grsnovi

It depends on what you're planning to do while on shore. We did a helicopter excursion up to the glacier once while in Juneau and if you're doing that you'll want the fleece.

When we boarded K'dam in June we had an assigned boarding time. We had stayed at the Movenpick and walked to the terminal around 10:30 or so (our bags had been picked up at our room @ 8am). K'dam was the only ship in port. The line for check-in was moving well and they were giving out numbered boarding tags. We had been assigned a 2:30 boarding but we were on the ship by noon, dropped our carry-on in our stateroom and headed to the MDR for a very relaxing lunch.

HAL certainly has the ability to look at my reservation and see what time I was assigned and then make me sit in the boarding lounge if that is what works best for them. This last cruise was the first time that I recall being assigned a boarding time.

Just did the K'dam to Norway this past June. The Lincoln Center ensemble consisted of a string quartet with an added pianist. They were fantastic. They did different programs each evening including straight classical, an evening of movie-themed selections and (my favorite) a set of rock that was amazingly arranged. I asked one of their players if they did their own arrangements and they did not so I can only assume that HAL has purchased these arrangements and they're being performed throughout the fleet.

When we were on her in June I heard that the Crow's Nest was going to get the EXC treatment.

...If most of the passengers would feel unhappy, that's what I need to know...

I don't think that you can extrapolate "most passengers" from the comments on CC. I suspect that on any given cruise probably less than 5% even know about CC. As to the wisdom of bringing a guitar on a cruise, as a player, I can't say that I've ever felt the need.

What is the Navigator App? Is it for your mobile phone?

Yes. Download it to your phone on boarding. Then while in airplane mode, log on and check your on board account, view activities, view photos that may have been taken while boarding or during the evenings. You can do most of that on the screen in your stateroom too - but you need to register your account and they give you a username. I was skeptical at first but it turned out to be useful. You can also (apparently) use it to message others in your party but they have to go into the app to see messages (they don't pop up or appear in your message app.

We have a brewer nearby who has music outside (for free) during the week and I can get a great glass of beer for $7 (which is about what I paid on K'dam the last week of June). Of course the 6 pack of Blue Moon in the fridge was $9 but my kitchen doesn't have the ambiance of the Crow's Nest. Then, as a kid growing up outside of Philly, Rolling Rock (from the glass lined tanks of Old Latrobe) was great. I can get an 18 pack of Rolling Rock for $9 now too (but I have no idea what it's like since it's been acquired AB).

... I must say it was a wonderful cruise...

...and I bet you met some great people too! ;p

We visited the spa the day we boarded K'dam this last time and they had a special that was good enough that after six HAL cruises with no spa, I booked the week for my wife.

(only sailed on the Eurodam twice), so the Oosterdam will be a little different for us.

...but really only a little. The O'dam has 1 less deck and no Tamarind and of course it's a bit older. Sailed on O'dam 3x and E'dam 2x and would sail either again.

Lemonade was readily available on our recent Norway cruise on the K'dam.

I did not realize there were two separate events.

Strictly speaking there aren't two events. Upon boarding everyone is welcome to eat in the MDR assuming they know about lunch being offered there and they arrive in time. The Mariner's Luncheon will be announced by an invitation slipped into the mail rack outside your stateroom door. It is typically on the last day at sea.

Was the cost per party (cabin) or per person.

I imagine that the $149 covers everyone in one stateroom. They do seem to be sorting these by facial recognition and there were two photos that were not us on our thumb drive of 180 shots (not actual shot but rather files consisting of larger and smaller prints to use the print analogy - not sure why anyone opting for the digital package would want them to arrange into a print file).

Just off the K'dam and purchased the $149 package. They no longer print 8" x 10" prints of everything but they do selectively put up ones they think are going to entice others. You are able to view the accumulated photos on the screen in your room and you can purchase individual prints that way if that's what works for you. If you purchase the package you get a (ship shaped) thumb drive with full resolution JPG files (not RAW) but they include all of the variations of the original shot - so there will be one file that is the full size shot and another file that (if printed) would be two medium size and four wallet-size (for example). You also get a digital release that allows you to take these to your favorite photo processing site and get prints without running afoul of their copyright.

