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Live From the Ryndam

wiselindag

By wiselindag,
in Holland America Line

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wiselindag

wiselindag

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Ryndam December 23, 2012

 

I am going to try to give you a brief (okay, if you know me, you know I never write a brief anything!) review of our seven day holiday sailing on the Ryndam. Just a little background... I am a mature and seasoned traveler and if I have counted correctly, this is my 35th cruise and second on HAL. I love cruising and always try to write a balanced account that gives credit where it is due and provides suggestions for ways in which the cruise line could improve its product. If you have questions, feel free to write and I'll try to answer them for you.

 

Sunday, December 23 - Embarkation

Boarding was smooth. We arrived at the port later than usual for us and were sent to a special needs line due to my husband’s white cane. After the two folks in wheelchairs ahead of us, it was a quick few minutes before we were on our way on board. Since it was past 1:30, we went straight to the cabin to unload our hand luggage.

 

For this cruise, because we are part of a group of 17, we booked the same category as the other group members – an ocean view cabin. We are mid-ship on the port side in Cabin 748 on Deck A and the cabin suits in every respect. There is ample room for the bed, two side tables, over the bed lighting, a spacious desk, a couch and small table, and two roomy double closets with plenty of wooden hangers with skirt attachments. The bathroom has a tub and two glass shelves and a storage area under the sink. Aside from the browncouch, brown sink brown bolsters, and other brown accents, seemingly a HAL favorite, but not mine, the room and bathroom are quite nice. We have slept soundly and experienced no noise. Our cabin attendant, Khalida, is lovely, and with her assistant, Joko, has kept everything clean and neat with the ice re-filled twice a day. There are no coolers in this category of cabin on HAL, although one can be rented for an additional fee. We are doing without.

 

After dropping off our bags, we went up to Deck 11, the Lido Deck, to grab some lunch in the buffet. HAL still has its 48 hour rule in effect with staff service only in the buffet, which leads to long lines for sandwiches (tediously made one at a time while three staff members stand around watching… you would think they could find a way to do this more efficiently, but apparently they prefer to have one staff member using one cutting board). The soup and salad lines were faster, but the ice cream line was also painfully slow. After lunch, we found our bags had been delivered and were inside the cabin, so we unpacked and then made our way to the boat deck for the muster drill.

 

HAL still does the safety drill out on deck, but has dispensed with life jackets. Our drill was not a success, however. First, we had a staff member with a very heavy accent and a low voice calling cabin numbers, a combination which resulted in the need for him to endlessly repeat the missing cabins, some of which were actually present. As more people arrived, those who had been standing there for some time were urged to step back, although there was no room to step back any further. This went on interminably and before we ever got to the actual information portion of the drill, an elderly gentleman in our boat section collapsed. His collapse necessitated calling for medical assistance. Finally, they asked all of us to leave the deck area so there would be room for the stretcher and medical staff. We started walking back into the elevator foyer, and as we did so, those in the next boat started walking in too, thinking, no doubt that the drill had ended. This led to additional congestion and confusion and ultimately people just went back to their cabins with no actual safety information or drill having taken place. If someone had been in charge of our area, it was certainly not clear, and they did not at any time issue understandable instructions. The unfortunate gentleman was taken off the ship in an ambulance before we sailed.

 

Contrast all of the aforementioned with a safety drill I experienced on the Celebrity Reflection three weeks ago in which we sat in a beautiful restaurant and watched a safety video in which the lifejacket was demonstrated and instructions were given on what to do in an emergency while the passengers sat in comfort. One of the passengers in my vicinity on deck used the word “archaic” to describe HAL’s procedure. If HAL can’t conduct a safety drill efficiently, what hope would there be for an actual emergency?

