robotpony

🤣 That's exactly what I thought when I read it! A simple comma makes such a difference.

Welcome to Vancouver! Also, Bon Voyage from Vancouver!

We didn't find $11 limiting. There were only a few standard menu drinks over $11, so most mixed drinks and a modest selection of wine (and most beer) is $11 and under. Doubles and higher end spirits are more expensive, but higher end is well above, say, a Hendric's, so you're not limited to only the cheapest spirits. If you drink Scotch or wine (or other expensive spirits), then $11 is more limiting. We were fine with the wine selection, but our tastes are fairly modest in that sense. The $11 glass of wine was better value on HA than it would be in Vancouver.

Lido coffee is okay first thing in the morning, but not something I would seek out. Lots of personal preference in this, but it tastes like the coffee in my downtown office. Unfortunately on HA (at least this summer) you pay full price for anything over your plan's limit, so a $20 glass of wine would be $20 + gratuity, not $15 (gratuity included). We did find a reasonable selection of wines under this limit, but it really depends on what you're looking for.

I was impressed by the quality of the BB King band on the Koningsdam this summer, though the music directer ended up sitting in on keyboards (he was fantastic, too). I chatted with him at one of the bars, and we shared our love of keyboards over the years. The band itself was tight, full of energy, and we watched every performance that week. I was also impressed by the duelling pianos music; a huge range of songs, taking requests, and just a nice place to hang out with lower overall business and volume levels. Unfortunately there was only one pianist due to a staffing issue, who duelled themselves quite effectively 😆. The highlight for us at the piano bar was the music trivia set against classic Disney music. Some great nostalgia to hear those old (and newer) songs in a lounge environment. I also noticed that the pianist sounded a lot like Ben Folds when singing, which itself was a special treat for a piano nerd who likes crossover piano/pop/rock artists. The rock band at the Rolling Stone was good; great at times, but couldn't really pull off the Pink Floyd numbers quite as well. There was a wide selection of music from the 70s to the 90s (and maybe beyond, we missed a few sets). We were especially impressed by the quartet. Their rendition of pop music in classical styles was a special treat, and their other performances were worth the time for us. Overall, the music selection worked well for me (m50) and my partner (f45). We listen to many different genres and time periods of music, and found something at all venues to enjoy. I also found the venues intimate compared to many of the shows we've seen over the years. The music is something that will keep us coming back to HA for the next few years at least.

Someone linked to some menus a few weeks back, and there was a vegetarian MDR menu in the set. We didn't know about this menu until recently, so I can't confirm it's on all/any of the HA ships this year. A few YouTubers have found its availability depends on which ship you are on.

This is what we've done for our next 3 cruises. The veranda cabins are nice, but really we'd prefer to be out of our room and closer to the amenities.

We bought some this summer at $8.5 and it will return ~$500 in OBC by the end of the year, which is something like an 80% return on the required 100 units. I consider it a long term hold stock that will continue paying in OBC based on the overall potential value, and the investment is small enough that even some risk is fine. The likelihood for growth is still there given the large and diverse inventory, despite the debt load (which will likely that will only delay growth more than prevent).

They were good (especially the sauces), but they did look a lot like frozen steak-cut fries the last time we were on the Koningsdam.

For what it's worth, I was unexpectedly impressed by the HA Dive-In burger. Burgers can be a divisive issue, but I appreciated the simple smash-style (think In&Out). The fries were adequate, but I'd probably skip them next time we cruise HA.

We had a room above the World Stage on the Koningsdam this summer due to some last minute planning. As we were usually at the shows, it never bothered us. For people who get to bed earlier, it would have been pretty disruptive on the nights had the later dance shows.

I read recently that the intent of ArriveCan was for customs declarations (instead of those sheets of paper handed out on cruises/flights), and that it was co-opted to try to streamline COVID intake. I believe it would continue to be optional, but can be handy for those who both travel regularly and don't carry a pen with them 😆

First cruise was this summer @ 49 years old, but we should hit ⭐️⭐️ with our November Caribbean plans! We're hoping that we'll be up to ⭐️⭐️⭐️ next year with a longish YVR→Hawaii and Iberian Coast trips.

Quick update on changes to current Canadian travel restrictions: vaccination status requirements will likely be removed by end of month, but masking and random testing likely will not be (if I read the news reports correctly). Severe cases are down significantly, but I assume we're taking some caution as flu and cold season approach to minimize overall health outcomes here.

Current indications are that travel restrictions will be phased out over the next few months. This hasn't been officially announced, but it has been leaked similar to other changes to these protocols.

