Westerdam Review -- 12/4 Sailing

[LollyT]

Westerdam – December 4 – 11, 2005, a tiny bit belated, but here you go:

 

 

To begin, we drove over with the other couple we were traveling with, and the drive down was quite enjoyable and flew by quickly. We arrived at Port Everglades with no difficulty, at about 2:00 p.m. My DB dropped us and the luggage (he told his mother I packed everything in the house including the living room sofa but in my defense, it was only the loveseat!) off and went to park the car. We must have hit the line at a good time because we only waited about 10-15 minutes for Embarkation and other than yours truly misplacing a piece of paperwork (which magically appeared just in the nick of time – phew), everything went smoothly and quickly. Our luggage appeared promptly and we unpacked and prepared to tour the Westerdam. I only have one prior cruise under my belt, and it was on the Celebrity Horizon (now out of commission), so my observations are based on that small comparison.

 

The Ship: IMO the Westerdam was quite lovely – very well decorated for the holidays, VERY clean, with many wonderful works of art and interesting things to see. The Horizon did not have an atrium, so the one in the Westerdam was, to me, pretty. The Waterford crystal ship hanging from the ceiling was beautiful and while I understand that there are FAR more elaborate and spectacular atriums on other ships, there was nothing wrong with ours. Loved the Crow’s Nest and the recliners up at the front, but good luck getting one. My DB enjoys an occasional cigar and we did visit the cigar room several times. The cigar room did nothing for either of us (nor the other two we were traveling with). It was not decorated in a particularly warm fashion and although there was nothing wrong with the décor, we would expect something clubby and masculine and cozy as opposed to generic. But hey, whatever. I did enjoy the teak furniture on the deck just outside the cigar room. Very attractive and comfy. Also, the cushioned teak deck chairs were surprisingly comfortable and we very much enjoyed going up to the observation deck late at night to gaze at the brilliant stars. I loved the glass flowers on the ceiling in the dining room which reminded me of the Bellagio in Las Vegas. I found the ship easy to navigate and once I figured out (and remembered) where everything was, bopped around with little difficulty. The Pinnacle Grill was lovely but the lighted panels with pictures of weird food groupings, etc. was a bit out of place. I think they are striving for elegance and, IMO, on that particular item they missed by a mile. I did ask if the Bulgari china was available for sale and it is not (I would have purchased a plate or two had I been able). The Lido pool was great and we enjoyed spending time there with the exception of having to listen to non-stop Christmas carols (a few carols would have been fine, but non-stop with no variety and not even one Caribbean steel drum song thrown in for good measure???). It got to the point of being ridiculous and if I never hear Frosty the Snowman again it will be too soon. Also, the towel hogs were out in great force on this cruise and we watched two groups of ladies walk up, stake out approximately ten chairs, and walk away. They did not return while we were there. One poor chap who just wanted to lay out for a half hour and read a book was left searching for a spot and you could just see the thoughts going through his head. We did speak to one of the staff about this but basically got the old “what can we do” response.

 

The Cabin: We were in a forward port deluxe verandah cabin (7012). I do not suffer from seasickness (thank goodness) but my DB did find the forward section of the ship to be a bit on the “active” side with regard to motion and to the sound of the ship hitting the waves, etc. We like to keep our cabin door open and breathe the fresh air and that was wonderful (we brought a bungi cord which I had read about on other CC threads to keep the door open – thanks for the tip). We spent a lot of time out on the verandah just gazing at the water. The cabin had plenty of closet space, plenty of hangars and plenty of storage space in the bathroom. I particularly enjoyed the tub. Great water pressure and plenty of hot water – we never ran out even when we showered one after the other. I did notice a tiny “port a potty” smell the first few days in the bathroom, but it went away and wasn’t bad enough to complain about. (I only noticed a sewer smell elsewhere one time and that was on deck 9 outside the spa. It wasn’t bad though and barely registered.) The bed was marvelous – believe every wonderful thing you’ve heard about the new HAL beds. We enjoyed having the sofa and table and fresh fruit. The amenity I ordered was in place when we arrived as was the gift from our TA. I do wish that the Westerdam had gone to flat screen televisions as the TV took up a bunch of space on the vanity and with the ice buckets, tray, water bottles, etc., there wasn’t a spare inch. I said to my DB that it would have been cool to have a flat panel television affixed to the wall opposite the bed. The cabin was plenty spacious and the verandah had two chairs, a small table, and a footstool. I was very happy with this category of cabin but would like to upgrade to a suite next time just for giggles. By the way, they shampooed our carpet one day while we were out and the cabin smelled very fresh and clean. Cleanliness on the Westerdam is superb!

 

Food: Wonderful! I’d heard about small portion sizes in the dining room, but that was FINE with me as I was able to still fit into my work clothes when I got back and avoid the expense of an entire new wardrobe! We often ordered two appetizers plus soup, plus salad and my DB ordered a couple of entrees more than once. We always walked away feeling comfortably full but not overly stuffed, so were able to hit the Crow’s Nest for a spot of dancing. We did not get to the BBQ, nor the dessert buffet but I heard they were great. We ate in the Lido for breakfast a couple of times, as well as lunch, but did not ever eat dinner there. The food in Lido was very good. I also loved the taco bar by the lido pool and visited that several times. The hamburgers at the grill smelled and looked divine but I didn’t get a chance to taste one. Next time! We ate at the Pinnacle twice and the filet mignon was among the best I’ve ever had. Actually everything I ate at the Pinnacle was fabulous. I didn’t get the volcano cake as I am not a fan of Grand Marnier, but my friend got it and she said it was just “okay.” The crème brulee was great. The bread we ate was all fresh and delicious. It was nice to be able to pop up to the Lido any time day or night and get water, juice, coffee, tea (hot or iced). Overall the food on the Westerdam met or exceeded my expectations.

