Nieuw Amsterdam Review
Rating by category
Additional details
My husband and I booked this cruise as a 65th birthday gift for me. This was our ninth cruise, but first on HAL. We have previously sailed with Carnival, Princess and Celebrity.
We flew in the day before the cruise, and stayed at the Fairfield Inn in Dania Beach. This hotel was just packed with cruisers, and we thought it was good value for what we paid. Nice room, okay breakfast, no complaints.
We returned our National rental car to FLL and took their free shuttle to the port. I think we arrived about noon and were onboard in about 30 minutes. It was nice that we could go directly to our room, which was ready for us.
Cabin Review
Deluxe Ocean-View Verandah Stateroom
Nice cabin, great balcony. Good bedding.
Port Reviews
Amber Cove (Puerto Plata)
Amber cove is basically a shopping mall with 90% stores empty. No beach, and I don't think there's a pool. We took an excursion to Cabarete beach, which was beautiful. It's hard for me to see the poverty on the island next to luxury resorts. The bus was way too crammed -- my poor husband's legs were totally compressed because of inadequate leg room.
Grand Turk
Really like Grand Turk. Beautiful beach, great pool.
Half Moon Cay
Beautiful island, great beach. The tram ride costs $25 for a 30 minute ride -- way too much. But we really liked the easy availability of the beach, and the beautiful water and powdery sand.