Oosterdam (Almost) Live, our Holiday cruise.

[WeLoveCruising]

I'm going to start this Live thread for our Oosterdam holiday cruise, which starts today. I hope to provide updates from the ship, we'll see how the internet goes....

 

I'm typing on my iPad, so please forgive any typos.

 

Background

My husband and I are 4 star Mariners with hundreds of nights on HAL, although our last HAL cruise was in December 2011. Shortly after that cruise, our young adult son was diagnosed with cancer and we spent the better part of the last years caring for him. Unfortunately he passed away this summer. This is a bittersweet cruise for us, we have many memories of cruising with our son. We chose a holiday cruise because we can't imagine being home alone for our first Christmas without him. We've done HAL holiday cruises before, and have always enjoyed them.

 

Pre-Cruise

We always come in the day before, we'd come sooner if I had my way, but our work schedules are always so tight. There is so much to do in Fort Lauderdale, and I just like being in warm sunshine. We arrived in FLL yesterday around noon. We are Marriott points people, always using them for our business travel, and typically stay at either the Renassiance or Marriott Harbor Beach. Because yesterday was my husband's birthday (53!) we splurged and booked the Ritz Carlton. I say splurge conservatively, because it was only about $30 more a night than the Renaissance. Of course the Ritz adds resort fees, etc so it's not a budget choice, but all in all it was well worth it for us, especially since we arrived early and had the day to enjoy the facilities.

 

We had dinner last night at the hotel restaurant, Burlock Coast. Research tells me it's a new restaurant with mixed reviews. We liked it very much. Because we are elite status with Marriott, we had a card for 10% off. When they found out it was my husband birthday they also gave us a complimentary dessert and round of drinks. My husband was drinking 18 year old Macallen scotch, so that was no small gift. We found the food to be excellent. He had grouper and I had snapper. Both fish entrees were piping hot and expertly prepared. We shared a key lime pie for dessert, that was so big (it's meant for sharing) that we had them pack it up for a midnight snack. It was my breakfast today! We would definitely be happy to return to Burlock Coast. The food and service were excellent, as well as we really liked sitting outside with a view of the ocean, and the pretty blue holiday lights lining the boulevard.

 

As I'm typing this, it's 10am and we are packing up, and will leave for this ship in about an hour. I hope to provide updates as frequently as our time and the internet service allow.

 

Next stop....the Oosterdam!

Edited December 18, 2015 by WeLoveCruising

[cat shepard]

May this trip be filled with laughter and wonderful memories.

[ohiogal48]

See you on the ship!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for checking in.

Happy Birthday to your husband

Looking forward to your "Live" report.

[Lizzie68]

I will be following you and hoping you have a wonderful cruise, and able to relive good memories. Your son will be with you in your hearts.:)

[WeLoveCruising]

Embarkation was a breeze! We are in a Neptune Suite so had priority boarding. Our stateroom is near the Neptune Lounge. It is clean, comfortable, and knock on wood everything appears to be working.

 

Our luggage arrived around 2pm, so we unpacked early. We had a quick late lunch in the Lido, noting the pre-made sandwiches. The bread pudding was available buffet style, I know I read another ship recently had it on request, behind the line.

 

The muster drill is never fun, but today's included rain so it was even more uncomfortable. They always seem to take longer than they are. At least now you don't need to wear your life preserver.

 

We have a table for 2, main seating. We checked it out and are pleased. Right now we intend to nap a little bit, and then attend the suite reception before dinner. The BB King band is 10:15pm tonight in the Queens Lounge. We have heard so many good things about them, and look forward to attending.

 

The ship appears in great shape. There is some worn carpet and other signs of age but nothing to detract from the style and comfort. Dry dock is coming at the right time. We noticed new pool lounge chairs and bistro style tables and the aft pool and Ocean Bar that we hadn't seen before.

 

Christmas decorations are up, and very nice, although not as many as we saw in years past. It been awhile since our last holiday cruise and I remember wreaths on every door. We do have a poinsettia in our room.

 

And that being said, we just started moving, so I am off to our balcony!

 

I will update and I can

[Lizzie68]

And we are waving at you on the sailaway thread.:D Bon Voyage.

