Going in August of 2025 can’t wait

Enjoyable video, we like the transatlantic crossing best, we met you on the fjords cruise in the commodore club

Great video. Biggest thing to be aware of especially in Athens in the summer is the heat. As an Australian who is use to 45 degrees in summer i struggled in Athens. The lack of shade makes it unbearable. Mykonos ia lovely in the area of the blue and white buildings. But we were surprised how small the area was. We stayed on Mykonos for a week. Not our favourite Greek Island. Santorini totally agree with everything you said and be prepared for the hordes and a truck load of stairs. We are back off to Greece next year. Never done a cruise around tge Greek Islands. We just stay on the islands. Great to know Rhodes is right where the ship docks. Very helpful for our cruise. Our cruise is stopping in Bodrum and Ephesus in Turkey as well as some Greek Islands. Glad most cruise ships havent discovered my favourite place in Greece. Kefalonia. Just gorgeous and laid back. We are there for 2 weeks before heading over to Turkey to do a road trip along what is known as Turkish Riveria. Thanks for sharing. Caz

We’re getting ready to cruise transatlantic on the Epic. We’ve heard terrible reviews on the sorry state of it. You were very balanced. Will watch the rest of them. We will have an accessible cabin, for an electric wheelchair. We will need elevator. We’ll see how it goes. Our question at the moment is weather. Hope it is not rough.

What a great video and I agree with everything you said! Craig and Jackie

the site says "For $99 per person per day for an Inside or Oceanview stateroom or $129 per person per day for a Verandah"

!!

How do you book this?

"Or you could stay home and watch TV" ...me who's sitting at home watching this on my TV...

dogs can travel qm2???? i think you need to take this trip and comment from a pup's point of view ... i know just the puppy!

Wow - what an amazing month! 🤩

I've crossed the Atlantic three times on QM2, first was a round-trip crossing about seven years ago (I'm counting that as two crossings), and again this past summer. This summer, we definitely noticed a decline in service and offerings. The QM2 is still a majestic vessel, but the staff were far less attentive, the food choices were fewer and more pedestrian, the entertainments were more lackluster, and there was just a general sloppiness about the crew interacting with the passengers. We had heard that with the very recent opening of the Queen Anne that Cunard basically "borrowed" many of the seasoned crew from the QM2 and put them onto the new ship, so maybe once the replacements on QM2 get a bit more seasoned, this will correct itself. I certainly hope so.

Great video. We will be considering the standby in the future. We love Holland America.

Very informative video. Thank you. Also, love that dogs can travel on QM2! Definitely looking into that.

My husband and I along with my sister and her husband successfully traveled standby on HAL out of Boston Massachusetts. The cruise was set to sail on a Tuesday, therefore we did not learn we had rooms until the day before the cruise. Apparently the 'inventory department" who assigns the rooms does not work on weekends so the 'no later than 2 days before' went out the window. When we arrived to board there were a few delays because despite having boarding passes our names did not make the manifest. I meant some standing around waiting for issues to be resolved. Once on board we ran into further delays because our room keys had not been issued. Housekeeping staff were very helpful in getting those issues resolved. Once the boarding and room key issues were resolved everything else went smoothly.

Warning! The dark side of HomeExchange! One week before my arrival date, my host cancelled my reservation for no valid reason. I had purposely booked something within the city limits of Stockholm, because all my engagements were in the city limits. HomeExchange then sent out inquiries (after I had written to them 5 times) to other properties around Stockholm and got 1 possible answer. The only problem was that this property was over 30 km (19 miles) outside of the city limits, where I would have to travel by public transportation more than 1 hour to get there. I would also have to travel through some very unsafe neighborhoods to arrive at this location. Travelling through these neighborhoods at night is very unsafe, especially if you are a single woman, so naturally I could not accept this arrangement. HomeExchange then informed me that they had offered me a place and I did not accept, and therefore they were not going to reimburse me for hotel expenses. This is the truth and people need to know the truth. HomeExchange hides behind their corporate fine print, saying they have the right to find another exchange location that is within 50 km (31 miles) from the original reservation. It is all fine and dandy until your host cancels, then you are on your own, this the dark side of HomeExchange. I had been a loyal member of HomeExchange for at least 5 years, where I have paid my membership fees on time and had done several successful exchanges, but I am now going to cancel my membership. I have not been treated well.

