tractortom

Thanks FatCat04, that seems to be the case with this particular cruise.   We're planning a Panama Canal cruise January of next year, I may see if it's available then....

Tom in Okeechobee,

I have to say, I tried that.  They show wine packages, and spirits, but NO drinks packages, no Dining Packages.  I wonder, because it's a charter, that they may have turned it off for this cruise????  I am still stumped!

Guys,

We leave NEXT SUNDAY on N Amsterdam for a seven day cruise.  I have ordered a bottle of rum to be delivered to the cabin, but am interested in looking at and maybe ordering one of the drinks packages.  I have been ALL OVER the Holland America website and can find wine packages, beers in buckets, and bottles of things delivered to the room, not to mention drink cards and the like. But NOWHERE can I find any link to the drinks package.  Can one of you tell me where to look?  I'm stumped.

Tom in Okeechobee

We're on N Amsterdam, NEXT WEEK for another 100% Charter.  Country Music Cruise via Starvista.  Seven days to Key West and St. Thomas with a stop on Saturday at the private island.  The ship is 100% full (all cabins sold) and has been for the past five months or so.  Will have Jeff Foxworthy, Oak Ridge Boys, Joe Diffie, Ronny Millsap, and about a dozen other acts on board for an average of five events a day.  Really looking forward to this trip.  So, next week on Sunday, we'll be the ones hanging off the balcony at 5pm when she leaves.

Tom in Okeechobee

Speaking of illness on the ship, not noro, but coughs and colds are a problem for us.

The wife and I were on an 11 day Holland America cruise in November. Before the cruise, I tend to start taking Emergen-C about once or twice a day for five days before, and then one a day during the cruise. I find that the mega-dose of vitamin C helps fight off colds. My wife, on the other hand, did not bother.

When we got on the ship, in the first two days I noticed people coughing. Of course, on day three, my wife was down with it. Just a cold, runny nose, sort throat, coughing. I stayed on the C and held it off another two or three days, and then I had it too.

We are SO careful to not touch the handrails, push elevator buttons with an elbow or knuckle, wash hands frequently, sanitized when offered, and we still came down with it, and the suffering that ensued.

So, in February, we are on Fantasy, just us two adults, on a ship crawling with little kids and the constant runny nose associated with kids. I have to say that I'm not looking forward to another cold this season, as I've had mine, and now that we are in our 60's, we rarely get sick, including colds.

So, what do you folks do to stay well? How do you hold off the colds that come from being around kids?

Thanks in advance,

Tom in Okeechobee

We live in south Florida, so we have four cruise ports within a two hour drive of the house. A couple years ago, I found a CHEAP weekday cruise on RCCI's Majesty of the Seas from Port Canaveral. I booked a outside cabin (two port holes) and we left on a Monday. At the time, Majesty was RCCI's oldest ship. It showed. The cabin was TINY, a bed, a chair, a bathroom a closet and a 14" TV made up the whole cabin. The bed was TERRIBLE, hard and broke down. The food, both in the buffet restaurant and in the main dining room was COLD. The ship was terribly worn and in poor shape. YES, we really hated that cruise. You get what you pay for, and that cruise cost the two of us about $600 for five days. Money wasted. We just got off an 11 day HAL to the Panama Canal, and really had a great time. Lesson is, you cheap out, you get what you pay for.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

Let us recall here, that a few years ago, there was NO rules against bringing your drinks of choice onto the Disney Ships. When we took our Fantasy cruise three years ago, there was a fellow on the mini bus with us (from off port parking) carrying a case of beer and a box of what looked like a half a dozen bottles of liquor and wine. He told me that he had dropped off his family and luggage, gone to the liquor store and stocked up, parked the car and was on the way to the ship. Looked good to me. So, current rules say you cannot bring on liquor, but a bottle of wine or a six pack of beer is OK. So if someone wants to bring liquor on, there are LOTS of ways to do it. Rum Runners are one of those, but I would suggest that you pack them in a zip lock bag, so if they puncture they do NOT leak into someone else's luggage.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

