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It does happen "in every day life" but most restaurants/cafes/coffee venues have a posted policy regarding the type of situation you describe. It just is not tolerated, even on air planes. Cherie

Possibly HAL can post etiquette and rules of the dining room at the entrance to the dining venue, or on the menus. I know not everyone reads or chooses to follow common etiquette. The rules could be followed by stating the consequence that you will be asked to shut your device off or leave the dining venue. Of course, this assumes that HAL will take responsibility for everyone's enjoyment of their meal. Cherie

I liked the response someone had on another thread. They leaned over and participated in the call. An alternative would be to ask the staff to ask them to take the call outside the restaurant. I think another suggestion was to stand and sing loudly by their table, and when everyone else applauds you stop singing. It is an annoying occurrence everywhere, not just on cruise ships. Cherie p.s. My complaint in the Pinnacle in January was individuals blowing their nose at their table. I was brought up that this was never done. You excuse yourself, exit the restaurant, and blow you nose so as not to gross other diners out.

Replies #4 and 6 indicate Custom's looked up the rule. It might be helpful to bring a copy of that with you. What an amazing souvenir. Cherie

Was it still less than if you had booked a veranda with HIA when you started the process? And, does your HIA include gratuities? Thank you and have a fabulous cruise, Cherie

What was the cost of the two buses and how long did it take? Thank you, Cherie

Also, if I were staying more than 1 night I would consider the hotels suggested in DaMom's thread in the Recoleta and Palermo districts. Cherie

We really enjoyed Buenos Aires. Our ship overnighted at the end of the cruise and on the day we docked we had a private guide who tailor made a tour for us. It was a a great day. I will be happy to provide his contact info if you would like. He is originally from New York and has lived in BA for 17 years. After our trip to Iguazzu we stayed one night at the Buenos Aires Hotel and Convention Center. That night we walked a few blocks to dinner and enjoyed the area with the park. We felt very safe. Others have said that they did not get Argentine pesos but on the first day we exchanged U.S. $ for pesos with someone our guide knew. It was really nice not to have to use a card when making small purchases or even buying dinner. We did use our Mastercard travel card a few times but small convenience stores really did not want U.S. $. We paid our tour guide in U.S. $. Also, since BA is at the beginning of your cruise you will probably have the opportunity to use the pesos at other ports. We stopped at Ushuia and Puerto Madryn. BA is a beautiful city. Cherie

The reason I mention it is because we made new friends who were not in a suite and they had help with there luggage when leaving the ship the evening before official disembarkation. I know this because we accompanied them off the ship and to their taxi to say good-bye. Of course they, and we, tipped the staff member that helped. Possibly it's a matter of asking for something outside the official policy and being willing to show appreciation to the staff member helping you. Cherie

mawvkysc - My husband called the Neptune Concierge because we thought this was a benefit of Neptune suites. It could be that whoever was staffing the Neptune lounge at the time was unaware that h'orderves were available for preorder to our cabin or possibly on the Oosterdam this was not a benefit. I thought that Patrick had mentioned this benefit when we introduced ourselves on the first day but as you can tell it was not a huge deal for us. Cherie

How amazing to see the Terracotta Warriors in Xian. I have only seen a traveling exhibit. Fabulous report and photos. Cherie

We cruised on the Oosterdam in January and chose the particular cruise because I like aft wrap cabins. On the Oosterdam they are Neptune suites. Not a big deal to us but our cabin was amazing. We did enjoy the benefits of Neptune suites at times and when we disembarked early with large bags the concierge arranged for someone to be at our cabin at 5:00a.m. to help us. I think this is available to anyone though. Regarding the shower/tub. I took showers in the tub because I felt so confined in the shower, so I would have preferred a larger shower and no tub. But I realize that many really do enjoy a nice bath. I think we understood that h'orderves or high tea could be ordered by 11 a.m. the day of. When we called we were told that only high tea was available and if we wanted h'orderves to go to the Lido. Not a big deal but we were surprised. We did enjoy high tea one day. We always had the Club Orange choice on the MDR menu and sometimes but not often ordered it. If I could get an aft wrap with out being a Neptune suite I would prefer it. JMO. Cherie

Love our menu tonight. I would like fried calamari, Chicken tikka masala, and panna cotta please. And red wine. The photos are beautiful. Cherie

You are right, I don't like eating in the Lido because it is so crowded. I would rather get food and take to the Lido pool area tables or back to our cabin. The Lido itself is an amazing space for passengers, with a variety of offerings and open to all passengers. Some want a quick meal and some want to enjoy the company and fun of others. My opinion is that the Lido is for everyone, That is just my opinion. You actually did not get it...it's not that I don't like the Lido, it's that I don't like the atmosphere when it is incredibly crowded. Sounds like you have a solution...go early or late and you will find a table. Please if you would like to say what I think be accurate. And I'm sorry that your cruise(s) did not have the variety of dining options that our cruise did. Cherie

