jules815

Does anyone know how to add more than one trip to the app? I have the first week of our b2b added and showing up, but can't figure out how to add the booking number for the second week.  

21 hours ago, phissy said:

We also have used the pre paid laundry package on MSC.

We chose the 40 item package.

This was before the big price increase.  We were told all 40 items were sent at once.

NO sending two deliveries of 20 items each.  Before Covid, this was allowed for YC guests.

When we received our laundry back, it was terrible. Barely folded and jammed back into the paper bag.

I had a pair of white jeans that were now light green. 3 T shirts and 4 underwear had rips in them.

I asked our Butler why the laundry was so terrible.

(We have had a good experience before)

He just shrugged, and said this is how it was when he picked it up.

We threw away the ruined clothes.

We will not purchase this package again.

Oh wow! Your clothes had rips?! I pre-purchased a package for our cruise in September. We've used it before and never had issues. Now I'm going to be really careful about what I send. I've never sent anything too delicate, but sometimes I'd send my nicer tees, etc.

Funny, I've been jumping between the MSC and HAL boards, we have cruises booked on both. It will be our first time with HAL and there's a thread on their board about how wonderful the laundry service is. Socks and underwear perfect folded and separated with tissue paper. People sending nicer tops and asking for cold wash and air dry, and they follow the instructions. Threads are like night and day. 😆

On 9/25/2022 at 8:30 AM, Maisyboo said:

Thanks for the reply. I did search before I asked . We are very close to that location 😟

 

So are we. 4211.

I know we don't sail until next year, but I'm putting together our itinerary on TripIt. 

When I'm trying to enter the port location in Ft. Lauderdale, several are popping up. Is there one pier that HAL uses there? (Doesn't have to be exact.)

44 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

I have never had a problem booking specialty dining onboard and like you book only after I have considered the day’s menus elsewhere on the ship .  The only one I book early is the first night, the specialty dining is usually much quieter the first night. 

Exactly! We're not lovers of seafood, so if the MDR menu for that night is leaning in that direction, that would be a good night to go to a specialty. Does it matter that we have dining credits? You can still book on board with those?

We'll be sailing on NS next year and wondering (for my husband, although I enjoy beer sometimes too) what beers they have on board? We both enjoy cocktails too, but sometimes a beer tastes good at the end of a port day. This will be a transatlantic (our first time sailing with HAL) and we have whatever the high end beverage package is.  Are there bar menus available somewhere online? Restaurant menus?

Also, we get Club Orange access with our room, but it looks like it's breakfast and dinner only. I know there are other food options around the ship (burgers and NY deli, the buffet) but will the MDR be open on sea days and would we have access to that as well?

As far as specialty dining goes, I know it's probably best to reserve in advance, but if we didn't, do you think we'd have a problem reserving specialty dining once we're on board? Our only other transatlantic experience was on a RC ship (Harmony of the Seas) and we didn't book any of our specialty dining until we were on board, sometimes not until the day of, and never had a problem.

I'm very much a planner when we travel, but for some reason I hate having our dining locked in so early. (What if we don't feel like having Italian on Wednesday??)

Thanks in advance.

39 minutes ago, Sea42 said:

Sorry I didn't see your questions earlier. We got off the N.S. on the 28th and were in 4211. We loved it! I know it was smaller than other Neptune Suites and it is a hike to the Neptune Lounge but for us that was not an issue. We had one day/night of moderate, 20ft, seas with a good swell and had no alarming noises, clanking, booming or whatever. We were in Norway so it was cold but we were on that balcony a lot. One side or the other was always out of the wind. On our cruise  the scenery was very important so it was the perfect choice for us.

 

Thanks for posting the pictures. Your trip looked amazing. Glad to hear you enjoyed the cabin and that huge balcony. This will be our first time sailing with HAL and we're excited about this trip. We definitely use our balconies when we cruise, even when the weather's a bit chilly. I don't think that room size will be a problem for the two of us. I do see that we won't have the jacuzzi tub in the bathroom, not sure if we'd use it anyway. Love a nice shower though. It's kind of hard to tell, but is there a seat on the back wall of the shower? Thanks again!

13 hours ago, Haljo1935 said:

Have only booked aft corner Neptune.

We loved the corner wraparound balcony so much I really couldn't tell you many details about the cabin itself other than DH loved the coffee pot.

Prefer deck 4 to have the extra space on the side so we can truly enjoy the best views.

Enjoy your cruise!

Speaking of that coffee pot, do you think I'd be able to get a kettle?

46 minutes ago, reposado said:

 

I believe on the side of the balcony there will be a somewhat large window washing "equipment." Doesn't bother some but bothered me enough not to book that particular room. 

Yes there is. I've seen it in pictures and it's definitely a large piece of equipment on the outside of the balcony, but that one is so huge that it's really only taking up a small portion of what we'll have. I almost feel guilty taking a room with such a massive balcony when we're only two people. We will use it though, that's for sure.

While I know it's technically not a "martini," I really do enjoy a lemon drop martini. Nice and frothy on top with a sugar rim. 

We went out to dinner last week and one of their specialty cocktails was a Raspberry martini. It was also very good. Wonder if they could make something like that on board if I asked?

9 hours ago, Haljo1935 said:

Have only booked aft corner Neptune.

We loved the corner wraparound balcony so much I really couldn't tell you many details about the cabin itself other than DH loved the coffee pot.

Prefer deck 4 to have the extra space on the side so we can truly enjoy the best views.

Enjoy your cruise!

Thank you.  We've booked 4211. 

