wdw1972

I'd love to see them in a smaller size - wouldn't it be nice to be able to pre-order the right size prior to boarding? The ones in the stateroom can pretty much wrap around me almost twice - it's hard to imagine it being too small on many people, but from the responses here that seems to be the case. That said, I only wear it inside my stateroom so it really doesn't matter how silly it looks. As a person on the smaller end of the spectrum, it can be difficult finding things that fit, and any "one size fits all" will never look like it was intended to look when I wear it! Sue/WDW1972

That's my understanding too. In any event, we've not heard of anyone's cards being taken and used by other passengers, so it's not something that even registers in my mind as possible things to be concerned with. It's been working for 2-3 years now. Sue/WDW1972

This may not be the popular opinion, but in my opinion if you don't have a passport you have no business cruising. Just get the passport and be done with it! Even if it was allowed to cruise without one on your specific cruise, if anything went wrong and you needed to return other than on the ship, you'd be screwed. Don't be stupid - get the passport. Sue/WDW1972

My next cruise is my 48th, and most of those have been on HAL (my preferred line). I book as soon as the next season opens up, so roughly 1-2 years in advance. I'm currently booked through February 2026. I like having the future cruises booked, and since I always want a cabana in HAL's Retreat, booking early ensures I get what I want. I'm not interested in booking last minute to get a "deal" because without the cabana I'm not interested in cruising. I almost always book solo - I cruise with a friend or 2, but we all book our own staterooms, and occasionally I'll book a cruise with my husband and share a stateroom with him. In the ideal world we'd have separate staterooms - but sometimes cruising comes with sacrifices 😉 Sue/WDW1972

I also prefer the Retreat on the Vista & Signature class ships. There are fewer of them, and they're significantly larger - especially the family cabana. When it's just 2 of us, we pay the extra $$ to book the family cabana on Pinnacle ships mainly to have the dining table & chairs in there. It's odd that a cabana intended for 4 adults has 2 loungers and a small table with 2 chairs on this class ship! On our last Rotterdam cruise there were 3 of us (we never have 4 people on a Pinnacle) and were able to rearrange the entire cabana to fit 3 loungers without losing the table with 2 chairs. One of us sat on a lounger by the table while the other 2 used the chairs - and when not eating the chairs were pulled to the side to allow space to move! By contrast, on the Vista/Signature the family cabana is probably twice the size - big table with 4 chairs, 3-4 loungers plus a couple (or more) sitting chairs. Two of us will be sharing a family cabana on Zuiderdam in November - possibly 3 if my husband decides to come along. Sue/WDW1972

Unfortunately I think you're mistaken. Relatively few schools are out over President's Day - mainly the Northeast. When my son was growing up in FL, the spring break was not tied to Easter, since the date for Easter varies so widely. My awful Nieuw Statendam experience that was overrun with hundreds of kids was 3/11/23 for 7 nights. Easter was 4/9/23. Agree between Club Orange and the Retreat you'll miss the worst of it. Walking through the Lido Pool area was something we avoided. We didn't have any issues in specialty dining, which is what we mostly do - other than one night in Canaletto when these absolute horrors (with parents who let them literally RUN wild and stomp like elephants (twins approx 8-10 years old) were running screeching through the Lido Marketplace while mom & dad ignored the behavior. One of my travel companions ran into them a few different times and finally spoke up when they nearly knocked over some of the more traditional elderly HAL passengers, telling the kids to STOP that. It was sad that the parents were so ignorant. From that point we've sworn off the 7-night Caribbean cruises since HAL seems intent on running this kids sail free crap and we've shifted our March cruising to February since March seems to be the peak month for spring breaks. Oh, another lovely experience was waiting for a show in the World Stage. Multi-family group a few rows ahead of us let the kids slam the seat bottoms up & down, hard enough to make noise. The parents just sat there playing on their phones, letting their little darlings behave inappropriately. Good luck! Sue/WDW1972

Does your 12-day end 11/28/25? If so, I'll be boarding the day you depart - and immediately head to family cabana #8. Good luck with the 7-day Nieuw Statendam. It will be overrun with hundreds of kids - I'll never do that again! The Retreat was the only thing that saved me on that cruise! The Lido pool was literally full of young little heads screaming & shrieking with joy - thankfully barely heard up in the Retreat. Sue/WDW1972

Yes. It's shipboard credit given "free" from HAL as part of a promo that you can't use in the casino. If you're buying it, you can use it anywhere. Sue/WDW1972

Have a wonderful cruise! Sue/WDW1972

Please add the following for me. November 28, 2025 Rotterdam 9-day Southern Caribbean ABC Islands February 14, 2026 Koningsdam 11-day Eastern Caribbean Windward & Leeward Islands Thanks! Sue/WDW1972

Very slim chance, especially in a warm-weather climate. Loungers in the middle are for anyone who booked a cabana in the Retreat. Sue/WDW1972

Thanks so much! I remember your comment about sitting on the port side - now I know why, and we'll be sure to do that. Sounds like it'll be a pleasant little outing. Sue/WDW1972

Loving your report/review, as usual. Can you provide any more details/thoughts on your sunset cruise in Aruba? I've got that booked for next cruise, and curious where I should set my expectation level. Sue/WDW1972

