crystalspin

None! Now, there have been a few ports that happened to be on a cruise, that were not significant or were actually pretty awful -- but they weren't the reason for the cruise or trip (i.e. not on bucket list). Cartagena Columbia comes to mind!

I normally start a very exact multi-column-Excel list about a month out, but with holiday planning ALSO occurring this month, I'm mostly doing the packing-planning by doing all.the.laundry and hanging likely candidates on an "X" rack, one side for me, the other for dr'spin. Xmas dinner will be Xmas eve this year, packing on Xmas day, start for California on 26 December. I get the suitcases out at the last possible moment because is freaks the cats out! Fortunately they don't know the difference between the X-rack being used to stage packing vs. for drip-drying. ETA: I do also have a double-list in Google Keep that I can add to on computer OR on phone, when I think of things to take or to do before trip starts.

Sharon's looks like the SMALL tree. Current sizes and prices are as follows: CHRISTMAS TREE SMALL $47.49 Decorated artificial tree (approx 16 inch) with LED lights. Batteries included. CHRISTMAS TREE MEDIUM $67.49 Decorated artificial tree (approx 27 inch) with LED lights. Batteries included. CHRISTMAS TREE LARGE $87.49 Decorated artificial tree (approx 35 inch) with LED lights. Batteries included.

Well, you do pay more for HIA than base-rate "Best Price", but when Crew Appreciation was temporarily part of HIA, just those grats, 2x SBP, and one WiFi plan, came to more than the difference between base-rate and "Best Value". So the specialty dinner and shore-ex were 'gravy'. However your second paragraph does make me realize that I will have to do the math all the more when we also get 4*s, after this B2B!

It was possible, for the cost of $11.80 per person per day and all adults in the cabin had to do it (if any did). At that rate it was less than ONE drink over $11 per day, so some saw value! But recently there have been first-hand experience with "Have-It-All-and-More", where if you want a drink over $11, you pay just the difference plus 18%. So before you upgrade, confirm with a bartender whether or not that practice is in effect for your cruise! So with that caveat, I would say upgrading to Elite would not be worth it. Some people read the Elite description online to say it includes 15 alcoholic beverages and unlimited non-alcoholic... but we don't reach 15 beverages in a day including all! If you think you might, stock up on canned drinks on first day and/or port days to keep in your fridge. One other aspect recently reported was the bartender charging only one card for two drinks (it lets them complete the "sale" faster)... for this couple, they were charging the fellow's card causing him to go over 15 on several days! So if the bar-server/tender wants to ring just one card -- alternate cards through the day.

I see this thread being locked quite soon! PCCs have saved me more than 10%. Hank doesn't think so. That's fine for both of us.

Hi Lais! You seem to know the Navigator app pretty well! This is my first time using it since it got so useful. Really since Alaska 2018 as I don't remember using it much on the TAtlantic in 2019. We're about to go on a B2B and I can only "see" the first leg in the Navigator. Have you (or has anyone) figured this one out?

Agree on kudos to Cruise Critic!

You would call 1-800-355-3017 and stay on to the last "To Talk To A Real Person" menu option. Then ask about getting a new one. In the wake of the pandemic, there are apparently some new PCCs. Your experience is not the first I have heard of CCers having to instruct their PCC on the Club Orange upgrade! Also note that even a good PCC is not going to be watching your booking for fare reductions or increased perks; that is still up to you. But when you call them to re-fare, say, they should point out any negatives about the change ("Yes the fare is $200 less but you lose $300 in OBC" for example).

Even if you/they call it a re-fare, it is essentially a cancel+re-book, and therefore means losing what ever was the promo then for the new fare and whatever is the new promo. And requires a refundable deposit; if non-refundable then you would also lose that!

No. Sorry. There is a pressing only Ship's Laundry available. ETA:

Oh yeah, this is bread-n-butter for HAL from San Diego (sometimes boarding in Vancouver!). Just go to Holland America website and search-a-cruise "Hawaii".

I see you have no replies. This may be because what you are looking for does not exist. I don't know what itinerary you might be looking at. Guessing you might have been looking at the NCL Escape out of Galveston? My one cruise on NCL was my last, so I did not spend a long of time researching there! Just for comparison, a Neptune Suite FOR TWO PAX on a 14-day Panama (FLL to SAN) on Holland America's Eurodam is $18,566 barebones, $20,306 with beverage packages, shore excursions, specialty dinners, and wifi. This is for two people, not three couples. I could not price the larger (twice the size) Pinnacle Suite because they sell out as fast as they are published.

