We’d choose HAL cruise line again. We loved meeting so many wonderful people at our open seating dinner tables, and for that reason we’d definitely choose open seating again.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Best embarkation ever! Short lines, smoothly managed and super efficient.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
5 out of 5
Food was very good. Buffets served many fresh, made to order & healthy options.
Coffee was great.
Didn’t dine in any specialty restaurants.
Deserts weren’t as impressive. Baked goods and sweets were just ordinary, but far less extraordinarily compared to other cruise lines.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
The Tamarind Bar was a cozy and relaxing retreat. Best spot to have an intimate get together on the ship. Often empty, so we made it our own.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
Shows were OK. Nothing too special. Not as impressed as we’d been with the entertainment on other cruise lines.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Overall service was good. Our cabin had a mess in it on checkin day, which was entirely unexpected. Hotel management came promptly to apologize and clean up. After that we had flawless cabin service.
Restaurant service was OK but inconsistent. Our anytime choice worked OK to be seated, but there was chaos each day with the maitre d at the entrance to the main restaurant.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Super clean and well maintained ship. Newer ships on other cruise lines should be in such great condition. I was very impressed.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
Our balcony cabin #6166 was very nice! It was in great shape after we had maintenance folks come in to repair some bathroom towel hooks that were very loose. The layout was very nice and efficient. Plenty of storage under bed, in multiple closets, under the writing desk and beneath the bathroom vanity. Having the tub/shower combo was spacious and delightful. The bath products for soaps, shampoos & conditioner were of Spa quality.
Ship tip
Enjoy the full 360 degree promenade deck for walking! Three laps to complete each mile.
Enjoy the fine art and historical photos of the Holland America cruise line that adorn the walls throughout the ship.
Partake in the late night snack time at the Lido at 10:30pm. The made to order pizzas are great although it’ll take 30 minutes to complete from your time of order.
Order a bucket of beers rather than a single beer. That’s way less expensive, and you can store the extra beers in your cabin fridge for later consumption.
Visit the lovely and often underused Tamarind Bar for a delightful cozy, quiet and intimate space to unwind and enjoy company and drinks.
The “Aft” facing balcony cabins are absolutely wonderful. They feature slightly larger balconies with a sweeping 180 degree view across the back of the ship, and those balconies and quiet and free of wind!
Fort Lauderdale can be a respectable shore destination in itself. Take a short cab or Uber ride to visit Las Olas Boulevard for shopping or dining, or to visit the beautiful Fort Lauderdale beach area along A1A.
We loved our Jet ski excursion at Half Moon Cay! We also enjoyed the Caribbean port ambience there and the lovely white sandy beaches.
The Holland America provided food service buffet on shore was fine, but the lines were long and not at all well organized.
Most natural attractions are 50+ miles away and quite a long ride from the Falmouth port.
Falmouth is decent for shopping and the port area is a security restricted enclave that’s free of any unwanted soliciting.
Our Discover Scuba excursion was a disappointment. The operator didn’t take the time to adjust the Scuba equipment for each person, which led to some problems for some individuals including myself. The preparation and training was far less than described for that Shorex, and it was over and done in less than 2 hours. I’d recommend choosing something else to visit while at Grand Cayman.
The amazing secret river (Rio Secreto) was well worth the visit! We took the high speed catamaran shuttle from Cozumel to Playa del Carmen for that Shorex. Our visit to PDC was very nice with lovely beaches, bars and shopping. People there are so very friendly.
Just like the embarkation, our disembarkation went fast and smoothly. Best disembarkation ever experienced on any cruise line! We used the wonderful airline bag transfer service for $25 each passenger for super efficient check in (bags taken Midnight prior to disembarkation) of our bags to the airline directly from the ship.
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