jeh10641

I, too, am a longtime fan of classical music. I hope HAL reads and listens to those of us who wish it to return full time on HAL.

Jim

On 4/30/2024 at 4:13 PM, jimbob22 said:

Just got off Neiuw Amsterdam.  The app does seem to let you make reservations for certain times for the passengers in your room.  But our family was in multiple rooms, so I went to the MDR to make a reservation for later that day and they said no can do, that we'd need to get a buzzer when we got there.  Fortunately, the waits were not too long (we could immediately get a buzzer and we waited nearby).  It would be nice if there was a way to make a reservation for more than just those in your cabin though.

Try synching your cruise reservation numbers to connect more than 1 cabin for reservations. I have done that in the past.

Jim

In this era of easily bruised egos, I am happy for the response from CruiseIreland. 

Jim

We had an inside cabin on Rotterdam, 1146 Main Deck that is a side entrance. 11 nights, Caribbean. Lots of room and storage. No sofa but we had a desk seat. On Westerdam, for a 20-night Panama Canal repositioning, we had an inside with a sofa bed for 3 seniors. Doorway at the end. Again, more than enough room and storage.

Jim

PacificMountain12,

Welcome to the world of HAL. I started with HAL when I was 17, albeit it was 65 years ago. It is still my favorite even though we have tried Costa and Royal Caribbean. HAL has just to offer a guarantee that you will visit (or see) a glacier in Alaska. A marketing gimmick or not, it is typical of their service. Their food is awesome. I recommend Koningsdam as it is one of the newest and largest (2,600 passengers) of the HAL ships. The entertainment at night is in flux so I do not know what is being offered now. No big Broadway shows but more smaller venues for live music. Port intensive cruises in Alaska and in June/July, more daylight hours than you can imagine.

To honor your father, magnificent choice. Good luck and have fun.

Jim

When I decided to take a cruise to Hawaii with HAL, I originally thought Vancouver because of its proximity to my home (easy drive and park). After reading about the Port of Vancouver embarkation, I said "forgeddaboutit!" and booked a cruise from San Diego!

Jim

On 5/1/2024 at 5:17 PM, Welshtony said:

1. PMFJI We're on the May 11th Koningsdam sailing from Vancouver. We're arriving in Vancouver two days before and will spend 1.5 days exploring Vancouver. It sounds like we'll need to plan to get to the port by about 11 am on Saturday.

Having never been to Vancouver before, can anyone suggest a hotel or area in town that would be good for walking around and also easy to get to the port from?

If money is not a consideration, there is a hotel at the pier. 

Jim

Hi, kazu (is it Jacqui?),

Madie and I will be on Koningsdam, January 28, 2025, 18 days Circle Hawaii. It is always nice to a "post" from you on Cruise Critic.

Jim

I love this "marketing" guarantee. I think there is a Norwegian cruise company that is guaranteeing a "Northern Lights" viewing. Of course, in Juneau, a short drive to Mendenhall Glacier is always a possibility. Will that count? Mother Nature may have a say in viewing glaciers since most are shrinking alarmingly fast.

Jim

20 hours ago, sherryf said:

LOL!  There are glaciers on Mt Rainier, but you can hardly say that the ship "visited a glacier" because it was in Seattle.  You can't even see Mt Rainier from Seattle a large percentage of the time.

Hi, sherryf,

I live in Sammamish. I love it when driving into Issaquah on a clear day, I can see Mt. Rainier framed by Squak and Tiger Mountains.

Jim

I hope I can convince my wife to do one more cruise, to Alaska, in 2026. I traveled to that state for 20 years, three times a year, two or more weeks at a time. Would love to go as a tourist!

Jim 

• BobbiSox
• Thanks.
• Jim
•  

The last few posts were interesting about Oceania and other luxury cruise ships. However, they had nothing to do with production shows on HAL which was the original thread. Focus people.

Jim

Across many "conversations" on Cruise Critic, I have read complaints about seeing the same show over and over. I also have read many comments from others who said how much they enjoyed going to same show over and over. People sell out on shore concerts for musical or comedic shows by entertainers they have seen or heard over and over. Others attend "Broadway" style shows many times both on shore and on ships. Everybody is right and everybody is wrong. Just enjoy what you are seeing or do not go and complain about it.

Jim

On 4/11/2024 at 6:40 AM, Ken the cruiser said:

OK, we're now really starting to get excited about cruising with HAL again on their 3+ week cruises! 🕺💃

 

Holland America Line Debuts New Production Shows - Cruise Industry News | Cruise News

 

Beginning in February 2024, Holland America Line is set to debut four shows that unite singing and dancing in a new mainstage experience. The concert-style productions are fronted by three multi-talented headliners, who will be supported by an ensemble of singers and dancers.

 

New shows include “Song & Dance,” which is set on a studio backlot and features two leading men fronting a concert of musical numbers from Broadway, Hollywood and more.

 

Holland America is introducing “Class Act,” a production that aims to bring Las Vegas to the sea with an elaborate show that celebrates iconic female music performers.

 

“All That!” was created to transport guests to a TV studio, where they can be part of the audience of variety shows of the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s.

