Haljo1935

Just saw this - glad you were able to get moved as that cabin would have been loud...

Just sailed on NS last month - no issues with noise from the Atrium, but those particular cabins you will have elevator and pedestrian noise. The more full the ship, the more noise at the mid-elevator. Also remember that port days those stairwells also get heavy traffic from people going to gangway.

Haven't stayed in these on the Oosterdam, but have on other ships and LOVE them! Seriously could fit 10 people on the balcony. They have been no noisier than other cabins and since the ice room is accessed only by crew which now give limited service, it has not been loud. These cabins do go early since there are only 2 on each ship and they're Port side - premium without premium price. One callout is if you're going to be more than 2 people in the cabin, check occupancy as some hold 3 and others only 2; it's due to some having sofa while others have sofa bed.

I have been asking this same thing - where did my casino rate discount code go? Out of the blue, all itineraries I price come at the published rate rather than free as I was getting. Nobody seems to be able to help and I am no longer receiving them via snail mail.

Can you advise on benefits of booking as Collectors vs B2B? I've never had a FCC suggest that when booking on board and would like to know if I should consider doing that - we do a few B2B each year and I certainly don't want to miss out.

We have loyalty numbers for CCL, HAL and Princess and are at different levels on each of them. Would love for them to be reciprocated if someone can tell me how to go about making that happen.

Leave this weekend B2B on Nieuw Amsterdam; 2nd week will have a forward Spa Oceanview and a Spa Inside w/window. This will be my first time in an inside and 30+ years since being in an Oceanview, so this thread is very timely for me. I know I probably confused some since I mentioned 2 types of cabins for same week - we're a group of 3 and plan on deciding who actually sleeps where once we're onboard and can see the cabins. I didn't know an inside cabin w/a window was a "thing" until I found this on the deck plan and decided it would be a good way to see if I could handle an interior. While not providing an actual view, I thought the natural light from the window may be my savior. Heck, insides may not even be an issue for me, but don't know since this is my first one. I'll update when I return and remain interested in comments from those with experience.

I know with 1000% certainty a person can receive many many free cabin offers from the CCL family (HAL included) without ever spending a penny in one of the casinos on any of their ships. I also know with same level of certainty the offers continue even after multiple offers have been accepted, bookings made and cruises completed still without parting with a penny in a casino. So, while I agree that sometimes people may not give the full story, I agree with Florida_gal_50 that on this topic may people may not be stretching the truth. I also believe we'll see these type of offers being made to these type of passengers reducing as cruise lines attempt to bring stability and profitability to their books.

Frustratingly, you can't book 2nd week excursions on the app but you can still do it online. With that said, I have 2 separate booking numbers for all my B2B even though they get linked. I booked 2nd week "stuff" during week 1 in Oct and Dec and plan on doing it again next week. Fingers crossed it still works. Again, extremely annoying but booking online does work. And even if you don't have an internet package, you can access HAL website from the app.

As recently as Oct and Dec, I have requested credit once onboard for something I prepaid prior to embarking and had ZERO issues. Simply let them give me OBC (it automatically posts as Refundable OBC) and at the end of the trip either have it refunded to CC or cash it out. This has worked for spa, excursions and dining. All requests need to be made with the appropriate desk (ie excursions at Excursion desk...) not at Guest Services. I did this on Nieuw. Amsterdam, Nieuw Statendam and Koningsdam, worked flawlessly. Have also made Pinnacle reservations using HIA by simply calling rather than doing it online. They applied to HIA credit and it shows as "redeemed" in the booking. Did that last summer (2022) for Dec 2022 & Feb 2023 cruises without issue. Agree passengers simply trying to use what they've paid for earned shouldn't have to jump though hoops or be disappointed, but sometimes we just have to find a way to make it all work. I'm not looking to make a vacation a stressful ordeal... And agree that plans/schedules/things change and there needs to room to accommodate those changes so capacity control should certainly be in play. Especially as ships are once again at capacity.

Any recent experience with laundry service? We've been fortunate on last couple cruises (Oct & Dec) to get laundry back same day even though we did not pay for express same day service. So, question is - with upcoming cruise being sold out/at capacity, has anyone experienced laundry b taking more than a day to get back? We rely on laundry service to minimize amount of clothes we take with us - I'm packing now for next cruise and would like to pack appropriately. That's my tip for new HAL guests - use the laundry service to minimize quantity of clothes you bring. $20/bag, $49 unlimited. The team does a great job, takes pride in their work and will tuck a handwritten note into your laundry when it's returned. 🙂