LOVED my Oosty cruise; won't book HAL again

[pcur]

Yes, it sounds contradictory, but there was a deal-killer on this cruise.

 

My husband loves to sleep late, and HAL compresses the dining hours to the point that he gets no hot breakfast, and we have to eat dinner earlier than we want, too.

 

We are accustomed to RCCL (40 years with them), and they serve breakfast in the buffet up to 11:30AM, then immediately start lunch selections. On the Oosterdam there was a 1.5 hour break between the hot breakfast that ended at 10AM, and some of the lunch items starting at 11:30AM. That 1.5 hours is exactly when he wants to eat late breakfast/brunch.

 

Dinner is 8 -9PM in the dining room, and we don't want to pay extra to go to a specialty restuarant every night to eat later. We like to have dinner at 8:30PM.

 

Otherwise, the service was exceptional, the food excellent, and the crew amazing! Sigh.....wish we could just get fed when we want.

 

I put it on my comment survey, but if it's working for them, why change it?

[Shmoo here]

Yes, it sounds contradictory, but there was a deal-killer on this cruise.

 

My husband loves to sleep late, and HAL compresses the dining hours to the point that he gets no hot breakfast, and we have to eat dinner earlier than we want, too.

 

We are accustomed to RCCL (40 years with them), and they serve breakfast in the buffet up to 11:30AM, then immediately start lunch selections. On the Oosterdam there was a 1.5 hour break between the hot breakfast that ended at 10AM, and some of the lunch items starting at 11:30AM. That 1.5 hours is exactly when he wants to eat late breakfast/brunch.

 

Dinner is 8 -9PM in the dining room, and we don't want to pay extra to go to a specialty restuarant every night to eat later. We like to have dinner at 8:30PM.

 

Otherwise, the service was exceptional, the food excellent, and the crew amazing! Sigh.....wish we could just get fed when we want.

 

I put it on my comment survey, but if it's working for them, why change it?

 

I'm sorry you didn't find what you wanted onboard. The only question I have is what about the Open Seating? On our HAL cruises the dinner times for Open Seating went to 9:00. Wouldn't that have worked for you?

[cruz chic]

No doubt about it Hal has shorter lido hours. They do have a more extensive room service then let's say Princess. Never cruise Rcl so can't comment. You could do 8:30 in open dining.

[pcur]

I'm sorry you didn't find what you wanted onboard. The only question I have is what about the Open Seating? On our HAL cruises the dinner times for Open Seating went to 9:00. Wouldn't that have worked for you?

 

We had open seating: they wanted us there by 8pm, and dinner took 2 - 2.5 hours. We also ate in the buffet since we had just finished 3 weeks on RCCL, and were a little tired of the dining room.

Edited May 18, 2014 by pcur

[nana51]

These seem like kind of minor issues. 30 minutes earlier for dinner doesn't seem to be a problem. I would order room service for a late breakfast. They have quite an extensive menu.

[Mytime2014]

We had open seating: they wanted us there by 8pm, and dinner took 2 - 2.5 hours. We also ate in the buffet since we had just finished 3 weeks on RCCL, and were a little tired of the dining room.

 

well at least you tried and everyone has their place.

you know your husband prefers eating on rccl and that's important to him.

[eandj]

These seem like kind of minor issues. .

 

 

Everyone has "issues" that are important to them. What OP might think is minor, might be a deal breaker for you. ;)

 

Whether it be entertainment, taste and/or schedule of food, service or ship policies like smoking, dress, corkage etc....don't we all have a wish list for the perfect cruise? In the meantime, we will have fun looking for the perfect match.

[LindaM]

We order room service when we want to sleep late. HAL's room service menu is quite good.

[cruz chic]

We had open seating: they wanted us there by 8pm, and dinner took 2 - 2.5 hours. We also ate in the buffet since we had just finished 3 weeks on RCCL, and were a little tired of the dining room.

 

That's odd because they are supposed to be open until 9. Did you ask why they wanted you there by 8? That sounds like traditional to me. What floor was it on?

Edited May 18, 2014 by cruz chic

[cruz chic]

Everyone has "issues" that are important to them. What OP might think is minor, might be a deal breaker for you. ;)

 

Whether it be entertainment, taste and/or schedule of food, service or ship policies like smoking, dress, corkage etc....don't we all have a wish list for the perfect cruise? In the meantime, we will have fun looking for the perfect match.

 

Totally agree. I guess it's only major issues if it's them:D.

Edited May 18, 2014 by cruz chic

[Mytime2014]

These seem like kind of minor issues. 30 minutes earlier for dinner doesn't seem to be a problem. I would order room service for a late breakfast. They have quite an extensive menu.

 

 

So.....that was my first thought.

The second thought was - thank goodness I'm not married, followed shortly by - and that is the reason you're not married because you have no tolerance for other people's issues.

Now all I can think about is the food - hating this diet but determined to get in "That" dress at least at the beginning of the cruise.;)

[kazu]

I am glad you had a good cruise and although I am confused with having to eat by 8:00 pm in open dining, what matters is if you and your DH are happy.

