Nieuw Amsterdam 1/18/2017 Review

[Tom O.]

Just got back from our 11 day Niew Amsterdam Eastern and Southern Caribbean cruise that had departed on January 18.

 

The Ship

 

The Niew Amsterdam, is a beautiful ship. It is just the right size for us. We don’t like the really big mega ships. Service was excellent in every area.

 

Food:

The Main Dining Room (MDR) food was good, but the quality has gone down from my last Holland America (HAL) cruise 8 years ago. The service is still legendary, but more expensive cuts of meat and seafood are seen less often. Old standards such as prime rib is still offered, but the quality of the beef is not what it used to be.

 

The Pinnacle Grill on the other hand had wonderful beef and seafood. We ate there twice, I had the porterhouse steak on one occasion and the rib steak on the other. Both steaks were excellent and they were huge. They were the best steaks I have ever had on a cruise ship. My wife had the filet mignon, which was not as tasty as the other two steaks. But I have always preferred “lesser” cuts of meat to filet mignon. The lobster was excellent.

 

We ate once at the Tamarind Restaurant. It was much better than the MDR, but in our opinion, not as good as the Pinnacle Grill. The tempura shrimp, which is served as an hors d’oeuvre, was really good – I could have made a terrific meal of just these shrimp. I had the wasabi encrusted steak, which was ok, but not as good as the steaks in the Pinnacle Grill.

 

The service and atmosphere was excellent at both the Pinnacle Grill and the Tamarind. Much better than the MDR.

 

We never ate in the Lido or the Caneletto. But I would never have paid extra to eat at the Canaletto, as it is simply part of the Lido.

 

The Dive In had excellent burgers and dogs. We had lunch there several times. We also had room service deliver from there for lunch, but note that there is a $4.95 charge per sandwich charge if they are delivered to your stateroom.

 

We never ate at “The Slice” because they were near the designated smoking area – see my comments on smoking below.

 

We actually only ate in the MDR once, but we had room service deliver complete dinners from the MDR on seven occasions. This is a great service from HAL, that they do not make widely known. You call it in, they deliver it at the time you ask for. No need to wait for a table, no need to change out of “comfy” clothes. The food arrived on time every day and was just as hot as when you get it in the MDR. And since it all comes at once, dinner takes much less time. And there is no extra charge for this service.

 

We had breakfast delivered every day by room service. The omelets are ok, but mostly we just had cereal and coffee every day. The room service had one item that was just terrible. It was the so-called 3 bean chili. It looked more like a bowl of refried beans, but it was actually puréed beans, with nothing else added – no spices or anything. It wasn’t chili at all.

 

The one time we ate in the MDR was a Gala Night. We chose not to bring formal clothes, so we just wore our normal “smart casual” clothes. Smart Casual is now the minimum requirement for Gala Nights. I noticed that I was among the minority not wearing a coat and tie, but this could have been because we ate very early that night (5:30pm). Another factor could have been the fact that this cruise was dominated by senior citizens (see below), because I noticed that most of the other non-tie gentlemen were a little younger than average.

Suggestions:

 

The following items are not complaints, because they of little overall importance. They are simply suggestions to HAL how to make their ships a little better.

 

TV. The television was a nice flat screen TV mounted on the wall – it was perfect for watching movies. But it was not interactive. It would have been nice to view my on-board account, or the MDR menu for the evening. There were menus for the specialty restaurants, but they never change. Since we mostly ordered MDR dinners from room service, this made it difficult to know what to order. This meant we had to take a walk to the MDR every afternoon to see the menu. Later, we found out that we could see the menus and our account by using the WIFI. However, I intentionally did not bring any device that could access the internet, because I spend way too much time on the internet at home and decided to take a vacation from it.

 

Ice. On every cruise ship I have been on, it is the steward’s duty to keep the room supplied with ice. This ship is no exception. The steward cleaned our room twice a day, and was very good at refilling the ice. However, the amount of ice supplied is small, and it seems every time I wanted my whiskey on the rocks, I didn’t have any ice. So, my suggestion to HAL, is why not provide ice machines, like hotels have? It would be nice if I could get as much ice as I wanted, when I wanted it. I finally solved this issue by making trips to a bar every day to have them fill my ice bucket.

