Volendam Review Dec 13 - 23

[Micmac]

Brace yourselves, I have written a long (very long) review. I tried to hit some things where I might have a different perspective than some of the other recent posters (especially since we had Hannah who is a quad in a powerchair).

 

I wanted to thank everyone on the board that helped us prep for this trip. Revneal, your pictures were priceless in helping us to prep for the ramps. Also, Donna - thank you so much for sharing a little of the Lunatic Chicken/Chicken Chicken Cruise with us. I loved the chicken and the M&Ms. The crew was still talking about it. (I have some pics of the chicken on the ship - but they are on Hannah's camera that we haven't uploaded yet.)

 

We only had 3 people on our roll call, so we didn't plan a get together. However, it was great getting to meet Bruce (1/2 of redhead2) on the last day in the photo gallery. Someone tapped me on the shoulder and said "excuse me", so I moved over.. imagine my surprise when he said "no - aren't you micmac?". Hope you guys had safe travels back to Vancouver.

 

In addition to the review, I have attached a link to my pictures.

 

http://www2.snapfish.com/share/p=358291198918956706/l=342008083/g=83108339/otsc=SYE/otsi=SALB

 

 

Pre-departure

We stayed at the Embassy Suites. I haven’t been there since the remodel and unless I am using Hilton points again, will probably not book there despite the convenience to Publix, the wine store and the port. When exactly did a bowl of pretzels become “heavy hors d’oeuvres?

 

Embarkation:

 

Very easy! From parking deck to the Lido was less than 30 minutes. Rooms were a little later than normal being ready (about 2:15pm). Once in the room, bags were all received/unpacked by the lifeboat drill. We did have some excitement as a construction worker at a pier building fell off a ladder – we were able to watch a rooftop rescue from our balcony.

 

Lifeboat drill:

 

Not sure what was happened with the drill – but considerably longer and less organized than other cruises. It was an extremely hot and humid day- someone in a neighboring lifeboat queue passed out and required medical attention. In addition, wheelchairs got “lost” in this drill. Han was at the front of the line – but as the late (very late – with cocktails, but not enough to share with everyone they kept waiting) people kept coming and coming, she got completely hidden and started to panic a little as she was unable to get any fresh air. Luckily a very nice gentleman from OR realized this and quickly rearranged some people.

 

Sailaway:

 

As always, a wonderful time. We were slightly delayed as they were attempting to get some necessary supplies to us and the truck was stuck in traffic. It made for an after dark departure, which wasn’t a bad thing. (It gave me time to start on the second bottle of champagne J)

 

Entertainment:

 

On the whole, very enjoyable. Personally, I wasn’t fond of either Lonny in the Piano Bar or Regina of Regina and the HalCats. I found myself looking for where NOT to be based on where she was to be performing. We actually found one gentleman that enjoyed her – well, until his wife informed us that he had taken out his hearing aid!

 

The HAL singers/dancers performed Let Us Entertain You, Gold, Southern Nights and H2O. Enjoyed Let Us Entertain You, Gold was good but was ended early due to very rough seas, Southern Nights was ok and thought that H2O was shaky at best.

 

I would highly recommend Mack Frampton to anyone. He is an incredibly talented performer. In his last number, we noticed that the accompanying musicians were watching him with their mouths open! As a musician myself, this was by far the best show I have seen in a long time.

 

The Indonesian Crew Show is cute – certainly not professional quality, but some of the staff was really cute in advance asking passengers to go –and then waving from the stage.

 

Paul Tanner was entertaining. Certainly there were some demographics on board that might have appreciated some of his impressions more than I did. However, he is certainly talented.

 

Explorations Speaker Randy Everson was knowledgeable, but lacked a little enthusiasm in his presentations. We went to his first talk and were surprised to find that he couldn’t quote basic facts about the Canal like the number of deaths in building the canal, etc. In looking around the lounge, Han said that she had never seen that many people asleep in the same place!

