Return from Ryndam 10/30-11/6-Review

[tjcletsgo]

Dakrewser,

 

Don't worry, your cruise will be wonderful. I am really hoping one of the other 2 couples will write their review. I'd be curious to hear what their experience was. I know one was also an S suite pax, so, believe me, we had a much better time of it that other pax. I felt truly lucky to have the Neptune Lounge at our disposal, otherwise I would have been really p----d at our cabin steward. Most of my complaints were minor annoyances, really. It's just there were so many of them, and I haven't even gotten around to mentioning the "system failure",or the "broken tank" that left most the the ship's bathrooms (our suite included) for a few hours on Friday.

 

Gizmo, about the Crow's Nest, ditto here. I was so anxious to get to the Crow's Nest to see that ceiling and can't believe they replaced it. That lounge looked so out of place on that ship, too. Why couldn't they decorate it in the sytle of the Exploration Cafe?

 

Lisa, no lobster in the Pinnacle. Yes, they are open for lunch but I never saw a menu. I'd pay the $10.00. We had lunch at the outdoor grill every sail day, their wonderful, greasy cheeseburgers and a taco. They cook it to order so IT'S HOT! LOL!

 

Bring your seasick pills, and visit the infirmary immediately and get a stash of seasick pills. You're supposed to take them at the very first sign of seasickness. Yes, we felt movement every night to some degree. It was really bad starting Thursday night, when we hit the Pacific Ocean. We kinda held on to the sides of the mattress..........Like I said, I don't get seasick, so it really didn't bother me.

 

No air conditioning problems at all. Weather in all ports (if sunny) should be appx. 85 degrees. Just beautiful!

 

They called the embarkation by number with suite pax getting priority. I'm assuming we just got a late start because of the swat team and all (yeah, that'll do it). Continued......

[tjcletsgo]

Formal night were Sunday and Thursday, informal night was also Dutch Night, it was on Monday. No one seemed to know what night was Dutch Night so we got trapped. Pinnacle was fully booked. I swear they do this on purpose.

 

We saw several men in tuxes on Sunday night, not as many on Thursday. These were mostly the older pax's who really put on the dog. The men all looked so handsome. I have to ditto what other reviews have recently posted. I was generally appalled by the dress code. I took all new clothes, purchased at end-of-summer sales over the summer. I wanted to be sure I was dressed approprately. Some of the people looked almost like homeless people! I couldn't believe it! Especially at the Lido pool area. Nasty!

 

I'm sure they fixed the Greenhouse Spa by now. It'd pitch a fit if it isn't working.

 

Kruzkeen, I've never been on this ship before so I have nothing to compare it to. The gym looked really nice and well equiped. Sorry, from what I saw, you'll have to pay to take a sauna/steam..............yeah, I know......

 

Lisa and other dieters, I managed to eat everything I wanted (and missed a BUNCH of stuff I wanted to try but couldn't find the room) and didn't gain a single pound. I just looked around and said to myself "is this really worth it?". If the answer was "yes", then I had it without a second thought. EVERYTHING in the Pinnacle was worth it!

 

Atseadaze, your suite 14, I think you'll be on the other side of the ship. I sure hope so! I saw your group-wasn't the Penthouse magnificent? Like I said, everyone has different taste and different opinions. Many people thought the Crow's Nest was beautiful but not me. You're upcoming cruise will be terrific!

 

Any more questions I can answer?

[LAFFNVEGAS]

I'm sure they fixed the Greenhouse Spa by now. It'd pitch a fit if it isn't working.

 

Lisa and other dieters, I managed to eat everything I wanted (and missed a BUNCH of stuff I wanted to try but couldn't find the room) and didn't gain a single pound. I just looked around and said to myself "is this really worth it?". If the answer was "yes", then I had it without a second thought. EVERYTHING in the Pinnacle was worth it!

Any more questions I can answer?

Janie, as for the Greenhouse Spa I pitch a fit this is all brand new and they made a thing of it, it should definitely be working, I am thinking of doing this on Monday our second sea day.