 

Smoking. This was one of the first HAL cruises in which smoking was banned on the balconies. This resulted in a large group of smokers gathering in a designated smoking area near the Sea View Pool at the rear of deck 9. There was so much smoke there that it burned my eyes. We could not spend any time there at all, and The Slice (the pizza place) became off limits for us. Also, many non-smokers stayed away from the Sea View Pool and this caused the Lido Pool to have a shortage of seating. Nevertheless, I was happy that the balconies were smoke free, and to be fair, most of the smokers had booked this cruise at a time when they thought they could smoke on the balconies. I don’t have a solution to this dilemma, and HAL will have their hands full trying to deal with it.

 

The Cruise

 

Although we have been cruising for years, this was our first Caribbean Cruise. We have been avoiding the Caribbean for two reasons: 1. We are not beach people. We love to see beaches, but have no desire to lay around on them, or go swimming there. And, 2. We do not do well in hot humid climates.

So, on this cruise we spent almost no time on any beach, and our excursions were mostly boat or bus tours. We didn’t do well with the heat and humidity, but we realized it was much worse for us in the Southern Caribbean Islands, such as Barbados. We were very comfortable in the North, in such places as the Bahamas.

 

Fellow Passengers. I have never seen such a collection of old people in my life as I did on this cruise. Mind you, I am 67, so I am no spring chicken, but on this cruise, I was a youngster. I would say that over half the passengers were over 75. There were some people my age, and a few fifty-somethings, but younger than that were rare. I would say there was only a couple of dozen under the age of 35. And there were no children, not a single one.

This did not bother me at all, but I felt sorry for the handful of young people, I wondered if they felt out of place.

 

Overall, this was a good cruise, but we probably won’t be going back to the Caribbean. We loved our ship and HAL service was excellent. I would not hesitate to book the Niew Amsterdam again.

[Crew News]

Thanks for your review. The heat in the Caribbean can be quit intimidating. Your update on the smoking policy effects and the Room Service changes was good to learn.

 

We enjoyed the NA with the upgrades in Alaska last year.

[Happy2cruise]

Really appreciate your review of the Nieuw Amsterdam . Have sailed many times but never on Holland. Just booked the Nieuw for 4/2 so your review and thoughts were very helpful.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for taking the time to write your review.

Glad you enjoyed your cruise.

[DeeniEncinitas]

Appreciate your review!!!!

We have traveled on her 3 times to The Med and Carribean and

Find her to be one our favorites!

Thank you again for taking the time to do the review!

Happy Sailings

Denise:)

[Sunshineliving]

Just got back from our 11 day Niew Amsterdam Eastern and Southern Caribbean cruise that had departed on January 18.

 

Ice. On every cruise ship I have been on, it is the steward’s duty to keep the room supplied with ice. This ship is no exception. The steward cleaned our room twice a day, and was very good at refilling the ice. However, the amount of ice supplied is small, and it seems every time I wanted my whiskey on the rocks, I didn’t have any ice. So, my suggestion to HAL, is why not provide ice machines, like hotels have? It would be nice if I could get as much ice as I wanted, when I wanted it. I finally solved this issue by making trips to a bar every day to have them fill my ice bucket.

 

 

Thank you for the information about the ice. My husband is like you with his whiskey. Thanks for the tip about going to the bar for it.

[CruisinNana]

Thanks so much for your thoughtful and informational review. It really helps me look forward to our upcoming cruise on the NA. I think I have solved the ice problem that you described since I have had the same problem in the past. I found a small hard sided cooler that fits in my suitcase which I use to put small breakables in so not to waste the space in the suitcase. This holds the ice all day and with a change at night, there is still ice in the morning. Sometimes, I like ice water in the morning so it works great for us. I think it is made by igloo and I found it in the grocery store. It was less than $10 but worth so much more!

 

I love the idea of ordering from the menu for room service. I think we will do that on a couple of nights. Since we are in a Neptune suite, I understand I can see a menu in the lounge which will save us from going to the dining room to peruse the menu. I bought a 70 inch round, lightweight, inexpensive table cloth to use on the dining table on the veranda so we can have dinner there. I have rarely had dinner in the cabin on previous cruises, but i think it will be nice not having to dress for dinner. We are on the cruise to relax.

 

We are 74 and 75 years old and my husband still goes to work everyday! So we will fit in nicely with the older crowd, but we use no canes and wheelchairs! I do think HAL is catering to an older crowd, and sometimes I find it shocking that WE ARE the older crowd even if we don't feel like we are!

 

Thanks again for your well written review. You told me all I needed to know to get ready!

