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Another Noordam Review Feb 26-Mar 8, 2011

Cruizer Bill

By Cruizer Bill,
in Holland America Line

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Cruizer Bill

Cruizer Bill

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By Cruizer Bill and Cruizer Diana:

We recently completed a 10 day cruise on the Noordam, travelling to the Southern Caribbean, and here is our review. We are 57 and 61 years young and this was our 11th cruise, fourth on HAL. Coincidently, our cruises on HAL ships are in chronological order – our first two cruises were on an “S” Class ship The Ryndam, our third cruise was on an “R” Class Ship the Volendam, and now our fourth cruise was on a “Vista” Class Ship, the Noordam.

The improvements made to the Noordam are amazing! It was like HAL had given us a questionnaire and asked us what we would like to see improved over the “R” Class ships and incorporated all the changes into the Noordam. We REALLY like the expanded Lido Atrium with lounge chairs in the shade. Same for the extended shade area on the Aft Pool are of the Lido deck. We also like the outside elevators mid-ships. Other great features were the expanded library left right where it belongs, a main Show Lounge that is expanded but still maintains the warm character of the smaller ships, and the artwork with the warm, traditional sailing theme throughout the ship. This is the tenth ship of any kind we have cruised on and is by far our favorite so far; even better than the Celebrity Millenium Class ship we have sailed on.

The ship is in excellent condition. It is very well maintained; no complaints here at all. We saw people working to keep Noordam in good shape at all times.

Embarkation – We arrived way early because we were turning in a rental car and did not want to get hit with a late charge. We showed up at 10:20am and could not board the ship until after 12:00pm but that was entirely our doing. HAL now has early arrivers wait until the rooms are ready. So as soon as they allowed us to board, we went straight to our room and dropped off our carry-on bags. Our luggage arrived the first day by 1:30pm. Passengers who showed up at noon breezed right through the check in process, so HAL deserves perfect marks here.

Check-in facility notes:

  • Restrooms are on the left---just as you enter the building—before you are given the health form and before security.
  • Restrooms are also in the second waiting room—after you check in and get your cruise card, but not in the 1st waiting room after security/before check-in.
  • Refreshments (coffee, water or punch, cookies) were available in the 1st waiting room, just past security (none in the 2nd waiting room).

Food – The Lido ran very smoothly, much better than our previous cruises. I think HAL has listened to us and organize the Lido to be easier to gain access to the desired food and they found how to speed things up. Food quality ran from good to excellent and I was very satisfied. Breakfast in the Lido is absolutely fantastic—great selection and very tasty; lunch was good, but DW would have preferred a few more healthy lunch options!!! The stir fry was all pre-made and with thick sauces. The Ryndam had a made-to-order stir fry that DW would sure like to see on the Noordam!!

We have seen the top-end food quality at the evening meal go down in the past 20 years due to cost controls but that is certainly reflected in keeping the cost of cruising reasonable – which it certainly is. We had anytime dining and enjoyed it. We had two nights in the MDR where we showed up at 6:00pm and were not able to make the 8:00pm show, so we started showing up at 5:30. People wanting prime steaks can visit the Pinnacle Grill. We went to the no-fee Canaletto restaurant and enjoyed it very much, especially the fine view from the 9th deck!

Service – Our room stewards were excellent! Every request was cheerfully accommodated, they kept our ice bucket full and bathroom clean and well supplied. They were so good we tipped them extra. As mentioned above, service in the MDR was at times too slow but we cured this by showing up earlier. Service in the lounges and on deck was spot on. The HAL crew is excellent, that is what brings us back.

This cruise experienced high winds and rough seas on the day we were scheduled to visit Grand Turk. The Captain decided it was just not safe to enter the narrow channel leading to Grand Turk and we instead slowly made out way to Samana, Dominican Republic. We had the port charges for Grand Turk reversed on our onboard accounts and the ship threw us a Rum Punch party that afternoon with free drinks and the HALCats providing music. We still had fun, thanks!

Passengers – This was the oldest group of passengers we have cruised with so far. I would guess the median age was about 75 with more people over 80 than under 55. I would also guess the mix was 60 to 65% female/ 35 to 40% male. It appeared Canadians were 35 to 40 percent of the passengers and the vast majority of passengers came from the East Coast. We saw fewer than 20 children on this cruise and they were almost invisible.

