PeetNL

Received the following answer for payment on X99:

You can pay by credit/debit card as we have a number of staff members at the bus that can assist. 

I hope you enjoy your visit to Edinburgh. 

Kind regards, Chris Morgan, Customer Services (CustomerServices@lothianbuses.co.uk)

Don't forget to eat with Knife and Fork 😁

Watched the Videos: Love it! Beautiful people, good Singers.

Found this note in the cabin and I'm confused. If I buy a $ 11.00 alcoholic drink with my SBP, do I have to pay 15% service charge on top of it?

For those interested: the new vision of the NBTC Holland Marketing organisation.

Perspective 2030 Destination the Netherlands

22 hours ago, tartanexile81 said:

I'd be happy to recommend some venues in the central areas if you're interested. 

I am certainly interested in your recommendations.

Thanks for all the answers of course.

Our ship m.s. Rotterdam visits South Queeensferry (Edinburgh, UK) Friday, August 16th 2019. It sails at night 01:00am. In the evening lots of passengers will visit the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

We are looking for an alternative to spend this evening. Does anyone have suggestions for us?

ms Rotterdam has the following Suites (all with balcony and t.m.k. slippers😞 Vista suites, Vista Spa suites, Neptune and Pinnacle Suites.

Now on HAL-website $ 11 is mentioned for SBP.

quote:  Includes any beverage priced at $11.00 or lower (up to 15 beverages per day).

On 3/22/2019 at 5:02 PM, RocketMan275 said:

I simply don't recognize all but a very few of the wines on the list.  We usually spend at least $20 or $30 on a bottle of wine at a a wine store.  These wines all appear to be less than that.  Have you seen any ratings on any of them?

I made a small list with the supermarket prices per bottle in Europe (with some indication of prices I found on US-websites) :

White:
Caliterra Sauvignon Blanc reserva 2017 € 7.36 $ 12.09
Laurenz V "singing" Gruner Veltliner 2017 € 12.49 $ 12.99
Deakin Estate Chardonnay 2017 € 6.35 $ 10.31
Chateau Labouré-Roi Chablis 1er cru 2015 € 23.31 $ 26.98
Rosé:
Domaine Houchart sainte victoire 2017 € 8.99
Beringer white zinfandel 2017 € 6.80 € 3.47
Miraval, Cotes de Provence 2018 € 11.95 $ 19.97
Red:
Frescobaldi Castiglioni Chianti € 12.99 $ 14.39
Frescobaldi Pater Sangiovese € 9.25
Greystone cellars merlot 2017 €  $8.99
McPherson Shiraz € 6.99 $ 8.46
Sextant Zinfandel 2015 € 16.99
Arboleda Carmenere 2016 € 16.99 $ 20.25
 

Dont worry: the crew will help you.

Island Sao Miguel, town Ponta Delgada: Nice town, nice parks (e.g. Jardim António Borges or José do Canto Garden). Easy to rent a car (e.g. ilhaverde dot com, offices: Campo de São Francisco or CC Solmar near the harbour). Easy to drive, very good roads and signs. Recommended spots: Hotsprings Furnas, Tea Plantations (Chá Porto Formoso or Chá Chorreana), Lagoa Azul, etc. Enjoy!

It is now a familiar and at the same time annoying image: massive crowds by tourists, such as here at the Zaanse Schans.

quit basic imo

Aft Lido Pool ms Rotterdam 2018

Especially in Amsterdam it can be very busy on King's Day, but only on that day itself. I expect that on Friday the 26 th of April 2019 it is not busier than usual at the Keukenhof.

My picture of the Retreat in 2017, July (sunny Sint Petersburg, Russia) and 2nd picture kindly contributed (halfacts) by Cruise Critic member ‘kazu’. (taken in April 2017). We enjoyed this area of the lidodeck.

Most 4 and 5-star hotels in Amsterdam are owned by international companies. They all serve large breakfast buffets at rates from  € 15 to € 25 p.p. Most of their customers are not Dutch, so they serve International and Continental breakfasts. Including all kinds of bread, toasts, cereals, eggs, bacon, jams, cheeses, coffee, tea, juices etc. If you not a big eater in the morning thats a lot of money. If you like breakfast as much as i do, you go for it. Usually cheaper if you book the breakfast with the room.

At 3-star hotels the breakfast differs a lot more: toast or bacon and eggs might be not available.

10 hours ago, KroozNut said:

As an update to this discussion, just off the Eurodam (12/16), and only drinks with alcohol were included in the 15 beverage count. We had a slew of waters, specialty coffees, etc, and none of those were counted against the 15 limit.

This is very strange. According to the Hal website, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages are included in the SBP package:

"Our convenient, affordable Signature Beverage Package allows you to select from a variety of wine, beer, spirits, cocktails (including non-alcoholic), sodas, bottled water (sparkling 330ml or still 500ml) & coffee! Includes any beverage priced at $9.00 or lower (up to 15 beverages per day)."

22 hours ago, mkl55 said:

Are ship transfers ($39 pp x 2 people) a good option? 

Good choice and the least hassle.

Taxi to Central trainstation Rotterdam about € 20.00 per cab

Trainticket is € 12.40 (first class is € 20.40) p.p. (online https://www.ns.nl/en )

Taxi from Rotterdam (Wilhelminakade 699) to Schiphol Airport about € 89.00 per cab (pre order https://rotterdamtaxicentrale.nl/en/rates/ or )

Do not be surprised that there are non US passengers on board who understand little of this discussion. I will explain this for more mutual understanding between us fellow passengers.

I live in the Netherlands and am not accustomed to the US way of tipping and the way foreign companies pay their employees. We give tips in the Netherlands when the service is exceptionally good, but as a rule no more than 10% (the bill is always inclusive of service and the employer pays a fair salary to the employees).

I am not concerned about which system is better, but it simply feels somewhat unusual for me. Probably because the ship is registered in the Netherlands, but has a US owner who probably uses US employment contracts.

But of course I adapt to the ship where I am a guest: I always leave the HSC in place, because it seems to me the right way (just an opinion).

We booked the Hotel Amsterdam ......

If I may ask @pamrose228 , in which Street is this hotel located?

Dont risk a fire. Hand in your broken device at the front desk and explain your problem.

I can get a really good deal at The Renaissance by the airport. How is public transportation to city center from here? Also, is there a train station close so that we can explore? Thank you!

There are two The Renaissance Hotels: One's in the city center and the other one (Renaissance Amsterdam Schiphol Airport Hotel) is in the middle of nowhere.