jeh10641

The most recent relies to my request have been very helpful. Thanks to all responders. jim

Hi, CruiserBruce, Thanks. I know about the extra stop needed on cruises leaving and returning to U.S. ports. I believe that Koningsdam cruises from San Diego (and others leaving from CA) do stop at Ensenada (Princess and Carnival) since I have researched those cruises. What i am looking for is specific information on the ships: Edge Solstice Ruby Princess Royal Princess Grand Princess Radiance (Carnival) Legend (Carnival) Spirit (Carnival) I hope to get personal experience knowledge from people who have been on those ships. I was on Anthem OTS last month so I do not need too much info on Ovation OTS or Koningsdam since we have sailed on Westerdam, Oosterdam and Rotterdam (2021). Jim

I have these as possibilities, thanks. We were on Ovations sister ship last month on a transatlantic (Anthem). We liked the ship and our cabin. Have you tried Solstice or Edge? Jim

We love sea days. We just got off a transatlantic crossing on Anthem of the Seas (15 nights) with lots of sea days. Jim

What ship? Jim

Hi, leaveitallbehind, You are the only responder to get it right. Since we have been to Hawaii many times, I am looking for cruise recommendations primarily ships. We have five cruises on HAL, 2 on Royal and 1 on Costa. Thanks for understanding. Jim

We sailed on Rotterdam in December 2021. Of all the cruises we have been on, it remains our favorite. I wish it sailed from the West Coast. Jim

Now that you mention it was a Wheeler, I se it. My father owned a 45 foot Wheeler Sport Fisherman in the 1950s. Jim

My wife and I are planning a cruise to or from Hawaii in 2025. Any recommendations? We have been to Hawaii many times as I traveled there for business more than 60 times. We have cruised with Costa, Royal Caribbean (twice) and HAL (5 times). Any advice on the various ships (Princess, Celebrity, HAL and/or Carnival) will be most welcome. Thanks in advance. Jim

New reality post-Covid.

As Kenny Rogers sang "You got to know when to hold, know when to them!"

I use TripAdvisor to see what any port has to offer. Sometimes I use the ship excursion, sometimes I use private tours. Mostly I had good experiences with both. Occasionally there are glitches in both cases. My interests lie in history and culture not beaches. Look at past cruises for the same ports on Cruise Critic. Sometimes passengers have recommendations or criticisms.

Look for transatlantic cruises from Europe to Florida or Texas. The Fall cruises usually have warmer weather in the Mediterranean as well as stops in Madeira, the Azores or the Canaries. Look for Spring cruises from southern U.S. ports to the Med. Same reasons, same ports. On westbound Fall cruises, you gain an hour of sleep for five nights. You lose that hour going East. The super large ships have so much to do that you will not be bored. Smaller ships like HAL's have less bells and whistles but there are still lots of things to do. Jim

You can probably do a back to back transatlantic on Cunard.

I realize that the original question was about no extra cost burgers so no need for a discussion over free /no extra charge in this thread. Since Celebrity burgers were brought up, I will give a strong vote for the "free" poolside burgers/fries/shakes (the last not free) on HAL ships. Jim

Hi, Eddie, Just have fun. I have done one eastbound TA (1959) and three westbound (1959, 2008, 2016 with a fourth coming in October 2023). We love westbound because that gives us time to spend in Europe beforehand visiting places we had only dreamed or read about. Although we live near Seattle, we are both from New York City. We have family and friends there whom we visit before flying to Europe from NYC. Less flight time than from Seattle. We are both in our early 80s. We are retired so there is no need to "relax" since we are always relaxed. Going westbound, we gain an hour of sleep time every night so after two or three weeks of land sightseeing before the cruise the extra sleep time is a great way of winding down. Each TA cruise we have taken has included three to five ports before the TA part. We are both readers so plenty of time for that. We love to meet new "friends" on every cruise. We love the entertainment at night. We do trivia, games, etc. Go to lectures or movies. Jim

On our last HAL cruise (Rotterdam, Port Everglades) in December 2021, our boarding time changed several times. The ship had about 1600 passengers for that cruise. I was 80 at the time. Boarded around 11 AM. Jim

I, for one, appreciate the more relaxed dress codes. I wore a tie and jacket for 50 plus years while I was employed. When I retired (at age 70), I swore no more ties or jackets. I save the packing space for more necessary items (pills, CPAP, etc.). My wife usually wears a dress or pants suit for dressier occasions. I add a nice sweater to a dressier shirt and pants (colored or khaki). Jim

My last HAL cruise was December 2021. At that time, I brought on board over a dozen paper containers of Premier Protein shakes with no problem or questions asked. Port Everglades was my embarkation port. Ship was Rotterdam. Jim

We buy our cruise insurance both from RCCL and Allianz. I think you can buy it up to 48 hours before you travel. I suggest you contact your Travel Agent or Royal to make sure. Jim

This just further enhances my choice of HAL over other cruise lines. Way to go HAL! Jim

My wife and I always buy the HAL laundry package for cruises over a week. It makes packing so much easier and lighter. Jim

Hi, Cliff, Anthem is by far the largest ship we have sailed on. The previous largest was Navigator of the Seas in 2008. But that cruise was only at 75% capacity so only 2500 passengers. Our HAL trips since 2009 have all been on ships with a capacity of 2700 or less. I am not sure I will cope. The town I live in had 5000 souls when we moved here in 1978. They could all fit on Anthem! Jim

Hi, cruisemom42, One thing I remember distinctly about those early (for me) was the three classes - tourist, cabin and first. Never the twain should meet. You could go down a class or two to visit but NO upward mobility was allowed. As a teen (1959), I did not follow those rules all the time. It feels like we are heading back to the class system with cruise loyalty programs and ships within a ship facilities. Jim