G made a liar out of me this morning, and surprised me by ordering breakfast in bed. A large pot of that delicious coffee, muffins, eggs, hash browns, ham steak and fruit. Let's just say we're not leaving HAL hungry! We liked that we could stay in our cabin until our group was called to disembark at 9:30am. Another nice touch...as we entered the terminal, there were at least 10 HAL crew members, from chefs to porters, standing in a line to say goodbye to the disembarking passengers. Lots of smiles and thank you's, and that's a very nice last interaction to remember the cruise by.
We'll definitely return to HAL (as I mentioned, we actually purchased a Future Cruise Deposit), and there were a lot of things done well on the Nieuw Amsterdam. But, we're on the move again, and a $10 taxi ride took us to our next destination, within sight of the Nieuw Amsterdam but a world of difference away...
Showing posts with label Nieuw Amsterdam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nieuw Amsterdam. Show all posts
Sunday, November 10, 2013
Holland America Line and the Nieuw Amsterdam: the good and thenot-so-good
It was nice not to feel compelled to write a detailed analysis of our week on the Nieuw Amsterdam, but I feel I should, at a minimum, share a few thoughts about our experience, especially as it compares to Princess. This is another one of those posts that will only interest fellow cruisers, so you might want to just keep moving if you're an avowed land lubber.
Good things
We love having a retractable glass roof over the main pool area. On days when the weather has been bad all day (the non-Half Moon Cay day) or frequently changeable (the next day), the roof is opened and closed as required. This provides a large top deck area for people to be, and doesn't force them down to the interior areas of the ship.
The pool and hot tub areas are never crowded. We could always find a deck chair mid sea day (though not always by a pool). In fact, nothing on this ship seems crowded.
The elevators are the best. They almost always arrive empty and quickly, we like the four panorama elevators that run up the outer sides of the ship. Let's put it this way: you never hear anyone talking about the elevators on the Nieuw Amsterdam. They're a non-issue. Just the way elevators should be.
Our balcony was nicely sized and fully covered. Except for when there was a blowing rain, I was able to enjoy many hours out there. The cushioned wicker furniture and ottoman were classy and in perfect condition. However, we were reminded Friday afternoon about why we don't often opt for a balcony cabin when one of our neighbors chose to dock their iPhone in some speakers and blare music for two hours that entertained (?) our entire side of the ship. No, balcony cabins are far less private and quiet than insides, and, though nice to have on occasion, are not mandatory for us.
The bathroom...OMG the bathroom. The bathtub was fully flat on the bottom, and lots of grab bars made getting in and out to shower easy and safe. The water was hot, the flow strong, and the hand held shower head a nice bonus. Also nice- one of us could be standing at the sink doing ablutions while the other was standing behind them toweling off post shower (a trick not do-able in a standard Princess bathroom). I disliked the faucet at the sink (separate hot and cold handles with the hot one hard to reach), but I could live with that one fault. The bath towels are amazing...almost bath sheets, but not so thick as to be unusable. All in all, an A+.
There's also a full fledged movie theater on board that shows a different movie all day, every day. I'm not one to sit in a dark theater and watch a movie, but if I was, that would be great. There are also a lot of different card and game rooms available, if that's your thing.
The Crows Nest is like Skywalkers on Princess ships, but at the front of the ship instead of the back. Along the front, glassed windows are leather recliners that provide divine views off the bow of the ship. Lots of sleeping in there all day long, I'm sure. On the Nieuw Amsterdam, the impressive library (it's huge), Internet cafe and coffee bar called the Explorations Cafe has been moved from a lower deck to share the Crows Nest space. I love this, and always intend to spend some time up there reading one of the many current magazines, but on this cruise, especially with our own balcony, I just didn't make it.
The fitness center is small but totally adequate. The wide Promenade Deck provides a lot of room for walkers (and cushioned teak loungers). However, we do have a difference of opinion on the value of a wide promenade (see below).
There are many more free activities to choose from that Princess would charge extra for (or has abandoned altogether) such as computer classes sponsored by Microsoft, cooking classes in the ship's Culinary Arts Center and serious craft classes. Port lectures focus more on what to see and do vs. what to buy, and that's nice too.
There was nothing really bad about the Nieuw Amsterdam, but there were a few areas where we prefer how Princess does things.
HAL still allows smoking on stateroom balconies. With no where else to go as more and more cruise lines outlaw smoking in passenger cabins or on balconies, more smokers have been forced onto HAL. 'Nuff said.
I actually preferred our Royal Princess mattress and bed linens to those on the Nieuw Amsterdam. Princess has finally got this one right. HAL still uses sheets and blankets on the beds. We like the Princess way of simply using just a duvet as a topper that we've started doing that at home too. I woke every morning on the Nieuw Amsterdam tangled in sheets and laying on the mattress pad. Yuck.
The storage in our inside cabin on Princess (not just the Royal Princess; the Emerald Princess too) is way better than in our balcony cabin on the Nieuw Amsterdam. I don't like closet doors on a cruise ship; give me an open closet and cubbies. I don't want to close up my Teva sandals after a day on a beach behind closed doors with my formal outfits. You don't want me to either. ;-)
Mostly, we miss the welcoming presence that the Captains Circle host has on Princess ships, and thê Elite benefits we enjoy on Princess. We miss the free minibar setup, the free Internet, the free laundry. We miss that, on Princess, we feel special, but on Holland America we're one of the crowd. We're quickly moving up their loyalty ranks and will soon be 3 Star Mariners, and I don't mind at all paying my dues, but 3 Star Mariner status on HAL still won't get us much. No, Princess (and Celebrity and Royal Caribbean) do a much better job of incenting return business.
Good things
This cruise will be forever known in our minds as the food cruise; the food has been wonderful. Dining room, buffet, sweet potato fries (decadently delicious!). I have chosen something from nearly every course, simply to try a bit of as many things as possible. The presentation, the variety, the taste, the quality of ingredients...it's all been wonderful. I don't think HAL does seafood as well as Princess, but they do chicken, pork, beef, veal so much better that there are plenty of other things to choose from.
The service in the dining room has been a step up from anything we've experienced in the past on a Holland America ship. We've had the HAL version of Princess' Anytime Dining, which means we've had a different wait staff every night we've gone to the Manhattan Dining Room, so the service has not been highly personalized, but it's always been fairly professional. We like how our table number and names are printed on a receipt and handed to the person who directs us to our table. It's a nice touch to be addressed by name ("How was your day, Mrs. X?") while walking to our table.
HAL has the best coffee I've ever had on a cruise ship. Far and away. I drank more coffee in one week than I'd drank in four months in Princess. It's that good.
The breakfast choices in the Lido buffet are so numerous and so good that we never went to the dining room for lunch. The 8 different kinds of eggs Benedict made to order, the crepes and toppings, the waffles made fresh, the omelet station, the pastries (OMG the pastries have been the BEST!)...yes, HAL has Princess beat when it comes to food.
Cabin stewards (we have two, the primary one has an assistant) do not have housekeeping carts lining the hallway for 6 hours a day. This is wonderful. The stewards unobtrusively carry just what they need to service a cabin, and return to the housekeeping lockers located along the hallways to re-stock. Our cabin steward was polite and efficient, but a bit more reserved than those we've encountered on Princess. On the other hand, when we told him our bathroom sink was draining slowly, he thanked us for bringing it to his attention. He didn't grunt or sigh or argue with us that it wasn't draining that slowly, as our Steward Nazi on the Emerald Princess last year would have done. So it's all good.