[WeLoveCruising]

And we are waving at you on the sailaway thread.:D Bon Voyage.

 

Right back at you !

We just pulled out into the open ocean.

[Mtn2Sea]

Bon Voyage - Have a great cruise!!

[ger_77]

Bon Voyage - enjoy your cruise; we'll be thinking of you.

 

Smooth Sailing ! :) :) :)

[cruz chic]

I'm so sorry about your son. I hope being on a cruise helps to deal with your loss. Thank you for doing this thread. Enjoy your cruise.

[summer slope]

Have a wonderful cruise and make lots of new memories. Merry Christmas.

[iflyrc5]

Looking forward to your live reports - we board on Jan 18 and since we are retired and live in Indiana we are staying on board for 42 days to enjoy the warm sun of the Caribbean rather than the Indiana cold:D. Wind chill is 17 here today.:(

[Vict0riann]

Hope you have a wonderful cruise.

[DaveOKC]

Embarkation was a breeze! We are in a Neptune Suite so had priority boarding. Our stateroom is near the Neptune Lounge. It is clean, comfortable, and knock on wood everything appears to be working.

 

Our luggage arrived around 2pm, so we unpacked early. We had a quick late lunch in the Lido, noting the pre-made sandwiches. The bread pudding was available buffet style, I know I read another ship recently had it on request, behind the line.

 

The muster drill is never fun, but today's included rain so it was even more uncomfortable. They always seem to take longer than they are. At least now you don't need to wear your life preserver.

 

We have a table for 2, main seating. We checked it out and are pleased. Right now we intend to nap a little bit, and then attend the suite reception before dinner.....

 

I will update and I can

 

We just disembarked the Oosterdam today have a few comments for you.

 

First, even though we were one of the first people to checkin AND our HAL luggage tags had PRIORITY in yellow on them, we were among the last to get them - AFTER the muster drill (around 3:30 PM)!

 

Second, I hope your suite reception comes off better than ours - we only had 8-10 people attend, and no officers. It was far different than any of the other ones we attended in the past. Part of the reason (I think) is that this time we did not receive an invitation in our cabin, but rather the notice of the part was on the very bottom of a full page, single page information letter about the Neptune Lounge that we did get in the cabin. Apparently, very few people saw this notice. It was a poor way to let the suite guests know IMO.

 

Third, for the first time, we did not have a Captain's cocktail party on a 10 or 11 day cruise.

Let us know if you have one.

 

DaveOKC

[cruz chic]

We just disembarked the Oosterdam today have a few comments for you.

 

First, even though we were one of the first people to checkin AND our HAL luggage tags had PRIORITY in yellow on them, we were among the last to get them - AFTER the muster drill (around 3:30 PM)!

 

Second, I hope your suite reception comes off better than ours - we only had 8-10 people attend, and no officers. It was far different than any of the other ones we attended in the past. Part of the reason (I think) is that this time we did not receive an invitation in our cabin, but rather the notice of the part was on the very bottom of a full page, single page information letter about the Neptune Lounge that we did get in the cabin. Apparently, very few people saw this notice. It was a poor way to let the suite guests know IMO.

 

Third, for the first time, we did not have a Captain's cocktail party on a 10 or 11 day cruise.

Let us know if you have one.

 

DaveOKC

I think that is the way they are announcing the suite cocktail party now. There have been a few posts to support that.

 

Dave, how did the scenic cruising go from st. Lucia?

[Keith1010]

Have a wonderful time.

 

Keith

[WeLoveCruising]

Day 1: Embarkation

 

After a very smooth and quick process to board (they even still had our photos saved in the computer, and didn’t need to retake them. Since we haven’t been on in 4 years, I’m glad I can still pass for a woman in my 40’s, lol), we arrived in our stateroom around noon. Even though the room was ready, we noticed a few dirty dishes stacked in the ice bucket. I am sure the stewards are so rushed to turn the rooms around that they missed it. It did make me wonder how thoroughly the rooms are cleaned between passengers. However, the room at least appears clean. We were out of our room when our luggage was delivered, luggage in, offending plates out.

