jmkennett

On 5/23/2021 at 4:11 PM, saryj said:

Just wondering if anyone has experienced two ships in port at Princess Cay?  Is it crazy crowded?

Not Princess Cay, but been to Half Moon Cay a couple times with two ships.  It’s not ideal.  Way too many people to handle it properly.  Same thing with Grand Turk.  Have been there a few times with two ships and just not fun.  Hope this doesn’t become a trend.  

19 hours ago, ICUQT said:

I think it is about time to let the adults back in the room.  I don't want government making choices for me. To old for that. Just give me the information so I can make an informed decision. The CDC is ruining the cruise industry with these stupid mandates. To much power and control in the hands of a few.

100% agree.  Who would want to go on a cruise with these types of ridiculous restrictions?  The CDC has become a useless joke, and our government obviously has it out for them, and seems hellbent on destroying this industry in the United States.   If I were the cruise lines I would leave for other countries.  Most passengers and crew will be vaccinated, so either the vaccines work (they do) or they do not.  About time people stand up to this nonsense and get on with life.  But of course, we can all fly, stay in hotels, go on trains, go to sporting events, etc., but cruises are demons.  Enough.  

On 3/23/2020 at 6:42 AM, NukeTim said:

Just wondering what others are thinkings.  Looking at the HAL site I see that the April 15, 2020 sailing of the

Maasdam to Mexico can be booked (we were scheduled for the April 1 sailing).  Is it realistic to think that

cruising will restart the second half of April?  I'm thinking of booking a cruise in May but will it really 'go'?

I know there is a 'cruise guarantee' but I'm still waiting for my FCC from the canceled cruise.

I want to go tomorrow and we have one planned this summer for Europe and Iceland. Not much I’d rather do then go on a cruise, but doubtful it will happen.  The UK is talking about six months in quarantine.   It pains me to say,  but I don’t think anything will start up again until at least late Summer and that is pushing it.   I think anywhere outside the Caribbean will be cancelled for this year.  2021 might be more optimistic.
 

I just don’t see it how they start up until there is a proven treatment or vaccine.  The World is on edge.  Nerves will be high.  Every time there is an announcement from the captain, will there be fear of a problem?  If one person has symptoms, will ports refuse to allow the ship to dock?  Will everyone be quarantined?  Start all over again with this craziness?   It’s a nightmare and I don’t know if anyone has an answer.  This has to be what is keeping Mr. Ashford up at night.  I feel terrible for him.  Met him a few years back and he is a good man.

i don’t worry about catching the virus.  I get it’s serious, but I’ll take my chances with Sweden’s approach. I think the World has gone nuts, but that is a different conversation. My worry would be ending up like most of the other ships over the last couple weeks.  Not sure I want to risk it.   Not being able to get home.  Stuck at sea.   Stuck in quarantine.  Etc.  That is what the cruise lines need to overcome and I’m not sure they can do it in the near future.  And, I hate it.  Wish I had an answer.  Watched a few sail out of FLL yesterday to nowhere,  empty of passengers, and I wanted to cry.

On 3/18/2020 at 4:37 PM, TAD2005 said:

When a cruise ship would develop 10 - 20 cases of Noro-virus,  it would be news somewhere, and gone the next day.  The coronavirus seems, so far, more contagious but the final numbers will not be in for many months.   But when this all settles down in a few months (hoping) and cruises resume, what will happen when one guest onboard a ship has to be taken to a hospital for any kind of respiratory disease at a port ?   That news will spread like wildfire, and the government health ministers in the next ports on the itinerary will start getting nervous.   They certainly do not want to be the "guy in charge" who allows that ship to dock, so to save his own butt, he will block docking of that ship.   That news will also travel like wildfire in our social media society.  Ports next on the itinerary will think, "what does that health agent know that we don't", and to play it safe, the next port will be closed to that ship.  And the domino effect takes over.   I hope this doesn't happen, but the media just loves to embellish bad news about the cruise industry, mostly to generate ratings and clicks.   We have an Oct 2020 Rotterdam cruise and a Sept 2021 Ryndam cruise booked.   Right now, we are wondering if this will be winding down in time for a July 3rd final payment.

 

I also think the Walmart comments by member Donald from China are despicable, and politically motivated.  That kind of trashing of people just because you don't fit within their social structure does not belong on CC.  Do it on Twitter or Facebook, if that kind of trash-talk makes you feel superior..