Cabin stewards (we have two, the primary one has an assistant) do not have housekeeping carts lining the hallway for 6 hours a day. This is wonderful. The stewards unobtrusively carry just what they need to service a cabin, and return to the housekeeping lockers located along the hallways to re-stock. Our cabin steward was polite and efficient, but a bit more reserved than those we've encountered on Princess. On the other hand, when we told him our bathroom sink was draining slowly, he thanked us for bringing it to his attention. He didn't grunt or sigh or argue with us that it wasn't draining that slowly, as our Steward Nazi on the Emerald Princess last year would have done. So it's all good.
We love having a retractable glass roof over the main pool area. On days when the weather has been bad all day (the non-Half Moon Cay day) or frequently changeable (the next day), the roof is opened and closed as required. This provides a large top deck area for people to be, and doesn't force them down to the interior areas of the ship.
The pool and hot tub areas are never crowded. We could always find a deck chair mid sea day (though not always by a pool). In fact, nothing on this ship seems crowded.
There is a dedicated movie theater that shows a movie several times throughout the day and evening. Some people never miss it.
All HAL cruises have a Catholic priest on board who offers Mass every day. That's pretty rare on a cruise ship these days; in fact, I think HAL is the only remaining cruise line that does that.
The elevators are the best. They almost always arrive empty and quickly, we like the four panorama elevators that run up the outer sides of the ship. Let's put it this way: you never hear anyone talking about the elevators on the Nieuw Amsterdam. They're a non-issue. Just the way elevators should be.
Our balcony was nicely sized and fully covered. Except for when there was a blowing rain, I was able to enjoy many hours out there. The cushioned wicker furniture and ottoman were classy and in perfect condition. However, we were reminded Friday afternoon about why we don't often opt for a balcony cabin when one of our neighbors chose to dock their iPhone in some speakers and blare music for two hours that entertained (?) our entire side of the ship. No, balcony cabins are far less private and quiet than insides, and, though nice to have on occasion, are not mandatory for us.
The bathroom...OMG the bathroom. The bathtub was fully flat on the bottom, and lots of grab bars made getting in and out to shower easy and safe. The water was hot, the flow strong, and the hand held shower head a nice bonus. Also nice- one of us could be standing at the sink doing ablutions while the other was standing behind them toweling off post shower (a trick not do-able in a standard Princess bathroom). I disliked the faucet at the sink (separate hot and cold handles with the hot one hard to reach), but I could live with that one fault. The bath towels are amazing...almost bath sheets, but not so thick as to be unusable. All in all, an A+.
Towel animals. What can I say? Like pillow chocolates at night, they're not necessary but they're nice. And they turned us in to kids each night when we returned to our cabin for the evening.
Our standard balcony cabin had a love seat, separate chair, hassock for the vanity and large coffee table. It was the equivalent of the new Deluxe Balcony cabins on the Royal Princess...with a much better bathroom, balcony and balcony furniture. The Royal Princess really fails its balcony passengers; luckily, we generally aren't two of them.
Our standard balcony cabin had a love seat, separate chair, hassock for the vanity and large coffee table. It was the equivalent of the new Deluxe Balcony cabins on the Royal Princess...with a much better bathroom, balcony and balcony furniture. The Royal Princess really fails its balcony passengers; luckily, we generally aren't two of them.
Room service is significantly better on HAL than on Princess. We can order anything from the dining room breakfast, lunch or dinner menus at the appropriate times to be delivered to our cabin. And a lot of people do; the crew dedicated to room service on this ship must be huge. Besides the dining room menus, there is a 24-hour room service menu to order from too, including breakfast on disembarkation morning. Did we ever order room service? No, you know that eating in our cabin just isn't our style. But if it was...it would have been great.
We love the ability to check out DVDs free of charge. Every cabin is equipped with a DVD player built into the side of the flat panel TV. Pick up the phone, place an order, and it's delivered a few minutes later. We spent a lot of sea day hours early in the cruise rotating between a video on TV and the sitting on the balcony watching the water go by.
We love the ability to check out DVDs free of charge. Every cabin is equipped with a DVD player built into the side of the flat panel TV. Pick up the phone, place an order, and it's delivered a few minutes later. We spent a lot of sea day hours early in the cruise rotating between a video on TV and the sitting on the balcony watching the water go by.
There's also a full fledged movie theater on board that shows a different movie all day, every day. I'm not one to sit in a dark theater and watch a movie, but if I was, that would be great. There are also a lot of different card and game rooms available, if that's your thing.
The Crows Nest is like Skywalkers on Princess ships, but at the front of the ship instead of the back. Along the front, glassed windows are leather recliners that provide divine views off the bow of the ship. Lots of sleeping in there all day long, I'm sure. On the Nieuw Amsterdam, the impressive library (it's huge), Internet cafe and coffee bar called the Explorations Cafe has been moved from a lower deck to share the Crows Nest space. I love this, and always intend to spend some time up there reading one of the many current magazines, but on this cruise, especially with our own balcony, I just didn't make it.
The fitness center is small but totally adequate. The wide Promenade Deck provides a lot of room for walkers (and cushioned teak loungers). However, we do have a difference of opinion on the value of a wide promenade (see below).
Loved the daily newspaper highlights that are printed and available around the ship. For those desiring more, the online edition of the NYTimes is available for free.
Disembarkation is so civilized. We were allowed to wait in the comfort of our cabin until our disembarkation color was called. And our cabin was still ready when we boarded on embarkation day at noon. It's magic (and a lot of hard work behind the scenes).
There are many more free activities to choose from that Princess would charge extra for (or has abandoned altogether) such as computer classes sponsored by Microsoft, cooking classes in the ship's Culinary Arts Center and serious craft classes. Port lectures focus more on what to see and do vs. what to buy, and that's nice too.
We love being entertained by talented performers. HAL has many and varied musical venues to choose from each evening. Princess seems to believe that we want to watch the Game Show Network or American Idol at sea. No, not all of us do.
We disagree on
The Nieuw Amsterdam (and all HAL ships) has a wide promenade deck, dotted with full length, padded teak loungers. I loved walking on the promenade; G prefers what has been done on the Royal Princess, where the promenade has been eliminated in favor of some outdoor seating areas. He dislikes the multiple uses of a promenade, with some walkers, some runners, some people simply standing by the rail and viewing the water. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on this point.
The not-so-good
The Nieuw Amsterdam (and all HAL ships) has a wide promenade deck, dotted with full length, padded teak loungers. I loved walking on the promenade; G prefers what has been done on the Royal Princess, where the promenade has been eliminated in favor of some outdoor seating areas. He dislikes the multiple uses of a promenade, with some walkers, some runners, some people simply standing by the rail and viewing the water. I guess we'll have to agree to disagree on this point.
The not-so-good
There was nothing really bad about the Nieuw Amsterdam, but there were a few areas where we prefer how Princess does things.
HAL still allows smoking on stateroom balconies. With no where else to go as more and more cruise lines outlaw smoking in passenger cabins or on balconies, more smokers have been forced onto HAL. 'Nuff said.
There have been far too many announcements by the cruise director for our taste. We did not find this to be the case on our previous HAL cruises, and I think that, as on Princess, this depends on the cruise director. Really, there's no need to re-hash the Explorer (HAL's daily activities list, like the Princess Patter) over the PA four times a day.
The cruise directors on HAL always give th appearance of being the president of the local Young Republicans club. They whole atmosphere on board is a little stuff, a little formal, and a lot of that comes from the cruise directors.
