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insidecabin
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Posted: Sun Nov 18th, 2007 01:52 pm | 26th Post |
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| Thanks for the imformative review, not done HAL yet, it seems a edge a bit to far over to the formal side for us, we are open to offers so if the deal is there it could be done.
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Welove2cruise2
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Posted: Sun Nov 18th, 2007 02:07 pm | 27th Post |
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Yes, it was more formal than we are used to, but we actually enjoyed dressing up at night. On one of the three formal nights (the night DH wore his tux) we went back to our cabin after dinner and changed into resort casual clothing; the other two nights we stayed dressed (though we were slightly less dressy than the first formal night).
A couple of other things I forgot to mention -- the stewards put rolled towels on the deck chairs every day -- no hunting around for a towel. There wasn't the chair hog issue (as far as I could tell) on this ship. And you don't sign out beach towels when going ashore. Coming back onto the ship, there was a steward handing out ice cold towels with a minty fragrance to them -- heavenly! And in the public restrooms there were cloth towels (actually washcloths) to dry your hands -- nice touch. The public restrooms were always spotless -- including the ones on the pool deck.
The service on this ship was incredible. The indonesian crew (wait staff, room stewards) seem very shy at first, but once you start talking to them about home, they open right up. The bar staff is phillipino, and of course we all know how awesome they are.
We were very leery of trying HAL after what I'd read on the message boards and the general feel of the line, but I'm glad we tried something else. We really missed our perks on NCL, as well as the staff that we've known and loved, but at this point in time we'll be booking cruises based on itinerary, port of embarkation and price before loyalty to any one line.
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"I'll take the deck of a ship any time..." Jimmy Buffett
Majesty 10/00 & 01, 7/03 & 04, 5/05, 6/06, 9/06, 7/07 Dawn 11/04, 10/05, 3/07 Spirit 11/06, Dream 7/08 Noordam 10/07, 3/08
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BarbCT605
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Posted: Sun Nov 18th, 2007 05:20 pm | 28th Post |
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Thanks for sharing.
DH & I are going in January and are die-hard NCL fans.
This will be a first for us (and, I think, last since HAL is leaving NYC).
Interesting info about formal nites. I like to dress up, too. But not for 3 nites -- eek.
Thanks, again!
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kimdave68
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Posted: Sun Nov 18th, 2007 11:03 pm | 29th Post |
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We tend to be overdressed for NCL.
The comments about lack of real entertainment are of great concern. I'm a weekend warrior (DJ) so the comment about kidnapping the DJ gets my attention! 
Outside of that it would seem that we'd be somewhere in the middle of the scale.
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Welove2cruise2
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Posted: Mon Nov 19th, 2007 12:20 am | 30th Post |
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kimdave68 wrote: We tend to be overdressed for NCL.
The comments about lack of real entertainment are of great concern. I'm a weekend warrior (DJ) so the comment about kidnapping the DJ gets my attention!
Outside of that it would seem that we'd be somewhere in the middle of the scale.
If you haven't booked yet, come with us on the 3/8 Southern Caribbean cruise! We'll all make our own entertainment!! Maybe they'll let you take over for the DJ... I guess there was one in Northern Lights, but it was late (10-30-11), and it was tough staying awake that long to go...
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Majesty 10/00 & 01, 7/03 & 04, 5/05, 6/06, 9/06, 7/07 Dawn 11/04, 10/05, 3/07 Spirit 11/06, Dream 7/08 Noordam 10/07, 3/08
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kimdave68
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Posted: Mon Nov 19th, 2007 12:42 am | 31st Post |
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Welove2cruise2 wrote:
If you haven't booked yet, come with us on the 3/8 Southern Caribbean cruise! We'll all make our own entertainment!! Maybe they'll let you take over for the DJ... I guess there was one in Northern Lights, but it was late (10-30-11), and it was tough staying awake that long to go...
I'd love to do this however I was booked on the Gem on 26 Jan and decided to cancel in favor of the Dawn going to Bermuda for the last time next Oct then staying onboard for the repo to Miami. We really liked that run and even though it's a day shorter and different this time around we know it will be interesting as always.
Is HAL pulling MS Noordam out of NYC year round? That's a pity but you know NY PST needs to get their shit together (pardon my French) as it's one of the worst places to disembark from. To someone that's never cruised before they would definitely have to wonder if it's worth it. We only do NY because it's convenient and 2) The Dawn. We have our reasons but we'd fly to MIA and leave on the Dawn before taking the Gem out of NYC. If anyone thinks the Gem will steal the thunder of Dawn they are sadly mistaken.
But since this is a HAL DB, I'll leave the NCL stuff out.
Why Noordam? I know a little about ships and like what I've seen from my research. The price, location of departure seem right and I haven't heard too many bad things about HAL in general. (perhaps the over-the-hill jokes but I'm 40 and most of my friends are 60+ so I prefer the older crowd.) I have permanent sea legs so walking around rascals and 02 bottles even on rough days at sea not a problem for me! 
