Cybergoth

Are you coming to the Roll Call meet and greet? 

If anyone here is on Twitter, there is a thread about this.  Let HAL know what you think!

https://twitter.com/BarryBevan/status/1101896784526430208

I Tweeted about this @ HALcruises. I did not get a reply.

I'm sort of in the same boat as the OP @jargey3000 (pun, I know).  Much like the OP, we just need the basics and don't go for specialty dining or upcharge services.  My first cruise was on Caribbean Princess but that was over 10 years ago. Next cruise was on Nieuw Amsterdam which I loved.  Then, we went on Celebrity which I really liked as well (Solstice, Summit, Reflection).  I'm going on Nieuw Statendam next month. I've only done 7 day Caribbean cruises.

I think you will find HAL similar to Celebrity when it comes to the 7 day Caribbean cruises.  Choose your ship based on the price and itinerary. HAL tends to skew to an older demographic than Celebrity, but that may change with the newer, bigger ships like Nieuw Statendam.

2 hours ago, Iseaster said:

@DAllenTCY - ...when you put it that way. 🙂  Thanks for that perspective.

 

@Cybergoth - we depart on March 17th.  I'll look into the roll call - but wasn't really sure what it was about.

Roll calls here: https://www.cruisecritic.com/rollcalls/

40 minutes ago, Iseaster said:

Hello! This is our first cruise EVER on HAL Nieuw Statendam in March.  We're flying overnight to Ft Lauderdale from Victoria, Canada and arriving at the airport at an ungodly 0530!!!  Can anyone advise/recommend what we should do (i.e. stay at airport until embarkation or ?) and how early can we arrive to board the ship?  I have images of trying to sleep in airport chairs for hours while waiting to board...

Hi!  Which day are you sailing?  Did you join the roll call on the boards here?

If I recall correctly, I think they give out pills for motion sickness and Tylenol in the medical clinic.

I found these by clicking on Find a Cruise, at the top of the page here on CC.

I put in Short Caribbean Cruises for March.

 

Celebrity - does seem to have some shorter itineraries... No private island/beach.

Disney Dream - Disney is really great! But, if you are hoping to avoid so many kids, might not work. Also $$$$

Azmara - Key West and Havana, on the Azmara Journey.

Another interesting one on Celebrity, but from San Juan - on the Summit, - St, Kitts, St. Croix, Antigua.

 

Happy Planning!

The Summit is a beautiful smaller Celebrity ship. It's one of my favourites, and I loved the Southern Caribbean itinerary,.

I've only taken 7-day cruises so I can't make any specific recommendations for shorter cruises.

I have been on several Celebrity Caribbean cruises and they were enjoyable; the Solstice class ships were comparable to Nieuw Amsterdam.

Rolling Stone Magazine Music Venue?

Both would be fine. Have a great TIME

Lol, clock! (Unintended pun?)

I am wondering if anyone has ever heard of a situation where a passenger undergoing cancer treatment, specifically chemo, has been able to get a chemo infusion on board a ship? If so, does anyone have a personal experience that they could share?

 

We have a cruise scheduled in Nov and the chemo schedule does not quite fit in. This cruise was booked before the diagnosis and we do have the insurance, but it would be a great change to be able to get away since our lives have turned upside down since the diagnosis.

 

thanks for any info!

I'm an Internist/Endocrinologist, not an Oncologist. I very much doubt you could get intravenous chemo on board - that is too specialized a treatment for the ship's medical staff.

I think you have 2 options:

1. cancel your cruise.

2. talk to your Oncologist about delaying the chemo for a week or 2.

Keep in mind that you could be sick from the chemo or cancer if you decide to go on the cruise.

So I majored in Geography in college and consider myself pretty well versed in where things are. A few cruises ago, I got out the map to show my twenty-something son, who is an RN and not dumb, where we were going on our TA. He pointed to something on the map and said, 'What's that?" I looked sideways at him and said,"That's England!" He gasped and said, "What? It's an ISLAND??"

 

I almost died on the spot, so I apologize in advance if you ever run into him on a cruise and he makes a similar comment!! He's really a good kid, I promise!! ;)

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

Why am I not surprised?

The National Geographic-Roper Public Affairs 2006 Geographic Literacy Study paints a dismal picture of the geographic knowledge of the most recent graduates of the U.S. education system.

Inside the United States, "half or fewer of young men and women 18-24 can identify the states of New York or Ohio on a map [50 percent and 43 percent, respectively]," the study said.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/EDUCATION/05/02/geog.test/

http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news_events/ed/2007/winter/features/geography.html

Thanks for the video.

Any idea where the ship docks on St. Maarten? I don't recall an actual cruise terminal (building) there.

Just got off the Reflection today. The first intro class for Zumba was free, then it was held in one of the fitness rooms by Canyon Ranch and **fee applies for the remainder of the week. I didn't even bother to ask how much!

+1

I was on the Refection the beginning of April. DS and I enjoyed the free 15 min intro/teaser Zumba on the pool deck but I was very disappointed that there was a charge for the rest of the week. We did not go after that.

1. Cotton polo shirts. I tend to wear them more than T-shirts. I like the ones you can get in Mexico/Cozumel.

2. Fridge magnets. I try to find a magnet that's not too tacky but shows something unique about the place I visit. From Paris, I had one of the Eiffel tower, from Barcelona the city's coat of arms, from San Juan a photo montage of the unique colourful doorways.

My TA has really good pricing for the Horizon in 2015, Southern Caribbean 7 night itinerary. It sails from the DR or St. Maarten. It's strange but it leaves Santo Domingo DR on a Saturday and stops in St. Maarten on Monday but boarding at St. M is much cheaper an both are 7 nights (Sat to Sat vs. Mon to Mon).

I'm tempted but the reviews in the member reviews section are mixed. Anyone here have any experiences with CDF?

Sorry if this was mentioned already, but I had to skip a few pages of this thread.

I got off the Reflection yesterday. Although I did not go to Cellar Masters (except for the CC meet up), I noticed in the Celebrity Today listings that "tapas" was printed beside Cellar Masters' opening hours.

The law is the law. :p You aren't in your home country so behave like a good guest and leave your camo on board. If you don't like the law, stay on board or stay home. :rolleyes:

I miss it! It was a fun event, never crowded when we went, with good food. We aren't interested in many of the sea day activities, so it was a nice way to pass the time. One of the features that distinguished Celebrity from the competitors. Very sad that it's gone.

 

It must have been popular since they never widely publicized it. You always had to look closely at Celebrity Today to find the listing.

Agreed. I missed having it on my cruise on the Reflection last week. It was nice having something "extra" on the cruise that did not require an upcharge. These "free" extras are getting fewer and fewer.

In my experience, the brunch buffets were not any more crowded than an average day in the Oceanview cafe and I did not see people behaving badly getting the food.

We stayed there in 2012 and I would stay there again. There was a cockfighting arena next door :eek: - I didn't check it out though :rolleyes:.

There are some authentic PR restaurants in the area.

That's too bad. I will miss the brunch buffet. For me, it's one of the highlights.

I may choose Holland America next time, if I think the food might be better. I'm sailing on the Reflection in 8 days.