 

AT 5, we watched the ship leave the dock and took some photographs of the Tampa skyline. This was my first sailing from Tampa, which is a very pleasant and uncongested port. Then we got ready for dinner, for which we had Anytime Dining. Because we are sailing with my sister in law and it is her 80th birthday party, she chose Anytime and asked all seventeen of us to meet her at 6 p.m. at the entrance to the Dining Room on Deck 7. HAL has two seatings, 5:45 (which is in my opinion too early) and 8:00. She chose Anytime and hoped we could get a reservation for several tables at 6 pm, but when she called up after boarding, they told her she needed to show up and couldn’t give her a reservation. Then they said they didn’t have enough tables for our group until 8 p.m. We ended up splitting up with some of the group eating in the dining room at 6 (tables of five, five and two, and the rest of us going up to the buffet. This caused further problems, because there was no regular buffet on the first night. Instead there was an International Buffet out by the pool. It was cold out so even though the roof was closed, we had chosen to sit inside (not realizing the buffet was not open inside for guests, but just for staff). Then we had to go out and get food and bring it back in and then it was just international selections and not entrees being served in the dining room and to make matters worse, the buffet closed at 7:30 and they started to run out of items before that…. Altogether problematic on many levels for an 80 year old birthday celebrant who was not able to eat at least in the vicinity of her entire family and who prefers an American menu (the one type of food missing from the International buffet which had cuisine from Indonesia, China, Spain, India, Italy, and assorted other countries.) I enjoyed what I ate, but wished I didn't have to make so many trips in and out to get the food and wished it had been open later. In addition, I was sorely disappointed when the only chocolate dessert ran out before I got there, so on the whole, the first night dinner was not positive.

 

The Opening Show featured the usual introduction to the various entertainers found around the ship. I thought the talent was abundant and especially liked the straightforward style of the Cruise Director, Eric. Thankfully the corny old lady jokes and the “everybody stand up to sing YMCA” which started the first show of my last HAL cruise were absent this time. Eric just announces the talent and gives you the information and gets out of the way.

 

Monday, December 24

 

Since we weren’t due to dock until 1, this morning was a leisurely one at sea. We dined in the buffet, which was congested due to the 48 hour rule, still in effect. and the full ship holiday sailing. Apparently this sailing was in fact oversubscribed because twice in the week before sailing I received incentive offers for our group to switch cruises.

HAL buffet plates are small. With no trays, it would help if they would use oversize plates like the ones used by Celebrity and Royal Caribbean so people wouldn’t need to make so many trips back and forth to the buffet line. Since my husband can’t see, I need to get all his food, and that means even more trips. Of course, lots of folks are in the same situation, getting food for others on this ship where it seems every other person has a walker or scooter, so I’m not the only one running back and forth to the buffet.

 

I think the buffet on HAL is quite good in terms of food variety with pretty much everything you can think of to eat. My favorite continues to be the Benedict station, where you can get Eggs Benedict with smoked salmon, American bacon, Canadian bacon, crab meat, spinach, or asparagus and Hollandaise or Mornay Sauce. We spent so much time chatting with newly found friends from breakfast, that before we knew it, it was lunch time, and we were still in the buffet… time to get ready for lunch and our arrival in Key West.

 

We decided a change of scene would be a good idea and lunched in the Rotterdam Dining Room, where we were surprised to find there was only one choice, a four course Indonesian lunch. On the menu was an Indonesian salad, Chicen Lemongrass Soup, rijsstafel with chicken, beef, and friend banana along with Nasi Goreng, and Rice Pudding for dessert. Our dining companions, who were initially put off by the menu, were surprised to discover that they actually enjoyed the meal. We did, too.

 

We docked about a half hour early and I got off and wandered into town to find some inexpensive internet. A good sign in my experience is always a place filled with crew members, and when I found a large contingent seated outside a shop on a side street , I went in and got the code for $3 and spent the rest of the afternoon on line, catching up on email and doing some work. A quick visit to Duval Street assured me that nothing has changed… the Conch Trains are still rumbling up and down and the same factories are still turning out the same silly tee shirts. I have visited Key West many times and seen all the obligatory sights, so no need for sightseeing in this port. I bought some water at the CVS, conveniently located right next to the port area (and hate that HAL does not provide a pitcher of water in the cabin, which is why I found it necessary to buy the bottles), and headed back to the ship.

