What are your favorite things ( preferably recent ) about HAL ?

[Haljo1935]

29 minutes ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

 

The rainbow followed us in our wake !

Thanks for sharing - that is awesome!!🌈

[scubacruiserx2]

We used to love eating on the Nieuw Amsterdam at the pop up Rudi's but we went to the last one on the Nieuw Amsterdam on our long cruise . They no longer have it on that ship , so enjoy it on the video .

 

 

 

The charger plates

 

 

 

The bread and accompaniments

 

 

A different bread and roasted garlic with the escargot

 

 

 

Next up was Foie Gras Torchon for the Mrs and Beef Tartare for Moi

 

 

 

Main course was Broiled Maine Lobster for me and Patty had a little Lamb Persil lade

 

 

 

I really did like the Ratatouille but we use a little cheese in ours

 

 

Pat had a HUGH Rudi's Soufflé and I had the Apple Tarte Tatin

 

 

 

It was a wonderful meal and at 1/2 price - a bargain . We received our 4th star Mariner medal on our bed this cruise . We wanted to wear them to dinner but decided to wait for a Gala night .😉

 

Edited August 22, 2023 by scubacruiserx2

[scubacruiserx2]

We knew that weather could change rapidly in Alaska and it started nice with us being the first ship in .The weather had been nice and clear.

 

 

But the fog began to roll-in resulting in us closing our roof over the pool 

 

 

Edited August 23, 2023 by scubacruiserx2

[scubacruiserx2]

The Westerdam was right behind us.

 

 

 

We we sure glad that HAL got in early and was leading the pack of other cruise lines

[scubacruiserx2]

Tracie's downtown looked pretty full so we went to the more distant one  Which was near the Tahku the whale fountain .

 

 

After leaving the fountain there's a nice walk along the water toward Tracy's II

 

 

While Juneau a nice place to visit I wouldn't want to sleep here . Alcoholism is rampant here and they sleep where they can sleep . 

 

 

Unfortunately Tracy's II was closed because of Covid

 

 

So no legs here without a long line and high prices for frozen legs . The lady who worked here explained that none of the crab legs are fresh at Tracy's - only frozen .

 

 

And so we went up the tram for dinner on the mountain top where the Halibut was fresh .Halibut Sliders and clam chowder

 

 

 

 

This young lady saw me taking a photo of Pat and asked me if I would take one of her and Dad said OK .

 

 

Thus ended this visit to Juneau on the Nieuw Amsterdam .

Edited August 24, 2023 by scubacruiserx2

[scubacruiserx2]

The last time that we went to Juneau we flew , landed and walked on Herbert Glacier

 

 

 

We came on the Nieuw Amsterdam's sister ship the Eurodam . These are our favorite class of HAL ships and here's the video of the Eurodam as we came down the tram .

 

 

 

The Eagle has landed ( Tram from Mt.  Roberts )

 

 

[fsufancc]

We just got off of the Rotterdam.  This was our first HAL sailing.  We had been on 2 Royal Caribbean sailings earlier this year.  I have to say that we are totally done with RCL.  I'll never sail them again.  They nickel and dime you to death, the food was awful. The ship was crowded - I mean shoulder to shoulder crowded at times.

 

The food on the Rotterdam was outstanding.  We ate mostly in the MDR and had a night in the Pinnacle Grill.  Never once had a bad meal.  The HIA package was well worth it too.  The ship never felt crowded.  The rock band in the Rolling Stone Rock room were beyond great.  The only real negative might be the Billboard on Board piano team. To me, they were just meh. 

[AliceS]

On 8/8/2023 at 2:48 AM, Stateroom_Sailor said:

1.  Reasonably priced, especially suites

2.  Excellent service from crew

3.  Best food in the mass market

4.  Exotic itineraries

5.  Spending adds to loyalty points

6.  Relaxed atmospher

7.  Great live music

 

 

8.  Minimal number of Negative Nancies, or cheerleaders.

I totally agree….don’t know about the suite pricing, but the rest?   Amen!

[RD64]

So many things from my recent 14 day B2B Alaska - but - at the Alaskan Brunch in the main dining room….the Berries with Goat Cheese. Just a random menu item, but my wonderful waiter Arta suggested it. With a balsamic glaze….one of the best things ever on a cruise ship.

 

Also though - the Asian section of the Lido buffet. Whether I had lunch in the MDR or the Lido, I would visit this section twice a day at least. If you are a fan of sambal - look for it when they make it with the orange peppers. I cried it was so good.

[scubacruiserx2]

We really liked some of the singing on both of our HAL Panama Canal cruises . These guys from Unity did a couple of good shows and we had a nice chat with some of them .

