Zuiderdam review June 30 - July 11

[aamechs2]

This was our 2nd time cruising with HAL, both Med cruises. We had 2 cabins, traveling with 15 year old twins. We boarded on JUne 30 in Barcelona. Boarding was quick and easy. WE got on the ship and went to our rooms. Category HH, rooms 4060 and 4062. We immediately noticed that 1 room seemed very dark even with the blinds open. We went to the lifeboat drill, way too much time standing out on a hot deck while stragglers showed up. But then we headed out to eat and then back off the ship for more time in BCN. When we got back, it was apparent that 2/3rds of the flourescent lights along the window wall were out. We also had cords hanging down from behind the TV, an outlet that was pulled out of the wall and a chair that was so smushed down you could not sit in it without putting a pillow on it. We tried to call the fron desk (there is no option for calling maintenance on this ship) but couldn't get thru. So we went down to the desk and told them. We also asked to have a limit put on our teens card and the lady said that she would but it wouldn't take effect til the next day. Back to our room, changed for dinner and went to the dining room. We had Anytime dining, it was about 8:50 pm. The wait was about 30 minutes for a table for 4. (What was weird is that there are 2 lines, one for anytime and one for fixed, but as we followed the rules and waited in line, 3 other families went to the other side and got pagers, which was frustrating once we figured out what was going on. This happened several other times during the cruise but we kept following the "rules") We were seated and when we ordered, I asked for the prime rib but was told that they were out. Sigh, didn't make me very happy. I can't remember what I ordered but it wasn't very good, luckily my hubby ordered the steak and shared (off the every night menu) Desserts were good though.

The next day we were up when maintenance came by to fix our lights. It made the room brighter but not much. The whole trip we remarked on how the lights weren't bright and in the wrong places. We couldn't see in our closets at all and consistently used my iphone flashlight for the 1st closet with the safe. We disembarked after a great breakfast and went up Las Ramblas to La Boquieria market and then to the beach. We had a fabulous day. Once back on the ship, I went to take a bath and got totally drenched by the shower! It would not let water come out of the faucet, only the shower head. We never could get the valve to work but I learned to put the shower down in the tub.

Getting back on the ship, we noticed that the phone in the other cabin didn't work at all, we couldn't get the safe to work and they had lights out too so another trip down to the desk because we couldn't get thru on the phone. Dinner that night was much better, we went at 6:30 and there was no wait, which was true throughout the cruise. The late dining was very popular but we always ate before 7:30 and never waited again.

The next day was a stop in St Raphael. We got off the ship and walked to the train station and with some difficulty in using the machine, took a train to Antibes and another train to Cagnes sur mer, where we walked a short distance to the bus stop for a bus to St Paul de vence. Beautiful medieval town and the bus drops you off right at the front. We reversed the route to go back to the ship but had a very inexpensive lunch in Cagnes near the train station and then spent time walking around in Antibes. I wish we had waited to eat there as there were many restaurants down by the warter but when teens are hungry, you feed them! We had also met a very nice couple from Florida who went on this adventure with us and helped with directions. I had very explicit directions to get to the train and bus station but not on how to work the machine which had no English available. However a nice French man helped us. We got back on the ship, got our bathing suits and went to a close beach for a wonderful swim. Back on the ship we had dinner, very good again, and went to a show that was great. (singing and dancing)

Next day was Monaco. We got off the ship with the intention of watching the changing of the guard, wandering in Monaco and then taking buses to Eze. The first part went fine but then I could not find the bus stop to go to Eze. We got on the wrong Monaco bus (yellow route which really goes nowhere) and we couldn't find anyone who knew where the bus stop was. We gave up and walked around Monaco for awhile. It was very hot, unseasonably we heard) and we got back on the ship to wait out the heat. We got back off at 6:00 and took the #1 bus to the casino,passing right by the Eze bus stop (#112) I was so mad at myself. I had the info but it was just so miserably hot (I never thought finding a bus stop would be a problem) We loved hanging out by the casino watching the cool cars and beautiful people. Looking at the menus at the restaurant of the hotel de Paris hwich is next door. Lady Gaga and Tony Bennet were performing that night so there werer people everywhere. We also went to the Stars and bars bar where they were having a 4th of July party, that was a lively crowd! The ship sailed at 11:00 and as we were headed out, the sky lit up with fireworks!! They went on for awhile, such a beautiful display with an awesome finale and we were very impressed that HAL would do that. (Of course we found out later that it wasn't HAL)

