LAFFNVEGAS "LIVE" from the Nieuw Amsterdam, First HAL Ship to Sail!!

[VintageGeo]

@LAFFNVEGAS Thank you for letting us ride along. We have enjoyed your adventures and we appreciate all of the info you have passed along. Safe travels home.

 

Lori & George

 

[Coffeeluvr05]

3 hours ago, LAFFNVEGAS said:

Good Morning from Seattle. One last breakfast in the MDR . While I am sad to leave we will be a lot sadder 6 weeks from today.

As I am thinking of things I will try to point them out. 
HAL no longer has sugar or substitute sugar in packets but rather all in containers for things like Equal it was this tiny shaker smaller than a salt shaker but the sugar container is larger . It looks modern but really is not very functional. There is a spout that the sugar it to flow onto but once the sugar container is half empty the sugar cannot flow into it. Plus because spout is wide it allows moisture in and the sugar gets lumpy.

I use the pink packets.  Does this mean I should bring my own?  I won't use equal or anything with aspartame.

[woodworker&knitter]

2 minutes ago, Coffeeluvr05 said:

I use the pink packets.  Does this mean I should bring my own?  I won't use equal or anything with aspartame.

They are at the coffee stations and the stewards will get them for you

[PSR]

5 hours ago, ksmaxey said:

No bar - just liquid.  It is so much cleaner and nicer.  This is our first with dispenser at the sink

 

Thank you for answering my question; I don't mind liquid soap for hand washing, but I prefer a bar of soap in the shower. Will try to get one from the cabin steward, or bring my own.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

23 minutes ago, Dismomx5 said:

Thank you Lisa for taking us along on your voyage. It was fun to read your posts and follow along.

I, too, hope that you do another LIVE post in a few weeks, and will look forward to any changes that have occurred as HAL gets its rudders in the right direction.

 

I do have one small question...how big are the stickers/is the journal. Maybe I will go back and get my former trips in the right size to add to the journal....that is, if they continue to give them out at the end of a cruise.

 

Safe travels to you and Tom. And thanks again!

I will try to give measurements once I am home. I do find it interesting they have started this while others discontinued.

[woodworker&knitter]

2 minutes ago, PSR said:

 

Thank you for answering my question; I don't mind liquid soap for hand washing, but I prefer a bar of soap in the shower. Will try to get one from the cabin steward, or bring my own.

My husband has been bringing his own bar of soap for many years. HAL has discontinued single use items.

[CruiseMGM]

27 minutes ago, LAFFNVEGAS said:

Follow up to Port Valet. 
First we did have transfers from Hal, with Luggage Direct you are not given colored letter luggage tags but rather white sticky luggage tags and your luggage is sent directly to the airport. You get a transfer ticket that states AAAA or BBBB or CCCC or DDDD. Hal Cruise Director does not announce for these groups to announce you just have to disembark at your time. You also do not have a set bus to go to. Our time slot said 8:00 with attempting to get our statement corrected it was 8:09 and I realize they were not calling any of the Luggage Direct letter. So we went to the gangway. They said no you just go at the time assigned or even afterwards. 
There are numerous busses and they are all going to to the airport.

we arrived at SeaTac about 9:15 and walked right through security. 

 

Thank you SO much for your reply and timings, that's great news. I think we all really appreciate your patience and willingness to guide us through all this.

 

One other teensy question? Did you sign up for HAL transfers pre-cruise or during the cruise? I'm having a problem with the Navigator Ap (and can't sign up online, either) and I'm hoping it's just because we're still 3 weeks out (THREE WEEKS FROM TODAY, woohoooo!!!!). Thank you again!

[LAFFNVEGAS]

I do have a correction regarding the Holland America Logo face masks. We saw people on the bus to the airport wearing them. I asked where they got them and they said they were selling them up on the Lido pool area and they also saw them at the gangway. Well we totally missed those. They stated they were $4.00 each. We also did not see the shops have their “Sale” merchandise out near the Lido pool area on the last sea day.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

2 minutes ago, CruiseMGM said:

 

Thank you SO much for your reply and timings, that's great news. I think we all really appreciate your patience and willingness to guide us through all this.

 

One other teensy question? Did you sign up for HAL transfers pre-cruise or during the cruise? I'm having a problem with the Navigator Ap (and can't sign up online, either) and I'm hoping it's just because we're still 3 weeks out (THREE WEEKS FROM TODAY, woohoooo!!!!). Thank you again!

I purchased the transfers when I made final payment for the cruise.

[barbAZID]

Hi thank you for your posts.  I was wondering if Holland has discontinued the American Test Kitchen.

Wonderful trip.

