carlmm

Many men wear suits, thus be happy to wear them, too.

A tie is optional but, maybe depending on the particular crusie, 50, 60 % or more of men do wear one.

It is really just the time they close the doors for new guests. There is no need to feel guilty or anything for using the service offered.

When you arrive a minute before closing you will be allocated a table just like everybody else before, you will be given a menu, have all the choices and be served like everybody else.

Thus if some people just start their breakfast you certainly can stay with your coffee well after the time the doors are closed for new guests.

You can have another cup, too.

? It seems the newest ships are going touch less with arm bands for room keys/payments/charges/identification. Maybe a good level of Tech upgrade is needed??

No, thank you.

Very classy, dinner suit and evening gown combined with a plastic or whatever arm band.

And no thank to total surveillance.

I returned from two weeks on the Nieuw Amsterdam a couple of days ago.

Unfortunately I must second the OP's statement about the entertainment. Pre-dinner live music was ok most nights with Adagio (also only two musicians) and the band. Yet, the nights when the band was taken away to play in the show room were even the formal nights. - Maybe especially on formal nights, dressed formally, some people would enjoy to dance? No chance.

Even the violinist from Adagio was sometimes taken away.

Yet worst was the later evening entertainment. No live music in the crows nest. A sing along pianist favoured by his singing fans, but no bar where one could seat relaxed, listen to some nice music and talk to friends. No band playing dance music after dinner. An almost empty Norther Lights with almost no seats and a not very welcoming atmosphere. ......

There were many nice points about the cruise but the lack of any reasonable evening live music venues made the evenings very short.

one thing I always liked about Hal is most people dressed a little better

On my previous cruises there were quite a substantial number of men in tuxedos. Certainly that meets today's definition of formal.

Of course I will wear a tuxedo on my Caribbean cruise starting next weekend, too.

(And suits/jackets on other nights just like some posters mentioned to do before.)

Thank to all for the valuable answers!

Is is possible to obtain cash on board?

Against your cc-settled board account? If so, what kind of charge is applied?

Re:

Ditto on the lunch - much better onboard.

Is the Dining room open for lunch?

Thank you for the additional information and input!

Thank you to all, for your valuable tips and insights!

How to get out of the port by public transportation or walking reasonable distances?

I will sail on tow consecutive HAL cruises in February/March and thus have a port day in Fort Lauderdale.

I would like just to walk out and do a bit of sightseeing by public bus, water taxi or just walking -from the information I found that looks to be nearly impossible.

The pier will probably be 26.

Is it true that both the nearest public bus station and the water taxi stop are on 17th street?

And that the distance is two miles or more to walk from the pier?

Is there really no shuttle like in other ports?

Any easier way to get to the interesting part of Fort Lauderdale without taxi and tours?

Any help will be appreciated.

you will see tux, dark suits for sure, but also dark sport coats and slacks (slacks not necessarily the same color) including several brown coat and slacks combos in the bar areas and the theater.

The later of which of course do not meet the definition of "formal".

Let's not encourage a further donwgrade of the experience.

Indeed the OP got some good advice.

Happy Sailing!

Does anybody know if there is a chance / how to get a taxi to the train station?

Either directly from the ship, or at least from the shuttle drop-off?

Jimsgirl, I am sorry, you had such a bad time, especially as I enjoy your posts and input quite a lot.

Nevertheless to attribute the reason for the bad experience to the notion that the nationality of the majority of the guest was "German" is offensive.

The failure of Cunard is not to attract Germans but to try to gain new passengers who have no interest inor now idea about traditional cruising and the Cunard of old.

Yet this happens unfortunately in other countries, too. On this board we have read similiar reports about short trips from New York or around Australia.

selling cheap 2 day trips as far ahead as 18 MONTHS

...

There was also the problem that this 98% of cruisers were offered these cruises at ridiculously low cost,

...

these cheap trippers.

How do you know how much the German guests paid?

Actually this short trips are relative expensive. Prices for 2 nights started at € 440 p.p, i.e. € 220 or about $ 300 per night and person in an inside cabin double occupancy.

You are right, it is a "deliberate sales policy", yet not "cheap" but to extract a per diem rate from an audience that accepts to pay more than which can be achieved on other cruises. Cunard certainly makes a lot of money from these Germans.

I hope you have met some nice Germans on your many cruises, too. Cunard has been popular with Germans for many years. Popular with Germans, that is, who enjoy the "traditional Cunard style" as much as you do. Germans who have sailed hundreds or thousands of days with Cunard, who miss the days of ships like the Vistafjord/Caronia and Queen Elizabeth 2. (Formalit, service level, qualit, personality ...)

Unfortunately we all know that Cunard (resp. Carnival) does not care much about its traditional customers.

Just looking at the list of German guest speakers Cunard puts on, shows that they aim for a different audience. Think of strange comedians and soap opera stars instead of classical musicians, historians or similiar.

Or take the pictures in the brochures: I do not know about the American ones but in this years German one not one photo from the Britannia restaurants shows men in tuxedos/dinner jackets but only in suits.

Indeed as much as I would love to sail from Hamburg onboard a Cunard ship, reports like yours as well as the way Cunard advertises at least the short trips do threathen me.

you may get the odd idiot

OK, you might call me or others "idiot" but we are certainly not odd ;) The vast majority of passengers is certainly cool and at the same time they certainly enjoy the formality of Cunard.

nobody seems to care what you are wearing.

