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Westerdam Cruise Review - November 8th, with Master Chef group aboard

GmaPajama

By GmaPajama,
in Holland America Line

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GmaPajama

GmaPajama

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I apologize for the lateness of this report. We had some health issues to deal with when we got home, and time has been sort of precious. Most issues are resolved, and life goes on.

 

We loved being aboard the beautiful Westerdam again. As I've mentioned before, she was our first HAL cruise - and the one we always refer to as our "one perfect cruise". When we sailed her in 2006, we had a full suite but didn't know about any of the perks. We did use the Neptune Lounge but didn't read the paperwork enough to know about the Pinnacle Grill Breakfasts, or many of the other benefits. We simply enjoyed the glory of the ship. Now, all these cruises later, we finally boarded her for a second time. She was in amazing condition, and looked just as new as she did the first time. We had our first Aft Wrap cabin, and we absolutely loved that huge verandah, even though the location on deck 5 made the Neptune Lounge pretty much useless. It was much easier to pick up the phone than to hike 2 decks and half a ship to get to the Neptune in person. In fact, we used the front desk a couple of times - because we were in the area anyway and it would save us a trip to the Neptune. But we didn't book this cabin for the Neptune, and the lack of a constant cookie supply didn't hurt us one single bit.

 

We were in adjoining cabins with first time cruisers (DD and SIL) and very much enjoyed being able to experience everything anew through their eyes. We had planned to not use our special check-in privilege in order to stay with family ... but, surprisingly, as we were entering the building a HAL lady asked DD if she had priority boarding. When she replied "no", she was given a card and told "now you do" - very nice! They loved every minute of the cruise and have booked another for April, with several of their friends. Did we create another cruise addict? We'd like to think so.

 

So, back to the Cruise itself. We found not one single thing wrong with the ship, and we looked specifically so I could tell you all about it. Captain Van Eerten always referred to her as "The beautiful and elegant Westerdam" and we couldn't agree more. Our cabin furniture had been updated somewhere along the way, and we liked the fabric on the sofa and chairs so much more than the plasticy-leathery stuff we usually see. I suppose it's a lot more difficult to keep clean, but it was SO comfortable for sitting. Our cabin steward, who asked to be called "You", was amazing. He worked alone and we liked not having to decide whether to split our tip or to double it in order to cover two stewards. One day we went ashore and failed to remove our Privacy Please tag. We didn't discover that till nearly 5pm when we went to prepare for dinner. You had totally respected our wishes, and the room was undisturbed. We called the Neptune to see what could be done. You was on his 4 hour break, but two other stewards showed up within 5 minutes to take care of our cabin. Perfect service, in my book!

 

The Master Chef Group. I believe they ended up with just under 600 people in this group that was a part of our cruise. HAL gave them the aft pool area for sailaway, and that was the only time the group had any impact upon the general population of the ship. If it weren't for their special lanyards and tote bags, I wouldn't have even known they were a group. The biggest of kudos to HAL for the way they managed to accommodate such a large group and still not inconvenience us ordinary cruisers. Several of the dinner menus offered a Master Chef creation ... but, truthfully, I thought the HAL offerings every bit as enticing. Mind you, I don't follow Master Chef so may have no idea what I'm talking about here - but the HAL offerings were pretty darn good.

 

Mark Pells was the Hotel Director, and he's come to recognize us. Not by name, but as people he's seen before. No surprise there, as he's been the Hotel Director on our last 4 cruises - which were on 3 different ships. Almost made us feel like stalkers, and we had a good laugh with him over that. Cruise Director Jonathon Rogers was really good. He was everywhere, and I do mean everywhere. He must sleep once a week while the ship is being turned over in Ft. Lauderdale. He was always energetic and entertaining.

