MS Westerdam Review: March 18-25 / Southern Caribbean

[AriesLV]

MS Westerdam Review: March 18-25 / Southern Caribbean

 

EMBARKATION: we arrived at the dock even before they opened the doors. By 11 we were entering the building, and we were on the ship by 11:30. It was orderly and efficient and best of all quick. Our staterooms were ready by then, which was fantastic and greatly appreciated!

 

FOOD: I was pleased with the food overall. My only complaint was with the beef dishes in the MDR, which I tried on the first two nights before switching over to other options. My prime rib on the first night, for example, was…gummy. On the second night I had a steak, which was simply not good. However, the non-beef entrees were good, I thought the soups and salads were very good, and the desserts were always fun and tasty. I don’t eat fish (allergies), so I can’t comment on the seafood.

 

 

I was surprised by how much I liked the Lido buffet. The Panini/sandwiches were really good; in fact, I don’t remember having anything in the Lido that I didn’t like, which is unusual! There was a lot of choice, and everything I tried was good. I was especially in love with the cobblers that they offered almost daily. With a scoop of ice cream, I was in heaven. The cookies were always good too, as was the pizza.

 

 

On the first formal night, the Captain’s Gala Night, we weren’t excited with the menu choices in the MDR, so we tried the Pinnacle. OMG was that a good meal. I had the filet mignon, well done, and it was delicious. My partner had the beef kabob, which the set on fire at the table: dinner and a show! The desserts were also fantastic. The Baked Alaska is made with Ben and Jerry’s Cherry Garcia ice cream, and also set on fire: awesome!

 

 

We had room service for breakfast a few times, and it was fine. Let’s face it: they’re making delivery breakfast for hundreds of people, so it’s never going to be super fresh or piping hot. If you want that, go to the Lido. We did have breakfast in the MDR twice, and it was excellent (hot and fresh!). I would highly recommend it for those sea days especially. I loved the bird song playing quietly over the sound system. What a nice touch.

 

STATEROOM: we had aft balcony cabin 5184, and loved it. You could have parked an SUV on our balcony (three chairs, two tables, and a lounger!). In case you wondered, deck 5 aft balconies are completely enclosed, meaning that deck 6 extends the full length of the balcony. This is not true on other decks; deck 4, for example, is about half covered. For me, the enclosed balcony is a plus, because I’m pale, and laying out in the full sun is a bad idea for me. It does get a little stuff at times, but it was the right choice for me. I was absolutely blessed out sitting in the shape on my lounger reading a book, watching the ship’s wake, and listening to that wonderful white noise.

 

 

We loved how much drawer space we had. There are two large drawers at the end of the bed, and two smaller ones under the couch. The closets were well thought out too, I thought. There were even shelves that folded up out of the way of hanging clothes or could be put down for shelf space. I can’t imagine anyone needing more space than that which was provided.

 

 

My only minor complaint was the sideways toilet. It was a little…difficult to use (I’m 6’1).

 

STAFF: simply outstanding. Our cabin steward, Joe, was awesome. He was fun and professional, and probably the most memorable of any cabin steward I’ve had in five cruises. The room was always clean, the ice bucket was always filled, and he called us by name within 24 hours (I’m terrible with names, so I am always impressed by this). Our dining room staff was also excellent. Our waiter, Anas, the assistant waiter, Arya, and the guy in charge of our section, Robert, were wonderful. Robert always stopped by to say hello, and Arya remembered our drink orders every night. I could not have asked for better service.

 

ENTERTAINMENT: I found Julia, the lecturer on ports and such, to be wonderful. Her lectures on pirates and ports were interesting and helpful. I expected a sales push, but she stayed away from that, which I liked. We went to one show, which was pretty good. To be able to sing and dance on a moving ship, and trying to please everyone, has to be difficult. I thought that the comedian was a little pathetic, but that’s just personal preference. We’re in our early 40s, which was on the young side of the audience, so I think the material was geared toward a different demographic. The more mature members of the audience seemed to enjoy it.

