weacat

Do I need to buy physical tickets if traveling with a child? Or use the NS app?

Following along as we are on this cruise in July. Enjoy your trip!

We have received this offer as well for a July 2023 sailing. I have 2 questions: 1) Does moving up from IV to Concierge change the cabin? 2) We have all included with our IV. Does moving up change that? Let's say if we bid for a suite - don't the suites have all included already?

Hi Jim, Enjoy your week in Amsterdam. We can't wait to be there in July. I was following your instructions for taking the train from Rotterdam to Amsterdam as we will be doing the opposite journey. Do one of you have a NS travel pass? I see that the "Joint Journey..." says you need to be traveling with someone who has a NS Travel pass. I goggled also and can't find where it says just travel with another or family for that discount. Paying the "full" price is still easier and more economical for us as it's 2 adults and one 9 year old.

Great review! We've been cruising with our DD since she was 2 and we all win - especially with kids camp. After trying many other cruise lines, we always come back to Celebrity. She's 9 now and about to be on her 9th cruise this summer with us in Europe. We sometimes go to the buffet with her for dinner and keep her company while she eats and then drop her off at kids camp while we then have a relaxing dinner alone. Win-win situation.

Have a wonderful trip and I'm looking forward to your posts. We'll be on Apex in July now departing and arriving back to Rotterdam. I will be especially interested in your train adventures as we will be doing the same from Amsterdam to Rotterdam with luggage and kid in tow.

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Excited to read your adventures! We have taken our 9 yr old DD on many cruises and she will be on her third Celebrity cruise this summer. She would be overwhelmed on a Disney or a huge ship and much prefers the calmness of Celebrity. Enjoy your travels and time with your daughter.

Thank you so much.

Our July cruise has changed departure and arrival ports from Amsterdam to Rotterdam. We were looking forward to going through the locks out of Amsterdam. Are there any locks we would be going though leaving out of Rotterdam?

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my question. If you have a chance - would love to know how it is on Apex as it is the next cruise we have booked as well. Enjoy your cruise!

So excited to read another one of your live blogs! Question for you - do you find that you have enough bandwidth to work on the cruise? I am considering a "working" cruise but I will need to attend webex meetings and do some actual work here and there. I am nervous that I wouldn't have enough service to actually work.

We were on the NA about 2 weeks ago with our 9 year old. There were about 10 kids about that age and got along really well. Club HAL hours were 10a-12p, 1p-4p, and 7p-10p. Most of the kids would go to the main pool during the afternoon and play/swim together. The staff was great and they had a great time. We brought appropriate clothing for the dining room and only ate there twice with DD since the dinners were so long and would "drag" into her Club HAL time in the evenings. Instead, we would go to the Lido early with her for her dinner, drop her off at Club HAL, and then we could go to the dining rooms for the longer dinner.

We are week off of the Nieuw Amsterdam sailing from 11/6 - 11/13. This will probably be our last sailing with HAL for awhile. We found that customer service was very spotty. The dining room was a mess. We had anytime dining and the first night was bad. It constantly got worse as the week went on. The first night we sat with 2 other couples and there was only 1 waiter taking care of us - no assistant. We understand that the first night is always a little "rough". The next night we ate in the Lido and it was great! Fast service and servers coming around every 5 mins to refill drinks. This was true every time we ate in the Lido. The 3rd night we went back to the dining room as a table of 2. We sat at our table for 40 mins before having our orders taken. After 90 mins and complaining to the asst Maitre D - we finally had our appetizers. Dinner took over 2 hours?? The 4th night in the dining room, we were sat again at a table for 2. Service was a bit better, but then our ordered drinks didn't arrive until we asked for them 3 times - We were almost finished with dinner before we received our wine. Finally, the 5th and 7th night were better because we had the asst Maitre D watching out for us. Breakfast in the dining room was even more of a disaster - food always arrived cold. We had to ask for refills of coffee constantly. No passed breakfast pastries. One morning, we had asked for a refill of coffee (we only received our first cup) 4 times and it still never happened. We ended up leaving the dining room and going up to the Lido to get more coffee! On the other hand, the service in the Lido, Tamarind, Billboard, and casino was amazing. We really enjoy eating in the dining room and even though we're not President's Club or even 3 Star Mariners - we expect a better service level from HAL.

I have both, over ear Bose and Ear Buds. I find the over ear better, but I do have to take off my earrings when I use them.

Or pizza

We were on the Millennium last year for a 4 day Christmas cruise. There were a lot more kids on board than usual but nothing like other cruise lines. Our DD - age 8 had a great time since there were a lot of activities for kids. Santa came on board via a boat and gave out gifts to the kids.

I have been doing the mock bookings on the November 3, 2022 Equinox. I have selecting the inside cabin (not guarantee). Oh - and look at the rate for a single occupant. I can’t figure out the math on this at all.

I’ve been doing some mock bookings on a few November sailings. An inside cabin for 2 people (2 adults and I’ve tried 1 adult 1child) is about $900 per person. When I add a third person to the cabin, the price jumps to $1350 per person. This is a cruise only fair both bookings. Anyone know why the price jumps so much? This price does not change if it’s 2 adults and 1 child or 2 adults. I know there is more work for the stateroom attendant, but $1350 more?

Hi Jim, Great review and thread! It has definitely increased our interest in taking this route for next year. The westbound would work best since we live in the Boston area. Though school usually starts in our area the Wednesday before Labor Day, we would be exiting the ship very early and running to get DD to her first day of school. Have you seen any kids on board?

Thank you for your detailed and thoughtful review. We had originally booked this itinerary the summer of 2020 and now rescheduled for next summer. We will be cruising with our DD who will be almost 10. Your details will come in handy as we get closer to our sailing date and help with the planning at the different ports.