just home from Nieuw Amsterdam

[RClark6369@aol.com]

Hi all,

Just now home from the first western Caribbean sailing of the season for Nieuw Amsterdam. Let me start by saying- the ship is immaculate. I was on this ship for her inaugural year and now 5 years later , she is still a beauty. I looked hard for wear and tear and found very little. Now for the not so good --

Is HAL loosing its way? I don't get it!! I love HAL for some of the following reasons: great passenger space ratios, civilized, elegant atmosphere and great cabins. Those qualities are still evident ; however, the edges are crumbling quickly around these great qualities. I love HAL ships, but face it, these are not wow factor ships. HAL ships cannot compete with the more recent builds; therefore, HAL should rely on some core qualities to over come that problem. Service, food quality and overall experience should be knock out spectacular..... Well , they ARE NOT!!!

Cuts in crew numbers, food quality and cuts in on board programs are shocking in my opinion. The waiters are rushed in the dining room. Room stewards do a poor job on cabins because of workload demands. The food was ....okay. Some hits, but many misses. Even the Lido deck BBQ has been scaled way back.... I was saddened by these things. The ship was so heavily discounted in price and they still did not sail out at full capacity.

HAL, I hope you are listening. The current path you are headed down is not a good one.

I am a 2 star mariner. Will I sail with HAL again?? Yes, of course I will. Am I worried that HAL is in jeopardy of loosing my cruise dollars?? Yes, of course I am.

 

You must fix this idea of .......cutting in order to gain. No business in the U.S. has survived with that business model.

 

By the way , if you are looking to book on Koningsdam, check out the passenger space ratio, this is not going to be a traditional HAL experience........

 

Signed -

concerned and worried for HAL and it's great staff

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for reporting about your experience on the Nieuw Amsterdam.

Yes -- we have noticed many changes in HAL in all departments.

Very sad to see HAL going down hill.

[CruiseReg]

Did you happen to note the prices for unlimited Internet? We're on the NA December 6th.

 

Thanks for your quick review!

 

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

[colonialinnkeeper]

We, too, have noticed the changes especially in the menu and dining room staffing. We were on the Statendam in July and were disappointed in not being able to have a Mariners lunch on embarkation. The menus have been condensed and offerings of "usual" things missing, the "always available" not always being available, etc. We have noticed stateroom staffing not up to the usual (although on this trip our stateroom steward was one of the best we have had in a long time). In trying to be everything for a wide variety of potential new cruisers, they are losing their niche and the things that keep bringing their loyal cruisers back. Even though we have loved HAL and been very loyal to the brand, we have booked on another line for the spring cruise for the first time in several years to see what is out there. We are hoping that these messages from so many people will finally reach those that have a say in how HAL will move forward.

[boom_boom]

I think HAL management simply doesn't care about the veteran cruisers. They are aiming at a younger group, not used to the quality of the past. Management appears to think that us old fogies are running out of time and money, so why bother to give us what we became used to.

I took the same Athens to Rome cruise in October that i did 2 years ago and the quality of food and service (other than cabin steward) was clearly mush less. Can't find a wine steward on the Lido. Can't the food order right on 3 of 5 nights in MDR.

We either accept that HAL's decline will continue until it becomes the Motel 6 of cruising or we find a different cruise line that still believes in quality. I'm willing to pay for GOOD service and GOOD food every day and every night; so I'm sure I can find a cruise experience that matches my expectations.

[Pia1913]

uh uh........ not happy reading this. We are on the NA 12/13; that is of course if they ever give us a cabin. We came back to Holland (3*)last year (Westerdam) after being a mostly Princess cruiser (almost 1000 days with them). We were thoroughly pleased with everything aboard and assumed this next experience would be the same. We are easy to please when it comes to food, but room cleanliness is mandatory. I will remain optimistic.

[rothbury]

Let's face it....us, repeat senior cruisers aren't the revenue generators they need. We go to bed earlier so we're not in the bars drinking. We don't buy the trinkets onboard because we have learned they are not a good deal and we very seldom take the HAL sponsored shore excursions because we have learned we can do better on our own. All of these factors affect HAL's bottom line. I'm not advocating we change but without revenue you have to make cuts somewhere. I would say on our last cruise that maybe 1 in 10 tables would order wine at dinner. HAL's response to that was to reduce the number of wine stewards. Same thing with waiters and waitresses around the ship. The lido is packed and the dining room is 3/4 full. HAL will never admit it but I would be willing to bet that revenue is down and we're "paying for it" with less service. Think about it.....Do you ever see senior citizen discounts on cruises? I haven't. I was told by a TA one time that some cruise lines and resorts don't care about senior's business. They prefer the 30 - 40 year olds with children that will spend money on themselves and the children.

 

Not trying to be controversial. Just telling it like I see it.

[colonialinnkeeper]

uh uh........ not happy reading this. We are on the NA 12/13; that is of course if they ever give us a cabin. We came back to Holland (3*)last year (Westerdam) after being a mostly Princess cruiser (almost 1000 days with them). We were thoroughly pleased with everything aboard and assumed this next experience would be the same. We are easy to please when it comes to food, but room cleanliness is mandatory. I will remain optimistic.

