Noordam Questions

[velvetred]

Does anyone know anything about cabin VF 5140 on the Verandah deck? It is a handicap cabin. Does it have a steel rail or plexiglass one can see through? It is an angled verandah from the deck plans so not sure what to expect. Also, does the Noordam have a sail away party on its Caribbean sailings?

We had been debating Celebrity versus HAL but from the help on these boards it seems HAL will better meet our vacation needs especially in the evening (AYWD plus an open Lido buffet with no surcharge as on Celebrity which apparently is not really a buffet in the evening). Thanks for any help and if you have any other information about the Noordam please share. We booked the 10 day in November 2009 to St. Maarten, St. Lucia, Barbados, St. Thomas, Martinique, and HMC - unfortunately the dates did not work out for us to be able to sail the Southern route to Aruba and Curacao - hopefully, this itinerary will be a winner.

[catl331]

Only 4001 to 4042 have the steel-wall railings, so you will have plexiglas. We've never had one of the angled-verandah cabins, but I've read that the forward-facing ones are very breezy when the ship is underway at 18 to 22 knots!

We had an aft-deck sailaway party/music for every stop except HMC.

Dinner in the Lido on HAL is not a buffet either. It has the same menu as the dining room, but it is semi self-serve. You pick up your own bread, appetizer, soup, and first non-alcohol drink on a tray, and place your entree order at a register. The entree will be brought to your table, and there will be waiters selling alcoholic drinks. You get your own dessert. There are tablecloths and low-lighting, and a nicer atmosphere than at lunch. We think the main advantages of eating there is that it takes about half the time of the dining room and it is very easy to get a table for two. (We couldn't reserve a 2-top in the dining room for any times between 5:30 and 8:00.)

Hope you like the Noordam as much as we did!

[joek]

Our advice....don't take it!

We had cabin 6049, same layout. It was the only veranda available when we booked. Didn't like it at all, frankly it spoiled our cruise. The bathroom is huge, extends the full width of the cabin. The shower area is built for wheelchair access, 5' x 4', no curb or lip so water can run over drain while ship is sailing and get entire floor wet. We solved that by laying extra bath towels along the continuous drain. The sink area is tiny, glass holders were placed above the faucet handles so we had to be dexterous to use them. No shelf space below the sink for vanity cases, etc.

The closet space is limited, drawer space even more so, a 12" wide night table each side of bed, 3 drawers in each. Two 28" wide closets have fold-down shelves but using them eliminates hanging long garments. The safe is in one of them. A 6" wide storage area at the vanity has 1 shelf for the hair-drier. I piled our cameras & chargers, fanny packs and stuff in the bottom.

The diagonal veranda was nice, faced out and aft, so while sailing, we didn't get buffeted by the wind. There is a ramp in the cabin at the veranda door which can be a tripping hazard if you're not careful.

We used AYWD for the first time and liked it, walked in around 6 every evening, asked for table of 6 or more and were immediately seated. Service was excellent. Food was so-so, meats never tender, some were tough (except for steak/lobster night).

As you can guess, we weren't happy on this cruise.

[rjcoon]

Can't answer your question, but I'll be on the same cruise. First time with HAL.

[carol allen]

Hi Guys

what is the date that the two of you are going to be on this cruise

Ithink it is the same as I am booked on

November 1-November 10th

there is a small roll call going on the roll call board


carol

[velvetred]

Carol - we are booked on the November 21 sailing. This will be our first Holland America cruise and I hope we will have plenty of activities and entertainment. Have a great cruise.

[rebeljohn]

Well, our traveling partner on our Noordam 11/27 cruise had a motorized wheel chair, and he LOVED the layout of 6049. I checked out the room myself, and was suprised at how much room was in the cabin. It had a HUGE shower area.

[velvetred]

I called tonight and changed from the VF handicap cabin 5140 on the Verandah deck to a VF guarantee. Now I am nervous because I like to know my cabin ahead of time. The VEs were all guarantees and the VDs that were open were all at the very back of the ship. The PVP said my best bet was to take the VF guarantee. Thanks for all the comments. Can anyone comment on how often movies are played on the Noordam and the location? Also, it looks like all cabins have dvd players and I hope this is correct.

[jrzebird]

I called tonight and changed from the VF handicap cabin 5140 on the Verandah deck to a VF guarantee. Now I am nervous because I like to know my cabin ahead of time. The VEs were all guarantees and the VDs that were open were all at the very back of the ship. The PVP said my best bet was to take the VF guarantee. Thanks for all the comments. Can anyone comment on how often movies are played on the Noordam and the location? Also, it looks like all cabins have dvd players and I hope this is correct.

You can second guess until the day you board, but if you set your mind to believe it's going to be a great cruise, chances are it will be.

I would not have gone for the guaranty, but that's just me. At least you knew which room you had. Now you may get steel or plexiglass, or you may end up in the same room. If you're lucky, you may get an upgrade. Or maybe not.

Also, I've never been in that cabin, but it sounded a lot like all the other cabins, except for the forward facing veranda and the large bathroom without the bottom shelf. It's possible that Joek didn't notice the drawers under the bed for storage. Some even have it under or over the couch. And, we had ample room to use the shelves that folded down and still use the closets for hanging gowns and suits. I bring an over the door shoe holder to put over the bathroom door and store my odds and ends like deodorant, toothpaste, razor, lotions, etc. Storage problem solved.

Which ever room you get, have a marvelous cruise!