Latest copy of Mariner Magazine renderings of seaview pool area etc

[Copper10-8]

Yikes! That reminds me of my first trip to the Panama Canal. There was a huge group from overseas. One lady brought her accordian with her and they had sing songs by the pool. I had a lot to drink on that cruise:D. That would be the day I would take up all my luggage allowance with that thing.

 

You must not be into polka's.................much!;)

[pipedreams62]

You must not be into polka's.................much!;)

 

 

Is that his "Mariner" button on his hat?

 

[cruz chic]

You must not be into polka's.................much!;)

Got that one right;):D.

[sail7seas]

There is ...

 

See below -- I believe this is an uncropped version of the rendering that is featured in the Mariner periodical at pp14.

 

Scott.

 

 

Thank you, Scott. Excellent. I admit to being curious to see the Retreat for myself. :) I'd rather think positive thoughts about it than not. It is what now exists on Veendam and is coming to the other four ships. We might find we actually like it when we see it for ourselves. :)

[esther e]

When I stayed at the Venetian Hotel in Vegas they had much the same kind of pool and we loved it! It was so refreshing to be in a lounge in the water. Maybe I march to a different drum, but I'm looking forward to it, and I do live in Florida and have a pool at my disposal 24/7, right outside my living room door.

[ctsally]

Hasn't HAL heard "if it aint' broke, don't fix it"? A wading pool for adults seems utterly ridiculous. The aft deck of the Veendam WAS such a pleasant part of the ship...complete with a real pool.

 

As for the movie screen, WHY? There is a theater INSIDE the ship for those who want to watch movies. Why should the rest of us have to listen to it?....especially in a place called a "retreat". The word "retreat" implies relaxation. The aft of the Veendam, before all this re-make WAS truly a retreat.

[cruz chic]

When I stayed at the Venetian Hotel in Vegas they had much the same kind of pool and we loved it! It was so refreshing to be in a lounge in the water. Maybe I march to a different drum, but I'm looking forward to it, and I do live in Florida and have a pool at my disposal 24/7, right outside my living room door.

It appeals to me too...and I'm not usually a pool person.

[brucory]

There is ...

 

See below -- I believe this is an uncropped version of the rendering that is featured in the Mariner periodical at pp14.

 

Scott.

 

Thanks for posting the pic. It puts things into perspective. It looks as though there are more loungers (non wet) than what there was before, in addition to the option of the wet loungers. I can see this area being a lot of fun, and an alternate venue for evening entertainment etc.

 

The majority of the few people we saw using this area last time were the entertainers and other support staff, so maybe more people will enjoy this area now - hopefully.

 

:D:D:D

[wander]

It looks like my kind of pool for enjoying the sun while relaxing. It is great for keeping cooler - just dangling a foot in the water helps. Now for serious swimming it would not work.

[christy744]

When we sailed around South America a few years back, anyone who swam in the aft pool (unheated, BTW) got a certificate stating "I SWAM AROUND CAPE HORN!"

 

I guess HAL can change that to "I DANGLED MY TOES IN TIERRA DEL FUEGO!"

 

;)

[djhsolara]

I have never been on any of the "smaller" HAL ships, but I will say that this concept appeals a great deal to me. I find that often rather than getting in the pool, I sit on the wet deck area around the pool where the water flows up (I don't know what this is called)...so this is a great thing for me.

 

I haven't seen the deck plans for Nieuw Amsterdam, but I would wonder if any new builds will be built this way now.

[carlmm]

For me this means one reason less to sail with HAL.

I do not like these Lido pools which are left over after the introduction of "retreats". Laying and swimming in an enclosed, maybe even covered cage has no appeal to me when on a ship under the sun.

Aft pools are so much nicer. Here the connection to the ocean, the sky, the whole world around you is much closer.

 

And yes I used the aft pool and the pool area a lot even on a cruise around Cape Horn.

And yes I do look at the deck planes before I book and take the ships layout into consideration. After one cruise on a RCCL ship that did not have the open aft deck space with pool years ago, I knew that I do want one and never returned to a ship like that.

 

That you have to pay for seats there and the movie screen make it even worse.

[R&CCruisers]

I always enjoy reading (and sometimes napping) by the aft deck pool and during all the times we have sailed, I have not often seen many people that actually used that pool to swim. In extremely hot weather, some would sit in the water to cool off--and I did that sometimes. We use pool loungers to cool off at our summer lake home and I'm thinking this new concept might be a good idea. I am anxious to see this for myself and then will make a decision as to whether or not I like it.

[DFD1]

Interestiing post about avoiding ships with no open aft decks. We also find ourselves avoiding these ships. Carnival, in particular, has a class of ship, The Conquest Class, which has has no open aft deck. After one short cruise, we decided to avoid such ships in the future.

 

For us, an important part of being at sea is enjoying the space out on the "fantail". The pool, on the other hand, less important to us than the open space out there.

