My partner and I live in Ft. Lauderdale and were very happy to find a good value on this cruise immediately following the holidays. We frequently watch the ships sail away from Port Everglades and thought the Vista class HAL ships were particularly handsome. We had the privilege of being invited aboard the new Westerdam for brunch, ship tour and a show on December 5, 2004 and loved it, so we were particularly excited about this cruise.

Embarkation: Sadly, our cruise was shortly after the Tsunami disaster. Our embarkation was understandably delayed because some Indonesian staff were disembarking to go home while replacements were coming aboard. They had to clear customs which caused the delay. Embarkation began about noon. We took about 10 minutes to get through security, then check-in was a breeze! Easiest of any cruise I have taken. We knew that cabins would not be ready, but they directed us to the Lido deck for buffet lunch. They also had the option of being able to leave your carry-on luggage in the piano bar(with a staff member protecting it) until cabins were ready. Nice touch. Cabins were promptly ready as advertised at 1:00 P.M.

Cabin: We were in a Deluxe Verandah Outside Cabin #5090 on the Veranda Deck. We were very near the midships glass elevators and loved the ease of getting around the ship. The cabin was very comfortable(larger than cabins on Princess, equal in size to Carnival but much more appealing). The beds were very comfortable Sealy Eurotop Mattresses with high thread count Egyptian cotton sheets (also had plush Egyptian cotton bath towels and nice bathrobes). Large suitcases easily fit under the bed. Cabin had sitting area with loveseat, minifridge, combined bathtub and shower with a great massaging showerhead, and a spacious balcony with two wicker style chairs and an ottoman that could do double duty as a table. There were two cabinets above the loveseat if you need additional storage(we didn't need them) and three closets that have shelves that can easily be moved. We found the closet and shelf space very generous. We also each had a locking night table with two drawers. Small safe in closet used code of your choosing which we liked. Our cabin steward, Ecko, was extremely pleasant with a big smile on his face and always called us by name. We had probably been in our cabin for 15 minutes when he brought our luggage. Very nice. Bathroom had 3 shelf medicine cabinet, and a shelf underneath the sink for larger items. Read more