That is my biggest fear.  Don’t know how cruise execs get past this.  Government officials are so quick to react, it’s scary.  No thought of consequences, just act to protect their image.  It’s going to be a PR nightmare for cruise lines until we have a vaccine or a viable treatment.  So frustrating, because every time you go on a cruise, it’s Russian Roulette that if someone coughs, they’ll want to quarantine.  This will be really tough for cruise lines to overcome.

On 3/21/2020 at 5:07 AM, NMTraveller said:

Here is what it would take for me to start cruising in the near future.

 

1.  Show that they get it.  Provide dining rooms, theaters, and public places with social distancing until corona is a thing of the past.  

 

2.  Demonstrate that they have some of the cleanest ships at sea.

 

3.  Test their employees for corona so that the crew are not a source of the spread.

 

4.  The crew should not be housed in cramped quarters.  House them in cabins if need be.

 

I am in good heath,  but I do not wish to spread Corona or be quarantined for two weeks.  Cruise ships should not be a petri dish for Corona.

 

I am rebooking my May cruise for next year...

I agree.  I think capacity will be limited.  I would guess at least a 30% reduction to start, which would lead to less crew as well.  I’m betting a majority will be in and out of Florida and East Coast, sort of going back to how it was after 9/11.  

I can’t imagine there will be any possibility of cruises in the Med, let alone anywhere in Europe until 2021.  And that is a big maybe.  And if in 2021, probably no more than one or maybe two ships per line.  I think Europe is two years away from any recovery for cruises.  Obviously, Italy is a mess.

The biggest hurdle to getting back will be what happens if someone exhibits symptoms of CV while on some random sailing?  That is what has to keep cruise line execs up at night.  Does it all start over and ban ships from entering ports?  Quarantine everyone again?  Shut down society.  Government officials will be trigger happy.  That will be the hardest thing for the public to get over when making the decision to get back to cruising.  Who wants to end up quarantined or having a cruise to nowhere?

I don’t know the answer.  All I know, is that the economy needs this to end, sooner rather than later, and some common sense will have to prevail to get people back to work.  And that includes getting the travel industry moving again.  I work in a big resort and just watched 1000 people get furloughed.  One week, we were fine, the next, this.  Lots of decisions being made in our society, without a plan for those decisions.  

It pains me for all the crew on all these ships, sitting in limbo.   Cruising is my favorite way to travel and probably my favorite thing to do.  Just sucks!

Just a few minutes ago, CNN reported that Australia and NZ are closing to almost all foreigners.  What now?  

I’m sure all of us are wondering, how does this end for the cruise lines?  How does it end for everyone?  In particular, how do the cruise lines start back up?  Things are closing every day, and the longer it’s closed down, the harder it is to open back up.  

Tell me you opinions.  If you have any inside knowledge in the cruise industry, medical field, government, etc., even better.  

I really have no clue, not optimistic, and really upset, that it will be probably a lot longer than anyone thinks.  How does it happen?  Who’s the first to blink?  Seems to me, anytime someone sneezes the government will want to panic and close everything down again.  At some point, in the near future, things need to start opening, as the economy can’t sustain it.

i could see it starting with limiting people above certain ages from traveling.  Short cruises.  No more than a week, mostly Caribbean & Mexico.  Possibly limiting capacity, not that it will be an issue.  Temp checks.  Perhaps required medical approval from doctors and eventually proof of vaccine for CV.

Your thoughts?

It's an absurd hold when you have a quad with kids.  They still require $60 per person, even for young kids.  I was recently on a 10 day on the Koningsdam and they wanted a $2400 authorization, even when I had already prepaid excursions, specialty dining, drink packages, and $1000 in cabin credit.   I refused and deposited cash along the way if needed.  About $200.  Sorry, but my kids are not going to spend $1200 on soft drinks.  Some common sense needs to prevail for people who have prepaid most of their ship board expenses, and especially those with kids.  Princess and Celebrity do not require this steep of a hold.  

A couple sites have published the 2021 World.   Whether it is accurate or not remains to be seen.  What I've seen on a site is into the Amazon, Devil's Island, across to Aruba, through the Canal to Puerto Vallarta.  Then straight across the Pacific to Hawaii, Guam, Palau, etc.  Japan, Beijing, Shanghai, Honk Kong, Vietnam, Singapore.  Then the normal Indian Ocean ports, Mumbai, Dubai, Oman, through the Suez.  Istanbul, Kusadasi, Mykonos, Athens, Naples, Cadiz, then across to FLL.

