En Route with Hank in Japan and the Westerdam

[darjeff]

Ridiculous story - our friends joining us on this cruise had their Japanese citrus soy sauce confiscated by HAL security because it contained 25% alcohol. Yep, there was the fear these folks were going to imbibe in some serious soy sauce cocktails at HAL's expense. Actually, they may have been tempted due to HAL's chronic shortages of wine, beer and other bar staples.

[ontheweb]

12 hours ago, Hlitner said:

Yep, as Ray posted, we finally got off that dam ship on Sunday morning.   Since we are finally home, we enjoyed some decent pizza (last night) which is something we sorely missed on the Westy, which is one of the HAL ships without a NY Deli.  

 

Kudos to HAL for quickly crediting our credit card for our unused OBC (significantly over $1000).  That unused OBC would have been a lot less if we had not closely monitored our onboard account and constantly asked for overcharges to be corrected (at least 11 overcharges on our cruise).  The Westy has a serious problem with their onboard accounting system and we again urge future cruisers to carefully check their onboard account (on a daily basis).  

 

We have consistently posted that we found our 42 day cruise, OK!  Some things were better than expected (such as our suite and our terrific stewards), some things were "HAL normal,"  and too many things were well below old HAL standards (and our own standards).  We did find that most of our food in the MDR (we almost always eat dinner in the MDR) were properly cooked and give a high five to the cooks and chefs for doing a pretty good job....given the products with which they must work.  The always offered salmon was always excellent and our "go to" item on the evenings when the daily menu was awful (this happened too many times). 

 

  On Sunday night, while in Tacoma, DW and I went to a decent seafood restaurant where DW had excellent Rainbow Trout and I enjoyed a fantastic piece of Alaskan Halibut.  While the fish prep on the Westy was generally very good, the farmed fish is basically tasteless and that dinner in Tacoma just confirmed the obvious.  Cruise lines (not just HAL) like to boast about using "sustainable" fish, but this is generally a code word for tasteless commercially farmed fish.  I also had a clam chowder (on Sunday in Tacoma) that was thick, tasty, with plenty of clams.  Something else you will not find on HAL.   The beef filets (on the Westy) were generally quite good (a nice surprise) while other cuts of beef left something to be desired.  All the offerings at the Dive-In (I had just about everything on the menu) were good and up to old HAL standards.  The Pinnacle Grill continues to be one of the worst values in the cruise world with a very tired menu, so-so food (hits and misses) and ridiculous add-on charges.

 

While DW and I are not big dessert fans, we did try many of the offerings on the Westy and this is an area where HAL could do much better.  In 42 days, there was not a single dessert offering where I said, "this is something I must try."  Yes, I know we can usually get decent cream brulee on HAL (the Pinnacle offering is really good) but it would be nice to have some excellent pies, cakes, etc.

 

With a few exceptions, the hotel crew on our cruise were excellent and up to previous HAL standards.  But there were obvious crew shortages (or cut-backs) which does have a negative impact.  Supervisors and very senior staff often seemed to be in hiding, and a few of us speculated they did not want to hear (or deal with) passenger complaints.  Service in the lounges was very uneven and bars were often staffed by a single bar tender during some of the busiest pre-dinner times.  Our service in the MDR was generally excellent, but we dine later (usually after 7:30) when there is much less pressure on the dining staff.

 

After a few days off the ship and some time to reflect on the cruise, we can find little reason to even consider HAL for future cruises (we heard this was from quite a few folks).  While we do think that HAL is "Ok" we already know (from experience) that we can find much better quality/value with several other lines.  I do hope this will change in the near future but will not hold my breath.

 

Hank

 

 

 

 

Thanks again for the comprehensive review.

 

So you went home for the pizza after missing good pizza. My DW on our first cruise (2002) said at the end what she missed was peanut butter and jelly. 🤣🤣

[ontheweb]

8 hours ago, jeffriel said:

Ridiculous story - our friends joining us on this cruise had their Japanese citrus soy sauce confiscated by HAL security because it contained 25% alcohol. Yep, there was the fear these folks were going to imbibe in some serious soy sauce cocktails at HAL's expense. Actually, they may have been tempted due to HAL's chronic shortages of wine, beer and other bar staples.

🤦‍♂️, I guess the rules are the rules and they must be followed no matter how ridiculous.

[cruisemom42]

1 hour ago, ontheweb said:

Thanks again for the comprehensive review.

 

So you went home for the pizza after missing good pizza. My DW on our first cruise (2002) said at the end what she missed was peanut butter and jelly. 🤣🤣

 

I found I was craving a good bagel and a schmear.

[Hlitner]

1 hour ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

I found I was craving a good bagel and a schmear.

ROFL.  That was our first breakfast at home.  But in fairness to HAL, there were always bagels on the ship....although cruise ship bagels might be better labeled the "unbagel."  But to be fair, we have never found a good bagel on any cruise line!

