needtravelbuddies

I understand the ship not waiting, but why is it making it so difficult for them to reboard?

I’m so sorry to hear about what you are experiencing. I was on the Oosterdam this summer for 24 days Greece, Dalmatian coast, italy and Malta and was seeing staff shortages, reduced service, and apathetic guest services but we were lucky in the food department. I was actually pleasantly surprised by the quality and selection of meals in the dining room and Lido. Perhaps the location was responsible - lots of lovely fresh fruit and vegetables in the Mediterranean, and good fish and seafood, I’m not much of a beef eater, but the filet was good, as was the lamb. I had a number of conversations with one of the head chefs (one of the last Dutch ones on the line) and he was very accommodating in finding requested items, although there were a few items that were beyond his control (real maple syrup instead of molasses-like treacle) but there were many special treats picked up in port (a plethora of cannellonis picked up in Sicily, and fresh baclava and Greek pastries and Turkish delight). Stewards were definitely facing a lot more cabins to take care of (but we only had 1100 passengers instead of 1900) and we didn’t really have many needs. Got chocolate once in 24 days. I sent a very long unsolicited letter to HAL detailing my concerns and they did reply, but I think it’s going to quite sometime before things are back to pre-Covid levels. Hope you at least enjoy the ports! Ours only had 2 sea days, but if we had more, the lack of activities and so-so entertainment would hav3 been an issue.