RMLincoln

Question: A guarantee means you will get a cabin somewhere within that type? But you could get something in a higher type? I'm just asking since I still don't understand all the types of bookings. We have a cabin assigned for our next cruise so we are safe, right?[/quote]

 

I bolded the part of the quote above... Even if you have selected a cabin you could get "upgraded" to a higher level and possibly to a cabin y9ou would not prefer, usually for location unless you have your reservation marked "DO NOT UPGRADE".

 

For example: We had a nice OV partially obstructed on Lower Promenade deck once and did not want to get "upgraded" to a very forward porthole cabin on Main deck, so we used this request. m--

Were there no lecturers? (Not counting the money making types.) Not having the lecturers would be a disappoint to me. m--

None! Port Information was available in an issued brochure with some maps that were slightly better than before. Any port talks dealt with shopping and shore excursions.

 

The "Good Morning Noordam" program on TV by the CD and Guests was a joke. (I compare that with othe such TV programs on other vessels, i.e. Carnival Pride.) Not informative unless one chose not to read the On Location brochure delivered to the cabin.

Thank you for the sad reality check. Sounds like short cruises are not worth HALs investment in enrichment programs. m--

Background: We will be flying from Boston into and out of London for our extended trip August - September and into October. It will include visits to Devon and Cornwall (family heritage), an escorted tour out of London around the British Isles, Paris, Italy (cousins reunion) and possibly Switzerland and or an eastern Med cruise. Then back to London area for a bit more before westbound to home. We travel relatively light - one roller back and one shoulder tote each.

We fly through Iceland for shorter flights so we can choose LHR or LGW. Would like a train to Devon after our arrival then a rental car for the western visit; then possibly train or ferry to France and into Paris.... probably train to Milan for cousins reunion, eventually fly back to England for time in London.

Transportation questions:

Do trains go west from Gatwick to Devon?

How does one get from Gatwick to London - coach or train?

Considering Ferry from Portsmouth to LeHavre then train into Paris... this seems faster than going from Portsmouth all the way to London for the Eurostar to Paris.

Any thoughts will help me! Thank you all. This is a part of our world I haven't been to in 40+ years and I'm so excited to be planning it but it is a big bite. CCers are the best! m--

Were there no lecturers? (Not counting the money making types.) Not having the lecturers would be a disappoint to me. m--

We are 24 days out- and received an email today from HAL offering us an upgrade from our guarantee inside cabin to a Verandah for $199 per person, an oceanview for $99 per person or an obstructed view for $59 per person. Since the prices are about the same as they were when we booked our guarantee for $499 per person, I think we will pass. We would rather use the $$$ on our trip or for an excursion I guess! On another note, I checked open cabins (inside) on January 28th and there were 32 still available on all different decks, AFt, Mid Ship and Forward.........today there are 23 and some decks have sold out. I guess travelers are snapping up the "close to sail date" sales!

Did you book directly with HAL, through a HAL PCC or through a travel agent?

Our last cruise was through a PCC (first time we did this) and it was the first time we saw an upsell offer. Then we got a second offer, hardly better than original pricing, so we didn't take them, not worth it to us. Our LP partial obstructed served us just fine.

Thanks, m--

So good to see so many of you from the eastern, northeastern and Atlantic Maritime regions posting. What a difficult time and the longer it lasts the more difficult it gets. So, more prayers go out to you, trusting you are all safe. Blessings, m--

That's a pleasantry to look forward to :). We've spent more nights on Maasdam than any other ship. Sounds like she hasn't been sold yet. Good news for us who like the older vessels. m--

Been on Constellation and Solstice as well as many HAL cruises. Both X ships are quite lovely. DH says he wouldn't be able to tell Celebrity from HAL except he likes Celebrity's pizza better! :) I'm a little more observant and see a different type of décor but I enjoy both lines very much. I do prefer HAL's library. I certainly wouldn't hesitate to take any Celebrity ship.

The Solstice class ships have the glass blowing lab up top which is very nice the first time, if the weather is nice. The acrobatic show is impressive but I personally wouldn't pick a ship for it - to each their own. I think the entertainment is just an edge better on Celebrity and the larger ships offer more venues and times to pick from.

The buffet has a very large assortment but is mostly self-serve which works better for some that others. The fresh squeezed OJ in the breakfast buffet has a charge, maybe $2.50 per glass. We didn't eat breakfast in the MDR but I think there is a charge for it there too.

Celebrity's specialty dining has higher fees than HAL's and more options, but I can't say much from experience - ate just fine in the MDR.

