REVIEW, Hapag Lloyd MS Europa, 5/15/22-5/27/22, Ocean Sun Festival, Tenerife-Bilbao

[Catlover54]

Here is a link to my detailed perspective and review.  Overall, I rate the trip  4/5 ( when compared with other luxury ships/cruises I have been on) 

I am happy to answer any questions.
 

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=687317&et_cid=3500453&et_rid=17464385&et_referrer=NULL

[willoL]

@Catlover54 thanks so much for the thorough review! You've covered so much of what I was curious about as an American considering cruising H-L. I'll take your advice and avoid them for hot weather destinations. Fortunately, I'm most drawn to northern voyages.

 

I really appreciate all the details and specifics you provide.

 

May I ask your level of German fluency or the background of where you learned that language? I do have the requisite "high school German" you mention and have taken part in recent years in foreign language immersion camp with my home educated child, but I'm not fluent. (I didn't find it challenging to order common foods in a restaurant in Austria or Switzerland, for example, or to engage with a cashier, but I quickly lose the thread beyond concrete present tense scenarios.)

 

Having the chance to learn more German while on a cruise is something I see as a perk since I enjoy self-study of several foreign languages, though I do think I would miss hearing the lectures on Europa vs. Europa II...

[Catlover54]

 WillOl:

I am glad you found my review helpful.

My parents were refugees from Eastern Europe and were  multilingual for various reasons ( including survival). Those skills later translated into both schooling and employment opportunities in Europe post-WWII, so family moved around a lot, and me, a little girl, with them.  I learned  quite a bit of "child talk" German when I was very young, starting with playing with German kids in the bombed rubble, and some VERY early school. I was also supposed to speak the language around us in our home, rather than parents'  native languages, ( to assimilate and prepare for possible school) and when you are very young, what you learn mostly sticks with you a long time even if it is buried deeply.  Then after  U.S. residence, I forgot much as we had to speak English, but then came  frequent holidays to visit German  childhood friends, ( who by then were talking more than child talk), plus  self-study reading newspapers, magazines, and books to communicate even more beyond child talk. I enjoy the fun of  learning and comparing words of varying European root origins ( Latin, Greek, or misc. slavistik) , mixed in with modern anglification .
 

Now, I understand almost  everything written in German , ( including newspapers, books and magazines, but I have to use a dictionary to look up odd words which are interestingly often 'foreign'  origin or archaic words) and I also understand 95-100% of   everything spoken on board or in the news as it is in high German instead of dialects, ( and basic high German  is all that the crew, many for whom German is a foreign language, speak on the ship, they get a cram course focussing on the food, service, and common pax requests words) .  The other way around is harder, e.g.,  I can carry on fluent general conversations and then some, though with occasional  grammatical errors or gaps no one cares about ( unlike in France). But if discussing philosophy, economics, or politics live, certain words and expressions and slang only come to mind  in English now, worse as I age  ( but when traveling, it is best to stay away from such topics with fellow pax anyway,  even if they personally choose to rant). " Recognition" for me is still easy ( unless the German spoken by pax is Swiss German or alpine Austrian 😳) , but recall is harder for sophisticated talk, so I could definitely not work at the UN as a simultaneous interpreter, but on the ship that level is unnecessary.

 

What I know is, however, way more than I think you need to get by, ( looking at and listening to the foreign crew who are at American high school level minus the proper grammar), which is why I said high school German plus a good kindle two-way dictionary, and maybe routinely sitting in the MDR in the section of a waiter who speaks English better than German ( that is many) would work out fine .  Reception speaks "educated person" European English, ( so speak slowly and avoid American slang) as does the excursion desk crew and all officers, ( for clarification of urgent or super important things), and the fitness guy, and the doctor, and the bartender, and  the spa people, because they have to interact in many countries, and English is the international language of tourism, medicine, business, and diplomacy. Just don't expect everything to be handed to you in English.  Pre-cruise paperwork was sent in English, and you can email or call pre-cruise to book in English  ( might be better to handle it yourself, to be sure, than through a travel agent).
Covid complicates things a bit ( e.g., they kept sending me German reminders to have an EU QR code for computer readable vax proof to board, non-existent here, but all I needed was my physical card).
 