 

Cabin

 

We were fortunate enough to be in a suite for this cruise. And yes, as others have said, I am so spoiled to the extra space that I am not sure that I can go back to a regular verandah. (Of course, this is coming from the same person that announced when I was 10 “when I have to pay for my airline flights, I will NEVER fly coach”. Hmm – now that I pay, I am just happy for an exit row in coach!) We were in 7034 which is an accessible suite. The bathroom had a larger door to accommodate Han’s wheelchair – the only problem is that they forgot that they needed to make the door frame leading to the dressing area larger to accommodate the wheelchair GETTING to the bathroom. As necessity is always the mother of invention, we simply used the Hoyer lift to get her to the bathroom since it isn't as wide.

 

The room was incredibly spacious – sadly, bigger than my first post-undergrad apartment. (With a much better view to boot!). Even with the sofa bed flipped out, there was room for a wheelchair to maneuver between the beds. I loved the location of our cabin. We were midship on Deck 7 – mere steps away from the Lido, aft or Lido pools, Neptune. We were just under the Lido (at the bump out) and only once heard any noise.

 

Dress

 

For the most part, everyone observed the dress codes for the evening. However, there were 2 interesting moments:

 

1.First night, a very muscular man strolled into the dining room with a rather tight muscle shirt and some capri type lycra pants (also very tight). About 2 minutes later, he came strutting out announcing loudly that he had been asked to leave and change to more appropriate clothing or eat in the Lido. (FYI – they didn’t return to the dining room the rest of the cruise)

2.On the first formal night, the comedian called some audience members to the stage. One man had on a t-shirt and shorts. The comedian couldn’t help himself – and asked him if he had somehow missed the Carnival ship. He then made a comment about it being nice to see everyone “dressed” in the public areas.

 

Now, there were outfits in which I wouldn’t have been caught dead in (seriously – boots, a thick sweater, turtleneck and a lined leather coat with a scarf in the Caribbean?) but they did fit the “approved” dress codes.

 

Staff:

 

There were some great staff members on board. I wanted to mention a few by name, for anyone that will be traveling in the next few months.

 

Guilbert – Neptune Lounge. He actually remembered me the minute I walked in from a previous sailing on the Westerdam. There was nothing that Guilbert couldn’t do! To boot, he was just a fountain of information

Gede – Spa/gym. On our first day in the spa he came up and introduced himself. He said “ I spa boy – my job is to take care of all of this”. His pride in his job was very obvious.

Anthony – beverage/wine steward – while not “our” wine steward, he gravitated toward Han on Day 1 and came to find her all day long – dining room or Lido for lunch. He made her several origami creations and even gave her a water globe that he had brought with him from the Phillipines to remind her of him.

Muid/Gede – Dining Room Steward, Asst. Steward – they were both very attentive. They were both very shy and business like at the beginning of the cruise, but warmed up very quickly as the cruise progressed.

 

** Just an FYI, there are currently over 50 Gedes onboard since it is the name traditionally given to the firstborn son. If you holler “Gede”, you are bound to get someone’s attention!

 

Thoughts on Capt Eversen – Met him at 2 cocktail parties and suite brunch. He definitely is not a conversationalist. Initial thought -- standoffish. However, he always made a very concerted effort to talk and joke with Hannah (with her CP, it is often hard to understand what she is saying). Also noticed he always tried to stand indiscreetly in the corner (not that easy to do when you are tall and the captain). Final thought --not completely comfortable in social settings. The moment his receiving line duties are over, he makes an immediate exit stage left.

 

Facilities:

 

Casino- while I didn’t “contribute” to the casino this trip, Hannah managed to play all 10 days on the same 20 dollars. The last day, she actually walked away $50 richer. One nice feature for me was that the casino itself is now smoke free! Funniest Hannah quote… we were leaving Curacao and I said “can’t wait – Panama Canal is next”. She said “can’t wait – we are almost 2 miles off shore”. For those who saw the last set of pictures, you can see how much she loves the slots.

 

Shops – as I have always been on Vista ships, I did find that the on board shops weren’t as large as I might have expected. However, we were able to find all of the requisite souvenir items. In addition, I didn’t think that they had some of the daily sales I have seen on other cruises. One notable thing – I bought very little alcohol in port assuming that I would be able to get it on board. Interestingly, there was no Blue Curacao on board. Luckily, I did buy 2 bottles when we were in Curacao. If you are interested in buying alcohol – you may want to check out your options prior to port calls.