Entertainment – We enjoyed the shows and especially the Piano Bar with Jimmy Maddox. Music was geared towards our age group. HAL is reaching out to the Baby Boomers now in their entertainment and we appreciate this very much. I’m a music fan and enjoyed the “Name that Tune” in the Piano Bar each evening. I won three times and came in second twice. Jimmy Maddox is so good that a group of five women booked this cruise so they could listen to him. They sat on the stools at the piano and seemed to be enjoying the cruise more than anyone else!

We also like playing group trivia four or five times with the CD Shane and our friend Carole (OnthegoGirl).

Diana attended several of the Digital Workshops and enjoyed them very much.

Our cabin was excellent! This was our very first verandah and we are now spoiled! The cabin was laid out just the way we like it and was very clean. The bathroom had the excellent Elemis shampoo, conditioner and body wash in convenient dispensers in the shower. Our best cabin ever!

We signed up for Unlimited Laundry at the Front Desk the day we arrived. It cost $7 per day; $70 for the 10 days. We set the laundry bag on our bed with the paperwork filled out each day and it was returned to us washed and folded the next day like clockwork. We loved it!

Value for the Money – Since this cruise was after the holidays we got a great deal. Also, the Vista Class ships have LOTS of verandahs on them. We were able to get our verandah cabin for the cost of an ocean view cabin. This was an excellent bargain! When comparing the price of this vacation to a land vacation where you have to pay for a hotel, meals and rental car, this is considerably less expensive! This cruise was quite a bargain and we would do it again without hesitation.

Bottom Line – We have a new favorite ship!

Disembarkation – Our disembarkation was lightning-fast. We signed up for the four-hour Land & Sea Excursion/shuttle to the airport. We met in the Ocean bar at 8:00am. Disembarkation was scheduled for 8:15 and by 8:20 we were off the ship. We walked through the terminal, picked out our bags, went through customs, and by 8:35 were seated on the bus with our luggage stowed under the bus! We had a wonderful bus-and- boat tour of Ft. Lauderdale and were dropped off at the Ft. Lauderdale airport by 1:00pm.

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Bill S

Bill S

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Hi Bil!

Enjoyed reading the review and learning that Diana and you had a much better experience on the Noordam compared to your experience on the Volendam last year. Verandahs have a way of doing that! ;) Congrats on the Name That Tune wins!

 

I agree with your fondness for the Noordam. We sailed on her a few years ago, and she is definitely our favorite Vista-class ship. Cheers!

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Kathyh1313

Kathyh1313

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Thanks for the review Cruizer Bill. It makes me even more excited for our cruise on the Noordam 3/18.

 

A question for you....did they hold the master chef dinner in the dining room during the cruise?

 

Any special hints, tips or advice you have to pass along that would make our cruise more enjoyable? What's a "do not miss"?

 

Thanks- Kathy

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Cruizer Bill

Cruizer Bill

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Kathy,

Yes, they did have Master Chef's dinner on the last sea day. It was OK but I am not a fan of it. I prefer a regular dinner over the napkin-waving.

 

My favorite time was sailing on the Jolly Pirates in Aruba. You can book from their web site, what good fun! We went snorkeling 3 places and had a fun, silly time on board with a good BBQ lunch.

 

We rented a car with Carole - Onthegogirl - in Curacao and drove to 5 different beaches. The best was Porto Marie Beach - good snorkeling and a great beach!

 

Unfortunately, we could not stop at Grand Turk. You should be able to go there as it is very unusualy to miss it

 

You will love this cruise!!!! Great ship, great crew and great itenerary!

Bill

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Himself

Himself

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Bill I am a lover of the R Class ships. I have never travelled on the Noordam--YET. However, as the Amsterdam is the best of the R Class--and it its--so too my many scouting reports tell me the the Noordam is the Best of the Vista Class ships and in my opinion the Nieuw Amsterdam is an improvement over the Eurodam and that is going some because the Eurodam is a very nice ship.

 

Thank you for sharing your fine review with us.

 

Himself

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Kathyh1313

Kathyh1313

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thank you for taking the time to write your review

 

sad to hear that the noordam brought back the master chef dinner after dropping it for a couple of cruises

 

KK, I agree with you about the master chef's dinner. I had hoped to hear it was not held. :( We already have the Pinnacle and Le Cirque booked for different nights. Maybe we will make a reservation at Canelletto for that last night.

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