RuthC

Agreed. That has to have been the best ever HAL production show. The singers had quality voices, and knew how to perform. The costumes were gorgeous, and the entire production was a work of art. I saw that show several times, with different casts, on a variety of cruises, and would love to be able to see it again. I have also loved various guest performers on the HAL stage over the years, but HAL just isn't hiring that same caliber of entertainer anymore. Sad.

Thank you for taking us all along for the ride. I have read your posts faithfully, and have enjoyed the time spent doing so. Have a safe landing, and a good trip home.

I wouldn't want to be that far forward, even if the cabin wasn't smaller than other outsides. The ship curves there, and some space is lost to that curve. I haven't been in the room, so can't comment on how much less space there is there. I can comment on other outside cabins, and they are very comfortable for two people.

I've read all the posts on your blog, four of the ones on your list, and one other not on your list. Thanks to all for their efforts in keeping me up to date to the goings on, each from an individual point of view. Now that the cruise is ending I don't know how I am going to fill all the extra time I will have on my hands! Perhaps research more cruises for myself???

It's not so much a 'special' as an everyday thing. You can send a bag of laundry every day, or even more often if you want to. The price is always the same. It has been $20/bag in the US and $30/bag in Europe, at least until recently. I have read reports that the price has gone up, but don't recall the amount, and did notice that the reports aren't consistent. You can also purchase an unlimited plan at a price per day for every day of the cruise. That price was $7 or $9, broken down as above, but also likely was increased.

If your TA is willing to print your boarding pass, and send it to you, that is all you need. My former TA used to do that for me all the time. No, you don't 'need' the Navigator app. It may or may not be nice to have, but there is a work-around for everything it does. Not everyone has a smart phone, and they are still able to cruise. I don't use it, and won't use it.

Thank you for asking that. It would be a favor to many of us to use a default (or larger) font.

There is Roman Catholic Mass celebrated daily. On sea days it is at 8:00 AM (except Saturday, when the Vigil Mass is in the evening), and on port days at 5:00 PM. Location varies, depending on size of expected crowd and availability. Non-denominational services are more often passenger led, unless it is a religious holiday sailing. On those there may be a minister. The captain doesn't get involved in leading religious services.

I've been sailing HAL since 1978, and more or less annually since 1992. I don't remember ever completing a questionnaire in order to be seated with compatible tablemates. I suppose it's possible one was sent, via my travel agent, and the agent completed it. But I have had several agents over the decades, and I would think at least one of them would have mentioned it. Are you sure it was HAL you remember doing that?

Glad to hear that our customary spring weather (did you get rain, too, I presume???) didn't discourage you from having a good time. Yes, there is a lot of history in this region. As a little girl I had walked on the Plains of Abraham. Later, in school, when the French & Indian War was taught, it was so exciting to be able to picture it in my mind. Having been there brought history to life. Same with so many other parts of history, like the American Revolution.

Crossing the Gulf is likelier to be bumpier than sailing closer to land on a round trip, especially a round trip out of Vancouver. You will be at sea. Should a storm be ahead of you, then expect the seas to still have some roughness to it. I always fee the difference when I cross the Gulf. Not always bad, but different from the smoother ride of the Inside Passage.

The person I quoted mentioned he was mobility impaired, as if that is a good reason to say going past the casino is a hardship. It isn't. As someone who has had mobility problems for years, I am absolutely serious. For years now, every step has been a new adventure in pain. If I can avoid the casino, anyone with mobility problems can.

Spring is not the time to visit New England/Canada. Summer? Sure. Fall? Absolutely! But spring here usually arrives some Tuesday afternoon in late May. Then it's summer.

Exactly. It's not hard. Drop down to another deck. Use the elevators at mid-ship, head forward, then come back up a deck. While using the elevators, you even get a chance to rest. That's on the Pinnacle class. On other classes it's just as easy to change decks. On some of them you can even stay on the deck you are on; the casino is already on a different deck!

If the items in the bag are sent to be washed, then appropriate items are also pressed. If the bag is sent for pressing only, there is a different charge than if they were sent to be washed.

Perfect when sailing Antarctica! Sailing the serene waters in quiet like you have never heard before. Tasting the fresh air as you breathe. Exactly as it should be on that itinerary.

Betting it is, too. There are signs all around us. We just have to pay attention and see them for what they are. Take comfort in the positives.

That's an inside cabin; OP is asking about a shower in an outside cabin. They aren't the same. IIRC, some of the outside cabins were changed from a tub w/shower to shower only. Those outsides have the shower in the same footprint as the tub used to be, so are larger than the showers in the inside cabins. Personally, I have been in insides on all the S- and R-class many times, and find them more than an adequate size. The tiles are not what I would choose for my own home, but they do stay on the walls, and are sealed well enough. The tile floor in the shower is not at all slippery, and that matters a lot to me!

This is something that HAL staff is (or at least was) trained to look for. I was advised to do this years ago by a HAL Lido steward when I was first traveling alone and asked how to save my seat. I do it to this day. Now, it won't prevent other passengers from taking over your seat, but it will stop the staff from clearing your place. Leaving something personal there can also work, but it needs to be something that will be noticed, but not mind if lost. I had a magazine taken once; it was tossed when I planned to return. Hadn't tipped the chair that time!

You just tilt your chair, and leave your napkin draped on the back of it.

I really don't recall how far in advance of the cruise I booked it, but I am sure it was a long time---probably sometime around a full year. I have always tended to book my cruises about a year or more in advance; it was keeping track of them that became difficult!

Have you requested wheelchair assistance? Sounds like you should. Your mom will appreciate it (so will her knees).

The first two are easy: ss Statendam NYC to Bermuda and return. It was this cruise that got me started---got me hooked! Without it, I might never have fallen in love with the sea the way I did, and have used those seas to see the far corners of the world. MS Ryndam Rio to Santiago, via Antarctia. By this cruise I had sailed a lot, both alone, and with my husband. Also by this cruise I was alone again, but coming back out into the world. The air, the scenery, the fellow passengers, were the best anyone could ever hope for that cruise. It was a special reentry into becoming myself. Perfect setting to visit Antarctica. The third favorite? The rest have all been so great, it's hard to choose. Perhaps it was the Cruise Critic group cruise organized by RevNeal on the Zaandam round trip from San Diego to Hawaii. Wonderful group of people, many of whom became life-long friends and travel companions. There are other contenders for the title, but this is definitely right up there with the best of times.

Oh my, yes.

Thank you for your review of your cruise. From all appearances you had a good time, which is the whole point of the exercise. Hope someday you can return for an even longer visit!