There IS a dance floor in the BB King Blues bar, and it was WELL used while we were there a few times last week, on the same cruise as Helen and JimandKaren. That Zuiderdam cruise was the first time in 17 years that we have been on Holland America and there was good and bad to be found. We ate quite a bit in the main dining room, and on nights when it was full, food service was quite slow, and beverage service as just NOT there at all (no one would refill a water glass). I was a little disappointed in the "Traditional Thanksgiving Dinner" as it had all the correct parts (real turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberries, etc) but the portion was so small that you could cover it all with an open hand. That is not how a Thanksgiving dinner is done at our house. The ship overall was spotlessly clean, the staff and crew were friendly and quick to learn your name, and acknowledge you with it. Everyone on board works very hard, but it seems to me that they are just plain understaffed in the main dining room, and some other places. The cabin we had (8140 Aft Wrap) was great, and the bedding, couch and carpets were all new. We really loved the coffee bar at Explorations (Crows Nest) and the Barista there, Jennifer, who kept us in high quality caffeine. As noted earlier, there were some parts of the ship that were always freezing cold, and others that were always hot and humid. The forward elevator lobby and stairwell were always steamy hot, and I went through there frequently on the way to the Crows Nest, the area around the Casino was freezing cold. You could NOT stay in the Gallery bar without a jacket, and the place was normally empty, except for trivia time. I did enjoy Billboard Onboard several nights, and the gal piano player/ singer was very good. Her partner (Andy) on the other piano made a good effort, but did not yet have the polish of a real entertainer, and when he sang, it all came out sounding like Neal Sedaka. The Ocean Bar was popular before dinner and did a happy hour from 4:00 to 5:00 with the second drink costing $2. I was there, for that deal several days. We didn't spend much time in the Lido, dropped in for a snack or some ice cream a few times. The burgers and hot dogs at Dive Inn are very good, but I didn't care for their fries too much.

All in all, we had a wonderful time. Met some nice people,. and got to see a part of the world that we have never been to. I'm thinking we'll go back to Costa Rica sometime in the future when we can stay for 30 days or so, and really get a good look at it.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

We'll be there during the sail away. Watch for the old guy on the port side aft (wrap) cabin on 8 on the way out. He'll be holding a Jack Daniels in one hand. He'll be ME!

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

We'll be on that cruise too. Getting the luggage packed right now, and checking lists to make sure we have everything. Plan to leave for the port at 9am tomorrow and should be there by 11:30, latest. As we haven't been on HAL since the days of 'white glove treatment', I'll be doing a write up for Cruise Critic and posting some photos after we get back from the trip. Will NOT be on-line during the cruise, as I really feel the need to "disconnect" for a while.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

I don't much care for the trend towards 'larger' ships, and the carnival atmosphere that is part and parcel with the large ships. We cruise quite a bit with Royal Caribbean, the large ships are awful. Rock climbing walls, zip lines, water parks, and an extra expense for most of it. I enjoy mid-sized ships, that have a sense of quiet and reserve to them, and less like going to the circus.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

She looked good from the outside! Watched her leave on the Port Everglades webcam at 5:45 today. I am a little curious what they did to 'updated' the Neptune suits as we'll be in one 10 days from now.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

Helen,

Diane and I will have access to the Neptune Lounge, and can take them to the concierge there and ask to have them delivered, if that is a help? You could bring them to me at our cabin 8140 and I'll make sure to get them to the concierge.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

Hello!

We are currently two weeks out from our 11 day Panama Canal trip on Zuiderdam and have a Neptune Suite this time around. It has the minibar (cooler) and I was wondering what was stocked in it? I assume some miniatures of various liquors, but what else?

When we last traveled with Holland America, some 17 years ago, I did manage to get into the minibar a couple of times for an expensive beer, and found it really handy.

Thanks in advance,

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

Regardless, I'd SNAP it up at that price and make it mine!

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

Maybe they are considering what Disney Cruise calls a 'Magic Window'. Found in their interior cabins, is a flat display, tied to an outside camera, that gives real time view of what is outside the ship in that particular direction. Would allow an exterior window on an interior space...

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

I don't know your budget, but the Neptune Suites on the aft corners of the NA offer a 270 degree field of view, as well as a closeup view of the locks closing feet from your veranda. You're taking a special trip and these suites offer special views.

The NA offers more dining options and space to roam. We'll be on her in a couple of weeks, but were on her sister, the Eurodam, last January and loved the layout.

That's exactly what I thought when we booked our Panama Canal Seafarer leaving 15 November. We have 8140, on the aft-port corner of the Zuiderdam. Can't wait to leave in three weeks and at least see SOME of the Panama Canal....

