REOVA

@chengkp75When we sailed on Zaandam in July we noticed the thermostat cut off (light out) after 10 pm and didn't come back on before 6 am. Even if we tried adjusting the temperature. We thought maybe ship was trying to conserve energy. Any thoughts on why they do this? 

26 minutes ago, Djb4CC said:

We did our first 4* tasting in October.  We got two red, two white and a sparkling.  The reds had been pre-poured at the table, but they only sat 3 of us at a table for 6, so we drank all that had been poured since we saw them just dumping the glasses on other tables.  Plus we ate all the cheese and fruit too.

 

You must have been that table that told me those empty seats were reserved. 🤣

17 minutes ago, syesmar said:

I’m curious about current indoor air quality, too.

Among those who mask but still got it onboard, removing a mask for public dining seems to be a factor.

I know there have been changes to mask policies among crew fleet-wide. Do they wear masks when cleaning staterooms? When I resume cruising I would need to let in fresh air anytime someone else had been in the room.

 

Crew only wear mask if mandated by the ship or personal preference. In July they had to wear them on our cruise. In November they did not, however more crew began wearing them mid cruise (and Captain reminded passengers to call medical if feeling sick) but no mention of uptick in infection or mask requirements. (Wink wink). 

2 minutes ago, Navybikermom said:

Does the travel agent get the same commission regardless of the cruise price? 

No. Well not usually. Big box work salary as call center plus small bonus. Other TAs may have salary plus commission and others work strictly commission based on fare. I've always researched my own travel plans. In beginning used a friend's travel agency before they retired. Then tried a National company and I walked in with cabin we wanted them to book for a 4 month cruise. The agent's eyes lit up because of the price and the commission. I did the work for a simple 1/2 hour booking and 3 hours later we had to wait to get a refund on our card and rebook the correct cruise for the correct year. 🙃 They were not for me. 

I learned what commission they make based on what other passengers were getting in pricing and credits and its pretty good what cruise lines offer them. (I thought about doing it but I hate when customers complain and cruise passengers seem to like doing that🤪). A good TA can do well on commission, including bonuses, free cruises, promotions and quantity/bulk discounts, etc.  (At least pre covid). They all don't get the same commission but it changes with price and so do the bonuses. 

One thing we noticed is the floor plan is not what is advertised. We really enjoyed the Prinsendam Neptune which had a private water closet (sink and commode) enter from entry hall and walk through door to rest of bathroom, which has a separate entrance from bedroom. Was a nice set up if you have guests (either overnight or visiting). Rotterdam does not have this plan (nor does N.S. I've been told). Supposedly KDam does. (May need to ask when booking although I'm finding PCC don't really know.) So if this plan is what you want, be aware. 

We are meticulous, wash hands, sanitize, masks, etc but my DW as well as my Brothers DW got Covid on the Zaandam in July (which forever will be the Covid Ship for us - and thanks to the book Cabin Fever). I believe they got it from a food tasting tour where there were multiple people close in a room and they were not wearing masks, eating. (My brother had it 3 weeks prior to boarding so probably had immunity). Myself (knocking wood) never. We had over 200 passengers and many crew during the cruise that got sick over the 35 days. Fortunately I was not one of them. My theory (some scientist stated early) is it takes a specific number of virus cells during a specific time to build up and take over your immune system. Sometimes your system can fight it (mild or no symptoms) and sometimes not. Mask wearing helps but if you touch something with a virus, take your mask off or on and touch your face (ear, eyes,nose, etc) in the process of removing or putting on, you infect yourself and the mask does nothing. Also most people use the same mask for an extended period of time. Hospitals have a 1 time use for a reason. That mask you use may not be helping, for those reasons. I remember going into a local grocery store a few years ago and they graciously had free masks at the door. The problem is they were not individually wrapped so everyone picks up the pile, takes one and puts the rest back down. (Hello!) I may or may not have gotten infected but every test I've had has been negative. (Testing is a whole nother conversation 🙄).  But also various people (vaxed or not, masks or not) have had various results with this so who really knows. But we try to be careful whenever we go out. 

