rm1247

We are sailing on Zaandam this June. Does anyone know if this ship has soft serve ice cream?

On 3/15/2023 at 7:15 PM, RuthC said:

I answered, in a different color, under your questions, embedded in the quote. 

Ruth, thank you so much for these answers to my questions! This is all very helpful.

Looking for help - first time on HAL - we are Diamond with RCI

We are experienced cruisers, but most of our cruises have been on royal ships (they were a good fit when our kids were young). We actually prefer the smaller Royal ships. Really wanted to take a cruise this June, but had very limited options due to schedules. We found a good deal on the Boston - Montreal Itinerary on Zaandam.  With only a few months before departure, I'm trying to figure out what we should expect as first-time HAL cruisers. Royal is comfortable and familiar. What are some of the differences that we will notice? Advantages that we'll enjoy?

I read back several pages and have done multiple searches, but still have some questions. I'd also love to know some tips on Zaandam. We are on the lower promenade deck. We usually book a balcony, but only outsides were available on this cruise. 

Specifically, I'd love to know about:

1. Coffee. Is it available all the time? Where? Is there a cost? Real cream or just milk?

2. Internet. Is it best to buy this ahead of time or is there no difference? My husband has to have internet for work, although I realize on an older ship it is likely unreliable.

3. What should we do ahead of time? Do we need to purchase or make any reservations before getting on the ship?

4. Embarkation. We usually try to get the earliest time available on RCI, but it sounds like HAL just randomly assigns you a time. Is that correct? Is there a way to get an earlier time?

5. Open Dining. How does this work? Can you request to have the same serving team each night? We are waitlisted for early, but currently have open dining.

6. Tender tickets. We tender for Bar Harbor. We've been on some RCI sailings where this was chaos and if you didn't line up for tickets super early you were out of luck. How is this handled on HAL, and specifically HAL?

7. Specials - Does HAL run specials on excursions and onboard experiences? Where are they posted? Do they have upgrade options?

8. Zaandam - any "don't miss" activities or locations? What are your favorites with this ship/class?

Thanks so much for the help!

Has anyone won a Royalup to a Royal Suite (NOT Oasis or Quantum class)? If so, how early were you notified? I’m watching our upcoming cruise and it looks like Royalup bids for Owners Suites and below were awarded, but the 2 bedroom Grand Suites (both are available) and the Royal Suite are still open. I’m curious if they usually wait to award those large suites.

What is the earliest you have seen a Royal Up win?

1 hour ago, BlueFish2000 said:

Is this the Abbott home test? 

Yes, the Abbot home test that is proctored by eMed. I ordered ours direct from Royal.

I saw multiple reports of people having trouble this past weekend with their tests, some taking over 5 hours to finish all of the people in their group. Wait times for one person seemed to be over 90 minutes, and if you logged out because of the app being nonresponsive your test was invalid. It seemed like most people were doing the tests in the day time, between 9am - 5pm. 

It was the first I heard of people having trouble, and concerns me as we'll need to test on either New Year's eve or New Year's Day, and couldn't get a backup appointment at a pharmacy because of the holiday.

I'd love to hear from anyone who tested in the past week and had no trouble with wait times (and what time you did the test). Of course, they would all be on a cruise right now. 🙂

I've read that many people had trouble with long delays in the past week or so with their eMed tests and wondered if you found that a certain time of day had less of a wait, and if it was better to log in on a laptop or a phone?

Thanks!

I'm trying to decide if it is worth it to book the Great Bay Beach Experience Excursion or if we should just do it on our own (I know the water taxi is right off the pier and the beach is right across from the ship). If you are familiar with the RCCL excursion, can you answer these questions?

It includes the taxi ride, but says the excursion is only 3 hours. Do we have to return at a set time or is the return trip good for anytime?

What is the location of the included beach chairs and umbrella?

I've read on these boards that you can take the water taxi for $7 round trip and rent 2 beach chairs, an umbrella, and some drinks for $25. That would put my total cost for on our own at $39, while the RCCL excursion costs $54. The convenience plus being able to use OBC is appealing, but not if choosing our own hotel location and return time is superior.

I appreciate any suggestions!

I have 3 bids in for my upcoming cruise and 2 of them just changed to expired and one is pending but can't be modified. When this turns into a win, what is the typical time it takes from the change to when I receive an email?

9 hours ago, orville99 said:

We came close on the 11/21 Harmony cruise that we "won" an upgrade from a JS to a CLS. The CLS that they assigned to us was dead center (1734) in the back of the ship, so our view of the ocean would have been completely obstructed by the Abyss and the boardwalk balcony cabins. Fortunately as soon as we received the upgrade email we called the RCL D+ desk and executed a change to the last available side facing CLS (1764). I doubt DW would have been at all pleased with the original upgrade location. She loved 1764 - and I dodged a bullet.😇

From now on we will only bid on suites that only exist as side facing suites.

This is one of the scenarios I'm afraid of. Interesting that you could change it. We booked through a TA, so I think I wouldn't be able to just call and get our cabin changed. 

Any other suite categories to avoid on Oasis class?

We are considering placing a bid through Royal Up for our upcoming cruise on Oasis, and I'm wondering if anyone won a bid and ended up regretting it? It seems like you might end up with the lesser desired rooms in a higher category, like those with noise issues or an obstructed view. I saw a comment recently from someone on Oasis on deck 14 about noise from the pool deck, and I realized that we could end up with a cabin on that deck. We haven't placed a bid yet, and I'm weighing the pros and cons. Thanks for sharing your experience! We are currently in a balcony, and would bid on one of the suite options.

