YourWorldWithBill

51 minutes ago, vicd1969 said:

That said, I am shocked no one has yet mentioned the club orange tote bag 😉

Wow, you're right! How could we miss that! It just goes to show that when distracted by small details (price, location, food, etc.) we can forget the really important things! 🫣

10 hours ago, cruiser man 60 said:

Whilst appreciating it’s not HAL went on NCL a few years ago and in MDR nearly every American male wore shorts with 50% in baseball caps worn back to front for some reason! !

Haven't seen that on HAL! But then, our cruises are almost never hot weather cruises.

Good early evening and thanks for all the reports. So sorry to hear the news from those going through troubles. Let's hope for better times, and cruises.

Bon voyage! Hope the cruise exceeds your wildest expecations.

12 hours ago, islandwoman said:

It is my understanding (although I have no experience) that in hotels, concierges expect large tips in return for fixing problems.  Is it the same on HAL, or are their tips covered by the assessed crew gratuities?

Because we used the concierge on our last cruise a lot, we gave him a tip; and because we had gotten to know him a bit, he assured us that a good report on the survey was much more important.

10 hours ago, rwethereyet1969 said:

First time cruisers, we are booked on the Koningsdam 7 day Alaska inside passage May 31 - June 7, 2025.  I booked this hoping for less rain, more sunlight, less mosquitos, snow-capped mountains, and *hopefully* less children since many schools are still in class through first week of June.  The temperature wasn't really a factor for us as we live in Wisconsin and it will feel mostly like home....lol.

 

I have already booked our Tracy Arm excursion.  For those who have done this excursion, what do you typically do in Juneau afterwards?  Will we be too tired to book a Juneau excursion as well?  Is there enough to do in port just walking around without booking something?  Very torn on this.

Juneau is a good area for whale watching.

Mistake.

16 hours ago, cruiseaholic78 said:

I sincerely hope not, bread pudding reminds me of school dinners (UK) and was never a favorite of mine! That said I have been following the menus on the Nieuw Statendam as we will be sailing on her next month and been very sorry to see hardly any fruit crisp offerings.

 

I hope you have not been influencing the chefs on HAL to replace my beloved fruit crisp with your beloved bread pudding. I might even need to put in a special request with of course double portion of creme anglais instead of ice cream (have to watch my weight).

Just for the record, the bread pudding I had in school (US) was not the same food as what's being discussed here! The fact that they still called it bread pudding... well, at school they can get away with a lot!

16 hours ago, cruiseaholic78 said:

I sincerely hope not, bread pudding reminds me of school dinners (UK) and was never a favorite of mine! That said I have been following the menus on the Nieuw Statendam as we will be sailing on her next month and been very sorry to see hardly any fruit crisp offerings.

 

I hope you have not been influencing the chefs on HAL to replace my beloved fruit crisp with your beloved bread pudding. I might even need to put in a special request with of course double portion of creme anglais instead of ice cream (have to watch my weight).

Just for the record, the bread pudding I had in school (US) was not the same food as what's being discussed here! The fact that they still called it bread pudding... well, at school they can get away with a lot!

Another note about passports: we usually don't take our passports with us on excursions, but a while ago in Rome the Italians were demanding to see everyone's passport before letting them reboard after excursions. They wouldn't even accept copies. For some reason I had taken mine, so I had to go to the room, get my wife's, and bring it back so that she could get back on board.

Just one more.....

I've been told that HAL holds a few staterooms until a short time before the cruise, for a couple of reasons. So, I guess if that's true it might explain this.

3 hours ago, Sea Hag said:

They probably might still be working on this, but for the cruise I booked the other day (through an agent on the phone for a quad on deck 10 of the Noordam for the two of us) I still see nearly all those quad cabins available for a party of two. I'll try that again in a few days and see what I see then.

Yes, I think things are changing almost daily. On the cruise I booked a couple of days ago I booked a V cabin midships. One day many cabins both aft and forward of the exact midship showed as available. The next day the cabins aft of exact midship were not available, but forward were, even though most were also marked as quads. 

26 minutes ago, 57redbird said:

@JazzyV  glad you finally have a plan --  hope it is super successful!  Just know it's a bit of a long recovery....I'm about 3 1/2 months out from my spine surgery & am still having good & bad days with pain.  Only did 4 PT sessions 'cause I didn't feel they were worthwhile... 4 exercises today, 3 different ones the next time,  4 different ones the next time & then I said 'Forget it".  I'm 79, not overweight & fairly active with my only limiting issue is emphysema (not on oxygen) so I thought my recovery would be easier than it seems to be.

