ZGSCL Live from the Koningsdam: November 14th 7 day Mexican Rivera

[erewhon]

Thank you for doing another Live thread.

Bon Voyage!

[Florida_gal_50]

7 hours ago, zgscl said:

So glad to hear you are staying on next week. I am sure we will cross paths. I’m in cabana 18 & our meet and greet is 3:30 on Monday in the Crows nest

I think I’m in 3 but I’m to lazy to dig through my mountain of paper right now being so busy and all 😉.  I’ve got to pack my bags as well because I took a reasonable upsell to a vista suite a couple weeks ago.  Luckily I don’t have to move anything on hangers.  Have a pleasant flight today.

Edited November 13, 2021 by Florida_gal_50

[CruiseMGM]

Very happy to be following along! We'll be on the K in December, same itinerary, and are really looking forward to your review and comments and pointers and pictures. Thank you!

[zgscl]

3 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

I think I’m in 3 but I’m to lazy to dig through my mountain of paper right now being so busy and all 😉.  I’ve got to pack my bags as well because I took a reasonable upsell to a vista suite a couple weeks ago.  Luckily I don’t have to move anything on hangers.  Have a pleasant flight today.

I am sure I will see you up there, drop in to say hi any time. Yay for the upsell ferry! I am at the airport, so far so good! 

[zgscl]

Greetings from San Diego! Very uneventful but long day getting here. In years of flying Delta my luck ran out and I met my first unfriendly employee at baggage check in. They were not outright rude, but definitely brusque and not at all pleasant. In my experience Delta employees have always been friendly and helpful so this was a bit of a surprise. I can only imagine that the pandemic has taken its toll on all frontline service workers & I hope their day gets better!

 

The Sky club in Seattle is open and serving hot food. They had eggs, pork or vegan sausage, breakfast potatoes, an assortment of pastries. I don't specifically recall but I think there was oatmeal and some sort of yoghurt parfait type item. Everything except alcohol is self serve but they do provide disposable gloves for those who want them to wear when dispensing food. 

 

I decided to try the HAL pre cruise hotel for the simplicity of it as well as the early boarding time. This season HAL is using the Sheraton San Diego Hotel and Marina. For a single traveler it was $279 plus tax (total $300.95). Transportation from the airport to the hotel is provided by the hotel's complimentary shuttle and there was no HAL representative at the airport. The itinerary on your boarding provides the instructions to get to the hotel. 

 

 

 

I was very lucky and only waited about 3 minutes for the shuttle. The shuttle runs on a 20-25 minute loop from 4:45 AM to Midnight. Follow signs from baggage claim to ground transportation and wait by the courtesy vehicle area.The shuttle was completely full and I arrived at the hotel at 2:30. There was a very long line for checkin with around 50 people. They had 8 agents at the desk and it took about half an hour to get through the line. The line stayed about this long until somewhere between 4 & 5. 

 

My room was not ready yet but they took my phone number and said they would call me when it was ready as well as got me pre-checked in. As is pretty standard the hotel holds a $200 deposit for incidentals (I am assuming this is per room per night). Also please note if you book the hotel independently there is a $26 resort fee, but this is included when staying with the cruise line. 

 

While waiting for my room I checked my ridiculous amount of luggage for one person with the bell desk and headed over to the hotel's restaurant - Quinn's Ale House. They also mentioned there was a poolside cafe and coffee shop that was also open at this time. Lunch was being served and dinner starts at 5. 

 

 

 

Restaurant staff were very friendly and it was a very nice place to relax while waiting for my room. Food was decent but not exciting. Grilled shrimp appetizer was close to tasteless but the burger that I forgot to take a picture of was good but not memorable. Apple Tart was good, not too sweet. 

 

At 5:15 I had still not heard from the front desk so I used the Marriott app to message the front desk to see if my room was ready. This was only possible because they added my Bonvoy number to the reservation when I tried to check in earlier. They told me my room was ready and to stop by the desk to finalize my checkin. To my surprise there was no one in the line at all and I was able to walk straight up to the desk. 

 

 

 

[zgscl]

At check in they handed out the Holland America welcome letter which provides some details about getting to the ship. I am very happy to report that they are providing luggage service and our bags will be picked up by the bell staff in the morning. We just need to attach our HAL luggage tags and place them by the door by 9 AM. Unlike the ship bags are kept on the inside of your room and they will come in to get it. This makes a lot of sense given a hotel is not nearly as controlled of an environment as the ship but the downside is you must be up and dressed by 9. 

 

 

One important note - it will benefit you to get to the HAL representative as early as possible when they open at 5. Bus transfers seem to be done on a first come first served basis (though maybe they take into account your boarding time). I am on the first bus and they said to be back in the lobby, checked out and ready to go by 11. They did reiterate to bring valuables, medications, etc. as well as passport, boarding pass and proof of vaccination/covid test with you and not to put them in your luggage which you will not see. 