Ship temperature in general, and our cabin temperature specifically seemed to run hot...except when it was freezing cold. It was hard to regulate, so much so that the climate control we never noticed on the Royal Princess because it was always perfect was constantly being commented on on the Nieuw Amsterdam.
The dining room is so loud that, sitting across from each other at a table for two, we couldn't carry on a conversation. This was not a dining room with ambiance. Service areas for the waitstaff are open and loud and absolutely distract from the dining experience.
Service in the Lido buffet is almost non-existant. We get our own coffee, water and drinks. Stewards seem most concerned with removing dishes...before we've even finished with them. But the Indonesian wait staff seems a little more laid back on the Nieuw Amsterdam than we we experienced on the Maasdam and Noordam. That's a welcome change.
I actually preferred our Royal Princess mattress and bed linens to those on the Nieuw Amsterdam. Princess has finally got this one right. HAL still uses sheets and blankets on the beds. We like the Princess way of simply using just a duvet as a topper that we've started doing that at home too. I woke every morning on the Nieuw Amsterdam tangled in sheets and laying on the mattress pad. Yuck.
The storage in our inside cabin on Princess (not just the Royal Princess; the Emerald Princess too) is way better than in our balcony cabin on the Nieuw Amsterdam. I don't like closet doors on a cruise ship; give me an open closet and cubbies. I don't want to close up my Teva sandals after a day on a beach behind closed doors with my formal outfits. You don't want me to either. ;-)
There is a nice makeup mirror on the desk, and adequate lighting in the bathroom, but the lighting in the bedroom is not the best. Or else the dark colors just absorb all the light. Either way, our cabin didn't seem as bright as a balcony cabin should seem.
The two drawers in each night stand are so shallow as to be almost useless. Pill bottles that can stand upright on Princess barely fit lying down in these drawers. And HAL passengers definitely need room for their pill bottles!
The short desk in the cabin is cluttered the moment we entered our cabin...brochures, informational binder-type things, the ice bucket and glasses, a metal basket for fruit we don't want. This clutter makes me itch, especially when G sees that as an invitation to pile on more stuff.
This ship is not pretty. I wouldn't consider any HAL ship we've been on to be pretty. Dark colors, narrow hallways, an inward focus, an unimpressive atrium all combine to give the appearance of a nursing home. The photos in the passenger deck hallway are fun (they depict the glory days of transatlantic ship travel), but the art work in the main areas is beyond our ability to appreciate. Whereas Princess ships are highly elegant (especially the Royal Princess), there's no elegance here. IMO, of course. Also, beige is my second favorite color, and I get a lot of it on Princess (which some people describe as too vanilla). No beige on the Nieuw Amsterdam; lots of navy and deep red and gold instead.
The crew is far less diverse than on Princess, and I think that diminishes the cruise experience a bit. Dining room and cabin stewards are Indonesian; the spa, bar staff and cooks are Philippino. How boring (though we did learn to say "thank you" in additional Indonesian dialects). The crew's ability to communicate in English is not quite at Princess standards, and, overall, service seemed a little stiffer and more formal on the Nieuw Amsterdam.
The two drawers in each night stand are so shallow as to be almost useless. Pill bottles that can stand upright on Princess barely fit lying down in these drawers. And HAL passengers definitely need room for their pill bottles!
The short desk in the cabin is cluttered the moment we entered our cabin...brochures, informational binder-type things, the ice bucket and glasses, a metal basket for fruit we don't want. This clutter makes me itch, especially when G sees that as an invitation to pile on more stuff.
This ship is not pretty. I wouldn't consider any HAL ship we've been on to be pretty. Dark colors, narrow hallways, an inward focus, an unimpressive atrium all combine to give the appearance of a nursing home. The photos in the passenger deck hallway are fun (they depict the glory days of transatlantic ship travel), but the art work in the main areas is beyond our ability to appreciate. Whereas Princess ships are highly elegant (especially the Royal Princess), there's no elegance here. IMO, of course. Also, beige is my second favorite color, and I get a lot of it on Princess (which some people describe as too vanilla). No beige on the Nieuw Amsterdam; lots of navy and deep red and gold instead.
The crew is far less diverse than on Princess, and I think that diminishes the cruise experience a bit. Dining room and cabin stewards are Indonesian; the spa, bar staff and cooks are Philippino. How boring (though we did learn to say "thank you" in additional Indonesian dialects). The crew's ability to communicate in English is not quite at Princess standards, and, overall, service seemed a little stiffer and more formal on the Nieuw Amsterdam.
HAL celebrated its 140 year anniversary last year, and I believe some of our fellow passengers were on that maiden voyage. Yes, HAL's demographic is pretty geriatric. I believe that this 7-night cruise had passengers that seemed less feeble than on our 10-night Noordam cruise last December, but we figured the average male passenger to be mid- to late-70s and the average female passenger to be even older. This was not a ship for young people.
Mostly, we miss the welcoming presence that the Captains Circle host has on Princess ships, and thê Elite benefits we enjoy on Princess. We miss the free minibar setup, the free Internet, the free laundry. We miss that, on Princess, we feel special, but on Holland America we're one of the crowd. We're quickly moving up their loyalty ranks and will soon be 3 Star Mariners, and I don't mind at all paying my dues, but 3 Star Mariner status on HAL still won't get us much. No, Princess (and Celebrity and Royal Caribbean) do a much better job of incenting return business.
Since we've started cruising, I've wished we could combine our favorite parts of several cruise lines into one perfect one...for us. Of course, no ship and no cruise line is perfect. We work hard at not dismissing either just because it's not what we're used to. There was a point where we moved from Royal Caribbean to Celebrity, and G moaned because he would actually be hungry with no place open to eat when we returned to the ship from a day in port. Then we moved to Princess (with it's then-24 hour buffet) and food availability stopped being an issue but service became one (this has been much improved). HAL offers Itineraries that are much better than Princess' good ones and wonderful mid-sized ships, but at a price of our Princess Elite benefits and beautiful ships. I guess we're lucky we've found a home on Princess but still possess the ability to enjoy what other cruise lines offer.
Variety is the spice of life, and life is good!
Day 12: Key West
Prepared Saturday evening, November 9th
In the years after that, we actually lived in South Florida for awhile, and Key West was just a long weekend trip for us. But, our visits have become few and far between since then, and we had not been to Key West since March 2001. When this Nieuw Amsterdam cruise popped up on our radar just a few weeks ago, Key West was definitely part of its appeal.
We were already in the Lido buffet having breakfast as the Nieuw Amsterdam docked in Key West. With two other cruise ships in port today (the Oceania Regatta and the Disney Magic), we were stuck just behind them as the crow flies, but a world apart in terms of reaching Old Town Key West. We were docked at the Navy/Coast Guard Dock Yard, requiring an 8-10 minute shuttle ride to get to the heart of Key West.
We had to go through US Immigration today on the ship before we could disembark, and that took an hour or so for our turn, and when we returned to our cabin to put our passports back in the safe, we were nearly knocked over by a noise coming from our side of the ship. And that's when we found out that the World Championship Power Boat Races (the Indy 500 of power boats) was being held in Key West this week culminating with the final race tomorrow. Our balcony provided the best front row seat imaginable to today's practices, not to mention all the other Key West boat and plane activity on a beautiful Saturday morning. We sat and watched the show until nearly 2pm, when we finally decided that, if we were going to go ashore, we needed to get on it. What we didn't know is that the Dock Yard was the wet and dry pits for the racing boats, and on our shuttle ride into Old Town, we were treated to an amazing array of haulers and motor homes and sports cars, many painted to match the racing boat. $$$$$. Last year's winner and this year's leader is Sheik Hassan from Qatar, if that gives you some idea of the world we were glimpsing today.
