Live from Alaska on Ms Zuiderdam - April 2022

[neeuqdrazil]

I'm relaxing in my hotel room before boarding, but during my walk earlier this morning saw pallets of diet coke and coke zero being prepared for onboarding, so I'll be happy. 

[lazey1]

18 hours ago, PSR said:

 

I've forgotten how to access the "signatures" at the bottom. Can you give us a hint of how to add that feature? Thank you.

 

P.S. Just found it by going into my ACCOUNT SETTINGS then "Signatures" and clicking "view signatures" or something like that, then "Save".

Please let me know how you find your ACCOUNT SETTINGS.

Jane

[Woofbite]

18 hours ago, Crew News said:

Did it just by any slight chance have legitimate Western/Southwestern

style salsa on it or is it still only that mango garbage?

 

 

The Taco Bar reopening after more than two years on hold this cruise. 

 

 

[Cruise Suzy]

14 minutes ago, lazey1 said:

Please let me know how you find your ACCOUNT SETTINGS.

Jane

Click on the triangle next to your CC name at the top of the page to get a drop down list of options.

[0106]

17 hours ago, canadarocks said:

Vegetarian Menu changes daily.

There was a vegetarian option on the menu in the MDR every night in February.  Sometimes I ordered several apps,  sometimes I ask for the meat to be left off an entree too.  It was very easy to find veg options in the Lido at lunch and dinner.

 

Check the navigator app MDR menus to see some of the possibilities.

[canadarocks]

Actually on double checking Roger's site..... the Vegetarian Menu is extensive but I don't think it changes from day to day. Please correct me if I'm wrong Roger. 

[Crew News]

17 minutes ago, canadarocks said:

Actually on double checking Roger's site..... the Vegetarian Menu is extensive but I don't think it changes from day to day. Please correct me if I'm wrong Roger. 

The Vegetarian Menu is the same every day and it need not be requested the night before.  An insider told me that in the near future the Vegetarian Menu will be a part of the daily menu.

[Crew News]

3 hours ago, RedneckBob said:

Maybe you should purchase the bottle to save money: only $4,995!

I did note that the Remy Martin has been moved to a bar that does not offer Happy Hour prices.  Saving $100 on a shot of liquor on Happy Hour prices was not a good cost saver for HAL.

 

When I grabbed a copy of the current Shops liquor list, I noticed that the $2800 cognac in a crystal bottle and refillable for free in Paris has been dropped from the list.

[Gactag01]

Thank you so much for posting the vegetarian menu. I am no longer a vegetarian, however I do have celiac disease and it is great to see so many GF options. 

[Crew News]

2 hours ago, quack2 said:

Speaking of cameras, what are shooting with these days?  I just made the jump to a mirror-less super computer.  Long-learning curve.

I bought an Olympus M1X (mirror-less) in February 2020 to shoot wildlife in Alaska, so post-pandemic, this will be its initiation.  It has a bird tracking feature that I am anxious to try.  I have been practicing the 60 fps with tracking for youth basketball and confirm that many close their eyes just before the ball leaves their hand.  For slow-moving things, I use an Olympus MKIII and of course my pocket camera is a Canon G7 MKIII.

[Crew News]

Just a few tidbits for "in transit" day here in Vancouver.  "In-transit" passengers were delayed from leaving the ship so that the pathway where several COVID had passed could be sanitized.

 

Our group left the Zuiderdam around 10:15 AM, walked past some clueless port workers and then waited in a line to be Security scanned, quick stop at US Border Patrol, 5-minute pause, and back on the ship before 11:00 AM.  This was absolutely the quickest I have processed in Vancouver in many years.  Kudos to those few who made this happen.  FWIW nobody wanted to see pour ArriveCAN receipts.
 

For the first time in many cruises, the self-disembarkation announcement came over a speaker in my stateroom and not in the hallway speaker system.  I was robbed of the last ten minutes of blissful sleep from my alarm clock .setting

Edited April 27, 2022 by Crew News

[Crew News]

2 hours ago, Woofbite said:

Did it just by any slight chance have legitimate Western/Southwestern

style salsa on it or is it still only that mango garbage?

The choices were the mango stuff or pico de gallo.  I think that the ship was caught a bit short by the approval and did not have nacho chips or real salsa onboard.  The ship did their best with pita chips that would not have survived a more liquid salsa.  I hope the real salsa is being loaded aboard as I make this post.  If I had five minutes with the chef to give a few nacho tips, I know the ship could be truly Southwest authentic.

 

The taco meat was good, the cheese was not cheddar, and the red onion was a bit thick for my taste, BUT the ship did their best to reopen the Taco Bar. 

[ellbelle]

I wondering if you could post about the bedside electrical outlet situation and assume they would be the same in inside, ocean view and balcony cabins (we are in a balcony)? We’ve never been concerned in the past and cannot remember from sister ships, but now that my husband is using a c-pap I’m hoping we don’t have to have a long extension cord to the desk. 
 

Thank you in advance!

[muffin]

FWIW  I understand the ArriveCAN  info is automatically attached to your passport when you get the receipt for it. Therefore when your passport is scanned they get that info up too…no need to ask you about it.  

 

[Skipper's Mom]

3 hours ago, Crew News said:

I did note that the Remy Martin has been moved to a bar that does not offer Happy Hour prices.  Saving $100 on a shot of liquor on Happy Hour prices was not a good cost saver for HAL.

