Least favourite HAL ship and why

[Boytjie]

Because that is where the likes of Diamond International, etc. come from. They do not belong in Alaska. According to local Alaskan business they have just increased the rents for the stores.:(

 

I bet they were not in the Caribbean originally, so they don't belong there either. ;) And I am sure they had the same effect there as in Alaska.

[kazu]

I too am curious as to why Kakalina didn't like the Westerdam. We are booked to take our first cruise on this ship in a little over five weeks. It will be our DD's and DSIL's first cruise and you're making me nervous now!

 

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We were on the Westerdam last Nov/Dec.

 

The crew were fantastic as was the ship. I also did a live thread - Never say Never - if you want to check that out.

 

MDR service was very good and we were very pleased (and we normally have migrated to the smaller ships:D)

 

I think you will be fine. Just go and have a good time.

[headhunterke]

I bet they were not in the Caribbean originally, so they don't belong there either. ;) And I am sure they had the same effect there as in Alaska.

 

Going a little off-topic here, but you're wrong about this. They were founded on St. Thomas mid 80's.

[Linda&Vern]

I don't have a least favorite HAL ship. Our favorite is Maasdam, followed closely by Westerdam. We've never had a bad cruise ... and thought the Veendam, Zuiderdam, and Amsterdam to be just fine also.

[Candiaccruiser]

Thank you, Kazu, I feel a lot better now! We are really excited about this trip on the Westerdam, what with it being DD's and DSIL's first cruise an' all, so it was nice to read your comments. Now to read your review!

 

 

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[HokiePoq]

:mad: Veendam, No aft pool, my favorite spot on any cruise. Also Rotterdam same reason. Went from my favorite to 2nd least favorite when the pool was removed.

 

Also Veendam due to the issues it was having when we were on it in 2007...plumbing smell, yuk. Also had engine problems the week before we got on and missed ports. Fortunately that was corrected and we had a good cruise other than the tropical storm we encountered.

Liked the Rotterdam but it would be better if it still had the aft pool rather than the useless area they installed on it.

All said, I would still sail on the Veendam again.

[maxie99]

32 degrees in Jamaica?

 

I was born at night, but not last night.

yes, i swear,, well maybe not 32 degrees--maybe 34 degrees--:rolleyes: it was Jan 1st year 2001 on the volendam and yes i did see ice forming on the puddles--:D--

[celle]

I have yet to be on a ship that I disliked enough to name and shame it here.

 

It's interesting that some ships named as most disliked are also thought of by others as their favourite.

 

I spent 27 days on Eurodam and, unlike others, I loved it.

[Boytjie]

Going a little off-topic here, but you're wrong about this. They were founded on St. Thomas mid 80's.

 

I stand corrected. :)

[arewethereyet]

yes, i swear,, well maybe not 32 degrees--maybe 34 degrees--:rolleyes: it was Jan 1st year 2001 on the volendam and yes i did see ice forming on the puddles--:D--

Lowest temperature recorded for the 2 weeks surrounding Jan 1, 2001 at Ocho Rios was 73 degrees.

[startwin]

I'm really hard-pressed to think of my "least favourite" ship. If I have to pick one I guess it would be the Zaandam, but I'd still cruise on her again. My favourite is the Volendam - which is someone else's least favourite. So it's all very subjective, and many other factors must come into play, such as what was happening at the time, did you have problems onboard, etc. Mind you, we had enormous issues on one ship but it's still one of my favourites.:D

[Wakepatrol]

I would say Westerdam. Would I sail her again? Yes but it was my least favorite. Don't really know why? Favorite is Amsterdam

[hal lover]

My least favorite would have to be the MS Eurodam. It was a 7 night cruise and it was just not for me. I like longer cruises! The crew was no where near what I have experienced on any other HA ship.

 

Favorite is still the MS Maasdam.

[chrispb]

Lowest temperature recorded for the 2 weeks surrounding Jan 1, 2001 at Ocho Rios was 73 degrees.

 

Sounds like Centigrade and Fahrenheit are both being used leading to some confusion?

 

But I can't understand ice forming on puddles - perhaps the "puddle" was in a glass along with the gin and tonic:D

[Hlitner]

The lowest reported temperature that has ever been measured in Jamaica is 39 degrees F (hardly cold enough for ice) and that temp was measured well up in the mountains.

 

Hank

[arewethereyet]

Sounds like Centigrade and Fahrenheit are both being used leading to some confusion?

 

But I can't understand ice forming on puddles - perhaps the "puddle" was in a glass along with the gin and tonic:D

If someone thinks ice forms in puddles at 32 degrees Celsius, they are beyond hope. ;)

[maxie99]

OK OK --guys,, I'll be back with my own research-- ---lol

[got2shop]

Candiaccruiser] I too am curious as to why Kakalina didn't like the Westerdam. We are booked to take our first cruise on this ship in a little over five weeks. It will be our DD's and DSIL's first cruise and you're making me nervous now!

 

No worries! We too are sailing the WesterDaM in Nov. on an Eastern sailing & this will be our 2nd time on her & we ABSOLUTELY luv her!! We have sailed on Nieuw AmsterDaM, EuroDaM(our absolute LEAST favorite) & NoorDaM.:) Happi cRuSiN

[Hlitner]

Candiaccruiser] I too am curious as to why Kakalina didn't like the Westerdam. We are booked to take our first cruise on this ship in a little over five weeks. It will be our DD's and DSIL's first cruise and you're making me nervous now!