16 minutes ago, leerathje said:

Her comment was "there's only 2 of us, but they brought 3 of everything!"

 

That would be a fight for DW and I who gets the third. But I'm sure she'd give me the extra finger sandwich. 

They also might be able to beat the fare and offer more OBC. Doesn't hurt to get a quote. 

1 minute ago, Tongiejayhawk said:

Thanks for the replies. I'm a little bummed that there won't be Christmas performances but am completely jazzed to be on the open seas again.

If you are on roll call for that cruise maybe someone will organize caroling around the ship (like the cabin crawls) or speak to the entertainment director/staff to see if they will do something spontaneous. When on the VoV in July, we asked the CD (who was on the GWC 2020) to put together a happy hour for GWC 2020 alum (we were all left in Perth Aus during the shut down). It was spontaneous, great getting everyone together and free drinks flowed. 😁 He also did a sing along at the piano (he plays) when the piano player got ill. (No free drinks then 🙄). They may not have free drinks but I'm sure they can put something together if asked. 

7 minutes ago, Ready2go11 said:

Leaving next week for my first cruise as a 4* since earning it in October. Very excited to enjoy my new perks. 
 

Curious as to any recent experiences of the wine tasting listed on the Mariner star chart, specifically on the Koningsdam. Do they actually hold the event?  If so, what can we expect?

 

thank you in advance for any helpful comments. 

Will probably be in MDR. Each seat will have 2 whites and 2 reds along with a small plate of cheese, meat, cracker, bread depending on the pairing of wine. Hopefully the person presenting will provide (printed) info on each wine and walk you through what to taste on the board to bring out the pairing. My DW is not a wine drinker but enjoyed it when presented well. (And I got to finish her wines). The last one we did the presenter did not have printed info nor tell us what was on the plate so DW was not as impressed (but I still got her wines). 🤣 no extra wine given when finished.

In the pre Covid days they had 3 tables in Crows Nest, each with the bottles from each of the wine packages. You could taste all of the wines from each table and then they poured generously afterward. 🍷 

@Reds4life this probably won't help you other than 1 perspective a year ago. 

https://profcruise.com/ms-zuiderdam/

5 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

Agree, and as this OBC money was the OP's, it will be the last used, and refunded if not used.

Maybe. OP needs to look at their statement and make sure HAL credited to the refundable side. (Which they should but may not) Otherwise HAL will keep it. Better to check now than trying to get it back on credit card later by disputing it to credit company. 

Thanks for the warning. Not sure what happens but the bar is probably the most difficult department to get corrections. We were charged for drinks that should have been within the package ($11). It wasn't until daily pestering of guest services (whose hands are tied until beverage manager acts) and a message in the Let Us Know feedback in Navigator app that we noticed the reversal. We check our statement every night but you will find charges added on the last day as department's finalize things. Before disembarkment is when it is important to make sure things are resolved. Once you are off ship....crickets. 

34 minutes ago, almostretired said:

I tried the search engine but was unsuccessful.  This is only our second HAL cruise, the last being 15 years ago.  The cruise line we are most familiar with went bankrupt and was all inclusive on beverages, allowing us to bring wine on board in whatever quantity we wanted.  The HAL FAQ on bringing wine on board is rather confusing - cannot bring on board, can bring a limited amount (no mention of what is limited).  It does state that there is a corkage fee if you have your own wine.  We do have a signature beverage package (in a Neptune Suite) so HAL make money if we drink your wine.  Any first hand accounts?  

 

Also, as we are on board over NYE, we planned on going formal.  We will be alone?

 

Appreciate the assistance.  Many thanks.

We had a SBP in a Neptune suite so the wines that would be fee were deducted from daily count (15) without fee. You can bring your own wine with a $20, per bottle, corkage fee. (I bet if you try to bring more than a case, someone will stop you so prepare to bring documentation that does not show specific limit).  I have alot of higher priced wines, so $20 compared to the markup of HAL prices would not prevent me from bringing on board. (We used to bring cases pre covid). However I decided that since I had the SBP, I would save my wines for home and try some different wines on the ship. Some I enjoyed, some I didn't but with 15 limit per day, I could leave a glass and order a different glass to try. It was like a cruise with "free" wine tasting by the glass. 

