Not really our cup of tea
Rotterdam Cruise Review
Contributor Level:
First Mate
Cruises: 7+ cruises
Reviews: 5
Helpful Votes: 45
Review summary
HAL is known for having a more senior clientele. We had sailed on HAL twenty years ago. We tried it again because it was a great deal with southern ports we wanted to visit and a new ship. Overall, the cruise was a good experience exept for MDR and lack of activities. I know certain people love HAL and I get that. Unfortunately, for us, it just isn't what we are looking for. For the right person, HAL and the Rotterdam is perfect for them. Just not us.Embarkation
We got right on the ship without waiting, but they assigned us a late embarkation time which we could not change, so almost everyone was already on board.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
We couldn't get reservations for MDR. Long lines to try and get them. App didn't work to let you book reservations. We went to MDR one night and had to wait a while for a table. Others also had the same problem. Took forever for service and wait staff seemed overworked and really didn't want to be there. My salmon was so undercooked, I couldn't eat it. Very disorganized. After talking to people at our table and the poor service, we never went back. We ate at the buffet the whole other time. For the most part, it was very good quality. Selection and service was good too. They serve you most of the food, which helped with people not being able to touch everything. The Dive In burgers and dogs, had great burgers and fries. The NY Deli and Pizza was not that good. They did not serve by the slice, so they had no pizza already prepared. You had to order and wait a long time for the pizza and it really wasn't that great.
Onboard Activities
Day time activities were almost non-existant. We felt like we were at senior summer camp. I kid you not, one of the activities listed was "coloring for adults". They did have free movies in your cabin on the TV, but who wants to sit in the cabin all day watching movies.
Entertainment
There was very little music during the day, but apparently HAL is known for their music groups, which were really good at night. They had BB King's Blues Club. The singers and band were great. They also had Rolling Stone Rock Room with a rock band and Billboard Onboard with two piano players who play and sing. Lots of music options at night. They had different comedians. We watched one and left after five minutes. He was boring and hardly anyone was laughing. They also had other bands on select nights and seminars at sea at the world stage. Some was good but it was not like broadway shows.
Service and Staff
For the most part service was good and most crew were polite and would try to go out of their way to assist you. There were some exceptions but most staff were friendly and helpful.
Ship Quality
The ship was a newer ship and was clean. The elevators were too small for the ship size. Basically services and public spaces were on decks 2, 3, 9, 10 and 12. They put cabins in everywhere they could fit them. The Mariner APP isn't really that great. I stopped using it half way thru the cruise.
Cabin / Stateroom
We had an inside cabin and while small, the shower was full sized and there were lots of places to store your stuff in the cabin. The bed was hard. The interactive TV had few channels, but had lots of movies to watch. Overall, the cabin was nice and well maintained.
Ship tip
While it was a nice ship and cruise, HAL really isn't our cup of tea. They mainly had seniors onboard, which we were aware would be the case. But, we had hoped there would be more to do on the ship, especially during the day. It was hard not to be bored as little was offered for fun.
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
Did not do an excursion but walked into town. Have been here before. The taxi drivers and sales people are contantly trying to hussle you and won't leave you alone. Too pushy and it makes the experience totally unenjoyable. I can deal with it, but an older couple walking a head of us were having a hard time of it. I had to step in to get them away from the older couple and harass me instead. It's too bad because no one likes to have to be harassed like that and preying on seniors really makes me angry.
We had been there before. Was a nice port. We walked to downtown area and looked around. Everything was too expensive and overpriced.
Beautiful island and beaches. The people were very nice and helpful. We took public transit bus route 10 to the butterfly farm just past Eagle Beach. Great self tour. Bus fare was $3.00 a person each way, but you can get a daily pass at the station that saves more money. The butterfly farm was $16.00 a person to get in. Beautiful and informative. A similar tour the ship offered was $65.00 a person, but included some additional sight seeing. We saved a lot of money. Also cheaper if you are just going to the beach. The bus station is across the street behind Diamond's International after you exit the port into town. After we shopped downtown and found "I Love Aruba" to have the best prices on quality embroidered t-shirts and other stuff.
It looked beautiful, but only fully vaxed are allowed and the ship made it clear that if you were not fully vaxed, you were not allowed to go ashore. We knew this prior to booking so not a problem for us.
Amber Cove (Puerto Plata), Dominican Republic
Nice port. The people were very nice. Very pretty island from the port area. We did not do any excursion.
Half Moon Cay, Bahamas (Private Island)
The weather was rainy and I was surprised they did not have a dock but tendered to the island. So, we stayed on the ship.
Disembarkation
Very quick. Short lines and we were off the ship and at our car very fast.
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