jagger16

Try the Pelican Grand. We come to Fort Lauderdale pre-cruise every year during the holidays (meaning most hotel rates are at peak prices) and have tried many hotels. The one we come back to the most is the Pelican Grand. Rates can be all over the place but check them out because if you catch an offer you can catch a good deal. We like that it's on the quieter part of the beach and away from the busy strip. Getting a cab to dinner and the port is easy. It's pretty easy to get around in Fort Lauderdale. Even if your not right near the port you are not far away. Good luck.

Thanks again, all of this is helpful. Unfortunately we are one of six ships that day! I guess we have to be prepared for either scenario. We are trying to plot the best course to Elia beach. I remember the last time we were there it was a little tricky finding the bus stop. We were hoping to catch a cab to the beach to get there early and take a bus back.

Thank you. Do know if taxis were available when you docked?

Can anyone who has been on Reflection this past summer tell if you docked or tendered in Mykonos? Knowing this will help with our planning for our August sailing. Thank you.

Thank you all for the information. Good to know that there are some options outside of the port. We had no luck with Rodos Cars or Galaxy returning emails. But we did finally confirm a rental with Rodos Cars through Facebook. Just an FYI to anyone who may be trying to make contact with them.

Does anyone have a recommendation for a car rental company that will deliver the car to the Rhodes port? We have used Eurocosmos in the past but they are no longer in business. Thank you.

Nick, Thank you for taking the time to do this review. Your pictures are great! Wanted to thank you also for the Rome Airporter suggestion. We had not come across them before. After your suggestion we went ahead and booked two transfers with them for our Reflection cruise in August. As you said, Marco is very quick to reply and the price is right. Once you confirmed the vouchers, that was it? Nothing else to do? It was so easy I just want to be sure that we don't need to do anything more. Thanks again for the helpful and entertaining review.

Hi Jacqui, Yes we are on a seven night Eastern Caribbean Holiday December 24, 2017 on Eurodam. Thanks for clarifying and adding us to the list.

Hi, can you please add us to Eurodam December 24, 2017 Eastern Caribbean Holiday? Thank you! We're returning to Eurodam for our 8th holiday cruise.

Joyce, We've stayed in a Vista Suite on Koningsdam, Signature Suite on Eurodam and a Neptune Suite on Eurodam and Rotterdam. The Neptune is the best, has the most room, biggest balcony and most perks. Next best is Signature which comes with less perks but is still a great size with bigger balcony. Coming in last would be the Vista which is still bigger than a Veranda but not anywhere near the Signature. The Vista was comparable in price to a Veranda when we booked so it made more sense to take that. Really the only perk was double cruise credits. We got an aft Vista which had a bigger balcony and more square footage but it was longer and more narrow than the mid-ship Vistas.

When comparing cruise costs, not only should you compare each of these to the other, you should also look at the Koningsdam deck plans carefully as there are some Verandas with larger balconies and some with angled balconies.

We took a cruise on Koningsdam with my family and booked four cabins between all of us. I helped everyone pick out what suited them best at different price points with different needs so I got very familiar with the options!

Are you cruising in warm weather? Just a thought but a nice treat would be a retreat cabana which would more than make up for a small cabin.

Thank you, Enthdegree. I have contacted them.

If you want amazing beaches you can't go wrong with the Greek Isles. If you go that route you can look for a cruise that includes stops in Croatia. There are awesome beaches there as well and Croatia is a lovely country with great food. But another option is to take a cruise that includes the Italian Riviera. We did a cruise that included stops in Italy, France and Spain and it also went to Sardinia and Corsica. We are total beach people and that cruise may have been our favorite for its absolute stunning beauty, amazing ports and sightseeing.

Does anyone have experience with using a taxi in Santorini to drive you around for the day? My husband and I rented a car and drove around ourselves when we last visited. This time we want to leave the driving to someone else and maybe see a few things but also spend some time on a beach. Private tours are a little more than we wanted to spend. We were wondering if hiring a cab on the spot for the day is even an option.

We'd also take any tour company recommendations if anyone has experience with private tours that may also fit our needs.

Thank you!

We were on the Rotterdam in Norway. There is no hydra-pool and there is an indoor hot tub in the thermal suite. We enjoyed that because it was cool but scenic on our cruise so it was pleasant to sit in the hot tub and watch Norway go by. If you go on HAL's website and look at the Rotterdam's deck plans you will see a 360 degree picture of what it looks like. I like the hydra-pool very much and the hot tub in the thermal suite on the Rotterdam is nothing like that. It's up to you whether you would enjoy the hot tub, heated loungers and steam rooms enough to get the thermal suite package. Enjoy your cruise!

It looks like Koningsdam will be at Havensight on December 27th.

Thank you, Peter. Havensight is where we want to be and different from where we docked on HAL two years ago. Appreciate the info.

Spunk, I'm sorry to hear about all your pre vacay troubles. But I'm glad you are finally on your way. Enjoy your much needed vacation!

Can you tell us in which port you will be arriving in St. Thomas? We are on the Koningsdam for Christmas and have to make meeting arrangements with our private sail excursion. We were told that HAL may be using a different port than in the past.

Thanks and thanks again for posting.

Koningsdam, December 23, 2016, Eastern Caribbean Holiday, 7 nights

Celebrity Reflection, August 11, 2017, Italy and Greek Isles, 10 nights

Thank you for posting.