 

When I grabbed a copy of the current Shops liquor list, I noticed that the $2800 cognac in a crystal bottle and refillable for free in Paris has been dropped from the list.

So disappointing!  LOL!

[Crew News]

37 minutes ago, ellbelle said:

I wondering if you could post about the bedside electrical outlet situation and assume they would be the same in inside, ocean view and balcony cabins (we are in a balcony)? We’ve never been concerned in the past and cannot remember from sister ships, but now that my husband is using a c-pap I’m hoping we don’t have to have a long extension cord to the desk. 
 

Thank you in advance!

There is a USB-A port on each side of the bed.  If you need AC power make sure the cord does not look like a multi-adapter type.  The chip can also provide an extension cord if you request it.  You can make th request by completing the medical form or just ask your Room Steward when you board.

[liketraveling]

1 hour ago, ellbelle said:

I wondering if you could post about the bedside electrical outlet situation and assume they would be the same in inside, ocean view and balcony cabins (we are in a balcony)? We’ve never been concerned in the past and cannot remember from sister ships, but now that my husband is using a c-pap I’m hoping we don’t have to have a long extension cord to the desk. 
 

Thank you in advance!

You can request an Extention cord from the assesibility dept.  i have stayed from an inside to a signature Suite and the only cabin so far that had a bedside outlet was a signature Suite.  I am sure Neptune’s have many more.

 

With all that said I don’t know what they upgraded on the ship during the shutdown.

 

I am booked on the Zuiderdam in Nov and requested the Extention cord.

 

 

Edited April 27, 2022 by liketraveling

[Florida_gal_50]

1 hour ago, muffin said:

FWIW  I understand the ArriveCAN  info is automatically attached to your passport when you get the receipt for it. Therefore when your passport is scanned they get that info up too…no need to ask you about it.  

 

Maybe cruising is a lot different but I couldn’t board my plane from the USA to Canada without showing my receipt.  Not only do I have a passport but I also have a nexus card.  I believe I also had to show it once I got back to Canada.  This was last month.

[PSR]

On 4/26/2022 at 2:35 PM, StLouisCruisers said:

 

 Error...🙄 Sorry

Edited April 28, 2022 by PSR

[PSR]

Crew, Have you added MDR dinner menus yet? When I click on your link, I get a lot of other menus, etc. for 4/25/22, but no dinner menus. Am I doing something wrong? Thanks.

[TortolaMC]

This is in HAL info on Alaska and Canada health and safety protocols:

 

"Guests not from Canada who are starting their cruise in Canada will need to complete ArriveCAN 72 hours before arrival and fill it out again within 72 hours of embarkation."

 

We're on the May 4 cruise driving up the day before from Seattle staying overnight in a Vancouver hotel.   So we fill out ArriveCan for our May 3 entry into Canada and then after we get there we fill it out again for May 4 embarkation?   What did you guys have to do?

 

[Crew News]

50 minutes ago, PSR said:

Crew, Have you added MDR dinner menus yet? When I click on your link, I get a lot of other menus, etc. for 4/25/22, but no dinner menus. Am I doing something wrong? Thanks.

First Alaska season lunch/dinner menus will be posted tonight.  Pacific Coastal menus are a one-time only use so they will not be included..

[Crew News]

1 hour ago, PSR said:

Crew, Have you added MDR dinner menus yet? When I click on your link, I get a lot of other menus, etc. for 4/25/22, but no dinner menus. Am I doing something wrong? Thanks.

Here is a link to the first evening's menu:  Alaska MDR Embarkation Day Menu

[zgscl]

1 hour ago, TortolaMC said:

This is in HAL info on Alaska and Canada health and safety protocols:

 

"Guests not from Canada who are starting their cruise in Canada will need to complete ArriveCAN 72 hours before arrival and fill it out again within 72 hours of embarkation."

 

We're on the May 4 cruise driving up the day before from Seattle staying overnight in a Vancouver hotel.   So we fill out ArriveCan for our May 3 entry into Canada and then after we get there we fill it out again for May 4 embarkation?   What did you guys have to do?

 

I disembarked Zuiderdam this morning. They made a huge deal about having the ArriveCAN completed and bringing the QR when we got off in Victoria and then again in Vancouver. We even had to sign a document and turn into guest services attesting to its completion. We also had to complete a Canadian customs declaration form. 
 

Both in Victoria and Vancouver we did not interact with a single customs or immigration official. No one looked at our passports, no one looked at us, no one talked to us. The one person I even saw in a uniform was in Victoria doing an inspection for people disembarking early. In Vancouver we walked off the ship, got our luggage, walked through and out. 

[zgscl]

4 hours ago, ellbelle said:

I wondering if you could post about the bedside electrical outlet situation and assume they would be the same in inside, ocean view and balcony cabins (we are in a balcony)? We’ve never been concerned in the past and cannot remember from sister ships, but now that my husband is using a c-pap I’m hoping we don’t have to have a long extension cord to the desk. 
 

Thank you in advance!

Fill out the SRI form and they should have one for you. You can also request from guest services. I said I was bringing a CPAP and had one waiting in my room even though I didn’t request it. I had an outlet on both sides of the bed on Zuiderdam but this was a Neptune Suite so the layout could be different in other categories. 

 

I also bring our EU adapters which have two USB ports and a US outlet on most cruises. I can usually gain a plug and a USB outlet somewhere in the cabin with this. 
 

https://book.hollandamerica.com/specialServices/login.action