jljcruise

We were on a Med cruise last fall. When in Spanish waters, signs were put up on the bars stating the VAT tax was being charged. When we left those waters, the signs disappeared. I can't remember if the signs were on the tables too or not.

IIRC, the king crab is not available anywhere due to a decimation of their numbers. The crab season was closed last year, not sure how they're doing this year. Other varieties of crab may be available, though.

We were on the Oosterdam for a month last fall and totally enjoyed being on her. As Miss G said, this is a very limited polling group. Enjoy your cruise!

I don't know the answer to that, but I'm guessing European countries may have an environmental fee (??). We did a Med cruise and TA this past fall -- all I can say is that it was higher and that I will very gladly pay it. I don't go on vacation to waste time doing my own laundry. And, best of all, HAL's laundry service is absolutely tops!

I think that ships tend to be on local time usually and any problems come from passengers who ignore the notices of time zone changes or just don't pay attention to time when they're on land.

Actually, HAL will usually deny you entrance to the MDR at dinner time if you wear shorts or torn jeans, but you can go in with nice jeans. Majority of men at dinner time wear either basic slacks or nice jeans with a collared shirt (Hawaiian shirts work, or a polo shirt). Formal wear on dressy nights is seen but not worn by many, again basic slacks and a collared shirt seem to be most popular. Or just eat at the Lido.

Hi! We will be on the Westerdam, 9 June 2024, 28-day Alaska Arctic Solstice. Thanks for all the work you do on these posts!

HAL has singers, instrumentalists, comedians, dance ensembles, magicians, and a few other miscellaneous type entertainment, not big production shows. However, HAL does emphasize the great itineraries much more than other cruise lines. Ask yourself if the entertainment is your goal or seeing ports and scenery. I think they have trivia every day ... and often more than once a day. We don't attend, but it seems to be listed constantly on the daily program. Can't answer the other 2 questions at all. We were on the Oosterdam last fall for 4 weeks. Had a great time. Enjoy your cruise!!

I bought a cheap analog watch that I wear on cruises. I set it on ship's time (verified each time we disembark) and then don't have to worry if some satellite changes our phone or tablet's time to local. I just find it an easy fix to the problem of worry about getting back at the correct time.

We did this last fall. Flew in to Athens 4 days early. The fly-in day we just got our bearings around our hotel area, stayed up as long as we could (6 pm), but that took care of most of our jet-lag. 2 days seeing Athens (Rick Steves walks mostly), and day 4 was another morning walk around the Acropolis area and then a taxi ride (Welcome Taxi) to port. If I could redo it, I'd take a few more days to see places out of the city.

We always use our OBC for gratuities if we don't have them on a free promotion. The gratuities are deducted daily on your bill. You can watch your bill deductions/additions on your stateroom TV (we check it once a day to watch for errors). OBC can also be used for shore excursions, drinks (alcoholic and non), specialty restaurants, ....

They fixed this. On our October cruise, this info was on the stateroom tv.

Not essential or needed at all. The daily schedule will be delivered to your room in paper format. The menus for everywhere and dining hours are on your TV. Your room card key can be scanned for tours. Your bill can be accessed on your TV.

We were on the Oosterdam in November 2023 and had the Lincoln Center musicians, just a different format. It was held on Main Stage and had an enthusiastic packed crowd each night they played. We were told that it is not gone, just less frequent as the group moves from ship to ship.

Yes, at both the set times and for anytime. We always do table for 2.