Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

Just home from Eurodam. Some thoughts...

DFD1

By DFD1,
in Holland America Line

Recommended Posts

DFD1

DFD1

Posted
Posted

Just home from Eurodam Jan 7/14. These are random personal impressons...

 

The ship...Eurodam's interiors are understated elegance and speak of quiet and quality. They are not bright, glitzy, or high fashion.

 

The ship is in excellent condition inside and out. The hull was spotless. We saw no damaged interiors, no shabby or torn fabrics, no stained carpet. She looked just fine. The elevators were all working and reasonably fast.

 

The Lido restaurant is too small for a full ship and was often crowded, but the food served there was just fine.

 

The virbration...it is real, but not fatal. It is most evident midship in an area about where the lido pool area transitions into the lido restaurant. It was not noticable in our staterooms aft on deck 7 or on the lower level of the dining room on deck 2. I did notice it in the Crow's nest where the ceiling panels vibrated and made a noise.

 

I am surmising that the vibration could be a problem for those in midship staterooms, but that's just a guess.

 

This cruise.....was not typical of a HAL cruise. There was a group of about 300 to 400 Phillies Fans on board. They completely changed the dynamic of this cruise. They were younger, louder, and much more active.

 

They filled the casino and every bar and lounge every night...except the explorer's lounge/Adagio (sp) Strings. They did not go near them. I'm sure they made this a very profitable cruise for HAL.

 

They closed the Crow's Nest at least three mornings for special group events. Otherwise, they did not close any other areas that I recall.

 

The Dining Room.......Lower level early fixed dining. Table for seven in the center of the room. Very noisy and loud. Not easy to talk in a normal voice. However, we had excellent service from our wait staff and the food was attractive and tasty. We had no complaints about either. We ate in the dining room 4 nights out of 7.

 

Tamarind....Superb. Lived up to its reputation....except there was a table near ours with staff, not officers, having diner not properly dressed for formal night, and they were loud. We asked that they quieten down and they did.

 

Canaletto(sp).....Very good. We had a nice evening there and the food and service was excellent.

 

The weather....Captain Bowland said it was the best in several weeks. We thought it was perfect.

 

This is our second cruise on Eurodam. She's a fine ship and we had a very good week on board. We still prefer the S and R Class ships. However, in his remarks, Captain Bowland indicated the smaller ships in HAL's fleet will be the last ones of this size. No more ships their size will be built by HAL, but he also promised that none would be larger than Nieuw Amsterdam. I hope he is right.

 

We still like HAL and expect she is doing the best she can in this economy.

 

All of this is my opinion. I'm sure others will differ. That's okay.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
seadrifter

seadrifter

Posted
Posted

DH and I were part of that Phillies group and we had a wonderful time. There were about 380 of us and many of us were not of a "younger" age group. No matter our ages - we love our Phils:D.

 

We noticed little vibration; only occasionally and what I have come to expect on any cruise ship.

 

We dined in Pinnacle Grill twice, Tamarind twice and Canaletto twice and enjoyed every meal.

 

Our day at Half Moon Cay was spectacular - perfect weather. We had the yellow cabana and liked that location.

 

Loved the Eurodam and have already booked next year's Southern Caribbean Phantastic Voyage.:)

Link to comment
Share on other sites
KirkNC

KirkNC

Posted
Posted
Just home from Eurodam Jan 7/14. These are random personal impressons...

 

The ship...Eurodam's interiors are understated elegance and speak of quiet and quality. They are not bright, glitzy, or high fashion.

 

The ship is in excellent condition inside and out. The hull was spotless. We saw no damaged interiors, no shabby or torn fabrics, no stained carpet. She looked just fine. The elevators were all working and reasonably fast.

 

The Lido restaurant is too small for a full ship and was often crowded, but the food served there was just fine.

 

The virbration...it is real, but not fatal. It is most evident midship in an area about where the lido pool area transitions into the lido restaurant. It was not noticable in our staterooms aft on deck 7 or on the lower level of the dining room on deck 2. I did notice it in the Crow's nest where the ceiling panels vibrated and made a noise.

 

I am surmising that the vibration could be a problem for those in midship staterooms, but that's just a guess.

 

This cruise.....was not typical of a HAL cruise. There was a group of about 300 to 400 Phillies Fans on board. They completely changed the dynamic of this cruise. They were younger, louder, and much more active.

 

They filled the casino and every bar and lounge every night...except the explorer's lounge/Adagio (sp) Strings. They did not go near them. I'm sure they made this a very profitable cruise for HAL.

 

They closed the Crow's Nest at least three mornings for special group events. Otherwise, they did not close any other areas that I recall.

 

The Dining Room.......Lower level early fixed dining. Table for seven in the center of the room. Very noisy and loud. Not easy to talk in a normal voice. However, we had excellent service from our wait staff and the food was attractive and tasty. We had no complaints about either. We ate in the dining room 4 nights out of 7.

