Mary229

Those buses are National Park Service concessionaires and are the absolutely only way to go past mile 12 into Denali park. Denali park is very regulated, this is not the policy of the cruise line, it is your government . The accommodations and transport by HAL are very good. One must be aware that they are not going to get NYC luxury hotels as they don’t exist in Denali yet they are very good and the food at the lodge is excellent there are two rest areas, one stop on the way in, one stop on the way out Again this is a government regulation

I think it indicates you have options. It used to state the precise restaurant you could visit. If you go to manage your cruise you will be given the options

You are doing a great job chronicling your journey. Thanks for all of the details. Bookmarking for my sailing in February

That would be great.

Every time we see a small lap dog on the ship my DH pouts “why don’t they let us bring the cat?” 🐈 No reason is given but I wonder what the original reason was for bringing the cat.

I like your spot!

Merry Christmas !

We are regulars in two bars and have never had to get up to order a drink.

In recent years HAL has been drawing from a wider variety of communities. I have met numerous Indians as well as Peruvians.

If you choose restricted or on a casino promo you pay early. If you pick flexible you don’t pay until final payment date. If you pick flexible you can change or cancel the flight as often as you would like up to final payment date

I have used flight ease very often and have never had a price increase. I have had schedule changes and sometimes those schedule changes may cause me to change flights and then I would get a fare change.

We did a full analysis of this lifestyle a few years ago. The model we looked at was cruising for 3 months or so then staying in a location for a month or so before embarking once again,allowing us time to explore a single area. We watched every YouTube, read the books and articles and even communicated with a few full timers by email. Financially it was a wash so that was not a consideration. The cultural enrichment was not an issue either as one could schedule visits to theater and museums easily. The largest hurdle for us was the limited social life. It seemed to us that it could become very cliquish and could be a bit of a soap opera.

I violate 6 or 7 of these items. I don’t drink, I lose weight on cruises taking advantage of the healthy fare available, I am not much of a crowd person and so on. I really like cruising, it is my second favorite way to travel narrowly edged out by driving to National Parks. I agree with @cruisemom42, the list is a commentary on mass market, short cruises.

There are packages available. I received an email a few months ago that said HIA would soon be available on all sailings, grands included

It depends on the airline not whether you booked through flight ease or not. I use American a lot and unless you directly pay them the fee for a seat upgrade nothing is guaranteed and even if you do pay it may not be guaranteed

You need a new weather app, that’s not right. Such travails today for you. I can feel the anxiety from here.

Good review. Thanks for sharing

Do you have a PCC or TA? This needs to be escalated to a specialist. They often say this but it turns out with the correct pressure applied they will accommodate

I would do fall. The air is crisp and the great throngs of tourists have left. We have a motto “October is great everywhere “

Hijacking this thread. If I fly DFW to YYZ to AMS on a single ticket with Canada air what is the procedure at Toronto. Do I need to claim my luggage and proceed through customs or is the luggage forwarded and I go through customs without luggage? Thank you

From experience - keep that suitcase closed or the cat may leave you a bon voyage gift

I am not a big foodie but I would look for recommended Asian or go to Little Italy where there are plenty of authentic Italian cafes in a very nice setting and not terribly far from port. I don’t know that you would like California style Mexican, I am not a fan. I like New Mexican Pueblo style, traditional Tex Mex and Caribbean style.

@Haljo1935 are you spending a day in port or boarding right away. My sis and I had a great time in San Diego last time. We used Uber everywhere, very good and very affordable experience

I agree. TA’s often have a bucket full of perks that they can hand out. Pricing is very homogenized now and it costs the customer nothing to use a TA

It was at one time that the early bird discount on the premium plan was “buy premium early at the surf price”. That may still be the case. In any event it may be worth a gamble to buy now and see if the front desk will reverse the charge once onboard to apply to your OBC. They do it with shore excursions but I am not sure it they will do it with other purchases.