Fred321

Hate to add more bad news but we were in a Vista Suite on the Koningsdam in a room with no connecting door and we could still hear conversations and tv from next door. I know it is a different ship but it is the same design and I would be surprised if they changed the walls on the newer ships. We have one more trip booked on this class {Rotterdam} and that is simply because it is a TA that fits our schedule. After that we are done with the newer ships mostly because of the poor sound proofing of the rooms and the terrible noise and rushing around in the main dining room. We really like the Tamarind and the Dutch Cafe but not enough to outweigh the other problems.

Any music available other than rock or blues and the screaming piano duets? Jazz trio, classical, quiet cocktail piano?

Only sense I got from listening to Antorcha on this year's world cruise was that the difference between Legendary and Grand was the number of days on the itinerary. I'm sure I may have missed something and others can correct me but I have no recollection of him going into a long explanation of the various amenities that would be involved in either category. Think he was honest enough to admit that they have been hammered by the debt they had to take on and that job one for him was keeping the company afloat. That doesn't seem to translate into a return to multiple nights in port or evenings in Ephesus. Unfortunately, unless they decide that the market would bear significant price increases , those days are over.

This was our fifth world cruise with HAL (actually 41/2 since we were on the aborted 2020). Would echo what the Mtn2sea poster said about the crew. They were fantastic. Unfortunately, this wasn't a Grand Cruise as they used to exist. Simply a long cruise. Our food and dining experience both in the MDR and Pinnacle were acceptable. No big problems and lucky with a wonderful wait staff. Food was OK and they did have a number of supply issues during the cruise so you have to give them the benefit of the doubt when it comes to availability and selection. Speakers were not as good or as informative as past World Cruises and the music selection was worse, in my opinion. Classical duo did more talking about themselves than playing. Jazz trio in Ocean Bar was good. Didn't really spend much time in the Rolling Stone venue but it seemed to be busy. With the change in ships, the crows nest is no longer a comfortable space for a drink at night which results in the Ocean Bar becoming very crowded. Staff there was very attentive but it was annoying having to search for seats every night. They really ruined the crows nest on this class of ship by trying to make it all things for all people. I am sure we were spoiled from our previous trips pre pandemic but we are pretty sure that we are done with world cruises with HAL. Just too many cases of remember how good it used to be. Friends of ours were aboard for their first world cruise and they seemed to enjoy it since they had nothing to measure it by. Think we will still do longer voyages even with HAL. Just won't expect as much in the future.

Everyone can dream but on this year's world cruise Gus Antorcha specifically stated that there were no new ships, big, small or medium, in the pipeline for HAL. Make of that what you will.

Was great to see you again. Glad to hear you made it home safely. It will be interesting to see how the company evolves. Think that we may be done with world cruises at least in the near future. Itineraries aren't that interesting to us and not really a "Grand" cruise any longer. Think our initial Grand World's spoiled us for what they have become. We did put a deposit down on the 94 day Volendam trip to Australia and New Zealand leaving from San Diego in January. Wanted to sail on the remaining R class ships before they disappear and had no interest in the Pole to Pole. If you guys decide to do something different next January maybe we will see you. Stay well. Rich and Peg

Celebrity also offers Infinite Verandas on their new ships which in fact Do Not include a veranda. Need to do some research and not rely on hype.

We'll be there next Thursday as well. Great to get some early reports.

Going to check with T Mobile customer service one more time before we leave and see if they are consistent with advice.We don't use the devices anywhere near as much as you do so not going to let cell phone issues get in the way of enjoying the trip. Maybe we can compare notes over a beverage once we get onboard.

Curious what you are doing since you will be out of the country for more than 3 months. Know there was a lot of discussion about this on the zoom calls. We also have t Mobile and use it very rarely but it seems that once you are out of the country for 3 months they will threaten to stop service. Best advice we could get from stores and customer service was to suspend service on my phone for two months and only use m wife's and then suspend hers for the final two months and begin to use mine. Have you gotten any other advice?

Your 5 day cruise is right before the 128 day world cruise and only two weeks after the ship comes out of dry dock. My guess is that the staff may be more focused on the upcoming world cruise than the short holiday one. You'll also probably have a crazy mix of older passengers staying on for the world cruise and kids on the 5 day. We'll be two of the older folks and probably spend most of our time on our balcony trying to avoid catching anything that would send us into quarantine once the long trip starts.

Our first world cruise on the Amsterdam in 2013 they had a dentist onboard. Basically getting a free cruise for his services. On our last world cruise in 2020 I had a crown come off while in Antarctica. Was told they no longer had a dentist onboard but I was put on a list of those needing dental work. Got a notice before we got to Ushuaia to meet on the pier on arrival. Was taken in a van with a few other passengers and crew members to a dental office where we were worked on. Transport and arrangements were made by a company in port that must deal with all of the ships that call there. Very efficient and professional. Paid with a credit card and was on my way.

