Menu repeat on extended voyages

[newfarmers]

We're wondering if the menus are different every night or on a repeat cycle on extended voyages. On Infinity we sailed consecutive seven day Alaska and then 11 night Hawaii. Menu on the second cruise was virtually identical and then began to cycle again on day eight. Yum! At least we knew what was good and what wasn't so good (ok... bad). Don't get me started on the difference between a good Aussie steak and the "prime rib" served up.

 

On 25 day Three Continents can we expect to get the same menu cycled nearly four times? I think I've read in one of the brochures that HAL say they don't, but not sure if that's just brochure speak for "same menu just not in same order". That food's sure going to get a bit predictable if they do cycle.

 

Suppose the same might go for entertainment as well??...

[mamaofami]

If I were going on a 25 day cruise, I'd be so happy, I wouldn't care if the menu were the same every night. If they recycle 4 times, you get to choose something different each cycle. Sounds yummy to me.:)

[Jemima]

The menu is different each day on a 17 day cruise.

[grannynurse]

On our 35 day Rotterdam transatlantic in 2004 we only had 2 or 3 repeat menus. I believe if the cruise is in segments like a b2b it may repeat but we had 900+ out of 1300 pax doing the whole trip.

GN

[newfarmers]

Mamaofami, true, we are excited beyond words. As our signature says "can we stand the wait".

 

We did have the same meals more than once on Infinity if we enjoyed them. But we'll also try to eat in the Pinnacle a couple of times and also the Lido so I know we won't be begging for choice. We ate twice in the SS United States on Infinity. It was amazing, both food and service and worth every cent of the surcharge.

 

American's often comment on how long the holiday is that we are taking but us Aussie's are lucky and get a minimum four weeks annual leave a year. We took three weeks last year and intended to do the same this year so we could take six in 2008. The plan was to take three to four week cruise next year ending with a week in Thailand (to relax of course) but when we saw this itinerary we couldn't resist.:)

[mamaofami]

The Rotterdam is a great ship. We were on her to the Panama Canal a few years ago right before she was to go into dry dock for repairs. We were amazed because we didn't see anything that looked worn. Until I tried the Noordam, I liked the Rotterdam the best. But the convenience of sailing out of NY can't be beat for me. I guess if I want to cruise to other than the Caribbean, and I do, I'll need to fly.

[RuthC]

newfarmers, I'm a veteran of many longer cruises (20-35 days). And I eat dinner :D .

On my last long cruise with segments (35 days; 17-& 18-day segments) the menu was repeated at the turn-around point; that was the first time that had happened.

Which is not to say that certain items aren't repeated before that. There may be two or three nights where prime rib, filet mignon, etc are on the menu, but the menu as a whole is not repeated.

[cruznon]

I never thought of that. I think it's great that differing menus continue so long before a repeat. HAL culinary service is impressive.

[cruzermon]

I'm sure this is a naieve question, perhaps because I've only cruised once on HAL, but how do you tell when the menu repeats? There seemed to be such a wide selection on the dinner menu that there are plenty of alternatives, even if the menus repeat. Of course, when I'm on vacation, I like to step outside of my normal grazing comfort zone, so I'll try out different dishes and tend to make selections on seemingly different dishes.

[leoandhugh]

our experiences on extended cruises have been that seldom, if ever, does a menu repeat in its entirety. several entrees or appetizers will repeat and there may be a different mix on some menus - but on TransAtlantics back 2back with a preceeding cruise, whether it be on HAL, RCCL, NCL or Princess we hav never had an entire menu repeated. As someone has already pointed out, more popular items like prime rib, will repeat, but there are always other selections and other dining venues to choose from.:) :)

[RuthC]

I'm sure this is a naieve question, perhaps because I've only cruised once on HAL, but how do you tell when the menu repeats?

The only time I ever saw a repeat was a 35-day cruise that had two segments. The first night of the second segment I thought the menu looked familiar, so I took a good look at the fine print. In the bottom corner of the menu is a teeny-tiny print of the voyage and dinner numbers. I saw that it had reverted to "1".

Later on I knew the desserts were identical. That's one thing that will never get by me! :D

[arzz]

During the 27 days we were on board the Prinsendam (segment of the 66 day Grand South America Voyage) I do not remember anything repeating exactly. We had 6 or 7 menu choices each evening. They always included some fish and seafood, chicken, some sort of steak or prime rib and other also more eclectic choices like venison, ostrich, pheasant, squab, etc. The "old standards" like steak would appear each time with different sauces and sides -- just enough to keep each meal rather unique.

 

Some nights it was hard to choose because there were so many attractive choices, other nights (but maybe it was just me) it was hard to choose because even with the variety nothing seemed quite right. There was meatloaf once, and I even remember liver and onions once. In general the food was excellent but even if it hadn't been it would not have mattered to me. The food was not why we were there, it was only one of the many wonderful extras that made our adventure an unforgettable experience.

[jcrandle]

It does remind me of the man who would open his lunch box every day and exclaim "ham and cheese, again". Finally, one of his co-workers said, "Well, why don't you ask your wife to fix something else?" "My wife?", came the response, "I fix my own lunches."