The unusual itinerary of this Trans-Pacific cruise caught my attention early and reservations were made early. Travelling single, I wanted to be sure of the trip, cabin and needs. My T.A. was first told that HAL could not book out of my home city so that was reluctantly agreed upon. I paid a deviation fee to be able to use my city and a better flight. My final travel documents were first online for the air. Immediately I found that there was an error and much time was spent adjusting a "computer problem." Final papers only arrived about a week early.
For the first night, I stayed in the Osaka Imperial Hotel (booked by HAL). The hotel is very high quality but not centrally located. The transfer to the hotel took very long in wait time. The next day, there was little chance to do independent touring with, "...bags out at 10am, check-out at noon, and bus at 1:30pm."
Ship check-in at Tempozan Pier was not unusual until we were told to wait in another room after being ready to board. It was then that we learned that a virus was already making problems on the ship and our activities would be limited by sanitation procedures.