We went on our first Hal. cruise in May and it is now my favorite ship. My husband was disappointed because Hal doesn’t have the big shows. The food in the dining room was exceptional. There were no long lines except in the buffet, which I preferred to avoid as quickly as possible and would grab a salad for lunch. The atmosphere was just so relaxing because we didn’t have to deal with the lines and we actually stayed up later than we usually do on a cruise to listen to the Music Walk.

Eyetalian? Omg. Im done.speak correct English

You point like dtump and I totally dislike him

I booked a standby cruise today. San Diego-to-San Diego, 51 day in the South Pacific departing September 30th. If I booked a regular booking it was $12,000 for an interior cabin. I travel solo but still would have had to pay for two people, instead I'm on standby for $5,000. I'm retired so flexibility is not an issue. I live in the Midwest, so I will book a $250 one-way flight to San Diego, and hope for the best.

Google Fi Unlimited Plus provides similar benefits for up to 90 days abroad at a time with 50gb per phone. It's worked in many countries for us and includes free Hotspot and international data roaming

Hal very informative, thanks , if it sounds to good to be true no thanks. Very stressful.

It doesnt address the biggest risk tor me which in cancellation by the other party leaving you with over 1500 pounds of flights you can no longer use without paying many thousands tor accommodation. My carpet getting wine on it or kitchen worktop getting damaged is minor compared to that

I have successfully exchanged. But it does take a very significant amount of effort to arrange. If you earn in excess of 400 per day before taxes you are better off renting for anything 2 weeks or less. You will need to kiss a LOT of frogs and theres a risk that the other party will cancel on you leaving you with flight tickets you cannot get a refund on.

I am sorry you did not get on your cruise. I’m retiring at the end of this year and it was very tempted by a 35 day Hawaiian Mara islands cruise. I opted for an 11 day Mexican Riviera. The representative said they were only inside Cabins. So I was charged at the $99 a day rate. I’m within two hours driving distance or I could take the train. I think what I’ll do as it gets closer is drive down, stay the night before in a hotel. If it don’t get on the cruise, they’re plenty of other things to do in San Diego. I’ll let you know what happens.

I went HAL's standby list for the Westerdam in June--just two days before sailing. Since this is normally when you'd receive notification about cabin assignment, I was told to show up at the pier by 1:00 p.m. on the day of departure (I showed up at noon). While I was let into the terminal's waiting area at the time of arrival and even cleared security with my luggage in tow (you can't drop off luggage since you don't have a cabin assignent), I still wasn't sure if I'd get on. At 12:30, the Director of Guest Services came over and told me there was a very good chance I'd get on. About 30 minutes later, she came back and told me that I'd be able to sail but had to wait until I was added to the manifest before they could check me in and allow me onboard. My recommendation is to book a verandah (or higher) standby because if a verandah isn't available, they will offer an inside or oceanview and refund the difference. Luckily, I was offered a verandah and also given a $100 onboard credit for just showing up at the pier without a confirmed cabin. Just an FYI, I later found out that I was able to get on because the people who had originally booked the cabin were denied boarding because they did not have the proper identification to travel. So a word of advice, ALWAYS, ALWAYS make sure you know the I.D. requirements before showing up at the port (a valid passport works best--even for Alaska cruises).

Norwegian Epic is a great ship with free style cruising. elevator agree.

Hello and thanks for this video. When I found out about this program, I called HAL and guess what, the HAL agent knew nothing about it, and I was put on hold for over 30 minutes until the agent came back on the phone and still could not provide any information. I called three other times and still was not able to get any information about the program. The HAL agents are not trained on this program so a total waste of my time to call and the website, no comment. I have two HAL cruises coming up before the end of the year and I am going to ask the future cruise consultant about the program and the cruise director some questions during one of the open talks if either one can provide any useful information. Something tells me that they will not know anything as well.

