PCruzer

Thank you for the info.

Does anyone know the timeframe for the announcement of the 2021 Voyage of the Vikings itinerary?

I know this is a rather obscure question, but does anyone know if you can use bed risers in order to incline the head of the bed?  We do this at home to alleviate acid reflux.

Here's the link to the July 2020 VOV cruise if this helps -

 

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/find-a-cruise/E0T35A/X047.html

When will the Itinerary for the 2020 VoV be available?

We love the Marriott. We've stayed there maybe 5 times, a couple years ago, we did 4 nights at Margaritaville. We won't be going there back.

Check the brand new CIRC hotel on Hollywood Circle.

Very nice hotel with many dining options within walking distance.

Thank you! Is it walkable to the Hollywood Beach area? Or is there other transportation?

We are looking for a place to stay in Hollywood for 2 nights prior to our cruise out of Fort Lauderdale. We love walking on the Broadwalk, but if there is easy transportation, it does not have to be on it. Looking for someplace quiet...not a Margaritaville-type place. Any suggestions?

We rely on a product called "No Jet Lag." It's homeopathic pills that you take every 4 hours on the plane if you are not sleeping. Helps you adjust to the new time zone. By the next day after arrival, we feel fine, which was not the case before we found this product! They used to only be available in the TravelSmith catalog, but now they are more widespread. I believe the last time I purchased them it was through Walmart online.

Lol, I sure wouldn't. And unless they built a connecting canal from the intracoastal to baggage claim, I'm not sure where you would board the water taxi at FLL either....

Why not for a few dollars more, take the water taxi?

 

It's a fun trip!

I have 3 favorite CD’s:

Brian Price............Holland America

Linda Minnikin......Holland America

J.T. Watters............Holland America

Thank you!

In February 2010, the Rotterdam was not able to negotiate Rarotonga. Word was that a tender staff member had his elbow crushed by the tender trying to board passengers. The stop was immediately canceled. The crew member was taken to the island’s hospital.

I will be following along on your WC. DH and I will be on the 2019 WC as first timers. So, looking forward to reading all about your trip and picking up some tips. Have a great time!

Thanks so much to everyone for taking the time to answer my questions. All the replies have been so helpful to this world cruise newbie.

Please add us to the list:

22 JAN 2019 - 113 Day World Cruise

How many pillow gifts are there on a typical full world cruise?

Another question for the World Cruise veterans...I know that HAL will ship your luggage from your home to the ship. What about the return? Do they also ship it back to your home after the cruise?

One thing I do whenever we’re gone for more than 30 days is to call our car insurance company (USAA). We drop our mileage to zero on our cars and we decline collision. Our cars are parked in our attached garage and they say that’s fine. It takes 5 minutes and saves us money.

One more tip that I read from someone else's list and proved to be very helpful.

 

About a year or so before we left I started putting away $1, $5, $10 bills that were in good condition.

 

Many of the countries you'll be going to will take USD as long as it's in good condition. I know that you can always go to the bank before you leave and break larger bills but somehow doing this a little here and there over a long stretch of time made it seem like I wasn't spending as much money. I had over $1000 by the time we left and the small bills came in very handy and it was painless.

 

It was a great tip...I wish I could credit the person who gave it to me!

Thanks to everyone for all the great tips! If you think of anything else, please post.

Have your sister open the tax notice and scan the notice to you - or e-mail you the necessary info to pay through online banking.

Regarding tax extension, each time we did a WC we have had our CPAs estimate the tax due in April and we prepay a 'safe harbor' amount prior to leaving for the trip. This is the big issue one must strive to resolve so that when they finally file tax return, they don't pay a penalty for late payment.Upon return we then have the CPAs prepare our tax return. No big deal there.

 

The other item is that we alway pack for a three week cruise as laundry is what resolves the need for clean clothes - and the ship does a great job with both regular clothes and dry cleaning.

 

Looking forward to sailing with you on WC 2019 - we are excited about the itinerary.

 

harry

Thanks for the tips about the taxes. We will talk to our accountant about it when we see him in the next couple months.

As far as clothing goes, we figured on 3 weeks worth of clothes and using the laundry, like you mentioned.

BTW, do you know anything about the visas necessary?

Have your doctors write out each of your prescriptions. (They'll gladly do so) That way if you need emergency refills, you have an original written physician prescription.

Great tip! Thank you!