 

SHIP: I found the ship to be in very good shape. Yes, you could find imperfections here and there, like some rust here or some deck chairs needing a new coat of varnish, but it was very clean and well maintained. I can’t say that I’m a fan of whoever did the design of the interior though. I liked the artwork in the main stairways, but otherwise found the décor to be…odd. I kept thinking someone tried a retro-70s theme that they never got quite right. I’m thinking of the chair designs, some of the lighting, and even the colors used for carpet, curtains, and furniture. However, that’s all personal preference on my part, and I’m sure others like it.

 

 

I never felt crowded, and there were many wonderful little places to hang out.

 

 

I heard/read a few complaints about the ship’s motion, along with suggestions that the stabilizers didn’t work well. Here’s my opinion: you are on a ship on the ocean. What do you expect? Do you also complain about turbulence on airplanes? The ocean moves; the boat moves: there is going to be some motion felt, especially if the seas are a little rough.

 

PORTS: I was a little annoyed with Aruba. We went to the beach first (Eagle – very nice/ lots of big rocks in the water, so take water shoes), and by the time we got back to town, nearly everything was closed (almost no stores were open after 6/6:30 and the ship left at 10pm).

 

Curacao: we did the Beach Experience excursion, which was a bus ride to Blue Bay Beach (www.bluebaycuracao.com). I thought it was well worth the $54/person, especially since snorkel gear was included in the price. The beach was beautiful, I got to snorkel and see thousands of fish, and there was laying on a lounge chair under a palapa: heaven! I would recommend water shoes here too.

 

Half Moon Cay: holy crap was the water cold! It’s a beautiful island, and the sand is gorgeous. I swear I felt like I was walking through cookie dough. We rented a clamshell, and were glad of it. As previously mentioned, I’m pale and needed the shade. The buffet was quite nice (although my burger was raw in the center, so watch out), and the whole place was immaculate. I did finally man up and go into the water, if only on principle.

 

MINOR GRIPES:

· for the first three or four nights in the MDR, the background music was Kenny G. I would have preferred a little less of that.

 

 

· I would have greatly appreciated having our bill/expenses available on the tv as some other cruise lines have. It’s not a major issue, and I could have checked with the front desk at any time to see how much we had spent, but it’s a nice feature when available.

 

 

· The complainers: you know who you are (or do you?). I’ve never heard so much complaining about the stupidest things or such rude behavior toward ship staff who were clearly running their little butts off so that you could have your every whim catered to (apologies for that dangling preposition). I heard two gentlemen yelling at the front desk staff because their inside cabin was too small. They felt that they were mislead somehow, even though exact dimensions are given on HAL’s website, and you can find the smallest details of every stateroom covered exhaustively here on cruise critic. I watched as an older couple flat-out yelled at a deck steward because they wanted the table cleaned off immediately, regardless of the fact that someone had literally just left that table (and their dirty dishes) seconds before, and regardless of the fact that this steward was obviously attending to other people and literally running from task to task. Then there were the anti-smokers who seem to enjoy making an enormous fuss about the smell of smoke. There are hundreds of threads on cruise critic about which cruise lines allow smoking and where. You knew all of this before you left home, and if you were going to be so offended by balcony smoking, you should exercise your right to choose a line that does not allow this most horrific of all acts. I would suggest Celebrity, which only allows smoking in designated areas on one side of the ship.

 

 

To be honest, these people generally just amuse me, so they were not a problem or an issue or of any real notice whatsoever. Come on people: you are on a beautiful cruise ship in the Caribbean and not fishing bodies out of the surf in the aftermath of an earthquake and tsunami. Take stock of the blessings around you, shut up, and have a pina colada.

 

MAJOR GRIPES: I can’t believe the bastards made me leave the ship when I really didn’t want to. How cruel is it to treat you like a king for a week and then make you leave?

 

DEBARKATION: this was my only true major gripe. We did not get our disembarkation information until 11:15pm on Thursday. I expected to be in the very first group off because we did the luggage direct program (which worked beautifully, by the way), but I couldn’t be sure until I got all the materials, including luggage tags. Since I had to get up very early, and since I could not put out my luggage until I had those luggage tags, I was slightly annoyed (and tired the next morning).

