Corona influenced

Item: Westerdam
Rating: 4.1
Author: Firehawk110

Westerdam Cruise Review

Firehawk110

Contributor Level: Second Mate

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Reviews: 2

Helpful Votes: 49

Overall rating:

4.1 out of 5

30 Night Far East Discovery Taiwan & Japan Collector (Singapore To Shanghai)

Sail date: January 16, 2020

Ship: Westerdam

Cabin type: Balcony

Cabin number: 5167

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 4 years ago

Review summary

30 day cruise started from Singapore and went smoothly until news about Corona Virus started to spread. By the time the ship reached Vietnam changes were being made to our upcoming ports. After leaving Hong Kong with some new passengers we immediately started to be denied entry to ports of call. First denial was Manila so we diverted to another port but that was changed after docking and so on and so on. We ended up getting denied entry by 4 different countries until Cambodia stepped up and let our cruise end in Sihanoukville, Cambodia.

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Entertainment

4 out of 5

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Ship Quality

5 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

Flat screen TV s with movies on demand and a mini fridge. Bed was extremely comfortable and verandah was adequate.

Ship tip

Check for viruses in the country you are about to visit.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Kaoshiung, Taiwan

3 out of 5

This was our last stop before getting rejected by 4 different countries and finally disembarking in Camdodia.

Thumbs Up 1

Ha Long Bay City (Hanoi), Vietnam

4 out of 5

Ended up with an overnight here sue to port changes because of the Corona virus. Glad we did. Gorgeous at night. Daytime was cloudy and foggy but spectacular at night.

Thumbs Up 1

Sihanoukville, Cambodia

1 out of 5

Only got off ship since a Visa is mandatory and we had to pay for it. What a waste of time. Taxi drivers and tour guides WILL NOT leave you alone.

Thumbs Up 0

Phu My (Ho Chi Minh City), Vietnam

4 out of 5

Went back into Saigon 50 years later. Saw The Presidential Palace, PO, Notre Dame Cathedral and a few other sites. I really don't think the city has changed that much.

Thumbs Up 2

Da Nang, Vietnam

4 out of 5

Did an overnight here. Very interesting city today. Never saw this part of the country when I was here 50 yrs ago. It was Yet holiday. Lots of closures.

Thumbs Up 1

Nha Trang, Vietnam

3 out of 5

Used tenders to get ashore and ours broke down.

Thumbs Up 1

Laem Chabang (Bangkok), Thailand

4 out of 5

Ko Samui, Thailand

4 out of 5

Disembarkation

4 out of 5

Due to the Corona virus we did not make but 1 port after Hong Kong. Rejected by 4 countries and finally Cambodia stepped up and let us into their port at Sihanoukville. Disembarkation was SO different you really can't rate it with the others. HAL chartered flights to Phnom Penh for everybody and flew us all home from there. We enjoyed military escorts and Ambassadors from many different consulates.

Traveler Photos

The tank that broke fence in Presidential Palace 1975

Not what you think. At least not what I thought.

5 Comments

Gwbigdog 2 years ago

Thanks for sharing your cruise with us.

Thumbs Up 0

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GerryBCruisin 3 years ago

Thanks for taking the time to share your review of Westerdam and the wonderful pictures.

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Starboard5 4 years ago

God bless and welcome back! 🇺🇸

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Cruiserike0322 4 years ago

Scary

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bobduck1993 4 years ago

So sorry that you could not have the experience that you set out for, hopefully the opportunity will come again ! Your ports of call were wonderful choices!

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