ShipsAreTheBest

I was picking my way through the Holland America blog site (which has been updated in the last month or so - can’t get to Captain Albert’s site yet).  Imagine my horror when I went to one of the pages  and saw this.  The ship isn’t a HAL ship!!!  It’s actually the old Norwegian Dream or Norwegian Wind!  I’m sure the website design gets farmed out - but that’s a pretty egregious error!

6 hours ago, Hlitner said:

Funny thing is we cruise on many different lines and only HAL charges "rent" for a cabin fridge.  All our other cruise lines simply have them in every cabin.  Wondering if HAL will soon start charging rent for toilets, sinks, pillows, etc.  Perhaps they will also impose add-on charges for items in the MDR and Pinnacle!  Oops.  Guess that is already happening.  Wonder when they will impose a fee to use tenders, or perhaps one can buy tender priority!  Oops.  Guess they already charge for tender priority (Club Orange).  Will there soon be a fee for cabin electricity, water, etc?

 

Tis a slippery slope

It’s only the older ships that don’t have fridges in the cabins.  I think charging rent is a capacity control device in this case.  The electrical system on the older ships probably doesn’t have the capacity to handle a refrigerator in every room.  So, they limit the number out there by charging rent for them. If I don’t feel the need for one, I don’t rent one (and then that’s one less device plugged in on the ship).  On the other hand, with what is probably a limited number to rent, when they’re out they’re  out.  You may be disappointed in that case, but since they don’t have one to offer, you’re not charged for the amenity either.

13 hours ago, *Miss G* said:

 

If you look at the left-hand side of the banner on the bottom of the map that @richwmn posted, you can see that the wind is West (with specific degree direction) at 12 knots.  Here is a conversion chart:

 

 

Actually, what is posted (direction and speed) in that display is the ship’s heading and speed.  Wind speed and direction are on the weather page (another screen altogether on the interactive TVs).

And, of note, there are no Canada/New England cruises yet.  Zaandam is slated for Alaska in 2024.  Volendam is the only other ship that can go to Montreal (the others are too tall to clear the bridges).  Just need to wait and see.  Another point to note, once the summer begins in 2024, the only destinations listed are Alaska and Europe.  They haven’t finalized the other schedules yet.

Looking at the deck plan, it appears 3401 is under the entry way of the dining room (near the ladies room).  I don’t think you’ll have a lot of issues with noise.  The section of rooms forward of here (between the aft and midships elevator banks) are under the galley, and would probably be subject to noise from above.

2 hours ago, Gail & Marty sailing away said:

He was the captain. He did twice ask the captain the cruise before he did one in Dutch.

When we were in N.Y.C. he was on the stage with Gus. There might be a You tub of the evening ceremony. It was a big deal with Ellis Island and N.Y.C. on the Rotterdam 

I was on this voyage.  Captain Albert was not on board, not as master or even as guest speaker.  The ship was under the command of Captain Werner Timmers for that voyage.

Unfortunately, there are no outlets by the beds.  Not even USB on Zaandam.  The only outlets are at the dressing table - one 115 V outlet (North American type) and one 250 V outlet (European type).  I believe the ship can provide cords (that way, they have control of quality, etc. to ensure safety).  One thing that is definitely not allowed is any type of cord/power strip that has surge protection  built in since they are not compatible with the the way the ship’s electrical system is grounded.

The “tracks” are the counter for the serving line in the galley.  The area on the starboard side (to the “right” of the “tracks”)

is the hot galley.

I stayed in 1039 on Rotterdam in October.  You can definitely hear the Rolling Stone Rock Room band when they were playing. Fortunately, I am not an early to bed guy, and their sets were over by 11 or 11:30 at the latest (plus, was a westbound transatlantic, so lots of days with an extra hour at night to catch up on sleep).  The room was great in all other respects (and noise really not an issue for me), but beware of this area if it is a problem for you.

Should have added this pic when I posted earlier!

Bitterballen and a Heineken made an excellent late afternoon snack!

It is almost certainly an “AC Station” , that is air conditioning station. Basically a distribution system for HVAC to all the cabins and public rooms in that area, including decks above and below.  It is well insulated (sound) and you will not likely hear anything.  Years ago, I was in an inside room on Maasdam adjacent to one of these (on A Deck - equivalent to Dolphin Deck on Zaandam).  Didn’t hear a thing.  

Thanks for posting these.  Minor correction to Rotterdam (I am aboard now).  There are three terminals in New York:  Manhattan (which is where we are docking, on the West Side - Pier 88), Brooklyn (Red Hook, used by Cunard and Princess), and Cape Liberty, which is really in Bayonne, NJ, and is used by Royal Caribbean and Celebrity.  We (Rotterdam) are most definitely not docking at Cape Liberty.

