mhurdle127

Do they no longer give out tiles for Mariners on HAL ships? We’ve been on the ship for six days and haven’t received them yet.

Trying to understand which level of internet I get with our Have It All package and the website isn't much help. Also, is it just for web access or is email and/or texting available on the ship as part of this package?

I'm really confused about the Internet plan that is supposedly included with the "Have it All" package and the HAL website isn't much help. What is actually included and is it for all members on the booking? Does it cover texts or just surfing? Is it just WiFi access and does that get turned off when you are in port? Just a lot of confusion on this - please don't get snarky - I'm really trying to understand this prior to our trip on Nieuw Statendam the end of this month.

On 1/30/2024 at 8:36 PM, BSMITH24 said:

We are on NS on Feb. 25.  We are in 8123.  We always stay on 8 .  It is near everything Spa, and Lido pool.  Very quiet.  The only thing we are not looking forward to is they canceled Key West and gave us Nassau we are not happy.

 

enjoy your cruise!

We are on that same cruise and were wondering why they cancelled Key West as well. We've been there before (and never been to Nassau), so we're ok with it but.....

I don't know how this thread turned into an argument over San Francisco - my original post dealt with two other ports. In any case, we are working on changing our cruise to another destination for next year, but for multiple reasons not inclusive of the San Francisco back and forth.

We just learned that our April 2024 trip on HAL that included Santa Barbara and Monterey as ports of call has been altered to remove those stops. I can find information about the decision by Monterey city council, but I can't seem to find information on why Santa Barbara was also removed. We were looking forward to both visiting the Monterey Aquarium and going whale watching in Santa Barbara, but I guess that isn't going to happen on this trip!

following

Just pulled this off http://www.**********/cruise/ship-schedule/

Wednesday - 15th

Divina - 3,502 West Indian Co.

Nieuw Amsterdam - 2,106 West Indian Co.

Seabourn Odyssey - 450 Crown Bay

TUI Discovery - 2,100 West Indian Co.

Thursday - 16th

Eurodam - 2,104 West Indian Co.

Good question - we will be in St. Thomas on the Nieuw Amsterdam next Wednesday (Nov 15th) and it looks from the Austin "Babe" Monsanto schedule that is posted at viports that the first time the Nieuw Amsterdam is scheduled to dock there is not until November 29th. Which makes me wonder if we are even going to St. Thomas at all!

If I were to pre-order wine from Total Wines, would an Uber driver take me there on the way to the port and wait for me to pick up the wine? My son drives Uber in Nashville and I know he regularly will wait for someone to run into a store if it is only 5-10 minutes and then take them on to their final destination, but I don't know if that is Uber policy or just my son going the extra mile for his passengers.

We are staying at the Crowne Plaza Cruiseport which as I understand offers a shuttle from the airport but not to the cruise port. How easy is it to get an Uber on an embarkation day? Also, thinking we may take an Uber to the Winn Dixie nearby to get 2-3 bottles of wine (we think this is probably cheaper than paying for it on the ship). Anyone have any suggestions on this?

It has been a couple of years, but I seem to recall that the fixed dining is on either the upper or lower level, while the other level is for those who don't care for assigned seating. Is that still the case on all HAL ships?

Copper, we are on the Nieuw Amsterdam out of Ft Lauderdale to Eastern Caribbean on November 11th (first time we have booked a cruise less than 30 days out!). Can you confirm who the key staff will be on that (CD, Captain and Piano Bar entertainer if you know). Thank you so much for all you do!

Who is scheduled for the Nieuw Amsterdam on November 11th?

Travelling on Nieuw Amsterdam on November 11th sailing - anyone know who will be in the Piano Bar then?

And I was thinking of some way to add a little hook on the back of the tile so that the only impact to the wall is a nail hole, not adhesive that will rip the paint off.

Doesn't seem like double-sticked tape would be strong enough to hold up a heavy tile.

This question may have been answered, but I am not finding it through the search feature. We have a bunch of the cork-backed delft tiles we received on HAL cruises that we want to hang on a wall (drywall). The question (and it sounds simple) is how? Everything I see about hanging cork to the wall has to do with cork itself, not a heavy tile affixed to it. Suggestions anyone???

CamfromWilliamsburg,

We totally agree with you on the smoky smell coming out of the casino mid-deck 2. I wish there was someway Holland America could limit the area in the casino where smoking was allowed, or move the casino to a less travelled area of the ship. Our other frustration about the Piano Bar was the number of folks who would come in there and spend the whole time in conversation rather than listening to the music. That would have been ok if they were further away from the piano, but I was amazed that people would sit right at the bar and talk the whole time, and I am sure it is difficult for the entertainer.

