Honeymoon Gift Recommendations on Noordam?

[the_dylaness]

Greetings, HAL cruisers! I was lucky enough to find the 1/6/07 Noordam cruise for my mother and her fiance and to help her book a balcony (VH though). They are getting married while the port is docked in St. Thomas so this is their wedding as well as honeymoon.

 

That being said, I really need some help deciding what the best gift for them would be. I have already purchased a couple small things for them when they arrive back at home, and would like to get something around $150-200 for them while on the ship. (I am a FT student so unfortunately my budget is not high.)

 

I have looked at HAL's onboard gift purchases and not seen too much that is appealing; the massages cost 3x what they do here in Kentucky (and I know about the hard sell), framed cruise photos are not their thing, they do not gamble, smoke cigars, or drink expensive coffees, and I just saw the poll that said the majority of people do not think the Pinnacle Grill is worth the surcharge. That leaves pretty much robes (uninspring), wine (possible but seems sort of blah...) and flowers (nice but I want something more than just flowers in their room for their wedding gift.) Do you all have any suggestions about what I could do to really get them something special with a real bang?

 

I have also thought about booking a shore excursion for them but I hate to take away their freedom of choice. The other option is to pay $200 to upgrade them to a balcony category that does NOT have a metal railing and will have the unobstructed view. They would really appreciate this but I know there is a good chance anyway that they will get bumped seeing as Noordam only has 4 VH category rooms.

 

Help! I am lost and really don't know what to do but I want to make this as special for them as I can. Somehow a 5 pack of wine just doesn't scream "Thoughtful Wedding Gift You'll Remember Forever!" (It's an 11 dayer btw.)

 

Thanks,

Sydney

[lucyforrest]

Dylaness, my fiance and I are departing on Noordam on Saturday and are also getting married while the ship is in port in St. Thomas. Do you know at all what wedding planners they are using? What about booking them a limo for transportation from the ship to the courthouse to the beach to the ship? The ones we used are Honeybee limo and they have a website if you just Google it. It was $95 an hour, so you could get them a couple of hours. Another thought was to book them a photographer for their wedding if they did not already have one. We are doing the Pinnacle Grill on our wedding night for dinner, I have heard great things about it, I think that would be a very nice gesture as well. Hopefully some of this helped.

[lucyforrest]

Dylaness, my fiance and I are departing on Noordam on Saturday and are also getting married while the ship is in port in St. Thomas. Do you know at all what wedding planners they are using? What about booking them a limo for transportation from the ship to the courthouse to the beach to the ship? The ones we used are Honeybee limo and they have a website if you just Google it. It was $95 an hour, so you could get them a couple of hours. Another thought was to book them a photographer for their wedding if they did not already have one. We are doing the Pinnacle Grill on our wedding night for dinner, I have heard great things about it, I think that would be a very nice gesture as well. Hopefully some of this helped.

[Scrumpy]

Even though reviews are mixed, I'd pre-pay for Pinnacle. If they decide not to go, they can get the credit. If they do go, they may enjoy the filet; I have done that several times and in spite of service difficulties and uninspired sides, I would recommend someone trying it once to see if they like it or have a more pleasant experience. But, if they aren't big on beef, skip it. DH has been underwhelmed with their other choices.

 

You could also pre-order champagne for their sailaway with chocolate-dipped strawberries. We've done that and it's fun. We always get flowers, too. It seems like more of a celebration when you start the cruise with those three things, but that's only my opinion.

 

The bathrobe sounds cheesy, but I ended up with one and I just like having it around. I don't really wear it since I have several others, but I like to look at it and remember our onboard experiences.

 

I can't advise you on the paid upgrade, but if no other idea is appealing, I'd do it in your shoes.

 

If you do hear them discussing a specific excursion between now and then, you could book it for them. It wouldn't be a surprise, but it would be something you know they'd appreciate.

 

You could also spring for a nicer hotel before or after their cruise - and, as mentioned before, a limo is always good. Depending on their travel plans, a limo at the airport and/or to/from the pier is much more pleasant than a cab or shared transportation.

 

I'm a spa junkie, so even though the treatments are more expensive, I have to indulge myself. I wouldn't immediately discount it and some things are not a lot more than on-land. Seems like pedicures, for example, were not too bad.

 

Congrats to your mom and her fiance!!!

[JimVrhovac]

Massage for two on the beach at HMC or on the ship. Have a bottle of wine delivered for the massage

 

Have don it and it worked. Spenyt ther afternoon in the room afterwards...

 

Jim & Ruth

[barbels]

I haven't got a clue about a present, but we have an active board going for this cruise which you might want to tell them about. We sound like a fun bunch and am sure we'd love to meet the bride and groom.

Barbara

[AAAAmerican]

You being a student too with a limited budget..but wanting a lasting memory for a fair and reasonable price is nice.

 

How about a KODAK Moment? That will last a lifetime and yours as well..

 

Kodak has inexpensive and high rated camera easy to use.

 

Made in China , designed in Japan for an American Company...

 

Like HAL. Ships built in Europe designed overseas for an American firm...too :cool:

 

With Christmas coming soon and American Thanksgiving here Black Friday usually has the Best Yearly Prices. Go to your library and as refference look at Consumer Reports to give you an idea of quality, costs, repairs and other pertinent facts...:cool:

 

 

 

 

 

Greetings, HAL cruisers! I was lucky enough to find the 1/6/07 Noordam cruise for my mother and her fiance and to help her book a balcony (VH though). They are getting married while the port is docked in St. Thomas so this is their wedding as well as honeymoon.

 

That being said, I really need some help deciding what the best gift for them would be. I have already purchased a couple small things for them when they arrive back at home, and would like to get something around $150-200 for them while on the ship. (I am a FT student so unfortunately my budget is not high.)

 

I have looked at HAL's onboard gift purchases and not seen too much that is appealing; the massages cost 3x what they do here in Kentucky (and I know about the hard sell), framed cruise photos are not their thing, they do not gamble, smoke cigars, or drink expensive coffees, and I just saw the poll that said the majority of people do not think the Pinnacle Grill is worth the surcharge. That leaves pretty much robes (uninspring), wine (possible but seems sort of blah...) and flowers (nice but I want something more than just flowers in their room for their wedding gift.) Do you all have any suggestions about what I could do to really get them something special with a real bang?

 

I have also thought about booking a shore excursion for them but I hate to take away their freedom of choice. The other option is to pay $200 to upgrade them to a balcony category that does NOT have a metal railing and will have the unobstructed view. They would really appreciate this but I know there is a good chance anyway that they will get bumped seeing as Noordam only has 4 VH category rooms.

 

Help! I am lost and really don't know what to do but I want to make this as special for them as I can. Somehow a 5 pack of wine just doesn't scream "Thoughtful Wedding Gift You'll Remember Forever!" (It's an 11 dayer btw.)

 

Thanks,

Sydney

[the_dylaness]

Thanks for your suggestions!

 

Barbara, I will let them know about the roll call. I can't guarantee that they'll join up because my mom still calls me with questions such as "I keep turning on the computer- why can't I see anything on the screen?" (Because the monitor is off.) "If I turn the monitor off will it turn off the computer too?" Ahh, mom. :rolleyes:

 

AAAA- I love the camera idea! Too bad my mom just got a brand new one (and camcorder as well- not sure if she has figured out how to operate it though!) I have to say that is a fantastic idea though, allow them to capture all the cruise moments w/o paying $20 for a print from HAL.

 

 

Still thinking about what to get the happy couple...