Eurodam thoughts

Thinking about booking the Eurodam for caribbean

Need opinions on her, condition of ship

When was or is due for dry dock

Thanks

I've been reading a lot of good reviews on her condition. If you can wait a couple of weeks we are sailing on her a week from this Saturday...I'll be sure to post a review in this forum.

Eurodam had her last dry dock in December, 2015. She received the new Gallery Bar, Lincoln Center Stage for classical chamber music, Billboard Onboard with the dueling pianos, the Lido became the Lido Market, and New York Pizza replaced Slice. Her suites were refurbished and enhanced. A new, interactive TV system was installed throughout the ship.

As I haven't yet cruised on her, I'll leave it to others to fill you in. My sister and I will be cruising Eurodam to Alaska towards the end of May, and she plans to do her usual cruising blog with photos.

We sailed on the Eurodam last September in the Mediterranean. It was our first time sailing with HAL. We had previously sailed with Disney and Royal Caribbean. We enjoyed our cruise and we would sail on the Eurodam again as well as recommend her to others. We found the ship to be in good shape. We were in a signature suite and found the room well maintained as well as quite spacious.

I'm going to hopefully give you both sides of the coin. I really like the Eurodam, have sailed on her 3 times, although the last time was in 2011. For me she is a elegant ship, with lots of nice space inside and out.

However I recommended HAL to a work colleague, they just got back from a Eurodam Caribbean cruise, and were not all impressed. They said compared to their cruises on Princess they thought the Eurodam was 'tired and dull' that a lot of the spaces were dark, and that the ship was boring with nothing going on in the evenings. They are hardly party people, so I was really surprised that they felt that way. It just goes to show how different people find the same ship.

We sailed on the Eurodam in the Caribbean a couple months ago. The ship is in great shape. The improvements to the ship include a Lincoln Center Stage, Billboard Onboard, and the Gallery Bar, which replaced the Northern Lights. The Gallery Bar was used during the day on our cruise for various onboard activities and was very comfortable.

The Lido became the Lido Market, and our favorite Lido item was the addition of the excellent New York Pizza.

We appreciated the table-side service of drinks: coffee, ice tea, etc. and that the tables were assigned to specific crew members who worked hard to keep them clean. Because of this system, along with the name of the person keeping things in order listed on each table, the Lido was pretty spotless.

The suites were the best upgrade, since there was new furniture and carpeting. We especially liked the USB outlets added near the bed's night stands, the additional electrical outlets and the sparkling new bathrooms.

As mentioned above, the ship received a 14-day dry dock refresh in the Bahamas in Dec. 2015.

The additional restaurant, the Tamarind, is an excellent value.

The Eurodam is my personal favorite. My March cruise was unusual due to the waether but the ship was fabulous. Here are my thoughts.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2472843

I'm going to hopefully give you both sides of the coin. I really like the Eurodam, have sailed on her 3 times, although the last time was in 2011. For me she is a elegant ship, with lots of nice space inside and out.

 

However I recommended HAL to a work colleague, they just got back from a Eurodam Caribbean cruise, and were not all impressed. They said compared to their cruises on Princess they thought the Eurodam was 'tired and dull' that a lot of the spaces were dark, and that the ship was boring with nothing going on in the evenings. They are hardly party people, so I was really surprised that they felt that way. It just goes to show how different people find the same ship.

I love HAL and had a great cruise on the Eurodam this past March, but will agree with your work colleague, the decor could have been better. I think her sister ship, the Niew Amsterdam has better decor and less dark spots.

HAL needs to add more daily and evening activities, if they did that, they would be a lot better suited for many, IMHO....

We sailed on her for three weeks over New Years, loved her. We'll do her sister ship the NA in Jul to Alaska looking forward to it. I think it's up to the person cruising to make it an enjoyable cruise. It depends if your a glass half full or half empty kind of person. As some one else stated, any cruise is better then staying at home.

