1of4

We bought gifts for our kids from the onboard shop. There is a gym that is free for everyone to use but I never used the spa or hairdresser but they both became booked very quickly from what I heard. The spa has a menu in each cabin and if I remember correctly it had facials, massages and other treatments. only the extremely premium liquor was a charge. I remember being surprised by the variety that was included as my husband likes single malt scotch and brandy and everything was included. I don’t drink so that’s why the diamond deck is a complete waste as the one special dinner with the captain is a set menu wine pairing dinner so not for me. Our cruise has been punted 3 times due to covid so I’m not sure what we will get next April other than free economy air from Canada which we hope to upgrade.

OBC can be used in the spa or hairdresser as well as in the onboard shop. You can pay extra charges like extra laundry or pressing and a very few of the liquor not included ( but I can’t imagine what they are as everything I wanted was included).

When we were on Senic Gem in 2019, we had been in Paris for 7 days prior to embarking so we had laundry. Our cabin category, deluxe balcony on the sapphire deck, did not include free pressing at the time. We are on a tulip time voyage next April and are in a junior balcony cabin and we do receive free pressing of 2 items per day. I rolled our dirty clothes, undies, socks and all and stuffed that bag so full I wouldn’t have been surprised if it weighed 5 lbs. I never realized there was a weight limit 🤷🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️. It was a record breaking heat wave so we needed it done and I refuse to have my knickers hanging around the cabin. As for classes onboard…nonsense! We ate dinner with couples in every category cabin over our 11 days. There is an invitation only dinner once per voyage but everyone onboard is invited. The diamond deck guest get priority reservations for date and table size. With my dietary restrictions we won’t do it again as it is a set menu.

I think the baggage rules are to discourage people from bringing too much. My husband and I both had a regular sized carryon, plus one backpack and a suitcase each as we were in Paris for a week prior to our 11 day river cruise. We had the same question about dinner attire. We were on the Scenic Gem in August 2019 so I can’t remember exactly but I don’t remember many ties and only a few jackets. My husband wore what he would wear out to dinner here. And I agree, the air conditioning can be uncomfortable so I always had a light sweater or wrap with me.

@Daisi I have been one of the canoeists 🛶. My husband’s family are all in the Peterborough area.

We are booked on the Scenic Jade 10th - 17th April

Wow…it’s a mystery! I guess we will find out eventually.

Interesting. Thank you for checking. On the Canadian site the April 10th date has disappeared from the date choices. I knew all the Royal suites were booked before we booked on Tuesday but they are not “in-budget” for us anyway. 😃

Thanks @Host Jazzbeau we hope to fly in 2-3 days ahead of the river cruise so will try Keukenhof on our own. It is the excursion on the last full day of the trip.

We have done one river cruise in 2019 on the Seine. We returned from that and booked another in November 2019 to do the Christmas Markets in 2021. Well that didn’t happen. So long story short, just this week we booked Scenic’s Tulips, Windmills and Belgium Delights for April 10-17, 2024. Yesterday I was talking to a Scenic representative about the junior suite and she said our week is completely sold out. What happened between Tuesday and Thursday? Has anyone experienced this before? We don’t want to be 2 people on the boat full of a group that all know each other. Or could a travel agency have reserved all cabins hoping to sell them all? Looking for advice or experience. If it is a group and the have exclusive events, we will have nowhere else to go except our cabin. On the plus side, I guess we chose a good/popular week! Gail

This post and thread has been very enlightening. I too never doubted that the ship would wait and the posted photos of the conditions were shocking. If HAL left them behind to keep their scheduled spot I can understand. But then compensate the 41 people with part of the $600,000 “saved” by not waiting. As others have stated, good will goes a long way and in acknowledging the ordeal that these 41 people had to go through for 3 days as a result of HAL’s decision, I think, is called for but was not delivered. Reciting the costs HAL incurred in returning the 41 people to the ship is the expense of the decision to leave them behind and is of no concern to the 41 passengers. I’m very underwhelmed by HAL’s response and am amazed nobody was harmed by the conditions, missing medication or by not having clean underwear.

I hope you are safely home and had a good sleep after all the travel and ordeal. I’ve been thinking of you and hope it was relatively painless.

Oh no! I have been thinking of you and so wishing for a better result. I read in comments that the WC has been cancelled. My heart breaks for you but I hope the issue can b found and solved quickly.

In our experience, being more than 2 people in the cabin, the tables are removed before we arrived so the only place for a tray is on the bed or, if you have a balcony, out there. 🤷🏻‍♀️ We only learned that cabins had: tables, bolster cushions, opaque drapes from the cabin crawl. So perhaps there was no place to put the tray and get ready/packed?

I am so sorry to learn that you were pushed @kazu. Unfortunately, I can attest that your size has absolutely nothing to do with it and I often comment to DH that I feel like a large ghost for how often I am run over, bumped or tripped. I swear the cane is a futuristic tool to make the user invisible! I’m still so relieved that you flew when you did. So many are now stuck no matter if it is on planes, trains or automobiles. All our roads are closed but stores open…figure that out! We are in day 2 of a major blizzard and it isn’t going to let up for Christmas either. I am thinking of you in the warmth and hoping you are able to relax. From our house to your cabin, Merry Christmas and a happy, healthy New Year.

Thanks so much Jacqui. We really enjoyed getting dressed for dinner and having portraits taken on the old formal nights. Best travel souvenir ever! Here are a few from the archive 😁

Club HAL closes over lunch…11:30-1:00 if memory serves but 2015 was a long time ago! Our kids enjoyed going into the pool over lunch time then happily went back into Club HAL.

Years ago on the Ryndam over New Years my son was 9 and daughter 11 and they were allowed in the sea view pool as long as I was there, which I was. My kids didn’t run, jump or splash. A few years later, in 2015, we were on the Westerdam through the Panama Canal with very few children on board but some adults who obviously disliked kids. The very first day we went to the Sea View pool someone complained and an officer told us they were only allowed in the Lido pool, despite what this sign says.

We really enjoyed the New Years cruise we did 9 years ago. I hope you enjoy the next 3 weeks. You chose your outbound flights really well as it has been nothing but delays and cancellations today as a major system goes through until Friday morning.

Exactly why there is a booming business in companies specializing in disabled travel. People just don’t realize the challenges until they face them themselves. Everything is so challenging from hotels, transportation to bathroom access and airports. My cane is always taken away and I am given one made of wood and suitable for a 6’6” person! I can’t move with it and they have to reach through the X-ray machine and guide me through.

Honestly, in my experience, Florida’s airports are the worst for providing any assistance at all, and if you do ask for anything they let you know it is a huge imposition. In Orlando I was next in queue for the disabled security check when an airline employee actually pushed me aside so she could go ahead. No excuse me, or asking if I would move to the side. The only other airport that came close to the lack of services was Reykjavik in Iceland.

Scenic divided passengers going to American beaches and those that wished to go to Juno Beach and the Canadian cemetery. We all went to the museum at Sword then met for lunch. My understanding was most other cruise lines on went as far as Rouen then bussed passengers to Normandy from there.

I’m really sorry to read this Jacqui. Please if/when you try it again use the walker (brakes) and not the wheelchair.

I know pre-Covid people brought flowers onboard. Just remember you also have to have a vase or something to put them in.

Oh Jacqui, what a lovely tribute to Jose. You have certainly done all you could to honour him, and more. I am certain he is travelling right beside you and you can feel his pride. I hope the rest of the cruise is as good to you as you were to him. ❤️ Heal well my friend.