LIVE - Koningsdam Oct 17th - ¡Mexican Riviera!

[aring75]

41 minutes ago, triiip42 said:

What's your boarding time and are you just going to walk on over to the ship?

We are in boarding group A, so we are supposed to board at 1:00 pm. 
 

And yes, we will walk right over. You can see the port entrance right from our hotel room. It’s literally right across the street. 
 

 

 

We have to be checked out of the room by 11:00 am, but I already checked with the front desk. Our room key will still provide access to the rooftop deck and lounges. We are welcome to stay until our boarding time. 

[aring75]

2 minutes ago, Cruisin MarcnFran said:

@aring75 Did you stay at the Residence Inn or the Springhill Suites? We have picked this property for our January ‘23 cruise on the Koningsdam. We’re trying to determine the difference in the two other then the price. We will be coming in several days before cruise.

 

We are at Springhill Suites, but they are sister properties so they share a parking garage and you’ll see both names on things like the coffee cups and laundry bags, etc.

 

They are right next door to one another with SS being (very slightly) closer the the pier. If you are trying to decide between them for just a one or two night stay, I think I would choose based on price. 
 

Just my opinion, but I hope it helps!

[Caribbean Chris]

So grateful to read your details about Springhill Suites. We booked the Konigsdam’s January Hawaii 17 night cruise ages ago and decided back then to splurge with the same corner view room you did - I agreed with your assessment that it was well worth the small additional charge! Great to see the room looks exactly like the website photo, and good input that you can hang out in the hotel until time to walk across the street after vacating the room itself. Have a WONDERFUL cruise!

[zgscl]

34 minutes ago, aring75 said:

We are in boarding group A, so we are supposed to board at 1:00 pm. 

Interesting - for the Seattle sailings A started as 1 but then moved up to 12 about a week out. Seems like San Diego they are holding it at 1. I wonder if they really mean this or if people will be able to get on earlier. The program I saw from last week indicated MDR lunch from 12-1 was open which will be pretty empty if people can't get onboard until 1!

[aring75]

23 minutes ago, zgscl said:

Interesting - for the Seattle sailings A started as 1 but then moved up to 12 about a week out. Seems like San Diego they are holding it at 1. I wonder if they really mean this or if people will be able to get on earlier. The program I saw from last week indicated MDR lunch from 12-1 was open which will be pretty empty if people can't get onboard until 1!

I’m not sure. There’s already a long line of people standing under the awning waiting to board. It’s 10:30 am. 
 

[zgscl]

27 minutes ago, aring75 said:

I’m not sure. There’s already a long line of people standing under the awning waiting to board. It’s 10:30 am. 
 

Interesting! I guess folks are back to trying to get on early. Will be interesting to hear how successful they were. On Nieuw Amsterdam we did notice boarding photos in the gallery arranged by time and there were some as early as 10:30 or 11 even though the first boarding times were not officially until 12. 

 

As much as I like being onboard early I think waiting in my hotel room sounds a lot more pleasant! 

Edited October 17, 2021 by zgscl

[Josie201]

Glad to have found this.  We’re boarding Koningsdam in February for the first time for a 25 day Hawaii/Mex Riviera cruise.  I’ll be following along so thank you and enjoy!   

[aring75]

28 minutes ago, zgscl said:

As much as I like being onboard early I think waiting in my hotel room sounds a lot more pleasant! 

Absolutely! And we are currently enjoying this beautiful weather on the 5th floor terrace of our hotel. I would not want to stand around waiting to board if I didn’t have to. 
 

Mark has a clear view of the entry gate to the terminal. He says people just keep trickling in. 
 

[aring75]

24 minutes ago, Josie201 said:

Glad to have found this.  We’re boarding Koningsdam in February for the first time for a 25 day Hawaii/Mex Riviera cruise.  I’ll be following along so thank you and enjoy!   

Welcome! That 24 day cruise sounds wonderful. Hope this helps you get ready for that amazing cruise!

[Florida_gal_50]

@aring75did you notice a drug store or supermarket close by the hotel? Thank you.

[Hogladyrider]

@aring75....Port of San Diego really has it together for boarding....at least they did when we sailed HAL out of that port.

 

We were apprehensive as we are Platinum on Carnival but this was our 1st time on HAL so we anticipated being at the bottom of the list.....wasn't the case we moved thru the boarding line smoothly and swiftly, hope you experience the same.