Edited January 31, 2017 by CruisinNana

[POA1]

Thanks for the review!

 

If you are a heavy user of ice, a small soft or hard cooler will work well. If you can fit it into your mini fridge, all the better. Another option is to ask for a wine bucket filled with ice. It's not insulated, but it holds almost as much as 4 little ice buckets.

Edited January 31, 2017 by POA1

[sandij]

We were on the same cruise and I think they must have been having a ice problem. Even on the Lido deck the ice machines were either not working or they had a container of ice sitting beside them that you could scoop from.

I was surprised by the advanced age (and we're 68) on the ship and I did actually see about 5 children.

[kira5]

We sailed on the N.A. last summer to Alaska. Never gone to the Caribbean. The flights are as much as the cruises unfortunately. I'm also concerned about the heat and humidity but I've also wondered about the sheer volume of ships that go there. If you look a travel/consolidator site it seems that there are hundreds of cruise ships travelling around the Caribbean. I wonder if the various ports become one tourist trap after another; nothing authentic, just shop after shop selling trinkets made elsewhere.

Edited February 1, 2017 by kira5

[RocketMan275]

I love the idea of ordering from the menu for room service. I think we will do that on a couple of nights. Since we are in a Neptune suite, I understand I can see a menu in the lounge which will save us from going to the dining room to peruse the menu. I bought a 70 inch round, lightweight, inexpensive table cloth to use on the dining table on the veranda so we can have dinner there. I have rarely had dinner in the cabin on previous cruises, but i think it will be nice not having to dress for dinner. We are on the cruise to relax.

 

Another tip. The concierge in the Neptune Lounge will place your dinner order for you. I checked out the menus and wrote our requests on a slip of paper along with the room number and the time we wanted dinner. Smooth as silk.

 

One thing. They bring all the courses at the same time. If you really want ice cream for dessert, order it separately. (or, just get some from the lido.) We had three dinners on our aft wrap last cruise and will do several more on our next. We sometimes order coffee and a danish as an early snack before we go to the Pinnacle for breakfast. Yes, I know there is a coffee machine but I think they are terrible. Rather have a keurig.

[POA1]

I wonder if the various ports become one tourist trap after another; nothing authentic, just shop after shop selling trinkets made elsewhere.

 

I remember walking into Skagway and seeing that authentic, native shop, Diamonds International. ;)

 

Pretty much every port legitimate local merchandise. You just have to do your homework.

[erewhon]

Thank you for reviewing your cruise.

[kentuckycruiser]

Another tip. The concierge in the Neptune Lounge will place your dinner order for you. I checked out the menus and wrote our requests on a slip of paper along with the room number and the time we wanted dinner. Smooth as silk.

 

 

 

One thing. They bring all the courses at the same time. If you really want ice cream for dessert, order it separately. (or, just get some from the lido.) We had three dinners on our aft wrap last cruise and will do several more on our next. We sometimes order coffee and a danish as an early snack before we go to the Pinnacle for breakfast. Yes, I know there is a coffee machine but I think they are terrible. Rather have a keurig.

 

 

Do they set up dinner for you?

 

 

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[RocketMan275]

Do they set up dinner for you?

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

Not sure what you mean by 'set up dinner' so let me describe our last cruise on Westerdam.

 

The second night of our cruise was Gala night and our steward asked if we were going and if we wanted a corsage. We told him we were ordering room service. He asked when it would be delivered and we told him at seven. He told us we didn't have to meet the delivery person, he would do that, we could just wait in the room or on the balcony. I went a bar around six thirty and got us a couple of cocktails and we waited on the balcony.

 

Our order arrived promptly at seven and the delivery person and the steward brought it out to the balcony. They put the food items on the table and left. (We tipped the delivery person.) The room steward told us to just leave the dishes and he'd get them when he did room turn down for the night.

 

They didn't serve us course by course. There are some rumors that can be arranged through the concierge but others have denied that is possible. To be honest, I think if you're in the PS that can be arranged.

 

From that night on, the room steward would ask us if we planned on doing room service that evening.

 

It went quite well. Does that help?

 

BTW, we're celebrating our 25th anniversary on our next cruise and the wife has requested room service on the balcony.

 

We didn't bring table clothes or anything else. Worked for us.

