syesmar

On 10/10/2023 at 12:23 PM, OlsSalt said:

Which ship has the Chihuly blown glass "flowered" ceiling in the Main Dining Room, in reds and purples?

Noordam?

I used to do this all the time for the TA’s perks. I would hold sailings via HAL’s regular phone reps, and that would give me a few days (usually) to work out my airline tickets, etc. Then when I was ready, my TA would call the department at HAL (it has “World” in its name) and within a few minutes they had it transferred to the TA (it seems like I may have been part of the call at some point).

Good luck!

We didn’t do a whale watching excursion in Icy Strait Point (I hear it’s amazing! We did a ww excursion from Juneau that trip) but we were blessed to observe a number of whales from the ship after departing (ymmv). They opened the bow that day. The whole day was magical and so memorable! The resident whale there at ISP made several appearances while we sat by the fire pits near the water.

5 hours ago, Laminator said:

I just checked in for an upcoming cruise in early November. HAL asks for a secondary phone number. You have the ability to opt in for text messages to be received at that secondary number. I would recommend everyone do so. This is why being a frequent traveler I have TMobile. I don't have to worry about roaming charges when I am out of the country. 

Great to hear! Last cruise I bought an inexpensive (less than $30 for a month's worth of calls and far more internet than I needed) SIM card from Amazon that had full coverage for our European ports to put in an older phone of mine. I will never again travel without a phone plan. It really made a difference with some logistics and spur-of-the-moment changes.

The morning of arrival, a call was picked up onboard (as we were arriving into Amsterdam and not far from land) from American Airlines informing me that our flight was cancelled. (Note: they also called my emergency contacts for some reason, glad they didn't intervene and let me handle things myself.😃)

We've stayed at the Inntel Hotel in Rotterdam a couple of times. Once we took a tram over to the cruise terminal, another time we walked over the bridge. It's been a few years, so read recent reviews, so I don't have vivid memories due to staying there just one night each after an international flight, but I do recall we had enjoyable stays and were comfortable with no complaints (and returned a second time).

Agree that the Hilton at Schiphol is very convenient when flying out of AMS (we also stayed there upon arrival last time prior to our cruise that sailed from AMS). Loved our stays there.

4 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

...If information was readily available that Tel Aviv was under rocket attack and the "Iron Dome" defenses had failed to intercept all incoming rockets, I'll suggest no tours would have headed south, but local Haifa, Caesarea National Park and possibly Nazareth/Galilee tours would have gone ahead, until the Ministry of Tourism shut them down.

+ If it had not been Shabbat, Saturday, there would almost certainly have been more independent travelers, with a number taking the train and/or public buses. Grateful everyone made it back onboard as quickly as they did.

Question: I recall in the past, some passengers who used Flight Ease reporting that their held flights were canceled after browsing/checking for alternate flights. Has this glitch been fixed?Thanks!

43 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

…Just beware of the type of flights you are getting...they are consolidator flights, meaning your ticket is not the same as one purchased from the airline with cash. They are much more restricted, and you are very low on the list for re-accomodation if something goes sideways….

In cases of cancellations, delays, etc., is it best to contact Flight Ease customer service for rebookings, etc., or is a passenger able to speak directly with the airline?

EDIT: saw the Post by @terrydtx after posting my question. Thanks.

6 hours ago, ferretktf said:

Not when you book but when you check-in you provide contact details…I also think that those who believe "every single passenger each time they disembark should hand over full contact info for the day" are massively over-reacting….

It would be convenient in the future for guests to have an option to enter their details online. If not, I would imagine those who wish to turn it in to someone on board, e.g., front desk, etc., can also do so (not necessarily when departing for the day, agree that would cause delays if everyone did so).

32 minutes ago, CNSJ said:

…Also, consider that  With hundreds on overnight tours to Jerusalem Sun-Mon and the ship sailing Haifa to Ashdod on Sunday night without those guests, getting them out of Israel would have been a mess as the ship would not have pulled in to get them.  

Agree. Grateful the ship was able to locate everyone as quickly as they did. If it had not been on a Saturday there likely would have been more independent travelers and complications. 

Wishing you all aboard Nieuw Statendam the best for the remainder of your sailing!

