FlaMariner

I wish it was this easy @RuthC!!!!!! ....but in reality..... they put personal stuff so you end up moving their personal stuff (where do you put it?) and then they might yell at you for breaking/stealing their ray bans or expensive suntan lotion. they also will return and say.....we just went to the bathroom and to get a burger.....we were only gone 5 minutes. ....and their accomplices may be nearby and will vouch for them..... also, I would not want to lie and tell them it was clear when I sat down down.....I'd have to tell them the truth. Sadly, as @3rdGenCunarder referenced, chair hog type people are not very nice....IME and IMO. It's a character flaw....same folks that board the ship and go right to guest services and start yelling...... (this is a fun topic, BTW)

Our preferred breakfast dining area is the pool lido deck and we are usually up early in the am....On occasion, we will watch the chair hogs creep up and begin their daily assault of claiming "their space" right by the pool...They bring all manners of "personal stuff" to make their claim.....It is quite funny.....then they go away...... sometimes I happen to notice when going to/fro/by the lido during the day that their "area" is rarely occupied. It must be some sort of tribal instinct and helps explain the land rushes across the USA western plains when the west was first settled.......I think it is a human trait to "claim space". I'd love a shrink to examine these folks and report back to us. I'd also love for HAL to make it clear with a timed mark on the chair and then once the timer goes off, the personal items are sent to lost and found. The real estate is too valuable and in such a great location to not let folks use it.

Yes.... From the HAL website..... As a member, you’ll earn Cruise Day credits for every day you cruise and for each purchase you make onboard. Earn bonus credits when you pay a published fare for a suite or penthouse and for each $300 in eligible onboard purchases.

Chair hogs are an ingenious sort.....I have no use for them.....A blight on humanity.....The ultimate in selfishness......."My unused seat is mine all day because I can"

@teeejh Our first HAL cruise was on the Zaandam in 2002 and we've been hooked ever since. We were in our early 30's. Our kids were pre-teens and with us and they are now 3 star Mariners in their 30's. On their own now and they prefer HAL. We have also sailed on the Koningsdam (and her sister ships). If all things were equal with date and ports...... .......we'd sail on the Koningsdam. Why? More venues.....Dutch Cafe, NY PIzza, Lido deck with an upper tier balcony area, movies on deck, larger music walk theaters....much nicer thermal suite spa if you are into that. Opportunity for a balcony stateroom at a reasonable price (major reason for us based on itinerary) Still a "small" ship.....a nice "mid sized" ship and not one of those dreadful "condo of the seas" ships on other lines. Both ships are fantastic. We would be happy on either one.....Welcome back to Holland America Line and have a great time no matter the ship....as long as it is a 'dam ship.....as our dining room waiter tells us.

I'm thinking it is what we call the keycard.

Mine is kept in my pocket. Easy access. No hassles.

No. You must share the entire beach with us inside cabin steerage folks.......but the good news is that you can easily spread out and enjoy the beach......never crowded......You can also rent a cabana and you can have that to yourselves.....but they even allow us inside cabins folks to rent cabanas. Enjoy Half Moon Cay....it's paradise on planet Earth.

Has anyone taken the bus from the port of Giardini-Naxos to/from Taormina? This is our DIY day and our goal is to enjoy Taormina.....Not in a hurry. If so, where do you catch it? Crowded? Any issues returning to the port/ship? Any tidbits of intel appreciated.

That's an example of "Swiftonomics" (economic lift when Taylor Swift concert comes to town)...........smart move to just get on a plane and head home.

got it solved.... Issue #1. my email ends in .net and that was not acceptable Issue #2. then my credit card was rejected and there was a note on the screen that "EU requires multi factor authentication, call your bank".....changed to another card and it worked.... Others in our group had the same issues.....beware and you are all now informed!

I could not get to the card entry point.......the error message appeared after submitting personal data and then went to the PAY page and you had to agree to terms and conditions first and then the error message.....

So, tickets are available to purchase thru the Sagrada Familia website for our April visit to Barcelona........After selecting our tickets and entering our info and then proceeding to the payment page, I get a message ERROR TRY AGAIN. Ugh. Any intel as to what I may be doing wrong?