 

Service: Pardon me if I gush, but the service on the Westerdam was outstanding!!! I don’t think we ever encountered a member of the staff that didn’t greet us with a smile. Room service was perfect and exactly on time each morning. Our cabin steward, Eko, was extremely friendly, gregarious, efficient and otherwise perfect. My only complaint is that he wouldn’t fit in my luggage! We asked for an extra ice bucket and he kept it filled with ice for us. Whatever we needed, we got promptly and with a smile. The front desk staff was pleasant and efficient both times I went up there. The shorex desk staff very friendly. Our waiter was Rahman and our wine steward was Tony. Tony enjoys singing Elvis songs and kept us smiling and laughing. He remembered what we liked and never kept us waiting. Don’t really have much of an opinion one way or the other about the Cruise Director (Michelle Worthely). She didn’t make much of an impression I guess.

 

Entertainment: Can’t address this issue as we didn’t go to any shows.

 

Ports: Not enough time in Nassau, so we stayed on the ship. Tortola was gorgeous and we went on a snorkeling trip (booked through HAL) which was enjoyable but nothing overly special. It rained a bit that afternoon and we saw the coolest double rainbow just outside our cabin. St. Maarten was a shopping mecca for anyone in the market for jewelry and my DB ended up getting me a lovely tennis bracelet for Christmas. For anyone interested, when I got back I had the piece appraised by a jeweler and not only was the color and clarity of the stones exactly as advertised, but the jeweler told me I couldn’t have touched that piece in the US for what we paid for it down there. We didn’t do any shorex (outside of trekking up and down Front street) on St. Maarten. Half Moon Cay was pretty much beyond words. That I am writing this review back here at my desk and not hiding out on that island is a testimony to my own madness. The last tender back to the ship was at 3:30 and I kept telling Tet (our butler) not to worry, that I would catch the 6:00 tender (the ship sailed at 4:00). No dice though and I was bodily dragged out of the cabana kicking and screaming. ;) The cabana is a “must do” in my estimation and if you can swing it, the butler upgrade is fabulous also. I put a picture of HMC on my holiday newsletter this year – it’s truly my “happy place” from now on. :)

 

This review has been extremely lengthy and if you’ve made it this far… thanks for reading. I’m happy to answer specific questions. Oh, and I can’t go without a final word about my fellow-CCers on board. What a great group of folks! If you get a chance to attend any type of CC gathering, be sure to go. I missed the initial sail away party and I really regret that. :(

 

I wish everyone a very healthy and happy holiday season and a wonderful 2006!

 

Laura

[SueOverend]

Laura, great review. We got home this morning after 4 exhausting days in Orlando. It was great meeting you and all the other CC group. I'll write a review too, but will probably have to wait until after Christmas. Hit the ground running today!

 

I must agree with you re the decor for the Pinnacle Grill - I don't know what they were trying to achieve with the brightly lit photographs. These are the sort of things we have in our Supermarkets in England and is certainly not associated with fine dining!

 

Great meeting you and have a great Christmas.

 

Sue & John

[gizmo]

Great review. Thanks, I enjoyed it.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thanks Laura for posting your review.

 

Enjoyed reading it.

[rubrrick]

Thanks for your wonderful review Laura. If there were any glitches to our 12/4 Westerdam cruise.....it, in fact was just too short!:D My DW and I have said that it was one of the best cruises we have taken. Getting together with our fellow CC'ers was not only wonderful but we came away with some new found friends!

We are definitely sailing HAL again!

 

Rick

[drdance]

Laura,

 

Thanks for the detailed review of the Westerdam. We're sailing on 1/3/06 for a short five days. It will be our second time on HAL. Great experience the first time around, and we're looking forward to this sailing.

 

drdance

[sweetcat]

We were on the 11/27 Westerdam cruise and had the same great experiences. Perfect cabin and wonderful beds. First balcony ever and loved to sit and just listen to the water.

 

We found the food to be excellent and in fact only ate at the restaurant once. (Late seating was too late). Service all over was excellent.

 

Decor is a little to vinyl and bright but makes a fun summer type atmosphere. There are quiet dark places to get away.

 

The retractable roof over the pool deck was a fine idea.

[cruisecache&squash]

Glad you had such a great time! We were on the 11/27 sailing and Eko was our cabin steward also! We were in 7030. He was wonderful!! And so smiley! Did you ever talk to the yum yum guy? His name was Is. He was very smiley, too.

[FLACRUISER99]

Great Review Laura. By the way HAL supplied Nuts & appetizersplus they reserved the starboard side of the Crows Nest for our 12/11 sailing CC party.:D

[LollyT]

Well, wonder what we did wrong???? Oh well. Great to meet you and welcome back. I'm anxious to hear how the second leg of your B2B went. Hope you had great weather, etc. etc.

 

Happy holidays to you both!!!

 

Laura