3rdGenCunarder

Yes! Give yourself a treat!!! You deserve it for all of your trip planning efforts. And another packing suggestion. Buy a blank book and keep a journal. I've done travel journals for years and love to take one out and reminisce. I like spiral ones because I can rip out a page if I need a piece of paper. You don't have to write a lot (mine do tend to become sagas 😱), just some memories. Maybe let your husband and kids contribute, too. Glue in postcards (I carry a glue stick for this), or peel off a tour sticker and add that to a page,

Not at sea, and probably not on a balcony, but it could happen in port in a larger space. On embarkation day in Vancouver on QE, I saw someone leave the remains of their lunch on a table by the pool, and a gull was there in less than a minute to see what was left.

I doubt there's a lot of difference. Based on my experience in an aft verandah on Eurodam, the cabin is likely to be longer than the cabins on the sides. If you look on the deck plans at the slight curve across the back, it looks like the ones at the center are the longest of the aft cabins. That said, all you get it a little more floor space. In my Eurodam cabin, there was some extra space between the nightstand and the bathroom wall, and some extra space between the other nightstand and the sofa. If you're planning to use the sofa bed (if the cabin is a triple), it would be important. Otherwise, it doesn't make much difference.

Many years ago, on QE2, they gave up on "experts" placed by an agency, like speakers and performers and got a staff member to run the computer room. On a cruise where the internet was difficult and she was very helpful, DH and I filled out "You have been a star!" cards for her. The next day she saw me and thanked me, so I knew they were letting crew know. QE2 also did "employee of the month" awards for various departments and pictures would be posted somewhere. I don't know if Cunard still does that. One time, they had a little reception and invited the Diamond world club members to the reception to see crew members recognized for their good works. The captain said we were invited because "you're family, too."

The answer to almost everything these days is "there's an app for that." I like that compliments get relayed to the staff member so quickly. I wonder if Navigator compliments get more attention than the ones people write on their surveys because they're immediate.

Part of the confusion is because posters sometimes refer to the HIA shorex and dining credits as OBC. They are not the same as OBC. For those who don't understand the difference, If you book HIA, those credits appear on the "home page" for your cruise booking as PROMOTIONAL CREDITS and under that there are links to dining and excursions. These credits are not "fungible," (I love that word!), meaning they cannot be used for anything other than the designated purpose. In the case of my next HAL cruise, I see "2 dining credits" and "$200 available" for shorex. HIA Promo credits can be used before you cruise. As others have said, it's a good idea to do that so you get the tours/dining times you want. The value of the HIA Promo credits is not refundable, so you may as well use it while you can. Anything called ONBOARD CREDIT is literally that. Credit to be used on board. Except for casino exclusions in some cases, you can pretty much use it as you see fit.

Perhaps they're busy updating their OS to Windows 8.

I have never seen one of those. It's great for keeping things from rolling off in rough seas, but it does sound awkward for eating, having to reach down into the top. Very odd choice.

I can't picture what you're describing. On K'dam, we had an oval glass-topped table that couldn't be raised (Neptune suite, maybe that's the difference) and turning it on its side wouldn't' give us any surface. Did your coffee table have solid sides?

If I tip the MDR waiters, I give them the envelopes directly on the last night. Cabin stewards are so busy on turnover day that if I don't happen to see mine, I leave the envelope on the desk, with the steward's name and "thank you" on it. Last time, I saw my wonderful steward as I was walking toward the elevator. I thanked him for taking good care of me and told him I'd left something for him on the desk. And in addition to gratuities, remember names and mention them in the post-cruise survey.

HAL might send an email when the tours open for booking. I get a lot of offers to improve my "cruise experience" when I have a booking. I bought HIA for my cruise last winter in the fall. I got offers to buy HIA at least twice after that. So the HAL computers keep spewing reminders of ways you can spend your money.

How many years ago was Cantare announced? I have yet to be on a cruise where they performed. I fear that will be my luck with Lincoln Center, too.

Wow, for a huge airport, your experience was very fast!! I had to laugh at the jewelry search. I had the same thing happen a few years ago. I have a couple of chunky metal necklaces that raised suspicion. The system or the guy at the monitor flagged the case. The guy who had to check it glanced at the monitor and sighed, "It's just jewelry," but he had to check. Thank goodness I had it in a little packing cube and he could see what it was without having to open it. But I have never had my bag checked because of candy!

