FlaMariner

My experience on HAL ships.......There is a bathroom near the gym and the thermal suites that has lockers and showers....and has no fee/surcharge. Enjoy the Nieuw Amsterdam.........

We went DIY first thing after arriving in port in the morning.....no wait for the skylift.....but had to wait for it to open a few minutes.......then no wait for the toboggan ride...and it was a blast! Enjoy it.

Our last cruise (Westerdam 2023) we had pre-paid gratuities and there was a tip price increase after we had our booking and we were fine.....gratuities were included...no matter the price increase. And welcome aboard Holland America Line

That's usually what I am looking to purchase.....We tend to buy the lowest cabin category (VH guarantee to snag the cheapest balcony is our favorite category....sometimes VF's are only a few bucks more and we bite) and we use our FCD and "roll the dice" with our $200 (total for 2) non-refundable deposit at risk. ...we also enjoy playing "paid upgrade roulette" right before boarding. Enjoy cruise shopping........

on our last cruise (Westerdam 2023), the cabin stewards came to our balcony cabin looking for someone smoking on the balcony....Big deal....At first they thought it was us.....And he used our balcony as a lookout to find the law breaking smokers......I'm surprised you had the smoking incident.....and it lingered. Welcome aboard Holland America Line........Great view...Thanks for sharing.

Got an answer....Yes, they do.

I think I've read on here that the new canal has an even higher toll? .....Every time I've been thru on Holland, it's always been a tight squeeze (w/a few scrapes to clean up in Aruba last year/Oosterdam) thru the original/old canal......Glad HAL isn't using that newer, more $$$ canal!

Sorry, clueless here..... got that but what does that mean? Does that mean that large volume TA's might book the buck deposit if they buy cabins in bulk from HAL? Or does that mean that any TA can book the buck deposit? (I'm going to ask my large internet TA if they participate in that.....they do not promote it online)

Panama Canal toll......it opened in 1914....one would think that it would be somewhat paid off by now, but we all know better....Government owns it.....$$$$$. It's quite impressive to go thru it....Quite an engineering feet and an operation......But once is enough for us....I'd rather cruise around it/avoid it now that I've got the time!

sorry, need help.... what is a "TA Group Rate"?

I'm answering this based on our experience....... In the past, we've pre-purchased the pass because the rate would be lower than the embarkation day rate.....but from what I've experienced lately, that is not the case.......the price has been the same in the near-recent. We've also taken cruises with many sea days and we've never, ever known the thermal suite to sell out. We'd head to the spa after boarding and buy the pass.....and use that OBC....we would not pre-pay. Enjoy the thermal suite....it's one of our favorite splurges.

Understood.....and agree......but you can go online and find out if a particular cabin is available to purchase now....without entering any personal stuff. As far as knowing how full the ship is and how many of XX cabins might be available, that, in my experience, is a closely guarded state secret and I've never been able to crack that code.

Me thinks the big online only TA we use is such a place you are asking about..... Why? From my comparison shopping, they always end up with the lowest price......And to compare apples to apples, I compare a "price per day" that factors in the value of any OBC or other discounts.

The big internet TA we use does not have this option but...... .....there is a large airline that sells cruises and I can go online there and cabins available with a deck plan appear...(based on the category type I choose)......and that is before entering any personal data and with no sign in..........keep searching and you will find such a site. Enjoy researching......

My experience is no. I've taken a couple of cruise quotes (from big internet TA) to the cruise lady onboard over the years (most recently 2023) and the price was always more onboard. As with many things, YMMV. We do love the future cruise deposits...And always buy those onboard....sometimes several......For $100 we can use it to book a cruise later and it comes with OBC. That's a no brainer for us.

That was necessary! Just got back an email w/this info.....Progress. Congratulations! Your request for an onboard credit for your upcoming cruise has been successfully submitted to Holland America Line. We will be in touch with you in the next five (5) business days to either: Confirm that the credit has been applied to your cruise booking by Holland America Line; or Request for more information regarding your application.

Thanks for this....I can't remember if I did that but I just went in and did it......either again or the first time!

Our survival guide for first night in the MDR includes: locate our table (we are fixed sitting) while checking out the ship the afternoon of embarkation...that way, when we arrive on-time for dinner, we bypass the check in kiosk line and go right to our table. already have our Sommelier wine package picked out and the first night's wine ready.....with keycard ready for the waiter reviewed the menu prior to sitting down so we can efficiently order tell all the fellow passengers that you chat with during embarkation that they might want to go to steak night in the lido.....(LOL, I really do not do that) These steps have made first night MDR much less of a hot mess.........but agree....it is the most chaotic evening in the MDR and if ever you are to go to a $$$ venue, this is the night. Enjoy the journey.....and the dinner in the MDR.

I just got an email update from my TA (she's answering emails on a Sunday evening.....wave season must be very busy) RE: Can I pre-pay tips now and save a few bucks before the increase? This is a her response..... I have been trying to get answers about the gratuity increase and the only information we have been able to get is that they are going up. They are not currently telling us if you will be able to prepay to lock in the current rate but based on what we are hearing, that seems unlikely.

My stockperks experience thus far..... Successful with getting the account registered......a pic of my computer screen with the statement info worked. But...... My shareholder OBC was approved by stockperks on 1/5.....and as of today (1/14), the OBC is not in our booking....as per email just received from TA. I've sent a message to stockperks (via the "contact us" option in the app.. inquiring as to how long it might take. Stay tuned for further updates......LOL

My bad. I thought $16 is the new rate? But it's the old rate? I am (obviously) confused also. Nothing new. LOL

Yep. Our two April cruises are now at the new tips of $16/day when I view the pre-pay online option....looks like we missed our opportunity to save $2 a day. That now explains why our TA was unable to get an answer from HAL regarding if we would be "grandfathered" if we bought them online before the price went up. They were scurrying to get the website updated with the new amount. Makes sense. No worries.....

No personal experience but the MDR is not listed in this "exclusion" venues list.....(from the website description of the quench package): The package excludes purchases made in the Mini Bar, Juices at Gelato, Room Service and beverages purchased on Half Moon Cay.

Agree. I'm going to rethink our tip strategy.......Along with the auto charge tips, we've tossed cash around to those onboard who have exceeded our expectations (and sometimes we have filled out the form to increase the auto charge tips).....Maybe it's time to just let HAL assess the tips and we stop w/the extra cash...... Our next cruise is $74/day per person....at $16/day, tipping charge represents 22% of our cruise fare....seems reasonable but perhaps that's the ceiling.

You can visit guest services and they will happily give you a form to complete to increase the tip amounts to a higher amount that "you do not care about"......The crew will be most appreciative! We've used the form in the past to clear out our OBC and also to add a few bucks when expectations were exceeded.