Dobby36

I second the recommendation of that tour team. We had a lovely experience with them. 
 

i didn’t stay in Valparaiso, stayed in Santiago.  But I think it was the better choice. Valparaiso was a bit on the rougher side.   Certainly felt safe in the daytime with a guide but not sure I would have wanted to venture out alone after dark.  In Santiago I would (and did) as it was a gleaming, bustling city at least from the experience in the area we stayed in (Las Condes) earlier in 2023. 

We used this company in March.  They were fab. https://puertosanantoniotours.com
 

guide was great, made multiple winery stops and had lunch along t he way.  Also did some walking in Valparaiso for the street art and he was full of interesting facts and knew nice overlooks and haggled with us to get better pricing from street vendors, etc.  was able to accommodate multiple hotel drop offs or airport drop offs from our one van at end of day. We organized a group through our roll call. 

2 hours ago, Fred321 said:

On this year's world cruise HAL CEO clearly said that there were no new ships currently planned for HAL. He was quite clear that his primary focus was improving the company's financials.

and there have been quotes from CCL leaders to the same point: https://thepointsguy.com/news/carnival-corporation-cruise-ship-orders-on-hold/

12 minutes ago, canadianbear said:

Have been following along.  Really enjoying your photos and opinions.  

Same! Appreciate the photos and notes.  We will be on the same ship next month. Well, next week actually! 

2 hours ago, Lakesregion said:

What happens if you do not have App capabilities and will not be home three or four days before sailing date and you do not have the boarding pass?

We had dinner with a couple who forgot to print their boarding pass and couldn’t get the app to work on their phones during the last cruise.  They said it was a matter of just waiting for a supervisor or someone to come and help the check in agent figure out what to print from their end and verify identification. 
 

that leads me to believe it wouldn’t be the end of the world, it obviously happens somehow.  But perhaps be prepared to wait a bit longer at embarkation.  

The bar code will also show up on the navigator app, if you’ve logged in and accessed your booked there.  No printing required!

I would have the same concerns and either have a back up plan, or added cushion time in case you need to be bussed, etc.  

I agree. I don’t think the rise of such incidents on land (at least in US) tends to translate 1:1 to cruise ship environments because of the general secure nature of travel by ship, and likely also the passenger demographic.  I suppose depending on port calls the experience could vary wildly but even then I imagine it would be isolated incidents when risk has been invited into the equation, not a targeted tragedy like we’ve seen at gay bars, pride events and house who display the pride flag, etc 😞

@NanaJPB even better! It’s one block down but much nicer and newer. Enjoy

53 minutes ago, Stelladoro said:

Thank you for all your advice. 

I recently emailed our CCL Shareholder onboard credit request for upcoming Oct cruises.

The response states that it may take longer to process request, due to high volume of emails. Hopefully, we'll get confirmation on time.

 

 

 

 

I got that “high volume” auto-reply email too, when I submitted mine earlier this month.  For me, they still replied in one business day.  Hopefully they will for you too! 

14 minutes ago, BaltimoreCruise said:

This morning I can't locate the information on the HAL website.  Is this user error or has HAL removed it?

Thank you.

Baltimore Cruise

 
i still see the article about it on HAL site: https://www.hollandamerica.com/blog/recent-articles/whats-new/onboard-credit-offer-for-aarp-members/

to find the page where you verify AARP status, hit “cruise deals” from the top menu bar, then select “community appreciation offers” or click here: https://www.hollandamerica.com/en/us/cruise-deals/community-appreciation-cruise-offers

It’s there along with military deal, teacher, etc. 

FWIW, I was on the same ship a few months ago and there were toilet issues.  Luckily (maybe because of highest floor?) ours seemed just to not flush well/lose pressure, and nothing foreign certainly came back up thank goodness! 
 

However, I distinctly remember the charming Captain making a joke to the effect of “sorry to those of you who’ve had plumbing issues.  Oosterdam, she’s an older lady. And those of us who are older often are familiar with such plumbing troubles” or something to make light of it during his captains talk. He was being funny, but did acknowledge it and apologize. This was late March.  I hope they are doing their best until the October dry dock can provide a fuller fix, but obviously there are issues.  As others have said it could be quite local due to foreign objects disposed of too.  

