This was our seventh cruise on HAL but our first on the Noordam and certainly our longest at 39 days. We thoroughly enjoyed it, which is why we keep coming back to HAL, but are concerned that the cutbacks in service are continuing. At some point we pray that HAL will stop cutting back and maintain the quality that we have come to expect. We experienced the first cutback just after boarding the ship in Vancouver when we we told that there was no longer an embarkation lunch for Mariners, but a "welcome reception" at 2pm in the Crow's Nest. Since we hate eating in the Lido, we sorely missed the leisurely delight of lunch in the dining room. Sorry HAL, a glass of cheap champagne is no substitute! When we raised the issue with HAL staff, we were told that the embarkation lunch is offered at the discretion of the captain. Well I'm sorry Captain Draper, but the embarkation lunch is clearly dbescribed as a Mariner perk on the HAL web site. Perhaps the Mariner Rewards table should be updated to say "Embarkation lunch depends on the Captain"?

Since we cruised last year, the dinner menu has been reformatted to suggest three courses instead of four by lumping the "soup & salads" and "appetizers" all into one group of starters. Most people still ordered two first courses, but the new format is clearly designed to encourage cruisers to order only one item.

Access to Internet is a necessity for most people these days. Sadly, the on-board internet continues to be frustratingly slow and overpriced. HAL could easily charge by the MB downloaded, but instead continues to charge by the minute. US$275 for 500 mins is more than many people pay for six months of high speed internet back home. Yes, we know it's via satellite and that's more expensive, but to watch the minutes go by whilst watching a rotating icon is cruel and unusual punishment. At least do what Princess does and offer free minutes to higher star Mariners. Read more