Oosterdam 11/16/15 Review

We are just off the Oosterdam's eleven day Southern Caribbean itinerary. This was a Monday sailing so it made planning a little easier and was also our first Thanksgiving on board ship.

The Oosterdam itself is in fine shape. Yes I could see some of the normal wear and tear that passengers will cause but nothing that would cause me to second guess our choice. There was one persistent issue in our cabin. We were in cabin 8082 and had an issue with the water in the bathroom. One our first day we could get no cold water to come out of either sink, shower or tub. After three calls the plumbers replaced a mixing valve on the first sink that made the issue manageable. When turning on the cold water we would get hot water, so hot that you could scald yourself. After the water ran for a few minutes then we would get water that was cool enough to shower and brush our teeth. We did take to bringing a glass of water from the lido to take our daily pills.

The internet service on board is still the old system. One hundred minutes for $55.00. I received 100 free minutes as part of the package and the service was rather good in my stateroom, although very slow. I have come to depend on free wifi when on shore but if and when the new internet becomes available I will give it a try. I do like to make sure my cats are all OK and maybe post a few pictures for friends at home.

The food on board had its good and less than good moments. We ate in the MDR twice. The first was on embarkation day, despite being told at check in that it was closed. The food and service were both good. The second was for the Mariners lunch and that too was good. We ate in the Pinnacle Grill for one meal and I was able to get the Steak Diane by requesting that ahead of time. Thanks to the CC members who posted about this option. It was fantastic! We also tried the Canaletto for the first time since it became a surcharge event. We received it as a freebie when we booked. The service and food were very good. It was so good that we paid to eat there two more times. I was able to get the lasagna without any fuss and it was better than what I can get at home. DH had the seafood soup the first time as a starter and then had it as a main course the second time, it was that good. (He never has requested to go back to a pay meal before) Each time we thought we had too much food to eat, even when sharing one starter. The food in the lido was fare but the choices seemed less than before, not in one night but for the 11 days. At no time did we see steak as an option and the veggie choices were not too exciting. The pasta bar saved us a few nights. An added plus was seeing some crew in Canaletto and the lido that we met on the Maasdam.

The entertainment was standard for what we have become used to. We both are looking forward to the ending of the Dancing with the Stars program. The singers and dancers were a bit better than what we have seen on the past few cruises so hopefully that means the shows will improve over time.

One observation to note for the gamblers and smokers. There were a minimum of three smoke free nights in the casino. One of those announcements was made at a show and the audience was loudly enthusiastic about the news. Later I got to speak with the cruise director and he let me know that the smoke free nights are very popular and more profitable for HAL. He also said that it would be a long time before it became a totally smoke free venue.

We attended our first Mariner Society event since this cruise marked our 100th sea day on a HAL ship. I was very surprised at the number of no shows. We received a call from someone to verify that we would attend. It was a pleasant event where they served champagne, wine and snacks. Later, on our last night we also received our 4 star pins since this cruise also got us to the next level.

In the end I had another wonderful vacation with HAL. We both decided that we could do this itinerary again. Barbados is a beautiful island and we would like to go back. I met some really nice people and hope to keep in touch with them. I also got to meet Joanie and we had some wonderful chats out by the aft pool.

Time to start planning the next adventure. :D

Thx for your review. Welcome back to reality.

Thank you for reviewing your Oosterdam cruise.

Interesting comment from the Cruise Director.

Thank you for the review.

Thank you for your review, only 6 months till we are on the Oosterdam :-)

Thank you for your review.

Happy to hear that you had a good time! Welcome home and on to the next adventure.

Thanks for your great review! We are sailing on her next 11 day cruise, so this information is especially good for us.

Do you have any thoughts on shore excursions - either those you took or what others told you about? We received alot of OBC from the Anniversary sale (like you I bet) and cannot book these until we are onboard.

Pe

Also, how was the "scenic cruising of Soufriere Bay" after you departed from Castries, St. Lucia? How long did it last and anything of note would be helpful, as we are hosting some CC members for this.

Further, any information on the "daylight passing of Mount Pelee"?

Thanks

DaveOKC

Thanks for the great review, enjoyed reading it and glad you had a good time.

We will be doing this in Feb. 2016 and I have a few questions,

Was there a pool side BBQ on deck and when?

What nights are the "gala" dress?

When is the Mariner's lunch?

Where did the ship dock in St. Thomas?

Thanks, this will help us plan our activities better. Linda

Thanks for your great review! We are sailing on her next 11 day cruise, so this information is especially good for us.

 

Do you have any thoughts on shore excursions - either those you took or what others told you about? We received alot of OBC from the Anniversary sale (like you I bet) and cannot book these until we are onboard.

