galensgrl

It means damm, the A/C is not working again.

 

As long as it's not a problem with the 'dam toilet, I'm good LOL :p

DH and I booked a GTY cabin on our upcoming cruise, and were hoping for an upsell offer to a Neptune. Alas, it is not to be, this time. Called yesterday and was told it won't be happening for us, anything we would be offered an upsell for is booked. I know it depends on a lot of factors and I wasn't planning on it, just hoping. Can't complain, we got what we booked, so I'm happy with the Vista Suite we got, though it's more forward than the midship cabin the booking agent promised but didn't deliver. It's all good, we're going on a cruise!!! But I did tell DH that instead of playing the upsell/upgrade waiting game, we're just going to book that 'dam Neptune suite next time lol. :D

Remember - if it doesn't come out of your body......don't flush it!

 

So true! It never ceases to amaze me that anyone would chance flushing anything but bodily wastes down a cruise line toilet. I think of it like being a really big RV type toilet system LOL Once on NCL someone flushed a disposable diaper down the toilet on the septic line we were on, and it took the plumbers an entire day to find the clog and fix it. DH and I were both just in disbelief that someone would flush something like that and think it was okay. SMH.

I suggest using this for inspiration...

 

 

(thanks to whoever posted this a few months ago)

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

 

I can't help but wonder what the front of the dress looks like - assuming it has a front :eek:

All I know is I wear underwear with my dresses, whether they need it or not :D

As an EMT I have stopped to rendered aid to 3 passengers on cruises. My best advice to all passengers is to learn where the phones are in public areas.

 

Phone locations vary ship to ship and cruise line to cruise line. Look for them near elevator lobbies, outside of lounges or at entrances to theater, buffet, dining rooms casino, pool, spa, other area of large gatherings. Take note of how to get help, it may be your loved one who needs it.

 

We were 2 days out of LA on our way to Hawaii, so about half way. I had a woman collapse literally at my feet one evening as I was exiting the show lounge. Her head hit the hard stone-tile floor in the entranceway/exit rather hard, but she fell because her heart stopped. I immediately began an assessment and as I called loudly to my husband to call 911 for "no breathing, no pulse", a physician jumped-in to join me in CPR. Her friends told us she had a pacemaker... well I believe it was more than an ordinary pacemaker because her heart started and she actually came to! The medical team arrived and took over, yes it was Bright Star call.

 

A few days later I saw her walking around the ship and we were both thankful to run into each other. I believe her pacemaker was equipped with a defibrillator which saved her. She told me she was overnight in the infirmary for observation, released in the morning and said she felt fine!

 

The other thing that I had to do during that incident was get a bar server to re-route people around us because they were actually stepping on us. One person kicked my evening purse (it was formal night) about 20 feet away from where I had dropped it by my side to attend to the woman, and he never even made a motion to retrieve it for me. People were unbelievably uncaring and oblivious.

 

Another incident that shocked me was when a gentleman tripped and fell in a doorway between the lido buffet and the pool area. He was unconscious and had a bad cut on his head while people just stepped over and around him, no-one had called 911 when I found him. People were worse than oblivious. Just astounding.

 

Please take the time to notice where the phones are, and be willing to call for help if help is needed. If all you can do is ask someone else to call for help and then direct traffic around an injured person, that will be a huge step forward. Remember, we're all in the proverbial "same boat." m--

 

Sounds like what is called the "bystander effect," which is what happens in a crowd when someone needs help in an emergency. It's a proven human behavior when people get in a crowd, it's a totally different mentality than when people are by themselves, the crowd mentality can be so disturbing. Most everyone thinks someone else will do something about the crisis, so they disregard what is happening and go about their business, avoiding the unknowns of "what will happen if I jump in". Self preservation at it's worst moment. People who are trained to respond to emergency situations aren't as affected by the bystander effect, and they usually spring into action helping and also getting more acute assistance from medical personnel.

 

But having people trample you and kick you and your stuff was truly an extreme. That is just unthinkable, but terrible things can happen when you get a crowd of people together. Not always, but high stress situations can bring out the worst in people, I'm sure that's no surprise to anyone. I hope it's never called for, but I've learned from your stories as well. One of the first thing I'm going to do when I get on the ship next time is take us on a quick tour of the ships public areas making note of where the phones are, just in case. Hopefully this will help us be present in the moment, help when possible and definitely speak up and seek help for those in need. Also a First Aid and CPR course is a good idea. Thank you.

