Nieuw Statendam

[rkacruiser]

1 hour ago, canadianbear said:

We will be on the Kongingsdam for that mess!  Think we will just go plunk ourselves in the water and look for the octopus.  I doubt we will get the Island tenders.

 

Consider a day at the Hydrotherapy Pool and Thermal Suite for the day.  Koningsdam's is likely the same as the Nieuw Statendam's,  I enjoyed many hours at the Pool and the Thermal Suite (with its variety of saunas) when I was on the Nieuw Statendam.

[Dismomx5]

19 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Consider a day at the Hydrotherapy Pool and Thermal Suite for the day.  Koningsdam's is likely the same as the Nieuw Statendam's,  I enjoyed many hours at the Pool and the Thermal Suite (with its variety of saunas) when I was on the Nieuw Statendam.

Is it possible to buy a day at the Thermal Suite? Or even two? We're on a 20 day Mediterranean, and I know that the cost for the entire trip would be astronomical. 😞

[rkacruiser]

20 minutes ago, Dismomx5 said:

Is it possible to buy a day at the Thermal Suite? Or even two? We're on a 20 day Mediterranean, and I know that the cost for the entire trip would be astronomical. 😞

 

Yes.  Day passes are available usually.  If you are of a certain Mariner Star level, there is a one day free pass to this amenity that I suspect if overlooked by many.  

 

As a suggestion, visit the Greenhouse Spa on the day of embarkation, speak with them about what you would like to do, and see what they suggest as to how to arrange a day or two or more of such daily passes.

[Dismomx5]

20 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Yes.  Day passes are available usually.  If you are of a certain Mariner Star level, there is a one day free pass to this amenity that I suspect if overlooked by many.  

 

As a suggestion, visit the Greenhouse Spa on the day of embarkation, speak with them about what you would like to do, and see what they suggest as to how to arrange a day or two or more of such daily passes.

Thank you. For some reason, I did not think that day passes were available. This is good to know for those ports where we don't plan on a long tour.

[Fouremco]

3 hours ago, Alberta Quilter said:

 

Next week, both the NS and the Koningsdam will be at HMC on the same day.  Which one will get the island tenders?  Inquiring minds want to know!  We did our two tours last Monday when only the NS was there.  We may not get off the ship this time with over 5000 people at HMC next week...

Usually the larger ship gets the island tenders, but in this case, I suspect that the first to (figuratively) drop anchor will get them.

[Alberta Quilter]

We had a fairly quiet day today.  We didn't dock until after 11 am and then it took some time to get clearance.  Then EVERYONE wanted to get off at the same time, it seemed.  They had two gangways open but most used one. It was a bit of a madhouse but not unruly; just a lot of people all at once.  We walked along the Main Street for a while but DM got tuckered. Maybe if we got off the main drag, it may have been nicer.  There were people all along trying to get us to rent a car or buy the earrings to match my pendant or get a free gift in the jewelry shop.  Really not that pleasant, mostly incessant. We lasted less than an hour.  We took a cab back to the pier.  DM waited while I bought vanilla for someone back home.  Then we took a pedicab to the ship, the cost was a tip.  We ate some lunch onboard and then DM had a nap while I puzzled for a while.  We enjoyed our verandah for a while before getting ready for dinner in Tamarind.  We had an amazing dinner there, introducing our friends to Tamarind.  We shared a variety of appetizers and then each of us had our own entree.

 

We watched the Folkloric show for a bit after dinner but it wasn't very good.  I got particularly turned off when they sang My Way, and not very well.  One of the dancers was lacklustre.  The other two did more but that was mostly swinging their dresses.  We did see the last part of the BBC Underwater Adventure in the World Stage.  That was interesting, so much so that we stayed and watched it again from the beginning when it was replayed half an hour later.

[richwmn]

Good Morning,

Today is the last day of the first week of my Nieuw Statendam Cruise. Later today we will have the Mariner Luncheon, but on the whole it is a relaxing day at sea.

We got our turn around day instructions today. Notable items, the instructions are a bit vague as to leaving the ship. At one point they say that we will have to present ourselves to immigration in the terminal, but later the instructions are to meet in the World Stage (Deck 2) and as soon as everyone presents themselves we will be free to leave. The other interesting thing is that those of use who attended the muster drill on Feb 10th are exempt from the one on the 17th.

