Rotterdam! Feb 16-25 Trip Report & Review

[MaryBethV]

3 hours ago, Navybikermom said:

That library carpeting hurts my eyes! 😵‍💫

Maybe they didn't want people to get too comfy in there. 🤣

[MaryBethV]

6 hours ago, Vict0riann said:

Quick question - was that Jerk lamb shank spicy?  I don't know much about jerk seasoning, but I would like to try it if it's not too spicy hot.   (In our house we use caliente and picante - I like caliente but not picante!)

I asked DH and he said that it wasn't spicy at all - it was more like a delicious, flavorful roast. 

[MaryBethV]

4 hours ago, CruiseIreland said:

OP, your review is brilliant and reflects much of our experience on the Nieuw Statendam last month. Excellent photos. Keep up the good work!! Ken 

Thank you! & Thanks for following along.

Edited March 6 by MaryBethV

[cheeseheads4ever]

Loving your report. We haven’t cruised on HAL for 12 years. Can you please let me know what the costs are for the specialty dining restaurants. We have a cruise on hold and want to see how much extra the dining is.

What restaurants you’d recommend? I am struggling to find pricing. How would you compare to Celebrity Cruises?

Thanks for any help you can give us.

[MaryBethV]

12 hours ago, cheeseheads4ever said:

Loving your report. We haven’t cruised on HAL for 12 years. Can you please let me know what the costs are for the specialty dining restaurants. We have a cruise on hold and want to see how much extra the dining is.

What restaurants you’d recommend? I am struggling to find pricing. How would you compare to Celebrity Cruises?

Thanks for any help you can give us.

 

I found recent specialty dining pricing info (which increased fall of 2023) here.

 

Some HAL ships include all the specialty dining venues, and some do not - so it depends on what ship your cruise will be on.

 

First of all, if you only eat in the MDR, in our opinion, you won't be disappointed. The meals and service we had there were very good. While not all dishes were memorable - I can say that I also don't remember anyone in our party ever getting a dish they didn't like (and that has never happened on a cruise before!). Of course, it is nice to eat elsewhere occasionally for a quieter, more intimate experience.

 

Tamarind: highly recommended! We booked our reservation online a few weeks before our cruise at $35pp + 18% gratuity. ($82.60 in total)

 

Nami Sushi: highly recommended! No cover charge - just a la carte pricing which you can view on the menu I posted on the Feb 19/Curacao post. Instead of making reservations, we opted to inquire at the Tamarind host stand if there was availability for Nami Sushi. On both nights they were able to accommodate us. 

 

Pinnacle Grill: highly recommended! We dined here twice (once for lunch, once for dinner - both coming up in this trip report). Lunch was $19pp + 18% gratuity ($44.84 in total). Dinner - we used the dining credit that came with our Have-It-All package.

 

We did not dine at Canaletto or Rudi's Sel De Mer, but perhaps others can chime in regarding those for you!

 

Unfortunately, I can't help you regarding how HAL compares to Celebrity as we have only previously cruised with Princess (most recently) and Norwegian. 

 

I hope that helps! Thanks for following along!

[REOVA]

15 hours ago, cheeseheads4ever said:

Loving your report. We haven’t cruised on HAL for 12 years. Can you please let me know what the costs are for the specialty dining restaurants. We have a cruise on hold and want to see how much extra the dining is.

What restaurants you’d recommend? I am struggling to find pricing. How would you compare to Celebrity Cruises?

Thanks for any help you can give us.

There is currently a thread in this forum of someone on Celebrity that just got off Eurodam (and will be boarding another HAL ship) providing comparisons. 

[CNSJ]

Thank you for a superb report.  Your photos are wonderful and to be honest, I am hungry after looking at them. We love Rotterdam.  It's our favorite ship.

 

[Kakiwynn]

We were on this same cruise but had a different experience with the main dining room. We thought it was beautiful, but the food was hit or miss (maybe we just ordered the wrong things), and the service was terrible. Definitely understaffed. We ate in all the speciality restaurants and they were consistently good. Canaletto was $25/pp and was surprisingly good. I don’t remember the exact price for Rudi’s but it was the highest cost, maybe $50+/pp.

[MaryBethV]

Hi friends! Who wants to go to One Happy Island with us today? ☀️🌴😍

 

Wednesday | February 21, 2024 | Oranjestad, Aruba

 

The alarm clock went off at 6:30 am which allowed us to view our first sunrise of the cruise!

