djhsolara

We are just off Carnival Splendor and there was no Code Orange. In fact, there was a much more relaxed approach to the hand sanitizing altogether. Although we find it a little much sometime, I much prefer that HAL has people at the entrance to eating areas "squirting" everyone with sanitizer. At least I feel that everyone is a little better off that way. No such thing on the Carnival ship...and very few people that actually used the hand sanitizer station outside of the MDR...it didn't leave me with a very good feeling.

If you do pre-purchase it, check the price once you get onboard. We've seen it be less when we got onboard and try refunded and re-billed us. They weren't happy about going if, but they did.

We use LD and either grab breakfast in the Lido or do room service. We've never had an issue having breakfast and still leaving the ship when we are supposed to.

So the main show for the night was "Fiesta Latina" sounded interesting so we thought why not? Mistake! The two singers had very little chemistry and while she played Latina well, he was laughable. He was flamboyant to an extreme and honestly his vocals weren't all that great. I think the issue was he was more Broadway and they had him singing genre's which weren't his specialty. They had a few songs while I can't see how they want to attribute to Latin artists they aren't.....Hot, Hot, Hot while having a very fast beat and tempo is by Buster Poindexter who is about as white as white can be. Lol. The sets and costuming were great, as were some of the female dancers, the male ones not so much.

 

You are spot on about this. We said the exact same thing...absolutely no chemistry.

Enjoying your review. You got on Splendor the day we left her...

Prior to our cruise I scoured the forum looking for information regarding HAL and the m/s Zuiderdam. Now that I have returned I found that most of the information was either erroneous or represented isolated incidences.

The 11 day Panama Canal cruise was great.

The ship is in good shape with routine maintenance ongoing. Remember, this ship is 12 y/o. Do not compare with a 2013 ship. No issues with air conditioning or toilets. Food was great. Service was outstanding. One post I read prior to sailing commented that the cabin steward was never seen. We saw both of ours daily and they were fantastic. Always fresh fruit and ice although we never requested either. There is a daily charge for gratuity. Previous posts stated that additional gratuity to individuals is pooled. This is not true... from the mouth of the cruise director.

I have come to the conclusion that negative comments I've seen from other posts should be taken with "a grain of salt". It is unlikely negative experiences will plague future cruisers. In any case, those with bad experiences should be taking it up wth HAL not complaining here.

Please remember that each person has their own experience. Just because everything went just fine for you it doesn't mean that it went the same for the person perhaps even in the next stateroom. It doesn't mean that either of them are sharing erroneous information, it just means that they each had their own experience.

This is Cruise Critic. We are all here to share our experiences...good and bad. If sharing information about a bad experience can mean that someone can avoid something that possibly could be bad for them then perhaps they will have a better trip. The same goes for sharing good experiences as well. It is up to the reader how the want to read into any post

Part of the problem is that often cruisers are not "smart" travelers (and this is not meant in any offense to anyone). Everyone is on the cruise to relax and lets their guard down, and then they get off the ship without a care rather than being very aware of their surroundings and where they are going. You are perhaps going to a strange country and you need to keep your guard up and be "smart" about yourself and your surroundings at all times, whether you are eating, drinking, touring, shopping or just walking around.

Douglas...Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I wouldn't see an issue with 6:15, but 6:30 is too late and disruptive to the servers. The only reason I say 6:15 is okay is because last week on Splendor there was such a line to get into the dining room at 6:00 and they didn't seem to open the doors until about 6:03-6:04...so til the last few days of the cruise we just waited until about 6:10 so that we didn't have to stand like a bunch of cattle being herded into the dining room.

Isn't that what happened in St Croix several years ago? High crime and the ships stopped calling there. They are just now starting to go back.

And Holland America is owned by Carnival.

Carnival Corporation, not Carnival Cruise Line.

If you are in a suite, you can get them in the Neptune Lounge.

Or you can cancel as soon as you board...just remember to do it.

Have never understood why one would cruise from a cold weather port in the winter. The first two days will be pretty much a waste, as well as the last two. To each his own.

Possibly price and a getaway. To us it is about getting away...and if I can do eight nights for under $1,000, that's a deal for us. We can barely eat out three meals a day for nine days for that much.

I believe Pride has an enclosed pool, so you should be able to use that. We were just on Splendor out of NYC and the covered pool was nicely heated for the first few days. On the second day, even though it was still cool outside, there were people sitting on deck and using the outdoor hot tubs. It absolutely was not a waste for us...and additionally there are certainly many options available for indoor activities.

1. WCMC

2. Thick bathrobes

3. Tables in the theater

4. Priced right

5. Big rooms

6. Unique cabins

7. Fun DOD glasses/containers

8. That carrot cake at the coffee place

 

That's all I can think of right now.