Congrats on your engagement and your first cruise! I have a couple of ship tips for you as we have often mentioned them to first time cruisers who were not aware of some of these things.

We like to have coffee and breakfast delivered to our room. We order the night before and leave the order outside on our door handle. It really helps get out the door quicker on busy port days. HAL has great room service and you can write-in things that are not on the menu.

Sometimes it's hard to choose what we want for dinner so my husband and I will often pick one entrée to share besides what we each individually order. And if you don't like what you order you can ask for something else - although we have rarely had to do that.

If you are wine drinkers you can bring wine on when you embark. Each of you can bring a bottle with no charge and you will pay a corkage fee for the others.

We keep an eye out for laundry specials for longer cruises such as yours. I like to take advantage of spa specials which come out the night before the day the special will be offered. We also enjoy using the thermal spa (additional charge)?and if you're into that, that's a nice activity on sea days. I feel that using it regularly helps keep me loose especially after all of those days of touring.

Your books will help you identify the cities that you need to be very careful with pickpockets. I know you have to be careful in Barcelona. I carry nothing when we go there and my husband keeps our minimal valuables in a money belt. He doesn't like it, but we do feel more comfortable touring that way.

It sounds like the Koningsdam has USB ports in the cabins but we will still take a Joto 6 Port USB charger with high speed charging. It cuts down on all of the electronic plugs we have to bring. You can order that on Amazon.

Hope this helps. I'm happy to answer any particular questions you may have.

AryMay, You mentioned in your blog that the water at the reef was choppy. And indeed it was judging by your picture! Do you know if it is typically like that in that area or was this due to the weather that day? Thank you for sharing. Enjoyed the Bonaire and Aruba posts on your blog.

We were on the Rotterdam in 2014 for a Norwegian Fjord cruise and we loved the size of the ship. It was easy to access any deck which was great because there are often really neat things to see in a moment's notice. We could be sitting in the Crow's Nest and then head out to a deck to see the midnight sun and the moon out at the same time! The promenade deck is nice and wide. The service was excellent, very attentive and the crew really got to know us. It was the best HAL food we ever had. The ship had a laid back vibe, there wasn't a lot of activity at night. But passengers seemed to stay up late and hang out late in the lounges. Maybe it was the midnight sun tricking us all! The back deck is not its strong point but it was not a cruise made for swimming so that was OK. We really enjoyed our cruise on her.

Thank you, Brad for the many, many, many pictures. We can't wait for our Christmas cruise on the Koningsdam. You mentioned in another thread that your cabin had a large balcony. What cabin were you in? I'm sure you mentioned it somewhere but I'm binge reading all of the Koningsdam information this morning and I am probably overloading and missed it. :)

Also, is the BB King Blues club in the Queen's Lounge or another space?

Thanks again for the information and pictures and I apologize if I am making you repeat yourself.

You get an A+ for a complete and detailed set of pictures. :) Thank you very much. They are very helpful. Glad to see the outlets are horizontal especially at the vanity. We were in a Signature Suite on the Eurodam after dry dock and the outlets were not only vertical but low and my hairdryer plug would not fit in the space. Hope you had a nice cruise.

LAFFNVEGAS - Thank you for taking time to share your special voyage with us. It’s so exciting to hear all the new Koningsdam news. I am enjoying your daily updates. You had mentioned a little bit about the dressing area in your cabin and I wondered if you encountered the same problem that I did on the Eurodam. We were in a Signature Suite this past December after the Eurodam came out of dry dock. I could not dry my hair at the vanity because the outlet placed there was so low, the plug from the hairdryer cord did not fit. The plug bumped into the top of the desk. Fortunately I had a really long dryer cord and I could plug it in next to the bed and get as close as I could to the mirror.

I would like to second the request for a picture or any feedback (if at all possible) of a Vista suite. That’s what we’ll be in for a Christmas cruise this year.

Thank you again for all of your information and for taking the time to do this. Enjoy your cruise!

Teddy, My husband and I have been on five holiday cruises on HAL (our sixth is coming up this year). We've also been on the Rotterdam (But not for a holiday cruise.) We took our first holiday cruise over New Year's 2010 on Nieuw Amsterdam. We weren't sure how we would like being away from home from our family and friends. Well after about being on the ship for about five minutes we thought this was the greatest idea ever! We learned quickly that the ship is decorated, festive and full of holiday cheer. It only got better as we thought about how we didn't have to cook, clean up or drive anywhere. We have since brought family with us and now we all celebrate together. We have been on for Christmas and New Year's and they are both a joy. Best of all, sharing the holidays with the always warm and friendly crew. They seem to enjoy the holidays with the passengers as much as we enjoy being with them. We took part in any activity that was offered and always had fun: tree lighting, Christmas carol concert, Santa arriving in the theater, pub crawls, New Year's parties. It was all terrific. And even though we did not sail where you are headed (We were in the Caribbean.), I agree to just go with the flow with the weather. It can be dicey that time of year and our expectation is . . . at least it's not snow. You will have a great time. Happy sailing and enjoy!

Thanks, Carolb! I put a call into Ama and the representative read from an update from the VP that basically said they have been getting through to Vilshofen. But I'm prepared for anything! Speaking of which . . . How was the heat? Did you ever have the need for a light jacket or sweater?