Thanks for clarifying. I just subscribed.🎉

Wife and I took our first cruise in December 2023, to the Caribbean. I agree with all the likes. The staff was helpful and friendly, the food was delicious and the entertainment, especially the Epic Beatles! Really enjoyed all four of their shows. The dance production was excellent also. As far as the complaints, we enjoy gambling so the casino was no problem. I was using a mobility scooter and was able to get it in and out of the stateroom with no problem. The couple we were traveling with was in the stateroom next door so communication wasn't a problem. We enjoyed the bars, crowded but not too bad. I also enjoyed the cigar lounge, well stocked humidor and drinks delivered. Heard from some previous Epic cruisers who said it is the worst ship in the Norwegian line. This was our first cruise and we thought it was great! Glad we didn't know any better.

We did not make Westerdam Aug 4 Seattle to Alaska. We got the email at 1:30AM on the day of sailing that they canceled our standby and would be refunding our money. We are from Iowa and flew to Seattle and went with plan b vacay - Mt Rainier, Astoria, OR, Olympic National Park. Sad to miss the cruise but had a nice time. I will be booking a cruise in the future w/o standby because I miss the ship life.

Do HAL Onboard Mariner Benefits apply to HAL Standby Bookings?

So are you telling me you pay months in advance you fly down to the The city, but still not be able to get on board?

We love Nieuw Statendam. We did an aft cabin for Norway. Two weeks sitting on that balcony as we sailed in or out of the Fjords was magical. We will sail on her again. Captain Driscoll was excellent at the North Cape making sure everyone got to see the horn. Same with 7 sisters. Coming down from the North Cape we had very rough seas with 20-30 ‘ swells. This ship handled the rough seas with style. She is beautiful.

I live in Florida, I booked the 42 day Med Cruze standby cruisin March 2024 . Your channel has been unbelievably helpful, thanks for that. Through a a friend who called me from a ship in the Med I learned about the program and a phone # , I called right away and sent them $5,800 . They sent me an e-mail receipt 👍. I’m Booked November 9, 2024 , well see what happens 🤞, meanwhile I’ll be watching your channel to learn anything and I will let you know my experiences . The cruise departs Ft Lauderdale and ends there, we are 2 hours from the Port, so I’m lucky and able to wait till the last minute. Thanks again for the great information.

When my family and I go to Denali we try to stop by the Princess Hotel. Or what we like to call Alaska brought to you by Princess Cruise line.😊

video very informative thankyou .

Did you get a refund from HAL for the Seattle standby ?

The reason they can charge less is because they are one of the biggest shipping companies worth billions and billions.

Very informative and clearly explained! How does the tipping for the land portion work? Thanks!

We didn't get on our Westerdam 7/7/24 7 Day HAL Standby Cruise and have not received our HAL Refund. Have you got your HAL Standby Refund?

I only see $99 inside and $129 balcony

1 day 13 hours 18 minutes. No notice of any kind. No email!! Nothing on website!! Navigator App: Check-in begins at invalid datetime.!!!

As a solo this would be a huge advantage if I only lived closer than a 9 hr drive from the ports.

Appreciate your wisdom. We are signed up for a 35 day cruise on the standby list with a balacony option. I wondered how they would handle the two lines. This was great information. I do have a question though. Is it two days out at start of business, two days out at close of business time or two days out from the cruise time leaving port. I plan to call them as I am seeing some people's comments saying that they did not get a call on 2 days out and had to call HAL one day out. To be fair it was July 4th two days out, but that is pretty unacceptable with our drive. Any information would be appreciated. Thank you.

I'm going on the epic in March and I'm a little nervous because this is the first time I've cruised as a passenger with the Norwegian Cruise lines. As you, I like the traditional dining experience and sitting with people that I don't know and getting to know them. But having free style dining and also being isolated is not acceptable to me. Are they still doing isolation or has that loosened up?

Been on 3 cruises to Alaska. Have to pick a spot and stay with it. Good glass at 2.8 and at least 200 zoom. 1st cruise was a disaster.

Well done sir. Sept 21 on a 14 day'r. We are long time Princess cruisers and 1st time HAL. Looking forward to this one. Now even more, Thanks!

We have been in Ireland in 2022 and loved it. We are coming again next year!

I am slightly mobility impaired. Almost always take the elevator (can’t use escalator due to balance/stability issues)…so I guess I would have to use stairs to get to deck 5? Are they steep, are there many steps? GREAT video-one of the most helpful, balanced I have seen.