1st timer on HAL very long westy 12/9-12/16

[sweetair]

After 45 cruises (mostly celebrity and princess)..this was my first HAL cruise Westerdam dec9-dec16.

Itinerary: day at sea/grand turk/puerto rico/st thomas/day at sea/half (_l_) cay

 

Embarkation: extremely smoothe at 3pm. I carried on 4 bottles wine and a case of water No problem.

 

Room 1015 inside cat J: I bought an inside guarantee and was upgraded to this. The room was very well laid out (except for the flat screen tv) and appeared much roomier than the balcony. The TV is severely angled towards the couch and only the person on the left side of the bed can really watch it. The room is square and if you want to envision the room...facing the outside door open it..to the direct left is a sleeper couch that is L shaped..back wall has a vanity..next to vanity are 3 closets. Next wall is empty..back wall has the bed and has the bathroom. There is no entranceway and plenty of room to get dressed. Hope i explained it correctly.

 

Dinner: table 89 Round table for 11 8pm upper: waiter PUTU(excellent): We got the table after embarkation..1 person in our group went to maitre'd and requested it (thanks ann)

Brought wine to dinner every night...no corkage..sommelier got a tip each night

Our table has an unusual way of eating We love to try all the entrees so we each order one and he delivered all in the center. Nothing ever went to waste.. and we got quite a variety!

 

Pinnacle grill: $30 charge:$15 corkage: adequate food Steak very very good: not worth the extra expense. Besides the steak, the chocolate volcano was yummy..last night dinner in dining room Warm chocolate pudding was EXACTLY the same!

1 person requested shrimp cocktail as a starter and was refused (hmmmm makes ya wonder??)

 

buffets: i liked the layout...breakfast: i loved the waffles after you get them crispy(whipped cream and peanut butter as requested)..i liked the eggs anyway you wish station

Lunch: taco bar was all i tried

 

Room service: WARNING they just show up and knock...WRITE on DELIVERY TICKET Please call before delivering! Then you will hear them knock and also be prepared!!!

We had an excursion that ran until 10pm so we missed dinner..room service satisfied that :)

breakfast delivery i got a HOT omelette and waffle (not until after 8am)

 

Day1: sea day: pictionary at noon then 1 trivia game

 

Day2: grand turk: weather too windy and rough because of Olga...could NOT stop..refunded $14.73 port charges and got 1 glass of champagne at dinner(they could have given 1 free drink instead)...1 trivia game

 

day3: puerto rico: took bus to marriott stellaris to lay on the beach..there was a "protest" near the caribe hilton LOTS of police activity..held the bus up for awhile.kinda scary.

At 3:45pm we went on the bio-bay excursion. I absolutely loved it...stopped at rest area for food and bathroom break to wait for sunset then approached the bay. 2 person kayaks are usually very stable..hardest part of paddling is where the boats are moored.

 

day4:st thomas: we used st thomas excursions to book a 3 beach snorkel We used HOMER> He was truely fantastic and did anything we requested...1st stop secret harbor beach: secluded beach, good snorkeling...next stop sapphire beach...Water was way too rough..beautiful blue waters. Next stop: MALOFIE hotel...AMAZING VIEW!!!! Next stop Coki beach:EXTREMELY crowded GREAT snorkeling. Great for kids to see lots of fish close to shore. Then we went to Homers house for lunch. Salads sandwiches soda,beer chips then the last stop was hull bay By then we were really tired. 3 people on the beach.

 

day5:sea day 1 trivia game

 

day 6: half (_l_) cay: rented the grand oasis cabana: AWESOME is the best way to describe it $1200 for up to 12 people Additional people $100 each

Comes equipped with FULL bar and bartender 9am-1:45pm,

/butler/personal chef ...food choices: steak,mahimahi,ribs , chicken,burgers,hot dogs along with salads and fruit,brownies cookies Snacks and dips also provided.

2 bathrooms/full shower/8 person hot tub/snorkel gear and floaties

 

Entertainment: helen and the hell cats were absolutely the WORST thing i have ever heard on any ship Saying she was OFF-KEY was an understatement..I guess HAL doesnt care because most onboard probably just turned off their hearing aids!!!