Thanks for your picture of the Adelaide cruise terminal. Good to see that the golf course across the street is still there. Looking forward to playing it when and if we get there on the world cruise.

Would never do anytime dining on any of the larger HAL ships. Have seen long lines and folks sitting around with beepers both before and after the pandemic. The newer dining rooms are just too crowded for decent service when they are full. Not too mention too loud. It always seems to us that you are either waiting for someone to show up and take your order or having all of your courses delivered at once by harried staff. We always do late fixed seating. Not a fan of eating later but that just seems to us the best option to have a relaxing dinner with waiters that get to know what you want. I know folks want what they want when they want it but we would rather modify our behavior a little for what we think is a big reward.

Yes there is. Our only Celebrity cruise but we truly enjoyed the entire Club.

Thanks very much. Really appreciate you taking the time. We'll keep our fingers crossed the we see his smiling face.

We were onboard Zaandam for this year's Voyage of the Vikings. Ran into Afton who was in charge of the Pinnacle. Last time we saw him was in the MDR on the ill fated 2020 World Cruise. We asked if he was going to join us on the Zuiderdam for the upcoming world cruise. He said that he hoped so but wasn't sure yet. If you have the chance can you find out if he has heard about his future yet? Thanks. Tell him Rich and Peg say hi to our favorite fisherman and hope we see him soon.

Thanks guys. That is good news. As usual we are enjoying your reports and look forward to seeing you soon. Rich

Saw that you mentioned Twinkle was on board. Hope that means she will also be there for the world cruise?

Be careful where you use the "free" wifi. On one of our cruises through Asia lots of folks onboard made use of free wifi in Shanghai at one of the coffee shops. Thereafter their computers started to work using the Chinese language and their cellphones also seemed to have been hacked if they had accessed the internet using the phones. Would never use free wifi if you have your banking info etc. on the device.

One of the things that can make you crazy on HAL is the lack of even simple explanations from someone in authority for what is going on. I can't remember the Captain's name on the VOV but I wasn't impressed by his attitude toward the problem of rising case numbers. Rather than require masks early on when it was becoming obvious the we had a problem he waited until the "home office" authorized it. Think that made the problem worse. Likewise he didn't remove the requirement until that was also approved by Seattle.

Captain would come on each day at noon and give the number of new cases from the previous day. Even someone like me can do the simple math. Really think the total of folks quarantined was near 200 at its height. Was starting to get a little creepy walking down the hall each day and noting the additional red dots on the cabin number plaques. One day I did a walk around our deck (Dolphin) and counted 20 cabins with the marks. We were traveling with 2 other couples and they all were quarantined at one point during the 35 day trip. we felt like we dodged a bullet but I will sure be bringing my masks on the Grand World.

If you ever get the chance read the Jack Aubrey series of books by Patrick Brian. Just Great.

Bill and MaryAnn, Just saw your post regarding Henk's comments about getting experienced staff for the World Cruise. We were just on the Zaandam VOV and ran into Afton who is currently running the Pinnacle on the Zaandam. He was an assistant matre de on the Amsterdam for the 2020 and was a great addition to the staff. We asked if he would be joining us on the Zuiderdam and he indicated that he would love to do it but had not yet heard from the company. Maybe a word to Henk wouldn't hurt? Looking forward to seeing you soon. Rich and Peg

Very interesting discussion. I am also impressed by the fact that the conversation has been civil compared to other forums I have seen. Have no Viking experience but do have a lot of cruising history on HAL and Celebrity. Recently got off a 35 day cruise on HAL. Boarded in Boston, test required to board as well as the minimum of 2 shots.No masks required except for crew. Approx. 1,000 passengers with maybe 10-20% wearing masks. First cases started to show about 3 days in. (First stop was Bar Harbor, a tender port, with folks packed into the tenders and few masks.) They quickly ran out of quarantine rooms and subsequently required those testing positive to stay in their rooms. Finally, after the total number of cases reached somewhere between 100 and 200 people based on the numbers announced by the Captain, they required everyone to wear masks indoors. Still had the geniuses who would remove masks once the lights went off but most folks complied. After a few days new cases started to level off and then declined to zero about 7-10 days in. Passengers then started to pester those in authority to lift the mask requirement, which they finally did. Surprise! two days later new cases started to appear again. This was our third cruise since the restart and we try to stay masked indoors and away from large groups (no tenders, no showrooms). So far we have been lucky and will continue to do this as we also continue to travel. No guarantees but masks seem to be a good idea regardless of requirements. Our last HAL trip seems like the perfect experiment.