 

 

If you can do it, I would recommend the luggage direct program highly. For $19 per person, our luggage disappeared from in front of our statement, and we did not see it again until we got to Las Vegas (which is home). We even had a transfer in Tampa, and there were no problems. I was surprised that Southwest participates, but they did (as long as your flight out of Ft. Lauderdale was after 11:30am or 12:30pm out of Miami).

 

 

By the way, why did I have to get off first because of this program? My flight wasn’t until 12:30, but I still had to be in group 1 off the ship. I suppose it’s some customs rule, in case I’m smuggling heroin or something.

 

FINAL THOUGHTS: I’ve cruised on Princess (once), RCCL (once), and Celebrity (twice). This was my first time on HAL. I prefer Celebrity because their focus (demographic) is more appropriate to my age group and preferences. I also think their food is a little better overall. That being sad, I really liked HAL, and would not hesitate to go with them again. I probably won’t travel with Princess again because I found their food to be truly awful (although the Caribbean Princess was beautiful, well maintained, and the staff was great), and I probably won’t seek out RCCL because I don’t really want to travel with a lot of kids and their target group seems to be families with children (although I’m really curious to try Oasis or Allure, just to see what one of those monsters is like). For me, if the itinerary and price were right, I would not hesitate to go with HAL again.

 

It was a wonderful, relaxing week, and I had a fantastic time. At the end of the day, what else could I possibly want?! I can’t wait until it’s time to go out again J

 

If anyone has any questions, I’d be happy to try and answer them, which is why I’m posting this here.

[IRL_Joanie]

Welcome home!! And thank you for such a detailed and honest and fair review of Westerdam!!

 

She is a great ship and it was great to read all the details and comments (which I agree with a to the complainers:cool:)

 

Only one question from me as I have people asking for them all the time.... Any photos??

 

Joanie

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.

[iriemon]

thanks for your detailed review. We were on her in February and loved the trip. Loved your comments about the complainers, and agree with you 100%. Let's see how badly you get flamed on your smoking comments, :eek: as true as they are.

[AriesLV]

What would you like photos of Joannie? We took over 2,000, plus video :-O

[Cruise Organizer]

I agree with th OP, but he did not mention the entertainment.

Best Comedian I ever seen on a cruise ship (26 cruises)

Piano show - also excellent

Overall, probably best whole week of shows.

 

I am not a smoker - did not see much smoking, even in the casino.

Complainers were at the pool, griping about small things. They also did not like kids - I was there with my spouse, no kids.

We had great tablemates - always one of the last to leave the dining room.

Photographers were also great - we actually looked good in the pictures!

Did not eat the beef in the MDR day 1 or 2 - tried the Pinnacle Grill - veal chop was excellent. We also tried the Canaletto Restaurant in the Lido - surprised in a positive way - private, good food, excellent service.

 

We had an SA suite - Neptune lounge is wonderful. We also ate breakfast daily in the Pinnacle Grill.

Ports were a little disappointing - we were shut out at Aruba

We have done this cruise on the Westerdam before, so these islands were not new.

HMC - the water was cold - I did not go in and I enjoy the beach.

 

I will say that while the service was good, it is not the same as past years.

 

Booked a cruise for next March while onboard.

[Lady Arwen]

Thank you so much for your review of the Westerdam. We're looking forward to boarding her next Friday.

[AriesLV]

Forgot two things:

 

1- THE SPA. We did the unlimited stone bench, spa pool, steam room package for $199/couple, and it was awesome. We spent from 5:30-7pm in their every day of the cruise (almost), and loved it. That pool is so warm and so relaxing, and was great for those tired muscles not used to all that walking. The staff in their was a lot of fun too!

2- I GAINED EIGHT POUNDS: I'm absolutely sure this was HAL's fault and not mine. I am sure that I read somewhere that if I passed through the Lido without taking a cookie or having an ice cream cone a cute, baby animal of some sort would be killed in a really nasty way. Therefore, it's not my fault, which I want everyone to know :p

[AriesLV]

You're going to have a great time, and I am really, really jealous!