 

nightly shows: Illusionist: very funny guy Better at humor than illusion..fun to see

 

Comedian: funny guy You NEED REFILL NOWWWWWWWWWWWW!

 

Crew Show: i really liked this...some very talented crew members.

 

Casino: won and lost Had fun There are a few newer slots...1/2/5 cent plus the usual quarter and dollar. Saw a few nice wins

 

disembark: fast and easy...i liked the fact that you could use your room until you actually leave the ship!!! I used express baggage and it worked out great.

 

MY opinions and impressions: i will say although i liked the ship and the staff i felt the age demographic was way higher than i expected. I think my next HAL cruise will be in 35 years or more. I would have liked a bit more activities to choose from. More daytime games more daytime trivia more poolside activities...I would have loved to watch them carve some fruits or carved the ice sculptures.

 

I had 1 major minor bathroom problem at 3:30AM. I thought it was handled very poorly. They called me at4am to see if it had been fixed Then called again at 4:30 am to check to see if it had been fixed. I got very little sleep and at 7am it still wasnt fixed. i went to the front desk and told them it does not take 4 hours to get the toilet to flush unless nobody bothered to try and fix it. Lo and behold It was fixed by 730am

 

a special thank you to those who made the meet and greet fantastic and to hans from beverage services for alcoholic beverages and cookies :)

Fun meeting all of you guys!

 

juice it up!!!!!

*sweet*

[Seago2]

Thanks for your review!

[kakalina]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review. Glad you enjoyed your first HAL cruise.

[hammybee]

Thank you for taking the time to share your perspective.

 

With 45 cruises under your belt, I think you know the game, well. Booking an inside guarantee on a pre holiday 7 day Caribbean cruise has got to be one of the all time great bargains, when viewed from a base cost per day perspective. I am surprised that you did not realize that sailing, at this time of year, especially from Florida, means you are likely to be sailing with a majority of retired folk.

 

Most people are satisfied when Room Service is delivered in the window ordered. I am not aware that any hotel or cruise line calls before delivering what was ordered. It most certainly has never been my experience, and I have sailed on most mass marketed cruise lines and stay in Marriotts, Hyatts and occasionally the 4 Seasons hotels.

 

Most people take responsibility for themselves and set their alarm clock before the delivery is expected. Imagine if every passenger made the same request to be called before delivery- oh my stars, that could be almost 1000 phone calls, on a ship like the Westerdam.

[our turn]

I agree that I would never expect to be notified of delivery when I had specified the time to begin with. However, a couple of times on our 12/02 Westerdam cruise, we did receive a call prior to delivery. On the Millenium, this past February, the butler called every morning before delivery.

[CroozeAddict]

Thanks for the review! We sail on the Westerdam next month and can't wait. I'm hoping we get good dining room service. Seems to be a hit or miss thing.

 

Thanks again.

 

:cool:

[Jo-Bob]

I have only been on 3 cruises, (2 on HAL) but with each and every room service order, each and every time, I have been called 5-10 minutes prior to the delivery of the order. It's a pretty nice gesture, not sure it's a matter of 'taking responsibility for oneselves".

[localady]

Thank you for taking the time to share your perspective.

 

With 45 cruises under your belt, I think you know the game, well. Booking an inside guarantee on a pre holiday 7 day Caribbean cruise has got to be one of the all time great bargains, when viewed from a base cost per day perspective. I am surprised that you did not realize that sailing, at this time of year, especially from Florida, means you are likely to be sailing with a majority of retired folk.

 

Most people are satisfied when Room Service is delivered in the window ordered. I am not aware that any hotel or cruise line calls before delivering what was ordered. It most certainly has never been my experience, and I have sailed on most mass marketed cruise lines and stay in Marriotts, Hyatts and occasionally the 4 Seasons hotels.

 

Most people take responsibility for themselves and set their alarm clock before the delivery is expected. Imagine if every passenger made the same request to be called before delivery- oh my stars, that could be almost 1000 phone calls, on a ship like the Westerdam.