Edited February 1, 2017 by RocketMan275

[kentuckycruiser]

Thanks - that's what I meant. Will they carry food outside and set on table. I'm just envisioning me balancing a heavy tray and trying to get the balcony door open! Not to mention I would think several courses would be on a few trays

 

 

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[RocketMan275]

Thanks - that's what I meant. Will they carry food outside and set on table. I'm just envisioning me balancing a heavy tray and trying to get the balcony door open! Not to mention I would think several courses would be on a few trays

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

 

I thought that was what you were asking.

Now, that was our experience with one room steward on Westerdam.

Not sure what will happen on our next cruise on Oosterdam.

I imagine it will be about the same.

 

But, remember, the room service person will have to get the trays to your door. I've never had one that didn't want to know where to put them. Tell him the table on the balcony. Tip well.

Edited February 1, 2017 by RocketMan275

[POA1]

I'm pretty sure that course by course is PS only. The times we did it, we had two waiters. We had company and a total of 6 dining. The PS gives them a butler's pantry for staging.

[RocketMan275]

I'm pretty sure that course by course is PS only. The times we did it, we had two waiters. We had company and a total of 6 dining. The PS gives them a butler's pantry for staging.

 

If you want course-by-course balcony dining, try the Ultimate Balcony Dinner on Princess. Fabulous.

[Tom O.]

All of our dinners were delivered carefully. We had a regular balcony room, and the tiny table on the balcony was not big enough for us to dine there.

The room service person would usually place the large tray on the bed, and then set the table for us with our hors d'oeuvres or salads set up first. If there were soups, he would pour them into a bowl for us. So we would just need to get our other courses ourselves as we got to them.

It was really nice.

[kftw]

Thank you for your review.

[jkturner]

Thank you for your review, we are on NA 27 May on an Alaska cruise, our first time with HAL.

 

 

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[ski ww]

Thank you for your review. We'll be on the NA in Jul on an Alaska cruise. We enjoy dining in the MDR, we always ask for a large table, late seating. It's a nice way to spend an evening socializing with our fellow cruisers. If we run out of ice I just go down the hall way to the room where the ice machine is & fill up our bucket. On the Eurodam the smoking area was on starboard & the Pizza place was on port, hopefully that is the same on the NA? But I do agree the smoke gets pretty bad in the Sea View pool area if the wind blows the wrong way. There where also people "vapping" on the non smoking side, when I pointed this out to the person he told me he wasn't smoking.

Allan

[bUU]

Thanks for your review.

 

We actually only ate in the MDR once, but we had room service deliver complete dinners from the MDR on seven occasions. This is a great service from HAL, that they do not make widely known. You call it in, they deliver it at the time you ask for. No need to wait for a table, no need to change out of “comfy” clothes. The food arrived on time every day and was just as hot as when you get it in the MDR. And since it all comes at once, dinner takes much less time. And there is no extra charge for this service.

Except an extra gratuity for the food runner. I think this may end up being something we take advantage of, should my spouse turn MDR-averse.

 

I noticed that I was among the minority not wearing a coat and tie, but this could have been because we ate very early that night (5:30pm).

:confused: I would think that attire would be more formal later rather than earlier.

 

However, I intentionally did not bring any device that could access the internet, because I spend way too much time on the internet at home and decided to take a vacation from it.

Holland America provides an easy way to address that: Just don't pay for a WiFi package. Then you can connect to the ship's Intranet without having any danger of drifting beyond that into the wider world wide web.

 

I finally solved this issue by making trips to a bar every day to have them fill my ice bucket.

Did the steward refuse to keep two buckets of ice in your cabin?

 

Although we have been cruising for years, this was our first Caribbean Cruise. We have been avoiding the Caribbean for two reasons: 1. We are not beach people. We love to see beaches, but have no desire to lay around on them, or go swimming there. And, 2. We do not do well in hot humid climates.

So, on this cruise we spent almost no time on any beach, and our excursions were mostly boat or bus tours. We didn’t do well with the heat and humidity, but we realized it was much worse for us in the Southern Caribbean Islands, such as Barbados.

I'm not a beach person either and don't enjoy heat and humidity. It is too late for your cruise, but in case someone else is reading your review, here are some of the things we did on our Southern Caribbean cruise, beating the heat: In Barbados we took a cave excursion. Very cool (double entendre intended). In Antigua, we went kayaking (for the first time).

[aliaschief]

Thanks for your review. We were on the cruise before you and had the new large flat screen TV's and ours was interactive as well as our cell phone and I-Pad.