BermudaBound2014

12 hours ago, crystalspin said:

Can anyone on the ship now, have a look at the laundry sheet and tell me the price by-the-bag?

Thanks!

Just a quick post for you Elizabeth- there is no price on the laundry slip for by the bag. I have unlimited and it’s been great, but not a one day turn around like most people say. It’s been 48 hours most times abs one time it took 72.

I don’t  have any ship info for you because I didn’t spend anytime on the ship. 
 

Some of my people and I hired a water taxi to take us to a Motu just south of the ship. It’s where locals hang out. It was basically like landing on Gillian’s Island. For the most part the island was deserted with exception of a friendly black tip shark and sting ray (although there were more people as the day progressed). 

The motu is advertised as having showers but they were fibbing. There were restrooms (bring your own toilet paper). The snorkeling from shore was excellent (bring fins, strong current).

We were only planning on staying a few hours but ended up there the entire day. By the time we water taxied back to the ship all the stores were closed. I was hungry, did the lido. Fourth time this cruise they have had prime rib on the buffet and not in the MDR. They were also fresh grilling mahi mahi again. I’ll make it into the dining room  at some point, but I am totally satisfied with the lido fresh grill and yummy salad bar. 
 

I’ll let the photos speak for themselves, I have no words….:l

Tonight’s dinner menu-

4 minutes ago, TableGirl said:

So what happens when you cross the line again to come back?  

We already did. We had no Feb 29 but two March 3rd. It’s March 5th now (same as North America). 
 

Apparently we move clocks 30 minutes in a few days. Not sure what that’s about other than to keep guests in a perpetual state of confusion 🙂 

@pmjnh nope, but I love lots of Scottish folks. I’m 💯 Polish and proud, but we get a lot of 10

minute showers in Kapalua, Maui so it’s pretty standard term we use there.

We have arrived at Gillian’s Island (aka Raiatea). The Captain opened up the bow at 6 am for the sail in. Took us 2 hours from when we crossed into the reef

at Tahaa (see photo below for where we crossed into the reef area) until we docked. Just spectacular! 

Current location

we entered the protected reef area in the north west section of Tahaa and sailed south East to our current location. 

This was our route (sorry, I don’t have time to make the red line perfect but you get the jist- enter north in Tahaa and sail south and across to Uturoa, Raiatea. 

Hasn’t this always been extended annually (as opposed to 6 months)???

We have entered the waters of French Polynesia.

Pool has been busy today. The water was actually warmer after they drained and cleaned the pool due to the Neptune Ceremony.

Lunch menu

3rd dressy dinner menu

had a bit of liquid sunshine pop thru…

Daily’s for March 4th. We have finally put that international dateline chaos behind us (literally).

I’m in picture posting jail again. Will catch up later.

@canadianbear it has nothing to do with your package. Cruise critic doesn’t like videos. I have premium. I can sometimes get a very short video to post.

This trip is simply decadent. D.E.C.A.D.E.N.T— The weather is lovely. Pool temp is perfect, and there is enough of a breeze to keep me cool in my cocoon on deck 10 when I’m not participating in Tia chi, morning dancing, or swimming. 

Last night was a dance party at bbkings. I can’t tell you how much I am loving that band. The vibe is just perfect for dancing all night. As i mentioned, i am more suited to the playlist in Rolling Stones, but the band in BBKing brings exceptional talent and way more energy.

I think the two story venue is perfect for the level of sound produced. I can’t imagine a band with this much gusto playing in rolling stones with its low ceilings. It’s loud but I just turn down my hearing aids and get busy on the dance floor!! Racked up another 20k steps yesterday. 
 

Oh- There was also a costume party happening at the same time in bbkings, but it was typical cruise ship lame where 4 people dressed up, we applauded, then we immediately got back to dancing. 

Tonight is dressy. There is no complimentary lobster on the menu. I’m a bit perplexed why they had a dressy night immediately preceding a port day. It’s not like this itinerary lacks for port days. I have been invited to catelletto tonight by some of my new favorite people. As such am not eating anything but a small bowl of oatmeal at 7:30 am. Girls gotta prime.

