Our First HAL Cruise - Nieuw Statendam - A Little Surprised

[Galley Slave]

It sounds like there are more dogs on the ships.  If someone is allergic to dog dander, are they deep cleaning the cabins where there have been dogs?  This has also become an issue on airplanes.  I wonder how HAL is handling it.  Are passengers with dogs paying for the deep cleaning?

[Nymich]

On ‎12‎/‎26‎/‎2018 at 6:35 AM, ski ww said:

Thanks for posting enjoyed all your pictures. That guy in the bath robe I see others have posted pictures of him also. 

 

 

He is famous now!

[Nymich]

23 hours ago, Fouremco said:

 

 

While I personally wouldn't use one outside my cabin, a white terrycloth robe doesn't offend my sensibilities as much as some of the flimsy, see-through "coverups" that I frequently see in the Lido Market.   

 

I vote for the thin cover up  if forced to choose.   I think people look really foolish and in fact not too intelligent wearing a bathrobe in the Lido.   The people in the cover ups look like people who took the time to cover up the bathing suit and slip on some sandals while breaking from tanning.   I live on the water in Florida though so I am used to seeing lots of cover ups.

[firecrewcapt]

Maybe Cousin Eddie is on the cruise...….LMAO.

[Fouremco]

4 hours ago, Wishing on a star said:

HAL newbie here....  

On which ships are the Lido and the spa/hydrotherapy suites in close proximity????

On all of them, I believe, with the exception of the Prinsendam.

[Aquahound]

I guess its appropriate to wear swimwear to dinner at Tamarind now since its in close proximity to the aft pool.  

Edited December 27, 2018 by Aquahound

[Hlitner]

2 hours ago, Aquahound said:

I guess its appropriate to wear swimwear to dinner at Tamarind now since its in close proximity to the aft pool.  

Do you think those that prefer to sunbathe "au natural" would also be welcomed in the Lido in their swim wear (or lack thereof)?

 

Hank

[colonialinnkeeper]

On 12/25/2018 at 10:32 PM, lovelights said:

We only put our passports and money in the safe. I don't even know if my camera would have fit in it, and I always kept my cell phone out on the night stand. Either there, or I had it with me. We really didn't have to open it much, because we only had Nassau and the private island to go to, and we didn't make it to the private island anyways. My husband was the only one that used it, and he said that when he took the money out to go to Nassau, it didn't seem to feel warm inside.

 

The mini fridge kept everything ice cold. We had taken 6 Aquafina waters, and 2 bottles of wine. (We ended up only spending $2.00 at Nassau, and that was on 2 bottles of water). I told my husband when we got back on the ship, that I was going to make sure that I never book a cruise again that has the private island and Nassau on it, because if you don't make it to the private island, and you make it to Nassau, you don't get any port fees or taxes credited back.

 

I can't believe we paid $105.00 per person for taxes and fees just to go to Nassau, yet I seen Holland America itineraries that goes to 4 places, and the total taxes and fees are only like $140 - $160 per person. I have no plans to book a cruise that has Nassau on the itinerary.

 

Ok, I got off subject..... sorry about that. lol

 

 

We have found that port charges vary quite a bit from one place to another, with Alaska being one of the highest.

[jkadventures]

We were on this cruise as well- not sure why the OP is putting the service dogs onboard in quotes?  That suggests the owners did not utilize them for assistance but as a way to bring their pets onboard under false pretenses. We were impressed by just how well behaved these dogs were and the fact that they provided the assistance which allowed their owners to travel. The small potty area on the promenade deck was always clean and there was no smell whatsoever.  Bravo to these wonderful dogs that provide support for folks everyday. 

[idiebabe]

1 hour ago, jkadventures said:

We were on this cruise as well- not sure why the OP is putting the service dogs onboard in quotes?  That suggests the owners did not utilize them for assistance but as a way to bring their pets onboard under false pretenses. We were impressed by just how well behaved these dogs were and the fact that they provided the assistance which allowed their owners to travel. The small potty area on the promenade deck was always clean and there was no smell whatsoever.  Bravo to these wonderful dogs that provide support for folks everyday. 

 

100% Agree!  

[2manycruises123]

On ‎12‎/‎24‎/‎2018 at 9:03 PM, lovelights said:

We've been on 20+ cruises, and this was our (husband and myself) first on Holland America. We chose our first cruise on HAL to be on the beautiful Nieuw Statendam, and indeed it was beautiful.