Our next day was a sea day. Very relaxing, but there were no chairs to be found anywhere on the LIdo deck, many with towels and people who never showed up. We did find 1 chair on deck 10. That was frustrating but we enjoyed our day anyway. Dinner was wonderful and even with Anytime dining, we had fabulous waiters, different every night but they did a wonderful job. We did buy the kids soda cards, the pay $25 and get $50 but it was fountain sodas and they were pretty awful, like they were stingy on the syrup maybe, I'm not sure. Plus my daughters got demagnitized and they still let her get a couple sodas but later charged her card for 10 sodas when it was only 2.

I'll finish this later.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Sorry to hear about all the cabin problems.

And sorry you missed Eze -- we loved it --a lot of climbing -- at least in my earlier years I was able to do it.

Looking forward to more of your report.

[Spursgirl]

We were also on this cruise and I am very interested to read your perspective.

 

And you're right it was unseasonably hot everywhere. It was 40 degrees centigrade when we were in Cannes where we went from Monte Carlo. Too hot for me!

[Keith1010]

Looking forward to the rest of your report.

 

Keith

[Stratheden]

The two lines at the Lower MDR are for those who have made a booking and for those who have just turned up and are waiting for a table. On the Zuiderdam in April we had the same table every night at the same time.

 

If you make the effort to get to know the staff at the door especially Sure'at it is easy to book your table for the next three nights.

 

Sure'at's memory for names and cabin no's is amazing. :)

[Typhoon1]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, looking forward to the rest.

[aamechs2]

oops the sea day was after we left Barcelona!

[erewhon]

Thank you for reviewing your cruise, sorry you experienced problems in your stateroom.

Edited July 17, 2015 by erewhon

[snooze alarm]

Our next day was a sea day. Very relaxing, but there were no chairs to be found anywhere on the LIdo deck, many with towels and people who never showed up. We did find 1 chair on deck 10. That was frustrating but we enjoyed our day anyway.

I don't put up with this selfish nonsense.

If it is obvious they are not in the pool or on a 10 min comfort break, I simply fold up the towel, and use the chair.

 

True story.

Oosterdam. Lido aft, port side.

There are 6 comfy cane armchairs under cover with large windows in front.

(stbd side is smoking)

 

These 6 were quite popular.

I rock up one arvo, and all are being used, BUT one lady was sound asleep with her feet up on the next door one.

 

I slowly start pulling her "foot stool" away....she wakes up of course...and I ever so nicely say..."Oh, I'm sorry, did I wake you?"

 

She of course didn't say anything as I repositioned "her foot stool" and enjoyed my book for an hour.

She did leave soon after though.;)

[sapper1]

I don't put up with this selfish nonsense.

If it is obvious they are not in the pool or on a 10 min comfort break, I simply fold up the towel, and use the chair.

 

True story.

Oosterdam. Lido aft, port side.

There are 6 comfy cane armchairs under cover with large windows in front.

(stbd side is smoking)

 

These 6 were quite popular.

I rock up one arvo, and all are being used, BUT one lady was sound asleep with her feet up on the next door one.

 

I slowly start pulling her "foot stool" away....she wakes up of course...and I ever so nicely say..."Oh, I'm sorry, did I wake you?"

 

She of course didn't say anything as I repositioned "her foot stool" and enjoyed my book for an hour.