 

Hank

[cruisemom42]

11 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

ROFL.  That was our first breakfast at home.  But in fairness to HAL, there were always bagels on the ship....although cruise ship bagels might be better labeled the "unbagel." 

 

More like "round pieces of bread with a hole".  😉

[ontheweb]

2 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

I found I was craving a good bagel and a schmear.

So far in this thread we have had pizza, peanut butter and jelly, and a bagel with a shmear mentioned, all are comfort foods.

[cruisemom42]

1 hour ago, ontheweb said:

So far in this thread we have had pizza, peanut butter and jelly, and a bagel with a shmear mentioned, all are comfort foods.

 

I think of comfort foods as more like stuff mom or grandma used to make:  chicken soup, meatloaf and the like. But hey, whatever gives you comfort!

 

 

[scooter6139]

17 hours ago, Hlitner said:

We just headed to Anthony's at Point Defiance.  Hard to resist the sea view after 6 weeks on a ship :).

 

Hank

Been disappointed with Anthony's in Point Defiance lately.  The one in Gig Harbor (across the Narrows Bridge) is a bit better.  Next time in the area and want good seafood, give Dukes a try.  

[mcrcruiser]

Hank we thank you  for your candid  evaluations  ,We were thinking of the Westerdam for the cruise from Seattle to Japan ,a 53 day voyage ;but ,following your comments  made our decision to not  do that  cruise

[bennybear]

Unfortunately,  even though the OP said the food was good as was the cabin service, he was disappointed in the lack of late night entertainment.  For us, we are often so tired from our explorations that is not a big issue for us.   I would not hesitate to choose HAL  if I liked the itinerary and price. 
Always  interesting to remember that for each negative,  people need three positives to balance things out.  

 

[ontheweb]

1 hour ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

I think of comfort foods as more like stuff mom or grandma used to make:  chicken soup, meatloaf and the like. But hey, whatever gives you comfort!

 

 

I was defining comfort food as not the fancy schmansy stuff they serve on a cruise.

 

And if you are really looking for bagels come up my way August 13th. (We will miss this this year as we will be on a sea day between Norway and Iceland, actually also our wedding anniversary.)

 

The Bagel Festival – Monticello, NY – The bagel Capital

[cruisemom42]

41 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

I was defining comfort food as not the fancy schmansy stuff they serve on a cruise.

 

And if you are really looking for bagels come up my way August 13th. (We will miss this this year as we will be on a sea day between Norway and Iceland, actually also our wedding anniversary.)

 

The Bagel Festival – Monticello, NY – The bagel Capital

 

And do they bring NYC water with them to make the bagels? Always heard that was the trick...

 

But seriously, I lived for a short while in upper Westchester Co. FIL grew up in Brooklyn and made periodic runs to the city for bagels, Italian bread and pastries, and cheese. Three things I am still very fond of.

 

[ontheweb]

28 minutes ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

And do they bring NYC water with them to make the bagels? Always heard that was the trick...

 

But seriously, I lived for a short while in upper Westchester Co. FIL grew up in Brooklyn and made periodic runs to the city for bagels, Italian bread and pastries, and cheese. Three things I am still very fond of.

 

NYC gets its water from reservoirs in my county. NYC water is really Sullivan county water.

[BetsyS.]

bennybear - I agree with you about itinerary and price. My stepfather and I think

that HAL has the best itineraries, and also the best crew at sea.

[bennybear]

1 hour ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Or you could easily pass by the thread.  I read what I want and pass by others.  I don’t need to look at a hundred pictures of “jazz hands”. That’s not particularly interesting to me so I just don’t bother, nor comment on it.  I didn’t realize there was a quota that needs to be filled.  Entertainment doesn’t matter to me but it does to others.  It’s not all about me.

No quota, lol!    But it’s easy to lose sight of the big picture sometimes.

 

 I read because cruising Japan was one of our favourite cruises,  I didn’t realize I needed to explain🤷‍♀️.

Never said it was all about me, just a different view point. 

Edited May 12, 2023 by bennybear

[bennybear]

1 hour ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

And do they bring NYC water with them to make the bagels? Always heard that was the trick...

 

But seriously, I lived for a short while in upper Westchester Co. FIL grew up in Brooklyn and made periodic runs to the city for bagels, Italian bread and pastries, and cheese. Three things I am still very fond of.

 

The Montreal ones are pretty good too.

[BetsyS.]

bennybear - I agree with you about the Montreal bagels. When I lived in Massachusetts years ago, a deli there had bagels that were shipped from Montreal. Very good! 😊

[Florida_gal_50]

45 minutes ago, bennybear said:

No quota, lol!    But it’s easy to lose sight of the big picture sometimes.

 

 I read because cruising Japan was one of our favourite cruises,  I didn’t realize I needed to explain🤷‍♀️.

Never said it was all about me, just a different view point. 

