Nieuw Statendam Post Cruise

[gobben]

Hello Folks,

 

Myself any my wife spent last week on the Nieuw Statendam sailing to the Southern Caribbean.  This was our first cruise post COVID and my 8th cruise, 3rd on Holland.  This will be a short review, just some bullet points to how we enjoyed our trip and if anyone has any questions, I'll do my best to answer.  

 

To start, we had a Verandah booked, category VE. Four days before sailing we received an upgrade off for an Vista Suite for $300.00 more, I called to see what rooms they offered and the one I took was an AFT view Vista Suite category AS.  (The day before I was emailed an offer to upgrade to an Neptune Suite for $898 more, I passed).

The Vista Suite was nice and the AFT view was amazing, but I do not see the extra money justification if it wasn't AFT facing.  Personally I would not pay extra for a VS over a Verandah again.  Cabin stewards were great but still offered only once per day service, we picked morning service.  (I was hoping since gratuities were higher for suite guest we would have seen something extra, but nothing extra)  I am sure we could have pushed the stewards and gotten both, but I know they are overworked as is.

 

We had the HIA package, once onboard I upgraded our drink package to Elite as I have seen mixed messages about how they handle drinks over the package price.    

We upgrade to Elite before we had any drinks and we asked at one of the tables upon boarding that offered the drink packages.  (this was $82.60 each)

Each drink we got, we had to sing a slip showing the price of the drink and a spot to add an extra tip.  The drink was then zero on the statement and a line for Additional Tip.

There are signs at most of the bars stating "Have a Beverage Package?  Order any cocktail or glass of wine and now only pay the difference on drinks that exceed your package price limit."

I did inquire with one of the bartenders about if she could tell how many drinks I have had and she said, no the system doesn't keep track, I would need to check with guest services if I lost count myself.   I asked what happened if I exceeded the 15 as part of the package, she said we would be charged full price for the drink.  I never reached the 15 so I could not test it.

(If doing the trip over, I would not have upgraded to Elite)

 

Also with the HIA package was internet, I did not even try to use the internet that came with the package and selected to upgrade to the better plan for $40 for both mine and my wife's phone ($80 in total).  Even with the better plan, I would call the internet access sketchy at best, while I could access all the sites I tried it was painfully slow 99% of the time.  I was up at 4am on morning and it was moving along pretty good.  

 

Food...  I do enjoy a good meal but I would not call myself picky.  Overall the food at the lido and the main dinning room was very bland.  We wanted to try the  specialty dinning options and ate at 3 of the 4 on the ship.

1.  Pinnacle Grill - Very good meal, service was a bit slow.  We booked it for the first night of the cruise, we both enjoyed the meal and the view.  (Extra appetizer was a charge)

2.  Canaletto - Again, another great meal, service was the best of the 3 specialty dinning. 

3. Tamarind - Beautiful restaurant, good was very enjoyable, service was a bit slow as well. 

(if doing the trip over, I would pay the extra for all 3 of these again)

We only went to the main dinner room one night, dragging a meal out for 90plus minutes for "OK" food, not our way that we wanted to spend out time.  The other nights that we didn't have specialty dinner, we at the lido.  Pizza was pretty good, fresh stir fry was my favorite.  While the food was good from the Dive-In, it closed at 6pm.  Using the app was a great away to reduce the time waiting in line for pizza or burgers. 

 

The ship was beautiful, laid out well, and the crew were great.  I believe the ratio of crew to guests needs an improvement, waits at the bar, guest services, dinning were my only complaint.  

 

Will I sail Holland again?  Yes, but they are not my only option. 

Let me know if anyone has an questions, I will do my best to answer.

 

 

 

 

[kazu]

Thank you for your review - very informative.  We had no slips to sign on our Oosterdam cruise but believe me, some bills were flying because of the first class service 😉   Personally, I prefer to tip in cash and not add it to the bill for those that i feel warrant it, but that’s just my preference 😉. The guys in the Sea View Bar on my last cruise scored, believe me without needing a line to sign. They were just that good and fantastic.

 

Nor did we have the option to buy a drink at the higher price and just pay the difference - true example of things vary by ship.

 

My next cruise is on a Pinnacle Class ship - Koningsdam - it will be interesting to see if we encounter the same things.  Appreciate the information very much. 👍 

 

Sad to hear that the MDR food was just “ok” though.  Sounds like I better lower my expectations for the Pinnacle Class which is a sad statement to make.

