Live Cruise Report: HAL Rotterdam, Feb 5 - 13, 2022 / Western Caribbean

[BelleEpoque]

Good morning all-

 

I am both excited and nervous to share that I will be doing a Live Cruise Report during my upcoming HAL cruise on the Rotterdam from Feb 5 - 13, 2022 in the Western Caribbean. 🛳️❤️🚢

 

About this cruise:

• 8 nights out of FLL with stops at Half Moon Cay, Falmouth (Jamaica), Cozumel (Mexico), Key West (Florida), and elsewhere
• this will be my first time as a solo cruiser, my first HAL cruise, and my third cruise since the restart
• sailing in an oceanview cabin

About me:

• Relaxed cruising is my style and tend to spend a lot of time lounging by the pool or elsewhere with a glass of vino or cup of tea and book (or e-book/audio book). I am also one of those cruisers who goes to the gym daily.
• I am in my early 40s and a little nervous about being among the younger people on this cruise, but I might be flattering myself.
• From what I read, HAL is very compatible with my love of music, fine arts and fine dining. (I am a huge fan of Princess and hope that I will find similarities and even improvements here since it is a newer ship.)
• I'm especially looking forward to the Greenhouse Spa, B.B. Kings, Lincoln Center on Stage, and dining at Tamarind and Rudi's. 
• Most of the cruise ports are familiar to me, but I am excited to try some new excursions that I haven't been able to do in the past -- perhaps one of the perks of being a solo cruiser.

This profile is new so I can have a little anonymity but I have been active on Cruise Critic for about four years now. I will be sharing this live cruise report link with friends and family who I hope will want to follow along. I was originally going to travel with a friend and family member but their plans changed and I decided to forge ahead on my own. I am a bit shy at first, but I would be grateful for evening dining companions who share my love of the fine arts, literature, or wine and whiskey (feel free to message me here if that's you).

 

It has been snowing buckets where I live in the Northern part of these United States, so I will be grateful for sunshine and any temps above 70 degrees if we get them! 

 

Thanks for reading!

Edited January 30, 2022 by BelleEpoque
formatting, clarity

[canadianbear]

Looking forward to following along on your cruise.   Especially how you like your first solo cruise.  Mr Bear isn’t thrilled cruising again so I may have to branch out on my own.  I assume you’ve signed up on the roll call which can be a good way to meet others prior to the cruise.  
 

The ship you’ll be on should be wonderful!  Don’t forget about the Dutch Cafe-they have great snacks or meals too.  
 

Did you book a solo cabin-I’ve read they do have a certain amount of those?   
 

Enjoy! 

[BelleEpoque]

12 minutes ago, canadianbear said:

...I assume you’ve signed up on the roll call which can be a good way to meet others prior to the cruise.  
 

...Don’t forget about the Dutch Cafe-they have great snacks or meals too.  
 

Did you book a solo cabin-I’ve read they do have a certain amount of those?   

thanks for the kind words. i have done plenty of solo land travel for leisure and work, but this will be different - hoping i like it better.

 

my usual travel companion can rarely get away for a cruise that is more than 4 days long, so i am hoping that if i like i will be able to more solo cruising in the 10 - 21 day range. (i've always had a love sailing and maritime culture, so the longer the better for me.) 

 

yes, i am excited for the dutch treats at the cafe (hoping it reminds me of my previous travels in amsterdam and elsewhere in the netherlands).

 

and i was lucky to be able to snag one of the single ocean view cabins and save a little money over a regular oceanview (though the inside cabins were cheaper even at the double occupancy rate, but i need a window; a veranda cabin is always wasted on me because i don't use the veranda much at all).

 

i am tempted to upgrade to a large cabin, but i think a smaller cabin might be better for me because it will encourage me to get out more and explore the ship.

Edited January 30, 2022 by BelleEpoque
spelling and grammar

[jbhcw]

Thanks so much for doing this live review!  Sailing...hopefully...2-20 on the Rotterdam...first time without my beloved husband...and during a pandemic...so I've been pretty apprehension about it all.. Plus it's been about 4 years since I last cruised.... Wishing you a wonderful time!! 

[Mtn2Sea]

Looking forward to reading your review.  Hope you enjoy HAL as much as we do.