Once in Old Town, we were quickly disheartened by the crowds and the filth and the number of $5 T-shirt shops and bars and mostly the number of drunks walking the streets. Has it changed that much in 12 years, or are we the ones who've changed? Perhaps a little of both...by 4:30pm we were in a shuttle going back to the Nieuw Amsterdam. Next time we're here, we want to circumnavigate the island on jet skis, but we didn't get into town early enough today to do that.
Our shuttle ride back to the ship took us through the Truman Annex, a former military base that now houses quaint, but very pricey homes and town homes in traditional Key West architecture. We adore Key West architecture, and our house is proof of that. We love the pastel colors with bright white trim and white balconies and railings, and white picket fences and palms. We've tried to create a bit of that at home and it was wonderful to once again observe the source of our inspiration.
But, oh-so-nice to get back on the ship and get cleaned up. I couldn't wash my hands fast enough. For some reason, Key West just felt dirty today. We continued to watch all the boats from our balcony, and were rewarded with a most surprisingly pretty sunset after it initially looked like it had been lost to a cloud.
It was also wonderful to have cell phone service and Internet today. Wonderful, and perfect timing. The boys had a football playoff game today, and frequent texts kept me up to date...behind at the half, tied in the fourth quarter, and, finally, in the last minute, another TD to win it 20-14. I was able to FaceTime with the champs (ain't technology great?), and I felt well, not like I was there, exactly, but a satisfactory substitute for personal spectatorship.
We decided to have a final dinner in the Manhattan Dining Room. I think we both know that these meals may be the best we'll enjoy all winter. Next on our agenda for tonight...we're packing again. Yes, we're moving on tomorrow morning. Stay tuned for more updates!
Photo 1: program from the power boat world championships
Photo 2: practice sessions with Sunset Key in the background (search Sunset Key, Key West, Florida in Zillow for some great Key West architecture photos)
Photos 3 and 4: Old Town Key West architecture
Photos 5 and 6: sunset
Saturday, November 9, 2013
Day 11: At Sea
Prepared Friday evening, November 8th
We had to give back that hour we gained the night before Cozumel, and so slept until nearly 8 this morning, but we had gotten out of bed earlier just to catch today's sunrise, which took place right off our starboard-side balcony.
Breakfast in the Lido buffet continues to be our preferred way to start the day. Today G had 9 different juices, including fresh squeezed OJ. I got a crepe topped with raspberry compote and then enjoyed watching it be made so much that I grabbed my camera and videoed the process, forcing a cherry-topped crepe on G.
There were a lot of activities on tap this morning, but with the sun shining brightly for the first time this cruise, I chose to plug in my ear buds and walk on the Promenade Deck while G went to the galley tour (he loves those things- don't ask me why). During the galley tour, he saw the preparations for today's lunch in the Manhattan Dining Room and insisted that it be on our schedule. So, still slightly full from breakfast, we did go, and had a wonderful four course lunch. Really, we could never cruise on the Nieuw Amsterdam for an entire winter...we'd have to be rolled off. I've narrowed my conclusion about food on the Nieuw Amsterdam: it has to be in the top two of the best cruise food we've ever had...and I can't remember when we've had better.
After lunch, we enjoyed using one of the aft hot tubs for a bit until we decided we needed to get to at least one formal tea on this ship. Each day's tea is different; there was a cupcake tea, an Indonesian tea, and today's was the most formal of all, the Royal Dutch high tea. Sure, we needed to see that. So, again with the food. Help me!
More walking afterwards, but this time at a slower place and hand in hand with my best friend. G sees the world a bit differently than most people, and had me in stitches with his observations about ballards and anchors and davits and divits (see photo below).
Breakfast in the Lido buffet continues to be our preferred way to start the day. Today G had 9 different juices, including fresh squeezed OJ. I got a crepe topped with raspberry compote and then enjoyed watching it be made so much that I grabbed my camera and videoed the process, forcing a cherry-topped crepe on G.
There were a lot of activities on tap this morning, but with the sun shining brightly for the first time this cruise, I chose to plug in my ear buds and walk on the Promenade Deck while G went to the galley tour (he loves those things- don't ask me why). During the galley tour, he saw the preparations for today's lunch in the Manhattan Dining Room and insisted that it be on our schedule. So, still slightly full from breakfast, we did go, and had a wonderful four course lunch. Really, we could never cruise on the Nieuw Amsterdam for an entire winter...we'd have to be rolled off. I've narrowed my conclusion about food on the Nieuw Amsterdam: it has to be in the top two of the best cruise food we've ever had...and I can't remember when we've had better.
After lunch, we enjoyed using one of the aft hot tubs for a bit until we decided we needed to get to at least one formal tea on this ship. Each day's tea is different; there was a cupcake tea, an Indonesian tea, and today's was the most formal of all, the Royal Dutch high tea. Sure, we needed to see that. So, again with the food. Help me!
More walking afterwards, but this time at a slower place and hand in hand with my best friend. G sees the world a bit differently than most people, and had me in stitches with his observations about ballards and anchors and davits and divits (see photo below).
Finally, it was time for a first for me on a cruise ship: I took a bubble bath in our bathtub. As nice as it is for showering, it's a bit short to bathe in, but I scootched down best I could...and did laundry at the same time. Oh, come on; tell me you wouldn't have done the same, given motive and opportunity. I must have dawdled a bit (I'm sure I dawdled a bit), because G's knocking on the bathtub door grew more desperate. I think we could cruise in a broom closet, provided it had two bathrooms.
Finally, it was almost 7pm, and though it was formal night, it was a foregone conclusion that dressing up to dine yet again just wasn't in the cards for us tonight. We did dress in our best "smart casual" attire, though, and went to the buffet just tonight's beef tenderloin, and dessert (raspberry mousse; life is good).
We had time to listen to the Adagio duo (violin and piano playing classical music). If there has been any disappointment this cruise, it's that HAL has done away with their string quartet in favor of a duo, a money saving exercise, I'm sure. Still nice, just not quite as nice
Tonight's entertainment in the "Showroom at Sea" was touted as having won Porthole Magazine's entertainment of the year award for 2012- Cantare, a 4-member male singing group. They were good- a cross between the Temptations and the Osmonds, looking like they came right out of central casting for the Book of. Mormon. There is something about so much of Holland America's main entertainment that reminds me of the Lawrence Welk shows my grandmother loved. This makes sense, considering that the average passenger age must be upwards of 80.
More music followed- Ben and the HALCats playing some pop songs and a bit of the Emerald Princess equivalent of. Jazzio in the Adagio. Finally, it was nearly 11pm and time for bed. Tomorrow is Key West, and we've been advised that we need to go through US immigration on the ship beginning at 9am. The upside: AT&T Internet service!
Photo 1: today's sunrise, as seen from our balcony
Photo 2: G'a breakfast crepe, with fresh cherry compote
Photos 3 to 5: lunch menu in the Manhattan dining room. Amazing!
Photo 6: Rusty bringing our desserts: lemon meringue pie for me and three sundaes for G
Photo 7: davits and divits and ballards...oh my!
Photo 8: just hangin' around
Day 10: Cozumel
Prepared Thursday evening, November 7th
G had to drag me into the sport of scuba diving. It wasn't that I didn't like the water- I did, and we snorkeled everywhere we went- but the thought of all those feet of water on top of me made me hyperventilate. Well, once I got my Open Water and then Advanced Diver Certifications, it became obvious that, of the two of us, I was going to be the diving die hard. In our pre-cruising days, we used to come to Cozumel several times each year, to stay at an all inclusive resort on the southern end of the island and dive as much as our computers would allow. No formal nights, dressing for dinner in shorts and flip flops, talking diving when our heads were above water...that's my idea of vacation heaven!