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

Guys, We have a cold front blowing into the area right now. The temp in front of said cold front is 82 with a 70% Humidity level. It's just going to rain on an off until the front passes and brings us the first cool air that we have seen since about April last.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

Yes, Zuiderdam is in the Freeport drydock. We are on the 15 November departure (second cruise after the refit) so I checked online for where it is today. It shows up in the northern most drydock slip at the Shipyard in Freeport. Should be high and dry in a day or two.

We are really looking forward to this trip, and are willing to overlook some small construction related issues if they are still occurring.

Look forward to hearing what she is like on the 5 November cruise and how the changes look.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

We take Emergen-C, when on the cruise, once a day. It's a mega dose of Vitamin C, along with some other things, that tend to fight off the bugs. Also, ALWAYS wash your hands after using a hand rail, or anything like that. There are dispensers for hand sanitizer at places on the ship, use them. Any place there is a 'serve yourself' use a napkin to handle the utensil, not your hand, when signing for a drink, USE YOUR OWN PEN. That one is a real rule of mine. Every time you purchase a drink, or anything that is not covered in the cost of the cruise, they swipe your card, and then hand you a pen. Do NOT touch the pen! You do not know when it was last cleaned, or when the previous user last washed his hands.

Oh, the post about getting lots of fresh air and sunshine is a good one!

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

We live about 2 hours from Port Canaveral, so we drove up to see Zuiderdam in the flesh (so to speak) and have lunch at Grills. The drive was easy, and the ship was tied up at the terminal closest to Grills, so we got a good look at her, and had a great fish taco to boot! We're cruising on her 15 November to the Panama Canal and points south and wanted to give them one cruise after the drydock/refit to finish the work before we actually cruise.

Got a couple photos, and had a good day by the water.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

Our first cruise, a LOT of years ago was on the RCCL Viking Serenade. A four day, weekday cruise out of the port of Los Angeles with stops in San Diego, Avalon and just across the border in Mexico. It was a gift.

My wife's family were John Deere Dealers, and her younger brother was running the business. He and his wife had a cruise planned and he won a cruise as part of a sales effort from John Deere. Did we want to go? Round trip airfare from Michigan where we lived at the time, to LA and back, bus transfers the whole works, for free.

We talked about it, and then made the decision. The kids were big enough to stay alone, so we loaded up and went. At the time is was RCCL's oldest ship, and NOT too much by today's standards.

We had a porthole cabin with twin beds, and a chair and not much else. About 80% of the folks on the ship were from the John Deere group, and all they talked was tractors and farm implements. Kind of interesting in its own way. The Pacific was dead flat calm for the first three days, and we had a good time. The second or third night, we had dinner up at the buffet restaurant, and ran into a couple from the deep south. They were both looking a little 'green' and told us this was their very first time on a ship, and that evening was the first time they had left the cabin due to motion sickness.

The next night as we left the Mexican port, the ocean was glassy, but rolling BIG sweeping rollers, with fetch all the way from Australia. The ship was rolling like crazy! We both slept like babies, but I did feel bad for the couple we had met the night before!

From that trip on, I was hooked. We have sailed HAL, RCCL, Celebrity and Disney. We have a HAL 11 night in less than a month, and a Disney seven day the second week of February.

I'd have a lot more money put away if I had told my brother-in-law, NO!

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

When you order Jack on line you'll be asked if you want it delivered in Ft. Lauderdale on embarkation day or sea day etc: If you choose Ft Lauderdale you may be charged 7% Fl tax. I choose the next day and usually it's in my cabin on embarkation day with no tax . If not there you can go to any bar and order or call room service.

They billed me when I placed the order, and specified the embarkation day, no tax appeared on the invoice. I have to assume that there isn't any tax associated with the sale, as it is now complete.

Valid thought, but didn't seem to be an issue this time.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

 

You are lucky to get 1.5 ounces at a bar. We have watched a couple of bar tenders not fill the shot glass to the white line.

I've found if you slip the bartender a $1 tip for pouring the drink, the second one is BETTER! After you tip him three times, he makes sure you are getting good sized drinks from then on. At least this is how it worked for me on RCCL the last couple trips...

Tom in Okeechobee, FL

I went ahead and pulled the trigger on this expense, along with a gallon of distilled water for the wife's CPAP machine. I'm kind of an introvert and need time to hide from the people sometimes. That means time out on our balcony and a glass of Jack Daniels and ice to keep me company.

Thanks for all the info guys! Nice to be able to get straight answers to questions to help with the decision-making process sometimes.

Tom in Okeechobee, FL