cruz chic

..........and people wonder why I don't like the Statendam:rolleyes:.

Ahem, does the "wink wink" suggest OP would be bringing the kind of movies HAL wouldn't have in its DVD library? Or does the shipboard DVD library have movies like that?

I thought the same thing:D.

Thanks for the responses so far. Can we just catch the HoHo bus after we disembark? Is it right at the port?

Yes, that's what I did. Can't remember how much it was but it was quite reasonable. Thank you for starting this thread. I think i'm going to do a repositioning cruise on the Eurodam in Oct.2013 so this has provided great info.

IIRC, there were some ship's tours that included walking in the national part. One was really hiking and another was an easier stroll.

 

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Thanks for the info. Maybe as soon as I saw hiking I ignored it:D. I don't mind exercise but if it's steep or I can fall down that's not good. I've got to watch my brittle bones at my advanced age;).

When we were there last month we rented a car and drove to the National Park of Saguenay. It was gorgeous. We hiked quite awhile through the woods -- lots of waterfalls -- and went to the Visitors' Center.

 

We had a lot more time there than the tours allow.

Oh, that sounds nice. Wish there would be another option to get there besides renting a car.

I loved Saguenay even though there wasn't a heck of a lot of options there. I did the hop on hop off bus there. The weather was quite rainy that day so I didn't hop off much:D. The people were very nice there and the market at the pier had some cool things. It had really good internet access that I could connect to right from the ship. That was a little side bonus.

We got in at 1:30 AM---half dead. Laundry is piled up to the ceiling.

When we got in the door we found that the furnace was stuck on. We had to throw the breaker switch at the main panel to shut it down. Then I had to open windows to cool the bedroom off enough to sleep. I thought we were back on the Zuiderdam but there was no front desk to call.

 

We did have fun didn't we?

Ouch. It's funny but not.

Opps...was his area near cabin 593 on the Veendam?

I was in 611 on the Apr.22/12 cruise and it was fine. I like it on the cool side.

Just off eurodam this morning. We were in 5058, and had only about 15 minutes of vibration about three times at night. We did notice it quite a bit at Tamarind for most of both meals.

 

We will sail this ship again in the forward area. I also spent a lot of time in cabanas and Explorations which are both fwd. Maybe location matters?

 

Linda N

I noticed it in the Tamarind as well and that was pretty much it.

I was on the Eurodam in Sept.2011 and had a midship cabin. Yes, I noticed it but it was not a big deal. One of my colleagues is on the ship right now. It will be interesting to hear what she says. I wouldn't hesitate booking the Eurodam again. I can't say the same of all HAL's ships.

I also read the world cruise blog where It was mentioned that Henk had made comments in regards to CC meetings and I'm not surprised. Can you imagine having to listen to that lot ( "Oh, Henk the paint fumes offend me" , "Oh Henk, the sun loungers are dirty etc). Supposedly poor old Henk was hosting a dinner for them, he probably felt like a " deer in the headlights" listening to them ramble on all evening and said that just to annoy them (either that or cut off his arm). That blog is full of "sugar coated" complaints that are supposedly never hers but she always has "on good authority" belong to other passengers . "One of us" ( as she refers to herself)- and all those other repeat world cruises with that agency they go with, sound like complete "pains" and IMO a little too condescending for their own good. Flame away:)

Personally I like to hear the good and bad about a cruise instead of the sugar coated variety that some folks love to spin on this board. I'm also very appreciative of the fact that people will spend hard earned cash and time while on a world cruise to let people know what it's like. In my job, I listen to people all day long whine and gripe about what we are charging them and it does get tiresome. The fact of the matter is that this is a significant part of my job. I have 2 choices, put up with the crap and get paid, or leave an go somewhere else. I'm sure he gets paid plenty for his "pain". You could skip by the world cruise thread if you find it offensive.

I won't mention anything specific but there also are a few herbals I swear by that increase the immune system, as well.

Why?

I keep masks in our carryon bags and if we are seated on an airplane beside an ill person coughing and sneezing, I would put on a mask. I'd rather stay healthy than worry what anyone thought of my wearing a mask. :shrug:

 

Maybe we should all wear masks on airplanes...seriously.

I don't think those masks do much. Seems to me I've heard that they only last a couple of minutes as a germ barrier. I'm not a 100% sure but it seems to me I heard this when the H1N1 scare was on.