Your gripe is completely valid. Those suites are nice and the jogging track is supposed to be roped off with signs at those hours. I booked one of these staterooms in error, but fortunately I was able to change to another room in the same category well before sailing. If I remember the jogging track is supposed to be closed until 8:00am. 4:00 and 5:00 in the morning is ridiculous. They should ask that the fitness center be opened for them so they can run on treadmills if they need to be running at that time.

 

I agree, and your Aussie is gorgeous :)

Often the problem with toilet overflow, at home and on the ship, is a valve that sticks open instead of closing and thereby shutting off the water so the water continues to flow into the toilet.

 

If you push the flush button, it will often fix the problem by unsticking the valve. The valve may not stick again, or it might.

 

We have found that this happens only right after using the toilet, so we never leave the bathroom until we see that that water has stopped.

It took two times having the water over the rim and onto the floor to figure this out.

 

Thank you for sharing this information. It will come in handy, if we have issues on a ship in the future I will keep this in mind.

We don't bother with the internet at all on a cruise. I don't have the patience for the wait times, and DH is a pc tech who fixes other peoples pc and server issues as a living so he is happy not to deal with computers at all on vacation.

We don't have a TV in the bedroom at home, but we will watch a movie at night while we're on a cruise. The TV is never on during the day though as we are out of the cabin doing other things most of the day.

Thanks

 

Yes, Bon Voyage! DH and I will be boarding the Veendam in Boston on the 28th, we can hardly wait. We are eager to be back at sea on a 'dam ship :D

Looking forwrad to your posts regarding the drydock. We are curious about the video on demand meant to replace the dvd's. Seems funny to watch TV on a cruise, but we love winding down with a movie at night. Cheers!

"Non-working toilet" can mean anything from a delayed flush to no flush to over-flowing. For a few minutes, hours, days. Doesn't pay to get into a dither until there are more details.

 

Acceptable for me (after many ships and many varying similar experiences) delay flush, no flush for a few hours, over-flowing once or even twice if it is a long cruise.

 

NO toilet flush at all for a whole day would obviously a NON-WORKING TOILET. But there is a lot of latitude in-between that we simply have gotten used to when on board any ship.

 

For me, the term "non-working toilet" needs qualification since it means all things to all people.

 

Your need for clarification is understandable. By "non-working" toilet, I am referring to someone reporting a toilet that overflows consistently and spewing sewage water all over the floor. A few people have reported having this happen. I guess I'm a "glass is half full" kind of gal because I know issues arise on cruise ships, and it's how they are dealt with on both sides (cruise staff & pax) that matters. On NCL we had as toilet that didn't flush properly and overflowed because someone "up the line" tried to flush a disposable diaper. Not the cruise lines fault, obviously. But they had their plumbers working on the problem, and then housekeeping came and cleaned up the pee water and disinfected the bathroom floor. Plumbing issue was fixed within the day, but during that day we didn't have a working toilet due to the larger plumbing issue. Thankfully the water didn't make it out to soak the bedroom carpet.

 

I'm not like others for whom an apology is important, especially the perfunctory, insincere kind of apology. Spare me. I'm not looking for compensation, unless I end up losing a limb or something in a freak accident that was preventable. My thing is, if I have an issue, please fix it to make sure my experience doesn't make me feel like I want to take my business elsewhere. We had our first cruise with HAL last year, and we loved it. Loved the Veendam, service was excellent, people were wonderful. Loved it so much we are going back for a 9 nighter coming up. From our past experience with HAL it is our impression that if there are any issues, they will get addressed. The staff we met, more often than not, wanted to know if they could do anything for us. And that level of service was so refreshing.

