BetsyS.

Bon Voyage to all! 🥂😊

I agree with others above that you should notify HAL again of your food allergy in advance. My travel agent did it for me. On embarkation day, you can remind the staff in MDR. The staff in MDR gave me a dinner menu for the next night and they are very conscientious about it. I filled out what I wanted for dinner for the next night. HAL does a great job with this.

Jacqui - I agree with you. Several people on the same ship at the same time can all have a different experience.

Haljo1935 - Thank you. Good to know.

The Lido pool area also has people playing cards for hours, so that is not a place to find an empty table. I have seen people taking their food from Lido back to their rooms because they cannot find a table. Some people give up and are forced to order room service. I think it's great that HAL offers room service - but people should not be forced to order it if they would rather eat in the Lido. I liked auntmeg's post by mistake.

My pet peeve with HAL is when people sit in the Lido FOR HOURS PLAYING CARDS! They see people walking around looking for a table so they can sit down and eat their meal. People should be considerate of their fellow passengers!

cabinluvn - Bon Voyage! 🥂😊

Bon voyage! 🥂😊 That's a great itinerary!!

Bon Voyage to all! 🥂😊

AV8rix - Bon Voyage! 🥂😊

Bon Voyage! 🥂😊 Have a great time!

Bon Voyage! 🥂😊

If you are ordering food in Lido, please do NOT ask your servers what country they are from, how many kids they have, ages of kids, when were they last home, when are they going home again, etc. There is a time and place for everything, but this isn't it. Please be considerate of the crew and your fellow passengers. As we know, Lido is very busy on sea days.

I'm so glad your grandson is all right. I wish you and your family all the best for the rest of the cruise! 😊

I'm on the Zuiderdam now and they had carrot cake in the Lido at lunchtime! 😊 I hope they will have it every day!

Bon Voyage! I wanted to tell you that embarkation in Boston yesterday was quick and easy. No lines at all! HAL obviously got numerous complaints about the fiasco we went through last year. They did a perfect job yesterday. I'm very happy for you and your family. Have a great cruise! 😊

Bon Voyage! 😊🥂

Sharon in AZ - Thank you. Embarkation was very quick. My stepfather and I did not have to wait on line. Our rooms were ready when we arrived. Last August we were boarding the Niew Statendam. We had to wait for an hour outside in the hot sun and then we had to wait another hour inside the terminal. Boston has now gotten its act together. I don't know if last year's problem was the fault of Port Authority or HAL, but I'm glad things went so smoothly today. 😊

Bon voyage to all! 🥂😊

loveandpeas - The new Canaletto menu starts on 7/29. One of the new items will be herb and parmesan crusted chicken breast.

loveandpeas- I also have a sweet tooth. I love the bread pudding, creme brulee, chocolate souffle and lava cake too. 😊 If the fruit crisps were not on the menu in MDR at dinner, I would ask for them. The waiters put vanilla ice cream on top!

OlsSalt - Yes, I remember the book from the 60s "Europe on $5 a day." It had great places to eat and visit if you were on a budget - very helpful book. Years later another book came out "Europe on $25 a day." I used that too. Another good book was by Michelin - it had a green cover. In the 60s I stayed in a convent in Montreal - a very nice place. Those were the days! 😊

Bon Voyage! 🥂😊 My stepfather and I met you and your wife 8/3 of last year. We had to wait one hour before we got inside the Boston terminal to board the Niew Statendam. You and your wife made the wait much better and we enjoyed talking to you. My stepfather and I will board the Zuiderdam this Saturday in Boston. I hope that embarkation will be much faster than last year. I wish you and your family all the best! Have a great cruise!

0106 - Correction - I think Hogates was in Washington, DC, not Baltimore.

0106 - Many years ago I went to Hogates restaurant in Baltimore. They had great crabcakes. Is it still there?