She did leave soon after though.;)

Did you unselfishly stop to consider that pulling the foot support out from under a sleeping person (especially if they were elderly) could result in back injury or a broken heel? Did you consider that the person may have had a medical reason for needing to have their legs elevated? Since you don't put up with selfish nonsense I am sure you considered all of this carefully before you took action.

[snooze alarm]

Indeed sapper; I did consider all this carefully before I took action.

 

Perhaps you are unfamiliar with this particular area of the Vista class ships.

 

There is quite a high, wide ledge below the windows.

Those who like their feet elevated - about 80% of people I saw using this area during the cruise - put their feet there.

 

Funnily enough everyone I saw thought these armchairs were there to sit on.

[sapper1]

Indeed sapper; I did consider all this carefully before I took action.

 

Perhaps you are unfamiliar with this particular area of the Vista class ships.

 

There is quite a high, wide ledge below the windows.

Those who like their feet elevated - about 80% of people I saw using this area during the cruise - put their feet there.

 

Funnily enough everyone I saw thought these armchairs were there to sit on.

 

I have 92 days on Vista ships so I can envision the area you describe.

Good luck on continuing to pull chairs out from under people's legs.

[Opua Kiwi]

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

Edited July 17, 2015 by Opua Kiwi

[syesmar]

. . . The first part went fine but then I could not find the bus stop to go to Eze. We got on the wrong Monaco bus (yellow route which really goes nowhere) and we couldn't find anyone who knew where the bus stop was. We gave up and walked around Monaco for awhile. It was very hot, unseasonably we heard) and we got back on the ship to wait out the heat. We got back off at 6:00 and took the #1 bus to the casino,passing right by the Eze bus stop (#112) . . . I had the info but it was just so miserably hot (I never thought finding a bus stop would be a problem) . . . .

 

I'm with you on that, aamechs2! It usually takes me a while to adjust to the layout there, and there have been times I've actually been closer to a bus stop than I thought, while looking for another. I, too, missed the bus to Eze once as I hurried to find the Cremaillere stop, not realizing how close I was to Pont St Devote. (We just took a later bus that day and finally made it to Eze). For me, I was trying to follow what guide books said, and often they leave out alternate ways.

 

To those who are planning: I have learned to mark where the all the bus stops are for my destination on the map. For example, your trip research may say to take the bus from XYZ stop, but there are usually several other places you could catch the bus if Plan A doesn't work out. The Monaco Tourism Board is very good at sending out packets with maps, brochures, etc. upon request: http://www.visitmonaco.com/ . I like to mark their maps when I plan. If you tell them you're a cruise passenger, they may be able to send out a coupon booklet, too (if not, pick them up when you get there at their kiosk). Here is a map for the local buses in Monaco: http://www.cam.mc/PLAN_CAM.pdf

See http://www.cam.mc/informations-pratiques.php?lang=en for more local bus info. Here is the route map for Lignes d'azur regional bus service:

http://www.lignesdazur.com/ftp/documents_FR/Nice%20Côte%20d'Azur%20janvier%202015.pdf The website, http://www.lignesdazur.com/ will have the latest schedules for regional routes.

 

Thanks for your review, aamechs2! Looking forward to hearing more. The Zuiderdam itineraries this summer looked fabulous!

[kazu]

Indeed sapper; I did consider all this carefully before I took action.

 

Perhaps you are unfamiliar with this particular area of the Vista class ships.

 

Welcome to Cruise Critic and the HAL board. :)

 

A little diplomatic tip. It's never a good idea to question someone's familiarity with certain ships unless you are on very sure ground. Many posters here have been on numerous cruises and many, especially the long time posters are here to help share their expertise, not to have it questioned.

[kazu]

Thanks for the great review. grrrr on the cabin problems.

 

Sorry to hear you missed Eze - it is a beautiful spot, even if it is a climb.

