Any Westerdam Alaska Returnees Yet?

[curtdesilets]

Thanks to Big Canoe:

 

My wife and I enjoyed seeing Alaska again and experiencing the Holland America approach, the first 2 visits were on Celebrity. Overall the ship is easy to get around on and quite pretty in a simple but elegant style. The food was very good, even at the buffet, which was a pleasant surprise. Lately cruise food seems to have declined in general...but Westerdam excelled in the dining room pretty much every night. Room service was hit or miss and somewhat disappointing, but still edible. The bars served up good drinks and at fair prices. Nice ! I must commend all the staff that we met, they were very polite, professional and really tried to assist in the best way that they could. An example was how they handled our stateroom problem. We booked cabin #4179, a balcony on the back of the ship overlooking the wake. It is larger than normal and has a large, but open roofed balcony....not good if it rains. Our problem, and we were not alone, was a lack of hot water. Several days went by with luke warm water at best. Many other rooms also had the same issue. The ship's staff genuinely tried to fix it and showed true concern for our discomfort. When it was fixed, day 5, they still called to check on us daily. Nice to know we were not ignored. The shows onboard were some of the best we have seen...great vocalists, band, and WOW were the sets amazing. So glad we went. In summary, Alaska is a grand destination and Westerdam is a good way to go..

[amysb]

.Most of the passengers felt the same as the line to have gratuities removed was all the way down the hall at the guest service desk.

 

This is exactly why I love Cruise Critic and also why I take all reviews with a grain of salt. Not to imply in any way that cruiseatick's comments are incorrect - not at all! It just shows how 2 different cruisers on the same ship can have completely different experiences. My DH and I were also on the May 3 Westy cruise, but our experience was entirely different.

 

The one thing I was surprised about was that the drydock did not completely replace soft goods and make minor repairs - we were in the aft-wrap Neptune Suite 5191, and the drapes were stained on the lining, grout in the bathroom was cracked and missing and the cushions on the verandah chairs did not match fabric & one was much thinner than the other. None of this impacted our cruise in any way, but I did mention it to the concierge in the Neptune Lounge, as I was a bit surprised, and was told that soft goods were only replaced in about half the cabins. The mattresses appeared to be new, however, and we slept quite well on them. Other than that, we had the best room steward we've ever had, every staff member we met was friendly and seemed happy and we overall had a marvelous time.

 

We dined in the main dining room, the Pinnacle Grill, the buffet, the Dive In and also room service, and never had cold food or inedible food. One of the highlights that I strongly recommend is the Chef's Table offered at the Pinnacle one night - the wine pairings with multiple courses was tremendous and the other 10 people at the table were a joy as well! The piano bar was entertaining, too, and Les was very talented. We did not do any of the shows this time - not sure why. We relaxed a lot, I guess!

 

We did purchase the Thermal Suite week-long pass the first day & utilized those facilities frequently. The steam rooms were broken for a couple of hours one morning, but they got them fixed quickly. The ceramic loungers & pool were so wonderful.

 

The weather was cool but bearable (and we're from Houston, so more used to heat than cold!). We had some sun and low-to-mid 50's in Juneau and Sitka, clouds without rain at Glacier Bay and light drizzle in Ketchikan. The ride back to Victoria became a bit bumpy and we were 2 hours late getting into port there, which upset one person we saw at the front desk. Fortunately, we had already planned to stay on the ship anyway and finish packing early. We used Luggage Direct for our large suitcases and absolutely loved it! I will definitely do this again any chance I have.

 

In Juneau we did the Musher Camp excursion (5 stars for all dog-lovers!) and in Sitka we did the Artist's Walk w/Hot Glass excursion, which was truly enjoyable and again I can highly recommend!

 

I never saw a long line at guest services, BTW, but may not have been around the main lobby at the right times. The line to debark at 7:30-7:45 am was fairly long, but moved quickly.

 

I'd be happy to answer any other questions, but we loved this cruise on the lovely Westerdam!

[runnergirl71]

We did purchase the Thermal Suite week-long pass the first day & utilized those facilities frequently. The steam rooms were broken for a couple of hours one morning, but they got them fixed quickly!

 

 

How much did the week pass cost if I may ask.

 

 

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[amysb]

How much did the week pass cost if I may ask.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

They had a "special" the first day for $249 for a couple. I believe it's normally supposed to be $299 for a week.

