Nieuw Statendam 1/6/19-1/20/19: My Opinion

[jonyboy]

On ‎2‎/‎6‎/‎2019 at 9:31 PM, rkacruiser said:

Arriving at the pier around 11:15, there was already a good sized line waiting to start the check-in process, but the line moved quickly and the check-in process was efficient and quick.  I was done by 11:30, but the cabins were not ready.  At check-in we were given boarding group numbers (Mariner Star status did not seem to matter), and at 11:45 the embarkation began.  Numbers were called steadily and I was on board shortly after Noon.  The Shore Staff did an excellent job in handling the embarkation.

 

After leaving my carry-on in my stateroom, I began my "must do items" soon after embarkation.  A visit to the Spa to get my daily pass for the Hydrothermal Pool and Thermal Suite was first on the agenda.  A visit to the Ocean Bar to get the once offered $50-$100-$250 beverage card.  No longer available, I was told by the bartender.  "Buy the Signature Beverage Package instead.  That is what they want you to do."  No thanks:  Disappointment #1.

 

Embarkation Lunch in the MDR followed and was seated with very pleasant folks whom I kept running into during the cruise.  The service and food were excellent.

 

Returning to the stateroom, one piece of luggage arrived and I started to unpack for the 2 weeks.  During that time, my Stewards Abe and Ratno introduced themselves.  Throughout the cruise, they were pleasant and did an excellent job.

 

Dinner time arrived after pre-dinner drinks at the Ocean Bar.  2nd Seating, at a rectangular table for 6 (I prefer a round table for 6 and did obtain that at the start of the 1/13/19 segment of my itinerary), 4 other very pleasant and good conversationalists joined me with one gentleman starting his first cruise.  (That was fun because the rest of us were experienced cruisers and, I hope, were helpful in introducing him to cruising.)  Stewards Gete A. K. and Putu were proficient in their jobs.  (And, they were still my Stewards for the 2nd segment since my table was near the original one.)  The first Wine Steward left a bit to be desired, I thought, but Edgardo was my 2nd Wine Steward and deserved the additional gratuity that I provided to him.

 

It was an excellent start and really special to be a guest on one of the ship's initial cruises for the season.

 

Public Rooms:  The news of the demise/disappointment of the Crow's Nest has been overdone, I think.  It's there, yes with the former Exploration's Cafe coffee bar.  That Bar also is a full Bar, something that I determined after lunch.  Plenty of comfortable seating with lots of room for more, a library area with many reference books, many empty shelves, and a very few of paperbacks that I think previous guests left.  A digital display connected to the Bridge in the front of the room drew alot of interest.  (I was expecting a display of the Bridge's location map that the Amsterdam had, but was not available.)  The EXC office and their inter-active displays took up some room, but not a significant amount.  Surprisingly, a non-carpeted dance floor type had been installed in the middle of the room, aft of the Bridge digital display.  Why?  This makes me think that the new concept of the Crow's Nest is still a work in progress.  Happy Hours could be held there, if HAL should choose, and reduce the overload in the two lounges that have them.  There are lots of empty shelves for books if HAL would choose to provide them.  

 

Billboard on Board, with the two pianolists, across the hall from The Rolling Stone Rock Room was were Happy Hour was held and both rooms were very busy.  The Bar Manager was behind the Bar once to help the bartenders; the servers were "stretched" and some seemed to be still learning on how to order drinks on the Ipads.  The evening entertainment in Billboard was great.  The Rock Room's band was loud, the performers were good, I thought, but the songs didn't change nightly and only one, in 2 weeks, was one that I knew.  People were using the dance floor in that Lounge.

 

Aft of that area was what had been called on the Koningsdam the Queen's Lounge, the BB King's Blues Club that was also the site of Lincoln Center Live with a string quintet.  Both groups were very good, playing a variety of music.  The dance floor there was filled when the BB King group was on stage.

 

Obvious to me, that HAL is putting much money into this Music Walk concept.  Maybe suffering, as a result, are the nightly programming at the World Stage.  The 270 degree video wall was poorly used, in my opinion.  The individual performers were enjoyable to OK.  The main shows consisted of a modern dance company.  I attended the first and did not attend the others.  The ship's main orchestra were excellent.  No BBC Earth presentations and I heard other guests expressing their unhappiness to the CD about this.  

 

The most innovative programming that I experienced was "Officers on Deck" during a Gala Night around the mid-ship's pool.  Deck chairs had been cleared, tall tables erected with a beverage area at the forward area of the deck.  Many of the ship's Officers, from the Captain on down, were present and could be approached in an informal manner if one wished to do so.

