Koshlong

I posted this on the Princess page, and got somewhat predictable response. I'd like to hear what people here think.

I'd like to do a partial Panama Canal transit next year and have narrowed the choice to Coral Princess or Zuiderdam. I've been on the Z in Alaska.

Can anyone give me some comparisons between these two ships? They seem to be about the same size and only a few years different in age.

Thanks. I hope!

Actually the Sanctuary and MUTS don't particularly interest me........ I'd like to hear more about the dining options and the entertainment. I agree that the entertainment on the Z is pretty weak, although I have to admit a sneaking fondness the the crew talent shows.

Thanks for all the input!

Thanks for your help. On the "travel agency site" I used it showed Gatun Lake on the Zuiderdam itinerary, but didn't give that info for Coral Princess. I'd noticed that others, like Celebrity and RCI, didn't actually enter the Canal. I figured that Princess ships would, but it wasn't clear.

I'd like to do a partial Panama Canal transit next year and have narrowed the choice to Coral Princess or Zuiderdam. I've been on the Z in Alaska.

Can anyone give me some comparisons between these two ships? They seem to be about the same size and only a few years different in age.

Thanks. I hope!

Thank you. That's just what I wanted to hear. I'm trying to choose between the Coral Princess and the Zuiderdam, and that would have been a deal breaker.

Does the Coral Princess do a partial transit of the Panama Canal or does it just visit Colon and run excursions from there?

Wow! I really like that itinerary. Can you tell more about it?

Holland America is doing a few cruises to Bermuda next spring, from Boston. They're alternating with Canada/New England cruises.

They still allow verandah smoking, although who knows by next year?

Their interesting thing is that they dock right in Hamilton, Bermuda, instead of at the Dockyards.

Don't think it'll really be a party cruise, though.

Personally, I'd try to get the G back. The obstructed cabins are laid out exactly like the verandah cabins..bed on the side wall. While the view from the main deck cabins is unobstructed, the bed is directly beneath the window. The only way to really enjoy the window is to have the beds separated and use them as daybeds. In my opinion, anyway.

I'd say yes, it is the balcony size. They used to be VD cabins and seemed to be some of the first ones booked.........so were reassigned. Sigh.

I like the tubs, too, but I think I might be in a minority here. They're only about 4' long, 'though. I'm short; my husband's just under 6 feet tall and he doesn't really fit. On one of our cruises, the cruise director referred to the tubs as "tubettes".

"

That could be a blast in a port like Grand Turk!

I certainly hope that it's nothing like the Playlist shows they're complaining about on Carnival.

We cruised with a very traveled Aussie couple on a 35 night cruise. They didn't want the weight of a jacket etc. on their flights so they headed for a thrift shop when they landed, bought a very suitable jacket for peanuts, and left it behind when they departed.

I thought that it was a very creative way to deal with the problem!

CHOCOLATE ice cream? Why on earth would they do that?

This may be the reason the OP wants to stick with NCL tours..........

Westerdam - July 15

Hope this works!

Who did you vote for in 2012? I was asked this several times on HAL cruises...........and after I'd told them I was from Ontario!

Maybe you should repeat your question on the RCI forum. There are bound to be people there who can answer your question. Good Luck.........and I think they're bound to be more vegan friendly than the message you got suggests.

I second cruiseapril on taking a tour in Martinique. They really don't seem to be too cruise friendly to English speakers. We pretty much found that we had to take a ship tour, too, because there really wasn't much offered locally. We've been there twice and found the whole story of St. Pierre to be very interesting.

I've been looking and looking for PICTURES of the new offerings! There don't seem to be many out there. I think I could find something to order each night, but I'd love to see what I'd be getting.

Thanks! It's worked well for me, too!

Hi, Anni

We've got a fairly unusual stop in Germany on our Baltic cruise next June. We'll be in Warnemunde overnight, from the morning of the first day, til about 5 pm on the second.

I was hoping to take a train to Berlin, spend the day touring, take a late train back (I can sleep on trains pretty well.), catch a nap back on the ship, and then spend the second day exploring Warnemunde and the surrounding area.

Is this reasonable, or even possible? If it is can you give me some ideas on how to do it?

Thanks

Marnie

That was the ship we were on, too. I'm still trying to figure out why they gave us a German speaking tour guide, who frequently had to stop and ask us how to say things in English. I really liked Martinique too. We're returning on the Noordam this March.

Wwinfl, that's what I wanted to do, but we couldn't get anyone brave enough to drive. My husband considers driving through Montreal at rush hour, translating constant construction signs as you go, to be as much "French driving" as he is willing to do.

We did this 3 years ago and there were pluses and minuses. Balata gardens were absolutely gorgeous and I got a lot of photos I'm trying to learn to reproduce in watercolours. St. Pierre is interesting and the museum is small but gets the point of the volcano disaster across rather well.

I didn't think we spent enough time in St. Pierre......not really any time to walk around on our own....and for some reason our guide's first language was GERMAN. I was prepared for French, and actually looking forward to trying some, but Grade 11 German was a long time ago..........

We're going back this year, and I'm thinking of investigating a private tour to St. Pierre so that I can really look around. I don't know if anyone can provide information on non ship tours in Martinique?