fatcat04

30 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Much different configuration,  purpose and situation,  and doesn't have a profit motive.

 

And what does "SHTF" mean.

@CruiserBruce When the "ahem" hits the fan. And yes, apples and oranges. 

Don't get me wrong, I love the big aircraft, especially the Queens of the Sky. But the industry has deemed them not efficient and let's face it, air travel is all about $$ not comfort or style anymore. I remember well when you dressed up in your Sunday clothes to fly. Now most wear sweatpants.. or even pajama bottoms. 

29 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Not really a new idea. Airlines have done similar. Why do you think the 747 has been retired? Very inefficient airplane.

 

Just making their fleet more cost effective and efficient. 

Exactly. The 747 (many of which have been converted to cargos) are out of passenger service and many airlines have retired their A380's. It's all about the $$. 

3 hours ago, REOVA said:

Need more info:

 

Are you 4 star yet? If not free laundry in Neptune.

What is the blank space next to 4168? The balcony is great size but is there noise factor? 

 

No noise factor there. We have stayed in both the double wide balcony cabins on NA on deck 4. Loved them. 4168 has nicer than average bathroom configuration but has the ever irritating shower curtain. I prefer the showers in verandahs on the Pinnacle class ships. 

All that said, Neptunes are mighty sweet suites and Signatures offer some good space plus usually have a nice balcony (though not all are equal). I'd jump at the upgrade. 

19 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

They used to have this dude make an appearance for the kiddies onboard. Make sure you bring a carrot for his white horse 😉 

 

I am assuming St. Nicholas, Bishop of Myra. We love his story and have a special service and then celebration for the kiddies after on his Saints Day, we read his story and then he shows up and gives out chocolate coins, nuts, and oranges. Kiddies put out their shoes the night before and find little gifts in them in the morning. Fun! We are Orthodox and you can't "swing a dead cat" in our church without hitting a Nick, Nicholas, or Nicky, so this tradition is alive and well here. But the carrots for the horse are new to me. Gonna have to place some carrots next to those shoes this year 

1) Charlottetown, PEI (also tied with Half Moon Cay, such an unspoiled place)

2)  Beef Tenderloin in Tamarind, the caviar service at the Pinnacle (it is well worth the money if you like caviar), Dover Sole (deboned tableside) at Rudi's, and an honorable mention to both the lamb chops in Canaletto and the Apple and Bacon Pannenkoek at the Dutch Cafe. 

3) Still trying to do sparkly, dh takes his tux and I take gowns or sparkle tops and palazzo pants.

Okay I asked dh about what he found. 

Glen Deveron 16 years was at the Seaview. 

But his fav at Notes on the Elite Bev Pkg was Aberlour Casg Annamh Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whiskey. He bought a bottle when we got him which is now history. It will be replaced soon. Good find!

1 hour ago, bobomonkeyrage said:

Open at inconvenient times imo. Usually when I wanted to be elsewhere, but I guess that makes sense. Prices are about what you'd expect, inflated. 
But it's got a great selection of all whisk(e)y regions, not just scotch and the two guys that were manning it both times I went knew what they were talking about. Were able to extrapolate from what I liked to find me something new in my wheelhouse and price range. 

My dh's thoughts as well. Great selection from all over, prices inflated but meh. It is what it is. Getting someone to open the cases in the evening during the musical performances was at times a chore, the guy with the key was not always there. And tbh we are spoiled for choice being on the Whiskey Trail. (you should see our liquor pantry)

All this said, check ALL the bars for selection. Dh found a sweet little unpeated Scotch at the Seaview Bar on our cruise last month on NS that was on the Elite Bev package. Nice little find. There is zero uniformity of brand/type in what each bar offers and you might be surprised. Being on the Elite Bev Package opened up quite a bit for us. 

Bon Voyage and many years more Father!! We were just on NS up in Quebec last month. Lovely ship. 

Lido pool movie screen had the games on when we were on in Sept/Oct. You  can sit in the hot tub and watch the game. 

On 11/7/2022 at 4:45 AM, coffee59 said:

I wasn't expecting so many negative comments.  We will be on the Nieuw Statendam, 8:00PM first night.  And honestly, only because it is free.  

I agree that it all depends on the Executive Chef and Maître d'.  Hopefully they both expect excellence from their staff and our experience will be a great start to the cruise.

We were on NS last month and we found the service in all of the specialty dining venues to be wonderful, the Pinnacle was no exception. And yes the beverage pkg was honored in all as well.