From our August experience on the Koningsdam, the pizza place was open after midnight at least some of the nights. Things started shutting down around the pool around 1AM those nights (I think) and were already pretty quiet, though with the time change it may have been midnight. We ordered pizza after dancing at the BB King venue (and hopping to the duelling pianos) a few nights, and it was fantastic. The vibe around the pool late at night is pretty great, not a lot of people, nice and cool, and some nice snacks.

From the staff members I spoke with, this was a special promotion to drive sales post-pandemic, and not a normal incentive. There was a good amount of chaos in the booking offices and they mentioned that they weren't even aware until a few days before. I couldn't get confirmation, talking to some travel agents on the cruise they suggested that specific guests were provided these to encourage them to continue cruising with HA, so I assume we were just super lucky. We likely would have booked something in that season, but something closer to home (Quebec to Boston maybe), rather than fly to Europe. We're happy for the incentive, and it definitely adds points in the HA column of travel.

On our August Alaska cruise we found a free cruise voucher in our stateroom mail slot. We were, of course, skeptical as HA posts a lot of smaller vouchers in the mail slot that don't amount to much (especially for Spa services, diamond shops, etc.). We read the terms and conditions and talked it over with the future cruise office, which we had booked an appointment with already. There was a large selection of cruises to choose from and we tentatively booked a 2023 Iberian coast cruise! The offer covered an inside cabin, which was fine by us. We added the HIA drink package and paid the $100 refundable deposit. All-in, with taxes, HIA, and crew tips, the cruise will cost more than 50% less than our typical cruise. Had we forgone the drink package, It would have been well under $1000 for two people on an 11 day cruise. Boy did that make our day! If anyone is curious, we were able to transfer the cruise to our local travel agent so that we could start planning flights and hotels in Copenhagen and Rome.

You should be able to tap in and out with a credit card (that supports tap), debit card (Interac), any Apple Pay device, or a system ticket/card. I haven't tested the Apple Pay method, but my partner regularly forgets their system card and taps with their Visa. You can optionally buy tickets at the kiosks just before the gates, which is a bit cheaper than using your credit/debit card directly. These kiosks sell single passes (3 zone) and stored/monthly cards (called Compass cards). Unless you're planning on using transit for a few days, the stored cards aren't much of a savings. On the Skytrain, you tap in to pass the gates on to a platform. You tap out when leaving the platforms later. This ensures the correct amount is charged to your ticket or card. On a bus, you merely tap in by the driver, tapping out was tested by never implemented (hint: no one did it). The driver can help you if tap isn't working. I once tried to tap using my Holland America room key (as it was in my pocket too), and the driver politely reminded me to use a real card.

Yes, for example if you ask for a margarita with 'Cabo Wabo' tequila ($10.75), this would be included in the SBP. Whereas, one with 'Patron Anejo' ($14.50) would not. And even with those limitations, we never exceeded our 15 drinks/day or the $11 per drink, even including some above-average liquors. It was a bit more difficult with wine, but there were still good choices at the $11 price point, you just had to be more mindful.

I'm pretty easy with drinks (my default is gin/soda), but I did find a few bartenders who made extra dry martinis and old fashions (the sort that are not too sweet). I was impressed with the overall consistency of drinks on our last sailing.

Wear the tux if you can, it makes the room better for everyone! Depending on what we pack, I'll always dress up in the dining rooms as it makes it special for us, and it classes up the joint a bit. I don't normally bring a tux, but I'm thinking of it for our next longer cruises.

Oddly, we were asked to sign once on our last cruise. It was also the only time they gave us our receipts. I assume this was a newer server or something.

We embarked in Vancouver in August (things change, but I'm pretty sure this will still hold). What we did: COVID test ~48 hours before leaving Set up VeriFly app (which includes your COVID results, passport, etc.) Set up AriveCAN VeriFly isn't required, but there was a much shorter line in the cruise terminal for those that had filled it out. We didn't have to show any documentation, other than our passports and VeriFly/AriveCAN receipts on our phones. We had screenshots of all of the QR codes (in case the apps didn't work), as well as screenshots of our boarding passes. The HA system was down just prior to us arriving, but by the time we got there our apps were working again. Screenshots are helpful when one of the apps go down, but printouts can work too. For those that had neither, HA was happy to help (but those lines were longer). And while the terminal was a bit chaotic, once we relaxed and scanned the room carefully (and asked for directions) we found the shorter lines and made our way through quickly. It took < 30 minutes to board, and the room was full enough I was expecting 1hr+. I find these things stressful, but overall this was much better than some of my worst airport stories.

The disembark time is when things get rolling on that day; you get to pick your time (more or less) by picking up luggage tags the day or two before, which puts you in a disembarking group. We disembarked starting at 8AM in August, and our group was something like GREEEN-1, which was 9:45AM. The whole process (in Vancouver at least) took about 20 minutes once we were off the ship.