In fact, a dive master at Dive Palancar on Cozumel, after watching me dive for a few days, named me Pescado Amarillo, because all my dive gear was yellow, and I was a fish in the water.
The. I dragged G on his first cruise, and the course of our vacation future was forever changed. We've only been to Cozumel to stay twice since then, and I've had to be satisfied with just very occasional cruise ship visits. The last time we were here, in 2005, we did a snorkel/beach excursion on the Fury Catamaran. We still have a photo of the two of us in the water on that excursion posted on the refrigerator, and it was time to make it a pair.
By the time we met for our excursion at 1pm, dark clouds were beginning to appear on the horizon and te wind was picking up. Still, we enjoyed the 30 minute cruise to Cardona Reef, and the snorkel in about 20-30 feet of water. We followed up with a visit to the Fury's beach resort. By then, it was raining, but the unlimited margaritas helped keep us warm and happy. The rain stopped for the cruise back to the cruise ship, and I even got a bit jiggy on the catamaran (hey, it was he Cupid Shuffle...I was powerless to resist).
The Nieuw Amsterdam stayed late in Cozumel, until 11pm, and on the Seaview Deck, a huge Mexican Fiesta was set up for several hours. HAL does this sort of thing really well...so much delicious food and a dessert table with an amazing variety of sweets, including chocolate dipped apples. At 8pm, a Mariachi band was scheduled to perform, but the lightning that had been threatening in the distance chose that moment to move in, bringing huge rain with it. We ran to our cabin, where we sat on the covered balcony and enjoyed the entertainment of the fiercest storm we've ever seen on a ship.
At which point G announced that he loved Holland America, but Princess really had much better weather.
;-)
Photo 1: Captain Wilbert on the Fury, talking on his cell phone and steering with his foot. ;-)
Photo 2: a coral head on Cardona Reef
Photos 3 and 4: Fury's beach resort on Cozumel
Photo 5: 8 years older, but still having fun (and the fish wanted in on the act)
Photo 6: tonight's towel doggy
Day 9: Grand Cayman
Prepared Wednesday evening, November 6th
It felt so good to finally get online today in Grand Cayman! I was thrilled to see that I had only 50 emails to attend to...until G pointed out to me that my iPhone settings likely limited them to just the most recent 50 emails and I had probably received a lot more than that since Sunday afternoon when we left cell service behind when leaving Port Everglades.
He was right. :-(
Never the less, we were able to once again feel on top of everything in our non-cruise lives, a good, albeit too fleeting feeling. And it's worth noting that our non-cruise lives already feel a world apart from our new, cruise lives. That didn't take long, did it?
Backing up...
We have visited Grand Cayman several times before, always by cruise ship. In early 2005, when the island was reeling in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan, we visited several times in quick succession, and were able to see the horrible devastation the hurricane had caused. Boats were being plowed off the main street; cars lifted out of the ocean; both the eastern and western ends of the island were without power for months afterwards. Grand Cayman is nothing more than a sandbar in the middle of the Caribbean, flat as a pancake and narrow enough to see across from the ship's upper decks. After the hurricane, there was no where to house the construction workers brought on island to clean up. We had seen barge after barge of camping trailers brought in for workers to live in; the barges then left the island full of debris. We received a real education in the reality of life on a small Caribbean island.
G was awake early this morning and in the buffet for breakfast by 7am. I took advantage of his absence to stretch across the entire bed and sleep a bit longer. He returned to the cabin about the same time I heard the cruise director make an announcement that today's tender operations were underway. Grand Cayman, despite being a popular cruise stop, does not have a pier large enough to accommodate a cruise ship, and tendering is required. Without the priority tendering that we have as an Elite perk on Princess, we would have had to wait in the Queen's Lounge for a tender ticket, which apportion passengers to each tender. That held little allure this morning, and gave me a chance to grab breakfast in the Lido buffet. By the time I was finished, the cruise director Dave was announcing open tender, and we quickly grabbed our wetsuit/dive skin and the dive gear we had brought from home and tendered into the little town of Georgetown, Grand Cayman. There were two other cruise ships also tendering today, the Carnival Conquest and Disney Wonder, but they were tendering to the new cruise dock. The Nieuw Amsterdam was tendering to the old cruise dock, which was lucky for us, because we were on a mission today, and that put us just a bit closer to our intended destination.
When we were in Grand Cayman several years ago, we had done some diving right from shore, gearing up at a dive operation called Eden Rock, a quick walk from the tender pier. We had had such a great time that we wanted to repeat that today. It's one of the few places in the Caribbean (Bonaire being another, and Coki Beach on St. Thomas a third) where we can dive from shore, by ourselves, without using a dive master.
It's also a great way to do a refresher dive, getting us back in the habit of assembling our dive gear. While it quickly becomes second nature, we did have to think for a moment, connecting our BCDs (buoyancy compensating devices- those "vests" that divers wear that support the air tank and manage buoyancy under water) and regulators (the hose/computer part) to the air tanks. Wearing 40 pounds of air tank and 16 pounds of weights (this is fun?) we climbed down the ladder in front of the Eden Rock into the water for our first dive in two years and our first taste of salt water this winter.
The nice thing about diving alone is that it allows us to go at our own pace and forces us to remember the basics of diving (especially navigation...you can't exactly ascend from 60 ft. just to stick your head above the water to see where you are), instead of mindlessly following the dive master. We spent most of our dive at about 50-60 ft, a comfortable depth on our own. The water was so clear that it was difficult to differentiate between water and air, and when a huge eagle ray swam over us, it took us a second to realize that it wasn't a large bird. No photos, though. My Lifeproof iPhone case is only waterproof to 2 meters and had been left behind on the ship.
We did just a one tank dive, and then tendered back to the ship to get cleaned up for lunch. We were starved, which being in the water always does to us. G was ready first, and we planned to meet up in the buffet. When I joined him, he said he had a surprise in store. He led me up to specialty Asian restaurant Tamarind on Deck 11. They were open for lunch today, and he was able to get us a table. What a treat! The setting, the food (Asian salad, hot and sour soup, four different kinds of dim sum, tempura seafood and, for me, green tea tiramisu for dessert) were all spectacular. I chose the suggested wine, called Conundrum, and by 2pm decided that this had to be the best day of our winter so far.
We tendered back over to the island with our iPhones, simply to find Wifi, and did, at a bar called The Blue Parrot on the other cruise tender dock. I was able to get a quick Vonage call of questionable quality out to Mom, work through 50+ emails and publish the blog posts I've been preparing each night. G checked on the webcams and Nest thermostat (so far so good on that). We were on the final tender back to the Nieuw Amsterdam at 3.30pm, and went out to the aft pool for a sail away party with unlimited rum cake (a Grand Cayman tradition). HAL does a lot of little extra things like that to recognize the day's port of call. It's a very nice touch!
There was no way we could eat a full dinner tonight. We relaxed on our balcony until about 7pm, when we went up to the Lido buffet for salads and dessert ('cause there's always room for Wildberry Charlotte!). Have I mentioned how incredible the food has been? When we were at the sail away party, we sat with a couple who does a lot of Princess and Celebrity cruises, but this is their first HAL cruise. Their first comment? "This is the best food we've ever had on a cruise!" With nearly 70 cruises, it's hard for us to say that with certainty, but this is definitely in the top 5. If we spent a winter on the Nieuw Amsterdam, the variety and quality of food would have us soon outgrowing our clothes.
