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Name: Randall Ponik
Email: randyp@groupz.net
Age: 46
Occupation: Engineer
NumberOfCruises: 4
TravelAgent: No
Ship: Holland-Westerdam
SailingDate: June 6, 1997
Itinerary: Western Caribbean
FoodDiningRoom: 93
CruiseDirector: 100
CabinComfort: 88
FoodRoomService:
CruiseStaff: 80
CabinAmenities: 90
FoodLidoDeck: 93
DiningRoomService: 98
CabinQuietness: 100
FoodMidnightBuffets: 95
CabinSteward: 90
ShoreExcVariety: 95
FoodVariety: 95
DeckService: 85
ShoreExcValue: 85
GoodForHoneymoon:
CasinoStaff:
PrivateIsland:
GoodForFamilies: 95
LoungeService: 85
TenderService: 80
GoodForSeniors:
BeautySalonStaff: 95
EntertainmentLounges: 80
WheelchairAccess:
ExerciseFacilities: 95
EntertShowLounge: 90
OverallPortsofCall: 90
BeautySalon:
EntertainmentPoolside: 80
CruiseActivities: 90
Casino: 85
AirSeaProgram:
MedicalFacilities:
ShipCleanliness: 93
EmbarkDisembark: 75
DiscoNightclubs: 85
DeckSpace: 90
Stabilization: 95
ShopsOnBoard: 90
SpaceRatio: 90
OverallCruiseValue: 93
Submit: Submit Review
Date: 14 Nov 1997
Time: 21:07:31
Remote Name: 208.138.66.83
Remote User:
Comments
MS Westerdam 6/7/97
This was the family's 4th cruise, and the first on Holland America. Overall, we felt that
this cruise on Holland America
was probably the best of our cruises, travelling twice on Carnival and once on Princess.
First the negatives. The boarding process Holland uses is different than other lines. When
you arrive and check in, your
party is given a number, the numbers being sequential in blocks of 20 or so. We arrived
early (about two hours before
boarding) and were given number 5. Then we waited for two hours until they started calling
numbers- which were
called very slowly. We thought we'd never get on board, but then we realized that there
were people with numbers in
the 30's and 40's! Boarding on Holland leaves a bit to be desired. Once their pride and
joy, the Westerdam is now one
of their older ships and needs more maintenance than the newer ones. I noted several water
leaks in the hallways, the
A/C on the lower floors was marginal for the first 2 or 3 days, and the elevator next to
our cabin went down on day 2
and remained down for the rest of the cruise. Nothing major, just nuisances.
The positives were many. Cleanliness was superb and comparable to our Princess cruise. The
cabin service was very
good, our dining room service was excellent. One reviewer on the same cruise complained
about the dining room staff.
That is a shame as ours couldn't have been more attentive and friendly. Both our waiter
and 'head waiter' spent a lot
of time with us entertaining our daughter when time permitted. The food was excellent,
again the best of all cruises to
date. Besides the usual cruise fare, there were usually Dutch or Indonesian dishes served.
The midnight buffets were
also superior to other cruises. Where the others usually served lots of cold dishes and
maybe 1 or 2 hot dishes, the
Westerdam usually had 4 to 6 hot entrees. The Chocohaulic buffet one night out by the
Verandah pool was
exceptional. It rained a bit during that buffet, fortunately the Westerdam has a sliding
glass roof over that area. By the
way, the ship, in addition to the main dining room, has two buffet restaurants on the
Verandah and Lido decks.
We were getting concerned about the main lounge entertainment after the first few evenings
as it had been sort of
'ho-hum', but then in the middle of the cruise, the entertainment became excellent with
comedians, a ventriloquist,
juggler, etc. Not a 'clinker' in any of those acts. On one night each cruise, the
Indonesian crew entertains in the main
lounge. Unfortunately, on that day while in port in Jamaica, one of the crew was killed in
a waterskiing accident, so in
respect to their crewmate, they didn't perform. I am told that the show is quite good.
The passengers on the Westerdam were a good mix ('from newlywed to nearly dead' as our
travel agent puts it). This
is not always the case on Holland. We met a travel agent while on Westerdam that echoed
our agent. She said that
she had been on the Statendam several months earlier and would have screamed if she saw
another oxygen bottle on
wheels go by. This ship appeals to all ages.
A far as the ports, this cruise was on the Western Caribbean with stops in Key West,
Cozumel, Grand Cayman, and
Jamaica. We vacationed on Jamaica years ago and said there was never any reason to go back
so while in port in
Ocho Rios, we stayed on the ship (as we did on other cruises to Montego Bay also). Most
people who did go on shore
weren't overwhelmed with the place either, but there were a few that thought it was great.
Cozumel is always a fun
place to shop and barter, and Grand Cayman while expensive offers some unique tours like
Stingray city - which
everyone MUST DO at least once in their lives. The tours offered on the Westerdam seemed
to have a larger range
than other cruises. In addition to the usual tours in the $20-$60 range, Holland offered
basically the same fare with
the addition of higher end tours up to $200 which included Deep diving submarines and
airtours to the ruins in
Chichen-Itza.
While on our other cruises, we tried to get our daughter (now 13) involved in the children
programs which never
appealed to her. They lacked 'something'. However, we had a hard time tearing her away
from Club Hal. She got and
stayed involved throughout the cruise, coming home with assorted tee shirts, fitness
awards, photos, etc. The staff of
Club Hal, which she STILL talks about, are to be commended.
All things considered, we all felt that this was better than our Princess and Carnival
cruises. Our daugher insists that
our next cruise be on Holland America. When a kid chooses any cruise line over Carnival,
that has to mean something.
She doesn't know it yet but we're booked on the Veendam in July!
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