My quadriceps were in pain for at least 4, maybe 5 months. I also didn't stick with PT but walked regularly. My surgeon told me that was fine.

Someone I follow on YouTube who cruises at least monthly always takes his own pillow, so maybe that's just another motivation for more luggage!

7 minutes ago, Crew News said:

Denali does not open until June to see caribou, moose, brown bears, wolves, etc.  It is my experience that early May is the return of humpbacks with very frisky calves, hungry eagles before salmon season begins, curious Sitka deer fawns, newborn harbor seals in Glacier Bay, and hungry black bears just out of hibernation searching for dandelions.

 

Opting for a Club Orange upgrade gets me an aft verandah for photos and Glacier Bays visitors

Years ago my brother cruised in July and said they saw eagles from the ship almost every day, and many whales without much effort.

8 hours ago, puppycanducruise said:

How did you get a picture of my dog?

That looks just like Bertie Woofster.🙂

Great name! I love that name. Many years ago I read all the books.

Our last cruise we were in Club Orange, and when I wanted something from the Indian menu I had to request it a day in advance. So, it's probably better to be safe rather than sorry, even in the MDR. 

I think that at breakfast you don't need to order in advance. For example, on a previous cruise I had a South Indian dish, dosa, one morning at breakfast in the MDR. It's one of my favorite dishes, and even if it's not on the menu I think they are making it every day because of the number of staff from South India on most ships. The head chef on a cruise told me that.

2 hours ago, kazu said:

The Neptune Suites on the R class ship are the largest in the fleet with wonderful balconies.  Bigger than any of the other classes of ship.  You can easily put 8+ people on the balcony to wave at sail away if you want.  Neptune Lounge is nicer IMO as well since there is no key entry - you just walk in.  The concierges KNOW who their guests are.

Although we haven't been on a R class ship, compared to the Vista class ships the bathroom on the Neptune in the Rotterdam (Pinnacle, as you know) was much nicer, with a spectacular shower! Even though neither cruise was that long ago, my memory about the room is a bit fuzzy; but I remember the bathroom very clearly! And our concierge was also the best, very attentive, and we asked for a lot.

3 hours ago, crystalspin said:

I was speaking of the R-class Vista Suites, above, Bill. On the Pinnacle class ships, the storage is much the same (three deep drawers and smaller ones in desk and nightstand). The differences are Vista Suite is about four feet deeper and the sitting area is toward the hallway rather than toward the balcony. Oh, and the locations on the ship are prime for the V.suites! 

Good to hear: Thanks! That's why we chose the V that we did: location. But it's great to know that the storage is about the same. Before booking I had read on CC that the Vista suites on the Pinnacle were not significantly enough better to justify the price. I like space, and it's always a tough decision to accept a bit less! And as I said on another board, I was hoping for an inexpensive upgrade, but the cruise is now sold out. 

2 hours ago, Crew News said:

August is much warmer than May but it is also wetter.  August also features mosquitoes (unofficial state bird).  May is the direst month but also the most scenic with snow on the higher peaks and a chill in the air in the morning.

We were there in early September, great for seeing the black bears catching salmon and the Aurora (which we were fortunate to see from Fairbanks). But for our next Alaska cruise we will focus on wildlife. Which is the best month for that? I see different projections depending on who is saying it. We're hoping for more whales, eagles, maybe others. 

Happy birthday @seagarsmoker !

Are there kittens who are not cuddly? Do they have a special day?

Parker, Peter and Rosie asked: are we still cuddly kittens?

Just now, crystalspin said:

We took a paid upgrade to the Vista (at that time it was called a Verandah Suite), from an OV, with three adults. It was great! Lots of room, a sleeper sofa that flipped rather than pulled out, three banks of drawers, three closets. No double points bc upsell.

 

Can't speak to the Neptune, sorry OP, but just hate it when people say "Vista Suite is JUST a Verandah". It is a fine cabin!

Now I wish I'd booked a Vista suite on our May cruise on NS. And it's sold out, so can't even hope for an upgrade.

The reason that it's so tough to recommend something like this is our individual perspectives. We loved the Neptune suites on our recent cruises, but are in a verandah for the next, as it is a longer, more expensive cruise. So, it's always weighing cost against benefits. 

As others said, the Neptune lounge is very nice; in addition to the snacks, etc. available, we found being able to talk anytime to the concierge, who could handle just about any issue, was something that was a real benefit for us and made it worth it. This meant more than the extra space, although I'll always take the space if I can! Nice large bathrooms and good closet space, also.

I have to stop reading, as this has made me hungry for lunch now. And since I do not have bread pudding at home, I'll have to wait for the NS.