Allan

We sailed on her for three weeks over New Years, loved her. We'll do her sister ship the NA in Jul to Alaska looking forward to it. I think it's up to the person cruising to make it an enjoyable cruise. It depends if your a glass half full or half empty kind of person. As some one else stated, any cruise is better then staying at home.

Allan

Absolutely agree!

We just got off the Eurodam in San Diego on Monday. The ship is in lovely condition, although decor may be understated compared to some other cruise lines. But I prefer that. I think it was refurb'd a few years ago. The public areas are all in good shape. The food was the best of any HAL ship that I can remember. In all fairness, we were on the lower side of the bell curve as far as passenger age goes. This was a Panama Canal cruise, so the passengers were older. Unfortunately, entertainment closed up early (before midnight) and there was only one venue that we could find for dancing to live music, but I attributed that more to passenger interest/HAL marketing than to the Eurodam itself. It has all the same public areas, pools, restaurants, etc as the other mid-large HAL ships.

Overall, I would happily sail on her again. And preferably soon!

We were on her the week before Christmas. I posted photos, menus, daily programs, and a few personal observations. Okay... More than a few.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2432473

Short version: We enjoyed ourselves and the Nieuw Amsterdam and Eurodam are our current favorite ships. (Although we have yet to not enjoy a cruise.)

Have all the cabins on the Eurodam been upgraded? I usually book an obstructed ocean view for price as a solo. I am booked for this Fall and hoping the room will have some upgrades. Enjoyed the pizza on the Rotterdam last month is it the same on Eurodam?

Have all the cabins on the Eurodam been upgraded? I usually book an obstructed ocean view for price as a solo. I am booked for this Fall and hoping the room will have some upgrades. Enjoyed the pizza on the Rotterdam last month is it the same on Eurodam?

My understanding is that all the rooms got the new treatments. The pizza is the new one, New York Pizza.

I'm going to hopefully give you both sides of the coin. I really like the Eurodam, have sailed on her 3 times, although the last time was in 2011. For me she is a elegant ship, with lots of nice space inside and out.

 

However I recommended HAL to a work colleague, they just got back from a Eurodam Caribbean cruise, and were not all impressed. They said compared to their cruises on Princess they thought the Eurodam was 'tired and dull' that a lot of the spaces were dark, and that the ship was boring with nothing going on in the evenings. They are hardly party people, so I was really surprised that they felt that way. It just goes to show how different people find the same ship.

I loved the Eurodam ..lovely ship, lovely crew great awesome food

We also just got off the Eurodam in San Diego. ....and were on the younger side of the demographic for a Panama Canal cruise. The ship was very nice. Clean and fresh. Lots of window viewing areas. I would say it has a traditional sophistication and elegance vs. Celebrity which has more wow factor and modern decor. Both nice in their own way.

• The food was great! We ate at Tamarind one night and had a lovely dinner- very good, but the dining room food was quite good and didn't feel the need to spend more on the pay restaurants. Dive In burgers are the best!! Individual pizza is made fresh for you at the New York Pizza wood ovens ...yumm.
  
• The entertainment has really stepped up from our last HAL cruise in 2014. The musicians on the Eurodam are fantastic on the music walk - very talented, with rave reviews from everyone we met on board: The string Quintet in the Lincoln Centre, Meghan and Ted on the dualling pianos in Billboard on Board, and the BB King All stars. Dualling pianos probably gathered the most crowds every night - Meghan and Ted were fun, personable and very talented singers and pianists - wow! People sang, danced and just generally had a good time. Lots of dancing at BB Kings, but a smaller audience with this Panama Canal cruise. The house band was great- very adaptable to all the guest musicians that came on board. Comedians, singers and instrumentalists had good shows. The only disappointing shows unfortunately were the ship dancers and singers. They are talented, but the shows were rather amateurish and dull. The choreography was not great and was distracting from the singers than entertaining. the first show with the silk rope number just needed some more practice I think.
  
• Loved the new on demand movies - nice selection to watch on the big screen tv's in the veranda rooms.
  
