jeh10641

We are in our 80s and agree.

My first cruise ever was in 1959 (17 years old, student tour to Europe between high school and college). It was the Nieuw Amsterdam, 1938 version. There were three classes of passengers then - first class (access to the whole ship), cabin class (access to the lower two tiers only) and tourist class (access only to the lowest tier places). God forbid you cross the lines (as teenagers, we did!). It seems cruise lines are slipping back to that. Jim

You are right. I meant to say National Park Rangers. Jim

Hi, Norris, I use bold font because it is easier for me to see. I hope that does not offend you. In my signature below is a review I wrote on the Rotterdam after our cruise in December 2021. Pinnacle class ships of HAL (Rotterdam, Koningsdam, Nieuw Statendam) are my perfect size ships. We are going on the Koningsdam in January 2025 to Hawaii. Talk soon. Jim

Hi, Cliff, Here is what I used: :HAL_Ship_Services@hollandamerica.com Jim

I suppose weather might have an influence on eating outside, on any day.

Not the same experience.

Fewer staff members, less cost.

I, too, sent the following note to HAL. "Hello, Gentle People, I have been a fan of and cruiser with HAL since 1959. My 3-Star Mariner status is a result of my loyalty. From a thread on Cruise Critic, I just read that the Main Dining Room will not be available for lunch on embarkation day. That is truly disappointing. I hope you reconsider that decision before my next HAL cruise in January 2025. The Lido Buffet on HAL is the best I have found on various cruises and ships. On embarkation day, it is a zoo since that is where cruisers are directed for lunch. Are the Dive In, NY Pizza or the Grand Dutch Cafe open now on embarkation day? If not, why not?"

I hope that is not the case.

You will love HAL, I think. In Alaska, they are reputed to have the best naturalists onboard because of their longevity sailing to Alaska. I have been sailing on HAL ships since 1959 (age 17+). Most recently (since 2012) on the Westerdam, Oosterdam and Rotterdam (Koningsdam in January 2025). Never cruised to Alaska but went there for business about 60 times. Now I'm retired. Have not been to the state in over 20 years. I look forward to taking my wife on a cruise there maybe in '25 or '26. Jim

Shame on you for chastising my comments on pricing as I was only responding to another's comment. Then you rant and rave about Boeing which has nothing to do with cruising at all.

First off, I did not change the subject to pricing but was responding to somebody who had. Second, I did not find the human service or food diminished in any way. One or two cabin cleanups per day is fine with me. All of the food we had was tasty and abundant. Staff members were friendly, efficient and willing to talk from management to servers. So far, Royal's booking activity has been above average for 2024 and beyond so I guess that people are ENJOYING their trips despite the naysayers. I am not a member of the Loyal to Royal bunch but I certainly enjoy their ships and everything on board. I should have bought their stock when it was in the $50 range. Woulda, shoulda.

Please read all of my recent posts. I DID NOT find your supposition to be true about the food and service. You can read my extensive review of Anthem located in my signature below (expand it).

I covered the food on board Anthem OTS extensively. My review is in my signature below.

The "Law of Supply and Demand" will answer your question. If pricing drives away customers, prices will retreat, maybe not all the way but enough to spark demand. In the meantime, our Royal cruise (Anthem OTS) had very few of the complaints found in this conversation. Included food was very good and choices were ample. Service was impeccable. Did i miss not having two cabin attendants? No. Did I miss two daily cabin cleanups? No. Most hotels do not offer those services. Many do not even offer daily service on longer stays. If you do not want to pay Icon OTS prices, there are many more options in Royal's fleet. I do not care about all the bells and whistles that she offers. For me, destinations are more important than the ship. The megaships cannot visit the smaller, less visited places. Those are what I like. By the way, my preferred cruise line is HAL.

In terms of profitability of cruise lines: Yes, they are having great bottom line success. But be aware they incurred multiple BILLIONS of dollars in debt during the "Shut Down!". It will take them multiple years of big profits to pay that debt down, especially as they add new and refurbish old ships to their fleets. As a stockholder in two cruise lines, I want that debt brought under control even if it means I may have to pay more in order for that to happen.

I will add my two cents. On our Anthem OTS cruise in October, we had two servers. Both were attentive and actually performed way above their paygrade. They had a pot of unsweetened ice tea for each dinner (about a dozen) in American Icon Grill MDR without us asking for it (see my review below, not available otherwise due the embarkation port and taste factors of Europeans according to the hotel director). The two made us origami several times, without asking, including a napkin special one night. The head waiter came over every night to talk to us. He had the kitchen make us a special dessert that was no longer on the menu. We had only mentioned it in passing and never asked for it. Our MDR dinners related, taste wise and appeal, to what I would expect in a land-based restaurant in the $30-40 range, per person (Seattle WA area). There were always 2-4 different items each night over 15 nights plus a few more that remained the same. Gourmet? Not really. However, it was still very good. If I ordered medium rare, it came medium rare. We like to dawdle over dinner but never had to stay more than 90 minutes in a leisurely atmosphere. The Windjammer Buffet was light years ahead of any land-based buffet we ever ate at except maybe in Las Vegas where those buffets now start around $40 per person. I have been cruising since 1959 but in recent years (after retirement) more actively. I do not classify myself as a "foodie" but I enjoy a good meal when I have one. I had only good top great meals on Anthem. Jim

Nothing wrong with my font settings. I find it easier to read this way.

Wrong again. I will not respond to any more of your insults.

Your words: "I'm sure it was memorable for you but not so much for the other guests." "For me and the rest of the guests, not so much." Enough said.

There is nothing wrong with having an opinion. We all do. Some people on this thread enjoy the singalongs and you keep saying that "most people do not enjoy them". How do you know what most people want? Have to talked to most people? You have not talked to me or many of the others who enjoy the singalongs. Find or start another thread to vent your opinions.

I have no idea what your problem is. I have seen the piano bars with people singing along. Sometimes, if I know the words, I join the singing. You should not be putting people down BECAUSE YOU do not like the show. Leave the venue if you do not like singalongs. Jim

Me too.

I get Walter's dogs every few years. My brother (died a year ago) lived in White Plains. I used to come East for MHS Reunions (now via Zoom). We use "Any Time" (or whatever the cruise line calls it) dining. We ask for tables of 6 to 8 including us so we get to meet other people. On our last cruise, via Cruise Critic Roll Call, we met some people with whom we connected before the cruise on land-based tours before and during the cruise. We dined with some almost every night. We all thought RCCL's food was very good. Jim