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Welove2cruise2
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Posted: Tue Nov 20th, 2007 12:26 pm | 32nd Post |
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Yes, the Noordam's final carib season in NYC is next year. And you're right, the pier in NYC is the pits, but we actually found debarkation a LOT smoother than embarkation -- now THAT was a nightmare! We heard that many of the dock workers are not showing up, so of course this slowed down the process pre and post cruise. Getting off, though, we were about the last color/number called (which was fine with us) so by the time we got off the ship there was hardly any luggage left, yet we still had to get in a line to get a porter...
I would love to do one of the repos from NYC someday; unfortunately it doesn't work with my work schedule -- I can't get away after about mid-March or before the very end (29-30) of October, and in late October/early November I really can't be gone more than a week and a half because it's nuts here that time of year...
We also preferred the older crowd, but would have been happier with better entertainment in the evening. I'll probably write an e-mail to HAL and see where that goes. I also think a big part of the entertainment problem had to do with the cruise director, who was like a ghost -- never saw him in person except for the one production show we went to and the karaoke/star seeker finals.
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Majesty 10/00 & 01, 7/03 & 04, 5/05, 6/06, 9/06, 7/07 Dawn 11/04, 10/05, 3/07 Spirit 11/06, Dream 7/08 Noordam 10/07, 3/08
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kimdave68
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Posted: Wed Nov 21st, 2007 03:39 am | 33rd Post |
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You would be amazed how the porters jump in action with the universal attitude adjustment tool!
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Welove2cruise2
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Posted: Fri Nov 23rd, 2007 10:45 pm | 34th Post |
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| A five minute wait wasn't worth THAT much!!
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kimdave68
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Posted: Sat Nov 24th, 2007 01:24 am | 35th Post |
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Welove2cruise2 wrote: A five minute wait wasn't worth THAT much!!
In most cases, yes I agree. A twenty is more than enough!
HAL karaoke like this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PheaAZ-wMc&
Last edited on Sat Nov 24th, 2007 02:11 am by kimdave68
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hstrybuf
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Posted: Sat Nov 24th, 2007 02:47 am | 36th Post |
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kimdave68 wrote: Welove2cruise2 wrote: A five minute wait wasn't worth THAT much!!
In most cases, yes I agree. A twenty is more than enough!
HAL karaoke like this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PheaAZ-wMc&
OMG! I used to sing that when I was a kid! 
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kimdave68
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Posted: Sat Nov 24th, 2007 05:03 am | 37th Post |
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hstrybuf wrote: kimdave68 wrote: Welove2cruise2 wrote: A five minute wait wasn't worth THAT much!!
In most cases, yes I agree. A twenty is more than enough!
HAL karaoke like this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PheaAZ-wMc&
OMG! I used to sing that when I was a kid!
Me too!
And of course how could anyone not remember this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5RJYisIYlk
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hstrybuf
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Posted: Sat Nov 24th, 2007 12:04 pm | 38th Post |
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| I remember that one too, more the tune though than all the words.
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kimdave68
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Posted: Sat Nov 24th, 2007 01:49 pm | 39th Post |
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Speaking of low bridges!
Holy Moly!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIUsRIi3bfI
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hstrybuf
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Posted: Sat Nov 24th, 2007 03:15 pm | 40th Post |
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kimdave68 wrote: Speaking of low bridges!
Holy Moly!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIUsRIi3bfI
Now that is one of those "What was he thinking?" moments!
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kimdave68
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Posted: Sat Nov 24th, 2007 03:30 pm | 41st Post |
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I don't have the details but what it looks like is a single piece drawbridge that has malfunctioned. You can see it slipping downward as the vessel approached. The skipper tries to avoid disaster by going full astern (throttle is most like WOT as observed by the stack). Of course watergoing vessels are nothing like a car or truck when it comes to stopping so the inevitable happens.
If you're on land and it appears a ship is coming in hot or is going to hit...RUN! Don't second guess it especially if you're on a bridge! I bet that incident in NYC last August scared the crap out of folks at the terminal especially since it happened right after the I-35 collapse.
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Welove2cruise2
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Posted: Sat Dec 1st, 2007 02:01 am | 42nd Post |
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kimdave68 wrote: Welove2cruise2 wrote: A five minute wait wasn't worth THAT much!!
In most cases, yes I agree. A twenty is more than enough!
HAL karaoke like this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PheaAZ-wMc&
Yeah, alot like this...