 

After the first night problems, I had arranged with Angelo at the Front Desk to set up three tables of six for our group to dine at 5:30 each evening. Although early, it suited the children in our group, and would have to work for the adults since it was the only time they could give us. We were given three tables adjacent to each other next to the window, where we got to watch the sunset, so on the whole, we were satisfied with this arrangement and appreciated the accommodation.

 

Our waiter, Daud,, was pleasant and did a good job with our order, although service was on the slow side. Others with whom we have spoken over the first few days have commented on the slow service, so this seems to be the norm. It might have to do with the numbers on the ship or with the smaller numbers of crew members if the rumors regarding that are true (I have read that HAL has cut back on staff, but have no confirmation as to whether or not this is accurate). If the waiters have to handle more tables, it would stand to reason that service would slow down. There also seems to be only one bar waiter for our area so that service is also slow.

 

My favorite dinner item tonight was the Crab Cakes. Although tiny, they were delicious and highly recommended. I also had a salad and the Prime Rib, which was rare, as ordered, but fairly tasteless. For dessert, I had a Coconut Ice Cream Sundae with Hot Fudge Sauce… hard to beat that.

 

I went to the casino after dinner and never made it to the show, which featured a guy named Chris Michaels, who plays eight instruments.

 

Tuesday, December 25 – Sea Day – Christmas Day

 

Watched the sun rise early this morning and then slept a little longer before getting up and heading to the buffet for a small breakfast. Today there was a Mariner brunch at 11 so we thought we’d go easy on breakfast to save room. As it turned out, we’d have done better to enjoy all the breakfast goodies and have a regular lunch since the Mariner brunch was underwhelming to say the least. They had a set menu with a couple of appetizer choices (salmon or soup) pot roast or fish and a single tart for dessert. The regular lunch menu in the dining room or the buffet menu choices were far better. They did give out the tile gift for Mariners, which is a nice touch, but I think the Mariner brunch should be more special. They did also serve small flutes of champagne and come around to refill them. Mimosas would also have been a good touch since it was a brunch (and there were no brunch dishes by the way so they might as well have called it early lunch.)

 

We have had lovely smooth seas. I spent the entire afternoon sitting out the

pool in the sunshine enjoying the warm breeze and the solo steel drummer. I guess this is another cost saving. Not so long ago there were steel bands. Now we seem to be down to steel drum soloists.

 

Tonight was a formal night. In honor of Christmas Eve, last night was formal optional so dress was mixed, but tonight folks were seriously dressed up. I only saw a few tuxedoes, but most women were wearing evening attire and sparkled and the gentlemen, for the most part had on suits or at least jackets and ties. I should add that they announced Santa had landed on the ship this morning and those “good little boys and girls” who went to the theater to meet him were given gifts of small ships. The small children in our party declined to leave breakfast for the occasion. One of them, who was on his second helping of breakfast food, told me he was simply “too busy.”

 

Getting back to dinner, we are now settled into our 5:30 routine. While standing in the reservations line to check into the dining room, though, we heard numerous discussions with upset guests trying to explain why they should be seated and an unruffled, but generally unhelpful Assistant who kept telling everyone to come back at some later time in the vicinity of 8 p.m. One woman, who thought she had a standing reservation for 5:30 was told to return at 8. Another woman was looking for three tables. Finally someone I took to be an Assistant Maitre D’ came over and implored the young man to find the woman at the front three tables somewhere in the dining room. All the while this was going on, our group of 17 was waiting there to simply check in, but it took more than ten minutes for that to be accomplished. When we left the dining room, two hours later, the lines on both the reserved and walk-in sides stretched back to the elevators and I overheard a young man say they had been standing there for forty minutes and had not moved. It appears to me that at least on the Ryndam, HAL is still struggling with As You Wish Dining.

 

Two different waiters handle our three tables. Since I sat at a different table tonight, our waiter was Bagiarta. He was quite competent and pleasant, but as was the case last night, service was slow. I think the problem is that the waiters are simply trying to service more tables than they can handle I’ll do some more research on this topic and report back later in the week. Tonight I had Shrimp Cocktail, Clam Chowder, Filet Mignon, and Chocolate Mousse. The Filet was quite tender and the Mousse was tasty, but neither the Shrimp nor the Chowder were particularly good. Those who had a Turkey entrée were pleased with their dinner.

