3rdGenCunarder

They don't print any more. But there usually are some sample photos you can look at to get an idea of what the poses are like.

It's a lot of years since I sailed on ACL, but I remember that most descriptions--from the cabin to the food--were overstated. The website showed a menu with three choices at every course, but we always had just two. I remember one starter that was a "mozzarella Napoleon." What arrived was layers of mozzarella and tomato. No pastry! In what universe is THAT a Napoleon?? The only thing they had in common was that they were in layers. Why not just call it what it was, Caprese salad? I was very impressed with the food on AQV--quality, taste, and presentation. Sad to see them gone.

I was on Zaandam last month and had only dispensers. I was not in a Neptune Suite. I always take my own bath gel and shampoo as I don't like HAL's brand. Have a wonderful cruise, Kathi!

The current bag (not the coveted CO one), at least on Zaandam last month, is canvas with a HAL 150 design. It seems a bit smaller than previous bags, but it's pretty. I think I got the plastic one last winter, and I do use it for shopping.

Right. The big question is can you play the "CO game" twice on the same booking.

Me too. I rarely go to the MDR for lunch. The Lido is easy enough if I go early. On my last cruise, I never had trouble getting a table out by the pool--Lido pool, I rarely venture "out back." But on embarkation day, I like the quiet of the MDR after the hustle and bustle of port traffic, queues at security (I always get behind the guy who forgets about the change in his pocket), waiting to board. I'm on the ship, unpacking can wait, I just want to sit and have a nice lunch that doesn't involve standing in line.

Back when it was a Mariner perk, the only reason I knew it existed was because I learned about it here. HAL never made it known.

I used to like the embarkation lunch when it was the standard lunch menu. But on Zaandam in February, the embarkation day lunch menu was cut down to a few "express" items, none of which appealed to me. So I braved the Lido. Fortunately, I had boarded early and had no trouble getting my lunch and even a drink by the pool.

Cunard's photographers vary in imagination. Some just want to put people in the "prom pose," and only know how to pose couples. One woman on QM2 had me pose in ways that made me feel like I had an invisible partner. In all the pictures, I was off-center, like someone was missing. The good news is that if you don't like one photographer's approach, go to another spot and try with a different person. I have found that some photogs are happy to work with you. One of my favorite pictures is from New Year's Eve on QM2. They were doing photos on the curved staircase. DH couldn't stand well and I had a raging cold, but I wanted a picture of us in our best formal wear. I posed us sitting on the stairs and I still have that one framed in the living room. We look elegant and a bit world-weary, like seasoned travelers. I may be unusual in this, but I don't feel comfortable having a formal picture done all alone. I feel like what am I doing here, what's the point of this picture? (It's probably because I'm an avid photographer and I like a picture to have a story behind it.) One thing I like to do as a solo is have a prop. I go to the bar and get a glass of fizz and ask the bartender to put some grenadine in it for color. Then I can hold the glass like I'm at a cocktail party or making a toast. Another photo op that hasn't been mentioned is excursions. Sometimes a photographer goes along and takes pictures on an excursion. In Norway, a ship's photographer came on a northern lights chase. He took some stock shots and also offered to take pictures of passengers. I bought one because it shows me with the lights in the background. It isn't a great picture of me, as I look stiff, standing still for a 4-second exposure. But it's a great "I was here!" shot.

There needs to be some leeway for brief times away from the chair. Bathroom, quick run to the Lido to get a snack to take back to the chair, etc. It's hard to know if someone is in the pool, so that can get tricky. Maybe every hour, someone walks along the loungers and for those that have been "claimed," roll everything up in the towel and leave it. Next hour, any towel rolls still there get removed. Chairs whose occupants have returned will still have their chairs but the hogs will not.

I love aft cabins, and it would take something special to get me to move from one.

I have purchased an upsell in the past, not involving CO. I think I did it twice, both times because I decided I did want a better cabin, not because of any HAL offer. They were happy to take my money and I did not have to rebook. But if there's a price drop change, I agree with @terrydtx, they're likely to want you to cancel and rebook. I think HAL (and other lines, too) does this to discourage people from calling and wanting to refare for less.

Watching final payment date is a good strategy for finding a better cabin, getting sold-out excursions, and picking up a good reservation time in a specialty restaurant.

The signs on the wall are small and could be overlooked, although the glass sliding door is a big hint. I've seen passengers in lanais put out their own large, laminated signs saying something like "this chair is reserved for cabin 000" or something like that.

Another thought on dining at Pinnacle. The service is excellent and the atmosphere is quiet, so concentrate on enjoying the meal and don't think so much about being alone--it's hard, I know, but Pinnacle (and Canaletto for that matter) doesn't have the vastness of the MDR so you feel less visible. Or at least I did. I ate there on my own on my last cruise (Zaandam). There were three 2-tops in a row, banquette on one side, chairs on the other. it was a slow night, and I was the only one sitting at one of those tables. I chose the banquette side, and the waiter removed the place setting at the chair. Then he took the candle, bread basket, and flowers that are usually crammed together at the side and spread them out across from me. That and the fact that I didn't have a couple right next to me made me feel less like the only solo in a world set up for couples. I don't know if they always do that, but it was a nice gesture.

I do dummy bookings just far enough to see availability, then back out or choose a different category, so nothing is held for me.

The first 15 minutes free sounds like the parking meters where I live! HAL has the surge pricing you mention, in a way--the Retreat cabanas. I remember reserved deck chairs on QE2. The upper "sun deck" had an area with reserved chairs. That became our "home," especially on transatlantics. The stewards brought out a cushions for the chairs, served "elevenses" (tea or bouillon and biscuits) and afternoon tea. Drinks, too, although they charged for that, same as any bar. The stewards got to know us--when we went up to reserve chairs they recognized us and made sure to put in a supply of Guinness for DH. The last time we did this was a 12-day cruise in 2004 for the low price of $17. That was for the whole cruise, not per day. Around the same time, Princess was charging $25 per day for their "retreat."

