crystalspin

Just to pipe up again. We visited Seward on the end of a 7-day HAL cruise in 2009, stayed there several days doing the things I mentioned, then self-drove to Palmer, Denali, and Fairbanks. We visited the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center on the turn-around day on the 14-day Alaska Explorer, renting a van from Anchorage to get my 9-person family to AWCC, probably driving right by Alyeska... Happy to hear that HAL is going to port at Seward again!

I don't know what the line is offering as shore excursions, but Seward has a number of "things to do". Whale-watching in Kenai Fjords (yes, you really do want to do this even though you are spending seven days on a ship), the Marine Center, Exit Glacier come to mind. OTOH, Alyeska is 20 miles from the Alaska Wildlife Conservation Center, which is worth a visit if you can't journey to Denali!

Welcome to Cruise Critic posting! Your Roll Call is here: Happy to have you join us. A Fr.Polynesia cruise on sister line Princess just got their ShoreXes published on June 1, so I am not expecting ours before September, but I do check every few days!

Have flown in on day of sailing three times. First was smooth (Vancouver). Second was extremely tedious, as we had to entertain ourselves at the airport for four or five hours (FLL). Third was nerve-racking and there is never going to be a fourth! We were to fly from LAX to Santiago Chile to catch the HAL transfer to Valparaiso port. With plenty of time. Until our flight was delayed. It was delayed so much they gave us meal vouchers. I used the time on my phone, making a backup-plan that involved a third-party shuttle company taking us to the next port south. I also called HAL to determine what time was the last bus to Valparaiso. Which time we JUST made! All of these were pre-pandemic; with the post-COVID flight disruptions, I would definitely move your flight to a day earlier and stayover. Welcome to Cruise Critic!

It was at the Gelato Bar on the K'dam.

On the Zaandam there is access to the Aft on Decks 6 and 7. The doors are solid and "industrial" looking, one each starboard and port. The open area is deeper on Deck 6 (lucky you!) and the Cruise Deck Plans photos show a stack of lounge chairs ready to be used! Now, the rails are solid and the area at least on Deck 6, is pretty much covered (for better or worse). But the area is there.

Like @dmrrn73, I eat a LOT of things I never did as a child -- mostly because I wasn't exposed to them. Hard-cooked eggs I actually MADE myself learn to eat, because they were so portable! The only things I can think of that I ate as a child that I don't touch now are breakfast "cereals", Wonder bread, and Miracle Whip. Also I don't drink milk (nor put it on the cereals I don't eat).

Just to clarify, the Hotel del Coronado is nowhere near the cruise port. When we stayed there (some decades ago to be sure), the most historic thing about it was the mattress, which might have been original. If you are going to stay on Coronado Island, I personally would recommend the casitas at El Cordova Hotel with a Miguels Cocina on the premises. But I would not stay on Coronado Island on either end of a cruise.

Caveat emptor.

The Zaandam Vista Suite is larger with more storage than the Vista on Koningsdam/N.Statendam/Rotterdam. We sailed with my mom -- we each had a bank of drawers and a closet each, plus other shelves behind closet doors. The steward made up the sofa each morning so we could have our own little happy hour and made it a bed every evening while we were at dinner. Other suggestion is have the ship do your laundry! We sailed the Zaandam when there were still passenger laundries, and what a waste of time! By the bag is most economic and unlimited is most convenient, letting you pack less.

Deleted accidental double post!

Get right on the insurance research -- many third-party plans need to be bought in a short time after booking the cruise (to avoid people buying bc they've found out they have new conditions).

My Hello Mello came today, and I couldn't believe how small the included pocket was! I am 5'6" but I have a VERY long torso and shortie legs. This wrap could be longer and/or wider for me, but I measured it and it is the same size as the Coolibar beach wraps (they are SPF 50). I might have thought about getting the Sanibel beach wrap in Radiant Coral -- IF it were any larger, but as it's not, and I spend little to no time on the beach, I will see how much I use this Hello Mello. Thanks for mentioning it!

As others have said, you do not want to have your phone out of airplane mode at sea. "Cellular At Sea" is very expensive. Glacier Bay is a remote national park, you should not expect any non-ship coverage (and even the ships coverage may be flakey so far north away from the satellites path). Sitka is pretty remote as well, but I can not speak from experience as I was sailing with all of the people I would have contacted!

Try a different browser.

Yes. And you even said it was a less expensive? If it's a question of the cabin you want, and it's showing for the combined itinerary but not the separate legs, have your PCC (or TA) call inventory and make it happen!

The most you can earn through spending is the same number as your sailing days. As far as spending, our experience is having the Signature Beverage Package accomplishes the maximum. All but one time we had HIA we also got double. Our last B2B we got 2 days short of double, but fortunately made 4* by 2 points! so I didn't worry about it. You can also double your sea-days by staying in a suite (even a Vista Suite) IF it is bought at "rack rate", not a paid upgrade offer. With suite AND spending, you can qualify for 3X your sea-days. That's the most possible.

Last Drydock: Feb 2022 according to CruiseDeckPlans

While I agree with @57redbird, I will also also quote the laundry slip: "REGULAR SERVICE - Items received by 9am will be returned the next day." Usually during dinner, so a bit over 24 hours. EXPRESS SERVICE is in by 9am, returned the same day, 50% surcharge. And of course not air-dried. With room make up being once a day for most cabins, you want to call on ship phone to have your bag picked up before 9. Here is a sample laundry slip. Looking at the URL, it appears to have been scanned in 2015, so prices will have changed, but FWIW: https://www.rogerjett-photography.com/here/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/HAL-Laundry-Bag-Price.pdf

If they have it (thinking the Lido is best place to ask), there will be no charge. There are some things with charges if you are thinking of room service. Also not sure about avocado in Alaska... Rooms that do not have a balcony can rent a "cooler", probably not cold enough to keep milk from spoiling more than a day or so! -- for a real nominal sum. Used to be $2/day. And/or you can get your steward to bring you more ice.

HAL ship's laundry will wash cold and air-dry. Just write in the conditions. Air-drying will probably mean an extra day before returning, so take enough outfits to have that extra day! The easiest is to buy unlimited laundry; the more economical is the laundry by the bag. It is a strong canvas bag and bigger than some other cruiselines paper bag; you can get a lot in it. But again, you have to have enough outfits to (1) wear enough to fill the bag, while (2) have things to wear in the meantime.

Lifetime member of CDP here, and they do not show crew-only decks nor (usually) give 'contents' of the white areas.I was once able to determine a white area included a crew stairwell when it was shown on a different ship in the same class, but that has been it -- mostly looking at HAL ships, though.

Thanks! That's what I kinda thought but didn't have the words to say! Maybe they will have tweaked the APs by next February, and maybe I will find that app, too.

@StLouisCruisers Having examined the deck plan for Deck 2, I agree with @RuthC -- if there are ANY Main Deck OV's on the starboard side aft of the mid-elevators, they will be quieter than any you mention -- even if they happen to be connecting cabins.

It was me who suggested StLouis start a new thread, since the question was not about Old Vs New ships and I didn't know how many were still following that thread! Sorry for the repetition to those of you who were.