22 hours ago, Himself said:

These seem to be Typical HAL menus over the past year.  Mot as many choices as in the old days.  it used to be there were always three soips each evening: a broth, a cream soup and a cold soup/  There were also more entrees on each menu.

I was told on a recent sailing that the cold soups have been eliminated.  

On 3/27/2019 at 7:46 PM, RMLincoln said:

That is tragic.  Let's all hope it was a one-time oversight.  m--

Got off the Koningsdam on Wednesday.  No goodnight chocolates the entire cruise.  Told we were not in a premium enough category.  In a VB balcony.

19 hours ago, seamist said:

Tonight’s menu and pics.  I did not take any photos of dessert. DH ordered the mango creme horn and I the banana crisp, already photographed upthread a ways.

39 minutes ago, seamist said:

Think I’m enjoying the food too much, sure I’m gaining weight 😬😬😬🙈.  Beef broth diet when I get home!

Great to sail along with you.  Thank  you for all the info and pics.  Just got off the Koningsdam for a great 10 days.  Awesome ship and cruise. 

Seeing the $10 extra entree charge, I've noticed a few other differences in the menus & daily activities paper.  On the K, we had three appetizers every night on the menu.  Noticing mostly two per night on the Euro.  Seems like another cutback.  No more cold soups on the K either and I've seen none on your Euro menus either.  Guess they have been taken off of the menus.  The extra $10 for an additional entree was not on the K. 

The daily paper is different on the K and has been even more simplified.   Gone is the the info from the past about the captain, officers, general ship info, etc.   Very little port info was given as well.  It's basically an advertisement for shopping.  Have a great rest of your cruise.  

5 hours ago, bdabob said:

We sailed on the Edge as invited guests Nov. 25 - 27. Our cabin was a C3 #12242.

The Infinity verandah was quite small and from the bedroom it had a "tunnel" feel to it.

I have bet my wife that Eden won't last; more attuned to Carnival than Celebrity.

Having all information on an app worked well for my wife because she carries her phone everywhere. I only carry my cruise card when cruising. One big improvement on the app would be to include the operating hours of the restaurants etc. To get that info now you have to click on all the individual restaurants .

Dividing the main dining room into four different venues is a great idea. Virtually no lines and service was less harried and rushed.

We thought the food was back to the high standard we first experienced on Celebrity 15 years ago. We have been underwhelmed with the food quality on Celebrity for the last 3 - 4 years but we thoroughly enjoyed our dining on the Edge.

The staff were all extremely courteous and helpful.

 

Couple questions regarding the balcony.  Did you like it better than a normal one or is it too confining?  When you close the inner glass doors and open the outer balcony window, does the AC stay on or is it only off when all the windows/doors are open?  Is the privacy screen like a curtain?  Looks like it is on the railing window?  Seems a little strange in the evening.  Does it feel like you are sleeping with the balcony "in the cabin" and get the "tunnel" feeling as you describe?  I'm 50/50 on this new concept.  Thank you!

Thank you!  As cool as this new stateroom concept is, I would miss having the ability to open up the balconies when having a cabin next door with friends or family.  Sometimes we have three or four in a row.  We tend to sit out there a lot, especially in the Caribbean, and it's nice to have cocktail hour with everyone while watching a sail away.   While I have obviously not experienced these rooms, they seem a little closed in.  

My apologies if this has been answered.  Do the Infinite balconies have doors (partitions) that open in between the balconies "outside", as on most every other cruise ships?  Doesn't look like it.  If we have two cabins or a group of cabins, we like to have all the doors in between the balconies opened, so we can walk between the cabins, without having to go outside to the hallway.  I realize this one is different because outside can be inside and vice versa.   If not, then we obviously have to go with connecting cabins. 

In the connecting cabins, where is the connecting door?  Right next to the balcony, somewhere else in the room, or like it is on the S class ships (the vestibule)?  Thank you!

On 11/18/2018 at 12:15 AM, Despegue said:

Back on topic...

 

*Good:

The Artwork,  most which is actually art, and not replica antiques like most items onboard older vessels, is much better than on previous vessels.

The decoration is more contemporary, but still quite Americana Classic, NOT modern or European contemporary.

The Lido Pool area is gorgeous

Showlounge is unique and a great concept.

Grand Dutch Cafe is fantastic.

Cabin airco can be switched off ( finally!)

NY deli and pizza is a great spot.

 

* The Bad:

The Icecream station closes at 14:30h. or 15h. And from then-on, the only icecream available is the Gelato for a surcharge.

No more self-service lemonade dispensers. 

 Standard Cabins are slightly smaller, with no more adjustable table. Room service becomes unpracticable.