I am glad you had good cabin stewards - ours were probably the worst we have ever had.

On Tuesday, we woke rather late (9:00/9:30) because we were not due in Puerto Rico until noon. Since the Lido closed for breakfast at 10:30 and lunch was not served until 11:00, we decided to proceed to the Lido deck just a bit before 10:30 and easily found a table on the starboard side to have a good view of our coming into the Old Town and passing by the El Morro fort. The captain positioned the ship so that both the starboard and port sides had views of our coming into Puerto Rico’s harbor, which meant we found ourselves jumping back and forth between the two sides of the Lido to get the best view! After lunch, we caught up a little bit on emails and texts on our phones, as this was the first time we had been connected to the electronic world since our departure on Saturday afternoon. We were docked directly next to the Royal Caribbean “Explorer of the Seas,” which was right next to the starboard side where our verandah was.

After a little bit, we proceeded to the terminal. My wife had done a tour of the city when we were here 3 years ago and visited the fort, and due to her knee surgery didn’t think it a good idea to do too much here (plus it was blazingly hot at 92-93 degrees). So we decided to purchase one bottle of rum in the terminal shops for her to take back and then I would pick up another after taking a short drive through the city on the free trolley service. Interestingly, as she went back through security and proceeded back to the ship, nobody stopped her to check the alcohol so she was able to take it back to the room without it being stored by the ship (we chose not to open it though). To get to the trolley, you have to turn left out of the terminal building and walk a ways down to the trolley stop across from the CVS pharmacy. It was so hot that I stopped in at the Subway next to the trolley stop to get a bottled water. I took the trolley up to the highest point and then got off and walked back down to the ship. I would have liked to have visited the fort, but with it being as hot as it was, I opted not to. After I entered back into the terminal, I visited the same duty free store and picked up another couple of bottles of rum, and by the time I went back through security, they apparently had their act together because I had to relinquish my bottles to personnel at a table just inside the secured area. We never really understood the rules on bringing alcohol back to the ship – somebody said we could only bring one liter per person back and someone else said five liters per person and then we weren’t sure if wife didn’t get checked because she only had one bottle and I got checked because I had two bottles, but any ways, it all made it back home with us so we are stocked for the next 5 years!

After another delicious dinner in the main dining room, we spent some time viewing our photos from the first formal night and then eventually headed down to the Piano Bar. This evening we got there early and were able to visit with Diane a bit before she started playing and laid claim to the seats by the bar which were to remain ours for the duration of the cruise. Around 11:00, after the ship had started pulling out of San Juan, we went up to the room and got some photos of the San Juan city lights as the ship headed to our next port of call, St. Thomas.

The next day (Monday) was our visit to Grand Turk. We woke early that morning and had breakfast in the Lido before getting sunscreen on and proceeding to the gang plank and walking the long pier to get on the island. We decided to find some chairs on the right side of the beach as you face the island from the pier. The weather was delightful (as it was all week in spite of predictions the previous week of 80% chance of rain at all ports – what do weather people know?) and the water was wonderfully clear and buoyant, although it was very rocky so we highly advise water shoes if you are going to get in the water, but expect to take some significant gravel in your shoes back with you to the ship! We could see fish swimming around our legs, which was neat. We did spend a little time in the souvenir shops and of course, no visit to Grand Turk would be complete without visiting the memorial to John Glenn’s famous orbit around the earth that ended in the waters of Grand Turk. This was a short day in port, so we headed back to the ship around 1. We had a light lunch in the Lido and then were able to see the Carnival Breeze (the only other ship in port that day) depart around 2, followed by our own departure (early!) around 2:45. Later that afternoon, we visited the Crow’s Nest again for happy hour and we were not impressed with their Classic Cosmopolitan, but rather enjoyed the “Drink of the Day,” Pirate’s Punch. We did not attend the show in the Vista Lounge this evening, but we were once again in the Piano Bar by 9 PM to hear the musical stylings of Diane and stayed for a couple of hours before retiring for the following day (Puerto Rico).

On Sunday morning (Sea Day), we visited the Lido for breakfast and enjoyed the offerings of the Omelette Station and the Waffle Bar. We were not really thrilled about the elimination of trays from the Lido, and especially since the staff did not seem very responsive to offering us beverages, it made things a little more difficult (I’m sure I probably spilled more than my share of hot water from cups taking them from the beverage area to our table, but I didn’t really care, because hey, I didn’t have a tray and I didn’t have help from the Lido personnel).