We went to the 8pm show, called Piano Legends. Five musicians plus a guest pianist played music from Beethoven to Lady Gaga. I guess it's obvious that our favorite sort of entertainment is musical in nature, and this cruise has had a plethora of offerings that appeal. Eclectic music performed by talented musicians...we'll always be in the audience for that!
We move clocks back an hour today, and have a 10am arrival tomorrow into Cozumel. We have actually booked a ship's excursion (!!!!) and so are hoping for some sun (pretty please!).
Photos 1-6: lunch at Tamarind restaurant on the Nieuw Amsterdam
Photo 7: tonight's towel animal
It felt so good to finally get online today in Grand Cayman! I was thrilled to see that I had only 50 emails to attend to...until G pointed out to me that my iPhone settings likely limited them to just the most recent 50 emails and I had probably received a lot more than that since Sunday afternoon when we left cell service behind when leaving Port Everglades.
He was right. :-(
Never the less, we were able to once again feel on top of everything in our non-cruise lives, a good, albeit too fleeting feeling. And it's worth noting that our non-cruise lives already feel a world apart from our new, cruise lives. That didn't take long, did it?
Backing up...
We have visited Grand Cayman several times before, always by cruise ship. In early 2005, when the island was reeling in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan, we visited several times in quick succession, and were able to see the horrible devastation the hurricane had caused. Boats were being plowed off the main street; cars lifted out of the ocean; both the eastern and western ends of the island were without power for months afterwards. Grand Cayman is nothing more than a sandbar in the middle of the Caribbean, flat as a pancake and narrow enough to see across from the ship's upper decks. After the hurricane, there was no where to house the construction workers brought on island to clean up. We had seen barge after barge of camping trailers brought in for workers to live in; the barges then left the island full of debris. We received a real education in the reality of life on a small Caribbean island.
G was awake early this morning and in the buffet for breakfast by 7am. I took advantage of his absence to stretch across the entire bed and sleep a bit longer. He returned to the cabin about the same time I heard the cruise director make an announcement that today's tender operations were underway. Grand Cayman, despite being a popular cruise stop, does not have a pier large enough to accommodate a cruise ship, and tendering is required. Without the priority tendering that we have as an Elite perk on Princess, we would have had to wait in the Queen's Lounge for a tender ticket, which apportion passengers to each tender. That held little allure this morning, and gave me a chance to grab breakfast in the Lido buffet. By the time I was finished, the cruise director Dave was announcing open tender, and we quickly grabbed our wetsuit/dive skin and the dive gear we had brought from home and tendered into the little town of Georgetown, Grand Cayman. There were two other cruise ships also tendering today, the Carnival Conquest and Disney Wonder, but they were tendering to the new cruise dock. The Nieuw Amsterdam was tendering to the old cruise dock, which was lucky for us, because we were on a mission today, and that put us just a bit closer to our intended destination.
When we were in Grand Cayman several years ago, we had done some diving right from shore, gearing up at a dive operation called Eden Rock, a quick walk from the tender pier. We had had such a great time that we wanted to repeat that today. It's one of the few places in the Caribbean (Bonaire being another, and Coki Beach on St. Thomas a third) where we can dive from shore, by ourselves, without using a dive master.
It's also a great way to do a refresher dive, getting us back in the habit of assembling our dive gear. While it quickly becomes second nature, we did have to think for a moment, connecting our BCDs (buoyancy compensating devices- those "vests" that divers wear that support the air tank and manage buoyancy under water) and regulators (the hose/computer part) to the air tanks. Wearing 40 pounds of air tank and 16 pounds of weights (this is fun?) we climbed down the ladder in front of the Eden Rock into the water for our first dive in two years and our first taste of salt water this winter.
The nice thing about diving alone is that it allows us to go at our own pace and forces us to remember the basics of diving (especially navigation...you can't exactly ascend from 60 ft. just to stick your head above the water to see where you are), instead of mindlessly following the dive master. We spent most of our dive at about 50-60 ft, a comfortable depth on our own. The water was so clear that it was difficult to differentiate between water and air, and when a huge eagle ray swam over us, it took us a second to realize that it wasn't a large bird. No photos, though. My Lifeproof iPhone case is only waterproof to 2 meters and had been left behind on the ship.
We did just a one tank dive, and then tendered back to the ship to get cleaned up for lunch. We were starved, which being in the water always does to us. G was ready first, and we planned to meet up in the buffet. When I joined him, he said he had a surprise in store. He led me up to specialty Asian restaurant Tamarind on Deck 11. They were open for lunch today, and he was able to get us a table. What a treat! The setting, the food (Asian salad, hot and sour soup, four different kinds of dim sum, tempura seafood and, for me, green tea tiramisu for dessert) were all spectacular. I chose the suggested wine, called Conundrum, and by 2pm decided that this had to be the best day of our winter so far.
We tendered back over to the island with our iPhones, simply to find Wifi, and did, at a bar called The Blue Parrot on the other cruise tender dock. I was able to get a quick Vonage call of questionable quality out to Mom, work through 50+ emails and publish the blog posts I've been preparing each night. G checked on the webcams and Nest thermostat (so far so good on that). We were on the final tender back to the Nieuw Amsterdam at 3.30pm, and went out to the aft pool for a sail away party with unlimited rum cake (a Grand Cayman tradition). HAL does a lot of little extra things like that to recognize the day's port of call. It's a very nice touch!
There was no way we could eat a full dinner tonight. We relaxed on our balcony until about 7pm, when we went up to the Lido buffet for salads and dessert ('cause there's always room for Wildberry Charlotte!). Have I mentioned how incredible the food has been? When we were at the sail away party, we sat with a couple who does a lot of Princess and Celebrity cruises, but this is their first HAL cruise. Their first comment? "This is the best food we've ever had on a cruise!" With nearly 70 cruises, it's hard for us to say that with certainty, but this is definitely in the top 5. If we spent a winter on the Nieuw Amsterdam, the variety and quality of food would have us soon outgrowing our clothes.
We went to the 8pm show, called Piano Legends. Five musicians plus a guest pianist played music from Beethoven to Lady Gaga. I guess it's obvious that our favorite sort of entertainment is musical in nature, and this cruise has had a plethora of offerings that appeal. Eclectic music performed by talented musicians...we'll always be in the audience for that!
We move clocks back an hour today, and have a 10am arrival tomorrow into Cozumel. We have actually booked a ship's excursion (!!!!) and so are hoping for some sun (pretty please!).
Photos 1-6: lunch at Tamarind restaurant on the Nieuw Amsterdam
Photo 7: tonight's towel animal
Wednesday, November 6, 2013
Day 8: At Sea
Today was a scheduled day at sea, as opposed to yesterday, which G called a "rehearsal day at sea". Apparently we practiced well, because we had a fine, fun and relaxing day from start to finish.
We spent most of our daylight hours cruising right along the south eastern coast of Cuba, passing Guantanomo about breakfast time. With our starboard side balcony, we had views of Cuba's mountainous coast until mid-afternoon.
We were awake early and in the Lido Buffet for breakfast when it opened at 7am. I am loving HAL's coffee, and am drinking way too much of it (decaf, of course but still...). It seems to go too well with the cloudy/rainy weather we've had since Sunday night.