You will be happy to see the number of tux and formal dress for NYE onboard. However don't be surprised by those walking around in shorts and t-shirts as well. 

1 hour ago, Augustsunshine said:

Does anyone know approx. when and how we find out what our assigned embarkment time is.

After you have inputted everything and the button says you can print documents, your boarding pass will show boarding time and letter. This will be temporary assignment until about 1 or 2 weeks prior when final assignment may change those. 

On 12/9/2022 at 10:27 AM, Reds4life said:

We will definitely be up for HMC and take full advantage of the whole day there. It looks amazing. 

 

We are on Zuiderdam by the way. I don't think I mentioned that. We might take in the music, but just wanted to make sure how the seating is arranged. We really like singing performances but are used to them in the theater, which is sounds like is empty for a lot of times. Speaking of seating, do they allow smoking in the casino and, if so, does it drift into the music areas? We absolutely are not interested in the stereotypical "smoke filled bar" setting. 

 

I read somewhere that HAL has free on-demand movies. Is that true? We may just set up a movie night in our room if so. 

Yes HAL has a new on-demand system for movies that you can watch in your room. The regular TV channels are few (besides FoxNews, MSNBC and BBC) and what they have are repeats and repeated commercials (we saw the same shows and commercials in July and November). But you should be able to find a movie you like. 

There were smokers on the last cruise we did on Rotterdam but dont remeber as much on Zaandam in July. The Casino is directly across from piano lounge so if they do allow smoking on Zuiderdam, that would be the lingering area but I wouldnt call it smoke filled. I am sensitive to smoking so although it wasn't smoke filled like typical, I could tell the smokers were there.  The BB King lounge is more down the "hall" and separated but the casino is behind so possibly some lingering. There is open dance floor and the tables and chairs are towards the rear and around the floor. Not theater like but still ok. Just make sure to get there at least 1/2 before show to get a good seat (whether you want rear, side or front). It's a popular venue and gets crowded. 

29 minutes ago, donandmelissa said:

If you have an iPhone, you can use WiFi to text other iPhones through an Apple exclusive platform called iMessage. It is integrated with the iPhones operating system. But you can’t use it on an Android phone, nor can you use an iPhone to text an Android phone over WiFi  

 

You can text on an Android over WiFi but both the sender and the recipient have to have WhatsApp.  We always make sure to establish before the cruise how we are going to communicate with the people we need to text when we are on the ship (pet sitter, our kids, etc). Most of the have iPhones, which makes it easy. We use FB Messenger for the others. Hope this helps. 

Correct. If not using an IPhone or IMessage, she tried to go through cell (SMS). OP didn't have an Iphone and was trying to text from Android (which uses cell) through wifi. She ended up using a wifi based messenger (which she said she didn't prefer). My Android can text all of my family (who all have IPhones) using cell SMS/MMS off the ship (green text). On ship we also use FB Messenger, Whatsapp or other communication apps. That was her frustration with trying to text from Android. 

We aren't coffee drinkers but I did notice the pods were OriginalLine not VertuoLine so probably espresso only. You may need to ask guest services (hopefully they will answer). 

We've only watched it in the World Stage but that was on GWC. They had a big party with appetizers (free) and drinks (fee) and each side of he room decorated in team colors. Be warned, you won't see any of the Superbowl commercials if they don't have license to show. We had to suffer from the same (ESPN?) commercials repeated during the game. 

43 minutes ago, daisy-mae said:

What if you were to pack an empty bottle in your luggage? Any chance that you would be called down to the naughty room if no liquid were detected?

We also bring water to airport, drink it, go through security and refill. The same bottle we use to refill in Lido. I have a problem of leaving my good hard plastic bottle places so this worked better. We bought larger water bottles in port and recycled the smaller ones when needed. Never had a problem in the 4+ years HAL became environmentally greedy. 

