highland cruiser

Hi you all, We are definitely missing Captain Kevin and all his announcements, talks and humor. I remember the horseradish issue one night when prime rib was on the menu. The wine we drank was always available and when they ran our of the scotch Brad likes, they substitutes with a better one!! We usually got our drinks at the Ocean Bar. But we were told by our waiter that they were running low on some items but it didn't affect us. Happy cruising.

There is a lunch but I agree that it is for everyone. We usually just get a quick bite at the Lido and then unpack and get my bearings around the ship.

We get an invitation in our cabin when we board. Time varies. 2 or 3 pm. Only drinks served but a good way to possibly see someone you have sailed with before. Gives a break from unpacking! LOL.

On the Koningsdam circle Hawaii Jan 14, there was a Mariner reception in the morning toward the end of the cruise. Think it was just 5 * , President's club and Medallion recipients as it filled about 1/2 of BB King's venue. We got our tiles the next day on our bed. The embarkation mariner reception with wine, etc. was at the Rolling Stones and was advertised at 3-4-5 *. Very well attended. My sister and DH did not receive tiles but got them on a previous Koningsdam cruise. Offered her ours but they declined. They are only 1*.

I finally had a chance to read and catch up with everything and everyone. Headed to San Diego tomorrow to board the Koningsdam on Saturday. My sister and brother-in-law are joining us. First time we have seen them in over 3 years. Can't wait even though we talk several times a week. Just isn't the same. Thank you for the report, Roy. Really enjoy seeing where all the ships are. Tea is my drink of choice during the day. Not a fan of HH. Had too much of it when the kids were growing up. LOL. It seems that a lot of you are on ships now. That is great. Safe travels to you all. Prayers to all also. So glad that Jacqui is home. Take care and stay well everyone.

I have followed Kathi on several of her trips. So sorry to hear about her issues. Will pray for her. Thank goodness she will be home soon and with her daughter. May her recovery be speedy and that the pain will soon be gone.'

Thank you for the canal pictures. We will transit on the Oosterdam in March. Appreciate you taking the time to give us such a good review of your cruise .

Just another message sending you prayers and a safe journey back home. 💔

My sister and brother-in-law have club orange on the Koningsdam Jan. 14 boarding in San Diego. Their boarding pass says priority boarding. No mention about club orange. Their boarding time in group B. We are on the same cruise with them. We are 5 * and have priority boarding on our boarding pass and we were in Group E, boarding an hour later. Called my TA and she got us changed to Group B. The HAL rep said that boarding assignments are random and she had no idea why we got Group E as we also have club orange. She also said on our room card there would be an orange stripe to designate we have club orange. My TA recommended that we take our booking confirmation that lists what perks we have to show front desk that we have purchased club orange in case there is a problem. We purchased Club Orange when we did the room upgrade. Go figure!! I wasn't worried. I knew we would still get on the ship. 😆

We are on a 17 day Hawaii cruise on the Koningsdam leaving Jan. 14. We need to provide a covid test. Can be self administered and presented at check in. This was on the protocols on the HAL site when we put in our booking number.

Happy New Year Jacque, hope your day in Cabo went well. We flew out from there yesterday after spending a week with family in Los Barriles. Had great weather. I am enjoying all the pictures and comments about the ship. Thank your so much for all the posts. Enjoy the New Year’s dinner.

Have a wonderful cruise. We are on the Koningsdam in January to,Hawaii. Our first time on this ship. Can’t wait!

I know I haven’t commented for quite a while but do read most days. Merry Christmas, Hanukkah, and any other holiday you you share during this special season. We saw the Koningsdam in Cabo’s harbor today. It looked great against the arch’s background. This is much nicer weather than what we would be experiencing in Oregon. Praying all of you still locked in the clutches of this awful snow/ice storm are safe and warm. We have been on Cabo a few days. Are headed to Los Barilles tomorrow where we have rented a house large enough for 9 adults and 4 kids. just need our Colorado part of the family to arrive tomorrow and we will enjoy almost a week together. Many blessing to you all. May 22023 be filled with great adventures cruising for you all. ⚓️🚢🎉🎅🏻

Does anyone know how long the early booking will be available.? We are on the koningsdaum January 14 and find it is usually a good thing to book onboard. But don’t want to miss out on the cruise we want. Thanks.

And we wish we were with you! We are headed to Cabo today to end Christmas with all our family. Have a house on the beach rented that will hold 9 adults and 4 kids. We will need a cruise after this. Travel safely! Happy Holidays!

We have received several of those thank you notes from the laundry team on our past cruises on the NS . It's a great idea to thank them using the navigator app. I keep the notes and when I do the HAL survey I add their names to other staff and crew I want to recognize. Always been happy with the laundry service. I will add to the votes to put your foot up and enjoy the scenery from a relaxing spot. Happy cruising.

Bon Voyage, Jacqui. We board the Koningsdam in January for round trip Hawaii. Never been on this ship so thank you for sharing. We purchased club orange as we are traveling with my sister and brother-in-law and they have been used it before so we purchased it and got the room upgrade. Thank you for posting about your voyage. Really enjoy following your travels. Stay well and safe. Merry Christmas.

Thank you for that information. We are all early risers so breakfast shouldn't be too bad. Will just be patient and see what happens at dinner. We did enjoy the smaller venue with Club Orange. Staff was awesome.

Curious about your comment about it being oversold on the Koningsdam. We have used club orange on the NS in September and February when the ship wasn't near capacity at all and we were in a Neptune. We will be on the Koningsdam in January and I assume that ship will be sailing near capacity. We have purchased club orange as we are traveling with my sister and husband and thought they would enjoy it. We had a VC room and were able to get a VS with the purchase of club orange for $255 pp or an extra $15 pp per day. So a good deal with our room upgrade. On the NS we never waited for a table. Is it possible to reserve a table for 4 at a specific time or do we just show up and hope there is a table ready for us. Thanks.

I am taking notes on all you tours and stops on your cruise. Thank you for the detailed information. We will be on the Oosterdam next Oct. from Athens to Fort Lauderdale. We have also used Spain Day tours before and were very pleased with them. Will be looking at using them again. Wishing you continued healing with your foot.

Enjoying all your posts. I am glad you are now on a trivia team. You will be a great addition. We are just watchers at trivia! I am always amazed at the questions that people know the answer to!! Stay well and safe.

I am so glad you are able to continue your cruise. You certainly deserve a cruise after all you have been thru. What an awesome roll call party. May your embarkation go smoothly tomorrow and soon you are back on a dam ship. Many wishes and prayers for you.❤️

Can't help much as have never been in an aft balcony but will be in one on the Koningsdam in January to Hawaii. It is on deck 8. I am little concerned about noise from the Lido deck but our TA said it has a nice sized balcony and is mostly covered. So we took it. In March was are on the Oosterdam in an aft balcony on deck 7. Looking forward to giving those rooms a try. I do know they seem to sell out quickly.

So enjoying all your commentary about your trip to Barcelona. Will be interested in see pictures also of Familia Sagrada. We have visited several time and it was in various states of repair. Thank you for all your posts and looking forward to hearing how the cruise goes.