We enjoyed sitting out on the verandah balcony that morning and decided to try room service so that we didn’t over-indulge in the Lido. We placed our order at 1 PM and it was delivered correctly and in a timely manner. As this was the first formal night, we got ready rather early in the afternoon so we could visit the Crow’s Nest during 4-5 PM happy hour. The “happy hour” concept on Holland America is one that we hadn’t encountered on previous cruises. Basically, for any drink ($6.95 or less) that you purchase, you can purchase an identical second drink for just $1 more. We found it a great way to sample (together and at the same time) various cocktails during the week. I believe they had the same offer in the Ocean Bar at the same time, but we never ventured down there except to listen to one of the HAL Cat bands just prior to dinner on several occasions. At least in the Crow’s Nest, they also brought around a small plate of complimentary appetizers to each group in the bar area (most of which were a tad bit on the spicy side to encourage you to buy more drinks, of course!)

At the conclusion of happy hour, since we had gotten dressed for formal night earlier, we had sufficient time to visit all of the five locations in the atrium area of the ship where formal portraits were being taken (we later same much longer lines at these spots after dinner). Tonight was the Captain’s Champagne Reception in the Vista Lounge which was scheduled for just one time that night at 7:45, which meant for a rather quick walk across the ship following dinner (which wasn’t easy given my wife’s condition following her surgery). We managed to secure a couple of seats in the middle balcony. This was one item worthy of comment to Holland America on their survey form: given the mix of fixed seating and “As You Like” dining, we found that the theater for the early shows beginning at 8 PM were always almost packed to capacity before we ever had a chance to get there from dinner. Either they need to move the early dinner back up to 5:30 as it was previously, or move the show back to 8:15, in my opinion.

Another thing we noticed is that they have completely eliminated the “meet the captain and have your picture taken with him” opportunity. We always looked forward to this on previous cruises, and I don’t know if this was done away with due to health concerns, the number of passengers on the ship, or the fact very few people bought the photos. In any case, we found Captain Rens van Eerten to a wonderful master of ceremonies for the Champagne Reception which was quickly followed by an entertaining show by the dancers and singers of the Westerdam, accompanied by technologically advanced computerized backdrops, which may have proven to be a distraction to some.

This night, we visited the Piano Bar because we had heard good things on Cruise Critic about Diane Fast, and we were not disappointed! In fact, our visits to the Piano Bar became a highlight of the whole cruise for us. I have played piano since I was six years old and served as a pianist for many choirs and local musical theater productions across the years, so it is really saying something when I say that Diane was amazing! Unlike other Piano Bar performers on Holland America that we have experienced in the past (who were all males, by the way), Diane was unpretentious, down to earth and the most talented player I have ever met. Rather than having a pre-set program, she took requests all night and, for the most part, knew the music and words to every song requested, and across a wide spectrum of musical genres. By the third night in the Piano Bar, we had actually moved to the bar itself (something we never would have dreamed of doing on previous cruises) and became loyal followers!

This is the first of several installments. I will add to it as I have time - still trying to catch up with being away from home.

This was our seventh time on a Holland America cruise and our first time aboard the Westerdam. Our destination was the Eastern Caribbean, an itinerary identical to one we took three years ago on the Eurodam, but the first cruise for my wife and I on which we travelled unaccompanied by other family members (after all, it was our second honeymoon after 25 years of wedded bliss).

It was also the first time that we chose to drive to the port rather than fly. It took a couple of days of driving to do this (about a fourteen-hour drive from Nashville TN to Fort Lauderdale FL), but we really enjoyed taking things at our own pace and not dealing with all the problems inherent in air transportation (paying extra $ for luggage, being cramped in an airplane seat, worrying about making connecting flights, etc).

For the purposes of this review, I will skip the getting to Fort Lauderdale and getting home. We pick up our story on Friday night, October 24th, where we stayed at the Mariott SpringHill Suites in Port St. Lucie, FL, about two hours north of Fort Lauderdale. An excellent location and we actually discovered another family from the Knoxville area who were choosing to stay there prior to boarding the same cruise (interestingly enough, we never saw them again after we got on the ship!) Although their website does not indicate it, the SpringHill Suites provides a nice breakfast area so were able to find enough to satisfy our palates, as we hoped to be having lunch in the Vista main dining room aboard the ship at the Mariner’s Embarkation Luncheon (one of the better kept secrets in the Holland America world).

We arrived at Park ‘n Go about 10:25 in the morning on Saturday, October 25th, which had come highly recommended on the Cruise Critic message boards, and we can vouch for the exceptional good service and value. We had booked them about 5 months ago for about $54 for the entire week – an exceptional value when you consider the fees for parking at the cruise terminal. Upon check-in, they took the luggage out of our car and loaded it in their shuttle and whisked us off to Terminal 19 where the Westerdam was docked. The driver then handed our luggage over to a porter at the terminal – in fact we never had to touch our luggage (except for the carry-on bag and wine tote we had) from the time we loaded our car in Port St. Lucie Saturday morning until we arrived in our cabin later that day!

