Fresh off the Oosterdam today and here's my review. HAL, I hope you're reading...

[PCruzer]

I have never been on a cruise which included a major holiday like Thanksgiving. If I were, I would expect the holiday to be reflected in the type of food offered and possibly the decorations in the dining room. I would not necessarily expect it to be a formal night. With each cruise my husband and I go on, we notice that less and less passengers actually dress formally. Because of this, I sadly foresee cruises with no formal nights in the near future.

[LuAnn]

Originally Posted by HeatherInFlorida

While I don't think it's one of the biggest problems mentioned so far on this thread about this particular cruise, I do think it's too bad that considering it was Thanksgiving, a holiday all Americans tend to celebrate, a little "switcheroo" of formal night would have been nice to make it more festive. The cruise sailed out of an American port so I think one could assume many Americans are onboard. And I honestly doubt that making Thanksgiving a formal night would prove offensive to anyone who does not live in this country.

Too many holidays are no longer recognized individually, so a little extra fuss over one we all share would be nice.

And finally, why do we continue to have threads where people post a fair and honest review of their experience and get bashed because they didn't expect some drawbacks? Scrapchick's opinions are clearly backed up by others on this cruise.

I'm confident that HAL's corporate office is far more receptive to fair criticism than some posters here. At least I hope so!!!

No one expects a perfect cruise (hopefully), but this is Cruise Critic and I think the majority of the members want to read honest assessments .... not some fluff about how perfect everything was.

Thanks, Scrapchick, for your review and telling us both the positive and negative aspects of your experience.

I couldn't have said it better myself. Passengers do have different experiences on each cruise and should have the opportunity to express themselves, and their opinions without getting "bashed" and personal comments made regarding them. LuAnn

[Scrapchick]

I have to say that it's going to be a long while before I post another review here... I didn't think everyone would agree with what I said but I hoped we could at least disagree in a civil manner. It has been the case for the most part, but there are a few people here who respond in such a hostile, unpleasant manner that it really leaves a bad taste in the mouth. It is such a shame that a few people feel they have the right to belittle and insult and bully anyone they disagree with. I referred several people on our cruise to this website and won't be so quick to do so in the future. You need an incredibly thick skin to post here and I don't really get why that needs to be so. We aren't debating politics or some other highly controversial topic here, just our mutual love of cruising. It's sad that civil discourse has gone out the window for a few people and they go on the attack towards people they've never met in real life, just because they have anonymity of an internet user name. I doubt you'd be so quick to bash me in person, but it's easy to rip into someone on a web board, isn't it? You never actually have to face the person afterwards, just drop your insult and leave.

The majority of respondants in this thread who have disagreed with my comments have done so pleasantly and politely and have asked their questions nicely. I have read every comment and want to thank those of you who chose to write in a courteous manner. I hope I have replied in kind. I haven't run away from the questions and have tried to justify my review, based on my own personal experience on this cruise.

It is such a pity to see the few spoil it for the many here. The vast majority of posters here seem like very decent people. Sadly, it is the sting left behind by the snarky and the rude that endures. I'll continue to post here and toughen my skin, but it will be while before I am brave enough to put another review out there, unless, of course, it's a 100% positive one!

[CroneWynd]

Originally Posted by Scrapchick

I have to say that it's going to be a long while before I post another review here...

Thank you for posting your review.

As someone else who had a less-than-stellar review to post once, I understand how you feel! However, your review was very well done, very detailed, and seemed balanced to me. Please don't stop providing us with your experiences.