• We generally will read or hang out around the ship. Did not feel the need for any more activities. Went to cooking and computer demos, the port talks, trivia (day and night), walked for miles around the ship on the promenade deck, used the fitness centre, and went to ab and yoga classes .... so we found lots to keep us occupied.
  

Hope this helps.

We also just got off the Eurodam in San Diego. ....and were on the younger side of the demographic for a Panama Canal cruise. The ship was very nice. Clean and fresh. Lots of window viewing areas. I would say it has a traditional sophistication and elegance vs. Celebrity which has more wow factor and modern decor. Both nice in their own way.

• The food was great! We ate at Tamarind one night and had a lovely dinner- very good, but the dining room food was quite good and didn't feel the need to spend more on the pay restaurants. Dive In burgers are the best!! Individual pizza is made fresh for you at the New York Pizza wood ovens ...yumm.
  
• The entertainment has really stepped up from our last HAL cruise in 2014. The musicians on the Eurodam are fantastic on the music walk - very talented, with rave reviews from everyone we met on board: The string Quintet in the Lincoln Centre, Meghan and Ted on the dualling pianos in Billboard on Board, and the BB King All stars. Dualling pianos probably gathered the most crowds every night - Meghan and Ted were fun, personable and very talented singers and pianists - wow! People sang, danced and just generally had a good time. Lots of dancing at BB Kings, but a smaller audience with this Panama Canal cruise. The house band was great- very adaptable to all the guest musicians that came on board. Comedians, singers and instrumentalists had good shows. The only disappointing shows unfortunately were the ship dancers and singers. They are talented, but the shows were rather amateurish and dull. The choreography was not great and was distracting from the singers than entertaining. the first show with the silk rope number just needed some more practice I think.
  
• Loved the new on demand movies - nice selection to watch on the big screen tv's in the veranda rooms.
  
• We generally will read or hang out around the ship. Did not feel the need for any more activities. Went to cooking and computer demos, the port talks, trivia (day and night), walked for miles around the ship on the promenade deck, used the fitness centre, and went to ab and yoga classes .... so we found lots to keep us occupied.
  

Hope this helps.

Wow, after reading this I'm even more excited to board Eurodam next Saturday! Especially looking forward to BB King club and the dueling pianos.

Thanks for a great review!

MDR on Nov. crossing was good, BBKing excellent but ship singers were lip sinking

poorly and some shows were out of 1950 i.e. Magician.

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No flaming please, these are just raw honest observations... I too got off in San Diego Apr 24.

The Bad... all carpeting is in need of immediate refurbishment, and not just because of the Norovirus Outbreak. Stairs are esp worn and stained.

All lounge area chairs, smell of old urine, esp Mainstage 2&3.

Seaview pool loungers need to be tossed, and a daily scrubbing to remove the daily smoke stack ash, would be great. The seaview pool stairs, are wood, and beginning to rot (many splinters)

The spa was our greatest concern, after many of us reported the cool water temps and the scum building up on the tiles, their approach to this issue appeared to be to add more chlorine. We finally quit using, when Level 3 Outbreak status called (not going to chance a rash on top of possible Norwalk). The ladies spa lockers need to be replaced or repaired. Aroma steam room ran out of aroma after day 2. Spa flip flops didn't fit men or women (and were dangerous to attempt to walk in them on slippery floors). At $559.00 US for a couple it was a total waste of money.

Much chair hogging in the Lido pool with no control despite signage.

The use of linen napkins should be discontinued esp in am's of this cruise. Witnessed many many seniors using the napkins has hankies, sputum rags and kleenex (nope, not kidding) I did speak to the main dining room manager (he asked me to critique the dining room service and food, so I spoke honestly).

Cabin attendants were exceptional (until last evening and embarkation day). We topped up their prepaid tips, the evening before. We think they were insulted with the amount. Neither would speak with us later that day or in the following morning.

The good... embarkation and disembarkation went smooth.

