Real NHDOC

Literally cannot remember staying in any hotel or cruise ship cabin where a pen and pad wasn’t either left on the desk or made available.

I also remembered that on the first day I asked our room steward for a pen and note pad (typically found in every HAL cabin upon embarking) so we could leave him a note if we needed anything and he told me “there are no pens and note pads are only given to guests staying in suites”. He said he would try and find me a pencil. I told him I would leave my notes in lipstick written on the mirror then. He found me a note pad and pen. They leave room service menus in the cabin but no pen to fill them out with? And wine in the mini bar but no wine glasses? Who does this?

Ran into a couple last night onboard Apex who lamented having ordered two martinis in the martini bar and being handed a bill for $47. One of the other problems is they have prices for some drinks in the menu but others aren’t listed so you seem to pay whatever they feel is appropriate. I ordered a $10 glass of pinot gris from the menu in one bar and inexplicably was charged $11 for it. So you cannot even trust the menus.

The Edge class actually has multiple (4) “main dining rooms” but they are all very densely packed with tables very close to each other. Each has a different theme but you can order any dish available in any dining room from any of them. As noisy as the Pinnacle class MDR is on HAL it is still an overall more pleasant experience than being on Celebrity Edge class IMHO. The ceilings are low and the large tables are very noisy and you just can’t escape them. It makes dining in them very unpleasant. So unless you want to pay for a special restaurant you are left with the buffet.

I wish they had a “no tiles, please” list so we wouldn’t have to keep returning them to the cabin stewards at the end of every cruise. It’s especially bad on B2B cruises because they give you tiles at the end of every leg. If I never got another tile I would be thanking Holland America!

You need to monitor your folio very carefully when you buy a Sommelier suite package because mistakes happen quite often and I have been charged many times for bottles that were supposed to be from my package. Their system is terrible and it becomes the guest’s responsibility to keep track of how many bottles were consumed since there is no way to tell from their billing system. Sometimes on some ships the bottle shows up as a zero charge on the folio and sometimes not. It’s just the way it is. Aggravating but still worth the effort since you can get good wines at a great price (with the Mariner’s discount) if you’re diligent. Only one time did I encounter a cellar master who was a stickler for only allowing us to order wines specifically listed in the cellar instead of allowing us to substitute others from the regular list of comparable price. Most of the time they will gladly allow you to have a bottle of St. Michelle Riesling, for example, even though there is no Riesling in any of the cellar listings.

I didn’t mention in my original post that we had cruised on Celebrity several times before, just never on an Edge class ship. The upcharges for everything from specialty dining to snacks in one of the bars is especially irritating. The same croissant that is free on the buffet will cost you $2 in the cafe on deck 4. Celebrity is probably appealing to someone who wants a 7 day getaway and doesn’t care that much about service or atmosphere in the dining room. For people who spend a lot of time on ships and appreciate service over glitz it’s just not a good fit.

After spending a very pleasant month aboard Eurodam we boarded the Apex on February 24th. Our first impression of the ship was it is beautiful and certainly a level above Eurodam being their Edge class. But the beauty of the ship could not offset the issues we have had which started with one of our suitcases going missing and not being located until 7pm. Then there is the dining room noise level, intolerable. The tables are all set so close to each other there is no privacy and no way to carry on a conversation. Food wasn’t as good as in MDR on Eurodam. Then there are the drink prices. Dramatically higher than they were even in January when we cruised on Summit. Almost no wines available for $10 a glass which is the limit for the standard drink package. Even some beers were over $10 (Stella at $11). Wines that were $10 a glass are now $17 and many relatively inexpensive wines are over $20 a glass. Cocktails that were $10 now $15. The same that can be had on HAL for $11 and included in the drink package are all an upcharge. We eat most meals in the buffet which is okay but the food is never hot. HAL lido is probably overall better. Then there is the service. Cabins not clean until afternoon and evening turn down not done until after 8pm. Single stewards clean the cabins. Nowhere near as friendly or accommodating as on HAL. Public areas strewn with dirty dishes left by slobs on stairs and in hallways for hours. Entertainment is still where Celebrity beats HAL hands down. Better stage shows and even the comedians and lounge singers are generally very talented. For value HAL wins hands down. Celebrity is on average 50% more expensive for everything and they never miss an opportunity to overcharge for things that are free or less expensive on HAL.

Be aware that the lists have recently changed almost completely. Some wines from Cellar 1 are now in Cellar 2 and vice versa and some have disappeared entirely. Don’t make any decisions until you see the current list. Also, in answer to the OPs question, if you buy a Cellar 3 package you can order wine from any of them. But IMHO there aren’t any dramatically better wines in Cellar 3 than in Cellar 1. It’s a lot of psychology that “spending more gets you better wine”. Just not true.

