doublebzz

I maybe only 67 now, but I'll be two years older then.

 

RocketMan

So will everyone else.

LOL. Now that might be one I would enjoy! Does she do the "hairiest chest contest" as well?

Of course, and she took 2nd place as well.

 

We are not into beer belly contests, drinking ourselves silly or any of that stuff but the sea days were truly boring. Thank goodness for the ports of call.

 

I guess it all depends on how "sedate" a time you want.

Each to their own. Actually, my wife loves to participate in beer belly contests.

Aside for the regulatory toots, the ones leaving the channel...that are for everyone's enjoyment...the Noordam did not do. Neither did the Westerdam last week. We'll see today.

I, too, wonder if it's out of respect for the friends and families of the Filipinos on board.

Could be or could be other ships in vicinity that Captain did not want to confuse with non-regulatory blasts.

Some use of the ship's horn is at the option of the Captain while other uses (such as 3 bleeps for backing up) are required. We were recently on a 28 day Veendam cruise where the regular Captain (Norman) made minimal use of the horn. But for a few days we had a replacement Captain (Captain Norman had to go home for some business) and our new Captain loved to use the horn. When he made his goodbye announcement (Captain Norman was rejoining the ship) our replacement Captain announced that he was taking "his whistle" with him when he left the ship. You could here the laughter around the deck :)

 

Hank

You are absolutely correct. 3 long blasts for engines going astern and 1 prolonged blast for changing status; i.e. all mooring lines clear and ship is underway. These are mandatory signals under the International Rules of the Road.

We were advised to use cabs when we were there in April. The cabs are regulated and reasonably priced. If I had one day there, I'd spend it around the Marina Bay Sands Hotel and the park that is nearby. We were on a guided tour but didn't get to do that which would have been better than what we did (private tour mostly on a bus).

Like anywhere else, you will have to watch the cabbies. On a cab ride from center city to the cruise pier, the cabbie tried to overcharge us. When I pointed to the meter, he relented and and we paid the appropriate fare. There is a subway station right at the cruise pier which is clean, safe and efficient.

Room stewards leaving towel animals on beds at night have been a fixture of cruising for as long as I can remember. During my first few years of cruising, they were a source of amusement and added to the cruise experience. Now, after 40 plus cruises, I find them a nuisance and add to the clutter in the cabin. During my last cruise, I was tempted to request the room steward not leave any of the towel animals in my cabin but thought otherwise as it might cause a problem for the steward. I'm wondering if anyone else feels the same and actually made this request and what the outcome was.

What misinformation was reported? I've had one of these cabins and I know I've reported what you wrote. I'm fine with being assigned one of these cabins. Best not to book a guarantee if you are not.

As an example, a few responders indicated that the SPA cabin occupants would have daily access to the thermal suite after 6pm. When I queried the SPA manager about this, she indicated I could sample the thermal suite after 8pm on the day of embarkation only. Great! Dinner or the thermal spa. There was also confusion about the veranda size, particularly confusion about the NA and Eurodam deck plans. And why is it that I have to justify to you what I wrote and be preached to about booking guarantees?

In the re-assigning of categories, are these cabins still holding the higher place in the pecking order, or with smaller balconies, were they downgraded?

 

I'm not sure when the reassignment takes place. For next April's Transatlantic on NA, HAL still shows VQ cabins as the most costly in the veranda category.

Is VQ on the 10th or 11th deck ?

VQ on the Nieuw Amsterdam are on the 10th and 11th decks. On Eurodam, VQ is on the 10th deck and VT on the 11th deck. The VT have a standing balcony - no room for chairs.

On a recent transatlantic, I was assigned a SPA cabin(Category VQ) on Nieuw Amsterdam. Not having any knowledge of what these particular cabins have to offer, I solicited comments on these boards. The few responses I received were wildly conflicting so let me provide the facts for anyone interested. First of all, these cabins are the most expensive within their categories. So, what do you get for the premium price? The cabins are equipped with a desk-top mini water fountain, a yoga mat, ipad dock and 5 bottles of water. That's it as far as SPA amenities go. The cabins themselves are the same size as other verandas but the balcony width is about half the size of regular veranda cabins; there is room for 2 chairs affixed sideways. I found the area to be quite quiet but the cabin subject to noticeable vibration at certain speeds. For those who feal proximity to the Crow's Nest and the SPA/Gym is essential, the location is great. For myself who likes the Seaview pool at the aft of the ship and who takes most meals in the MDR, I had to walk the length of the ship 2 or 3 times a day. Finally, the nomenclature of "SPA" cabin is certainly misleading. A reasonable person would assume these cabins had some sort of interrelationship to the SPA; perhaps use of the thermal pool or discounted SPA packages, etc. Outside of proximity, it had no relationship to the SPA. So, do I think its worth paying a premium for these cabins? Absolutely not. Apparently, I am not alone in my thinking. None of these cabins were sold as of two weeks before sailing. I'm sure that was why I was "upgraded" from category VH to VQ.

 

Since this will be our first HAL cruise, any suggestions would be appreciated. Thinking suite and Eastern Caribbean.

