Review Norwegian Fjords on MS Rotterdam

[ontheweb]

11 hours ago, Laminator said:

I think HAL has a reasonable understanding of what their limitations are. They have a very limited staff. If compliance was 80% they may have a chance. I am guessing compliance was 20% or below. What can they do? Give out mask citations? Tell the guests they are not allowed to eat on ship for the next 24 hours? We are not in the US now. HAL is sailing in countries that have no mask mandates. Those citizens are by far the majority on these cruises. It would be impossible for HAL to enforce. They did the best they could do under the circumstances. 

I am assuming that all the cruise lines including HAL do not want to reinstate mask mandates on a ship, especially when passengers boarded knowing there was no mandate in place. The only time they do reinstate mandates is when there is a breakout. And that is really when they MUST  find a way to enforce it. JMHO.

[ScotsLady]

We are on this cruise 24th August, first time with HAL but we chose for ports.

cruise mostly with Celebrity but also Cunard, Oceania and RCI. Last cruise was with. Celebrity Apex last September and was just wonderful, hope HAL measures up.

we are in an aft suite for this cruise.

 

Irene

[rotjeknor]

We were on the 14 day Jewels of Scandinavia, may 8-22 . There were only 1400 pax onboard, so no service issues. On the other hand , you’re being served your breakfast, lunch and dinner, your cabin is being cleaned, every crew member is friendly etc. , so why complain if , sometimes, something goes wrong… 

Concerning the masks, I think it’s a shame people do not take more responsibility. We wore masks most all of the time. We don’t like it , but getting covid even less. You just know if you’re in a more or less enclosed space with 1400 others who cough, sneeze ( and not always in their elbow…😳) , and don’t use the hand sanitizers that covid or another virus is having a great time. And what if the cruiselines have to start canceling again ? Who’s fault is it then ? I really hope people will stick to the rules concerning masks also for the sake of the crew. 

[macaroni]

They did not do their best. They did nothing. They could have had someone in the theater reminding people to wear their masks. They could have told someone they were speaking directly to to put on their mask, instead of ignoring that they were not wearing a mask... They made no attempt…if they tried and no one listened at least they would have made an attempt….

[rotjeknor]

5 hours ago, macaroni said:

They did not do their best. They did nothing. They could have had someone in the theater reminding people to wear their masks. They could have told someone they were speaking directly to to put on their mask, instead of ignoring that they were not wearing a mask... They made no attempt…if they tried and no one listened at least they would have made an attempt….

That’s exactly my point … we are all adults , have lived thru two years of Covid measures and now we have to be told to wear a mask… All over the ship there are signs : masks recommend.  What about being responsible people…. ??  

[DebbieMacG]

Thanks for the review. We were due to board on Sunday but have had to cancel as we’ve both got the flu , so too sick to travel, we are really disappointed ☹️ 
 

 

[rotjeknor]

4 hours ago, DebbieMacG said:

Thanks for the review. We were due to board on Sunday but have had to cancel as we’ve both got the flu , so too sick to travel, we are really disappointed ☹️ 
 

 

That’s sad . Hope you get better soon and be able to book a new cruise.

[DebbieMacG]

40 minutes ago, rotjeknor said:

That’s sad . Hope you get better soon and be able to book a new cruise.

Thank you, we’ve managed to book on Enchanted Princess for the end of the month, to Norway and Denmark, no flying needed. We will hopefully do our missed cruise later in the year. Sad to be missing the Rotterdam and Amsterdam though! 

[Kamfish642]

1 hour ago, rotjeknor said:

That’s sad . Hope you get better soon and be able to book a new cruise.

Masks recommended vs. required?  Not the same.

[macaroni]

Right…..our 2 cruises had masks required……if recommended we could not have and would not have complained.

[MDTrip]

Did you hear of anyone being quarantined? Anyone being taken off the ship in hazmat suits? Just wondering about the current policy. Thanks. 

[Laminator]

20 hours ago, MDTrip said:

Did you hear of anyone being quarantined? Anyone being taken off the ship in hazmat suits? Just wondering about the current policy. Thanks. 

The issue here is the US does not rule the world. Europe has no mandates and the Dutch travelers are NOT going to wear masks. That is plain and simple. If you are concerned then you should cancel. Here it is all about living with Covid.

[RynoWally]

54 minutes ago, Laminator said:

The issue here is the US does not rule the world. Europe has no mandates and the Dutch travelers are NOT going to wear masks. That is plain and simple. If you are concerned then you should cancel. Here it is all about living with Covid.

