Just back from Maasdam 3/8-18 - any questions?

[Infi]

Just back from Maasdam 3/8 cruise this morning. Had a wonderful time and really loved this ship. I know the smaller ships of HAL have many fans on here, and after our first cruise on one of them, I understand completely. We had only sailed the larger HAL ships prior to this cruise and I have to say the ship's size made this cruise even more enjoyable. Our new goal is to sail all the smaller ships of HAL while we still can.

 

Some observations:

 

--Embarkation: very smooth. I have never been impressed with the HAL shoreside staff in the past, but they were very helpful and extremely organized. As the ship was just coming off the 49 day Brazil cruise, I was expecting delays but there were none to be found. We were onboard by 11:45am.

--Ship was in immaculate condition - very clean and constant maintenance going on. Loved the layout of the ship and that it had all the amenities of the larger ships.

--Crew: wonderful! The HAL crews are always so pleasant and accommodating, but the smaller size of the Maasdam meant we got to know the crew even better than we usually do. It was a pleasure interacting with them and they were the highlight of the cruise.

--Sadly, the dining room waitstaff are still very overworked and have too many tables to cover. They do the very best they can, but they are stretched too thin and it shows during the dinner service. As a passenger, it's difficult to watch. I wish we could pay more for our cruise so they could increase the staffing levels to what they used to be.

--Food: excellent. Great menu variety and great quality in the MDR, especially at breakfast and dinner. Really appreciated that the MDR was open for lunch on some port days which hasn't been the case on other cruises. Lido food/late night snacks were a little lacking, according to my DD (I don't eat in the Lido so can't personally comment.) Tried lunch in the Pinnacle for the first time and it was a lovely experience that we will definitely repeat next cruise.

--Entertainment: mixed thoughts. The guest entertainers (acrobats, comedian, violinist etc.) were excellent and we enjoyed their shows very much. On the other hand, the main shows in the theater were very poor IMHO. The quality of the performers was good, but the issue was the shows themselves: cheap or non-existent sets, limited costumes, and only two backup dancers who always looked very out of place because there were only two of them. I don't fault the performers - they do the best with what they have - but it comes across as very low-budget.

--Activities: noticed these were cut back in comparison to previous cruises. They seem to have gotten rid of the travel guide and lifestylist positions, which means less activities during the daytime. As always, enjoyed the Culinary Arts Center demonstrations and the crafts activities (whose budget is also being cut, unfortunately).

--Music: I know this has been reported on here, but I was sad to see the demise of the Adagio Strings as a quartet. They are still a quartet on the Maasdam, but they were approaching the end of their contract and didn't know if or when they would return. We got to know the musicians well and it's a shame that HAL is trying to cut them down to duos.

--Itinerary: we visited San Juan, St. Thomas, Dominica, Antigua, Tortola, and Half Moon Cay. We don't cruise for the ports in the Caribbean, but this was a unique itinerary that we really enjoyed. A very nice blend of sea and port days and some lesser-visited islands which were very nice. Also appreciated how easy debarking and embarking the ship was with fewer passengers - the experience was always very speedy and easy.

--Passengers: we have sailed HAL five times now, and this was one of the most elderly cruises we have been on. In the 10 days, we had 10 medical evacuations. We left Ft. Lauderdale on the 8th and returned about 3 hours later to offload two passengers who needed medical attention. On our second sea day, we made an unscheduled stop at Grand Turk to offload two more passengers to medical jets. Each port after that brought another ambulance. At Half Moon Cay yesterday, another passenger was offloaded and taken away on a medical seaplane. Needless to say, it was very depressing and really made one think about how fragile life is. I must give kudos to the medical staff as I know they had a very rough cruise and to Captain Russell-Dunford for keeping us informed and updated about these emergencies and managing to keep spirits up during the tough days.

 

 

If anyone has any questions about the ship or the cruise, please post here and I'll try my best to answer them.

[sail7seas]

Happy you enjoyed the beautiful Maasdam so much.

She's a beautiful ship with a wonderful crew.

Welcome back and thanks for sharing with us.

 

[aliaschief]

Welcome back and thanks for sharing your cruise experience.

[Copper10-8]

...............--Activities: noticed these were cut back in comparison to previous cruises. They seem to have gotten rid of the travel guide and lifestylist positions, which means less activities during the daytime. As always, enjoyed the Culinary Arts Center demonstrations and the crafts activities (whose budget is also being cut, unfortunately).

.........................

