glorialagos

Thanks to all who responded. I have the cabin we want on a courtesy hold and plan to book as soon as the AARP verification shows up for obc. Too risky to wait since we knew the exact cruise and location that we wanted. I appreciate everyone's assistance!

I struggled with the topic title but I hope someone can understand what my question is. My friend and I are wanting to book the Feb 4, 2024 cruise on Statendam. When I get to the "choose your cabin" page, it gives me deck 7 and 2 options. I am not finding a way to switch to another deck. Also, I would like to see how any total cabins are available to know if we should book now or can we wait to hope for a special with crew appreciation included? Our past two cruises were booked during the Black Friday promotion (each was for a February cruise) which included the daily gratuity - which is a nice savings. However, we don't want to wait too long and risk the chance of the cruise selling out. Any suggestions? Should we just go ahead and book without the crew appreciation to guarantee a cabin? If so, is there a way to see other decks besides the deck 7 option that I am taken to automatically? Thanks in advance for your assistance.

Any update on this? Did you find fishing?

Got the first upsell about 30 days out. Veranda to a Neptune $999 per person. Ignored. Second upsell offer came the next week. Veranda to Neptune $750 pp. Called but none available. Ten days before sailing. Third offer. Neptune for $549 pp. Took it. Best decision ever made. Choice of two cabins, both great location near the lounge.

Yes and yes. The margaritas were very good. I prefer the classic, not frozen, with salt. Due to having the HIA package, my friend and I tried a large variety of drinks. The only "bad" drink we had was the smoking one? I believe it was bourbon? The presentation was fun and we felt very special with the attention given to make these. However, we are not whiskey drinkers and we both took one sip and could not drink them. Cosmos became our favorite but we requested regular glasses. The martini glasses were too easy to spill!

I'm really not sure. It was about a 45 minute ride and I only saw buses. Bamboo beach was fairly small and crowded with many cruisers. I didn't research any other beaches so I am not sure what else was there. Sorry I can't be of more help. Maybe start a new post with that question.

Once they get it figured out, I would highly recommend the horseback riding. I didn't expect to like it so much and I loved it!!

We were there last week. We had heard the scary stories of Falmouth so did not leave the ship until right before time to get to our excursion. We were very sorry that we missed exploring this port. There were many cute shops and the port area itself was very secure and safe. I would feel totally comfortable exploring the port at your leisure and hop back on the ship when you are ready. (We took the Bamboo Beach excursion and would not give it high marks.)

Yes. But our airlines did not participate, unfortunately. (I just returned last Sunday from the NA in Fort Lauderdale).

Exactly!!! Believe me, it was worth it - points or no points!!! Thanks everyone!

I just spent a wonderful week in a Neptune Suite and will have a hard time ever going back!!! So when I looked at my Mariner status, it shows 0 for suite points. I read the info section and it said something like "full price" suite. Because my suite was booked as an upsell (and definitely was very discounted), does it not count as suite points? I sent an inquiry to the Mariner desk but thought I might get an answer here more quickly. Thanks!

We had a blast last week at the orange party!!! It was fun to see the crew there and we even spent time mingling with the cruise director. Pack something orange - or not! But I would certainly check it out. We had a great time.

I am the OP and wanted to update. The large charge disappeared and I was charged only the $6.99 I expected. The fine print mentions something about putting a hold on your credit card so maybe that was it? We did fine the accounting system hard to understand - so many charges and then debits of those same charges. Anyway, it is correct now and I am also able to see the bill on the Navigator app. I was just being too impatient! Thanks all.

When I try the Navigator app it tells me to connect to ship wifi. ?? I can't seem to get past that page.

I just got off the Nieuw Amsterdam yesterday morning. I checked my onboard account prior to disembarking and had a $6.99 bill. I just checked my Mastercard statement and there is a charge for $419 from Holland posted yesterday. I cannot find anywhere to check my statement to find out what those charges might be. The chat function is not available on Holland's site. Could anyone direct me to the right spot? Thanks

I assume this should be 10:00 pm. I felt like the area was open later than that on my last cruise? I enjoyed going in the evening since I am not a big entertainment person.

According to the Congratulations email and the HAL rep I spoke with, the Teacher Appreciation can only be used on new bookings. So I guess you have to know in advance that you want to book a cruise, get the verification info sent in and approved, and then book in order to get the OBC of $100? Seems like they won't be giving many of those. I did get the shareholder OBC but, since I was already booked, could not get the Teacher Appreciation. Has this been everyone's experience? It's only $100 but hey - 100 bucks is 100 bucks - especially when you are a teacher!!!!!!!!! (I'm retired)

Thanks for this info. I did not know there was a teacher appreciation OBC. I already have the shareholder OBC and just sent my verified info to my PCC. I'm not sure I can get it but doesn't hurt to try. Thanks again.

Thanks for this. I have only seen the numbers on deck plans and never the letter categories (or I didn't notice). Next time I book a cruise, I am going to put a lot more thought into choosing the cabin. Hopefully we are happy with the one we chose and maybe someday I'll even get an aft!!

I would love to have an aft cabin some day! Seems they are always book by the time I decide to cruise.

This is exactly what I was looking for!!! Thank you so much. Is there an actual deck plan with the letters assigned to the cabin? My friend and I just chose our cabin due to what we thought would work best for us. I'm glad to know that it seems to be deemed fairly "desirable" by HAL!!

I have searched and searched for this and what I am looking for does not show up. Could someone explain the veranda suites letter meanings? What is better? I am currently booked in a VB cabin. How does this compare to other cabins by letter? If I were to get an upsell offer, what letter category would that be? I have always been confused by all the different categories and have never seen a good explanation or key legend to help me out. Thanks.

I have been trying to find information on the different categories and my searches are not turning up anything. Could you explain the differences between the letter categories? I am booked in a VB. What is the difference between a VB vs VC, etc? I am just curious and wondering which is better? Thanks.

And Rotterdam's is wonderfully relaxing!!!!

Great to know. Thank you. I can't wait to spend time reading on a heated chair!