Could not agree with this statement more. We were on from May 7th-June 6. Wife had to be quarantined the last week after volunteering to get tested and was positive. There were tons of people on the ship that were coughing extensively and no masks, we did wear masks for the most part, and we knew the risks going into it. My wife tested negative the first 3 times, but symptoms were very prevalent so they kept her in Quarantine, and then finally tested positive 4th test. You can tell that they don't want to come down on people for not wearing masks, and also don't encourage the testing of go out of their way to test, I tested the day my wife first started showing symptoms, but not again until the day before leaving the ship, so that means they let me do whatever I wanted for 3 full days after my wife tested positive, even after I called the day she tested positive to see if they wanted to test me, they said no. This hands off approach is probably the best for their bottom line, even if it makes some upset. Given the fact their balance sheet is probably in the toilet right now.

[medskis]

On 6/8/2022 at 8:46 AM, ScotsLady said:

We are on this cruise 24th August, first time with HAL but we chose for ports.

cruise mostly with Celebrity but also Cunard, Oceania and RCI. Last cruise was with. Celebrity Apex last September and was just wonderful, hope HAL measures up.

we are in an aft suite for this cruise.

 

Irene

We and another couple are booked for Rotterdam for 21-28 August dates. Verandah Deck 6. We have previously sailed HAL Osterdam 12 nights in 2018, on Adriatic dream itinerary and Eurodam Mexican Riviera 2019. 

 

Yesterday we completed our first Celebrity cruise (to Bermuda, 10 days, on the Summit).  We originally chose Celebrity a few years ago to cruise the Med on APEX in 2020…. Cancelled of course and rebooked Apex for Med 2021…we canceled that when they moved Apex to Greece for summer 2021 as so many other ships were doing.  With HAL scheduled for August 2022 (lift and shift from 2021) we chose the Bermuda / Celebrity Summit as an easy way to use our FCC.  After talking with many on board, and some who had cruised on Rotterdam during the winter, and a friend who just completed APEX Baltic who had done a few HAL Europe cruises, I think we are talking apples and oranges in some comparisons. Celebrity Edge class ships like APEX are very well regarded for facilities, food, entertainment and all……  a very frequent cruiser on Summit who had done 2 weeks on Rotterdam in February declared HAL food « consistently » better than Celebrity and that seemed to be applicable when considering the sailing we were on…. Food good, and a few times great, but not quite what we had experienced on our own prior 2018 and 2019 HAL cruises in Europe and Mexican Riviera.  My friend who just did Apex in Baltic raved and said she would rebook Apex in a heartbeat (they had sailed HAL 24 days Konigsdam in Europe pre Covid)

  We are very much looking forward to cruising on the Rotterdam on 8/21 and I also hope to be able to sail Celebrity Apex /Beyond in not too distant future.  With a bit more time to staff up (one server last week told us it was her first day on board/new contract and I am sure all lines are trying to staff up) it would be interesting to have more reports with apples to apples

comparisons.   re food, I guess it is also « on the palate » of the beholder! 😊
On the HAL Mexico cruise we were joined by friends who had cruised multiple times on Oceania. I was surprised on the last night when in the MDR they said they thought the food on HAL was every bit as good as what they experienced on Oceania.  I was impressed.

Fyi - one more note re the Summit…. Beautifully redone interior spaces including cabins but what a tight bathroom.  We are narrow people but the shower was quite tight to maneuver within as was whole bathroom and someone paced out the cabins and said most are 8.5 feet wide.  Plenty of good storage though and long enough for a vanity desk/ small loveseat close to balcony end of cabin.  We were Aqua class which is just below Suites class, midship, deck 9. It was quite nice having an exclusive restaurant for breakfast and dinners for Aqua guests, considering we were a bit adverse to BIG venues.  Re Covid, someone just posted they asked CD (?) on way out and he said 6 cases reported , 1900 pax / 90% full. 

Maryellen and Rob  Philadelphia, Pa. 
               PS ScotsLady ……  we are visiting Scotland for 12 days before flying into Amsterdam.  First time there. Lucky to have an old friend in Edinburgh and we even have tickets for the Royal Military Tattoo.  Renting a car and headed to Oban, Skye and Inverness too. 

 

 

 

Edited June 13, 2022 by medskis

[ScotsLady]

8 hours ago, medskis said:

We and another couple are booked for Rotterdam for 21-28 August dates. Verandah Deck 6. We have previously sailed HAL Osterdam 12 nights in 2018, on Adriatic dream itinerary and Eurodam Mexican Riviera 2019. 