 

After dinner we went up to the production show, “Classique.” This was a pleasant pastiche of songs and dances… about what you would expect. We couldn’t find a seat on the Main Level and went up to the Balcony, only to discover that the sight lines for most of the seats are very poor. In general, this is a small theater with substandard seating. They do three shows a night to make up for this, but given the times, and our dining time of 5:30, the only show time that works for us is 8.

 

This concludes my first installment. Tomorrow we’ll be in Roatan and I’ll report back later in the week. Let me know if you have any questions and I’ll do my best to respond.

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KirkNC

KirkNC

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Thanks for the review. Personally I think all drills should be done on the deck as the chaos you experienced in your drill will be much worse in an actual emergency. Learning anything (other then how to put on a life jacket) in a dining room will not help you one bit in an actual emergency. By going on the deck at least you know where your lifeboat is located if nothing else. Combine that with the possibility that meeting anywhere inside may not be possible if fire/smoke is present. Now I will agree that HAL could improve their process by having someone who can speak clearly and loudly. Unfortunately the room on the deck is not easily fixed but again, what do you think it will be like in an actual emergency.

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iflyrc5

iflyrc5

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I agree with KirkNC, would rather have drill on the deck, yes it can be a little difficult but a real emergency will be much worse. If you think tendering is bad going ashore now, imagine what it will be like in the dark, rain, rough seas with twice the number of people on the tender and most of them probably seasick.

 

That said, thanks so much for your review, we will be on the Ryndam starting Feb 10 for 21 days.

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Christine Frances

Christine Frances

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Thanks for the review. Personally I think all drills should be done on the deck as the chaos you experienced in your drill will be much worse in an actual emergency. Learning anything (other then how to put on a life jacket) in a dining room will not help you one bit in an actual emergency. By going on the deck at least you know where your lifeboat is located if nothing else. Combine that with the possibility that meeting anywhere inside may not be possible if fire/smoke is present. Now I will agree that HAL could improve their process by having someone who can speak clearly and loudly. Unfortunately the room on the deck is not easily fixed but again, what do you think it will be like in an actual emergency.

 

Celebrity, and more and more cruise lines, hold their Muster Drill in Public rooms on the lifeboat deck with easy access out to the boats if necessary. They no longer "assign" you a lifeboat (because "yours" might not be the best one to use) but if it is necessary to abandon ship the crew will lead you from the "Muster Station" to the correct lifeboat for that situation. What would happen if, in the Concordia instance, that one of those lifeboats that was high up in the air and unable to be launched, was "your" assigned lifeboat? Chaos!! Is anyone going to let you into "their" lifeboat?

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cruz chic

cruz chic

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Celebrity, and more and more cruise lines, hold their Muster Drill in Public rooms on the lifeboat deck with easy access out to the boats if necessary. They no longer "assign" you a lifeboat (because "yours" might not be the best one to use) but if it is necessary to abandon ship the crew will lead you from the "Muster Station" to the correct lifeboat for that situation. What would happen if, in the Concordia instance, that one of those lifeboats that was high up in the air and unable to be launched, was "your" assigned lifeboat? Chaos!! Is anyone going to let you into "their" lifeboat?

I agree with you. I find it funny that people would have a problem finding their lifeboat in HAL`s case. It`s really not difficult. That said, Celebrity did a terrible job of the safety drill when I sailed with them in May. I had to chase the guy down to get him to check off my name.

 

To the OP. Sorry that open dining is not good on the Ryndam. At times, they do it quite well. Also, in May Celebrity did not have water pitchers in the cabin.

