FlaMariner

Southerner here....Grits onboard has always been a challenge for us and somewhat of a comedy adventure. I'm always fascinated and amused at how Holland America Line does such a great job of providing every type of diverse food the world has to offer....and caters to all the specific dietary requriements people can demand/dream up but when it comes to a basic and easy staple known to many and specific to the Southern USA, it's always a challenge. When asking for grits onboard, these have been our experiences: we have been served cream of wheat we have been given a soup spoon to eat them we have been told no when at the station with eggs, bacon, etc we are told "grits are at the asian area" when waiting for them, we have been asked "how many do you want?" when we arrive at the "asian area" the lady does not know "grits" and asks the chef Chef says "not made yet" Chef says "don't have them today" Chef says "we will get them for you" When I do find the grits onboard, a few things: they are not good (way too watery) they freak out when I hand over my plate of eggs and bacon and ask them to "just put them there on the plate"....they think they should be served in a bowl. also, some judgmental type fellow USA citizens that tend to live further north than we do, seem to be amused and intrigued at our grits inquiry On every survey, I add a comment about grits (either please have them or have the head chef reach out to Waffle House and ask how to make them properly). I feel it is my duty onboard to always ask for grits. Enjoy the journey....and the grits onboard if you can find them!

On our Oosterdam Mediterranean cruise in April, the Captain was generous in opening up the bow deck...front of ship....Seems like he did it about every evening for sail away..... Listen out for the announcement and enjoy those views!

We prefer the VF forward balcony cabins on deck 8. Why? good price point quiet, tucked away area with no thru traffic only one deck up to the gym, spa, lido nothing loud above or below us But the last few cruises we have gone "guarantee" and we've never had a bad/loud/bad location cabin...... Enjoy choosing a cabin!

So no ports cancelled and the "time in port" has not been reduced...just times adjusted? Did I read that correctly? We would call that a great cruise. Enjoy the Nieuw Statendam.....no matter the port times adjustments.

I can confirm that with HAL's air site, I can choose air up to 21 days post arrival...Just booked a 4/25/25 flight from Europe back to USA...Also, great price...$520 now. Love HAL air options/prices/flexibility for international.

Here is a somewhat "apples to apples" comparison of a "legendary/world" cruise vs a regular cruise.....This caused me pause a few weeks back as to why such a difference.... Regular cruise: 4/4/26 27 nights Ft Lauderdale to Rotterdam Balcony $4099 / $152 per day/ per person on Nieuw Statendam....12 ports World cruise: 4/22/26 25 nights Lisbon to Ft Lauderdale Balcony $10,843 / $434 per day/ per person on Volendam....11 ports (I welcome folks to check my math...and the price source was the big, online TA we use) I know, the ships are different, the ports are different....but how much will you pay for those extra pillow mints, extra lectures and supposed "better" food? Obviously, some folks pay a lot more for the "legendary/world" cruise with the extra "perks". In this example, 185% more. Ouch. I just don't get it....but glad we have choices and hope everyone enjoys their cruise....whether it is labeled legenday/world or regular.....For us, right now, we are fine $$$ with a "regular" cruise......

According to HAL....A Legendary Voyage is: 25- to 59-day itineraries Region-spanning journeys such as Voyage of the Vikings and Glaciers & Volcanoes: Alaska to Hawaii Carefully crafted itineraries featuring rare and renowned ports across the globe Special onboard experiences that enhance the story of each destination Overnight stays in top ports, including Reykjavík, Honolulu, and Tahiti, plus less-traveled destinations such as Moorea and Manaus

Any 'dam ship cruise I am on is legendary..... Officially named "legendary" or "world" usually mean twice the price of a regular long cruise and thus we steer clear for now

That was my experience. I referred someone and after they sailed, the $50 FCC showed up on my HAL online account. The TA was easily able to put it towards our next booking. Easy money. Free money.

Does our cabin TV have Fox News?

Thank you for that @grantbob There has been a price drop on the cruise and we are past final payment....So going to get the TA to ask about upgrading to a spa balcony room......I did not realize the spa deck rooms include the spa hydro suite pass....(that is not the case on HAL).

I'm glad you said that.....that was my plan (will slip more than twenty bucks though) if I'm stuck with a group table or waiting in a queue every night to get a table for two for our 25 night cruise.

I agree. When we do a 7 day "milk run" to the Caribbean, there is not much time for lectures, etc.....It's a much different experience for us as well as the cruise line.....vs a longer cruise. Also, when attending a coffee chat w/the Hotel Directory on the Oosterdam TA, he referenced how different the longer cruises are from the "milk runs" based on customer demands....He said the "milk runs" were basically easy to figure out supplies (load up the ranch dressing, plenty of ketchup and plenty of beer) but the long cruises are a different animal....And when in Ft Lauderdale heading to Europe, stuff the ship with Diet Coke because that's not easily available in Europe......Basically, lots of different needs/requirements based on the type of cruise.

I wish we could see a breakdown by Carnival Corp brand of "rate of return". This press release indicates Carnival Cruise Line is #1.......I'm curious as to where and what return the other brands deliver.....and especially HAL. Does anyone know if that data is available? It's not in the annual report/proxy....at least as far as I can figure out.

Our OBC is listed on the Booking Notification from our TA.

Our HAL cruises have had both guest lecturers (college professor types) as well as great EXC presentations (given by the cruise director).......It has not been one or the other but has been both types of presentations on the same cruise. And we enjoyed both types and glad we had them and could choose. We even had a college professor who was an astronomer on our 2023 South America HAL cruise who gave lectures during the day and then at night she would narrate star gazing on the back deck with the ship lights turned off....that was in addition to a professor giving talks on the South America and the EXC talks.....

