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Nieuw Amsterdam

richwmn

By richwmn,
in Holland America Line

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richwmn "Live from...." Rare

richwmn

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I have been considering continuing the process from the last two weeks with a continuing discussion. So here it is!

 

This morning I was on Nieuw Statendam as we arrived in Fort Lauderdale. This afternoon I am on Nieuw Amsterdam getting ready to head on on pretty much the same itinerary as last week. Why? Because I can and because I haven't been on Nieuw Amsterdam yet. Additionally, it just worked out.

 

Nieuw Amsterdam was booked several months ago. Contrary to my recent history, this was booked as a guarantee cabin like I did to begin with. I received a cabin assignment about 10 days ago getting a reasonable ocean view cabin. Last Friday I received an email from HAL advising me that my cabin had changed. That is why I am now sitting in a Verandah Stateroom on the Nieuw Amsterdam. For the record it is cabin 5100, pictures already provided to HALfacts.

 

Because of several factors, this is not going to be an "apples to apples" comparison. The biggest reason is solo cabin on NS to Verandah on NA.  I have much more room this week and a good location. This cabin is right next to the outside glass elevators on deck 5. This makes it very convenient to the Lido for meals, and equally accessible to the MDR and Showroom. The cabin is very nice, the stewards have introduced themselves and it is almost time for the muster drill.

 

Since these cruises are a week apart, it will be easy to compare entertainment. NA has had the upgrade to the Music Walk, so the offerings should be similar.

 

As I did for the last two weeks, the dinner menus for tonight are attached.

Feb24LIdodinner.pdf

Feb24dinner.pdf

Edited by richwmn
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tommui987

tommui987

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56 minutes ago, richwmn said:

This morning I was on Nieuw Statendam

Aloha Rich:

 

Wasn't sure if you were still keeping an eye on your Nieuw Statendam posting so ...

We are on a B2B in September, the first being from Amsterdam to Amsterdam.

Unless HAL decides to upgrade us to a suite, our cabin will be the same.

 

What would be the procedure if we wanted to take a tour when we return to Amsterdam - supposedly the NS arrives in Amsterdam at 7:00AM and departs at 5:00PM?

 

Thanks,

Tom

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richwmn "Live from...." Rare

richwmn

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Muster drill is done! Now just waiting for an underwater inspection to be completed so we can leave. The Captain has announced that this will not change our arrival in Nassau.

 

For those who wish to know -

Captain: Edward G. van Zaane

Hotel Director: Jessica M. Schumann

Environmental Officer: Barb Bessette-Henderson

Executive Chef: Thomas Schumann

Cruise Director: Nick Reiersgard

 

Muster drill was outside on the promenade deck. As usual, most people were there and barely listened to the announcement. One youngster in front of me was playing with a phone the whole time. It did go rather quickly so it wasn't too bad. Now dinner and then sail away.

 

rkacruiser mentioned that the menu was identical to one from the NS. I looked and it appears to be identical, at least the first part, to what was on NS yesterday which leads me to believe it hasn't been updated for today. I'll see if one is posted in a couple of minutes.

 

More later!

 

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richwmn "Live from...." Rare

richwmn

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11 minutes ago, Jilltoons said:

So the dinner menu will probably be the same for the Mexico cruise in April?  That Halibut is calling my name.

I don't know if the menus for the Mexican Itineraries are the same as Caribbean, but it looks like the Caribbean ships are on the same schedule. I went to MDR and found that the menu posted was not the same as the online menu, so I guess it wasn't updated. We'll see what happens tomorrow.

 

Muster Drill:

As I mentioned above, the muster drill was held at 4:45. I was surprised that the announcement was that it was for all passengers embarked today and it appeared that, like Nieuw Statendam last week, those on last week did not have to attend. Nice change for those on multiple segments. The drill went fine and then there was the hustle and bustle of getting back to cabins and other areas. Everyone had to be first.

 

It has been a while since I was on Eurodam, and this is my first time on Nieuw Statendam, so I must say I was impressed with the way the ship looks. Functionally, it is not a whole lot different than the Vistas so I was familiar with the layout. Nieuw Amsterdam has the Billboard On Board, but not Rolling Stone Rock Room. You can see where the Northern Lights was(?) due to traffic patterns, and America's Test Kitchen shares the Queens Lounge with BB King.

