drgrinch

Also, do not allow your phone to take its date and time from the ship's network while at sea.  At some point in the night it may switch you to GMT - very awkward if you have set an alarm for the next morning.

Departure night is usually the easiest for reservations.

After use, your cabin steward will collect and replace them from your cabin if you leave them out in an obvious place.

Be careful of taxis in FLL.  Get the price before you get in.  I was charged $45 for a 5 min. ride from the cruise terminal. 

Don't know if Holland America has jumped on this bandwagon or not.  Don't worry though if you were concerned - all major curiselines send their garbage to shore to be disposed of.  Cargo ships and river-dumped trash in Asia are the main contributors to the plastic problem at sea.

Lyft is good alternative to Uber - their peek time pricing isn't quite as shocking. However, if you need to wake up in the morning, or just long for an old school "E Ticket" ride experience, I'd definitely recommend the taxi cab - I've had some real white knuckle experiences in Boston cabs!

Keep in mind there are different levels of travel insurance - from "cancel at will" to relatively bare bones emergency coverage. The former can be quite expensive, costing a significant percentage of the cruise fare, while the later can usually be had for a few hundred dollars (US) depending on your age (over 70 can get expensive). My wife and I buy the emergency only variety in case we have to be evacuated or a severe health issue forces us to cancel the trip. The choice is yours and you do get what you pay for.

June is historically the "driest" month for the panhandle area of Alaska - less chance of getting rained on, or having your flight-seeing tour cancelled. But then rain is always a distinct possibility, especially in the panhandle area.

DW and did the renewal on the Amsterdam in 2012 (our 32nd) and cannot recommend it enough. A lot depends on the captain and organizer but, it was an incredible experience. The gifts that come with the package were a minor consideration. The ceremony itself was fantastic (DW was floating on a cloud all night) and it was the only time I can remember when a HAL officer offered a handshake. It is a memory we still cherish.

If you book a Suite, one fantastic thing that hasn't changed much is the Neptune Lounge and concierge service. Its still a wonderful oasis and quiet refuge which, incidentally, still serves the best coffee on the ship. We are somewhat alarmed to read that they have changed the pillow chocolates though! In all seriousness, we love HAL ships and the basic qualities that make HAL special have not changed - a manageable vessel size combined with quiet sophistication and a skilled and warmly accommodating crew serve to create an ultimate "get away from it all" experience. If it weren't for the day-of-the-week carpets in the elevators, we'd lose track two or three days into the cruise.

DW and I will be sailing on the Westerdam through the Panama Canal in March. It will be interesting to see what has changed since we were last aboard her in 2014.

Trivia is one of our favorite on-board activities, even if it does become a blood sport at times. You just have to overlook the hypercompetetive types and enjoy the game for itself. If other teams want to turn the game into a stress-filled pressure cooker, then that is their loss.

We head to whichever dinning room is serving the bon voyage lunch. Then we take a quick tour around the ship to see what is where and what may have changed since our last trip.

As I Like the cash-back feature, and the ease of resolving problems with Discover, I use it as my card-of-record onboard and where I see the relevant decal displayed by merchants. As others have indicated though, you can't rely on it once you are off the ship.

Some ships have a craps table,, some do not. The minimum is $5. Double odds are allowed on pass/come bets but some of the other wagers are at a reduced payout compared to Vegas.

The previous poster has offered good advice. I would add that a "bucket" hat works well for yoir head as does a water resistant shell jacket over whatever you need for warmth. Don't bother with an umbrella as they are a pain, or outright useless, in a wind.

Probably the main thing after you are suitably dressed is to just get used to it like the locals do. It takes a couple days, but then you'll just start to ignore the drizzle and have a good time. The Alaskan panhandle is a temperate rain forest area - most days are rainy to one degree or another.

Youngsters frequently are less than semi-formally attired on HAL - even on formal/gala nights. As long as they are neat and reasonably well behaved they will fit right in.

This is what makes HAL special; some ships may be long in the tooth but the crews are incomparable in quality for a mass-market line.

My strategy, learned from another poster here, is to tell the masseuse up front that I would much rather spend money on a supplemental tip than on products she might try to sell me - it always works for me.

The Neptune Lounge has the best coffee on the ship (or espresso/cappuccino). Hanging around the Neptune Lounge machine in the morning is good way to meet the ship's officers - they know where the good coffee is and it's close to the bridge.

DW and I were on this cruise as well. I would add that Princess has really improved the quality of its MDR food (experienced last spring as well) - our meals were excellent.

Also, when we boarded, there was a quartet of carolers dressed right out of a Dickens novel in the Piazza singing classic carols under a snowfall provided by a snow machine on deck 7. It really established the mood for a great Christmas experience!

We are currently on a 10 day Mexican Rivera cruise. Our suite was 6k for DW and I (each). Including our son as the 3rd in our cabin was an additional 1.9k. This was the call-in-and-book-it price with no promotions or specials. Hope our referent gives you some idea. HAL lets you book additionals for $500 if you have some loyalty status.

We are currently on a 10 day Mexican Rivera cruise. Our suite was 6k for DW and I (each). Including our son as the 3rd in our cabin was an additional 1.9k. This was the call-in-and-book-it price with no promotions or specials. Hope our referent gives you some idea. HAL lets book additionals for $500 if you have some loyalty status.

We are currently stopped in Mazatlan. Our cruise began in SF where we were treated to carolers in 19th century garb doing a caroling routine that could have come right out of Dickens. The voyage thus far has been exlemplary with the food, entertainment and general ambiance right on as far as we are concerned. There are 500 kids on the ship but, if you avoid the normal "kid zones", they really aren't a problem. We took some greif from the family for scheduling this but I have to say it has been one of the best travel decisions I have ever made. Princess seems to have Christmas well and truly nailed...

Well, at least if they get too annoying you won't have to go far to toss them overboard!

We have two experiences with PCL: a good experience with some reservations on the Sapphire and a fantastic experience on the Emerald. In view of how PCL cruises are priced compared to other "upscale" mass-market lines, I have to say we are very satisfied. Indeed, we'll be departing this weekend on the Grand and I for one can't wait for another PCL experience!