boze9999

Did CBP come on board the ship or did you have to disembark as in transit, wait for zero count and wait to get back on ?

Holiday and Spring Break Caribbean/Mexico cruises tend to have the largest youth numbers for sure!

I'm sure HAL can't win - they get so many complaints about dozens/hundreds of kids inside the Lido pool where a lot of guests love to have peace and quiet (and sleep) and when the roof is closed the noise reverberates exponentially - they obviously can't close both pools to the younger set - truly a challenge with only two pools.

This is the permanent sign on the Rotterdam (from a couple of weeks ago). Children under 16 are allowed with adult supervision.

Appreciate all the officer posting @kazu!

Who is your Hotel Manager @kazuand Captain?

Thank you for the NYE update @Copper10-8! See you there!

We join the ship on the 29th @kazu. I know the Pinnacle has a special dinner on New Years Eve, however can you find out if they will be having a New Years Eve party celebration in the Lido Pool and if so, any details: is it first come first serve or can we make reservations and is there a charge?

Yes @Florida_gal_50we've experienced it many times on the on the non-Pinnacle ships, although we most commonly sail the Pinnacle and the Vista class ships.

The links share the general benefits, so good to review. A few points of ship differentiation FYI: On the Pinnacle Class ships (Koningsdam, Nieuw Statendam, Rotterdam), you have a dedicated dining room for breakfast and dinner - quite nice as it's more private and typically more personalized service. On the other ships, for Club Orange you have breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill (very nice!), however your dinner is in the Dining Room (sometimes in a special section, and always with an additional "special entree option) which IMO isn't as special as in a dedicated room on the Pinnacle Class ships. If you book a Neptune Suite or the Pinnacle Suite (Penthouse) you automatically get it. Otherwise, as others have said, you have to call HAL to request it (at an additional fee). It is capacity controlled so many times is sold out, so if it's of interest to you, book sooner rather than later.

The HAL chefs are rotating through the ships. Although I can't remember the specifics @gwilliwe did his dinner and would absolutely do it again! The "one of a kind" special dinners are always top shelf in my opinion!

My information was from an Orlando news report. Things change obviously. All my colleagues trying to fly into MCO have cancelled flights from Wed afternoon to end of day Thursday....so far and for this moment in time

Just a FYI - We're in Orlando for a conference and the airport (@4PM) and amusement parks are closed Wed-Fri.

The Nov 1st changed menu w/ the new surcharge for the 2nd apps showed the bacon as part of the normal appetizers and not subject to a $7 charge - . So in less than a week, HAL already changed and made it a Surcharge......not so good IMO

For clarification, HAL will allow you ONE pre-dinner selection (salad, soup, bacon, etc) and any additional ones will be an additional $7 plus 18% charge per additional item.

You asked.... @CruisishFor us, decades of cruising on HAL and never had a bed bug problem and have never heard of one from any fellow passengers.

And another question - we have future cruises booked with prepaid PG dinners - will the old or the new policy dictate? Another note: the fine print about the extra surcharges will not be seen by most in a subdued lit venue!

We were also told this new uncharge for a second pre-entre item in the Pinnacle was rolling out fleet wide beginning Nov 1st!

In case you haven't gone onto HAL - they have a new tool for "what is required for vaccines and pre-board testing" for any 2022 cruises. The link is on their website https://book2.hollandamerica.com/protocols/. You'll need your booking # and your voyage #. Very surprisingly, all of our cruises which a few weeks ago required pre cruise testing no longer require testing! PS - if you have already downloaded the Verifly APP you will probably have to delete it and download it again so it "updates" with new requirements.

This is a great option for tuxedos, and other accessories! So affordable and true to size!

Wowza @sunviking90We have challenged those last minute surprise charges (again for the principal vs the amount) and never had that kind of response. Usually it's an ok - we'll remove it from your bill.

The app only retains very basic information and does not retain the entirety of your statement that you can request at the front desk.

We usually have a lot pre-purchased items @Florida_gal_50 some purchases get full credit back and others partial and sometimes (as we all know) HAL incorrectly charges you for something on board and you are due credit. I find the running detail on a printed daily invoice from the front desk is more timely and more detailed than the Navigator app. This is especially so on the final bill where we've almost always had an invoice which needs correcting and beneficially, with a printed final invoice you have the entire cruise folio in paper vs the app (which zeros out after a period of time).

The Navigator App is convenient - however as a very frequent HAL cruiser, I recommend going to the guest desk daily (or frequently) and getting their PRINTOUT of your folio. It will show debits AND credits, which is helpful - especially if you purchased items prior to sailing. You can then cure any discrepencies as they occur vs at the end of the cruise (when the lines are long!). And Definitely.....get your PRINTED final statement on the last night or morning of your cruise, as again - it details the (mostly) final accounting of credits and debits - and allows you one last time to debate any errors. Once you leave the ship, the accounting corrections are slow and sometimes frustrating with HAL's corporate accounting department (OnBoardBilling@HollandAmerica.com). Just some good advice that we religiously follow!

And if a cocktail or glass of wine with pre-dinner is what you prefer, I suggest ordering it at a bar and arriving at your table ready to enjoy it right away @celticGreen81