Mtn2Sea

We were also on the N. Statendam and received the email on the 27th asking us to complete the survey.  Just before the pandemic, I completed several cruises in a row without getting a survey request, so if you haven’t gotten the survey email yet, you may not get one.

1 hour ago, tensixmom said:

Ah... OK thank you very much.  I wish they had allowed me to put the gratuities in my cart at the original time of purchase!!  Would have saved me a trip to the service desk upon boarding!

i would encourage you to wait a day or so prior to going to Guest Services to apply the gift card to your account.  Just got off the N. Statendam and I had to go to the front desk the first day on another issue and the line was very long and slow.  A couple of days later I went back to apply the balance of a card to my account.  The line was very short and only took about five minutes to get the card’s balance applied.

Today’s sunset as the N. Statendam was leaving Boston.

We just boarded the N. Statendam today in Boston and VeriFLY made a big difference (once we got into the terminal building).  Once we got through security, things moved very fast.

We’re aboard the beautiful N. Statendam and about to go to dinner.  We had reservations for tonight, but had a note in the cabin that the Pinnacle does not open until tomorrow.  We had quite a time getting on the ship.  We got to the terminal at 2:30, our designated time.  The line outside the door was at least a quarter mile (it felt like more).  Once we got into the building, things went faster, thanks to VeriFLY.  We had to show our ArriveCan receipt twice.  For the first time, I did not show any paper - everything was on my phone.

Seems like I also saw the arrow on #2, but no arrow on #1 until I was within 30 days.

DW and I are in our Boston hotel room ready to board the N. Statendam.  We’ve received conflicting info from HAL regarding our boarding time.   Couple of days ago, we received an email that we should not show up until 2:00 because the ship will be having an inspection.  Our boarding pass now shows 11:20, which is earlier than it’s been showing.  The hotel is allowing us a late check out, so I think we will walk next door and have lunch and then decide when to call Uber.

P.S.  Welcome @RedneckBob!

When is your cruise?  I had to wait until I was within a 30 day window before I could move forward after initially setting up my account.

We visited Porto in 2019 while on the Amsterdam.  As others have said, we would have loved to have spent more time there.  Today and tomorrow are packing days for our flight to Boston where we’ll board the N. Statendam on Wednesday.  Fingers crossed that I won’t be reporting back on how the ship handles Covid!

Here are just a few of the photos I took in Porto.

39 minutes ago, colin v said:

Absolutely. You just call the number and go through all of the cabin options.  You can also change your cabin as many times as you wish.  We have CO on an upcoming cruise on the Rotterdam.  Our cruise was booked with our TA but I did the CO upgrade directly with HAL.

About a month or so ago, I booked Club Orange for a cruise on the N. Statendam that leaves next month.  I called HAL directly at the number someone had posted for CO, but was not allowed to book CO and was told I had to go through my online travel agent.  The most I could get out of the HAL agent was that CO was still available.  I wonder if the travel agent one is using makes a difference in booking directly.  I had given my booking number and the HAL agent referred me back to my travel agent by name.

1 hour ago, StLouisCruisers said:

I was just notified a few minutes ago that Buddy has passed away.  My twin and her DH were able to be with their daughter Amy at her home.  I'm sure the two kids are there too but I have no more details.  It's not easy becoming a widow, but especially at age 47.  May he rest in peace.  Pray for strength for the family.🙏😢

I just wanted to express my deepest condolences to your family and especially to Amy and the children.  Such a loss, even when expected, is never easy.  May the memories of Buddy bring some comfort to those experiencing his loss.

Looks like your granddaughter had a blast on what will be a very memorable trip with her grandparents!  Have a safe trip home.

Thanks for taking us along on your latest adventure!  Hope all of you have a great time.

Hope you have a great cruise!  Looking forward to reading all about it.

44 minutes ago, roxybear135 said:

Yesterday we were in Edinburgh. We had to tender to the port and then we took a bus (£10 each round trip) to downtown Edinburgh. It was about a 30 minute drive from the port. 
 

We headed straight to Edinburgh castle but when we got there it was unfortunately sold out for the whole day. We hadn’t bought tickets ahead of time since we weren’t sure when we would get there (it’s a timed entry) so this was very disappointing. I would suggest booking one of the excursions that goes there if this is something you really want to do. 
 

Instead we wandered around town and went to a beautiful church named St. Giles. It was very windy but a beautiful day otherwise. 
 

Once back on the ship, we spent the afternoon playing cards and relaxing at the Grand Dutch. Dinner was excellent with an Asian rotisserie duck being the highlight. 
 

Unfortunately, most of last night and today has been spent dealing with flight issues. I’m flying SAS back home and they went on strike yesterday so my flight looks like it will be cancelled and I’m not sure when or how I will get home. 

I’ve got my fingers crossed that you get your flight home straightened out!!

Looking forward to your photos.  Hope you have a great trip!

@Heartgrove Jack, my deepest condolences on the passing of your sister.  May your faith and memories bring you and your family comfort.

Hope upon have a smooth and safe flight! ✈️

4 minutes ago, Dismomx5 said:

First the good news. We had our initial flight cancelled in the middle of the night just prior to boarding. FlightEase was quick to obtain a new flight for me without issue. The new ticketing was emailed promptly.

 

Now for the bad. When we had to cancel our travel agent did the cancellation. She gave me a phone number to call for FlightEase because I had all the information that they would need. The first time I called I had a wait time of “less than four hours “. At around the four hour mark the hold music went to dead air. Nothing. 😭

 

The next day I tried again. I tried right just before seven (weekend hours) and I got a “wait time of less than one hour“. I had by this time given my travel agent the information that she would need to book me. At the two hour mark of waiting on hold, I emailed her frantic wondering if I was possibly in a system of another world. She informed me that she was on two lines with them both with a “wait time of less than four hours”. At the three hour mark on hold I got an email from my travel agent that she had secured the dates and times for the flight that I need. I never was able to connect.

 

I believe there is a 24/7 emergency number. Next time I would call that in the middle of the night. 

Thanks for the info.  What a nightmare!

1 hour ago, Dismomx5 said:

 Not the way things were planned and the process of getting in touch with FlightEase was painful. There HAS to be a better way!

So sorry you had to miss your cruise.  I’ve seen a few other comments regarding problems making contact with FlightEase when a problem arose.  Our air portion for our upcoming cruise in August was booked through FlightEase.  Could you expand on your experience in going in touch with FlightEase to make changes to your flight schedule.  Also, any advice if this situation arises would be most appreciated!

I usually check in about a week prior to boarding and have never had a problem other than receiving emails from HAL reminding me to check in.

Our only visit to Icy Strait Point was in 2017 while aboard the Amsterdam.  We walked around some and then took a whale watching tour.  We bought the tickets directly from the tour operator.  The price turned out to be the same as HAL’s excursion.

Enjoyed the video!  Looking forward to the next one.

Just the other week I went to my HAL account and used bonus gift cards to purchase onboard credit for my upcoming cruise that was booked through a travel agency, not directly with HAL.  Afterwards (maybe the next day), I was able to see my OBC by looking at my itinerary.

For my upcoming cruise in August, I booked with an online agency (not the big box store) and subsequently went to HAL’s website and booked our flights.  Later I went to the HAL site and used the Manage Your Cruise route to get back to my flights (you click the links like you’re looking your flights as you did initially).  You should then be able to pay for your flights.  My final invoice from my online travel agency doesn’t show my flights or on board credit that I have other than the OBC given to me from the agency.  When I book with the big box store, I can see all my OBC.