Oosterdam, 11/7 -11/14, Review

[Pudgesmom]

Our third cruise, second on HAL, we were on the Statendam in Alaska two summers ago.

Sunday, we took a cab from FLL to the Crown Liquor, which was next to a Winn Dixie. Our cabbie was willing to wait 15 min. to purchase wine, as it was not quite noon on Sunday. Once fortified with 2 boxes of wine and a case of Diet Coke, we were off to the ship. Boarding took about an hour, after which we had a delicious lunch at the aft pool. Cabins were available at 1:30.

Our cabin - THE BEST - we booked an sS suite on Deck 6. The perfect size for two, with comfortable chairs, great couch for napping, and plenty of storage. Husband, Brad, took an immediate nap on the very comfortable brand'new mattress. We spent much time in the room, sitting on the balcony, watching rented movies, listening to our music, and eating and sleeping. Our cabin was impeccably maintained by Srimanto, our steward. Oh, we used the whirlpool every day.

The ports- Nassau was a waste of time, as the ship leaves so early. St. Maarten- we cabbed to Cul-De-Sac, and ferried to the beautiful beach of Isle Pinel. A beautiful, quiet, small beach. We would return. Then our driver returned and dropped us off in Marigot. We had a great local lunch at Coco's, and then shopped for perfume and fountain pens. Cabbed back to the ship by 4:30. Tortola- we tried Smuggler's Cove Beach, but the surf was quite high, and ended up swimming a few minutes at Cane Garden Bay, then touring the island by cab. It was just not the best day for beaching it. Half Moon Cay- What a beautiful beach! Despite the devastation of the foliage, the water and sand combine to the prettiest setting we've ever seen. Unfortunately, there were two ships there that day. The tender trip in took 45 minutes due to traffic and the beach near the tenders was unpleasantly overcrowded. We had rented a clamshell, were walked down the beach with about 20 people, to the last two available. It was unfortunate that this was not better organized. Several unhappy people went straight back to the ship. Having said that, we walked half a mile down the sand and had a wonderful swim in a totally unpopulated area. I would recommend trying for a cruise with only one ship in this stop.

The ship - Although it was larger than the Statendam, the public areas felt more narrow to me. We had a great time dancing in the Disco on 70's night, were not overly impressed with the singer in the piano bar. Other than that, we did not attend any shows. We enjoyed walking the Promenade and using the gym. Brad enjoyed a private lesson on using the free weights. He also tried the golf simulator. His lesson was only so-so. He played Pebble Beach and had an ok time- I think that was tainted by the very high seas on the day he played.

[Oceanwench]

Was the singer in the piano bar named Steve?
I sailed the Oosterdam the week before you - we spent several nights in the piano bar and found him very entertaining.
Although he did hit a few sour notes, on the piano and in his singing!

But one night we were there till the wee hours, and everyone was singing along.
Maybe the people gathered around the piano make a big difference?

[Pudgesmom]

The Greenhouse Spa - both good and bad. I purchased the week long pass to the thermal suite and hydropool. Forget the hydropool, the temperature is tepid at best. They say they want to maintain it at body temperature, but it feels cold after 5-10 minutes. The thermal suite - WOW!!! The tile beds are fabulous. After 15 minutes, the warm moist heat will melt your cares away. I also enjoyed the scented showers and the steam room. It was very time-consuming checking in and out of the spa. You must exchange your room key for a key to the suites, and wait in line with those booking treatments or signing in for treatments. This is also where bathrobes are picked up. Check-in and out took as much as 15 minutes. This procedure would work better if the desk was better staffed. There was just not enough help there. Same for maintenance of the spa areas. Lots of robes and towels lying around, sometimes no towels were available, one day the robes distributed were wet. It was nothing really major, but the overall ambiance was definetaly lacking. For example, there is a door leading from the outside deck to the "Relaxation Room," where you wait in your robe for a treatment. Various people traipse through this room at intermittant intervals. I would recommend, use the thermal suite, get a massage, but don't expect much else.

The food- as with the overall cruise, I would describe the food as a good value for the money. I always found something good, but nothing was exceptional... We had some uneven pacing in the dining room, but mostly I think our waiter was WAAAy too busy. We had wonderful room service promptly delivered every morning for breakfast. We ordered dinner from the dining room one night. It took over 1/2 hour to get through to room service. The wrong meal was delivered, but another call to room service, and the mistakes were repaired in less than 10 minutes. THe Lido pizza is delicious, and I particulary liked the wraps. The Pinnacle is very good, although despite confirming our pre-booked reservation on boarding, it was lost by Tuesday, and we had to eat at 5:30.