 

The one thing I think I can say was iffy was the Wine Tasting. DH doesn't ever drink, so I used his complimentary pass to take DD. Because I don't normally have anyone to go with, it was my first time attending. Truly, I thought it sort of hokey. The Sommelier made some corny jokes and gave out some bottles of wine, but I'd expected some serious guidance with the 5 samples we were served. He just sort of told us when to drink each one and when to freshen our palates with the cheese and crackers - but no real details about the wines. I'm far from a wine snob, so perhaps he was actually giving some kind of guidance and I just didn't recognize it. Nonetheless, it was fun to spend that time with my daughter.

 

The ports were excellent, as always. There were 6 ships in St. Thomas, with 26,000 people. I expected it to be awful, especially since we were the ship to be anchored. Turned out being anchored was the best possible way to do it. We were tendered directly to town, and the flea market area. No long pier to hike and no bus to take. A friend had asked me to pick up a pants set that is sold only at the St. Thomas flea market, and it couldn't have been easier. We did a catamaran tour there, to Honeymoon Beach on St. John. It was a HAL tour and made for a perfect relaxing few hours. DD and SIL loved the ride through the mountains to get to the marina, though I don't much like those scary mountain roads.

 

Entertainment. We frequented the BB King Blues Club, as well as the nightly shows in the Showlounge. We'd enjoyed a BB King group on an earlier cruise, and this group was just as good as the other one. They are very good at what they do, and we hope to see them again. The HAL Singers and Dancers had some new, and fascinating, shows. Most amazing was the new video-staging, or whatever you call it. The projected backgrounds were as close to 3D as humanly possible, and we often felt we were right there - wherever "there" was intended to be. Stage props were kept to a minimum, which made the impact of the staging quite intense. We VERY much liked this new idea.

 

So ... was this another "perfect cruise"? I don't think we'll ever recreate the wonder of that very first Holland America experience - but this cruise was pretty close. Actually, all our HAL cruises have been pretty much amazing. Now that this cruise is behind us, we get the fun of deciding where to go next. Maybe my review of that one won't be so wordy. Forgive me if I got carried - but it's easy to do with a truly amazing cruise. Questions?

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Crew News "Live from...." Rare

Crew News

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......Our cabin steward, who asked to be called "You", was amazing. He worked alone and we liked not having to decide whether to split our tip or to double it in order to cover two stewards.

 

Thanks for your review. We had the same cabin steward, You, in July aboard the Westerdam. He was one of our best and also honored our inadvertent "Privacy Please" tags. Just as you reported, our room was also cleaned within a few minutes of our noticing our error.

 

Glad you you liked the "Westie" and agree that she can create new cruise addicts.

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GmaPajama

GmaPajama

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OH! I forgot to mention Half Moon Cay and our Cabana with Butler. We don't get the butler for just the two of us anymore ... just TOO much food. We did it this time because we wanted DD and SIL to experience it. Especially SIL, who thought 24 room service was the best thing in the world and took full advantage of it to get by between the regular meals. :)

 

This was less than perfect. The butler didn't come to our cabin till a full hour after tendering had started. When we called the Neptune, wondering where he was, we were told we could go ahead and get to the cabana by ourselves and he would find us there. No, I don't think so. Part of the butler experience is being escorted ashore ... so we waited. Once at the cabana, everything was wonderful. We enjoyed a beautiful day at the beach and perfect service by our butler - who was normally an assistant dining steward in the MDR. When we discovered his normal job, I have to admit I was amazed at how well trained he was for butler service. Everything was great, till just as the main meal was being served. We were told our butler was needed back on the ship and another would take his place. The second butler was from the Pinnacle and very pleasant. He met our every need, but the continuity was lost. Truly, both butlers did a perfect service - it was simply the fact that we had to change in the middle of the day that sort of put us off. Even so, it was another amazing day and we were thrilled to do it.

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IRL_Joanie

IRL_Joanie

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.....<SNIP>......E]

 

Donna, There is no need for any apologies due to length of review or time between cruise and this review:)

 

Absolutely loved your review and have to say that now you know why we so love the Aft Wrap Suites aka "Our Penthouse."