Pe

Also, how was the "scenic cruising of Soufriere Bay" after you departed from Castries, St. Lucia? How long did it last and anything of note would be helpful, as we are hosting some CC members for this.

 

Further, any information on the "daylight passing of Mount Pelee"?

 

Thanks

 

DaveOKC

We're on the next 10 day, so we probably board when you get off (so I really hope to read some of your thoughts!). Just wanted to add that we've done the scenic cruising around St Lucia on other ships, and it is quite pretty. Depending on the time of year....I dont know sunset timing to the ships departure since our 10 days is doing the ABC islands....but I recall once on the Statendam doing it right as the sun was in the "golden hour" before sunset. It reflected off the mountains, creating light and shadow that was really special. I'll always remember that time. We were in the low rent district on that trip, so no balcony, but DH and I got two large iced coffee drinks and spent an hour or so walking around the promenade, taking lots of time to stop and admire the view. I noticed other people with binoculars, so if you have access to some that would be a nice touch.

Thanks for your great review! We are sailing on her next 11 day cruise, so this information is especially good for us.

 

Do you have any thoughts on shore excursions - either those you took or what others told you about? We received alot of OBC from the Anniversary sale (like you I bet) and cannot book these until we are onboard.

Pe

Also, how was the "scenic cruising of Soufriere Bay" after you departed from Castries, St. Lucia? How long did it last and anything of note would be helpful, as we are hosting some CC members for this.

 

Further, any information on the "daylight passing of Mount Pelee"?

 

Thanks

 

DaveOKC

Dave, the first thing to keep in mind with the anniversary OBC is that it can be used for anything. The original rules were relaxed.

In St Lucia we booked the World Heritage Site Route that ended back at the ship. It was very interesting to be inside an active volcano. There was one that caught up with the ship and I heard that was good too. In Barbados we booked the Green Monkey Echo tour and this was the best of the four we did. In Martinique we were there on a Sunday and most everything is closed so we booked the walking tour to use up some of the OBC. I would save the money and do something else. In St Kitts we did the Brimstone Fortress excursion and this was pretty good if you enjoy forts etc.

The scenic cruising in Soufriere Bay was just to pick up the excursion that did not go back to the pier. The biggest let down was the "daylight passing" of Mount Pelee. We had 5:30 reservations in the Canaletto and by that time it was too dark to see anything. If I had known this I would have gotten up earlier to try and see it then.

Hope that this helps.

Thanks for the great review, enjoyed reading it and glad you had a good time.

We will be doing this in Feb. 2016 and I have a few questions,

 

Was there a pool side BBQ on deck and when?

What nights are the "gala" dress?

When is the Mariner's lunch?

Where did the ship dock in St. Thomas?

 

Thanks, this will help us plan our activities better. Linda

Hi Linda, if there was a BBQ on deck I missed it and we ate the lido most nights. Gala nights were the first and last sea days. The Mariners lunch was the last sea day. The ship was docked in the usual HAL spot, at least for us, away from downtown. The taxi to downtown area was $4 pp each way.

Dave, the first thing to keep in mind with the anniversary OBC is that it can be used for anything. The original rules were relaxed.

 

In St Lucia we booked the World Heritage Site Route that ended back at the ship. It was very interesting to be inside an active volcano. There was one that caught up with the ship and I heard that was good too. In Barbados we booked the Green Monkey Echo tour and this was the best of the four we did. In Martinique we were there on a Sunday and most everything is closed so we booked the walking tour to use up some of the OBC. I would save the money and do something else. In St Kitts we did the Brimstone Fortress excursion and this was pretty good if you enjoy forts etc.

 

The scenic cruising in Soufriere Bay was just to pick up the excursion that did not go back to the pier. The biggest let down was the "daylight passing" of Mount Pelee. We had 5:30 reservations in the Canaletto and by that time it was too dark to see anything. If I had known this I would have gotten up earlier to try and see it then.

 

Hope that this helps.

Yes, it is to pick up people but the sail out of st. Lucia is beautiful and shouldn't be missed. I don't want people to think it's just a stop to pick people up and nothing interesting.

Thank you for the review.....glad you enjoyed your cruise!

Yes, it is to pick up people but the sail out of st. Lucia is beautiful and shouldn't be missed. I don't want people to think it's just a stop to pick people up and nothing interesting.

Completely agree, one of the most scenic hours we spent in the Caribbean.

I'm not certain on Mt Pelee, we've done in leaving Martinique before, and I dont recall it being anywhere near as special as the St Lucia sail away. Now, Stromboli, off the coast of Italy...THAT was something...an altogether different cruise of course but since we're talking scenic volcano cruising, if anyone has the chance to do that, it's well worth arranging dinner and your evening around that to be outside at the time.