The embarkation process was smooth, although a bit delayed. We passed through security and were directed to a table that served as an alcohol checkpoint. We took advantage of the one “free” 750ML bottle of wine each and also brought two additional wines on which we had to pay the corkage fee (a handwritten ticket was provided to us showing the $18 per bottle charge which later appeared on our onboard account). We then filled out the necessary health forms and went to the check-in counter where we presented our passports and pre-printed boarding passes and were provided our room keys, ship map and embarkation group number (group #4).

After taking a seat in the air-conditioned departure lounge at 11 AM where they had lemonade and some sort of pastries, we waited for the actual embarkation on the ship, which didn’t start until 11:30 (about a half hour later than we had previously been told). By 11:45, we were on the ship and went straight to our room on the Verandah deck to drop off our wine tote and carry-on bag and proceeded directly to the main floor of the Vista dining room for the Mariner’s Luncheon (scheduled from noon to 1:30). It was interesting that all the stewards were directing everybody to lunch on the Lido deck, but we were so glad that we chose not to go there this time!

The Mariners’ Embarkation Luncheon was such a welcome change to the hustle and bustle of the Lido that we had experienced on previous cruises. The food was good and the service was quick. We actually were seated at a table for two (not because we requested it, but I didn’t complain!). A lot of folks have mentioned how slow the service is but I think we made it through lunch every bit as quickly as if we had gone to the Lido and oh, how much nicer and calmer the experience was!

After lunch, we returned to our room where we discovered the rest of our luggage had been deposited. We were a little disappointed to find that the cabin stewards did not actually put the luggage in the stateroom but outside in the hallway. Not a big deal, but it was always the extra touches like stateroom delivery that we have come to expect from Holland America, so a little disappointed that this has changed. I met our cabin steward and explained to him our special needs (ice for wife’s knee following a knee replacement surgery 10 weeks prior, emptying out the refrigerator to make room for our wine, etc.). Overall, we were not very impressed with the cabin stewards this time around – there were several times that they would not service our room unless we had put out the little “Service Please” sign outside the stateroom.

The 3:15 muster drill still leaves a lot to be desired. Some of the stations scanned our room keys and others still did the old manual process of calling out the staterooms and waiting for you to say “present”. This latter approach proves difficult when the majority of the passengers fail to take the drill serious and are joking and talking loudly – the captain finally came on the loud speaker and said “All Quiet on the Deck” but even that didn’t last very long. I hate to think how bad things would be in an actual emergency!

One of the improvements we noticed is that, for the most part (with a couple of notable exceptions), announcements are now able to be heard in the stateroom rather than having to go out on the balcony or open the stateroom door and listen in the hallway. The exceptions were early morning announcements on port days (which I can understand) and on disembarkation day when announcements were being made about departure groups (which I do not understand, given that they encourage passengers to remain in their rooms until their group is called).

Captain Rens van Eerten was a delightful ship master. We had heard he was a lover of the ship horn, and this Ft Lauderdale departure was no exception. As we sat out on our Verandah balcony sipping wine that we had brought on board, we were able to experience no less than 100 “toots” on the “Queen of Horns”, or as the Captain more affectionately referred to it, “the beautiful elegant Westerdam”.

Following the embarkation lunch, we had spoken with the main dining room maitre’d about our early fixed seating assignment, which was not by a window as we had requested (albeit we had waited to make the request only a couple of weeks before the cruise). In any case, within a couple of hours, we received a card to our stateroom providing our new table assignment (Table #59) which was a window seat in the upper dining room (5:45 early dinner). We ended up being assigned to a table with two other couples who had also requested a change in seating, and it ended up being a wonderful experience getting to know these folks.

Our dining room stewards were Made assisted by Saskara, and they were wonderful. Even when we rearranged the order of the three couples at our table each night, they kept up with us, remembered our names and our preferences, in true Holland America tradition. Our wine steward, Neil, was a font of information and provided valuable guidance on wine and other pre-dinner drinks.

Tired from two days on the road, we retired early to the stateroom the first night and did not take advantage of any of the onboard ship entertainment (other than a DVD that my wife rented from the “Ship Flicks” list that was found in our stateroom).

End of Day 1 (more to follow)

When we took off from Fort Lauderdale on Saturday, October 25th, I think I counted at least a 100 toots from that wonderful Westerdam horn!

We also noticed significant delays last Saturday when we disembarked the Westerdam. Our time was supposed to be 9:15 and we weren't allowed off the ship until after 10 because of delays in customs. By the time we reached our car at Park n Go, it was almost 11. Was glad we didn't have a flight to catch!