On the way to breakfast the Lido Pool area was covered with towel animals, which seems to be the standard over the last couple of months. Lots of talent went into making those little pieces of art. Kudos to the Room Stewards who participated.

 

[catl331]

12 hours ago, Fouremco said:

Usually the larger ship gets the island tenders, but in this case, I suspect that the first to (figuratively) drop anchor will get them.

Or maybe it's whichever ship is catering lunch on the island ... which is also the first ship in?

[Fouremco]

7 minutes ago, catl331 said:

Or maybe it's whichever ship is catering lunch on the island ... which is also the first ship in?

Good point. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[richwmn]

Mariner Society Lunch

Caribbean

 

Jerked Seafood and Macadamia Salad

Chicken and Andouille Gumbo

 

Caribbean Pepper Steak

Montego Bay Grilled Haddock and Shrimp

Rasta Pasta

 

Coconut Cream Pie

 

I had the Gumbo and it was very good, very spicy. Others mentioned that the Salad was also very spicy.

The Steak was very tasty, again others said that the Haddock was also good.

 

 

[jargey3000]

On 2/13/2019 at 12:19 PM, richwmn said:

Greetings! Some quick updates. We appear to be at the industrial pier, so nothing just off the ship. I doubt that I will leave the ship since I have been here several times.

 

Menus, Menus, Menus -

I don't know how many I can attach, but here are all the posted menus as of today.

Canaleto_dinner.pdf

DiveIn-lunch.pdf

Dutch-dinner.pdf

Feb13Dinner.pdf

Nami-dinner.pdf

NYDeli-dinner.pdf

Orange-dinner.pdf

Pinnacle_dinner.pdf

Sel_de_Mar_dinner.pdf

Tamarind-dinner.pdf

Thanks. i'm not familiar with HAL . Are all -or any- of these restaurants  'extra-charge'? thanks.

[rkacruiser]

13 minutes ago, jargey3000 said:

Thanks. i'm not familiar with HAL . Are all -or any- of these restaurants  'extra-charge'? thanks.

Pinnacle, Tamarind, Canaletto, and Sel de Mar are extra charge.  Orange refers to Club Orange which is a new extra charge situation that provides some "special perks" for those who pay this extra money.

Edited February 16, 2019 by rkacruiser

[richwmn]

Here is tonight's menu for an easy day at sea.

 

For the person that asked about Orange, I have looked several nights and it appears that the menu is the same as the MDR, just maybe a "better" dining experience.

 

 

 

Feb16dinner.pdf

[richwmn]

18 minutes ago, jargey3000 said:

Thanks. i'm not familiar with HAL . Are all -or any- of these restaurants  'extra-charge'? thanks.

 

4 minutes ago, rkacruiser said:

Pinnacle, Tamarind, and Sel de Mar are extra charge.

Orange is only free to those in Neptune or Pinnacle Suites, others can opt for a package that costs $50/day to get to dine there as well as some other perks.

 

[Overhead Fred]

In the Club Orange menu linked above, it says" Club Orange Daily Special, Ask your server" in the Available Daily section. I think this may be the only food difference with respect to the MDR.

[Responder]

Have they upgraded the chairs in

CO yet.

Are many people attending?

[catl331]

3 hours ago, jargey3000 said:

Thanks. i'm not familiar with HAL . Are all -or any- of these restaurants  'extra-charge'? thanks.

 

3 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

Pinnacle, Tamarind, Canaletto, and Sel de Mar are extra charge.

Also Nami Sushi, which is inside the Tamarind but has a la carte pricing. Also, drinks are not free at the Grand Dutch Cafe.

[rkacruiser]

11 minutes ago, catl331 said:

Tamarind but has a la carte pricing. Also, drinks are not free at the Grand Dutch Cafe.

 

I do not recall that Tamarind was ala carte.  I did forget the Rotterdam ???? (I forget the year) coffee was not free nor were the other drinks.  I found that to be a weak point (and was not impressed with the Rotterdam coffee)  of the Grand Dutch Cafe along with the timing when Bitterballen was available.  Happy Hour starts at the Rock Room and Billboard at 4:00 P.M.  But, this delicious HH snack is NOT available until 30 minutes  after HH starts.  (Then, one has to leave their seat/drink in order to get it and hope that their seat/drink will still be there.  The Hotel Director/Food & Beverage Director/Bar Manager need to work on this and get it FIXED.)

