Westerdam Review
Rating by category
Additional details
The writer being the male side of a retired couple, avid cruisers (more than 3 dozen to date) will, having reviewed the Westerdam at an earlier time, skip the usual ship overview and divide time (more or less) equally between the ship experience, pros and cons, and the details of the charter itself. Firstly, booking was directly through the charter agency and we were, living in the S.Fl. area, taken to the port by private transportation.
BW (for the uninitiated, Beautiful wife) and I also did the Jazz themed charter a prior year and obviously were pleased and impressed sufficiently to return again. The port schedule itself (Nassau, St.Thomas USVI, Gustavia St.Barts, and private island Half Moon Cay) to jazz afficianados (we do not necessarily include ourselves in this demographic) to a true jazz lover could well be almost secondary to the music immersion itself.
First impressions, fellow music lovers/cruisers were noticeably friendly much earlier on, bringing to mind the closeness and familiarity usually seen in a longer period of time. Jocularity reigned early on and never ceased, in fact,the event being promoted as "The Greatest Party At Sea".
Cabin Review
Large Ocean-View Stateroom
Cabin (Westerdam) Nbr. 7110, near stern and elevators. Class: Deluxe Verandah, average size for this class room, but probably without a doubt the best storage ever. HAL needs to make two hidden storage areas known, as we found both by accident, two large areas as pullouts beneath the couch and the same at the foot of the bed.Perhaps a note in the first informational handout?
Night lighting to read could most definitely be improved upon. To avoid glare in your eyes from overhead lighting you must get into your own light, or shut off ancillary lights and go it alone with a then less than satisfactory bed light. Suggest adding a night light for the bathroom as Celebrity has done on its Solstice class, with the main light becoming a less bright night light. Privacy curtain a nice touch.
Bed very comfortable. Towel animals, gone missing on some ships, have returned here and are very nice...even the miniatures in the bathrooms. Well, I can vouch only for the men's, of course. Very quiet, no disturbance from hallway.