There are a few other things I find perplexing onboard. One is that they do not repeat activities  on the TV, nor do they repeat Kristins port talks. Seriously HaL, float into 2024!! They are missing a huge monetary opportunity not filming all the activities throughout the cruise and then selling a $1.99 thumb drive for $49.99 like all the other cruise lines. I can see not videotaping copyrighted performances but line dancing and port talks are fair game.
 

I would love to listen to Kristen’s port talks, but not at 4:30 when she gives them. Why is it too much to replay them on the tv so we can catch up at our leisure? There are lots of complaints on the social media pages about the same thing so it’s not just me being entitled. It’s about using technology to enhance a guests experience. 

I wanted to watch several of my friends perform the hula and ukulele today at 1:00 but missed it because a) the app has stopped notifying us when events are about to happen. Instead we get a notification a few hours late and b) I was dripping wet from the pool. I put in another request for activities to be filmed and some higher energy music at the lido from 1-3 (I’d like it all day but am willing to compromise). I’m pretty sure these two requests are falling of deaf ears. I am pleased to say that every staff compliment has made it to the staff member because they keep thanking me so we know that is working.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m having a fabulous time. In over 50 cruises spanning 4 decades; this is absolutely one of my favorites and we haven’t even made it to this reason I booked (French polynesia). I totally understand, and accept, that I’m not HAls target audience, but I suggest to HAl that they pay a bit more attention to us retired Gen Xers as we are quickly becoming a large market share. 
 

Ok enough silly babble. Just talking out loud ( I said l was pausing the food not alcohol ;).)

Heres a few photos and tonight’s menu. I’ll try to post dinner in Caneletto later. 

whoop whoop!!I’m out of posting jail- but apparently my Cc account is drunk. Above is page one of todays lunch menu. Page two is the last photo in this thread.

Tonights dinner menus

Sunset near the equator

current situation

Notice two March 3rd. There are two sundays too. It’s a good thing I don’t have the drink package because  this has had me in the twilight zone since last Thursday (which was really Friday). 
 

Good morning from the southern hemisphere. Here is the answer to the question you have all been pondering-  The toilet swirls the same direction (I think, because truth be told I never really noticed what direction a toilet swirls in the northern hemisphere). 
 

The beauty of a cruise this long is that  you can make brand new discoveries on day 17 and I made two very important discoveries last night.
1) The chicken wings at the deli during movies are excellent. Super meaty and just the right amount of spicy hot for me. 
2) The band in BBKing is on point. Seriously on point. My taste in music lends itself more to the playlist in Rolling Stones, but I fell in love with the amount of energy the BBKing band brought. I’m talking standing ovation energy!  Granted, by the end of their last set (11:30pm) the crowd was long gone but there were a few of us folks willing to burn the midnight oil- or more accurately the 11:30 oil.m because by midnight this ship is fast asleep. 
 

Few random photos and tonight’s menu:

either cruise critic or the ships internet has put me in the penalty box. I can’t upload photos right now. I’ll try again after dance class 🙂

Lots of reports of very poor mdr service on the current 35 night Koningsdam. Of course, there are reports of good service too so it seems hit or miss.

The fact remains that lots of other cruise lines can handle “as you wish” dining without issue.
 

Carnival just introduced new technology where you enter your dining time in the app and they tell you how long the wait (in case you want to change to another restaurant, but that wouldn’t work on HaL because they don’t offer alternates to the MDR sit down that are complimentary). Then they notify you in the app when your table is ready to avoid crowding outside restaurant doors. Technology exists to streamline the process. 

Today we crossed the equator. King Neptunes Ceremony to change the crew pollywogs into shellbacks. People seemed to really dig it. For those on next years voyage, all chairs were long gone by 9:00 for a 10:30 start. 
 

The very best part for me was finally some live music at the pool if only during the ceremony. I realize I’m too young to be HALs target audience since 95% of passengers are over 60 and 50% are well over 80;  but don’t they realize that 70 is the new 40?  
 

I should also note that the lunch menu in the dining room has been changing daily (not that I’ve done there ;))

Based on what I’ve read i believe this is new (or perhaps because this is a legendary cruise with a ton of sea days?)

I’ve officially settled into the rhythm brought about by a long stretch of glorious sea days. 
 