 

Pia,

 

We have never had a problem with our cabin or bathroom being anything less than very clean. And, we have found this to be the case around the ship. It seems more a staffing and dining room cutting corners problem. Despite cabin stewards having more work, our steward on the Statendam was amazing and our cabin was always in perfect condition. I think you will have a great time on your cruise. Let us know your impression when you return.

[cptlapcat]

uh uh........ not happy reading this. We are on the NA 12/13; that is of course if they ever give us a cabin. We came back to Holland (3*)last year (Westerdam) after being a mostly Princess cruiser (almost 1000 days with them). We were thoroughly pleased with everything aboard and assumed this next experience would be the same. We are easy to please when it comes to food, but room cleanliness is mandatory. I will remain optimistic.

 

Also not happy reading this. We are on the NA on 12/6 after a 10 year HAL absence. Snagged a last minute Neptune Suite SC Guarantee at an outstanding price. Now the good news. Yesterday (12 days out) I got an email from HAL that they upgraded me to a Neptune Suite SA. So far so good.

 

I loved HAL 10 years ago and wanted to give it another chance. I will let you know my opinion but I am optimistic. This is the first time I have ever gone Guarantee but at the price I figured the worst Neptune Suite will be pretty darn good.

[dakrewser]

I've been hearing that HAL has "gone down hill" for the past 15 years. Each year the moaning and groaning seems to get worse. It's been 3 years since my last HAL cruise, but I'll be boarding the NA this coming Sunday. I imagine I'll have a good time, as I almost always do. But - we'll see.

[cruz chic]

Let's face it....us, repeat senior cruisers aren't the revenue generators they need. We go to bed earlier so we're not in the bars drinking. We don't buy the trinkets onboard because we have learned they are not a good deal and we very seldom take the HAL sponsored shore excursions because we have learned we can do better on our own. All of these factors affect HAL's bottom line. I'm not advocating we change but without revenue you have to make cuts somewhere. I would say on our last cruise that maybe 1 in 10 tables would order wine at dinner. HAL's response to that was to reduce the number of wine stewards. Same thing with waiters and waitresses around the ship. The lido is packed and the dining room is 3/4 full. HAL will never admit it but I would be willing to bet that revenue is down and we're "paying for it" with less service. Think about it.....Do you ever see senior citizen discounts on cruises? I haven't. I was told by a TA one time that some cruise lines and resorts don't care about senior's business. They prefer the 30 - 40 year olds with children that will spend money on themselves and the children.

 

Not trying to be controversial. Just telling it like I see it.

 

Please don't make sweeping generalizations. I would put my bill up to any newbie.

[foodsvcmgr]

To the future NA cruisers, don't worry too much. Read my detailed report on Oosterdam on the "Just off Oosterdam Nov 16" thread. To be sure some things encountered are less than stellar, but overall we still like the HAL experience, especially considering the major jump in price point to find something significantly superior. We are also on NA the end of January and fully expect a positive experience if not necessarily perfect.

[cruz chic]

uh uh........ not happy reading this. We are on the NA 12/13; that is of course if they ever give us a cabin. We came back to Holland (3*)last year (Westerdam) after being a mostly Princess cruiser (almost 1000 days with them). We were thoroughly pleased with everything aboard and assumed this next experience would be the same. We are easy to please when it comes to food, but room cleanliness is mandatory. I will remain optimistic.

 

Hal does their assignments closer to the sail date around the 10 day mark generally. I've found princess usually does theirs earlier.

[Pia1913]

Also not happy reading this. We are on the NA on 12/6 after a 10 year HAL absence. Snagged a last minute Neptune Suite SC Guarantee at an outstanding price. Now the good news. Yesterday (12 days out) I got an email from HAL that they upgraded me to a Neptune Suite SA. So far so good.

 

I loved HAL 10 years ago and wanted to give it another chance. I will let you know my opinion but I am optimistic. This is the first time I have ever gone Guarantee but at the price I figured the worst Neptune Suite will be pretty darn good.

 

Hope your 12/6 assignment carries over to us for 12/13. We had a Neptune last year and have one booked for the Oosterdam TA in March. This one was for a Signature guarantee, but it would be nice if they'd give us a Neptune upgrade. Actually, it would be nice to just get a cabin so I know where we're going. ;)

[jackson bernard]

We were on the same sailing.

 

The Internet was $249.00 unlimited and worked well.

 

We thought the food was hit or miss in the main dining room, but great in the buffet and specialty restaurants.

 

The entertainment was not good at all.

 

The room was clean, but they never fixed the safe in our room as requested. (It was not secured to the shelf).

 

The TV in the room was great with a good selection of free on demand movies.

 

There were always chairs available by the pool. The casino was small with older machines.

 

The spa has a weird layout. You have to go into the public area to get from one section to the other.

 

Embarkation took about 45 minutes standing in line. Could be difficult for those with walking/standing difficulties.

