Westerdam Review

Escape to Aruba

Review for the Southern Caribbean Cruise on Westerdam
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Gater Girl
First Time Cruiser • Age 20s

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Sail Date: Jan 2010
Cabin: Deluxe Ocean-View Verandah Stateroom

My Husband and I left Jax at 4:15am on Jan.3,2010. We stopped for coffee, then a fast food breakfast..and were on board the Westerdam, eating lunch on the Lido Deck before 1:00pm. Embarbartion was the easiest we have ever experienced. We unloaded our luggage, , then parked the car, walked to the Port Bldg. There was not a line. We showed our Boarding Documents, then went up the escalators, where we waited maybe 5 mins, and then had our credit card info taken, etc. and we were on the ship. It was amazing.

Our Cabin was ready by the time we finished lunch. We loved it. It did show some signs of wear and tear, and we did have to have someone look at the toilet. Repair people came immediately, and that was the end of the problem. The balcony was pretty much un-used the first two days because it was very cold.The room had plenty of space, not so much drawer space, but two large hooks on the wall took up some slack. International CNN was the only news channel, and after hearing one Reporter wail about 'teaching them not to hate", we quit watching it. There was very little USA news on it anyway. WHY not Fox or MSNBC news outlets? Please. Other than that, we enjoyed the cabin. We sat out on the balcony the night we were in Aruba. Firecrackers were being shot at the Big Hotels, my DH sipped a martini, I sipped a diet coke, and that is a memory to cherish. The weather was perfect, the lights of Aruba were beautiful, and the firecrackers..a nice extra. Before Aruba..it was not so nice weather wise. It was 57 degrees at Half Moon Cay, so we stayed on the ship. The weather in Miami had been very cold when we boarded, so we expected bad weather. It was not until the second sea day that it warmed up. The temperatures in Aruba and Curacao were perfect. Both were in the 80's, and Curaco had the permanent trade wind they have blowing.

ACTIVITIES- Shane was the CD and I thought he was good. He was lowkey, but then HAL is sort of lowkey. He was very approachable and witty. He conducted the Trivia games on board and they were well attended and competitive. My only gripe about the activies is..There is not enough Trivia! He was also in one of the impromtu productions (illness of a major cast member) and he was hilarious. HAL has a new Daily Program, with new categories. They seemed to have a lot of culinary lessons, a lot of yoga, spa, spirtual things, exercise and computor classes and photography classes. We only do Trivia, and went to all of them, and enjoyed everyone of them. They also had a Marriage Game Battle of the Sexes,hosted by DJ Jazzy, but since it was not Trivia between the ladies and the gents, we did not stay. DJ Jazzy did a lot of Bingo, and that was well attended. I went to One session. The Casino was the worst thing on the ship. It was very small. It had a few interactive slot machines, which everyone wanted, and then rows of the cherries, sevens and such machines that sat empty for most of the time. If anyone won on any of the slots, I did not hear about it. After dinner, it was always so crowded, it was impossible to do anything.

Cabin Review

Deluxe Ocean-View Verandah Stateroom

Cabin VA

We were in cabin 8024, a VA balcony category. It was the highest we have been. We liked the view. HAL had it furnished nicely, with a wicker chair, with cushion, another chair, a table and a small footstool. We used it more than any other balcony we have had. We ordered roomservice coffee each morning, and my husband drank his out there. The closet space was fine. Plus two large hangers were available for clothes if the robes there were put into a closet. I wish they would remove those robes. I cannot imagine wearing anyone's robe but my own..they just add clutter. The cabin was at the front of the Westerdam but we liked that. It was far enough from the Vista Restaurant to keep us not snacking, and we got a lot of exercise trotting there two times a day. It was close to the Crow's Next, via elevator, where we spent a lot of time. We were very please with the cabin. It did show some wear and tear, a carpet was stained, the drain in the tub did not work, but we take showers so no problem. We had a wonderful cabin attendant, Haman. It was just a nice cabin on a nice cruse. I booked it through Vacations to Go..Jeb Houston. So thanks. It turned out lovely.

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