Just back from Koningsdam (Ancient Empires / Eastern Med)

[Blue Midget]

First cruise on HAL having previously been on RCCL a few times. Picked the cruise mainly because of dates and itinerary and wasn't quite sure what to expect from HAL. We all had a great time and no real grumbles. Couple of points that may be of interest to others.

 

- There's been a few queries on which venues are included if you have a drinks package. We had Signature beverage package and no charges were taken when we went to Grand Dutch Cafe for either alcoholic or non alcoholic drinks. We did though though get charged when when we ordered a drink that was $10 or $11 from Notes. Guest Services early on tried to argue that this was as the $11 limit did not include the service charge. They did eventually back down on this and refunded the charges although the issue continued to recur relating to Notes only. I suspect something on the billing system isn't set up correctly relating to Notes and it's flagging a charge at $11 instead of $11 plus 15%.

- One of the party had a quench beverage package which should include the Coke Freestyle cup on Konigsdam. This wasn't supplied and again guest services tried to argue it wasn't included in the package until I showed them an electronic copy of the purchase which clearly listed it. It's worth taking electronic copies of everything pre purchased as guest services are either not trained on some of the detail of what's included or were being a little difficult at times.

- Service in main dining room (fixed time) was excellent as was the food. Quality of ingredients used and preperation of food both definitely a step up from RCCL. A previous post queried whether scallops were served in MDR. I was suprised to see them on the menu as ingredients on at least 3-4 nights out of 11. When ordered these did turn out to be sea scallops rather than the small bay scallops although there would usually only be 2-3 along with other sea food.

- Cabin stewards also excellent (as they also were on RCCL)

- Comments about the couch bed in balcony rooms being too small are accurate. Not really suitable for anyone over 5'2". It seems to be down to the design. There's a gap a the top of the matress and then it's constrained by the desk at the bottom.

- Did not have any difficulty getting into shows that we wanted to see although the itinerary was pretty busy so entertainment was not my main priority.

- I can understand some of the negative comments about the Lido. I can see the advantage of the food being served rather than guests helping themselves but it was difficult to tell at times what was on offer at each station without a fair bit of queueing and wandering around. The quality of the food served though was very good. Including the Lido lunch menu on the app would help. I didn't try the Lido for breakfast as tended to use MDR unless we had a very early start in which case room service breakfast.

 

Overall though had a great time and would have no hesitation in booking again.

[trub]

thanks for posting your views, glad you enjoyed your cruise with HAL

[I_r_a]

Thanx for sharing, BM

 

Ira

[cat shepard]

Great info, thank you. I need to remember to check my account often, if not every day.

[sevenseasnomad]

Always check the onboard account at least several times during a voyage.  As for the Lido lines, I agree it's an imposition; however, I'd rather stand in line than run the risk of Noro.  I like the idea that HAL is proactive in this regard.

 

OP, did you enjoy HAL enough to book again?  For those of us who prefer this line, I guess that's the question.

 

Glad you enjoyed the cruise.

[mexico8]

11 minutes ago, sevenseasnomad said:

Always check the onboard account at least several times during a voyage.  As for the Lido lines, I agree it's an imposition; however, I'd rather stand in line than run the risk of Noro.  I like the idea that HAL is proactive in this regard.

 

OP, did you enjoy HAL enough to book again?  For those of us who prefer this line, I guess that's the question.

 

Glad you enjoyed the cruise.

The answer is already given in the OPs post above.   (Yes, they would book again)

[Krazy Kruizers]

Glad you were able to enjoy your first HAL cruise in spite of a couple of problems with the Signature Beverage package.

 

Thank you for your opinions.

[DeeniEncinitas]

I also agree with (KK) KrazyKruizer!!!!!

For your first time I hope it won’t be your last. We enjoy the smaller ships of HAL but

because of itinerary we will be on Koningsdam in 2021. I hope we enjoy her!

Denise😊

 

[puppycanducruise]

Thanks for taking the time to post your comments.

Glad you enjoyed your cruise.

[erewhon]

Thanks for taking time to post your comments.

Pleased that you enjoyed the cruise.

[Blue Midget]

 

8 hours ago, sevenseasnomad said:

Always check the onboard account at least several times during a voyage.  As for the Lido lines, I agree it's an imposition; however, I'd rather stand in line than run the risk of Noro.  I like the idea that HAL is proactive in this regard.

 

OP, did you enjoy HAL enough to book again?  For those of us who prefer this line, I guess that's the question.

 

Glad you enjoyed the cruise.

 

Absolutely, I think for me the most important thing would always be itinerary / dates but in fairness I think HAL tends to have more varied itineraries which is a definite plus. I went with wife and 3 adult children (17, 21, 25). Before we went I did have a perception of a much older demographic which was a bit of a concern. This was not the case but then it was one of HAL’s biggest ships in the Med in school holidays. It might have been different on a much smaller ship out of season. There were far more younger people on the cruise than I expected. On the last sea day there were a few ‘rowdy’ younger kids which I suspect some traditional HAL cruisers may have taken issue with. It was nothing  compared to what I’ve seen on RCCL though in summer sailing out of Southampton.

 

Other positives included the presence of the EXC port talks which were not focussed purely on selling shore excursions. My wife loved the afternoon tea on the two sea days which was served on the 3 tier platters. 

 

We all agreed by the end that we’ve enjoyed every cruise we’ve been on, all have had different strengths and weaknesses but on balance this was actually our favourite one so far. It’s hard to put your finger on it but there were lots of little things that made it a very pleasant experience.

 

 

[kazu]

Thanks for taking the time to share your experiences.

 

The Med is always wonderful to visit.  Glad you had a good time 🙂 

[ski ww]

Welcome to HAL, thanks for writing your review.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Thanks for the review.