Completely agree, one of the most scenic hours we spent in the Caribbean.

 

I'm not certain on Mt Pelee, we've done in leaving Martinique before, and I dont recall it being anywhere near as special as the St Lucia sail away. Now, Stromboli, off the coast of Italy...THAT was something...an altogether different cruise of course but since we're talking scenic volcano cruising, if anyone has the chance to do that, it's well worth arranging dinner and your evening around that to be outside at the time.

I can't recall anything exciting coming out of Martinique but it could be my poor memory. I think the scenic cruising out of st. Lucia is the most beautiful place I've seen in the Caribbean. Can't speak for Italy. I've never been there :).

I think the scenic cruising out of st. Lucia is the most beautiful place I've seen in the Caribbean. Can't speak for Italy. I've never been there :).

So many places to cruise, so little vacation time, is my problem :)

I'm glad you enjoyed St Lucia sail away as much as we did. I really remember the sunlilght at that time of day, shining on the mountain, was spectacular. And my husband and I seemed to be all alone on the Promendade. I remember we both got a big iced coffee from Explorations cafe, and just stood out there admiring it, drinking our coffee. Really great memory for us.

Thank you for posting a review.

So many places to cruise, so little vacation time, is my problem :)

 

I'm glad you enjoyed St Lucia sail away as much as we did. I really remember the sunlilght at that time of day, shining on the mountain, was spectacular. And my husband and I seemed to be all alone on the Promendade. I remember we both got a big iced coffee from Explorations cafe, and just stood out there admiring it, drinking our coffee. Really great memory for us.

I've been there in February, March and April, of different years. The most spectacular was in March of 2008 iirc. It must have been a rainy spring there, as the pitons had a lot of green on them. It looked like velvet! It had just rained, and there was a beautiful rainbow. It was spectacular. I was in the same boat as you for vacation time. Thx to the economic downturn here I have plenty of time but not to much cash. It's always one or the other.

Dave, the first thing to keep in mind with the anniversary OBC is that it can be used for anything. The original rules were relaxed.

 

In St Lucia we booked the World Heritage Site Route that ended back at the ship. It was very interesting to be inside an active volcano. There was one that caught up with the ship and I heard that was good too. In Barbados we booked the Green Monkey Echo tour and this was the best of the four we did. In Martinique we were there on a Sunday and most everything is closed so we booked the walking tour to use up some of the OBC. I would save the money and do something else. In St Kitts we did the Brimstone Fortress excursion and this was pretty good if you enjoy forts etc.

 

The scenic cruising in Soufriere Bay was just to pick up the excursion that did not go back to the pier. The biggest let down was the "daylight passing" of Mount Pelee. We had 5:30 reservations in the Canaletto and by that time it was too dark to see anything. If I had known this I would have gotten up earlier to try and see it then.

Thanks for your excursion tips. I have the St. Lucia and St. Kitts one on my list, so your comments makes me feel good about those two. I will check out Barbados again, but I do not recall seeing it on the list from HAL.

WOW - thanks to everyone for the very positive reviews of the scenic sailing out of St. Lucia. As I mentioned earlier, we have invited our CC roll call members to join us for this, so I was hoping it would be special for everyone.

Since we have the aft-wrap on deck 5, I am trusting we all can fit on it!

DaveOKC

WOW - thanks to everyone for the very positive reviews of the scenic sailing out of St. Lucia. As I mentioned earlier, we have invited our CC roll call members to join us for this, so I was hoping it would be special for everyone.

 

Since we have the aft-wrap on deck 5, I am trusting we all can fit on it!

 

DaveOKC

It's very nice of you to do that. How many peeps are you having? Those balconies are pretty sweet. To be honest I like them better than the pinnacle suite.

Jake, I enjoyed your trip report.

Keith

When I got my final statement there was a credit balance of about $50. This was mostly due to missing Half Moon Cay and and earlier port tax credit. I was curious to see if HAL would refund those return those credits to my credit card. I'm happy to report that HAL did indeed figure out the correct amount that needed to be returned and it showed up on my account this morning. So out of $700 OBC I only left a dollar and change on the table, not too bad.

It's very nice of you to do that. How many peeps are you having? Those balconies are pretty sweet. To be honest I like them better than the pinnacle suite.

Sorry to pull us a bit off topic, but to answer your question, its difficult to say as its a bit of an open invite. However, over 20 people have said they are coming and I expect even more.

Interesting you should mention the Pinnacle suite - I turned down an upsell to it about a week ago since I like these cabins so much.