 

Please listen to some of the videos as they can all sing well 

 

 

 

[scubacruiserx2]

Unity also did a great tribute to Billy Joel .

 

 

 

 

 

[scubacruiserx2]

 Another group that we enjoyed on HAL was the Jukebox Rogues . The first time that we say them they were billed as Frankie's Guys . We had hoped that it was a tribute band doing Jersey Boys that we had seen in the West End when we were in London with some friends that we had met on a cruise . They live in the Isle of Mann but came over to meet us . We weren't disappointed as they launched into one of the  4 Seasons # 1 hits .

 

 

 

The next song I had to stop in the middle of one of my favorite songs , so it has 2 parts .

 

 

 

 

We were seated in an empty row but some knucklehead that saw me video taping them kept walking in front of us while we were watching , recording and enjoying the performance . After the 3rd time that he did it I finally stood up and towering over him I told him Don't do it again when I'm filming !  He didn't . Are people really that rude or just inconsiderate ?

Edited September 5, 2023 by scubacruiserx2

[Stateroom_Sailor]

On 8/26/2023 at 1:05 PM, AliceS said:

I totally agree….don’t know about the suite pricing, but the rest?   Amen!

 

I believe HAL is especially competitive on their newer ships, repositions, and some exotics.  Princess may be similar in price, but I am comparing from my experience on Celebrity.  I know these's two sailings aren't apples to apples as far as the upcoming sail date, but difference in cost per night is still astounding. 

 

Celebrity Millennium October 18th, 2024, 11 Nights Yokohama to Singapore 

Veranda $4,595, Suite $6,267

 

Westerdam October 28th, 2023, 28 Nights Yokohama to Singapore 

Veranda $3,142, Suite $5,169

[ConanD]

Had some really good experiences with customer support recently.

Booked directly with HAL, so without a TA. But every mail I send to HAL Customer Service was always answered within a few (working) hours.

From name corrections, cabin changes to dining time changes (They even already booked a table for 2 at the window when I just asked to change to Early dining!). Everything was handled quickly and expertly.

There's still more than 250 days remaining before my cruise begins, so I do feel a bit silly for bothering them with so many questions so soon, but they don't seem to mind.
 

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

2 hours ago, ConanD said:

Had some really good experiences with customer support recently.

Booked directly with HAL, so without a TA. But every mail I send to HAL Customer Service was always answered within a few (working) hours.

From name corrections, cabin changes to dining time changes (They even already booked a table for 2 at the window when I just asked to change to Early dining!). Everything was handled quickly and expertly.

There's still more than 250 days remaining before my cruise begins, so I do feel a bit silly for bothering them with so many questions so soon, but they don't seem to mind.
 

Thanks for sharing. 

[Don Kehote]

On 9/5/2023 at 9:26 AM, scubacruiserx2 said:

After the 3rd time that he did it I finally stood up and towering over him I told him Don't do it again when I'm filming !  He didn't . Are people really that rude or just inconsiderate ?

I feel like you could have moved, and that your reaction to someone else enjoying the show is over the line.

[Blackduck59]

So we just finished our fist cruise on HAL. Our cabin stewards were first class. They kept our cabin tidy morning and evening. The entertainment suited our needs and I think enough variety to please most people. One of the biggest things I noticed was there was rarely any congestion at the elevators. 

There was one rather unfortunate "presentation" in the world stage that this proud Canadian took exception to, I insisted on a meeting with the Hotel General Manager, which I got, and it was very constructive. We certainly appreciated the quick response to our concerns. We tend to book by itinerary, then line. We booked another cruise on HAL mostly because of the itinerary and secondly because we hate the class of ship that Celebrity has decided to put down under starting next season. 

 

 

[scubacruiserx2]

After breakfast  we went to the Coffee Chat presented by HAL with the Jukebox Rogues where they share their background , influences and future plans . We really like that HAL does this venue of a meet and greet - with free drinks and munchies .

 

 

 

 

Their next show was called Masters of the Musicals 

 

 

 

We met Jonathan who performed the lead vocals on Singing in the Rain and Billy who performed lead vocals on one of their other songs in the elevator .

 

 

We stepped out and had a nice long chat with them . We really enjoyed their performances and they we thrilled that we would video them and share their songs with others on our threads including this one and others . 

Edited September 6, 2023 by scubacruiserx2

[scubacruiserx2]

Another song from the show was Grease .

 

"Grease" is a song written by Barry Gibb ( of the Bee Gees ) and recorded by Frankie Valli (of the Four Seasons fame): it was released as a single in May 1978. It is the title song for the musical motion picture Grease of that year, which was in turn based on the 1971 stage play Grease.