 

Tamarind....Superb. Lived up to its reputation....except there was a table near ours with staff, not officers, having diner not properly dressed for formal night, and they were loud. We asked that they quieten down and they did.

 

Canaletto(sp).....Very good. We had a nice evening there and the food and service was excellent.

 

The weather....Captain Bowland said it was the best in several weeks. We thought it was perfect.

 

This is our second cruise on Eurodam. She's a fine ship and we had a very good week on board. We still prefer the S and R Class ships. However, in his remarks, Captain Bowland indicated the smaller ships in HAL's fleet will be the last ones of this size. No more ships their size will be built by HAL, but he also promised that none would be larger than Nieuw Amsterdam. I hope he is right.

 

We still like HAL and expect she is doing the best she can in this economy.

 

All of this is my opinion. I'm sure others will differ. That's okay.

 

Thanks for posting a review. Glad you had a good time. We are doing our first Signature class ship (NA). I expect I will be the same as far as preferring the S & R class but we wanted to give it a try.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
CathyK2

CathyK2

Posted
Posted

Thank you so much for the review. It sounds like you had a good time and were able to keep everything in perspective.

 

We will be taking the Eurodam in June for a Baltic Cruise. Would you be able to tell me what the specialty dining places are, what they specialize in and the cost? I understand the free Italian place, but I think someone had said there were two others. I know you mentioned one. Comments?

 

Cathy

Link to comment
Share on other sites
seadrifter

seadrifter

Posted
Posted
Thank you so much for the review. It sounds like you had a good time and were able to keep everything in perspective.

 

We will be taking the Eurodam in June for a Baltic Cruise. Would you be able to tell me what the specialty dining places are, what they specialize in and the cost? I understand the free Italian place, but I think someone had said there were two others. I know you mentioned one. Comments?

 

Cathy

 

There are two extra charge specialty restaurants on Eurodam. Pinnacle Grill is $25 pp and Tamarind is $15 pp. We enjoyed all our dinners and especially loved Tamarind, which was fun and offered unique (to us) choices. The young women who waited on us were great.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
DFD1

DFD1

Posted
  • Author
Posted

seadrifter has it right. Tamarind is exotic and tasty. The food presentation rises to an art form. The beautiful young women who serve make you feel like royalty. We were a group of 7 and we had a delightful time.

 

We no longer go to Pinnacle because of two bad experiences on two different cruises a few years back....and I find it hard to tolerate condesending waiters...and that's what we found both times. I've dined all over the world and they were the worst. Life is just too short.....

Link to comment
Share on other sites
CathyK2

CathyK2

Posted
Posted

Thank you SeaDrifter and DFD1 for the info on the two other restaurants. I've been on the Westerdam and Veendam, but since we just booked the Eurodam this last week, I haven't even looked at a deck plan yet. I like HAL and wanted to go to the Baltic, so it sounded like the right choice.

 

You both are saying good things about Tamarind. Would you be able to tell me what you had to eat there? Thanks.

 

Cathy

Link to comment
Share on other sites
DFD1

DFD1

Posted
  • Author
Posted

CathyK2, It's hard to reproduce the menu selections from memory. The menu is exotic, but delicious, and the servers spend a fair amount of time interpreting it for you.

 

The shrimp was the best I have eaten in years. The beef was an inch and a half thick and you could cut it with a fork. The salads and soups were interesting and exotic.

 

The deserts were architectural masterpieces in their presentation, unlike anything on the ship. Completely different and very good.

 

You will not be disappointed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
seadrifter

seadrifter

Posted
Posted
Thank you SeaDrifter and DFD1 for the info on the two other restaurants. I've been on the Westerdam and Veendam, but since we just booked the Eurodam this last week, I haven't even looked at a deck plan yet. I like HAL and wanted to go to the Baltic, so it sounded like the right choice.

 

You both are saying good things about Tamarind. Would you be able to tell me what you had to eat there? Thanks.

 

Cathy

 

The Tamarind menu is complicated and you really do need the servers to explain it.

 

Here is a link to HAL's website where the dinner menu is shown. Go to the bottom of the page and click on "View selection of samples from the Dinner menu."

 

I'm glad we had dinner there twice - once is definitely not enough;).

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Himself

Himself

Posted
Posted

Thank you for taking the time to write your "scouting report" on the Eurodam. I am sorry to hear about the vibrations. I hope they can remedy the problem. I was on her a year ago last fall and I remember no vibrations. I enjoyed reading your prompt report.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
DFD1

DFD1

Posted
  • Author
Posted

Angie, there is a "Chocolate Extravaganza" around the Lido pool one night that is an incredible sight to see. I believe it is after departure from St. Thomas.

 

The entire area around the midship pool is turned into the most amazing display of chocolate deserts of every ilk. There is both a dark and a white chocolate fountain as well as chocolate swans and animals, and dozens of chocolate cakes, pies and pastries.....It's a chocolate lover's dream.

 

I hope you have a great time on Eurodam.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...