 

Disembarkation was slow with no info on what the hold up was. We were off the ship about an hour after they said we would be. There was also a huge taxi line outside. Not the cruise lines fault, just something to be aware of if you are making early arrangements for flight home. We barely made a 12:10 flight coming home.

 

The times the ship stayed in port were great. They had plenty of excursions for any age.

 

It was a nice getaway.

[deck chair]

Hello

 

After many sailings with HAL I gave up after a 35 day cruise (2005) on the MAASDAM round trip from Boston, Voyage of the Vikings. This is what I noticed to my great dismay:

 

1. Cut back on cabin stewards

2. Cut back of musicians.

3. Cut back of waiters in dining room.

4. Cut back on cruise staff.

 

Clearly nothing has changed. HALS's rush to be all things to all people will end in failure.

 

Keep in mind this was a 35 day cruise not a 3 night booze cruise. You would think HAL would put their best foot forward....NOT!!!

 

So I have changed to Cunard line. Check them out.

 

Deck Chair.

Edited November 26, 2015 by deck chair

[cruz chic]

Hello

 

After many sailings with HAL I gave up after a 35 day cruise (2005) on the MAASDAM round trip from Boston, Voyage of the Vikings. This is what I noticed to my great dismay:

 

1. Cut back on cabin stewards

2. Cut back of musicians.

3. Cut back of waiters in dining room.

4. Cut back on cruise staff.

 

Clearly nothing has changed. HALS's rush to be all things to all people will end in failure.

 

Keep in mind this was a 35 day cruise not a 3 night booze cruise. You would think HAL would put their best foot forward....NOT!!!

 

So I have changed to Cunard line. Check them out.

 

Deck Chair.

I'm not sure Hal puts better staff on longer cruises. How would that work? You have crew that is constantly working, going home, then coming back. While they may hand pick some key personnel for new ships or world cruises it would be a logistical nightmare to do this for longer cruises. That said, I could see the food being better or of higher quality on longer cruises.

[RClark6369@aol.com]

I am a 40s something cruiser. Started cruising with HAL in 1990s .....in my 20s. HAL appealed to me in those age brackets. HAL had a niche in the market due to the things that I stated in my original post above. The problem is that they have lost their way. HAL will never be able to compete with RCI and Carnival for the younger and family demographic. Furthermore, Their current track does not appeal to either the younger or their "bread & butter" older crowd. The sailing that I wrote about for this thread was discounted so heavily - outside cabins $350, veranda $580. I was worried that the ship would be heavily booked with a budget, par-Tay crowd. Guess what, that wasn't the case at all. Even at those steep discounts they still could not fill the ship.

[erewhon]

RClark6369,

 

Thank you for your comments.

 

Did you write these on your survey after the cruise?

[CinWin]

We just returned from our Western Caribbean cruise on the Nieuw Amsterdam and really enjoyed the ship for the 2nd time sailing on her. We booked "As you Wish Dining" this cruise because 3 of the nights we had reservations for the specialty restaurants. Tamarind and Pinnacle Grill food was wonderful. Not crazy about the Canaletto food though. Main dining room food was o.k. We were too busy to attend the Mariner luncheon. Room service breakfast food was hot and very prompt in arriving. Service was excellent in all venues on ship. We were disappointed in the very cheesy production shows and the singers and dancers. Really liked the very personable cruise director, Mario. B.B. King shows were very entertaining as well as the comedian on board. We only left the ship twice - Cozumel which was very crowded because of 7 ships in port with us and Key West where we walked around even though it rained most of the day. Every part of the ship was immaculate. Staff everywhere was very friendly and smiling. Getting off the ship took way too long though, but it was nice to be able to stay in our Veranda cabin on deck 7 til time to get in the line. Not sure if we will return to Holland America or go back to other lines we've enjoyed in the past. We also previously sailed on Eurodam the year she first came to Port Everglades.

Cindy

Edited November 26, 2015 by CinWin

[Keith1010]

Thank you for your report.

 

Keith

[rothbury]

Wow!! I'm sorry Cruz Chic!! Here I thought these forums were for people to express their own opinions and observations. I guess not!!

[cbr663]

Thanks for your feedback on the NA.

 

I am wondering how you found the Pinnacle Grill or the Tamarind? What about Canaletto? Did you visit the Dive In? Did you use room service? Did the ship offer the Chef's Table dining?

[cruz chic]

Wow!! I'm sorry Cruz Chic!! Here I thought these forums were for people to express their own opinions and observations. I guess not!!

 

Huh? Isn't that was what I was doing was sharing MY opinion or did you mean that your opinion should be the only one that counts? Not everyone spends next to nothing. Please don't make my post out to be something more than what it was. Nowhere in my post did I say you shouldn't share your opinion.

Edited November 26, 2015 by cruz chic

[Pia1913]

Wow!! I'm sorry Cruz Chic!! Here I thought these forums were for people to express their own opinions and observations. I guess not!!

 

I went back to read and then reread all of Cruzchic's posts and saw nothing untoward about any of them. Then I looked at your profile, so now I understand. Big generational gap. I have shoes older than you.