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Matt Hochberg in his weekly 1 hour You Tube video for Royal Caribbean Blog spoke specially about the serving sizes at Izumi.

Hi, bvocruise, I sailed on the old version of Nieuw Amsterdam (1938 version), Westerdam and Oosterdam before I sailed on Rotterdam. The first three did not have a Grand Dutch Cafe so I did not miss it. On Rotterdam I only had two 8-inch, warm chocolate chip cookies that I thought were the best I ever ate. I would not change a cruise just to have a GDC on board. The Pinnacle class of ships max out 2,660 (or so) passengers and less than 1,000 feet in length. Not big ships in my opinion. Rotterdam was never crowded. GDC had no long lines, had pleasant window seats and I read a book while enjoying my cookie. Have great cruise to Alaska. Jim

Hello, cgolf1, My first cruise was on HAL I was not yet 18. That was in 1959. HAL is my favorite (sailed on Costa, American Export, Royal Caribbean). The small music venues are wonderful. The food is excellent. We sailed with cousins in Dec. 2021 on Rotterdam. One was gluten free and she loved the food options. in all venues. I love the walk around the ship promenade deck. Do not worry about the dress code (except no shorts or bathing attire in inside dining areas). For formal nights, I usually wear a button-down collar shirt with a nice sweater (it can get chilly) and my wife wears a simple dress or pants/jacket. If you feel like packing a tuxedo or formal gown, by all means do so. If you like dancing, do that as well. The main theater shows can be entertaining. If Cantare makes an appearance see them. Ditto Dance One. Most of all, relax and enjoy your trip. That is on MY bucket list. Jim

Hi, Leanne, Fort Lauderdale has special memories for my wife and me. On the port side as you exit into the Atlantic are two high rise condo buildings on the beach. Collectively, they are known as Point of Americas. The shorter of the two (sort of offset to the rear and slightly further from the beach is where my parents lived from 1969 until 2000. My mother was the last survivor and she moved out 2000 to a senior complex (age 89). Their apartment was on the northeast corner of the 23rd floor (three down from the top). Whenever we visited, with or without our son (now 52), a highlight was whenever a cruise ship went by, many residents blew their airhorns and waved at the passengers. As a passenger on a few cruises into or out of Port Everglades, it brings tears to my eyes as the memories flood into my brain as we pass the buildings. Thanks for reminding me of those thoughts. Jim

As I was reading the comments, I had another thought. Silly me! Anthem does not have three floors of dining but it does have four MDRs on two decks. I have read that two are traditional and two are MTD. Am I correct in that? Second, Anthem has the Solarium Bistro which is a combination of buffet (starters) and sit-down (main courses) with dessert a buffet. To me that sounds like a viable option.

Hi, gail-s, We booked MTD for 6:45 more than 6 months ahead of our 10/15/23 transatlantic on Anthem.

Check out Royal Caribbean Blog. There was a post today (03/28/23) about this.

We have only taken one RCCL cruise (Navigator, 12 nights, 2008). Did not know it was a thing, never saw or heard of him before this stream. Now I am looking forward to seeing him/her in October on Anthem transatlantic (15 nights).

I, too, am "an old coot" and love being one. No longer do I have to please anybody but me (and my wife, "happy wife, happy life"). The Ocean is certainly a nice natural pacifier. Jim

My first Royal cruise was in 2008 on Navigator from Barcelona to Tampa in November. I think there were less than 20 kids. My second Royal cruise will be in Oct. 2023. I am a Three-star Mariner on HAL but the deal on Anthem was less $100/day/person for a "spacious forward facing" cabin. It is now 55-60% higher (and no longer available). I usually book large inside cabins. We were not big fans of Royal's specialty dining in 2008 so by passed that on three HAL cruises (none less than 11 nights) until December 2021 on Rotterdam. That specialty dining was awesome! I have two specialty venues booked for our Oct. 2023 transatlantic on Anthem. Much as I would love to sail on HAL this time, dollars won out over perks.