 

Hammybee- Just FYI- When we were on the Infinity in May they would call appx 5 minutes before to let you know room service was on the way. It was nice as it gave me time to pull on a robe before they arrived. It was a nice touch and the room service guys got to see a less scary me!!;) :D

[hammybee]

I agree that I would never expect to be notified of delivery when I had specified the time to begin with. However, a couple of times on our 12/02 Westerdam cruise, we did receive a call prior to delivery. On the Millenium, this past February, the butler called every morning before delivery.

 

Not my experience on X, but then again, I have only sailed inside cabins on X and did not include butler service.

[mafig]

Is this the itinerary that you stay 13 hours in Puerto Rico?

 

We are considering this itinerary next year on Eurodam, and we would want to rent a car and tour the complete island on our own.

 

Aside from the bad weather, how did you like the itinerary?

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for taking the time to write your review.

[localady]

Not my experience on X, but then again, I have only sailed inside cabins on X and did not include butler service.

Hammybee- We were in a Concierge Class cabin, no butler service. It may have been an add on for that cabin though, as we had a larger breakfast menu than other cabin classes.

I had to agree that it was a nice touch, whether it's doable ship-wide is another thing.....

Thanks to the OP for a great review!:D

[starysacz]

Thank you for the review. Enjoyed reading it.

[sweetair]

To all those who questioned the phone call before breakfast delivery...

Every cruise on celebrity i have taken (22), they have always called prior to room service delivery and 20 of those trips were in INSIDE cabins.

 

HAL did follow the request and called 5-10 minutes before delivery It was great. Just write it on the breakfast request order.

It must be protocol for HAL to call 30 minutes after room service to see if everything was satisfactory.

 

Mafig:We were in PR 15 hours because we missed our grand turk port of call. I only took this Itinerary because of grand turk and half (_l_) cay. Loved half (_l_) and would do that again in a heartbeat if it were possible to do without a HAL ship ;) Never got to grand turk so i cant comment. I have been to PR and St Thomas 25 plus times so no excitement there.

 

croozeaddict: enjoy your cruise..i cant wait to hear what you think!

 

juice it up!

*sweet*

[alonzo14]

Hi sweet: It was great meeting you at our Meet and Greet!

 

FYI we had room service 6 or 7 times and were never called either before or after delivery.

[sail7seas]

Thanks for your review. Enjoyed reading your comments.

 

I think it was generous of the ship to offer free champagne. They really didn't have to as they can't be responsible for weather/rough seas and missing the port due to it. I don't think they needed to offer anything and certainly not a free 'drink of choice'. JMHO.....

 

 

We have never been called prior to Room Service delivery and we have it just about every morning. We set our alarm.

 

Welcome back and thanks for posting your review.

 

 

[sweetair]

im glad i requested the room service call Try it! you guys have no idea how great it is..celebrity spoiled me with that.

 

I forgot to mention about the casino charges...IF you are playing the slot machines...You can have $10-$100 taken from your room card to use at the slots free of service charges up to i believe $1000 daily. If you want money to play the tables or you need cash they charge a 3% charge.

SOLUTION...go to a slot machine..add the money into your account and then go to cashier and cash out FREE of 3% charges It works very well!

 

*sweet*

[ILoveScotland]

Sweetair, thanks for the review. DH and I are on same cruise as CroozeAddict, and a bunch of us on the Roll Call have booked the Oasis on Half Moon Cay. Any highlights of the Oasis you can share? Our itinerary is different as we're heading to the Southern Caribbean. Our first stop is HMC.

 

We almost always have room service breakfast. We're still checking out several cruise lines, but NCL, Celebrity and RCCL have all called at least 5 minutes before delivering breakfast. It's made a nice wake-up call. But I'll remember to write a note on the menu when I put it on the door each night.

[sweetair]

ilovescotland: i wrote a review of the cabana on the private islands in port of call.

First thing you will need from all of your group is the size of their feet for flippers (they can call it into shore excursions on embarkation day or you can make a list and deliver it) The person who paid for the excursion will be the room the butler picks everyone up at on the morning of arrival. We wanted the earliest tender but was given priority 9am as the earliest YET there were tenders as early as 8am. i was assuming the cabana would not be ready until 9am...IF i ever do it again i would just go ashore at my earliest time and play on the softest sand i have EVER encountered!

