chase after our tour guide.....

Bon Voyage to all!

Lisa- Please have a margarita for me!

Bon Voyage to you and Pedro!! ;) :D

Thank you, thank you , thank you for once again taking us along on your epic adventure, your postings are always such a treat!! :)

Bon Voyage to you both :D

With the Explore 4 package, I wonder if a guest would be able to just pay the difference if ordering a drink or glass of wine that is more than $7.00. For instance, if one were to order a glass of merlot that's listed at $8 per glass, would you likely have to pay the whole $8 amount or just pay the $1 upcharge with the other $7 deducted from the Explore 4 daily package? It looks like the wine selection $7 and under is pretty sparse.

The wording on my Explore4 package specifically says "excluded" also.

I am not banking on them allowing us to purchase more expensive spirits and allow an upcharge.

I'm hoping that I am looking at the menu incorrectly. As I look at the prices for the house wines, it appears that only three of the wines are under the $7cap--two white zinfandels and a pinot grigio. As we only have an occasional glass of wine for dinner--and prefer a merlot or another red wine, I guess the card is of absolutely no use to us.

 

Has anyone ever tried to use the card for "part of the drink" and pay for the balance?

The wording on my upcoming reservation with the Explore4 says that any beverage over $7.00 is "excluded". I feel that the wording is pretty clear unfortunately, it doesn't say a supplement can be paid for more expensive spirits, it specifically says they are excluded. I too am disappointed that there are no Reds by the glass available at all if this is the case.

We hopped in just before the 15th as our TA was able to offer the lowest price we have seen yet for one of our "bucket list" cruises. :D:D

It will be interesting to see if the price drops further without the Explore4. DH can't have alcohol due to medical issues and I am a light drinker. It will be nice to have our coffee and bottled waters covered as we tend to drink more of them. It will be interesting to see if Pellegrino and still bottled waters are included, I am assuming since they are under $7.00 they would be.

Explore4 is not a make or break for us, so of course we will be watching the prices.

My Sis and I were on a Gospel cruise on the Oosterdam to Mexico with the same group two years ago.

We were told fixed seating late was totally taken by the Gospel group. When we got to the ship we received a late seating as we had originally requested. We were in a suite so perhaps that influenced it.

I fret as you are that it would ruin our cruise. It didn't whatsoever. People were very pleasant, normal shows were still held, and overall it was a positive experience in retrospect.

You did quite well :rolleyes: The "special" Mariner fare is sometimes even higher than the regular fare !!!

Especially if you are a 4 Star Mariner or higher!

One or two star Mariners get the good offers, our higher fares are justified to pay for our perks! :rolleyes:

Very interesting indeed. I think the Princess policy is very fair. On our 21 day cruise, I brought on 18 bottles...six of which we brought home (15 wine; 3 limoncello from Sorrento). brought home 4 bottles of wine and the 3 limoncello. So, the 10 that were consumed on board would have been an additional $150 revenue for HAL. For me, not much more than what we paid on board with the $18 a bottle corkage fee anyway. What we really enjoyed was sitting on the verandah at sailaway with a glass of wine from whatever port we had visited and a plate of cheese.

Exactly Sheila, we did 37 days last year on the Nieuw Amsterdam in the Med and that cruise would have been truly diminished if we'd not been allowed to bring a few wines back from all the marvelous wine regions we visited. We would be okay with paying a per bottle fee.

It shall be interesting to see if Princess or HAL adjust their wine policies to be more in alignment with the announcement this morning of the new "Holland America Group" headed up by Stein Kruse. Would really like to see HAL adopt the Princess policy allowing wine to be brought from ports with a set corkage fee. HAL cruises to amazing wine regions all over the world and their current new policy of no wine brought from ports diminishes the travel experience for many, myself included.

Not supporting nor condemning just pointing out the OP is a 4 Star mariner and has been a member since: Join Date: Jul 2009

 

Joanie

I noticed that this was his or her sixth post......sometimes folks finally get up the nerve to chime in here on the boards to have the exuberance of this group hit them like a Mack truck....... ;) :eek:

You haven't received much of a warm welcome to Cruise Critic, welcome aboard!!:D

I am sorry your wife had her beer confiscated at the gangway, HAL is becoming more and more restrictive with the beverages you are allowed to bring aboard. I believe, they believe that it will strengthen the bottom line. . . . .

All it has done here on CC is create a backlash of Titanic proportion.....:eek: ;)

Neither did I (think it would be this bad). I can see HAL wanting to limit people from hauling a case or two on at embarkation, but one of the enjoyable thing about a European cruise is to buy a bottle in port and enjoy it on the verandah at sail away. At least that's what I envisioned. :eek: Truthfully? If I hadn't just made final payment, I would cancel our upcoming cruise. I'm THAT ticked off.

Sheila-

I did the cruise you are doing last fall and I would be angry as can be!!! :eek::eek::eek:

I am sorry you are one of the cruisers that are past final that are affected by this. Of course you will want to purchase wines on the trip to enjoy on the ship (on your own balcony) as that is part of the charm of that itinerary. Giving you NO warning is inexcuseable!!! :rolleyes:

Haven't been into CC for a bit, and this is what I return to....

