WisRiver

Several years ago we had a back to back in FLL.  There were written instructions from HAL.  We were told not to pack our closets, but to pack our suitcases.  The cabin stewards moved our stuff, but told us our cabin would not be ready for us to use until after 1 PM.  We disembarked 10:00 AM and cleared immigration with our passports in hand.  We took the crew shuttle (ask where they board) to the shopping area on 17th Street.  Since we had been eating HAL food for the past two weeks and would continue to do for another week, we decided to eat lunch on shore.  We shopped, ate lunch, used the free internet in the Starbucks and returned on the crew shuttle.   While this several years ago, the cost of the crew shuttle was less then $5 per person each way.   There was no problem with passengers using the crew shuttle since it is privately operated.  We returned to the ship at about 2 PM with no wait, since almost everyone else had boarded. 

Keep the Oyster Card for your next trip to London.  If you know someone who is going to London, you can lend them you card with a small gift.  

I cannot remember the price of a back pack.  My daughter in law bought a purse last year for about $40 US (about 800 pesos at last years exchange rate.).  There are several ATM's with 200 meters so extra pesos are readily available.  We bring pesos and US dollars, and will bargain in either currency.  You have to have a rough idea of the exchange rate to figure out the best price.  My experience is that you get the best price in pesos.  

Food:

Cheap, local food will be in the market.  Sol y Mar and Barlovento are ex-pat hangouts when cruisers are not in town.  If you like drinking and eating with Canadians and Americans, these are places to go.   We like to go to Eladios, on the beach.  Locals as well as ex-pats like the botanas (snacks) that accompany drinks. 

If you have kids, El Corchito is a good option.  Not so sure if it works for adults. 

There will be numerous vendors in the Progreso area.  

Bolom Balam may have want you want, but you have to decide if you think the prices are reasonable.  The owner has been there for at least 8 years.    We think he offers good quality for the money.  Since we winter near Progreso, if there is a problem with a purchase at Bolom Balam, we can return to repair or exchange.  A cruiser may not be able to make a return. 

We have shopped at Bolom Balam for leather goods.  I am not sure what you mean by price range.  There are expensive items and inexpensive items.    It depends on what you are looking for.  It is worth stopping there, and you decide if it is a good price.  Most of the leather goods are made in the state of Chiapas.  

We order the gin and tonic package after we get to our room.  We call room service.    You only get 4 cans of tonic, so we bring on board another 6 pack of tonic and some whole limes.  Sometimes we have had to go to the bar to get a glass full of cut limes.  In our cabin G and T without fresh lime is barbaric.  

We have rented from London Connection https://londonconnection.com four times in the past 7 years.   They are an excellent company.   While LC apartments are not cheap, they offer excellent service.  They have several two bedroom apartments in the Covent Garden area.  We especially like the  2 BR apartment on West Street since it has two bathrooms.  The 2 BR flat on Shelton Street flat has only one bath.  Both are centrally located.  LC also offers a driver service from Heathrow or Gatwick.  Again, their driver is more expensive than taking public transportation, but we love the service. 

If your ship has stopped in a Schengen county (a country that is party to the Schengen Agreement on immigration https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schengen_Area) before you arrive in Rotterdam, then there is no need to worry about immigration or customs.  We have done B2B's before in Copenhagen and Rome.  There will be onboard instructions, but in our experience you walk off the ship at your leisure, and return before departure.  We will be on HAL's Voyage of the Vikings round trip from Boston in late July.  We anticipate walking off the ship in Rotterdam, spending the day touring, and returning late afternoon.

Your story of your trip to Manchu Piccu maded me tired.  Four years ago when the Zaandam repositioned from Buenos Aires to  Boston via Patagonia, Chile and the Panama Canal, we decided to do Manchu Piccu on our way down.  We flew from the US to Lima and on to Cusco.  Our seven day trip (including Manchu Piccu) cost about the same as the two day HAL excursion.  We had time to experience the Sacred Valley and Cusco.  On our way back to the US we had a great two days in Lima.

There are multiple threads on the London forum of Trip Advisor discussing things to do on Christmas Day. We have spent two Christmas's in London. Chinatown restaurants are always open on Christmas day and we have been able to walk in and find to find reasonably priced, tasty Christmas meals.

The best northern lights will be in the winter, and the further north you go, the better chance you have of seeing them. Several years ago we did a late fall cruise on the Hurtigruten (a Norwegian ferry line that also offers cruise like arrangements). We started in Bergen and ended in Kirkenes. Most days above the arctic circle we had 4 or 5 hours of day light, so the long nights meant we had good chances to see the northern lights.

We have taken two cruises to the Antarctic, "a HAL drive-by and an expedition cruise on Hurtigruten's Fram" I never noticed any limitation on laundry. I think they recycle laundry water. We sent out laundry on the Fram.