5 hours ago, KAKcruiser said:

I know about the rotating snacks depending on time of day.  They did have cold sandwiches at lunch time.  But it was really diminished from what it used to be - certainly no shrimp or good snacks.  The other problem is this was a 7 day cruise on the Nieuw Amsterdam.  Maybe a longer cruise on a Pinnacle class ship would be better.

Doubt it. We were on Rotterdam last month and they served the same 3 finger sandwiches every day. They did have shrimp some days (they ran out). The layout and variety each day was nothing close to what used to be there but having a nibble on something and casual chat with others is good. Funny thing. They only had chocolate chip cookies. I asked if they can bring a tray of macadamia cookies, she said no they all have a set menu. HOWEVER, when I would go back each day there were 3 macadamia cookies on the tray. SHE personally went and got them from upstairs each day. 🥰🥰 yes you will get spoiled but we stopped booking Neptune suites years ago (had to use up FCC last month)  because my DW said it wasn't worth extra cost each cruise.🙏🥰

1 hour ago, Banditswife said:

internet- yes guest services did blame it on my phone choice, I have a newer Android.  But over the course of 14 days, had to have guest services "fix" my issues.  It seemed like every time we left the ship, had to be fixed again.  I partly blame myself, cuz I am tech challenged- LOL  But I was upset that I couldn't send or receive texts to/from my pet sitter, that was something I had planned on being able to do.  Ended up using instant messenger, which I dislike using, but at least I was able to check in w/ sitter.

What cell service do you have? Texting generally uses cell service. My texts wouldn't go through either since I had airplane mode on when on ship but didnt have problems with wifi in Carribean. My DW would have problems with her old Iphone because she would switch off airplane mode and wifi in port and forget to put both back on. But I did connect with various wifi apps to message or call when needed.  I don't use Apple products but maybe that's all the staff knows. Still odd for them to say that. 

8 hours ago, VACruiser123 said:

We live 11 hours from Ft Lauderdale by car. We also only cruise in balcony or better cabins and almost always in the back half of the ship (category is almost meaningless in any type of cabin) but otherwise do not care about side of ship - we do avoid being under the pool areas.  Airfare on the east coast to FL is almost always under $200 RT and sometimes much less so it is not a huge factor. You have to go with what works for you.

It's almost 14 hour drive for us. What airline do you fly for under $200 RT? We can't even find that to Charlotte anymore. 😁

1 hour ago, VACruiser123 said:

That can be a problem given your cruising model. We are pretty much the opposite. We never buy insurance and we tend to book after final payment date. I have almost never found "best" prices in advance and that includes onboard "next cruise" sales...even after taking some OBC and any other add ons into account. In fact I have rarely paid an all in price that exceeds 80% of onboard next cruse pricing and usually much less.  But our ability to take vacation is purely driven by our business and it's cycle and that is not compatible with long range "pick X date" for planning a vacation. For us close in booking is both cheaper and also in the window of certainty for when a good week will be available to take a vacation. So different booking models can lead you different "value" decisions. Hopefully the product overall improves for all of us over the next year or so.

We met people like you that could drive to Port after getting last minute deals.  Unfortunately we don't live close to a HAL port, so we don't have that option. We have also grown picky about the cabin. We need a balcony (been quarantined twice in 4 years), a cabin that is in the right location to minimize noise and smell (been there, done that) and we like specific itineraries and to either be on port or starboard depending on itinerary and ship direction (cabin snobs 🤣). Otherwise we could walk a block and get on a Carnival ship (no thanks). 😉

1 hour ago, kevingastreich said:

Well, we definitely thought about that but we didn't want to get "stuck" with it if a SS does not become available.  We don't want to do it in anything less than a Signature Suite.

There will be cancellations even if all Neptune Suites are booked. So SS will be asked to upgrade and Vistas to fill those down the line. If you have a good TA, they will be aggressive in getting HAL to upgrade you. On our first GWC we booked a lesser cabin category and were upgraded to Neptune at less than half the earlier rate. The risk reward was worth it. For later GWC we booked vista's because that's really all we needed. It's nice having more room but we didn't need it, (although we missed the lounge). You have plenty of time to worry about it. 😁