Moriah

This might be a little off topic, but the best thing about the Neptune Lounge are the concierge crew that man them. My Mom used to call them "The Neptune Girls" until the first cruise when we had a male concierge 🙂 Anyway, they are, in my experience, amazing. As others have said, the Neptune lounge isn't a "lounge" in the sense of a bar, it's more a place where those staying in the suites can have all services that others might get from Guest Services, while in a private space with yummy snacks! Only recently has it also become a "bar" for certain hours of the evening, and the alcohol is not complimentary. Everything else in the lounge is. My best memory of The Neptune Girls was on Oosterdam in 2007 when they used to have tiny chocolate eclairs every afternoon. When one of the concierge staff discerned that I was disappointed on the one afternoon when I arrived too late to partake of the eclairs, a few minutes later she knocked on my suite door carrying a tray of half a dozen of the treats that she had gone to fetch herself to alleviate my disappointment. THAT is HAL service and while such a small thing, as you can see, I've never forgotten it! 🙂

I'm not sure why you would look for them, or need them "pre-boarding", but you will not find them there. They work in the NEPTUNE LOUNGE (as you know, since you've sailed in the suites frequently... )

Actually the concierges in The Neptune Lounge take care of you so there is no reason for any line… or for going to guest services at all. I wonder why you were told to go there and use the Club Orange line.

I have no memory of there ever being a priority line at guest services! When was that and what ship(s)?

I am an American/Israeli and my adult children are in Israel -One in the North in the Galilee and one in the South in Eilat. I've been texting with them and they are fine for now but it's terrifying what's going on. I'm glad HAL is getting you out of there.

There are always a few free ones like morning stretch, or Thai Chi sometimes in the afternoon, but most of the others like yoga, etc. have always been for a charge.

Very smart - you'll get a good night's sleep in Miami before your cruise.

Open seating will be in the other dining room (well, same MDR but upstairs or downstairs). If you will not make it to your assigned seating on any given night you can always line up for anytime dining (or make a reservation for it and let them know you won't be at the other dining room) Or you can eat at a specialty restaurant, room service, or Lido buffet of course.

Ah, that does make sense... I hope someone will answer because I'm curious how that works...

Air travel has become even MORE erratic and unreliable over the last 5 years, and I have NEVER trusted the airlines to get me to a cruise embarkation city on the day of embarkation! Now, I would do it even less. Thank goodness you had the one day buffer! Last month, I flew to Seattle to cruise to Alaska. When we landed, we were delayed getting to our gate because there was an aircraft parked in it. This was two days before my cruise was leaving, so I was perfectly relaxed. As we waited to get off the plane, people around me struck up conversation. The couple across the aisle from me said they were going on a cruise. I piped up, "Me too. What cruiseline?" They were on a different line, and I said, "When do you leave?" They said "IN TWO HOURS!!!" It was already well after noon, their cruise was leaving at 3 (doesn't that mean they have to board by 2?) and they were expecting to get off the plane, get their luggage that they had checked, and get to the port in time! I was aghast, and so were a lot of others around us. When we finally taxied to the gate, we all parted the seas of people to shoo those two off, but I don't think any of us expected them to make it in time. And this was with an on time landing, just a slight delay because of gate being occupied! What if something worse had happened. And it was their 10th anniversary cruise... sigh...I still wonder if they made it.

I would wait until your embarkation and go to the gym and see exactly what will be on offer for your sailing. Who knows if it will be worth $100 for you to get "unlimited" classes. The classes are not that numerous in any case, so a-la-carte might be the way to go. That way you can try them out before you make a commitment.

That's great news about the HAL Cats! I miss the ships having their own band at sail away parties, etc. Great memories. Also agree with that manager that Vista is the "perfect size" - I hope our four vista ships can keep going for a while. They are pushing 20!!! I sailed on all four of them, while not on their maiden voyages, pretty darn soon after, and they remain my favorites.

I know! I got a casino offer a while back with a list of cruises and I picked a warm weather itinerary for this winter -I looked at the Panama Canal cruises, but when I saw how high the charges were, I ended up with a Caribbean for 9 days with total port taxes under $200.

This isn't an answer, but I'm curious why you would do that? PCCs at HAL just are not what they used to be, for one thing, and you don't get anything extra from them that you would not get from a TA, in fact usually it's the opposite. I'm just curious why you would consider it, not really arguing one way or the other.

Ya, it's quite confusing. But having a package really is freeing. All you have to know is you can have up to 15 drinks, and "gratuities included" means you just don't have to pay the gratuity. Hopefully the bar staff is actually getting the 18% that they would if you were paying individually for the drinks...

I think what was meant here was the MINI BAR, not bringing something to your room from a bar.

Yes, you are not charged gratuities on your drinks when you have a drink package.

If you want to reserve a cabana in advance of your cruise you can call guest services - they will give you the current price for your ship and sailing, and keep in mind not all of the ships have cabanas. If you want to reserve for some days only and not for the entire cruise, you have to wait until you are on board. The prices on the sheet you linked to I believe are still in effect. They look similar to what I was quoted for my upcoming Rotterdam cruise.

There were a couple of Tai Chi classes on Westerdam in Alaska last month, and some artsy activities as well. I was on Rotterdam a year ago and don't remember, but I'm sure there are similar activities especially when there are several sea days in a row. They had oragami paper folding and I was always meaning to go but never made it. Maybe during my November cruise on Rotterdam!

Joanne, don't get confused between room "size" and "category". Some inside cabins are quite roomy, and bigger than any ocean view or balcony. Others are tiny. Ocean views are with very few exceptions all the same size, regardless of whether they are full or obstructed views. (And no, they are not bigger than 'large interiors') Inside cabins have a range, and the range is just that - some cabins in the same category are bigger than others. The deck plan of the ship you'll be on can be helpful in that when you look at the map of the rooms you can tell if you are dealing with a cabin that is especially big or small.

These are great tips!! Thank you so much!

Does anyone know a trick for narrowing a search for ONLY cruises that are repositioning or "one way"? I would love to be able to generate a list of all the transatlantic cruises for example over the next couple of years, without having to sift through all the "Europe" cruises, etc. And in general I'm interested in seeing a list of cruises that reposition all the ships. If anyone knows any search tips (talking about the HAL site, but if there is another way, I'm of course open to it) I'd be most appreciative.

You won't be out any money, but you won't be able to go. Port fees and taxes will be refunded if you cancel. Hope they feel better and you'll be able to sail. Bummer.

I cruised with my daughter on Rotterdam in the family ocean view on deck one and it was awesome!! You will love it. I love the lower decks. It was very quiet and that extra shower and sink was wonderful!