Roz

Why doesn't it sound right to you?

I retired late last year and was hoping to be able to take advantage of last minute travel deals. They're just not out there like they were in the past. Used to be you could pick up some bargains out of Florida but no more.

In mid to late December in Amsterdam, it started to get dark around 3:30 - 4:00. It's cold and wet too. Still had a great time, just be prepared.

@Coral, @gnome12 is correct, they're both Road Scholar trips. I was surprised at how expensive their trips are, but I've only heard good things about them from friends and acquaintances. I don't perceive them as high end but I've never traveled with them.

@Banditswife, I agree with you that the HUB app is easier to use and more functional.

It's bugging the living heck out of me that I don't have any major vacation booked in 2024. I've been doing some research, and put together a spreadsheet to do some cost comparisons. The prices quoted are for a solo traveler. For the river cruises, I'm looking at the lowest category of cabin. The first two trips are with a non-profit educational travel company. The first price is the total cost, then # of days, and finally cost per day. The tours with the non-profit include most, but not all meals, and limited alcohol. Art Treasures of Holland by River Barge $6,499.00 10 $649.90 Art History in Belgium & Holland (Land) $6,939.00 14 $495.64 Uniworld Dutch Delight $3,999.00 8 $499.88 Tauck Cruising the Dutch Waterways $4,790.00 8 $598.75 Tauck Hidden Waterways of Flanders & Holland $4,690.00 8 $586.25 Tauck Rhine Connoisseur $6,790.00 11 $617.27 The first things I noticed was the difference between Uniworld and Tauck. I like both lines, but can't justify paying $100 more per day on Tauck. Despite the increase in cruise fares, it's looking like river cruising is still competitive when comparing to my other choices. What have you discovered when comparing river cruising (or cruising in general) to other forms of travel?

None of the countries on my recent South American cruise required a visa - Argentina, Uruguay, Falklands, Chile, Ecuador and Peru. You may need a visa for Venezuela. Didn't need a visa for Colombia, but that was back a few years.

This is very true. My bank app would no longer work, which was a bigger factor to me than the navigator. The Hilton app was another fatality.

Website maintenance is usually done on weekends so I wouldn't panic until Monday.

Why should their "enjoyment" mean I don't get a place to sit to eat my meal?

In today's world, a 7 year old phone is ancient. 😉

Amen! That was biggest complaint on my most recent cruise. People parking themselves in the Lido during peak meal times.

There have been numerous threads about this. It happened to me. The only solution is to purchase a new phone. I'm glad I did because the new phone has lots of upgraded features.

Most TAs want to keep business on the books and earn a commission, which is one of the reasons they send payment reminders. But at the end of the day it's up to the passenger to note the due date and make sure the final payment is made. I'm sorry this happened to you.

@0106, I have personal experience with boarding the Oosterdam late in Buenos Aires earlier this year. It took me 3 days to get from Tennessee to Argentina. When I realized in Houston that I wasn't going to make it by all aboard on the first day, I contacted my TA. She in turn contacted the department at HAL that tracks delayed passengers, and gave them my revised flights and itinerary. I finally arrived at the cruise terminal, hot, tired, sweaty, and stinky. I was subjected to the same rigorous entry process that I had just gone through at the airport. I was scanned, x-rayed, photographed, and fingerprinted. DO NOT assume that all of this will be up and running if you arrive late and haven't made arrangements ahead of time.

You may want to try a river cruise on the Rhine or Danube.

When I've taken a river cruise out of Amsterdam we've always sailed from the eastern docks. This was on Uniworld and Tauck.

@Ine, thank you for the information. Have you heard anything about the terminal the riverboats use? Is there talk of relocating that terminal also?

@Joanne G., different viewpoint here. I find it VERY stressful to be traveling by myself when things go awry. Earlier this year I almost missed my South American cruise when I missed a connecting flight toBuenos Aires. I had to stay overnight in Houston and then take a flight the next evening to Santiago and then connect to BA. I was alone and afraid, and don't speak Spanish. What if I finally made it to BA and couldn't board? How would I get back home? Navigating the Santiago airport was difficult due to the language barrier and not understanding their procedures. It took me 3 days to get to BA. I arrived exhausted, sweaty, and stinky. Made it onto the ship, barely. The situation the OP described would definitely stress me out and be made worse by being by myself.

Don't know.

I watched a video yesterday by a vlogger that attempted to explain all the changes. My head was spinning. How do they possibly expect passengers to research/know/understand everything? $10 to activate the Medallion, $5 for room service if you phone in the order instead of using the Medallion, free pizza at one place; added charge at another place, etc.

Cruise Suzy is 100% correct.

I wondered the same thing about the towel.

I just received the following email: Congratulations!   We have verified your eligibility on this special offer you requested.     Redeem Offer   Please allow 2 days before booking to receive your AARP member onboard credit offer.   Kind Regards, Holland America Line

I've been a member since 2003. 😁