BYO water bottles?

[Hsmama]

Oosterdam- Alaska cruise- never cruised before. I have been reading,and it appears that bringing our own travel mugs for water etc is a good idea, to bring back to cabin? Also- if I have some water bottles ready to fill/refill,is this smart? port days,etc. I don't like paying for bottled water if I don't have to- I want to be able to have a drink of water in the cabin with me, do I need the mugs, or just stick with water bottles to refill?

[Lady Arwen]

You can drink the ship's water directly from the tap.......as good as what you have at home. You can fill your bottles in your cabin or you can fill up in the Lido buffet. However, if using a public water dispenser, please fill a glass and then pour into your container so as to not touch your bottle to the water dispenser, the same for the ice machine. You can, of course, purchase water in bottles, but it's really not necessary.

[alwaysfrantic]

I took a coffee mug but other than a water bottle, wouldn't need anything for water. You can get a cup of water anytime, anywhere. And if you have the bottle you can refill it for ports or carrying around.

[Sequim88]

We pack both - our Holland America ceramic insulated coffee mugs and wide mouth water bottles that make it easier to add mostly ice to melt down through the day. For our Alaska cruise mugs work well for sitting on decks or balcony and drinking hot coffee or cocoa but I especially like cool water at night. Cabin bathroom tap often produces lukewarm water even at coldest setting due to the distances in warm utility passages.

[take us away]

We pack both - our Holland America ceramic insulated coffee mugs and wide mouth water bottles that make it easier to add mostly ice to melt down through the day. For our Alaska cruise mugs work well for sitting on decks or balcony and drinking hot coffee or cocoa but I especially like cool water at night. Cabin bathroom tap often produces lukewarm water even at coldest setting due to the distances in warm utility passages.

Just ask your room steward for ice in the evenings which should solve your lukewarm water issue.

[POA1]

If you are taking your own bottle, pack one with a wide opening (once the cap is off.) It will be easier to refill. Not 100% sure on the Oosterdam, but the last 3 ships we were on had a bottle fill station in the Lido. If not, ask one of the Lido stewards to fill it from a pitcher. We keep ours in the mini fridge, but ask your room steward for evening ice if you want your water even colder.

[bUU]

If you are taking your own bottle, pack one with a wide opening (once the cap is off.) It will be easier to refill.

Great advice. The best ones we've found recently are Contigo AUTOSEAL. We recently picked up a 16 oz for $11.77. They come up as Deals of the Day on Amazon pretty regularly. I use them at work, where I have been prone to knocking my water over into my keyboard. I did it last week with the Contigo... and the water simply didn't come out. Whew!

[Hlitner]

We wonder when HAL is planning to implement their 1/2 Corkage fee for empty drink containers :).

 

Hank

P.S. If you are a new to HAL you might not understand...so just ignore this post.