NCTribeFan

I always at least sit at a machine and put my card in. Maybe play a few spins. But if they're busy, it can take quite a while. Was great on the Pride B2B2B last October (ending with the TA). Had a couple of servers who knew as soon as they saw me to come right over. There were times, though, when all of them were on the other side of the casino (the smoking side), then back at the bar waiting to get the drinks, then off to deliver them that took a long time. Would be so much simpler if we could just order at the bar.

Looking forward to this! My first HAL cruise was Zaandam to Hawaii. I think that was 13 years ago. I should've just been on Volendam to Hawaii last month, but I cancelled that just a couple of weeks before the fires there. So, I booked January 2025 on K'dam. I sailed her when she first came to the states. I believe that was November 2017. Loved the ship. I'm usually solo (although most of my recent and upcoming cruises have friends also sailing, so I'm solo but not alone). But I've done plenty of true solo cruises and almost always in interior cabins. Safe travels!

No $50 bets for me! Yikes. I don't "do" many activities on the ship. I entertain myself by reading. Sadly, there is a serious lack of books on ships these days. HAL's Pinnacle class ships have real libraries again. I think I read at least 5 novels while on Rotterdam's TA in April. It's quiet in there, too. I always bring a couple of books as well. And I keep my Kindle loaded with fluff just in case. I typically only spend time in the casino in the evening (I'm not really into shows and I'd jump overboard if a piano bar was the only entertainment), and I try to stay out on sea days, but I do understand the draw. But I'm a Low Roller, for sure. It's slots and low betting on the Roulette wheel for me. When I have DOU, I joke that I have to go the casino to get my "$30 free drink" before dinner since that's about what I drop in the slots while waiting for my drink. 😁

Did I miss it or have the chilled fruit soups disappeared from the menus? I was so disappointed when HAL removed them (theirs were even better than on Carnival, imo), so was happy to see Carnival still had them last year when we were on Pride for a month. I love those soups.

I got an email yesterday saying I was already a Sea Rover. I'm guessing they had my first application on file (even though I didn't qualify at that time because I didn't have a 2023 booking), and they automatically applied it to my 2024 bookings.

Does anyone have an estimate of how long it takes to get that confirmation email? I applied last year but didn't have a 2023 sailing. I now have two 2024 sailings, so reapplied last week. I don't sail until April, but since we have to apply by the end of the year, I'm hoping I get a reply soon. I don't want to forget about this with all the other things going on this month. I just checked my bookings and I see the Bonus $100 bar tab, a bottle of bubbly and Deep Blue Extras (with no detail of what that includes). So it seems I've been approved although I haven't received an email.

Got my tile on the Rotterdam TA last April but if there was a Mariner's lunch, I missed it. There were many, many 4 & 5* sailors on that one and I'm only 3* so maybe there was one and I just wasn't invited. If there were any Mariner lunches since Covid on my sailings, I was unaware (Eurodam 11/2021, NA 12/2021, Zuiderdam Alaska B2B June 2022; the 26 nights on Rotterdam April 2023). Not sure I got tiles on all of those but I believe I did. I'll be on Eurodam next month. I'll try to remember to pay attention but there are no guarantees!

Let me also state that on the Rotterdam TA last spring, the filet in the CO MDR (not the upcharge steak, just on the regular menu) was better than what I had in Pinnacle. I was very pleasantly surprised!

Thanks for the clarifications. The Hawaii cruise (I'm looking at either 1/11/25 or 1/28/25 show the early booking HIA, which now, for a couple of days, are available for a $25 deposit. I'm really tempted to just go ahead and book with that deposit. If I visit the Future Cruise desk on Eurodam, and can get a better deal, I can cancel and rebook to get the onboard booking credit, correct? I want all the perks and all the OBC I can get! I feel like I'm begin a tad greedy. 😄

I booked this while on Rotterdam in April during the 150th Anniversary TA. Looks like this itin is available in February, but January shows as sold out. I love this itinerary although it's a bit too port-intensive for me. I've been to them all multiple times. But I'm delighted to return to Dominica. It's my favorite island, mostly because it isn't over-developed with chain bars/restaurants. Of course, there are people who think that means "there's nothing to do there." Sigh. Sadly, the tour operator I always used (Levi Baron of Bumpiing Tours) appears to have gone out of business. He did great tours and is a wonderful person. Booked a ship tour to use up the HIA credit. Still, to me, a sold-out HAL ship (assuming it isn't actually at full capacity) is still better than non-sold-out ships on other lines I've sailed. The space ratio is so much better that if you just avoid the buffet at peak hours, or try to be first off the ship in every port, they just don't feel that crowded. At least, that's how I hope it feels on this sailing!