 

 

For some unknown reason I have a lovely studio suite with a king and sofa bed. Unclear if HAL booked this for me (I am staying in a Neptune suite but I don't think would make a difference) or if this was an upgrade by the hotel because they were oversold in standards (also seems odd as I have absolutely no Marriott status). Either way I am not complaining, maybe they knew I had way too much luggage and would need somewhere to store it. Hotel is completely sold out tonight. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 14, 2021 by zgscl

[canadianbear]

Glad you’ve made it to San Diego. It is one of our favourite places.  Lots to do.  Easy walking area although I’m not sure where your hotel is location wise.  We usually stay within a few blocks of the cruise terminal.  
 

 

[zgscl]

The hotel TVs are quite modern and allow you to sign into your Netflix/Amazon Prime account to stream content. They also have the ability for you to wirelessly connect and watch something on your phone or laptop on the TV. There is a movie system with a good selection of movies as well as local TV. 

 

The hotel does offer room service for breakfast and dinner. Pizza was pretty good and much better than the one I had recently at home that did not come with cheese...I always thought cheese came standard on pizza! 

 

 

 

 

 

When boarding a cruise away from home the biggest challenge I experience usually is tracking down a stapler to attach the luggage tags. Sometimes the front desk does not want to part with theirs and sometimes there is a big line in the mornings. I have solved this problem with a tiny stapler, $4.95 on Amazon and I have attached the luggage tags from the comfort of my room. Sometimes it really is the little things in life. 

 

 

And with that, I am off to bed as it has been a very long day. Excited to get onboard tomorrow and meet a number of folks from Cruise Critic. 

 

[zgscl]

9 minutes ago, canadianbear said:

Glad you’ve made it to San Diego. It is one of our favourite places.  Lots to do.  Easy walking area although I’m not sure where your hotel is location wise.  We usually stay within a few blocks of the cruise terminal.  
 

 

Thank you! Great city though I am not really exploring this time. The hotel is extremely close to the airport. Less than a 5 minute drive from the airport, most of that being on airport property. If one was ambitious they could walk. I thought about staying downtown but wanted to just make everything easy. this time around. 

[zgscl]

Also, I should note that the hotel mask policy is that masks are required for unvaccinated guests. Vaccinated guests are mask optional and no proof of vaccination has been required anywhere. Hotel employees are wearing masks and the front desk has a gigantic plastic shield that the employees need to walk around to talk to you because the hole to pass things through is quite small. When behind the shield the employees did often pull their mask down but they were quite good about putting it back when coming around to hand you things. 

[canadianbear]

34 minutes ago, zgscl said:

Thank you! Great city though I am not really exploring this time. The hotel is extremely close to the airport. Less than a 5 minute drive from the airport, most of that being on airport property. If one was ambitious they could walk. I thought about staying downtown but wanted to just make everything easy. this time around. 

Oh now I know where it is!   We had friends stay there in 2016 and went to visit them.  We enjoyed walking around the grounds.  
 

Have a great sleep before your cruise!

[Florida_gal_50]

For anyone getting on the koningsdam today keep a very close eye on your account.  Everyday it’s a new surprise for me.  I’ve not been given Mariners credits for dinners i bought before the cruise.  I’ve not been given the discount for my wine package.  I’ve been charged for premium internet.  I paid off my account yesterday so new charges are easy to see.  I had my 5 star pinnacle dinner last night and even though I’ve advised them I still got charged.  That got removed while I was sleeping but they replaced it with Canaletto.  I asked them do you think I stopped by for a snack?  This week I have free internet, gratuities and drinks.  This ought to be fun 🙄.

[canadianbear]

16 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

For anyone getting on the koningsdam today keep a very close eye on your account.  Everyday it’s a new surprise for me.  I’ve not been given Mariners credits for dinners i bought before the cruise.  I’ve not been given the discount for my wine package.  I’ve been charged for premium internet.  I paid off my account yesterday so new charges are easy to see.  I had my 5 star pinnacle dinner last night and even though I’ve advised them I still got charged.  That got removed while I was sleeping but they replaced it with Canaletto.  I asked them do you think I stopped by for a snack?  This week I have free internet, gratuities and drinks.  This ought to be fun 🙄.

Good grief 🤦‍♀️  Who wants to spend their cruise always having to have their account corrected.  Ugh.  
 

Hope this week goes smoothly for you…sigh!

[Florida_gal_50]

5 minutes ago, canadianbear said:

Good grief 🤦‍♀️  Who wants to spend their cruise always having to have their account corrected.  Ugh.  
 

Hope this week goes smoothly for you…sigh!

I’m getting super fed up.  I hope others don’t have this issue.

 

 

[Florida_gal_50]

Fellow koningsdamers your ship has come in.  We are pulling into the pier.

 

That is disappointing about Hal not meeting guests at the airport.  For me that’s the biggest draw for a hal hotel.  Once at the hotel I’m fine with getting to the pier on my own.