[kjw869]

I too am waiting for more reviews. The one overtly negative one that is here seems quite over the top with the (hard to believe) notion that there was a long line of people demanding their gratuity money back. We need some other, perhaps more balanced critiques of the ship.

 

Yes, that is very hard to believe. We just disembarked the Zuiderdam last Saturday, and there was a long line at the Front Desk, most of the people were holding their Final Statements. I didn't hear one complaint about the service, so it's also hard to believe the crew was unhappy on the Westerdam.

 

We did see the Westerdam twice while in two Alaska ports, and both times the ship looked wonderful. It looked like a new ship with the paint job. We've been on the Westy three times and can't wait until we board her in January of next year.

[kkwilson]

The slots in the casino are loose- am up 40!!!!!

 

Hi Judi,

 

We will be on the Westy this Sat . Hope you aren't wearing her out!

Which slots do you like?

 

Kenny W.

[amysb]

I too am waiting for more reviews. The one overtly negative one that is here seems quite over the top with the (hard to believe) notion that there was a long line of people demanding their gratuity money back. We need some other, perhaps more balanced critiques of the ship.

 

Yes, that was why I felt compelled to post a brief review, when I am typically more of a lurker than a poster :o. Although the cruise wasn't perfect (if anyone ever has a 100% perfect cruise, please let me know :D), it was truly excellent, at least from our perpective.

[runnergirl71]

They had a "special" the first day for $249 for a couple. I believe it's normally supposed to be $299 for a week.

 

Thanks. Did you notice if they had a special price for solos? If not, totally cool. :)

[amysb]

Thanks. Did you notice if they had a special price for solos? If not, totally cool. :)

 

I believe the single was 1/2 the price, but don't quote me on that, LOL!

[runnergirl71]

I believe the single was 1/2 the price, but don't quote me on that, LOL!

 

Thanks! That gives me a ballpark idea anyway. :)

[RuthC]

Did you notice if they had a special price for solos?

 

I believe the single was 1/2 the price, but don't quote me on that, LOL!

The spa price for a solo is always more than half the couples rate. Just one more "single supplement". :rolleyes:

[curtdesilets]

The spa price for a solo is always more than half the couples rate. Just one more "single supplement". :rolleyes:

 

$149, I'm pretty sure, for a single.

[RuthC]

$149, I'm pretty sure, for a single.

How much for a couple on the same cruise? $249?

[curtdesilets]

How much for a couple on the same cruise? $249?

 

I think it's $249 for a couple, if you buy it on embarkation day. That works out to less than $20 per person per day if you use it the entire 7 days. not bad. We've done it before and found it to be...paradise.

[RuthC]

I think it's $249 for a couple, if you buy it on embarkation day.

That's a significant per person discount over the single rate. :mad: I could use that $25 single supplement in the bar.

[Windsailer]

May 17-24th.

 

High points:

 

Alaska.

Bed in our Signature suite.

Room service for breakfast (twice) and lunch (once).

 

Low points:

 

"At your service" phone number is a joke. On hold twice for 20 minutes just to get more ice. The second time I walked to the front desk to ask for it.

 

Dining. Was placed in late fixed even though our boarding pass had us in open (as we always do) Had to go see Ricco/Enrico ? to have it changed. He was VERY reluctant since he said the ship was almost full and open would be very crowded. I said I didn't really care since we were planning to eat in the Lido anyway...just wanted to give up what apparently was a prime table for two so someone else could have it. Next time I won't bother. Now the Lido. Since the MDR lunch hours were very, very limited most people were eating in the Lido. IT WAS PACKED. I have never seen such crowds on any other HAL ship. First time we just went back to the cabin and ordered room service, Second day decided to come back later and I went to the Explorations Cafe for a couple of their little sandwiches to tide me over.

 

Food. Never had breakfast potatoes more than luke warm even though I always asked if they were warm, and was told yes. Halibut night in the Lido (Ketchikan). HAL had their salmon BBQ for lunch but it wasn't in the ON Location Guide so was only sparsely attended. So what happened to the left-over salmon you might ask? Well, we in the Lido got it for dinner instead of the halibut. That's what the cooks on both sides said. On the last night the Lido had Bourbon Glazed Beef. It was RAW. not rare, RAW. I asked the cook to put it on the grill for a couple of minutes so it would be edible. While I was waiting no one in line asked for it, and I assume that was the kitchen's intention. Finally, there was never any Prime Rib or Beef Wellington in the Lido, which we have always had on Vista Class ships.