 

MDR:  Breakfasts and lunches were consistently excellent.  My dinner experience was mixed.  The first 7 days seemed better than the last 7 days.  Being a b2b, this was a 2 week experience in the MDR when the menu was exactly repeated, day by day.  For a Collector's Cruise, this is not acceptable.  I wrote this off as a sole example of being on an early cruise for the ship.  (Really, no other "teething" issues appeared for me.)  Lots of emphasis on presentation of the food, I think.  Recipes have been tweaked for some items, i.e. Escargots, since January, 2018 on the Zaandam.  And the tweaking was not to my liking.  A new executive in Seattle in charge of the beverage--maybe the food area as well--department thought the wine list needed to be improved.  What improvement that I saw was the elimination of my favorite wine that was replaced by a wine that cost $29/bottle more.  

 

The Grand Dutch Cafe:  a winner and a venue staffed by Dutch personnel.  Only complaint:  Bitterballen was only available 4:30 P. M.  The venue is on Deck 3 when the HH venues are on Deck 2.  Making this Dutch snack available earlier would prevent one from having to go to Deck 3 to get the snack and then return to HH.  

 

Dinner at Sel de Mar was the most excellent dinner I had aboard.  Service, food, ambiance:  all excellent.  I ordered Escargots (a different recipe from the MDR's, but still needed more garlic), Dover Sole, and Crepes Suzette.  With my Mariner discount, the cost for such a dinner was a bargain.

 

Tamarind was good.

 

Pinnacle Grill  The first visit I ordered lamb chops.  No lamb taste.  The second visit I ordered the Rib Eye.  This will be the last piece of beef I will ever order at the PG.  Having just come from a cruise on Royal Princess where their Crown Grill still uses Sterling Silver Beef that HAL once used in the PG, I was disappointed once again in the PG's beef.  There is simply no beef taste.  My previous 3 up-scale restaurant visits before this visit to PG, I ordered a Rib Eye.  PG's ranked #4 of the four restaurants (two locally as well as Crown Grill).  Service at both visits was by the same waitress and she deserved the gratuity that left for her.  Because my part-of-package wine had been transferred to the PG, the Wine Steward's indifferent service mirrored what I have had in most PGs on other ships.  

 

The Lido Restaurant is laid out as the other Marketplace concepts are on the other ships.  Easy to use without the chaos that I experienced on Royal Princess with their Horizon Court/Bistro concept.

 

The New York Deli as well as the Dive-in were excellent choices when one did not want much to eat.  The sandwiches at the Deli were excellent and it was a thoughtful touch that Iced Tea, Lemonade, and water were available, self-serve.  The pizza I ordered for one lunch was just the right size and the Panna Cotta with fruit for dessert was very good.

 

Room Service for Breakfast was usually on time or just before the time requested.  Only once, the tray had been set up for a minimal order from me with no silver ware or napkin.  I became creative and found that a croissant can be buttered with a spoon if there is no knife.  (But, I did have two coffee cups/spoons for an order for one.)

 

Breads and baked goods were excellent wherever I enjoyed one.

 

The interactive TV worked well once I figured out how to use it.  I enjoy the option having a variety of entertainment choices available and surely enjoyed the music channels.

 

  

 

In my opinion, two venues need to be re-worked in Pinnacle #3.  Club Orange:  Canaletto would be a better place for this dining facility.  When one dines at Canaletto, one is still dining in the Lido Restaurant.  Make Canaletto more special.  The Ocean Bar is no longer the prime bar on a HAL ship.  The Bar seating is too small for so many guests and with most of the seating out in the corridor passing the bar, I avoided it.  The room is divided into half and that causes the ambiance as well as whatever music is available to be enjoyed.  And, whomever thought that the Stewards and bartenders should wear hats during the evening should be given a different responsibility for making such decisions.

 

The ship is beautiful. The art work is modern and many pieces makes one wonder what was the intention of the artist.   It is not crowded for the number of guests present.  The crew were as expected with their service and friendliness.  Most, if not all, were involved in Venice in bringing this ship to life.  (And, I pity the poor crewmen who had to carry the chairs destined for Billboard on board.  I can guarantee you, those chairs are so heavy to move that in any heavy sea, if everything else is moving:  they won't be!)  They are proud of the Nieuw Statendam as they should be.

 

The handling of 538 b2b guests in Fort Lauderdale by the HAL Shore Staff needs to be recognized for their efforts.  Jeff kept us informed very well  during the process and the procedure went well.  (As always, there was one "gentleman" who was tardy in disembarking and clearing ICE so that the ship could be declared zero down allowing the rest of us standing in long lines waiting to be re-embarked.  Such is life.)  

 

Disembarkation on 1/20/19 took longer than expected because the ship needed to have its position at the pier slightly moved twice due to the strong winds from the East.  Also, the terminal had an electrical failure for awhile during this time.  But, when I disembarked, all was normal and I was was on my way quickly.

 

Did I enjoy my cruise?  Yes, I did and did truly enjoy meeting the folks that I did.  I'd be glad to sail with these good people again!

 

 

 

   

I had the same opinion of the rib eye in the PG.  Never again