 

No worries! We too are sailing the WesterDaM in Nov. on an Eastern sailing & this will be our 2nd time on her & we ABSOLUTELY luv her!! We have sailed on Nieuw AmsterDaM, EuroDaM(our absolute LEAST favorite) & NoorDaM.:) Happi cRuSiN

 

We will jump in here to make a few Westerdam comments. We have cruised on that ship 14 days last December and 35 days this past April/May...and had few problems on the ship. Our biggest complaint had to do with the new deck chairs which are absolutely awful. The only comfy deck chairs are the approximately 50 loungers located around the main pool. All the others have been recently replaced with "blue" chairs that only have 2 positions...flat and about a 45 degree angle. Neither is good for reading and our 35 day cruise (much of it in the South Pacific) those chairs were usually empty. Our only other "rant" was regarding the Taco bar (at a permanent location near the pool) where we usually found the hot items to be warm or even cold.

 

I should add that since DW and I love to spend time in the sun in loungers, these new chairs are a major issue. Many others could care less. But the lounger issue is bad enough that we will probably avoid doing any more warm weather cruising with HA until they make some changes. I have previously posted that the executives in Seattle should be forced to sit in those new loungers for a week...after which they will all be in the hospital with back issues.

 

Hank

[Candiaccruiser]

Thanks for your reassurances, got2shop and hlitner. As we are only going to be on the Westerdam for one week (This time, anyway! Who knows what the future may bring?) I guess we'll have to learn to live with the less-than-comfortable loungers... it could be a lot worse! That said, I do enjoy reading on the Promenade Deck, so I will have to wait and see how I get on!

 

 

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[Jalex63]

I wonder if the British Virgin Islands are nicer than USVI ?

 

Without Question. Spent many great vacations bare-boating in the British Virgins when I was younger. Twenty years ago crime was almost non-existent in the BVI. Although things many have changed over that period of time, I would be willing to bet that this would still be pretty well the case.

 

While we have not sailed on that many HAL ships, to this point our favorite is the Amsterdam. Don't have a least favorite.

 

As to ports, we dislike places like the Turks, Caymans, etc. as there is really nothing to do there if you don't want to spend the day on a beach or at a bar. That said, actually the worst port we have visited was on Guadeloupe at Pointe-a-Pitre. This had to be the most stinky, filthy place I have ever had the misfortune to visit. However, it might not have been as bad as Limon, Costa Rica. We did a tour there and therefore did not see the town except to drive thru on our way to the rain forest. I have never seen trash piled as high as it was on the side streets of that town. However, the rain forest was great!

[SeattleCruiseLovers]

It's funny.. DH and I got home yesterday from the Westerdam. We kept telling each other throughout the cruise, "This is nice, but it's no Oosterdam!" (We were on the O in June.)

 

We found the Westerdam to be worn and even dirty in many places. The Westie's Vista auditorium was not very nice, while the Ooster's was very comfortable. Our Westie stateroom had no cold water (took 2 days for them to fix; and they did give us a bit of a refund, as well as another room to shower in, and a Canaletto dinner). The food and coffee were significantly less quality than the Oosterdam. Also, service was nowhere near as good as the service on the Ooster. (And the Oosterdam had the days-of-the-week rugs in the elevator!) And.. there was no chocolate night on the Westerdam! :(

 

However, the Westerdam's captain was way more personable, outgoing, and attentive. He seemed to genuinely enjoy interacting with passengers, and we appreciated that. We also had a much better time overall on the Westerdam cruise. Still.. next time, we'd choose the Oosterdam (or at least any 'dam that has a Hydropool!).

[brazilgirl]

It's funny.. DH and I got home yesterday from the Westerdam. We kept telling each other throughout the cruise, "This is nice, but it's no Oosterdam!" (We were on the O in June.)

 

We found the Westerdam to be worn and even dirty in many places. The Westie's Vista auditorium was not very nice, while the Ooster's was very comfortable. Our Westie stateroom had no cold water (took 2 days for them to fix; and they did give us a bit of a refund, as well as another room to shower in, and a Canaletto dinner). The food and coffee were significantly less quality than the Oosterdam. Also, service was nowhere near as good as the service on the Ooster. (And the Oosterdam had the days-of-the-week rugs in the elevator!) And.. there was no chocolate night on the Westerdam! :(

 

However, the Westerdam's captain was way more personable, outgoing, and attentive. He seemed to genuinely enjoy interacting with passengers, and we appreciated that. We also had a much better time overall on the Westerdam cruise. Still.. next time, we'd choose the Oosterdam (or at least any 'dam that has a Hydropool!).

 

Not too happy to hear this...:( hope the dry dock spruces things up before we sail on the Westerdam next June!

[Candiaccruiser]

Oh dear, SeattleCruiseLovers, now you've got me worried all over again! Maybe I would be smart to stop reading these boards until after our vacation so that I'll be able to form my own opinion... but I know I won't be able to help myself!

 

 

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[Candiaccruiser]

I have to add that we've never been on a HAL cruise that we didn't enjoy! We had some serious problems on one of our vacations on the Maasdam but we didn't let it spoil our time aboard. We've sailed on her again since then and loved her.

 

 

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