[Lilly-Ann]

Awww.... I bet you are so excited!!!! Looking forward to following along. We will be on the one after you.  🙂

[esimon]

would love to meet up with the single cruisers and get to know you. I'll be traveling with my DH but  would travel with out him if I had too.  We will be on this cruise and B2B

[BarbinMich]

On 1/30/2022 at 3:07 PM, jbhcw said:

Thanks so much for doing this live review!  Sailing...hopefully...2-20 on the Rotterdam...first time without my beloved husband...and during a pandemic...so I've been pretty apprehension about it all.. Plus it's been about 4 years since I last cruised.... Wishing you a wonderful time!! 

Hi, Jane.  I will be on the Rotterdam with you!  I, too, will be solo.  This is my second solo since my DH passed Mar 1 2020.  I was on the Eurodam 11/16-11/24 and things went well for my first solo.  My DH and I had sailed 51 times (on 3 different lines) before his health deteriorated.  Look forward to meeting you!

 

Barb

[BelleEpoque]

9 hours ago, esimon said:

would love to meet up with the single cruisers and get to know you. I'll be traveling with my DH but  would travel with out him if I had too.  We will be on this cruise and B2B

You’re so lucky to be doing a B2B.
 

Wonder if there is a Cruise Critic meetup scheduled? It would be a Great War for all

of us to connect. 

[quilty964]

We hope to be on the cruise with you.  Leaving on the 4th, but the snow forecasts are making me worried about our flights!

[canadianbear]

It is good you have done lots of solo land travel so that will help I'm sure.   Have you looked on the roll call for your cruise to see if there is a M&G? 

 

I am glad you snagged one of the single ocean view cabins-I wondered about the motion as I think they are forward.  Please let me know as that would be what I would pick if I ended up going solo.  I am a little concerned about my claustrophobia though being in a cabin without a balcony.  It wouldn't make a difference to me being in a small cabin but I'm not sure I could handle anything without a balcony, sigh.  That makes it very expensive paying a rate as a single.  I will have to keep working on Mr Bear!

 

I believe there is usually a meet up for any singles cruising on the first or second day.  Used to be in the program I think but you'd probably have to ask if you don't see it.

 

Can hardly wait for you to board!  Let us know how it goes, how your cabin is, how any excursions you do....well, you know...all of it!!  LOL. 

 

 

[AFNavigator]

On 1/30/2022 at 10:41 AM, BelleEpoque said:

8 nights out of FLL with stops at Half Moon Cay, Falmouth (Jamaica), Cozumel (Mexico), Key West (Florida), and elsewhere

If you are looking for heat, it looks like you get to sail further south now.  It appears Key West has been dropped and replaced with Belize City (a tender port, by the way).

[travellovers2]

We'll be on this cruise the week after. Looking forward to your review. Have a wonderful cruise!! 🙂

[ski ww]

Looking forward to reading your report. Ask to share a table in the MDR that way you'll meet some one at meal time. Bon Voyage, enjoy your cruise.

[BelleEpoque]

On 2/1/2022 at 6:58 PM, ktbraun said:

We hope to be on the cruise with you.  Leaving on the 4th, but the snow forecasts are making me worried about our flights!

Hope you make it without issue! Best of luck.

[BelleEpoque]

On 2/2/2022 at 12:35 AM, AFNavigator said:

If you are looking for heat, it looks like you get to sail further south now.  It appears Key West has been dropped and replaced with Belize City (a tender port, by the way).

I am disappointed that we won't get to Key West but I am curious about Belize City since I've never been there. Any recommendations for excursions?

[BelleEpoque]

I got a negative C19 test today! Yay! 

[canadianbear]

Just now, BelleEpoque said:

I got a negative C19 test today! Yay! 

Such a relief!!! 

[BelleEpoque]

🌖Good evening from the MS Rotterdam VII, under the waxing moon. 

 

I boarded the ship around 1:30p today at Port Everglades after a 3-hour flight this morning on Delta. This marks the first time that I have flown to the cruise port on the same day as embarkation. However, because of obligations at home, I had no choice this time. Thankfully, all went smoothly with the flight and I arrived with almost two hours to spare until my boarding time.
 

Needless to say, it’s been a long day (I was up around 4:30a to go to the airport), so I will be heading to bed soon as I also have an excursion bright and early tomorrow morning on Half Moon Cay. 

 

Thus far, I am very pleased with the ship, its staff, service, facilities, and dining options. The ship is a very manageable size, and I am very content with my choice of cabin (well-located near the elevators, yet quiet; surprisingly spacious; and impeccably clean). I had an afternoon nap and the bed was quite comfortable.

