Having been on HAL previously I had great expectations but overall I felt they missed the mark for food, dining room service and activities. I experienced some things with the foodservice that were not typical of HAL based on my previous experiences but it is what it is for this cruise. The food was probably at Carnival's level - good but not great. Dining room service was inconsistent depending on who you got as a server. The ship is beautiful though, very well laid out and they did a nice job with the cabin and ship decor. Both excursions were awesome and our cabin steward was the BEST! I will probably not sail with HAL again simply because there are so many other choices out there. I'm not sure if it was just this ship or just this sailing but I was overall disappointed. It was also the most expensive cruise I've ever taken so it made my disappointment even worse.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Very quick and efficient. It's the fastest I've ever checked in on a cruise.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Main Dining Room food was good but not as good as my previous HAL cruises. The buffet was fine during the day but the 10:30 pm buffet was terrible. Every night, the cold cuts were gray and the cheeses were sweaty and limp. They were held over from the previous meal but not refrigerated properly. On multiple nights, the spaghetti in the pan was crusty at the ends because it was so old. Just so NOT HAL! The Asian restaurant was good, but again, not great.
Grand Dutch Cafe
5 out of 5
A great place to get coffee, other beverages and a snack with little to no wait. The staff was super friendly and everything I had there was great quality.
Onboard Activities
1 out of 5
Not much to do during the day. Only 2 Bingos and very little other activities.
Half Moon Cay
5 out of 5
One of the best private islands in the Caribbean. Lovely beach with nice amenities. The Wave runner tour was top notch!
Entertainment
4 out of 5
Great variety and quality of entertainment except for the comedian, who honestly, just seemed bored (we went to both of his shows).
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Dining room service was not very attentive for one half of our meals but on the other half they were great. Couldn't get a water glass filled for almost 10 minutes many times. Couldn't get a waiter's attention numerous times on numerous meals. I can't say enough great things about our cabin steward though. 10+!
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Loved it. Laid out well and very clean all day, every day.
Cabin / Stateroom
5 out of 5
The cabin was clean and we loved how it was designed, from color scheme to layout. Our cabin steward was probably the best I've ever had in my 30+ cruises, unfortunately I forgot his name but he was so great!
Ship tip
Lower your expectations on the food and bring plenty to keep you busy during the day.
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