My days look like this-—tai chi, oatmeal, chat with new friends. dance class, lunch, chat with new friends, naps, ice cream, meet new friends, walking the promenade, happy hour, maybe trivia, maybe show, maybe casino, maybe dancing, maybe another late happy hour. Much  of the day is meeting or getting more aquatinted with new friends. Our roll call is the bomb. Yesterday was the first day I played some slots. An hours worth of entertainment. Lost $50.
 

Had a salad for dinner from the lido (it’s a great salad bar) and enjoyed the sunset. A lazy day on the koningdam had me tucked in for a movie quite early. Will hit up the bands tonight. My friend said the band in bbkings is actually very good. I think the entertainment in Rolling Stones and billboards is just “ok”. In fairness, these folks aren’t a band at all. They are contract workers assigned to a ship by a third party. The Rolling Stones band (notice, they don’t even have their own name) has only been together 7 weeks. It takes awhile to gel. However; none of that has stopped me from enjoying a set or two. I didn’t come on HAL for top shelf entertainment and you shouldn’t either. 
 

Warning- Side track; yesterday my dance class was cancelled due to the Koningsdam zoo parade. For those unaware, they do this on Carnival ships too. One morning you will wake up and the lido will be entirely filled with towel animals. Then they parade the cabin stewards onto deck for a round of applause. 
 

I don’t appreciate this tradition like many. First, in a time of fiscal conservatism (as evidenced by some of the entertainment options), I think it’s a terrible waste of water rewashing thousands of towels.  But more importantly; don’t our amazing cabin stewards work hard enough? These guys are ninjas when it comes to keeping my room clean and apparently they were up at 5:00 am making  monkeys? Personally, I’d rather see the crew get an extra hour of sleep but that’s just me. Clearly, I’m in the minority as many folks gleefully rushed around to take photos of towels transformed into alligators. To each their own, this is just my personal perspective on the event. We can all agree to disagree like adults that color. 
 

I should probably mention that yesterday morning we entered the twilight zone. I’m not going to pretend I understand it, but the chart seems pretty straight forward. I did have a friend get pimped on dinner reservations due to the day change, so if you have any reservations for March 3rd you should probably find out if it’s the first March 3rd or the second March 3rd :). 
 

Today is much of the same. Some random photos and of course tonight’s dinner menu for my new friends requesting- 

No update on Noro but captain just announced we are skipping Fanning island (as we knew), and he expects an ontime arrival in Raitea.

Apparently the helicopter had mechanical issues that prevented another attempt which meant we needed to do a tender evacuation.

2 hours ago, mcrcruiser said:

Are these people only performing in the Crows Nest ? Also what time do they perform ?

TIA

I just witnessed the medical evacuation. Two couples. Both men walked on the tender. Both females alert/awake and in wheelchairs. One lady was alert enough to carry on her own medical papers. She had a purple cast on left leg (not sure if related).

Tender departed. Got half way to shore and turned around. Loaded 4 more full size suitcases (originally only had four small rolls boards). 
 

Again- both patients were alert and in wheelchairs. God speed recovery. 

Not much to report today. Did some tai chi. Then did some

Dancing. Then napped. Then pool. Then walked. Then napped. Then met friends for drinks. Currently enjoying happy hour in the crows nest.

The helicopter rendezvous keeps getting pushed back. Originally for 6:00. Then 7:30. It’s 9:00 and we are still cruising at 20knots toward Kona.

D0 want to give a huge shout out to Callaire, a nail tech in the spa. She is very professional and takes her job seriously. I had a shellac nail chip after just one week and she fixed it complementary because she wants customers to be genuinely happy with the job. Highly recommend her if you want a mani/pedi. I appreciate someone who stands behind their work. 

Tonight is formal night. Quite a few dressed up. Reviews of tonight’s entertainment were very poor. Last night everyone seemed to love it and I thought the Hawaiian Luau entertainment was great the night before. Everything one could want from a luau besides an ocean breeze and fire dancers.

They offered escargot in the lido. I totally skipped dinner. I just can’t eat like I used to. I’m making up the calories In liquid form 

Some deets from today-

I Am currently on the Koningsdam and it feels more crowded than both ships I sailed on last month. One which holds 6,000 passenger’s and the other 4,000 passengers. 
 