29 minutes ago, mikebsxm said:

Check out Cruise deck plans dot com.  You can see actual pictures of cabins all over the ship, even a few videos.  These pictures were taken by people who sailed in those cabins.  They are dated, so you can tell if they were shot before the 2017 dry dock or after.  To see the pictures, you may have to join, but there's no charge.

I have been a member of this site for I actually don't know how long and it has been worth every penny I initially spent and I have made probably close to $100 contributing pictures to them over the years. Great resource. 

We switched to GoogleFi for our phones and use the international Unlimited + plan (200+ countries). It has been exceptionally reliable for data, texts, and calls all over and the hotspot off my phone is great for the 5 year old (or me) using a tablet just about anywhere. With 4+ lines it is $40 a month per device and well worth the peace of mind for us when we are travelling. 

9 minutes ago, Shmoo here said:

Bingo usually isn't IN the casino.  Typically played in one of the lounges (during the daytime).  

Okay.. had no idea. Just figured it was gambling so a casino enterprise. 

On 10/31/2022 at 6:20 PM, SDARCH said:

I'm a Gen X-er.  Grew up free range and as a 10 yo could be miles from home and my parents wouldn't even know.  They would set us loose at Walt Disney World (1970s) and I have no doubt, if allowed back then, they would have had no problem letting us wander in a port on our own.  Different times.

Us too. We weren't "latch key kids" per se but pretty close. My mom was always "be home by dark." But all the responsible adults around us felt comfortable correcting our bad behavior without being prosecuted too. You always knew where everyone was by whose yard the pile of bicycles was in. Good times.. maybe even the best of times. 

On 10/31/2022 at 10:42 AM, Roz said:

They can play bingo but if they win, an adult has to be present to claim the prize.

I had no idea.. can they really?? I thought all casino was off limits. 

On 10/27/2022 at 9:03 PM, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

I agree. They say "Don't worry. If there's a problem, we'll contact you." But I'm not online all the time at sea, or even when I'm traveling on land, so I may not get a text or email for a day or two. 

 

I would ask the Front Desk what's going on and check with my credit card company asap.

Yes, I was flabbergasted when they made that decision. We always went online and delineated on their website when we would be gone and where. When I could no longer do that it was frustrating. When we were in France last year the first two days we had issues. Thankfully we have Google Fi international unlimited cell phone service but it was still time consuming. A simple fill out form online seems so much logical and less time consuming.

Our Schwab travel debit card still has that option plus no international transaction fees. Never had an issue. 

On 10/25/2022 at 4:11 PM, shipshape sam said:

We are looking forward to enjoying the Dover Sole on Rotterdam next year.  Enjoy the table side deboning too.

One of my all time favorite dishes and Rudi's does it very well. I too love the table side deboning.

But yes as many have said Rudi's has a lot more than seafood. It is French Bistro style cuisine. Dh loved their Steak Frites. 

On 10/26/2022 at 12:34 AM, crystalspin said:

Just to answer a small part of your over-the-top post: someone has just reported there is no Club HAL on the Volendam (and presummably the Zaandam) since start up. People write on Cruise Critic to learn from other people not to be cut down, despite the "critic" in the name.

Exactly.

Our recent experience. There were a sum total of 6 children of preteen Club HAL age on our recent NS cruise. They had 2 crew members assigned to Club HAL but there was no schedule and you had to make an appointment for your child by 5pm the night before if they wanted to attend the next evening. Dd only went 2 times. We just kept her with us the rest of the time and took her Fire tablet and headphones. She did great and had fun even without the club. 

7 hours ago, FlorenceItaly said:

We board the NS on November 5, and are considering the upgrade to Elite since we have quite a bit of OBC.  We are interested in the value in regards to wines, bourbons and martinis.  Did you find there were adequate elite package alcohol available?  Also, did you have a favorite bar?  Thank you.

If you are a fan of nicer whiskey and scotch, the Elite pays off as Notes has a large selection with several Elite pkg choices. That said, you have to be there when Notes is open and we just got doubles to save the trouble of them needing to open up the case too often as that seemed a bit of a chore. And really I wish Notes was less overpriced whiskey tasting station and more actual bar. Wines, tbh, I am not sure as all our old standards were on the Signature pkg except for the Miraval Rose and the Beringer Knights Valley which are both on the Elite pkg. But I would say we each got enough value everyday to justify the upgrade. 