I was in 3335 (just like 3339 mentioned above)this May.  One of the ones where the bathtub was replaced with a shower.  Much better setup.  I used to think HAL really was a cut above in offering bathtubs, but in retrospect the shower that replaced bathtubs (in staterooms that had tubs originally) is much better.  The tub is hard to get in and out of if one is less mobile.  And, as a tub, it’s pretty useless as a soaking tub unless you are of shorter stature.  The newer style shower is a vast improvement (and way better than the corner-style shower on many other ships including the inside room showers on the HAL ships).

11 hours ago, iceman93 said:

This makes sense to me.  I know the analogy isn't perfect, but it's like if McDonald's and Burger King merged.  It would make no sense to convert all the restaurants to McDonald's; there are too many customers who prefer the Whopper to the Big Mac, for example.  And too many places where the locations are too close to support two McDonald's, but a McDonald's and Burger King can quite happily coexist.  So streamlining operations behind the scenes but continuing to offer customers two different (but very similar) experiences makes sense.

Excellent analogy.  You might see CCL spin off a brand or two (for example Princess and/or HAL), but don’t expect to see them combine them.  Doesn’t generate the synergies they already have AND it doesn’t solve the real problem - the debt load! 

Thanks for your review!  We were on board Boston to Montreal on the May 28 sailing.  Interesting to see some of the tweaks that have occurred.  For instance, I see you posted the When & Where’s all week (which format resembled ours).  Today, the “Daily Program” looks entirely different!

I really don’t think there will be an outright merger of HAL and Princess.  Almost all that could be done in that regard has already occurred (back office).  That’s where mergers get the biggest bang for the buck.  While there are similarities in style between the two brands, there are enough differences to set them apart and attract their own customers who have a preference.  I like both.  I like HAL better - Princess has gone too big while HAL has stayed (relatively) medium sized, although trending bigger.  I think HAL crews are better whereas Princess has better entertainment.  They should continue to exploit  the synergies that they have (and look for more), but combining the brands with one coming out on top over the other is not the way to go.  

One of the challenges of these extremely large ships is that the funnel (smokestack) is not as tall as it probably should be.  Stack height is key to having the smoke clear the decks.  But when a ship is as large as Breakaway you are limited on stack height in order to keep the air draft of the ship low enough to clear bridges (think the Verrazano Narrows in New York).  Ever notice how squat the funnel looks on Queen Mary 2, given her otherwise large size?  It was so that the ship could clear the Verrazano.

3 hours ago, nyold said:

 

About Montreal, I think another commenter showed a picture of 2 bridges that the ship must pass under in order to go to Quebec, so that limits the size of the ship that can go to Montreal. I don't think Zaandam is the "maximum size," maybe you can go a class higher or two, but probably not Pinnacle.

 

 

Thanks for taking us along.  Interesting to compare this sailing from the one before ( which I was on).

As far as going to Montreal, Zaandam is the maximum size (for HAL, which pretty much eliminates any other major cruise line from going). Vista class and larger have too great an air draft (height above water) to fit under the bridges between Quebec and Montreal .

If I had to guess, it’s all about getting to the Narrows at slack water, which is the time ships want to pass through there.  Timing is everything, and a slightly earlier departure probably ensures that timing.

For Boston to Montreal, night leaving Bar Harbor, you go forward one hour (for Nova Scotia and PEI).  Night leaving Charlottetown, PEI, you go back one hour (back to EDT).

Remember cell phones, iPads, etc. don’t automatically set if they’re on airplane mode (as they most likely will be on the ship), so be sure to manually adjust before you go to bed.

We had a delayed departure leaving Halifax.  Passenger was nearly an hour late.  Makes me think they forgot to adjust their timepiece the night before!

13 minutes ago, semibeater said:

Why did you bypass Charlottetown  today?

I don’t think it was on itinerary.  Today is sea day, Quebec tomorrow, Montreal Saturday.  Remember, this trip was in Boston on Sunday, not Saturday.  Something had to go in order to arrive in Montreal on Saturday.

Bigelow in the MDR and in the Lido. Harney & Sons in the PG and Neptune Lounge.  Good variety of teas in both cases.

I think he’s 68.  Probably just time to retire.

Agreed.  There has to be a better way.  Ironically, it’s easier to disembark the ship for the last time  and walk out of the terminal with essentially no hassle! The biggest issue for me was finding my suitcase!  I know about the “zero count” but really don’t understand the need for it.  Not sure what it accomplishes for CBP.