X cruiser trying HAL

[cruise kitty]

Hi, we've cruised celebrity in the past, & will continue to do so, however, found a Thanksgiving cruise on the Oosterdam that was too good a deal to pass up:)

I have a few questions;

Is there a casual restaurant for formal nights?

We have a verandah guarantee, do the showers have glass doors, or the dreaded curtain?

Is there music by pool on sea days?

Does HAL offer a beverage pkg.?

thanks so much

[Jade13]

Hi, we've cruised celebrity in the past, & will continue to do so, however, found a Thanksgiving cruise on the Oosterdam that was too good a deal to pass up:)

I have a few questions;

Is there a casual restaurant for formal nights?

We have a verandah guarantee, do the showers have glass doors, or the dreaded curtain?

Is there music by pool on sea days?

Does HAL offer a beverage pkg.?

thanks so much

Shower? You get a full bath tub with shower in almost all HAL staterooms (including Insides)

Try the Lido on the formal nights. They cover the tables and will make your entree to order and bring it to your table.

No beverage packages but HAL's prices are cheaper than Celebrity. They still sell 20 punch cola cards for $20.70 and 10 punch house wine cards for $41.40 (or 20 punch cards). No unlimited packages. But, you can bring unlimited wine on-board.

[cruise kitty]

Shower? You get a full bath tub with shower in almost all HAL staterooms (including Insides)

Try the Lido on the formal nights. They cover the tables and will make your entree to order and bring it to your table.

No beverage packages but HAL's prices are cheaper than Celebrity. They still sell 20 punch cola cards for $20.70 and 10 punch house wine cards for $41.40 (or 20 punch cards). No unlimited packages. But, you can bring unlimited wine on-board.

thanks, the unlimited wine is fabulous! I see there is an Italian resturant to eat at also that is more casual, I understand the dress code is for all the public areas, would strolling on the promenade deck be considered an area to be kept formal? thanks again:)

[maxout]

thanks, the unlimited wine is fabulous! I see there is an Italian resturant to eat at also that is more casual, I understand the dress code is for all the public areas, would strolling on the promenade deck be considered an area to be kept formal? thanks again:)

Adherence to the Formal Night Dress code outside of the MDR and Specialty Resturants is spotty, I dont think the promenade would be an issue.

[RuthC]

Shower? You get a full bath tub with shower in almost all HAL staterooms (including Insides)
Correction: insides are shower only.

[RuthC]

I understand the dress code is for all the public areas, would strolling on the promenade deck be considered an area to be kept formal? thanks again:)
The outside decks, and the Lido deck, do not come under the dress code.

[Himself]

Have a great cruise and enjoy the OOSTERDAM

[Jade13]

Correction: insides are shower only.

Thanks. Even I didn't know that.

[Jade13]

Shower? You get a full bath tub with shower in almost all HAL staterooms).

Try the Lido on the formal nights. They cover the tables and will make your entree to order and bring it to your table.

No beverage packages but HAL's prices are cheaper than Celebrity. They still sell 20 punch cola cards for $20.70 and 10 punch house wine cards for $41.40 (or 20 punch cards). No unlimited packages. But, you can bring unlimited wine on-board.

Forgot to add all staterooms have a full assortment of Elemis bath products, shampoo, conditioner, sharp shower gel (my favorite), body lotion, bath and facial soap and shower cap.

[E-500]

Hi, we've cruised celebrity in the past, & will continue to do so, however, found a Thanksgiving cruise on the Oosterdam that was too good a deal to pass up:)

I have a few questions;

Is there a casual restaurant for formal nights? Already answered

We have a verandah guarantee, do the showers have glass doors, or the dreaded curtain? Dreaded curtain

Is there music by pool on sea days? Piped in and somedays the HAL Cats play out there. (Lido pool vs. Seaview Pool)

Does HAL offer a beverage pkg.? Already Answered

thanks so much

Please see my bolded comments above.

[LynnObie]

thanks, the unlimited wine is fabulous! I see there is an Italian resturant to eat at also that is more casual, I understand the dress code is for all the public areas, would strolling on the promenade deck be considered an area to be kept formal? thanks again:)
Hello Cruise Kitty... We love both X & HAL. IMHO, you made an excellent choice of ship for your 1st HAL experience. There are some excellent deals right now on various categories. We got a sweet deal on a SS guarantee for January which is our favorite cabin/ship combination of all the ships we've experienced. To your question about formal nights, no different than X. "Public areas" officially means almost anywhere outside your cabin or the Lido. That being said, as you already know from being on X, MANY folks (including yours truly) dress formally for the MDR then change into something more casual for later. I may get flamed for this reply but everyone knows it's the truth.

