TAD2005

Any extra perk your TA is providing has nothing to do with HAL, and they won't know anything about it until you board.   If the TA is providing the SBP for you then they are actually purchasing it from HAL and it should show up on your keycard when you board.   Travel agents routinely provide OBC, PG or Canaletto dinners, prepaid gratuities, or other perks.   They purchase those options from HAL at a TA discount, but they are strictly between you and your TA.   Make sure you take your TA invoice with you if the SBP does not show up on your keycard.

Whatever beverage package or individual bottles you buy online, the 15% SC is included.  If you buy it onboard, the price is without the 15%, but is is added in during the sale, so the price ends up being the same no matter when you buy it.   Your 3-star Mariner status doesn't kick in until your next cruise.   That would be an accounting nightmare between Seattle and the ship's accounting office.

52 minutes ago, debbiejohncruise said:

I wonder if all the tvs are accessible or just in the suites? Anyone know?

On the Vista class ships and the Eurodam, the ships I have been on, the new, flat screen TV's all have HDMI side-facing jacks on the rear.  The problem is getting your hand behind the TV and plugging in your HDMI cable.   Possibly bring a set of long tongs (what you use to flip hot dogs on your grill) to reach in there.   The remotes that HAL provide do now allow input switching, so you have to bring a universal remote.   Make sure your HDMI cable is at least 12 ft long, or your laptop will be sitting on the floor.  And finally, PLEASE be sure to switch the TV back to the Ethernet connection before you disembark.  Otherwise, the next guests will have nothing until they can get maintenance to restore the settings.

First step, call Ship's Services and request the name and e-mail address of the Ship Coordinator for the Zuiderdam.

Next, go onto Hal Facts dot com and download the PDF for the dining room layout for the MDR. of Zuiderdam.   The table layout shows the accurate table numbers.

We always make a list of about 10 tables that would work for us.   We send that list of table numbers and our booking number to the Ship Coordinator, and we always get one of our top selections.

We do this process about 5 or 6 months out from the cruise.  And this is for FIXED TIME dining, not Anytime.   For Anytime dining, I think you must do this when you board.   Make sure you specify your dining time, either early (5:30 or 5:45) or late / main seating at 8:00 or 8:15.   I do not think this will work for selecting a table for anytime (As You Wish) dining, but give it a try.

17 hours ago, Ferd Berfle said:

 

A gallon of distilled water is free for the asking on Princess.  Wonder what HAL and MSC are thinking, certainly not customer service.  While I obviously can't object to paying $2.95 or $4.95 for an 88 cent jug of distilled water, it's just weird that there is an issue at all given one cruise line has no problem providing it.  How much are we paying for this cabin?

Princess also charges 18% service charge for any beverage, even water and soda.   So, yes, you save $2.95 on distilled water, but you pay 3% more for the service charge.   It all washes in the end.

We did a trans-atlantic on the Westerdam in Oct. 2017.   All cabins have the large (48"??) flat screens mounted on the wall.  The old DVD players and DVD lending library are gone.   The channel selections include a lot of recorded entertainment, like TV series, HGC series, travel shows, etc.  There are some live channels like BBC World Service, CNBC, MSNBC, Fox News, and 2 ESPN sports channels.  There is a special events channel for popular sport events.  There is a movie channel with many hundreds of selections.   They are broken down by genre and are all on-demand.  If you start a movie before dinner and stop it to go to dinner, when you come back, you can resume that movie right where you left off.   They have a ship's position and weather channel showing forecasts for future ports.  There are also 2 cameras, forward and aft.   One of these has the routine daily announcements on it.

Because they removed the TV and DVD players from the desk area, that freed up 2 additional 120 volt electrical outlets.

If I were you, I would get the SBP guaranteed in writing.

The current HAL promotion is Explore-4, and in past years, it DID include the SBP as its primary perk.  This year, Explore-4 includes various amounts of OBC depending on your cruise length and cabin selection.   Your TA saw Explore-4 attached to your original booking ans assumed (incorrectly) that it included the SBP.   The Explore-4 promotion perks this year are the same for all levels except for free premium internet for booking a suite.   You said that because you had in inside cabin, the SBP was not included, but it is with an ocean-view or higher.   I have never heard of a promotion like that.   Maybe your TA is biting the bullet and paying the difference between your Explore-4 OBC and the full cost of the SBP ??   If you have the Explore-4 promotion, you are entitled to substantial amounts of OBC.   Find out what the name of the promotion you really have.   

Always have it in writing when you board the ship.