 

Just a heads up for ya; The Travel Guide and Lifestylist positions are not being cut. There were some last minute personnel changes prior to you embarking and those two positions could not be filled for your cruise! They should have been as of today!

Have to agree to disagree with you on cast shows like Encore, Road House and Goode Company;)

[imae39]

We are interested in a shore excursion in Tortola and Antigua. Did you book your own or go on excursions offered by Holland America? Did you enjoy these islands? We have been to the others before so wonder what to do on these.

Was pleased to read your review. Thanks.

[George C]

thanks for the nice review, agree 100 percent about staff in MDR, looking forward to our sailing on it next month.

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.

[burke1021]

I was also on this cruise and agree with everything you said. The main shows in the Showroom were not very good and after the Roadhouse performance, we decided to skip the show on the last night. The dancers seemed very out of place and out of sync. We were also saddened each time the captain announced the evacuation of another passenger and agree he did a great job of keeping us informed.

 

Having said that, this was the very BEST cruise we have ever taken. I loved Dominica, Tortola and Half Moon Cay the best. I wish we could have stayed at Half Moon and Tortola longer!

 

I also want to mention that Stryker the Piano player was fantastic. We went to his show every night and we hope to experience his talent on our next cruise.

 

The Maasdam is small, elegant and has the best crew..... in particular the bar staff... Lawrence, Fe, Jherney and France. They always made us feel special!!! I hope to see them again!!!

 

Well done Holland America!!!

[TraelorMex]

So glad you enjoyed the Maasdam. We recently did a 42 day'r on her. We love the smaller HAL ships as well....no comparison between them and the biggies.....

We also were VERY sad to learn of the 'adagio strings' being given the boot. We REALLY loved them...they were terrific. Maybe we can get HAL to reconsider....:)

[George C]

Do you remember who your Piano player was???

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report, glad you had a good time!

[RuthC]

I also want to mention that Stryker the Piano player was fantastic.

He sure is! Do you happen to know how long he will be on the ship?

I'm sailing her in June, and I would love to run into Stryker again.

[Copper10-8]

He sure is! Do you happen to know how long he will be on the ship?

I'm sailing her in June, and I would love to run into Stryker again.

 

You won't in June! He departs April 22

[gelo7]

Thanks, for sharing your thoughts.

[kazu]

thanks so much for the great review. We really enjoyed the Maasdam too. While, our cruise was a few months ago, I was quite impressed with the innovative entertainment. We're not 'show people' but certainly found some worth attending on this ship:)

 

Sounds like you had a great cruise.

 

Welcome home:)

[cruisinclined]

We are interested in a shore excursion in Tortola and Antigua. Did you book your own or go on excursions offered by Holland America? Did you enjoy these islands? We have been to the others before so wonder what to do on these.

Was pleased to read your review. Thanks.

 

You can take a 20 min. minivan ride in Tortola to Cane Bay from the port, a few years ago it was $6 pp each way and there are sunbeds, snack bar and good swimming or relaxing.

In Antigua, Nelson's Dockyard is a must see and there will be ship tours and probably cheaper portside operators.Beaches too of course.

[Infi]

Just a heads up for ya; The Travel Guide and Lifestylist positions are not being cut. There were some last minute personnel changes prior to you embarking and those two positions could not be filled for your cruise! They should have been as of today!

 

Have to agree to disagree with you on cast shows like Encore, Road House and Goode Company;)

 

Thanks for the update, I'm glad to hear it was a staffing issue and not a cut. :)

 

I agree with you on Encore, that show was fantastic. Road House and Bob Mackie's Broadway, on the other hand, were duds IMHO. The small cast and limited sets really cheapened the experience, unfortunately. :(

[Infi]

We are interested in a shore excursion in Tortola and Antigua. Did you book your own or go on excursions offered by Holland America? Did you enjoy these islands? We have been to the others before so wonder what to do on these.

Was pleased to read your review. Thanks.

 

imae, we just found our own tours in port. Did not do a tour in Antigua, as we have been many times before, but they are readily available on the dock for cheaper than the ship's offerings. I second the suggestion above to visit Nelson's Dockyard, it's a unique site.

As for Tortola, I haven't been there in many years and DD had never been so we did take a taxi tour. They have the safari-style vans (like in St. Thomas) on the dock that give a 2-3 hour tour for ~$20pp. It is a quiet island, not much to see other than a few beaches and mountains, but we enjoyed it nonetheless. There is a small shopping village downtown (10 min walk from the pier) with lots of stores, as well as some roadside vendors outside the port gate.

