bartexas

We always have a bottle of Veuve chilled for celebrations. I use prosecco for spritzes and like cava for every day. Examples of celebrations - our team won the World Series, unexpected raise, guy we were in a lawsuit with got arrested by the feds... We also exchanged the Wycliff for a bottle of wine.

I have a variety of wristlets (to match my outfits) that hold my phone, key card, and lipstick. It would be easy enough to have a mini pen in there, too (if I cared). Personally, I would feel guilty if a server had to spend time listening to my convoluted explanation of not signing vs. moving on to serve the next customer who is likely thirsty. For those people saying they don't have pockets, wondering what they do with phones/key cards. Personally, the idea of wearing a card on a lanyard is far more grotesque than using a pen and following it with some hand sanitizer. If you are carrying your phone and setting it down on various surfaces, it's made as much contact with others as a shared pen. There are also plenty of phone cases that hold a small pen. Seems like a cry for attention when the problem is so easily resolved. I guess some people need to feel special.

We love HAL's unlimited. We send laundry out daily. We usually have 2-3 outfits each per day (workout/excursion/dinner). All of our clothes have come back in great condition. It's so nice to leave the ship with mostly clean clothes for the next stage of the vacation. It's included with a Neptune Suite, but we budget it into our OBC when we're in a Signature. To us, it's part of the splurge of going on a nice vacation.

We loved this hotel in 2019. Got a great upgrade with two balconies that looked at the pier. If you have Marriott status, their lounge was pretty solid. We were there several days pre cruise and watched the big NCL ships come in early each morning. Our cruise was at the other port, but the hotel offered a shuttle for something like $15/person, which was really convenient. The hotel is right by the elevator that takes you from the pier level to the upper streets where Pike Place Market is.

When I booked with my TA, I can log into the HAL site and the booking is there. I can add dining, excursions etc. The payment info is on the invoices I receive from the TA. I keep them all in a Google folder with the invoice date as part of the file name so I can easily access the most recent. If you can find your confirmation number on something from the TA, you should be able to add it to your HAL account. That said, the TA should have linked you to your Mariner account for pricing purposes. I have a Platinum AMEX, so if I use one of their authorized TAs, I get a couple hundred bucks of OBC. I love our TA, and she's gone to bat for us when there have been issues.

We took our 2nd HAL cruise in May, since then, I’ve been offered “Free” cruises at least 6 times with a long list of available cruises. I’ve reached out to my TA on a couple to find out the price to upgrade to a Neptune. A couple have been good deals, a couple haven’t had that upgrade available. Haven’t been able to make the dates work. My guess is that, because we spend $ on board - wine tastings, some casino play, at least one Specialty beyond what is included with HIA, probably lunch in the Pinnacle a couple of times, maybe an excursion or two, they’d rather give us a “free” cruise than the people we’ve met on board who brag about their free cruise and how they don’t spend any money. However, I have no idea and maybe they’ll just keep on until I pull the trigger once and they’ll dry up.

We loved having the Neptune concierge work on our reservations. It’s super convenient to wander down the hall for a snack and glass of wine to bring back to the room - we were on an Alaska cruise, so spent sea days on the balcony. You get some hot food on the room service breakfast and room service mimosas are included. We also like breakfast in the Pinnacle.

We added it on our 7 night Alaska last May for $238 for both of us. I messaged my TA asking what it would cost to add, and that’s what she came back with. She let us know it was a great price. Ship was far from full, fwiw.

This is for a limited group, but, if you have a Platinum Amex, pay for your cruise with it. Through the Cruise Privileges program, we had a $300 OBC on our 7 day in a Neptune. Benefits are lower depending on cabin.

I do this with books and figure that the things I buy swap out for the weight of the books. Just leave them around the ship. I still like reading a physical book more than on my iPad.

We did a champagne tasting once. Super fun. Had Tattinger, Veuve, Moët and Dom. Tried it with chocolate, eggs, potato chips, and some other things. Can’t recall the price, but after the tasting, they came around to refill you with your choice until they ran out.

We’ve been getting a lot of these offers lately. When I contact my TA, the price to go from “free” to Neptune (can’t do inside, would consider Signature, if Neptune not available) on these offers has been between $659-$1759/person. Haven’t been able to take one yet due to dates. We’ve taken two 7 day Alaska cruises, one in 2019, and one in 2022. Both times, we’ve taken upsell offers, purchased drink packages, specialty dining, an excursion or 2. I play bingo, and we both played a little in the casino. I think our net is maybe -$100. On the second cruise, we took a spa offer for a side by side pedicure. Because of suite credits and onboard spend, we hit 2 star in 2 cruises. We also submit lots of “kudos” and name specific crew members’ names while onboard - at least 2 per day.

We purchased the Cruise Train from Anchorage to Whittier before our Southbound cruise on May 15th. It has not shown up anywhere on our itinerary. I double checked and made sure I have the receipt - I did pay for it. I went to it like I was going to book it, and it noted that we had already purchased it. Today, it showed up on the itinerary from my TA that came with the notice that we're on our own for testing in Vancouver, but it's still not on my online itinerary or in the app. At this point, I have no idea where to go to get on the train or what time to go there. Does anyone know this info? Is this something they will be sending?