 

There were a few surprises that we weren't expecting, but that's just because we hadn't seen them on other cruise lines before.

 

We seen people walking around in their bath robes throughout the ship. Is this a norm for HAL cruises? One night while we were eating dinner in Lido, we seen a man walk by in his bath robe. I was stunned. It just surprises me that you're suppose to wear a collared shirt, and slacks or skirts, or whatever to the theater, yet there's people that walk around with bathrobes on. Guess some people haven't figured out that the word "bath" doesn't mean you wear it in a dining area. And just when I thought that was bad, I watched one of those "special needs" dogs (this one happened to be a golden retriever and I seen 2 of them on this cruise), sniff the desserts at Lido, and once when it walked out the elevator with it's person, it left the elevator smelling of wet dog.

 

Smokers have very little space to smoke, but the special needs dogs have a special place to poo and pee, located on the promenade deck where people have to walk by it. (Oh, and I'm not a smoker, but my husband vapes, and noticed that there weren't many places to smoke)

 

The Casino smelled of cigarettes and we only seen one person smoking.

 

I had heard that the food was very good on Holland America ships, but I was shocked when the 2nd night on the ship, there was lobster served on the buffet. That's a first for us. Not sure if HAL serves lobster on all of their buffets during a course of a cruise, but they did on this particular ship. The food was delicious, and the crew was the best we've ever had the opportunity to meet.

 

BB King was absolutely amazing. And even with the wet dog elevator, and the older crowd walking around in bath robes, we're planning our next cruise to be with HAL. Just wish they'd build a dock at Half Moon Cay, so everyone didn't miss having the opportunity to visit it so much, because I've heard that it's one of the best private islands, it's just a shame that our ship didn't make it there. 😞

 

 

We were on this cruise too. Loved the ship, but bar music was too loud. Yes, people were robes in the Lido, but that is okay. dogs did bother me, but they are needed for people. food was great. at the beginning of the cruise we thought the ship was too big, but after a couple days it was just right, never crowded. going back on the ship this Sunday.

[2manycruises123]

23 hours ago, Galley Slave said:

It sounds like there are more dogs on the ships.  If someone is allergic to dog dander, are they deep cleaning the cabins where there have been dogs?  This has also become an issue on airplanes.  I wonder how HAL is handling it.  Are passengers with dogs paying for the deep cleaning?

I hope HAL cleans the cabins extra well after dogs left. This is the first time there have been dogs on a cruise and we have been on over 40 cruises.

[Wishing on a star]

I still see no excuse for Bath Robes in the Lido.

Swimwear and coverups are acceptable public attire.

IMHO, bathrobes are not.

It is just that simple.

 

But, like I said....  Makes for some eye-rolling and people watching and laughs.  

Whatever....

 

I did a few searches and this does seem to be a phenomenon that is more common with HAL cruisers.

Gotta luv what are called "The Bath-robe People". Hahahaha!!!!

 

[Aquahound]

19 minutes ago, Wishing on a star said:

I did a few searches and this does seem to be a phenomenon that is more common with HAL cruisers.

Gotta luv what are called "The Bath-robe People". Hahahaha!!!!

 

Robe People are on all lines.  This was on Celebrity Solstice.  These people really celebrated their robes.  

 

You won't see this on HAL since HAL has no lido entertainment.  😉

 

Edited December 28, 2018 by Aquahound

[notladjr]

It is funny you mentioned seeing the guy in the Lido Market with a robe on because we experienced the very same thing on our first HAL cruise a few weeks ago. We were on Nieuw Amsterdam for an Easter Caribbean cruise and had a great time. However I also was shocked a couple of times to see a man (not sure if it was the same guy twice or two different men) in the buffet line in his white HAL bathrobe. I thought he looked ridiculous.

[BRWolf]

Very nice topic and thanks to the OP for posting, for the pictures, and the general discussion.  Regarding "bathrobe" people, on our first cruise we were encouraged to use them to go to the pool and back to our room.  We never thought to stop and grab a bite or make side trips.  

[Turtles06]

17 hours ago, notladjr said:

However I also was shocked a couple of times to see a man (not sure if it was the same guy twice or two different men) in the buffet line in his white HAL bathrobe. I thought he looked ridiculous.

 

I totally agree.  Inappropriate.