 

Yesterday we completed our first Celebrity cruise (to Bermuda, 10 days, on the Summit).  We originally chose Celebrity a few years ago to cruise the Med on APEX in 2020…. Cancelled of course and rebooked Apex for Med 2021…we canceled that when they moved Apex to Greece for summer 2021 as so many other ships were doing.  With HAL scheduled for August 2022 (lift and shift from 2021) we chose the Bermuda / Celebrity Summit as an easy way to use our FCC.  After talking with many on board, and some who had cruised on Rotterdam during the winter, and a friend who just completed APEX Baltic who had done a few HAL Europe cruises, I think we are talking apples and oranges in some comparisons. Celebrity Edge class ships like APEX are very well regarded for facilities, food, entertainment and all……  a very frequent cruiser on Summit who had done 2 weeks on Rotterdam in February declared HAL food « consistently » better than Celebrity and that seemed to be applicable when considering the sailing we were on…. Food good, and a few times great, but not quite what we had experienced on our own prior 2018 and 2019 HAL cruises in Europe and Mexican Riviera.  My friend who just did Apex in Baltic raved and said she would rebook Apex in a heartbeat (they had sailed HAL 24 days Konigsdam in Europe pre Covid)

  We are very much looking forward to cruising on the Rotterdam on 8/21 and I also hope to be able to sail Celebrity Apex /Beyond in not too distant future.  With a bit more time to staff up (one server last week told us it was her first day on board/new contract and I am sure all lines are trying to staff up) it would be interesting to have more reports with apples to apples

comparisons.   re food, I guess it is also « on the palate » of the beholder! 😊
On the HAL Mexico cruise we were joined by friends who had cruised multiple times on Oceania. I was surprised on the last night when in the MDR they said they thought the food on HAL was every bit as good as what they experienced on Oceania.  I was impressed.

Fyi - one more note re the Summit…. Beautifully redone interior spaces including cabins but what a tight bathroom.  We are narrow people but the shower was quite tight to maneuver within as was whole bathroom and someone paced out the cabins and said most are 8.5 feet wide.  Plenty of good storage though and long enough for a vanity desk/ small loveseat close to balcony end of cabin.  We were Aqua class which is just below Suites class, midship, deck 9. It was quite nice having an exclusive restaurant for breakfast and dinners for Aqua guests, considering we were a bit adverse to BIG venues.  Re Covid, someone just posted they asked CD (?) on way out and he said 6 cases reported , 1900 pax / 90% full. 

Maryellen and Rob  Philadelphia, Pa. 
               PS ScotsLady ……  we are visiting Scotland for 12 days before flying into Amsterdam.  First time there. Lucky to have an old friend in Edinburgh and we even have tickets for the Royal Military Tattoo.  Renting a car and headed to Oban, Skye and Inverness too. 

 

 

 

Hi,

 

Good to hear your views on the ships.  We have sailed Edge and Apex and would do either again.

Enjoy Scotland, hope the weather is kind to you, nothing worse than seeing our beautiful country in the rain. We live in the west near Glasgow .

Currently in Moorea for 2 weeks then on Paul Gauguin cruise.

 

Irene

[SweetsugarNL]

Hi Maryellen and Rob,

We are looking to book the same Rotterdam cruise!

 

On topic, i prefer masks but I am Dutch and due the whole covid period a a lot of people complain about the masks everywhere in the Netherlands. So the most Dutch wear them only if you enforced them

I wear still masks in public transport but I am mostly the only one!

[medskis]

17 hours ago, ScotsLady said:

Hi,

 

Good to hear your views on the ships.  We have sailed Edge and Apex and would do either again.

Enjoy Scotland, hope the weather is kind to you, nothing worse than seeing our beautiful country in the rain. We live in the west near Glasgow .

Currently in Moorea for 2 weeks then on Paul Gauguin cruise.

 

Irene

Now there is a switch from Scotland!  Moorea and French Polynesia.  In 2011 we and another couple did a great land and sea combo in French Polynesia.  First 9 nights on land, 2 at the IC on Tahiti and a week at the IC Moorea.  We then flew to Raitea and boarded a 60 ft catamaran for a week…4 guest cabins, a captain, and a hostess who prepared 3 meals a day.  Best snorkel of my life by far off of Ta’a a in the « coral garden ».  Lovely visit to Huahine, and 2 nights Bora Bora in various lagoon positions for snorkeling with varied fish species. We are lucky to have such opportunities.  Enjoy.  Get your cameras ready.

[medskis]

11 hours ago, SweetsugarNL said:

Hi Maryellen and Rob,

We are looking to book the same Rotterdam cruise!

 

On topic, i prefer masks but I am Dutch and due the whole covid period a a lot of people complain about the masks everywhere in the Netherlands. So the most Dutch wear them only if you enforced them

I wear still masks in public transport but I am mostly the only one!

I understand.  It is a personal preference now that the mandates have gone away.  Both my husband and I (and 11 total of 23 in our ski club group) all came down with « colds » after skiing a week in the Trois Vallees in France March 13-20. Everyone had to show proof of Vaccination to check in but even my booster was 5 months old by then.  With 600 international guests at an all inclusive hotel….lots of opportunities for exposure.   We were in Portugal afterwards for 5 days when we tested to come home and 11 of us Positive.  We had to stay one extra week in Portugal with our own arrangements and new air tickets back to US.  BA.2 was rampant in W. europe then .  We hoped we still had some antibodies for the June 2-13 Bermuda cruise we just finished.  We will get 2 nd boosters in July.