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Name: Edward V. Chapman
Email: echapman@msn.com
Age: 55
Occupation: Retired
NumberOfCruises: 25
TravelAgent: No
Ship: Holland-Rotterdam6
SailingDate: May 12, 1998
Itinerary: Trans-Atlantic - Westbound
FoodDiningRoom: 89
CruiseDirector: 70
CabinComfort: 70
FoodRoomService: 89
CruiseStaff: 80
CabinAmenities: 85
FoodLidoDeck: 45
DiningRoomService: 89
CabinQuietness: 40
FoodMidnightBuffets:
CabinSteward: 89
ShoreExcVariety: 50
FoodVariety: 75
DeckService: 60
ShoreExcValue: 45
GoodForHoneymoon:
CasinoStaff: 80
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies:
LoungeService: 85
TenderService: 75
GoodForSeniors: 75
BeautySalonStaff:
EntertainmentLounges: 75
WheelchairAccess: 75
ExerciseFacilities: 90
EntertShowLounge: 85
OverallPortsofCall: 80
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside:
CruiseActivities: 75
Casino: 85
AirSeaProgram: 80
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 75
EmbarkDisembark: 50
DiscoNightclubs: 80
DeckSpace: 30
Stabilization: 75
ShopsOnBoard: 80
SpaceRatio: 80
OverallCruiseValue: 75
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 20 May 1998
Time: 12:34:37
Remote Name: 199.217.140.22
Remote User:
Comments
Rotterdam VI, April 24 - May 5, 1998, Transatlantic (Ft.
Lauderdale, NYC, Bermuda, Azores, Lisbon). A little quick
personal background - 25+ cruises, NCL,
Princess and Cunard. Normally stay in a large outside cabin but
have never had any real problems with any cabin, including one
directly above the stern. This
was our first HAL cruise, booked based on the recommendations of
my cruising friends who love HAL, the fact that it was a new ship
and was able to get a
verandah cabin at a reasonable price. Going in was mildly
concerned about the size of the ship (1,320 passengers) and the
crew-passenger ratio (a whopping
2.1:1). The first concern turned out not to be a major problem -
the second, the ratio was a major problem in many areas.
Air arrangements: Booked with cruise line, since trip involved a
one-way trans-Atlantic. No problems in going a day early and
staying in Lisbon for 3 days on our
own.
Pre-cruise Hotel: Stayed at Sheraton Yankee Clipper, about 5
minutes from ship terminal. Nice hotel, good pool/beach area.
Boarding: Scheduled to board in Ft. Lauderdale at noon. Arrived
at the terminal in a taxi about noon, was directed to another
terminal away from the ship
because "altho ship arrived on time, the passengers had too
much luggage and they couldn’t get it all off". Went to
the directed terminal, was given a number,
told would be boarding shortly and left to own resources. None of
the normal boarding amenities were available, coffee, juice,
water were provided, nor was any
staff available to provide information. After an hour and a half
wait - most people did not have seats - we were allowed to hike
to the next terminal and board.
(Note: A duplicate problem occurred in New York City, although
the ship had docked by 8 AM, they were unable to complete
disembarkation by 12:30.
Cabin: Our cabin was 6215, verandah cabin, somewhat aft, but we
had been assured that it was a quiet and comfortable cabin. The
cabin was quite large, plenty
of closet space, nice sitting area with couch and chair and a
nice verandah. Our luggage showed up reasonably promptly, but we
had to spend the next 20
minutes cleaning trash out of the drawers and closets of our
cabin so we could unpack (4 trash cans worth) - our steward had
spend the morning helping move
bags (staff ratio problem). After cleaning our cabin, we went to
lunch - or tried to - for some reason the restaurant was closed
and we had to go to the Lido -
along with apparently all the other passengers. We did notice the
cabin was warm, but assumed it was the normal port condition.
(The Lido on the Rotterdam VI
can best be described as that $1.99 all-you-can-eat Vegas style
buffet, where you can get filled up, but still feel you paid too
much. Two 'verification' visits to the
Lido during the cruise lowered our opinion - poor quality food,
in large portions, with broken ice machines.) Back to the cabin.
That night we experienced the
noisiest, vibration filled and poorly air conditioned cabin we
have ever experienced. The next morning we went to hotel manager
and requested a change.
Nothing was available that day, but were told they would check in
New York. The second night was even worse. We informed the Hotel
Manager that if we
weren’t allowed to move, we would have to leave the ship in
New York. Fortunately, we were moved forward to another cabin.