 

 

 

The Daily - 

 

 

Port Info -

 

 

 

We had ordered room service breakfast again via the door-hanger menu the night before to make getting ready for our excursion easier. Note: the staff that delivered our food on this cruise never paused for a tip. Even with having ours ready - we had to be quick to catch them before they were out the door again. So if tipping is your thing - be quick about it and they are grateful! If it's not, you won't be pressured to do so.

 

 

 

How cute is the little creamer container?! I wanted to keep it. 😎 (I didn't)

 

The creamer container said to savor the journey - so we did. 😊 Sipping coffee on the balcony while watching a spectacular sunrise is one of my favorite things in this entire world. Thank you, God, for such a beautiful morning!

 

 

 

 

It was time for our Aruba Town & Countryside HAL excursion. We chose this one a few weeks before our cruise because it was rated "easy" and looked interesting. Unfortunately, MIL was not up to going, so it was DH & I + FIL for this little adventure. MrC and MrsC went on a different excursion - more on that later.

 

 

 

Johann was our bus driver/tour guide and he was wonderful - he gave us a ton of information while we drove from location to location. He is originally from the Netherlands and came to Aruba 25 years ago.

 

 

The bus was clean and well-air-conditioned. However, if you are 6'4" like DH, this is the leg room to prepare yourself for...

 

We learned that Oranjestad means orange city since orange is the Dutch royal color. Johann informed us that our first stop was "Right around the corner, 20 minutes. Okie-dokie!"

 

A few photos through the window... this is Wilhelmina Park, named after Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands.

 

The beautiful coastline.

 

 

"The lake on the right is where we ice-skate in the winter." 🤣

 

Casibari Rock Formation - this is the second-largest rock formation on the island, and you could climb up it (through the rocks). If you want to keep this excursion "easy" I'd recommend that you don't climb up and down. It is not easy on the back or knees! It was fun though - we were the first bus there (which Johann was excited about).

 

 

There were restrooms available at this stop and a vendor selling water bottles for $1.

 

 

 

Up top the surface is very uneven and you need to be steady on your feet.

 

Great views though!

 

 

 

I spy the Rotterdam! (on the left)

 

Hooiberg Mountain - which translates to Haystack Mountain. Johann said it is the 3rd highest point in Aruba and it is fun to hike up to the top.

 

 

Imagine having giant boulders in the middle of your neighborhood. 

 

 

Heading down the other side -

 

 

Looking back up -

 

 

 

 

 

 

On to the next location! "Just around the corner! 20 minutes. Okie-dokie!" 😄

 

We passed the largest rock formation on the left side of the bus - so I handed my phone to my FIL and he got a very nice photo for me. 

 

Johann says that anywhere you add a little water, up springs cactus! And the locals have found that they can make an interesting (intimidating!) and economical fence.

 

 

 

We made it to the North side of the island -

 

 

The *baby* Natural Bridge - The original natural bridge was very large and spanned the entire inlet. Sadly, it collapsed in 2005. We were here to see the smaller natural bridge that remains. Johann warned us not to walk past the posted warning signs & onto the bridge - as you would not want to be on top of one IF it were to unexpectedly collapse. He even said, "Some people seem to have forgotten how to read...but please don't walk on it!" However, some people don't think rules and warnings apply to them. ☹️

 

Looking at where the original bridge used to be -

 

 

You can get a photo without people in it if you are patient, zoom in, and crop accordingly. 😉

 

 

There is a gift & snack shop as well as restrooms at this location.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3rd location coming up! "Just around the corner! 20 minutes. Okie-dokie!"

 

 

 

Alto Vista Chapel - 

 

 

 

 

❤️ Miss our dogs!

 

There were refreshments and souveniers available for purchase near the chapel.

 

We headed to our last location... and you guessed it - it was... "Just around the corner! 20 minutes. Okie-dokie!" 

 

California Lighthouse - named after the shipwrecked S.S. California off its shores.

 

There is an Italian restaurant near the lighthouse. Johann said it was a very good restaurant and a great place to watch the sunset (you just need to make a reservation weeks in advance).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These flowering cacti in the midst of some of the scariest-looking thorns I've ever seen caught our eye. Beautiful!

 

 

 

I wish I had taken a photo of all the buses for you - there were SO many by the lighthouse. Johann reminded us of our bus number for good reason!

 

 

And finally on our way back to the ship -

 

 

 

Rewind...