The roll call for my recent cruise was pretty quiet compared to some in the past. With in excess of some two dozen unique names of which a few indicated they were sailing with extended families our M&G that was on our first sea day was attended by three participants. In the past M&G's were often coordinated with HAL who would supply snacks and senior officers. Those days appear to be gone. It would have been embarrassing if I had attempted to set something up with HAL only to have such a poor showing. Contrast that with the 41 page roll call that is now going on for the NCL Bliss Pacific Coastal that leaves Vancouver BC on 9/30. This roll call apparently started when the Bliss was announced and cruises were scheduled. It was very active when it started in January 2017 with people speculating on the ship's amenities. CC roll calls have been compromised (in my opinion) by automatically adding individuals to roll calls. Many of these folks don't know what they are and (as far as I know) CC doesn't support private messages like many other chat boards.

From our first lunch on board on embarkation day, when the lower MDR was nearly empty, I thought it beautiful. Later in the week there was one day when it was really full (and very slow). We had tables near windows for the most part and we will always sit with others when offered. We ate on the upper level once and I didn't really notice a difference.

I can't recommend Tamarind enough. It is a fantastic experience. This last time on K'dam was exceptional. We didn't do any of the other specialty restaurants this time. We were easily able to get our seating even though we didn't book until the first sea day. Sel de Mer seemed very empty whenever we wandered past and although initially I was interested I was put off by the mixed reviews here and the a la carte pricing.

We did the High Tea at the Empress once and it was very nice. We arrived late on our last visit and our shore excursion to Butchart was cancelled. On our first stop here we did an Orca Watch cruise that was possibly the highlight of the week.

...at least the post card was BUSINESS REPLY MAIL and no stamp was required!

...perhaps you left a few ZEROS out...

You're indeed correct although I had intended to insert a "k" following the 168. Big ooops!

Just as an airline seat over the wings evens out air turbulence, so too will a stateroom amidships even out rough seas. We been blessed with fair seas on all of our cruises - all of which have been on smaller ships than Bliss. I'm looking at an aft stateroom on Bliss for the 9/30 repo out of Vancouver. I've never sailed south along the west coast so I'm not certain what is typical but I'm wondering if an aft cabin on a 168 ton vessel is going to be affected much if seas are unusual. Not sure if I should opt for a cabin amidships or go with the aft. Thoughts?

Just off the K'dam. 1st night out was my birthday and we ate in MDR. They served me a birthday cake w/candle and Happy Birthday written on the plate. Wore my tux 2nd night out but not on the 2nd Gala Night. May not bother with the tux when we take the kids/grandkids to Alaska next summer. I've did my birthday on E'dam in 2009 in the Pinnacle and other than the Happy Birthday on the plate the evening was a typical Pinnacle. This last time out was our 3rd time in Tamarind and it remains my favorite! Had a most excellent lobster this time.

I took the tux 2 weeks ago to Norway, wore it once and just a jacket/tie on 2nd Gala Night. Didn't eat any gelato - maybe that's why I weighed the same when I got home?

We buy the OTC Bonine and chew one each morning while on a cruise. We've never had a problem.

Did the Baltic in 2009 and since buying the tux in 2005 I was still bringing it and certainly didn't feel that it was a mistake. Two weeks ago we flew from the west coast of the USA to Amsterdam for our last cruise to Norway on the K'dam which holds 2700 passengers. On our first Gala night I probably saw less than a dozen guys in tuxedos. While I wore mine, I didn't wear it the 2nd Gala night (or the 2nd tux shirt that I brought along) opting for just a jacket and tie. These days I think it is more a matter of what one wants to wear and lug around (and pay for extra bag fees).