We will be in Coco Cay in January and I'm considering purchasing the Beach Bed. The only one available is the Breezy Bay at Chill Island. I tried searching for information on these beach beds but can find very little info.  Would anyone happen to have any pictures? Here are my questions:

Is the area quiet? The beach beds appeal to me because of the comfort, shade, and privacy.

Is there enough privacy from the surrounding beds?

Do you have a clear view of the ocean? I'm concerned that the view may be just of the overwater cabanas?

How far are you from the food areas?

Is there an attendant to bring drinks?

Should I wait to see if one of the beach beds in another area opens up?

Thanks for your help!!

31 minutes ago, Maitaivegas said:

Hit the silhouette icon the one on the far right. Toward the middle it has your check in date.

Thank you! I tried checking on the app but hadn't found it until I read your reply.

We have a cruise planned in January but check-in is currently unavailable. I understand that this is because they have pushed back the due date for final payment, but I also understand that it is ideal to check-in as soon as possible to get an early arrival time. Is there a date that check-in has typically opened? 60 days out? 45? Does it vary by ship and port?

Thanks for your help!

10 hours ago, allisonb22 said:

We didn't have the dining package last time on anthem but just came to say we LOVED everything about Jamie's. it was great and our waiter, rolly, was fabulous!! make sure you get the meat plank 🙂 it was awesome.

Thanks, allisonb22! We've heard others recommend Jaime's and are excited to try it!

11 hours ago, ryanbarckley said:

I was just on anthem for the Jan 5 cruise and the way the package worked for us was we could go to any specialty restaurant (including Johnny rockets) as many times as we wanted as long as they were open, embarkation day included. When we got on board we wandered right up to Jamie’s and made reservations for every night right then and had zero problem getting the times we wanted (between 630 and 730 each night). We did make some changes throughout the cruise and it was slightly harder but we always found something that worked. 

 

 

Thank you!! This is very helpful! Are milkshakes from Johnny Rockets also included? Stopping there for an afternoon snack is going to be a fun perk.

My husband and I bought the unlimited dining plan for the first time for our upcoming cruise on Anthem. This is a special treat for our anniversary cruise as we have only done specialty dining once or twice in the past. Could you share tips about unlimited dining, and specifically for Anthem? Here are some of my questions:

Will any restaurants be open on embarkation day? Does the UDP include lunch that day?

I read a review that dining takes longer in Specialty restaurants. Is that true?

What are your favorite restaurants on Anthem? I’m trying to figure out which ones to book more than once.

Any favorite dishes we should be sure to try?

Do you suggest trying a 2^nd restaurant for dessert? Or a snack in the afternoon? Which ones are good for that?

Does it include Johnny Rockets? I think on Anthem Johnny Rockets is just a counter?

Does the dress code for specialty match what is in the Cruise Compass or is it just always smart casual?

Thanks for any suggestions you have!

Dolphin Discovery locations do not allow personal cameras to photograph or record the dolphins and people in the water.

Neither does Atlantis in Nassau.

Instead, dolphin places charge $30-40 USD for one printed picture. I have heard that Dolphin Discovery charges $40.

 

Others not in the excursion would be able to meet up with you at Chankanaab. You could swim/snorkel with them, enjoy the rest of the park. Those 2 people just would not have the unlimited food and drink that the dolphin excursion people would have. They would have to buy their own food/snacks. I think the cruise lines reserve all the morning time slots, as only afternoon ones are available on Dolphin Discovery websites. So your dolphin activities would be finished by noon or so and you could hang with the remaining 2 for the rest of the day. Chankanaab is open from 8am-4pm.

 

I plan on going to Chankanaab (on our own) in January and maybe do the sea lion discovery. I will have a good breakfast on the ship, eat a little food/drink at the park, and then have dinner back on the ship.

Thank you! That is extremely helpful! Do you know how the return to ship is handled for those on the excursion? Can we stay as long as we want or do we have to return at a set time? I chose the earliest time available (8:30am), but I'm assuming that is the time we leave the ship, correct?

We have 4 in our party who would like to do the Dolphin Discovery through the ship (on sale right now, and cheaper than doing on our own), but 2 others who just want to enjoy Chankanaab park. If 4 of us do the ship excursion and the other 2 just go to Chankanaab on their own, will we be able to meet up? Has anyone done this?

Also, can you bring your own camera into Dolphin Discovery?

Thanks for your help!

Yes, supposedly they will either reprogram your bands, or swap them for free.

That's what I'm hoping they'll do. I saw one report where they wouldn't trade them, but maybe that was just an isolated incident.

We'll be sailing on Anthem soon in a regular balcony cabin. I'm wondering if we can swap our Quantum WOWbands (for free) for Anthem WOWbands or if we'll have to pay for the new ones. Anyone have experience with this?

I did mean 13250. The original posted stated 136xx which could easily be just opposite of where I was, so not necessarily in a completely different location. The initial post is asking about Deck 13 in general so I provided my observations. YMMV

I am considering cabin 13650, which I think is just opposite of 13250. What was the overhang above your balcony like? Did it bother you? Happen to have any pictures?

Thanks!

CanadaRob, could you tell me if 13650 is affected by the overhang? We are considering this cabin but was warned against it because of the overhang. Also, did you hear much noise from above while out on the balcony? Thanks!

Lets go workout!

 

Free weights:

 

They even have a squat rack

 

You just made my son's morning - THANK YOU!

Really enjoying your review - thanks! My son would like to see pictures of the gym. Are there any weights?