Dobby36

There is an Avis/budget in little Italy (1670 Kettner) that is about half mile walk from the cruise port. The main car rental family is further, adjacent to SAN airport. not sure if either have a shuttle that drops off at the cruise port, but I doubt it since the airport now uses an on-site consolidated shuttle to the combined rental facility, doubt there is much in incentive to maintain each’s own shuttle service. but a 15 min walk, or a $10 Uber should get you to the nearest rental agency. Enjoy!

Plus one for this company, we used them after the Oosterdam earlier this year for a winery tour and hotel transfer. Guide was a hoot, and so full of info. Would do again for sure.

I would save La Jolla for if/when you come back to SD for a long weekend. It’s pretty sea cliff areas and there is some caves to explore, seaside viewing and nice restaurants and shops to stroll around. But to be it does not stand out as a must-do for a one-day visit. It’s also a 15 (or more) min trip each way from the cruise port to downtown La Jolla

Great idea! I watch tons of cruise videos on there but it never occurred to me to watch a port video! Many thanks. Aalso, @Wayfairers I meant next cruise, not next month. My apologies. We aren’t there until early November.

Should be, since White Russian is on the list (same thing but with cream)

Yes, but they won’t be premium brand name ingredients, rather house/well spirits. see the list on drinks on the bottom of this page, CrewNews posted: https://rogerjett-photography.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Beverage-Package-Contents.pdf

That is what I was trying to say they do. I realize now I didn’t write it very clearly 😕 Suppose it can’t hurt to just make that clear when ordering, by saying “I have the drink package, can you charge me for two singles “

My fav is the bread pudding, but the one they make in MDR for breakfast, with orange zest and pomegranate seeds if I recall. I think it’s supposed to be only for Club Orange, but I’m guessing if you know about it you can just order it off menu? also the Thai Beef Salad in Tamarind. Mmm. Could eat there everyday!

They certainly can be out of specific brands, but they often have some that aren’t even ON that list posted (Grey Goose and Belvedere and Wofford Reserve come to mind- which all were included under$11 in 2022, and I suspect still are for singles) In fact, the grapefruit cosmo listed here is under $11 and has grey goose. https://rogerjett-photography.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/Billboard-onboard.pdf bottom line, all of those drinks you asked about should be covered, assuming you don’t ask for a double or the addition of some extra-premium liquor. the bartenders (more so than the servers, but often even them too) are good about keeping you under the limit if you say you have the regular drink package. oftentimes they would charge me twice, for instance if I wanted a double woodford reserve in something. And produce just one glass as I ordered 😉

Im stopping there next month too, on Celebrity and following this thread, hopefully someone has some advice. Seems like a very beachy vibe from our initial searches online.

Just also throwing my thanks in here. I’m visiting in November for only a couple post-cruise days, so this info has been very helpful as I try to plan our short stay as well. Cheers!

I agree the food in Old Town is not the best Mexican, but I think it’s a fun place to visit for tourists. But would place Little Italy above it, as others have. I think you could do it yourself, but since so many places are sit down and counter service, you might get a fuller experience with a setup done by a walking tour where you can still easily/cheaply/quickly sample smaller portions of main dishes. Enjoy!

Im in the minority, I see. But I think you buy tickets online and just Uber there. If they are charging $55 MORE than a single day ticket, for a group of 15 that’s $825 for a bus ride. If you use even a premium black suv Lyft/Uber, you’d only need 3 and at highest estimate it’d be $50/way, so that’s $300 total. The $500 you’d save could be used for a nice lunch at Alberts Treetop restaurant inside the zoo. (Do make reservations ahead!) Any Uber driver knows of the pier and zoo, ESPecially the Uber Black SUV option. plus this way you can get any cost savings on he zoo tickets (military are free, child are less, or a group of 15 qualifies as a large group for 10% off rates) but whatever you do, ENjOY! I’ve been a member of the zoo for years, and that plus safari park are some of my best memories. If your budget allows, splurge for a behinds the scenes group tour. Call them and they will make it really special.

I was also on Oosterdam in 2023 BA to Santiago, and agree that many dressed for comfort. There was still the occasional gown or tux, but much more rare than the Mediterranean cruise I took on Eurodam the year prior.

On the Oosterdam in March they announced “Neptune, 4/5 star mariners and club orange proceed to gangway x” and everyone else had to get a tender ticket in a specified lounge. The CO/mariners,neptunes just showed the corresponding keycard at the stairwell to gangway. No ticket required.