Celebrity has IMHO the best "open dining time" system - it's really anytime! They turn tables over very fast and use a radio system to communicate between the seating host and the dining captains - reservations or walk-up.

Sounds like a great way to do a reunion! m--

Thanks for posting this great review. Glad you had a wonderful time. m--

Check out this link

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g186534-d2314697-Reviews-Tasting_Scotland_Day_Tours-Glasgow_Scotland.html

or google Tasting Scotland Reviews, and go to TripAdvisor. Looks like 20 reviews, all excellent, 5 stars, but I didn't read them for details. m--

Sending my thoughts and prayers to you all as you hunker down through these terrible storms. And hoping that you will send them back to us here when fire season starts here because we have so little snow now. Wishing we could take yours!

Please, please be very careful for your safety. Falls are always a concern. And if power goes out do not take any risks with cooking on grills in the house because of deadly CO gas. Blessings, m--

Is there a ferry that would work? Maybe a ferry to Le Havre then a train to Paris? We are considering a visit in late August/early September but are still in the very early planning stage. So many options to consider! Thank you all for your help. m--

Always dressed up for formal night - DH in sharp dark suit, dress shoes, crisp white shirt, special tie... me in a gown with wrap.

Now we are combining our cruises with travel abroad. European, Australian, New Zealand flights now have very severe limits on carry on - 8 kg on some (our shoulder totes barely make that), extra fees for checked luggage.

Plus I don't want to have more luggage than I can carry up a flight of stairs or lift onto a bus or train. One roll-aboard (20") plus a shoulder tote is all I can manage. DH can manage a slightly bigger suitcase but his size 14 dress shoes are no longer coming with us.

He used to wear his suit coat on the planes but on our last trip we needed cold-weather jackets... so he packed a black cardigan sweater and nice tie, dress shirt. We were admitted to the MDR but we didn't meet the jacket and tie suggestion. I've changed the gown for a black crepe shirt, simple shiny shell with a burn-out or sparkly topper and gold sandals.

I hope we won't have to feel like we are cheating but with the number of formal nights reduced to 3 on our 21 night transatlantic cruise it was too little to justify the cost and struggle of taking more luggage.

It made me think that maybe formal night is more for the ship to be formal for us to enjoy! The dining room chairs covered, decorations, live dinner music, special menus are what make formal night formal. Not what shoes my husband wears. And guests dress nicely, as they do on ships that don't have dress codes.

And there will be some who get away with something that someone thinks is not dressy enough... which happens now anyway. m--

We had been looking for a cruise for Spring Break, as we couldn't find exactly what we wanted for a resort stay. So we found something we could be happy with - Mexican Riviera 7 days on the Veendam, and booked it. For two weeks, same cruise I have a couple of random questions, hopefully some folks will have some answers.

1. We have done this cruise about 10 years ago on the Ryndam (a real favorite of ours), how different will we find the Veendam?

They are the same calss but Veendam has had changes. Veendam now has only one pool - the aft pool area has been changed, the pool removed and cabins added under where the pool had been, plus other new cabins added in the aft. This results in a bit poorer passenger-to-space ration due to the added cabins and no added public space.

2. Will we have completely identical events i.e. entertainment, menus, etc? I would expect so, but thought I'd ask. Probably, but sometimes having the same menus is an advantage - if you had trouble deciding between two choices you can try something different the next week.

3. Formal night - 2 each week? D.H. doesn't feel like taking his tux, is it fair to think there will be very few tuxes on a shorter cruise such as this?

4. Any must-do excursions? The last time we just went into town in each place.

5. We booked HH guarantee at our own peril, I guess. Does anyone know what the chances are of us being able to keep the same cabin? The lady at HAL wasn't able to tell us. The HH guarantee is a popular choice and there are usually more HH guarantees sold than there are HH rooms, so some people will get "upgraded." Whether you think your upgrade is better or not can be a crapshoot. No telling if you might have to change rooms but even if you do it's not that big a deal; the room stewards will help you and usually provide a rolling hanger cart.

6. Fixed dining. No available slots, of course. On the 7 day itineraries, are people as attached to their early ot late fixed dining times? We don't care which seating, we'd just like a fixed time. On our last 3 cruises we were able to get into a fixed dining time 2 times, but not last December, and we didn't much like Any Time dining. We've had open dining several times and were able to request the same table/same time for the whole cruise. This was great for us; if we decided to stay longer in a port they would give our table up after 15 minutes and we could be seated later on, so IMHO even better than fixed seating because with fixed seating if you miss your dining time you are off to the Lido and won't be seated later.

 

Thank you in advance for your help, it is appreciated as always!

