'Twas Two Weeks Before Christmas - Live from the Nieuw Statendam, Dec. 10 - 17, 2023

[57redbird]

Probably a minor ? for you....why doesn't the MDR lunch menu change?  We did the 35 day cruise last Feb/March & only did the MDR a couple of times for that reason.

[0106]

@57redbird I’m getting ready to board the Oosterdam for a 22 day cruise.  I look at the menus on the Navigator app every day.  The MDR lunch menu is different every day that it is open.  The MDR is usually closed for lunch on port days.  Here is today’s menu

[Navybikermom]

I have heard good and bad things about how long the lines can be at the Dutch Cafe. I will be on the Rotterdam in May for my first pinnacle experience and would like to know how it goes for you. When’s the best (quickest) time to get a morning coffee, is there a big wait for lunch food, etc…

 

Many thanks!

[0106]

@NavybikermomWe found the best time to visit the Dutch Cafe was when we returned from a shore excursion for a quick bite.  The lines were extremely long all morning.

[Haljo1935]

2 hours ago, POA1 said:

I was serious about needing research project suggestions. We need some structure and focus. (Although "photo catalog of all the art on the ship, by location, is a bit beyond our scope. 😉)

 

If you want to know something, please post it.

Oh drat, lol. In fairness, you delivered quite a lovely art catalog. 😊

In keeping with the theme of "how much can you ask for before the questions start flowing and the liquid stops" see how many butter refills you can get - does the amount of butter in each serving increase (an attempt to provide enough you stop asking for it) or decrease (conservation effort) and does it get softer (they leave the next bowl out in anticipation of your upcoming request) or harder (stays in fridge cuz they cycle through it so fast).

Our dining table consumes what I can only imagine to be a record-setting amount of butter. I personally don't contribute to the impending butter shortage as I don't eat it, but it is a fascinating dance to watch.

[57redbird]

1 hour ago, 0106 said:

@57redbird I’m getting ready to board the Oosterdam for a 22 day cruise.  I look at the menus on the Navigator app every day.  The MDR lunch menu is different every day that it is open.  The MDR is usually closed for lunch on port days.  Here is today’s menu

Thx...totally different than what we were offered.....Mexican St tacos everyday & I don't remember what else. Maybe dependent on the itinerary...ours was the Hawaii/Tahiti, etc. one.

[BruhnSisters]

3 hours ago, POA1 said:

I was serious about needing research project suggestions. We need some structure and focus. (Although "photo catalog of all the art on the ship, by location, is a bit beyond our scope. 😉)

 

If you want to know something, please post it.

 

I have two simple requests for your next trip adventure report:

1.  Ask Poohby to keep an eye open for rubber ducks onboard.

2.  Stay in that "Bubble of Awesomeness" . . . we love that clever and optimistic writing style.  

[Huskerchick]

1 hour ago, Navybikermom said:

I have heard good and bad things about how long the lines can be at the Dutch Cafe. I will be on the Rotterdam in May for my first pinnacle experience and would like to know how it goes for you. When’s the best (quickest) time to get a morning coffee, is there a big wait for lunch food, etc…

 

Many thanks!

The Dutch Café was definitely busy certain times of the day but the staff did a great job of moving people thru. Finding seating seemed to be the biggest issue so if there are 2 of you one might grab seats while the other placed the order

[0106]

35 minutes ago, 57redbird said:

Maybe dependent on the itinerary

We had the same menu everyday in our October 15 day TA on the Rotterdam.  We ended up having 10 sea days because we had to miss a port.  The MDR lunch menu be came extremely boring but luckily we had the NY Pizza & Deli, Dutch Cafe and Dive InI’m hopeful the MDR menu will continue to change every day on all cruises with many sea days.

[Navybikermom]

14 minutes ago, Huskerchick said:

The Dutch Café was definitely busy certain times of the day but the staff did a great job of moving people thru. Finding seating seemed to be the biggest issue so if there are 2 of you one might grab seats while the other placed the order

Just one of me. I’ll just take my spoils and move to a quiet spot elsewhere 😁.

[POA1]

On 12/25/2023 at 12:53 PM, Sunshineliving said:

@POA1 Thank you for your posts. You are the reason I found out about the Retreat. I've only cruised one time without a cabana. My husband said never again. 

Merry Christmas!

Our pleasure! We have had a Retreat Cabana on every sailing we've done since 2014. It's one of the first things we book, usually moments after the cruise is confirmed.

[57redbird]

16 hours ago, 0106 said:

We had the same menu everyday in our October 15 day TA on the Rotterdam.  We ended up having 10 sea days because we had to miss a port.  The MDR lunch menu be came extremely boring but luckily we had the NY Pizza & Deli, Dutch Cafe and Dive InI’m hopeful the MDR menu will continue to change every day on all cruises with many sea days.

Yep...that's the menu we kept seeing....did only a couple of lunches there.

[POA1]

17 hours ago, Navybikermom said:

Just one of me. I’ll just take my spoils and move to a quiet spot elsewhere 😁.

We wound up sharing one of the high tops in the window area a couple of times. Other times we got lucky and scored one of the tables in the atrium area across from guest services.

 

Michelle gave really high marks to ham and gouda sandwich. She's not a big sandwich person, so it must have been really good. The fries, as mentioned earlier, we excellent.

 

 

[POA1]

I should mention that the excellent fries come with you mayonnaise and peanut sauce. The cafe has a curry ketchup, but you'd have to ask for it. They may have regular ketchup. I'm not sure.

[POA1]

19 hours ago, 0106 said:

@NavybikermomWe found the best time to visit the Dutch Cafe was when we returned from a shore excursion for a quick bite.  The lines were extremely long all morning.

