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Live on the Koningsdam 12/12 - 12/19 Mexican Riviera

sergel02

By sergel02,
in Holland America Line

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sergel02 "Live from...." Rare

sergel02

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Posted

I finally got the internet working!

 

My family and I are on the Koningsdam for our cruise this week and I figured I’ll log the journey here for those interested or had any questions about what it’s like. It’s our first pandemic cruise.

 

Some tidbits:

 

- Embarkation was super smooth. You needed your passports, negative test results, vaccination status, and boarding passes. 
 

- Mask wearing required on board.
 

- I heard only around 1600 passengers on the ship, though could be wrong. 
 

- Surprising amount of Young Adults (and like 3 kids). Last night was funny because it seemed like everyone under 50 was watching Shang Chi in the theater and everyone older was at the Rolling Stones club.
 

- Internet is pretty good but we have the Premium which is like $210 for a 7-day for 4 devices. You get about 500mb a day per device of premium use. 
 

- The Theater is amazing with those screens and sound system. BBC Earth is great to see 

 

- I’ll never get use to the angled toilets. Maybe because I’m tall but I can’t fit properly. Same with my family. It’s rough for my IBS. Maybe we should have gotten a more accessible room. 

- Had an odd issue with both our soap dispensers leaking and draining soap to our whole bathroom. Crew was great in handling it. 
 

- The ship is swaying quite a bit. Might be from wind from the storms on the West Coast though.

 

- Main dining room is gorgeous though you feel so many vibrations from the engine. 
 

- Buffet has been great so far. 
 

- They have hand washing stations before the buffet that is similar to the kids club ones on Disney. They’re cool but I swear half the water gets on my clothes. 
 

- We expected more Christmas decorations. The Gingerbread village is nice though. 
 

- Sad they are out of stock for the replica ships. Not until next cruise will they get them. 


Will post as the days go on. 

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sergel02 "Live from...." Rare

sergel02

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1 hour ago, DAllenTCY said:

Boarding yesterday were 1,008 guests.....plus 64 in transits (B2B)


David

I wonder if the 1600 I heard was guests and crew. 
 

Ship certainly feels crowded enough. That line for afternoon tea took forever lol. Can’t imagine when the ship is at capacity. 

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canadianbear

canadianbear

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Fantastic!  Another live thread.  Glad you figured out the internet.  Mr Bear is very tall too and found the toilet angle strange.  I think there were a lot of complaints.

 

When we were on the Koningsdam they had the Christmas houses by the Dutch Cafe.  I do think years ago the ships were decorated more.  
 

Have a wonderful family cruise!

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Wren_dc

Wren_dc

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Will be following you as well.  We board on December 26th. 

 

Would love to know how cold the first few nights are (I know the CA coast can be quite cool, especially this time of year).  I'm wondering if I should pack a sweater to wear in the MDR for the first night.  Thanks!

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sergel02 "Live from...." Rare

sergel02

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2 hours ago, Susanmaz said:

We are boarding in 98 days… so excited. I do have a question - is there still a separate shampoo and conditioner in the shower? I always worry that they’ll start doing 5he combination stuff for hair washing.

Ooh this I can answer! Yup, still separate: Shampoo, Conditioner, and Body Wash. 

1 hour ago, Wren_dc said:

Will be following you as well.  We board on December 26th. 

 

Would love to know how cold the first few nights are (I know the CA coast can be quite cool, especially this time of year).  I'm wondering if I should pack a sweater to wear in the MDR for the first night.  Thanks!

Sam Diego was cool but not cold. Mexico is even warmer. I’d say you don’t need a sweater but I’d pack something light if you’re going out or if it gets cooler some nights, something like a cardigan or something. 

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sergel02 "Live from...." Rare

sergel02

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1 hour ago, roxybear135 said:

Have a great cruise!  We're on this cruise on December 26 and I can't wait.  How strict were they with embarkation times?  Do you know if it's ok to show up early?  Was the MDR open for lunch on embarkation day?

