Charleston Lady

Wonderful news! Thanks for sharing. In June of 2019 we celebrate our 50th anniversary and are planning a family trip. We love Northern Europe and want to share it with children and grandchildren, especially aboard such a lovely new ship. We love Prinsendam, and her itineraries are the best, but didn't think our grandchildren would enjoy it so much as a bigger, newer ship.

We have taken our grandchildren on several HAL cruises and they love it. Our family, including the children, always eat some lunches and dinners in Pinnacle and Tamarind. When our granddaughter was younger and just ate a bowl of pasta, we were not charged for her meal. If she eats a regular meal, we pay the regular price minus our Mariner discount. The children have excellent manners and dress appropriately. We have NEVER seen any kind of a contract.

Re Tauck.....we have 100's of ocean cruising days, but have only done one river cruise and it was with Tauck. They were wonderful! EVERYTHING is included and there was never any hint of the need for further tipping. They constantly surprised us in amazing ways all through the trip as a previous poster indicated. I was familar with the company, but didn't even realize they did river cruises until our travel agent recommended them. We sandwiched the 14 day cruise between 2 HAL cruises and it was a nice change. When we left our bill was $.75 for a postage stamp! I would definitely do it again, but not in the summer....too hot. There is lots of walking, but they adapted the pace, etc. to the needs of all in the group. Would absolutely go anywhere with Tauck.

We are devoted HAL cruisers but tried a more 'kid friendly' line when we first took a grand child with us. However our grandchildren much prefer HAL! They stay at the kid's club till the last possible time and have had lots of pool fun with the children they met--even those who speak different languages. Children have a special language all their own, and it seems to work! We have always found the amazing crew to be attentive to their 'picky' food requests and go out of their way to make them feel special. They love cruising and HAL.

It was not offered on the July 3rd sailing of the Amsterdam. I'm not a chocoholic, but I do enjoy some chocolate treats once in awhile. Like the idea of the double chocolate cupcakes, but how to keep the crumbs off my tux and white formal shirt?

Bob, just tuck that big white napkin under your chin....and go for it! There's nothing better than getting messy with chocolate...

Did you take the cooking class offered by America'S Test Kitchen? Wondered what the format was like and what the price was. Will be sailing on her in November and appreciate your information. Thanks!

We are taking a family trip on NA in November and I wanted to do a cooking class with our daughter. I wondered if America'sTest Kitchen is up and running?

I have done cooking classes in the old format ( 5* perk) and wondered what the differences were. Thanks!

Have been to Half Moon Cay many times. My husband, children and grandchildren think it is the best place ever. They hope one day there will be a trip that just stays there for 7 days!

As the others have stated beautifully, there are many ways to enjoy it, even if you just gaze at it from the ship. Keep an open mind and you may have a better time than you think. It is one of the most beautifull places on this earth.

Wishing you a wonderful journey.....

To Buck 1949.... we took a Julio Tour this past spring on our stop in Corinto during the HAL world cruise. We went to Leon with a CC group we arranged online. I was very pleased. The bus was nice, the young male guide knowledgeable about his country and realstic about its issues. It was inexpensive as I recall and included a great lunch with some dancers for entertainment. Don't recall the restroom arrangements specifically, but I am not a good 'squatter' so they must have been okay!

If you use the big box store credit card, you get 3% cash back at year end and travel cancellation insurance.

Please tell me more about the cancellation insurance. I booked with them recently for the first time, transferring the booking from HAL as we booked onboard initially. I was pleased with their extras and did buy trip and health care insurance through them as they suggested but it was not free. I paid with their credit card. Did I miss something?

Thanks!

On family trips our 13 yo grandson usually wears a white dress shirt to the dining room and a blazer, bow tie and khakis if we go to Pinnacle on gala nights. It depends...some times he is ok dressing up and sometimes it is just not worth the struggle. Dinner is usually more fun if everyone is happy. Especially on a summer cruise, things are fairly relaxed. Hope this helps. Most of all, have fun together!

Our daughter is also a fan of the Bolognese sauce, as am I. We were on Eurodam last month and she asked for the recipe which promptly appeared.

When I told the server in Tamarind how much I loved the chocolate dessert, she brought me the recipe and I didn't even ask!

Not sure I could replicate it from their directions, as some of you have said, but it was a nice gesture.

If it doesn't turn out well, guess we'll just have to book another cruise to enjoy it onboard!

I am really enjoying your notes as always and am interested in your thoughts on the new ship. Glad you had a good birthday. Loved hearing about the licorice gelato. I thought I was the only person in the world who liked licorice!

Nice to hear that you loved Tamarind. We are taking our family on Eurodam for Thanksgiving and plan to try it. The menu looks so interesting.

We'll be on the world this year, so see y'all on Amsterdam in January.

Nancy

First....so sorry for your losses re the health problems. Adjustment is difficult, but your positive attitude is a winner.

Secondly, have enjoyed reading all the good advice. We have done all of those, at least in part and they were all wonderful, but the choice must be the one you are most comfortable doing. If that is Canada/New England, then so be it. It is a lovely trip with beautiful scenery and interesting ports.

I wish you the best and would encourage you to remain positive. In my 46 years as a nurse I have seen many outcomes that defy logic and have gained tremendous respect for our bodies' ability to heal themselves.

Best to you and your family....

We went to Semana on the Noordam January 2014 and did the cultural tour with "Terry" mentioned earlier. He is a young man from the US who has married a local and is very nice and interested in building good business with tourists. I felt safe and had a good day. It is more third world than many other Caribbean ports and was a nice change. I'd go for it!

Our first cruise was on the Regal Princess to Alaska in 1994 for our 25th anniversary. We took our 2 high school and college age daughters with us. They had their own stateroom and thought they were really something!

Since then we have spent hundreds of days at sea and occasionally take the whole family, even our 2 grandchildren who also love cruising - a family tradition now!

We took our family to Alaska last summer and my son-in-law and 10yo grandson did the Grizzly Meadows shorex. They liked it, but said it was definitely not as fun as the helicopter ride or the crab boat they did in other ports. There were no bears and the ride was ok, but I'd probably chose the other trip if I were you. Just some thoughts.

Thanks for your very insightful review. In August we are taking all 8 of our family on the Westerdam itinerary. They range from 5-65 and all are excited about it. My DH and I have been to Alaska several times and took our daughters in '94 on the Regal Princess. It is one of their fondest memories. Going back with son-in-laws and grandchildren will be awesome, I hope!

We have 330 some days on HAL and have been around the world twice on the Amsterdam so we like the way they do things. Looking forward to Sitka and Victoria, as this will be a first visit there. Thanks for your great pictures too. Victoria looks like my kind of place!:)