vicd1969

Some brief notes on my recently completed 7 -day sailing on the Nieuw Statendam with my cousin and his family, who were first time HAL cruisers. Positives: Embarkation was reasonable when we arrived around 1230 - longest wait was actually the traffic going through the port checkpoint cabin attendants Made and Andi made us feel at home Cousin’s family ocean view cabin was spacious and the separate shower and bathtub were much appreciated Dive In fries and burgers MDR and Tamarind mains were all hits Lido service and breads BB King and Rolling Stone bands delivered energetic and fun performances NY pizza offering wings and sliders after 9 pm for late night snacks Dutch cafe had very good coffee - the paid coffee at the bars in the lido are inferior Half moon cay - they loved watching the stingrays Hal now has enough assistants helping out with activities I was always able to find a heated chair in the thermal suite, the steam room is huge! CD Betty Ann was wonderful in her presentations, but the best was her cozy Q&A session that took place on the 12th deck Plenty of NFL games on the big lido screen for this fan. Standing room only for movie night when they showed Top Gun Maverick. Instead of a mariner lunch, just got a free mariner cocktail coupon. This actually worked better for me personally since it didn’t force me to schedule around a lunch and I didn’t have a beverage package this time. But I can see it be disappointing for most mariners. Things to improve We ate in the MDR three times. With two kids in our table, it is necessary to give them something to eat as soon as we sit. Bread was delivered without asking only once., when we went early at 5. We also didn’t get to put in our orders until like past 15 minutes from being seated once in the MDR and the night we ate at the Tamarind. The food did come out promptly once orders were taken. But it seems anytime dining is a crapshoot and based on the very limited sample size, the earlier you go the better. Premium Internet service not very good after day two, though it was somewhat better when I sat closer to the bow on decks 2 and 3, like at the rolling stone room. The port stop hours were a bit limited - we arrived too late in Aruba to do anything more than a beach trip. Getting off at 2 pm was a zoo. We ate dinner onshore which was surprisingly good given the touristy location by the harbor. Curacao was a bit better with the 7 am to 4 pm port stop, we were able to go explore a relatively secluded snorkeling site and walk around town a bit. You do have to be an early riser to maximize the stop. I didn’t realize the disembarkation process changed. When I sailed this past summer, we were given tags for our Club Orange anytime disembarkation. This time, you had to grab whatever tags you wish by the guest service area. So this ended up to be a first come first served situation with all the desired times gone by the time we came by. Fortunately for us, we had a late flight so it didn’t matter which tag we took. But the communication could have been better, it only said to come by guest services to pick up your tag the evening before disembarkation, not that tags would be available much earlier and will run out. Some of the Tamarind appetizers were disappointing - either too sweet or not spicy/flavorful enough. The Tom Kha soup didn’t have enough lemongrass for example. We did get a second order of the shrimp tempura, the kids loved them. On a positive note, no charges yet for extra appetizers at Tamarind. No tile received - though not sure 7 day Caribbean sailings get one.

I'm on the Nieuw Statendam this week. At the Lido deck big-screen TV, they showed NFL games at 4 PM Sunday, the 8 PM Sunday Night game, and the Monday night game. There were quite a few chairs for the evening games, and no one was being really loud and obnoxious. And that's even with one of the games involving the Packers-Cowboys fan base. The only glitch was when the first Sunday afternoon game was turned on - the volume was set way too loud. But after a couple of minutes the crew finally adjusted it to a reasonable level.

On board Niuew Statendam now and laundry is indeed $30 per bag and $63 unlimited for the 7 day cruise. My cousin has 4 people and still it’s a good deal for his cabin.

I'm also on the 11/12 cruise and both the Navigator and the website glitched for me as well. I'll try after 5 PM in case the software thinks it's too early to submit. update: I used Verifly and it took. My Navigator app also now says completed. 🤷‍♂️

You have a good point about the pressure on publicly-owned cruise lines to cut costs. This may mean that for privately-owned lines such as MSC and a few other smaller lines who can afford to take a longer-term outlook, you could see better bang for your cruise bucks in the future.

They could always implement a fuel surcharge. I don't think they did that even when oil was at around $120 a barrel this past year.

Maybe top 4 - I suspect the European subsidiaries Aida and Costa would have more willing buyers. Cunard could also be on the selling block to someone looking for prestige points, not necessarily short-term financial returns. Another possibility is Princess and HAL shedding older ships and then merging into one entity.

The J and K cabins on the Nieuw Amsterdam are bigger than most inside cabins on other cruise lines. But some of the J cabins on the port side are under the BB King stage, so you would need to pay attention on which cabin to book.