 

Hoping to be rocked to sleep tonight. Fais des beaux rêves!

 

More tomorrow…

[erewhon]

Hope you have a fabulous cruise.

[travellady]

On 2/2/2022 at 2:36 AM, travellovers2 said:

We'll be on this cruise the week after. Looking forward to your review. Have a wonderful cruise!! 🙂

We’ll be there with you.  Doing the 14 day tropical Carribean.   Counting the days!

[jeh10641]

BelleEpoque,

I think you will enjoy Rotterdam. The Music Walk venues are great (I was on board 12/01/21 with my wife). Ask for a table for 6 or 8 people in the MDR. Tell them you would like others to sit at your table. We have done that on several cruises over the last decade and have made lifelong friends on each trip.

 

Jim

[canadianbear]

Hope you had a great day at HMC-it’s such a pretty place, we love it there.  
 

I imagine you were exhausted.  When we fly to Ft Lauderdale we have to be up at 2:30am and that makes for a very, very long day.  We try to stay 2 nights just to relax before a cruise. 

[BelleEpoque]

Good evening!

 

Here is my report on Days 1 and 2…
 

Embarkation:
I took the HAL shuttle from FLL to Port Everglades ($19). It was perfectly fine but after waiting almost 30 minutes for the shuttle, I did start to wish that I had just taken an Uber or Lyft as the price was basically the same (slightly cheaper in fact). But one convenience of the HAL shuttle was that they transferred my luggage directly to my room and I didn’t have to drag it around the terminal during embarkation. 
 
There was quite a line at checkin (or it felt that way; but perhaps I’ve gotten spoiled during these COVID times, sailing on ships at less than 50% capacity). I think it took about 30 minutes all in and was totally smooth once I made it to the front of the line and showed the agent my boarding pass, proof of vax, and the negative test results. 

 

After stepping onto the ship, I went straight to my cabin and my bag arrived shortly after, delivered by my lovely cabin steward. When it comes to cabins, I care most about cleanliness, light (preferably ample natural light during the day), and location. It is a single oceanview cabin and I would score it a 4/5. 
 

I did the virtual muster and checked in at my station, and then headed to the spa to buy a pass for the week and schedule a couple of treatments. The spa is quite nice and I would give it a 4.5/5. It has been a bit busier than expected but totally fine so far. 
 

Sidenote: I haven’t heard yet how many passengers are on the ship but it feels comfortably busy. And I am glad: I was worried it might feel empty. But no issues getting a deckchair at the lido pool (not that I’ve done that yet) or a reservation at any of the specialty restaurants, for example. 

 

After a late lunch at Dive-In on the lido deck (a very good burger), I had a siesta before hitting the thermal spa. I had a pre-dinner cocktail (Lemon Drop) in the casino while watching $50 evaporate in the slot machine (this reminds of me of one of my favorite Joni Mitchell tunes from her 1979 album with Charles Mingus: the song is called “The Dry Cleaner from Des Moines” and tells the story of her unlucky experience on the slots at the Circus Circus casino in Vegas. My experience last night also reminded me that I am not a gambler.) 

 

Dinner in the MDR was solid: I had French onion soup to start and then the oxtail entree with cauliflower purée. After the main, I ordered a pot of Darjeeling tea (was thrilled this particular tea was available in MDR) and a few bites of a sickly sweet dessert that involved shaved dark chocolate, meringue and cherries. I retired to my cabin after dinner and had a few bites from a fruit and cheese plate with a glass of red wine. 

 

I have been listening to an excellent audiobook: “Apples Never Fail” by Liane Moriarty, who is best-known for “Big Little Lies”). I only managed to listen to about 20 minutes of the audiobook before deciding it was definitely time for sleep.

 

Regarding navigating the ship: I keep getting lost. Don’t know if it’s me or the ship. Probably me. The Navigator app is decent. I was kind of expecting it to be more like the Medallion app on Princess but there’s no comparison. Princess definitely wins in that category. 

 

Day 2: Half Moon Cay

We arrived at HMC on schedule around 8am. I had room service breakfast in the cabin (it was hot and on-time and the coffee is not bad at all). 

 

I boarded the tender boat around 8:45a and we left a little after 9am (it felt like an extra long 15-minutes). The weather wasn’t bad at all today: sunny, warm and not too humid so it was a great day for exploring HMC.

