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Most videos are city/port specific. Just search for the stops you are going to visit. I've looked a Bergen, Alesund, Geiranger, Rib boat tours, food to eat in Amsterdam (our origination port), etc. HAL Rotterdam ship tours, food overview, veranda cabin overviews, and more.

We've become huge fans of "puffer" jackets. They are very easy to stuff down to a minimum. I can get my Men's XXL jacket into a 1-gallon Ziplock bag. We used them on a recent Alaska cruise and they were great.

Don't forget YouTube as a resource. Tons of videos about each specific port stop.

^^^This^^^ We are doing a 7-day sailing out of Amsterdam on the Rotterdam in Aug. But we are doing another week between London, Brussels, and Normandy (via Paris). This has radically changed our packing strategy.

I was wondering about ordering a double bourbon on the rocks. I am hoping that they just knock 2 off of my 15 count.

I just bought the unlimited option for our sailing on the Rotterdam in Aug. We are doing 7 nights on the ship, but 2 weeks total on land and at sea via a single carry-on bag each. I was wondering about the turn-around, and from this thread, it appears that it will be 24-48 hours. The option to get laundry done will help greatly with the packing. Is it safe to assume that we can fill bag(s) and turn them in on embarkation day? We will have been several days on land between, London, Brussels and Amsterdam prior to embarkation.

I can answer part of the question. I just looked at our Boarding Passes for our Norway sailing out of Amsterdam. It has the Embarkation date and Boarding time, and the Boarding Time is listed as "To Be Assigned". As a HAL newbie, does HAL choose your time?

We just sailed with RCL on the Quantum OTS. They had a "Big Band" orchestra that was outstanding. Lots of horns and woodwinds plus a piano. They were in one of the larger venues, but the place was packed to hear them. No singer though. Maybe they can do something like that.

HAL newbie here. We are sailing on the Rotterdam in August out of Amsterdam. The website has "Unlimited Laundry" package for something like $73.50. Is that per person, per stateroom??? We are doing 2 full weeks (7 days on land and 7 days on the ship) and doing it out of a single carryon for each of us. Trying to figure out how to get things washed and dried. If I grab a laundry package, can Mrs Fan and I both use the service? Or do I need to buy for each of us ($73.50 x 2)?

When we lived in Florida we did this with local restaurants all the time. Nothing better than fresh grouper (or any fish for that matter) cooked within an hour or two from catch to table. Didn't realize that it could be done with the ship. Boy that sure looks good.

Just back from Alaska inside passage (on RCL). T-Mobile worked in Ketchikan, Sitka and Juneau in 4G. I don't think there is 5G service yet in those areas. We had a Wi-Fi package, again with Royal Caribbean, and used Wi-Fi calling while onboard. T-Mobile will warn you via a push notice if you are not in Airplane Mode about Cellular at Sea which is very expensive (so I have been told). Also, your phone clock will be all over the place as it draws signal from cell towers and you will be out of range a bunch. Once in town, it will synch up with the local time.

Last cruise we went on, a guy the table over was wearing bib overalls on formal night in the MDR. His wife was in a gray crew neck sweatshirt and matching baggy sweatpants. SMH. They were getting "side-eye" looks for other passengers, but no RCL employee made it an issue.

We stay at the Warwick Seattle. Sign up for their FREE loyalty program. They will e-mail you specials. It is a 10-minute walk to Pike Place Market. There is a CVS Drug Store right across the street for last minute needs. A couple of liquor stores nearby if you are going to bring wine aboard. It is a $35 to $45 Uber from the hotel to the pier which is pretty standard for most of the downtown hotels. I got a room (2 queens or a king) for $179 (plus taxes). This was a Holiday special price thing that was up during the week between Christmas and New Years. We sail in mid-June 2023.

For my sailing on the Quantum in 2 weeks, I go to the main page, then touch the Dining tab in the lower left. Then touch Main Dining room. Then touch Dining Room Deck 3 or Deck 4. New window pops up, then the "Menu" is about mid page (a little lower). Now click on each day to see the daily dinner menu for the MDR.