 

Explorers Lounge – Loved it! The new design is great. In addition, it looks like they made a concerted effort to add many titles to their library.

 

Spa – I bought the thermal suite package. One difference from the vista ships is that there is a hot tub instead of the hydropool. The hot tub is located in the thermal suite which makes it a little more noisy (especially when there is a group in the tub) and warmer but it is still relaxing with great views. While sea days were more crowded, there was never a problem getting a chair when I was in there. Most times I was in there alone or with one other person. (There are 5 chairs)

 

Gym- Hopefully there will be some new equipment added here when they are in dry dock. However, it is as well equipped as many hotel gyms. We typically walked on Deck 3 in lieu of using the treadmills. (3.5 laps = 1 mile).

 

Front Desk – Joe got turned around the first night going to the dining room. He stopped to ask directions and was told that perhaps he should have taken a tour of the ship and the female at the desk then turned around and went back to the office! In addition, I left some last minute Christmas cards at the desk at 2pm and asked if they would go out before we left Ft. Lauderdale. Despite assurances they would, the cards were postmarked the 24th (the day after we returned). OK – so, definitely not our favorite area.

 

Laundry – They were wonderful. Did a great job on laundry, pressing and dry cleaning. For anyone who is curious, one night I managed to get 8 pairs of pants (3 were mens), 8 dress shirts/polos (6 were mens), 3 dresses and 6 pairs of shorts (2 were mens) into the bag. I think I win the award… (BTW, I couldn’t recreate that again if I had to – only did it then because it was a dare and I never back down from a dare!)

 

Food:

 

While a true “foodie” would certainly find things to pick apart with the menu, we never seemed to miss a meal. One thing mentioned yesterday in a thread was about the vegetarian menu – since I am allergic to seafood and am a little picky about other meats, I often find myself just ordering various combos of veggies (I love their green beans!). Nobody had ever mentioned until this cruise that there was a full vegetarian menu in addition to the vegetarian option available on the regular dinner menu. While I never ordered from it as it had to be done the night before, there did seem to be some great options.

 

We ate in the Lido for all lunches. While the lines could be a little long if you hit it at just the “wrong” time, we found there to always be a varied selection in addition to the ever present nachos, burgers and pizza. People we talked to that ate in the Lido for dinner were pleased with the food/service.

 

Our only downer involved room service. The night of the Panama Canal, I decided not to go to dinner and messed around too late to get to the Lido for dinner. When I attempted to order from the room service menu in my room, I kept being told that none of those items were “on” the menu. I got frustrated because I CAN read and called the Neptune. About 2 minutes later, someone from room service came down with a menu and confirmed that the one in my room was not recent BUT they didn’t take the menu out of the book – just handed me the new one. After finally getting and finishing my meal, I called for my tray to be removed. One hour, two hours, three hours… the tray got so comfortable it started claiming a side of the bed! I ultimately called to tell them I was going to sleep and they could just retrieve it in the morning.

 

One perk of the suite we did take advantage of were the hot and cold appetizers. They were always a great treat to enjoy as we were getting ready for dinner.

 

Master Chef Dinner – maybe this is buried far enough into this post that I won’t get stoned. While I found the menu to be very limited this night, our dining room stewards LOVED it. They loosened up this night and were different the rest of the cruise. They even got one of the older gentleman from a neighboring table (he was a hoot) and danced with him through the dining room. I know that everyone has their own opinion on this, but I do have to say that our guys loved it, making us enjoy it.

 

A quick word about AYWD. While we didn’t take advantage of it (we had late seating), we talked with several people that did. Nobody we talked with was unable to reserve the dinner time/table they requested. Because of the timing of some of the after dinner events, several people were able to get a standing 7pm dining time that they felt worked wonderfully for them.