 

There were a few other glitches but the one thing I really found to be strange was in the Lido on day 6 for breakfast and dinner.The crew member in charge of the rolling coffee cart on the starboard side was wearing a Husky mask, holding a rubber ball that made loud squeeky sounds and singing/saying loudly in a falsetto voice "Have a Nice Day". It was bizarre.

 

There were also unusually long lines whenever we went to the Front Desk.

 

We are planning to take another Alaska cruise this September - might go on the Amsterdam instead.

[cruiseatick]

As the last poster claimed the device was anything but excalance!! You all may think I am exaggerating when I say this was the worst Hal cruise I have ever been on,this is not my first cruise and will be retuning to royal as I believe the aditude of the crew sets a tone for the whole week,maybe holland needs to get with the times my mother is 70 and Hal needs to get with the times ,we thought the entertainment was horrible it seemed as we were transported back in time to the 50 sat the the captains night kick off show with big fake bottles of champagne that shot out glitter,if you are looking for a cruise that will allow you to remember the old days of cruising then you may like this cruise,The Vegas like shows were quirky at best ,but I usually don't care for the cruise line singers and dancers but there is usually a good comedian ,not on this ship they had a juggler who's claim to fame was juggling bowling balls that is so outdated,but this same act has been on Hal for 27 years no late nite comedy just bad singers and dancers,,, I know all of you will tell me to go back royal and I will run back to royal as they take care of their past passengers like priority boarding and all kinds of discounts on board not holland you get a cheap bag and that's about it I did go to the embankment lunch and that was nice to avoid the lines at the lido.if a 70 year old woman says holland needs to get with the times that says something these old ships with old ideas may be nice for some ,but not for me what about interactive tv in your staterooms to check your on bourd account ,make dinner reservations book excursions not on this ship ,holland will be a thing of the past if they don't get with the times and the service will get worse and worse if they only had a thousand people on a cruise that takes 2500 there is a problem,the newer ships do have tamerind Asian restraint that was wonderful and the cabanas on erodam and new Amsterdam were a good start ,but if a ship went into dry dick and didn't change anything but soft goods ,that's a problem......

[avalon1025]

Just off the May 17 cruise, thought the ship was wonderful and one of my best cruises of the 92 I've taken. Very friendly crew, ship was in good shape, food was great, zero crowds anywhere. I guess some people will find fault in anything? I was in a suite and was escorted aboard and who was in the neptune? The CEO, he was delightful with the captain welcoming guests aboard. Honestly over the past 10 weeks I've sailed the Celebrity Silhouette (great ship and cruise), Crown Princess (absolutely awful in so many respects) and the Westerdam (as great as the Silhouette, but different in decor and the most friendly of staffs).

 

For the price, I can't find fault with anything on the westerdam.

[curtdesilets]

Just off the May 17 cruise, thought the ship was wonderful and one of my best cruises of the 92 I've taken. Very friendly crew, ship was in good shape, food was great, zero crowds anywhere. I guess some people will find fault in anything? I was in a suite and was escorted aboard and who was in the neptune? The CEO, he was delightful with the captain welcoming guests aboard. Honestly over the past 10 weeks I've sailed the Celebrity Silhouette (great ship and cruise), Crown Princess (absolutely awful in so many respects) and the Westerdam (as great as the Silhouette, but different in decor and the most friendly of staffs).

 

For the price, I can't find fault with anything on the westerdam.

 

I find it so interesting that 2 people can have such vastly different experiences on the same cruise. We have never really had a "bad" cruise...some just weren't up to the standards of others. What's also funny is that if something is wrong, say the food is too cold or undercooked, there are very easy ways to remedy the situation. You go up the ladder to the food services manager, and especially if you have as many cruise credits as some of these bad reviewers apparently have, the management will do something.

 

Instead, often, the complainers have some sort of ulterior motive to disparage the cruise line or ship via cruise critic and not go to the source to get the problem fixed. They would rather have the problem, and talk about it incessantly. This isn't always the case, but sometimes it is.

