jtl513

Yes. The MDR is not a buffet.

11 minutes ago, POA1 said:

She can either link to the images on the institituteofcheer.com server

The image she wants is the old HAL logo, with the small Half Moon (ship) in front of a large modern ship.  Do you have that on your site?   In any case, why does the link to an image on the CC site no longer work for her?

3 hours ago, POA1 said:

I'm pretty sure that it's her little Mariner logo that was what was broken. There was some code in the signature that used to point to the logo on the HAL site. 

No, it is a link to an attachment to a post in the Test forum that I posted for her many years ago so that she wouldn't have to rely on the HAL site: 

boards.cruisecritic.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=69999

On 10/30/2018 at 1:29 PM, john2003 said:

Received this yesterday in the mail. There is a photo captioned Cape Horn showing a large iceberg. My experience is these are much further south on way to the Peninisula and driven by the Southern Ocean winds which go around the globe. I wonder if they have ever been seen at Cape Horn. I doubt it. 

Geography lesson needed for me or them. 

Wikipedia says:

Ice is a hazard to sailors venturing far below 40° south. Although the ice limit dips south around the horn, icebergs are a significant hazard for vessels in the area. In the South Pacific in February (summer in Southern Hemisphere), icebergs are generally confined to below 50° south; but in August the iceberg hazard can extend north of 40° south. Even in February, the Horn is well below the latitude of the iceberg limit.^[23] 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Horn

Can you still use OBC for a cash advance, since they get 3% for that? 

On any itinerary Early/Open dining will be the most casual and Main/Fixed the most dressy. Longer cruises tend to be dressier than short ones.

Only in very unusual circumstances. We had a Gala night on the last night of the 4-day first cruise of the Koningsdam out of FLL, 11/9-13/16.   Lots of VIP's and TA's aboard that short cruise. 

3 hours ago, Radbooks said:

We do have insurance, but I don't know what is required. A note from the doctor or what?

Both HAL's Standard and Platinum Cancellation Protection Plans are "cancel for any reason", so all that is required from you is a written statement that you wish to cancel. IIRC in our case we called first and got an email address to send the written statement.

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/pre-post-travel-cruise/cancellation-protection-plan.html

16 minutes ago, Alberta Quilter said:

 

Sorry, this isn't true.  If one originally books an OV cabin and then takes an upsell to a suite (any type of suite) then they do NOT get double cruise Day credits.  

 

I dislike misinformation, too.

However: if you originally book a non-suite, and later initiate the upgrade yourself, paying a "published fare" (i.e. full price) for the suite, it's just as if you booked the suite originally, and you do get the double credits.

On our last couple of cruises they didn't have 6 or so different kinds every day, just the "classic" and one special type that changed from day to day.

18 hours ago, Bill B said:

Well... I stand corrected. I've cruised with HAL and been on CruiseCritic for 18 years... but never heard of this promo before.

I don't know how you missed it ... if you search for ZPM you'll find 23 pages of posts! The oldest I noticed was Oct 2009, but I think we got it further back than that.  

10 minutes ago, aaaaa said:

To make an advance reservation, do you have to pay in advance too?

Yes.      

44 minutes ago, DocJohnB said:

 

 

Are jeans allowed in the dining room on any night? Asking, because I really don't have a clue.

Yes, "nice" jeans are allowed on non-Gala nights.

10 minutes ago, alwaysfrantic said:

If a 3 or above Mariner pre-books specialty dining ahead of time, is the discount applied onboard as credit, or is the discount only provided when booking onboard?

The discount applies when you pre-book, and it shows up as a "Loyalty" credit on your first or second day statement .

Tamarind hasn't been open for lunch on any ships for a few years now, and the SdM was not when we were on in Nov '16 at least.   Canaletto never has been AFAIK. The Nieuw Statendam is supposed to have a new venue called Club Orange where the K-dam has the America's Test Kitchen, and believe that it's going to be open for breakfast and lunch.

correction: the article says breakfast and dinner, not lunch, and you either have to be in a Neptune Suite or purchase a pass.

https://www.cruisecritic.com/news/news.cfm?ID=8935&source=99360

Try the Grand Dutch Cafe for lunch! 

6 minutes ago, killsport said:

Thanks @jtl513 and @JEH for your responses! Looks like I'll be appropriately attired (and yet still comfortable).

I should have added that this was for early/open-seating. Fixed and later dining tends to be more toward the dressier side.

On Gala nights on our last 7-day Carib (Oosterdam, Dec '16) about 2/3 of the men in the room wore either a jacket without a tie or a dress shirt and tie without a jacket. The remaining 1/3 was about evenly split between those with suits/tuxes and those with neither jacket nor tie.

21 hours ago, Iamthesea said:

The ship berths at Terminal 25.  Does anyone know if we can easily walk from  Terminal 26 to T-25, or is it too far to walk with luggage?

 It's about 750 feet, or 200 feet less than the length of the N.A.  

Sorry, no DVD players any more, and no way to attach a portable one. There is a sizable selection of on-demand movies available through the Navigator LAN page.

10 minutes ago, sail7seas said:

I have excess of days and might think gto 'give some away' if that would be permitted.

 

 

Well, the Mariner FAQs say you can't buy them, so I would expect you can't sell or give them away either!   They're not like airline FF miles or credit card points that have some value for purchasing alternative goods.

22 hours ago, DocJohnB said:

 

I just don't feel there is any realistic way for a supervisor (an anybody else) ascertaining which monies in a steward(ess)'s pocket came from a person who has withdrawn their HSC and which came from an "extra gratuity".

 

... or if a steward is under-reporting the amounts given. Basically it's an honor system backed by a little fear of getting caught cheating. 

15 hours ago, Iamthesea said:

What are the other perks of staying in a Signature Suite?

6 hours ago, kazu said:

Telephone concierge,  binoculars, umbrella, more pillow selection.  That's about it.

Double cruise-day credits

2 hours ago, Aquahound said:

 

I think all the lines should follow NCL's model.  The DSC is mandatory on board.  In order to remove them, you have to request it, in writing via mailed letter, after the cruise is ended to NCL.  The letter must detail your reasoning for removing the charges.  It's an inconvenient process and there is no way to remove them while on board.  

I like that idea.  

18 hours ago, ellieanne said:

I find that sometimes pre-purchased tours & meals are credited as on-board purchases for the Mariner Days and sometimes they are not. I do know know why or what the difference is. I never count on pre-purchased things for my Mariner days.

 

The upshot is I do not understand how or why Holland America calculates the spending bonus days the way they do. I'm usually use happy to finish up the cruise earning one or 2 extra days.

Our pre-purchases have always counted. Without them we would not be 4-star.

24 minutes ago, pirate_dad said:

I get the quieter and less crowded part but if the menu is the same its coming from the same kitchen so why pay more for it. The main dining room didn't bother me on the Koningsdam and I loved the view out the back window of the ship. If the food is prepared differently/better cuts or comes out of a different kitchen with better chefs then I might buy into it but it seems like an awful lot to pay for ambiance.

ONLY for breakfast are the MDR and PG menus the same, and there is no extra charge for the PG breakfast for Neptune and Pinnacle Suite passengers.   Specialty restaurant menus can be found here:

http://www.rogerjett-photography.com/specialty-2/hal-regular-and-specialty-restaurants/hal-specialty-restaurant-menus