zookiebird

Go down to the Promenade Deck.  Its not nearly as crowded as the upper decks and you can roam from side to side.

I use CrfuiseTimetables.com

We were fortunate to have had Kelley Ryan as our CD on the Eurodam earlier this year. Nicest person in that position we have ever met. Sure wish she'd be with us on the NA next February.

The MDR dinner menu is posted daily. For the most part we find the choices to be very good. If nothing strikes our fancy we go to the Lido or one of the alternative restaurants. I'd say the quality and service acceptable to good, especially when one considers the large number of dinners being served at the same time. Our waiters and assistants have always been friendly, attentive and knowledgable. Truly outstanding.

Some of my favorites are:

Lido omelettes with a side of smoked salmon

Everything in the Tamarind

MDR cold fruit soups

Dive In dogs

Lido bread pudding

MDR French onion soup

A nice ice cream cone in the late afternoon

Both are great but I would choose Eastern. Chances are there will be less ships in port with you. You could check this out by visiting cruisetimetables.com.

We're aft facing cabin fans too. However, if one has any mobility issues they may not be for you as there is a lot walking involved from the cabin to other areas of the ship. In that case, a mid-ship would seem to be preferable.

We are booked on a cruise to Hawaii in February and have selected an aft stateroom on deck 8. I know that we are under the aft pool deck and wonder if anyone has had experience with an aft deck 8?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Don't have direct experience with a deck 8 aft but the only complaint I have heard is occasional, early morning noise due to the cleaning crew moving some chairs around on the Lido deck.

IMHO, I'd book the 7141 without hesitation. We've been in 7143 three times on the Eurodam (right next to 7141). We love the location and have never experienced a vibration problem. I

Our experience has been that embarkation lunch in the MDR has very limited choices but is a nice, quite escape. However, if you're really hungry your best bet is the Lido or Dive In.

We've been on 5 different HAL ships. Eurodam is our favorite, especially after the re-fresh. Beautiful ship with a terrific on board atmosphere and the best staff we have ever encountered.

1990 - Cunard Countess out of San Juan. A great little ship with a terrific crew and wonderful fellow passengers. Been hooked on cruising ever since.

We also love aft facing staterooms. Relaxing on our balcony with the wake stretching out behind us is almost like being on our own private yacht. The only downside is that it can be quite a walk to a number of on board destinations. But then, that helps with walking off some of the delicious meals we've enjoyed.

Half is a good estimate. We've been aft on Zuiderdam on 8 and liked the amount of cover at the back. We could get out into the sun or retreat under cover. We were also aft on 5 and didn't like it as much. Lots of shade and a larger balcony space, but if felt closed in. I like to be able to stand at the railing and have a feeling of openness,not a roof over my head.

Exactly my feelings too.

Three reasons I'd go with HAL:

Service

Ambiance

Glacier Bay

We've had aft facing balconies on the Eurodam, Nieuw Amsterdam and Zuiderdam. Most days there is no soot at all but occasionally there can be a small amount based on the wind direction. The stewards wiped down the balcony in the morning and sometimes flipped over the lounger cushions at night as as precaution.

HMC is one of our favorite stops. In addition to the incredible beach two of our favorite activities there have been horseback riding thru the surf and the manta ray interface. Both very cool.

My understanding is power strips are OK but anything with a surge protector is not allowed.

Usually we take a cab back to our hotel then fly home the next day but this years' a little different. So, many thanks to you all for your kind suggestions. Much appreciated.

DW and I will need to rent a car when we return to Port Everglades from our cruise next month. We haven't done this before so any advice you could give us as to the proper procedures would be much appreciated. Thanks for your help.

They'd probably market it as the Signature Pot Package and make it part of Explore4.

I have done what the OP is looking to do on my last 3 cruises. It was suggested by my HAL PCC. What needs to be done is to call the big box TA and tell them you want to TRANSFER your existing HAL booking to them (NOT cancel and re-book). They will call HAL to verify the booking then make the transfer. You keep your existing cabin, pricing and all HAL perks plus pick up any perks offered by the TA. Everything should be "apples to apples" but of course it is best to verify when making the transfer.

Don't know if this helps you but cruisetimetables.com shows the HAL Eurodam doing a 14-day BtoB in late February that visits Ocho Rios the first week and Amber Cove, DR; San Juan PR; St Maarten and Half Moon Cay the second week.

Alaska cruises have become so popular that from my experience the probability of a price reduction is not good. My history is primarily with HAL. So, from my perspective I would bite the bullet and book the cabin of your choice as early as possible. HAL and the other lines do offer promotional programs at times but these are aminity inducements and the cruise fares under these programs actually increase as you will end up paying for these "freebies". Whichever line you choose I hope you choose a voyage that goes to Glacier Bay. .

I'd do A for its diversity BUT, before I'd book it I'd check out cruisetimetables.com to see how many other ships would be in port with me One HAL voyage I recently looked at had 7 other ships scheduled to be with us in Cozumel and 2 of the 7 were mega-ships. Crossed that one of my list.