DW likes her omelet with fresh, whole eggs.   At the omelet station, she asks the attendant for fresh eggs, and the guy reaches over to a bowl of eggs and cracks them into the skillet right in front of you.   Never an issue, they are happy to please.   All you have to do is ask.   You can't complain if you do not speak up !

Just did a 28 day cruise on the Eurodam in March 2019.  My only negative is the Lido Pool area cabanas.   They take up almost the whole starboard side of the Lido pool area with these "pay to sit" cabanas.   The Eurodam is a larger ship than the Vista class ships.   At lunch time, when you are walking around the Lido pool area with your tray of Dive-In burgers, looking for a place to sit and eat your lunch, you see all of these mostly empty cabanas.   Don't even think of sliding in one to wolf down your burger, because an attendant will be on your case asking for your key card to charge you.   

The situation wouldn't be so bad if all the readers and sleepers would find another place on the ship to read or sleep, but only during the very busy lunch hour.   One person will tie up a whole table, with their feet on one chair, and bags and towels on the other 2.    If you ask to sit, just for lunch, you get this look that says, "get lost".   A few people are kind enough to move their stuff off of a chair so I can sit and enjoy my lunch for 20 minutes, but that is not very common.

Other than that, the Eurodam is great, no other issues.

You are confusing the beverage cards which can have any $$ value, and the Signature Beverage Package (SBP),

The beverage card is a separate card that you present to the waiter to buy just about anything liquid.   Even bottles of wine.   Once you run out of cash on the card, throw it away.

The SBP (or the more expensive Elite (EBP) is not a card, it is added to your personal account and printed on your cabin keycard.   The SBP or EBP will be printed on your card if you purchased it before your cruise.  If you buy the package onboard (at a $10 plus 15% service charge increase in price), then they will either reprint your keycard, or put a sticker on it.

It makes no difference how you got the SBP, either you purchased it, or you got it as part of a promotion.

The rules are the same.  Once your keycard has the SBP or EBP printed on it,  you can have 15 alcoholic beverages per day AND UNLIMITED sodas (cans), non-alcoholic coffees, and 500 ml bottles of water.   

There is no difference in the SBP or EBP, except the max drink price, $11 for the SBP and $15 for the EBP.   And the bars do not care how you got the package.   Yes, they do scan your card for the unlimited sodas, coffees and water, because that allow the ship to track the overall ship beverage consumption and what they need to order for the next cruise.   The scanning for sodas, coffees and water is for inventory, not for checking your personal consumption.

12 hours ago, jakkojakko said:

Mm apparently there are cpaps that just use regular tapwater. My wife is now using one for three months, including a three week cruise, and has no problem what so ever.

On many CPAP machines, the CPAP humidifier component heats the water to humidify the air blown into the mask.   If your local water supply has lots of minerals in it, like well water, then those minerals will be deposited on the water reservoir and sometimes difficult to remove.   I stayed in a villa on the island of St. Maarten for a month and distilled water was not available.   So I used the local tap water.  The water in St. Maarten is desalinated Caribbean Sea water.   Very expensive, compared to water rates in the US, but after 30 days of constant use of the desalinated water, I had no scale or residue in my CPAP reservoir.   Cruise ships also use desalinated water for a good portion of their potable water.   But I still order a couple of jugs when I cruise.   If your CPAP machine doesn't heat the water to humidify the blown air,  then regular tap water will be fine.  If you can drink it safely, you certainly can inhale it.

10 hours ago, Aquahound said:

While I believe the SBP limit does not include non alcoholic beverages, it's tough to consider that email response "definitive" when the numbers they quoted are clearly wrong.  

Because this document is 9 months old, that explains the reason the per-drink allowance and daily cost are not current.   But all other details are correct, including the part about non-alcoholic beverages not included in the daily 15 count.   The document was "definitive" at the time of publication.

Domestic round trips to and from the same airport will not same much.  The big advantage is the ability to get a confirmed flight, but not have to par for it until final payment date, which usually is 75 days out.

Some people say they get better fares by booking in their own, but one reason for those discrepancies is that Flight Ease does not quote flights from budget carriers like Southwest, Allegiant, Spirit, etc.    Flight Ease only quotes the major airlines in the US and around the world.

23 hours ago, dockman said:

hmm...i preordered it...wasn't in room on arrival..told cabin steward and he brought a gallon...i didn't ask cost but showed up on my room tab at $4.95 for the gallon....this was in sep 2019 on westerdam

Did you bring your printed receipt generated when you purchased the $2.95 jug of water online ?  With that receipt, you should have received the water with no charge.   Occasionally, online purchases do not make it to the ship, especially if the purchase happens in the last few days before departure.   No matter what you purchase online, you should always printout the receipt and bring it with you.   