 

[kazu]

30 minutes ago, atexsix said:

It's a mess anytime HAL tries to reconcile advance purchase packages of any kind, one reason we rarely do it, their computer systems aren't sophisticated enough, as we all know just from trying to book shore excursions and print boarding passes.  In other words, the more complicated the transaction, the more likely it'll get screwed up.

 

LOL - I usually am successful at getting anything mucked up fixed but I tend to do longer cruises and watch my on board account carefully.  (Not sure if that is because I was on smaller ships in the recent past or not?) Just the same, I’ve had to contest a couple of times when I get home too.

 

First sailing so hopefully things improve as they continue 🤞 

[cruisegirl]

4 hours ago, woodworker&knitter said:

Those sugar dispensers were on our 2019 cruise . I’m really surprised they haven’t been replaced yet. They really are useless 

Think I will pack a box of Sweet n Low. And a bar of soap. 🙂

[SLC1954]

FYI, the sticker with our journey goes in the booklet, you just peel if off and place on a page.  I think this may be a new offering to collect our journeys 

This was a great cruise for me, my only problem I has was there was no heat in my cabin despite several trips to guest services. The cabin steward brought me extra blankets. 

[zelker]

2 hours ago, atexsix said:

Bummer!!!  Just think, we could have shared forbidden unrecyclable Splenda packets 😭

I'll "hide" some for you to find around the ship ... just don't flush them!!  😂 🤣 😉

[zelker]

35 minutes ago, barbAZID said:

Hi thank you for your posts.  I was wondering if Holland has discontinued the American Test Kitchen.

Wonderful trip.

 

ATK was discontinued about 2 years ago.  I miss it.

[zelker]

41 minutes ago, LAFFNVEGAS said:

I do have a correction regarding the Holland America Logo face masks. We saw people on the bus to the airport wearing them. I asked where they got them and they said they were selling them up on the Lido pool area and they also saw them at the gangway. Well we totally missed those. They stated they were $4.00 each. We also did not see the shops have their “Sale” merchandise out near the Lido pool area on the last sea day.

YAY!!!  Sure beats ordering them from that website for $8 each and then paying almost $10 for shipping! 

[1ANGELCAT]

Lisa, I hope your flight is on time . Safe travels and thanks for the memories.

[zelker]

2 hours ago, atexsix said:

I kinda had a feeling this was coming, I'm going to go ahead and plan on it for HAL so we're not scrambling at the last minute, Dear Dad is V.A. and I can't imagine what would be involved in trying to get him an appointment two days before a holiday weekend.

 

V.A. won't work, their website says results won't be available for 3 or 4 days, we'll just have to pay for it ourselves at pharmacy.

I was envisioning they'd do a rapid test at the pier.  Will be interesting to see how it plays out.  Would be a PITA if we have to get it done before that since many people will be traveling during the days leading up to embarkation.

 

[atexsix]

Lisa,

 

Did you do all your typing on a phone or tablet?

[atexsix]

1 minute ago, zelker said:

I was envisioning they'd do a rapid test at the pier.  Will be interesting to see how it plays out.  Would be a PITA if we have to get it done before that since many people will be traveling during the days leading up to embarkation.

 

Exactly.  Was just talking about it with DD and pier testing is the only way they can pull it off, only reason it's a mess today is because it came without warning, otherwise pier testing is a fairly smooth process.

[atexsix]

47 minutes ago, kazu said:

 

LOL - I usually am successful at getting anything mucked up fixed but I tend to do longer cruises and watch my on board account carefully.  (Not sure if that is because I was on smaller ships in the recent past or not?) Just the same, I’ve had to contest a couple of times when I get home too.

 

First sailing so hopefully things improve as they continue 🤞 

So do we, we rarely do 7 days or less.  And now that they aren't doing paper statements means customer service will be getting a lot more phone calls.  Is it deliberate?  To minimize the number of people crowding around guest services?

[dutchie50]

5 hours ago, LAFFNVEGAS said:

I am not sure I got it, maybe try sending it again. Thanks 😃

Sent you a pm on fb/messenger. 

[wandb]

What a wonderful “Live From” Lisa. You made us feel like we were there with you, and brought back so many memories of past HAL cruises. Alaska was our very first HAL Cruise, back in 2005—and still one of our favorites. 

 

Thanks for the time you spent keeping all of all of us up to date. 

[12cruise2]

what's this--HAL isn't doing paper accounting statements at the end?  We keep track daily, but still. . .

[canadianbear]

1 minute ago, 12cruise2 said:

what's this--HAL isn't doing paper accounting statements at the end?  We keep track daily, but still. . .

I can’t imagine 😱 it might be ok on a short cruise but longer ones we’ve found it’s always a mess that needs straightened out while on board.  What about people that don’t use a smartphone etc.  I sure hope this isn’t a forever thing.  Kind of hard if they email you your statement and it’s an issue when you get home.  Imagine all the phone calls!