I'm confused as well. I only mentioned BF because I checked the price for the Hawaii cruise and it was exactly the same as it was when I first looked at it, so there was no sale at all, which we all know is often the case. When I do a mock booking for the K'dam Hawaii sailing, it shows the Early Booking Bonus HIA with upgraded drinks, wi-fi, and grats. How do you know when the 90 days of launch is up? I think that's really my question. Would be nice if the Terms & Conditions for the EBB stated when it expires for a given sailing. If I cancel the Rotterdam TA, I lose the CO portion of the fare? That doesn't sound right. The CO pdf I downloaded says in the FAQ "Club Orange is an add-on to the total cruise fare and regular cancellation fees will apply." Doesn't say it's non-refundable. Guess I need to contact my PCC although she's probably swamped right now with the "sales" going on. She's not the most responsive at the best of times.

Re: sparkling wine - have you considered buying a wine package once on board (if any of the levels has the wine you want)? You can get the bottles and take to your cabin, so whatever you don't drink during Cruise #1, you have for Cruise #2. Rinse and repeat as needed. I'll be on Magic in January for the first time, so looking forward to your reports. Go Buckeyes!! 😁

I'm currently booked on the Rotterdam TA for next October at a very reasonable fare with HIA Early Booking and CO added for just $180 (15 nights, solo). BUT, I'm thinking of cancelling and booking Hawaii for January 2025. Currently, the HIA Early Booking Bonus says that offers expires 11/30/23 for 2024 sailings. When does it expire for 2025 sailings? What I'm thinking is that while on Eurodam in January, I could book the Hawaii sailing and get that little extra OBC. But I don't want to wait until January if the Early Booking Bonus with it's extra perks will not be available for that sailing. The Hawaii cruise is rather more expensive than the TA, but it's always possible that the price will drop (checked price with the Black Friday "sale" and it's exactly the same as I priced it weeks ago with the same perks) and this version of HIA has price protection. If the Early Booking will be available, I'd like to do that while on the ship. Then, I can cancel the TA when I get home and have the deposit transferred over as a payment on the Hawaii cruise. Since Hawaii is on Koningsdam, I'd probably want to book a guarantee and add CO. That private dining room is worth it! Thanks!

I'll be on Magic for 6 nights on January 7th (different itinerary). Other than the newest, biggest ships, I've been on every class (starting with Jubilee) except this class ship. It's a bit larger than I like, but I like the ships in the similar classes. Had a cruise booked on Breeze that was cancelled. I've mostly moved away from Carnival, but I have friends doing the NYE sailing and staying on for the 6 nights after, so thought I'd join them for this leg, then 4 of us will drive up to Port Everglades and board HAL's Eurodam (which I love). I decided to (finally) use my Diamond upgrade, so I'll have a rare balcony (I'm usually solo and actually like interior cabins because I sleep much better). There's a possibility my DD and 3yo granddaughter will join me. I've never sailed with a small child, so that will be different! Anyway, looking forward to your thoughts on the ship!

Ah. That may help explain my confusion with the Zuiderdam point. I'm really thinking that the casino charges are included. Of course, if I take cash and use that at the tables (like I typically do) that won't count. But if I charge casino funds to my account at a slot machine, I think that does count. So, what I'll do in January is charge to my account, play the slots for a bit, then cash out and use that cash at the roulette wheel. Hey, if I'm going to lose my money gambling, I'd like SOME benefit from it! 😁

I give up. I looked at the Alaska B2B and the actual charges were slightly more for the 2nd week than the first, yet I received 7 spending points for week 1 and only 4 for week 2. So I looked at Eurodam when I did NOT have HIA. I added up every charge except for the draws to my card in the casino. I *should* have earned only 2 spending points but I actually was given 5. The only way I could have earned 5 was if they counted the casino draws. I just added up my casino draws and, you guessed it, the total now comes out to 5 spending days. That doesn't explain the differences on Z'dam, though. I spent more in "regular" spending during week 2 and also drew more for the casino during that week. I give up! 😄

Ah. It's getting a little clearer with each explanation. I thank everyone for their input. I'll look at actual spending (excluding casino draws) and take a stab at what I think the SBP/HIA might have been. Hard to know without having a receipt for every drink! I'm mostly a beer & wine drinker but I did get used to having an Aperol Spritz or 2 every evening before dinner on Rotterdam. I had HIA on the 16 night TA but did not have it on the 2 x 5-nights following. I had drinks while gambling and would stop in the casino to get a pre-dinner drink. But other bar charges should be listed on that statement. When I get some spare time this week, I'll see if I can make sense of it for those 10 days.