26 minutes ago, ferretktf said:

Yes and No,
 

after you have disembarked the ship do not know when you are returning, and you do not need to tell them… as long as you return by the time the ship is due to leave that port … in the case of Haifa that was 10:30pm the following night. You are free to leave and come back whenever  you wish….

Thanks for the detailed info. I have had overnights in Barcelona, Venice and Istanbul and never had to turn in any info and there were no curfews that first evening, but I was curious if it was different for Haifa or Ashdod. I wonder if they’ll update their policy in the future to request that guests leave their details when overnighting off the ship during a visit with an overnight in port?

All the Best!

7 minutes ago, ferretktf said:

…There were no rockets over Haifa or anywhere near Haifa, Nazareth or Galilee. Because of this there were no concern over tours departing the port.…

An additional note: There were rockets in Tel Aviv prior to the buses leaving at 8am. And air raid sirens went off in Jerusalem at 6:30am.

Glad you are okay. Hope you enjoy the remainder of your cruise.

3 hours ago, Vict0riann said:

We heard from friends on board that the ship contacted the missing couple's family at home to ask if they knew where they were going, and were told they would be visiting friends locally, and that way the ship was able to contact them and get them back to the ship.

That’s good to know. I do leave a detailed itinerary with phone numbers for our independent excursion companies and guides with our emergency contacts, and definitely will continue to do so after reading this.

I think in the future I will make an extra copy for security, too, as another poster suggested. I wonder if uploading such information into our HAL account (if such an opportunity existed) would be helpful in these types of situations. 

I know that some passengers choose to overnight independently to make the most of their time while in Israel for 3-4 days. For those who have done this independently, are you required to inform the ship of your hotel and itinerary details?

On 10/7/2023 at 6:57 AM, CNSJ said:

…Tour departed early this AM.  We were on tour of Galilee region at Jordan River when we were all recalled to the ship.  Awaiting last passengers to return so we can depart for sea as soon as possible. Three days in Holy Land has become three hours…

Captain just informed us that we are sailing in a few hours..

@CNSJ This whole situation in Israel is heartbreaking. Prayers for all involved. I lived in Jerusalem as a student and have wondered how cruise passengers who do their excursions independently without a guide would know if they needed to return to the ship. I would imagine taxi drivers and bus drivers would advise passengers. I can only imagine how much more difficult it would have been to recall passengers had it been later in the day or not a Saturday when more transportation options would have been available.

Were there any instructions prior to leaving the ship on what to do in such a situation? Grateful the passengers made it back to the Nieuw Statendam.

EDIT: I was typing the Post above when you posted about what time the incursions began and what time you departed the ship. It would have seemed wise for them to at least warn passengers about the rockets. It is surprising to me that buses were permitted to depart at 8am.

14 hours ago, Btimmer said:

Then there were the open BBQ's around the LIDO pool.

Loved when they did the BBQs….what wonderful food we enjoyed especially at the Salmon Bakes in Alaska, the BBQs in Istanbul and Santorini, each with their own unique regional dishes and decor! Great memories!

On 10/2/2023 at 7:50 AM, whogo said:

I am trying to forget the almost mandatory disembarkation meeting in the showroom with pleas for excellent ratings on the post cruise survey.

😁 Singing “Love in Any Language” at the end could get nostalgic. Fun times! I agree discontinuing the disembarkation talks is better now.

On 10/2/2023 at 7:48 AM, bluesplayer said:

The Baked Alaska parade with the dessert on flames.

I still have a paper Chef’s Hat from our first cruise that they gave all the MDR diners that night.

+ I remember the stewards having some sort of line and illustrated assembling food (was it a salad?) in an entertaining way. Maybe someone has an old video to share?

17 hours ago, saturn93 said:

I really liked the Lido Chocolate and Dessert Buffet around the pool area.

I always enjoyed the Dutch Chocolate Extravaganza, too! Although it was often quite late in the evening, perhaps a different time would have been more feasible. It was quite the event!

On 9/30/2023 at 10:16 AM, sahara1 said:

They changed the policy but upped the price to include the second appetizer!

So the specialty restaurants have had a recent price increase? That’s unfortunate if so.

23 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

For about 6 months or so -- and only rolled back very recently -- the specialty restaurants were only allowing one appetizer/soup/salad + one entree + dessert as included in the cover. There was an upcharge for anything more than one starter (can't remember the actual price), so if you wanted, let's say, crab cakes and a salad as well as your entree, you got upcharged.

