suzieque
August 15th, 2004, 06:44 PM
We had a great cruise. As Jacqueline pointed out, the pluses outweighed the minuses. Plusses were a fabulous (albeit intensive) itinerary! We found that if you just choose a few highlights that you must see in any city that is far from a port (like on this cruise), you will have a more interesting and relaxing time. We did the research before the cruise, and had pre-booked several drivers and guides in various cities which worked out great for us. We got to see things that were not on the HAL tour itineraries and without a huge caravan of busses!! The port lecturer people on this particular ship were awful. When they were'nt trying to scare people into using only their tours (talking about being on your own & missing the ship stuff...), they were giving out incorrect info on the ports!! The days at sea ( only 3 out of 13) were a needed and welcome respite from the get up at 6am, eat breakfast, get off to see the sights kind of days that most days were.
I actually thought the Indonesian crew was the most friendly of all the cruises I've been on (this was my first on HAL). The European staff was not as friendly, and did not make a point of smiling and saying hi as they passed you in the hallways and public areas. I found the staffs on Princess & Celebrity more open and eager to connect with the passengers. My daughter said the teen group met the first night, then splintered off into groups, so she chose not to go off with any particular crowd. With late seating (8pm) for dinner, we were rarely out before 10-10:15. Saw a few shows, but really just walked around the ship, went to the internet center, looked in the shops and then went to bed early to be rested for the next day!! The cabins were great. The new beds (thick, pillowtop mattresses!!!) 250 count sheets (not changed during the cruise, though!), and the bathroom with tub were very nice touches. Vanity area was too small and much of it was taken up with the TV. I was "upgraded" to an aft cabin. Huge balcony, but NEVER AGAIN will I take that area!! The balcony was mostly open to the above decks, and it was filthy dirty every morning and evening, soaking wet, and unuseable for me, because people on the Lido deck (2 floors up) frequently tossed, dropped or otherwise lost their beer & soda cans, water bottles, and cigarettes which landed on my balcony. Almost got hit in the head twice while sittng out there. Complaints to HAL front desk provide no relief from this matter. Made the balcony virtually a waste and pissed me off greatly!!! The photo staff did a great job, and the food was pretty good. Lido was best. We were at table 91 in the upper dining room, and never seemed to have a hot meal! Everything was lukewarm. The coffee on board was excellent. I am a coffee nut, and brought my own with a French coffee press, just in case it was like the Princess coffee. I was pleasantly surprised!!
Overall we had a great cruise. Each itinerary and group of passengers varies cruise to cruise, so you can never be assured of a fun-loving lively crowd. I felt this group was a bit more reserved; kept to their own travelling companions rather than making lots of new friends and acquaintances, but I too may have been guilty of that as well, as I was not interested in going to a smoke-fiilled bar till the wee hours. I was more interested in the fascinating ports and nearby cities we were to see each day.
If you have specific questions, feel free to respond to this post or e-mail me directly at sprovo@apr.com
Suzie
I actually thought the Indonesian crew was the most friendly of all the cruises I've been on (this was my first on HAL). The European staff was not as friendly, and did not make a point of smiling and saying hi as they passed you in the hallways and public areas. I found the staffs on Princess & Celebrity more open and eager to connect with the passengers. My daughter said the teen group met the first night, then splintered off into groups, so she chose not to go off with any particular crowd. With late seating (8pm) for dinner, we were rarely out before 10-10:15. Saw a few shows, but really just walked around the ship, went to the internet center, looked in the shops and then went to bed early to be rested for the next day!! The cabins were great. The new beds (thick, pillowtop mattresses!!!) 250 count sheets (not changed during the cruise, though!), and the bathroom with tub were very nice touches. Vanity area was too small and much of it was taken up with the TV. I was "upgraded" to an aft cabin. Huge balcony, but NEVER AGAIN will I take that area!! The balcony was mostly open to the above decks, and it was filthy dirty every morning and evening, soaking wet, and unuseable for me, because people on the Lido deck (2 floors up) frequently tossed, dropped or otherwise lost their beer & soda cans, water bottles, and cigarettes which landed on my balcony. Almost got hit in the head twice while sittng out there. Complaints to HAL front desk provide no relief from this matter. Made the balcony virtually a waste and pissed me off greatly!!! The photo staff did a great job, and the food was pretty good. Lido was best. We were at table 91 in the upper dining room, and never seemed to have a hot meal! Everything was lukewarm. The coffee on board was excellent. I am a coffee nut, and brought my own with a French coffee press, just in case it was like the Princess coffee. I was pleasantly surprised!!
Overall we had a great cruise. Each itinerary and group of passengers varies cruise to cruise, so you can never be assured of a fun-loving lively crowd. I felt this group was a bit more reserved; kept to their own travelling companions rather than making lots of new friends and acquaintances, but I too may have been guilty of that as well, as I was not interested in going to a smoke-fiilled bar till the wee hours. I was more interested in the fascinating ports and nearby cities we were to see each day.
If you have specific questions, feel free to respond to this post or e-mail me directly at sprovo@apr.com
Suzie