sevigny

Hi Erewhon, Funny that you should mention the leaks in the Neptune. I believe it was late Friday or Saturday evening, that we came into the Neptune as it was closing, only to find poor Kristina surrounded by buckets on a tarp. She looked horribly embarrassed. I felt so sorry for her. On the plus side, they have just instituted afternoon appetizers orders for the suites. Less choices, but they were yummy, and evidently change every few days. We are enjoying, it’s just an adjustment. Thanks for your comments, I was afraid I was being too picky.

Just read this, and unfortunately, we agree. The glory days of the Prinsendam are long gone. She was worth paying extra for. The Noordam, not so much.

We are currently on the Noordam. We have sailed for the first time since COVID on a 14 day Auckland to Sydney, and are now on the trans Pacific from Sydney to Vancouver, a back to back. When we first boarded in Auckland, we felt the service was excellent, especially our cabin stewards, who we think have at least 40 cabins to take care of. They are running from one to the other. The first few days the food was pretty good. But, by day five or so, it was easy to see that, especially in the Lido, the emphasis is on quantify, not so much on quality. The soups are all broth, with a little bit of meat/veggies at the end. Last week we had chicken noodle soup without noodles. The beef in the Asian area is the same every day, a different sauce, the same veggies, but it is tough and fatty. When my husband gives up on a dish, saying the meat has a huge piece of fat in it, I know things have changed, We had a Mariner’s reception on the 14 day. We expected to go to the dining room for the traditional Mariner lunch afterwards, but no such thing. When we inquired, we were told the lunch is now only for 15 day and longer cruises. The dining room unfortunately has also declined. The service is very good. Portions are bigger, but, the choices have become limited Spaghetti and meatballs for dinner? Turkey with sweet potatoes without the sweet potatoes? Now we are on a “legendary voyage “, but the food doesn’t seem legendary. I really used to look forward to the little treats in the Neptune. I always felt we could make a little lunch out of their food, if we weren’t doing lunch at the Lido. Now, the poor little sandwiches are just that. The nice little appetizers before dinner have given way to pita triangles and hummus, with an occasional bowl of shrimp. On the plus side, we had no classical music on the 14 day, but there is a classical trio on board now, and they are doing three short concerts per day. They are very good, and each concert is very well attended. Everyone in the service area is very good, and some seem almost desperate to please. I anticipated these situations, after following the HAL boards closely, but it’s one thing to read about it, and another to experience it. While the trans pacific cruise was definitely a bargain, the 14 day was not. We will have to reevaluate if we want to do the Westerdam’s 28 day Japan trip in the fall of 2025.

Hi, we are cruising on March 23rd. How do you see the actual menus pre-cruise? I keep trying and only see a sample menu for the dining room or Lido. I’d really appreciate any help anyone could give me. Thanks so much.

Is there a new library on the Noordam? Hoping so, as we are on her for 39 days in March and April next year. And yes, nothing could beat the Prinsendam library.

Okay, I guess we must be really old, because we can remember almost everything in this thread! And, yes, how did we let so many things just disappear? We haven’t traveled on HAL since 2019. I’m sure when we are on board the Noordam next spring, and ask the Neptune lounge concierge for the list of daily hot appetizers we can have brought to our suite before dinner, she’ll fall off her chair. As they say - “those were the days “.

One of the best experiences we had on HAL was listening to the classical music in the explorer’s lounge after dinner every night. Occasionally the quartet, then a trio, then a duo, would do afternoon concerts, and we would always go to those, also. I miss having classical music on board, and feel it really diminishes the HAL experience. I am hoping our transpacific cruise next spring has classical music every day on board. Why take away something so many passengers enjoy?

The Prinsendam’s second to last cruise before she was sold. We were on for almost a month, from Ft. Lauderdale, ending up in Southampton. We visited Morocco, the Azores, ports in Spain, Italy, and France. It was during the Semana Santa, Holy Week in Europe, and we were able to see some of the processions with the flower covered icons. The best and saddest cruise we ever were on, the cruise itself was fantastic, but we were so sad that we would never be able to travel on the Prinsendam again. Such a mistake for HAL to sell her. She had an absolutely devoted following.

Omg, who is monitoring their social media accounts? I’m trying to think of a worse reply. Certainly does not inspire confidence that Celebrity wants to be a cut above. We’ve been lurking for a while, as our last cruise pre-COVID was fabulous. Really starting to re-think Celebrity as our back in the pool cruise.

Oh the Prinsendam! We first sailed on her to Alaska, the summer after 9/11. I remember our travel agent telling me that our Europe cruise was a no go, but she could offer us this Alaskan cruise on the Prinsendam instead. She said she wasn’t sure we would like her, she was a “quirky “ little ship. We took a chance and were hooked on her almost immediately. She was our perfect ship from then on. I remember sitting with Captain Gunderson at lunch while he described how he made his own lutefisk at home in Norway. My husband was turning green. We last sailed on her in May of 2019, the second to the last cruise before she was turned over to the German line. Nothing compared to her. We’ve also thought about sailing her as the Amera, but we’re just not sure it could measure up. We loved her just the way she was, quirks and all. Loved reading this thread, so many wonderful memories.