Amtrak has a train in the afternoon from Tampa....that stops in Fort Lauderdale....You'd have to arrive the day before though.

My bad...that's what we booked PREMIUM ECONOMY. $1,156.80. We always travel in steerage and this is our first time buying a higher class.....given the long flight.....As far as we are concerned, this is a major upgrade purchase for us.......

Not understanding all these very high prices...and clueless about average prices...but.......I suggest you go to Singapore airlines and look at RDU to SIN... I just booked ATL to SIN (via JFK) in business class (JFK - SIN) and the ticket is $1,157. We travel in October.

Not sure what you are referencing about the USA but I found stats that show Jamaica at the top of the heap in terms of murders per person.....I'm feeling safe in Kansas City....not so much in Montego Bay. Ranking of the most dangerous countries in the world in 2023, by murder rate (per 100,000 inhabitants) Jamaica 53.34 Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 40.41 Trinidad and Tobago 39.52 Saint Lucia 36.70 Honduras 35.09 Bahamas 31.22 Belize 27.88 Ecuador 26.99 Mexico 26.11 Colombia 25.38 Expand statistic

I'd be OK if my biggest concern in Jamaica is aggressive sales folks and hair braiders........I can handle that....It's this from the USA State Dept RE: Jamaica that causes pause.......Again, a great day to enjoy the ship..... Country Summary: Violent crimes, such as home invasions, armed robberies, sexual assaults, and homicides, are common. Sexual assaults occur frequently, including at all-inclusive resorts. Local police often do not respond effectively to serious criminal incidents. When arrests are made, cases are infrequently prosecuted to a conclusive sentence. Families of U.S. citizens killed in accidents or homicides frequently wait a year or more for final death certificates to be issued by Jamaican authorities. The homicide rate reported by the Government of Jamaica has for several years been among the highest in the Western Hemisphere. U.S. government personnel under COM security responsibility are prohibited from traveling to the areas listed below, from using public buses, and from driving outside of prescribed areas of Kingston at night. Emergency services and hospital care vary throughout the island, and response times and quality of care may vary from U.S. standards. Public hospitals are under-resourced and cannot always provide high level or specialized care. Private hospitals require payment up front before admitting patients and may not have the ability to provide specialized care. Ambulance services are not always readily available, especially in rural areas, and are not always staffed by trained personnel.

Agree....A bus full of tourists seems like an easy, lucrative and efficient target.

The State Dept USA has it listed as a level 3 Reconsider Travel.....We would stay on the ship and enjoy the Eurodam that day. Here is the link to the State Dept travel advisory for Jamaica...... https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Jamaica.html

Looking for a way to do a round trip Trans Atlantic in 2025? Except for Cunard, it's usually TA's to Europe in the spring and to USA in the fall....but I found this interesting TA on Carnival.....Looks like the Carnival Mardi Gras is heading from Port Canaveral to Barcelona on 9/13/25........and returning a couple of weeks later (must be dry dock time). That could easily be coupled with the usual Europe to USA TA's that time of year. (We are contemplating this Carnival one way to Barcelona with a Holland America Line (our preferred line) return on 10/11 from Rotterdam to Port Everglades) Two week cruise to Europe....two weeks in Europe.....two weeks cruising back home.....and no air!.....Sounds like paradise. Not sure the dog we leave behind will allow this.

I saw that....we are taking quite a leap this year and we booked Carnival on a Trans-Pacific in October from Singapore to LAX on the Carnival Panorama...... We left Carnival many, many years ago but the price was right as was the itinerary.....I'm counting on not the usual Carnival party crowd.....We shall see. Seems as though the ship is in Singapore for a dry dock and this is not the usual "stomping ground" for Carnival. We are game.

Seems as though this does not impact us as we manage to enjoy HMC without ever spending money. The beach, the beach walk, the hiking trails, the beach chairs, the roundtrip tender, the swimming, the bathrooms and the island barbecue are all surcharge free. We love our day at HMC.

That's fun. Thanks for sharing. We will be watching.

Interesting...... That's an offer I'm certain we will never see.....We are certainly not HOB...high onboard spenders....and I think we are fine with that. Enjoy that offer.....sounds incredible.