Colorado Klutch

It appears there have been active protests, but no physical altercations. Locals complain about cruise passengers peaking into their kitchen windows and even attempting to enter private homes. Obviously, it would help if cruise passengers were simply considerate when visiting ports. As is typical, the local merchants LOVE the cruise ships since they depend on the income. Maybe the protesters are people who live on trust funds and have no concept of what it is to earn a living? They complain that cruise ship employees are mistreated. No doubt some have been mistreated, but I have visited many parts of the planet where people have no opportunity to earn a living. Cruise ships jobs are highly coveted. They work hard and are proud of their jobs. Yeah, these are all very "big picture" issues we can't solve. I just want to be aware of what I might encounter if I book a Norway cruise.

Thanks. I've seen pictures of anti-cruiser signs posted at Norwegian ports. While this isn't particularly welcoming, have there been active protests or demonstrations? One sign said, "Go back your boat and return as a proper tourist". Well, considering how expensive it is to visit Norway as a "proper tourist", it's either as a cruise passenger or not at all.

I am new to cruising and recently booked an Alaska cruise with Holland America. If Mrs. Klutch enjoy the experience, I was thinking of booking a future Norway cruise with HAL. However, I'm learning there is a lot of anti-cruise ship sentiment in Norway and they will soon ban cruise ships in the fjords. Is anyone following this situation who might have updated information? I did three Northern Atlantic exercises when I was in the Navy and went into two fjords. The experience was amazing and I was hoping to share it with my family. Maybe not...

Well-seasoned groups don't want to ride cruise ships all over the planet away from their friends and family. Well-seasoned groups typically have plenty of work paying good money; likely more than cruise lines are willing to pay. I don't mean to disparage the performers on cruise ships. They are talented and hard-working. And cruise jobs are good, steady work which is hard to come by for performing artists. But let's be real. It's not Broadway and it's not Carnegie Hall. It is good experience and good resume fodder for moving on to other good, steady work.

I recently saw this story and it would make me concerned that what applied months ago may not apply now: https://www.cbsnews.com/miami/news/dozens-of-cruise-line-passengers-stranded-at-port-everglades/

Do the bars not have soda water? Not the same as LaCroix, but similar.

I will do that. Thank you!

Almost a month ago I booked an Alaska cruise on HAL for May. I couldn't figure out how to book Early Dining, so I called Customer Support. The rep informed me Early Dining and Late Dining were completely full, so I was automatically assigned Anytime Dining. I'm wondering if this means my cruise is going to be completely packed or if cruisers have heard Anytime dining is a chaos of waiting in line.

Try a good old-fashioned snail mail letter: The postal address of Holland America Cruise Line customer service or head office: 450 Third Avenue West Seattle, WA 98119, USA. If you can find out, It would help to have a name for the person who is in charge. Here in the world of email, chats, texting and social media, it's ironic how nothing gets attention like a traditional, printed letter.

I submitted the form for the Veteran's OBC. I did not receive an email and don't see anything on my account indicating I have an OBC. I tried to submit it again and got the message, "We appreciate your enthusiasm, but you have already submitted". So who knows?

I doubt typical video games would be a big draw. But some high-end racing simulators would likely go over well. People pay a lot of money to use those things at private clubs

Interesting. Thank you.

I'm wondering how such renovations are accomplished. When I looked at the ship schedules, there's never a day between cruises. Does HAL simply bring the construction crews along for the voyage?

Considering how expensive cigarettes are these day, just think of all the extra money non-smokers have to gamble! 😄 Every cig is one less spin.

I don't gamble, but the positive side of cruise ship casinos is they bring in a lot of revenue which helps to offset costs for everyone. (Slot machines are ATMs that work in reverse.) One of the reasons Disney cruises are so expensive is because there are no casinos to offset costs. I hoping the extra casino space will prevent more cost-cutting with Holland America.

Interesting. I recently booked the White Pass excursion and saw no mention of anything being complimentary.

I guess I'm just a nerd, but Holland America ships are strikingly beautiful.

I used to work in Portland, Maine occasionally. Every time I went there I would go to a local, floating restaurant called DiMillo's for their 2-lobster dinner. It was good and it was cheap. But I wouldn't expect a cruise ship to recreate that experience. It would require a massive tank of live lobsters! I've had only a few frozen lobster tails in my life and none of them impressed me. Sounds like the Dover sole is the way to go.

Wondering if the cost will go up with the bandwidth.

It's all subjective. Years ago my brother gave me grief because I wasn't interested in booking a cruise on a Carnival ship. He accused me of thinking I was too good for Carnival. I had to explain I didn't think I was too good for anything. I had simply researched multiple cruise lines and got a very strong impression Carnival wasn't for me. I know lots of people who had a great time aboard Carnival ships. Cool. After more research I came to the conclusion Holland America seemed right for me and Mrs. Klutch. I hope I'm right. If not, there are many other cruise lines to choose from.

Thanks. I booked the cruise the myself, then transferred it to a TA. My TA said she would looking into it, but I haven't heard anything.

I completed the form for Veterans while I was logged into my HAL account last week. I never received an email nor do I see any indication of an OBC. How does one verify this?

My only point was that big ships go through a lot of food. Cruise ships get food supplies from wherever they are operating. But sure, it must be from a guaranteed supplier.

So you were a "Chop". 😄

Pardon me for using a Navy reference again, but when I was stationed aboard an aircraft carrier, I used to see the Logistics Requests. Whenever the ship pulled into a port, we would purchase supplies from the local economy. (One of the reasons foreign countries were willing to put up with thousands of sailors invading was the huge sums of money the Navy brought in with them.) One number that stood out was "11,000 Dozen Eggs". I expect cruise ships order similar numbers.