 

It's fun to watch. That's why I love cruise critic and take into account all of the reviews, good or bad, to try to hypothesize what my experience might be like. It is still good to see where the problem areas might be, so we can avoid them though.

 

It's interesting to hear that your recent experience on Crown Princess was not so stellar. We were on a "norovirus cruise" around the British Isles a few years back on Crown. I was less than impressed. Good cruise and itinerary, but myriad problems sort of overshadowed it.

 

Happy Cruising to you! - OP

[curtdesilets]

Just off the May 17 cruise, thought the ship was wonderful and one of my best cruises of the 92 I've taken. Very friendly crew, ship was in good shape, food was great, zero crowds anywhere. I guess some people will find fault in anything? I was in a suite and was escorted aboard and who was in the neptune? The CEO, he was delightful with the captain welcoming guests aboard. Honestly over the past 10 weeks I've sailed the Celebrity Silhouette (great ship and cruise), Crown Princess (absolutely awful in so many respects) and the Westerdam (as great as the Silhouette, but different in decor and the most friendly of staffs).

 

For the price, I can't find fault with anything on the westerdam.

 

Avalon 1025....

 

Here was our experience on Crown Princess back in 5/2011, if interested:

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=84579

 

The cruise would have been better but we were in "Code Red" for the entire duration and IMO, Princess did not handle the situation well at all. I spoke at length about their Code Red procedures and the effect on the overall cruise experience shortly after arriving home from this cruise.

Edited May 25, 2014 by curtdesilets
Additional info

[cruiseatick]

My auto correct has a mind of its own , and we did confront the head waiter on our cruise and they gave us all free drinks on the last nite,we are not the only people that have had problems with westy . Look for apost from Cruz chick who was on the repo cruise from ft launder dale she had to endure bad service for two weeks . My wife is a travel agent and did talk to her rep at holland that said the service that we received was unacceptable .did I mention the explorations cafe with one broken coffee machine and a line out the door every morning., all they could say is they been trying to get two machines for some time now.i am not trying to be a hater but it only fair to give people an honest review.Ass I have said we were with a group and all had problems so it is not an single persons opinion ,as I had said we had to order coffee from room service and carry it to our meetings as the coffee was delivered cold to the meeting room.Its easy to keep two passengers happy but when you book a group and all are having problems that's a problem . Holland America has the same compass for the past five years nothing changes past passenger have already went to cooking classes and windows seminars ,art shows,it's not all negative ,but it is only fair to give an bias oppinion

[DiploTraveler]

The ride back to Victoria became a bit bumpy and we were 2 hours late getting into port there, which upset one person we saw at the front desk.

 

Funny... same thing happened on the May 17 sailing, although we were only one hour late to Victoria. The ride back was so bumpy that the captain asked women not to wear high heels and for passengers not to use their verandahs. The promenade was closed.

[runnergirl71]

Funny... same thing happened on the May 17 sailing, although we were only one hour late to Victoria. The ride back was so bumpy that the captain asked women not to wear high heels and for passengers not to use their verandahs. The promenade was closed.

 

 

This just reinforces my decision to not book an excursion for Victoria but hang loose and play it by ear.

 

 

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[DiploTraveler]

"At your service" phone number is a joke. On hold twice for 20 minutes just to get more ice. The second time I walked to the front desk to ask for it.

 

That was our experience exactly on the two Caribbean cruises that we stayed in a Superior Verandah. Last week, we stayed in a non-superior Verandah and I was afraid the wait times would be even worse. Exactly the opposite. I got through right away every time.

[DiploTraveler]

This just reinforces my decision to not book an excursion for Victoria but hang loose and play it by ear.

 

 

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That's not a bad idea and I believe a lot of people on board did just that.

My wife and I have mixed feelings about the Victoria stop. It's a beautiful town with a very European feel to it. We decided to go downtown on our own and walk around. We enjoyed it very much, but you get there after many places have already closed, you don't get too much time in port, and if you get back on the ship at the all aboard time, you only have 45 minutes to pack.

 

The captain warned us that there is absolutely no room for error in the time scheduled between Ketchikan and Victoria. So, it seems that any unforeseen event (weather, delayed departure, etc.) will cause a delay getting to the last port.

 

Bottom line: Nice city, terrible scheduling.