Teresa and I met on the Panama Canal cruise and had stayed in touch afterward. This was the first cruise that we shared as cabinmates. This itinerary was one we were both interested in because it is
port intensive and at the outer limits of the time we had available to
travel.
PRE- AND POST-CRUISE TRANSPORTATION
Although some people enjoy the
challenge of researching and making their own travel arrangements, we
opted to assign this to HAL, eliminating the potential need to make
last-minute changes or risk overlooking something. Again, rather than
research each port and select “must see” sights, we generally chose to
be part of a HAL-sponsored tour. This enabled us to be relaxed and enjoy
each day’s excursion(s). We went so far as to pre-book (via the
internet) specific excursions which might sell out before they could be
purchased once on the ship.
We chose to arrive a day early in
Amsterdam in order to see some of the city before setting sail. Our
hotel, the Amsterdam Crown Plaza, was ideally located for a self-guided
walking tour. We strolled through the neighborhood and ended the
afternoon by taking a canal boat ride. The following morning, as part of
the precruise package, HAL took boarding passengers on a three-hour
mini-tour to Zaanse Schans, a windmill village erected at the end of the
16th century. There we saw how wooden shoes are made and sampled cheese
made in the village.
THE SHIP
Décor is standard HAL: Attractive and functional without glitz.
Although the Prinsendam’s public areas are
primarily on Decks 7 and 8, it wasn’t until the middle of our second
week that I was able to remember which facilities were on what deck.
(Public areas on Deck 8 from the Excursion Desk through the Explorer’s
Lounge were consistently uncomfortably cool.)
For whatever reason, we noticed that some
niceties have disappeared since our last HAL cruise three years ago.
Champagne and orange juice were served at the Captain’s Reception, but
hors d’oeuvres were not. Attendants no longer hand Lido diners a
mini-menu or tray, although the menu is posted and trays are generally
carried to tables for diners once food selections have been made. There
was no basket of fruit in our cabin. Beverage stirs have been replaced
by plastic drinking straws. These are not complaints, merely
observations. Service from the ship’s staff remains superb.
We requested first seating for dinner in
LaFontaine Dining Room and probably had one of the worst table
locations, Table A, which is at the front of the dining room between the
aisle railing and waiters’ service counter. The only way to see out a
window was to peek under the greenery. In the long run, this was
unimportant because conversation with our table mates quickly replaced
the desire to look at the scenery.
Although I am not a gourmet, I found the
food, particularly the vegetables, less interesting than on previous
cruises. As in the past, however, there were several items to select
from for each course. Prime rib, which was served at least three times,
was excellent each time I ordered it. (The lobster tail was served
without the cup of drawn butter. Instead, the waiter poured butter over
the meat.) Desserts still reign, from over-the-top rich to sugar-free,
and fruit, cheese and ice cream/sorbet were always options as well.
We ate breakfasts and lunches in both the
dining room and the Lido. Service for breakfast and lunch in the dining
room was unhurried. I often waited 20 minutes after ordering before food
was served. Although there are two hot food lines in the Lido, the
salad/dessert bar is only on the starboard side. We enjoyed the food and
variety of selections, and, if we hadn’t enjoyed our dinner companions
so much, we probably would have eaten more often in the Lido.
We didn’t eat in the Odyssey Restaurant, but were told that the food was good but no better than that served in the LaFontaine.
OUR CABIN
The Prinsendam, which began sailing
under HAL’s ownership in June, is still being refurbished. Work on our
cabin had been completed; work is still to be done on others. Our
original booking was for a cabin on the Lower Promenade (deck 7), but
shortly before the cruise, we were offered a cabin with a veranda on
the Upper Promenade (deck 9) at a reduced rate. We took the upgrade and
thoroughly enjoyed being able to sit outdoors without going to a public
area. Cabin appointments included twin beds, a settee, coffee table and
side chair, television set and remote, mini-bar and refrigerator, vanity
and bench. A hair dryer was “hardwired” at the vanity and there was a
110 plug as well. Our bath had a shower only, and the convertible
110/220 plug in the light fixture didn’t work.