I had toilet issues in my trip on the Veendam last month. My issues were not that it happened. My issues were with the front desk staff who did nothing and never issued an apology. It happens. It's a ship. I get it. But offer apology. Offer to make t right.do something. There are a million ways to make a customer heard and feel better about a gross situation. And my response I got from mentioning such in the survey again came with nothing except "they feel sad that I had areas I felt dissapointed in". Nope that's not an apology. And we also got nothing in response from hotel management either. It left a bad taste in an otherwise enjoyable cruise. But seriously toilet issues are gross. No water. That's bad.

 

I agree with your post. There are some issues that are more serious than others, obviously. Slow internet? You're on a ship where the internet service is usually spotty at best. They don't have the mixed salads you want on the salad bar? This I get because being diabetic, I can't have the bread but still want the tuna or egg salad. Those mixed salads get old and crusty looking pretty quick when sitting out on a salad bar, so I'll scrape it off the bread if I want it bad enough. I paid to cruise, the cruise line can figure out what is cost effective for them to offer on a salad bar. And I am not a wasteful person in general, but I have a restrictive diet, and still I have to eat like anyone else. I would love to opt for pasta and other "carby" foods at the buffet, but I don't want to lose my eyesight or my feet, so I watch my diet.

 

Non working toilet and no water? That is a basic need really, and two of the things you expect to have on a cruise are a working toilet and clear, potable running water. Not having those basic needs met is unacceptable really. That could upset anyone really, I know I'd be upset to have a cabin with a non-working bathroom. And I agree with the OP on that specific point 100%. Getting it fixed should be the priority for shipboard staff when they are made aware of it. But I have read that front desk staff on ships are notorious for acting like issues such as toilet and plumbing issues are unheard of "until now." I think there's a tendency to try to avoid having to offer compensation, but that's just my take on this phenomena of not apologizing.

Service is primarily delivered by Indonesian and Filipino staffers who often do have limited English-language skills, but they are friendly, professional, accommodating and are the main reason most of us keep coming back to HAL ships.

 

HAL was never a "luxury" line - it is solid high-value mainstream cruise line who offer some of the very best itineraries out there for the dollar. Let's put it another way, HAL devotes more space and care to its libraries than you will find on most any other ship. This gives you an idea where HAL priorities are for its passenger demographics.

 

HAL low-key comforts, longer itineraries and traditional design appeal to older passengers who want something more predictable than glitzy so it rarely has a high number of younger passengers, except during the holiday cruises. However, reports from those who do travel with younger children typically deliver high marks for the special youth programs HAL offers.

 

I don't even know why anyone would say HAL "nickel and dimes" everyone. That comment does not make any sense without more details. HAL is very low key in its announcements and activities. They have shops and activities that are designed as profit centers but there is no pressure or reason to participate if this is not your choice.

 

We often hear stories about people leaving their cruises with zero balances on their final bills. HAL shore excursions are certainly more pricey than one can often arrange on their own, but it you like the ease and security they offer then you can add extra costs to your final cruise but again that is totally your choice. Even the traditional ship photographers are low key and just a polite no when they offer to take your picture is all that is necessary. They soon learn to stop asking. HAL tries hard to make this a cash-free, no tipping experience with a voluntary service charge added only at the end.

 

Keeping mind if you travel to travel and see things in port, the shipboard life and distractions do not carry as much weight on HAL ships as they might on other cruise lines. Agree, if you go into this comparing Disney to HAL you will find this impossible. We started cruising with Crystal which has a reputation for very high-level service which actually was not to our liking for the most part. HAL was a breath of fresh air for us with the biggest surprise being the genuinely hospitable crew and staff members who naturally responded to passengers in a positive manner; not because they were trained to be "friendly". That made us HAL loyalists now for over 300 cruise days. But we are two seniors traveling with no children - which is a very different experience than yours.

 

The negative review you are quoting really is an out-lier in much of its detail, as the prior posts have pointed out. But HAL is not Disney as also pointed out. And Disney from all reports does offer a superior product ... and its prices reflect this.

 

I agree with everything you say here, especially the part about HAL ships not being a "nickel and dime you" type of experience. For an example on our Veendam cruise we had our pictures taken and we bought pictures, but were never pressured to do so. They take your pictures, you go to the gallery to look, and if you want them you buy them. No pressure from HAL to do so. We came to HAL from NCL, which is known for the nickel and diming routine. HAL is nothing like that, thank goodness.