 

The new program includes “Hey, Mr. DJ,” which will feature iconic radio DJs presenting songs from the ’60s through today.

 

HAL's elimination of the production shows back in 2019 was one huge reason we started cruising with other lines, as we do enjoy going to the theater shows in the evening.

I had heard "rumors" about this. Thanks for confirming them

Jim

Hi, lamthesea,

We are booked on Koningsdam, cabin 7001 in January 2025. I hope it is quiet also.

Jim

I have been warned countless times through cruise bloggers not to book under any pool deck or music venues or casinos because of the potential for "noises". Ditto smoking areas. I usually book on midship, lower deck, inside cabins. On the last cruise and next cruise, we have moved to forward facing cabins on deck 8 and deck 7. We are both in our 80s and mostly mobile, without artificial assistance devices. We do not care how close we are to dining venues or activity centers. The exercise helps us to enjoy more HAL food than otherwise.

Jim

15 hours ago, atexsix said:

Dear Dad passed away this afternoon.  I want to thank all the well wishes, thoughts, and prayers, over the course of this almost 2 year journey.  It meant a lot to us.  It was truly a privilege caring for him and he died peacefully and without pain while I held his hand. 

 

Wave season was terrible for him, they advertise cruises every 30 seconds it seems, but now he can go anywhere he wants.  I'll miss him greatly.  And there's now a huge void in my life.  

 

I hope everybody are having wonderful vacations and maybe there'll be a much needed break for me sometime this year.  

 

All the best,

 

~Bruno

My Dad passed away 3 years ago and my Mom 17 years ago. I miss them both and feel your recent pain. I speak to my parents several times a day. It helps even though they do not often reply.

Jim

4 hours ago, Bristol5 said:

Yes, the Konningsdam to Hawaii.  Great to know about the extra classes, that sounds wonderful.

I also enjoy the freedom to just sleep in and relax. Thank you both for your quick response!

Hi, Bristol5,

I have done a few cruises (three transatlantic) with 4-6 sea days in a row. I like doing trivia, reading, chatting with new/old friends, attending the lectures/shows (night and day), doing nothing and/or exercising (so I can enjoy more food on HAL ships!).

Jim

12 minutes ago, Monarda55 said:

When I first started looking at this cruise several weeks ago, the itinerary map for April 2026 showed the ship sailing east of Vancouver Island both going and coming. The October 2025 map still shows that, but the April 2026 map has changed— now the ship sails west of Vancouver Island on the northern leg. 

 

The charm of this itinerary, for me, was getting Inside Passage scenery for both legs. Any idea why they would have changed it for one sailing (April 2026) but not the other (October 2025)?  I hadn’t yet booked it, and I’m glad. 

Bummer on the change.

Jim

7 minutes ago, dmwnc1959 said:

 
It’s a very, very narrow passage mostly used by inland ferries, small boats, and on rarer occasion smaller cruise ships. I took a screenshot from Marine Traffic and used red arrows to point towards the Canadian Inside Passage.

 

In the first image Prince Rupert is circled in the upper left corner, and Grenville Channel (the dotted line) leads away from that heading basically southeast. 

 

The second screenshot has Bella Bella circled in the Canadian Inside Passage area that Noordam will navigate. 
 

 

Thanks for the clarification. That looks like a great voyage.

Jim

On 3/30/2024 at 5:35 PM, dmwnc1959 said:

I did a little mock up of the track I remember us doing years ago through the Canadian Inside Passage from Prince Rupert. I still remember this part of it quite vividly. One main aspect of my job in the US Navy was navigational charts. Also included here is the text from Holland-America for comparison.

 

“The ship overnights in Prince Rupert before scenic cruising in Greenville Channel, past the first nation’s village of Bella Bella, Johnstone Strait and Seymour Narrows.”

 

The third image would be a rough estimate of the transit from the end of the Seymour Narrows to Nainamo, Vancouver, and Seattle.

 

 

 

 

Overall track 

 

😁

Is the pink line the route? It looks like it is going through land.

Jim

On 3/26/2024 at 2:17 PM, 0106 said:

BB Kings is still available on the Rotterdam, Koningsdam and NS.  It was the best venue on the NS for the first two weeks in March.  The Billboard piano players couldn’t sing and the Rolling Stone band had no charisma.  Unfortunately, BBs is gone from all the other ships.

B.B. King's gone! Say it is not so.

Jim

4 hours ago, SRF said:

That is nothing.  A friend got an offer for Baltimore to Barcelona trans-Atlantic. 
 

An interior was five. 
 

FIVE DOLLARS per person.  For a 12 night cruis 

No way! I thought I had a great deal for a car in Las Vegas for US$0.03 per day in October.

Jim

50 minutes ago, horseymike said:

For the record, we disembarked the Rotterdam on March 17 , 2024, during that cruise there was a Steel Pan Group called Island Magic who took this style of music to the next level……

If you have the opportunity to attend one of their performances don’t pass it up.

I love Steel Drum Calypso (and more) music. We did not have that on our Rotterdam cruise in 2021 (Caribbean).

Jim