 

Ports of Call:

 

Half Moon Cay – while I love the island, we chose to stay on board. As we were sharing the island with the Westerdam, they were using the new, accessible tender. As such, getting Han on our tender was going to be tricky as best (For anyone in a chair that has the opportunity to use the new tender, it will be a very easy roll on roll off). We stayed on board and enjoyed having the aft pool to ourselves! However, as always, everyone that went ashore thoroughly enjoyed themselves. (I used the binoculars to scan the horizon – and it doesn’t seem that there were others as daring as Brian and crew on their cruise in Nov!)

 

Aruba – we were delayed about 1.5 hours because of rough seas the night before. Be warned if you are going to be there on a Sunday – most of the stores are going to be closed/close at 1pm. Since we were delayed, some stores like Diamond International and Little Switzerland stayed open until 4pm so that we could have at least 2 hours to shop. Those who had shore excursions were unable to do any shopping as everything was closed by the time they got back to the port area. One small disappointment, Carlos& Charlies was closed for renovation. No crazy balloon hats for us.

 

 

Curacao – Joe and I went on a privately arranged ATV tour. This was by far my most favorite shore excursion ever! If anyone is interested in finding out about the tour operator, I will be glad to send you the information. They arranged transport to the site, it was a 4 hour tour, they took us back to the pier AND we got a CD with tons of pictures of us on it. The shopping area was a very easy walk (or cab ride) from the port.

 

Panama Canal – this was an incredible experience. Revneal – I found myself laughing about your comments about all the little old ladies pushing when you were going through… they were out for blood on ours. IF you are planning on staying on the ship through the return passage, I would suggest not sweating pictures the first time through as everyone is jockeying for positions at that point (who knew that people could be that ornery at 6am?) but instead wait until the return. The ship was a virtual ghost ship on the return and I was able to see a lot more/better. NOTE: At 6am, it was 106 in the shade according to my alarm clock thermometer. Wear lots of sunscreen and stay hydrated. We saw several nasty sunburns later that day and at least one person collapsed while on deck.

 

Colon – Even inside the “secure” area, we didn’t feel entirely safe. Unless you really need a Panama t-shirt – you probably won’t miss much staying on the ship. One couple managed to get outside the secure area and was walking several blocks to a church when a police officer saw them, put them in a taxi cab and told the cab to take them straight to the church, give them 5 minutes to take a picture and then take them straight back to the ship. He told them that was a great way to get killed. Warning – don’t leave secure area unless you are on one of the tours!

 

Costa Rica – we went with a privately arranged accessible tour to the rainforest. If you are going on an excursion, ensure that you are going in a motor coach, not a van. The roads are very bumpy – and I had the coloring of an iguana once we got the rainforest. We did manage to find some monkeys – one set was a family complete with a baby still hitching a ride on mom. Somehow I managed to really make one howler monkey mad as he made some horrid noise and then proceeded to throw a barrage of coconuts at me! (Note – the howler monkeys must not like blondes with really cute wedge sandals). For those wishing to see wildlife without going on a tour – several sloths were spotted in the trees in the park adjacent to the port. In addition, if anyone is interested in Costa Rican coffee, forego what you find in the shops around the pier and walk 2 blocks instead to the grocery store (most anyone can point it out). Coffee was less than $2/bag as opposed to almost $10 in the souvenir stores.

 

Disembarkation - After rough seas all night that saw the sliding closet doors break free four times, I decided to forego any additional attempts at sleep and go out on the balcony to see us come into port. About 5:15, I see some cruise ships... but we keep going. Hmm - that must have been Miami? About 7:15 we dock and are cleared about 7:45. Since we were red 1, we started towards the gangway about 8:10 in preparation of being called. 8:10, 8:20, 8:30, nobody is being called and there is lots of staff activity on the gangway. At 8:45, the security officer finally comes into the hallway and announces that there was a delay with homeland security, but they should be ready for us momentarily. Patti Positive to my right pipes up with "thank you - we understand that they need to sometimes delay us to ensure our safety". This was when the security officer leveled with us - they had been busy sipping coffee and chatting while the ships just sat! It seems some of the activity were some "higher ups" getting involved. About 3 minutes later, they called us.