There is a definite ebb & flow to the line. We lucked out with very short lines each time we were there, but the line could get long quite quickly.

[POA1]

Now that we are off the ship and don't have to worry about being hassled by the poohparazzi, I can disclose our secret location, which we cleverly concealed with a light up, wrapped "Christmas gift" on our door. I will post room photos later today and send the full size ones to HALfacts. (If you think of it, take photos of your room and send them in to them. We find it helpful to look at the rooms we're booking and we want to pay it forward.)

 

We were in 7087, a category A Vista Suite. There are only 4 Vista Suites on Deck 7 (Schubert or Poohbert, depending on who you ask.)

 

We were here:

 

 

 

[KAKcruiser]

Another question about the menu is what will be offered for Easter Sunday.  Will it be a different menu?

[POA1]

Apologies for the delay... It was a long day at work today.

 

Here are the room photos.

 

The bed in the Vista Suites is closest to the balcony.

 

 

 

The TV is opposite the bed. That's not great for TV addicts, but we watch no television on most of our cruises.

 

 

The bed is described as a queen or two twins, depending on how you have the bedding configured. We have a king size bed at home and this bed is much closer to a king than a queen.

 

 

 

[POA1]

There are two chairs and a small table on the verandah.

 

 

Each chair has a footstool tucked underneath. You can make it out in the photo above.  When you pull it out, you sort of have a chaise.

 

 

Note to self: Go out on the balcony and take a picture next time.

 

 

Edited December 30, 2023 by POA1

[POA1]

Jumping back in...

 

 

Moving from the balcony and bed toward the cabin door, you have the desk and storage for glasses. Your ice bucket goes on that little silver tray.

 

There are three drawers in the desk. We used them to store socks and underwear. You can feel free to use them as you wish. I won't judge.

 

There are plenty of outlets behind the desk: USB, 120V North America, and 240V Europe. The mirror has backlighting, but there is no magnifying mirror.

 

 

The sleeper sofa is opposite the desk. There are cabinets over the couch. That's where you'll find your life jackets and some extra pillows and blankets.

 

There is a cube table in front of the sofa. Its primary function is to be in the way when two people are trying to pass one another. I miss the tables they had on the Ryndam, Maasdam and the older ships. It was an oval, so no pointy edges. It had a glass top, which is way classier than this vinyl, adhesive, wood grain surface. To top things off, those tables had gas lift struts which allowed you to raise the tables to dining height. Despite its amazing powers, the Bubble of Awesome cannot deliver unto us, a decent coffee table.

 

If you are thinking that the sofa looks good, it's because there's a Club Orange tote bag sitting on it.

 

Poohby Joe, sporting his classic HAL logo shirt, poses with his new Club Orange tote bag.

 

There are outlets on either side of the bed, including USB. Very handy for keeping your phone charged while you send random words and phrases out into cyberspace while your spouse is asleep. (At least the ones on the right side were good for that. Michelle does not do that. Her outlets were fine, but she just slept happily on all night.)

 

 

Edited December 30, 2023 by POA1

[Bruinboy20]

Trudy and I have a Vista Suite booked on the Koningsdam in February so we are very appreciative of your pictures and descriptions of the room. Tell HuskerChick that we are doing our best here with the Huskers, but boy, it's been a challenge. 

 

Richard

[Huskerchick]

1 hour ago, Bruinboy20 said:

Trudy and I have a Vista Suite booked on the Koningsdam in February so we are very appreciative of your pictures and descriptions of the room. Tell HuskerChick that we are doing our best here with the Huskers, but boy, it's been a challenge. 

 

Richard

Yay a fellow Huskers.  My family is from Omaha. Yes it has been a challenging few years but I'm optimistic about the things Matt Ruhl is doing. We just need to find a QB, easier said then done I know. 

You'll like the Vista Suite. I found it to be a good size. The only disappointment was the bathroom which I thought was small but we made it work. 

[POA1]

Speaking of bathrooms..

 

 

The bathroom is a pretty standard set up with a single sink, corner commode, and walk-in, glass door shower.

 

 

The shower is a good size and we prefer this to the tub version. Not that there's an issue with the tubs, but this configuration seems to work better for us. I could see where this might work better than a tub if a person had an issue stepping over the tub wall. We're still pretty spritely, so the preference for the shower is simply a matter of what we favor.

 

Water pressure and temperature were good throughout the cruise. The shower head comes out of its holder for your rinsing convenience. There are two knobs. The left controls the water pressure. The right adjusts temperature. A note of caution: The water "mixes" via the horizontal handle and it can be a little hot if you use it as a grab rail.

 

As mentioned by the lovely @Huskerchick

counter space is at a premium and will be until you get into the Signature Suite category.

 

As former MaIners, we are legally required to use L.L. Bean toiletry bags. I have a medium, and she has a large. (I hope you know what these are. I did not think to take a picture.) My bag fit on the left side of the sink. Hers fit on the right. It didn't leave a lot of spare room, but it's workable.

 

 

[0106]

I appreciate all the wonderful information you provide and am excited to follow along on your next adventure. 

 

Previously, someone posted “art” tours of the various ships.  Was it you?  If it was could you repost the link.  I am specifically looking for the Oosterdam.  

 

[POA1]

The shower floor is a non-slip surface. And, more importantly, the shower door keeps the water in the shower where it belongs.

 

There are quite a few hotel brands that could learn from this. (I'm looking at you, Hilton & Marriott family.)

 

I do wish that there was a night light in the bathroom. We travel with two automatic LED night lights, but they would not play nice with the outlet cover in the bathroom. I wound up plugging the night light in by the desk.

 

There is an auto-sensing light under the closets, which is a nice feature. You do have to make it past the cube table to activate it though.