3littlepigs

What cabin category are you in?

Not all cabins on the Volendam have mini refrigerators.

 

 

Neptune Suite.

I thought the suite had a fridge rather than a cooler?

 

Probably not worth an international phone call (and I would likely muck up the time zones) so I will ask the concierge when we get there, I assume he doesn't email you in advance like the RCCL guy did?

Maybe we can ask the concierge to arrange.

Thanks!

That's exactly what I wanted to hear :)

So we can use the fridge?

 

RCCL and X are happy to empty the mini bar and store the contents in your cabin (X in a box under the bed and RCCL on one of the shelves above the bar) Will they do the same for us on the Volendam?

 

We NEVER use anything in the minibar but do use the fridge so like the extra space. Do we ask the cabin attendant?

One side of the podium is for those with reservations, the other side walk-ins. Usually the line on the reservation side is shorter and moves faster.

 

Thanks!

We are on Open Dining, just wondering if I make reservations for dinner is there a separate line or do I go to the front or do I just wait in line.

 

On our RCCL cruise we just waited in the line even though we had reservations every night.

Bagels with smoked salmon,fruit and coffee sounds like a very nice start to the day!

 

Will have to find some nice water bottles to take and we are all set!

Although the promised suite perk matching Corsage and Boutonniere may be a giveaway!

Water bottle is a good idea!

Must remember that one.

 

We need to do some fixing of the shore excursions we have booked so very happy to be able to do it there rather than have to line up downstairs.

 

Himself loves smoked salmon so he would be very happy to have breakfast there!

Thanks!

 

If there is cold water as well he will probably be happy with that over a soda card.

 

I do like the idea that its on the same level.

 

On Radiance of the Seas the Concierge lounge was about 3 decks above the cabins, so not so convenient. The good thing there was they had an indoor and an outdoor area which was lovely and an amazing bar man at their 3 hour happy hour in the evening.

 

I look forward to the comparison, pretty sure both are very nice in their own ways.

On RCCL before Christmas we were in the restaurant one morning waiting for a waiter to take our order, they seemed to be very slow, must have been a busy time. I had my book and room key sitting on the table while we waited (no pockets!) Next thing there is a bit of a rush around us and a waiter appeared to take our order with a supervisor close behind apologising profusely for the delay. It didn't occur to me straight away, but I later realised the most likely reason for the kerfuffle was that the supervisor had walked past and seen our sea passes and chastised the poor waiter for leaving us sitting there. It happened time after time at dinner as well. We waited in line the first night for a table, gave our cabin number and were seated. Every night after that if there was a delay in seating people we were pulled out of line to be given a table, got a bit embarrassing!

 

On RCCL at least a Gold Sea Pass is magic...even if its not on display!

Just wondering what drinks are available in the Neptune Lounge other than coffee and tea?

Himself is just working out whether he wants a soda card or whether he is happy with the cold drinks on offer there.

 

Also wondering what snacks they serve during the day...and what the opening hours are. On RCI the Concierge Lounge was open 24 hours so if I couldn't sleep I could nip in there and sit quietly with a cup of tea at any hour.

 

Thanks!

When we were in Asia on the Millennium last year I expected to see a large Asian contingent but there were very few. There was a huge mix of nationalities which made for a fun cruise. I was surprised at how many Russian passengers there were!

You were at the meet and mingle weren't you? I was on there with my mum.

 

The captain was constantly calling over the loudspeaker about washing your hands. It is such a simple thing to do!

 

I used our own toilet about 99% of the time and can remember one time when I used the public toilet where a woman came out of the cubicle and never washed her hands. I was so mad!

 

It's these filthy ones that ruin it for others who have the commonsense to do the right thing.

 

The Captain was lovely! Seems some people just won't listen and spoil everything for others. Must admit I was the same, I would rather just nip back to the cabin to use the loo.

 

Finally got our photo album back from Snapfish yesterday, everyone comments on how lovely our cabin was.

 

Loved the Roast Beef Rolls for lunch at the Park Cafe, their Potato and Waldorf Salads were very good too. Loved the fruit pots in the morning!

We have only been on Radiance (and probably wouldn't go RCCL again uness the suite prce was a bargain) but a lot of people were commenting that they prefered Rhapsody, I think mainly because there are less passengers and it has a different feel. Radiance is cetainly a beautiful ship with great staff but just too crowded, poor food (except Park Cafe) and boring repetitive activities. We enjoyed our cruise but I put that down to our Grand Suite and the associated Concierge lounge...very nice :)

There was Noro onboard our cruise in December. The Concierge read the Riot Act in the lounge one night (in the nicest possible way) saying none of his suite pax were going to get sick if he had anything to do with it. He was very vigilent with the hand sanitiser.