After breakfast, we walked a few laps on the Promenade Deck (very nice, to be able to do that!) and then returned to our cabin where I retired to the balcony to do The. First. Reading. I've. Done. Since. We. Left. Home. Really. There was certainly no time on the Royal Princess, what with all the exploring and blogging I did, and even on the Nieuw Amsterdam there's always been something else going on. It doesn't help that G has never been a reader; I see these couples sitting side by side in quiet companionship while they both read, but quiet companionship has never been G's strong suit. He's always moving, and if he's not moving, he's in a hot tub or napping. I have to squeeze in my quiet time when I can get it!
While I was on the balcony, a DVD we ordered from the front desk just minutes earlier was delivered (love that about Holland America), and a crew member showed up to speed up our sink drain (also requested just minutes earlier). As a couple who does everything for ourselves at home, I really appreciate this aspect of cruising.
The Mariners Champagne lunch, a perk of being a loyalty club member, was held today in the Manhattan Dining Room at noon. It required a bit of a dress up (slacks instead of shorts) but the food has been so delicious we didn't want to miss it. Well, we were a little disappointed in today's Mariners lunch, and if we'd thought back to previous HAL cruises, we had been a bit disappointed in their Mariner lunches too. So, a first miss in the dining room, but it was enough to convince us to skip formal night tonight and plan to have dinner in the Lido buffet instead.
Rain showers continued to move in and out in the early afternoon as they had all morning (our covered balcony had provided a protected retreat), but, by mid afternoon they seemed to leave us for good. Still, the rainy start to the day had made us lazy, and we happily watched the Royal Pains DVDs we'd had delivered to our cabin and snoozed on and off until it was time for sunset. We dressed for dinner and went up on an open deck for our prettiest sunset to date, then to the buffet where we had the very best Beef Wellington ever, EVER! Incredible, and followed by my favorite Key Lime Pie.
We saw our first production show in the Showroom at Sea, called Garage Band. Okay, production shows aren't Holland America's strong suit, but we still enjoyed the music, a sort of history of rock from the 60s to present day.
We're already back in the cabin and about to have wine and cheese, chosen from big wheels of it in tonight's buffet, on the balcony.
I could get used to this!
Photos 1 and 2: tonight's beautiful sunset
Photo 3: the Lido pool at night. They have NICE fountains, surrounded by water so run off makes no difference.
Photo 4: tonight's towel animal...a peacock (we think). Very intricate construction on this one!
Day 7: Half Moon Cay...or not
The Nieuw Amsterdam pitched and rolled all night long, and every time we woke, it seemed our hopes of being able to tender into Half Moon Cay were diminishing. Still, early this morning, we saw spots of sunlight on the water and became momentarily hopeful. We were in the Lido Buffet enjoying an early breakfast (tendering was scheduled to begin at 8am) when the captain came on the PA and made the not-unexpected announcement that, due to the storm front that had moved in, and the forecast that showed no signs of improvement, there would be no stop today at Half Moon Cay for the Nieuw Amsterdam.
Well, shoot.
Any port, but especially tender ports, can be missed due to weather or other reasons. We're not supposed to get mad about it, but disappointment is a reasonable response. And we were disappointed...for an hour or so. But then the realization dawned that we had been so busy exploring the Royal Princess that we really hadn't slowed down since we left home. Or for months before that. A down day was just what we needed.
Breakfast in the Lido Buffet on HAL ships is always a feast. I had an egg beater omelet with shrimp and sweet peppers and onion and a large bowl of fruit. G enjoyed the no-extra-charge freshly squeezed OJ, and pineapple, grapefruit and mango juices. He returned to our cabin with a travel mug filled with his own fruit blend to enjoy later in the day.
We took a few minutes after breakfast to explore the pool area on the back of the Lido Deck (large pool, two hot tubs and lots of loungers) and the mid-ship pool area (large pool, three hot tubs and a retractable glass roof). Then we ventured into the fitness and spa areas where there is a free use sauna for each gender but the steam room is part of a relaxation spa and is extra charge. This ship is very similar in layout to the Noordam that we were on last winter, and, although much larger, not dissimilar to the Maasdam we were on in 2010.
Back in our cabin, I did some hand washing of the last two day's clothes and gave myself a quick manicure while I water tested my iPhone's Lifeproof case for the first time in months (still water tight!). It was nice to take care of some housekeeping duties.
It was so windy and rough that the beautiful, wide Promenade Deck that wraps around the Nieuw Amsterdam on Deck 3 had been closed off to passengers. Still, we enjoyed using our own balcony until lunchtime. I've decided a balcony is perfect for doing my nails...G didn't complain once about the smell, and the ottoman covered with a pool towel made a nice foot prop for a pedicure.
By noon we were starting to feel a bit hungry, and, once again, G thought the Manhattan Dining Room was the right option. When we opened our cabin door to go there, we noticed that a revised Explorer (the daily activities guide) had been delivered to our mail slot, reflecting the addition of several activities as a result of our unscheduled day at sea. We took it with us to view at lunch...but, honestly, we were enjoying being lazy for the first time in months.
The food we've been served in the dining room has been incredible. I had roasted vegetables with goat cheese as a starter, then a cold triple berry minestrone followed by a vegetarian entree that were all delicious. Service has not been as slow as we've experienced in the past on HAL, though we did spend two hours at lunch. We had been seated with a couple of about our ages from Arizona and we all just "clicked". Lazy lunches and good conversation are some of the best parts of sea days!
I returned to the gym to enjoy the luxury of a mid-afternoon stint on a treadmill. The fitness center is surprisingly well equipped with some excellent weight machines. While it had been busy this morning when we peeked in, by mid afternoon I nearly had it to myself.
We were in the Manhattan Dining Room before 6pm for dinner. What has most impressed us about the Nieuw Amsterdam compared to our previous HAL cruises is the service in the dining room. What had been painfully slow on the Maasdam and Noordam is very well paced on this ship. And the food has been incredible. I am ordering four courses at every meal just to taste a bit of everything, because I truly can't choose between all the options. The presentation and the quality is a step up from Princess, and we're loving it. Champagne was served with dessert tonight, a Holland America tradition when a port has to be skipped due to weather. It's a nice gesture; we'll also get our port charges for Half Moon Cay refunded.
The featured entertainment tonight in the theater is a ventriloquist. Gag. Instead, we took a few minutes to book a ship's excursion in Cozumel and buy a Future Cruise Deposit for Holland America (our first ever- they didn't used to be refundable and we never wanted to commit $100 per person, but now they are and so we did). We then enjoyed the "sophisticated classical music" of the Adagio duo (violin and piano) in the Explorer Bar, and the not-so sophisticated solo guitar music presented by Brad in the Crows Nest. The Piano Bar is featuring a Beatles Name that Tune later this evening, and that's a final possibility.
We love love love being entertained by talented musicians and HAL offers that in spades
The weather, which had added rain to the wind by lunch time, never did clear today. We're cruising south and west around Cuba and hope to sail though this by tomorrow. The ship is much more stable tonight, and our cabin is not moaning and groaning as it was last night. I see that as a good sign we'll see the sun tomorrow. And a strong indicator of a good night's sleep tonight!
Photo 1: Got hangers? Yes...so many there's no room to hang clothes on them. ;-)
Photos 2-4: crepes and waffle station in the Lido Buffet and the decorations made out of bread
Photo 5: the retractable glass roof over the main Lido pool, which makes this area so cozy and usable even in inclement weather.
Photo 6: Holland America has such classy looking china. Every dish is served with their traditional logo in the 12 o'clock position.