I started cruising HAL around 30 years or so ago, when I was in my early-mid 30's and traveled with my son who was preteen at the start. We cruised through his teen years, almost always on 7-night itineraries. Back then kids were few, and were typically well-behaved (obviously parents parented more back then). I continued cruising, generally an approx 10-day in the fall and a 7-day in the spring (often March). There would be kids present, but not a lot, and not a problem - until 2023. My 7-night NS was a nightmare with kids! Both pools were packed with kids. The noise was deafening. A relatively small number of kids were absolute horrors - running (stomping feet like elephants despite being probably 8-10 years old), in full view of their oblivious parents, darting between adult & elderly passengers, with no intervention by the parents. After the 2nd or 3rd time of this happening to my travel buddy she finally spoke up and yelled at the kids to stop that. She shouldn't have had to do that. We all swore off any future 7 night cruises - it's just changed too drastically (not for the better). Club HAL cannot accommodate anywhere near that # of kids, so HAL is a big part of the problem as well. Don't encourage all these kids if you have nothing to offer them besides one scheduled hour per day to access Club HAL (maybe)? We did a 9-night in March this year hoping it would be better. It was, but still way too many kids for our liking - a drastic change from the 28+ previous years cruising at this time. Thankfully, most all of the kids were much better behaved, and HAL did set aside the seaview pool for adults only. A couple I ran into in an elevator were very polite and seemed like great kids. Unfortunately I can't assume that will always be the case. So, we're shifting our spring cruise to February starting in 2025 & 2026 - and sticking to 10 & 11 night itineraries then. Good luck to any mariners booking a 7-night Caribbean cruise after a several year gap between cruises. There's a good chance it's not going to even remotely resemble the cruises they remember! Sue/WDW1972

Let's hope! However, for those parents who are more inclined to pick the line that suits them best (vs the kids), HAL seems to be a good choice. I can only hope most of the families will lean towards the other lines and let HAL focus on the adults (with a handful of kids onboard at most). Sue/WDW1972

No - it's not near the pool at all. It's a quiet, secluded area to enjoy the cruise (for an extra fee) without dealing with the chair hogs by the pool or kids. If you like to use the pool, the Retreat isn't for you. Stewards there provide service throughout the day - lunch, getting drinks from the bar, snacks, etc. There's an open common area with loungers in the sun, then there are loungers inside each cabana (2 per cabana, since a cabana is for up to 2 people, and the 2 family cabanas on the corners accomodate up to 4 people). Sue/WDW1972

I love the spa verandahs - haven't noticed the verandah being smaller (on most ships) and since I always have a Retreat cabana you cannot beat the convenience! I've had no issues with ship movement up there. Sue/WDW1972

I believe I'm paying less than double, as I booked an ocean view. However, the real issue is I have no desire to share my stateroom with hubby for 11 days, so the standby list is a way to get him on the ship for cheap (with our separate staterooms) if it comes through. He's fine either way - going or not going. He thinks a 7-day cruise is a long one. We're doing a 7-day Alaska together next year and I booked us an aft neptune for that (family trip w/adult son/daughter-in-law) but for me 7-day cruises really aren't worth the effort. Our stateroom for Alaska is a triple, so hopefully HAL doesn't try to bump us. It's 5/18/25, so before the summer vacation crowd hits the ships! Sue/WDW1972

Not sure. I booked with the early booking & mariner bonus stuff, so adding someone might mean I lose some of that. If he cruises it'll be on the standby list - $49/day plus port fees. He likes inside staterooms - I won't ever stay in one. For that price he can have his own room - we'll spend time together, but won't have to share a room. Sue/WDW1972

I cruise with 1 or 2 other friends. If it's 2 of us we book 2 staterooms. If it's 3 of us we book 3 staterooms. We're not in our 20's and looking to cruise as cheaply as possible, and the idea of sharing a bedroom/bathroom with a friend is simply not acceptable to any of us. We're grown adults. I'm thinking of adding my husband to the standby list for the next cruise, if that exists then. Would love to have him onboard but don't want him in my stateroom either! Personal space is a wonderful thing, especially on a so-called vacation! Sue/WDW1972

No pillows. You could use a rolled up towel, but the backs of the chaise lounges are adjustable so I don't see the need. Cabanas are definitely NOT always shaded - it depends entirely on where the sun is at the time. If directly overhead, yes you have shade. When it's off to one side or another the sun will shine into those cabanas. Example, heading south you have the afternoon sun (hot) on the starboard side. Heading north it's on the port side. Going to ABC from Florida, you'll have some days going south and others going north, so there's no way to ensure shade every day in any of the cabanas. Airflow is fine on the sides (from my experience).The same walls that exist on the sides also exist on the cabanas facing aft (none face forward) so the air flow is good in all of them - assuming there is a breeze that day. Keep in mind if the ship is traveling south at 16 knots and the wind is blowing south at 16 knots you won't have any breeze at all. If the wind is blowing north at 16 knots while you're going south, you'll have very gusty wind! Unfortunately I've had a couple days over the years where that bad combination rendered the cabanas and Retreat basically unusable - cushions blowing off the loungers, etc. Sue/WDW1972

There's one on deck 2 near where you enter the ship - by Ocean Bar. Another is up on the Lido deck, in the Lido pool area close to the spa (forward). That one is less busy, since people tend to to not know it's there. I never have a need for it for more than 10-15 minutes immediately after embarking so I don't know if either remain throughout the cruise. I'd say definitely no to the one in the Lido, but not sure about the one on deck 2. On Rotterdam (pinnacle class) the one on deck 2 was open and manned every day, and the person working seldom seemed to have anyone stopping by to make a reservation. Sue/WDW1972

Good question. I'm thinking the sparkling wine alcohol content must take care of that. Sue/WDW1972

I agree! A frozen drink shouldn’t be soup. No frozen grapes or chocolate strawberries in this retreat. Instead, watermelon and pineapple skewers with a plain strawberry on the side. sue/wdw1972

Asked Hery this morning. He gets the gelato from the gelato place down by the Lido pool. Makes sense since they have so many flavors and not much room up here. We’ll have to do this in the upcoming days. Sue/wdw1972