[canadianbear]

16 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

I’m getting super fed up.  I hope others don’t have this issue.

 

 

You’d think they’d have gotten used to being back with guests.  In the past I’ve found it an annoying waste of my holiday time to have to deal with their errors.

[zgscl]

1 hour ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

For anyone getting on the koningsdam today keep a very close eye on your account.  Everyday it’s a new surprise for me.  I’ve not been given Mariners credits for dinners i bought before the cruise.  I’ve not been given the discount for my wine package.  I’ve been charged for premium internet.  I paid off my account yesterday so new charges are easy to see.  I had my 5 star pinnacle dinner last night and even though I’ve advised them I still got charged.  That got removed while I was sleeping but they replaced it with Canaletto.  I asked them do you think I stopped by for a snack?  This week I have free internet, gratuities and drinks.  This ought to be fun 🙄.

Welcome back to San Diego! We will be there soon. Thanks for sharing, how tedious. At least it is easy to follow on the navigator app. I remember several cruises we would go to the front desk every day to get an updated print out 

[scubacruiserx2]

10 hours ago, zgscl said:

The hotel TVs are quite modern and allow you to sign into your Netflix/Amazon Prime account to stream content. They also have the ability for you to wirelessly connect and watch something on your phone or laptop on the TV. There is a movie system with a good selection of movies as well as local TV. 

 

The hotel does offer room service for breakfast and dinner. Pizza was pretty good and much better than the one I had recently at home that did not come with cheese...I always thought cheese came standard on pizza! 

 

 

 

 

 

When boarding a cruise away from home the biggest challenge I experience usually is tracking down a stapler to attach the luggage tags. Sometimes the front desk does not want to part with theirs and sometimes there is a big line in the mornings. I have solved this problem with a tiny stapler, $4.95 on Amazon and I have attached the luggage tags from the comfort of my room. Sometimes it really is the little things in life. 

 

 

And with that, I am off to bed as it has been a very long day. Excited to get onboard tomorrow and meet a number of folks from Cruise Critic. 

 

 

We used to staple unit we found these waterproof reusable tag holders .

 

 

 

[zgscl]

43 minutes ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

We used to staple unit we found these waterproof reusable tag holders .

 

 

 

Oh I love that idea thanks!

[Florida_gal_50]

I use those holders as well and attach them with pipe cleaners.

 

I visited the front desk to get my new card key.  They maintain the reason it's so difficult to fix my account is because I'm a 5 star it wants to give me extra credits.  Here's a thought, don't debit when you shouldn't.  I told her I'm fine with extra credits :).

[zgscl]

48 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

I use those holders as well and attach them with pipe cleaners.

 

I visited the front desk to get my new card key.  They maintain the reason it's so difficult to fix my account is because I'm a 5 star it wants to give me extra credits.  Here's a thought, don't debit when you shouldn't.  I told her I'm fine with extra credits :).

As an accountant I’d be happy to help explain the difference between a debit and a credit to them. Given the mariner program is not new, and I can only assume you are not the only 5 star who has sailed and gotten discounts/other perks you would think they could figure out how to make this work. 
 

How did they handle the B2B? Did you all have to disembark? 

[Sharon in AZ]

1 hour ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

We used to staple unit we found these waterproof reusable tag holders .

 

 

 

I also purchased these and found them on Amazon. Great purchase and useful tags for any type of trip not just a cruise. 

[SilvertoGold]

1 hour ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

I use those holders as well and attach them with pipe cleaners.

 

I visited the front desk to get my new card key.  They maintain the reason it's so difficult to fix my account is because I'm a 5 star it wants to give me extra credits.  Here's a thought, don't debit when you shouldn't.  I told her I'm fine with extra credits :).

Same old, every cruise.  HAL really needs to get a handle on the 5 star rewards.  I absolutely hate having to waste time because of their inferior and inept accounting methods. We had a Pinnacle Manager on the Rotterdam once who would take me down to the Front Desk to get the Pinnacle meal of the previous day sorted out.  In the morning  we would meet and down we went.  He was aghast and confused about why this was such a problem, but so helpful.

[zgscl]

2 minutes ago, SilvertoGold said:

Same old, every cruise.  HAL really needs to get a handle on the 5 star rewards.

We were very lucky that there were no issues with the 3* discounts on Nieuw Amsterdam. If they can figure out drink packages and pre-cruise HIA purchases, how can this be so complicated???

[sprinkles]

2 hours ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

We used to staple unit we found these waterproof reusable tag holders .

 

 

 

 

2 hours ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

We used to staple unit we found these waterproof reusable tag holders .

 

 

 

Thank you for posting this.  Hubby was literally stapling  on our Koningsdam tags while I read this.  So I just ordered some (sitting here waiting to be thrown out of our hotel room at noon lol).  1:20 check in time.   I feel like a kid waiting to go to Disneyland.