SilvertoGold

I asked if they still printed out the NYTimes news and the Koningsdam and Noordam both said "under no circumstances".

Been there and done that. Sometimes this delivery never arrives, sometimes very late in the morning. I am just happy if it shows up. This was on the Koningsdam and Noordam.

Not sure if you are docking in Amsterdam or Rotterdam. For the latter, no, not unless you wish to live very dangerously. But if docking in Amsterdam I would say fine. What about a HAL transfer to Schiphol? Would that be an idea that would make thing easier?

Looking forward to your posts. Appreciate how you number your posts as this makes it easy to find my place after a few days of not reading CC. Great idea! Thanks for sharing your insights and adventures once again. Bon Voyage and have a healthy and happy 2023.

Very good idea! I think that is what we will do. Now to find the right size to take the HAL tags. Thanks for your help!

I am hoping Auckland cruise terminal has good tags as I am not going to print ones, take tape, scissors and struggle to put them on upon arrival. Been there, done that and won't do it anymore!

We loved the printed NY Times. Too bad it is gone. The Navigator app has a link to the NYTimes which is a substitute, not the same, but usable.

Yes, it just takes several days for HAL to update the new info.

Only one per booking number for us. When we sail multiple cruises (with multiple booking numbers, not just one), we get multiple Welcome Back emails.

Agree about Renzo. Really one of the best restaurant managers on HAL! Will you be posting the Tamarind menu? Changes? Thanks for this info-dense thread. A very enjoyable read, as well as being informative.

Form Canada, a healthy and happy New Year to you :)

Excellent cruise, excellent blogger! Have a great cruise and enjoy the KODM. Happy New Year to you!

Sometimes you do get extra OBC or extras for booking onboard. Julie will find out for sure about any promos.

Most HAL ships (Vista, yes) have a special line-up for CO in the MDR.

Be aware that HAL ship do things inconsistently. Some Happy Hours are in one or two bars only. Some are 2 for 1, others are buy one get second 50% off. It is all over the board and it rarely says on the daily program how it works. I am glad to hear about how the Westerdam does it, but that could change.

You should have got both! It is good to know that some ships are making this cocktail this way! I would love HAL to be more consistent and/or train their bartenders more consistently.

The birthday song on HAL is in Bahasa Indonesian. I think it is called Gelan Gelan.

Thanks, Julie. Appreciate the time you take on your cruise answering questions and giving advice, in addition to your cruise blog posts.

Thanks. Any info on the Noordam (or other HAL ships in NZ/Australia) is helpful for our specific planning.

Do you have a website address for these VLOGers? Might be interesting.

Julie and everyone: which would you recommend: Dunedin or Christchurch? Not sure we want to do two long days with shuttles in a row. Also to consider are the port towns. Would appreciate your opinions.

Assistant to the Hotel General Manager picks up the contents of the box. I have seen this happen on 3 ships this year. No idea what actually happens then. I would like to know how the Navigator APP contact form is handled.

On the rainy west coast YVR was a disaster after the two major dumps of snow! Cancellations, delays, people waiting days, international flights cancelled for 2 days outright. Roads were impassable and bridges shut down at times because of so many accidents plugging them up. In the east Toronto had problems and it is snow county!

Oh! The Zaandam is an R class, built in 2000, small and very elegant. It is a really lovely ship but a different experience if you are used to large, newer ships. Personally I love it, but many do not because of the limitations of its size and the not-too-new staterooms, although they are larger than on the newer ships. The Noordam is a Vista Class, built in 2006, and fairly recently renovated. We enjoyed Alaska on it for 2 weeks this September and several cruises in the past decade. A medium size so there are fewer limitations and it is a more elegant and comfortable ship than HAL's larger ships. Enjoy your Canada/NE cruise, it is a winner!