QuangFre

I tried CO on the Koningsdam last month and below is a summary of my experience

 1) Having breakfast and dinner in a more private dining room with slightly better food ( mimosa for breakfast and one extra entry for dinner). Usually dine anytime with minimal wait time.

2) No specialty coffees offered unlike previous reports.

3) Slightly faster customer response.

Hope this helps.

I just finished the 13-day cruise on Koningsdam.

We love the food on this ship , specifically pan cakes and coffees on Grand Dutch, Nami sushi, dinner on CO, fries on Dive-In.

It was exceptional and better than all my previous 12 cruises , including the one on Celebrity Silouhette ‘s eastern med .

I am surprised this ship is not ranked in top 10 for food on Cruise Critic.

Definitely will return to Koningsdam soon.

Fast track pass is some priority pass you can buy to get expedited through passport control( if applicable) and security check.

This is available at Rome airports.

Fast track is a pass you can buy at Rome airport for priority line at security and passport check.

It costs 8 euros pp.

Yes I did book the flight without checking all the potential issues, mainly relying on my past experiences flying from Rome.

Having a reliable airport ride service and flying without check-in luggage along with Airport ‘s fast track pass helped a whole lot.

Otherwise, FCO is a mess and can be problematic for passengers without a lot of time.

Thanks Kazu.

I noticed the port authority sending someone over to inspect the ship and he did not show up until 7:08. This was perhaps the reason for the slow clearance.

I am currently at FCO airport waiting for my flight Swiss Air to Zurich.

The Koningsdam docked at 6 am but somehow was not cleared by Port Authority until 7:16 am. I really don’t know why it could not be expedited.

Anyway, I hired RomeCab to pick us up right on the dock and we got to FCO at 8:10.

I purchased Fast track voucher for 8 euros and got through security check in 5 minutes.

 I also did online check-in the day before so we did not need to check in the Swiss air counter. So we got to the gate at 8:30 with plenty of time to spare. The walk to gate D from terminal 1 is rather long, taking around 15 minutes.

So this is my actual experience taking an early flight out after the cruise.

I already signed up for CO upgrade but these are good info for future Koningsdam cruise passengers. Thank you NCFoodFan.

Great . That makes it an easy decision. Thanks for the info mcw331.

Hi Mike,

If we only have to pay for 2 people, we wouldn’t hesitate.

Thanks for the info.

Garrick

Thanks Penny49 and 3rdGenCunarder.

We are currently on a Oceanview cabin and this CO amenities list includes complimentary cabin upgrade subject to availability. This is the key factor for me.

Breakfast choice seems to be an added bonus as well  but the rest seems rather ordinary. 

Best regards,

Garrick

Hi folks,

I am seeking advice on whether to take up HAL ‘s offer of Club Orange upgrade, costing an extra $35 pp per day. My family of 5 is on the cruise for 13 days so that would cost $2275.

We will be on the Koningsdam next weekend btw.

This supposedly include complimentary cabin upgrade but such room may not be available though. This is my biggest concern.

Any pointer or suggestion from folks who have had direct experience with this upgrade option is much appreciated.

Thanks beforehand,

Garrick

Almost all cruise companies do not follow minimum wage requirements of different governments since their ships are from different countries . Many crew members from 3rd world countries like Indonesia, India barely make $3 an hour and they typically work 14-16 hours a day.

I think our gratuities more than cover their wages. Sad but true for these cruiselines.

Actually I had a flight out of FCO to Vienna last year and it was very fast. Check-in and security only took 40 minutes total.

It varies from day to day and we need to account for some time margin.

Hi cruisemom42,

Thanks for your idea. Yes our driver ( van) will pick us up from the dock and we won’t have any serious luggage(all carry-ons) so should be able to make it out fast.

It is doable but does not leave any room for error. 

From my previous disembarkations at this port, I always got out before 7 but those times were with Celebrity and NCL. Lesson learned !

Thanks again DC1979. Your info is really helpful.

Was it Naples the night before for your cruise. My flight is at 10 am to Zurich. I already booked taxi service from the cruiseport but still feeling uneasy. Probably will plan to disembark in Naples then.

Thanks . I am curious what the actual docking time was DC1979? Holland told me they can give me priority disembarkation so I presume they can make disembarkation soon after docking.

if not, I may have to disembark the night before in Naples.

Hi all,

Question to past Koningsdam cruisers who disembarked in Civitavecchia?

I am wondering what the actual disembarkation time for Koningsdam in Civi is? According to official schedule it is 7 am. This would be a bit late for my flight from FCO so I would appreciate any info from fellow cruisers ?

Btw, I called and Holland told me to contact crew staffs when boarding.

thanks

Garrick

Regardless of sneaky charges or not, NCL tend to attract bargain hunters more than other cruise companies.

It ‘s just not worth it IMO since their service is subpar and their food is so inferior, not to mention much smaller cabin. Same thing with RCL as well.

You should experience Celebrity or HA at least once to see the difference.

I recently sailed on NCL in Europe last summer. Before that, I did so with RCL and Holland. 

From my experience, Holland is far superior in food and service. No room service charges at Holland unlike RCL and NCL. Specialty dining on NCL is even inferior to regular food at Holland.