3rdGenCunarder

Welcome to HAL! I don't know about phone service at sea. Others can answer that. But I can tell you that an internet plan can be shared. The wifi intranet is free. You can use the Navigator app to check the daily program, menus, etc. If you want internet service, you have to pay for it. If you both don't need to be online all the time, you can share a plan. HAL describes the plans for "one device," but it's really one device at a time. You must log out of the internet service before she can log on. It's your first cruise. Try to enjoy the sea and the ship! I know that a lot of people need to stay in touch with work. But you're on vacation. Cut the cord for a few hours a day.

Well, I hope it's more of a library than I saw on K'dam.

There have been reports that flavored water has been confiscated.

It would be nice to see a Dutch cafe on more ships. I don't know if that will happen, but I wouldn't bet on a library. HAL has pretty much given up on that idea.

That does sound late. What time is the ship scheduled to sail? I have only sailed on HAL out of US and Canada ports. People start showing up at 10:00 or 10:30 and nobody checks boarding time. I don't know if Sydney enforces boarding times. You might try the ports of call boards and ask how boarding is typically handled in Sydney.

Why are you set on port side? I'd grab the deck 7 cabin. It's a hike to the lounge, but at least it's on the same deck.

"the unpleasantness" I like your choice of euphemism! I agree that the breakfast and lunch options at the Lido are as good as before. I was on Eurodam, and in addition to the usual things, they had lots of Asian options, and the makings of a proper English "fry up." Waffles, excellent crepes. Breakfast is wonderful. Lunch had many options, too, but I tried to stick to the salad bar to make up for my big breakfast. One correction to your earlier post. The bread pudding isn't "out" where you can see it. They hide it at the back of the dessert station. I suppose that's because it's where the warming spot is, but it always seems like a secret. OP, I haven't been on NCL in a zillion years, but I suspect their buffet is open all day and into the night. One aspect of HAL's buffet that is frequently criticized is that it is NOT open all day. There's a blank spot in the late afternoon, although on most ships you can get burgers or pizza at that time. And dinner is over around 9:00, and nothing until the 10:30 snack. (Those times are estimates, someone will correct me if I'm off on the timing)

The MDR on the K'dam is loud on the lower level, and I would have hoped that HAL might address the issue on the later Pinnacle ships. The second time I sailed on the K'dam. I was at a table on the upper level at the back, almost in the corner. It was amazingly quiet compared to other areas.

Absolutely! The sail to the glaciers is slow, and you don't need to be outside the whole time. If the weather is dreary, it's nice to be able to go out for a while, see the view, then go inside to warm up--especially with room service coffee. I don't much care how big my cabin is--for me it's all about the view from the balcony!

Yikes! I haven't been on an R or S ship in 6 or 7 years, so I'm glad I asked. I didn't expect USBs, but I didn't remember that there were so few outlets. Glad I asked--I'm going to have to do some serious scheduling to charge my phone and my camera batteries. Is HAL okay with a "squid" cord splitter? I don't think they usually come with a surge protector.

The corner afts vary a lot on the Vistas, and deck 6 are the smallest. But I think there is less (but still some) variation in size of aft on the Signatures. Balcony sizes don't have the variation on the Signatures that you see on the Vistas. Try looking at pictures of cabins on halfacts. Signature Class | HAL Cruiser Information (halfacts.com)

That isn't a lot of outlets for this day and age of rechargeable devices. No plug by the bed?

Such a simple solution! It's a shame some people are too inconsiderate to do that.

That makes sense. I wonder if cabin category comes into play here. We booked our first Alaska cruise on Zuiderdam closer to sailing than we usually do. We booked a Neptune suite. We had to take a guarantee because it was the last cruise of the season and we wanted combine it with the coastal to San Francisco. They were keeping their options open and only doing guarantees at that point. Despite the late booking, we got first seating confirmed before the cabin location was confirmed.

A few years ago, we had strong winds blowing toward our side of the ship coming down the coast after leaving the St Lawrence River. We couldn't open the balcony door all day. OTOH, I've had northeast cruises that were perfectly calm.

Perhaps ask the winery if their products are available anywhere else in Alaska where you could pick some up at a more convenient time.

Bring back Dutch Tea, Dutch night in the MDR (for the night of the Orange party?), or add Dutch items to the "special" dressy night menu? For the non-Pinnacle ships, could they enlarge the coffee/bar area in the Crows Nest (or whatever they call it now) and serve some of the Dutch Cafe items? I recall seeing some things in a cold case, so not everything requires having a kitchen there.

The classes were a 5-star perk, and anyone else had to get on a waiting list. I would sign up right away on embarkation day, so I had a chance of making the cut. And I did. I was lucky to do the class twice when there was a guest chef. Even better than the cooking was the conversation over the lunch that followed. They need a kitchen setup for hands-on classes, but they don't need one for demos. Cunard does demos in the main theater. They use portable cooking stations and get the most entertaining staff members to do it. I think the chefs enjoy it even more than the passengers.

Does booking a guarantee cabin, as opposed to choosing a cabin, affect getting your choice of dining time?

Nooooo! Please, please no more spa or shopping infomercials!!!! I would love to see the cooking demos return. Even better, the hands-on classes. I would happily pay to go to some of those again.

On Eurodam last month, I found the beef portions to be significantly larger than the fish portions in the MDR.

Sure doesn't sound like it. All we've heard about the changes in the entertainment is what's going away. What's replacing it is unclear. If Lincoln Center is going to be on World Stage as a group that travels form ship to ship, with my luck, they won't be on any cruise I'm taking. I still haven't seen Cantare. All I ever see is Step One.

I just looked at Navigator on my phone. I don't see a way to edit the account holder. But there is a contact given if you want to delete an account. Try emailing navigator.support@hollandamerica.com and put something like "change account" in the title so they know you aren't simply trying to delete an account.

You don't have to use it, but it makes things easier. You will get a paper daily program, but Navigator means you don't have to carry it around to remember things you wanted to do. You can also check menus, which is convenient if you're wondering what's for lunch or dinner at the Lido. If you booked a tour through HAL, your tour ticket will be in Navigator. Paper tickets are not distributed, although you can get one printed. Given the short hours of the Shorex desk, that could be a hassle. There are reports that some tours will scan your cruise card and accept that as a tour ticket, but I didn't see that happen.

That's how I read it, too. But--When I tried to check in at the face scan kiosk in FLL, it said I hadn't done all my docs. That was wrong. I had done all the check-in stuff the website wanted, and HAL did not require Verifly to get all the green check marks and a boarding pass. The kiosk watcher sent me to a live check-in person, and a minute later I had my little paper boarding pass. So no big deal, but I wonder if the kiosk wanted me to have Verifly. HAL did send emails "encouraging" me to do it. But after going through ArriveCAN several times last year, if I wasn't required to do an app I had no desire to bother. OTOH, the kiosk might have been cranky for some other reason.