Questions About Veendam to Bermuda

[booklady26]

I’ll be sailing on the Veendam to Bermuda next month and have a few questions for anyone who’s recently done the same cruise:

1) How dressy is formal night? My husband is wondering if he should take his tux or just a sports jacket? Tuxes are prevalent on formal nights on the longer HAL cruises we’ve taken, but I don’t know about a 7 nighter.

2) It’s been several years since we took a cruise to Bermuda which stays overnight. Our very first cruise was on the Volendam (an earlier incarnation of the one sailing today) in 1981. Back then, onboard casinos were closed and ship’s entertainment was very restricted on those nights in port. Is that still the case?

3) Anyone have recent dinner menus for the MDR, Pinnacle (both regular and Le Cirque) and Canaletto?

4) What’s the cost of the weekly spa pass? Is there a hydrotherapy pool or just steam, sauna and thermal chairs?

Any help you can offer is appreciated.

[3rdGenCunarder]

Hi Booklady,

 

We went to Bermuda on the "old" Volendam, too!

 

We did the Veendam cruise last year and saw very few tuxes on Formal night (DH was one of them). I think most men were in suits or sports jackets.

 

Yes, casinos are closed in port. Evening entertainment on the ship is less restricted than it used to be. The new scaled-down shows on Veendam are great. Not "production" shows with lots of people. Really good singers, worth listening to. Have you been on an overnight in Bermuda since they started doing the Harbour Nights? that's a fun evening on Front Street.

 

I don't have menus or spa info, but someone else probably will.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[booklady26]

Thanks Cunarder.

 

Yes, I was on the Dreamward (later became the Norwegian Dream) in the mid- 1990's. They had Harbor Nights then and it was kind of fun.

[3rdGenCunarder]

Thanks Cunarder.

 

Yes, I was on the Dreamward (later became the Norwegian Dream) in the mid- 1990's. They had Harbor Nights then and it was kind of fun.

 

Goodness, I was on the Dreamward, too! Also Westward, RCCL Song of America, and QE2.

 

Harbour Night has gotten bigger. Sadly, the man making the little donuts wasn't there last time.

[peaches from georgia]

And I was on the Dreamward and the Song of America to Bermuda. Always went to Harbor Nights. Fun. Those were the good old days when the cruises to Bermuda docked at both St. George and Hamilton. :)

[Guest LoveMyBoxer]

DH and DS(11) both wore and will again be wearing their tuxes on formal nights. We sailed the same week last year (3rd week in Aug) and there quite a few tuxes. Like others said, casinos are closed in port. Can't help you with the rest.

 

Now for reminiscing: Sailed to Bermuda on Westward (honeymoon), Song of America, Meridian, Pacific Princess and Zenith. Miss the days of going to both St. G and Hamilton.

[lvz2cruz]

We sailed in June and did not see a lot of tuxes. It seemed that those coming to the dining room on formal night respected the dress code more than some cruises.

Canaletto has the same menu every night. I remember a seafood pasta, chicken marsala, lasagna, vodka pasta, and one or two more entrees. There is an antipasto platter, salad, and desserts. Finally each table gets a huge platter of fresh cotton candy.

The lst night was the master chefs menu in the MDR without the theatrics. You could not order off the always available--I guess it's not ALWAYS available;).

There was entertainment each night. The singers are very good and so are the dancers. Later in the week some of the shows only had some--one night was the 3 guys, one was the main girl and guy. There was a magician one night and a deck/pool party one night.

Hamilton Harbor nights will end right after Labor Day I think.

The casino will close late Monday night and reopen Friday afternoon. So will the onboard shops.

Enjoy your cruise. We loved ours!

[booklady26]

Thanks everyone. I'll reminisce about my Bermuda cruises too back in the day when the ships were small enough to sail into Hamilton & St George.

 

True, those ships weren't the floating palaces that many of today's ships are. They didn't have anywhere near the amenities we enjoy today. But they were more intimate with only several hundred passengers instead of thousands. It was a time when taking a cruise meant total escape and relaxation not being occupied and entertained 24/7. Sea days were meant to be enjoyed at leisure not considered wasted days until you reach port as so many people feel today. I still love the sea days.

 

I already mentioned the Volendam and Dreamward. I also cruised to the Bermuda on the Nordic Prince (RCCL), Atlantic (Home Lines) and Horizon. (X)

 

For anyone who sailed on Home Lines, remember the lovely wooden deck chairs that you had to reserve for the week for a charge of something like $5. See, onboard revenue isn't a new thing and it did keep chair hogs at bay.

 

I remember being very skeptical about going on the Horizon. It was in 1990 and was the 7th voyage for the ship on the just launched Celebrity Cruise Line which was an offshoot of the "bargain cruise line" Chandris. I'd never sailed on Chandris but it's reputation wasn't very good. Unlike today when bargains can be found on the best cruise lines, back then it was "you get what you pay for". Cheap price = cheap cruise.

 

Well, we were blown away by our cruise and Celebrity has gone on to greatness. I digress and it's probably a story for the X board.

 

But it was HAL's Volendam that hooked us on cruising. I celebrated my 30th birthday on that cruise. I remember spending my birthday at Tobacco Bay. It was the first time I had ever swam in water that was so clear I could see my toes at the bottom of the ocean floor.

 

Here we are taking our 47th cruise to celebrate our 40th wedding anniversary by sailing HAL to Bermuda again. Our actual anniversary will be Captain's Night and I can't think of a better way to celebrate it.