 

Glad to hear the review helped. Enjoy your cruise!

[Infi]

I was also on this cruise and agree with everything you said. The main shows in the Showroom were not very good and after the Roadhouse performance, we decided to skip the show on the last night. The dancers seemed very out of place and out of sync. We were also saddened each time the captain announced the evacuation of another passenger and agree he did a great job of keeping us informed.

 

Having said that, this was the very BEST cruise we have ever taken. I loved Dominica, Tortola and Half Moon Cay the best. I wish we could have stayed at Half Moon and Tortola longer!

 

I also want to mention that Stryker the Piano player was fantastic. We went to his show every night and we hope to experience his talent on our next cruise.

 

The Maasdam is small, elegant and has the best crew..... in particular the bar staff... Lawrence, Fe, Jherney and France. They always made us feel special!!! I hope to see them again!!!

 

Well done Holland America!!!

 

Burke, I agree with your comments as well - this was such a wonderful cruise. The staff on the Maasdam is just fantastic! They made all the difference for us. Like you, we were also big fans of Lawrence (what a beautiful voice!) and France in Explorer's was such a sweetheart and so very caring. France has a real gift for working with people, and we enjoyed spending evenings in Explorer's with her. Glad to hear you had such a good cruise also.

 

So glad you enjoyed the Maasdam. We recently did a 42 day'r on her. We love the smaller HAL ships as well....no comparison between them and the biggies.....

 

We also were VERY sad to learn of the 'adagio strings' being given the boot. We REALLY loved them...they were terrific. Maybe we can get HAL to reconsider....:)

 

It was so nice to be back on a smaller ship and the difference in service and getting to know other passengers and crew was like night and day. There's nothing wrong with the cruises on the big ships, but there is just no comparison between the two.

 

We got to know the girls of the Adagio Strings very well and they were very sad as they approached the end of their contract. They aren't sure where they will go after this, and I hope for the best for them. I wrote this on my survey but it sounds like the decision has been made, unfortunately. They will be sorely missed! :(

[JamesEM]

Thanks for sharing and reminding to get travel insurance for my next cruise.

[imae39]

On ten day Maasdam cruise how many Formal Nights are there?

[RuthC]

On ten day Maasdam cruise how many Formal Nights are there?

You should expect three formal nights on a 10-night cruise.

 

If you are on an especially port-intensive cruise, there may be one less, but that is rare.

Your final documents will give the expected number for your cruise. (again, subject to last-minute change.)

[iowasue]

Thanks for the reviews about the entertainment. We sail on the Maasdam in a little less than 3 weeks! Since we are also doing the 10 day Eastern Caribbean itinerary, I'm curious what you did for excursions. I'm especially interested in Dominica. Also interested in trying Magic Ice in St. Thomas.

[sodsmom]

Which days are the formal nights on? We are doing the same itinarary in April and are trying to book Pinnacle Grill for a day that is not a formal night

Thanks

[Infi]

Thanks for the reviews about the entertainment. We sail on the Maasdam in a little less than 3 weeks! Since we are also doing the 10 day Eastern Caribbean itinerary, I'm curious what you did for excursions. I'm especially interested in Dominica. Also interested in trying Magic Ice in St. Thomas.

 

First, my apologies for the late reply, I didn't see these posts until now. We've been to all of these islands before, so we didn't take any excursions, except in Tortola because DD had never been there. In Tortola they had tours on the pier in those safari-style vans you see in St. Thomas, $20 for ~3 hours. There's not much to see on the island in terms of sites, but it is a pretty island with lots of coastline, especially Cane Garden Bay beach. You can also see many of the US and British Virgin islands in the distance.

 

As for Dominica, it is very different from the other Caribbean islands IMHO. It's a very lush and mountainous island that has been largely undeveloped except for eco-tourism. The downtown is a real, unpolished downtown and more for locals than for tourists - no Diamonds International here. I would recommend getting out of the port area and really seeing the island. Again, there were tours you could take on the pier, about $25-30 for 3 hours or so. Trafalgar falls and its twin waterfalls are worth a visit, also the Emerald pool, the sulfur springs, and Champagne reef is supposed to be great if you are into snorkeling. The ship also offered whale watching and snorkeling cruises, if either of those interest you. I would also check out the ports of call board here, as I know there are several local tour operators who are very well recommended on CC.

 

Hope that helps! Enjoy your cruise.