Oh No! I have to say that as a newbie HAL cruiser and a newbie Hal Meet and Greet organizer I am very concerned.

 

Previously I was worried that the M and G was going to be full of stilted conversation..now I hope it is filled with appropiate ones.

 

 

Now I am really kicking myself for doing this.

 

Denise

I wouldn't worry about it. The way this thread sounds is like this is a common occurance. That hasn't been my experience. I do remember one person "crashing" a m&g on one of my cruises. She saw the sign and thought it was a complaint session. Some people just don't get it and I don't know why others feel the need to aplogize for this behavior.

Yes- Just happened to be sitting within 5 feet of one,with fresh batteries in my hearing aid.

I thought maybe a whisper 2000.......thx for the answer.

No- I haven't been to meet and greets, but I've been a fly on the wall at some. It's usually one person "Holding Court" and everybody just sits there and listens.

 

Would you mind explaining this comment? Usually the m&g are in the Crow's nest and sort of away from the rest of it. How can you be a fly on the wall? How would you know what time the m&g was happening and what as being said?

This is great, thank you so much!

 

My father is a bit of a diva, and he hates waiting in lines. So I want his experience to be as seamless as possible, especially the first impression of boarding the ship.

 

We are platinum on Princess and agree that the priority boarding is becoming less of a perk given the hordes that now qualify for this benefit. However, it's still nice to be in a special waiting area and to get on first.

 

Should we arrive around noon to get in the priority line ups?

I have almost always found the lines on HAL to be better than Princess. I think you'll be happy. I wonder if anyone enjoys standing in line:D. I think the "worst" part of the lines is going through security. After that it's usually pretty darn good. It is likely to be busy around noon. You might want to wait until 1 ish or so. That said, it probably depends on the port.

 

We had several Suite Guests who thought they received that perk everywhere and were quite upset to be sent back to the end of the line at one port.

 

Joanie

I'm wonder how they thought that task would be accomplished:confused:. Strange.

We have been upgraded to a suite for the first time. I have read the amenities and have a question. The description of the amenities says, in part:

"Neptune Lounge: A very special amenity exclusively for guests cruising in a Deluxe Verandah Suite or Penthouse Verandah Suite, the industry-leading Neptune Lounge features a private place to relax, socialize with other suite guests and enjoy the personalized service of a concierge. The fleet-wide lounges provide worktables, large screen television, library, sofas and chairs, refreshments throughout the day and wi-fi for a small charge."

 

What does "wi-fi for a small charge" mean? Does it mean there are separate, less expensive internet packages for suite passengers, or what?

 

Thank you for any information about this!

Betty

No, wifi is the same price for everyone. Love the spin on that:D.

Thank you to the OP. I managed to get the OBC applied to both my Feb and April cruises. I hope they'll apply the shareholders benefit when the time comes.

We used to get e-mails from HAL when we got home thanking us for sailing with them -- and several times there was a 25% discount promo code for a future cruise.

 

Haven't gotten one of those in a long time.

 

In fact we don't even get a "thank you for sailing with us" e-mail any more.

 

Same here. We must be giving them too much business.

We were given an invitation when we checked in. It was interesting though because when we asked one of the crew when we first got on board they told us the luncheon was pretty crowded and we might want to go up to the Lido. We ignored his advice and when we arrived at the MDR there was no line and not crowded at all. I am so glad we took the chance on the MDR.

They do seem to like to steer people away from the MDR. I've heard that line more then once myself. I like the MDR because being around a lot of people is not optimal for me.

CruiserBruce: OP (me) only has a few over 800 posts - sure that is closer to 1000 than it is to 0, but still not to 1000 yet. Before I post a new thread I usually do a search first. You caught me one of the few times I didn't do a search. Should I have done that? Yes, but no need for you to be mean about it. This is a small world.... I may just be sitting at your table on your next cruise so you may as well be nice.

Dont let a few cranky people turn you off. I don't mind if someone has asked something 1000 times. Sometimes people will have different answers. I haven't found the search to be bringing up that much lately. Did a search the other day and it only brought up responses from Aug. That's not helpful IMO. I hope you enjoy your cruise:).

Thanks for keeping us up to date. I'm enjoying it.

Had a buffet last year on Noordam.

In the dining room? Why would they do that when the have the lido perfectly set up for that?