Adoptionmsw

United allows me to check in for both out and return flights at the same time. The boarding passes are delivered to my iPhone. The return boarding passes appear 24 hours before scheduled departures. I must admit I have not tried this on international flights.

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I can answer a few of your questions as we were on the Veendam last Fall. If you don't care to send out the laundry, there are self-serve machines on the Verandah Deck. People do use the pool, and especially the hot tubs. We were off the ship fairly early in Bar Harbor because we did the Cadillac Mountain/Jordan Pond tour (recommended). To just stroll the town and lunch, I would say 10:00 give or take.

 

 

 

Enjoy your cruise!

Thanks, Heartgrove for pointing out the self serve laundry. We made good use of it on the Maasdam on our 50 day transatlantic last fall. I much prefer doing the laundry myself.

Did you have the popovers at Jordan Pond?

I can reply to the laundry issue. We went on a back to back on the Westerdam a number of years ago. Because it was two weeks, we needed to get things washed. We had the same disappointment you had on Carnival. It was obvious items were washed in commercial machines at hot temps. Two or three brand new Brooks Brothers golf shirts came back badly faded. Now if we're not cruising on the smaller HAL ships that have self service laundry rooms, we bring what I would call technical or hiking clothing for day wear. These things can be rinsed in the sink, wrapped in a towel and hung on the laundry line in the shower. They're dry and ready to wear the next morning. In ports like Bar Harbor, that's how you'll see people dressed whether they're cruising or not. It's the kind of clothing you can buy at LLBean, REI, etc. Enjoy your cruise.

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And Cleveland gave a family of a 12-year old shot by police $6 million after his parents let him run around in public with a look-alike weapon, pointing it at people. IMO, they the parents should have been brought up on charges, but I digress. The point is, the NYT does have major lean to the left.

Apparently the police officer who shot the boy in Cleveland had a complicated work history with another department. Cleveland did not review his credentials properly before hiring him. In addition, the 911 dispatcher did not transmit the full report, that it was a child and the gun was "probably" fake. Over and over when it comes to black males it's shoot first and think later.

The editorial page of the NYTimes does indeed lean to the left. The op-ed page is a mix. Not everyone would agree that the straight reporting "leans."

Good example of NYT bias: There was no "poor man choked to death for selling cigarettes on the streets of NYC". He was running a protection racket on that street, no choke-hold was ever confirmed by both video and autopsy and he died of his own morbid obesity refusing arrest while also illegal re-selling cigarettes.

I guess that's why the City of NY settled with Eric Garner's family for $5.9 million.

I'd be interested to see some statistics. How many smokers on an average cruise on HAL who would stop sailing if they couldn't smoke. How many people who would choose to sail on a cruise that prohibited smoking. Would it be a wash or would the cruise line use money. I have to presume HAL has done market research around the balcony smoking.

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Smoking should not be permitted anywhere on ship. It is disgusting and grossly offensive.

I agree totally. I would really prefer a total prohibition.

Each HAL satisfaction survey I tell them to ditch the NYT as their ship "newspaper" link - amazing bias, beyond the pale.

Since the Times pays for the Explorations Lounge area, I don't see that happening anytime soon. It only seems like bias if you're accustomed to getting your info from Faux News.

I'm going to take heat for being a snob, but NCL mass markets to a different type of cruiser than HAL. It's emphasis on a casual party atmosphere has cost it some higher-end customers. The Haven is just the pendulum swinging the other way.

 

We're looking at NCL and an Owner's Suite (only suite w/king bed) for an 18-day SE Asian & India - Singapore to Dubai leg of a Grand Voyage on the smaller, non-Haven NCL Star in 2018 so I've been reading up on NCL suite offerings. I can see a lot of pros with the Haven on a ship with 3900 passengers or more!

The conclusion I took away from the NYT article is that restricted areas are a lot more important on these huge ships. I can't imagine what it would be like to cruise on a ship that holds 6,000, potentially 2,000 of them children. Hubby and I will stick with the longer cruises on the smaller HAL ships.

Not sure why all the vitriol over the NY Times. Don't read it if you don't like it.

We were on the Maasdam for 50 days last fall. We had an inside cabin and experienced no issues with AC or plumbing. We did receive notice two times that the water would be turned off for the afternoon in our section of staterooms. Repairs were being made. On the other hand, our experience in the main dining room with as you wish dining was not good. Service was so slow it always took at least 2 1/2 hours or more for dinner. We finally gave up and started eating dinner in the Lido. We had no issues with the quality of the food in either location. We've come to really enjoy extended cruises which is one of the reasons we stick with HAL.

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It's not smokers wanting it all, it's nonsmokers not wanting ANYONE smoking, even if it doesn't affect them.