You guys need to be prepared to tip 3 people..the butler (he is with you guys the whole time 9am-3pm) the bartender (with you from 9am-1:45pm) and chef. The chef stays about 1.30 minutes They will ask you guys what time you want to start lunch...we chose Noon and the salads arrived at that time.The PINEAPPLE WAS A WOW!!!!! the chef started cooking. He grilled...

steak,mahimahi,burgers,hot dogs, and had BBQ ribs and chicken.(and he was so cute too hehehe)

Tipping is a personal matter

Be smart and get extra bottles of water from the bartender before he leaves and take them back to the ship (its crystal geyser) I usually finish a case or 2 of water per week...Ask EARLY if you guys want mojitos so they can get you mint.

There is a slide that is strictly for the use of those in the cabana..People will try to use it or get into the cabana..the butler will stop them or you can just politely tell them its private. None of my group are impolite but we didnt want screaming kids all day long using it.

It was extremely relaxing and lots of alcohol!!!! a hammock and 2 person lounger inside along with 2 bathrooms and a full shower.

outside was 4 loungers 4 adirondak chairs and 8 person hot tub.all your snorkeling gear and floaties.

The highlight was just being there after a long week of rough waters and missing a port :)

 

have a fantastical time and CALM seas and please let me know

*sweet*

[ILoveScotland]

Wow! Thanks, sweetair. I'll pass the info on to the person who's booked the Oasis for us. I'll go over to ports of call and look for your review, too.

[cands]

Now read the review of the same cruise by the same poster on the Celebrity board!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=678429

[Solo Cruiser]

The one disappointment of my recent cruise was that we couldn't get a CC group large enough to rent the private oasis. Thanks so much for the review and the specific information about what is for me a must do sometime in the future.

[Seago2]

Now read the review of the same cruise by the same poster on the Celebrity board!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=678429

 

What is your point? It's essentially the same review.

[cruzinnluvinit]

After 45 cruises (mostly celebrity and princess)..this was my first HAL cruise Westerdam dec9-dec16.

Itinerary: day at sea/grand turk/puerto rico/st thomas/day at sea/half (_l_) cay

 

Embarkation: extremely smoothe at 3pm. I carried on 4 bottles wine and a case of water No problem.

 

Room 1015 inside cat J: I bought an inside guarantee and was upgraded to this. The room was very well laid out (except for the flat screen tv) and appeared much roomier than the balcony. The TV is severely angled towards the couch and only the person on the left side of the bed can really watch it. The room is square and if you want to envision the room...facing the outside door open it..to the direct left is a sleeper couch that is L shaped..back wall has a vanity..next to vanity are 3 closets. Next wall is empty..back wall has the bed and has the bathroom. There is no entranceway and plenty of room to get dressed. Hope i explained it correctly.

 

Dinner: table 89 Round table for 11 8pm upper: waiter PUTU(excellent): We got the table after embarkation..1 person in our group went to maitre'd and requested it (thanks ann)

Brought wine to dinner every night...no corkage..sommelier got a tip each night

Our table has an unusual way of eating We love to try all the entrees so we each order one and he delivered all in the center. Nothing ever went to waste.. and we got quite a variety!

 

Pinnacle grill: $30 charge:$15 corkage: adequate food Steak very very good: not worth the extra expense. Besides the steak, the chocolate volcano was yummy..last night dinner in dining room Warm chocolate pudding was EXACTLY the same!

1 person requested shrimp cocktail as a starter and was refused (hmmmm makes ya wonder??)

 

buffets: i liked the layout...breakfast: i loved the waffles after you get them crispy(whipped cream and peanut butter as requested)..i liked the eggs anyway you wish station

Lunch: taco bar was all i tried

 

Room service: WARNING they just show up and knock...WRITE on DELIVERY TICKET Please call before delivering! Then you will hear them knock and also be prepared!!!

We had an excursion that ran until 10pm so we missed dinner..room service satisfied that :)

breakfast delivery i got a HOT omelette and waffle (not until after 8am)

 

Day1: sea day: pictionary at noon then 1 trivia game

 

Day2: grand turk: weather too windy and rough because of Olga...could NOT stop..refunded $14.73 port charges and got 1 glass of champagne at dinner(they could have given 1 free drink instead)...1 trivia game

 

day3: puerto rico: took bus to marriott stellaris to lay on the beach..there was a "protest" near the caribe hilton LOTS of police activity..held the bus up for awhile.kinda scary.