 

Thanks again for taking the time to share with us :)

[aamechs2]

Day 6 finds us at Calvi, Corsica, a french island. It is absolutely gorgeous! The Citidel is high up on a hill, the water is that beautiful azure and the beach is gorgeous and wide with some shade. Perfecto! My husband opted to walk up to the Citidel, he really enjoyed it but said it was hot and a pretty good work out. The twins and I went to the beach where they hung out with their friends. Surprisingly there were a bunch of teens on this cruise, actually the whole crowd was much younger that our previous HAL cruise which was awesome. I would say mostly a 50-70's crowd but definitely a good number of 30's too. I heard that there were 200 kids on board with about half 13 - 17 and the rest younger. The kids were from all over the world and got along wonderfully. It was a perfect beach day and the town of Calvi is lovely, small shops that are a good mix of touristy type stuff and real shops. Food was reasonably priced and yummy. There was also free wifi at the tourist information center which was a nice touch. We headed back to the ship about 3;30, love the cool towels and lemonade that is given at the pier. (I would love it even more if that lemonade was available at dinner but it's not unless you pay for it. Matter of fact we had trouble finding it even at lunch, usually just 1 drink station had it) We went to Canavetto's for dinner. I would say that it was worth the $10 per person. The appetizers were good, the pastas that we had were great and the main dishes were a mixed bag with the sea bass being phenomenal! They kind of tell you to order 2 apps, 2 pasta and 2 main dishes for 4 people but we ordered 3 pasta and 4 main dishes and I'm glad that we did. The desserts were very good too and very artfully presented. After dinner we went to a show, I think it was the couple who start off cracking bull whips, then juggle boxes. At that point I left but my husband saoid that they got much better! Sigh, maybe they should skip the kind of boring beginning stuff.... I wasn't the only person who left at that point. When I got back to our room, I realized that I had no room service breakfast menu and really needed one since we were off early the next morning, my kids were also complaining that their room was warm and it was warmer than ours, plus their safe wouldn't work (after having it reset when we got onboard it hadn't been working at all. Luckily they didn't have much to lock up) which was only barely cool enough (I travel with a small fan, without it I would have been hot at night). I tried to call the front desk but the phone kept hanging up on me. I went to the kids room and tried and the same thing happened. I tried to call the room stewards number but got no answer. Pretty frustrating because it was late and I wanted to go to bed! I went down to the front desk and told the manager. She tried her phone and realized that yes it was hanging up instead of putting people on hold. She said that she'd look into it but it was the same thru out the cruise. It was at this point that we also found out that HAL won't put a limit on the kids card for charging things, even though they told us that they would. This was extremely frustrating. She did get me a supply of room servive breakfast menus (this was the 2nd time we didn't get one but I took the kids the other time, this time they needed theirs too)