That carrot cake is AMAZING!!

Also...Carnival does well with their spa staterooms. On HAL a Spa stateroom only gets you a little bit better decor, a few discounts and a few bottles of water. On Carnival it also includes the Thalassotherapy Pool and Thermal Suites. This is a big plus!!

We usually do Luggage Direct so we don't have to worry about the luggage. The last time we were in your same situation we rented a car, drove to Sawgrass Mills and had a nice lunch. We still had time so we saw a movie and did some shopping. There are plenty of things to do around the Ft Lauderdale area and you can usually find a cheap car for the day. We take a cab to the airport to rent the car.

I would not be going back and forth to the ship in Nassau. It is usually always a hassle getting through customs (we were on line 20 minutes last week in the middle of the day) and then there is the walk past there to the ship. That's too much bother for me...but to each their own.

Must have changed? when I cruised the rear pool and the hot tubs at the rear were adult only.

Oh I'm sorry. I didn't know you were talking about the aft pool/hot tubs. I meant the mid-ship indoor ones.

Douglas...Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

An example on my splendor cruise parents had their children in the hot tubs all the time, once I got in the a less crowded tub and joined a woman with 2 children, I was glared at by the parent as if I was a pervert and they quickly got out:confused:

 

 

 

I did not get back in a hot tub again the entire cruise:(

That's strange...we were on Splendor last week and there were almost always kids and adults in the hot tubs. The signs did not restrict it.

Douglas...Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

We saw the sign and were perfectly happy to wait until the Lido opened for passenger dining, but the chef actually came over to us and invited us to join them -- he TOLD us to go ahead.

 

 

 

We've never seen that particular manager again. I won't name her here, though I do know and mentioned her by name in the end-of-cruise survey. But I will say she was a stickler for the "rules" all over the ship. I saw her yelling at other passengers on that cruise.

If a manager of any type "yelled" at me on a ship it would be the last time she yelled at anyone. I would be taking that right to the top (if I were not in the wrong). Apparently she is in the wrong profession.

Not to sound negative, but if I were enjoying the adult only area I would not appreciate someone bringing in a child...sleeping or not. That area is called "Serenity", not "have a crying baby wake up area". There are plenty of areas on the ship that are for everyone, in my opinion people should respect the areas that are for adults only...just like I respect the areas that are for kids only.

...Douglas

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On the Splendor in the colder weather, they move some of the outdoor food areas inside. Last week when i was on the Splendor they moved the deli inside a few times to the area where the sweet spot and the burrito bar was and the Tandoori was on deck10, replacing the Rotisserie. Once the ship hit warmer weather, the food areas returned to their normal spot

Thank you...that's exactly what I was reporting. The Tandoori was in place of the Rotisserie on deck 10 last week for the first day or so.

...Douglas

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It may have been said weather permitting because (at least on Holland America) HMC is often a missed stop because of weather (not necessarily because of someone's wheelchair use). One time they took one tender off, got them to the island, deemed it too dangerous and brought them right back. We were on our balcony watching people getting back on the ship while the tender was floating up and down. It looked very dangerous and I was just glad I wasn't on that tender. That was one of two times that we missed HMC due to weather.

...Douglas

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I was looking for it on the first day but they had Tandoori there instead. Once it became Rotisserie we went up there, but I never saw any meat other than rotisserie chicken...not sure about that menu sign that someone posted listing other meats. The Mac & Cheese seemed to be the same that was served at the Seaday Brunch and was rather good.

...Douglas

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It is Carnivals island so why are they not set up to accept that program on that island? I understand that other Carnival Companies ships go there.

HMC is owned by Carnival Corporation, but it is actually Holland America Line's private island.

...Douglas

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On the dream class ships a spa cabin includes full access to the spa. We did the dream last year with a spa balcony and loved it. :) You get full access to the Thelasso therapy pool, numerous saunas, huge ceramic tile walk in showers, the locker rooms, etc. And the spa suites have upgraded amenities with the really nice spa quality toiletries. The robes are to your ankles instead of your knees and they much more plush. And the slippers say cloud 9 spa on them. Your beach towels are a little fancier and they're yellow instead of blue. The comforters, linens and room decor are a little fancier too. But the cabins themselves are not any bigger. :( I hope this helps.

Your description was exactly correct of our Spa Balcony on Splendor last week. Very nice towels and little bottles of Elemis toiletries. I don't know if it is canned in or what, but I also noted that often when we stepped on the balcony we could smell the spa (you know...that nice fragrance you smell when you go to the spa reception).

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