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sailorbill

sailorbill

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A holiday cruise will have many, if not all, of the third and fourth berths occupied so the passenger count will be quite a bit higher than the normal 2 per stateroom. In this situation it should be expected that there will be longer lines and slower service. No cruise line increases or decreases the number of crew members from one cruise to the next according to the number of passengers on board. The crew is on long term (5 months or so) contracts. The same number of crew members will be on board for the early December cruises with low passenger counts, the holiday cruises with high passenger counts, and the early January cruises with low passenger counts. If you book a holiday cruise you should expect to put up with a more crowded ship with longer lines and slower service and not consider it to reflect negatively on the crew or the cruise line.

 

As to having water pitchers in the stateroom or not, the water is the same as that coming out of the bathroom sink. The sink in the stewards pantry used to fill water pitchers is fed from the same source of ship's potable water as the stateroom sinks, the ice making machines and the water used for in the kitchens for cooking and washing fruits and vegetables. The water is as good or better than 95% of the municipal water systems in the US. Having the room steward keep stateroom water pitchers filled is one more not really necessary task for the overworked stewards.

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RuthC

RuthC

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Celebrity, and more and more cruise lines, hold their Muster Drill in Public rooms on the lifeboat deck with easy access out to the boats if necessary.

On most of the HAL ships, there are no public rooms on lifeboat deck.

Up to three decks of passengers would need to climb up past lifeboat deck to get to a suitable public room, then climb back down to reach the deck to access the lifeboat.

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wiselindag

wiselindag

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First, thanks for your comments. I agree with all of you! Yes, it's true that there are not as many public rooms on the lifeboat deck, so that makes sense. Also, the water pitcher vs. tap makes sense, but for me is psychological. I was on Reflection a few weeks ago and think we had water pitchers in balcony cabins, but maybe I imagined them... don't think so. I'm usually in Aqua Class and know we have water and iced tea there. They have cut back on service staff in the dining room for the past few years... more folks on each waiter's roster and more duties since they now tend to drinks with the wine guy doing only wine and not other beverages. The show times for the person who asked are 6:30, 8 and 10.

 

For those of you sailing on the Ryndam in the coming months, be glad. She is a fine ship with an excellent staff and crew and you should have an excellent cruise. I am enjoying our cruise quite a lot and am pleased with our cabin, the state of the ship and the folks who work on her.

 

Here is another installment:

 

Wednesday, December 26 – Roatan

 

This morning we docked much earlier than the 8 a.m. posted arrival time and were delighted to see a sunny sky when we looked out our window. We went up to the buffet for an early breakfast and had our usual three or four courses – cold cereal, fresh fruit, Eggs Benedict (impossible to resist!), and some pastry since every meal on the Ryndam gets finished with some sort of dessert. One of the best features of the HAL buffet (in addition to the Benedict station) is the assortment of fresh juices pre-poured and set out each morning. I usually take a grapefruit juice, and get an orange juice for my husband, but sometimes, for variety’s sake, we mix it up and get some other kinds including apple, V8, tomato, cranberry or pineapple.

 

After breakfast, I left the ship and walked onto the dock, asking first the security guys and then the so-called Ryndam port expert for advice on where to find an internet hook-up. No one had the correct answer as it turned out. They all thought I could get WIFI at the coffee place in the shopping village at the top of the ramp or in the drinks place or perhaps at Mahogany Beach. I tried all of the above and at each location, was sent on to another, never managing to achieve a connection to the internet. The closest I came was in the room designated for WIFI in the building behind the beach. Some guys had managed to connect with the Captain’s Galley WIFI, but others were unsuccessful, and try as I might, I couldn’t do it. If you want to try your luck, the password is supposedly captain wif without the “s.” Aside from the Wifi problem, Mahogany Beach is quite nice. There are shops, clean restrooms, free beach chairs (the clam shells do, however, cost money), and chairs under trees that provide good coverage from the sun as well as a lovely clean beach. The water was warm and swimmable and although fairly crowded, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. We shared the beach with the crowd from the much larger Carnival Dream, and many folks seemed to enjoy the food available from the vendors selling lunch. I waited until I returned to the Ryndam to eat. Some people paid $12 for the chair lift to the beach, but it was an easy walk so unless you have a mobility problem, it’s really not worth the price.

