nattiegirl

Hi all, Sorry it took me so long to respond. As far as breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill, the Oosterdam does not have a designated dining area yet for the Club Orange so I assume they were still offering breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill for Suite passengers. I am not sure what they are planning in the future. Our breakfast in the dining room was the same as other passengers with the addition of one or two more choices of entrees. Same with the dinner menu. For me, the value was in the priority seating as the Alaska cruise I was on was packed and lines were long for anytime dining. I just can't stand that long. 

After each cruise you get a questionnaire. I make it very clear I will not sail on the mega ships for any reason. Hopefully Holland America will listen. I sailed Antarctica on the Zaandam and felt it was the perfect size. But was told by staff that they are having trouble competing with the mega ships. Sadly, I think the experience of sailing on a smaller ship might be over.  Or come at a might higher price. 

Just returned from Alaska (6/23 to 6/30) on the Oosterdam. I did participate in Club Orange and I loved it. It was offered to us at 25 per day per person.  The upgrade put us closer to elevators and for me being able to walk right in to the dining room without waiting in line was a benefit because I have mobility issues making standing difficult. Since this was first cruise Oosterdam had offered CO there were very few people involved. We did get spoiled. The tour was a private tour of the kitchen. We did not participate due to stairs being involved. We loved the additional menu items and tried quite a few of them. 

At this time the Oosterdam does not have a private space for CO but they do make every effort to put you at your preferred table in the dining room. Not sure if this will change when they sign more people up.

For me, I would still prefer to sail in a Neptune suite but for some this is a chance to experience some of the perks without spending so much more for the suite. I don't think this takes away from the Neptune suite experience at all. 

I just returned from Alaska on the Amsterdam. We sailed 8/28 and returned 9/4. Although forecast was rain we hit absolutely wonderful weather. Be prepared but hope for the best. You never know till you get there. Our crew was even surprised as most of the season has been a bit cool. Late night people even saw the Northern Lights one night because it was so clear. Have a wonderful time. :)

Norovirus has incubation time of 12 to 48 hrs with average of 33 hrs. So, no, someone would not catch it on tour and be ill by the time they came back to ship. They had to be exposed prior to shore trip and had the bad luck of becoming ill while away from ship. Norovirus is always around but seems to hit the summer Alaska cruises especially hard. Crew coming on board for first time can even bring it on. Best protection is to wash, wash, wash. Keep your hands away from your mouth and eyes and eat things that are cooked and not handled.

There are certain medications that can make symptoms better. I am taking Alaska cruise in August on the Amsterdam and will go prepared.

I have been to Glacier Bay many times and find any place outside when at Glacier is good. The ship turns totally around a couple of times so everyone gets a good view. But if you are not looking right at the glacier you might miss calving. The Zaandam has some great decks on the stern, I think deck 7 and 8. The doors at end of hallway say "keep closed" but they are open to passengers. Used them a lot on trip to Antarctica.