I do not think it would be essential to speak German beyond high school  to enjoy this ship unless you are keen on guided excursions and the lectures ( though the enrichment people speak English, like the gardening expert and  historian, no lectures are in English) .If you love languages, and your high school where you learned some  German was not horrible, just  a little planning and perhaps an iPhone app ( and maybe Google translate, already set up, and polite requests would do the trick (e.g., for port info on TV or with English-speaking crew when they have time). Menus for the next day are posted on the TV , and they are short, which gives you plenty of fun time to plan your meals and look up foods that sound unfamiliar ( I used my dictionary for some unfamiliar foods, but then oddly had to look up the English definition of them, they were unusual gourmet worda).  It would also be good to learn common service phrases and foods , especially those you like or are allergic to or often want for your room or table, before you cruise or have a handy list or "google translate",  off-line. 

I heard a German family with a Spanish-speaking teen relative jointly struggle with a waiter, who spoke no English or Spanish and the girl spoke no German.  The older pax  and teen communicated in very broken English with each other but the old people reading the German menu did not know the English words for certain basic things, like translating the German menu words for  "beef" or "pork" into English for the girl  so everyone was lost ( a simple kindle dictionary and simple look-up would have solved that). I tried to spontaneously help a bit from the next table but the older Germans ( apparently from the less friendly north) did not like my offering  my translation and offer for more -- something that American line pax would have thanked one for instead of acting insulted. 

I understand you also know Spanish, and FYI there are some Spanish crew in dining rooms.  The Filipinos ( most cabins) of course speak and understand better English than German, because they learn it in school when little as an official language , and not just in the HL German cram course. Some of the dining and suite crew of different nationalities even speak English to each other.

Just make sure you are ON TIME for things, and ASK at reception or Touristik  ( or an officer) for important things if you do not understand something critical , to be crystal clear ( like disembarkation procedures , or if your flight changes and you need help to rebook due to bad internet in your suite). A pleasant and open  personality helps, but IMHO try NOT to smile too much randomly if you want to fit in ( many older Germans think Americans falsely smile way too much), even if the base crew are trained to smile a lot. Independent excursions would be best ( though in some countries they cannot find German translators, so excursions are then in English anyway), to not miss out, unless all you want is a  ride to the town and no history lesson.

 

Or, try Europa II first ( bilingual), to test your understanding of announcements and lectures and an excursion or two, in German, plus it is  a brilliant ship.  DH ( no German speaking or understanding) loved the food and service, but missed English company ( I did not mind)  as there were almost no Americans or Brits on board, the gym guy's English was bad then so he could not talk to him, and he felt lost when off doing a few things  alone on the ship ( but he is innately shy on all ships, and I am the one who has to call reception or room service even on English line ships -- he loves taking interesting  photos, but I do the talking and the research) . 
Also, the expedition ship Inspiration is bilingual ( have not been on it but heard good things, including in Antarctica,  as to how they handled the non-Germans).

 

Post here if you decide to go on HL, be it on German Europa or bilingual Europa 2. I am retired now, Covid is (hopefully) less, so who knows, maybe I will happen to be on the same cruise! 
HL and especially Europa is not for everyone, but it has definite benefits.

 

[cathaana]

Great review, thanks. Strange that they have started serving 'American' style breadrolls and to bad about the pastries. We probably won't be back on the Europa for quite a few more years due to our young kids but we have many wonderful memories and still want to do Europas Beste at some point. It will be interesting to see how Europa 2 compares next year.

[Catlover54]

9 hours ago, cathaana said:

Great review, thanks. Strange that they have started serving 'American' style breadrolls and to bad about the pastries. We probably won't be back on the Europa for quite a few more years due to our young kids but we have many wonderful memories and still want to do Europas Beste at some point. It will be interesting to see how Europa 2 compares next year.

In the mornings they fortunately still had the German crispy Broetchen which are deadly for waistlines when unsalted German style butter is added with jam, honey, or a good cold cut on top ( I had to ask for the kind I wanted for my room service, otherwise they would just bring a boring salami and lean smoked turkey I can get at home, by default) . The "croissants" were what was pathetic ( small, soft and collapsed, looked freshly thawed from a bag).