I’m very happy to hear they rolled that back! Thanks for the info @cruisemom42

13 hours ago, LAFFNVEGAS said:

… I do not see HAL stooping that low but then again they were trying to charge for an Appetizer and a salad 😲 not long ago.

I missed the info on that. Was that in the MDR or specialty restaurants? How many can currently be ordered?

10 hours ago, USN59-79 said:

At one time there was a listing of the shortcut for dear people in your life…Can anyone point me to the listing?

@USN59-79

Here’s an old Thread with many of the abbreviations: 

11 hours ago, sciencewonk said:

…Priority boarding was not honored in San Diego when we boarded there.

Thanks. Are you saying there was no Priority Line at check-in?

15 hours ago, DE Solo said:

One can always request a second tiered stand of tea sandwiches/cakes/scones. I have never been turned down….

I have a funny story (at least to me:>) about tea time at the Fairmont Empress in Victoria. It was 2007 and we spent time in BC prior to our very first cruise. We had heard so many good things so we wanted to go (I even had a coupon so how could I resist!). We had been warned it was a hearty meal so we decided to go later in the afternoon so the Tea would be both our lunch and dinner.

We had been told it was all-you-can-eat and our server told us that he would be happy to refill items as needed. We “cleaned house” so to speak of the first Tea Tier as we hadn’t eaten in 7 hours and were extremely hungry. When the server returned later, my husband said, “we’ll take another one!” The server then dramatically proceeded to gasp, grab his chest in disbelief and took a step back. We then realized we had committed a faux pas. The server said he would be happy to bring items one at a time but he couldn’t bring out another tray all at once. So we ordered our seconds one by one. We still get a good laugh when we think about that day at the Empress. Although the cost was considerably less then than it is now it was a splurge for us and we quickly realized the value in cruising, as back during those years, HAL’s Royal Dutch Tea was excellent and actually comparable to what we experienced that day at the Empress.

Fun times!

In these circumstances, does HAL honor the original amount of days for Mariner Cruise Day Credits? I know the number of credits received can be a factor for some when choosing a sailing.

I know the subject matter is about having a phone ONboard, but I did want to give input, as others have, about how helpful a working phone can be during a cruise. 

We took many cruises and seemingly did just fine without an international plan for years (although we’d usually scramble to find a strong enough wifi signal when in port so we could check an email or pay a bill, etc.). 

Then we did a land-based trip for a month or so in a country where we had lived as students and realized the value of having a working phone with internet. Compared to the past, we had so much more freedom, information at our fingertips, live “real time” traffic maps when driving, and the ability to call and confirm logistics info like opening hours, etc. It was so efficient and made traveling so much easier that we said we’d never travel internationally again without some sort of phone plan. 

Our next cruise, we purchased an inexpensive sim card/plan from Amazon and we were so glad we did. (We weren’t able to make calls or have internet access aboard the ship while out to sea, but while on or near land and when the ship was docked). I’ve been able to book last-minute car rentals when original plans changed, make calls, and get notified when our flight was canceled due to weather [if I didn’t have internet, I would have been caught off guard at the airport and not known the airline was planning to put us on separate flights home (somehow there was a glitch with our frequent flyer tickets and our records got separated from one another). The calls and texts from the airline came through in the wee hours as the ship was arriving in port for disembarkation. Knowing this, I was able to have a list of available back ups when I arrived at the airport and it worked out to our satisfaction (the airline’s phones were down but ordinarily I would’ve been able to handle it all over the phone as I had done on the aforementioned land-based trip when that return flight, too, got cancelled).

Just wanted to share my personal experience of how having some sort of plan has greatly benefited our travels, been a real timesaver on numerous occasions and given us more tools for additional spontaneity.

57 minutes ago, Vict0riann said:

We had a lovely Indonesian tea on Rotterdam in the Spring….

I am so glad to hear and see this! Loved the Indonesian Tea Times!

For whatever it’s worth, the HAL “Know Before You Go” page still says this under “Dining Venues,” sub-section “Other Delightful Dining Options”: 

• Classic High Tea once per cruise.

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/faq/know-before-you-go.html

I also miss the Royal Dutch Teas and Indonesian Teas! Do they still do the Cupcake Teas?