CaptJerry51

I assume you do this by doing a test booking on the HAL website. Is the HAL website reliable for showing all of the available cabins when doing a test booking? In other words, are they showing everything or will a personal cruise consultant perhaps be able to see more/everything than the average cruiser at their computer? For instance, I recently did a test booking on their website for a 40 day South America/Antarctic segment of a world cruise and the website would not show a choice for choosing individual cabins. It would not display them. Only one choice - guaranteed cabin of a particular level - ie. oceanview, partially obstructed. No choice for forward, mid, aft. I know I have set up two different questions here.

Bump! Bueller, Bueller, anybody? I assume you just take what they give you, but I would like to board in time to have lunch in the MDR, which I understand on embarkation day stops seating at 1:00 pm.

I did a search and the last thread was December 2021 on this topic. It basically said that HAL sends communications 2 or 3 times near the sail date with new, different boarding times on each contact. Those of you who have cruised recently - June, July - what has been your experience? How are times assigned if anybody knows? Is there anything that can be done to influence it? Check in early online - first come, first served? Can you state a preference? or....you just take what they give you? When are you first notified? and how? Does higher Mariner status matter?

Thanks for the tips, Crew News. I made a last-minute decision to not get the long zoom 40-150 f/4.0 R and instead got the prime normal 25 MM f/1.8 instead for the wide aperture. I may pick up the $200 40-150 mm f/4.0 later after I have used the current kit for a while.

Original poster here reporting an update. I have been continuing to research on and off since my original post 7/16 but focusing on the Olympus OM-D cameras. I have decided on the E-M5 instead of the E-M10 for more features, better autofocus, weather sealing. I can get the body and 12-45 f/4 pro lens as a kit for $1,400. Add in the 40-150 R (non pro) f/4.0 zoom and I have a very capable and portable, lightweight kit for most situations. With a couple UV filters, a circular polarizing filter and a memory card and I'm all in at about $1,850. I haven't bought a new camera since 2011 and it is amazing the capabilities in these new cameras!

Thank you TheOldBear, especially for including the link to the reconditioned equipment page. Your suggestion nicely covers the spectrum of situations - really good "pro" glass for near subjects - probably 90% of my shooting, and an OK quality telephoto that won't break the bank like the really good "pro" glass version would at $900. I don't anticipate using the telephoto nearly as much as the 12-45 f/4 pro lens. What do you think of getting the pro 12-45 f/4 as reconditioned for $140 less than new?

I went back 5 pages of posts to June last year to see if the answer to my question was there. No. I'm 71 and don't take near as many photos as I used to. The family is grown and they all take the pictures that I used to take with my camera with their phones. My last (current) camera is an Olympus Pen E-P1 micro 4/3 mirrorless. Bought it in used in 2012 to go on an Australia / New Zealand cruise. Got it on the recommendation of the owner at Creve Coeur Camera in St. Louis - no longer there. Key criteria were - light, small, high quality. Key thing I dislike about it is the lack of a viewfinder. I want to get a new camera and am sold on mirrorless micro 4/3, so please don't recommend a DSLR - too big and heavy. Key wants: - viewfinder as well as flip-out adjustable view screen - flash (as well as hot shoe for more robust flash), - mid range zoom lens - maybe buy separately or as part of the body / lens kit if it is decent - I would like just one "do it all" lens - keep the whole package light, small, simple - top end on price $1,500 - I don't use it enough to justify more I am not a photography geek, (please don't take offense) although I am a mid-range amateur that started with a Nikkormat in 1975 I am currently looking at the Olympus OM-D E-M10 Mark 4 for $800 with their kit lens. I may just buy the body for $100 less and get a better lens. My online research for small/medium mid-price cameras with their usual rankings has not shown much love for this camera, but it looks like it might suit my needs fairly well. I don't do enlargements or anything else - not much postproduction, just save images on my computer to share with family and go back and relive where I was. So images don't have to be National Geographic quality. In the past, I would have gone to the big camera store where I lived that carried lots of brands and had very helpful staff. St. Louis - Creve Coeur Camers, Minneapolis - National Camera. Can't find one of those anywhere near where I now live. They may only exist in New York or Chicago anymore. I welcome all suggestions or recommendations. Thank you in advance for your reply.