Wikipedia

 

 

 

They saved their favorite song for last that evening coming up next .

Edited September 6, 2023 by scubacruiserx2

[scubacruiserx2]

The last song was the most difficult one to perform but they did a very good job on Queens tribute to Nihilism - Bohemian Rhapsody . Unfortunately my pocket camera was beginning to experience some problems with overheating and required a quick break so it comes in 2 parts , but I think it's worth a look and listen .

 

 

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

We haven’t cruised with HAL since 2019 and have mostly cruised with PCL, X, and NCL since then. But when X started charging ridiculous prices for their cookie cutter itineraries, we decided to check out HAL again as we are 4* Mariners to see if they had any interesting 3-5 week itineraries similar to what mostly attracted us to PCL a while back, and on occasion NCL if the itinerary was awesome like the Africa cruise we did with them last November.
 

And of course as many of you know, they have a bunch of 3-5 week itineraries that go to some pretty cool places and at very competitive prices! We really don’t care about their shorter cruises unless they can be uniquely connected to make an awesome B2B itinerary.
 

We are also very impressed with the Early Booking HIA promotion if we book a cruise more than a year out, which we usually do. We also like the cabin upgrade option that comes with Club Orange. 
 

Unfortunately I can’t comment about recent onboard experiences because our first cruise back with HAL won’t be until April 2025 on a 21-day Panama Canal cruise on the Koningsdam. But there are some pretty cool itineraries we’re wanting to book if they’re available in 2026 like their new 28-day Alaska cruise and a 22-day Mexican Riviera - Hawaii B2B. 😁

 

Edited September 8, 2023 by Ken the cruiser

[Guest ldtr]

On 9/5/2023 at 6:26 AM, scubacruiserx2 said:

 Another group that we enjoyed on HAL was the Jukebox Rogues . The first time that we say them they were billed as Frankie's Guys . We had hoped that it was a tribute band doing Jersey Boys that we had seen in the West End when we were in London with some friends that we had met on a cruise . They live in the Isle of Mann but came over to meet us . We weren't disappointed as they launched into one of the  4 Seasons # 1 hits .

 

 

 

The next song I had to stop in the middle of one of my favorite songs , so it has 2 parts .

 

 

 

 

We were seated in an empty row but some knucklehead that saw me video taping them kept walking in front of us while we were watching , recording and enjoying the performance . After the 3rd time that he did it I finally stood up and towering over him I told him Don't do it again when I'm filming !  He didn't . Are people really that rude or just inconsiderate ?

I assume you also realize that if you are using a phone to record it can be rather annoying to anyone seated behind you.  The lit up screen on a cell phone, in a darkened theater sticks out to anyone sitting behind the person recording and is somewhat distracting from the performance.

Edited September 8, 2023 by ldtr

[scubacruiserx2]

7 hours ago, ldtr said:

I assume you also realize that if you are using a phone to record it can be rather annoying to anyone seated behind you.  The lit up screen on a cell phone, in a darkened theater sticks out to anyone sitting behind the person recording and is somewhat distracting from the performance.

 

 

We agree that lit up screens can be distracting and that one of the reasons that I don't use cell phones for photos . Also many times I have had people with cell phones and their selfie sticks , stick them if front on our cameras spoiling our photos to take their photos . They also obstruct the view of other people just trying to enjoy the view . All of my cameras have eye pieces which can correct my vision - thus I don't need reading glasses which I need when using my phone or reading . It's much more easy to see through the lens for focusing and it blocks out the glare of bright sunlight . The full size camera had a large telephoto so that we can take wildlife  at a distance . We set it for silent mode so that it will not click thus not disturbing people or wild life .

 

 

We saw these deer feeding at a distance as we were entering the Panama Canal and we didn't want to spook them .

 

 

3 turkey sized Brown Guan sunning themselves in Costa Rica

 

 

In the same place out of the bushes popped an Agouti that weighed about 10 pounds

 

 

 

Hummingbirds in the Monteverde Rain Forest

 

 

 

We also used it for concerts without flash thus disturbing nobody

 

 

The small black camera next to my water bottle is the one that I shoot videos and food photos with  . The pop up eyepiece on the right turns off the screen light when you look through it . This also keeps the small camera steady leaning on my face . So no lights , a steady video and no complaints ever before .

 

[scubacruiserx2]

Returning to some of our favorite things about HAL is more entertainment before sharing food , people , places and things that we enjoyed . The last Jukebox Rogues show was favorites of the group .

 

 

 

[scubacruiserx2]