 

Thanks again.

I prefer the Eastern Caribbean to the Western. On a Caribbean cruise, I would avoid dates when school is out or during Spring Break on any cruise line including HAL. I believe a veranda is essential on a warm weather cruise; whether you want to indulge in a suite depends on how much time you are going to spend in your cabin. The perks of Neptune suites are nice but come at a steep price. I believe all ships have the specialty restaurant, Pinnacle Grill, which is excellent. The Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam also have the Tamarind Pan-Asian restaurant which is top notch and would be a deciding factor for me all other factors being equal. I'm sure you are about to receive many more recommendations, some of which may be conflicting.

You're about 10 years older than the average Holland America cruiser.

Or about 10 years younger depending on the cruise.

You didn't mention what cruise you were considering and I find length of cruise the determining factor in age make-up.

On short cruise of 10 days or less, the demographics are probably not much different than Princess, Celebrity or RCCL, among others. Face it, on longer cruises, its generally retirees than can absent themselves from home for extended periods and the demographic is older, more experienced cruisers. If you are not put off by a lot of folks with mobility problems, and I'm not, and if you are not looking for a bar open past midnight, then you should find HAL to your liking.

Local story about two Princess passengers who intentionally got married during a US port stop that coincided on the easily remembered day they wanted to get married: 11/12/13.

 

How does one get married unintentionally?

If you paid with a credit card, you may want to check to see if it includes any additional benefits like travel insurance that might help out. For instance, I have a Chase Sapphire that includes $5,000 in travel cancellation insurance among other benefits.

 

We had a spa cabin on the Maasdam once and received slippers, a spa mat (which was hidden under the bed), fresh fruit plate in the afternoon, and supposely a mini fountain which was out for repair (which was fine with us - who needs water bubbling!). I guess these "amenities" are no longer provided and yes there was no spa amenity which I think there should have been at least one free or reduced something.

 

I believe the slippers and fresh fruit plate (which I never received) are amenities of all veranda cabins. I did receive the mini fountain, yoga mat, ipad dock and 5 bottles of water all of which I would exchange for a token on the New York subway.

It is particularly good when mixed with bourbon.

Most of my free time was spent relaxing in the spa thermal suite, which I purchased a full cruise pass for. It was almost always deserted (most days I received no higher than locker #4) so I wonder how many of the designated spa cabins were occupied, or if the occupants actually knew about the included perks.

 

Just got off the Nieuw Amsterdam and was assigned a SPA veranda cabin. There are no SPA amenities associated with a SPA cabin even though HAL would like folks to think so.

We asked for an ash tray for my husband the first day but didn’t get one until day 2.

Was on Nieuw Amsterdam for the previous cruise and enjoyed it as well. Just wondering if you got any static about smoking on your balcony. My neighbor complained to me the first day of my cruise.

HAL initially had some problems with the their roll out of anytime dining but, for us over the past year, it has worked fine, particularly it if you don't mind sharing a table. We generally dine between 7 and 7:30 and have been seated immediately during our last two 14 day cruises on Eurodam and Nieuw Amsterdam.

HAL is a very nice mainline cruise line. I have never thought of HAL as

"upscale and prestigious". I see HAL primarily as a high-value cruise line in which I appreciate they are looking after the bottom line, so we can still afford to visit all those far away places with strange sounding names without paying the "upscale and prestigious" prices. If they need to cut a few corners to keep doing this, we will just go with the flow, as long as we don't have to start rowing. :p

I appreciate your view and commend you for being one of the very few responders who actually addressed the issue I was raising.

I wonder if the OP went to Staples and made a copy he would expect it for free --

I wonder if you really read this thread - clearly you don't understand it.

The point is HAL, I'm sure, would be liked to be perceived as an upscale, prestigious, quality cruise line. When management decides its worthwhile to peddle 25 cent boarding passes, that surely diminishes from that perception.

For all of those who made it personal, let me tell you I always book verandas or suites, don't smuggle alcohol aboard, use all the ship's services and probably drop a grand in the casino each cruise so stick to the issue.

If that all it takes to give them a negative impression I wish they would go to another line. Those folks are way, way too needy.

Spoken like a true business person.

I am going to make one final comment because so many posters have gotten on a tangent that goes far astray from the point I was trying to make.

I purchased a small internet package towards the end of my cruise just to check on some emails. I had no need to print boarding passes or anything else. When I noticed a sign stating there was a 25 cent charge for printing boarding passes, my perception was this was kind of chintzy. Lets assume that the same percentage of respondents to this thread who agree with me (maybe 5%) feel likewise; that means that up to 100 guests come away with a negative impression of HAL. So, my point is why instill a negative image when it can be easily avoided by just eliminating the sign or just have it state 25 cents per page for printing? I frankly don't see how even HAL's most ardent apologists can argue with that.

P.S. When I have the time, I'm going to initiate a thread on the duty free store scams and can't wait for the flack I'll receive on that.

Should they provide free printing for Boarding Passes only?

 

 

The answer is yes.