We were on the Voyager in October. The Ice Show "sells out" quick as the venue is small'ish. Get there early. We had The Key and were still denied seats about 5 minutes prior to the show starting due to what I felt was lack of signage for Key holders. We asked a few RCL team members and got shrugged shoulders, went to one side of the seating stage (the wrong side) and had to go around to the other side and by then, they had opened up the reserved area and there were no more seats.

We are on the Quantum in a few weeks. iFly and Northstar have been sold out for several weeks now. I wish I would have made a reservation but missed the chance. All the shows are sold out, breakout room sold out. I think the ship is going to be totally full for the sailing.

On all the lines we have sailed on, I head to the buffet early and create a mini "charcuterie" plate and take it back to the room. Mrs Fan and I have happy hour while we get dressed for the evening. A glass of wine (or whiskey for me) and some cheese, meats and finger foods in the room or out on the veranda/balcony.

I bring some Ginger chews. They are like caramels (a little smaller) made with real ginger. They are available at most drug stores, Costco, Amazon, etc. I did the Transderm Scop (behind the ear patch) years ago. Made my mouth feel extremely dry all the time I was wearing it. Didn't care for it. Bonine, while non-drowsy puts me in a low fog.

I stated in another thread that we were on the Voyager last October and on formal night a couple at the table next to us; She was wearing a frumpy gray sweatsuit (sweatshirt and pants with the string belt) and he was in bib overalls with a flannel shirt. Most people were dressed "smartly" but there are outliers like that couple.

HAL newbie here. Does HAL assign check in times? or Is there a window where you can check in online prior to sailing and choose a time?

If a show is sold out (per the cruise planner), if you have purchased The Key, are you able to get a seat (assuming you get their early) in The Key section? And if you don't have The Key. Do you need to have the show reserved on your planner to see it or can you show up early and get a seat? I am asking because we have The Key and early dining on an upcoming sailing. I reserved seats for Starwater which was scheduled for 6:30. Then RCL moved the show time to 6:00. I went to grab a later time and the show is sold out.

Count us in as "Lysol/Clorox wipers." I put wipes in zip-lock bags and keep them handy in my laptop backpack for the flight and cabin. For a flight, I wipe the belt buckle, arm rests, tray tables, window shade, power plug, air vent, and other areas on the plane. Then I wipe my own hands and sit down for the flight. I was an IT consultant and flew 100K miles/year for years. I've seen gross unspeakable things done by passengers who were sick, in bare feet, handling dirty baby diapers, snotty tissues, clipping toenails, and more. I think your toilet seat at home is cleaner than the passenger seat and surrounding area on a plane. In the cabin, all door handles, knobs, desk area and handles, lamp switches, balcony railing, remote control, etc. gets the once over with several wipes before we do anything else after we get access to the cabin. Does it help? Who knows. Does it hurt? Nope. Do I feel a little more at ease? Yes.

Do they have slow dancing on the Quantum OTS? I'm talking about "cheek to cheek" or ballroom type dancing. We sail the Quantum OTS to Alaska in June and I was hoping to get some dancing in with Mrs Fan (every night if possible but would settle for a few nights). Not the DJ/club stuff with a bunch of 20/30-somethings. I asked this on another board and got mixed reactions as no one seems to have a definitive answer. I stated in the other post that slow dancing seemed to have fallen out of favor with couples for some reason. If anyone has sailed the Quantum lately and would know the answer, I'd greatly appreciate it. We sailed the Voyager OTS in October and there was a duo that I think were husband and wife. He had a synth machine that played percussion, bass and some cords. He played the guitar, and she sang. They were okay and they played a couple of hours for a night or two in the Star Lounge that had a dance floor. Other than that, there was nothing.

^^^This^^^ We have the HIA package and there are maybe a few higher end liquors I'd like to try. So, for me this is a very workable solution rather than paying the upgrade for the entire sailing. For others, it is strictly a YMMV situation.

You don't because you are ready to pay and have your card in hand.