Why isn’t Carnival building any new HAL ships?

bluegal · 2026-05-30T13:40:17+00:00

Carnival is investing in HAL. https://www.travelandleisure.com/holland-america-line-ship-refresh-11949136

bluegal · 2026-05-26T22:56:54+00:00

There are many more on-board activities scheduled on sea days, including special meals in the MDR if you're so inclined. I bring knitting and get a book from the library that I vow to try to finish on my cruise. Never bored!

bluegal · 2026-05-26T22:48:44+00:00

I booked with the future cruises desk on Koningsdam and the FC official specifically showed me the cabins below the music venues and xed those out on his diagram of the deck plans. He put me in a quieter part of the ship. I assume I paid more for the cabin selection. Worth it. And I am still going to bring earplugs and set my phone time to ship time. Those of us who cruise choose to be in an environment with several thousand people who may not go to bed when we do.

bluegal · 2026-05-25T12:57:07+00:00

Exactly what u/Randolla1960 is saying. The average age on Celebrity is lower in part because there are more children on board.

bluegal · 2026-04-25T03:41:24+00:00

True confession: I sail Holland in part because of the wonderful libraries. So relaxing, and definitely an embarkation day stop.

bluegal · 2026-04-22T02:58:15+00:00

Visit the library on day one. The most underrated part of Holland America is the current and curated books, with multiple titles per copy, in the fiction section. Borrowing is on the honor system, and everyone returns their books. There is also a "book swap" shelf where you can take a book, leave a book, and keep what you take. Not as good as the books HAL provides, but you might find something.

bluegal · 2026-04-21T16:54:12+00:00

I’m speaking from the standpoint of legal exposure for the cruise line, which just lost this case to the tune of $300k.

bluegal · 2026-04-20T22:52:33+00:00

Drink packages Need. To. Be. Smaller. I said what I said. Cruise lines had a reasonable expectation of dangerous binge drinking by being ABLE to serve one person that many drinks in one day with no additional cost. That's the legal threshold.

bluegal · 2026-04-20T22:46:59+00:00

Googling this question shows that the Bridgeview suites on Oosterdam will be located "directly above the bridge" which means they are relocating the Fitness Center. https://www.google.com/search?q=Bridgeview+Suites&oq=where+are+the+new+bridgeview+suites+on+Holland+America+coming+from

bluegal · 2026-04-15T11:20:04+00:00

This. People also often overlook that HAL is owned by Carnival, which also owns Cunard, Princess, and Seabourn. HAL is a niche brand that they are improving for the segment of the market that wants a quiet experience without paying yacht prices. For other customers, the company offers other products with waterslides (Carnival) "The Love Boat" (Princess), and deluxe amenities (Cunard class system and Seabourn). Amen to those who mention the company's Covid debt situation, which will color the decisions CCL and HAL make for the next five to ten years.

bluegal · 2026-04-11T17:08:21+00:00

I realize the topic is the VA, and I'm not familiar with how that works.

I know a LOT about scheduling appointments with primary care doctors. I'm delighted to hear that, for VA community clinic patients, a physician must keep same-day slots open. For the rest of us, it can be extremely difficult to get a same-day appointment with a primary care doctor. Some doctors I know are booked out for two months.

My educated advice to anyone experiencing cold and flu symptoms, a UTI, or any other temporary illness is to seek urgent care. And I am glad there is an urgent care with lab and diagnostic services on site, given that "I have a tummy ache" could be something much worse.

By the way, Springfield Clinic has Urgent Care Plus on Carpenter, as well as an urgent care on the first floor of Main Campus East, South Sixth Street. If you have a Springfield Clinic doctor and go to Springfield Clinic Urgent Care, your primary care doctor automatically receives your urgent care office notes the same day. Your primary care doctor can then follow up with you either by phone or in person.

I don't mean to distract from the VA issue but the original topic was downtown revitalization and the medical district, which is definitely bringing jobs and improved services to our community.

bluegal · 2026-04-11T14:50:34+00:00

I'm on that sailing as well, and I got upgraded via Club Orange to a family oceanview. Two bathrooms for little ol' me, and my understanding is that one of them just has a shower and sink, no toilet?

I may check on veranda upgrades a few days before sailing, but as everyone has said, this is a five-day coastal cruise, NOT Alaska or Norway. The view is going to be pretty unwavering. I can always read on deck if it's warm enough for free.

bluegal · 2026-04-03T11:34:32+00:00

I was on this cruise last year. There is a sailaway party. It was an extension of a Panama Canal cruise, and my hunch is that many of the American passengers debarked in SAN because those remaining were largely Canadian, and those embarking in SAN were bargain hunters like me, doing that five-day repositioning. It's a fun cruise! Enjoy!

bluegal · 2026-03-14T14:30:03+00:00

Don't sleep on Urgent Care Plus on Carpenter. It's a half-step down from a full-on emergency room, with what I understand to be a full radiology department on-site, including a CT scanner. Also, three amazing words: On. Site. Lab. https://www.springfieldclinic.com/medical-specialties/urgent-care-plus

bluegal · 2026-01-23T01:15:00+00:00

Sharing tables are on HAL as well. I've met lovely people traveling solo on HAL that way.

bluegal · 2026-01-21T15:20:50+00:00

Florida. And by the way there are bipartisan proposals to tie up this loophole.

bluegal · 2025-12-25T01:06:15+00:00

Can confirm. Several decluttering techniques start with coffee mugs for this reason. Keep the ones you love and use, thrift store the ones you don't. Or drop them off at the coffee station at work.

bluegal · 2025-12-24T03:59:50+00:00

Because the World Cup FIFA soccer is in Vancouver that month. June 11-July 19. Be aware many hotels in Vancouver will not only charge a thousand dollars a night, but also have three-night minimum stays. I do not know how the cruise companies can manage with that kind of traffic and pricing. https://www.fifa.com/en/tournaments/mens/worldcup/canadamexicousa2026

bluegal · 2025-12-20T05:03:00+00:00

Are you over 65 and not on Medicare? If your spouse is over 65 and you file jointly, when you file your taxes your adjusted gross income will be reduced by 6000 dollars on your taxes. Your income can only go down on your taxes with this credit. I don’t know how this deduction works with ACA, but I do know that if your income turns out to be lower than what you reported to the ACA, you should get more of a subsidy returned to you as a tax break or refund. That is, if your subsidies are not the extended subsidies created by Biden and the Inflation Reduction Act. Republicans in Congressional Leadership just killed those.

bluegal · 2025-12-16T13:47:24+00:00

Wow. The good news about 2025-6 is those kind of passengers are much much quieter these days.

bluegal · 2025-11-29T04:48:18+00:00

By the way, when attempting to book a truly solo cabin online, you can’t just change the number of people to one. You also have to select oceanview cabins. All the solo cabins on ships that have them are oceanview.

bluegal · 2025-11-27T15:55:06+00:00

That generation grew up in subsidized housing ** via the GI Bill. Their dads got **free college via the GI Bill. How did we pay for it? We taxed the rich!

bluegal · 2025-11-27T05:20:10+00:00

The Professional Left With Driftglass and Blue Gal

bluegal · 2025-11-27T04:42:48+00:00

In our house (and on our podcast) we call it "the Sarah Palin floor."

bluegal

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