 

* The Ugly:

Some decoration Still has some way to go to become truly contemporary luxurious without  cheap retirement-home reminders.

 

You mentioned no self-service lemonade dispensers in the Lido.   Are there any self-service drink dispensers besides water and coffee in the Lido, as on the other HAL ships?  The other ships usually have a variety of juices, (lemonade, cranberry, etc), coffee, & of course, water.  If not can you still get them and are they only served to you?  Appreciate the review.

All good, bad start ship wasn’t ready for service. What’s new. New TVs in all cabins, not interactive. Slice and salty dog on top deck with extended menus. Pizza is very good. New carpets in hallways. New muts screen. All new carpeting in green on open decks. New tiling round centre pools. New beds and new bedding.

Thank you for the update. When you say TVs are not interactive, there are no on demand movies, documentaries, travel shows, etc., correct? Just the normal 10 or so channels? Just off the Regal and the TV was great. Nice to pick some random travel show before falling asleep. Also, does Sabatini’s have the new menu?

Just off a 12 night on the Westerdam. The Gala nights were the two sea days, which were days six and nine.

We have sampled the different types of pizza on various HAL ships. Most recently on the Oosterdam in November 2016, they had the usual hot pizza stone on the port side of the Lido, near the Pasta Bar. Not too bad, acceptable, We have heard that recently renovated ships have a NY Style Pizza bar where you custom order a personal sized pizza and you get a pager similar to the Dive-In burger joint. We will be on the Westerdam in October for a Med/TA 25 day cruise, including 8 long days crossing the Atlantic. What is the Pizza setup now, after the April drydock in Palermo ?

Just off the Westerdam yesterday. The pizza is still served in the pasta area and is available throughout the day. It was self serve, under hot lamps. There were three types. Cheese, Pep, and one other. In my opinion it was marginal at best.

The Lido needs some help. Always a fight for tables during peak hours. Sometimes you would have to do a couple roundtrips to snag one. It just can't handle the amount of people using it. It's also understaffed. I feel sorry for the crew working it because they were really doing their best, but could not keep up with the demand. Tables would sit dirty for a bit of time and during peak hours, this was an issue, as every table was needed. HAL needs to figure somehow figure this out.

Drink machines were often out of the drink or out of order. They have cut back on the variety of juices as well. Mostly just water, iced tea, and lemonade. Sometimes a few others. Never knew day to day. Omelet station only had one, maybe two people working it. Same with the crepe and waffle area. Always a line at both. One waffle iron does not cut it.

Anyway, if you have any other questions, I'll try to answer.

Regarding your review point number 10, we had a very similar experience to you in 2012 on Nieuw Amsterdam with VERY bad smell on the balcony. It ruined 7 days of our 10 or 11 day cruise. We are avid balcony users, hence we booked an unusually large balcony stateroom. If you wish to see my original post and others responses, here's a link to my post back then. Believe me when I say we had a very frustrating week. We were not believed by a number of crew. We were promised some compensation and were told this was all logged when we would get in touch. We soon found out afterwards that nothing was logged and we had to file a case with HAL HQ. They EVENTUALLY gave us a future 2 category upgrade, but not without a fight.

 

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1690113

Thank you! I will read it. We have had probably seven different higher ups in the cabin to see for themselves. They got to smell the problem and I believe they very much realize the issue. I think they are trying to figure out what to do. It's been very disappointing. They did not do nearly enough to this ship during dry dock.

Thank you for all the pros and cons.

We were on the Westerdam in 2016. DH is not a fussy eater but he hated those pre-made sandwiches. They are made too far in advance and no matter when we had lunch, they were always soggy.

We watched many people take a bite and then put the sandwich down and walk away to find something else to eat.

For years HAL has been cutting back on staff everywhere on the ship. Sad.

Good to know! It looked like a good idea, but I only had a bite of one. It was ok. Nothing memorable. They seem popular and if good, they are a good idea, but if not, then that nixes that idea!

Thanks for the info.

You are welcome!

Currently on the Westerdam (see my review). Ship is beautiful but the cabin balconies and a lot of the decks are in bad shape. I'll bet some cargo ships have better looking decks. I'll post pics that should embarrass HAL.

I had another thread, but for some reason I couldn't post a reply.

Strange Internet things happening.

I'm going to try and get pics posted, If the internet will cooperate. I also apologize for lack of paragraphs and errant spell checks. Doing some copy and paste.