The company- We had a cruise critic meeting our second day, and enjoyed meeting with about 10 other members. We shared a dining room table with HeatherinFlorida, her husband, and their friends from Maryland. Great companionship and lots of fun! I felt like I knew Heather before we started talking. It will also be interesting to read her review of this same cruise.

Activities- none, other than the one trip to the disco. We saw a few well-behaved children.

Weather-Variable. We had one day of Gale Force winds and 18 foot seas. The ship was really rocking and rolling. Neither of us were bothered by this, although I know many became seasick.
During this time, a passenger became ill and we changed course for Puerto Rico. Unfortunately, the man died. Then it was nolonger necessary to seek medical attention and we turned back for Half Moon Cay.
We had rain in St. Maarten, and many cloudy days, but beautiful weather at Half Moon Cay.

Disembarkation - We requested 10:00, and received #32. We waited in our cabin, which we liked, and were called at 9:30. The whole process took about 10 minutes and we were sitting at our gate by 10:30.

Overall, I would try Holland America again. I think we got a good value for our money. Our next cruise is on the Radisson Diamond through the Panama Canal in 2005. I'm anxious to make a comparision.

Thank you everyone on this board for providing invaluable information for our cruise!:)

Beth

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome home.

Glad you enjoyed your cruise on the Oosterdam.

The worst area we found on her was having to go through the photo area on the way to dinner. So crowded with people trying to look at pictures and others just trying to get to dinner.

Whenever there are 2 ships scheduled for HMC and ours arrives 2 hours after the other one, we just opt to stay on board and enjoy ourselves with usually a half empty ship.

[localady]

Beth-

Welcome Home!:)
Glad you enjoyed your room! We always love a larger room as we too spend a good deal of time relaxing there. Sorry to hear of the bad weather and medically necessary rerouting. Sounds like you have a very positive outlook, and I know as a mom of teens you enjoyed the relaxation and peace and quiet.:D :cool:

[sail7seas]

Welcome Home, Beth.


Thanks for posting your comments. I was interested to read your impressions of the Greenhouse. We have't seen all that much written about it. Sounds like they need a little more organization/staff.

Glad you enjoyed yourself and particularly happy you had fun with Heather et al at your dining table.

[Pudgesmom]

OceanWench-
I'm sorry I don't remember the name of the piano bar singer. I do agree the company can taint the experience, and honestly, my husband wasn't feeling too hot that night. Still, though, I thought the player/singer was mediocre.

Krazy Kruisers- Your advice about staying onboard was good. In fact, after our swim we headed back to the ship. However, this was our first and maybe only trip to Half Moon Cay and we had hoped for a better experience.

Localady - My main goal was relaxation, and that was completely accomplished!!! I was the last through at a foour-way stop this morning.

Sail7Seas- I have particulary appreciated your balanced perspective. I believe you get what you pay for, and I paid a lot less for my SS suite on this cruise than I paid for my balcony cabin on the Statendam a few years ago.

Beth

[ekerr19]

Beth-

Welcome home! Thanks for sharing your cruise with us. We had one night of rough seas too, I can relate. I slept like a baby, but others weren't so lucky.

Thanks again!

[Ziggy7]

Welcome Home, Beth!
Thanks for sharing your your cruise with us! Sorry not all things went well but glad you had a nice relaxing time! I really hope you get to experience HMC with only one ship there, its heaven :)

[dakrewser]

Overall, I would try Holland America again. I think we got a good value for our money.
That's probably something we should all keep in mind. Thanks for an excellent review.

-dave

[HeatherInFlorida]

Beth, you beat me to it!!!:D I've actually opened a Word document to begin my review. Hopefully today.

As I told you in person, I'm so happy we met up here on the boards and were able to arrange to sit together. I know you and Brad added enormously to the enjoyment of our cruise. We had a lot of laughs and I'll never forget it.

And I have just upgraded our cabin on the Summit next year. It's not as large as your cabin, but larger than the one we were going to have ... also a much larger balcony. How I envied you your SS balcony!!!

Great review ...

[HeatherInFlorida]

Was the singer in the piano bar named Steve?
I sailed the Oosterdam the week before you - we spent several nights in the piano bar and found him very entertaining.
Although he did hit a few sour notes, on the piano and in his singing!

But one night we were there till the wee hours, and everyone was singing along.
Maybe the people gathered around the piano make a big difference?
Yes, the piano player was Steve. We only saw him one night at "Name That Tune" and he seemed annoyed that we were playing his game and weren't one of the "regulars".

[marko711]

per day and per week. Thanks

[Pudgesmom]

Mark-
I believe you can get the thermal suite only for $80.00 for the week, or $15.00 per day. If you are having a service or treatment, then use of the suite and the hydropool are included in the charge.
Both suites for the week were $150, or $250 for a couple.

Beth