jertom

Thanks for posting ! We will be in the Caribbean then on NCL Pearl,  looking for it.

You might have limited the number of potential responses by specifying the particular 14 day cruise, as there are shorter cruises to Cuba and Caribbean. Take a look at the thread about Cuba in 2020 which has quite a bit of info.

We were on the same cruise as OP. We thought that the compensation for missing Cienfuegos was on the skimpy side. We also didn't appreciate the limited elevator service. Our shower drain was a little slow. But overall we enjoyed the cruise. We still like the older HAL ships vs the alternatives. Most civilized ships for the price, and good itineraries.

Rotterdam will be making a one day stop at King's Wharf, Royal Naval Dockyard on her 15-Day Tampa, FL to Rotterdam, Holland journey, departing on 14 APR 19. That's HAL's only call in Bermuda for 2019. Zaandam is doing Canada-New England cruises, Boston to Montreal. She is NOT going to Bermuda

According to HAL website, Zuiderdam is also stopping in Bermuda April 2019.

I prefer to walk, bike, hike a mountain, kayak, atv to remote location, scuba drive, etc.

COcruise, seems to me that all cruises usually have excursions like that and if not you can book them independently.

I have mentioned this before on similar threads … we simply prepay most of our bills. .

Do you mean that, for instance, if you will be away for 3 months, you make one payment to a utility in advance to cover your estimated total for 3 months ?

Thanks for starting this thread, DSLibrarian !

Amsterdam, at 777 feet, is too long for Hamilton Harbor. Bermudian authorities have banned any ship over 740 feet from docking in downtown Hamilton. If she was still calling at Bermuda for her 2019 GWV, Amsterdam would have gone to King's Wharf/Royal Navy Dockyard. The two remaining "S" class ships; Maasdam at a little less than 722 feet, and Veendam at 719', plus the elegant explorer at 669' can still make it into Hamilton if they/HAL wanted to

Thanks for getting down to specifics !

Amsterdam was indeed scheduled for Kings Wharf during the 2019 World Cruise before that stop was cancelled.

Rotterdam and Zuiderdam are currently still scheduled to stop at Kings Wharf during transatlantics April 2019, according to HAL website.

HotBranch,

Great review !

I’m on the waitlist for a segment also. When is the next payment due for the full World Cruisers?

 

Janet

June 2019, will be a bit of a wait !

And there might be grits, too !

Andy & Judi, and Keith:

Thanks for your ideas.

We usually only check email using ship terminals when cruising.

Particularly useful points you made:

Physical privacy with laptop in cabin is better than ship terminals with people around.

Other WiFi networks within range on a ship are less likely on a ship than ashore.

There is some degree of risk to travel without checking financial accounts.

A lot to think about !

Tom

Personally, I would not use the ship's shared terminals to access any of my financial accounts or email. I always bring my laptop.

Well, although I use the ship terminals I haven't used them for financial accounts. But aren't the ship terminals just as secure (or insecure) as using a laptop and the ship WiFi?

You are very welcome.

 

I just make sure our security settings are on with respect to the computer such as going into my settings and making sure the firewall is secure and turned on .

 

In short I would go through all of your privacy settings.

 

Keith

Keith, thanks for the reply. You are talking about your own computer settings. Not sure if I want to use my laptop or tablet, still thinking about it. But if I do, I would take advantage of the settings like you do.

Tom

I'm certainly no expert, but will try to answer.

 

I use a Win 10 laptop and when signing into a public network always ensure network discovery & file/printer sharing is off. If already online, you can check your current settings by selecting:

 

- Settings - Network & Internet - Network & Sharing Centre - Change Advanced Sharing Settings

 

On the next screen you can turn on/off these options. If on a public network, both should be off.

 

When surfing online, routinely check the URL area to confirm you are using HTTPS:// and not HTTP://

 

Our bank's online banking uses a rotating question after entering the User ID/Password. The bank also requires any device to have 128-bit encryption, so all communications between my laptop and bank servers is encrypted. While there is no guarantee the transmissions won't be intercepted, it is highly unlikely.

 

On our last WC, I logged into online banking once per month from the ship and did not experience any issues.

Andy and Judi, thanks for providing all those ideas. I have not used a laptop while cruising (use the ship terminals) and still trying to decide about using the laptop or tablet.

You are very welcome.

 

I have not set up a VPN but I feel very comfortable checking my accounts on the cruise ship. I won't use wifi in port. I am sure that my security settings are on so my data is not shared with anyone.

 

Keith

Keith, thanks for starting this thread. Can you elaborate on how you are sure your security settings are on? Do you mean the ship's security settings or your financial website account settings?

We also have guarantee cabin for segment of 2019 World Cruise. Don't worry.

Fastest and easiest is to Google "deck plans (name of ship)". You'll get the HAL PDF as one of the first few listed hits.

Yes, you are right. And in fact Googling directly is one of the best ways to avoid the frustration on many websites.

wondering about transfer from airport to Rotterdam port any suggestions beside Hal transfer?

from what airport to Rotterdam port ?

Why don't cruises show?

Because the website was designed, developed, and moved to production by people who don't have a clue.

Yes, or possibly moved to production by management even though the designers were not really finished.

Add Crystal and Silversea to your list.

Yes, strictly speaking, you are correct. I was just trying to simply things because there seemed to be so much confusion over Amex issued cards vs non Amex issued cards. I'm sorry this thread has become so contentious. .

Well, no matter how contentious, many of us appreciate you starting the thread again as a reminder. Without that I would probably have missed the deadline.

Ships have to turn off their cellular operations so as to not conflict with locals. So if at the dock, you can use your phone on local cell towers.

Thanks for those details and also thanks to catl331 and KirkNC.

Tom

We only use it for data/texting. Calling is available for $.20/minute I believe. As far as where you can use it, we can use it on the ship while in port and occasionally while at sea if we are very close to land. You have to look at who the provider is when at sea, we don’t use it when is Cellular at Sea or a bunch of numbers, only when it’s a land based provider. They actually send you a text when you are within range, a “Welcome to __________ country”. We have never encountered the problem some report with other carriers that charge them a premium while in port because they used the Cellular at Sea network. Ours always goes to the T-Mobile affiliate in port. I guess it’s possible there maybe an exception to that in some remote place but again, I always look at the provider (easy on an iPhone, it’s upper left on screen”.

Thanks, very helpful !

Tom

T-Mobile subscribers have data and text access for free in most foreign countries. We have used that for about one year now. We pay $70/math for two lines. Note: the access does not include access while at sea.

Thanks for this info. Have you been able to use the phone from the ship while in port, or do you have to get ashore well away from the ship?