As for beverage packages, if you set up an account at the HAL website & look at your booking, you will see the opportunity to pre-purchase several items under "Indulgences" including "Wine Cards" for discounted cost of their house wines by the glass. The 10 glass card costs about $4.14 per glass & the 20 glass card costs about $3.88 including 15% gratuity which is paid up front when you pre-order. We find HAL's house wines are comparable to X's. They have a selection that suits us & the price is right. Current selection copied from HAL site: "This wine card is valid for 20 glasses of house pouring wine which includes Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, White Zinfandel and Sparkling Wine." The Sparkling Wine has always been their House Champagne which we also like. Sauvignon Blanc wasn't listed on their printed list on the Zaandam last year but it was also offered to us as a house wine in MDR at the time. I have heard that HAL may be phasing out the Wine Card but they are still offering it for pre-purchase on both the Oosterdam & Zaandam which we are booked on. Last year on the Zaandam, we were still able to buy the Wine Cards in the Main Dining Room. They can be used anywhere on the ship but might only be sold on board in the MDR.... or not at all, per some recent posts I've read. I believe, in all, there are about 93 beverage options listed under "Indulgences" that can be pre-ordered.

I hope this info helps & hope you will really enjoy your 1st HAL cruise.:)

[cruise kitty]

Thanks so much for all the terrific answers! We are excited to have a cruise that we can drive to, DH really needs a "get away from it all" trip, & I think this will fit the bill!

[SwissMyst]

I assume this is the Oosterdam Mexican Riviera cruise - we did it over Christmas holidays and it is a good well-paced cruise. Cruising Magdelena Bay is austere and haunting and such a change of pace from open water sailing that even if you don't see any whales, it is an awesome reminder of the starkness of the western coasts of North America.

Mazatlan was small enough to be easily walkable and had a lovely historic renovation area of cafes, shops and plazas. That was the surprise stop for us and would happily keep going back there and to the same restaurant for lunch "Te Amo Lucy". Good shopping in Puerto Vallarta for lovely Talavera ware and Cabo has a little bit of something for everyone, though I think next time we just might stay on the ship to eat and relax in the sun with all the scenery surrounding us in the quiet.

[LynnObie]

....We are excited to have a cruise that we can drive to....
Do you live in San Diego? We love going out of San Diego becasue of it being a smaller port + we can drive to our pre-cruise motel in about 2.5 hours or less. We live in Apple Valley, noth of San Diego on the way to Las Vegas.:)

[cruise kitty]

Do you live in San Diego? We love going out of San Diego becasue of it being a smaller port + we can drive to our pre-cruise motel in about 2.5 hours or less. We live in Apple Valley, noth of San Diego on the way to Las Vegas.:)

We're in the hills above OC, it'll be about an hour and half drive for us... very different than flying out of LAX to Rome! We considered taking the amtrak, but there's some reasonable parking lots that will be less expensive. We did a couple of Celebrity cruises out of ensenada to hawaii before, but it still took a bit of time to get there, we used x's bus out of San Diego, this just seems so simple & nice, looking forward to it!

[deserttraveler]

HAL doesn't offer the account viewing or room service ordering via the TV.
HAL DOES offer a vastly better library!
HAL's ice cream is not as good (has more air, melts faster)
HAL does a slightly better job with cooked-to-order meat.
The "Italian" alternative on HAL was not even close to X alternative of that creperie on S class.
Lido dinner on HAL much better than bare-bones evening buffet on X.
HAL beds are better, shower curtains are tolerable.
I happily travel on both.

[LynnObie]

We're in the hills above OC, it'll be about an hour and half drive for us... very different than flying out of LAX to Rome! We considered taking the amtrak, but there's some reasonable parking lots that will be less expensive. We did a couple of Celebrity cruises out of ensenada to hawaii before, but it still took a bit of time to get there, we used x's bus out of San Diego, this just seems so simple & nice, looking forward to it!
Good Morning Cruise Kitty..... You have an even easier drive than us to the San Diego port. In case you're interested, the Comfort Inn Old Town (http://www.comfortinn.com/hotel-san_diego-california-CA120)where we stay pre-cruise or pre-flight has a package that includes parking in their covered garage while you're gone + shuttle to/from the port. The package is about $30 higher than the room rate so currently about $140. We like to go down the night before our cruise, then be with the 1st wave to board the ship. We lived in Orange County for many years before moving to our retirement home at Del Webb Sun City, Apple Valley.