The dining room food was good, well presented, tasty, and the correct amount. Their menu would benefit from more North American type foods. Seating on chairs could be a bit higher for us shorter people. Staff pleasant and efficient.

Lido food was ok, staff generally pleasant.

Caneleto, was ok. Expected larger menu, service was a bit brusque and rushed. They do a nice arrangement to deaden noise from Lido.

Dive In burgers, huge and tasty

Did not eat in Tamarind, and disappointed we forgot about it. Ambiance is lovely up there.

Tried the Pinnacle Grill x 2, and decided it wasn't worth a second visit. Food is very heavy, nicely prepared, and tasty, but it becomes very redundant. Did not like the Maitre D, and will not discuss that online. Nice ambiance in this restaurant.

Mainstage entertainment was a hit and miss, mostly miss, but as previously noted, this crowd wasn't there to be entertained. The BB King Blues were outstanding, Billboard very good, and Lincoln Center awesome.

Trivia was usually packed, bingo and casino sparsely attended.

Two HAL bus tours taken, and they actually fair to good. Meals provided on both, which were safe to eat and tasty. Panama Canal speaker during transit was informative and appreciated.

Now to the question all have, regarding "cabins beside the outside glass elevators". We are very private people, and I can add that never once did I feel we were being gawked at. And yes, occasionally people were curious and had a look (we all would), but they usually looked away in embarassment. This cabin 6089 Signature Suite was the second best cabin we have ever had on many cruises (Penthouse being the best). It was private, quiet, spacious. No neighbours on one side. No elevator noise. Excellant a/c. Strong wifi signal(which is the worst wifi ever).Furniture new, clean, comfortable. Draperies clean. Beds comfortable (sheets too short). Bathroom, full jetted tub, double sinks, separate shower (taps are a very bad configuration). Great lighting. Small window, fridge, large screen tv. Two occasional chairs, full sofa bed. Tons of storage, and electrical outlets. Close to everything. Colour palette pleasing and calm.

On an end note, we had a wonderful cruise. The lack of entertainment suited us fine. She is in fair shape, but is in need of some refurbishment. On a whole the staff, were friendly and respectful. Kudos to them for taking the abuse from my peers. I will add here, that being a retired geriatric nurse of 43 years, I was disgusted to witness the rudeness the older generation delivered to these employees. I can add my understanding of cognitive issues in this age group, but as a younger senior I was mortified to see this bad and usually disgusting behaviour from them daily. The staff did a great job of masking their feelings/reactions toward these racist disrespectful group.

Bar staff were all friendly, and efficient. Will add here... the Signature Bev Pack, definately not worth the money.

I don't regret purchasing it, (needed to do once to see for myself), but there was no way we drank that much. It was nice not to have "to worry" about an end bill, but we actually did have one??? Go figure... Next time, I would purchase separate drink cards.

On a whole I prefer the quieter understated ships. HAL suits our lifestyle at this age. But if there is a next time, I will research the age group more. There were very few of us at the lower end of the senior years. My guess.... the average age of this ship was about 82.

It's so interesting how 2 people on the same cruise have such different reviews. Everything is subjective and I guess it's why there are so many choices out there.

I.e. cloth napkins....they should be banned from EVERY place. I have witnessed people of all ages blowing their noses or spitting into them and not just on cruise ships.

They are filthy disgusting and filled with germs and I always have tissues in my handbag or ask the server for paper napkins when we're at a restaurant with cloth napkins.

Sorry to hear about the noro virus outbreak...hope that the ship is scrubbed before we get on her. :o

Sorry to hear about the noro virus outbreak...hope that the ship is scrubbed before we get on her. :o

Was there a noro virus outbreak on the Eurodam this trip?

3Shelaghs - Thank you for your report, it was really interesting. Sorry there were some parts of cruise that were not so good.

Can I just ask if you bought the spa pass on board? I see your cruise was 16 days, and $559 for a couple seems little more expensive that I was expecting.