Thanks. I did just that. She will have the evidence even if the fare goes up after I asked over the weekend.

Well, I had the opposite experience. I booked 4/8/22 for a 1/5/23 departure and checked fares today and the new fare is $1,726 less for two people. I tried to call my cruise consultant, but apparently they now only work Monday through Friday. I sent an email asking to refare. If she balks, I will just cancel and rebook.

I am booked on the Zaandam full transit in January next year and emailed my cruise consultant to determine that the Zaandam would transit through the original canal which I am much more excited to see than the new Panamax. Her reply - "We do not know that info ahead of time but most likely the old one because the new one is used for bigger ships than the Zaandam…. But still, anything is possible. It depends on the schedule for the day." I am hoping a ship the size of the Zaandam will be directed to the original canal.

I just discovered you are a serial documenter! I am reading your review of the South America Zaandam cruise in December 2013. That is my next dream cruise. Thank you very much for giving us this day-by-day peek at the details of the shipboard and port experiences. Much, much more than the cruise reviews section of the forums.

Thanks for the great travelogue/review. Is this "The End"? or more to come? I still like the old movies where the final shot had "The End" superimposed over it.

Just to wrap it all up and let you know what HAL's response was - I finally got an email response from my Personal Cruise Consultant that she was forwarding my question/request to Ship Services. Their response was: Good day, The amenities included in the promotion cannot be substituted or changed. Thank you & Kind Regards, SHIP SERVICES

Excellent review with so much detail! Thank you. I am booked for basically this itinerary January next year. I have always tried to book my own private excursions with much success, but it has been awhile. I have even gotten very lucky in New Zealand just walking up to one of the operators just off the ship with no prior contact. I have been looking for info for private tour operators at the Pacific ports north of the Panama Canal. Trip Advisor has been somewhat helpful. I haven't found much from searching Cruise Critic reviews. What have you found for sources to find good tour guides at the ports on this itinerary?

Sailing the Zaandam 16 days Ft. Lauderdale to San Diego through the Panama Canal embarking 1/5/23. I chose the "Have It All" promo which includes wifi. My last sailing was in 2018 on the Veendam and the wifi was so bad that I have never bought it. How much better is it now? Good coverage throughout the ship? Adequate speed downloading? Maybe it is better on the larger, newer ships, but I love this class of ship. My plan is to use it to connect my smartphone and stream Pandora music while onboard. Check email. Maybe do some more online research of ports, but I should have done most of that already before embarkation. That's about it. Pandora will be the biggest thing for use on sea days - 8 of them. Will I be satisfied or disappointed? If I will be disappointed, I would like to know so that I can load music onto my phone for use without wifi. Also, apologies if this has been discussed elsewhere recently.

It has been 4 years since we went to Canaletto on the Veendam. I thought an area of the Lido cordoned off as "Specialty Dining" was not very special. Also, we didn't think the quality of the food was very special. I would have preferred the main dining room.

I am booked on the Zaandam for Panama Canal transit 1/5 - 1/21/23 and chose the "Have It All" promo which includes 2 nights Specialty Dining. On the booking confirmation it shows: 1 night Pinnacle Grill dinner 1 night Canaletto dinner I have sent an email to my Personal Cruise Consultant asking if I can skip Canaletto and do another Pinnacle Grill dinner or even just a Pinnacle Grill lunch. I was less than impressed with Canaletto on my previous one-time dining there and just don't want to do Italian on this cruise. No response after 3 days. Has anyone found HAL to be flexible on this? Do you just deal with the issue on board at the front desk or at the Pinnacle Grill reservations desk?