We finally have a little down time. This is a marathon cruise, with nine ports and two sea days, plus boarding day, so not a lot of time on the ship, as say on a Caribbean cruise.

A little background. I'm a three star, with five HAL cruises in the last few years (Euro twice, Noordam, and NA) and some others earlier than that. This is cruise 48 for me, so I have a lot to compare. Been on all the major lines, all around the World. The Regal Princess, 10 nights, over New Year's was our last (it was great). I work in a five diamond rated resort, so I have a lot of insight on the luxury travel sector.

I'll give an early pros and cons. I'll still take the cons instead of being at home. However, there have been some issues. I have to be honest and not sugar coat it and there is one big problem that I will talk about at the end of this. Everyone may have a different situation in a different place and time or on the same cruise. These are my observations.

Pros

1. We are on a cruise and that beats about anything else and the ship is nice. Great itinerary. Some of the popular stops and some out of the way spots. I wish HAL and other lines would do some more like this with the larger ships. Livorno, Monte Carlo, St. Raphael, Ajaccio, Almeria, Ceuta (Spanish Morocco), Marseilles, Sete, and an overnight in Barcelona at the end.
   
2. Great dining room and stateroom staff. Couldn't be nicer and more efficient. The food has been very good.
   
3. My wife has ordered in room dining for the mornings and it has consistently been on the early side of the time frame. A great plus when you want to get off the ship on time.
   
4. Love the redesign to the piano bar. The dueling pianos work well and there is so much more space. I have a complaint about this as well.
   
5. Finally have a stateroom TV with on demand options. Nice flatscreen instead of the old small ones in the corner of the desk. Lots of movies and TV shows to watch before bed.
   
6. The replacement lounge for the nightclub is beautiful, however, this could also be a con depending on your opinion. Personally, not sure the point of it. Haven't seen anyone in it. At least before, it was used as a nightclub. Now, late night is in BB King's Blues.
   
7. You can now access a lot of things on your phone, tablet, etc. Account info, dining res, etc., etc. No chat option as on Princess.This would be nice to have to find friends and family.
   
8. Public areas are spotless with a lot of new carpet.The ship is beautiful.
   
9. Some pros for the Lido. Great salad bar.Make your own or they will make one of around four on a menu. The grab and go sandwiches are a great idea.Dive In is the best burger at sea, but a bit slow.It's understaffed.The guys working there are doing the best they can with the volume. Breakfast has been really good as well. There are some cons for the Lido.
   

Cons

1. Explorations. I've read a lot of opinions on this. It looks nice, the interactive stuff is cool, but why did they mess with a great lounge? The Future Cruise Office and Shore Excursion office took the place of the cafe. Now, you get coffee at the bar. I haven't seen any live music and it really has no identity. Last time on the Eurodam, we had a guitar player at night, lights were dimmed, and it was great. Now, I feel like I'm in a university or some hi tech interactive thing outside an exhibit at EPCOT. Maybe some entertainment will show up the cruise, but doesn't look like it. The "library" is almost not existent. They could have put all this stuff in the atrium and left it alone. Just a stupid decision.
   
2. Daily program. Very simplistic which is not all bad, but there seems to be lacking info. It lists events and only posts hours of some of the dining venues and a few lounges. No spa, shops, etc. I miss the old one. No info about the officers, etc.
   
3. They also have the interactive screens around the ship and some info ones on shore excursions, etc. They are great, if they are correct. Last week they showed all aboard in Livorno was 7:30. It was 6:30 in the paper and on the itinerary. This mistake CANNOT happen and could cause someone to miss the ship. I called on it and they said they would let the broadcast team know. They also listed us as going to Villefranche instead of St. Raphael. Incorrect as well. At least know when and where we are going.
   
4. Atrium. Doesn't really affect me, but it's just strange. Looks like something out of IKEA. Not exactly the luxury HAL look and doesn't go with the rest of the ship. Seem like they are trying to be too hip. As said before, they could easily have the Explorations stuff here.
   
5. Hours of a lot of things are just strange. I'll explain the Lido below. I realize this is not a late night ship, but you have this great new piano bar, and it's not open every night. We are Ceuta today, with a day at sea tomorrow. Having the day at sea tomorrow generally means the evening on the ship tonight will be busy and people will be out later. So, why has the very popular piano bar closed tonight, again? Makes no sense. There are two piano players in this lounge. One of them can't play tonight? It was also closed a few nights ago. I've never seen this on a ship or on HAL before.
   