[Overhead Fred]

The Tamarind is not ala carte but Nami Sushi (inside the Tamarind) is ala carte

[qoap24]

7 hours ago, richwmn said:

Here is tonight's menu for an easy day at sea.

 

For the person that asked about Orange, I have looked several nights and it appears that the menu is the same as the MDR, just maybe a "better" dining experience.

 

 

 

Feb16dinner.pdf

Thank you so much for checking for me. 

[Alberta Quilter]

It was a busy sea day for us yesterday.  There was the Mariner reception.  Then we had lunch in the PG (we skipped the Mariner brunch).  After that, we had Team Trivia, then our free wine tasting.  That was followed by another round of trivia.

 

DM and I split a pizza for dinner.  We then went down to the Dutch Cafe to sample the hot hors d'ourves there. We finally made it to a show!  It was a variety show with the comedian, who was good, and the mentalist who was not so good.

 

This morning, I checked our onboard account to find an additional credit of $178!  The only thing I can think of for this credit is the missed port of Grand Cayman. We didn't have a tour booked but it seems like a lot for port fees and taxes, doesn't it?  I just hope it's a refundable credit because we're not spending our original allotment of OBC as it is.  If not, the crew fund will get a boost!

 

 

[Krazy Kruizers]

24 minutes ago, Alberta Quilter said:

It was a busy sea day for us yesterday.  There was the Mariner reception.  Then we had lunch in the PG (we skipped the Mariner brunch).  After that, we had Team Trivia, then our free wine tasting.  That was followed by another round of trivia.

 

DM and I split a pizza for dinner.  We then went down to the Dutch Cafe to sample the hot hors d'ourves there. We finally made it to a show!  It was a variety show with the comedian, who was good, and the mentalist who was not so good.

 

This morning, I checked our onboard account to find an additional credit of $178!  The only thing I can think of for this credit is the missed port of Grand Cayman. We didn't have a tour booked but it seems like a lot for port fees and taxes, doesn't it?  I just hope it's a refundable credit because we're not spending our original allotment of OBC as it is.  If not, the crew fund will get a boost!

 

 

 

You did have a busy day.  Having lunch at the Pinnacle is better than the Mariner's brunch -- JMO.

[Krazy Kruizers]

12 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

 

I do not recall that Tamarind was ala carte.  I did forget the Rotterdam ???? (I forget the year) coffee was not free nor were the other drinks.  I found that to be a weak point (and was not impressed with the Rotterdam coffee)  of the Grand Dutch Cafe along with the timing when Bitterballen was available.  Happy Hour starts at the Rock Room and Billboard at 4:00 P.M.  But, this delicious HH snack is NOT available until 30 minutes  after HH starts.  (Then, one has to leave their seat/drink in order to get it and hope that their seat/drink will still be there.  The Hotel Director/Food & Beverage Director/Bar Manager need to work on this and get it FIXED.)

 

That is not good if you have to get your own appetizers and then worry if someone cleans up your unfinished drink.

[EbayCruiser]

On 2/15/2019 at 8:17 AM, richwmn said:

For this week, the Western Caribbean Itinerary, Grand Cayman and Half Moon Cay are tender. Ocho Rios and Cozumel are docked. Be aware that for Ocho Rios we docked at the industrial pier and it is a long walk or cab ride to get to any of the shops. Even at the newer pier it is a bit of a walk off the ship.

 

 

Thank you - hoping we get the large tenders on HMC.  We are going on 3/10, does anyone know how many other ships will be there?

 

[richwmn]

To add to what Alberta Quilter said about yesterday. My schedule was similar. Medallion Ceremony and I followed up with the actual Mariner's Lunch. I posted the menu above and it was a very nice lunch.

I caught up with Alberta Quilter, her mom, and the others for the last question of trivia.

Their wine tasting didn't last long, as there was only an hour between the two trivia contests.

Second trivia, then a brief pause before dinner in the Lido.

Then came the last trivia of the cruise, a music trivia using TV theme songs as the topic. Shows representing the fifties thru today were used.

I then listened to 2 full sets of Billboard Onboard, while I chatted with a bartender I know from several earlier cruises.

This morning breakfast, and I am now waiting to report to the Main Stage to join the others staying on board.

I did not get the credit that Alberta Quilter mentioned, so it couldn't have anything to do with Grand Cayman.

The second week on Nieuw Statendam officially begins shortly, watch for us at Sail Away!