 

thanks on the review 👍 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[510picker]

We were on the cruise with you and I would have to agree with everything you said. This was our third “post-Covid” cruise on HAL with our last being on the Nieuw Statendam in April of this year. That cruise was at less than half capacity. 
 

We definitely noticed cutbacks on this cruise compared to our previous HAL cruises. They were all little things, but it is those little things that has always made HAL standout from the others. We are easily pleased, had a great time on this cruise, and will cruise with HAL again. Hopefully things will return to “normal” in time. 

[oakridger]

Signing for drinks and even for included food at the Dive Inn was new for Rotterdam on my cruise.  I immediately sent a note to the ship via the app expressing my dislike for the practice. I did not ask for a response from HAL. The poor bar people had to then keep track of all those little pieces of paper.  What a waste of staff time!  I just don't get it.  I still had a good time on the cruise, but it seemed like a lowering of the shipboard ambiance for sure.  I thought of the term "Carnivalization".

 

~Nancy

[LMaxwell]

Was this the holiday week cruise and were some of the issues related to number of guests onboard vs number of staff to handle things? 

[gobben]

8 hours ago, LMaxwell said:

Was this the holiday week cruise and were some of the issues related to number of guests onboard vs number of staff to handle things? 

 

It was the week before the holiday, guessing the ship was close to capacity.  The lines were not as long as what we found on a "mega ship" but they were very noticeable.  

[puppycanducruise]

Thanks for sharing your comments.

Glad you enjoyed your cruise.

[PACD_JG]

I just disembarked the NS yesterday.  The dumbest thing I heard on the cruise - a lady in front of me told an officer while we were getting off that HAL "should have less passengers like during Covid."  The officer was polite and said thank you.  I bit my lip but wanted to say that yes, HAL enjoys going broke - less passengers would be super.

[REOVA]

11 hours ago, oakridger said:

Signing for drinks and even for included food at the Dive Inn was new for Rotterdam on my cruise.  I immediately sent a note to the ship via the app expressing my dislike for the practice. I did not ask for a response from HAL. The poor bar people had to then keep track of all those little pieces of paper.  What a waste of staff time!  I just don't get it.  I still had a good time on the cruise, but it seemed like a lowering of the shipboard ambiance for sure.  I thought of the term "Carnivalization".

 

~Nancy

I was told it was for inventory purposes. However not everyone asked for a signature so it was hit or miss. Seemed like their computer system would track inventory without needing a signature or maybe they don't trust the bar staff and they want verification of sale. 🙄

[PACD_JG]

5 minutes ago, REOVA said:

I was told it was for inventory purposes. However not everyone asked for a signature so it was hit or miss. Seemed like their computer system would track inventory without needing a signature or maybe they don't trust the bar staff and they want verification of sale. 🙄

 

I didn't like this procedure either.  But taking into account the amount of cruisers who like to complain, maybe Guest Services deals with plenty of customers who dispute their charges...and now HAL has proof.

[Vict0riann]

With the HIA, the tips are supposed to be included, right?  Why would they "suggest" an additional tip by making you sign a slip.  Sounds like the way the spa does it!

[Ellencruise]

An extra dollar tip to the hard working crew is always appreciated 

[oakridger]

15 hours ago, PACD_JG said:

 

I didn't like this procedure either.  But taking into account the amount of cruisers who like to complain, maybe Guest Services deals with plenty of customers who dispute their charges...and now HAL has proof. ***

 

I was actually told two things by bar waiters themselves: 

1-it's for inventory purposes (seems that big, nice computer no longer knows how to do that??)

2-So that there is proof that guests have received the item. ***  

 

Sometimes no receipt was presented and mostly I just scribbled my supposed signature.  I didn't want to hassle or argue with waiters for sure.  They have enough to deal with.

 

I also had to sign for my included burger/hot dog at the Dive In and the Dutch Cafe.....I didn't have to sign for food anywhere in the other included venues.  🤷‍♀️

 

~Nancy

[Ken the cruiser]

If I might ask, how was the entertainment, both on sea days as well as in the evenings on port days? Also, was it early and late fixed seating for dinner in the MDR or could you just show up anytime and be seated?