Big picture?  I’m not sure what you mean by that.  My vacation days are super precious to me.  I’m still working and I don’t have money to burn having 3 or 4 houses to depend on financing  my retirement so my money needs to go as far as possible.  I want to know if there are continuing problems on a ship because I don’t want to waste my money on it no matter where it’s going.  To me that’s the big picture I’m interested in.

[Hlitner]

On 5/12/2023 at 4:39 PM, BetsyS. said:

bennybear - I agree with you about itinerary and price. My stepfather and I think

that HAL has the best itineraries, and also the best crew at sea.

When it comes to the crew, HAL does hold Its own with any line.  But as to the best we have had, it has consistently been in MSCs Yacht Club.  The butlers, stewardesses, and wait staff are amazing.  With the new HAL, the crew is understaffed and over stressed, which takes its toll.  I would give very high marks to the Seabourn crew who do not have “no” in their vocabulary.  I watched one of their bar waiters wade into chest high waves (she was wearing her uniform) to refill champagne glasses among some passengers (while at a rented beach club).  I kid you not.

 

Hank

[bennybear]

1 hour ago, Hlitner said:

When it comes to the crew, HAL does hold Its own with any line.  But as to the best we have had, it has consistently been in MSCs Yacht Club.  The butlers, stewardesses, and wait staff are amazing.  With the new HAL, the crew is understaffed and over stressed, which takes its toll.  I would give very high marks to the Seabourn crew who do not have “no” in their vocabulary.  I watched one of their bar waiters wade into chest high waves (she was wearing her uniform) to refill champagne glasses among some passengers (while at a rented beach club).  I kid you not.

 

Hank

Interesting that you find only a luxury line or ship within a ship surpassed them in service.   We found the Neptune concierge outstanding as well.  Wondering how you would compare that experience?  Or regular MSC? I always prefer comparing apples to apples. 

 

 

[Hlitner]

38 minutes ago, bennybear said:

Interesting that you find only a luxury line or ship within a ship surpassed them in service.   We found the Neptune concierge outstanding as well.  Wondering how you would compare that experience?  Or regular MSC? I always prefer comparing apples to apples. 

 

 

Our cost for the HAL Signature Suite was

about the same, per person day, as our MSC YC Suite.  But I will agree that MSCs Yacht Club is a far superior product to HAL.  Keep in mind that a Neptune Suite costs more than the YC and it gets you a lounge.  The YC gets you a large lounge, 2 private eating venues, a private pool deck, Butlers everywhere, included Internet, Included high end booze, nightly entertainment in the private lounge, priority elevators, etc.  As to concierges, the YC has a dedicated concierge desk staffed 24/7.  The perks that come with the high end HAL suites are among the worst in the entire industry.

 

Since you talk Apples to Apples

how about HAL Neptunes vs NCLs Haven Suites.  Or Celebrity Retreat suites?  We had not brought up the Neptune thing, but since you opened    up that door ……

 

Hank 

[bennybear]

9 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

Our cost for the HAL Signature Suite was

about the same, per person day, as our MSC YC Suite.  But I will agree that MSCs Yacht Club is a far superior product to HAL.  Keep in mind that a Neptune Suite costs more than the YC and it gets you a lounge.  The YC gets you a large lounge, 2 private eating venues, a private pool deck, Butlers everywhere, included Internet, Included high end booze, nightly entertainment in the private lounge, priority elevators, etc.  As to concierges, the YC has a dedicated concierge desk staffed 24/7.  The perks that come with the high end HAL suites are among the worst in the entire industry.

 

Since you talk Apples to Apples

how about HAL Neptunes vs NCLs Haven Suites.  Or Celebrity Retreat suites?  We had not brought up the Neptune thing, but since you opened    up that door ……

 

Hank 

My point is that is not an apples to apples comparison,  crew on a luxury line or ship within a ship.  

Genuinely wondering how the non Yacht club service in MSC compares?  Not sure they sail in Japan.   Princess, Cunard and Celebrity do but mostly have shorter cruises, with less ports,  

I would agree that suites are another matter.  We enjoy the egalitarian approach on HAL, where some may prefer a more segregated experIence.   On HAL, The service and dining room are the same whether in an inside cabin or suite.  That may be a double edged sword for some.  

 

[Florida_gal_50]

While some might think that the service is the same whether you are in a Neptune or another class of cabin that is not true in my experience.  I’ve been on several cruises since the upstart so my experience is recent.  I hadn’t had a Neptune for several years.  Had one on my last cruise through an upsell,  the way you are treated is totally different.  Unless you experience traveling in a non Neptune room how could you possibly know?

[kazu]

I have done a lot of Neptunes in my time but now, as a solo, I’m happy to be able to be able to do a verandah.  

 

There is some difference in how you are treated - but it’s limited IMO.  You usually get a nice table in the MDR if you are doing fixed dining.  And the concierge makes a big difference not having to go to the reservation desk for specialty dining, shore excursions or guest services.  that’s assuming you have a good concierge. 

 

But IME, there is no difference in how you are treated overall on board.  HAL is basically egalitarian - but I didn’t wear my card around my neck, either 😉