You can go for a drink. Although some people do go there for a pre-dinner cocktail, it isn't usually full and nobody asks if you have booked dinner. The bar isn't open all day. IIRC, they opened around 5:00. I don't know where Tamarind is on your ship, but it's often tucked away in a place that people don't stumble upon. Worth seeking out. And even during the day when the bar isn't open, it can be a quiet place to sit.

Ouch! That's high. At that price, they should charge just the difference if you upgrade. I bought the 10-day pass on my last cruise and it was $196.

Cocktail suggestion--try the Tamarind Bar. Tamarind is HAL's Asian restaurant. (I love the crispy duck!!!) The bar for this restaurant has some special cocktails. I don't know if they're available in other bars. The cucumber mojito is wonderful as is the drink with the lychee in it (forgot the name).

Did some ships have a piano up there?

Your description of how to use the rods is what I do. I've seen people chatting in the thermal pool, but not usually loud. And not on the thermal beds. That's a relaxation/quiet area. I hope it was just an unusually loud group and it isn't happening all the time. The problem with the thermal beds on K'dam is that they're in the room where you enter the thermal suite, so people walk in and out, talking. On the other ships, the thermal beds aren't in a thoroughfare.

I think I've seen "Humanity." "Move" doesn't sound familiar. There's one where they dance to various musical instruments that's quite clever, except for the mistake with Rhapsody in Blue. I forget what instrument they were highlighting as they music played the iconic glissando beginning, but it wasn't a clarinet. Tsk. Karaoke style? Words fail me.

We had a very long, but fantastic, ship's tour to Berlin on a Cunard cruise. None of the four of us had been to Berlin, and with a port intensive itinerary, we, we opted to let the ship take care of us for this one. We could never had worked out the logistics so well on our own. We visited several sites, but the one that I remember best is a museum about the Berlin Airlift. Absolutely fascinating to me, whose knowledge of 20th century history isn't the best. In Stockholm, we opted for an independent day. As soon as we could, we got off the ship and took a taxi to the Vasa Museum. Vasa was a Swedish warship from the 17th century, raised and preserved. The museum was quiet, and we had a leisurely walk past the exhibits, which are on a spiral balcony that goes around the ship. By the time we reached the top, the first tour buses were arriving. We looked down to the lowest level and it was like looking at Times Square on New Year's Eve (except it was morning and people were sober). We were so happy to be done and ready to leave!

Thanks. That's pretty thin for someone who doesn't like the loud offerings on Music Walk. Step One are good, but I've seen their shows more than once. "Four Vocalists" makes me wonder if HAL dropped Cantare and hired a generic group instead.

Because hours on end of random slap BANG is jarring and uncomfortable. I don't mind pitch or roll. I've been aft on Zuiderdam when the pitch was so strong that the drawers under the bed kept rolling in and out and that didn't bother me. We listed so much in the wind on Amsterdam that the desk drawers slid open. That didn't bother me. I had 7188 on K'dam and the shower was smaller than a standard US phone booth. Seriously, I had my knitting with me so I had a tape measure. And no shower over the tub, so the tiny stall was the only option. When I had the midship Neptune, I couldn't believe the improvement in one "step" from SB to SA. Bigger room, bigger bathroom and bigger shower stall. Still no shower over the tub. I've heard that they put showers over the tubs in the Neptunes of the later Pinnacles.

It doesn't always happen. It depends on the way the waves come at the ship. In "following seas," where waves hit the ship at the back, they come in under the ship and then the ship slaps down on the water. It isn't rhythmic like pitching or rolling. It was random and jarring and it happened a few days in a row because of our direction and the weather system we were in. In all of my cruises, I never had an experience like that, and I've been aft plenty of times. It's why I booked midships for my second time on the K.

Yes, that's probably the difference. My excursions last winter (Eurodam) all met on the pier and vendors scanned phones. I learned later (here, not on board) that I could have had them scan my key card. I wish I had known that back then, as I didn't want to take my phone to the beach. And if you can find the shorex people in their VERY short working hours, you can request to have a ticket printed.

So the only music options were the three on Music Walk? What was in the main showroom?