ilv4cruising

Wow. That is close. Thank you so much for those details. Very helpful. All the best for your future travels 🙂

Hi folks, I actually have a followup question about staying at the Springhill Suites Downtown. I see a lot of comments about being able to walk to the pier for our cruise. Unfortunately my husband has chronic back pain and some nerve impairment in his leg. How far a walk is it and is it difficult terrain? If his back isn't up to it on the day (some days are better than others 🙂 ) will a taxi be possible or will they not bother because of how close it is? Thanks in advance

Thank you everyone for the great suggestions. I've booked the SpringHill Suites Bayfront (at least for now) as it offered the best rate. I'll keep an eye on the rate for the Marriott Coronado and the Embassy Suites in case the prices improve (fairly high for both right now). Thanks again for your help.

That looks amazing but it is a bit pricey since we are staying for 3 nights. Will keep am eye on it in case the price drops. Thanks for mentioning it.

Wonderful. Thanks

Ah yes. I should have been more specific. It is the SpringHill Suites Downtown/Bayfront that I was looking at. Does your earlier comment still apply (hope so 🙂 )

I was getting concerned about Springhill Suites as there have been some reviews saying it was dated and one reported bugs in the bed. Reviews were from April this year so was worried. I'm glad to hear some positive reviews. Also, I'm curious on why the Residence Inn is more expensive (since my understanding it is part of the same building). What makes it worth the extra money? Is it that much nicer? Thanks,

Hi there, We will be in San Diego next April, pre cruise and I'm starting to look at hotels 🙂 . We will be staying for 3 nights and I'm currently looking at SpringHill Suites and Wyndham Bayside. Prices are about the same but the SpringHill includes breakfast. We are looking for a hotel that is close to a few restaurants, very clean and comfortable beds and room with a coffee maker. We will probably take taxis/uber/lyft for getting to attractions so that isn't a concern. I wouldn't mind getting feedback on which hotel might be better. I've seen some suggestions on this forum already but I wouldn't mind some recent reviews. Also, if you have a different suggestion that would also be appreciated. Thanks,

Thanks. This helped 🙂

Hi there, I'm having trouble finding the cabin sizes for the Aft cabins on the Koningsdam. I'm currently trying to decide between 5219 and 6214 (only 2 left available). Does anyone have the cabin and verandah sizes for these? Thanks,

The issue we found with the Thermal Pool was it had seats and not really "beds" so I think people treated it more like a regular hot tub to socialize in. I agree with you about the way they designed the K'dam and placement of the thermal beds. I actually made that comment to them and said I hope it won't like this on your future ships (we were on the K'dam shortly after it launched). We haven't been on some of the more recent ships so can't comment. The K'dam was the only time we experienced this "chatter". All of our other experiences have been great.

Hi there, I don't see an answer to your question so I will give you some of my tips that have worked for me in the past. If possible I try to get a place on the rods at one end. That way I use one had to grasp the rail to stop me from floating away :). I also will take a towel in with me and role it up behind my neck. I've worked in the computer industry for over 40 years so sometimes my neck hurts. This helps a lot. If I can't get a spot on the end once I lie down I'll take one had a sort of grasp the bar near my bottom to help me from moving around to much. Since the Hydro Pool has minerals in it you aren't supposed to stay in longer than 20 minutes so I find this tips will help be relax and enjoy for about 15 minutes. I then go over to the middle and enjoy the stronger jets and the strong shower spray against my neck. Then I head for the heated beds :). I've traveled with others who have bought these passes and since you can go as often as you need it is a great value. I will admit though we did not like them on the Koningsdam. I'm not sure if it was the passengers on our cruise but folks were treating the Thermal Pool as a "hot tub" (lots of chatter, laughing etc) and even the thermal beds were being used like a social gathering. It was not relaxing at all. I hope this has improved (we haven't been on the Koningsdam in quite a while). I hope you find a way to enjoy the

I think it depends on the cruise. As an example, we just booked Koningsdam for Hawaii next April and I was told 5:30 for early and 8:00pm for late. You might want to contact HAL to ask about your specific cruise.

@rloke Did you happen to get a link from Atlas with the pictures of our trip taken by the Expedition leaders? I never got one but contacted Atlas and they just sent it. Just wanted to let you know.

Wow. For a fairly new line it seems to have lots of issues. Glad the rest of the trip home was good.

It was great thanks. I hope your trip home was good

We were on your cruise as well. In fact we are 2 rows behind you on the plane :). Love your pictures;. Hope all is well.

Thanks for everyone responding. That is great news and I appreciate it and the other tips.

Hi, Thanks for the info. Will also do a search. Yes my deposit is refundable and our final payment is close so that is why I'm asking :). I appreciate the info.

Hi all, Has bought the HAL insurance and had to claim the "cancel for any reason" (CFAR)? We have a cruise scheduled for May with the final payment due soon. Although we really want to take this trip, there are some "unknowns" going on for us that might prevent us from going. Since the cruise and deposit was done early in 2022 I can't get CFAR insurance for our trip other than buying it from HAL. Has anyone had to claim this and, if so, did you have any issues? Thanks,

Hi folks, I hope this is the correct forum to post this in. We are considering booking Longyearbyen Roundtrip cruise for next year. Our interests would be Polar Bears, Whales, Walrus and Seals and other wildlife. Has anyone done a similar cruise)? Just looking for information on what to expect for doing this type of cruise in August and if it worth the cost. Thanks,

I agree with your comment on a "good TA" however, in my experience (so far) I usually have a better understanding than they do on my destination. Trying to find one that only does cruises to Antarctica hasn't been that easy, I have tried. However, it might be a Canada thing. I will admit I grew up with a mother who was an amazing TA (she had a huge dedicated following) so I have high expectations 🙂 .

That is great info. Thank you

Great information. Thanks.

Thanks for the search tips. We booked on the Traveller (at the time I didn't realize it was their new ship). There are 7 cruises before ours so hopefully that will give them time to fix any "kinks" they might have on board. I'm glad the previous reviews had positive experiences on board.