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Everything posted by Denali2003
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@We_like_to_cruise We went to a B&B last September. They have an electric kettle. I thought it was the coolest thing. Yes, it heats the water up FAST. So, when we got home, I ordered one from Amazon. I LOVE IT!!! Love that it shuts off immediately once the water is boiled. It takes longer for the tea to steep than it does for the water to heat up 😉
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On our 2018 cruise on the Star Princess I asked to talk to the head chef in the buffet. He came out and I asked about the Vegetarian / Vegan options. More to the point, telling him there were none (except for the salad). He agreed. He does not have control over it. However, he did go to the back of the kitchen, came back with the buffet menu for the rest of the cruise. He too is a Vegetarian and is disappointed in the lack of choices. Then every time I went to the buffet, he saw me and came out from the kitchen and walked me around the buffet showing me what I could eat. I thought that was very kind of him. There was one dish on the buffet -- spaghetti wrapped in eggplant slices. OMG, that was good. He said he made that dish. I made sure I got his name and gave him a great review. I felt bad for him one day. He was at the meat carving station. He's a Vegetarian and has to stand there and cut up a animal (couldn't remember if it was a turkey or pig). On our 2021 cruise on the Regal Princess (the ship was only half full but full crew) the Head Waiter (Erno) from the dining room went above & well beyond with my food choices. On that cruise, the Vegan dinner menu was much more extensive than it is now. Each night he would bring me the next night's Vegan menu and I picked what I wanted. One night we had dinner at Sabatini's. He contacted the main guy there - Franco and told him to "take good care" of me. He did. Then, just after we ordered our dinner at Sabatini's, Erno came in and showed me the next night's Vegan menu and I picked what I wanted. Another night we decided to have dinner in the buffet. Erno had my dinner delivered to the buffet for me to eat! Like I said, WELL above & beyond. A few times Erno saw me in the buffet and walked me around to show me what I could eat. He was disappointed to see that salad was my only option. On our 2022 cruise it was full passengers and only 50% crew. Our experience was less than desirable. Guess we were spoiled on our 2021 cruise. I will see how our May 2023 cruise goes. We will be on the Island Princess.
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There is a thread from someone who is currently doing a World Cruise on the Island Princess. I asked about the Vegan menu in the MDR. She said she asked and they said they did have one. Attached is the current Vegan/Vegetarian menu. It is SO MUCH smaller than the one I had on the Regal in 2021. I am very disappointed. Based on this particular menu, there's nothing on here I would eat. Maybe the Eggplant.
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I am sort of in the same situation. I have Neuropathy (not from Diabetes) and sugar, refined flour (white breads, white pasta) also white rice, cauliflower, potatoes (fries, mashed, baked, etc), sweet potatoes and very high sodium foods -- all of these aggravate my nerve pain. While these foods are not damaging to my health - it makes my feet hurt! A couple of these make my feet burn so bad that I want to chop them off! On top of all of that, I am a Vegetarian and Lactose Intolerant. Very hard for me to find food to eat on cruises. Princess really needs to step up their game with Vegetarian / Vegan options. Holland America, Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, Disney & Virgin all have amazing V&V options!
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I had that menu on our Dec 2021 cruise on the Sky Princess. The yogurt is dairy milk. Princess does not have non-dairy (coconut, almond, soy) yogurt 😔
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Recent vegan/vegetarian cruisers on HAL
Denali2003 replied to soccermom4's topic in Holland America Line
Hello. I like that HAL has a separate Vegan / Vegetarian menu in the MDR. Is it the same items each night or is there a different Vegan menu each night? Thank you. -
@0106 Thank you for the links. Good to know that there are other posts about Vegetarian / Vegan food. 😀
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So if you wanted to have a meal in your cabin and order room service, you have to pay to have something to drink with your meal? What about breakfast? I know you fill out the card and hang on your door, but do you have to pay extra for your coffee / tea?
