InTheWASide
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Posts posted by InTheWASide
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[quote name='cp556']I'm with you, KK ... I love grapes. But I didn't see them on the checklist for the fruit bowl! I always noted that grapes were the first to spoil, so perhaps that's why. I wonder if I wrote in "grapes" if that'd do anything .... I'll find out in two weeks :)[/QUOTE]
They always did for us carol. If you hand write something in, just like with the room service menu, if it's possible and reasonable they'll do it.
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Well it sure looks like it is glass panels.. with the palm enclosed.
Otherwise... why is it there? Just decoration?
That's my guess. And definitely not glass. I asked my husband who took these pics. He said the space duly looks amazing now.
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I keep going back to those pictures of the Explorers Lounge and can't figure out why they put up those gold "panels".
What is the purpose of them?
An attempt to make the room feel a little more private and less on display? That is a main hallway going right past it
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Disappointed with the enclosed glass around the Explorers.... probably to reduce noise. The 'palm leaf' decor is tacky. A pity the beautiful open lounge... the beautiful mural hidden. The palms on the glass so someone does not walk into the glass.
No glass.
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I cant recall how it looked before. When i saw it in person it didn't look any different than any other hal ship. What change are you noticing from other ships?
Here is Westerdam's vista lounge "before"
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Just returned from New Zealand cruise on Solstice. Ice bar is now working fine. We cannot speak highly enough about the Solstice as the service was excellent & we could not fault anything. Loved it so much we have already book for the 8 night South Pacific on Solstice.
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I'm so happy to hear this. I get on 5/8
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Holland America celebrated a construction milestone as the first steel was cut for the as-yet-unnamed Pinnacle Class ship that is due for delivery in February 2016. Stein Kruse, the company’s president and CEO, presided over the ceremony on Feb. 4 at the Fincantieri shipyard in Marghera, Italy, where the vessel is being built. Antonio Quintano, director of Fincantieri’s Marghera shipyard, co-hosted the event.
The 99,500-ton ship is the first Pinnacle Class vessel for Holland America Line and the largest ever built for the line. The steel cutting follows a period of design and development for the 2,648-passenger ship.
This is the 15th ship built for Holland America Line by Italian shipyard Fincantieri, which most recently constructed ms Nieuw Amsterdam that was delivered in July 2010.
I wonder what the last minute change was...
The original "we're gonna build another ship" announcement and Fincantieri's website say 99,000 tons and 2,660 passengers.
Now they've added 500 tons but removed 6 staterooms... Hmm...
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Nice pics. Thanks so much. The show lounge looks sharp.
Yeah it does. He sent a panorama of the Explorer's Lounge too. I hope someone can help with making these bigger because it really does look amazing
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Got these from my husband who was on the one night cruise last night.
Westerdam holds a very special place in my heart so I'm glad to see there are some little touches of modernization here and there.
Here are some pics from around the ship... I just wish I knew of a better way to get them on here larger (had to take picture messages and screenshot them so the phone app would select and upload them.) If anyone has any bright ideas, please do share :) :
The Dive In
That burger is the "Cannonball" by the wayThe Explorers Lounge
The Atrium/Pinnacle Grill
Explorations Cafe/Crows Nest
Vista Lounge
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LOTS of HAL employees boarding Westerdam today. Hope my husband has a great time on his overnight cruise
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Ron Bontenbal has been the HM/HD on Westerdam for a long long time and he's an incredible guy
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Appears as though Prinsendam layout changes next month.
Anyone up to date with changes ?
Reconfiguration of stateroom categories only
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I see this being similar to what Carnival has done with Redfrog Pub. They have some small plates for about $5.
$3.33
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there are still activities where pins, mugs, etc are given as prizes. They just go to the winners/winning teams instead of dam dollars and a redemption period at the end of the cruise
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Let's hope they don't end up charging for it; we heard that rumor ( :eek: ) on the Maasdam this month.
Considering Carnival doesn't charge for the Guy Fieri burgers and those things are INCREDIBLE it would be a really bad move if HAL ever decided to charge for burgers, hot dogs and fries.
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Not too much in here we don't already know, but looks like this will be fleet wide by the end of this summer.
I realized some people may not want to click the link, so here's the news in its entirety:
Holland America Launches 'Dive-in At the Terrace Grill'
ON 21 APRIL 2014.
Holland America Line is enhancing the Terrace Grill on its 15 premium ships and rebranding the popular lunch spot as “Dive-In at the Terrace Grill.” The outdoor bistro-style grill area by the ships’ Lido pool will feature new signature burgers, hot dogs and fries.
The first ships to open the new gourmet grill were ms Eurodam, ms Amsterdam and ms Maasdam. The remaining ships in the fleet will be opening Dive-In at the Terrace Grill throughout summer 2014. The areas will be decorated with new Dive-In signage and décor.
