Oosterdam Review

Oosterdam - Mexican Riviera

Review for the Mexican Riviera Cruise on Oosterdam
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aldo
First Time Cruiser • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Apr 2005
Cabin: Signature Superior Verandah Suite

Let me start by saying that this is my 11th cruise so I have a good idea on what to expect on a cruise. I'm 45 and my wife is 40. We usually sail Princess, so expect comparisons and no I don't work for them nor does anyone I know. We have been on NCL and RCL.

We usually do at least one cruise a year. We decided to try HAL, the Oosterdam to Mexico, to break away from Princess to see how the other half lives so to speak. We soon discovered how good we have it on Princess. We had heard some good things about HAL and knew that it was more sedate and an older crowd. That was ok as we were looking for a very relaxing time. We also knew that dinner times were set as opposed to Princess where you dine when you want, anytime between 5:30 and 10pm.

Boarding: When we got on the ship around noon, all cabins were off limits until 1:30 pm. You could check your carry on bags at a room but it was soon overrun so we had to carry or bags for about 1.5 hrs. This was a hassle especially trying to eat lunch. On Princess, we have always been able to go right to our cabin and drop our bags. If princess can do this on a ship of 2500, why can't HAL manage it on a ship of 1800? When I did get to my cabin, the bottle of JD I had preordered to be in my cabin was not there. After two complaints to the front desk, 3 hours apart, the bottle showed up after dinner. By the way, that bottle of JD cost me $54. The last time on Princess it cost me $27. The thing that really ticked me off about HAL is that they tried to sell me the same bottle to take off the ship for $17.95. Talk about feeling gouged.

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Signature Superior Verandah Suite

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