DH and I took our first HAL cruise last year. Like you, I read many reviews, positive and negative, before we boarded the Veendam last year. The negative reviews I read made me nervous about the cruise we booked, too. But once we got on board, everything was fine. We had no issues, and the service was wonderful. Maybe because the Veendam is a smaller ship, but we got to know the service people quite well, and they were mostly friendly and welcoming. Some of the staff were indifferent but still gave good service, and we ran into a surly staff member in the Lido. Just that one though, but I noticed she was abrupt with everyone. Just her way I guess. For the most part though, the staff was friendly and service was very good.

 

We don't have children, so I can't comment on HAL's programs for children and teens. But I just wanted to let you know that we found the service on our HAL ship to be refreshingly excellent, we feel that they aim to please, and we are looking forward to an even longer cruise with HAL coming up in a few weeks here. Cheers!

[quote name='TheDougOut']CruiseDeckPlans.com has a little yellow star over your room - "Underneath pool area and buffet. There may be noise from above."

Confirmed!

We'll be nearby, but in an outside cabin on the fringe of the garden buffet seating area. If we hear noise, it'll be our cue that we're missing something. Like bacon. I call that a feature.[/quote]

Great site you refer to here. DH and I booked on another line, and have been wondering if the cabin we picked had any issues. According to CruiseDeckplans.com, our cabin has no known issues. Woohoo! We didn't think it did, but it can be hard choosing a good cabin on an unfamiliar ship. A lot of times there are large blank areas that have no indication of what's there (Galley area? Crew area? Housekeeping or storage area?) From now on we will be looking at 2 deck plans when we book - from the ships website, and also the one at CruiseDeckPlans.com. Cheers!

To Hawkeyetlse

 

Thank you for the information & wine list aboard the ship. We thought I should share this information. We are active wine drinkers at home & on the cruise. We usually never find a suitable white wine at the bars or the house wine being offered by the cruise line. We are forced to purchase their beverage package just to get something drinkable. Even then we order bottled wine at dinner to complement the meal. So as a way by example: This is what we can purchase wine for at home in Arizona vs the ship charges.

 

White Wine on NCL similar to competing cruise lines.

 

White Zinfandel Beringer, Calofornia Ship $36.00 Total Wine Store $11.00

Chardonnay Meridan Vineyards, California Ship $36.00 Total Wine $7.99

Chardonnay Louis Jadot Pouilly Fuissee Burgandy France Ship $65.00 Total Wine $14.95

Chardonnay Robert Mondavi Private Selection Ship $ 40.00 Total Wine $8.95

 

My point is the mark-up on alcohol products is obscene & expensive. This does not include the usual 18% added as a service charge or gratitutity. Also as a consumer we are purchasing 1-6 bottles at a time. Imagine what discount the cruise line gets, for ordering thousands of cases of wine across all of their ships.

 

Understanding I am not complaining, just pointing out that drinking wine on any cruise can be expensive & of poor quality.

 

Happy Travels, John

 

I have to tell you, the mark up on wine and alcohol on the lines that charge for those things is obscene and expensive across all of the cruise lines. It's nothing to pay $30+ for a bottle that costs $10 or less at home. That kind of crazy mark up isn't really unusual on a cruise. Also cruise lines charge $18 or more per bottle for the privilege of drinking our own wine that we bring, above and beyond the first bottle. Cruising is a fun vacation, but if you like your luxuries, it sure isn't a cheap vacation choice. [/i]

Sorry to hear about your unhappy experience with HAL. We had our first cruise with HAL on the Veendam last May, and we enjoyed it so much we are going back to the Veendam for a different itinerary in a few weeks. DH and I are so looking forward to it. Which is funny for my husband, he enjoys vacations but doesn't really get that verbal about them, but he LOVED the Veendam and the HAL experience. He gets very enthused about the staff and the level of service we experienced with HAL. And the Veendam is a smaller, older ship that certainly gets mixed reviews, but we have no complaints about her so far. Our first impression was good, unlike yours, which makes it easy to look forward to going back to HAL. As long as we have good experiences and no real disasters, we will keep choosing HAL. Good luck with your future cruises.

