Just Back from the Rotterdam

[doone]

A quick review, please feel free to ask specific questions.

 

This cruise was booked before covid on the Nieuw Statendam for 2021, but pushed out due to covid and finally landing on March 8, 2023 on the Rotterdam.  Sailing with family, friends and co-workers which ended up being 29 in my group.

 

Embarkation was easy, no glitches.  My group had 11:30 am embarkation and we all breezed right through early, like 10:45 am, easy peasy.

 

We had verandah cabins on deck 6 aft, great, quiet location, conveniently located to the Lido and Sea View pool.  The ship sailed at almost capacity and it felt it.  Fortunately HAL handled the crowds beautifully and everything moved right along.

 

Food is subjective, but I found the food to be plentiful and excellent.  Had lunch in the dining room 2 times and service was excellent, good tomato bisque soup and burger……..had dinner in the dining room just once, the last night and it was very good, but really enjoyed the freedom of eating at the Lido for our dinners…….

 

My group had open dining and I was a bit nervous about how long it would take to get a table, no one had an issue getting a table at the dining room, wait time was just a few minutes and it worked out great.  

 

Service at the Lido for breakfast, lunch and dinners was awesome, tables were cleared quickly by the lido stewards, coffee, juices, water were always available, can’t say enough good about the service we received.

 

Dive-in was awesome along with Grand Dutch Cafe (best espresso martini’s), gelato and NY Deli and Pizza.

 

Ate at Tamarind, Canaletto and Pinnacle with Tamarind being my absolute favorite.

 

Pools were crowded and had the chair hogs, guess that’s never going to change.

 

There were a few kids onboard, very well behaved as far as I could tell.

 

Cabin stewards were excellent and lived up to what we expect from HAL, they are the best.

 

Islands and excursions we enjoyed, Grand Turks was overcast so our beach excursion was cancelled.  We shared 2 islands with Carnival’s Mardi Gras, Grand Turks and Amber Cove.  This was my only complaint, this ship is so large and holds so many passengers it kind of spoiled these 2 island stops for us as the Mardi Gras passengers really took over……they were all nice but just too many for the 2 island stops……but we adjusted and dealt with it.

 

Entertainment we all felt was some of the best we have ever experienced on HAL.  BBKings was amazing each night was our favorite.  Step One Dancers were very god as was Rolling Rock Room and the Piano Players.  Some folks really enjoyed Lincoln Center Stage and said they were worth the price of admission, didn’t have the heart to tell them Lincoln Center Stage was going away.

 

The staff and crew were all so helpful, ship was spotless, can’t say enough good.

 

Disembarkation was the easiest I have ever experienced.  Our flight home wasn’t til 3 pm, so we book the 9 am disembarkation, off the ship and in an Uber within 20 minutes, it was amazingly easy.

 

All in all, an absolutely amazing cruise and cannot wait to sail again.

 

I think I covered everything I experienced, any questions, ask away……

 

[Real NHDOC]

We were on the same cruise, plus the two prior legs and will say our experience overall was very similar.  Nothing but good things to say about the crew and food overall was outstanding (other than a couple of less than perfect meals at the Pinnacle Grill - but stuff happens).  We miss the BB King's band already.  On the Nieuw Statendam now and even though the band is very good they aren't as good as the group on Rotterdam who were just amazing.  They alone made the cost of the cruise a bargain. 

[Chrissy6299]

Great to hear about your experiences. We're sailing on her next week!

[eroller]

Great to read the positive reports, even with a full ship.  

 

I’m sailing in 9-days and it’s a sold out ship.  In fact I’m still waiting on my cabin assignment.  Hopefully it will get assigned this week.  

[ClippyJoe]

We have a cruise booked on the Rotterdam also . I am glad to hear good reviews. Thank you both for posting.

[0106]

@doone or @Real NHDOCDid the fix the”leak” in the Seaview pool?  In the beginning of February, the deck was always wet near the bar.  That was the only negative of my 11 day cruise.  Loved CO,  great service from all departments.  Looking forward to our TA on her in the Fall.

[Real NHDOC]

20 minutes ago, 0106 said:

@doone or @Real NHDOCDid the fix the”leak” in the Seaview pool?  In the beginning of February, the deck was always wet near the bar.  That was the only negative of my 11 day cruise.  Loved CO,  great service from all departments.  Looking forward to our TA on her in the Fall.

It’s the one part of the ship we never go to because of the smoking so cannot answer your question. 

[metairiegal]

Did they have Happy Hour specials?