Hope you have a fun time! m--

I'm sorry I can't comment about the tours you asked about, but in December we did a "2 person" tour in Gibraltar that turned out to be very strenuous - lots of stairs at multiple attractions, no handrails - a big issue for many on the tour - and then very steep grades getting up to the siege tunnels which was just the beginning of the tunnels tour. Surfaces were very uneven or cobblestones plus it was wet out so it was slippery. Of the 20 or so on the tour we and one other couple were the only ones to finish it with our guide. Luckily for the others they were able to either stay in or go back to the bus at the tunnels and wait it out there, albeit somewhat uncomfortable and annoyed.

I posted a review that this tour should be marked as "3-people." I think the previous advice to check the HAL site and read the reviews there as well as other places is the best homework you can do.

Otherwise you may be able to get private tours that have a less in-depth visit to some of the major attractions, maybe only from the outside or form the road. You'll see a lot more even on a 'windshield" tour than you will staying on the ship so I do hope you can find an excursion that fits your comfort zone. m--

We were on Maasdam 21 days, off Dec 12 in FLL and the internet was atrocious. And Captain Smit made more than one reference to it, always hoping that he could tell us that it was better, which never happened. There were several days it was turned off because it was so intermittent. m--

Very NIIIIIICE....ahhhhh

What a great day for a Sail Away! Checking in from the sunny and much too warm mountains of New Mexico. It's hard to complain about not enough snow! We got 6" out of the storm pushing into Boston now. Oh do we wish we could take it from you. Please stay safe.

Congratulations on the victory erewhon! m--

The point-to-point passengers may purchase meals in the cafeteria or even purchase meals in the dining room but they are very expensive there - about $70pp for dinner.

But it all seems to work together quite well. It was great experience for us. m--

So.. The tap water in the cabin is safe to drink... But it's not available in the dining room? Coffee is free with meals but all water must be purchased? But I can get a cup of ice for free at the bar? Paying for water at dinner seems ludicrous! How much is a coke?

 

 

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The tap water in the cabin is just fine.

At breakfast we had water available from the juice machine.

At lunch we had hot water for tea. No juice machine available.

Coffee was available with breakfast, with lunch and after dinner in the upstairs lounge. If you want coffee or tea all day you will have to buy the coffee/tea deal. Then you get your refills in the upstairs lounge.

Water in the dining room at dinner must be purchased. It is bottled water. Not sure about ice but I've read here on the boards that you can get ice in the cafeteria.

Yes, paying for water at dinner seems crazy. There is a water package available. I figure it balances out that there are no internet fees and no gratuity.

I don't know how much a coke costs.

m--

Thank you sharing this with us. We are all sad but we stand with you. <<<hugs>>>

Please take very good care of yourself, and let others do what they can do, so they can have the chance to give of themselves to support you. Blessings, m--

This Valentines Day celebrate the deep love you both shared.... not everybody gets to have that!

Apologies for yet another thread on Formal Nights.

 

I am due to make my first cruise with HAL in May to Norway on the Ryndam.

Norway should be beautiful in May!

 

On my cruises with other lines 'Formal' has meant wearing a tuxedo.

Tux not required on HAL but a few men enjoy wearing a tux and all men look good in a tux! Jacket and tie are the recommendation and nearly all men in the MDR will conform to that.

 

Reading other threads on the subject of the dress code for Formal Nights on HAL, one reads conflicting opinions on whether or not one should wear a tuxedo, or even if a dress code is enforced.

Yes, one reads a lot of opinions here, it is true. And there are instances when the dress recommendation is not fully enforced by the Maître d' which upsets some people. If you look around the MDR on a formal night hard enough you will probably see some violations of the recommendation; better to enjoy yourself!

 

So my question to anyone who has recently cruised on the Ryndam is what is the required dress code for Formal Nights, and how strictly is it enforced?

 

Being over or under dressed compared to other passengers can be embarrassing.

 

Thank you in advance for any replies.

I like the new chocolates just a tad better than the old ones. They are milk chocolate and ok. If you are a connoisseur you will probably be disappointed. m--

He will not be the only one in a tux. Some men really enjoy wearing a tux and if your husband is one, then good for him! I think the guys always look great in a tux!

But if he'd be wearing a tux because he or you thinks he should then realize that that is not the case; a suit and tie or jacket and tie (with pants of course) are both very appropriate.

Have a great cruise. m--

This has been one heck of a fun ride. Thanks for providing the transportation.

Let's go again some time soon.

I agree with Ruth! :D

Thank you so much and I hope all your belongings are returned AOK. m--