YourWorldWithBill

When we were on the Noordam my cousins had CO, and it's true that it made it easier for them to dine with us, and to enter the dining room ahead of others who were waiting. I guess that would have been different if they were not CO.

I think you're correct about the one night two night issue. Our HAL cruises were 7 day and 10 day, and our next is a 13 day, and all were/will be in each port only one night. But since both of our Viking cruises were 7 days, there were also one night in each port! We've also experienced the extra night (on another line), and we liked it at the end of the cruise. As I said, although we liked Viking a lot, and missed the food a bit, we started feeling more comfortable in several ways on each of our HAL cruises, and the cost difference sealed the deal. Part of a decision a couple of years ago came from comparing cruises to the fjords in Norway; we were surprised by the better itineraries on HAL. And that's also really apparent in Alaska.

You're correct: they open up at a certain point, usually 3 or 4 months prior to sailing. I've always booked early online, but on these boards some have said that they keep plenty of slots available for booking onboard.

The main difference is location. We were midships on the Rotterdam and had 2 sinks and a bathtub (which we also didn't need). The Shower was the best I've had onboard.

We cruised on Viking twice before our first HAL cruise, and once we started on HAL we never looked back. We have the same reason you mentioned - we didn't think the difference in price was justified - but we also like the HAL itineraries and the staff. Remember, the main benefit of Club Orange is the room upgrade; so, if you pay for the cheapest verandah category you have your agent or HAL consultant while you're making the booking, talk to the right dept. at HAL and upgrade you to the stateroom you want. Nice savings. You won't have access to the Neptune lounge as they do, but there are several small things that go with the CO are convenient, and some that make it easier for you to be with them otherwise.

My nephew lives in Maui; previously west of Paia, and now on the slope of Haleakala. I visited a couple of times, but not since he moved.

That's been my experience in various ways: things on Navigator functioning well on the ship, but not pre-boarding.

Just a note of support for the beauty of College Fjord. We walked away from our dinner to go from side to side on the ship and couldn't get enough of what we saw.

We're going the opposite way: enjoyed CO on the Rotterdam (and other) and looking forward to it on the Nieuw Statendam soon. I believe that only the Rotterdam was built with CO in mind, and that the space was adapted on the other ships. So my prediction is that you'll really like it on your next cruise!

Maybe that's out new plan! That's the path.....

Good point. I use ginger tablets that are real ginger and pretty effective.

We also experienced both, and I would agree with @Crew News: walking on the glacier was worth every bit of the expense, but it is expensive. In fact, we found just the helicopter tide getting to, around and from the Mendenhall pretty spectacular, also. A once-in-a-lifetime experience. Perhaps because of the time of year and weather, Glacier Bay, although nice, was not the highlight of our cruise. But we didn't go to Hubbard Glacier. Obviously I can't comment on other viewing of the glacier.

I think we have to see how this plays out. As others have said, it's not in HAL's interest to offend its customers. My suspicion is that it won't happen too often. My PCC, probably stating the company line, said that any move would be to an "equal" or better cabin. All of us who chose our cabins know that we are particular about what cabin we want, so the idea of "equal" may not work; but let's see how HAL actually deals with it. After all, I'd be fine with an upgrade in most cases, but not all. And as far as your point, @Gsel, I seriously doubt that they would move someone from a Neptune suite.

I went to that post and copied it. Thanks for that work; way beyond my capabilities lately.

I don't do that much, just check things. I use Firefox occasionally on my desktop, but just let my cell use Chrome. It's probably a good idea to use Firefox; I'm using it on my tablet.

Just a quick note to say hello to everyone and thank you for the fleet report, maps, and all the posts. @Quartzsite Cruiser, I really look forward to your cartoons every day. I restrain myself from posting cartoons, since I'm usually posting fairly late. @Overhead Fred, thanks for the pictures; we will be visiting Keukenhof in a couple of weeks before our Baltic cruise, so the pictures have us ready!

Nope, the dinner menu won't open, but breakfast worked, and Tamarind worked. I generally don't look until almost time for the cruise, but now it's just doing the usual HAL IT shuffle. Probably too early to see the daily menu.

We are on the NS May 5 cruise.

Thanks for the very helpful detail. Since the Explore has a longer battery life, that seems to make the most sense. And because we don't know how she will respond to it, we'll buy one and see how it goes, and use meclizine at night. Good advice to take it a couple of hours before removing the band when at sea. Since most days we will be in port early morning, she probably won't wear it those days during the day until before disembarkation. How long before leaving port would you suggest? A couple of hours?

Similar here. Sprinkling very slightly at times, but the rain is mostly finished.

Thanks, we appreciate it. We'll probably try the EmeTerm and go with Bonine instead of the drowsy kind.

Greetings all, and thanks for fleet report, the maps, the posts and pictures. As @Haljo1935said, pretty heavy rain this morning in our area. Dark skies earlier, lighter now but still raining. Many flights are delayed. One of our dogs, Coco (the newest & youngest), and one of our cats, Parker, are fluctuating between being cuddle buddies and trying to whack each other. A bit dangerous for Coco, so she stays in her playpen when we're not around.

I understand the frustration. This sort of thing is really ridiculous.

Do you have a personal cruise consultant? If not, call the PCC number 800-355-3017 and speak to whoever you get on the line. There are other numbers you can try, but see what happens with that. If that doesn't work, try 877-724-5425. In fact, maybe try that first! It's "resolution specialist."

A bit tragic that probably none of us are surprised by that.