FreestyleNovice

Dutch news reporting about a few Dutchies on board: ..showing the Encore in their second shot, "This is the ship they are stuck on.." : edit: source RTLNieuws https://www.rtlnieuws.nl/video/uitzendingen/video/06bf4775-3fee-4c7e-a6a8-d569c1737cc6/rtl-nieuws-1930-uur

No disembarking the next 24 hours.

The fun we had with that first Atrium pic of Prima, the leaked go kart track and slides.

Meanwhile in Italy: The bridge block was also hoisted up/installed:

Here's a shady spy-ish Aqua shot taken this week..

As said above, it's indeed the Amsterdam city center as an general area. The metro is the fastest route from Amsterdam Centraal Station, the bus route is more to the west and therefore less of an option. For anyone doing some Amsterdam sightseeing or staying in the city centre before heading to Keukenhof it might be a good option.

Tight but doable. Book a taxi, public transport is almost half the cost of what a cheap taxi would cost. Minus the sunday schedule, risks, the hassle and stress. Random taxi prices I found: 70-110-140 Euros for a taxi, the latter would be a metered fare I guess. Train: 15 Euro per person, plus the Metro.

As @Globaliser wrote, there's a luggage depot at Schiphol Airport. It's directly underneath Arrivals 1/Arrivals 2 (after you exit the baggage reclaim, look for the escalators/elevators in between Arrivals 1 and Arrivals 2 and the large and constant flow of people coming from the Plaza going up to Departures 1 and Departures 2). But. It would save you time if you would travel with luggage to the Keukenhof, use their luggage storage (see the FAQ under Services at https://keukenhof.nl/en/frequently-asked-questions/ for specifics) and ride the Keukenhof Express Bus to Leiden (which is kind off in between Schiphol and Rotterdam), from Leiden Centraal Station you can easily travel to Rotterdam. Your Keukenhof Combi Ticket (bus and park entrance) will allow you to do that. Downside is that you would have to take your luggage on to the bus, which is a regular public transport bus with some space for you and your luggage. During peak days they will drive these busses to their max capacity (standing passengers) or they at least did, regulations might have changed. The Keukenhof Express Bus runs every 10 minutes, a park visit is about 3 hours. You could extend it with a tulip field boat tour https://keukenhof.nl/en/facilities/whisper-boat/ or drink a coffee or a beer in Leiden during your stop. Near the Leiden Centraal Station one of the sunny terraces with a view of Molen De Valk, a two minute walk and it can't get any more Dutch than that! A glimpse: https://maps.app.goo.gl/kW9p4nbkbxra56Jg8

I am not sure what ferry you are referring to, the cruise ship (both river and ocean cruises) dock is on the Amsterdam Centraal Station side in Amsterdam so there's no need to use a ferry. You can easily walk or take the tram for a minute to get to Amsterdam Centraal Station from the Passenger Terminal Amsterdam/Cruise Port Amsterdam. From there you have two options for public transport, take the Metro underneath the station to Europaplein (Amsterdam RAI convention center) and board the Keukenhof Express Bus there. Or take a train to Schiphol Airport and board a different Keukenhof Express Bus. Check out the map at https://keukenhof.nl/en/ov/ I would suggest the Metro to Europaplein as it will be cheaper and quicker. The Keukenhof website provides a detailed step a by step. Enjoy!

Norwegian Joy arrived a day late for her current drydock due to a storm.

Port side, near said the tables and chairs.

Thanks!

Does Royal automatically provide a crib when booking a baby or is it on a request basis? Thanks in advance.

I see what you did there.

Bookmarking this for future reference, thanks! But what is the benefit to Royal to hold back the cabin numbers if the GTY cabins are already assigned?

I am not looking to book a handicapped room at all, I just could not identify this stateroom size wise. Sorry to hear about your experience and I hope you still enjoy your cruise.

Thanks all! And just now I noticed the small ramp up to the balcony.

Hi all, Can you help me identify this larger sized Central Park Balcony? Supposed to be 10197 on Oasis of the Seas. The filename says 2JXL but I can't find anything about it. Going by the furniture it can't be one of the newer Oasis class? Thanks guys!

Perhaps it’s hard to beat Cococay’s pool, which is supposed to be the largest or something along that way open pool in the Caribbean. Thank you other users for confirming the pool, interesting news!

Never heard about a pool either..

This. As written by @Dutch_Travelgirl, the Schiphol Oost area has literally nothing to offer. It really just is a few hotels, lots of (airline) office and hangars and warehouses. Nothing in the direct vicinity, you will be bored within five minutes and the only restaurant would probably be the hotel restaurant. I would like to suggest the terminal hotels, there are a few better dinner options at the Plaza than the mentioned fast food like Italian at Per Tutti, La Place etc. See https://www.schiphol.nl/en/at-schiphol/eat-and-drink/facilities/?side=landside If you would like to stay off the airport and given the shuttle time for the before mentioned hotel I would suggest looking into some of the smaller (non chain/family/mom-and-pop run) hotels in place like Aalsmeer or Hoofddorp city center. Aalsmeer has some nice bistro restaurants but less lodging. Hoofddorp is more modern with more hotels. Nothing out of the ordinary or special but you will be in a real neighbourhood instead of an airport lot with those. A wider selection of restaurants, an evening stroll, perhaps to visit a shop or get some snacks/groceries, etc. If you like Marriot you might want to look into Courtyard by Marriott Amsterdam Airport, Hoofddorp. Although not in the nearby center it has a good offering of on site restaurants, a park and nearby restaurants. Another alternative to the airport Plaza is the A4 highway "brugrestaurant", bridge restaurant(s) with modern hotel. Food offer is a bit more truck stop/fast food than the airport but with a shuttle and the hotel offering more facilities (i.e. a more reasonable sized pool, fitness, etc) it might be worth consideration if you are looking for efficiency. There are some hidden gems like a beach hotel at Zandvoort, hotels with a view of the Dutch landscape, lakes or tulip fields or quaint old city towns like Haarlem, Leiden within 20 minutes driving time but you will need to elaborate before we go into that. Feel free to ask anything but please, please skip Schiphol Oost. Even if you have been to Amsterdam the outskirts of Amsterdam have more to offer and meet your requirements than that deserted piece of the airport..

OP is now battling the Vibe wall and bouncers.

Ditto. Perhaps it might help OP's case if Vibe is blocked off/rented out and save some proof (pictures) of that. Despite the "glitch", enjoy your cruise OP. Perhaps you can arrange some last minute ship's excursions or through Shorex.. Group and still make the most of the cruise.

If only there would be plans for a pier..

I am confused. Your signature says "Celebrity Silhouette 3/16 - Spring Break for Adults", I hope that was a chartered cruise because Celebrity is far from what you are looking for! If I bypass any potential upside down pineapples.. Fun in terms of Carnival cruise Fun or perhaps adults only with Virgin? Other than that, you are a loyal RCCL cruiser, already sailed Allure (Oasis class) so if the ship is the destination; Icon of the Seas, departing Sat 21 Dec 2024. And last but not least Norwegian might be a good choice, with lots of entertainment and dining options on their mega ships.