Moriah

Oh wow! I just this minute posted that there is no sound notification for Navigator texts! Can you please post instructions on how to get it to make a sound on iPhone? That would be a lifesaver for me on my cruise next week!

Alaska is NOT considered roaming. It's part of the US. You can turn on your phone when you dock anywhere in Alaska and get your provider's signal. Remember though, that Victoria is in Canada...as is Vancouver... and be careful.

When I cruised with my no-tech 90 year old Mom, I came equipped with post-it notes and markers and always put a note on the bathroom mirror and near the doorknob of the cabin telling her where I would be and until what time, and when in doubt, the plan was always to meet at the cabin. In reality, we were almost always together and when we weren't, we just agreed to come back to the cabin to collect one another. I confess it was kind of a pain... I prefer texting... but even when I sailed with my 31 year old daughter, who constantly texted me, she complained I didn't see her texts because I'd forget to check! The Navigator does not give you any sound notification of incoming texts so it's easy to forget!

That doesn't make much sense, since the person has paid in full. Honestly HAL doesn't much care if you actually sail. Once final payment date is past, and you are paid up. If you try to CANCEL before the sail date, however, of course they may do all kinds of weird things, such as make the person who IS sailing pay a single supplement or whatever. But a no-show, in my experience, does not cause this to happen.

Yes, they end up with 250% payment IF the person CANCELS before the day of sailing by calling HAL and telling them in advance that they intend not to show up, even though it's after final payment. However, if they "can't make it" and just don't show up, that doesn't happen, at least not in my experience, since sadly, it happened to me that I ended up sailing alone on Maasdam a few cruises before she left the fleet... The lack of drama is if the person who is sailing just checks in and goes on the cruise, and the other person just doesn't.

Yes, this.

No. This is a bad idea. I have been in this situation. When you check in, just say, my roommate will not be able to make it to the cruise after all. There is no drama there. As Ruth said, HAL is paid up, all is well on their side whether the person shows or not, and you will simply check in and sail alone. You will be AFTER final payment, and the other person is paid up, so really, it's not very dramatic. I would NOT advise you to lie. They will come to your cabin and investigate before sailing if you do that, trying to "find" the person... it's just a bad idea. And there's no reason for it.

No, they won't charge you anything on the day of sailing when your roommate doesn't show. the person who doesn't show forfeits 100% of what they have paid. So HAL is all paid up. The no-show person will get nothing back, and as said, their OBC will disappear into oblivion.

I hope that coffee snafu was because of Covid supply chain issues. I've never had a problem with having coffee in the suite. Think positive, gregma! Coffee you shall have at 5:15 or any time! 🙂

Nope, the person who does cruise will not get the other person's OBC. Yes, you just tell the person when you check in for embarkation that the other guest will not be sailing after all. You will still get your own OBC, but anything on the other person's booking will not show up on your statement.

Probably not - you will probably be charged per person, not per entree. I guess they see it as paying for the "experience". You can always still share if you like, or just order starters... but remember the menu isn't set up with prices for each item except for a few premium items with up-charges. So ordering "just an extra appetizer" would not work as far as "extra charge" or instead of a regular charge. Does that make sense? As I mentioned, the specialty restaurants are charge "per person", not based on what you order.

Shore excursions that start half an hour after "arrival", which it's been pointed out already actually means "time you can disembark the ship", don't have to be rushed to. You will be fine. If you have an excursion set for half hour after "arrival" please do not think you have to rush to be the first ones off the ship. If you arrive in Juneau, for example at 8 AM, and your excursion meets at 8:30, I would get off the ship at 8:15, and walk the few steps to the meeting place for your excursion. You'll probably still have to stand there for a while as stragglers arrive 🙂 Plenty of time for breakfast, but I have found, especially when you have a suite and it's comfortable for eating, room service on an early port day is sublime. Have them deliver breakfast at 7:30, take half an hour to eat, then get ready and head for the gangway. Don't stress! This is your vacation! 🙂

Oh wait, I know I said I'd shut up, but I just noticed you are sailing on Volendam. Keep in mind the Pinnacle Grill has NO WINDOWS on that ship. It's a lovely dinner venue, but at breakfast, I don't know about you, but especially in Alaska, I don't want to miss the scenery!