Lunch is when there was disappointing soft white and slightly dry stuff in little slices which the waiter called "Italian",  so I skipped it.  For dinner breads they had a basket that was a bit better and had some pretzel-type mini-rolls fresh-baked which were just ok to keep hunger away until food came, but the basket was without the traditional crisp Broetchen or rye/grey hearty country breads.

 

Compared with Crystal's evening bread, which was addictive, there was no contest on the bread,  and Seabourn's morning croissants at least pre-Covid were very good.

 

One thing that was always available for the less than stellar pastries, was real fresh whipping cream which I am addicted to.  A couple times I just ordered a double portion of the cream without the cake 🙂

[vistaman]

12 hours ago, cathaana said:

Great review, thanks. Strange that they have started serving 'American' style breadrolls and to bad about the pastries. We probably won't be back on the Europa for quite a few more years due to our young kids but we have many wonderful memories and still want to do Europas Beste at some point. It will be interesting to see how Europa 2 compares next year.

It seems I am one of the few non German DACH pax willing to" dance" from the Europa to the Europa II.

I think with kids you better can go and cruise on Europa II for sure

On the Europa I met Germans pax - they did one cruise on the Europa II and not willing to go back on her.

I was able to book "Beste " for this year as well 😁

[vistaman]

On 6/10/2022 at 2:03 AM, Catlover54 said:

 WillOl:

I am glad you found my review helpful.

My parents were refugees from Eastern Europe and were  multilingual for various reasons ( including survival). Those skills later translated into both schooling and employment opportunities in Europe post-WWII, so family moved around a lot, and me, a little girl, with them.  I learned  quite a bit of "child talk" German when I was very young, starting with playing with German kids in the bombed rubble, and some VERY early school. I was also supposed to speak the language around us in our home, rather than parents'  native languages, ( to assimilate and prepare for possible school) and when you are very young, what you learn mostly sticks with you a long time even if it is buried deeply.  Then after  U.S. residence, I forgot much as we had to speak English, but then came  frequent holidays to visit German  childhood friends, ( who by then were talking more than child talk), plus  self-study reading newspapers, magazines, and books to communicate even more beyond child talk. I enjoy the fun of  learning and comparing words of varying European root origins ( Latin, Greek, or misc. slavistik) , mixed in with modern anglification .
 

Now, I understand almost  everything written in German , ( including newspapers, books and magazines, but I have to use a dictionary to look up odd words which are interestingly often 'foreign'  origin or archaic words) and I also understand 95-100% of   everything spoken on board or in the news as it is in high German instead of dialects, ( and basic high German  is all that the crew, many for whom German is a foreign language, speak on the ship, they get a cram course focussing on the food, service, and common pax requests words) .  The other way around is harder, e.g.,  I can carry on fluent general conversations and then some, though with occasional  grammatical errors or gaps no one cares about ( unlike in France). But if discussing philosophy, economics, or politics live, certain words and expressions and slang only come to mind  in English now, worse as I age  ( but when traveling, it is best to stay away from such topics with fellow pax anyway,  even if they personally choose to rant). " Recognition" for me is still easy ( unless the German spoken by pax is Swiss German or alpine Austrian 😳) , but recall is harder for sophisticated talk, so I could definitely not work at the UN as a simultaneous interpreter, but on the ship that level is unnecessary.

 

What I know is, however, way more than I think you need to get by, ( looking at and listening to the foreign crew who are at American high school level minus the proper grammar), which is why I said high school German plus a good kindle two-way dictionary, and maybe routinely sitting in the MDR in the section of a waiter who speaks English better than German ( that is many) would work out fine .  Reception speaks "educated person" European English, ( so speak slowly and avoid American slang) as does the excursion desk crew and all officers, ( for clarification of urgent or super important things), and the fitness guy, and the doctor, and the bartender, and  the spa people, because they have to interact in many countries, and English is the international language of tourism, medicine, business, and diplomacy. Just don't expect everything to be handed to you in English.  Pre-cruise paperwork was sent in English, and you can email or call pre-cruise to book in English  ( might be better to handle it yourself, to be sure, than through a travel agent).
Covid complicates things a bit ( e.g., they kept sending me German reminders to have an EU QR code for computer readable vax proof to board, non-existent here, but all I needed was my physical card).
 