7 hours ago, ginger and professor said:

I wonder if there is any way that they could turn up the amplifiers more than they do, that way you could hear them in your staterooms and would not have to go to the show.

There is a speaker manufacturer in Chatsworth,  California called Cerwin-Vega.   They make great speakers for live bands and home systems.   Their motto is "Loud is Beautiful...IF it's Clean".    If a band has garbage, cheap speakers, or amps, by turning it up, all you get is distorted music, which is very annoying.   If the amps and speakers are quality systems, the higher volumes do not irritate.   But yes, the close proximity of nearby cabins to BB-King's Blues Club will allow the sound, especially low frequency bass to travel to those areas.

2 hours ago, oneijoe said:

Don't know if anyone mentioned the definitive word from HAL which was posted on Reddit.  In summation, non-alcoholic drinks do NOT count toward of the 15 drink/day (non-alcoholic drinks are unlimited with purchase of SBP).  Official response as posted:
 

 

Not sure of the date of the above message from HAL.   But as of May of 2019, the SBP max drink price is now $11, not $9.   The cost of the SBP, if purchased online before the cruise is $44.95 per day plus 15%, or $51.70 per day.  If you wait to buy it on the first day of your cruise, the onboard price is now $54.95 per day plus 15%, or $63.19 per day..

Every cruise line has their special term for open seating dinner.   HAL's official term is "As You Wish Dining".

Just now, Copper10-8 said:

 

Rolling Stone Rock Room is a good addition also! Seen two different bands so far; both good and both drew a crowd

Right after graduating from Drexel in Philadelphia in 1971, I was a DJ on the now defunct WIBG radio, 990 on the AM dial (Ancient Modulation), and I played a lot of BB-King music on the all night grave yard shift.   

Just love the "Philly Sound" of Doo-Wop and 60's & 70's rock-n-roll.

1 minute ago, Copper10-8 said:

 

 

Pop quiz for ya, Tad! What did B.B. King name his guitar?

Lucille !, but  I will admin to checking it on Wikipedia.

The BB part of BB King is for Blues Boy, but his real name was Riley King.

Of all the music venues on HAL, BB King Blues Club is the best.   I have not yet experienced Rolling Stone Rock Room.

14 hours ago, SetAnOpenCourse said:

Actually you asked a good question.  The “BB Kings” bands on the ships are named after a deceased Blues musician (B.B. King) but these bands play different styles of music.  

 

I hope in the future that people simply answer your questions on cruise critic.🙂

God !!! can't anyone recognize a little humor these days ?

I assumed that most who cruise on HAL must be at least in their 40's and up and BB King was a famous musician who lived 89 years and died in May 2015.  He specialized in blues, but also played good 'ol rock-n-roll, plus some jazz on his guitar.   Which is exactly the kind of music the BB-King Blues Club plays on HAL ships.  That is what I responded.   Sorry if you thought I was being snarky.   

There's a running joke these days..... How do you drive millennials crazy ?   Lock them in a room with a rotary dial phone, a 12 channel TV with rabbit ears and no remote control.  

I have ordered distilled water from the website for many cruises over the years.  We have gotten it when boarding in Athens, Venice, Barcelona, San Diego, Ft. Laurerdale, and Rotterdam.   In Europe the jug is usually 4 or 5 liters.  In the US ports, it is a US gallon.   I go through a gallon in 2 weeks.   A long time ago, the cost was $4.95 per gallon, but in 2017, the price is now $2.95 and we have never been disappointed with delivery in our cabin upon arrival.

We will arrive in Schiphol in October, 2020 for a HAL cruise out of Rotterdam.  We need a hotel for 3 nights.  We want one near lots of good restaurants, and it would be a plus if it had a quality restaurant in the hotel.  Everything should be within walking distance.   Any suggestions ?

20 hours ago, cruisehome said:

what kind of music do they play

 

If you are asking "what kind of music does BB-King play", then you must be very young (under 30) or you lived your youth in Siberia !! 

It's Rock-n-Roll, blues, jazz and music from the late 20th century.

Due to the width of the ship on deck 10, the balconies of the added cabins on deck 10 are not very deep, maybe 4 ft.   I heard one person describe sitting on the chair on one of those "Juliette Balconies" as "knees on the glass".   Otherwise, the cabin interiors are the same as other veranda cabins, just higher up.  The views are very nice.