FreestyleNovice

No apologies needed, your scope deserves an own thread!

Found this guy sharing his photos with shoe covers, I guess he liked the Aqua more! Close up of one of his photos, the hull art is coming on! Originals:

For those posted here and/or anyone's future reference, @Beezo's thread has some excellent info, including some incredible renders: Probably best if we keep that one and discuss it there but I thought that thread was started on April 1st when I first saw the renders of those mountains.. 🔒

@Beezo, that's some nice work!

We sure had some good fun with previous builds, I like the idea of NCL executives spitting their morning coffee over their desks when scrolling through their bookmarked CC threads finding out about such things heheh! A big help was the Meyer Werft webcam and social media from their visitor gallery, that helped a lot with puzzling out to be announced areas. Unfortunately Fincantieri is less easy to follow and more and more fellow cruisers and even influencers are learning the tricks of sleuthing! Times are changing..

No problem, that's what CC is for! That sounds like a good insurance! And good to know. Enjoy your day in Amsterdam!

I think they are two separate companies, one wears orange and the other one wears pink shirts on their boats. They seem to be quite identical in what they do.

https://flagshipamsterdam.com/ https://bootuitjes.nl/en/canal-cruise-amsterdam/ https://www.floating-amsterdam.nl/en/ Your plan sounds reasonable, I personally would pre-book the boat giving the time restraint. Your motivation to not pre-book is clear but in general those August days are some of the best days we get and availability might run out with great summer weather. In case of bad weather those open boats will have a canopy up and you might even discuss a cancelation with them (I am not sure of all policies). And even on a rainy day it's still a sight to see Amsterdam from the canals, by foot you will be even more wet. By foot you ca tag on an easy paced 1½-2 hour circle from and to the Centraal Station; Dam, Wallen, Jordaan, etc. Be aware the Vondelpark, Rijks and Van Gogh are not within that time frame, as they are too far south unless you take public transport to cover the distances. The Dutch love their summers, I hope you get to enjoy the canals on a beautiful sunny day and see the locals and youngsters relax on anything that will float whilst taking in the views of our historic city.

The small boat canal cruise with the walks to and from the boat/bus stop combined with the places you listed. Amsterdam is restrictive in coaches/busses in the city center; see https://www.amsterdam.nl/en/traffic-transport/coaches-tour-buses/. In short: tourist busses are no longer allowed inside the canal belt/S100 road perimeter unless they have some rare permit. Your most probable point of drop off will be De Ruijterkade Oost (Centraal Station). Plan from there, use an app like Moovit or take an Uber to move between further away spots or as last resort to be back in time at the bus stop. Amsterdam is compact, very walkable and lots of public transport options to help you get around quickly. Enjoy your stay in Amsterdam!

I wasn't impressed by the Apple reseller on my post Covid Celebrity sailings (2022 & 2023), it used to be better in my experience. Perhaps the market is either moving too fast for their inventory or who knows? Back in the days when duty free airport shopping was a real thing, buying i.e. a discman cheaper than main street prices, perhaps a bit similar?

When getting dropped off at port: Porters: zero. Taxi/car driver: 10%.

Renting a car or train plus local taxi. I would not pay an excessive amount (because it will be and it is) to sit in the discomfort of a regular taxi for nearly three hours. I haven't read anything indicating mobility challenges so I guess the luggage hauling might be a fear but.. Plan your train trip. Book your train tickets. Head to the Amsterdam Centraal Station, use the escalator or elevators, buy a soda/beer and a bag of chips, board one of the high(er) speed trains; the Intercity Direct or Eurostar train, store your luggage in between the seat back to backs or luggage racks and sit back and relax. Your views of the landscape passing by will also be better than other cars/highways. Here's a bit of info on the luggage part onboard the two trains on that route: https://www.nsinternational.com/en/before-you-go/luggage https://www.eurostar.com/uk-en/travel-info/travel-planning/luggage The last leg is on a regional Belgium train in most options, using the balcony and staying with your luggage to avoid logistical challenges.

I would leave the Markt Binnenrotte for what it is, if you go by foot you can plan your route to walk along or over the market towards the Markthal (route: Rotterdam Marriott hotel, Weena/Hofplein fountain, Cool Singel/City Hall) unless you are really looking forward to the street market experience but it's just local hustle. I personally would not sacrifice an easy morning in Paris for it! Your 3:32PM arrival might sound a bit late for your leisurely pace but still doable to me, it still gives you >6 hours for a 10:00PM end. An earlier train might give you some extra time or leverage but it would be a second or one drink at dinner thing in the end I think! On the other hand: perhaps the 1:32PM arrival biggest benefit is that it still gives you enough time even if it runs late for some unforeseen reason.

I missed the Euromast in your list by the way, swap it for the street market timewise (the Euromast will be longer though)? Not wanting to mess up your plans! https://euromast.nl/en/

Forgot to answer the actual question: I would not bother or skip other things prior to your arrival in Rotterdam (if that's the case) to see the street market, it's close by and does not take hours. Wandering around the street market will perhaps take 30 minutes off your Markthal visit if it's not done in 10, the Markthal definitely is the more attractive place.