 

This was the easiest disembarkation on record. I breezed through customs and not only were our bags in the color/number area, they were arranged by cabin! Less than 5 minutes after scanning my card for the last time (boo!), I was walking out of the pier terminal. An earlier post spoke of the crabby porters in Lauderdale - I have to second that! He had 7 bags which I handed to him - all he had to do was put them on his dolly and roll. We tipped him $25 and he looked as us like we were Ebeneezer Scooge and walked away mumbling things not fit to print.

 

Overall a great cruise. One trip was all it took for my RCCL devoted friends to "see the light". While this was my first non Christmas cruise in years, it still had the feel since the ship was already decorated. It seemed that every time we turned around a new tree had magically appeared. I wish that decorating was as smooth at my house! This cruise went so well they did an on board booking for a 14 day Christmas cruise next year and will be booking an Alaska trip for 2009 as soon as the brochures are out.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for taking the time to write your review.

 

So glad everything turned out well for your daughter.

[GmaPajama]

Thanks, Michelle, for posting your review. It makes me want to jump right back on! Your comments about the Master Chef Dinner were right on - we actually changed Pinnacle reservations so we could be there. Our waiters were just SO excited about it, we didn't want to disappoint them by missing out.

 

Interesting to realize there are so many Gede's there - I sometimes struggle with names and was certain I had everyone mixed up. I actually started writing them down, but Gede ended up all over my notepad and I never did figure it all out. :)

 

Glad you got your goodie bag - it was fun to leave it, and I hope we get to sail together some day. Thanks again for writing your review. I appreciate your thoroughness and enjoyed reading it.

[KAKcruiser]

Ienjoyed your review. In regard to Captain Fred Everson, we have cruised with him several times and thought him to be a fine person.

[O2B@C]

Thanks for an interesting, informative, and well written review. It's always great to hear from someone who doesn't gloss over the occasional flaws, but also doesn't let them spoil the cruise. Glad you and your family had a good time.

 

One question: How do you pronounce "Gede"? (Sounds like it would be a useful thing to know!:D )

[hammybee]

I really enjoyed the ride. Thank you for taking the time to share your cruise with us.

 

I loved the picture of your Hannah, in her red dress. Now that's a smile :)

And the dinner roll goggles are special. That's a keeper, for sure.

[Seago2]

What a great review. Sounds like an excellent trip. LOL on Patty Positive:D

[gizmo]

 

Pre-departure

We stayed at the Embassy Suites. I haven’t been there since the remodel and unless I am using Hilton points again, will probably not book there despite the convenience to Publix, the wine store and the port. When exactly did a bowl of pretzels become “heavy hors d’oeuvres?

 

 

 

Thanks for the review. I enjoyed reading it.

 

Beside the pretzels what else was wrong with the Embassy Suites ?

[Crazy]

Enjoyed reading your review. I was on the Volendam for the Winter cruise thru the Panama in Feb 2007 and it was wonderful. I loved the Volendam. My brother and his wife stayed most of the day in the Crow's Nest and had a great view going thru the links. Great time. Looking forward to the Eurodam July 1, 2008.

[barbiedoll54]

Thanks so much for a great post. Hubby & I took the Voldendam to Alaska this summer. Fabulous. We are considering a Christmas curise next year to the Panama canal. Since you mentioned you usually travel over Christmas, can you tell me if there are a LOT of young children aboard at that time? There were very few on the trip to Alaska and it is not that we don't enjoy children but we don't want a "constant party" atmosphere either. Any other Holiday traveling tips would also be helpful.

 

Thanks in advance.

Barbiedoll54

[Micmac]

Thanks to everyone for their responses. Hopefully it helped people relive past cruises or get excited about future cruises.

 

O2B@C - Gede is pronounced "Ga day" (Think a great australian accent saying good day - sounds much better than my strong southern drawl!

 

Gizmo - Just a few things about the Embassy Suites

• Was in check in line for over 20 minutes (was only the second person in line). Those in line behind me had waits of over 45 minutes
  
• Self parking spaces are very limited while valet service is very understaffed
  
• Room given was incorrect twice (non handicapped) and took call to Diamond desk to get it corrected after being told by on site staff nothing could be done.
  