 

It seems less like a ship when everything is enclosed. Even the lido pools on HAL are hot and stuffy on some days with little fresh air around. We avoid that area except to pass thru or early in the morning.

[Tampa Girl]

Interestiing post about avoiding ships with no open aft decks. We also find ourselves avoiding these ships. Carnival, in particular, has a class of ship, The Conquest Class, which has has no open aft deck. After one short cruise, we decided to avoid such ships in the future.

 

For us, an important part of being at sea is enjoying the space out on the "fantail". The pool, on the other hand, less important to us than the open space out there.

 

It seems less like a ship when everything is enclosed. Even the lido pools on HAL are hot and stuffy on some days with little fresh air around. We avoid that area except to pass thru or early in the morning.

 

Are you sure that the Retreat is enclosed? It is difficult to see from the virtual tour on HAL's website, but it did not appear to be roofed in like the Lido pool area.

[carlmm]

Are you sure that the Retreat is enclosed? It is difficult to see from the virtual tour on HAL's website, but it did not appear to be roofed in like the Lido pool area.

 

The retreat is indeed not enclosed. The bad point is that the only pool left is the Lido pool which is enclosed.

In the retreat which now occupies the aft there is no pool and you have to pay for certain seats.

[Tampa Girl]

The retreat is indeed not enclosed. The bad point is that the only pool left is the Lido pool which is enclosed.

In the retreat which now occupies the aft there is no pool and you have to pay for certain seats.

 

 

But . . . the good thing - there is an actual bar there now!

[jtl513]

I haven't seen the deck plans for Nieuw Amsterdam, but I would wonder if any new builds will be built this way now.

It should be exactly the same as the Eurodam, which has a real aft pool.

[DFD1]

No, the retreat is not enclosed. I did not mean to suggest that. Quite the contrary, the retreat is wide open, and we are looking forward to spending time in that area. The pool itself is less important to us than to others.

 

It's the ships with no open aft deck that we try and avoid.

 

Sorry if I misspoke.

[Copper10-8]

The retreat is indeed not enclosed. The bad point is that the only pool left is the Lido pool which is enclosed.

In the retreat which now occupies the aft there is no pool and you have to pay for certain seats.

 

Sorry, I probably missed that! Would you mind pointing out where it says that you have to pay for certain seats in the Retreat?

[hammybee]

While I agree with you some of the stupid inane ideas people come up with in changing our beloved HAL ships,Ireally do not belive our passenger opinions mean anything to those at head office,they ae going to do what they want regardless of what we think,IMHO.

 

Way more than 1 million sail with HAL each year. Most of them fill out comment cards. Chances are a good many of those comments are the opposite of your own or mine, for that matter.

[lettienets]

Way more than 1 million sail with HAL each year. Most of them fill out comment cards. Chances are a good many of those comments are the opposite of your own or mine, for that matter.

I'll bet not even five people wrote in that they wanted the aft pool removed and replaced with a wading pool. Maybe a handful wanted movies under the stars but I bet they don't want all day CNN, sports and music videos. I will believe it when I see it.

I did not know you had to pay to sit in certain chairs!:eek: That is even worse. That i did not see coming.

[brucory]

I'll bet not even five people wrote in that they wanted the aft pool removed and replaced with a wading pool. Maybe a handful wanted movies under the stars but I bet they don't want all day CNN, sports and music videos. I will believe it when I see it.

I did not know you had to pay to sit in certain chairs!:eek: That is even worse. That i did not see coming.

 

But, I would bet there was a lot of complaints about the relative lack of available rooms with balconies on the S and R class ships. The discord between these ships and others with more balconies has been very apparant. This renovation has directly sought a solution for this by adding more balconies and the lanai rooms with direct access to the outside. The pool matter was just an additional consideration...

[cruz chic]

I did not know you had to pay to sit in certain chairs!:eek: That is even worse. That i did not see coming.

I think that is pure speculation on someones part. I don't think that is true. I'd like to see them enforce that in an open area. On Princess I spent time in the Sactuary and I loved it! It was $10 per half day (8:30-12:30) and (1:00 - 5:00) or something like that. There was a fence around the area. The lounge chairs were so comfortable (better then the bed in your room:eek:) and they treated you like a queen. I thought it was well worth the money. One guy we were talking to said "they should include a massage for that price". Yeah sure buddy. If the $10 keeps people out like that it's well worth it.

[carlmm]

Sorry, I probably missed that! Would you mind pointing out where it says that you have to pay for certain seats in the Retreat?

 

I might be mistaken. (And I would like to be mistaken in this case.)

The quotes I found now with just a quick search relate to the Eurodam, for example

"The "Retreat" cabanas on the Observation Deck cost $45 on port days and $75 on sea days"

http://www.frommers.com/articles/5202.html

 

Maybe somebody can confirm for sure that the retreat on the Veendam will be to use for everybody free of charge?