You can also buy a HAL gift card from the Barclay,s points redemption area and apply it to anything from the HAL website that can be pre-purchased pre cruise. I’ve used it for casino chips, laundry, flowers, in room drink setup, and general OBC. The items/notecards indicating their purchase are always in my stateroom when I embark(but I save the email confirmations just in case!)

i hope not, too! I would still encourage them to try cruising. Especially on a line that’s unabashadley pro-LGBTQ, like Virgin for example. Other safe bets I’d suggest would be Celebrity and Norwegian. One suggestion, at least on some lines the online checkin also asks for a title. I’d suggest they choose “hon. Or prof. Or amb”. I have often cruised with my mother of the same last name and they write mr and mrs LastName on everything, and make asssumptions that the male is paying for both people, etc. when we switched up our titles one time for fun, it seemed less apparent. and yes the Dept of State in US has been issuing X gender markers in passports since 2022 so travel companies should follow suit if for no other reason than compliance to government standards.

When we were on the Oosterdam, someone asked the Captain about such tours returning. He said he suspected as staffing and training continue to be returned to “normal” post restart, you could expect behind the scenes tours and galley kitchen tours to restart as well. Bridge tours are gone forever due to regulations and inherent risks. Ive never done the full behind the scenes tour, but the galley tour on Zuiderdam in 2019 was free, a group of a few dozen. Found it fascinating and I think it was just listed in the daily program, for a slow time between lunch and dinner service.

Two years ago I skipped buying it ahead of time, and then discovered aboard the Eurodam that the unlimited price had gone up by $10(IIRC) in that case if I had purchased it ahead I’d have paid the old price and I suspect no one would come after me for the difference once onboard lol

None of the entertainment venue bars are so buried deep into the entertainment venues that it would be odd/difficult to pop in for a drink while walking elsewhere. I often do so (although the HAL bartenders always want to bring it to your seat instead of making you wait, even if you prefer to wait and then move along) on the way to dinner or elsewhere. the Ocean bar is likely closest depending on where you are eating. If I recall there is no bar lower in the atrium, but the Grand Dutch Cafe also serves a full bar (perhaps less some speciality cocktails) so don’t forget about stopping there as an option in the evenings when there isn’t a long line for espresso drinks. Often in the casino on NS when it was busy in he evenings I would just as much rather walk to the restroom and grab another cocktail from Grand Dutch on the way back in than wait a few mins at casino bar. You should never have trouble with long waits in the bars, in my experience. Especially with a transatlantic cruise crowd versus a shorter family cruise.

I’ve seen Alaska Brewing Co beers offered on Alaska sailings, and once a Caribbean beer or two on sailings out of Florida but that’s the extent of any craft offferings I’ve seen, and even those were nothing to write home about. I’d suggest scouting them out and enjoying onshore during port days when you can instead of expecting you’ll be pleasantly surprised onboard.

I’m super tall as well and often scoot the bed (twin/separated) mattress “down” or away from the wall, and place the couch pillows between it and the wall, effectively extending the length of the twin mattress by 4-7 inches. It helps me and would provide a bit more height for his issues, perhaps? It helped me wth heartburn a bit too. the room staff noticed it one day when I forgot to move the pillows back to the couch and then they remade the bed but left my little setup intact. They can always bring more pillows if needed.

We really liked Las Condes neighborhood. Stayed at Ritz Carlton, but friends were nearby at Doubletree and they liked that as well. Easy walkable to many shopping and restaurant highlights, felt clean and safe. The tallest building in the city with the viewing platform is nearby, as well as a few parks. Would suggest checking it out. About 30 min from airport if I recall.

We did this company in march and organized a group through our roll call to bring the price per person down. Started at port San Antonio, did wineries and Valparaiso and ended In Santiago with appropriate hotel drop offs. Very nice guide and clean AC,d van. Def recommend. https://puertosanantoniotours.com

i second the endorsement of Bluff Cove, including the tea/scone/cake service in the facility as well as the yarn in adjacent gift shop. Lots of British charm to accompany the Penguin sights. And as an improvement over your 2011 visit the Land Rover journey is now on a dirt road for the final mile. They showed us the old tracks in the bogs that used to be used but it was “paved” into a dirt road a couple years ago and you can now drive there at a relatively smooth and fast clip after leaving the real road.