 

The dining room was much less crowded this evening and service was faster as a result. I had an opportunity to ask about the service question and was told that in fact the number of guests served by each waiter has increased over the past few years and they have been given additional duties regarding beverages as well. Previously the beverage waiters handled all beverages and not just wine, but now there are far fewer beverage waiters and they only handle wine, leaving all other beverages to the overtaxed waiters. As a result, with more diners and more jobs, dinner service takes longer.

 

Our dinner was once again served by the very able and amiable Bagiarda. He has an excellent sense of humor and is quite good at his work. I enjoyed the “available every night” French Onion Soup and Caesar Salad, and was less enthusiastic about the Veal Medallions and Morels in Cream Sauce, although they were supposedly the special creation of a Master Chef. Dessert choices presented a dilemma, though because I had a tough choice among three favorites – a Hot Fudge Sundae, Crème Brulee,

 

After dinner, because we were a few minutes early, we ran into Khalida before she had finished cleaning our cabin. She apologized profusely as if it were her fault that we were early, and we had a few minutes to chat with her. Once again, we were struck by what a charming and excellent young woman she is. We learned something new tonight… the poor beleaguered young man we have been observing at the desk on “As You Wish Dining” on Deck 7 of the Rotterdam Dining Room is her husband. We told her how difficult his job seemed (not really his fault the system doesn’t seem to be set up to work well) and how calm he manages to be in the face of the nightly onslaught.

 

Later in the evening I met an interesting 11 year old in the Explorations area while I was working on the computer. This is a terrific area of every HAL ship in which there are computers with the NY Times available (I’m very happy to be able to access the Times on line without having to pay for it!) He was trying to find someone to play chess with him and told me he would happily hang out at Club HAL if they had a Chess set there, or even a Checkers set, but they don’t… seems as if they should, though.

 

Thursday, December 27 – Santo Tomas de Castilla, Guatemala

 

I had arranged through Shore Trips to take a trip with “Go with Gus,” a tour organizer who comes highly recommended in Santo Tomas de Castilla. The plan was to go on a river cruise on the Rio Dulce with a visit to a school and time to stop and perhaps eat lunch in the town of Livingston. My tour time was originally set for 11:30 local time, but this was changed to 10:30 to allow enough time to get back for our departure. Then I got an email telling me it had been moved to 9:15, so I am guessing there weren’t enough people for the later departure and they moved us to the earlier time.

 

My voucher instructed me to meet the tour folks after security on the dock in Santo Tomas, so I had an early breakfast and headed out in time to be there before 9:15. I found the Go with Gus tour booth in the building with the little shopping area and was greeted by our lovely tour guide for the day, Dary, and by Iris, Gus’s wife. We were about twenty people in all, and walked out to the boat about 9:30 for the start of our tour, but were delayed at first by some confusion regarding the possible inclusion of six additional passengers. These folks did not materialize and we eventually set off, first across the big Bay where the Ryndam was docked, and then down to the town of Livingston, with some pauses for photographs of birds and some scenic spots along the shore. We debarked at what turned out to be Go with Gus’s hotel in Livingston for a restroom break and were given some fresh fruit and bottles of water. Then we continued on the river to several picturesque little canyon areas where children greeted us on boats and on foot. Pens, pencils, notebooks, and other school supplies were distributed to them at each stop. Then we went to a place where tortillas were made and we eat were given one filled with black beans and hot sauce if we wished. At our next stop, some people went in the Hot Springs and others checked out the caves with flashlights which were rented for $2 each. This was followed by lunch at Gus’s hotel. We were given a bottle of the beverage of our choice and then a plate filled with vegetables, potatoes, and fried fish, all of which was quite tasty. There was no dessert, but there was a sweet fruit liquour offered after the meal. Dary then led us along the main street of Livingston where we could shop before we picked up our boat once more from the Municipal Dock for our return to the Ryndam. In all, we spent about five hours on the tour and had a good opportunity to see the local area, which is certainly very undeveloped and not, in my opinion, ready to be a cruise port. Thy do have a charming custom, though. Folks came to the dock to wave us off as we departed. Some drummers and dancers performed and taxi drivers lined up to wave and honk their horns as the ship pulled away from the pier.