Internet was another question. Both companies used satellite internet based on a stationary satellite parked over the Equator. The shipboard dish is aimed almost parallel to the earth. Internet speeds were slow (think old dial up modem speed) and bandwidth limited on both ships. On the Fram there was no passenger usage of internet from 8 AM to 6 PM to allow the ship staff access to the satellite. The internet was useful for reading e-mails. No streaming videos, no uploading photos to Facebook or transfer of large files.

We were on the Koningsdam for the March, 2018 transatlantic from FLL to Rome. The Culinary Arts Center consistently had the best and most varied food on the ship. Dinner was a set price of $15 (less 4* mariner discount). The CAC never seemed to be crowded. We would book a table on the day we wanted to dine, but several times we just walked in at about 7 PM.

We were on the Viking Aegir from Bucharest to Budapest in May, 2019. For our day tour of Bucharest we were divided into three or four groups. One group was for the people who did not our could not do a lot of walking (the easy group). The easy group did a driving tour which went by the the Palace of Parliament but did not go in. This group wound up in Old Town where they did a short walking tour. The other groups did an abbreviated driving tour which ended at the Palace of Parliament. These groups did a walking tour of the building that involved lots of up and down stairs.

After the Palace of Parlament tour the groups met at the Village Museum (an outdoor museum). We then went on to an excellent fish restaurant where there was a nice folkloric show. After lunch we had a two hour bus ride to get on the Aegir. We then took a short cruise across the river and docked for the night in Bulgaria.

The VOV may be an enhanced repositioning cruise, but it is unique in at least three ways. First, it sails out of Boston. There is easy access for a substantial portion of Canada and the US. Second, the late July departure means the cruise is still in the height of the summer season. Finally, the itinerary is unique. It is a transatlantic round trip. Most repos are one ways. HAL has decided it can charge a premium for this cruise. We have decided the cruise is worth the price and are booked for all 35 days in 2019.

That a Seattle based company (Holland America Lines) cuts a deal with another Seattle based company (Microsoft) for the right to offer Microsoft based computer courses on it ships is not surprising. We were on a Celebrity cruise several years ago and they offered Apple (iOS) courses. On Celebrity a few of the courses were free, and many had a fee. People say Apple computer are intuitive, but their courses through Apple Stores are valuable. On Celebrity, the content was much the same as offered at an Apple Store.

Sleepless:

It is not hard to get Lyft from a Fort Lauderdale Hotel to the port. They are quicker, cheaper and less crowded than the hotel shuttle. Have your passport readily available to show security as you enter the port area. We have used Lyft in April, 2017 and March, 2018 without a problem.

We have Cap One chip and signature credit cards. We have been using the same Oyster Cards in London for the past five years. In May, 2018 we had no problem "topping up" our Oyster Cards with our credit card at a ticket machine.

It is helpful to have local currencies. You can make purchases using Euros, but you get change in the local currency. We were on a Viking River cruise earlier this year. Since we were going to be in Bulgaria and Hungary for several days, we obtained local currency at ATM's. We used the leftover currency to tip some of our waiters and cabin steward. They said these currencies were no problem for them to use, since the cruise started and ended in these countries.

Earlier this we sailed out of Fort Lauderdale. We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express on 17th Street. We took the hotel shuttle from the airport and Lyft from the hotel to the ship. There is a security check as you enter the port, so make sure your passports are available for review. We had a clean, air conditioned van that cost $14 for 4 persons including tip. We waited 10 minutes for the car after I placed my request. Uber or Lyft seem to be the best option from hotel to ship.

We were on a Viking river cruise for 23 days (Bucharest to Amersterdam) in May 2018. Docking times are approximate. Free time in each port depends on the excursions you choose. If you limit yourself to the included tour, then there will probably be several hours of unstructured time. However, the included tour may stop at a remote dock, and the included tour takes up all your time. For example in Kindersdyck, Holland, there was very little free time and the dock is out in the country.

We have visited the Cotswolds several times, and have rented cottages through Rural Retreats. Their services and quality of lodgings has been excellent. https://www.ruralretreats.co.uk On our last trip (May, 2018) we spent four days in Stanton (near Broadway in Gloustershire) and two nights in Bath. I think that a rental car is a necessity. We have never done a group tour of the Cotswolds.

We had open dining on the K'Dam for the March, 2018 transatlantic. We usually had dinner at 8 PM and sometimes seated upstairs and some times on the lower level. I never seemed to notice much difference between the two levels. We were a group of four, so they gave us an available 4 top.

Several years ago we did a 33 day repositioning cruise from Buenos Aires to Boston. We had spent some time in the Argentinian wine country prior to embarkation, and brought two cases of wine (12 bottles) on board with us. We paid the corkage fee, and stored the wine in our cabin. It went in the bottom of our closet. We never thought to ask if HAL would store the wine for us.

bUU:

Can you open the veranda dividers to the cabin next to you. We have opened the dividers for veranda cabins on other ships. We would like to do so on an aft wrap around on the Eurodam.