 

So, if the other cruise line does the trick - go for it.

 

DH and I prefer HAL but we have found a way to work around some of the issues you mentioned (ie room service) and have had no issues.

 

If my DH was having issues, we wouldn't be sailing HAL - so what works for you and your DH is what you should do.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Sorry that you were disappointed in your HAL experience.

Open Seating -- you can arrive as late as 8:55 -- don't understand why you were told to be there by 8. Are you certain you had Open Seating?

[cbr663]

I understand the frustration. On our recent Alaskan cruise it took me 3 days to acclimatize to the time difference. For three days I awoke at 5:00 am and would have loved to have a coffee. I so wanted to sneak out and grab an early morning coffee, but none is served at that hour.

 

And please, don't suggest room service. I did not want to disturb my DW by ordering room service that early.

[cruz chic]

I understand the frustration. On our recent Alaskan cruise it took me 3 days to acclimatize to the time difference. For three days I awoke at 5:00 am and would have loved to have a coffee. I so wanted to sneak out and grab an early morning coffee, but none is served at that hour.

 

And please, don't suggest room service. I did not want to disturb my DW by ordering room service that early.

 

There is supposed to be coffee available 24/7 in the lido. It wasn't?

[kazu]

Yes, it sounds contradictory, but there was a deal-killer on this cruise.

 

My husband loves to sleep late, and HAL compresses the dining hours to the point that he gets no hot breakfast, and we have to eat dinner earlier than we want, too.

 

We are accustomed to RCCL (40 years with them), and they serve breakfast in the buffet up to 11:30AM, then immediately start lunch selections. On the Oosterdam there was a 1.5 hour break between the hot breakfast that ended at 10AM, and some of the lunch items starting at 11:30AM. That 1.5 hours is exactly when he wants to eat late breakfast/brunch.

 

Dinner is 8 -9PM in the dining room, and we don't want to pay extra to go to a specialty restuarant every night to eat later. We like to have dinner at 8:30PM.

 

Otherwise, the service was exceptional, the food excellent, and the crew amazing! Sigh.....wish we could just get fed when we want.

 

I put it on my comment survey, but if it's working for them, why change it?

 

too late to edit my reply earlier to you but I would amend your signature. 'Early' is very subjective. Many that want early dining eat LONG before you would consider it.

 

Just a bit extreme and could be misleading to some. It's all subjective to each person:)

[RuthC]

Pcur, I certainly understand your frustration with breakfast ending so early. I was a little frustrated with it, too, as breakfast used to end at 10:30. I hate getting up so early just to get my breakfast before it closes. But that is what I did.

 

IIRC, room service breakfast times end with the 10:00-10:30 range. I have found that when I specify a time within a range, that is when the food is delivered. Perhaps if you ever do decide to try HAL again, you could try that.

 

I don't understand needing to be at open seating dining by 8:00, as they are supposed to accept entering passengers up until 9:00. Since I don't do open seating, I can't speak to what happened this time.

 

I can tell you from recent experience that Oceania serves a hot breakfast up until 11:00 (or was it 11:30? not certain about that later time) out at Waves Grill. It's not as complete a selection as the buffet, but it is extensive. You may want to check out that cruiseline if you're looking for something different.

Dinner runs late on that line, too.

 

In any case, I'm glad you found some positives, and wish you well on your search for the best cruiselines for you.

[esimon]

I suppose it wont help for me to point out how unhealthy eating that late is.

[sail7seas]

I suppose it wont help for me to point out how unhealthy eating that late is.

 

 

Seeing as OP stated they have been sailing RCI for 40 years, the chances are pretty good they are into the senior age range. They likely have patterns and habits that work fine for them by this age. :) They know what they like and what they want.

 

OP .... Hope your next cruise offers more of what you seek.

Happy there were things you enjoyed about Oosterdam. She's a nice ship. :)

 

 

 

Edited May 19, 2014 by sail7seas

[hrhdhd]

I suppose it wont help for me to point out how unhealthy eating that late is.

 

Actually, eating late is not necessarily unhealthy. Eating unhealthy food at any time of the day is.

[eandj]

I suppose it wont help for me to point out how unhealthy eating that late is.

 

;)Guess you'll need to point it out to all of Europe . Dinner after 8 is the daily norm.

[Mytime2014]

;)Guess you'll need to point it out to all of Europe . Dinner after 8 is the daily norm.

 

but....but....Dr. oOze says it is bad for you :eek:

[iancal]

It would not bother us but I do have to agree. HAL's Lido hours are not great-especially later at night.

 

But, this is one of the great things about having so much choice. There are lots of great cruise lines/ships out there to choose from.

[sherilyn70]

I suppose it wont help for me to point out how unhealthy eating that late is.

How is eating when you get up unhealthy? Not everyone is on the same schedule. Eating times are based on when you get up and go to bed, not what time is served in a restaurant. My husband essays breakfast at 11:30pm on work nights.

 

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[Mary Ellen1]

So sorry this didn't work for you! I, too, wish they had longer buffet hours, esp. in the evenings.