 

For a change of pace, dinner on Thursday evening was scheduled for 6:30 in Canaletto, the Italian eatery section of the Lido. There is now a $10 upcharge for dining in Canaletto, which I think is a change. I don’t remember paying to eat there on our last HAL cruise. I ordered a salad, Linguine with Seafood, and a Pastry with Chocolate and Ice cream for dessert and thought the meal was quite good. Others at the table didn’t think the dinner was worthy of a $10 upcharge, which I confirmed, was definitely something new instituted by HAL since last year.

 

Once again, eating at 6:30 didn’t work for the 8 p.m. show and we didn’t feel like staying up for the late show at 10, so we missed the Magician. As usual, the casino was not kind.

 

Friday, December 28 – Costa Maya

 

The day dawned windy and sunny. Costa Maya is another made-for-cruisers port at the southern end of Quintana Roo below the Riviera Maya. There is a lovely beach with chairs and palapas and Senor Frogs, Carlos and Charlie’s and lots of souvenir shops for the final round of shopping before we head home. I am taking advantage of the “free” wifi at Senor Frog’s (“Free” because I have to buy a drink and tip the guys, of course.) Later today we head home.

 

I will stop here and say I have found the Ryndam to be in very good shape and the staff and crew, although stretched, to be pleasant and friendly. This has been a fine cruise with many lovely people on the ships. Because it’s a holiday cruise, there are many multi-generational families, as you would expect, and these families have all seemed to get along quite well. The children I have observed have been well behaved and polite and it has been very enjoyable to be aboard.

 

I'll post a wrap-up with the information on the final formal night, show (if I manage to get there) and debarkation after I return home. As always, your questions are welcome and thanks for taking the time to read my review.

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rafinmd "Live from...." Rare

rafinmd

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Celebrity, and more and more cruise lines, hold their Muster Drill in Public rooms on the lifeboat deck with easy access out to the boats if necessary. They no longer "assign" you a lifeboat (because "yours" might not be the best one to use) but if it is necessary to abandon ship the crew will lead you from the "Muster Station" to the correct lifeboat for that situation. What would happen if, in the Concordia instance, that one of those lifeboats that was high up in the air and unable to be launched, was "your" assigned lifeboat? Chaos!! Is anyone going to let you into "their" lifeboat?

 

On most of the HAL ships, there are no public rooms on lifeboat deck.

Up to three decks of passengers would need to climb up past lifeboat deck to get to a suitable public room, then climb back down to reach the deck to access the lifeboat.

 

I don't think there's an easy answer for this one, but I tend to agree more with RuthC. I don't want to be mustering on the Promenade Deck if the ship has a problem in a storm with gale winds and 40-foot waves, and I don't want to muster in a dining room if the problem is a galley fire. I'm sure all cruise lines have contingency plans if the primary muster area is compromised, and I think it's wise to have a consistent plan. I'll also say I was not impressed with either of my Celebrity musters. On the Solstice the problem was a 2850 passenger ship with only 2 stairways. Getting down to my muster station on the crowded stairs took me 15 minutes. It's never been more than 2 or 3 minutes on any other ship. On the Summit I checked in and was told to "have a seat", but the monitor seemed oblivious to the fact that we were way over the seating capacity. It was also a room with several corners and only one of the monitors demonstrated the life vest although many of us could not see him/her.

 

I think mustering in public rooms would be a real problem on the R/S class ships and iffy on the Prinsendam. It would work on the Vista/Signature ships (Cunard does it on Queen Victoria/Elizabeth) so I assume HAL has decided it's best to have a consistent Plan A for emergencies, and I see no reason to question that decision.

 

Roy

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smokesmom

smokesmom

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My DH and I like to eat around 7:00. Do you know if the lines were still long at that time? This will be our first time on the Ryndam. We were on the Veendam but had fixed 8:00 so I don't remember lines.

 

Enjoyed your review. Looking forward to the wrap-up.

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