The packing problem with warm/hot/humid climates is that you can't re-wear garments as much -- sometimes not at all! BC they are all sweated up! But I do not pack anymore, just more hand-wash or hotel or cruise laundry.

Agree with all three points! If you didn't make it your "personal item" flying, you would have to pack it entirely full (perhaps of socks and undies?) then pack the Bogg entirely within a larger suitcase. I have packed other things that way! Like a big rice-paddy hat from Vietnam...

14! I am doing ALL.THE.LAUNDRY. And shopping for Xmas dinner which will be served on 24 Dec.

You've probably already been assigned one. Assuming you get emails from HAL, for example the Alaska promo I received today, look at the dark blue header. Mine says ID: Rewards Status: Contact your Personal Cruise Consultant XXXXXX XXXXXX 1-800-355-3017 (x#####) XXXXXXX@HOLLANDAMERICA.COM If yours doesn't have the PCC noted, call that number and stay on to the last "To Talk To A Real Person" option. Then ask about getting one. I know pre-covid, they were assigned without asking as I some of the thousands I have saved were when I had to cancel a cruise (that I had booked by myself online) on the last day before final payment date. It turned out HAL was observing Xmas that Friday! No one answering phone. I remembered that I "had" a PCC and I emailed her addy and called her extension and left time-stamped messages with the TWO reservation numbers for a TransAtlantic cruise in a Lanai cabin. While not a Pinnacle Suite, this was not an inexpensive booking for me! My inspiration worked, and I was refunded.

Where's the "WOW" emoticon! Also, who is going to back up and move for two days, even if it were free?!!

I booked a long cruise (Hawaii-Tahiti) within the launch period, in a forward high-deck verandah. Subsequently I decided I wanted to move to a mid-ship lower Vista Suite. I figured I would have to take the current Promo and lose $300 in early/launch OBC, but my PCC said NO -- since the move is an UPGRADE, she could give me the launch fare and package including the OBC! I do not know if I would have seen the same thing "doing it myself". My PCCs (two now) have saved me thousands since I started relying on them.

I think @SuperCurmudgeon meant the second to last day before sailing! haha

Hi JulieAnne! There is already a RollCall for this cruise, here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2810169-ns-september-6-2023-11-days/#comment-62061652 Only 5 CC members so far but you might see what they are thinking and planning. We have visited both Copenhagen and Barcelona for several days on the ground, at one end or other of TransAtlantics. Loved both cities! ETA: If you can spend two nights in Copenhagen before your cruise, I recommend Tivoli Gardens for a lovely outing. You could easily spend the whole "free day" there. Also, taxis are safe and plentiful.

Agree, try Edge. The entire HAL website hangs up more times than not (but sometimes works fine, go figure) on my Chrome. Tried just yesterday at a time it wouldn't let me "Manage My Bookings" in Chrome and it went right in with Edge. I gave up Firefox several years ago for the many sites it wouldn't load.

After online checkin, my screen looked like that posted by @richwmn. I had the site send me the PDFs by email, as my laptop is not convenient to the printer. For both the legs of my B2B sailing 29 Dec (I did this Monday the 12th). There is no time on our boarding passes but I may have to print them without it as we start travelling a few days early!

How odd! The ports change when you pick different dates! I will have to look at each date (for all four listings). May is such a nice month here in the high desert I would tend to pick a different month... Also May '23 is too early for my sis and mom because they need to see COVID resolved. But thanks for the heads up on checking those itineraries!

We're minimum 5hrs from SLC and having driven I-80 across Nevada once I would avoid it! Geologists call it "Basin and Range for a reason! Very tedious! We would probably take the slightly longer route I-70 to I-15 to route 58, spending nights in Mesquite and Bakersfield and SF of course. However it is the ship/cabin choices and cruise itinerary on Princess that just don't seem desirable! 10-days (11 in 2024) and only calling on Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway - whereas Carnival Miracle r/t LA is 14 days with those ports PLUS Sitka and Icy Strait Point.