jmc27

Hi - we are booked on the Grand Tour in Jan def a bucket list for us!

we have received our final documents and it states that dress code for dinner is collared shirt and long trousers for men, is this correct? We thought it would be much more casual. TIA and Merry Christmas everyone.

Not going to stress about it and certainly not going to do the crew out of their gratuities - only letting HAL UK know there is a glitch in their system. Happy cruising folks

My email confirms I paid in sterling but does not actually show dollar rate. Guest services are adamant I paid the old crew appreciation rate of $15.50. They are correct as when I divide the credit on my account it does come to $15.50. 
The issue I think is the UK site which for whatever reason shows the rate to be $16 but has not updated the charge to reflect this.

I have contacted UK guest services to get clarification - I’ll update when I get a response

Hi - we pre paid the crew appreciation a month before we boarded via the UK web site.

After checking my onboard statement today I have discovered that it does not cover the daily charge.
Spoke to guest services who said we only paid $15.50 and not $16 per day even though we only pre paid in September and I am certain the web site showed the charge to be $16. 

Guest services suggested I amend our service charge to $15.50 in order to not incur an extra charge but I refused to do that as that would impact the crew.

Anyone else had this happen?

Quick update - we dropped luggage at 1.00pm walked along the front for an hour or so and then went to check in . We were through and on the ship in 15mins😊. What worked was having all the paperwork and check in completed using the app and having a copy of our Australian visa to show. It was a very stress free procedure.

Thanks everyone for all the info - we are ready to start the journey from Scotland to San Diego . We will see what time the hotel shuttle is to take us to the cruise port and take it from there. Cannot wait to board the Noordam. Happy cruising everyone

Thanks guys - we are staying near Airport the night before so will plan on arriving around 11.30 to give us a few hours to walk about - our check in is 2.30pm. Hopefully that should all work out. Really looking forward to our cruise , longest we have been on(34 days) to date. Happy cruising everyone and thanks for the info

Hi - is it possible to drop off luggage at San Diego port before your check in time? We do not want to check in early just drop bags so we can go for a walk around the area and come back for our check in time.

TIA

Hi kazu - I did think this was instead of S&S as I couldn’t see it on the daily. For the first time we have HIA so we will probably just work our way through the wine list by ourselves😊 
QuattroRomeo - thanks for the pics hubby is a beer lover so he might check out the beer tasting🍻

Just noticed this on Navigator for our October cruise. The cost is $15 - does anyone know what exactly this is? It seems to be on every afternoon around 4.30pm.

We used to love Sip and Savour (pre Covid) so not sure if this replaces it.

TIA

Hi VMax1700 and Krazy Kruizers - thanks for this. When I look up the perks for 3* the wine package discount isn't there anymore but I can see from your copy and paste that it does appear to be still in operation. That makes the package far more beneficial to us and yes thanks for the heads up KK about waiting til we are onboard, I will take your advice.

Hi guys - sailing on the Zaandam in Nov and looking at wine packages. The beverage package is no good to us as we would not make best use of it!

From HAL’s web site it appears that we no longer benefit from a discount on wine packages so wondering if the Cellar Master package is worth it. Looking at the wines on offer on the no 1 package we would be quite happy as I think that would be the one included in the deal.  Any advice?

thanks

Thanks guys - I checked everything as well but could not believe no one had started a roll call yet! And yes I might just be the cruisers to do it.

Hi - just booked Zaandam South America cruise on Nov 18th 2019 and cannot find a roll call. Am I missing something or is it possible there is not one?

Hi guys - this is all really interesting to me but I have a question - does this apply in the UK or is it mainly US/Canadian customers who are able to cancel and rebook?

Thanks for sharing this - really enjoyed reading about the history of the ocean ships. Heading to the Orion this weekend, will check out the remote control which doesn't require a teenager to work it!!!

Hi - we are sailing next Jan on Escape and looking at spa passes vs upgrade to spa cabin.

At the moment we have $250 OBC and 3day dining package which was the promo when we booked.

To. upgrade to a spa cabin is £275 (approx $360) and we would lose the dining package but keep our OBC.

I can't find anywhere how much a 14 spa pass costs - so my question is ...upgrade or wait til we are on board and buy spa pass.

Thanks and happy sailing

Not sure but here's the actual response -

"Thank you for talking the time to e-mail in to us. The pre cruise gift is something that our US office offers their passengers however it is not applicable here in the uk.

This is because US passengers do not get their gratuities included."

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Hi all - Viking just confirmed to me that UK cruisers don't qualify for the pre cruise gifts because our gratuities are included in the cost of the cruise.

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Hi we were on Maasdam in June for Canada/New England cruise. We are late 50s and yes we were in the younger age group [emoji3]

We found the ship to be showing a bit of wear and tear but extremely clean, Good AC in our cabin and we found the food in the MDR to be really good, great portion size for us, well presented and good service.

Entertainment was mixed, some good some ok and some not for us.

Like you we pick cruises for the itinerary and we would not hesitate to sail Maasdam again.

We are doing New Zealand/Australia on Noordam in Nov and hoping its as good - again it was the itinerary that interested us.

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Hi all - love this thread. We are booked on the West Indies Explorer next Jan and really looking forward to the ship itself as well as the itinerary which is strange for us as usually its all about the ports!

I have a question about the mini bar - we have the Silver Beverage package does that include alcohol in the mini bar and will it be filled up daily? We are in a V2 cabin so I know that;s not usually the case.

Thanks

Hi, we too have just returned from the Maasdam Boston to Montreal cruise and can only say don't listen to the negative reviews just GO!

We were slightly worried beforehand but can honestly say that we had a fabulous time - our balcony cabin was kept spotless by our very efficient stewards who worked out our routine and came and went when we were out. We seldom saw them!

We enjoyed the food in the main dining room for dinner, breakfast in the lido and nibbles in the afternoon by the pool. It's true it's an older ship and that shows in some places but it was more than made up for by a great itinerary with ports you could just walk off the ship directly into the towns, something that we really enjoy.

Our next cruise is booked - the Noordam and New Zealand and we are hoping it is just as good as the last:)

Hi - we are just back from a Panama Canal cruise ad loved this port. It's very easy to get to the old city via taxi from the port. We went outside the port gates and picked up a taxi for $10 and arranged for the driver to come back and collect us. We just walked around on our own but there are loads of local tour guides offering walking tours of that's what you prefer.

If you look at "Whats in a Port" you will find lots of info on ports of call.

Enjoy

Thanks for the info - 223 all booked and so excited :)

Now begins all the research into things to do and places to explore.

Happy sailing everyone

Hi all - thinking of booking Veendam for Panama Canal cruise in Nov. There are several aft cabins still available - would be be best in the middle or the end of the aft row? Had an aft cabin for our Baltic cruise a few years ago and loved the view.

Thanks in advance