 

Cabin:

This is only my third balcony. The first was maybe 15 years ago on Zuiderdam, and the second was one of the Juliet Balconies behind the Crows Nest on the Eurodam, maybe 8 or 10 years ago. The cabin is nice, and so much bigger than the solo cabin on Koningsdam and Nieuw Statendam. I am planning to do sail-away on the verandah so that will be my first real experience out there.

The bathroom is roomy and contains the combo tub/shower. I have gotten use to the lack of a step up on K & NS so I was caught the first time I entered the bathroom. Everything seems ok. The cabin is nicely arranged with the TV positioned so that it is visible from the bed and couch. A note on the TV - CC constantly has posts about hooking up personal devices to the TV. This is the first TV I have seen that the connections are easily accessable. If I had a cable and a universal remote I could use it as a display.

 

Embarkation:

After a short walk, I went directly to a check in agent (4*) and after checking everything and deciding that the picture from 2 weeks ago was ok, she gave me my key card and sent me upstairs. I waited about 20 minutes and then boarded the ship. In Transit passengers were being allowed back on when I got upstairs. My cabin was ready and the cabin steward came in to see if I needed anything.

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richwmn "Live from...." Rare

richwmn

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14 minutes ago, Jilltoons said:

I actually think I might have realized something else.  Was this a special Culinary Council dinner? Are there separate menus in the main dining room?  Thank you for your help to this newbie Holland America cruiser.

 

3 minutes ago, Jilltoons said:

Thank you for clarifying the menu.  I got a little excited LOL.  

I don't generally eat in the MDR. When I post a menu it is by downloading a link provided on Navigator. I have seen in the past that some ships are better about updating Navigator than others. I don't think that there are separate menus in the MDR, but someone else can answer more definitely.

 

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rkacruiser

rkacruiser

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2 hours ago, Jilltoons said:

I actually think I might have realized something else.  Was this a special Culinary Council dinner? Are there separate menus in the main dining room?  Thank you for your help to this newbie Holland America cruiser.

 

No.  Usually on all of the HAL cruises on which I have sailed, one dinner in the MDR features the Culinary Council Menu.  (Or some variation of a title thereof)  Sometimes:  good.  Sometimes:  not.  Some guests choose that night to visit PG or Canaletto or another dining option.

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richwmn "Live from...." Rare

richwmn

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Good morning from Nassau.

After a nice uneventful night with a late sail away, we docked on time. Looks like the weather is nice, but looks like a bunch of guests in town. We are docked along side Disney Magic, and I saw Oasis of the Seas a few minutes ago. Last time I was in Nassau, a long time ago, there were too many guests and not a real good experience.

 

Last night I touched on the TV by mentioning that it was the first I have had that was mounted such that the inputs were easy to get at. It is a Samsung so a remote should not be a problem. I don't have any idea if it is just this cabin or the whole ship.

 

The TV service is a different story. First, the navigation of the menus is much easier on the Nieuw Statendam.  NS also has a larger selection for movies for streaming. I haven't counted but it looks like around 60ish as opposed to around 140 on NS. Still a decent selection.

 

Breakfast was easy and uncluttered, so now off to see the town.

 

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richwmn "Live from...." Rare

richwmn

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It is now Tuesday morning, at sea toward San Juan. Yesterday in Nassau there was a short power failure which knocked the POS system, TV and Guest Internet offline. It is still not back to the way it was before the problem. All transactions were done on paper. Happy Hour in the Ocean Bar was crowded and the staff was hopping. The Assistant Beverage Manager was expediting the drink orders and it was still taking a while.

 

Last night the Main Stage entertainment was an Illusionist - Leon Etienne. This was your typical magic act, fast moving and very good. I went to the first show and it was full, but not overflowing.

 

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richwmn "Live from...." Rare

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OK, to catch up on a few things since internet was down yesterday. Yesterday's menus are attached here. Please understand that these are the menus as published on Navigator. If the staff doesn't update Navigator I won't know.

 

There were a total of three trivia sessions yesterday. The first one was general trivia, followed immediately by a music trivia, then an evening general trivia. The general trivia questions were a bit harder than I have had on other ships recently. The music trivia was about the same as others. No prizes at all were distributed. On NS last week there was a trophy that everyone was encouraged to decorate and bring back. I was told a new prize package was coming out "soon".

 

The movie screening was at 3pm and was "Can You Ever Forgive Me?" Only that one showing. Someone on NS last week told me it was a very good movie. I tried to watch it and it was very slow starting and I turned it off.

 

There was plenty going on all evening. All seemed to be well attended.

Feb25dinner.pdf

Feb25Lidodinner.pdf

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