MrC and MrsC went on a different HAL excursion this morning. They were a little more adventurous and visited a beach, some fascinating caves - and the same Casibari Rock Formation that we did. Here are a few photos from their excursion.

 

 

 

 

How cute are they?!!! ❤️

 

 

Next up: Back on the ship for lunch, more of this beautiful Happy Island, and a super fun evening!

 

 

Edited March 6 by MaryBethV

[MaryBethV]

26 minutes ago, Kakiwynn said:

We were on this same cruise but had a different experience with the main dining room. We thought it was beautiful, but the food was hit or miss (maybe we just ordered the wrong things), and the service was terrible. Definitely understaffed. We ate in all the speciality restaurants and they were consistently good. Canaletto was $25/pp and was surprisingly good. I don’t remember the exact price for Rudi’s but it was the highest cost, maybe $50+/pp.

I'm so sorry to hear that! ☹️ It shows you can be on the same cruise and have different experiences. Fortunately, the only night we felt the service in the MDR was a little "off" was embarkation night - other than that it was very good. 

We would love to try Canaletto and Rudi's next time - I'm glad you had great experiences in the specialty restaurants!

[cheeseheads4ever]

Thanks so much MaryBethV for the very informative information. Again we love your report you have did an incredible job with pictures and detailed information.

Last time we sailed on HAL was 10 years ago on Westerdam. We had a fabulous time at the BB King Blues Club.
We are seriously looking at booking the Rotterdam for a November Birthday cruise for my DW.

We have until the 10th for a courtesy hold. I was surprised the deposit was $1200. Seems high.
We have cruised our past 10-12 cruises on Celebrity and just feel like it was time for a change. I realize all cruise lines have made cutbacks but just need something different.

Thanks again for all your help!

 

 

 

 

[MaryBethV]

6 hours ago, cheeseheads4ever said:

Thanks so much MaryBethV for the very informative information. Again we love your report you have did an incredible job with pictures and detailed information.

Last time we sailed on HAL was 10 years ago on Westerdam. We had a fabulous time at the BB King Blues Club.
We are seriously looking at booking the Rotterdam for a November Birthday cruise for my DW.

We have until the 10th for a courtesy hold. I was surprised the deposit was $1200. Seems high.
We have cruised our past 10-12 cruises on Celebrity and just feel like it was time for a change. I realize all cruise lines have made cutbacks but just need something different.

Thanks again for all your help!

 

Wow - a $1200 deposit! Is that non-refundable? I wonder if it is because of Thanksgiving/Holiday time. 

 

There are indeed cutbacks everywhere I'm sure - though we didn't feel that much on HAL (it could be because we are new to HAL). However, we did see the nickel and diming, particularly with the large amount of *common* drinks that were anywhere from 50 cents to a few dollars above the drink package cap of $11. It didn't feel very "have it all" at times.

[sailawayward]

8 hours ago, Kakiwynn said:

We were on this same cruise but had a different experience with the main dining room. We thought it was beautiful, but the food was hit or miss (maybe we just ordered the wrong things), and the service was terrible. Definitely understaffed. We ate in all the speciality restaurants and they were consistently good. Canaletto was $25/pp and was surprisingly good. I don’t remember the exact price for Rudi’s but it was the highest cost, maybe $50+/pp.

 

We were on the same cruise, as well.  It's sad to hear that you had such a different experience than we did. 

 

We had dinner at Pinnacle Grill the first night of our cruise because we figured we could bypass the embarkation madness of the main dining room on the first night of sailing.  We used that as part of the HIA dinner promo and saved Tamarind for our last night.  The food in Pinnacle was fantastic.  We thought about having lunch there during the cruise but we never got around to it.

 

We never felt like the MDR was understaffed any time we were there.  There were only 2 of us and we had the early assigned dinner time when we didn't already have reservations in the specialty restaurants or when onshore.  Our assigned servers were Marvin and Saursana and they were both very attentive and each took a sincere interest in our experience.  We were surprised how much we connected with them.  We did walk-in lunch in the dining room when we could during sea days; and the service was very good, just not as personal as dinner.

 

The staff at the buffet and throughout the lido food areas were working really hard to keep the passengers moving, so we didn’t really wait excessively in line for anything.  From our experience, passengers were very accommodating & polite to one another.  We thought all of the food onboard really was delicious (except for the gluten-free cookies which were just gross and luckily those were never offered again).  The fruit was especially fresh.  Considering how busy the ship was, tables were cleaned and made ready for new guests very efficiently.

