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The second of our Signature-class ships, Nieuw Amsterdam celebrates historic New York City with its inspired design and an art collection valued at more than $3 million. While on board enjoy regional cooking demonstrations and food and wine tastings with Port to Table programming. Dine in your choice of specialty restaurants. Or rejuvenate in the Greenhouse Spa & Salon.
Second time on the NA, third HAL cruise, although have taken cruises on other lines. Booked a balcony room in a good location, happy with the room, although the bathroom is smaller than we liked, the prior NA cruise was in a signature suite. Two very happy and friendly room stewards took excellent care of us. Booked this cruise due to the casual itinerary, been to Cabo many times, but not the other ports and they were nice and relaxing to visit, a more peaceful atmosphere than in other Mexico ports. We choose any time dining because we prefer to arrive when we want, although our advanced ages limits eating too late in the evening. We never had to wait for a table in the main dining room and requested a table for two, which we were granted. The dining room never seemed crazy busy and the wait times were minimal for food to be served. All servers were excellent and very professional. We did not eat in the MDR for other meals, preferred the Lido or the other venues. Breakfast at the Lido was very repetitive, same food choices every day. Would like to see them change the choices up a bit. That being said, we absolutely like being served the food choices instead of self serving, it helps with germs, etc. However, and this is a big issue for me. The noise in the Lido is loud and the servers cannot always hear your requests properly. I was given things that I did not request several times. We are mannerly senior citizens who wait our turn in line and appreciate the hard work being done by the servers. To clarify, we do not act entitled as has been mentioned by some reviews/comments on the blogs. We give additional gratuities to staff members on many occasions for great service. We ate one night in Tamarind, which was lovely, except for the table that was in the center of the room where many people, staff and guests, constantly walking by. I think a complete renovation of this room could help. Service was great and the food very good. They were very busy the entire time we dined there. We really like the atmosphere of the restaurant and bar area. We also ate at the Pinnacle Grill. First negative is the bar adjacent to the PG. It is extremely small and the staff is busy trying to get orders for the PG and other areas, so if you are a guest just trying to get a glass of wine, expect a wait. Second negative was the PG itself. It was our anniversary and we wanted a special evening. They gave us a horrible table in an odd section with other dinners sitting too close. The waiter also made mention that we were using OBC to pay for the meal, not appropriate, nor should that have made a difference in the quality/service of our meal. The food was not good, steaks were full of fat and grizzle, dry and flavorless. The waiter continually tried to "upsell" our meal to include lobster tails or other items that were an up charge. That is okay once, but not five times. It was irritating. Service wasn't the best and we were thoroughly disappointed. The magician/illusionist that was in the theatre was excellent. We enjoyed two of his shows. Did partake in the Rolling Stones Lounge to listen to music, due to health and mobility issues, could not dance, but it looked like people were enjoying the really excellent music. All in all, enjoyed our cruise. The ship is in need of some minor touch ups. The disembarkation was chaotic due to two ships docking in San Diego at roughly the same time which makes this smallish port rather busy. We were sitting in our room waiting our turn to visit customs and it was cutting it pretty close to the time we needed to leave for the airport. We enjoy HAL for the quiet and easy cruise experience, but may experience other lines to see what they can offer.
