jertom

I would also like to see any responses to OP's question.

We have been to St Lucia on a Sunday and it was really closed up, more so than other Caribbean ports.

Looks like Amsterdam finishes up Oct 22, 2021 at Ft Lauderdale. That seems to rule out a Grand Asia for that year.

12 hours ago, Sergeant Major said:

 

Jertom,

 

Yes, the 108 campgrounds, included in our membership, are all owned by the same corporation, and are spread around the USA. The more we use the system, the lower our overall, nightly camping cost, since the yearly maintenance fee is the only cost going forward.

Very good ! A real incentive to use those campgrounds and keep travel costs down. Good luck !.

2 hours ago, Sergeant Major said:

 

 

jertom,

 

The campground membership has cost us around $20K with all previous upgrades & 9 years of past annual maintenance fees, but now the only cost going forward is the $585.00 per year annual maintenance fee for up to 365 days of pre-paid camping. The campgrounds include everything prepaid (water, electric, sewer, trash, property taxes, maintenance, lawn care, etc. as well as all amenities such as pool, Jacuzzi, gym, other rec facilities, lodges, day rooms, restrooms, etc.), so that is how we save enough money to also do cruises. Got to pay to play, but campground membership(s) can be a big money saver in the long run.

Thanks for the explanation. $585 a year is a good deal. I assume that is a membership that allows camping at multiple campgrounds all around the country ?

On 9/9/2019 at 3:08 PM, Sergeant Major said:

 

 We have 108 membership campgrounds were we can camp for free; so even if we stay at each one of them for one month each, it takes 9 years just to visit them all one time. We also have 100s of discounted campgrounds. As far as timeshares go, we have about 150 of them we can now live in with just the yearly maintenance fee costs, as well as 100s of discounted timeshares. We could live 12 months per year in campgrounds, timeshares, or cruise ships, but choose to do varying amounts of time in each. . 🙂

Wow, just the 150 timeshares boggles my mind ! It seems like a lot of yearly fees to pay. Not to mention whatever fees the 108  campground memberships require.

On 9/24/2019 at 4:03 PM, jertom said:

My TA said that HAL would not place this for me. Can you confirm that you actually were able to do the $100 deposit?

Thanks to others confirming, our TA tried for the 3rd time and was successful in doing the placeholder deposit. As others said, it is not known whether there will actually be a 2021 Grand Asia. It seems like in essence, it is a placeholder for whatever cruise the Amsterdam does in fall 2021.

Thanks for those who posted on this thread !

On 9/9/2019 at 5:00 PM, DeeDee Groff said:

If anyone is interested, HAL is accepting $100. to put your name and your top three cabin choices on a waiting list for the 2021 Grand Asia so that when it's announced, you will have the opportunity to pick your cabin and give the initial deposit (less the $100.).  My TA told me this morning HAL didn't give any information when the announcement would be made, but what's happening with the 2021 Grand Asia echoes my experience in this past spring with the 2020 Grand Africa.

My TA said that HAL would not place this for me. Can you confirm that you actually were able to do the $100 deposit?

Just like reserving a hotel : read and understand the cancellation policy before you book !

4 hours ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

I read in another thread somewhere here about people taking those flocked hangers that come in sets of 10, that you can buy at Costco and some dollar stores, and using them in the closets instead of the bulky wooden ones provided by most cruise lines.  Anybody done this kind of thing?  Is this overkill? 

We have often asked the steward for extra non-wooden hangers.

We have found some decent hotels, not fancy, at reasonable prices by searching on Trip Advisor.

The porthole cabins the most forward often feel (and are) smaller because of the hull curvature.  Best to get one as far aft (but still in the forward part of the ship) as possible.  Main deck can be better than A deck because the curvature is less.

11 hours ago, freestyling said:

Run water to ensure the p-trap has water in it and then close drain or put in stopper. We have never cruised more than 40 days or gone more than 50 days and have not had any issue yet. Before we did this we would return home and have quite a smell in the bathrooms! 

