grsnovi

Having done a similar cruise last summer but having stayed at Hotel Mövenpick, our luggage was taken from the hotel at 8am. We boarded around 11:30 or so (our assigned time was 2:30 as I recall) - it wasn't an issue and we had lunch in the MDR (which was great). You should be able to grab the tram right at the pier (it is one stop further than Central Station). I would expect that you could easily take the tram out to the Rijksmuseum or the Van Gogh and get back in time but you would run the risk of losing track of time in either of those great museums. Amsterdam is easily walkable if all you want is a taste of the city before you leave. If you have never been it deserves more than a couple of hours.

I realize that "...ignorance of the law is no defense..." however it seems to me that this topic would (minimally) warrant an example in "Know Before you Go" along the lines of: "For example: you might be surprised to learn that entry into Canada will be denied for passengers with DUI's as old as 30 years." Or possibly a listing of countries with unusually restrictive entry requirements that might catch people by surprise. It's all well and good to take the smug attitude that "I've never had that problem..." but having erred 30 years ago some folks might tend to forget their transgressions.

I had no idea this was a thing. I'm hoping that none of the rest of my party has had a DUI as we're supposed to be stopping in Victoria next Friday. It would seem that this would be a good "Know Before You Go" sort of question. We've been numerous times however I'm not sure what undisclosed situation may be lurking in the past of the rest of our party.

5 hours ago, rafinmd said:

Do you plan to be on deck when Eurodam arrives in Juneau

I can't say as I'm not the master of my own domain  There will be 10 of us (4 of whom will be children) so there's no tellin' where I'll be. 

12 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

There were several "banner waves

We had participated in several banner waves on the O'dam years ago. It was kinda fun having the banner and signing it the next year. What prompted my original post was the fact that we're departing in a week on our 4th AK cruise and I was just seeing a lot of ships in Alaska port postings (if this is Monday it must be Juneau, etc...). It's funny how the availability of video feed cameras on the internet has made travel research so much easier. Looking at traffic cams in the winter or at rush hour. Watching the rain come down in Ketchikan and hoping that by next week things will have dried up... 

5 hours ago, sevenseasnomad said:

The ship personnel seem to be very familiar with this type of situation.

They do a really good job. If there is an area that could be improved, it would be in the area of GF desserts (other than fruit). DW has sensitivities to both gluten and dairy which ends up being tricky.

For the record, I didn't say that it bothered me or that it wasn't of interest - I was just curious. If there are posts dealing with ships in ports other than Alaska, I don't recall seeing them (which doesn't mean that the next 37 replies need to be links to posts regarding ships in ports other than Alaska).

HAL has lots of 'dam ships that are in some port every day yet here on CC, there seems to be a fascination with the ships in port in Alaska on a daily basis. Can somebody explain to me why there is a daily message thread on specific ships in specific ports? For those interested it is certainly easy enough to have a browser favorite saved for the port's webcam.

I would expect that your Neptune concierge would be able to make that happen OR you could flag your MDR server on Monday and tell them you expect to eat in the <insert specialty here> on Tuesday >>BUT<< that you would like a GF option on Wednesday. Even without pre-selecting it would seem that getting a GF option on any night would be pretty easy - HAL seems pretty good in that regard (however my observations are based on GF by choice and not GF due to Celiac).

I'll admit that while on board, on a gala night, I'm usually not looking at others and wondering if what they have on is acceptable. That said, I've typically worn my tux (OK, I'm older) I'm not bringing the tux to AK next week but I will have a pair of black slacks. Clearly the accepted dress codes are changing. 40 years ago I had to wear a suit every day to work. Up until 2 years ago we could only wear jeans on "casual Fridays" - I suspect that HAL struggles with appeasing their traditional clientele and looking to appeal to the younger crowd they need to survive - hence the latitude granted to their dining room hosts. As has been mentioned, the call gets made as you arrive at the front of the line for a table. If you get turned away there are certainly options without putting up a fight and ruining your evening and that of those around you (including the DR host).

3 hours ago, Perkins52 said:

Looking forward to day when my wife tells me it is time to get luggage out of crawl space!