As a bit of background for this review - my husband and I have gone on approximately 30 cruises on different cruise lines (mostly ocean cruises and only 2 river cruises) and are in our 50's. We are 3 star Mariner's on Holland America. We live in San Diego - so really enjoy the ability to cruise out of our home port. Please HAL keep the offerings coming out of San Diego! This was our second time on the Nieuw Amsterdam. The ship was chosen for the itinerary. I prefer the Koningsdam and the pinnacle class ships - but the NA was in good shape and it was overall a great cruise with a few hiccups. We were cruising with another couple who were new to HAL. The embarkation process in San Diego was smooth and quick - we left our home at about 10:45 am and were on the ship in our cabin by 11:15 am. Getting to the cabin from Deck A - the elevators were backed up - so we walked. The main dining option for most is the Lido Buffett for embarkation lunch - it was fine. I'm not a fan of buffets in general - but I do like that HAL has for the most part most of the stations are served to you (i.e. the passengers do not touch the food serving utensils, etc). Much cleaner IMO. The buffet runs on both sides of the Lido - though there are a few different options on both sides. I really enjoy the made to order salad bar - but throughout the week found the service there a bit slow. Servers were friendly, drink service maybe a bit slow and our friends got us drinks out a the back seaview pool bar. The pools are nice. the main pool has a cover that was retracted part way for most of the cruise - which is nice. There was plenty seating and service our there was good. Though on the 1st sea day the seating did get crowded. There were some fun activities through the week - Trivia, Line Dancing, Pumpkin Carving. One of the things I love about HAL is the live music. Well the BB King lounge used to be my favorite - but now is being phased out on most ships (I think)...it was not on the NA. We did have a fun time at the Rolling Stones Lounge and loved the band - had 2 lead signers - a man and a woman. The bassist got injured on our cruise and they had a replacement one half way through the week. The band played several sets at night (one night off) and was fun. Room was usually packed with lots of dancing. There was a string band that played and also the Dam band in the Ocean bar. There was also a solo guitarist at times - all good and enjoyable. I only went to one show in the Main Stage - but it was good - signing and dancing. Lots of activities all around the ship - Trivia was well attended. Some port talks and the Mexican ambassadors did several lectures. There were daily art classes. Scenic commentary coming into Cabo and leaving Loreto were nice. Average age on the ship skews a bit older - there were probably only 5 kids on board (that we saw); there was a group of some younger women (late 20s?) but for the most part people were 50plus. A large group (almost 200) of members of the Elks lodge and also a large bridge group competition. There was a lot to do and see or not do and see. The Crow's Nest is a favorite of mine - but usually crowded - they do offer puzzles and games up there. 2x during the week we were able to score one of the lounge type chairs that look out over the bow - very nice. The library (Deck 3) is very nice as well. Crow's nest bar was usually backed up and service there is not the best - they need to move the specialty coffee/tea part of that bar to another location in the Crow's nest to separate out the bar v coffee for faster service. There was also a specialty coffee location in the Lido on one side - usually faster service there. Bar service was for the most part great. Like the Billboard bar (though the piano player was just OK); Ocean Bar as well as the casino bar. Tamarind Bar (1 night) was nice for some cocktails (Lychee Martini was fab). The Lido and Seaview bars were quick. I also really like the Pinnacle Bar though it did not open until 5pm for dinner. Dining - mostly in the Main Dining Room for dinner - had open seating option and never had a wait other than 1 time for 5 minutes with a beeper. We ate at various times - latest being 7:30 pm and earliest at 5:30 p.m. The menu varies daily of course, with some options more appealing than others. I found that the options of the appetizers was diminished from my last cruise, which was disappointing. Went to the MDR for lunch 2x - the last day the menu was really appealing to me and was excellent. The 1st time - nothing appealed to me and all the appetizers (aka small plates) had meat in them which was a bummer. I paid for the upgrade for the crab Louie salad and would not do that again. Service in the MDR was quick and friendly. We ate a Pinnacle Grill for dinner one time. Overall it was good - my dining companions liked their steaks. I have the seabass which was good. The baked potato is HUGE so share unless you are starving. The best meal was at Morimoto's at Sea - $55 pp charge plus 18% gratuity - but it was well worth it. Delicious. Though apparently your Mariner discount does not apply at this specialty dining restaurant. Had breakfast every day in the MDR - it is fantastic! Great