Trip Reports by our Clients:
TWO CRUISES WITH TRAIN RIDES INCLUDED
Dear Sylvia,
You may use my comments anytime. So far you have booked me on two cruises and they were both perfect. You did a wonderful job coordinating the Alaska cruise and Rocky Mountaineer trips last summer.
The fall cruise was wonderful. Thanks for all your help. I never did get the verandah but somehow I survived. I would recommend the trip to anyone (everyone?). Great weather, hot and humid but still great. No hurricanes or bad rain.
There is a new landcruise sold by Holland America in Caldera, Costa Rica. It is especially for train buffs. It comprises a bus ride, a very good river cruise and, at the end, a ride for about an hour on an old beat up rail line along the coast. They have fixed up an old diesel, a caboose and some passenger cars and it rocks and rolls through people's backyards. I think this is part of the old "banana train" that used to run for tourists. The last time I was in Costa Rica about 4 years ago, all the trains were out of service.
Also for rail fans, in San Pedro, California they have revived a part of the Pacific Electric and run trolleys from Long Beach to San Pedro. You can see them run from the cruise terminal. I wish I had taken a cab from the airport and rode the trolley as runs close to the terminal.
Holland America should stick to ship cruises. I had to board the plane in Phoenix at 6:30 am for the 60 minute flight to LAX. HA had greeters there for about 30 minutes and then they left. There was no place to sit, no place to put baggage, no coffee shop as it was the UAL baggage claim area. I waited for 5 hours for the bus to the cruise terminal. It arrived at 12:30. Should I bitch at HAL about this? [Sylvia's answer -- "No, that's a job for your travel agent.] Bummer. I was ready to go back home. I am glad I didn't because everything else was great. I don't know which I enjoyed more, the Panama Canal or the Amazon.
Thanks again,
Jim Metz 
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