 

We were never ones for the Mariner’s embarkation lunch, even when they had it, so we did our usual trek to the Lido. Most of the passengers were still boarding, so we had no line and no problem finding a table. We settled on the first things that looked good in the “bistro” style station. We each had a carved to order strip loin, with polenta for me and mashed potatoes for my husband, and assorted veggies for each of us. I made my way to the salad bar station, but instead of finding makings for tossed salads, there were pre-made salads of fruits and other veggies. I found some house made pickled veggies and was happy. I said before we have lots of nights on HAL, but none recent, so I had an eye out for changes. I noted two positive ones immediately, just in that little Lido cross area. 1) the cheeses were most definitely improved. Next to the rolls they had selections of real swiss, brie, harvati, and a few others. There was no giant block of fake cheddar to be found. Secondly, the iced tea glasses were normal sized! The little shot glass things I hate (and that forced me to carry two) were replaced.

 

After lunch we did some exploring of the ship, got our thermal suite passes, somehow managed ourselves to be corralled with a sales pitch tour of the spa but politely declined signing up for things, and went back to unpack.

 

Dinner last night was fun. We have a table for 2, main seating. I noticed lots of people were dressed up, more than I would have remembered or expected on a Smart Casual night. I saw lots of dresses and beaded tops on the ladies, and wondered if a holiday cruise is a bit more festive. In fact there was a tree lighting ceremony before dinner, with Christmas caroling, but we were napping and didn’t make it. Dinner was a step or so up than I remember. I had a pork dish and my husband a roasted chicken with sausage stuffing. I recall prime rib always being served on the first night, but that wasn’t offered. I did have the Viennese apple strudel dessert, which always says “Cruise Night One” to me ☺. Service was slow, and since that’s a subjective term I’ll put in context that it was 45 minutes between the time we sat down and the arrival of our first appetizer. Things picked up after that. I know the first night can be that way. DH and I shrugged, that it wasn’t as if we had anywhere else to be, and enjoyed just being there together.

 

After dinner we did several laps around the Promenade, as we like to do. There’s a cold front coming, and it was rainy and windy, but since we live in Upstate NY it takes more than a South Florida chilly wind to deter us from being outside! We had a good time walking around, and around 10pm ducked back into the Queen’s Lounge to catch the BB King Band. I’m glad we did! They were a really good band, and a lot of fun. They got the dance floor full in no time. We had a few cocktails, a Fresh Grapefruit cosmo for me, and a BB King special, Lucille, for my DH. We know Lucille is the name of his guitar, but it’s also the name of our Golden Retriever, so DH couldn’t resist.

 

I’m typing this up 6:30am from my balcony, as the sun is getting brighter, and the sky more blue. We’re looking forward to our day on Half Moon Cay. Last cruise we weren’t able to tender in, so we have our fingers crossed for the pink cabana we reserved.

[WeLoveCruising]

We just disembarked the Oosterdam today have a few comments for you.

 

First, even though we were one of the first people to checkin AND our HAL luggage tags had PRIORITY in yellow on them, we were among the last to get them - AFTER the muster drill (around 3:30 PM)!

 

Second, I hope your suite reception comes off better than ours - we only had 8-10 people attend, and no officers. It was far different than any of the other ones we attended in the past. Part of the reason (I think) is that this time we did not receive an invitation in our cabin, but rather the notice of the part was on the very bottom of a full page, single page information letter about the Neptune Lounge that we did get in the cabin. Apparently, very few people saw this notice. It was a poor way to let the suite guests know IMO.

 

Third, for the first time, we did not have a Captain's cocktail party on a 10 or 11 day cruise.

Let us know if you have one.

 

DaveOKC

 

We were lucky, our luggage came really quick, probably by 2pm.

 

We noticed the same disappointment with the suite cocktail party. I didn't notice any invitation, so we asked about it because we know it's the first night. They told us yes, come at 7pm. Lots of folks must not have known about it, because there were very few people there, and same as you - no officers. We didn't stay, we were a little disappointed, so went down to the Ocean Bar.

 

I'll let you know about the cocktail party.

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

We just disembarked the Oosterdam today have a few comments for you.

 

First, even though we were one of the first people to checkin AND our HAL luggage tags had PRIORITY in yellow on them, we were among the last to get them - AFTER the muster drill (around 3:30 PM)!