Edited November 28, 2022 by Ken the cruiser

[oakridger]

They have both early and late fixed dining, or you can choose anytime dining when you show up when you want. Port days had less offerings, but there was something available. Due to some non-HAL related reasons, I didn't go to much of the entertainment, but I loved the BB Kings, Lincoln Center Stage and Rolling Stone Rock rooms that I attended.  The cruise director presentations on different subjects were interesting.  On Rotterdam they did show recent movies at the Lido pool theater on a few evenings which people seemed to be attending when I walked by. (As I recall, they were Elvis, Top Gun: Maverick, Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris and a kid friendly movie and probably others)

 

Ocean Bar on Nieuw Amsterdam Panama Canal cruise had a 4-5 piece band playing several early evenings to about 9:30 sets each night and they were talented.  Some people were dancing there.

 

Oops!  Did you want answers specifically for Nieuw Statendam?  I got confused with your other "Full Circle" thread running now about this stuff in general.

 

~Nancy

 

Edited November 28, 2022 by oakridger

[Ken the cruiser]

11 minutes ago, oakridger said:

They have both early and late fixed dining, or you can choose anytime dining when you show up when you want. Port days had less offerings, but there was something available. Due to some non-HAL related reasons, I didn't go to much of the entertainment, but I loved the BB Kings, Lincoln Center Stage and Rolling Stone Rock rooms that I attended.  The cruise director presentations on different subjects were interesting.  On Rotterdam they did show recent movies at the Lido pool theater on a few evenings which people seemed to be attending when I walked by. (As I recall, they were Elvis, Top Gun: Maverick, Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris and a kid friendly movie and probably others)

 

Ocean Bar on Nieuw Amsterdam Panama Canal cruise had a 4-5 piece band playing several early evenings to about 9:30 sets each night and they were talented.  Some people were dancing there.

 

Oops!  Did you want answers specifically for Nieuw Statendam?  I got confused with your other "Full Circle" thread running now about this stuff in general.

 

~Nancy

 

I’m easy. Any information about the entertainment aspect of cruising on any of the current HAL ships works for me. 😁

[FlorenceItaly]

1 minute ago, Ken the cruiser said:

I’m easy. Any information about the entertainment aspect of cruising on any of the current HAL ships works for me. 😁

Ken, I have followed and read most of your reviews.  I have cruised most recently since restart Celebrity and HAL.  Unless you are on a HAL Pinnacle Class ship I do not think you will be pleased with HAL's entertainment.  I disembarked the Nieuw Statendam earlier this month and loved all the musical entertainment in the evening.  As far as "shows" this is still a weak link with HAL.  JMO.

[Ken the cruiser]

34 minutes ago, FlorenceItaly said:

Ken, I have followed and read most of your reviews.  I have cruised most recently since restart Celebrity and HAL.  Unless you are on a HAL Pinnacle Class ship I do not think you will be pleased with HAL's entertainment.  I disembarked the Nieuw Statendam earlier this month and loved all the musical entertainment in the evening.  As far as "shows" this is still a weak link with HAL.  JMO.

Thanks for following along on my reviews, and we’ll definitely keep that in mind if we see a unique 2025 HAL itinerary we’re interested in similar to the one to Longyearbyen in June 2023! 😁

[Derbie]