 

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But it does affect non smokers. It drifts from the casino to adjacent areas. Depending on the prevailing winds, it makes the sea view pool an unpleasant place to be, even on the non smoking side.

We recently voted to make our coop apartment complex nonsmoking. The catalyst was a fire which caused a death and made four units uninhabitable. The cause: improperly extinguished smoking materials. Smoking kills.

LAFFNVEGAS, I'm so glad to see your post and know that you are home safe and sound. Thank you for all the time you took to create this review for us.

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The single biggest reservation I have regarding giving HAL a try again (after my 50 year hiatus) is that their suite perks are sorely lacking when compared to Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, and NCL. Honestly, the smoking issue is secondary.

 

 

 

... but I guess that's two strikes, right off the bat! Nonetheless, I'm determined to keep a positive outlook and have a good time come November! :)

 

 

 

Tom

For me the smoking issue is not secondary. On our last cruise we spent a great deal of time in the library (round trip transatlantic, lots of sea days) which was adjacent to the casino. There were doors between the two areas which were propped open half the time allowing the smoke to flow through. I would get up and close the doors over and over often noticing casino staff standing nearby chatting. I put in a request to the front desk asking that staff monitor the doors. The response was they are too busy. For the same reason, we've never taken a verandah cabin. I would be furious if there were smokers in adjacent cabins who smoked on their verandahs. I don't know when HAL is going to enter the 21st century on this one. It's fully recognized that second hand smoke is dangerous. End rant...

Teamflames, I get the sense you're projecting here. Does your name tell us something about you? This has been a very respectful discussion. I for one really appreciated Lisa's postings and the various responses. Everyone has their own idea about what constitutes a good vacation.

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Thanks so much for this live review. The photos were very helpful. We've come to appreciate HAL's longer cruises on the smaller, older ships. We did a TA last fall, 50 days on the Maasdam and are booked for the VoV this summer on the Rotterdam. Your review has helped convince me that the bigger ships are nice but the smaller ones with longer itineraries work better for us.

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We received ours on the cruise where we earned it. We missed the ceremony itself because our excursion ran late. It was waiting for us in our cabin.

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Hubby and I would be very unhappy if the NYTimes disappeared. What about the crossword puzzle? Since NYTimes co-sponsors the Explorations Lounge with the computer stations, it ain't gonna happen.

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Is there still ice cream in the Lido? Good question. I hope so. Otherwise is will be death by a thousand small cuts, I mean charges. LOL

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Is the gelato bar an extra fee? It looks wonderful but I am not inclined to pay extra for food on the ship with the exception of at least one trip to the Pinnacle.

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I'm enjoying your posts. I can't wait to see photos once you're on the ship. We took a long cruise on the Maasdam last fall and are booked for 35 days on the Rotterdam this summer. The Koningsdam is so much larger. I'm wondering how that will affect your experience. Have a wonderful trip!

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I don't try to telephone major corporations anymore. I do my complaining on Twitter and Yelp. I invariably get a private message requesting details and contact info almost always within 24 hours. These folks do not want you saying bad things about them on social media.

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We cruised to Alaska last fall on the Zuiderdam. We use Verizon. We were able to use our phones in every port except Vancouver with no roaming charges because Alaska is in the US. Signal was good right on the dock. Daughter was making wedding plans and lots of telephone back and forth was necessary. Each town had a library with free internet as well. We don't buy the internet package on the ship because it's expensive and very slow.

DH and I have been on three themed cruises on HAL, two political and one knitting. In each case we were part of a group, twice about 400 people and the third time, about 50. The amenities were determined by the group organizers and the travel agent they worked with. There were special cocktail parties, lots of meetings and lectures on sea days. With the larger groups, gratuities were included in the package, dining was fixed with other members of the group and the speakers rotating tables so we could interact with more people. It was very pleasant. My only complaint was the price which was understandably higher because of all the speakers and staff. I'm sure those who wished to do so, bought the beverage package on board.

We just booked the Maasdam round trip to the Mediterranean from Ft. Lauderdale sailing October 30. It's a 50 day cruise with lots of European ports. We sailed for 27 days last fall on the Zuiderdam to Alaska and then on a repositioning through the Panama Canal to Ft. Lauderdale. It certainly didn't seem too long to us. I can't think of anything better than letting HAL take care of all the details while DH and I spend our time relaxing.

We recently did Alaska followed by a repositioning through the Panama Canal to Ft. Lauderdale, 27 days on the Zuiderdam. We were invited to two Mariner brunches and a special Indonesian lunch. We went from 2 star to 3 on this trip so we're not long time cruisers. My only disappointment was the tiles which were the same as those I received on a cruise over two years ago. In the past, the tiles were different on every cruise.