I can’t answer super accurately sadly but I can tell you we got there maybe 20 minutes before our time and no one was in line, so they didn’t seem super strict. Though less than half capacity so that may have been part of it. 
I don’ believe the MDR was open for lunch on embarkation day but don’t quote me in that. They are limiting some parts of the MDR not needed due to the capacity. For Gala dinner tonight the whole 3rd deck was closed.

 

 

Some more musings of Day 2 (edit: didn’t realize I can’t edit the OP with these)

 

- Gala Night tonight. Everyone was super nicely dressed and food was good. They had fresh sole fish caught in San Diego, so maybe 1 or 2 days old only. I like this for a couple reasons: it usually tastes better and did this time, it sometimes supports local fishers depending on who the line is getting the fish from, and it’s a bit more sustainable (hopefully) since you don’t have to transport it long distances. Only thing I know for sure though is that it tasted good! According to my family anyway, I had risotto.

 

- I took the stairs from deck 3 to 9 for some exercise and regretted many life choices when I finally finished.

 

- Maybe some repeat HAL cruisers can answer, but when does the Lido Buffet usually close? We got there a bit after 8PM to see what they had for dessert, and they were open but closing up. Not sure if it’s usual, because it was Gala night, because of COVID, due to reduced capacity or something else.

 

- The maître d’ said around 1100 guests onboard due to CDC guidelines. I wonder when the Conditional Sail Order becomes voluntary (1/15/2022 unless something changes again) if the cruise lines will try to fill up more but still require vaccination proof and some testing.

 

- Saw a little bit of the Billboards show, it was decent enough. That stage and screen is still my favorite on sea though.

 

- Oh also he Afternoon Tea today. Queue to get in was super long but it went by fast. Food was great, tea a bit weak. 

 

- Supposed to Tender into Cabo tomorrow, docked from roughly 1100 - 1830. 
 

- Waves and winds you can stop rocking the ship now please and thanks.

 

 

Edited by sergel02
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Florida_gal_50

Florida_gal_50

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I think the lido buffet does close at 8 but I’m not 100 percent sure on that.  I wouldn’t be surprised if the mdr was closed for lunch on embarkation day.  It wasn’t open on November 14 from all indications but I didn’t go down and check the door to make sure.  Op, you have a great sense of humour.  

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waASPCrusier

waASPCrusier

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7 hours ago, sergel02 said:

 

 

- Maybe some repeat HAL cruisers can answer, but when does the Lido Buffet usually close? We got there a bit after 8PM to see what they had for dessert, and they were open but closing up. Not sure if it’s usual, because it was Gala night, because of COVID, due to reduced capacity or something else.

 

 

For times last week, we found the best way to be sure is in the Navigator app, from the main screen select the experiences(Ship icon) bottom center then Where and When, then the tab for Times.  I know the opening changed depending on sea days vs port days, but pretty sure dinner service ended each night at 8pm.  There was a late night service In Lido maybe starting at 10:30.

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Heartgrove

Heartgrove

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We just disembarked on Sunday. Sorry you are feeling the motion of the ocean! Do not depend on the posted dining hours as they are shortened. We went to "Blend" one evening at 6:30 pm and when we were finished the only food available was the New York Deli with only salad and desserts. The Lido does reopen at 10:30 for the late snack though. The "Blend" is fun to do by the way but is only on Koningsdam and Nieuw Statendam. The same space onboard the Rotterdam is now a bar.

 

When we were walking out of the gate at around 9:15 am, passengers embarking were being turned away.

 

We went to Rudi's one evening and the meal was delicious. The only downside was the apple tart was not tart but actually bitter. It was also our only problem with our statement as it was a manually entered charge - of someone else's drinks.

 

- Jack

 

 

Edited by Heartgrove
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sergel02 "Live from...." Rare

sergel02

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4 hours ago, waASPCrusier said:

For times last week, we found the best way to be sure is in the Navigator app, from the main screen select the experiences(Ship icon) bottom center then Where and When, then the tab for Times.  I know the opening changed depending on sea days vs port days, but pretty sure dinner service ended each night at 8pm.  There was a late night service In Lido maybe starting at 10:30.

….I never realized I could click on the Ship icon. I literally thought it was just there for show haha

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