menu options - though service was a bit slow at times. Room service was fine - timely - though sometimes cold. We have a VC category verandah cabin on Deck 5 Port Side Forward. No problems with the location. No noise at all. The sailing was super smooth. The cabin was in pretty good shape, though I found the pillow to be too soft for my tastes. The bathroom was a good size, but I'm not a fan of the tub/shower combo (prefer the walk in shower only - but I knew this going in). The bathroom was showing some signs of wear especially around the tub area. The space for storage - especially for a 7 night cruise was very good. USB ports on both sides of the bed and one on the desk plus additional regular volt plugs on the desk. The casino had great atmosphere - though slots were tight. Hubby did well at the tables. I liked that you can hear the music from Billboard in the casino - makes it more open. Dealers were friendly. We had 3 ports - Cabo where we did not get off the ship as we have been there many times. La Paz and Loreto. We really enjoyed the last 2 ports as they were new to us. La Paz does have a 30-40 minute one way shuttle ride from where the ship docks ($10 USD pp round trip) - which I think some people were put off by so they missed seeing the town which was great. We also had a catamaran sail and beach excursion booked for that day in the afternoon - so pretty tight to see it all. The excursion was fantastic! Highly recommended it. Water is so clear and blue. Loreto you tender but it is quick - less than 5 minutes. By the time we were ready to get off the ship no ticket for the tenders was needed (this was about 10am). It is then an easy flat walk to a nice area with shops and restaurants and the Mission. Highly recommended. We dined for lunch at a restaurant in that area and tried the local chocolate clams - grilled - yumm! and local fresh seabass grilled tacos. Also a hit. Now the hiccups - the 1st full day of the cruise - woke to the toilets not flushing in the cabin. Then discovered they were not working in the entire forward section of the ship! Our friends on Deck 10 were also affected - theirs apparently for longer than ours. The "Out of Service" Signs were abundant throughout the public restrooms including the Spa area. Several calls to Guest Relations confirmed there was a problem with the plumbing and they were working on it - out for several hours before it began working again. OK great - but then next morning same thing happened - was not hoppy with that - was fixed quicker - but I think there is some plumbing maintenance that needs to be done. On the last day (disembarkation day) the public toilets near the MDR 2nd deck stopped working. Elevator service was slow all around the ship. Thermal Spa - had the weekly pass - I love the Thermal Spa on the Pinnacle ships = on the NA it is a scaled down version - still nice - but much smaller and not as many amenities. I enjoyed it - but next time if on the NA I would just do a daily pass for the price. Disembarkation was a bit slower than normal - maybe due to the government shut down? or possible due to the fact that Koningsdam docked about 30 minutes before us. However; once we went to Deck 3 for the Ocean Bar immigration it was quick and easy to get off the ship, get our luggage and our Uber.
My husband and I just went on our very first cruise. We live in Southern California so I picked a cruise that would leave/return out of San Diego. This particular cruise was for 7 days - supposed to stop in 3 locations (Ensenada, Cabo San Lucas and Puerto Vallarta) - Hurricane Priscilla had other plans for us... Cabo port closed and we had to pass it by. Getting on the ship was a breeze - we parked at the Wyndham across the street, just pulled our suitcases and got in line for the ship. Only took about 10 minutes from getting in line to getting on board. We stayed on deck 6, (upper Veranda) with a balcony. The room was smallish but worked for 1 week comfortably. It was cleaned twice a day by the wonderful staff on our deck (Yona and Holqi). They did a wonderful job and were always very happy and smiling when we saw them. Photos of our room are attached as well as the adorable elephant towel they left for us one evening. (Jeans added behind the elephant so it is easier to see - white towel/white bedspread...) We dined at Pinnacle Grill (twice) and Tamarind (once). Pinnacle Grill was dressy - men wore jackets and ties (most did, my husband wore just a nice button down shirt and that worked perfectly as well) The food was okay, not as great as we were hoping. First dinner we both had the Filet which was just okay. Second dinner I had the Chilean Sea Bass and my husband had the prime rib. I didn't like the Sea bass at all (undercooked and way too buttery/greasy). My husband had the prime rib and again we have had way better. We did have the lobster tail added to that meal and that was delicious. The staff at Pinnacle was fantastic though! First dinner we were waited on by Augus (sp? Sounded like August without a T) and he went above and beyond in terms of service even helping us back to our room with our leftovers and drinks! (luckily we were his last customers of the evening!) Second