IMO this ship is poorly designed to move crowds. The venues for evening entertainment in music hall are literally back to back and crowded because there aren’t many choices in things to do.  The lido buffet is also poorly designed, and the top decks are full of weird dead ends preventing smooth transitions. 
 

Im having a great cruise, but in terms of functionality, the physical design of the Koningsdam makes it one of my least favorite ships. 

Thanks @canadianbear- when the captain comes on all I hear is….

I would bet dollars to donuts fanning will be cancelled. Ships rarely make it into Fanning island anyway.
 

I’m just hopeful that the person will be ok and shame on the people who expressed outright disappointment in turning around. That’s some bad karma right there. The universe  noticed. 
 

Oh what a day!! Still on adrenaline high.  Got up at 3:0am and couldn’t go back to sleep I was so excited for todays Shark Cage Dive. 
 

Our group of 6 from the CC roll call met at 5:45 am. I can’t tell you how much I have enjoyed this roll call. So many great people and many of us have several private trips planned for French Polynesia. Uber came at 6:00 and we were on the north shore in 40 minutes. Easy peasy.

Our time slot was 8 am so we were early. We walked to a little beach, watched some boat action, a sacrificed a member of the group as chum (long story) ;). 
 

The shark encounter itself was flipping amazing!! At one point someone in our group counted 18 sharks circling the cage. Most in the 8-12 foot range. My go pro video is off the charts but CC won’t accept video so I grabbed a couple still shots to post.

The seas were EXTREMELY choppy. 10 footers easy. At times it felt like the cage was in a total free fall between crest and trough. As such, many people (me included) got seasick- but I’d do it again in a New York minute (hoping for a bit smoother sail). 
 

Bonus of the day was two whale sightings, one within 50 yards with a great tail shot. I love the north coast.
 

We were going to take the bus back but ended up ubering to save time (plus a few of us were still queasy). 
 

Total Uber cost was way more than it would have been had we just rented a car, but it was reasonable considering the cost was split 6 ways and no muss/no fuss. 
 

There was a sail away party leaving Honolulu but the vibe I’m getting is that people are tired and ready for a couple sea days to rest up for the next burst. 
 

I can’t remember if I posted the daily or menu for today so if anyone wants them I’ll be happy to grab for you.

@cruisemom42I hope you know I’m just playing. I totally get that the lido is not for everyone and I understand the appeal of being waited on.  When hubby and I travel we are about 50/50, but as a solo im 90/10.
 

As far as healthy goes, I just feel yucky if I eat yucky. It’s definitely related to age as when I was younger I could eat anything. 

captain just came on for an announcement. Several people have reported ill. It’s a gastrointestinal illness. 
 

IMO it’s Likely noro. In keeping with my detoxing, I’m going to skip dinner tonight (or maybe eat very light) because I have a big shark cage dive planned for very early tomorrow and I don’t want any interference. 
 

I racked up 18,000 steps and 8.2 miles today walking from the ship all the way down Waikiki beach. I did not hike diamond head as I’ve done that and forgot to make reservations.
 

While the Ilikai wasn’t much changed the waterfront is vastly different. Big pools have been built on the seaside of several hotels. I don’t remember a cement path along the beach either but they maybe me. There was a section of the beach quite eroded but that’s common. I’m sure everyone knows that Waikiki beach is almost entirely man made. They will pump more sand in as it erodes. 

Oh- found my old apartment. it was a dive then and it’s a dive now, but I was shocked it hasn’t been replaced by skyscrapers. It’s literally right behind the Ilikai in a fabulous location. 

My dive apt on Hobron street still stands- 

1 hour ago, gizmodog said:

Seems from looking at menus all drinks are above the signature package. 
do they allow you to upgrade to premium once you are on board?

plenty of drinks at or below $11-? Just not the fancy ones. I’m sure they will take your money to upgrade onboard- but hopefully someone with personal experience will help,

2 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

As you know, I'm not a Lido fan (or any buffet) but some of these specials sound ALMOST good enough to tempt me there. Although, looking at your menus for MDR it seems many (most?) of them are on offer there as well.

 

Come to the other side. It’s hot and fresh over here 😉 
 

Here is tonight’s lido invitation and this dish is on the mdr menu (above). I don’t think the menus are much different at all.