Rotterdam does have a CO dining room. Priority boarding may or may not apply, depending on the port. Fort Lauderdale is very good about it. I've heard that some ports are not. Your upgrade would be anything in the Veranda (V) category. Part of your research should be to do some dummy bookings to see if anything in the "better" categories is available and in a location you like. July is pretty close, so CO maybe sold out already.

I was on HAL and did "Craft Cocktails and Light Bites," which was done by a company called The Spoon Experience. It wasn't "light" bites, it was supper. Fantastic guide, and we were full at the end of the tour. Poon does a variety of tours, including a cocktail tour. You might check them out as an alternative to your ship tours. Read the blurbs and see if you recognize the wording. That's a good way to figure out who the vendor is.

It was Feb 14. There were 5 of us going to the gardens. Three from our ship, booked through shore excursions group. Two from a different ship, who had booked gardens, castle AND the blow hole, which they never got to see because the driver had to get us back for Zaandam's tender schedule. None of us got what we paid for. We had only 30 minutes at the gardens. I wanted to see the blue iguana conservation center. I had to power-walk in that heat, but I got there. I was the only one of the 5 who saw the iguanas, but I had about 2 minutes to look at them and then rush back. At Pedro St James, we got there when a big bus load arrived (from our ship, ironically). They got to see the film, and the one and only guide was assigned to them. Our driver just stood around with no clue, so one of the group asked if we could just go and look at the house, which we did. The castle guide came to talk to us a little bit while the big group was seeing the film. I'm sure he was interesting, but the heat and the stress got to me and I felt sick. I told the driver I was going to the visitor center to get something to drink and I would wait there. The group came out shortly after that. I hope he didn't rush them because he was worried about me. I just needed to be somewhere cool and have something to drink--I had left my water bottle in the bus. If you were on the Feb 14 tour, I am so glad to hear you got back to your ship! When he said that someone would be back to pick you up, I worried that they would be late or not show at all, considering how bad the day had been up to that point. Here's how low Cay sinks. I did a review on Tripadvisor. I read the other reviews of the gardens and castle tour. Most people seem to be reviewing the gardens, not Cay's tour. One person said they rented a car and it was lovely to see the place at their leisure. Cay replied to thank them for the good review. If they had a rental car, you know they didn't take the tour with Cay, but Cay took credit for their visit to the gardens. Shameless.

I went with Sea Cow last month. Very safety conscious, very quiet. I think they take a max of 26 people. But they take people into the water in small groups, each with a guide. They do a drift snorkel (so does Woodwind), so the current carries you along. The most fish I have ever seen on a snorkel trip!! When I went, there were only 8 of us. We were in the water for 45-60 minutes, then went back to the boat for a rest and a snack while the boat took us to the next spot. Another 45 minutes of snorkeling. More snacks after that and an option to have rum punch then, when we were done with the snorkeling. I don't know if they always have a photographer on board, but they did on this trip. No hard-sell to buy the pics, but I did. $40 and they send a link to download the pics. It was a cloudy day so my underwater camera didn't do well. But she could free dive to get down closer to the fish. Plus, she had a much better camera than I do. In addition to fish pictures, I have a picture of myself snorkeling.

That's how I felt about it on Koningsdam. CO was new, and at the time, only for Neptune and Pinnacle suties. It hadn't existed when I booked the cruise and requested early fixed dining. I was not happy to see the change to open dining on my booking. And when I got onboard, I took one look at that glass box and saw all those two-tops and figured I would be eating alone, poor sad me, for all the world to walk by and see. I was newly widowed (6 months), so probably over-sensitive, but I just had a horrible reaction to the place. I think there was one table for 6, and what were the odds that I would arrive when other people looking to share arrived? So I asked to go back to the MDR, large table early fixed dining, and I was allowed to do that. At breakfast, I prefer to eat alone, so I did go back to CO for that. I appreciate that they accommodated my wishes. I like the fixed table because I get to know my dinner companions. It's fun to meet and talk about what you did that day and what your plans are for the next port. Even when DH was alive, we liked a large table. I know people worry about not liking their dining companions. In more than 50 cruises, I can remember two less than wonderful companions. But one person at a table for 6 or 8 won't bring down the group if the rest of you don't let them.

I saw a similar thing in Ocean bar on Zaandam last month. Two young women were sitting at a table next to mine. We all had a nice view of the band but, of course, they could be heard all through the bar. A couple came in--I'd seen him before at guest services and he was being a jerk about something. I forget what, but very entitled. This couple sat for at least five minutes, then they walked over to the table next to mine and asked the two women if they would switch because they like this table. "You can hear the music just fine over there," he said, pointing to the table they had left. Like he had some kind of right to their table. And the women moved!!!! I'd have told him, "If you can hear the music just fine over there, I hope you enjoy it."

Just one thing to add to @FlorenceItaly's excellent post is that not all ships have all four levels of suites. For example, the two smallest ships, Zaandam and Volendam, have Vista suites but not Signature suites. Suites increase in size as you move across the chart.

HAL's IT leaves a lot to be desired. Navigator isn't fully functional until you're onboard, so keep trying on the computer. Some days I can get online and do whatever I need to. Other days, nada. Try a different browser or open an incognito chrome window or an InPrivate window in Edge. The incognito window works for me when the website is being what my niece's kid would describe as "poopy."