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(Sort of) Live From the Westerdam!


Cindy
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Hi all! I am currently on the Westerdam on the first post drydock cruise. Parts of the ship look great, including our suite, the Pinnacle Grill, and the updated area by the casino. As expected, the casino is now completely non-smoking due to the openness of the area.

 

The new state rooms on deck 10 are not done, nor is the Crow's Nest. They do not anticipate that area of the ship being ready until May 24, and access to that part of the ship is not possible. We knew about the delay before we got on the ship, and they have given each passenger a refundable $200 onboard credit for the inconvenience. They are trying very hard to be proactive and minimize passenger frustration. This cruise is extremely port intensive with only one day, so for us the impact is minimal.

 

I will take and share some pictures soon. In the meantime, I am blogging the trip. I haven't caught up to real-time yet, but I will get there eventually! Here is a link:

 

https://theworldthroughmylens.blog/

 

 

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Hi Cindy, great to see your thread here. Thanks for taking the time to share your cruise with us, and for the link to your excellent blog.

 

We're booked on our first HAL cruise next year, on the Zuiderdam. She'll be in dry dock later this year, so I'm particularly interested in your comments about what's been done to the Westerdam.

 

Have a fabulous trip!

 

Judith

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Thanks for posting!! Subscribed. Are the retreat cabanas finished or is that area not expected to be done until later in May? Reserved a family cabana for December. Hoping to see some pictures.

 

 

That whole section of Dock 10 is a construction zone. The stairs leading up there are blocked off and the elevator to 10 are disabled. I have some pictures I took from above this afternoon, but I will need to resize them before I can post them.

 

 

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Looking forward to reading your blog. May I ask: dit they update the regular staterooms as well, or just the suites?

 

 

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I think they redid some of them, but it isn't consistent like the suite upgrades.

 

 

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As many CC members will advise, NEVER book a cruise immediately before or after a dry-dock refurbishment. Many times, crews will board a week or so before dry-dock and start work in some areas. And cruise lines rarely schedule enough down-time in dry-dock, so they keep crews onboard to continue the upgrades after the ship leaves dry-dock on a cruise with paying passengers. The same has happened this time with the Westerdam, but it appears they won't be totally completed until May 24, which is outrageous. They usually end up giving OBC for the disruption and loss of access to certain public areas of the ship. Good rule of thumb.... check CC for dry-dock schedules, charters, and groups on-board.

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As many CC members will advise, NEVER book a cruise immediately before or after a dry-dock refurbishment. Many times, crews will board a week or so before dry-dock and start work in some areas. And cruise lines rarely schedule enough down-time in dry-dock, so they keep crews onboard to continue the upgrades after the ship leaves dry-dock on a cruise with paying passengers. The same has happened this time with the Westerdam, but it appears they won't be totally completed until May 24, which is outrageous. They usually end up giving OBC for the disruption and loss of access to certain public areas of the ship. Good rule of thumb.... check CC for dry-dock schedules, charters, and groups on-board.

 

We booked this cruise fully aware the ship would be coming out of dry dock and there was a good possibility (probability) the work wouldn't be done. The itinerary and time of year were exactly what we wanted, and that was the most important thing to us.

 

I think the drydock was way too short for the scope of the work, but the closures have had no impact on our cruise at all. With only one sea day on a 12 night cruise the ship facilities aren't as important as they would be otherwise.

 

 

 

 

 

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Cindy, is there any "scuttlebutt" about the dry dock fire that you've heard? Simply curious.

 

 

Not that I've heard, but honestly we've been so busy off the ship I haven't had time to "snoop" or stick my nose in where it doesn't belong![emoji23] The only scuttlebutt I've heard so far is the contractors stole a lot of gym equipment, including a rowing machine![emoji15] They also liked the Bose speakers and the Nespresso machines!

 

Tomorrow is our only sea day, and I plan to walk around with my camera and take some ship pics.

 

 

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Not that I've heard, but honestly we've been so busy off the ship I haven't had time to "snoop" or stick my nose in where it doesn't belong![emoji23] The only scuttlebutt I've heard so far is the contractors stole a lot of gym equipment, including a rowing machine![emoji15] They also liked the Bose speakers and the Nespresso machines!

 

Tomorrow is our only sea day, and I plan to walk around with my camera and take some ship pics.

 

 

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That's horrible they would steal so much.

 

Really enjoying your blog and the photos are fabulous!

 

 

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