meal we were served by Beh and Antony (Antony served the drinks). Both were very helpful and very efficient. Dinner at Tamarind was beyond delicious. We both had the Wasabi & Soy Crusted Beef Tenderloin... I highly recommend it. Server was Dhana and she was amazing. Smiling, professional and efficient. So delicious food and great service at Tamarind! We ate once at Dive-In (burgers and hotdogs outside by the pool on deck 9) good fries but extremely slow service and after waiting 20 minutes for the food they got my very easy order wrong, took another 10 minutes to fix! The rest of our meals were at the buffet (Lido Market) on deck 9. Some of this food was very good, some not so great (kind of a hit or miss...). Want to mention Ric though. He served us some of our drinks (coffee, wine, etc) and was an absolute joy! He is from Bali and we talked to him at length (when he had the time....), he made going to the buffet a great experience. As for the entertainment - We went to 2 shows, the comedian, Mark Yaffee (he was awful -- absolutely the least funny comedian I have ever seen) and Curtain Up. Curtain up was wonderful! The cast of 8 were very talented - singing/dancing to broadway songs and doing it perfectly. We also tried out the casino - it was fun with slots and table games (we stuck to the slots), Joan did most of our drink delivery (also at World Stage) and she is great. Veronica (casino host) set up our second dinner at Pinnacle - she gave us choice of places to go and I wanted to give Pinnacle another shot... should have picked a different restaurant, but oh well...). The captain gave us lots of updates with the weather and he got us around the storm as best as he could. Sleeping in is not really an option, the messages from the captain and cruise director were every morning at 9. We did 2 shore excursions that were good (both were tours of the cities - Ensenada and Puerto Vallarta) -- the excursion in Cabo was cancelled since the port closed and we skipped the stop, the cancellation of the excursion was done automatically by the ship and the online credit showed up pretty quickly. Disembarkation was a mess - the line to go through immigration before leaving the boat was enormous. They kept announcing people should wait until their assigned times but it did not look like they did... and no one walked the line to get people out of the line that weren't supposed to be there! People were cutting in front of others making it worse for those in the line and again - no crew to tell them not to! Overall the crew is what made this cruise a success for us. The room was very nice and clean, the shows were mixed and the food was good enough. The hurricane gave us a pretty bumpy ride for a day but most of the trip was smooth sailing.
With refined amenities and Holland America Line signature Mariner’s Dream bed gracing each elegant stateroom, the ship offers six grades of staterooms. Most are ocean-facing, many featuring teak-lined verandas for dining alfresco or private sunbathing.
Holland America Line invites you to dine "As You Wish". To savour Italian cuisine one night and a perfectly grilled porterhouse steak the next. To take your place in the Dining Room at a specific seating time or be spontaneous, following your desires. Onboard, there are restaurants to suit every mood, along with the flexibility to choose the dining style you prefer.
Boasting an expansive range of enrichment facilities and opportunity, Holland America Line's ships are bound to offer something you'll want to know more about. Why not have a go at the Digital Workshop powered by Windows and learn how to enhance your holiday picture or how to easily share them.
Every day aboard a Holland America cruise ship brings a wealth of cruise activities and indulgences, along with the freedom to partake in as many- or as few- as you please. It's an opportunity to try something new that surprises you, every day. Dabble, discover, daydream- do everything, or do nothing at all.
Whether you want to workout in the Fitness Centre, learn yoga, pamper yourself with a massage and spa treatment, or enjoy a game of basketball, there's a perfect onboard activity for everyone.
Holland America Line's youth activities program, Kids Club, offers an array of entertaining events for kids and teens ages 3-17, supervised by a full-time, professionally trained staff. They'll have an opportunity to join other kids their age for arts and crafts, sports, video game competitions, scavenger hunts, challenging team games and themed parties.
Note: Kids Club is not offered on cruises of 25-days or longer, including all Legendary and Grand Voyages. We will offer a selection of children’s activities throughout these longer voyages for any children who may be onboard.
Safety Comes First
Safety is our primary concern and strict policies are in place for effective supervision. Adult guests are not permitted to remain in Kids Club unless attending to a special-needs child.
Please note: During voyages with a high number of families onboard, we will make all efforts to accommodate interested parties. However, participation in our program cannot be guaranteed. Hours of operation may change to better serve our guests.