I was talking to one of the crew about people walking straight past the sanitizer he commented that Aussies were the worst at non-compliance, sometimes our "she'll be right" attitude just doesn't cut it.

 

We didn't eat at the buffet after the first days lunch, food was yuk! We found the Park Cafe had some really good choices at breakfast and lunch, and the salad bar next to it was very good too. MDR food was horrid on our cruise, looked great tasted bad.

 

Staff onboard were amazing ( except entertainment staff, some awesome, some awful!)...best we have ever come across!

Love the salute at Newcastle!

Don't think we can trust Aus Post to deiver before you leave, but, never fear the car rental company will give you a detailed map.

 

Avis ( look at the Australian site) have a few deals like 7th day free or free upgrade, definitely worth a look.

Definitely go a bigger car than a Corolla. We do the coast run regularly and I wouldn't fancy it in a little car. Camry or Commodore would be my pick, rental price difference is very little and while petrol would be a bit dearer the increase in comfort would be well worth it.

 

The NRMA here do a very good map, and the car company will give you a map. I can't remember when you are leaving...is it too late for one of us to pick up the NRMA map and post it?

Definitely have a look at Avis, they usually have discount offers on their site.

Travel insurance car rental excess would generally be a cheaper option than the rental company's.

[quote name='RuthC'][FONT="Comic Sans MS"][SIZE="3"][COLOR="RoyalBlue"]No, it's not sweetened. It's not like the coffee syrup that comes in small bottles for mixing with milk, like when you make coffee milk.

It's more like a very concentrated coffee, that then has hot water added to bring it back to regular strength. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][/QUOTE]

How bizarre!

I guess it's easier to get a consistent product and less messy than grounds, not sure I fancy tasting it though.

Good luck with the Via!

When our kids were younger we used to take a pool noodle each to hook under their tummy/chest so they have some extra buoyancy. They are very cheap so can be abandoned after you finish with them. Some very cute kids in Vanuatu were very happy to adopt the last ones we had.

 

From memory the pastries we had were about $8, lemon tart...yum! the bread rolls we had were cheaper maybe $2 it was divine. My daughter says choose the bread that was the furthest to the right sitting on top of the counter.

 

We didn't have coffee there because we were very disappointed when it came out of an automatic machine rather than made by a barista!

I have never seen or heard of coffee made from a syrup before, I don't think it exists here. Is it sweetened? It couldn't be just coffee, must have some other stuff in it.

Please don't telll me they don't have real milk on the ships....We visited Costco for the first time yesterday and they were selling coffeemate, something I hadn't seen here for more than 25 years!

Or dry your clothes within the cabin by putting them on a hanger which you can hook onto the A/C vent in ceiling.

 

I am guessing that's why there were stickers saying "do not hang anything here" next to every aircconditioning vent in our suite on Radiance;)

Whatever you do don't ask this question on the X board :eek: the answers will be X rated!;)

 

We always have a balcony and have found those stretchy clothes lines stick well if you angle them diagonally from the glass window to the glass balcony divider, don't load the line too heavily and use pegs. Nobody else can see the line if you put it at the correct angle.

 

If you take a few cheap wire coat hangers you can also hang things in the shower from the rails of the towel rack.

I hope you're not just kidding, because I'm willing to try it.

 

 

We only buy the Italian and its a good choice for travelling. The only other one they sell here is the Colombian, its quite weak. The Italian Via is a decent strength and flavour. I don't generally like Starbucks coffee but the Via is very acceptable. They sell a small pack here with just 3 sachets in it if you want to try it cheaply...although I bet you don't have to pay $11 for a pack of 12 like we do for the normal sized pack.

 

Definitely worth a try if you have a Starbucks nearby ;) we have to travel to the city to buy it, there are only a handful of Starbucks in Sydney. We had loads of stores for a little while but the company went broke here...too much competition with GOOD coffee;););)

Many years ago I worked for a big airline in yield/capacity management. Took a LONG time to learn all of the formulas and algorithms used to make sure a plane was full. It got to where I could look at a reservation and pretty much know if they were going to no-show. Yes, we were the people that decided how many should be over-booked. Sometimes it bit us but usually worked in our favor.

If there are 200 people on a plane they can easily have 150 different fares paid.

I'm sure the cruise lines go through similar daily "exercises" to determine fares that will fill the ships. I'd guess that at least some of the categories that are frequently used for "sale" prices are the categories that tend to have higher on board spending habits.

It has to be rough- a ship can't be over-booked.

 

What a fun job that must have been!

I love tracking the prices of the various categories to try to pick the best buy point and whether to grab a gty.