I do not think it would be essential to speak German beyond high school  to enjoy this ship unless you are keen on guided excursions and the lectures ( though the enrichment people speak English, like the gardening expert and  historian, no lectures are in English) .If you love languages, and your high school where you learned some  German was not horrible, just  a little planning and perhaps an iPhone app ( and maybe Google translate, already set up, and polite requests would do the trick (e.g., for port info on TV or with English-speaking crew when they have time). Menus for the next day are posted on the TV , and they are short, which gives you plenty of fun time to plan your meals and look up foods that sound unfamiliar ( I used my dictionary for some unfamiliar foods, but then oddly had to look up the English definition of them, they were unusual gourmet worda).  It would also be good to learn common service phrases and foods , especially those you like or are allergic to or often want for your room or table, before you cruise or have a handy list or "google translate",  off-line. 

I heard a German family with a Spanish-speaking teen relative jointly struggle with a waiter, who spoke no English or Spanish and the girl spoke no German.  The older pax  and teen communicated in very broken English with each other but the old people reading the German menu did not know the English words for certain basic things, like translating the German menu words for  "beef" or "pork" into English for the girl  so everyone was lost ( a simple kindle dictionary and simple look-up would have solved that). I tried to spontaneously help a bit from the next table but the older Germans ( apparently from the less friendly north) did not like my offering  my translation and offer for more -- something that American line pax would have thanked one for instead of acting insulted. 

I understand you also know Spanish, and FYI there are some Spanish crew in dining rooms.  The Filipinos ( most cabins) of course speak and understand better English than German, because they learn it in school when little as an official language , and not just in the HL German cram course. Some of the dining and suite crew of different nationalities even speak English to each other.

Just make sure you are ON TIME for things, and ASK at reception or Touristik  ( or an officer) for important things if you do not understand something critical , to be crystal clear ( like disembarkation procedures , or if your flight changes and you need help to rebook due to bad internet in your suite). A pleasant and open  personality helps, but IMHO try NOT to smile too much randomly if you want to fit in ( many older Germans think Americans falsely smile way too much), even if the base crew are trained to smile a lot. Independent excursions would be best ( though in some countries they cannot find German translators, so excursions are then in English anyway), to not miss out, unless all you want is a  ride to the town and no history lesson.

 

Or, try Europa II first ( bilingual), to test your understanding of announcements and lectures and an excursion or two, in German, plus it is  a brilliant ship.  DH ( no German speaking or understanding) loved the food and service, but missed English company ( I did not mind)  as there were almost no Americans or Brits on board, the gym guy's English was bad then so he could not talk to him, and he felt lost when off doing a few things  alone on the ship ( but he is innately shy on all ships, and I am the one who has to call reception or room service even on English line ships -- he loves taking interesting  photos, but I do the talking and the research) . 
Also, the expedition ship Inspiration is bilingual ( have not been on it but heard good things, including in Antarctica,  as to how they handled the non-Germans).

 

Post here if you decide to go on HL, be it on German Europa or bilingual Europa 2. I am retired now, Covid is (hopefully) less, so who knows, maybe I will happen to be on the same cruise! 
HL and especially Europa is not for everyone, but it has definite benefits.

 

I an leaving tomorrow for departure 15th june on Europa 2 from Hamburg to Liverpool 

With a negative PCR  but going to some lab tomorrow for a antigen : togethet 80 € 

quite an industry those tests !!! 

[Catlover54]

3 hours ago, vistaman said:

I an leaving tomorrow for departure 15th june on Europa 2 from Hamburg to Liverpool 

With a negative PCR  but going to some lab tomorrow for a antigen : togethet 80 € 

quite an industry those tests !!! 

Vistaman, when I boarded Europa a few weeks ago, after much agonizing and cost about figuring out where and how to timely get the pre-cruise test after coming from long flight from U.S., they barely looked at my paperwork when I boarded.