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WOW!!!!! That's FAST!!!!! We are looking into sailing on HAL in 2024. We have been sailing with Princess for 20 years and now looking for a change. Their laundry service takes 2-5 days to get back. However, they do have self serve laundry mats on each deck for everyone. Elite members get laundry done for them for free, but takes a few days to get back. 24 hours, heck even 48 hours is a great improvement for us 🙂
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Hello. My husband & I have previously cruised 16 times (17th coming in May 2023) with Princess. We are now looking at HAL for our future cruises. We have been reading a lot and watching a lot of videos of the Rotterdam. We are very interested in cruising on her in 2024. We both still work, so 1 cruise per year is what we can do. I do have a few questions. #1 – Does HAL still use a card as your room key & for purchases? #2 – Since we’ve never sailed HAL, picking a cabin for us is a gamble. For the Caribbean sailing we are looking at for early 2024, the most affordable cabins are Aft and Forward. I heard the Forward cabins have a lot of “rocking & rolling”. How are the Aft (mid-Aft) cabins? #3 – Can you get lunch in the dining room on Embarkation day? #4 – What are some of the daily activities like on sea days? Does anyone have a photo of the event listings? #5 – If you are in Billboards, can you hear the music that is playing in the other venues in the Music Walk? #6 – Does HAL have a separate Vegan/Vegetarian Menu in the dining rooms? I see (and love) that they have Beyond Meat options in other eateries on the ship! #7 – I heard that if you have dinner in the Specialty restaurants and want to have more than 1 appetizer, that you have to pay extra for more than 1 appetizer (per person). Is this true? #8 – If you have the “Have it All” package and order Room Service, are your drinks included or do you have to pay extra for your drinks? For example, we were looking at Norwegian and while the food was free for room service, you had to pay extra for your drinks, even if you had a drinks package. Thank you for your help!
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How long does it take to get a bag full of laundry back after you send it to be cleaned?
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Hello. For those who are currently on the Island. I was wondering if you could do me a favor? When you go to the dining room, can you ask if they have a separate Vegan menu? We will be on the Island and May and would like to know if they have the Vegan menu. The Regal Princess had it in 2021. It's amazing actually. Just like the regular dinner menu, there is a different one each night. I did email Princess' Dietary Specialist and they replied that Princess does not have a separate Vegan menu. I replied that they do / did. I do have photos of the menus. Even the non-vegan people we were cruising with and the people at the table next to us ordered off of it because the food sounded good. They all loved it.
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@JABTPS Hello. I am also a tea drinker. I will be on the Island for the May 11th Panama Canal sailing - Los Angeles to Ft. Lauderdale. I know about the Teas in the Horizon court (Lipton, English Breakfast, Green and a couple of herbal teas) I know on the other ships in the International Cafe - they have the Earl Grey, Vanilla Bean. Are those the Premium Teas? Should I bring my own Earl Grey & Rose tea?
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This might sound trivial but, do they have Splenda on the ship? (dining room, Horizon Court, etc). When we were on the Caribbean Princess in 2022, they did not. I cannot use regular sugar. Do not like Equal or Sweet n' Low (nasty aftertaste - to me) When we stopped in San Juan, I had to buy a box of Splenda and keep some with me. Are the soda dispensers working in the bars? Also on the Caribbean last year, the soda dispensers in the bars were not working (yes, in all of the bars), so they had to use cans, but not until the 2nd to last day of the 7 day cruise. We were on the next 7 day (B2B) and they had to use cans for the entire 7 days. Hopefully the plumbing is working properly on the Island. They were not on the Caribbean. Apparently people were flushing things down the toilets that they should not be. Several announcements were made on the P.A. System of items that they have found in the tanks below. Underwear, apple cores, false teeth, face masks. The toilet in our cabin worked, but the cabin next door did not. They had to use a public restroom during the night.
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Reporting from on the Rotterdam January 14 through February 25
Denali2003 replied to iflyrc5's topic in Holland America Line
OMG!!!!! Thank you!!!! I like everything. I am SO excited that they have Beyond Meat!!! 😀 😀 and they have Whole Wheat pizza!!!! -
Reporting from on the Rotterdam January 14 through February 25
Denali2003 replied to iflyrc5's topic in Holland America Line
Did they wait until the ship was back in the US to disembark the Covid passengers? -
Reporting from on the Rotterdam January 14 through February 25
Denali2003 replied to iflyrc5's topic in Holland America Line
Hello. My husband & I are considering cruising on the Rotterdam in 2024. This would be our first time on HAL. We have done 17 cruises on Princess. We have become disappointed in their food & service. What is your opinion of the food & service on HAL Rotterdam? I like that there are Vegetarian options on the dining room menu. Do you know if they have a specific menu for Vegans? I noticed the Rustic Lasagna is on the menu each night. Does it have meat? Princess has been filling their ships 90-100% passenger capacity, but with only 50-60% crew. Is HAL the same way? Does anyone have any photos of the food? Thank you 🙂