Wrong. People do care, they might be just too "cool" or or in my words to polite to address a spoiler directly. That you are not addressed or confronted still doesn't make it right.

I know that Cunard is famous for the old formal charme and I don't want to spoil It.

Thank you for this kind attitude. This is the spirit that makes everybody comfortable and happy.

To be honest I don't know the winter garden; is there a bar inside?

Drinks are served in the winter garden. In fact it is quite a nice place.

About a month ago we finished a cruise on the MS Amsterdam. It was the perfect vacation except.... i hated the suit and tie on formal nights and the "smart casual" on other nights in the MDR.

If you hated the required and common dress code on a Holland Amercia ship, you will hate the Cunard style even much more. The formality, regarding the dress code as well as the overall atmpshere is much higher on Cunard.

Do you really just want to "survive" while you endure a style and way of life, much loved by the vast majority of humans around you but hated by you?

Why can't HAL pull away from the pack? Why must they be lumped in with all the other lines?

 

Why not run a big ad campaign, elegant cruising, cruising like it used to be?

Nice commercials showing the teak decks, teak lounge chairs and people dressed up.

CCL/HAL apparently believes just aren't enough people with the money and time to travel by ship who give a dam about such things...

It is even harder to understand CCL/HAL as many things would not bear any higher costs and thus not require passengers with more money.

For example, to advertise and to enforce a more elegant dress code does not cost anything more than an anything goes attitude.

And there is no reason why standards should not be maintained on a seven days cruise.

Money spent on gadgets to attract the non-traditional cruiser might as well be spend on securing the e.g. elegance of public rooms or the teak decks.

we have provisionally booke Star hotel but I am hearing some not so good reports

There is nothing wrong with the Star hotel if you know what it is and what not.

It is a charming old coaching inn with a lovely traditional breakfast room.

It is not a modern or even renovated hotel with the latest amenities and large rooms.

I enjoyed my stays there especially as a perfect start for travelling with the Queen Elizabeth 2. Both have their old world charme, both have their cracks not liked by fans of contemporary hotels/ships.

One potential downside when you start a world cruise: Not all rooms are accessible by elevator and their are no porters. Thus if you have a lot of luggage it might not be suitable.

The location of the Star Hotel right on High street is ideal. Very close to most sights and ships (easy walking) and only five minutes to the pier by taxi.

Non of the other mentioned hotels' location is even comparable.

.... So its either be prepared to off load all the food and bring US cert on or always have CDC certified foods. ....

.... The US Government has taken the liberty of claiming that certain US Laws apply to foreign flag ships that:

 

1. carry US Citizens

2. have offices in the USA

3. sell passage to people in the USA

4. call at US Ports.

5. sail anywhere on the "high seas"

 

Is this legal? Who knows. I'm not a lawyer. It sounds a bit dodgey to me.

....

Thank you for the answers! It certainly is not your fault if I they do not make me happy.

Thist fits with the experience on an European based ship, where several food items were not available any more once thes ship entered US waters and when passengers were told the ship's crew had to seal off certain storage areas to make sure they were not going to eat any of these until the ship left US waters.

Part of the challenge is the requirement by the CDC that nearly all food served on a ship must come from CDC Certified Sellers. All of the sellers certified by the CDC are in North America.

May I ask you to explain this further? To which ships does this apply, and what is the internationally valid legal basis for this?

Almost all ships are not US-flagged. Cruise lines' structures are complicated and often include companies registered in various countries. Ships stop in many countries and passengers do come from many parts of the world. Can every country in the world expect their maybe contradictory legislation to be followed by cruise ships?

Tips are not necessarily expected in Italy... although folks who deal primarily with North Americans may expect a tip. 5-10 euros would be a nice tip for a guide. 2-5 euros would be a good tip for a driver.

These numbers are very reasonable. Even they are not necessary or mandatory in any way but can be a nice sign of appreciation.

The huge numbers given in the other post before are far to high for most European standards.

Actually the walk to the Piazza Indipendenza is nice, through old parts of the city, passing the cathedrale and the Norman palace. It takes, depending on your pace, maybe 45 minutes without much rush.

Another option is a short walk to Piazza Castelnuovo (use Via Emerico Amari straight from the cruise terminal) and the bus from there to Piazza Indipendenza.

Yet, I must say, after having taken the later route, I would not do so again because it takes a lot of time if you are unlucky like us and have to wait long times for the buses.

We were quoted € 40 or so for a taxi to Monreale and should have taken it.

My suggestion: take a taxi up to Monreale. Go early as the sights there close in early afternoon. Take the bus down and walk back to the ship. Depending on your time left you can stop to visit for example the cathedrale or one of the many other beautiful churches etc.

I loved my stay at the "Carrera" in Sanitago. It is not only a very good hotel but right in the historic centre on the same square as the presedential palace.

Thus in my opinion it is the perfect place for people who like old style grand hotels and who like to walk around in the city to see museums, churches etc.

It is a French non-vintage sparkling wine with a production of 10,000 cases per year.

It is Cunard's standard welcome bottle and served at receptions, often under the misleading title "champagne".

About its taste you probably have read enough.

It looks like the paintings can be good value if you know what you do.

On my last crossing I met a passenger who financed his trip and even made a lot of money by buying many paintings and reselling them at home for much higher prices. I am talking about five digit purchases every day.

Regarding taking the items home: Of course the auction company will deliver them to you. Back in 2003 shipping price varied between $ 31 and $ 139 depending on size and destination.