A great life experience!!
Oosterdam Cruise Review to Other (Asia/Africa/Middle East)
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 7+ cruises
Reviews: 2
Helpful Votes: 32
Review summary
This Antarctic 22-day cruise was well worth it for the unforgettable experiences we had!Embarkation
This was not HAL's cause but the events in Santiago, Chile caused the cruise to start very poorly. Reuter's reported a violent incident in our departing port and our bus was not able to enter the port until after the sailing time. That delay along with the other 2,000+ vacationers caused a massive delay in the onboarding process, due mostly to the inadequate facilities at the San Antonio, Chile port. The port authority did not have adequate personnel or conditioned space to accommodate that many people. It took us almost four hours to get boarded then there was some other situation in the port that did not allow us to sail until after midnight. Thus, the extremely difficult day and the late departure caused us to miss our first destination in Puerto Montt.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
We used the main dining rooms the most and were extremely pleased. There were the usual four or five items repeating each day for those who wanted standard, but good, food, e.g., a New York strip, roasted chicken. There was always, as advertised, daily specials advertised as local fare and I tended to lean that direction unless there were any special seafood items. One thing I commented several times to the Chef and the staff was to commend the Soup Chef, the soups on this cruise were the best I have ever eaten outside our home cooked soups. We did not use the specialty dining rooms since we were so pleased with the main dining room. We ate half of our lunches, when on board, in the main dining room since they had a greater variety and since the lines at the Lido Dining were always congested and I promise, being a senior citizen, that the majority of seniors are disrespectful and lack common courtesy and manners. I have kept that statement in my mind for a long time but this cruise was the worst. That is why we mostly migrated to main dining. The wait staff were better than most ships so we enjoyed the four or so waiters we customarily saw.
Onboard Activities
We did not do any of the activities listed but we did visit those locations. We did not always see people at those locations but there were other things to do. We did walk a lot when conditions permitted and there were some days where it was not safe/fun!
Entertainment
Even my wife thought that we had the best shows we have ever seen on 10+ cruises. A very wide variety of performances and a couple National Geographic documentaries. It definitely was not what is seen on a lot of shorter cruises, the same troupe singing/dancing every night.
Children's Programs
There may have been a half dozen children under their teens, a dozen teens, and some younger married couples. We are 72 and 66 and we felt like youngsters on several excursions!
Service and Staff
The HAL Oosterdam staff for this 22-day cruise was the best of all our 10+ cruises. I wrote more individual thanks/acknowledgments on this cruise than ever. I guess it was because we were with these young folks for so long that we got to know them personally. Our limited involvement with the ship's staff was also very positive when we brought attention to some of the staff, we found out the word did get passed down.
Ship Quality
This ship seemed like an older ship but it showed quite nicely. It did not have all the flavor and color of some of the ships trying to dazzle the younger crowd but it was extremely clean and well maintained. I believe it has been 7+ years since the last refurbishment but it looked much better than I expected. We were on deck 4 midship so everything was a short distance, main dining on 2 and Lido dining on 9 in the back and Main Stage in the front on 2. I always used the stairs even with some aches/pains and am glad we did.
Cabin / Stateroom
We chose what was supposed to be 'fully obstructed' but it wasn't. Sure there was a lifeboat outside the window but we could still see the weather and the land/port when we were near land. It was cold and windy in some of the itineraries so we felt it better to look outside and then go one floor down to deck 3, the walking deck, to take pictures and it ended up perfect since we could move from aft to port easily. Our two stewards kept the room as expected, immaculate. We were asked the first day if we wished to have our beds turned down at night and the room cleaned and we opted to let the staff have more time with other guest/duties and it was still a good decision. There were 'days at sea' where we slept in later and even when going to lunch our on a walk, the room was always found in perfect condition when we returned. We seemed to always be adjusting the temperature in the room but we saw a lot of variety in temperatures over the 22 days, from a high of low 30's to a high around 90. The shower was as expected, not as large as home but it was manageable.
Ship tip
It is not the most luxurious ship but it is not the ships with all the water slides and cart tracks but it is fun if you stay busy.
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
This was the worst situation we have ever experienced but it was almost entirely out of HAL's control. I referenced the events in an earlier section.
Puerto Montt, Chile Did not visit port
Again, because of the events we listed earlier about the events at port of San Antonio we had to sail by this port and we were eager to see the snow capped volcano.
First time to see the Andes and we crossed them to see they beauty on both sides. This is an arid area and it did seem very dry when we visited. This was a 'tender' port and also very small as others stated in their reviews. We had this excursion on the 'wait list' and was not able to book until we were onboard. This was not our first choice but it was a very nice ride through the country.
Our first penguin experience and it was fantastic, more than we could imagine. We were extremely close to the families, as close as we were allowed, but that is fine. Plenty of good pics for everyone. A little bit of a hill to climb and some could not make the entire trip. This is a very arid location so the burrowing Magellan penguins were the focal point and well worth it.
Cruise Cockburn & Beagle Channels
Ushuaia, Tierra Del Fuego, Argentina
Wish we had more time here. There must have been three ships at port during this cruise and it was very congested but still a great little town to visit. The post office had just closed so we missed that chance. We went to Tierra del Fuego National Park and had a great time, pics of the 'end of the world' road's end.
Cruise Cape Horn & Drake Passage
One cannot write enough about the glaciers, icebergs, whales, seals, and penguins we saw. Only the pictures can capture the beauty. This was the highpoint of our journey along with all the penguins.
Port Stanley, Falkland Islands
We had the greatest of times here. We were on the wait list for three excursions and could not book until onboard. We booked Bertha's beach but we got a notice the day before that this beach was closed due to some sickness. We were given an alternative of Gypsy beach and could find little about it with limited internet. There were no guarantees of seeing penguins but it was a take-it-or-leave-it proposition. We decided to go and our tour guide stated Gypsy beach/cove was too crowded during the early morning excursions since there were two ships in port, more cruising visitors than the population of the island. She took us to York Cove, I believe' and there was only a half dozen people on the beach where we had to walk 45-50 minutes. There were King and Gentoo penguins and they would walk near you even if you walked away and it was absolutely the greatest excursion ever. Granted, this was like the third option of the original so who knows if you would be fortunate to have the best guide to help you find your own private viewing location. Due to the lack of people/busses around, we were even able to tour part of the island we had not expected. We did take the opportunity to go into the town using the maps provided and see all the sites with plenty of time. The museum was especially unique and neat.
Another Magellan penguin colony and it was a warm day so thankful the penguin families had some cover, small bushes/shrubs providing some cover from the sun. This was another arid area for the penguins to have their babies and like Punta Arenas, but they had a beach much closer and put on a diving and swimming show for all.
Beautiful port with tons of expensive private boats/yachts. This did feel like a resort community and had beautiful homes. We just took a leisurely excursion to see the area.
We opted for the full day excursion, steak lunch, and the Madero Tango show. Best steak in a long time and the show was fantastic! The dancers were great and the music was too!! The singing was not in English but sound was great! There was enough to understand, "Don't cry for me Argentina!".
Disembarkation
We used the excursion/transfer to airport method, was the third group to be called and everything went smooth!