 

Second, I hope your suite reception comes off better than ours - we only had 8-10 people attend, and no officers. It was far different than any of the other ones we attended in the past. Part of the reason (I think) is that this time we did not receive an invitation in our cabin, but rather the notice of the part was on the very bottom of a full page, single page information letter about the Neptune Lounge that we did get in the cabin. Apparently, very few people saw this notice. It was a poor way to let the suite guests know IMO.

 

Third, for the first time, we did not have a Captain's cocktail party on a 10 or 11 day cruise.

Let us know if you have one.

 

DaveOKC

 

Exactly the same on the Amsterdam in September. I don't read those letters anymore since they had in the past. anyway, all been the same. When I asked the Concierge the next morning about the Suite Welcome party, I was told in a very nasty tone that "Yes, you did receive an invitation, it was at the bottom of the letter." Not a pleasant welcome.

 

Priority luggage has never come early for us and there was no Captain's cocktail party.

 

The new norm.

[Krazy Kruizers]

On our Eurodam cruise in October, there wasn't anything written on any papers about the Suite Welcome aboard party.

If you didn't stop in the Neptune Lounge sometime during the first afternoon, you didn't get your verbal invitation. Ours was from 7:15 - 8 PM -- champagne only. No officers or any other crew like the CD. About 16 people stopped in and left quickly.

In the daily "On Location" there was listed a Mariner's Reception from 1:30 - 2:30 in the Crow's Nest. Again only cheap champagne. We got there at 1:25 and the place was packed - a real mob scene. Just the CD and wine cellar master were there -- pushing to sell the packages of wine.

The first week there was a VIP party and we were invited to the Awards Ceremony that was held before the Mariner Brunch.

The second week -- no VIP party and no invitation to the Awards Ceremony.

Lots of changes happening.

[sppunk]

Thanks for your reports so far!

 

Can you clarify the lido salad situation? Can you truly NOT have them put lettuce in a bowl and tell them then what ther items you want (gorbonzo beans, carrots, onion, etc.)? If true I'll have to cancel our Koningsdam cruise because my wife won't eat anything at lunch except very specific salads she makes (or has made) that are smile, no dressing, etc.

[WeLoveCruising]

Thanks for your reports so far!

 

Can you clarify the lido salad situation? Can you truly NOT have them put lettuce in a bowl and tell them then what ther items you want (gorbonzo beans, carrots, onion, etc.)? If true I'll have to cancel our Koningsdam cruise because my wife won't eat anything at lunch except very specific salads she makes (or has made) that are smile, no dressing, etc.

 

I didn't mean to scare you. It's quite possible I just looked in the wrong place, maybe it was moved from where I was used to seeing it. I didn't look hard for it at all.

 

We ate at Half Moon Cay today, so didn't have lunch onboard. I'll report back tomorrow. I suspect it is just fine. I have had salads most every day I sailed, and as I said I might have easily missed it.

 

FYI, there are also good entree sized salads in the main dining room each night for dinner

[WeLoveCruising]

Interesting quick note….

 

When on the tender waiting to come back from HMC, we saw a fellow passenger being taken away by Bahamian police in handcuffs. A few on the tender with us recognized him as a passenger on our cruise. I have no idea what he did to get into trouble on HMC…..

 

We had a really good day in our cabana, until the weather turned and we went in around 2pm to avoid the rain.

 

Mixed feeling on the island…I really don't like the changes. They did too much, I enjoyed in much better when it was less developed. I hate the pirate ship, and there are many new shops and bars in the main area. I don't like what the two-story cabanas do to the feel of the beach, either, although I must admit if I were traveling in a group they would be fun to have.

[sppunk]

I didn't mean to scare you. It's quite possible I just looked in the wrong place, maybe it was moved from where I was used to seeing it. I didn't look hard for it at all.

 

We ate at Half Moon Cay today, so didn't have lunch onboard. I'll report back tomorrow. I suspect it is just fine. I have had salads most every day I sailed, and as I said I might have easily missed it.

 

FYI, there are also good entree sized salads in the main dining room each night for dinner

 

When it comes to a potentially unhappy being scared is natural. :) Thanks for the feedback. I look forward to your investigative findings lol.