Photo 7: tonight's towel animal was a stingray. :-)
Day 6: Nieuw Amsterdam embarkation and evening
There is something with us and noisy Holland America Line (HAL) cabins. We've had four cabins on three different HAL ships, and each one of them has made for fitful sleeping. Of course, it's too early to tell if the creaking and groaning taking place in the ceiling overhead will take a toll, but I just find it noteworthy that, out of nearly 70 cruises, we've only had cabin noise issues on one Celebrity cruise (until we were immediately moved) and all four HAL cruises. Jinxed? Perhaps, when it comes to cabins, but in all other ways we've had a most promising first day on the Nieuw Amsterdam.
Despite disembarkation instructions that indicated we'd be off the Royal Princess at 11:30am, last and final disembarkation was called at 11am. Except, sitting where we were, what we heard over the PA was indecipherable and we actually walked off with the in transit (back to back) cruisers. Ours were nearly the last suitcases left in the terminal, which certainly made them easy to find. G was livin' large today, and solicited the assistance of a baggage handler who saw us through ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and to the taxi stand. $10 and 7 minutes later we were delivered to the Nieuw Amsterdam, at a different pier in Port Everglades.
Check in went smoothly and by 12:05am we were walking into our balcony stateroom. It's tight...we'd prefer less clutter on the vanity and no love seat and chair in the cabin (and extra floor space instead) but the balcony itself is nice and fully covered and large enough for a cushioned wicker chair and wicker ottoman as well as a very small table and second chair.
We were docked such that we had a wonderful view of the ocean, and I would have happily stayed here all afternoon, but G wanted to take advantage of our Mariner (HAL's loyalty program) perk of lunch in the dining room on embarkation day. He was right; the chunky chicken mango salad was delicious and service was actually fairly good (shocking; along with noisy cabins, slow dining room service has been an HAL hallmark for us).
Back to the cabin to unpack our large suitcases that had been delivered in our absence, we immediately ran into trouble. The storage in the cabin isn't nearly as user friendly as in our inside cabin on the Royal Princess. The closets have doors (but there really isn't enough room for the closet doors to be opened and it certainly precludes a second person passing by). There is no room under the bed for the large suitcases (we're using the love seat to open one on, with two crammed inside the closet). Simply put, we're wedged in here pretty tightly. For a 7-night cruise with 7 nights worth of luggage it would be fine; for a 7-night cruise with months' worth of luggage, it has the look and feel of four people in an inside cabin.
Muster drill was at 3:45pm; on HAL, passengers muster by standing outside on the open Promenade Deck, but without carrying a life jacket. I don't enjoy the standing-while-attendance-is-taken-cabin-by-cabin part, but not having to take a life jacket back to our cabin immediately afterwards afforded us the opportunity to walk around the upper decks of the ship as sail away began. It was a thrill to first watch the Royal Princess sail away, followed by us.
It was funny; cruise friends Jenny and Bill boarded the Royal Princess today, and as they were sailing out of Port Everglades, I phoned her from our ship. Her first words: "Does the elevator situation get any better?" A little, maybe, but let's just say we're loving the many and quick elevators on the Nieuw Amsterdam (just over 50% as many passengers as the Royal Princess with the same number, faster and LARGER elevators on a smaller ship). Hello, Princess, so you see a possible issue here?!?
Jenny told me that it had already been announced that, due to a bad storm moving in, the Royal Princess would be skipping Princess Cays tomorrow and instead substituting Grand Turk later in their cruise. Ruh-roh. HAL's private island of Half Moon Cay is on Little San Salvador island in the Bahamas, only about 15 miles from Eleuthera, where Princess Cays is located. Was the Royal Princess canceling on a note of caution, and partially due to the issues they had had with tendering disorganization last week, or were we on the Nieuw Amsterdam going to find out, but not until tomorrow morning, that the storm was preventing us from tendering to Half Moon Cay? We had all evening to wonder about it, but I can tell you that this ship was rocking and rolling tonight, and we began to resign ourselves to a sea day tomorrow.
Despite our plans to dine exclusively in the buffet on this cruise, two meals down and both have been in the Manhattan Dining Room. We were given a lovely table for four for just the two of us, had decent service, a wine steward (on Princess the waiters have to act as sommeliers too), and a view of a beautiful sunset over Miami from our table. Very nice!
After dinner, we wandered the shops until - no, not a string quartet- but at least a violinist and pianist played "sophisticated classical music" starting at 7pm. Pure heaven. When they took a break, we headed up to the Crow's Nest, a glass-fronted lounge at the top front of the ship to listen to a guitarist (another favorite on HAL) and chill. It's 10pm, and we're ready for bed.
It's been a busy 24 hours!
Photos 1-2: our standard balcony cabin (equivalent to a deluxe balcony cabin on the Royal Princess). We booked this cruise after final payment had passed and prices had started to drop to fill the ship; we're paying less for 7 nights in this balcony cabin than we paid for 5 nights in an inside on the Royal Princess. Life is good!
Photo 3: our first ever bathtub at sea! The bathroom is actually large enough for one person to brush heir teeth while the other towels off after a shower. I'm not usually a fan of showering in a bathtub (spoiled princess that I am), but the extra space this bathtub affords is a nice change of pace.
Photos 4-5: our balcony. Plenty of room for two people. This standard balcony cabin is similar to a deluxe balcony cabin on the Royal Princess with a larger balcony and much improved bathroom. Nice!
Sunday, November 3, 2013
A Western Caribbean cruise on the Nieuw Amsterdam
I warned you I had some surprises in store this winter. Today we're moving over to Holland America Line's (HAL's) newest ship, the Nieuw Amsterdam. While it's their newest ship, it launched in 2010, and although it's HAL's largest ship, it holds only 2100 passengers, which is a far cry smaller than most new cruise ships being built.
This will be our fourth HAL cruise but our first time on the Nieuw Amsterdam. You might recall that last year we spent the period of Emerald Princess' dry dock on the HAL Noordam. We're comfortable on HAL ships- not quite as comfortable as on Princess ships (heck, they're home to us)- but are generally content to enjoy what we consider HAL's strong suits (quality entertainment, uncrowded ships, their private island in the Bahamas called Half Moon Cay, and their buffets) and accepting of their weaknesses (dining service, language issues with the crew and an older- much older- passenger demographic). We'll see if this cruise changes our perceptions.
We booked this cruise only three weeks ago, and because prices were dropping to fill the ship, opted for a Verandah Guarantee. This means we're guaranteed a balcony cabin, but it's assigned to us...we don't choose it ourselves. We were pleased when, just days before we left home, we received a cabin assignment that was several categories higher than what we had booked and paid for. Although the cabin itself isn't that much larger than an inside cabin, the balcony will give us the additional space we'll need to avoid feeling like we're stumbling over suitcases all week (once again, we don't intend to unpack everything).
We chose this cruise for its Western Caribbean itinerary; we've not been to most of these ports in at least eight years, although we've been to them all several times in the past. We are also looking forward to this smaller ship, and the string quartet that we know we can count on listening to every evening. And gorgeous Half Moon Cay (HAL's private beach resort in Little San Salvador in the Bahamas) which alone would make this a worthwhile cruise.
I won't have free Internet on the Nieuw Amsterdam, and won't be paying for it on the ship. Just as I did last year on the Noordam, I'll continue to blog every day, and will publish posts whenever I get free or cheap WiFi in port. It's a strange feeling, to be disconnected from the World Wide Web, and I'll admit it makes me twitchy. It's like being on the dark side of the moon, and I've never been a fan of the dark. ;-)
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| Holland America Line ms Nieuw Amsterdam Launched 2010 86,700 tons 2,106 passengers |
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| Our Western Caribbean itinerary |
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| Yay! A return to Key West! |
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