 

Way You, Oh my goodness, brought back the memories of his impeccable service to us!! Love him and feel he is the top of the line when it comes to taking care of us.

 

Glad to hear that the health issues you referred to are better, and that you have created some new cruisers:)

 

Joanie

Edited by Host Walt
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GmaPajama

GmaPajama

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Thanks for posting, Donna. I'm looking forward to being on the Westerdam in April. Been on the O and Z and didn't really care for them.. I'm not a fan of the Vista ships. Am only doing the April 2015 cruise because of the chance to meet so many CCer's.

Ya know, Gail, I wasn't much a fan of the Vista ships either. Till I encountered the Noordam. She redeemed the entire class for me, and I find more to like each time I sail one of them. Each of them is special in it's own way, and I'm hoping you'll be surprised by the Westerdam.

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sail7seas

sail7seas

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Wonderful review, Donna.

 

Sorry to hear you had health issues but hope all is now resolved well.

Westerdam is a lovely ship and I'm happy to hear she is still in excellent condition.

 

Thanks for taking the time and effort to share with us. No review is ever too long for me. The more the better.

 

Welcome Back. :)

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GmaPajama

GmaPajama

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Thanks everyone. I'm glad you're enjoying this review. I should probably have mentioned I left the wine tasting with a little case of the giggles. That happens when you don't drink often enough. It could also be why I didn't get the guidance I was looking for. He probably gave it and I didn't listen. :)

 

Carol, I know you won't mind if I share our "personal joke"? It will always be one of my fondest cruise memories. Here goes ... We had just met Carol and Sam, and hit it off from the very first hello. Carol wasn't going ashore at HMC, which was our first port, and Sam was. We invited him to stop by our Cabana and share in all the snacks. We didn't see him all day. That evening, we ran into the two of them and Sam seemed a little surprised when he looked at us. We told him we'd missed seeing him at our Cabana, only to discover he thought he'd spent the day with us. Turns out we were such new acquaintances, he wasn't sure he could recognize us. He stopped by "a" Cabana and the people were so kind he sort of assumed that was us. So he spent the day (on and off) with people who had no idea who he was, but welcomed him anyway. It had been a very long time since I'd laughed so hard.

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IRL_Joanie

IRL_Joanie

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Thanks everyone. I'm glad you're enjoying this review. I should probably have mentioned I left the wine tasting with a little case of the giggles. That happens when you don't drink often enough. It could also be why I didn't get the guidance I was looking for. He probably gave it and I didn't listen. :)

 

Carol, I know you won't mind if I share our "personal joke"? It will always be one of my fondest cruise memories. Here goes ... We had just met Carol and Sam, and hit it off from the very first hello. Carol wasn't going ashore at HMC, which was our first port, and Sam was. We invited him to stop by our Cabana and share in all the snacks. We didn't see him all day. That evening, we ran into the two of them and Sam seemed a little surprised when he looked at us. We told him we'd missed seeing him at our Cabana, only to discover he thought he'd spent the day with us. Turns out we were such new acquaintances, he wasn't sure he could recognize us. He stopped by "a" Cabana and the people were so kind he sort of assumed that was us. So he spent the day (on and off) with people who had no idea who he was, but welcomed him anyway. It had been a very long time since I'd laughed so hard.

 

Absolutely LOVE-It-heart-Button.jpg.e209a9fecf06cf66696df1164c0cc717.jpg !!!

 

Joanie

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SilvertoGold

SilvertoGold

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Donna

 

We've been to so many of the Wine Tastings that we can say that it all depends on the Cellermaster.

Some are very serious, some can do it in their sleep and you can tell.

 

Hokey is the best adjective I have heard to describe the whole show sometimes, and a show it can be, rather that a serious wine class.

 

Thanks for the review: a very enjoyable read!

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