July 6, Livorno!! We had hired a driver from Tuscany by taxi (I used them on 2 previous trips and found them reliable and reasonably priced) We had 2 ladies, Jean and Kay joining us, we all met on the gangway at 7:20 am and our driver Alessandro was waiting on us. Off we went to Cinque Terre. It was a beautiful drive and took right at an hour and 15 minutes. He dropped us in Riomaggiore and we told him that we'd be back by 2:00 or so, he told us to go enjoy our day and not to worry about the time! We had to wait for the ferry at 10:30 so we enjoyed Riomaggiore, then boarded the ferry to Vernazza about 10:20. Gorgeous views from the water!! We stopped at several other towns but we knew that we only had time for 2. We got off in Vernazza. So very pretty. We had about 50 minutes because we were taking the train to Manerola and the trains only run 1 an hour :( We headed up the steep stairs toward the cemetary for that iconic view. And after a very steep climb, my hubby and son made it (my daughter and I stopped about 2/3's up and just enjoyed that view!) My son actually did it twice to let my husband know how far it is. Jason is in great shape but it was quite a climb up steep stairs. They got beautiful pictures and video then headed back down. It was not at all crowded which was wonderful. We met Jean and Kay at the train station and off to Manerola we went. Again we only had about 50 minutes because the train was 15 minutes late. Manerola was equally gorgeous but different. Instead of a sandy beach it was a ravine with a "ramp" down to the water. Jason and Caleb immediately dove in, I took pictures from every angle and Kelsi flirted with the Italian buys who were very taken with her blonde hair and blue eyes :) Manerola was more crowded but still not bad. All too soon we headed back to the train station (a pretty long walk thru a tunnel) we caught a very crowded train to Riomaggiore. We had to walk back up a very steep hill to where Alessandro was waiting, there was no shade and it was hot by now. We got there about 2:40 and headed out to Livorno. I asked if we could do a "drive-by" of Pisa and he said "of course" he jokingly told us that we were in Lucca, not Pisa and then drove us almost right up to the leaning tower! (We had been to Florence and Pisa 2 other times but the kids only saw the tower on a drizzly day) What a gorgeous view!! Alessandro encouraged us to take our time so we snapped pics and enjoyed it. Then back to LIvorno. Jason asked about an ATM (we wanted to give him more of a tip then we had, we had to use cash for the trains and ferry so we were a little short on tip $$) He drove us around Livorno which is actually a very pretty town! Then onto the ship where he dropped us off after a wonderful day! We showered and went to dinner where we were able to sit by a back window. Loved the view as we left Livorno. Dinner was fabulous (though I don't know what we had sorry. I keep a travel journal but on Med cruises, there's so much to write about what we see that food gets left out)

July 7, Olbia

Really they could've skipped this stop. It is an OK town, not very picturesque and the beach is just OK. It doesn't help that you must leave port by bus (free) which is crowded and hot. There was a beach express bus for E5 each but you had to go across the street to buy tickets and it was confusing with a long line. Once we boarded another very crowded and hot bus, we got to the beach in about 15 minutes. Chairs and an umbrella were E5 each. So we enjoyed that. Then hike back to the bus stop, pretty hot by now and wait for the bus. If you lost your ticket, the driver would not let you on. Luckily for the few who did, there's also a public bus stop there. The public bus is cheaper, about 1/2 price but stops at more places. We head back to the ship about 2:15, Jason and the kids go in search of wifi. We head to dinner about 6:30. Service is very slow! They have sweet and sour shrimp which is fried so maybe that's why it so slow. It was good shrimp but not worth an hour 15 minute wait! Ok more later!

[aamechs2]

This is much longer than I thought. And I realized that it should probably be under reviews but I don't know how to do that.

July 8, sea day! We need about 4 of these. :) Again no chairs to be found. Plenty of deck room but they don't have chairs in them. It is hot today though and I realize that I would rather "lay out" in comfort and wait to work on my tan in my pool in Texas! So we go wander the ship a little. Up to the Crow's nest which is a nice space but hard to remember it's up there. We did not use the internet at all as numerous people complained about how horribly slow it was. We finally made it to lunch before they closed the main lines (kind of weird hours for lunch buffet, 11:30 - 2:30 but there was always pizza, burgers and a mexican buffet by the pool) The sushi was pretty good and I had some kind of chicken from the Indonesian area that was fabulous. My hubby loved the Dive in burgers, fries and hotdogs. I worked on my journal in our cabin but honestly the lighting was so poor that it made reading or writing hard. Jason pointed out that if they had the bed the other direction, there would be a light right above the bed but the reading lights were pathetic. Also no drawers at the desk!! I didn't realize how horrible this was until being on a ship that had none! The make up mirror was there, no very well lit, the desk only has 1 light on the side and there's no place to store make up. So I used the fruit basket :( But it meant our desk had stuff piled up which I hate.... Dinner at 6:30 that night. It was formal night. The lobster was excellent! Probably the best I've had on a cruise ship, nice and big and not overcooked. The filet was great too. Desserts were good too.