As far as dieting, I am giving myself BIG PERMISSION to eat anything I want:D I have worked hard all this year to loose 54.5 pounds before I turned 50. I actually expect to gain about 5 pounds although I will work out every morning and we will walk the Promenade Deck every afternoon or evening. It's the Neptune Lounge cappacinos, the Swiss Muesli, and the Pinnacle that has me a bit worried:o It actually won't upset me if I gain, I might actually surprise myself and not gain much.

Janie you had mention that you had that terrible table in the dining room to begin with, where did they move you to? We will have 6:15 lower and requested table 125 or any table next to the aft windows. We have been fortunate on previous cruises to to get window tables.

I don't think the motion will bother me too much as long as I take my Bonine, in Alaska there was no motion, we never even felt the movement of the board when we got off:( (I am weird I like that feeliing of still being on the ship once I get home) Now April of 2003 on the Zuirderdam was another storywe had 20 ft swells and felt the ship a rockin and I had no problems so if it does not get worse than that I will be fine:) I have about 22 Bonine tablets I am taking that should be enough.

I am so glad you enjoyed your Suite we are so very much also looking forward to it:p

 

Thanks again for all your wonderful info.

[tjcletsgo]

Hi, Lisa!

 

Wow, 54 lbs.!!!!! That's GREAT! I've been doing minor Atkins this past year, finding low carb replacements for things like morning cereal, milk, low carb lemonade, etc., and limiting pasta, rice, potatoes and bread. That's about it. I've only lost about 12 lbs. this year, but it doesn't feel at all like I've been dieting. This cruise was a breeze for me. I've learned (finally, after 53 years) to quit eating when I'm full. Isn't that amazing???? LOL!!!!!!!!!

 

Lisa, if you decide you're gonna have a great time, and limit your expectations, you will have the cruise of a lifetime. So many people have raved about HAL, I think I had unrealistic expectations.

 

We ended up with table 20, by the windows. It was a nice table, but, it was really hard to see out the windows, on the whole ship. On RCI, all the drapes were open, and you could see the moon shining on the water. Not HAL. You have to get right up to the window and cup your hands to look out. Plus, when it gets dark, they go around and close all the drapes. Who do they think is gonna look in????????? That kinda gave me claustrophobia. Weird.

 

Have you ever worked for a company that couldn't get things right, even tho' they have the best intentions? They change this, change that, and hope it will solve the problem but, since there isn't a common goal or objective, the basic problem remains the same? That's how I view HAL at this point. It's like they don't "get it". I think it's really sad.

 

Anyway, let us know as soon as you come back, how your cruise went! I'm sure it will be wonderful!

[Sail With Me]

What about the Butler? Did he not make up for Roland?

[tjcletsgo]

Atseadaze,

 

There was no butler at all.....I don't think the Ryndam has butlers. Can anyone else answer that question?

[1cruiselvr]

I don't think HAL has butlers....

[tomc]

Plus, when it gets dark, they go around and close all the drapes. Who do they think is gonna look in?

 

HAL is from the Netherlands; I assume The Flying Dutchman.

[Randyk47]

Janie - Thanks for the review. Have to admit I found some of it to be a bit disturbing as the Ryndam is our all time favorite. Hopefully this is all just shakedown from her renovations and things will sort themselves out.

 

Atseadaze - Maybe you won't get Roland. You'll be on the port side of the ship in an even numbered suite while the odd numbered suites are on the starboard side. We had 10....back in the days when it was numbered 1010....and it's still the best cabin we've ever had.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Just thought I would let everyone know that I emailed Mary last night about if the seas were rough or the stabilizers were not working (she also takes Bonine because of motion sickness) she said the seas are extremely calm and has not had to take any Bonine at all. I would guess there is not currently a problem with the stabilizers so that is great news.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Janie I have another question. When did they do the Chocolate/Dessert Extraganza? Was it in the afternoon or 11:00 pm? I hate to say it but we are early risers and tend to be in bed by 10 pm even on vacation so we actually enjoy it when they do that in the afternoon. We just have a very light lunch and then only sample the Desserts so we can still have dinner at 6:15

[Himself]

Janie and all readers:

 

The Ryndam just had a major overhaul and I think that it would be much like a new ship, with many "bugs" to be worked out.