However, I noticed the ship doctor testing a very wealthy looking (based on several reliable parameters) couple himself, right there at dockside!  I am not sure how they managed to arranged convenient dockside testing for themselves (VIPs?), which was not offered to others, but maybe something had fallen through with their prior tests and rather than send them home, the ship used common sense and had the doc test them then and there.  

 

So if something falls through on your "some lab" testing tomorrow, perhaps Europa II could do the same for you when you try to board  (I like to have contingency plans)

[carlmm]

On 6/10/2022 at 2:03 AM, Catlover54 said:

 WillOl:

I am glad you found my review helpful.

My parents were refugees from Eastern Europe and were  multilingual for various reasons ( including survival). Those skills later translated into both schooling and employment opportunities in Europe post-WWII, so family moved around a lot, and me, a little girl, with them.  I learned  quite a bit of "child talk" German when I was very young, starting with playing with German kids in the bombed rubble, and some VERY early school. I was also supposed to speak the language around us in our home, rather than parents'  native languages, ( to assimilate and prepare for possible school) and when you are very young, what you learn mostly sticks with you a long time even if it is buried deeply.  Then after  U.S. residence, I forgot much as we had to speak English, but then came  frequent holidays to visit German  childhood friends, ( who by then were talking more than child talk), plus  self-study reading newspapers, magazines, and books to communicate even more beyond child talk. I enjoy the fun of  learning and comparing words of varying European root origins ( Latin, Greek, or misc. slavistik) , mixed in with modern anglification .
 

Now, I understand almost  everything written in German , ( including newspapers, books and magazines, but I have to use a dictionary to look up odd words which are interestingly often 'foreign'  origin or archaic words) and I also understand 95-100% of   everything spoken on board or in the news as it is in high German instead of dialects, ( and basic high German  is all that the crew, many for whom German is a foreign language, speak on the ship, they get a cram course focussing on the food, service, and common pax requests words) .  The other way around is harder, e.g.,  I can carry on fluent general conversations and then some, though with occasional  grammatical errors or gaps no one cares about ( unlike in France). But if discussing philosophy, economics, or politics live, certain words and expressions and slang only come to mind  in English now, worse as I age  ( but when traveling, it is best to stay away from such topics with fellow pax anyway,  even if they personally choose to rant). " Recognition" for me is still easy ( unless the German spoken by pax is Swiss German or alpine Austrian 😳) , but recall is harder for sophisticated talk, so I could definitely not work at the UN as a simultaneous interpreter, but on the ship that level is unnecessary.

 

What I know is, however, way more than I think you need to get by, ( looking at and listening to the foreign crew who are at American high school level minus the proper grammar), which is why I said high school German plus a good kindle two-way dictionary, and maybe routinely sitting in the MDR in the section of a waiter who speaks English better than German ( that is many) would work out fine .  Reception speaks "educated person" European English, ( so speak slowly and avoid American slang) as does the excursion desk crew and all officers, ( for clarification of urgent or super important things), and the fitness guy, and the doctor, and the bartender, and  the spa people, because they have to interact in many countries, and English is the international language of tourism, medicine, business, and diplomacy. Just don't expect everything to be handed to you in English.  Pre-cruise paperwork was sent in English, and you can email or call pre-cruise to book in English  ( might be better to handle it yourself, to be sure, than through a travel agent).
Covid complicates things a bit ( e.g., they kept sending me German reminders to have an EU QR code for computer readable vax proof to board, non-existent here, but all I needed was my physical card).
 

I do not think it would be essential to speak German beyond high school  to enjoy this ship unless you are keen on guided excursions and the lectures ( though the enrichment people speak English, like the gardening expert and  historian, no lectures are in English) .If you love languages, and your high school where you learned some  German was not horrible, just  a little planning and perhaps an iPhone app ( and maybe Google translate, already set up, and polite requests would do the trick (e.g., for port info on TV or with English-speaking crew when they have time). Menus for the next day are posted on the TV , and they are short, which gives you plenty of fun time to plan your meals and look up foods that sound unfamiliar ( I used my dictionary for some unfamiliar foods, but then oddly had to look up the English definition of them, they were unusual gourmet worda).  It would also be good to learn common service phrases and foods , especially those you like or are allergic to or often want for your room or table, before you cruise or have a handy list or "google translate",  off-line. 

