ladyj1138

Does the CO Dining Room ever do lunch on sea days?

Thank you! I'd LOVE to do that. But I don't think they're interested... Anyone know who I should talk to at HAL?

It's such a shame how little attention HAL pays to their afternoon tea. There is so much they could do to make it much more of an event, something to be truly looked forward to, at very little extra cost to them. Improvements to the food, an actual selection of teas (one of which could be a HAL specific blend), more attention to the table settings/atmosphere, and tie-ins to the locations the ship is visiting. It's also disappointing that a table for two and a table for four both receive a single set of (very) small bites to share, no duplicates. Hard to split those little finger sandwiches four ways... Lots of room for improvements. We have so many ideas at our house after our Alaska sailing a couple of weeks ago, I wish they'd listen.

They did the same thing to us. One cabin moved from 12n to 12:20, and group D to group E. Our other cabin’s check in time was not changed at all. We are Club Orange for both cabins too. So much for expedited boarding. Now we’ll miss lunch in MDR too. ☹️

We are also Club Orange and our boarding time is noon. We will still be there at 11am, as we are traveling with a service dog and expect our boarding process to be more time consuming.

Has anyone had luck in getting a cabin robe in a larger size for us PLUS folks?

We always cruise with unlimited laundry on HAL. Helps us to pack less stuff.

We got the rental at a great rate, lots less expensive than taking a tour. We’re the only ship in port that day which helps with crowding. The totem poles are super important for us to see. I hope the artists will be working that day.

@Coral The tour operator doesn’t have a tour at the time we needed, so we’ve opted to rent a car for the day instead. We’ll have more flexibility that way, and my husband loves to drive so it’s no big deal. Thank you for your suggestion and the story about you and your family. ❤️

@Coral I’m very sorry to hear of your mother’s passing. It sounds like you put in a lot of effort to make sure she had a very full life. Thank you for the referral to your tour operator, we will give them a try. We have encountered so much ignorance about service dogs and the laws that cover service dog teams. This will be my daughter’s first cruise and I really want it to be a positive experience for her so she can feel safe and comfortable in traveling with her dog. Thanks again!

I’m so glad we’re not the only ones who plan Costco as part of our visit.

I thought so too, was very disappointed in the tour operator’s flat refusal.

We are seeking a tour of Bears and Raptors that will allow our service dog. I already booked and had to cancel one tour that refused to allow our service dog. how do you know how many ships will be in port?

Friends, We are cruising AK round trip out of SEA on 9/2/2023. I’ve submitted our special needs list to the accessibility department, we have our vaccination certificate, and we are looking into the trackable health certificate because our vet didn’t seem to have a clue about it. Our problem now is the private tour we booked via Viator for Sitka is now refusing to allow my daughter’s SD on the tour, citing lack of space, but providing no alternative arrangements. I’m very disappointed in this operator, and I’m curious if any of you have toured Sitka with your SD? Thanks!

We always get the laundry service. Helps us pack less. Plus finding those little green tags inside each item of clothing for months afterwards always brings a smile to my face of good memories from the trip.

Genuine letters with a personal story do not an astroturf campaign make. As a former elected official I can spot astroturf a mile away. Letters are a good start, genuine and over a couple of weeks is a possible path.

You’d think they could do this at BB King’s. I’d love to see some old standard with dancing, and some real jazz.

Back in 1998 on my very first cruise (RCCL Legend of the Seas), my husband and I were roped into a talent show where several passengers displayed various talents and a few of us were directed in a big musical number. It required daily early morning rehearsals for the entire week. I’m not a morning person, and I swore I’d never do anything like that again while on vacation. It felt too much like going to work.

GenXers here, with Millennial daughter. HAL might be interested to know that people can enjoy music of many types. I love our 80's hits, our 70's classic rock, and a lot of other music from different eras and styles. But you will have to pry Classical Music from my cold, dead hands. On our 2022 Alaska cruise on Eurodam, LCS was packed every time they played. It was hard to find a seat. Then having those players on the main stage for the BBC nature presentation was outstanding. I was so sad to hear of the decision to discontinue LCS, but I continue to hold out hope that HAL will listen to the fact that I can love a classical music performance at 7pm and then rock the night away at 9pm. Our whole family is like this. It's not rocket science, folks. Classical music is one of the things that sets HAL apart. HAL, please don't abandon it!

@Haljo1935 That’s the thing, people confuse the purpose of these dogs all the time. Emotional support animal- This can be a variety of different animals. Their presence alone provides emotional support, or a calming effect, to their person. These animals do not perform specific tasks related directly to their person other than simply be physically present with them. Therapy animal- these can also be a variety of animals. I even know a pair of therapy llamas. These individual animals serve many people, often in settings like hospitals, rest homes, rehabilitation facilities, chemotherapy and dialysis treatment facilities, etc. Horse therapy is a common example. The animal’s existence and calm demeanor allows for special interactions with people dealing with a variety of conditions, inducing emotional responses of love and well being. These interactions can be magical under the right conditions. Service animal- these are most often dogs, but other animals have been trained to perform tasks for their person. Service animals are typically assigned to an individual person with a limiting condition, for whom the service animal is trained specifically to perform at least three discrete tasks. Many service animals can perform more, but three tasks is the legal requirement. Per the ADA, In situations where it is not obvious that the dog is a service animal, staff may ask only two specific questions: (1) is the dog a service animal required because of a disability? and (2) what work or task has the dog been trained to perform? Staff are not allowed to request any documentation for the dog, require that the dog demonstrate its task, or inquire about the nature of the person’s disability. please check out this link for more FAQs about service animals. https://www.ada.gov/resources/service-animals-faqs/ Thanks!

Well, if you’re unhappy about service dogs being on ships, then avoid the Sept 2 Eurodam sailing to AK. We will be there with our adult daughter who has had her service dog for six years. He is the best dog, incredibly smart, well behaved, beautifully trained, and has made all the difference in the world for our daughter. Having him present is the only way she is able to leave the house and interact with others. Without him, she would be a shut in. Her life has been infinitely improved by having a service dog, and I hope that people will give them the grace to enjoy this cruise without being treated with suspicion and cruelty.

At 54, I’m no longer fighting with my limitations. I’m using wheelchair service at the airport regularly. Last month, I went to a conference for work, and I rented a scooter for the whole week despite feeling embarrassed in front of my able bodied colleagues. If I didn’t have the scooter, I would have been miserably hobbling about. We’ve done two cruises in the last year, and I haven’t had a mobility device yet. We are cruising RT out of San Diego this November, and I’ve heard horror stories about embarkation there. I’m debating renting either a wheelchair or a scooter for the cruise. I’d prefer the scooter (always have one in Vegas), but I’m concerned about the space limitations on the ship especially if it’s fully booked. thoughts?

I filed a covered claim with Travel Guard in mid May 2022. I got an email in July saying the were “sorry about the delay”, but my claim was being processed. I called them at the beginning of August, and was assured by an actual person that my claim was due to be paid in two weeks. It’s been over a month since then, and I’ve gotten bupkis from anyone. Going to have to spend more time on the phone, and finding out how to file a claim against them in my state. BTW, I’ve file two claims with Allianz over the years for airline tickets and had both paid promptly and without all this runaround. I won’t travel without insurance, just need to find a better carrier.