July 9 Palermo We had planned on taking the city buses to the catacombs and Monreale but as you leave the port area, taxi drivers and horse carriage drivers accost you! They were very aggressive. I just kept walking saying No grazie but my hubby talked to a couple of them. 1 guy agreed to take us for 4 hours where we wanted to go for E60 but he wasn't happy with the price. However he was very nice taking us around to different Piazza's showing us beautiful statues and a church. Then we went to the Catacombs. Kelsi and I stayed out and went to a small cafe for wifi, the guys went in. They thought it was strange and weird to see the "mummies" all dressed up. Not sure they thought it was worth it but an experience like no other. Then at this point the driver started saying we were going to Mortedella. I said no Monreale! He repeated what he said so I got out of the van. Then he agreed to go to Monreale. Again he was very nice taking us there and waiting on us. WE loved the Cathedral. So very gorgeous!! Not at all crowded and much like the one in Venice, St Marks. We went up this tower for a scenic view over the city and the courtyard. Then back to our driver. He took a picture of us from a vantage point overlooking the city then back down to Palermo. He drove us by a few more gorgeous buildings, the Opera house and another church. Then we asked to be dropped at a piazza. When we got out, Jason gave him E72, which we thought was a nice tip. But he was not at all happy, telling us Monreale was E120. I said No, you agreed to take us and we just said goodbye and walked off. He didn't follow us or anything but it put a damper on it because I would never want to cheat anyone. We walked over a few streets and went to a cafe. Pizza, a large bottle of water and a calzone with a table and free wifi was only E14! Loved the ambiance and just sitting there. Plaermo is very run down but there's so many beautiful old buildings that I would love to go back. Palermo was also cooler with a nice breeze. We got back on the ship and went to dinner at 7:15, again no wait. I think this was the night I had sea bass, though I'm not sure. It was very fishy and I didn't eat it. But obviously I didn't starve to death, most dinners had some really good dishes, a couple we didn't love what we had. With 4 people we usually tried most of the entrees.

July 10 Salerno OK I HATE shuttle buses to get out of the port. Overcrowed, hot and it takes forever. Getting off, there was NO sign to show which was the free port bus, luckily the Sixt rental car guy told us. WE took the first bus and the fast walked to the ferry dock to take the 8:40 ferry. It was a l-o-n-g walk but very pretty along a shaded wide walkway. The ferry waited an extra 5 minutes for stragglers and off we went. It stopped at Amalfi first and then on to Positano (cost was E12 each way) the view from the water was incredibly beautiful!! So many small villages hugging the side of the "mountains" or tall hills! WE had been to the Amalfi coast twice before and this time we just planned to relax and enjoy our day. We walked up to the top of the village, stopping at La Zagara for some wonderful chocolate mousse. I had it last time, it's the stuff dreams are made of...:) We bought souvenirs then stopped at a pizza place, I can't remember the name but they had an upstairs with a counter for to go and a downstairs for sitting. Our calzone was fantastic!! The mozzarella in Italy is the best in the world to me! Again it was E4 and a huge serving. We walked on down to the beach and put down our towel. The black sand was HOT! So left our shoes on til we got to the edge of the water. (water shoes would've been great) The water was heavenly, aawwww relaxation at it's best! All too soon, it was time to go. We used the shower for .50, best 1/2 euro that I ever spent! We stopped and had a soda at La Brezza to use the wifi. E5 per soda, bleh! When we went to board our ferry, the line was huge! I was a little worried but they got everyone on. Most got off at Amalfi so then we spread out. Very nice walk back to the bus stop with some yummy (and cheap) gelato along the way. The line for the port bus was so long!! Not happy as it was hot standing there. It took 3 buses for us to get on. A few taxi's came by and people grabbed them, we should've but I kind of have an aversion to taxi's. Then there was lots of traffic in the port area so getting back took forever. Luckily this bus had a/c. Back onboard we just hit the buffet for dinner and went to pack. Hard to believe 2 weeks is over.