9 minutes ago, mcrcruiser said:

Do you have a menu for lunch at the Pinnacle Grill ?   TIA 

https://eatsleepcruise.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Pinnacle-Grill-Lunch-Menu.pdf
 

try this link above.  The best part is that the items are largely different than the dinner offerings so it’s something different to explore.  I can reccomend the burger, the Cioppino, and the prawn appetizer! (My Pictures are from Oosterdam this spring: cheese plate for dessert, Cioppino, and prawn starter)

Thanks for sharing the brunch menu! I’ve only seen it offered once on my trips, and I forget why it wasn’t ideal to make it there for us that day so I’ve never been. Lots of interesting options that stray from the usual breakfast and lunch offerings! Impressive.  

On sea days the Pinnacle Grill is also open for lunch. Even with recent increases I find it to be the best value in speciality dining on any ship I’ve been on ($19/pp at lunch, IIRC)

and here is the specific link to the MDR lunch menu, from same site Mary was pointing you to: https://rogerjett-photography.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/MDR-Lunch.pdf

On sea days the Pinnacle Grill is also open for lunch. Even with recent increases I find it to be the best value in speciality dining on any ship I’ve been on ($19/pp at lunch, IIRC)

Sorry to stay off topic, but @Haljo1935 is always providing such helpful and positive contributions to HaL threads I had to jumó in to say: 

I stayed in an inside on Rottterdam, and was quite surprised upon checkin to find it had a window! It was on 11, my fav floor near the crews nest. It just looked out on the roof of the pool area and the jogging track so I often left it covered by curtains as folks were walking by.  But it was nice for some natural light. 
 

a quick search here shows a thread that mentions they have the same situation on Kdam: (also highlighted on deck plan below) one downside was some chair/furniture noise from retreat above, but it was minimal  

38 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

Are you familiar with your hotel location?  A half mile in Quebec City can be quite a hike through winding streets and down a steep slope 

I’ve been to Quebec City by land, but not our specific hotel.  We will assess when we arrive and figure out if it seems feasible. I’ve got no problem calling a car if need be, but if the weather is nice and we can get some steps in, sure!

16 minutes ago, jaapie said:

Walk to pier 30 or walk to pier 22? It is my understanding (but I could be wrong) that walking to pier 30 is not permitted because it is thru an industrial area.

If I click on rafinMD’s posted link above in this thread, the webpage of the port mentions the terminal is accessible by foot, but has a shuttle in operation during cruise times. I’ve never been, but I’d expect that means you can walk up to a certain point, and from beyond that the shuttle bus takes you the rest of the way? I’ve used similar busses at ports in Buenos Aires and Valparaiso and other industrial ports where the passenger cruises aren’t the principal operations (versus something like port Everglades being the opposite!)

If you are asking me, I think we plan to just walk from our hotel (pending how we feel and the weather) as it is only half a mile or so, and we are capable of that with one luggage piece each. 

Sorry, yes they were cut off! The lowest we’re $100/pp, mostly for Alaska and Caribbean 7-days. The highest was maybe $800 for the two-week-plus options.  And yes, all are no-frills inside cabins, but it notes they can be upgraded.  I suspect you’ll see some offers in the coming months.  

I like John’s Place, just outside the Marina area. It’s adjacent to an Oxxo on the main drag.  The name might suggest otherwise, but it’s decent Mexican food and strong drinks at reasonable prices. It’s an indoor outdoor kinda cantina vibe, nothing fancy but I recommend the guac and the queso fundido which is served in a screaming hot molcajete which keeps it good through a whole meal.   

I think you did enough to get some offers.  There are more than just two categories of free vs. 30%off. For instance I recently got a flyer with a bunch of cruises from $100-800, which is lower than 39%off, but not free obviously.  I’ll link my post with pics of offers below,  but can answer other specific questions if you have them.  But I suspect you’ll get offers in the coming months over email.  I seem to, regardless of future existing bookings that are casino-offers or otherwise. 
 

I would second the HAL recommendation above, especially due to your note about interesting itinerary choices. The age group also seems suitable, and the focus on food and music.   They have a couple different lounge spaces that host pianos, rock cover bands, and other non-stage production musical entertainment choices.  

As another local I agree with @scottca075 (although I suspect above we’ve been doing some conflating of the SDMTS Public Rail Trolley and the Trolley Tours hop-on style vehicle) it seems an inefficient use of your time in port, unless just riding around is the only thing yóu plan to do besides the Zoo.
 

His list above covers the best options well unless you have specific interests, like you have young kids, are into military history, want to see the LGBT neighborhood, etc  etc.