My husband I were on this sailing.  It was our first sailing on HAL.  We both had to adjust ourselves to so much less to do, than other lines we have sailed on. We really like to stay busy when traveling, be it land or sea.  I honestly felt sorry for the kids on the cruise, since there appeared to be very little for them on the schedule each day.  I heard people complaining about how many kids were sailing; however, it was Thanksgiving week for Americans, and schools were out for fall break.  We booked a balcony room on the 5th deck, and found it quite nice, and the views were beautiful each day.  We had the HIA package.  Neither one of us drink much, but I did take advantage of the Dutch cafe and the lattes each day.  Wifi was terrible at best.  We had once a day room service from the staff.  Our steward offered to clean twice, if we hung out the notice on the door.  We never asked for it.  We did dine at Pinacle and Caneletto.  The food in both restaurants and service were very good.  I would say the placement of what is supposed to feel like a quiet Italian restaurant is, well anything but.  Lido is right there, and there is a constant march of people going by the windows towards the buffet.  I found the afternoon tea nice, but certainly not the best I have encountered before.  Thanksgiving dinner was disappointing, but service was always good.  My husband was really looking forward to BB Kings, as he is a lover of the blues.  The band was very solid, but it was not' the genre of blues at all.  It was much more R&B and should be noted by blues fans.  The rock band was very talented as well.  The classical group were excellent musicians.  We only saw the comedy show once, but he was very funny and quite clean.  I understand so many people have a lot to compare this cruise to, since we met so many wonderful people who had been on many HAL cruises, so I understand as I miss SO many options on other cruise lines from times gone by.  I am waiting to see if an item is removed from our account.  I wanted a delft blue cup and saucer for my sister. Our heritage is Dutch and Scott, so Delft is in our blood.  LOL.   Customer Service sent me to the Dutch Cafe.  They sold a set that had two cups (not the same as they use) and coffee.  I went ahead and purchased a set for what I believe was $32.00.  Well, there was a tip added for well over $6.00.  I am liberal tipper and added $ on my paper receipts many times during our cruise.  I refuse to pay 18% on a gift.  I went to CS and they advised me they could not remove it.  So, I asked them to take the item back and remove it from my account. It was still on my account, along with a coke from the fridge that we had put in there ourselves. As of yesterday afternoon, it was still showing. It was refreshing to not have the constant pushing of items for sale.  I thought we would see the cruise director out more often, but we never saw here accept at talks, etc.  We are planning on a two-week Alaska cruise/land trip this summer with HAL, that was cancelled twice due to Covid.  

[LMaxwell]

Was there any sort of activities beside trivia? Was there a night time deck party during the week? 

[PACD_JG]

3 hours ago, Derbie said:

My husband I were on this sailing.  It was our first sailing on HAL.  We both had to adjust ourselves to so much less to do, than other lines we have sailed on. We really like to stay busy when traveling, be it land or sea.  I honestly felt sorry for the kids on the cruise, since there appeared to be very little for them on the schedule each day.  I heard people complaining about how many kids were sailing; however, it was Thanksgiving week for Americans, and schools were out for fall break.  

 

I think your review is very fair, but I guess I don't feel sorry for the kids on the cruise because the parents should have known better - HAL's niche has never been about children.  I say this as somebody who was on this cruise with a 15 and 14 year old (our second with HAL).  Saying you sympathize almost sounds like you're excusing them from being little jerks.

Edited November 28, 2022 by PACD_JG

[Ellencruise]

I agree HAL is not my first choice if I were traveling with children, teens, etc.  There are many more cruise lines that cater to the younger crowd.

that being said is why my husband and I like HAL!

When we start planning a family trip we are looking at Disney or Celebrity.

[AFNavigator]

9 hours ago, FlorenceItaly said:

Ken, I have followed and read most of your reviews.  I have cruised most recently since restart Celebrity and HAL.  Unless you are on a HAL Pinnacle Class ship I do not think you will be pleased with HAL's entertainment.  I disembarked the Nieuw Statendam earlier this month and loved all the musical entertainment in the evening.  As far as "shows" this is still a weak link with HAL.  JMO.

??  With the exception of having less video panels in the World Stage and not having a Rolling Stones Rock Room, the two Signature Class ships have the same entertainment offerings as Pinnacle class ships.  Same goes for the Vista class ships except at least one has switched out BB Kings for the Rock Room.  The only other "entertainment" the Pinnacle ships have exclusively is the big screen at the lido pool.

[joedirticus]

We were on the Holiday (Thanksgiving) cruise. My biggest complaint was they had overbooked the cruise by 200-400 guests. Long lines with everything. Most of the food was pretty bland and I was tired of the breakfast selection by the ed of the cruise. Not much variety of entertainment, imho. It was either music at night, trivia or the shops trying to sell something. We don't drink or gamble, so that limited our choices by a lot. There was a comedian a couple of nights that was entertaining and the first dance show was entertaining. This wasn't choice of cruises, and I will probably never cruise Holland America again. I will say that there was an issue at Megans Bay excursion and Holland America was quick to refund our money, after they found out what happened.

[Derbie]

5 hours ago, Ellencruise said:

I agree HAL is not my first choice if I were traveling with children, teens, etc.  There are many more cruise lines that cater to the younger crowd.

that being said is why my husband and I like HAL!

When we start planning a family trip we are looking at Disney or Celebrity.

I agree.  The other choices are much better for families with kids.