For me, it's not much of a perk. As i said, it's quiet. That's about it as far as why it would be "better" than eating elsewhere. And if you are in any kind of hurry, don't eat in Pinnacle OR MDR. Get room service or eat at the buffet, where the food is fast, delicious, plentiful, and fresh. I'd rather have an omelet cooked right in front of me on the Lido than order one in the Pinnacle and wait half an hour for it to arrive cold. But that's just me. I'll let others chime in now 🙂 In any case, you will love your Alaska cruise in a Neptune Suite!

Yes, in Alaska the veranda can be a chilly place, but sometimes it's "just right"! Also, room service for you and your friends right inside your suite is a nice quiet choice as well.

Also, coffee and tea ARE available 24 hours for you right in your suite, which comes with an espresso/coffee machine.

No, it's not open 24 hours. Varies slightly, but usually from 7:30 AM until around 8 PM. A limited bar is available usually starting in the afternoon. Your drink package or regular payment apply.

Oh, and something I forgot to add. Best thing IMO would be to order room service breakfast and eat with your friends on the veranda of your Neptune suite. Much nicer experience, I think, than breakfast in the Pinnacle.

I really don't think this is much of an issue. I have always wanted to consider breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill a great perk of the suite life, but in reality it never panned out that way. Often in port the "view" from the Pinnacle Grill can be just a cement wall, LOL, for one thing, and if at sea, still, as was pointed out, you get the exact same food in the MDR, only it takes longer and is colder by the time it reaches the Pinnacle. Nothing special. i have never ever been to a Pinnacle breakfast that was even slightly crowded. Usually it's a ghost town in there during breakfast. I really don't think that you taking a table for 4 instead of 2, and having breakfast in there with your friends, is taking away from the quality of anyone's cruise. If, on the other hand, your friends were a family of 8, obviously, a different story. I think it's the Maitre D's discretion, and it's really not a big deal. It's not as if the chef is going to be creating some super special breakfast for your friends that "regular" cruise guests can't eat. I personally don't even eat in the MDR in the morning. Service is very slow. For both venues the only perk is the relative quiet. I get that people sometimes prefer the Pinnacle and/or MDR for breakfast to avoid the zooey atmosphere of the Lido buffet, and to each his own, but as for bringing "guests" to your perk-breakfast, if they say yes, then okay. If they don't, I'm sure they have reasons, so I would just go eat somewhere else with my friends. Wow, I must be more opinionated that I thought about this! What a long reply I've just given for something I myself just said is 'no big deal' LOL

Great! Sounds like my "complaint" had them check into it. Hopefully that means other activities are not left off in the app either. Enjoy your cruise!! (And you have permission to dance... LOL)

On my last cruise (Rotterdam in November 2022) there were paper programs, and they were NOT consistent with what was in the app. I was surprised to see that the paper programs were more complete! I happen to like line dancing, and one of the entertainment crew was offering it on our cruise most afternoons, calling it "Permission to Dance". I looked for it each day and it never once showed up on the Navigator app, even though it was on the printed program, and it did take place on the printed days and times. That's the example I am aware of, but I'm sure there are other discrepancies as well. So for my next cruise, next week, I'm planning to check both to be sure I don't miss anything!

Thank you!! I'm flying down to Miami on Thursday from VERMONT, where we've had a pretty depressing winter, so the sunshine is CALLING me! They cancelled one of our HMC days - I originally booked this cruise because there were two calls at HMC, but oh well, things happen, and it's still going to be a great time. Thanks for the Bon Voyage! How fun is this?

I'm not Dave, but last year I received a casino offer of a free stateroom, etc. and I called the same travel agent that books my cruises normally, and she had absolutely no interest, so I'm guessing that no, they do not get a commission. Since all I paid was port fees, that makes sense. So I called HAL and booked with them and it was seamless. They send the booking to the casino dept. You don't have to call the casino people directly. And after the Casino dept. makes final payment, you get a confirmation just as if you yourself made that payment. I'm leaving on a Casino offer cruise this Sunday, and I have another one booked in May. Easy peasy.

Yes, apologies for jumping in late, and all three cruises are 7 days. THANKS!

I am booked on this cruise as well, so perhaps we will meet on board. Meeting a friend in Miami on Thursday and of course headed to ship on Sunday. Hoping for great weather for our sail away from Port Everglades! On my last Caribbean cruise on Rotterdam we had such high winds that the port was closed , our sail away was in the middle of the night instead of 4 PM, and we missed HMC altogether! I have a feeling this upcoming cruise will have no such problems. Smooth and sunny is what I am envisioning!! Are all four of you ladies sharing a stateroom or suite?