Hi Jacqui - I got a last-minute deal for a cruise with my cousin's family. Thanks for putting me on the list! November 12, 2022 - 7-day Southern Caribbean on the Nieuw Statendam

Great concise review. I concur that Dive In fries have gone downhill post-COVID, at least in my Norway cruise. The fries were made Dutch-style (kind of like plain steak fires) instead of having the panko-like coating the classic Dive In fries had. But the majority of passengers were Dutch, so they may have modified to suit their tastes. I'm sailing again this November in the Caribbean and really hope HAL reverts back to the old recipe.

If I want to pay for another cabin to join me at Tamarind, for example, will the charges hit my account and help me earn towards my mariner points?

It's been my experience that enforcement of beverage bottles/containers is more lax in the excursion ports compared to the embarkation port.

My Orange party experience - super crowded BB King with most mask-less, so I pretty much left early to reduce my COVID exposure risk. The orange drink did complement the sunset when I went outside, however.

As others have said, the menu is technically the same as the regular MDR with an additional entree and appetizer choice that's prepared by the chef onsite in the restaurant. But dinner tends to be served warmer and the wait staff are more accommodating to special requests. Frankly, we found the service to be better than that in the Pinnacle Grille on our Rotterdam sailing. Since you tend to have the same waiter for both breakfast and dinner, you establish a closer and warmer relationship as they get to know your preferences. In the specialty restaurants, unless you are a frequent diner at the place, you won't have the same connection. My nephew and sister couldn't stop raving about our Club Orange waiter after our cruise.

Normally should have soy or almond milk available. I don't think they have Lact-aid. But it's not a guarantee they'll have it due to supply chain issues still occurring - some recent passengers have complained about certain alcoholic drinks not available on their cruise. Also, if you ask your dining room server the previous night, they can make accommodations for your dinner the next night to be lactose-free.

There is a small delivery charge, but Dive In is available for room service orders.

Oh by the way here is an early morning view from the V balcony when sailing in Norway instead of the open sea.

Here are a few pics of the view from my V class balcony on the Rotterdam at deck 5. The lifeboats didn’t really interfere with the view and the space was ample for sitting, though dining on the balcony would be tight. The two cabins in front of mine have more depth since they are in the diagonal part of the superstructure.

Yes, we were! Great to hear from her, thank you very much for your mention!

It's not as obstructed as the oceanview obstructed cabins on the older ships. The lifeboats jut out further and don't obstruct above the balcony railing. But if you wish to upgrade, I highly recommend purchasing the Club Orange package which costs less than the book price difference of a V category balcony. It will allow you to upgrade to a V Category balcony. You also get the separate Club Orange dining room. I upgraded from our Rotterdam VH obstructed using Club Orange and it was one of the best cruising decisions I've ever made.

What region is your sailing? Sounds like the Pinnacle class ships may be more suitable for your family (more things for kids, LOTS more music options, slightly nicer sports court). Also, Volendam doesn't have many balconies - I think all of them are classified as suites.

Any drink $11 and under in the specialty restaurants are covered by your beverage package. You can also bring in drinks you got from the other bars/restaurants on the ship.

The hydro pool on the NA is super-nice, but you need to pay for the spa pass (can be bought online for the whole week), or day-rate subject to availability once onboard. A passenger reported that on a different ship the spa did not honor the 2nd 7-day pass she bought online for the B2B, so I would be cautious about buying two spa passes for the B2B. Tamarind restaurant - Highly recommended, but will cost extra. Maybe worth a splurge at least once on a B2B For Alaska, crew may serve her pea soup if she's outside by the promenade deck on Glacier Bay day Not sure if HAL still have cooking demos on 7-day cruises (which is what the B2B are) Crow's Nest is a great hangout spot, but can get crowded on sea days and during happy hours. Depending on her physical shape, highly recommend going out to deck 10 and 11 to view Alaska if weather permits

If you are still onboard, please give a shout out to Franco and Elena from the big family group on the June 19 sailing.

The Cunard sailing is 12 days vs the HAL one at 14 days for the North Cape itinerary. That may explain some of the price differences. That said, if you are fine with packing at least two sets of formal wear for your trip, a couple of the Cunard stops are superior. The QV goes to Geiranger and the Lofoten islands, which are usually on list of people's top favorite Norwegian ports. It's also early June vs July, where more snow capped mountains make for better photos. If scenery and ports are your top priority, I'd vote for Cunard as well. If food options and a desire for casual relaxing are your priority, the Rotterdam is a better fit.