There is s good post by CC member Jolie Cruiser that explains the customs process; that post is here. I think the procedures the CL has in place for customs are what makes the process painless or a mess:(.

 

As for the tender ride, it is about 10 minutes.

 

Cruise ships anchor east of Bar Island and south of Sheep Porcupine Island.

 

Here's a picture of the aft half of a cruise ship at anchor taken from the Town Dock:

 

 

 

SBtS

 

Thank you for posting that picture of the ship and it's tender boat. I have never seen the tender process live and in person. As such I am a little bit nervous about tendering, considering the part of how you get on the tender and then back on the ship is somewhat mysterious to me. I have a feeling that if other older and/or less fit people can do it, so can I. I guess we will see, as our upcoming cruise has 2 tendered ports. At the very least I will get to see how it is done, and maybe even try it. ;) Maybe.

Hi Father, thinking of you basking in the sun at HMC, when it's 26 degrees and snowing lightly here, and it's April 4th already. Have a great time on your cruise. :)

We haven't received anything yet. Last year was our first HAL cruise, maybe they were sent to Mariners who have more stars than we do. We are foodies though, it would be fun to do the survey.

If you are not against paying for specialty dining, we found dinner in the Pinnacle Grill to be a very nice dining experience. DH enjoyed the filet, it was tender and cooked nicely. I thought the halibut with shrimp scampi was very good, and the veggie sides tasted fresh and tender-crisp. Also if you want something extra special (but also pricier @$49 per person) the Dinner at LeCirque held at the Pinnacle Grill was superb. We thought it was worth the cover charge. We made reservations for LeCirque again for our upcoming cruise, we booked early as we don't want to miss that. We thought the Gala Night meals in the MDR were very good too, the steak and shrimp on the first night and the filet and lobster tails on the second Gala Night were yummy.

Signs and announcements are no longer sufficient.

 

Excuse me for abbreviating your quote, but you are right on in regards to many people thinking the rules are meant for others and signs being ignored. On the first day of one of our NCL cruises several years ago, our toilet and others on the same septic line became unusable due to a bad clog in the line. It was discovered that someone tried to flush a dirty disposable diaper down the toilet further up the line. What is so strange about that is, even on land can anyone really believe that a baby diaper is able to be flushed down any type of toilet without causing a plumbing problem? I think not, but somehow someone thought flushing one down a cruise ship toilet was an okay idea, despite very clear signs over the toilet warning people not to flush things not meant to be flushed. Yes a cruise can be a "magical" experience, but obviously that doesn't apply to the real world plumbing system. ;)

Yes, there is room service on the first day. While the staff might be reduced that day the number of requests is also greatly reduced.

 

Wow, that's a nice perk. DH will be pleased to have that to look forward to. Thank you for your response.

I always pack my thermal mug when I head out to a cruise. It comes in handy for my morning coffee, holding just enough to wake me up.

On the way home, it safely holds all those uneaten Pinnacle truffles I can't finish after the meal.

Mug takes up no extra space when it's being put to good use.

 

"Uneaten" Pinnacle truffle? I had no idea such a thing existed...:D My favorite Pinnacle Truffle is the little dab of white, milk or dark chocolate with dried fruits and nuts swirled in them. Sooooo good.

Hi everyone. Our cruise is coming right up, and DH and I were discussing what we look forward to on our first day on the ship. DH said he looks forward to getting on the ship and ordering room service so that we can eat a leisurely lunch in the cabin while we unpack and go over paperwork like spa and dinner reservations, etc. I told him that we will probably have to go to the Lido and grab a sandwich and bit of salad to take back to the cabin as there is no room service that first day. I assume all staff is busy working on getting cabins ready or whatever else they attend to that first day. He thinks that room service staff is just dedicated to room service. Will there be room service that first day? Thanks.

 

Lorie

For me the worst part of the cruise is when it ends, and we have no other cruises booked to look forward to because DH refuses to book another cruise until the current one has been over for about 6 months :( I try telling him "Hey, it's so much better when we have a cruise to look forward to", but nope, he won't budge. :mad::mad::mad:

 

We'll never get to the two cruises a year phase if the DH doesn't change his ways. I think taking a Spring cruise AND a late Summer/Early Fall cruise is reasonable. ;)