Kind of Live from Oosterdam

[brazilgirl]

We are on our 4th cruise day on the Oosterdam and a cancelled port made me decide to create a “live” thread. We are on an 11 day itinerary, round trip from Athens, which includes the Dalmatian Coast and some Greek Islands.

 

We are a couple in our 50s who currently lives in Portugal ( I am American and my husband is Brazilian). We love traveling and cruising and have sailed on many different cruiselines : Azamara, Celebrity, HAL, Crystal, Virgin and others. Our last HAL cruises were on the Eurodam and Westerdam in 2013 and 2014, to Alaska and Northern Europe.

 

 

We flew to Athens from Lisbon on a redeye. We almost started off on the wrong foot by the airline trying to bump me off the flight due to overbooking. Crisis averted and we landed in Athens at 5:45 am. We headed to our Airbnb for a shower and nap. It was a simple but comfy apartment with a great balcony that had outstanding views of the Acropolis

[brazilgirl]

After a nap and a shower, we headed to a highly recommended restaurant called Kucina. It did not disappoint and after we explored Athens a bit on foot. We had visited the Acropolis on a previous trip, so decided to not do a formal tour and post cruise we will have 3 more days. We had nice weather and enjoyed the antique shops, markets and churches.After an early evening, we bought supplies for breakfast and booked a taxi to take us to the port at 11:30, as we were allowed to board the ship at 12:00.

[brazilgirl]

Sunday came soon about and we were ready to board the Oosterdam. We chose this cruise booked on the itinerary, as were eager to explore a bit more of Croatia and Greece.

 

The check-in process online was very easy and when we arrived at the port we waited less than 15 minutes for our group ( according to arrival time) to be called. On our previous HAL cruises, we had a Neptune Suite and a balcony. This time we decided to go back to basics and we got an inside cabin. We chose this considering the itinerary was very port intensive and we wanted to save $$. 
 

Our checkin and boarding was the easiest we have ever had, extremely smooth and well organized. Upon boarding, our room was already available, which was appreciated.Lunch at the Lido was good and not terribly crowded. We double checked our restaurant reservations and picked up some reading at the library ( the new library is brightly lit and well organized).Our inside cabin had good storage space and a fabulous mattress and pillows. I do miss having a balcony but not a deal breaker.Some bathroom issues. We have had problems with the hot water and the plumbing, both were solved quickly, but not great to have already had these snafus in the first days.These benches always make me smile.Oosterdam does have old world charm .The Bar is a classic as wellIt is a bit of a challenge to find a lounger by the pool.

 

Please feel free to ask any questions, happy to answer

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Have a great cruise.

[Sea42]

Thanks for taking the time to share your cruise. I hope you're having a wonderful time!

[canadianbear]

Will follow along. Hope you have a great cruise. Glad the water issue is resolved. 

[AKJonesy]

Heading to Athens next month staying 5 days then boarding NS for FLL.  In Athens, what neighborhood did you stay in and would you recommend it AND how did you get around in the city?  

We did Oosterdam last fall and still love the ship.  We also had some hot water issues, but resolved quickly.  Have fun.  Thanks for any input.

[brazilgirl]

1 hour ago, AKJonesy said:

Heading to Athens next month staying 5 days then boarding NS for FLL.  In Athens, what neighborhood did you stay in and would you recommend it AND how did you get around in the city?  

We did Oosterdam last fall and still love the ship.  We also had some hot water issues, but resolved quickly.  Have fun.  Thanks for any input.

We downloaded an app which is similar to Uber called Free Now which is used in Athens. We paid about 18 Euros from our Airbnb to the port ( we took a taxi from the airport because we arrived at 5:45 am and it was almost 50 Euros.)

 

We walked the rest of the time, as we enjoy walking and are pretty used to navigating with google maps. We will be staying in Athens for 3 more days post cruise and plan to do some excursions.

 

We stayed in the Exarchia neighborhood. I think I would prefer a more central location. We will stay in a different neighborhood closer to the Plaka when we return.

[brazilgirl]

Our first port was Korcula, Croatia and we were blessed with stunning weather. It was sunny, no wind yet not to hot. Korcula is less overrun with tourists and is sometimes called “Little Dubrovnik”. It is easy to walk around and really not necessary to take a formal tour.

 

It is a tender port and the tendering process was smooth and fast. We had breakfast and headed ashore. 

The water is extremely clear and clean and there were some people swimming ( made me want to dive in). 
 

We decided to climb the Bell Tower, which costs 5 euros and is really worth it for the amazing views. It requires mobility as there are lots of very narrow stairsAfter the Bell Tower, we took a look at St Mark’s church and Marco Polo’s birthplace. We strolled along the promenade and had an overpriced tourist lunch which we kind of regretted, lol. But the atmosphere by the water was really relaxing and worth the gouging.

 

 

The true charm of Korcula is had in wandering the narrow alleyways and peeking in the courtyards as well as strolling near the water. It really is special.Lots of gelato available and beautiful coral jewelry.The Oosterdam in the distance.We headed back to the ship for the sail-away, which went through the fjord like landscape. There was a special sunset ending a great day on the island. I woudl go back to Korcula for a land vacation.

[Northwest Nerd]

Very nice trip review, thank you Brazil Girl! I remember your Westerdam Alaska trip report, now 10 years ago! You had your family with you, as I recall. Your kids must be quite grown up by now!