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"I'll take the deck of a ship any time..." Jimmy Buffett
Majesty 10/00 & 01, 7/03 & 04, 5/05, 6/06, 9/06, 7/07 Dawn 11/04, 10/05, 3/07 Spirit 11/06, Dream 7/08 Noordam 10/07, 3/08
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Adios
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Posted: Tue Dec 4th, 2007 11:27 pm | 43rd Post |
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Thanks for your review. I will be venturing over to HAL on the Oosterdam in March out of San Diego. First time on HAL. I love the Spirit class ships of Carnival and I know that the Vista class is a knock off. We were able to get one of the aft corner cabins on deck five. I will love the aft view of the wake. This will also be my first time on the Mexican Pacific route. Again thanks for taking the time to post a review.
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Sail Happy
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Posted: Wed Jan 2nd, 2008 01:44 am | 44th Post |
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Hi welove2cruise,
I'm glad to see that you're on this site too. It's a lot of fun here! Look forward to meeting you on the March 8th cruise. I think we'll definitely have to make our own fun on the Noordam, unlike NCL or Carnival. Carnival is my favorite as far as nightlife goes. Thanks for the very informative review!
Sail Happy 
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King Marcus
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Posted: Thu Jan 3rd, 2008 06:15 pm | 45th Post |
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I have taken also my 1st HAL cruise over the same time on the Zuiderdam. Noel was also in our way the whole cruise and we missed 2 ports with not so nice weather throughout the whole cruise.
I have sailed 20+ cruises on NCL, alone the past 12 months I did over 6!
I just completed my Transatlantic cruise on the Gem and sailed in the famous Garden Villa...all I can say...NCL finally lost a good customer.
I had a far superior cruise on the Zuderdam in a SA Deluxe Verandah Suite! Quality, cleanliness, food, presentation and service was a WOW factor every day. Yes the shows and enterntainment is less then on NCL, but I rather have a quiet afternoon then listen to bad music. Latly the production shows on NCL are less then mediocre.
The food in the Main Dining Room on HAL was absolutely wonderful...huge selection and great quality and taste. We had a standing reservation for 8 and had a table for 2, which was great. The Pinnacle Grill was outstanding! Yes it serves almost the same as Cagney's, just a notch better and the presentation is out of this world...like you would expect in a real 3Michelin Star Restaurant.
The whole HAL experience reminded me of staying in a Ritz Carlton and not a Marriott like NCL! I am in my mid 30's and had a great time from the best Embarkation to a said and quick disembark! HAL gave us a true 5* cruise experience, which remided me off Seabourn on a bigger ship!
I am now (since we will not sail NCL anymore) booking many different lines for this years cruising...to see what more is out there! We will be booked on Celebrity (Alaska) , HAL (Europe) and Silversea (Asia) for this year cruises!
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AviatingPrivateer
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Posted: Thu Jan 3rd, 2008 07:15 pm | 46th Post |
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King Marcus wrote: I am in my mid 30's
Stop fibbing about your age M, we all know you're JUST 29!
Guten Morgen!
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Sail Happy
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Posted: Fri Jan 4th, 2008 12:17 am | 47th Post |
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King Marcus,
What happened on the Gem to turn you off completely to NCL and even staying in the Garden Villa didn't help? I have to book another NCL cruise soon (got the onboard future discount) and was planning on the Gem some time in 2009.
As for HAL, I'm glad to hear that the Pinnacle Grill is worth the money. I found that a couple of times on NCL the specialty restaurants were hit or miss. I'll definitely make reservations there at least once.
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Carnival x 14
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Royal Caribbean x 3
Princess x 2
Upcoming Cruises
Noordam 3/8/08
Carnival Miracle 5/1/08
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Welove2cruise2
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Posted: Fri Jan 4th, 2008 12:47 pm | 48th Post |
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Hi SailHappy! Glad you found us over here!
Marcus: I read about your disappointment in the Gem TA, and that is a shame. As for us, we're now looking at our budget (as well as itinerary and port of embarkation) before we book a cruise and if we find a cruise for less money on another line but NCL, then we'll book that (evidenced by the fact that we are booked on the "Snoredam" again in March). However, all things being equal, we'd much rather sail on NCL -- comparable service and food (but more dining venues on NCL), nice cabins, beautiful ships, and NCL's entertainment beats HAL by a landslide.
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"I'll take the deck of a ship any time..." Jimmy Buffett
Majesty 10/00 & 01, 7/03 & 04, 5/05, 6/06, 9/06, 7/07 Dawn 11/04, 10/05, 3/07 Spirit 11/06, Dream 7/08 Noordam 10/07, 3/08
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Sail Happy
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Posted: Fri Jan 4th, 2008 11:58 pm | 49th Post |
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The "Snoredam"--I love it!!!!!!
Well, it seems like we have a pretty fun group going on this sailing, so hopefully it will be a little more lively for you this time! We'll just have to wait and see...
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Carnival x 14
Norwegian x 11
Royal Caribbean x 3
Princess x 2
Upcoming Cruises
Noordam 3/8/08
Carnival Miracle 5/1/08
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