I was told that day is this Thursday...   

1 hour ago, Sir PMP said:

you'll find out that the Koningsdam is the most disorganized ship

Wasn't our experience.

Quite a bit changed here on CC, some better, some not so much.

Some will also say that HAL isn't what it was in 2017 but we're going out on 8/3 and looking forward to it.

I suspect things are what you make of them.

Glad to see you back and hope you enjoy K'dam as much as we did.

Have you ever used a personal trainer in a gym at home? I think that PT's can help you figure out an exercise routine that is going to be helpful for you to achieve specific goals and it is certainly helpful if you're working on new exercise to ensure that you've got the correct form. I don't know that engaging a PT for 10 sea days of exercise is going to be any better than just going to the gym and doing 45 minutes on a treadmill. If your primary goal is to maintain your weight - eat like you do at home (or at a minimum don't binge on bread, alcohol and desserts). Of course not binge eating on a cruise could be problematic. This coming cruise will be my first since altering my diet and exercise following my heart stent in December. I've dropped 35 pounds and I'm not anxious to gain any of that back on this cruise. I worked with a personal trainer from late March until early June and doing so helped me develop a strength training routine that I can maintain on my own. PT's are usually not cheap - I've never looked into what they might cost on a cruise. Enjoy your cruise!

Tamarind.

We first enjoyed Tamarind on Eurodam and subsequently ate there the next time we went out on her. We then ate there on Koningsdam when we were in Norway last summer. The atmosphere is very elegant and the food suits us as we both enjoy seafood and many of the pan-Asian dishes feature seafood. 

We haven't eaten at any of K'dam's other restaurants - tired of the Pinnacle Grill and didn't feel that the food/atmosphere of the Canaletto warranted the surcharge. My 2 cents...

Thanks all. 

The US CBP says that you need a "consent letter" and they say that it doesn't HAVE to be notarized. Does anyone have any recent experience with this? My son and his wife both have custody of their children from prior marriages and we're going to AK in a few weeks. Both ex-spouses are fine with doing the letter. Does the letter need to be notarized? Wondering if anyone has dealt with this in the past six months. TIA.

This one is on my "to-do-once-retired" list and could be as soon as 2020.

We liked the K'dam when we sailed her to Norway. We stopped by the spa on our walk around to see the ship (1st time on this class) and we booked DW for the week. They are quite happy to attempt to upsell you while showing you all of their amenities but the spa is pretty nice. Enjoy.

3 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

I won't be there until a month from now

Me either, but DW is worried that smoke will be an issue. Thanks! - G

John - Is there any smoke evident from any of the fires burning in Canada?

13 hours ago, Harley52 said:

We already cruised the Norwegian fjords

We've cruised those and we've cruise Alaska 3x in the past but are going there again in 4 weeks and looking forward to seeing the beauty of Alaska and a relaxing week. Enjoy your cruise and keep your eyes open, who knows what you'll see?

The ones via snail mail seem to be winter and summer. So, I have a Winter 2018 and a Summer 2018 but nothing that says 2019. Could be that summer = late summer? 

I can't say that I'd be any help on your first question. With regard to the rest: a summer cruise will likely have some younger folks aboard. I would suspect that your teens would love to cruise so if it's a new experience for them I don't know that HAL would be better or worse than any other line. Norwegian would likely have more on-ship activities but you probably won't be on the ship all that much. YES - you can always eat in the Lido with no reservations, many do. HAL is a mid-level line they aren't top of the line but they do seem to cater to an older, more traditional clientele. You'll get a ton of replies...

We've had macaroons on HAL ships. DW has issues with gluten and the macaroons are a treat for her. They are usually available in the Explorations Cafe. Its been a while since we were on the O but I'm pretty sure they had them when we were (as well as having them on the K'dam last summer). BTW - we'll be a day ahead of you as we leave on the Eurodam on the 3rd. Once upon a time, I lived in Gladstone, MO and worked in downtown KC, MO.

We'll be there again in August (with our kids and their kids, so there will be 10 of us) and we're taking everyone to the Lumberjack show. As mentioned above, it's silly fun - I think our grandkids will enjoy it.