As to favorite bar, well, we probably ordered more drinks and spent more time near the Lido Bar than anywhere, even in the evening. If we weren't at BB Kings (they have some special cocktails I enjoy and dh's High West Rendezvous Rye there), we were in the Lido Bar area. I love the Lido space, both floors. Just well designed, light, airy, open, and lots of comfortable couches and chairs and attentive bar staff (plus snack options nearby).

One complication we found was after a couple days of hunting not every bar stocked the same more high end whiskeys and scotch. You expect some of that but it really was so random and none of the bars offered an actual liquor menu so you pretty much just had to ask what they had.. and not every bottle is out on display. I'm easier to please but dh had to travel to get just what he wanted. That was one complaint we had, there was no uniformity in the stocking of the bars and the wait staff oft times did not know what was in each bar without asking. So IF there is something special you like and you find it, that should probably be your go to bar as no telling if any of the others will have it. 

But she is a lovely ship and I'd cruise her again in a heartbeat, especially in the Caribbean. I told dh that she or her sisters would be a great ship for a nice relaxing warm weather cruise. 

We upgraded to the Elite pkg at $10pp/pd plus 18% grats on our Sept 24 NS cruise and got unlimited non-alcoholic beverages. We thought it was a good investment. Gotta do it before you buy your first drink. We did it at the Lido bar. 

We also found the Music Walk to be crazy amazing at night. The BB Kings group was tight and just awesome. Lots of dancing and packed venues. Wish it could have gone on until later. 

42 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

 

And heaven forbid you want to park your car at a hotel.  $50+ per day has become too normal.

 

Hank

Exactly Hank. $35 a day to park it ourselves. Funny thing is we are changing hotels tomorrow because the conference ends, we have family nearby we want to visit, and we are not paying $400 a night plus parking etc to stay here BUT we are moving to a mid range Marriot all suite property across town next to an interstate with included breakfast  ($33 for the buffet here, who eats enough for breakfast to justify that cost?? I know, people on an expense account lol), free parking, and no "resort fee." But yes, cheaping out and nickle diming seems to be the major trend for all hospitality industry and that is a real shame. 

I am presently staying in a $400 a night Marriot Gaylord convention hotel (dh has a national conference and I tagged along) and don't get me started on the cost cutting disguished as safety. It can be much much worse.

I am in my 40s and well remember when room service at nice hotels came on a rolling table with crisp white linens, real warmed plates and customized utensils, teeny salt and pepper shakers and the menu was extensive and the food freshly prepared.

No more. My breakfast just came in a brown sack handed to me at the door with tons of plastic containers, no plates. And who knows when it was made. 

Marriot should be ashamed!!

Yet another nonsensical policy that is "fleetwide" but ymwv depending on ship, phase of the moon, barometric pressure, or Magic 8 Ball.

I get no biomatter going OFF the ship, that is the law in most of the world. But bringing something on to the ship that won't leave the ship? 

It so often is like the people making the rules have never been on a cruise ship. But hey they hired a previous head honcho of the company who hadn't so....

4 hours ago, Sharon in AZ said:

Yesterday was a beautiful day in Saint John!  We went on the trolley tour and enjoyed seeing the highlights along with the reversing rapids and the city market. 

 

 

 

Our TV hasn’t been working since day two and I’ve reported it every day. Last night we were notified that all TV were reset and working but alas ours still wasn’t. I reported it last night and again this morning. Now after breakfast it’s working. Hopefully that will last. 

The fog this morning. 

We don’t have any plans today, just walking around and finding Lobster.  Craig took this picture from our balcony as we were sailing in. 

 

We also saw some huge gorgeous homes along the shore. 

 

The St John City Market is a nice find. I bought some wonderful locally made pottery at a shop called The Butcher's Daughter there last month. Very well made and the owner of the shop said she knows the artisan personally and that she lives about an hour outside St John. I love those kinds of souvenirs. 

On 10/13/2022 at 12:59 PM, shipshape sam said:

Been on 35 cruises and never have put a door decoration on.  Was considering doing it and plan to still do something even without approval of some posters for our 45th anniversary.  As to why do people do it? They are having some fun. May not be your type of fun, but I rarely see one that does not have something nice/humorous on it.  I like the ones with a brief saying and their names.  I think if it bothered me so much, I might take another route.  I can't believe anyone it intending to target anyone to irritate them.

This last cruise I saw a very prettily decorated thin wooden oval sign on a cabin door. It must have been a couple who cruises quite a bit and is retired. It was very sweet. You celebrate your anniversary. 45 years together nowadays is really rare.