 

After arriving, I checked in at the info hut for my horseback riding excursion (which I had technically missed since it was scheduled for 9am but the agent graciously put me in the next group scheduled for 10:30a). While waiting, I did a bit of shopping in the straw market and then explored the island on my own on foot. I manage to only spend $30 in the straw market, which I’m proud of. 

 

HMC is wonderful - white sand, blue water, incredible vegetation and it is also a bird sanctuary, as many of you already know. For me, it rivals all the other cruise line private islands that I’ve visited, but I know that my only child would prefer Disney Cruise Line’s Castaway Cay. My child might also be slightly bored on both HMC and this ship. I do think that HAL is good for people like me who are in it for the food, music and relaxation, but if you like the roller coasters, water parks, and Broadway-style productions on other cruise lines’ mega ships, you might be a little bored. 

 

The horseback riding excursion was excellent, though we didn’t get to take the horses into the water (I actually didn’t mind but maybe next time or in a different port). I was raised with horses and the docile beasts on our excursion seemed well cared for by the excellent Jamaican horsemen who run the stables and lead the excursion. I had a great conversation with one of the guides about the Jamaica’s legendary Caymanas Park race track (near Kingston). There is a great scene in one of my favorite books, Marlon James’s “A Brief History of Seven Killings” (which won the Man Booker Prize in 2015), set at this track. And I’ll stop there before getting too far off track (ha!). But Google the book and racetrack if you’re not already familiar. 

 

After a light buffet lunch at Island Barbeque with a few people that I met on the excursion, I had a quick dip in the sea and then took the tender boat back to the ship. My mission after getting back on board was to pay a visit to the ship’s library, which is top-notch and far exceeded all expectations (the space is fantastic and the selection of books was impressive, so I’ll definitely be spending my sea days reading the two books I borrowed). 

 

I spent the afternoon in the thermal suite at the spa, had a satisfying “snack” on the lido deck (a green juice from the gelato place and a slice of margherita-like pizza with a Caesar salad from New York Pizza and Deli; I loved the pizza and will definitely be back). After that I had a siesta before getting dressed for “gala night”. Before dinner, I enjoyed another Lemon Drop while listening to a quartet play Mozart piano concertos on the Lincoln Center stage. 

 

I had to pay guest services a visit today to deal with an error on my statement and made a reservation at Rudi’s Sel de Mer while I was there. Dinner at Rudi’s was tres delicious: foie gras and escargot to start; broiled lobster tail with cauliflower purée (yes, I like cauliflower), and two glasses of wine (a red from Bordeaux and a Chablis from Burgundy). The foie gras is normally served cold but you can ask for it hot as I did. The staff and service were as good as the food. No room for dessert but I did make an attempt at the delightful apple tart tatin with a few sips of cappuccino.
 

After dinner, in spite of being stuffed like a goose in Dordogne and soused like a tourist on Bourbon Street, I had another Lemon Drop and spent more time than anticipated on Music Walk at the BB Kings Blues, Rolling Stone and Billboard On Board stages (all of the musicians were exceptionally talented and thoroughly entertaining but the BB Kings band was a standout along with the female vocalist at Billboard). 

 

The ship is a rocking tonight in more ways than one and I definitely have not consumed this much alcohol since my Alaska cruise last summer, so I’ll be finishing the night with Dramamine and Advil. Tomorrow is a sea day and I look forward to sleeping in, a spa treatment, some time in the fitness center, and more music at the Lincoln Center stage. 

 

(Please pardon any typos or grammatical errors. Don’t bet the rent on in it but I may post a few more photos tomorrow if I have time to edit them…)


xxx
 

 

 

Edited February 7, 2022 by BelleEpoque
Photos

[BelleEpoque]

8 hours ago, jeh10641 said:

BelleEpoque,

I think you will enjoy Rotterdam. The Music Walk venues are great (I was on board 12/01/21 with my wife). Ask for a table for 6 or 8 people in the MDR. Tell them you would like others to sit at your table. We have done that on several cruises over the last decade and have made lifelong friends on each trip.

 

Jim

I can be terribly anti-social, I rarely get any alone time at home, and I am (too) easily annoyed by others, so I am kind of enjoying my solitude when it happens… but, you’re absolutely spot on with your suggestion of the group table in MDR. It warms my cold heart to hear you’ve made lifelong friends that way. The nice thing is that cruisers are usually in a good mood while cruising so it makes socializing a lot easier. Lol