Disembarkation day We elected to do self disembark. Up early and went to breakfast about 6:30, when we got back the room steward was in our room stripping the bed! That didn't make me very happy, luckily we were able to wait in our kids room. WE walked down to the 1st floor about 7:00 hoping to get off early (to catch an earlier flight) finally at 7:15 they let us off the ship but the guy running the port building wouldn't let us walk thru. So frustrating and now the taxi has to wait over there. At 7:30 he let us thru, Roma Shuttle was waiting for us with our name on a board. E130 for a private van to the airport. Our driver Alexandert got us there quickly and we sailed thru the airport and onto an earlier flight.

[aamechs2]

I was disappointed in the condition of the ship. Since it had been in drydock, I thought it would look refurbed but it didn't. The teak around the pools was faded, the paint was peeling in places, our room had numerous issues. Small issues but things that I thought they would've fixed in drydock. No smell thankfully.

 

Things I loved: waffles at breakfast with no wait and mixed berries! Quick omelet service, the shows were good to great, the glass elevators are awesome, loved having a bathtub, best lobster and cheesecake on a ship, loved the memory foam they put on my bed, wish all cruise ships did this. (With a hip replacement, hard beds kill me and I travel with a small piece) dinners were mostly good to great, ship flicks was cool, movie theatre was nice, pizza was always excellent, kids counselor did a good job, the couple of deck parties they had were fun, wish they had them with music, every night

 

Things I hated: no desk drawers this was aggravating everyday!, lack of light in cabin, even with a window it was too dark, using a flashlight to see in the first closet and safe was annoying, TV is tiny and the sound was bad, room not very cool, without my fan I would've been hot and so would hubby, the cords hanging from the TV, the outlet pulling out of the wall,, no lounge chairs ever available, actually hard to find them taking pictures anywhere, room steward invading my room at 6:30 the last day, hard to find anything to drink other than water or tea at the buffet and no choices in dining room, and the POG juice which I love, was so watery that I didn't drink it. (maybe a cost saving measure?) We bought soda cards but the soda's were so weak, even without adding ice which we tried that the kids only used 1/2 of it. I should've just bought 1. THe inability to put a limit on the kids card

 

One of the worst things, we did a Black and white photo shoot. Because we did this, I didn't worry about taking other pics but we didn't go look at them until 9:30 the last night. The pics were fabulous BUT they were $195!!!! PER PICTURE! (8 X 10) Really? Yes I expected they were maybe a little more, maybe $60 or so but $195? That's ridiculous. Yes they come on a metal backing or something but I still don't think they should charge that. Or let you know before you waste time taking them.

 

I would sail HAL again, but not that ship, well maybe if they had that itinerary. LOVED the ports except Olbia.

[mudscraper]

My kingdom for a paragraph. Thank you.

Edited July 17, 2015 by mudscraper

[sapper1]

Re the outlet hanging out of the wall---I reported same on the Westerdam in April as a fire hazard. It was fixed before you could say "Bob's your uncle".

[aamechs2]

OK mudscraper so I didn't do so great with paragraphs lol. But I did manage to get everything to post before I timed out or whatever happens sometimes. I had a Tahiti review that I never posted because it disappeared.... sometimes when I hit enter to tab, it posts the post (I'm sure that is not proper english either, I blame it on all the Aussies on the ship haha. They were great fun!)

 

Yes I showed them the outlet when they replaced the bulbs but they didn't fix it and probably forgot about it. Same with the wires hanging and the tub faucet. Plus they actually made the kids room cooler and ours got warmer....

[aamechs2]

Weird that there's an edit button on my last post but not on the previous posts or I would fix the paragraph issue. :(

[Krazy Kruizers]

The edit button lasts for 15 minutes and then it goes away.

Please just continue with your review and forget about those people criticizing how you are writing, etc.

I am enjoying your review.

[sapper1]

Weird that there's an edit button on my last post but not on the previous posts or I would fix the paragraph issue. :(

 

The edit button times out in about fifteen minutes or so.