john bowtie

Can you attend a show more than once if space is available from the standby line?

Also on an upcoming Harmony cruise, I booked my shows first and am now not able to book MDR on the nights that I have shows due to the strange 5 1/2 hour block. I was able to book a Solarium Bistro dinner one night at a very early time when I have a late time at the ice show. I would really like the early fixed seating but it is wait listed.

Thanks for posting the daily planners. I'm on the May 5 sailing and it's nice to get a feel for how the week is scheduled.

I would suggest doing the original rainforest canopy tram ride (the very long two level tram) in Costa Rica (though is does require a very long bus ride from Limon. For the partial Panama Canal transit--if your ship is too large for the old locks (like the Celebrity Beyond)--I would recommend a shore excursion on a small ferry boat that completes the transit to the pacific ocean though the old locks--it allows you to see the old locks up close and also experience a full transit--long tour/day but worth it.

I like how most Princess Shore Excursions include detailed tour information. https://www.princess.com/ports-excursions/fuerte-amador-panama-for-panama-city-excursions/panamas-rainforest-aerial-tram click to the excursion detail tab.

I purchased a collapsible, travel tea kettle from Amazon for road trips. (Hot water from hotel coffee makers often has a "coffee" taste.) It's very low voltage but does boil water (just takes some time) and has an automatic shut-off. Takes up very little space in my travel snack bag. I don't try to take on a cruise as I know it would be a no-no. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B091Y9CNP7/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Since I am more of an ice tea person (I prefer hot tea over ice--thanks Celebrity for spoiling me in Cafe al Banca--I am the person in the buffet with a cup of hot tea and multiple glasses of ice at the table--I like that Holland usually has English tea, either Tetley or PG Tips). I tend to take cold brew tea bags and a large plastic cup on a cruise to make okay iced tea for the room.

If time allows, there is a Galveston Attraction Pass that can save you 40% when you get tickets through it for 4 or more attractions. I did Ocean Star Offshore Rig Museum, Galveston Railroad Museum (these two are within walking distance of the port), Galveston Naval Museum, Moody Mansion and Bryan Museum. https://www.galvestonislandpass.com/

Note that different excursions can leave from different areas. During the busy season, they will run multiple trains each day. For the most popular trip, the train may park directly next to the ship on the pier. For the longer trips, the train may leave from the station a short walk away.

Wow--my first cruise post pandemic, the classic soda package was $9.95 plus 18% per day. Not only have they raised the price 3 times (it was 12.95 and 15.95 on my other two cruises since then) but about doubled in price.

Note that I love trains and was excited to get to try Brightline. I took the premium service from MCO/Orlando to the Fort Lauderdale station. There is a special lounge at the station from premium ticket holders with free beverages and snacks (thought the regular waiting area was very nice with a snack shop and a bar. The premium service on the train had very comfortable seats. After departure a cold towel was offered, followed by complementary beverages and snacks and then a light lunch of sandwich, salad, fruit and a sweet (similar items for purchase in the regular coaches. Electrical outlets and usb ports at the seat and on board internet. The premium fare also included one free checked bag and a complimentary uber (up to a few miles) from the Fort Lauderdale station to my hotel. I loved the experience and would do again. Premium was very nice, but probably not a necessity. Far better than driving.

Ad and deck plan for Pacific Princess from about that time.ic

I would be more comfortable with the later flight--disembarking MSC (especially if the ship is at capacity or you aren't staying in the Yacht Club) can be challenging. Better to have plenty of time and take it easy to Sanford.

This may also depend on the day of the week your cruise leaves. Take into account how busy roads may be the mourning of your cruise. Also, since you will have a car to park, you may wish to check out stay/park/cruise options were you could leave the car at the hotel for less than parking at the port.

On my recent Rotterdam cruise 12/3-15/2023--for the first part of the cruise fresh squeezed orange was included at the gelato stand but until 10 AM only (had it several days and was never charged). Mid-cruise a different person was at the stand and said it was never included at any time. Asking a manager in food and beverage, she it was only included only at the beverage location inside the lido for breakfast hours only. Who knows if the policy changed mid-cruise.

Still waiting for my cruise that ended 12/15/2023 to post. Note if you need the portfolio now you can e-mail onboardbilling@hollandamerica.com <onboardbilling@hollandamerica.com> and they will send it to you. I requested mine to get a medical claim started with my travel insurance. It was interesting that the portfolio sent included all the detail of every onboard purchase, even ones covered by the Have It All package.

Also had a great experience on Brightline to/from MCO to/from Ft Lauderdale. I did the premium service that included a private lounge with drinks/snacks at the station, one free checked bag and a free uber from the station to hotel the night before the cruise (and from the cruise terminal back to the station post-cruise--this charged me but customer service issued a credit). The onboard premium experience from Orlando started with a bottle of water, then a cool towel, then drink/snack service and finally a small lunch tray with a sandwich and other items. Seating was 2 seats on on side of aisle and 1 seat on the other with lots of leg room. Will certainly do again as MCO has better options out of my local airport.

Greetings from the Rotterdam. The good news from today was that Panama shore excursions left as scheduled starting 10:30 this morning. The ship docked in Colon as scheduled with tours returning to the ship and passengers able to disembark briefly before the 8:30 sail away. I didn't do a tour, but very happy for all who had one planned (as they had been cancelled on several previous partial-canal sailing.

Also currently on this sailing. Since you have been posting photos of the art around the ship, note that guest services can print out a color brochure/guide with the artist/location of all the art.

Your Brightline Premium fare will also include a free uber to/from the stations (I believe up to 5 miles)--so won't cover Parkland to Boca but will cover the short distance from the Miami station to the Port of Miami. You schedule the Uber by going to the Brightline trip details and then Extras (where you select a location & time)--its the same place you go if you want to reserve a free checked bag.

Did the entertainment include any classical music. The Lincoln Center Stage group was a highlight on a previous Holland America cruise and while I know that the ships no longer have this ensemble on board for the entire cruise, I was wondering what kind of replacement was on offer?

On my Panama Canal cruise, I met a couple who had been there so many times, they decided to do their laundry while the ship was doing the transit! But if it's a once in a lifetime trip, I recommend doing an excursion--the historic old locks by small ferry if possible.

I did this excursion on an Emerald Princess partial transit and it was incredible. The small ferry went through the old locks with another much, much larger cargo ship that towered over our ship and had only a few feet of clearance on each side--this really added to the experience. One note, my trip was one of the first after cruising restarted and the small ferry was at less than half capacity--if it had been full, the excursion would still have been good (do you really want to go to the Panama Canal and not be in both the Atlantic and Pacific in the same day) but more of a challenge to get a good spot to see everything.

Another recommendation for Glacial Wind tours--just incredible. Saw a pod of 6 whales bubble fishing--must have been a lot of food in the area because they surfaced again and again.

Another option. If you are willing to skip the train, you can rent a car in Skagway and drive to Carcross/Emerald Lake on your own. With this option, you get to stop as often as you wish on the drive (and can easily avoid a crowded stop if there is already a bus there). This option can also be far less expensive that the rail/bus tour. We left at 7:30 and returned at 5:30. We stopped at the Tutshi Dog Sled tours (incredible--puppies and very informative), the Suspension bridge, Skagway overlook, Skagway old cemetery along the way. We had lunch in Carcross at the Bistro--which was a much better option than the tours (great fish & chips, soup). I did the rental car with Affordable Car rental in Skagway--no problems--the car was waiting directly next to the ship was was easy to drive for the day.