Chelly

Wonderful review and spectacular photos.

Thank you!

Empty nesters here and we are cruising this September for our 25th Anniversary on the Disney Fantasy without kids. We normally cruise Carnival but our first cruise was on Disney and we have wanted to go back for a while. We enjoy Disney and are looking forward to this cruise

Ahh.. nostalgia. Thanks.

No way I would cruise Disney without kids. We usually alternate and cruise with and without kids and I never even consider Disney for the adults-only cruise. This time it came down to Carnival or NCL and we chose NCL for the ports

Thank you. Appreciate your response.

I am curious...

To the cruisers with young children who have been comparing Disney and Carnival.......If you were NOT cruising with your children, would you cruise on Carnival or Disney?

Does your vote for Cabins go to Disney?

Be prepared for more crowding and noise on RCI than Celeb.

On RCI, I found it difficult to find a quiet spot to escape to, so a balcony cabin was very important. Just my opinion.

Lee (don't know his last name) was the piano man on the Veendam for our January 20, 2015 cruise. I liked him, but did not see much but his name that tune contests. He attracted a big group of regulars. He offered the mike to one of the cruisers for a song, don't know if that is a regular thing.

Thank you for posting. I believe Lee's last name is Strubeck. Looking forward to Veendam's Piano Bar beginning tomorrow!

For those recently on the Veendam, was the Piano Man Lee Strubeck? If so, how would you rate him? If not, do you know who was playing in Veendam's Piano Bar? Thanks for answering. I am a big fan of HAL's piano bars.

Sailing on Veendam Saturday.

We were also on the March 7 cruise. We felt that the ship's staff was wonderful, our room steward was excellent as well as the bar staff.:D

 

Unfortunately, it was my first cruise on HAL which was greatly impacted by room related issues and smells.:mad::(:mad:

 

I am so glad to hear that you enjoyed your cruise and didn't encounter the same issues. :D

Localady, I will be on the Mar 21 Veendam. I'd like to hear about the cabin issues and smells. If you prefer not to share here, would you do it on your roll call. It will be very, very appreciated.

Thanks,

Chelly

Thank you for your concise and fair review. Boarding on Saturday and looking forward to this relaxing cruise.

Hi Chelly, you will need a reservation. You can make your reservation online. They are pretty good at being on time.

thank you:)

I wear my tuxedo (black tie) outfit whenever possible. After wearing ill-fitting rentals for a while, I eventually shelled out the money for a tuxedo suit, and every time I wear it, I'm decreasing the per-wear cost! To be honest, I bought it for professional use, but whenever there's a chance to wear it for social events, I'm all in.

 

I look much better in black tie. Any gentleman does. As a couple, my date always looks better when I'm in black tie (she and I both agree on that point, in every case I can remember). For the social occasions where I'm single (and in many professional occasions), let me just say, discreetly, that the well-dressed single ladies appear to be pleased with single men in black tie.

 

Some men claim that it's uncomfortable, but if it's uncomfortable, that probably means it doesn't fit. That's one of the reasons I acquired a suit that fits.

 

A gentleman looks great in black tie. It's a ridiculously easy choice; unlike the ladies, gentlemen in formal situations don't have to spend any time at all figuring out what to wear, and other than occasionally replacing a worn collar, tie, or shirt, there's no need to worry about a new outfit every time. The same outfit every time is perfect! A formal gentleman has a much easier time than a formal lady. And when she goes all-out with a carefully chosen outfit, I'm right there but without having to carefully choose anything, except perhaps a boutonnière or pocket square.

 

If only 10% of gentleman are dressed formally, be part of the top 10%! If on-board rental is the best option for you, just be careful with the alterations. The lady you're with (or kilted gentleman, if that's what you do), will definitely approve, and if you're stag, many single ladies will approve.

 

I can't see a down side, for cruisers. Airline baggage fees are only a small percent of cruise fares. Be among the best-dressed 10% of the gentlemen.

Agree, and IMO we need tuxedos for the ladies too.

We booked in advance. Ours was not a shared shuttle. Don't know if you can just hop on.

 

I don't know what cruise line you are on, but on Royal, you can sign up for airport transfers on the ship.

Thanks. I will be on Carnival. Transfers are available from cruise line, but I was hoping shuttles would be available at port. Looks like Carnival transfer is best option but I'd have to take a later flight that I'd like.

Can I walk off the ship at port of Galveston and board a Super Shuttle to Hobby without a reservation? I am a single. Any other options available to get from port to airport?

We used Super Shuttle this past September with good results.

Did you need to book Super Shuttle in advance? Can you just board and pay at the cruise terminal for return to airport?

Thanks.

Chelly- I think you should be fine. Just pay SW for pre-board and then request the early debarkation toting your own luggage. I have an 11:45am SW flight out of SD and really don't have a concern.

 

Have a great cruise! :)

Thank you localady. I really appreciate your experience-based advise.

And, best wishes to you for a fantastic cruise.

I'm on the March 21 Veendam 7-day Mexico cruise from San Diego. I've booked a SW return flight for 11:05 a.m. on day of disembarkation. I guess there is a good chance I won't make that flight. However, the next flight at 4:05 p.m. seems awfully late. So, I'm going to take my chances, and hope for the best with the early flight. Will report back here either way.

So what do they want us to do? Quit cruising on HAL? We already had very little choice without flying to the East coast.

As much as I thought I'd never do this, I am trying NCL and Carnival out of Houston and Galveston. I refuse to cruise out of east coast, so HAL is forcing me to try other cruise lines.

Suggest you change to a cabin on deck 10; better to be between two passenger decks. If you can't get mid-ship, you may prefer aft to forward.

Dear Trisha,

I have followed your posts for years and have appreciated your advise. I know how you and Virgil enjoyed cruising to Hawaii. I used to love your avatar photo of the two of you.

I am sorry for your loss and know your sadness. You are in my thoughts.

We booked it directly through Cheryl's taxi and tours!

Thank you, I will note that in my Nassau file for next visit.

Loveysbydesign: Loving your review and photos. Can't thank you enough for doing this for us at CC. Sorry if I missed this, but did you book your Nassau tour through Carnival or an independent company? Thanks :)

First post here and wanted to chime in. I pack everything into different sized ziplock bags. I try to separate them by day but it's really what fits. And it's not because I try to fit more or anything.

 

On one international trip before I started doing this, we (DH and I) had a connecting flight in Hong Kong where it was pouring and our entire suitcase and all it's contents were drenched. Even by the time we got to or final destination 5 hours later and in the middle of the night (no stores open to buy clothes) everything was still soaking wet. We spent the whole night in our hotel room wringing out all of our clothing and hanging them up to dry.

Oh ouch. I feel the pain. Understandable why you'd use ziplocks now.

I don't think they do. They can help organizationally, but if you're a good packer (be it a roller or bundler or whatever) then you can pack in less space than using bags.

 

(note - I don't do either - if I don't have space, I either take less stuff or use a bigger bag, depending on the trip and my needs for that trip).

Thanks for the answer. I always thought packing bags might take up extra space. Ive been cruising for 35 years and I'm a roller. For knit shirts, underwear, socks, shorts and capris, I stack like items in a pile, role up tight, then secure with sturdy elastic bands. I can squeeze lots of stuff and it makes for easy unpacking.

I've never used packing cubes, but after reading this thread, I'm convinced they are efficient and organized. My question is How do they save on space?