For a long cruise, it is a good idea to Plastic Wrap the toilet bowl to slow down evaporation of the water. Also we put something over the shower drain to cover it up.

Spend time finding as much as you can about all the ports you will be visiting: the history of the country and the port, the languages, the political situation, the geography, and things to do.

If I were the OP,  at this point I would like to hear from someone who has actually stayed in cabin 2556 !

3 hours ago, scluvsrain said:

I do not think this is correct.  The 2xxx cabins on the Main Deck are BELOW the promenade deck (walking deck).  Those cabins are 3xxx.

Sorry, you are right and my grammar was wrong. I should have added the word "above" to my first sentence.

The Main Deck cabin does have cabins above but also the walking promenade.  Potentially could be noisy but our experience not a problem. Other inputs?

Not only can you book private tours, you can go off the ship on your own and poke around or take a tour with a local. Just be careful how you fill out the US government form, it is a little tricky (like the way HAL's wording makes you think you need to take a HAL tour). We just walked off the ship on a HAL cruise in December.

Tom

We recently got an upsell offer exactly 15 days before our sail date, so you can hope you may get one yet.

Our offer was good, but we did not take it,  as we were happy with our cabin.

Roy, we have enjoyed your postings about the S America Grand Cruise. Besides being entertaining, it helps us prepare for the 2020 World Cruise on Amsterdam which includes S America and Antarctic. Thank you !

Tom and Jerie

Scrapnana, thanks for all your postings. We enjoyed following along and getting lots of information on many of the ports on our  2020 HAL World Cruise.

Tom and Jerie

9 hours ago, WCB said:

Report #61   Semarang, Java, Indonesia   March 20, 2019   Wednesday   Chance of rain & 87 degrees     Part #1 Of 3     80  Pictures

In 1942, the Japanese military occupied Semarang until 1945, making this important to their history.  But the most important find outside of town, was the discovery of the well-hidden ruins of Borobudur Temple, constructed by Buddhist kings prior to 850 AD.  The largest single monument in the Southern Hemisphere, this 10 stone-tiered terrace monument was buried over 1000 years by dense jungle growth.  Discovered in 1914 by Sir Stamford Raffles of the Dutch East India Company,  this restored monument has 72 stupas (resembling upside down bells) and statues, which have been put back together with 2 million pieces of andesite stone.  With one Great Stupa on the very top, or Nirvana, this UNESCO World Heritage Site has become the most visited of all sites in Indonesia.  And we have had the pleasure of making three trips to see it since 2001. 

Bill & Mary Ann 

 

Thanks for your informative thread, we enjoy it every day ! Your description of Borobudur Temple inspired me to google for more info. It is an incredible story. I did find one thing to correct, maybe it was a typo: the discovery was in 1814 not 1914.

Keep on posting and enjoy the cruise. We are joining the cruise in Barcelona.

Tom and Jerie

11 hours ago, rafinmd said:

My parting shot will come from the little card my stewards left at turn down, attributed to Lao Tzu.  "A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving".

Roy

 

A great quotation to think about while cruising !

And another by Lao Tzu which could also be relevant to cruising: "He (referring to The Master) is ready to use all situations and doesn't waste anything."

7 hours ago, Sue from Canada said:

It was last month.  

 

23 hours ago, columbus1492 said:

Does anyone know if the laundromat is still operational on the Veendam?

 

If a drydock is coming up, check again. When we boarded the Rotterdam in January, we found that the laundromats had been removed.

1 hour ago, VMax1700 said:

Success!

Just received an email 'Booking Confirmation' with the new stateroom number.  So no moving!

DW is delighted - more time at Galleria Mall on turnaround day! 

 

Thanks to all who offered advice.

Stay safe and warm all affected by the weather!

 

Congratulations on getting the same cabin for both cruises !

And I totally don't understand how you got the assignments so early, but you might as well just enjoy the certitude. One less thing to think about.