[mchell810]

Really enjoying your photos.  Thanks!

[Live4cruises]

Thank you for bringing us along!

[oakridger]

@brazilgirl Hello!  I remember you from the Crystal forum quite a few years ago. I enjoyed your reports then and am happy to see you back cruising!  I did think of you when Brazil was having so many problems but now you are in Portugal.  I hope you like your new home and that it's much more peaceful there.   

 

Thank you for these beautiful pictures and showing Korcula.  Croatia has been over touristed it seems so it's good to hear the smaller ports are still so enjoyable.

 

I like the size of Oosterdam and her sister ships. 

 

Enjoy the rest of your trip and I'll be watching here for more posts and pictures!

 

~Nancy

[StLouisCruisers]

@brazilgirl can you give us some insight as to why Oosterdam is in Split, Croatia today instead of Hvar, Croatia?  Is it weather related?  Or the ever popular operational reasons, or perhaps scheduling conflicts?  We have the fleet locations on the "Fleet Report and Daily" and sometimes the cruise line throws a wrench in the works.  Just curious.  

 

I hope you enjoy Split.  It's a lovely port of call.

[TxNight]

13 hours ago, StLouisCruisers said:

@brazilgirl can you give us some insight as to why Oosterdam is in Split, Croatia today instead of Hvar, Croatia?  Is it weather related?  Or the ever popular operational reasons, or perhaps scheduling conflicts?  We have the fleet locations on the "Fleet Report and Daily" and sometimes the cruise line throws a wrench in the works.  Just curious.  

 

I hope you enjoy Split.  It's a lovely port of call.

I am on this cruise also. Trieste and Hvar was cancel due to weather/high winds. Thursday became a sea day and Friday was Split

[brazilgirl]

Hello everyone

 

it is so nice to see fellow cruisers that remember my previous cruise reports. Yes, our kids are all grown up ( 27, 24 and 20) and they are jealous we are on a cruise without them , lol. We will be cruising as a family next July out of Copenhagen, where our daughter now lives, as a family.

 

We love living in Portugal, a wonderful country. We moved in 2020 and are really happy.

 

An update as to why we are in Split rather than Hvar… yesterday due to high winds, our visit to Trieste was cancelled as the Captain did not feel it was safe to dock with the famous Croatian “Bora” gusts and rain. Today we were supposed to call on Hvar, a tender port, and the Captain again felt it was a risky idea due to winds and decided to change to Split, a port that we could dock rather than tender. We ended up having a glorious day, so it was a wise decision.

[brazilgirl]

After visiting Korcula, we stopped in Zadar. I had visited Zadar previously and explored the city so we decided to use our onboard shore excursion credit and do a 4x4 “Safari” Adventure. It turned out to be a truly delightful option.

 

The excursion was provided by a family owned small business that focuses on outdoor travel adventures such as hikes, kayaking, 4x4 Offroad explorations etc.

 

3 Land-rovers were used and our small groups were divided up. Our guide first took us to see the Zrmanja Canyon, where a famous TV series called Winnetou was filmed.Then we headed farther into the Velebit Mountains, where we saw many monuments to fallen soldiers in the Balkan War and we learned more history about the conflict. We also saw the village where footballer Luka Modric ( from Real Madrid) was born.

 

The scenery was dramatic and quite interesting, different from the Croatian tourist destinations.We proceeded offroad and saw many gorgeous vistas with a lot of information about the history and landscape from our guides. We ended up at a rustic stone farmhouse for a very authentic lunch, laid out on wooden tables. We had hearty gnocchi with a beef ragú that was excellent, as well as homemade wine.

 

 

 

We wandered around the pasture and one of the curious cows got annoyed with my photos and almost tried to run after me. Luckily, my husband yelled at it and saved me 🤣.

 

There was also a friendly farm cat named Tom who made friends with all the group.

 

It was one of my favorite cruise excursions ( I tend to not book ship excursions, I usually organize them myself). So glad we made this choice.

[brazilgirl]

A few comments on the ship. The Oosterdam is a traditional and well maintained ship. The decor is like an old manor house, with darker colors and woods. I suppose if I could choose, I would lighten up the pallette to make it a bit less heavy, but that is my personal preference.

 

 

The crew is extremely friendly and the service is warm and attentive. Our stateroom attendant, Tony, is always present and had a keen eye.

 

We have been very impressed with the food in the main dining room. We have ended up eating there most days and both my husband and I have decided that we like the food better than our last two cruises , on Azamara and Virgin. Crystal does get the trophy for best ever food, but that is a different price point.

 

We loved loved loved the Caneletto food but the Pinnacle Grill was not as delicious , maybe an off night? 

 

Scampi at Caneletto

The fruit crisps are as good as you can get.

 

[StLouisCruisers]

Thank you @TxNight and @brazilgirl for the port location info.  I'm glad you liked your substitute port, Split.

[QuattroRomeo]

Korcula looks like a lovely place to wander! Beautiful photos.

[QuattroRomeo]

Looks like a great trip in Zadar! The cow photos are very good and fun - hopefully worth the "charge"!!

[cccole]

Loved today's post on Split.  What a great excursion.  And, after spending 3 weeks on the Oosterdam in January, I agree regarding the Caneletto.  We like it so much better than the Pinnacle.  Thanks for letting us cruise with you.  Cherie