+1 Holland America Line....this was very true and we noticed this also when on the Sky vs Rotterdam (all post Covid).

We were on the Oosterdam in April...... For the Livorno port stop, we toured Cinque Terre. Our friends toured Florence/Pisa. No way to do both in one day. We all used www.italytours.eu for the tours in Livorno and other Italian ports also. Small group. Great guides. Fantastic price. Enjoy Italy....

Yes, We are 4 Stars and have used this fantastic benefit on 4 cruises since entering this special world.....Just check "unlimited" and send it in. No need to mark it 4 star or do anything on the form (we've never been charged since acquiring this most special benefit). Enjoy the free laundry......and welcome to the 4 Star Club!

When I have this issue, I remind myself that the issue is my lack of knowing the Indonesian language and I realize their English is better than my Indonesian. Great review. Thanks for passing along the experience......

We were on the Oosterdam this past April (2024, 22 days TA & Mediterranean) and the previous March (2023, 17 days, Santiago to FLL). We found her in great shape both times. Do not recall anything "out of order" or worn out. We love the size of the ship.....And she was in great shape. Both times we had quite the interactive and visible captains......And the staff was top notch. We'd sail her on again and again. Also, no issues with Park West being in the way. Enjoy the Oosterdam........

We try very hard to follow the "at least a day before embarkation arrival" rule if flying. Flying is not reliable. The crowd strike issue this weeks is a real live example.....It's not just weather that gums up the works.

I don't know the cost but from our experience, anytime we compared a HAL hotel rate to booking ourselves, the HAL rate was always higher...and most of the time way higher.... But when leaving for a cruise from Rotterdam.....if you want to go "all in" with HAL, check out these two hotels in Rotterdam: The former HQ building for HAL now a hotel: https://hotelnewyork.com Or the older Rotterdam ship now a hotel: https://ssrotterdam.com Nothing like going to ROTTERDAM to board the ROTTERDAM and staying at the ROTTERDAM pre-cruise. Enjoy Rotterdam or any 'dam ship...

We have cruised on the Rotterdam and the Sky Princess. Without knowing/considering the itinerary and price, we would choose Rotterdam. Why? Fixed Dining. We like same time, same waiter, same table. On Sky, we had to beg every evening for a table for two with the waiter team we enjoyed. Horrible lines, asking permission every night, avoiding the tables for two that are in a line and not private. We love the fixed dining experience on Rotterdam. And the food...more on that later. Cabins. We were in balcony cabins for both. Sky has an open closet (like motel 6), no chair, less storage and we think the balcony was smaller (could be based on the cabin) Ambience. Sky was like being at the shopping mall. Especially the atrium which was like the food court. Loud lido with some sort of bingo gambling going on. Spa/hydro suite on Sky was not as good and was hidden in the dark center of the ship...We enjoyed the Rotterdam hydro suite....Rotterdam is more our traditional, calm selves. Retractable ceiling. The Sky lido pool area does not have a retractable wall meaning the area is useless during inclement weather. Makes ship very crowded elsewhere when the weather is bad and all the lido pool folks have to seek shelter. Rotterdam (and all HAL ships) have the retractable wall. Food. For us (I realize different folks have different opinions on food) HAL food is excellent. Dutch Cafe, NY Pizza, Dive in, MDR, Lido all beat what we experienced on Sky. Lido on Sky was , for us, very frustrating...salad bar was a cluster to maneuver and it was hidden, juice cups were shot glass size, more like a cafeteria than HAL's lido market. Breakfast in MDR for Sky was a very small menu w/only one "special of the day"...HAL's was extensive every day. Entertainment. Not into production shows and that seemed to be big on Sky. Nothing similar to the EXC talks (informative educational talks) that HAL has and we enjoy. The jazz club had what we call "brunch jazz" which is not our thing. Sky had nothing like the Music Walk experience on Rotterdam (Billboard, classical, rock, blues, etc.) Technology. We liked the navigator app on Rotterdam to order burgers, etc. to pick up later....Sky relied on this quarter size "medallion" (lost on day 2) that they promised would make cruising so much easier but it rarely worked or had nothing of value for us. They seemed to obsess over it but it did nothing for us. Size matters. Rotterdam 2668 vs Sky 3660 passengers. Sky often felt crowded....We never experienced lines or crowding on Rotterdam Staff. Both were great....But the Rotterdam staff (especially cabin stewards and waiters) do a great job of quietly getting things done and getting to know your likes/dislikes. Hard to quantify that one but the staff on HAL seems to be a notch above. There is probably more but I'm tired of typing. Realize we are HAL loyalists (based on the experience and value we get) but we were open to trying other cruise lines but this Sky Princess experience on Princess helped us realize we were "one and done" with them for now..... I wish you a great journey on whatever you choose.....And we choose the Rotterdam any day over the Sky Princess.

We are in/out in 1.5 hours without pushing it......we enjoy an efficient MDR and I'll pass along a few suggestions: Utilize fixed dining....so the waiter knows what you want/don't want and is ready to help out on day 1 (which is always chaotic), find your table in the afternoon and then just go to it when the MDR opens....no need to wait in the long line to be taken to your table also, day 1 afternoon, if buying sommelier wine package, get the list from the beverage table (set up usually at lido) and figure out what you want....sometimes, they will know if some are available/not available......but wait and buy from waiter as he gets credit Check out the MDR menu on your TV while getting dressed for dinner.....so you will know what you want or at least have a general idea Order everything at once.....some folks hold off on ordering dessert or after dinner coffee....but telling the waiter what you want up front saves steps Dinner in the MDR is a highlight for us......we love it....and enjoy the banter with the waiter, trying different foods than we would risk ordering at home....and the pace is really up to us..... Enjoy the Main Dining Room......whether 30 minutes or 2.5 hours!