Buffalo Trace was plentiful on Eurodam this month. The bartenders in Ocean Bar didn’t know anything about the new barrel being offered but told me they use BT in the Manhattans they made in the bar. It was only $9 a shot on Eurodam so it was covered by the drink package too.

Wish I could be as positive about the RS lounge band on Eurodam. I miss the Pinnacle ships for both the vastly superior venue BB Kings has in addition to the horns which are woefully lacking in the RS lounge band. Blues without horns is just not the same. And the singers on Eurodam - let’s just say they are weak.

Lol, not tipping because it robs the workers of their dignity. That’s one hell of a way to try and justify being a cheapskate.

Last night was a “dressy night” on Eurodam. We watched as two women in t-shirts and shorts, one wearing flip flops showed up for dinner in Pinnacle and were allowed to eat. So, no, there is no longer any dress code enforcement, at least not on Eurodam!

Too bad about your unfortunate experience with Tamarind. Overall our experiences there have been better than those in Pinnacle on the Eurodam. On one of our trips to Tamarind our appetizers were served lukewarm but otherwise everything was very hot and fresh. I had a question about your order. You mentioned you get softshell crab from Nami. I know they do a crab roll but will they serve just a fried softshell crab like what you had previously shown a photo of? We asked our server and she said it was only available in the roll form. I assume she was incorrect - how do you get just the whole crab?

We had it. The presentation was beautiful and the taste was excellent. Having said that we also have been equally pleased with the Nami Sushi offerings too. The Morimoto sushi plate is probably as good as cruise ship sushi can be.

Pinnacle bar on deck 2 during certain hours.

Exploited might be a reasonable term. HAL (and the other lines) take advantage of the low wages prevailing in parts of the world they recruit in. Furthermore, HAL’s history of colonialism in Indonesia makes their “relationship” particularly fraught with issues. Having said that the opportunity to earn much more money than they’d have the opportunity to in their home countries makes the backbreaking Herculean tasks they perform cruise after cruise worth doing. So it’s a win-win, in that respect. But they are exploited. And that’s why I feel they deserve the crew incentive plus extra cash. It’s a way to recognize some of the big picture and how lucky we are to benefit from it.

Another nickel and dime story: Guest next to us ordered Pellegrino sparkling water and was told signature package only covers Perrier. What?? It’s water and presumably counts towards the 15 drinks a day but you can’t get the brand you want? But order a scotch and Pellegrino - no problem. Just hold the scotch. Five easy pieces! You also can no longer get the still water that comes in the cans that can easily be refilled with the screw top lids as part of the package. Just the non-reusable kind. Again, it’s just water and well under $11 so why not include it?

This topic has been discussed ad nauseam and while it is irritating that HAL has chosen to raise both the price of HIA and many drinks to more than $11 but not raise the $11 limit it’s what they did. The most effective way to get it changed is to make a comment in the post cruise survey when it asks what they could do to make the experience better. The Eurodam now has an $11 limit on happy hour drinks meaning you can’t get any discount off of any drink over $11 which seems stupid when they could just limit the discount to the first $11 if they really wanted to nickel and dime. But there’s no limit on the number of drinks you can order at a discount so we often see 6 packs of beer leaving the bar to go back to the cabin fridge to be enjoyed at any hour and not just happy hour.

There is no limit to the number of dishes or openers or desserts one can order. That’s why it’s nice to go in a group of four or more so that you can try everything. It’s meant to be served “family style”. As for the price, it works out to about $65pp, but remember that’s in addition to what we’ve already paid for food provided in the “free” venues so in reality it’s probably more like $100pp if you factor in that it’s a supplemental charge. Overall, I think the quality of the food is better on the Tamarind menu but maybe that’s just because the kitchen is used to making those dishes day in and day out. Also, Tamarind sets a pretty high bar usually and it is hard to beat. That, combined with the lower price and mariner’s discount has us thinking we’d prefer two Tamarind dinners for the same $$$ as one Morimoto night.

There was a time post covid when the cabin stewards would ask if you wanted “morning or evening service” which made people think they could no longer get both but they never stopped providing both if you simply asked. Now it seems like things are more back to normal but sometimes we occasionally run into a steward who still will ask because some people prefer one or the other. But nightly turn down was always available.

They never stopped offering turn down service on Holland America. You can request it when you meet the room steward on the first day and it will be provided. We started our post covid cruising in August of 2021 and never have been told we could not have service morning, evening or both.

I recommend anyone save their money and order the Szechuan shrimp instead of the wok seared lobster. It’s basically the same recipe but the shrimp is better than the lobster.

FWIW the Sichuan shrimp dish (which can be ordered from mild to spicy) is basically the same recipe now as the wok seared lobster but without the upcharge. The shrimp are actually more tasty and tender than the lobster in most cases too.

just ask…you can request all white or dark meat however they serve it with half white and half dark typically.