 

Our dinner at Rudi's was incredible, and the service with Najib Ben and Roice made it such a lovely experience.  Since I'm gluten-free I thought the options for Morimoto dinner were very limited, but we still loved the dinner. Tamarind is the best on the ship, and Amy really pampered us.

[POA1]

Wonderful thread! We're on the same 9 day cruise over Easter, albeit a slight variation to the ABC islands part. Your words and beautiful photos are really helping to set the mood for our sailing at the end of the month.

@MaryBethV

[wdw1972]

Thanks from me as well - I board Rotterdam tomorrow! We plan to book Rudi's for the first night, have a couple Tamarinds & a Pinnacle dinner already booked and will add a Pinnacle lunch and a Canaletto once onboard. Your photos have been excellent and your positive/upbeat approach is very enjoyable!

 

Looks like I'll finish reading your report while I'm onboard - enjoying the Retreat!

 

Sue/WDW1972

[POA1]

1 hour ago, wdw1972 said:

Thanks from me as well - I board Rotterdam tomorrow! We plan to book Rudi's for the first night...

We loved Sel de Mer on the Nieuw Statendam. The Tournados Rossini & Rack of Lamb were excellent. If you like escargot, Rudi's is outstanding.

 

I'm looking forward to hearing about your Retreat experience now that the full "new" amenities program is in place.

[Kakiwynn]

I will add we had the anytime dining so maybe that is why we had bad service. We tried both tables for two, and tables with other passengers. 

[MaryBethV]

9 hours ago, POA1 said:

Wonderful thread! We're on the same 9 day cruise over Easter, albeit a slight variation to the ABC islands part. Your words and beautiful photos are really helping to set the mood for our sailing at the end of the month.

@MaryBethV

I am already looking forward to the Institute of Cheer's Easter cruise! 🤩

[ski ww]

Enjoyed your write up & pictures of Aruba, we spent a week on the Island a few years back, they brought back great memories. We will be on the Rotterdam for two weeks in Aug.

[MaryBethV]

3 hours ago, Kakiwynn said:

I will add we had the anytime dining so maybe that is why we had bad service. We tried both tables for two, and tables with other passengers. 

 

You are one of those brave ones! I just can't eat and chit-chat with strangers at the same time. 😂

We also had anytime dining... we ate at all different times and with anywhere from 2-6 in our party. The longest we ever had to wait was 3-4 minutes. My MIL was having a hard time walking and when we ate with MIL/FIL, they would have us take the elevator upstairs so they could give us a table close to the entrance so she wouldn't have to walk far. That was very much appreciated. The MDR practically needs it's own zipcode and if you are shown to a table all the way aft you almost need hiking boots!

 

I hope your dinner service is better on your next cruise. 🥰

[MaryBethV]

5 hours ago, wdw1972 said:

Thanks from me as well - I board Rotterdam tomorrow! We plan to book Rudi's for the first night, have a couple Tamarinds & a Pinnacle dinner already booked and will add a Pinnacle lunch and a Canaletto once onboard. Your photos have been excellent and your positive/upbeat approach is very enjoyable!

 

Looks like I'll finish reading your report while I'm onboard - enjoying the Retreat!

 

Sue/WDW1972

 

I'm so excited for you!!! You should be boarding about now. 😃🎉 Have the BEST time ever!

Add me to the list with @POA1 - I'd love to hear about your thoughts on the retreat as well! 

[MaryBethV]

10 minutes ago, ski ww said:

Enjoyed your write up & pictures of Aruba, we spent a week on the Island a few years back, they brought back great memories. We will be on the Rotterdam for two weeks in Aug.

 

I would happily spend a week in either Aruba or Curacao - we have friends that go to Aurba every year and I now understand why! Have fun on your Aug cruise. 😊

[MaryBethV]

Aruba cont...

 

After our excursion, we joined FIL and MIL in the Lido Market for lunch. MIL finally got her fish & chips... and she always loves sitting next to "her favorite second son". 😉

 

 

Salad for me, please! They assembled my salad, then I took it over to the carving station for some roasted tri-tip. Just fabulous!