And why should they? Shouldn't passengers choosing to eat in the Lido know how to behave? Because you choose to eat in the Lido for whatever reason, and enjoy the variety of offerings, and amazing staff...does that give you superiority over anyone else dining in the Lido? Cherie

Thank you for your post. I know you love the aft wrap balconies on HAL and I do also. I don't think the Windstar ocean ships even have aft cabins. It's nice to know that everything else makes up for the balcony space. Loving your posts from this cruise. Cherie

I don't know that there is a solution to this post. You are choosing to travel on a ship with over 1000 passengers, there are 4-5 dining options, there are several hours for dining and you are upset because? When you decide you want to go to the Lido instead of the MDR, Dive In, or Room Service there is not a table reserved for you? What? I hated even going to the Lido on our 22 day cruise. I would have to take deep breaths and brace myself for absolutely clueless individuals intent on only one thing...eating! We occasionally took food out to the Lido pool tables for lunch, but mostly took Lido food back to our cabin. Usually we ate in the MDR to avoid the chaos of the Lido. The variety in the Lido is wonderful but you have to be prepared for others to be there. One time we were just walking thru to go to the Lido Bar and I was actually knocked into a pillar by a woman only able to focus on the fact that she had her food and was on her way to a table. I had seen her at one of the counters but did not think that I would be in her way. Think again. She did not even skip a beat. I loved seeing groups enjoying themselves all over the ship. People are having fun, isn't that what cruising is about. If tables are blocked off for people having fun and those just wanting 10 minutes to eat, will those being in a hurry to eat be denied access to these tables? Wow, so many things in this world to worry about. JMO. Cherie

Puerto Madryn and Punta Arenas are other cruise ports where you can get close to the penguins. Some of the ports are a 50/50 chance of being able to go ashore because of weather. Our excursion in Punta Arenas was cancelled because of wind. We did go ashore but were not able to make the boat trip to the penguins. In Puerto Madryn we chose a private tour that included penguins plus elephant seals, seal lions, and other wild life but I think there was a tour that was just for penguins. The Falklands is also a 50/50 chance. We were lucky and we were soooooo happy. I think you should not choose just one location to be close to the penguins because mother nature decides what you will be able to do. You will see so many penguins and just be amazed. Cherie

This is just so much fun. I would love to have the tomato and watermelon salad, seared sesame crusted tuna, and ice cream. Thank you for inviting us to join you for dinner. The beach bbq looked fabulous. Nothing like a wonderful beach day with great food. I loved your photos of your HAL cruises and we were on a 3 week cruise in January. I found the food looked wonderful but did not have much taste, except for the specialty restaurants. How are you finding presentation and taste on Windstar? And do you miss having a balcony? Thank you again for bring us along. Cherie

I think I would take a printed copy of this response with me. Sometimes not everyone on every ship has the same info. It is clear to you but it was not clear to the person responding to your first email. What is stated in the second email should be what you will be able to expect, but you may need to be able to show the last email. Have a great cruise, Cherie

We used Kidney Cove Tours on the Falklands. Our friends are amazed when they see the photos and at how close we were to the penguins. We saw 4 different species of penguins and it was a fabulous tour. Cherie

We found it pretty easy and fast. If we needed one at a particular time and at a specific place we ordered ahead of time. It costs more, maybe $5, but is way less than the taxi scalpers that are waiting outside the cruise terminal. We did this when leaving for the airport at 5:30 a.m. If you are going to be there soon you might just do a trial request to see what the time and rate is for what you are looking for. We did this so we had an idea of what the Uber or Lift might be as opposed to a taxi. Also, if taking a taxi...make sure they are going to use the meter. Cherie

OlsSalt - I know that ships are different but when we were recently on Oosterdam for 3 weeks we noticed the Pinnacle Bar and Ocean Bar areas to be nice spots where small groups or individuals were reading or enjoying conversation during the day. Of course, the Ocean Bar provided beverages. There's sooooooooooo much room in the Lido and on the Lido pool deck I have a hard time worrying about others having a good time. I thought it was awesome when we saw 2-10 persons enjoying a game and enjoying their meal. When you choose to travel with over 1000 of your best friends you may have to have an open mind and a good attitude. JMO. Cherie

Why not post on your roll call prior to leaving letting people know that you will be happy to give them your tile? One year I posted on this forum that I would like to give mine away and someone in Canada asked for them because they were tiling a shower with HAL tiles. You could make someone very happy. Cherie

Mariner status and tiles are not a big deal to us but tiles were left in our cabin in January. I don't remember when on the cruise they were given. If you are concerned you might ask your cabin steward. Cherie