If you do not like RCCL cruises then change your cruise line. Screw the benefits, they not all that great anyway.

I stand corrected. Misread my atlas. I did mean Portsmouth. Sorry about the confusion. Jim

Thank you BecciBoo, I, too, dress for me. At 80+, I no longer have to impress anybody else. For "formal" nights, I usually add a nice sweater to my normal evening dress clothes, collared shirt, long pants (not jeans). Jim

Wow! Awesome collection. Thanks for sharing. Jim

Sir PMP, I wish. I am not sure where the 42 came from but I am 81+. Jim

I know that not all cruises stop in the U.S. I was giving a possible scenario on how staff could convert two dollar bills. Do you know how they bank their cash tips?

I believe they get some time off on occasion. Certainly at the end of their tour.

I thought two of the dining rooms were designated for My Time Dining and two for Traditional (2 seatings).

Any U.S. port.

I received a $2 bill as a gift recently and am saving it for a special occasion. I like the idea of having a bunch of them for tips on a cruise. Ship personnel can go into a U.S. bank when in port if they want to convert them. I have never had a problem with $2 in retail stores.

I live near Seattle. For 89 octane gas, I am averaging about $4.89/gallon. Eggs are over $4/dozen. My cruise cabin (large spacious forward looking) that I reserved in April 2022 for October 2023 is now 60% higher and unavailable at any price. That is a transatlantic, 15-night trip. Original price was less than $1,500/person. That comes to less than $100/night/person for room, food, entertainment. etc. i usually reserve an inside cabin (on HAL) for that price which is why I booked it so far out. Air fares are about where I expected them to. To get to Europe from New York City, we are flying on IcelandAir with a short stop in Iceland. That saved about $500 in air.

Hello, aimcat, Did you get your flu shots last fall? Your experiences could have happened on a land-based vacation too. Depending on where you live, flights may be necessary for a land vacation. Airfares have been greatly inflated for the last 6 months or so. Especially last-minute fares. Most cruise bloggers do not recommend booking a cruise two weeks before it leaves. You might get lower prices but that is not a guarantee. We always book as far our as we can. Our next cruise in October, 2023 was booked in April, 2022. That cabin today is about 60% higher and is not available now. $800 for a 4-day drink package? That is a lot of booze for that short period of time. Maybe that contributed to your woes? Were you cruising during "Spring Break" time for schools? Cruise ships at that time usually sail at more than 100% of capacity because of kids staying in cabins with parents. Do not give up on cruising. Just plan better next time.

Hello, John Bull, I guess the deciding factor is time. On our last trip to London (2009), we drove from Chiswick (west London) to Canterbury and then to Hastings on our first day. We stayed overnight in Hastings. On the next morning we visited Battle and the Battle of Hastings site. After our visit, we drove to Salisbury, stopping in Plymouth to see Nelson's Victory. Even though we were driving "on the wrong side of the road", it was an easy drive. Jim

Hello, The Chandlers, This stream has many recommendations for travel between London and Southampton. I think we are going to do it by train from Waterloo Station to Southampton. The trains go in the opposite direction from Southampton. Luggage should be a concern since there are five of you. Jim

My first HAL cruise was a transatlantic in June 1959 followed by a Caribbean cruise on the same ship in 1966 (1938 version of the Nieuw Amsterdam). More recently, we were on Westerdam, Oosterdam and Rotterdam. I do not miss three classes (first, cabin, tourist) that said you could NOT attend venues in the classes above yours. I do not miss smokers everywhere (although I WAS ONE on my first 2 cruises!). I do not miss mandatory dress codes (too much to pack at 80+ years old). I miss the Midnight/Chocolate Buffets (although I would not be able to do those now because of the time and dietary issues). I miss the singing/dancing wait staff on the last night. I, too, miss the music in the MDR. Not only piano players but sometimes string trios/quartets like European cafes. I miss the greetings on embarkation and debarkation. Thank you all for the memories. Jim