Lido deck main

What is new and exciting is that you are cruising again and with your friend. That is all that matters. Hope you have a wonderful cruise.

We are January 2024 and it was approved a couple of months ago.

We prepaid one of our gratuities for the Grand South America worked out at that time to 1.27 percent. We had over 1,000.00 OBC in U.SD. To help offset the the other persons gratuity. HAL's rate is pretty competitive for Canadians.

Was Gede just on the grand Volendam. Our cabin steward was named Gede.

Thanks for taking the time for the review. For future reference you can use the Navigator APP very similar to the Medallion and use the order now area to preorder your Dive in meal from anywhere on the ship. No need to wait in line. Glad you had a great cruise.

Ballesteras Islands is out of General San Martin in Peru. Puerto Montt is in Chile.

I have never had a perfect cruise. But I still love it. It is all about gratitude and thankfulness. I am grateful I get to travel, I am thankful to all the people who help to make my cruise a good one. Did you read the world cruise blogs, some with pure joy and thankfulness, participation in ships activities, others bloggers more miserable and entitled and complaining. Who cares how long it takes to embark, meet and talk with your fellow cruises while waiting in line, who cares if they run out of a certain food, my goodness you are on holiday, lots of different foods available. Some people even start their blog, with this is probably the last HAL cruise I will take, and then just go on and on about how bad it is.

Rich, Thank you very much, I appreciate you taking the time to do the blog, it is quite a commitment. I really liked the inspiration cards that you posted each day. Your pictures are great. I like your writing style. Thanks again.

You fell off the ship. You didn't want to pay for a wheelchair. On the other thread you mention that customer service provided you crutches to get back on the ship. Please take responsibilities for your own actions. Just because something bad happened to you off the ship. What should be said is that in hind-site I should have rented a wheelchair. It would have made my life so much easier. You should be taking this lesson as a learning experience. A statement to the effect I feel bad treating some of the HAL employees so poorly is also due. Some people put customer service representatives through hell and don't appreciate a thing. It is everybody else's fault but mine. It is all nonsense.

That map show west of Vancouver Island.

Pete, thank you very much for the enjoyable, information loaded blog. On my next cruise in September I will request to sit at table 89 one night and have a drink and a meal in your honour and toast to you (and the rest of the gang).

I am referring to the Grand voyages. Which I was on. We were on the Volendam. The Grand South America leaving this fall is on Zaandam. I know there are other part voyages on other ships.

Actually you said it best. That you are interested in some HAL itineraries (especially Antarctica). HAL is about the destination. You will probably be on the Zaandam. Smaller ships can only go to those destinations, and also that cruise includes Amazon River, also need a smaller ship. Smaller ships have less spaces for late night activities. We are elite on Princess. For me travel is about the destination all of my longer cruises are on HAL. All of our repeat Princess cruises leave and return to Vancouver, we do them when we want to fill in between our HAL cruises as those are simple and easy but always to the same places. It really is about the ship and destination. We just did the Grand South America (including Antarctica) got home in March was on sister ship of Zaandam. Yes late night activities were lacking. Still loved the cruise. We are early sixties and like you like late night and activities. We are going to Europe this fall on HAL on one of the newer ships, which does have a lot of late night activities and a great itinerary. So in this case we can have it both, great itinerary and great late night entertainment. It is up to you, for niche destinations that require smaller ships it is about destination only, little late night. If late night is important to you hopefully Princess has a ship that does Antartica. We have an over 3 month cruise early next year on HAL on the same small ship we took to Antartica, again late night will be lacking but again it is about the destination. Hope you have a wonderful cruise whatever you decide.

@Miss G please read post 105

We were on the Volendam for the full Grand South America voyage 74 Days ending in March 2023. I can confirm that behind the area where you pick up meat items there is a high grill where the meat, fish, etc would be cooked. Many a night we waited for fresh items. Usually no more than five minute wait.. That grill is on both sides off the lido.

To go through the land crossing at the U.S. boarder. All passengers in the vehicle must have nexus to go in the nexus line, otherwise they all have to go in regular line, which is usually long but with the low rate of the Canadian dollar I can't imagine many Canadians going shopping in the states anymore, so lines to cross maybe less.

Nexus is first line. Never a wait . There is a sign for Nexus. All the backup for the other people is U,S. Customs. Also regarding the Dive In, you can preorder on the navigator App.

are you calling 1-855-932-1711 call in the morning open at 7:00am pacific time

I love the positive attitude and all the participation you do. You have clothes for all occasions.

It's a requirement to itemize laundry. We always used the fill the bag option for $20.00 (could be higher now) could get a weeks worth of clothes in that bag

I can remember the spiel but it was something like that. For every dollar one spent on the program, you would get X credit on HAL. But the rewards back to HAL were low.

LOL yes it was probably ten years ago my time frame is all off.

I remember that now, I think it might have been around 2017 or 2018, when they introduced the program, they had a desk where the future cruise consultant sat, the ship I was on had the desk just to the right of the customer service desk. I think they were handing out free selfie sticks if you went to hear the spiel. So we went to get the selfie stick and listened to what the person was selling and came to above conclusion it was like a time share so we had no interest in the program what so ever and left without buying into the program.

Watching it right now, no mention of the Canadians. 😔. Just like Argo, Canadians instrumental in helping the Americans out of Iran but downplayed in the movie. Thank goodness Come from Away exists and is popular. 😊

Bon Voyage.