I heard a German family with a Spanish-speaking teen relative jointly struggle with a waiter, who spoke no English or Spanish and the girl spoke no German.  The older pax  and teen communicated in very broken English with each other but the old people reading the German menu did not know the English words for certain basic things, like translating the German menu words for  "beef" or "pork" into English for the girl  so everyone was lost ( a simple kindle dictionary and simple look-up would have solved that). I tried to spontaneously help a bit from the next table but the older Germans ( apparently from the less friendly north) did not like my offering  my translation and offer for more -- something that American line pax would have thanked one for instead of acting insulted. 

I understand you also know Spanish, and FYI there are some Spanish crew in dining rooms.  The Filipinos ( most cabins) of course speak and understand better English than German, because they learn it in school when little as an official language , and not just in the HL German cram course. Some of the dining and suite crew of different nationalities even speak English to each other.

Just make sure you are ON TIME for things, and ASK at reception or Touristik  ( or an officer) for important things if you do not understand something critical , to be crystal clear ( like disembarkation procedures , or if your flight changes and you need help to rebook due to bad internet in your suite). A pleasant and open  personality helps, but IMHO try NOT to smile too much randomly if you want to fit in ( many older Germans think Americans falsely smile way too much), even if the base crew are trained to smile a lot. Independent excursions would be best ( though in some countries they cannot find German translators, so excursions are then in English anyway), to not miss out, unless all you want is a  ride to the town and no history lesson.

 

Or, try Europa II first ( bilingual), to test your understanding of announcements and lectures and an excursion or two, in German, plus it is  a brilliant ship.  DH ( no German speaking or understanding) loved the food and service, but missed English company ( I did not mind)  as there were almost no Americans or Brits on board, the gym guy's English was bad then so he could not talk to him, and he felt lost when off doing a few things  alone on the ship ( but he is innately shy on all ships, and I am the one who has to call reception or room service even on English line ships -- he loves taking interesting  photos, but I do the talking and the research) . 
Also, the expedition ship Inspiration is bilingual ( have not been on it but heard good things, including in Antarctica,  as to how they handled the non-Germans).

 

Post here if you decide to go on HL, be it on German Europa or bilingual Europa 2. I am retired now, Covid is (hopefully) less, so who knows, maybe I will happen to be on the same cruise! 
HL and especially Europa is not for everyone, but it has definite benefits.

 

As German I found reading your Report from your American perspective very interesting entertaining.

Thank you!

[English Voyager]

Being in the UK, there are several contributory factors behind my decision not to travel to Europe or further afield, so current reviews on HL cruises are most welcome.

 

At least I am able to enjoy my previous cruises on the Europa 2 by watching the videos produced by the on-board videographers.

[vistaman]

On 6/13/2022 at 8:37 PM, Catlover54 said:

Vistaman, when I boarded Europa a few weeks ago, after much agonizing and cost about figuring out where and how to timely get the pre-cruise test after coming from long flight from U.S., they barely looked at my paperwork when I boarded.

However, I noticed the ship doctor testing a very wealthy looking (based on several reliable parameters) couple himself, right there at dockside!  I am not sure how they managed to arranged convenient dockside testing for themselves (VIPs?), which was not offered to others, but maybe something had fallen through with their prior tests and rather than send them home, the ship used common sense and had the doc test them then and there.  

 

So if something falls through on your "some lab" testing tomorrow, perhaps Europa II could do the same for you when you try to board  (I like to have contingency plans)

i found a lab in Hafencity in Hamburg 29 euro but he could not give a print i was near an ice cream parlor

the concierge made the print in the hotel

was validaded  by a doctor in the Netherlands ???

 

for my next cruise in september i found a lab near the casino in hamburg making prints

 

on embarkation i decide to be naughty : i gave her - an older unpleasant woman not working on the ship -

my vaccinations my EU certificate , the questionnaire and my PCR and she shouted in german antigen test your antigen test 😝