I did at least figure out why I could download some statements and not others. On the B2Bs, the 2nd week is included on the first although the statement only shows the date of the first leg. That's why I couldn't open one for the 2nd. I think I'm slowly getting the idea. I'm putting casino draws one place and other onboard spending in another column to separate it out. Does any OBC cancel out the spending or is it treated as a payment rather than an offset of expenses? Am I correct that purchasing CO has no impact because that's considered as part of the base fare? What value is allocated to HIA? $50/pp/day?

Well, that explains why I got so many points on Zaandam. There were 3 of us in the cabin. We did ship tours in two ports, took advantage of the old BOGO Happy Hours daily, and I'm pretty sure I bought a wine package. I even purchased a photo. I did Zuiderdam B2B Alaska in June 2022. These were "free" casino bookings. I added HIA and CO for both weeks. I also booked a pre-cruise hotel in Seattle with the transfer to Vancouver. I earned 7 spending points on the first leg but only 4 on the 2nd. The only ship excursions were the ones covered by HIA. It doesn't make sense that I earned 3 more points that first week where my spending probably was probably much the same. Sure seems like that pre-cruise hotel & transfer had an impact. Surprise! Looks like suddenly I can access my statements! Yee Haw! Time to put my accounting skills to the test and see if I can make any sense of my spending points earned. LOL. Just kidding. I was able to download the statement from the 6-1-22 sailing but the others say it's unavailable. Sigh.

Well, since I cannot access the PDFs at all (tried different browsers, the app, and Chrome on my phone), I can't see the detail. Their website really is frustrating. The amount of Spending days I got for my first cruise on Zaandam (14 nights Hawaii) seem way out of line with whatever spending I did. No HIA back then and I didn't spend nearly as much as it seems I should have to get 8 additional points. That was my only HAL sailing where I wasn't solo. Did they give me credit for my cabinmate's spending? Many of the others, I purchased HIA and/or Club Orange after my initial booking. I do have those amounts on my spreadsheet, but I really would like to see my statements to see if I think any casino spending was included. I do gamble, but I am very far from a high roller but it really seems like I got some credit for that spending. Of course, I was doing some "cleaning" recently and pitched out all the documents I had stacked up from several years of sailing. 😄

I know I've stated this before. I'm a CPA and I've never been able to understand why I've received whatever points I've received. Maybe I'll try again. I'm getting semi-close to making 4* but if casino spending doesn't count, then I won't reach it on my upcoming Eurodam sailing. Why would spa and shops count but not casino? They're all separate entities so why would they be treated differently? I don't really expect a logical answer, so this may just be a rhetorical question! 😄

Yes, the shape (and size) on the deck plans isn't always accurate. That's why I try to find actual photos (again, I use cruisedeckplans dot com). So while I'm happy with my upcoming J cabin, I'll keep an eye out for some I category cabins in the future on those ships.

Are those Cat I cabins shown above considered "large" insides? I thought it was just J (and maybe K). I know that deck plans don't always display the dimensions accurately. If those are truly large insides, I'll have to check them out. I absolutely love the J cabins on Vista-class and Eurodam/N. Am ships. My inside cabin on Rotterdam (for 26 nights) was quite small. I'm looking forward to again begin in a J cabin on Eurodam in January. Just need to be careful of the location. I wouldn't want to be portside and under BB Kings. I use cruisedeckplans dot com and use their "deck drag" option to see what I'm under. And I prefer the cabins that are not connecting because of the bed layout and trying to watch TV. EDIT: I just found a photo of 8045 and it does appear to be a large inside. So, maybe I've been paying a few dollars more for a J when I could have an I and still have all that room (and not have to worry about being under BB Kings! Thanks, Ruth!

Besides allowing us to use Whatever Credit to pre-purchase items, wouldn't it be nice to be able to apply a Gift Card prior to sailing? It takes FOREVER to get it done at Guest Services and since I typically have multiple cards (usually for $100 each), it takes even longer. And the paperwork is just ridiculous. Hmmm. I suppose I could use a Gift Card to purchase Shipboard Credit which, hopefully, would be preloaded to my account, assuming I opt to have it "delivered" on embarkation day. That would save the time wasted at the Service Desk and allow those folks to spend more time helping people log onto the wi-fi. Really, they need a separate desk with 2-3 CS people for the first couple of days phones/wi-fi help only. That doesn't help with the issue of not being able to use OBC prior to sailing. I have lots for my January Carnival cruise (B2B with Eurodam) and have pre-purchased water, wi-fi and grats. Next, I'll book my specialty dining and use some more. It's so easy. HAL does need to keep up.

Mine looks like the above with both the Classic and CO options. Only the Pinnacle-class ships have dedicated CO dining rooms. The others, CO people eat in the MDR and they can order the CO daily offering. Looks good to me! I'll be on Eurodam in 2 months.