The second cabin was mid-ships,
identical to the first, but with significantly reduced noise and
vibration. The verandah was quite nice with a small table, a
recliner and a deck chair.
The Restaurant: One of the bright sides of the ship. Although the
restaurant did not provide a full 5 - star menu, (I’m sure
due to the time constraints of a two
seating ship), the food was excellent, altho the menu started to
repeat after only seven days. In the 12 day trip, prime rib was
the beef course three times - not
bad, but not five star variety. Service was also a little slow,
due the lack of sufficient bus boys- staff ratio problem. The
alternative restaurant, the Odyssey, Italian
style, was excellent, but only sat 40 people, and was closed
while in port - how many time can you divide 40 into 1,300?
The Ship overall: First I will state my prejudice - I love the
ocean. When I am on a ship, I want to see the ocean. The
Rotterdam VI is NOT an ocean liner. There
are only two small exterior areas on the ship where you can view
forward, in front of the gym on deck eight. The promenade deck
goes all the way around, but
there are bulkheads forward. There is a relatively small sun deck
area by outside aft pool also. I am just grateful that I had a
verandah cabin, otherwise I would
have gone bananas. What the Rotterdam VI is, is a Vegas-hotel
designed to focus everything inward, to the casino, the shops and
the bars. One of the publicity
points of the ship was that the "wood was still there"
- it wasn’t. What was there was plastic. Remember that new
hotel just off the interstate in the middle of
nowhere you got stuck in for several days? Pretty to look at
first, but after a while, it was you realized that it was just
cheap plastic - and starting to show it
already. For those who love the classic lines of cruise ships all
I can say is don’t look at the Rotterdam VI from a forward
view - she is just plain UGLY (&
somewhat tacky on the inside.) There is an abundance on nice cozy
nooks on the main promenade deck with windows.
Really Bad things. The Uninhabitable Cabin. Not being able to
contact your cabin steward without going through the front desk
or wandering the hall. Also, the
cabin stewards were not provided with even minimal pantry goods
(tea, coffee, etc.) - everything had to come from the kitchen
(which did provide satisfactory
service). When going ashore by boat, being put in the Queens
Lounge forward, issued a number, and then RUN down 4 decks to the
aft end of the ship - trying
for me, really rough on a number of the seniors on-board. Having
the wine steward and associates peddling wine in the corridors
during the day to boost sales.
On the last night, traditional Baked Alaska was served - but no
other desert. Going to tea, and only having two cookies per
person served (C’mon Carni-HAL,
that’s just cheap!) Having a "clearance sale" for
the shops that blocked the main thorofare. Poor design of deck 4
that meant changing floors to go to the
restaurant. Having the only cappuccino machine available broken
most of the cruise. Laundromat - 2 of 4 washers broken, charge of
$2.00 to wash!
Neither Good nor Bad. The ship’s performers were the usual
cruise ship 'one routine, 10 songs, 5 different outfit'
performers, but had a lot of energy. The
casino was nice too
Really Good Things. The Crow’s Nest Bar (up forward, great
view, good service); the Gym, the Queen’s Lounge - one of
the best designed main show rooms I
have ever seen on a ship. Room service - great for afternoon tea,
& one full dinner in the cabin - full restaurant choices
& quick service. And best of all, having
the Tommy Dorsey Band on-board as the special entertainment -
outstanding music & great entertainment, who actually spoke
to the customers (unlike the
ship’s entertainers).
Debarkation: Ship arrived in Lisbon as scheduled and we were
ready to leave at 9:30. The ship did notice a shortage of taxis
and suggested that we stay
aboard till they showed up - which we did. All in all the
debarkation in Lisbon was handled a great deal better than what
we observed in both Ft. Lauderdale and
New York City.
Post Hotel Stay: We stayed at the hotel the cruise line uses, the
La Meridian, which is a Forte Hotel. Did book independently,
which saved significantly. Hotel was
OK, although restaurant was very pricey and not up to par.
Fortunately the Ritz was next door, and we used their restaurant
- excellent. As a side note, Lisbon
was terrific as was what we could see of Portugal in just a
couple of days - definitely worth a trip back.
Summary - would I go back on the Rotterdam VI? Probably not. Am I
looking forward to my next cruise on the 20 year old Island
Princess with NO verandahs &
less than half the Rotterdam’s size? You bet!
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