Holy cow batman! :eek:

We don't drink much wine but do enjoy it while onboard. But the thought of the 37 day Med cruise we took last year without the ability to bring back a bottle of wine while in the different ports is a huge disappointment. Part of a trip like that is the local food and wine and this policy severely restricts that enjoyment......:rolleyes:

I feel so badly for those who are headed to Europe for their upcoming cruises. Having already paid final payments, they have truly been "duped". Yes, I know that the language in the cruise contract allows HAL to do this, their attorneys wrote it that way.....

It's a shame, and makes me rethink less restrictive recreation options....

Staffing cuts are evident just upon observation.

We always sit at the same table on various ships and have for years.

We know how many dining stewards and service areas used to be busily serving in past years. The same section, same tables today have fewer people doing the work. They work as hard as they can but there are not enough of them.

 

For years we discussed how low can you go as far as crew size.

Judging by the stress I witnessed in the crew on the last few cruises I have taken, they are at, or past, their saturation point.

Dining is not an enjoyable experience when your waitstaff is obviously stressed.

Crew size (at least in hospitality) has hit rock bottom Seattle. This is as low as you can go.

I'm not sure that the elaborate displays that Disney feature are really necessary.

But how lovely it would be if we were able to have a

real eggs benedict, the sauce similar to the Pinnacle bearnaise vs

the Lido faux bearnaise ?? Add a bit of real lobster or crab (Not Krab!)

and their wonderful coffee, and I would gladly pay for the opportunity to have brunch at the Pinnacle.

In fact, it might become my favorite meal! ;) :D

Sail, actually on the contrary HAL would do this and it actually has been brought up for discussion among those at the top. Now is it something that could happen in the near future that is totally unknown? I think it is a fabulous idea and I for one have talked with Hotel Directors and Pinnacle Grill Managers about this. When it was discussed it was talked about in having it much like what is offered for the Suite Lunch and offering Champagne, Mimosas and Bloody Mary's and chargin a small fee probably in the range of $20.00. In one conversation the Pinnacle Manager went as far as to tell me how they would set it up in the Pinnacle Grill so this has definitely been talked about. Who knows something like this may be rolled out when the new ship comes out maybe before ;). I definitely would like to see something like this and like mentioned previous Celebrity does a great job with theirs and I was quite impressed.

I would just love that offering at the Pinnacle. Such a great option for days at sea! It would be lovely to have had that offered. :)

HAL did sponsor a brunch many times in the MDR of the NA in Europe last Fall, they called it a "Commonwealth Brunch".

We weren't from the Commonwealth so we weren't included.

I'm positively drooling with all these possibilities to look foward to!

 

Okay...really odd question...can you get potato chips on the ship? Or should I plan to make those kinds of purchases in port?

 

I have to confess I have a weak spot for salty crunchy things...:o

In a pinch Pringles like chips have been offered at the liquor kiosk on board also, though I am sure they are more expensive than what you'd find in port.

I think a lot of folks have a weak spot for salty crunchy things! ;)

Even the world cruisers mention stocking up on snacks while in port. :D

I just returned from my 7th cruise - the first without huge swollen ankles! In fact, no swelling at all. The answer is: it's the ship's desalinated water. I gave up coffee, any juice that was reconstituted; soup - and ICE! How about that soda machine? How about the soda at the bar - ask for a can. You have to really pay attention to everything that has the ships water in it. Of course, don't drink the water. Drink bottled - maybe you can bring your own. This info is so important, I don't know how to get it out there except on Cruise Critic.

I have always suspected that, as on the cruises that I consume mostly bottled water, I have not had the swelling problems. I try to drink at least one large bottle a day and it really helped! :D

What beautiful photos you took of the ship that was my "home" for over a month in Oct/Nov! She is a lovely lady and her staff makes her more wonderful! :D

^^This is it! Thanks!

 

I found this soup to be memorable as well and had been looking for the recipe :)

 

Note to HAL!! Need a Tamarind Cookbook! :D

Happy to help! :D I need to do a bit of research to get a couple of the fresh ingredients, but typing it up got me motivated to do it. A couple of days on the TA crossing, I had a bit of sea sickness and all I wanted was the Pho soup, it truly made me feel so much better!

P.S. Pardon the typos in the recipe (they should be 'steamer'), I saw them after the edit feature had expired. :rolleyes:

I found it!

Chicken Pho with wild lime and rice sticky noodle-Serves 10

300 grms Cooked Rice Noodles

800 ml Chicken Stock

25 grms brown sugar

200 ml coconut milk

25 grms garlic, finely minced

10 grms serrano chilis, minced

10 grms kaffir lime leaves, fresh

25 ml lime juice

40 grms galangal, fresh minced

200 grms chicken, cooked and shredded

50 grms lemongrass stalks crushed

25 ml fish sauce

10 grms red chilies minced

200 ml heavy cream

20 grms ginger minced

salt (as needed)

white pepper (as needed)

Garnish:

Lime slices

scallions, fine julienne

Cilantro

Chili oil

Sesame Oil Red Bell Pepper, fine julienne

Thai Basil, fine Chiffonade

1. Saute chili, galangal, lemongrass, kaffir leaves, garlic, ginger, and all coconut milk and heavy cream, bring to a simmer and add chicken stock, lime juice, fish sauce, and bring to a simmer again, add sugar and check seasoning. Allow to simmer for 10 to 12 mins. Strain thru a fine sieve.

Add chicken and noodles to individual bowls and add into stamer for 4-5 mins. Remove bowl from staemer, ladle broth into bowl and add garnishes.