• Dirty carpet
  
• Breakfast service lacking (staffing issue)

I spend an average of 200 nights/year in Hilton properties and have experienced the good, bad and ugly. Just felt that for the price (or in my case, points) it wasn't equivalent to other similarly priced Hilton properties. A better choice might be the Amerisuites that is very close.

 

BarbieDoll - On HAL, I definitely haven't had any problems with kids. (Now - on one cruise there was a group of adults that were out of control!) RCCL is another story at Christmas. They actually paraded the kids through the public areas shouting "we don't want to be quiet, we will start a riot". Now, you can imagine how enjoyable that made the trip!

 

No huge travel tips related to the cruise itself - just check to see where the ship will be on Christmas eve, Christmas day (and Boxing Day, Dec 26, on some islands) as this might determine shore excursion and shopping opportunities. Just remember that you have to get to/from port; no matter if you fly or drive, you have to contend with holiday travel.

 

There is nothing better than a Christmas day waking up with someone else making up your bed; lying in the sun with carols playing while drinking eggnog and/or fruity drinks; having a leisurely day, then getting dressed up for a dinner you didn't have to cook and won't have to clean up!

 

Happy New Years Eve everyone!

 

Michelle

[barbiedoll54]

Hello and thanks for the response. We enjoyed HAL in Alaska and I have read other reviews for other lines and it seems that HAL is more upscale and adult oriented. We would love to take a Christmas trip and after your comments I think we will get more information and book the trip. Thanks so much for the information, glad you had a great time.

Barbiedoll54

[ohflvaz]

As already stated Excellent review...especially for not dwelling on just the disappointments. Would you be good enough to post the ATV tour information from Curacao. We'll be there in a couple of months .

 

Thank You

[gizmo]

Micmac,

 

Thanks for the info on the ES. :)

[WDeany]

Could you please tell us more about the ATV tour in Curacao; the name of the company you went with, did you get really muddy/dusty, what were you able to see, etc.

 

Thanks very much

[Micmac]

We used Eric's ATV Adventures. You will love him! If you ask nicely, he will swing by the port and take you to his shop located across from the Seaquarium and then drop you off after the tour.

 

His website is:

http://www.curacao-atv.com/. He has an email link off of the website. He is great about returning emails, but it sometimes takes a day or two for a response.

 

Depending on the weather, it is possible that you will get both dusty and muddy as part of the island gets significantly more rain than the others. If you look at our pictures, note that Joe and I are dirtier than most only because we are way too competitive. While the others on our trip were a little muddy, we were definitely the worst.

 

If you end up taking a tour with him, please tell him I said hello.

 

P.S. See you are from Montgomery - he is a sucker for southern accents!

[mamadot]

Thanks for the great review! Could you elaborate on entertainment. Was there any classical music on board? There is often a string quartet or classical ensemble. Thanks for any information.

[WDeany]

I went to the website, but didn't see any prices. Could you tell me how much the 4 hour trip costs? Did you go to the beach during the tour? Was the cave part of the trip? Sorry I have so many questions....Am thinking of surprising my husband with the trip, but just want to make sure it's not going to be too much for me (not him).

 

Thanks very much

[romancing_the_sea]

Very well done!! Thanks for posting!

[Micmac]

WDeany- The tour was $90 pp and included transportation to/from port, the 4 hour tour, 2 refreshment breaks and a CD of pictures from the trip (Eric actually dropped us off at the port, ran to his house to burn the CD and met me back at the port 30 minutes later to make sure we had it before we left). Eric takes the tour to the cave as a part of the tour, but not everyone will want to actually go in (we chose to stay out). There is an area that has some great stones for sitting - and great venues for picture taking. The second refreshment stop is at a beach with a sheltered cove. For those wishing to take a few minutes to hop in the water, they can - but it is not an extended stay at the beach.

 

I think you will enjoy it - Eric was really responsive to the group and will not push you more than you can enjoy. In addition, you have the option of riding one of the two seater atvs if that is more to your comfort level.

 

Mamadot - there was some classical music on board. There was a string quartet that played in the Explorers Lounge, as well as the first part of dinner on formal nights. As a musician in a former life, I am always fairly critical of the entertainment and can easily give them a two thumbs up!