We bought the same pass. Yes, you buy it onboard the first day. We used ours extensively, usually twice a day. Given the cost of other things, like excursions, cabana rental, etc, it didn't seem unreasonable for a 16 day pass -as long as you really use it.

While I had a more favorable impression of the ship, I will agree with 3Shelaghs that the spa was a bit of a weak point. It seemed like a struggle to keep the hydro pool clean and at the proper temperature. And their "precautions" during the Norovirus incident were strange and didn't match the rest of the ship. (Removing all clean towels, including the hand towels in their restrooms)

BTW, other than the spa comments, I think the ship's crew handled the virus outbreak exceptionally well. They were able to knock it down within a few days of notifying passengers. it appears that someone brought something back from one of the ports. Stuff happens, and they handled it well. Seeing passengers refuse hand sanitizer made my head spin, but in spite of it, the ships protocols worked.

Thanks, ours is a 14 day sailing, and I was hoping it would be $400-450 ...but it seems like it may have gone up.

Hi 3 Shelaghs,

I don't think our reviews were that dissimilar, we just touched on different topics. We just didn't let some stuff we saw bother us too much. But its good that you mentioned them. We don't do the spa -but that sounds horrible. I wont be too quick to sign up for the spa on another cruise.

I'm adding my 2 cents for just another perspective (if anyone cares)

No flaming please, these are just raw honest observations... I too got off in San Diego Apr 24.

The Bad... all carpeting is in need of immediate refurbishment, and not just because of the Norovirus Outbreak. Stairs are esp worn and stained.

 

I too kept thinking the stair carpeting was dirty (I really notice that kind of thing), but I came to the conclusion, that it was a funny muddy colour, not dirt on our floor where we used the stairs. But yes, some areas needed to be replaced. Didn't really notice in the public rooms. I did notice some peeling wallpaper in the hallways, and duct tape holding a panel on the wall, but not really an issue.

All lounge area chairs, smell of old urine, esp Mainstage 2&3.

Seaview pool loungers need to be tossed, and a daily scrubbing to remove the daily smoke stack ash, would be great. The seaview pool stairs, are wood, and beginning to rot (many splinters) Much chair hogging in the Lido pool with no control despite signage.

Ha Ha Ha, agree the faded lounge chair pads have to go!! Looking past their due date. I don't really know how they smell as I only got one early in the cruise... they were always saved

;)

. The leather seats in the Mainstage were very comfy ....hee hee, I didn't notice a urine smell, but yes some chair odour.

Mainstage entertainment was a hit and miss, mostly miss,

The BB King Blues were outstanding, Billboard very good, and Lincoln Center awesome.

Yup, I agree completely. Also very good was the steel drum performer out by the pools. Meghan and Ted at the duelling pianos and BB Kings- what talent

On an end note, we had a wonderful cruise. The lack of entertainment suited us fine.

Us too! I see the shift in entertainment from the mainstage to the music walk, so no problems with that. I would call the music walk great entertainment for an evening.

. On a whole the staff, were friendly and respectful. Kudos to them for taking the abuse from my peers. I will add here, that being a retired geriatric nurse of 43 years, I was disgusted to witness the rudeness the older generation delivered to these employees. I can add my understanding of cognitive issues in this age group, but as a younger senior I was mortified to see this bad and usually disgusting behaviour from them daily. The staff did a great job of masking their feelings/reactions toward these racist disrespectful group.My guess.... the average age of this ship was about 82.

Yup, agree with this, I saw some of this too. Also,

Whenever I excused myself to pass a very slow-movng walker or scooter, which always took up the entire hallway, never to the side, I always did so with a smile. I couldn't believe how many grumpy looks I got. People would just scowl! Mostly the older women. I couldn't believe how many people wouldn't smile back.

Anyway, we had a great cruise. Our last cruise was on the Oosterdam before drydock and this ship is in much, much better shape. Furniture looked much newer. And the new Gallery Bar is gorgeous! A great quiet place to hang out.

If anyone has any questions, let me know.