[Crew News]

31 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

@aring75did you notice a drug store or supermarket close by the hotel? Thank you.

There is a CVS on Ash Street (about three blocks north, unfortunately uphill walk).

[Florida_gal_50]

1 hour ago, Crew News said:

There is a CVS on Ash Street (about three blocks north, unfortunately uphill walk).

Thank you.

[maggieq]

Have a great cruise!  Looking forward to your comparisons to sailing on HA vs celebrity during COVID.   I loved the freedom we had on the celebrity Edge.  

[aring75]

Okay…sorry it took so long to get back. Getting on board, I felt like a kid in a candy store! But let’s get caught up, shall we?

 

 

We waited comfortably on the outside terrace at our hotel until about 12:15 pm. Our boarding group was supposed to arrive at 1:00, but we didn’t mind waiting if needed. 
 

After making sure all was good with our check out, we walked over to the terminal. That took about ten minutes. It would have been faster if we wanted to be jaywalkers. 
 

We dropped off our luggage and were allowed right in. First you wait in a quick-moving line for the “health check-in.” Here, you must show your boarding pass, followed by your vaccination cards and results of your negative COVID test. 
 

Next, you are directed to the security line. This is where they scan your carry on items and you walk through the metal detectors. 
 

After this, you go to one last station where they check you in for the cruise. After this you are sent to the gangway to board. Keep your boarding pass out one last time. 
 

While it sounds like a lot, it moved quickly and really was no problem at all. From start to finish it probably took around 15 minutes. 

[aring75]

6 minutes ago, maggieq said:

Have a great cruise!  Looking forward to your comparisons to sailing on HA vs celebrity during COVID.   I loved the freedom we had on the celebrity Edge.  

Hi again @maggieq! The Celebrity cruise was amazing! It’s been a while since we sailed with HAL, so I’m really looking forward to seeing the similarities and differences as well. You know I’ll tell you all about it! 😁

[aring75]

After boarding we went straight to the cabin to check it out and grab our room keys. 
 

 

 

 

 

We have a standard sized balcony. There are two chairs and a small table. 
 

[aring75]

Still trying to decide if I like the storage options or not. Upon first glance, it seems like there’s quite a bit of storage space. 
 

 

 

 

However, many of the drawers are pretty shallow and/or narrow. And the over the door shoe holder, which I like to use for toiletries and such, does not fit on any of the available doors. 
 

One like this:

 

[aring75]

It may take a day or two to get settled. I’ll let you know what I think after living in the space for a bit. 

[aring75]

We were given two very good quality HAL masks. I like that they are adjustable. 
 

[aring75]

Headed to the buffet for lunch. They are serving everyone’s plates from behind the counter. You are not permitted to serve yourself. 
 

All silverware and napkins are found at your table and they come around pretty quickly to get your drink order. 

 

Started off with the roasted chicken, macaroni and cheese, and parsley carrots. 
 

 

 

And then I had to try the famous HAL bread pudding. LOL, I said just a little bit. I’d hate to see the large portion!

 

[aring75]

We have early dinner. That means we eat at 5:30 pm. That seems quite early to me. Especially after a long day in port. I will report back about how that goes. 
 

 

I meant to mention it before. There’s a good amount of wall space. Since the walls are metal, this is great for bringing your heavy duty metal hooks. 
 

[CruiserBruce]

10 minutes ago, aring75 said:

We have early dinner. That means we eat at 5:30 pm. That seems quite early to me. Especially after a long day in port. I will report back about how that goes. 
 

 

I meant to mention it before. There’s a good amount of wall space. Since the walls are metal, this is great for bringing your heavy duty metal hooks. 
 

You could change to Anytime dining, thus getting to eat when you wish...see the maitre 'd. You could eat in the various specialty restaurants, or in the Lido.

[Hogladyrider]

@aring75......when we sailed HAL it was the same, no self serve at the buffet, they filled your plate from behind the counter.  We actually prefer this over serve yourself.

 

The selection of food at the Lido was outstanding and OMG the fresh bread was to die for since we do not eat much bread anymore.

 

I am a fan of no self serve at buffets for two reasons; cleanliness and cuts down on food waste.  To me there is nothing appealing about seeing a cruise passenger with their plate piled HIGH with food and they leave most of it to go in the trash!  JMO

[maggieq]

Your cabin reminds me of a balcony cabin we had  on the Celebrity Summit.