Entertainment on HAL ships

[ryoko]

We are considering the Oosterdam for a Mexican Riviera cruise. Can someone tell me what the entertainment is like? Do they have nightly shows after dinner? How were the performers? We really enjoyed the shows on RCI's Freedom and Liberty of the seas and were wondering if they have something similar on HAL ships.

[CroozeAddict]

We are considering the Oosterdam for a Mexican Riviera cruise. Can someone tell me what the entertainment is like? Do they have nightly shows after dinner? How were the performers? We really enjoyed the shows on RCI's Freedom and Liberty of the seas and were wondering if they have something similar on HAL ships.

 

I just recently returned from the Westerdam and the shows were hit or miss. The production shows were real snoozers while the comedy and piano shows were quite good.

 

They do have two shows nightly to accomodate both early and main dinner seatings.

[Krazy Kruizers]

On a 7 day cruise there will be 2 production shows.

 

Then on the other nights there will be comedians, juglers, guest singers, etc. -- these vary by ship and whom HAL hires.

[Krazy Kruizers]

On a 7 day cruise there will be 2 production shows.

 

Then on the other nights there will be comedians, juglers, guest singers, etc. -- these vary by ship and whom HAL hires.

[Krazy Kruizers]

On a 7 day cruise there will be 2 production shows.

 

Then on the other nights there will be comedians, juglers, guest singers, etc. -- these vary by ship and whom HAL hires.

 

Check out the Crow's Nest.

[ryoko]

Thanks for the information. We're mostly interested in the production shows. The HAL Oosterdam 7 night cruise to the Mexican Riviera is a bargain compared to RCI's Mariner 7 night cruise to the same ports. The shows and activities are really important to us so we'll have to weigh it all. Thanks again.

[hammybee]

Thanks for the information. We're mostly interested in the production shows. The HAL Oosterdam 7 night cruise to the Mexican Riviera is a bargain compared to RCI's Mariner 7 night cruise to the same ports. The shows and activities are really important to us so we'll have to weigh it all. Thanks again.

 

I am not a big fan of production shows. Having said this, I enjoy those on RCL and CCL, more so than on HAL. That's just me and your milage may vary.

 

The Mariner carries almost twice as many pax as the Oosterdam and the experiences are different, not better or worse. It all depends on what you want out of your cruise and are willing to pay for. The Mariner consistently sells at a premium to the Oosterdam because of the rock wall, ice skating rink, minature golf and restaurants and no surprise, a higher entertainment budget.

 

Only you can decide if a floating resort hotel versus a more traditional and personal sailing experience is the best one for you.

[ryoko]

that's exactly what I was thinking, being such a large ship, with so many more passengers and selling at a higher price, the entertainment budget must be higher on RCI. I'm still considering the HAL cruise though, it's good to try something different to see if you might like it. One more question, and this might be the wrong place to ask. Has anyone cruised the Mexican Riviera in December? Is it cold out at sea? Too cold to enjoy the pool and deck areas? I live in San Diego and it can get cold on the water in December.

[retiredldo]

I dont think there are that many differences between the shows actually, they have songs, dance etc. Part of it depends on the cast. And no one mention the options in the other venues, from the piano bar, to the ocean bar area etc. But we just finished our 14th cruise, and we were on the smooth jazz cruise, let me tell you, the entertainment was fantastic and what helped to make that so was the response from the audience. On just about everyone of the other cruises, (HAL< Princess, RCL< NCL>Carnival etc) the response on most occasions was fair to partly cloudy. On this last cruise, folks were up and moving to the music Fantastic sort of off subject, and back to the regular cruise shows, with one exception that was on NCL where folks got up and walked out, I think we have always been entertained

Pete

[ryoko]

You are right, Pete. Even though we enjoy the theatrical production shows best, there are other venues of entertainment on board every cruise line I'm sure. On our Freedom cruise, there was an excellent guitarist in the Windjammer most nights.

[velvetred]

My DH and I cruised on the NCL Star for 8 nights in early December last year out of LA. It was cool on the first and last nights of the cruise but by the time we far enough South in the Baja Peninsula coastal waters the temperature was very nice. It was even a little hot while we in Acapulco but it was comfortably warm for our other three ports - Puerto Vallarta, Ixtapa, and Cabo San Lucas. I would not hesitate to cruise again to these ports in December. Have a great cruise.

