Petronillus

I usually order a double, so the limit on my signature package really comes to 7½ drinks. I've yet to bump into the limit. What a temperant boy am I!

I suspect that what you've just detailed explains why my fellow passenger regretted not having booked 3 nights.

DW & I drink enough to at least break even on the beverage package. For me the main thing is feeling carefree. Not for nothing was my Dad born and raised in Scotland.

On our most recent cruise one of my fellow pax said that if he had it to do over he would have booked one of the cruisetours including 3 days in Denali. I didn't press him for details but he said that 2 days just wasn't a long enough time. It made enough of an impression on me that I resolved to choose an itinerary giving us 3 days (when the time came).

I hope I'm not quibbling but my primary incentive to purchase the Club Orange option is that at the time of booking, with Club Orange you select the lowest-cost cabin available in your category (verandah, ocean view, etc.) and then upgrade to any other available cabin in the same category at no additional charge (i.e., other than the fare for the initial choice and the extra cost of Club Orange). For DW & me, all the other CO perqs are gravy.

We're still basking in the afterglow of 28 days ohboard the Westerdam cruising Asia-Pacific. HIA gave us the signature package, and I had my set of drink preferences (a rather small number and narrow range). I never once found, regardless of venue, that my charges varied. On those rare occasions when I ordered something above the signature-package limit, the server always told me what the upcharge would be.

As of last month Chivas Regal was available at most bars onboard and did not exceed the $11 signature package limit. I think that all the single malts were above our pay grade. At home my favorite tipple is Ardbeg Uigeadail, but on board high-end blends are satisfactory. I wasn't on the lookout for single malts but IIRC the stop shelf had Glenfiddich, Glenmorangie, and the like.

Last month, on Westerdam, we had the Signature package and were barely grazed by the recently increased prices. My bloody Marys were at or below the cutoff, and same for my Bombay Sapphires. Our Chivas Regals were also within the limit. For a couple of days the Crow's Nest was out of Chivas; when we switched to Johnny Walker Black, the upcharge was something like $0.59.

We just spent 28 days in 4179 on Westerdam. The only complaint I have about the cabin is over the dearth of electrical outlets. When we arrived a power strip had already been supplied, and we put it into use immediately. The verandah was deeper than any we've enjoyed previously. Our verandah door was about three feet back from the railing of the 5th-deck cabin above us. We had occasion to shelter under the overhang from time to time. We weren't bothered by either the vibration or the sound of the engines. The view of the wake was delightful. The most pleasant memory was viewing Mt. Fuji in all its splendid glory right smack off our verandah, for the entire time we were berthed.

There's something in OP's original post that has me confused. Is there a Pacific Coast itinerary that reaches both Alaska and Mexico? I couldn't find any on the HAL website, am wondering if it would be two back-to-back bookings we'd have to cobble together ourselves.

On our most recent cruise, on one of the Meet-the-Artist coffee klatches that the CD hosted, one member of the Step One Dance Company mentioned that they do get separate cabins, which they appreciate and which make HAL a preferred employer. It reminded me of another time when the LCS pianist was married to the cello. As a result they shared a cabin and the cello got one all to itelf. BTW, at the same coffee klatch, one of the children asked the Step One troupe is at the end of the cruise they become the Step Two Dance Company. An astute question, I thought: is it perhaps a 12-step program?

Between Krista and the Step One Dance Company we found the entertainment offerings fully satisfactory. I should give honorable mention to the excellent Third Avenue West jazz trio who performed in the Ocean Bar. About half of the bar was plainly jazz afficionados, clapping after solo riffs and the like. The rest were there for a gabfest and for them it was no more than background music. Personally, I thought the chatter was demeaning, and most times it drove me away.

A few years back, shortly before the pandemic, I showed up at the MDR wearing shorts, on a non-gala evening. The maitre d' took me aside and very discreetly asked me to go back to the cabin to change into a pair of long pants. His comment was smoothly delivered with nothing the least bit offensive, and I took no offense. DW and the couple accompanying us were seated without delay and I was immediately escorted to our table upon my return. On our most recent cruise tuxedos were few and far between. I did spot two gentlemen sporting kilts and full highland regalia.

Before DW and I set sail last month on our Asian Collector cruise on board the Westerdam, a thread was spinning about the recent change in format for Billboard OnBoard where the number of pianos was reduced from two to one. It was taken as given that this was another piece of the HAL bean-counters' handiwork, but the main question on this thread was whether two was necessarily better than one. It eventually broke down into an exchange of personal grudges and attacks, but before that there seemed to be a consensus that it all came down to how good the remaining solo pianist was. I'm here only to report that Westerdam can proudly boast of a top-notch talent in Krista Meadows. Krista plays skillfully and with verve, but she is first and foremost a singer. She performed three 45-minute sets a night; the first two were programmed around various time periods and/or genres (e.g., music of the 50s/60s/70s/80/90s etc., British Invasion, Country & Western, the Beatles) and the third set was always reserved for requests. After her second set, she would pass out and collect request slips, which she then organized into a playlist. Those she was unfamiliar with, or she didn't have a satisfactory accompaniment for, she would set aside as "homework"; more often than not, the next time the number was requested, she'd be ready with it. Krista created an intimate atmosphere in the venue. She engaged us as friends, including the waitstaff. Instead of seeking refuge and respite in a (quasi) green room between sets she stuck around and interacted with us. Doing requests she would sometimes find that her arrangement was not yet ready for prime time, she would admit as much and promise to work on it in homework, and so far as I could detect no one thought the less of her for it. If I knew in advance that Krista Meadows was performing on a particular cruise, I would be inclined to book that cruise over others.

On our last couple of cruises the Promenade Deck was blocked off because of rough seas. We've seen lanai cabins on only a few cruises. When the Prom Deck is closed, does that affect the lanai cabin occupants' access to their lanais? I don't see a lanai in our future.

We're just back from an Asian cruise on the Westerdam. The bags are as capacious as ever, our charge was only $25, and the service was quick and top-notch. By all reports, this is one area where HAL outshines the competition, even competitors at higher price points.

A good place to start would be the website of Compass Speakers and Entertainers. I don't know if HAL is one of their clients.

From your lips to God's ear!

Thank you for all your postings. I'm glad you're feeling better -- well enough to go horseback riding and to savor the "food porn." This shot of the steak is to die for!

Thanks for the tip. Very creative.

Nothing is official, it seems to me, until you can print out the luggage tags.

I think that all the walls hold magnets. I've stocked up in what look like colored buttons (blue, green, red) that the Dollar Store sells in quantities of eight.

WOW!

I grew up in Detroit, and Detroit is a border town. In addition to WJR and WXYZ, I loved to listen to the CBC, especially the Royal Canadian Air Farce.

Our first HAL cruise was the inner passage of Alaska, including a day of scenic cruising Glacier Bay. Although it was early in the season, we were blessed with unseasonably warm temperatures. So, while the winds did whip around, it wasn't at all uncomfortable to be outdoors. I remember spending a lot of time along the railings at the aft by the seaview pool. At one point we heard a thunderous roar and got to see an iceberg calve off the glacier. It was thrilling. I suspect that we might have missed it if we were anchored to our verandah or sheltering in a cabana.