 

 

Since we didn't get to the beach in Curacao, I really wanted to go to one in Aruba. DH's back wasn't feeling all that great after our morning excursion, but he was still game to head to a beach with me. 🥰 So... we changed, SPF'd up, and walked off the ship. We were prepared to have to walk all of the way over to the ship next to us to catch a cab - but amazingly one was dropping off passengers in front of the Rotterdam just as we walked out. 😃

 

"Eagle Beach please!" The cab ride was $15 one way (set prices) and our driver let us off near the Coco Loco bar. We made our way to the loungers and umbrellas and found a set in the first row by the water. Score! The attendant came and set them up for us. Thankfully I had done some research in advance so we didn't visibly choke at the $50 USD charge for 2 loungers + an umbrella. (We were given wristbands that would allow us to use the showers and restrooms at the bar.)

 

And this is why it was worth it -

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ahhh - water, sun, and sand are good for the soul!

 

This was looking back at the Coco Loco bar on our way out.

 

❤️ - indeed!

 

Back on the ship - the view from our balcony.

 

 

I was trying to get in touch with MrsC to make dinner plans with them - but wasn't getting a response. (Turns out she was getting in some port shopping time! 🙂) So, DH and I decided to head to the Dutch Cafe to try some of the Dutch snacks.

 

 

We sipped wine while we waited... and the snacks eventually came. Top left is the Mini Cheese Souffle (OK - fried cheese is fried cheese), then the Bitterballen balls (OK - tasted like fried mashed potatoes?), and the Vlammettjes spring rolls (these were good!).

 

On to see Reema & Lyn at the Half Moon Bar. Reema found out I love cherries and from then on there were cherries in pretty much every drink I ordered. LOVE her!

MrsC texted me back and even though MrC wasn't feeling well, she was up for joining us. Yay! She met us at the HMB and I introduced her to the 3 Mile (she likes hers with vodka). Mmm!

 

Chatting with Lyn, we learned that they were low on martini glasses and had even run out earlier. The horror! 😧 Some cruisers apparently do NOT like their martinis in the "uuuugly goblet" glass. 😂 I guess I was lucky...

 

 

Time for a late dinner with MrsC! So fun!

 

 

Spaghetti Aglio e Olio - I know this is a main dish, but I ordered it as my starter. It's a pasta course ok? And it was delicious!

 

Gourmet Greens - 

 

Shrimp Crostini - DH liked it.

 

Caribbean 'Jerk' Chicken Breast - (with the infamous rice & black beans). DH said it was good.

 

Tri-Tip Beef with Creamed Leeks and Bacon - I guess I had a thing for tri-tip today. This was good, but I'm going to say that my salad at lunch was still my favorite of the two.

 

Brown Sugar Glazed Salmon - MrsC seemed to like it!

Dessert - this is when we hatched our genius plan to "help" Lyn at the HMB. So, we ordered a round of lemon drop martinis with our dessert order. 😎

 

Raspberry Mouse Tart - with TWO quarters of a raspberry! Someone is going to get it for not rationing correctly. 😂 

 

Opera Cake - delicious! It tasted like tiramisu to me - which I love.

 

Finally, we absconded with our half-empty lemon drop martinis and promptly took them to the Half Moon Bar. When Lyn saw the three of us walking down the hall to present her with our stolen "extra" martini glasses, she about died laughing. We were the crazy martini glass people from that point on I'm sure... and we're ok with that. 🤣

 

@wdw1972 Sue - I hope you get to meet Reema & Lyn. They are so much fun! If you do, please tell them hi from us. (They may not remember us - we were 3 or 4 cruises ago already! - time flies!)

 

Next up: sea day shenanigans

 

Edited March 7 by MaryBethV

[Iamthesea]

5 hours ago, MaryBethV said:

I just can't eat and chit-chat with strangers at the same time. 😂

 

I am the same way.  I like to enjoy my food. After eating with others, I can't even remember what I had to eat. 😃

 

What a wonderful idea to top your salad with some beef from the carving station.  I have a salad most days when we cruises.  Sometimes I make it a taco salad.  The tri-tip will elevate the protein needed for some of those exhausting excursions around Europe.  We sail the Rotterdam in May.  Enjoying your review very much!!!

[cheeseheads4ever]

The thing I’m so impressed about on this report not only for the incredible job you have did with pictures and detailed info is the LOVE your DH has for his mother.

Not a doubt about this. there’s not a day goes by I wished I was in his place on a cruise ship sitting next to my mother having a drink.

So impressed by your report. You should be so proud of your DH.

Hopefully I haven’t missed anything…

Looking forward to our cruise on Rotterdam in November.

Thanks again for the great job detailing your vacation…