Equinox, Marina, Disney Fantasy, L'Austral and Nieuw Amsterdam in 365 days!

[Dr. Cocktail]

I was lucky enough to sail on the listed 5 ships this past year. I thought it would be fun to post a comparative review highlighting “bests” and “worsts”. I travelled in extended and/or aft verandas except for L’Austral which was an ocean view. I am certain that many of you will rabidly disagree with my statements but that’s fine - I am simply telling you what I thought. In some instances, I may even appear to contradict myself. I will also post this on the HAL, Oceania and Celebrity boards. So, without further ado ….

 

Best Interior Design: The contemporary and stunning Equinox and Disney’s recreation of classic liner decor on the Fantasy

 

Still Ugly After All These Years: HAL continues to combine colours in ways that I always thought were not possible (and not in a good way). Nieuw Amsterdam’s Manhattan dining room uses a shade of red usually reserved for an escort’s miniskirt and manages to cover every single surface in the room. My retinas are still sore

 

Best Overall Food: Not even close - the Marina. While not everything is wonderful, most of it is!

 

Worst Food: Again, not even close - the Fantasy. I am still seeing a therapist to discuss the Popcorn Soup (!!!) served in Animator’s Palate. This is the ship where they feel that there is no such thing as too much fried, starchy, cold and pre-made items.

 

Best Desserts: L’Austral’s classic, to-die-for French Pastries are the best I have ever had on a ship.

 

Worst Cabin Design: Surprisingly, the Fantasy provides a queen size bed that can’t be separated, split bathrooms whose doors open into the closet area and bathroom ventilation that is so poor that moisture is literally running down the walls. An honourable mention to the Equinox for having the world’s longest, hardest, most uncomfortable and useless sofa where what we need is additional storage space.

 

Best Cabin design: I loved Nieuw Amsterdam’s hall closets that easily provided the most storage of any of the ships. It also offered a unique system of shelves that could convert a closet with hangers into a closet with numerous shelves. I didn’t even come close to using all the available storage. Of course, the bathroom storage consists of three puny open shelves but you can’t have everything.

 

Most Beautiful Cabin: Marina has a luxurious cabin that really feels more like a smaller room at a Ritz Carlton. Beautiful sheets, plush carpeting and a gorgeous marble and granite bathroom.

 

Worst Specialty Restaurants: A three-way tie: Nieuw Amsterdam’s Pinnacle Grill where I was served a piece of gristle, connective tissue and fat masquerading as a steak: Equinox’s Tuscan Grill where the server couldn’t open a wine and every single staff member took great pains to tell me how wonderful the meal was when it was rather poor and Equinox’s Murano (where I had previously had wonderful meals) where the obsequious waiter bluffed and lied his way through a terrible meal.

 

Best Specialty Restaurant: Easily Remy’s on the Fantasy. A little over-the-top and fussy but a truly gorgeous meal. I also love Jacques on the Marina.

 

Best Itinerary: L’Australs meandering down the coast of Croatia and Montenegro

 

Best Show: Disney Fantasy’s Aladdin. Loud and a bit juvenile but colourful, fun and beautifully staged (we still have no idea how the Magic Carpet with Aladdin and Jasmine flies over the stage!) An honourable mention to the 250 passenger L’Austral who still managed to have two pianists and two vocalists alternating in the lounge

 

They Rolled Up the Sidewalks Award: the Marina where live lounge entertainment at night is

virtually non-existent. The Nieuw Amsterdam was also surprisingly quiet as HAL used to excel at providing numerous live music options

 

Best Cruise Director: We loved Dotty Kullasa on Marina and the tres gentile and elegante Isabelle on L’Austral

 

Best Alcoholic shnorkfest: Marina’s Captain’s Cocktail Party where the cocktails are free-flowing and L’Austral’s where the free-flowing champagne they serve is, well, French champagne

 

Likely to Leave You Sober Award: the Nieuw Amsterdam. I have had liquor-filled chocolates with more alcohol in them than their mixed drinks in the lounges

 

Most Relaxing Onboard Spaces: Equinox's Solarium and Nieuw Amsterdam’s Hydro Pool and Heated Loungers

 

Worst Chair Hogs With No Enforcement of Rules: Equinox bar none. Disgusting. Marina was a close runner up but they started enforcing rules by the end of the cruise.

 

Worst Overall Cruise Experience: Disney’s Fantasy. No matter what they say, it’s really not for adults.

 

Best Overall Cruise Experience: Oceania’s Marina. A class act that needs better nightlife.

An honourable mention to the L’Austral for an elegant, contemporary small ship experience.

 

In all fairness, I must also state that in 2011, I had taken two additional cruises on Equinox that were excellent with much better food in the specialties and a much more congenial crowd.

 

Longest Persnickety Review: Mine.

[Mura]

Thanks for posting. For this cruiser has only been on Marina of the ships you mentioned, I found the comparisons and contrasts very interesting.

 

Mura

[JimandStan]

What did you think of the food in general on Holland America?

[Dr. Cocktail]

Breakfasts were decent in the Lido and the omelettes were good.

The Lido lunches were OK but heavy on the salt and oil. We had nice lunches served in our Retreat cabana. Dinner in the Manhattan dining room was wildly all over the place. I grew up in a household (as did my partner) where at dinner you had two choices - eat what was put in front of you or your mother would beat you 'till you were dead.

 

I sent back my main course twice out of four nights, again with special dispensation from my partner who HATES waste and fussiness. It took one look of my entree (he declined a taste!) to tell me to try something else.

Apps were generally excellent as were soups, salads, desserts and surprisingly, even the cheeses. Mains were the big problem.

You also don't enjoy your food when the waiter has absolutely no time to deal with anything. These boys are ridiculously understaffed.

 

Apps were good in the Pinnacle but our main was virtually inedible. I actually get my meat weekly from a real, family run butcher and he would have used our steak to make hamburger. When I asked for a cheese plate, the embarrassed waiter returned to say there was none available!

 

Tamarind was, according to my partner, "a C grade PF Changs" albeit with great atmosphere and charming waitresses.

[cruisingxpert]

Loved the review and especially, the format.

 

I've been on the Solstice twice and most of the HAL ships. Going on Oceania for the first time in March.

 

I agree with everything you said about the ones I've been on. Food on our first HAL was very good and excellent in the Pinnacle. Food and service kept going down in quality every successive trip.

 

Appreciate the info.

 

CJ

[joysav]

Dr. Cocktail

 

Reading through the Post I got a bad dose of Déjà Vu in regards to Disney.

 

WDW suffers almost the same problems .The Disney Hotels ,entertainment

can not be bettered.

 

But the Rooms / Suites are crap. Some of the Suites look at another wall across

a Courtyard for an example .Constant complaints about this on WDW forums.

Old 27" TV which we can not give away here in Oz. Hard beds etc etc.

 

I thought it was always about View , View , View when you are heading towards

a thousand bucks a night.

 

And in regards to food there are around about 80 full service restaurants but

only about 6 to 8 are worth eating at.

 

Stay at the Swan or Dolphin is my recommendation and in the first 3 weeks of

December if you can.