 

[EbayCruiser]

We just booked this ship for March 2019.  Sale was too good to resist!

 

Looking forward to sailing on this new ship!

 

We also usually only eat in the lido so looking forward to the great selections.  HAL has the best food!

[RDC1]

bath robes are not uncommon on other cruise lines as well. seem to be fairly common to be used going to/from room and hot tubs, pools, and spa. Often the buffet areas are between those areas and the stern elevators, so you do have people walking through.  Seen them on Celebrity, Royal, Princess, in addition to Hal across all age demo graphics.

 

Seem even more common on Asian cruises.

 

 

 

[Travrat]

The safe above the refrigerator is HOT!

If you have an item that is heat sensitive do NOT place it in the safe. 

I did not see many robes in public on Koningsdam Christmas cruise but I have stayed in many luxury hotels in Europe and have seen people come to the pool and spa areas in them. In fact, most European spas encourage you to wear your robe and slippers provided. 

I did not see many service dogs on my cruise. As far as parking goes, if you are driving to the port Park and Go shuttle service is excellent! We always use them for airport or port parking. They are very pleasant and reliable. If you are lucky you may see the monkeys that live in the mangrove next to their lot🐒

[nutensteve]

On our very first HAL cruise we booked a couples massage. We were told we could just wear our robes to the Spa. Well I was trying to impress my wife with my ability to find my way around the ship and I mistakenly ended up in the Lido. it was sort of embarrassing walking thru the Lido especially when someone joked about they had no idea that the Lido was "robe casual". I'm still trying to live that one down. 

[Turtles06]

25 minutes ago, RDC1 said:

bath robes are not uncommon on other cruise lines as well. seem to be fairly common to be used going to/from room and hot tubs, pools, and spa. Often the buffet areas are between those areas and the stern elevators, so you do have people walking through.  Seen them on Celebrity, Royal, Princess, in addition to Hal across all age demo graphics.

 

Seem even more common on Asian cruises.

 

 

 

 

The main issue is not people merely walking through the buffet in a bath robe (although I believe that's inappropriate), but stopping to get food and have a meal, like the guy in my photo above.   Bath robes are not appropriate attire for public dining areas.   As I noted in a much earlier comment, Guest Services on board told me this is against the rules (but no one in the Lido was enforcing the rules). 

[Turtles06]

14 minutes ago, Travrat said:

The safe above the refrigerator is HOT!

If you have an item that is heat sensitive do NOT place it in the safe. 

 

As the person who asked that question, thank you for the reply.   This is a design defect on Celebrity's S-class ships; it's too bad to see it being repeated here.  

[RuthC]

5 minutes ago, Turtles06 said:

The main issue is not people merely walking through the buffet in a bath robe (although I believe that's inappropriate), but stopping to get food and have a meal, like the guy in my photo above.   Bath robes are not appropriate attire for public dining areas. 

Even worse is wearing them to an activity in a lounge late afternoon, or to the show in the evening.
Both of which I have seen.

[Copper10-8]

Hey OP, thanks for taking the time and effort to write your review on the mighty Nieuw S

My two cents:

 

I believe HMC has physical limitations that restrict/makes it difficult to build a large cruise ship pier. The island has a very sizable/deep drop off from its shores making it challenging to get concrete poles as a foundation for a pier down there

 

Shirt and shoes have been, and are, required in the Lido for a long time on HAL and signs directing this are posted at both entrances (see pic). It's up to the Lido/Canaletto manager and his/her assistants to enforce it 

 

Service dogs are incredibly well trained animals. What are now known as 'comfort animals' are a different story. I saw an owner of the latter allowing same on top of a table in the Lido on Amsterdam during her 2014 Grand Asia/Pacific (but that animal and her owner was a different story altogether). Regardless, no animals should be allowed at any time to get their faces near any displayed food. Unless that owner of the dog you saw doing it has vision issues, he/she should have never allowed it by holding the animal on a short leash

 

The "robe people" have been around for a while. At one time, HAL was using publicity pics of the then brand new cabanas on Eurodam displaying one of their robes hanging on a hook inside, suggesting its use there. I personally don't feel they belong in any eating establishment but it is not posted anywhere/against any house rules, so fine folks will continue to wear them. Personal taste or lack thereof? YMMV 

 

Enjoy your next one whether on HAL or one of the others!