At 3:45pm we went on the bio-bay excursion. I absolutely loved it...stopped at rest area for food and bathroom break to wait for sunset then approached the bay. 2 person kayaks are usually very stable..hardest part of paddling is where the boats are moored.

 

day4:st thomas: we used st thomas excursions to book a 3 beach snorkel We used HOMER> He was truely fantastic and did anything we requested...1st stop secret harbor beach: secluded beach, good snorkeling...next stop sapphire beach...Water was way too rough..beautiful blue waters. Next stop: MALOFIE hotel...AMAZING VIEW!!!! Next stop Coki beach:EXTREMELY crowded GREAT snorkeling. Great for kids to see lots of fish close to shore. Then we went to Homers house for lunch. Salads sandwiches soda,beer chips then the last stop was hull bay By then we were really tired. 3 people on the beach.

 

day5:sea day 1 trivia game

 

day 6: half (_l_) cay: rented the grand oasis cabana: AWESOME is the best way to describe it $1200 for up to 12 people Additional people $100 each

Comes equipped with FULL bar and bartender 9am-1:45pm,

/butler/personal chef ...food choices: steak,mahimahi,ribs , chicken,burgers,hot dogs along with salads and fruit,brownies cookies Snacks and dips also provided.

2 bathrooms/full shower/8 person hot tub/snorkel gear and floaties

 

Entertainment: helen and the hell cats were absolutely the WORST thing i have ever heard on any ship Saying she was OFF-KEY was an understatement..I guess HAL doesnt care because most onboard probably just turned off their hearing aids!!!

 

nightly shows: Illusionist: very funny guy Better at humor than illusion..fun to see

 

Comedian: funny guy You NEED REFILL NOWWWWWWWWWWWW!

 

Crew Show: i really liked this...some very talented crew members.

 

Casino: won and lost Had fun There are a few newer slots...1/2/5 cent plus the usual quarter and dollar. Saw a few nice wins

 

disembark: fast and easy...i liked the fact that you could use your room until you actually leave the ship!!! I used express baggage and it worked out great.

 

MY opinions and impressions: i will say although i liked the ship and the staff i felt the age demographic was way higher than i expected. I think my next HAL cruise will be in 35 years or more. I would have liked a bit more activities to choose from. More daytime games more daytime trivia more poolside activities...I would have loved to watch them carve some fruits or carved the ice sculptures.

 

I had 1 major minor bathroom problem at 3:30AM. I thought it was handled very poorly. They called me at4am to see if it had been fixed Then called again at 4:30 am to check to see if it had been fixed. I got very little sleep and at 7am it still wasnt fixed. i went to the front desk and told them it does not take 4 hours to get the toilet to flush unless nobody bothered to try and fix it. Lo and behold It was fixed by 730am

 

a special thank you to those who made the meet and greet fantastic and to hans from beverage services for alcoholic beverages and cookies :)

Fun meeting all of you guys!

 

juice it up!!!!!

*sweet*

Can you tell me who the Captain is on the Westerdam now?

 

Did you go to all the entertainment opportunites in the evening?

 

We are going next Sunday and would like any information you have for us since this is a different itinerary.

 

Linda

[sweetair]

solo cruiser: it was too bad but you still got to experience half (_l_) cay which i LOVED! i would love to find sand like that on any other island :) I am also a solocruiser and i still feel the "bite" of paying double for my cruises. Thats 1 reason this cruise appealed to me...it was cheap to try it.

 

carlalena:thank you but i ignored cands comment and yes i did write the same basic review but shortened it a bit Maybe cands was upset that i left out the droll details of my day to day activities or every detail of the room layout.

 

i know that my review would stir different reactions on the 2 boards...i am not a cheerleader for ANY cruiseline (although i have seen quite a lot from the "defenders of their choice") but i know quite a few people that sail celebrity and would be interested in my experience.

 

*sweet*