YOWzers

We have this booked in June. Just wondering if people who have taken this could say whether there is the potential to see whales. I didn't book this as a whale watching tour so it is not a dealbreaker for me but it might make it more exciting for my kid. 

We are going on the HAL Koningsdam Inside Passage cruise (June 4-11). We will be hitting Juneau, Skagway and Ketchikan.

We are still trying to sort out our planned excursions but one thing that is a must is an authentic salmon bake. Can anyone recommend either a combined excursion itinerary in any of these places which includes a salmon bake or a standalone experience for us to book?

I see a ton of excursions out there offering salmon...some of the reviews say the food is just so-so...we'd like to book something where the freshness and flavour of the fish is top priority. Would welcome any suggestions!

I had the same question. We are on the Veendam leaving on Tuesday and I was wondering if they had made any changes. 

We are in Cozumel for the day in March and are looking for an excursion at a small private beach (ideally with lunch and drinks available).

We are not super into crowds so want to avoid the big beaches and big resorts. We will also have our four year old with us. We don't necessarily need a place that caters to kids (sand and water is all she needs) but rather we are looking for a smaller facility that isn't explicitly adults only.

There doesn't seem to be anything that meets our criteria available through HAL. Any ideas?

Thanks for the response. That might settle it for me :)

Sent from my SM-G935W8 using Forums mobile app

Hi there,

We will be in Puerto Limon on Christmas Eve with parents and toddler in tow with Holland America. We have never been to Costa Rica so wanted to do something that will let us see the natural beauty of the country but still keep in mind a two-year old's short attention span.

A lot of the excursions offered by HAL are adventure-oriented and we wouldn't be able to do them but there were two that I was thinking could be appropriate (maybe)?

There is a jungle pontoon boat Tortugeuro canal tour as well as the Monster Bus rainforest expedition. Has anyone ever done these that can let me know if they would be well-suited for a toddler?

Also open to other ideas of private tours that might be of interest to us.

Thanks in advance!

We are looking to get the elite package for the same reason. Why wouldn't you just send back a bad glass of wine and get them to open another bottle?

Sent from my SM-G935W8 using Forums mobile app

We are a bit of a motley crew heading on the Zuiderdam over Christmas this year. It will be myself, my husband, my mother-in-law, my father and my two-year old daughter.

It is my dad's first cruise but the rest of us have done at least some of the ports that we are going to.

Other than HMC or just getting off the boat and walking around near the port, I am not sure if there are many excursions that would be appropriate for all of us to do together. I was hoping that some of you might have some insight based on past cruises about anything (either through HAL's excursions or else something I can book privately) that might be appropriate for our group.

I noticed that a lot of HAL's excursions have a minimum age limit on them so they wouldn't accept my toddler. We are also a little constrained as we don't plan to bring a car seat for the little one (so would likely need to take a coach or a boat rather than a car or van) and the older folks likely won't want to do anything with a lot of walking. Have I made this difficult enough?! Haha.

Our ports of call are Willemstad, Oranjestad, Gatun Lake, and San Jose. Given that it is Christmas, it would nice to do something all together instead of breaking up into smaller groups every single day so any suggestions would be appreciated!

(Even if you could point me in the right direction I can go check out the destination-specific boards but I really don't even know where to start. If all else fails, we have ten days by the pool to fall back on...)

Does anyone have a recent copy of the Pinnacle wine list?

Is babywearing typically okay on a tender? I have never noticed anyone with a baby strapped to them (mind you I wasn't looking) but I can't imagine this would be a problem. Does anyone know?

Thanks! I didn't know it was HAL providing. That is super sweet. I hope they are still doing it.

Thanks! Yah she doesn't seem particularly sensitive to me but I don't want to test it on vacation. A trial run is a great idea :)

Do any of you guys have any experience throwing your baby's stuff in with ship's laundry?

We have laundry included with our room so it seems like a waste of time to wash the baby's stuff by hand because we are worried about her delicate baby skin. We also don't want to bring more clothes than we need for her and this little diva usually needs at least 2 or 3 outfit changes a day for various reasons.

We haven't really tried washing her clothes in anything other than baby detergent but she doesn't seem to get rashes or irritation from our clothes...and as a baby she spends a lot of time permanently attached to me! ;)

When I was on the Zuiderdam over Christmas a few years ago, I thought it was super cute on Christmas day when they gave announcements over the loudspeaker that Santa was coming to get all the kiddies (and kids at heart, I suppose) excited that Santa was coming and then he had a little visit with them all in the theater.

I was just there for the eggnog but I am trying to remember if the kids got presents from him. If so, how do you get in on that? Do you just bring a wrapped present for your child and give it to someone for Santa to pass on?

Thanks all. That is very helpful!!!

Does anyone know what brand of swing Babysaway carries? I can email them but if anyone knows that would be helpful!

I would bring the swing...if it was easy to transport by plane from Canada... :(

We are travelling on HAL over Christmas with our daughter who will be just over 6m old at the time of the cruise.

Two issues...

We are pretty dependent on her swing for naps during the day. Can anyone suggest a portable low cost alternative that we can pick up in FLL if she doesn't naturally break herself of this habit before then? I am trying to get her to nap in her crib but it isn't going so hot!

I can't really think of anything that would work other than just rocking her or swinging her in her car seat. Or maybe hoping that the motion of the ocean will do the trick?!

We are also starting her on some solids over the next little while. I don't want to introduce her to anything new on the ship so are there any that you guys would suggest trying with her in the next few months that would be easy to get on board?

Is that an exhaustive list of what is covered under the "social" plan or are those examples? Could I expect similar apps like blackberry messenger to be included?

Question about this too...if my assigned reservation is linked with another cabin will they assign us the same night and time? Or is this something I will need to anticipate dealing with once on board?

I think the best we could have done was gotten a reduced fare for a third passenger for our baby....just like she was any other passenger (Babies are people too I guess!). But with MIL having to pay a supplement anyways and the higher cost of our room, it made more sense.

We know the suite rules and don't plan on breaking them but I really had no intention of waking a sleeping baby so I could go get a snack in the Neptune. I was also hoping we could board quickly rather than sit there with our baby. Luckily, if we do run into problems...we have grandma!

I appreciate the point about the muster drill too. I wouldn't have even thought of that.

I believe I need a passport for her to fly to the US so she will have one regardless. :)

Thanks for the responses guys. That gives me peace of mind. As for the baby's eligibility to sail, we have already cleared her with HAL'S medical department. So I guess we are good to go. :)

My husband and I are sailing on the Zuiderdam with my MIL and 6 month old baby on December 21. When I booked the cabins, I booked my husband and myself in a Neptune suite and my MIL and my baby in a veranda cabin next door. It seemed to make more sense to book it that way rather then adding the baby as our third person in our room and then having my MIL pay for a cabin all to herself. But...I am concerned now that there may be issues with the baby being if a different cabin class than us.

I am planning to wear my baby for most of the cruise and I was wondering how sticky they will be if I try to eat breakfast in the Pinnacle, go into the Neptune lounge or take advantage of priority boarding etc. Do you think they will let me keep her with me or if they will strictly enforce the rules and tell me that she is a no go?

My guess is that other than boarding it wouldn't be a big deal...but what do I know? This is our first time bringing a child with us on a cruise.