6. Dining room and Lido are very understaffed. Our waiters are awesome. Some of the best ever, but they need help. They have not complained at all, but it so obvious they are stretched really thin. The last two nights our assistant was called away and our waiter was doing everything himself. I felt terrible for him and he felt bad. Both the Lido and main dining room need to add about 10-20 percent more staff. When the wine steward has to help serve, you know there is an issue. HAL corporate should be ashamed with the situation they put their staff in, at least in the ship's dining room.
   
7. Lido hours. It's always been this way, but why not just keep it open and transition from breakfast to lunch, lunch to dinner, like Princess and Celebrity? If they can do it, so can HAL. Dive In closes at 5PM. On Princess the burger place closed at 11PM. Lots of people will be coming back at different times due to several late nights in ports. Make it convenient. It's so frustrating. Wish HAL would do a version of the Princess 24 hour International Cafe on all ships. Heck, HAL has basically taken away the Explorations Cafe, so that's one less option. The other night in Monte Carlo we sailed at 11PM. Couldn't make it back for 8:15 dinner. Returned at 9:00. Lido closed at 8:30, except for some pasta and pizza. It reopened at 10:30. Why not just keep it open all the way through? There were many people looking for food. Seems they do more work closing it down rather than just staying open all the way through.
   
8. And more on the Lido. Haven't been on the Westerdam, so not sure how much was done to the Lido during dry dock, but it seems the same as the Noordam and the NA. I heard they did some changes on the Euro. This space just cannot handle crowds at peak time. Constant fight to get a table. Not enough staff to clear the tables. Not sure of the solution, but more staff would help. Drink machines have been cut back. Used to have a couple different juices in the machine. Now, it's iced tea and one other flavor. Fresh OJ is gone. Taste fine, but it's, I think, the same Vitality brand as the other juices/lemonade. Completely random as to what Juice you will get. Sometimes it's odd, such as every night at dinner it's been orange juice. My opinion, but I don't drink OJ with dinner, such as a steak or Lasagna. I usually eat in the restaurants, so it doesn't affect me. Just found it weird. Princess and Celebrity have such better buffets IMO.
   
9. Staterooms, at least mine, need some TLC. This is not the cabin steward's fault. It's a capital improvement need. I would have thought this would have been accomplished in dry dock. Balcony floors need to be redone. Wear and tear on the floor and rust in a lot of areas. The table in the cabin looks like a dog chewed on it. Trash can looks as old as the ship. Minor things yes, but attention to detail is important.
   
10. This one is absurd and has affected a week of our cruise and also for several of our neighbors, who are also complaining. Up to day seven we had an almost constant sewage gas smell on our balcony. Not a slight odor, but a nauseous sewage gas smell coming out of a drain under our railing. It basically made the balcony not useable. They needed to solve this a lot quicker than they did. I know they are trying and mechanical things happen, but I didn't pay for a balcony to not be able to use it. Not pleasant. After four days we finally got past the I'm sorry sir and maybe have someone who will keep us informed and offer some compensation. Sailing out of Monaco the other night it was unbearable and we had to go to another deck to watch the sail away. It was affecting Upper Promenade, starboard side, aft. Not trying to be unreasonable and I'm trying to be patient, but just want to enjoy my balcony. The balcony is in dire need of a refurb. I will post pics later, but HAL should be embarrassed that they have this kind of upkeep. It's rusty, stained, and looks more like something you would find on a cargo ship. They obviously did not take care of this in dry dock. Some areas of the outdoor decks above the aft pool are in dire need of help. When I post the pics, I hope HAL is embarrassed. They should be.
    

I don't want to come across negative and we really are having a good time, but there are things that really need addressed.

Once I'm able, I will post some pics of the good and bad. That's it for now. I'll try to answer any questions.

Where are the public computer work stations, originally in the Crow's Nest/Explorations Cafe, located now? Deck 3 forward, starboard side in between the Main stage and Merabella shop? Thanks mucho!

Hi. Yes, there are a few public computers on Deck 3, near Merabella. There are some computers in the Crow's Nest / Explorations but I think they only access the New York Times.

It's a whole other conversation, but IMO, they've ruined what once was the best lounge/bar on the ship. Have no idea what they were thinking. Hoping they don't ruin this lounge on the other ships.

You can still sit up there and get a drink, but there is no music or entertainment. I think it will become a forgotten space. Really kind of pointless. The cafe is now at the bar and it just a regular bar. The cafe was replaced by the Shore Excursion desk. The could have just left the Shore Excursion office where it was or could have built a Grand Dutch Cafe in the atrium, but they did neither.