Eurodam 12/20 Holiday Cruise w/Child

[J Alex's Mom]

I just wanted to make a quick post about our experience so far on the Eurodam with our 8-year old son.

 

First of all, check-in was a bit of an experience, to say the least. We arrived around 11:50 at the port. We thought how lucky we were -- there were no crowds. We quickly got through the security scan, filled out our health questionnaires and walked right up to the check-in desk, when suddenly the fire alarm sounded. They rushed everyone outside, back to the curb check-in area. After waiting approximately 30 - 40 minutes, the building was cleared and we, along with everyone else who had arrived in the meantime, were finally allowed back into the building. Unfortunately, we had to go through security AGAIN. It was a mess to say the least. It turns out there was a car fire at the pier beside ours, but they have to check all the buildings, apparently.

 

The bright side was that when we finally did board the ship, the lido was not crowded at all. The food was great, and the drink service was fast & friendly. I would recommend the lasagna!

 

Our cabins were available at 1:30. We decided to check out Club Hal's open house. The facilities are very nice -- our son loved Club Hal last year on Westerdam. He is in the 8 -12 year old group. They offer activities from 7 - 10 pm tonight and after care is available from 10 - 12 for a minimal charge of $5 per hour.

 

After that, we visited our cabin. I was VERY pleased to see that the cabinets over the sofabed were added. I had read here earlier that they were eliminated on the Eurodam. We use those cabinets to store our wine, and I couldn't have been happier to see them!

 

At 3:00 p.m. we attended the webcam wave coordinated by Lisa. It turned out to be a beautiful afternoon.

 

We walked through the Silk Den and the Tamarind -- lovely spaces. In fact, I'm writing this as I prepare for our dinner in the Tamarind at 6:00 p.m. I'll post about the food and our son's opinion of Club Hal as time allows.

 

Also, our ship has been delayed, so while we watch the other ships sail away, ours will not depart until 7:00. Evidently some of our passangers are running behind as a result of travel delays.

[NevadaHiRoller]

Nice update. Enjoy your cruise.

[J Alex's Mom]

Just a quick update as I'm now on expensive and slow ship internet services...

 

The Tamarind was a delight. Note that they will customize each dish to the diner's tolerance for spicy/hot. My son loved his dinner, and he is not a very adventurous diner.

 

More updates on Club Hal later -- my son decided that he was too tired to attend last night's activities.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thanks for checking in.

 

Sorry that your embarkation didn't go well.

 

We ate at the Tamarind several times and loved it. Glad you also enjoyed your dinner there as well.

 

Will be looking forward to your "Live" report this week.

[mpduquaine]

I am very interested in hearing about Club HAL. I will be on the Jan 3rd sailing with my 4 children 13, 16, 17, 18 and am interested if this club even exists. I have heard many many negative about Club Hal, so I am hoping you can ease my thoughts.

I hope you have a good review on the Club

Thanks

[J Alex's Mom]

Sorry for the delay in posting updates on Club HAL and our cruise with my son. The speed (or lack thereof) of the internet connection on the ship proved quite unbearable, and there were so many other things competing for my attention.:)

 

I'll keep this relatively brief and focused on the my child's experience on this cruise -- I'll post a full cruise review in another thread.

 

First of all, Club HAL is broken down into three age groups -- younger than 8, 8 to 12 (tweens) and teenagers. Our son was in the youngest group on last year's cruise and was in the tweens this year. One important thing to note about the tweens is that in this group, they are able to sign themselves into and out of Club HAL at their leisure. If you do not agree to this policy, your child will be placed in the younger age group.

 

As soon as we stepped onto the ship, a Club HAL representative approached us and offered the Club HAL "menu" for the day. They have an open house (for this cruise, it was between 1 - 3:00pm). There you fill out contact information, insurance info, etc. This also serves as notice to them that you are interested in Club HAL and thereafter they will deliver the daily "menu" to your stateroom each day.

 

Below were the 'tweens activities by day (I cannot locate our first sea day, but the activities were similar to the second sea day)

 

Day 1: Welcome Aboard

Club HAL Open House 1:00 - 3:00

Caribbean Party Night (music, get to know you games) 7-10pm

Club HAL after hours (this is offered every night for an additional $5/hr fee from 10 - 12:00mn)

 

Day 3: Welcome to Grand Turk

Port Day Activities --- Port day activities will be available today from 8 - 4, lunch is served in the kids' room

Top Secret Assignment (photo scavenger hunt) from 7 - 10pm. My son participated in this and had a great time. The kids split up into small groups (his team consisted of three) and they, on their own, explored the ship trying to find items pictured on a page such as art, statues, etc. Note that the children are on their own, they are not accompanied by a Club HAL representative.

 

Day 4: Welcome to Tortola

9:00, Hemp bracelets

9:30, Scene It!

10:00 Celebrity Heads (I have no idea...)

10:30 Dodgeball

Port day activities offered from 1 - 4:00pm

You Pick the Flick - 7 - 10pm

 

Day 5: Welcome to St. Maarten

Port day activities from 8 - 4pm

Eurodam Olympics 7 - 10pm

 

Day 6: Merry Christmas

Club HAL open (videogames, air hockey, etc.) from 9 - 11:30

1:00 Christmas Gotcha! Hunt

1:30 Bingo

2:00 Sports of All Sorts

2:30 Christmas Trivia: Girls vs. Boys

3:00 Crusin' favorites

Red and Green Party (games, watch "A Christmas Story" 7 - 10pm

 

Day 7: Welcome to Half Moon Cay

Island Activities - 10:00am sandcastle building, 11:00am beach ball

Peace Out Party - 7 - 10pm

 

Again, after care is available each day from 10pm - 12mn for a minimal charge of only $5 per hour.

 

Alex enjoyed the activities he participated in this cruise. Because he enjoyed being with us and the grandparents this year, he didn't attend as many as last year. There were lots of kids participating, but this could be largely because of it being a holiday week.

 

They have improved and expanded the Club HAL areas from those on the Westerdam. Alex enjoyed the video game room and the air hockey in particular.

 

On Christmas morning, Santa visited the ship and provided pictures and gifts to all children who chose to attend in the mainstage area. Captain Mercer has more info on this on the Eurodam News Blog.

 

By the way, the Aft pool remained classified as adults only during our cruise, and this was emphasized during announcements and the daily Club HAL schedule. This made the lido pool particularly crowded. We did see children in the aft pool every time we were there, so it seemed that this was not actually enforced. It's my opinion that if they have the rule, they should enforce it...but I can also see why some likely retreated to the aft to escape the crowds, this being a cruise with more than the average number of children. Unlike the Westerdam, I did not notice signs as you entered the aft pool area "reminding" those that it was adults only, so perhaps they missed the message....;)

 

As HAL is the only cruise line we have experienced, I cannot speak as to how it compares to other lines. Our son is an only child and enjoys sitting down for more "formal" meals, so this time, he chose to forgo some of the Club HAL activities and enjoy dinner in the Pinnacle, Tamarind & Canaletto. Our Tamarind dinners would typically span about 2 hours, so it made having dinner and doing the evening Club HAL activities difficult this trip. However, he did enjoy the activities in which he was able to participate.

 

I hope this answers some questions on Club HAL, at least for tweens. I know it was difficult for me to find detailed info prior to our first cruise, so feel free to ask if you have any questions.