CalicoJoe Cruise Review on Oosterdam on Nov 17, 2018

Oosterdam Cruise Review

CalicoJoe

Contributor Level: Third Mate

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 5

Overall rating:

3 out of 5

Sail date: November 17, 2018

Ship: Oosterdam

Reviewed: 6 years ago

Review summary

Food: This was the biggest disappointment by far. The buffet food was bland and seemed to be targeted to the overeating crowd. They do have some healthier options, but they are harder to find and get old quick. The room service breakfast was almost inedible due to the enormous amounts of grease. The dining room food was almost always over cooked. The fast food joint on the ship is exceptional (I had to find the urge to go there everyday). The Cannaletto is worth the extra cost and everything that we had there was good. The Pinnacle is absolutely not worth the additional cost as it is no better than the dining room food. Rooms: No complaints. It was actually much roomier than I was anticipating and everything worked well. Service: Outstanding everywhere. The staff is very polite and warmly greet you whenever you pass them. They answer questions cheerfully and expect explain things very clearly. I will say that the officers seemed conceited and standoffish, but this may have just been the stark contrast to their exceptional staff. Activities: There was a lot, but geared toward an older crowd. I had a hard time finding anything of interest and my children did too. Facilities: Pretty limited. The gym was much appreciated. The basketball court was fun, but almost always very crowded and poorly stocked. I avoided the pools as they seemed way too small to me for the number of sitting in them. I do have bigger concerns regarding sanitary conditions than most people. The ship was OK, but I think I’ll avoid it in the future.

5 Comments

Gwbigdog 2 years ago

Thanks for sharing your cruise.

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cruisereckoning 4 years ago

Thanks for the review.

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gdy0354 5 years ago

Just got ship this past Saturday. Food in dining was always at correct temperature, vegetables every night was al dente. Never overlooked. All meat for served cooked as requested. Breakfast buffet excellent. Not sure what people eat at home. On ship made to order waffles, many varieties of pancakes, made to order omelets, eggs benny, carved ham, English bacon, bangers, turkey sausage, regular sausage The list goes on and on. 85 degree days, pools never had more than two or three adults at any time. Maybe 3 or 4 kids. Never had to wait for a pool chair. Go on RCCL, Norwegian, Princess, you will find the pools overflowing with people elbow to elbow with chair hogs everywhere. Only complaint with pool was no crew enforcing the diaper regulations.

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CalicoJoe 5 years ago

Thanks for your wisdom. I didn’t get to pick the cruise, my in-laws did. I was expecting an older crowd, but Holland America is more like a floating nursing home. The only difference between HAL and a nursing home is that a nursing home has better food.

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Shh813 5 years ago

You should have researched better before booking. Holland America is for an older crowd. We loved it. Went on Nieuw Amsterdam last March. Not much to do on the ship during the day, but that's what the ports are for. We loved the pool area as it was so peaceful with no loud band , only piped in music. The food was absolutely delicious at buffet and main dining rooms and the best burgers I ever had at the Dive-In. Will definitely go back.

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