[ryoko]

We have decided to cruise out of Florida this December. But, thank you for the information. We will most definately be doing a Mexican Riviera cruise in the near future.

[brucory]

For the untamed,

 

Does this mean that if you dine later and want to see a show, you have to go before dinner and vice versa?

 

Mmmm. Is that why everyone seems to want early dining?:confused:

[newmexicoNita]

We are considering the Oosterdam for a Mexican Riviera cruise. Can someone tell me what the entertainment is like? Do they have nightly shows after dinner? How were the performers? We really enjoyed the shows on RCI's Freedom and Liberty of the seas and were wondering if they have something similar on HAL ships.

They do have shows nightly, almost all cruise lines do and the entertainers are professional. My only negative comment, much of the nightly entertainment is geared to those in their 50-80s. If you fit that age group you will be very happy.

 

Nita

[JDOUGLEJ]

Entertainment on cruise ships can be so different it is almost impossible to determine which ship will have good or bad entertainers. We just returned from the Noordam and thought the entertainment was very weak, :confused: However, I know others really thought it was great. I am 65 and My DW is 58 so we fit the demographics for HAL. Sept. 06 we were on Caribbean Princess and except for 1 night (You could tell he was new and very nervous) we thought entertainment was outstanding.:D Have been on Carnival twice and yep you guessed it 1 time really good and 1 time really bad. :eek: Luck of the draw and your preferences have major influence on quality of entertainment. Think positive, it will probably be outstanding.:) HAVE A GREAT CRUISE VACATION!!!!

[Momee]

I was one who thought the entertainment was good. The 2 comedians were very good. The dancers were excellent. Singers were excellent although not my cup of tea as well as the pianist was excellent although not my type of entertainment. But it was first class

[jer_l]

We are considering the Oosterdam for a Mexican Riviera cruise. Can someone tell me what the entertainment is like? Do they have nightly shows after dinner? How were the performers? We really enjoyed the shows on RCI's Freedom and Liberty of the seas and were wondering if they have something similar on HAL ships.

We were on the Oosterdam last November and found the production shows about what you would expect from Community Theater or Junior College productions. We enjoyed them, but they paled in comparison to the shows we've seen on Celebrity. The cruise, however, was great and the price very low.

[dabear]

Cruising out of Florida in Dec or Jan is no guarantee of warm weather or calm seas. A few years back we left/returned Fla on the Zuiderdam in the mid 50s daytime and the seas were rough. It's hit or miss. We now prefer to depart from San Juan in the winter for a 7 day cruise so we don't loose too much good weather.

[ryoko]

50's in Florida? I had no idea it got that cold. Hopefully it will be warm once we get down to the islands. :)

[SakeDad]

We have decided to cruise out of Florida this December. But, thank you for the information. We will most definately be doing a Mexican Riviera cruise in the near future.

 

Cruising out of Florida in Dec or Jan is no guarantee of warm weather or calm seas. A few years back we left/returned Fla on the Zuiderdam in the mid 50s daytime and the seas were rough. It's hit or miss. We now prefer to depart from San Juan in the winter for a 7 day cruise so we don't loose too much good weather.

 

50's in Florida? I had no idea it got that cold. Hopefully it will be warm once we get down to the islands. :)

 

Ummmmm....:o ...... I think you're all in the wrong room:rolleyes: ...This is a room about shipboard ENTERTAINMENT:p

[m steve]

After 7 years of cruising, we find that the shows are getting worse each cruise. Last cruise I didn't go to one. They seem the same from ship to ship and line to line. The singers and dancers seem to try hard but this seems to be their first gig and awaiting a call to Vegas to get better costumes, material and productions. Of course, the shows in Vegas cost as much as a 5 day cruise in an inside cabin.

[Williebill]

We are considering the Oosterdam for a Mexican Riviera cruise. Can someone tell me what the entertainment is like? Do they have nightly shows after dinner? How were the performers? We really enjoyed the shows on RCI's Freedom and Liberty of the seas and were wondering if they have something similar on HAL ships.

 

Debi,

My DW and I have sailed with several ship lines and I have seen good production shows and I have seen bad production shows on all of them.

Bill