We were originally booked for a transatlantic on a Celebrity ship sailing from Fort Lauderdale on 4/14. We're going to be there for a wedding and decided to add a cruise to the end of that trip. Wedding venue and date changed to the weekend before (6th) which left us scrambling for something that sailed on 4/7. That's how we found this cruise on HAL, which tbh, is better for us because all the ports are new. For the Celebrity TA we were booked for the first time in an aft cabin. Did a lot of research on that and so many people love those afts and we were excited to finally try it. Then I read about people not getting enough sun on TA's and you should book starboard (eastbound) to really enjoy your balcony. We were excited to find 4211 because it seems like the best of both worlds. 

(sorry for the long post)

2 minutes ago, Haljo1935 said:

Having Elite Bev, Premium I'net and Gratuities, you have the best HIA (have it all) package - congrats!

As others have said, you should really look at booking specialty dining and excursions that really interest you as soon as possible as they do fill up.

Enjoy your cruise!!

So is Elite the one that includes everything up to $15, as well as specialty coffees, bottled water, etc? My husband was asking if you can get fresh squeezed oj on HAL ships? 

Just tried specialty dining and it said not available yet. Still too soon? 

I know so little about HAL, feeling like a noob here. 😆 Very excited though.

1 hour ago, CruiserBruce said:

Tamarind is Asian fusion, yes.

 

All these items are in the "Have It All" package. You weren't aware your booking came with those?

Actually I had only been focused on itineraries. We were looking for something specifically from Ft. Lauderdale sailing on April 7th, but kinda burned out on the Caribbean. (We'll be in FLL for a wedding prior to the cruise) Messaged my travel agent (first time using one) this morning and had her book it for us. Not at all the norm for how I usually book a cruise. I usually know so much about the ship before I book, too. 

46 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

It means you have two free dinners each at some of the specialty restaurants. The actual value will depend on which restaurants you are offered.

Pinnacle Grill and Tamarind. Strange though, when I looked for Tamarind on the HAL website for NS, it didn't show up. Is Tamarind the Asian restaurant? Scrolled down to the second page of our booking from my travel agent and found all kinds of goodies included that we weren't aware of. Premium internet, Elite Beverage packages, excursion credits, gratuities, etc. 

Just booked our first cruise with HAL today and was looking at our invoice. It says we have 2 dining credits each. What is the value of 2 dining credits.

On 5/18/2023 at 10:23 AM, Sea42 said:

We're in 4211 and loving it! Gede, our steward is great.

I just booked this suite for a transatlantic on Statendam for next April. That balcony looks HUGE! 

9 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

The midship Neptunes are larger and laid out better than the corner afts. I love the afts on Signature and Vista ships, but not on the PInnacles. I had a corner aft on K'dam (deck 6 or 7) and hated it. Odd layout, bad bathroom with a ridiculously small shower, long hike to the lounge, and on top of that, the ship rode badly at the back. Next time, I had a midship Neptune and couldn't believe how much nicer it was in all respects.

Oh no. This will be our first time in an aft and we were looking forward to it. I understand you can feel movement, was it horrible? Neither of us suffer from motion sickness. 

2 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Neptune Suites get all the CO benefits and more.

 

Aft corner Neptunes are very popular, but, having been in all but deck 8 aft corners, I would suggest only deck 4 or 7.

 

Otherwise, it is mentioned here frequently to avoid the SQ and SCs. They have some balcony size issues.

Good to hear! In the process of booking 4211 with my ta right now.

If you were sailing on New Statendam in a Neptune suite, which one would you choose or avoid, and why?  Also, would prefer Starboard side since this will be an eastbound transatlantic.

Am I correct in that a move up to Neptune gets you Club Orange and some other things included?  (This will be our first time sailing with HAL)

15 minutes ago, karmamule said:

We've found Butcher's Cut to be "fine" for what it is but it's not an "OMG must go there" experience. As others have said the filet in the YC is just as good. We do still like to go to Butcher's Cut at least once for the varied breads, appetizers and desserts. My partner always gets a filet but I like a good ribeye so will usually have that at Butcher's Cut.

We've never gone to any of the specialty restaurants on MSC because we've never wanted to miss out on anything in the YC restaurant during our 7 days cruises. Next one is a B2B, so we'll have more time to check things out minus the FOMO.  😃

I have a Butcher's Cut question. Husband and I will be sailing on Seascape. This will be our third MSC cruise and we've never used the Diamond benefit at Butcher's Cut or any other specialty restaurant. I think we're going to give it a try next cruise. I understand it's a special pre fix menu for the Diamond benefit meal. Are you able to order an extra side or whatever and just pay for it?

Following along.  We'll be on Seascape in September.

What time did you arrive at the port?

8 hours ago, Morgsmom said:

TOTALLY agree.  Please don't make me go to Cozumel and Costa Maya ever again.  Bring on all of the lovely ports that were wide open pre-pandemic.  

My husband and I are going to Cozumel in September for the, I don't know how many times, but it's a lot. Usually go to Nachi Cocum which is a really nice beach day, but kinda burned out on that too. Last time we stayed on the ship which isn't a negative, a pool day in the YC is awesome. So for our next visit, since we'll have plenty of pool time because it's for 2 weeks, I think I'm going to book an MSC excursion for the day we're in Cozumel. Little tour of the area with a stop at a tequila factory and something about chocolate, oh and bees! Sounds like something that might be fun. Not opposed to using a 3rd party (we've done that a lot too over the years), but the MSC one ticked all the boxes for something we might enjoy, so I think we're going to do it.

A few years ago, pre-covid we did a little island tour in Grand Cayman. We were on Celebrity that cruise and I booked it thru them. My husband still talks about how much he liked it.

On 8/29/2022 at 7:47 AM, mafig said:

We asked for loungers to be put on our balcony.

Did you get them?  I'm hoping for 1. We're on Seascape in September and the balcony looks large enough.

UPDATE:

Just mentioned all of this to my husband. He said he's perfectly comfortable using the ship's tap water for his CPAP.