CruiserBruce

HAL has always exceeded the requirements.

The drive is about 30 minutes. Allowing for claiming bags and Immigration (assuming you are flying direct from the US), plus getting with your transport....maybe 11am at the earliest. There is a water bus line you need to look into.

A two week drydock is normal. Most of the work is below the waterline and not in public spaces. HAL has always been very good about drydocks about every 30 months, but Covid messed that up. Rotterdam was launched in October 2021, so a drydock probably wouldn't be planned until the early part of 2024.

You will have to leave the ship due to Immigration procedures, not Customs. It is possible they might do the clearance on board...they did in March of 2022, when we did a B2B out of San Diego. Your cabin attendants will give you directions on your stuff, if you have to switch cabins.

But those middle men stand in the way when there is a problem..we had that problem...couldn't reach anyone to fix the problem. And the low bid providers are low bid for a reason...they have difficulty getting work through normal channels. There have been several reports of poor English skills, for example.

I don't get it....got a ton of answers on the other thread...and now posting again? And with an unrelated title?

Nope. Not offered in Vancouver.

Totally agree with @cruisemom42. There are many negative comments and warnings about them on the ports boards.

Have you done a Google search for it? Checked Halfacts.com? (Make sure you look on the sister ships Koningsdam and N. Statendam.)

Welcome to Cruise Critic! First, we are not allowed to name or discuss travel agents on Cruise Critic. You might want to read this thread just down the board:

Don't worry about Customs. Worry about Immigration. Customs is barely a thing anymore.

As you don't tell us what time the ship arrives, hard to answer your question. Keep in mind that when you book a private transport like this, you own that vehicle. They will wait. So, I would schedule them for 90 minutes or so after the scheduled arrival. That way you might have to wait a few minutes, or the driver might have to wait a few minutes...but hopefully you will meet in the middle somewhere.

There is a checkpoint on Eisenhower. Some say Terminal 2 is outside the security checkpoint...but I believe its inside. We have sailed out of Port Everglades 4 times. 3 times we entered through Eisenhower, one time we entered at Spangler. Either will work, but Eisenhower is closer. Perhaps the choice of Spangler is due to your approach route.

In our experience, most excursions either meet on board, or on the pier, and start from there. Can't think of any that start elsewhere. So, I think we need a lot more specifics. 2 or 3 hour drive into town? That is usually part of the excursion. There can be a lot of driving on some all day excursions, but that is part of the excursion. Your guide/leader will be giving you information during that time. As to what to do in a given port, beyond what interests you, start here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/8-europe/

You will be fine with a 1:30 flight.

There is no Immigration or Customs sailing out of Seattle. Immigration and Customs is handled by the appropriate authorities when its done. Only when you return. Security is the standard getting on a ship.

Read the third paragraph in the OP's post.

No cost, unless you order one of the extra cost items. Also, tipping is very appropriate.

Sorry to see the confusion on this. You had a 10am check in time, not boarding. People are starting to think boarding starts at 10am. Amazing they started boarding at 11:15.

Most countries don't require the ship to zero. The most notable exception is the US. I think the situation in BCN had to do with arriving in the EU.

This is discussed regularly on the Costa Rica board, here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/forum/120-costa-rica/

We didn't for Norway/Iceland/Greenland last July. In hindsight, it was ok without it.

How old is "college age"? Most of these issues are settled by being classified an adult at 18, I believe, in the US, and pretty sure its the same in Europe. So someone would need to be unconscious, essentially, before a POA would kick in. I guess you are asking strictly for what might happen on this trip?

They have been assigning times since resumption after Covid, but nobody knows the reasons for the time assignments. It has been very widely reported here that the assigned times are ignored.

"Best"? Limo with champagne being served. Taxi is probably the easiest. Going to the airport would depend on where you are staying. There is a train, takes 15 minutes. There are two hotels across the street from the airport, which what I would use with a "very early" flight.