[Real NHDOC]

23 minutes ago, metairiegal said:

Did they have Happy Hour specials?

50% off at 4pm in Billboard Onboard and Rolling Stone bars coinciding with lightning trivia 

[MisterMatthew]

Doone, nice review.

 

Thank you so much for posting it.  Did the DiveIn or Pizzeria have waits?   Just wondering, as you mentioned a sold out ship.

[Real NHDOC]

20 minutes ago, MisterMatthew said:

Doone, nice review.

 

Thank you so much for posting it.  Did the DiveIn or Pizzeria have waits?   Just wondering, as you mentioned a sold out ship.

Lines at both can best be avoided by ordering from the navigator 

[Ellencruise]

Nice review. Sailing onRotterdam in Aug, can’t wait

[aliaschief]

Nice review. Thanks for sharing your cruise experience.

[doone]

4 hours ago, 0106 said:

@doone or @Real NHDOCDid the fix the”leak” in the Seaview pool?  In the beginning of February, the deck was always wet near the bar.  That was the only negative of my 11 day cruise.  Loved CO,  great service from all departments.  Looking forward to our TA on her in the Fall.

I will guess yes the leak was fixed, we didn’t notice the wet floor.

[doone]

3 hours ago, MisterMatthew said:

Doone, nice review.

 

Thank you so much for posting it.  Did the DiveIn or Pizzeria have waits?   Just wondering, as you mentioned a sold out ship.

Thank you. Yes there were slight waits as they prepared your food but wait was never more than 10 minutes at DiveIn or NY Pizza they have slices of pizza you can get immediately or you can order a pizza and there is a bit of a wait as the pizzas are made to order.  As one poster mentioned you can order in the Navigator app and avoid lines or waits.

Edited March 19, 2023 by doone

[YourWorldWithBill]

Thanks for the great info. We're on the Rotterdam in May.

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

12 hours ago, doone said:

... Some folks really enjoyed Lincoln Center Stage and said they were worth the price of admission, didn’t have the heart to tell them Lincoln Center Stage was going away.

 

...

 

 

Thanks for the review !

 

Can you elaborate on this? (new around here, sailing on the Rotterdam in Nov.)

 

Tom

[macaroni]

Just got off also and it was definitely one of our favorite cruises. The food in all venues was top notch. Had items we might normally not have ordered but were glad we did. Parmesan crusted veal loin, pork chop and spaghetti with garlic, oil and shrimp all excellent . Had no complaints except in pinnacle where we felt that they were trying to upsell to the extra cost items… entertainment was the best ever.

passengers were all very nice….crew was great and hardworking. Our steward had 35 cabins to tend to with an assistant.

[Iamthesea]

15 hours ago, doone said:

Some folks really enjoyed Lincoln Center Stage and said they were worth the price of admission, didn’t have the heart to tell them Lincoln Center Stage was going away.

I guess I have missed something on these forums, but when did HAL start charging for the LCS concerts?

[Crew News]

7 hours ago, doone said:

Thank you. Yes there were slight waits as they prepared your food but wait was never more than 10 minutes at DiveIn or NY Pizza they have slices of pizza you can get immediately or you can order a pizza and there is a bit of a wait as the pizzas are made to order.  As one poster mentioned you can order in the Navigator app and avoid lines or waits.

There is no waiting for breakfast at the NY Pizza & Deli.

 

[doone]

4 hours ago, Iamthesea said:

I guess I have missed something on these forums, but when did HAL start charging for the LCS concerts?

They don't charge for LCS, it was an expression meaning it was so good they could have charged.  Sorry for the confusion…..

Edited March 20, 2023 by doone

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

10 hours ago, macaroni said:

….crew was great and hardworking. Our steward had 35 cabins to tend to with an assistant.

 

On Carnival now, the stewards have ~30 cabins, but no assistant (most of the time). Also, they're down to once/daily service. On HAL, can they still provide morning (before noon!) service and a nightly turn-down?

 

Tom

[macaroni]

Yes, 2 services a day….

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

4 hours ago, doone said:

They don't charge for LCS, it was an expression meaning it was so good they could have charged.  Sorry for the confusion…..

 

But, it's being discontinued --- was it just not popular enough?

Basically, what is it and what's the timetable for its last chapter? 

 

Tom

[YXU AC*SE]

@Tom-n-Cheryl  --> likely most helpful to read here:   https://thepointsguy.com/news/cruise-line-removes-music-venues/.   Scott.