“We’re always listening to our guests and travel partners for ideas to evolve the dining experience on our ships with new concepts, and the Dive-In is an exciting enhancement to our culinary offerings,” said Richard Meadows, executive vice president of sales, marketing and guest programs for Holland America Line. “For a casual meal, Dive-In offers a delicious choice with a gourmet twist.”
All of the signature burgers are hand-formed, freshly made beef patties featuring Holland America Line’s secret Dive-In Sauce, chop-chop lettuce and sliced tomato on a toasted brioche bun in addition to other accoutrements. Guests can choose from burgers such as The Gainer, which is served with a mound of crispy frizzled onions; The Cannonball with Gouda cheese, applewood smoked bacon and sweet caramelized onions; and The High-Dive with cheddar cheese. Guests in the mood for chicken can choose The Back Flip chicken breast burger topped with guacamole and all the burger dressings, while vegetarians can sample The Freestyle, a vegetarian burger with grilled portabella mushroom topped with melting Gouda and cheddar cheeses, avocado and Dive-In sauce.
“I applaud the creativity and skills of our culinary team to come up with a tasty menu that could be a stand-alone bistro grill on land,” said Michael Smith, senior vice president, marine hotel operations for Holland America Line. “It’s been a fantastic hit with our guests so far and we know it will continue to be very popular.”
Signature hot dogs feature Nathan’s Famous all beef dogs, all served with Dive-In Sauce in a poppy-seed bun. The Dive-In Dog is topped with American-style mustard and a mound of crispy frizzled onions; The Dog Paddle is topped with sauerkraut, crispy bacon bits and German mustard, while The Dunkin’ Dog is topped with melty cheese sauce, pickled jalapenos and chopped red onions.
No hamburger or hot dog would be complete without Dive-In French Fries, and guests can order them three ways: traditional, topped with Dive-In Sauce or smothered in melty cheese sauce.
The existing Taco Bar will continue to be available with the Dive-In at the Terrace Grill. Guests make their own taco with handmade tortillas or hard taco shells and a selection of popular condiments and fillings including chicken, beef and pork.
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Not too much in here we don't already know, but looks like this will be fleet wide by the end of this summer.
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I think the change to automatic daily tips has greatly reduced the incentive for good service.
To the OP, I strongly disagree with this statement as the guests always have the option of lowering or removing the gratuities, and when gratuities are removed the form asks why. You better believe if reasons are given and those reasons involve staff, those reasons are looked into by ship's management
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It is not the names that make people sound pretentious.
Precisely. :D
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Yes. And to add to what was said, you can also get a bottle of water per card in addition to your cocktail order. Saves time. It is important to hydrate.
Good to know. Thank you!
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that's how I understood it would be. The officer was quite excited about it. But he got interrupted and couldn't carry on. time will tell I guess;)
This is what I have heard as well. Forgot all about those details compared to some of the other things being mentioned. Even some of the details of how the Guest Relations office is being reformatted were very intriguing and that's one of the spaces that the guests would probably care the least about.
Funnel design also sounds very interesting. While I don't fully understand it the way it has been explained to me, it is NOT the twin funnels like Vista/Signature Class as has been depicted to date
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Are they still planning a January 2016 launch?
Good question. Read all the press releases starting with the weird carnival corp one that combined a Hal and carnival new build in the same release rather than letting each brand have their own and it's odd from there forward. Those say Hal in late 2015 and carnival in early 2016.
But then there was talk carnival wanted their ship out ASAP so there was mention that they swapped building order which would move Hal to 2016. But any references to carnival vista (that's the name of their new ship) say early 2016. So whether Hal and carnival swapped but then carnival delayed a few months or they never swapped but Hal is bumped a few months I have no clue.
And ever since that announcement from carnival corp so very long ago, all we know is the main designers selected and steel has been cut. Even Fincantieri's website seems more sparse than usual
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Is this Chocolate Bar only on the Westerdam? Does anyone know if it's also on the Nieuw Amsterdam - we're on that ship in June and would just love to find one there! Maybe it's fleetwide??? The menus sound great!
Yes. Not on other ships. Only Westerdam and it's amazing.
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[quote name='Arwen']I have not received a survey, but after numerous cruises on HAL and other cruise lines, my one big request is for quality dark chocolate. What is that? Not what HAL sells which has the cheap corn syrup sweetener, and other additives. The super small selection of real dark chocolate they do carry is 'sugar free', but with a sweetener that does not agree with my tummy (or many others) and is a known 'side effect'.
I go through withdrawal for decent dark chocolate on long cruises...even with almonds or cranberries, whatever. I try to buy it in port.
I would be quite willing to pay top dollar for truly fine and delicious chocolate. However, I do realize that it would not bring in the same amount of money as fine jewelry or watches :rolleyes:[/QUOTE]
Go on Westerdam and check out the Jacques Torres chocolate seduction area. Amazing chocolates to be had there
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Westerdam - Glacier Bay Day
in Holland America Line
Posted
All of those on that cruise in June 2012. Plus cocoa and spiked cocoa as well as wine and cheese out on the bow
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