Himself

[anniecat]

sorry to hear about the "oop's" and cold food. but hopefully all will be well soon.

[dot73]

Don't worry, Anniecat, our Feb. 14 cruise will be great. I'm sure all the bugs will be ironed out by then. I've never had a bad HAL cruise (5 so far) and I'm sure this one will be great as well. I'm in a "cheap" cabin so at least I won't have to worry about having Roland as my steward.

[bkreader]

Thank you so much for the information on the Ryndam. This is so sad; I was aboard when she was still extra-special. :(

Does anyone know who the master chef is on the Ryndam now? - Jane

[DaveOKC]

Laffnvegas - we are in 041 on the Dec. 4 cruise. We picked this one since in Jan. we were in 007 and found the noise from the deck chairs to be a bit loud at times and 041 (and 043) are below the carpeted area of the Lido Cafe, so unlikely to be noisy. The only thing that I noticed about 041 vs 043 is that 043 has a bit of an overhang on the deck so you will get a bit more shade than we will.

I hope this helps.

DaveOKC

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Laffnvegas - we are in 041 on the Dec. 4 cruise. We picked this one since in Jan. we were in 007 and found the noise from the deck chairs to be a bit loud at times and 041 (and 043) are below the carpeted area of the Lido Cafe, so unlikely to be noisy. The only thing that I noticed about 041 vs 043 is that 043 has a bit of an overhang on the deck so you will get a bit more shade than we will.

I hope this helps.

DaveOKC

Dave, the overhang was what I was afraid of. When we were zoomong in to the Ryndam while it is in San Diego we were trying to figure out which would be our cabin and we noticed the overhang. Hopefully it will not bother us. Oh well if we want sun we can just walk down the hall to the aft pool:D I will let you know how the noise level is. Thanks

[tjcletsgo]

BKREADER, According to my Cruise Log, the Executive Chef was Jock Barelmann. The Hotel Manager was Theo Haanen, the Captain was Frans Consen (who had us in stitches with his rrrrrrrolled r's).

 

Lisa, the Chocolate Extravaganza was during the day in the Dining Room. I was still WAY too full from lunch. That's what's great about cruising; if you don't like the food in one place, you can always go somewhere else! You can't possibly go hungry!

[Bunny2]

O.K. I am scared now. We are cruising on the Ryndham and were very hopeful when we saw it had been refurbished. Our last cruise was on Windstar and we thought we could never go on another line again. We booked Ryndham because we can drive to San Diego. I am anxious to here about this weeks excursion on the Ryndham.

 

Do you have any insight on the shore excursions in Cabo. We were debating horseback riding or All terrain. We don't want to be gone all day though ...we hear we should visit the Office.

[Bill HaHa]

We hope that all of the problems will be worked out by March 6th when we go to Sea of Cortes/Mexican Riverra for 10 days. Has anyone else been on the Ryndam since the dry dock. Would love to hear other opinions about the ship.

[bkreader]

tjcletsgo,

 

:eek:

 

I knew Wolfgang Rappl wouldn't have let this kind of thing go on! (Exec. chef in 2001) - Jane

[1cruiselvr]

We had our first 'suite' experience on the Ryndam last year and loved it. The Neptune Lounge Staff couldn't have been better. I think this ship is great and would sail on her again, no problem. Happy Sailing!

[tjcletsgo]

Bunny2,

 

Yes, take a cab to The Office for lunch or drinks. It's a beautiful place, with an outstanding beach! Hang on to your drinks, tho. If you look away, they'll get snatched by the waiter!

 

Have fun!

[Sail With Me]

We think the Ryndam remodel is exqisite and that everyone we met was wonderful...food excellent and saw no negatives at all when we were aboard. Looking forward to our November 20 visit and lunch and then our voyage to the Mexican Riviera on November 27.

 

Karen and Bob

[DaveOKC]

Bunny2 - skip the horseback riding - we did it two years ago and it was definatey not worth the time nor money spent.

DaveOKC