Overall, we had a great cruise. Loved the ship and loved our cabin. We had amazing weather and the ports were all beautiful. HAL service was outstanding most of the time, but could use some improvement in a few areas as noted. Half Moon Cay port experience could be greatly improved.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Arrived at the port around 11. Waited less than 30 min and were able to go to our cabin immediately.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
4 out of 5
Main dining room was EXCELLENT; both service and food. We dined in the MDR every night, a couple lunches, and a few breakfasts. We also went to the Dive-In grill by the pool for lunch a couple times and really enjoyed it.
The reason we didn't rate this with 5 stars is that the Lido and pizza place by the pool were both just so-so. The Lido was quite crowded with people most of the times we went there; the food was fine and there were lots of options, but the service did not compare to other areas on the ship (many of the staff in Lido just didn't seem to be very focused on customer service; just didn't seem to be as enthusiastic or motivated as the staff in other areas of the ship).
The complementary champagne on the ship was terrible. I'm not normally a snob about free champagne, but there was something about it that made it undrinkable for me. I tried it on 2 different occasions with the same result. Most people were drinking it, so may just be me. [Note that the bar staff will bring a glass of wine instead of the champagne if you request it.]
We didn't try any specialty restaurants on this cruise.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Our teenagers used the pool, jacuzzi, and ping pong -- all great, but they were disappointed that the Exploration Cafe did not have more board games like we've experienced on other ships. They ended up getting a deck of cards from the front desk and a couple dice from the casino, which was good.
We all went to the fitness center several times - it was larger and better equipped than other (older) HAL ships we've been on.
The movies by the pool is a fun addition that we haven't had on any of our previous HAL cruises.
For New Year's Eve, there were celebrations planned at several venues (pool area, BB King's Lounge, and a few others). They passed out complementary glasses of champagne prior to midnight and did a countdown. It was fun!
We also did the Bingo game twice, which was fine, but not great. I really appreciated that they pre-sold the Bingo cards so there wasn't a huge line at the beginning. I prefer when the Bingo announcer makes the game fun; unfortunately our's was not that type.
Entertainment
4 out of 5
We went to the stage show once and a comedian once. Both were fine, but none of us liked the shows enough to go back for more. We did like the World stage layout, seating, and digital screens. The entertainers seemed to be similar quality to what we've experienced on other HAL ships.
Children's Programs
Our teenagers were not interested in participating in the teen program.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
We had great service from the Dining room staff, front desk, and cabin stewards. The gentleman working at the Dutch cafe was also excellent.
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Loved the ship. It had just come out of dry dock earlier that month, and everything was in great condition. We loved discovering all the interesting artwork all over the ship.
The promenade walking deck was definitely not as nice as on the older ships but there seemed to be fewer people using it so it worked fine for us.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
The cabin seemed a bit smaller than on the older ships, but we had a generous balcony area, which really helped. The closet/drawer space was pretty tight for the 4 of us, but we managed. We all liked the new bathroom layout, although more shelf space would be excellent. Also more wall hooks in the cabin would be helpful to offset the limited closet space. The on-demand shows/movies and live TV offerings were good.
Ship tip
You have to stick your key card in a slot near the front door for the lights to work in the cabin. We hadn't experienced this on previous ships and it took us a while to figure it out. :-)
We stayed a couple nights before the cruise in Hollywood Beach, which was about 20 min away from the port by car. It was super windy there, so didn't spend much time on the beach, but there's a fun boardwalk there with lots of restaurants and parks nearby.
We've been to HMC several times on previous cruises and this port has always been a highlight. Unfortunately, this visit was not good. The Nieuw Statendam was also there and the little island was ridiculously crowded. There were long lines for food/drink/tenders (30+ minutes at the buffet, 50+ minutes for the tender back to the ship). The buffet area ran out of "normal sized" cups, so drinks were being served in tiny cups which was frustrating for everyone. A nasty verbal exchange between guests happened after some people unintentionally(?) cut the line at the buffet; people were very cranky with the crowds and long waits.
The beach chairs were packed closely together and extended way down the beach. We had rented a clam shell and spent about 30 minutes trying to find someone to help us. We ended up pretty far from the restrooms and other facilities. We were happy to have the clam shell since it was very sunny, but it doesn't have any ventilation so it was really hot underneath.
Overall, it was not the calm, relaxing experience we'd had on previous cruises. I would recommend that HAL should not have 2 ships at this tiny island on same day unless they can figure out how to better accommodate all the people. They need more staff and a better way to spread all the people on the beach.
It was beautiful here. We chose to walk down the beach about 15 minutes to Jack's Shack. It was much less crowded at Jack's than closer to the ship. Lines for food/drink not bad. Prices were OK. It was a very enjoyable day!
This was our favorite port of the trip! Koningsdam was the only ship in port that day and the free resort area right off the port wasn't crowded at all. Our kids hung out in the pool and relaxed on the hammocks, while the adults lounged by the pool. Drinks and food were pretty reasonable for a resort.
There were 5 ships in port so we wanted to do an excursion that would get us away from the crowds. We ended up choosing a non-HAL excursion to Blue Lagoon Island for another beach day. It was pretty crowded but OK. Our teenage kids played in the inflatables park and the adults walked over to the dolphin area to see the dolphins. We had a decent buffet lunch which was included. Service was pretty good. Drinks not as expensive as I was expecting. Ferry to/from BL island was fun. The area right near the port is not great.
Very good. We ordered room service breakfast and hung out in our cabin until our group was called. Note that it can be hard to hear the disembarkation announcements from the cabin... we had to go to the hallway to hear.
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