[IRL_Joanie]

What would you like photos of Joannie? We took over 2,000, plus video :-O

Joanie is greedy:) Seriously though, Any photos of the different areas in and of the ship and Stateroom photos. I would greatly appreciate it as I am sure others would also:)

 

I can also use videos.

 

And if you do have photos of your stateroom can you send not only a description, good and bad but also add your CC member name?? I get quite a few photos and need to make sure I get the credit to the person that sends them to me:)

 

Joanie

[DFD1]

Nice review of a lovely ship and great itinerary. Glad you enjoyed HAL. Come back soon!

[AriesLV]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/61146668@N04/

[AriesLV]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/61146668@N04/

 

Spelled your name wrong - so sorry Joanie!!

[Krazy Kruizers]

welcome home

 

thank you for taking the time to write your review

 

glad you enjoyed your cruise

 

such a shame that they made you get off the ship

[fsdj1097]

We were on the Westerdam on this itenerary in February. We were very happy with the Westerdam. We also had the Thermal Suites package and agree that it was a wonderful addition to our cruise and worth every penny. We took this cruise mostly for the 3 full sea days rather than the ports. Although we really enjoyed HMC.

 

Sorry about your experience with the beef dishes. I had a wonderful prime rib and a great NY Strip. We also had a great experience on the LIDO.

 

Thanks again for a great review.

[IRL_Joanie]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/61146668@N04/

 

Don't worry about the misspelling of my name Mike:) I've been called worse:)

 

I have a few of the photos downloaded now and will get them up tomorrow.

 

Thank you so very much!!!

 

Joanie

[erewhon]

Thank you for your review.

I always feel so sorry for the hardworking staff having to cope with such rude passengers.

[DaveRRT]

Had a great time on the Westerdam also 03-04-11. Had VD 4145 will try to send some pics to Joanie. Food , strings, piano bar, craps table, and our CC get together in crows nest all great , may do it again in December Dave

[kazu]

Very enjoyable review - thanks so much. for what it's worth, we often run up to the Lido - grab the fresh made sandwiches (usually paninis) and bring them back to the room ;) Quite edible IMO:)

[djhsolara]

Thank you so much for the review!! We will be boarding her next Friday. I like your photos of your balcony. We will be in the aft corner, so it was great to see the depth of the balcony.

 

From the sound of it, perhaps we will be getting some OBC for our Thermal Suite package. We paid $250 from Ship Services, however you mentioned that you paid $199. That happened to us the last time as well.

 

:) :)

[StartrainDD]

I submitted our review/log to cruise critic yesterday and will post a link when it is published. We gave it 5 stars. After our last cruise experience (on Princess) the Westerdam was an absolute GEM. The crew, service, and food - 5 stars - absolutely.

 

I don't think I mentioned smoking in my review - the only place we truly avoid is the casino as at times, the smoke in there is horrible. We don't get balconies on HAL as DW has real problems with smoke (makes her cough terribly) so why take the chance on not being able to use the balcony? Otherwise, we were never troubled by smoke (and as I said, DW is very sensitive to it).

 

Would love to cruise the Westerdam again!

[StartrainDD]

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=80799

[Histrionix]

Hi, I'm the other half of AriesLV and I posted review of this same cruise on the main board. A little lengthier and perhaps not as funny as his, but the sentiment remains the same: http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=80821

[Histrionix]

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=80799

 

 

Great reveiw - so glad you enjoyed it as much as we did. Hey, I think we probably ran into you in the thermal suites if you spent anywhere near as much time there as we did! :D

[mallbucks]

http://www.flickr.com/photos/61146668@N04/

 

We very much appreciate the photos you posted of cabin 5184. We have booked cabin 5185 for a 30 day cruise to Hawaii/South Pacific in Sept. this year and are really looking forward to the aft balcony. First aft facing cabin for us so good to know you enjoyed it so much. Thanks again.