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Everything posted by rwmiller
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Koningsdam is a wonderful ship and HAL is an expert with Alaska as they were the first to go there. Less people mean shorter lines. In addition, HAL is more adult focused so they will take care of you and your parents. Bob
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I looked at the itineraries for ships leaving Vancouver in 2024. The Princess map states that Royal class ships go around Vancouver island instead of through the inside passage. The limitation is due to ship size. I am taking a HAL cruise in September leaving Vancouver at 4pm. Our itinerary lists cruising the inside passage all day on the 2nd day so it takes some time to make the transit. However, we obviously will be sleeping for the beginning of the passage. But, for southbound, you probably finish the passage on the last night. I personally would not base my selection based on the timing of the inside passage. The days are long as you noted so, if you can live with 4 hours of sleep you can see it all. 😉 Good luck, Bob
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Our favorite tour in Ketchikan was a non-ship tour called Expedition Black Bear. You take a boat ride to a low cation where you walk to get to an overlook over a creek where the salmon run and the bears fish. Great viewing from not far away. Bob
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Adding my 2 cents. If you go in July or early August the salmon are running which opens up excursions to view bears fishing. We did one in Ketchikan that was amazing. We have only done round trips so can’t comment on that. Our cruise have been on Princess and HAL. Both have a long history cruising Alaska and have infrastructure there that the other lines do not. We have had great lectures on board to build your knowledge of what you will seeing. Bob
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Posted on Another Site...Ruby Princess Hits Dock in SF
rwmiller replied to Jaymuxman's topic in Princess Cruises
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@kathylynnt yes. The same court for basketball was used for pickle ball and there were set times for get togethers. Bob
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We just got off the Ruby on Friday. Here are the main stage shows: We had three production shows- Stardust, Colors of the World and Magic to Do. Two comedians with a couple of shows each. A female vocalist doing two shows - one an Abba tribute. Finally Voice of the Ocean. There was one enrichment lecture a day in the main stage and many trivia contests, game shows and bingo tournaments in addition to musicians and games in the Piazza. You should stay busy. Bob
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We just booked a free cabin offer with our CVP and the travel summary shows booked through Princess and the cost reflects what we paid with no balance owed. Sounds like exactly what you are seeing. Bob
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We used a phone near the elevator bank to call the DINE line. The phone was answered quickly and they took our information and we got the invitation a few days later in our cabin. Best of luck. Bob
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We were on Discovery Princess 3/4-3/11 and there was a lot to do at night but no themed events other than the Gold Party in the Piazza. There were shows or acts in the main stage as well as the Vista Lounge and Princess Live. Of course there was also music in the Piazza with people dancing. Usually lots of people at these events with a lot of energy. Bob
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We enjoyed the UBD on our recent (March) cruise on Discovery Princess. We loved the food but there were two aspects that made it less enjoyable than the one we had on Ruby Princess in January 2022. First, the balcony on our mini suite was small with a center support that made the space very tight when the table was set up such that one of us could not easily get by the table to go back into the room. Second, we had really only one waiter interacting with us and he also had to work two other UBDs at the same time which caused him to disappear for long periods of time between courses. The service was excellent when he was there but there was no periodic checking on how we were doing like on Ruby. I would still do it again as it was our favorite dinner. Bob
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The Chef’s Table Lumiere was $130 each with wine on Discovery Princess last week. Bob
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Live and Life from Koningsdam on her Mexican New Year's voyage
rwmiller replied to Copper10-8's topic in Holland America Line
Thanks Copper. I will pass it on. And as a Navy veteran I thank you for your service also. It was an honor to serve and I appreciate all fellow vets. Bob -
Live and Life from Koningsdam on her Mexican New Year's voyage
rwmiller replied to Copper10-8's topic in Holland America Line
Copper, You weren’t in VMGR-352, were you? Our son is a pilot with them now stationed at Miramar MCAS. We loved the New Years cruise on Koningsdam and can’t wait for our next HAL cruise. We are however heading back to Mexico in March on Princess after we got a great deal for a mini suite. Bob -
Live and Life from Koningsdam on her Mexican New Year's voyage
rwmiller replied to Copper10-8's topic in Holland America Line
See you onboard. The boarding process was smooth as silk and we were in our stateroom 35 minutes after leaving our hotel room. Bob -
The bag is large enough to hold all the.items you list. You can always get 2 bags if you want more. Even better send laundry out every day. 😊 you leave the bag in your stateroom by 9 am and usually returned in the afternoon on the next day. I have been late sometimes with no issues. Laundry package is available on the Cruise Personalizer webpage. Go to the Pacages and Gifts section then Packages. Worth it in my opinion. Bob
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We cruised Ruby Princess from San Francisco this year. When we were in Hawaii the casino was closed from the time we arrived in the first port (Hilo) until we left the last port (Kahului). Bob
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Dine My Way & all new Dining questions since cruising restart!!
rwmiller replied to Host CJSKIDS's topic in Princess Cruises
Just for info, we are on the Ruby Princess now and Michelangelo is closed due to staffing and number of passengers. I don’t know how full your cruise is but this dining room is the one cut first. Bob -
Princess Senior Ship Staff, inc Cruise Directors & Entertainment Directors
rwmiller replied to CCHelp 's topic in Princess Cruises
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We were just on the NS and saw people walking in 5 minutes before closing with no problem. Even a few people showing up late were seated. Bob
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Casino offers - be sure to check the website!
rwmiller replied to DaveOKC's topic in Holland America Line
That may have been what was done in the past but we are sailing on a casino fare this week and Club Orange on Nieuw Statendam was $25/ day per person for a 7 day cruise. Our PCC has told us that price is for cruises up to 13 days; it is $15 / day for longer cruises. Bob -
If you look at the page Vmax1700 posted, HAL pools all the service charges for the entire fleet over the entire year and then distributes to the crew members. So it really is just a way to pay the crew while keeping the advertised rates lower. And it emphasizes the benefit of cash tips for extra good service as well as naming the best crew members in your survey so they get additional compensation. Bob
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Best tracker for suit cases when flying??
rwmiller replied to Gail & Marty sailing away's topic in Holland America Line
We also just purchased 4 AirTags to be ready for our next airline trip for our son’s wedding. Definitely don’t want to lose the luggage. 😊 A four pack is $100 from Apple and they engraved them for us so we can track which is which. Will be glad to have them but hope we don’t have to use them. Bob -
Free cabin casino offers and getting upsells?
rwmiller replied to DaveOKC's topic in Holland America Line
Yes you can. We just did for an upcoming cruise on NS with a casino veranda cabin. Bob