3rdGenCunarder

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."

Okay, I'll bite. What is the difference? I was a freelance editor for many years, so which was I?

Good line, I love it! 🤣

I wouldn't worry about the thermal pass. If you go right away on embarkation day, you should be able to buy the pass. That's what I do. I don't recall anyone here saying passes were sold out in advance.

You don't have to make your own coffee? I agree with you. I worked at home for years and had no desire to hang out in the local coffee shop with my laptop.

HAL had Microsoft classes for years. I learned a lot of good tips, especially about photo editing. A year ago on Eurodam, the classroom was empty. Lincoln Center group used it as a warm-up/tuning area because it was near their performance area. Now, I think the old computer classrooms are used for the arts and crafts classes.

Yes, they do have and use past data. I've done galley tours several times (pre-covid, of course) and we were told that they have a good idea of what will be most popular any given night. I think we were told that on surf and turf night, about 90% of people order that (back when it was lobster). On Cunard, they said that the passenger makeup affected the amount of lamb ordered. People from the US are less likely to order lamb than people from the UK.

The higher levels of internet and beverages probably came with an early booking bonus. I'm not a doctor (and I've never played one on TV), but I don't recommend 15 espressos in a day! But if you want bottled (actually, canned) water to take on an excursion, or a soft drink, that can use up a few of your daily drinks.

I bought photos on a snorkel trip, and when I got back to the ship, I realized I would need to download them from a link. So I upgraded to Premium in order to do that. The download was slow (half hour), but it worked. A side benefit was internet calling and texting, which I hadn't had before. For the second week of a 2-week cruise, the cost was $40.

My record is clean, too. But from comments here, I'd say the most often confiscated item is a power bar with a surge protector, which is a big no-no. Heating devices, like travel irons, mini coffepots, immersion heaters (are they even still made?) A few times on disembarkation day, I've seen the table where you collect your forbidden possessions. I remember seeing a full-sized iron. I wouldn't have space for that, and I hate to think how much weight it would add to a suitcase.

What about Canaletto at a non-dining time? A lot of people don't realize you can sit/eat there during the day, so it tends to be ignored. Ironically, on Zaandam, the library was one of the areas where people gathered to socialize, and not necessarily because they were getting coffee. What would Marian the Librarian say???

I know that CO is "capacity controlled," but it sounds like HAL needs to take another look at the capacity limit for CO, especially on the Pinnacle ships.

Wow, that's worse than I've ever seen it so early! I would be tempted to just walk along the line, scooping up everything and dumping it on the last "claimed" loungers. Let the pigs sort out their stuff.

I was shivering one night in MDR on Zaandam last month!

And moi as well. And I probably never will, as I don't gamble and I don't buy expensive jewelry onboard. I think EFFY may have some allotment of cruises to give away because a couple on my recent cruise had a free cabin (and they added CO to get to choose their cabin, still an inside). They sort of grumbled that they had to pay that extra to choose. Well, [insert string of expletives here], I paid a lot more to get to choose my cabin! Sorry (not sorry?) for the rant/digression. They did not gamble, and I don't think they were big drinkers--never saw them have wine at dinner. And they never talked about excursions. BUT she spent big on jewelry, including a few things at the EFFY auction. So I'm guessing that EFFY or shops onboard were the source of their freebie. I've done 16 cruises on HAL, so they probably figure they don't need to entice me. Right now, I don't have anything booked with HAL and no plans to. My next cruises are all on Cunard. So, HAL, entice me back?