ON-BOARD ENTERTAINMENT AND ACTIVITIES
As on all HAL cruises, there were
many daily shipboard activities, but shore excursions generally
prevented our taking part in them. In fact, this was the first cruise
that I didn’t sit in on a bingo session!
Evening shows in the Queen’s Lounge were
generally quite good. Those of the cruise staff were typical, although
their third show (“Broadway in Concert”) featured individual cast
members, and, in my opinion, was the best I’ve seen. The Filipino and
Indonesian staffs also had their shows which, once again were performed
after my bedtime. Guest entertainers included George Solomon, Tyler
Linkin, Hanna Starosta, Paul Lennon and Nick Lewin. I found the tub
chairs very uncomfortable, but the sight lines were generally quite
good.
The only lounge we visited was the Crow’s
Nest, perhaps because we found the view, ambience and service
exceptional. On our second visit both of our waiters welcomed us by name
and continued to do so throughout the cruise.
SHORE EXCURSIONS
It would be unfair to try to say
which port or country we liked best based on three- to six-hour port
tours. The most we can honestly say is that we appreciated the
opportunity to visit seven countries and eleven ports (thirteen if
Amsterdam and Copenhagen are included) and would like to return for
extended visits in many of them.
As mentioned earlier, we opted to take
tours sponsored by HAL and prebooked three on-line through HAL’s web
site. For those we booked on the ship, the Shore Excursion staff was
always helpful and friendly. Although we felt some tours we took might
have been overpriced, the trade-off to leave the planning to someone
else, to have first-rate transportation and knowledgable guides,
generally warranted the cost.
Esbjerg, Norway (Town of Ribe) – Our first
stop was the VikingeCenter, where a settlement is being constructed as
it would have appeared ca 825. In Ribe, Denmark’s oldest town, we
strolled cobblestone streets and saw the nest of what may be the last
pair of storks in Ribe. Other stops included Ribe Cathedral, the Flood
Column and St. Catharine Church and Abbey. Here, as on all tours we
took, a little (very little) time was allotted for shopping.
Stavanger, Norway (Lysefjord Cruise) –
Although the ship’s itinerary was to include cruising up the fjord when
we left port that evening, we wanted the experience on a smaller scale
and prebooked the boat ride to Pulpit Rock. We sat on deck to look at
the scenery until a rain shower chased us inside. On the return to port,
we stopped for a waffles and cream snack at a pavilion on the fjord.
Bergen, Norway - We did a self-guided city
tour and rode the funicular to the city overlook. Once back in the
city, we visited the market and several dock-side shops.
Vik, Norway (Vik, Voss & Flam Railway
Overland Adventure) – The ride up to Voss is breathtaking and several
stops were made so we could step off the bus to take pictures. The
buffet lunch in Voss provided an excellent selection of Norse dishes.
The rail cars from Voss to Myrdal and Myrdal to Flam were unlike any I’d
ridden on before: The seats on one side of the car face “forward”’ and
those on the other face the “rear.” Also, although there are scenic
views on both side of the railroad, generally speaking, there is more to
see on the left side than the right. It was frustrating not to be able
to see what those on the other side of the car were oohing and aahing
about! If it were possible, I’d prefer that the entire tour be done by
bus.
Kristiansand, Norway – The one tour we
might have signed up for was either full or cancelled (I can’t remember
which!) Thus, we walked into the town and strolled the three- or
four-block pedestrian mall.
Gdansk, Poland (Gdansk & Oliwa
Cathedral) -- Our tour visited the Old Town which was destroyed in WW II
but has been rebuilt. Special stops included St. Mary’s Church and a
drive to Oliwa Cathedral where we listened to a 20-minute organ concert
featuring three instruments consisting of about 7800 pipes.
St. Petersburg, Russia: Day One
(Catherine’s Palace at Pushkin & Pavlovsk) – In a word, WOW!!!
Catherine’s Palace, both the exterior and interior, are opulent and
difficult to describe. There’s a nominal fee if you wish to take
pictures inside the building, and I recommend that you do so. Words will
not suffice to explain what you will see and available post cards are
less than satisfactory. Following this tour we had lunch at Pavlovsk,
Paul’s residence, and then toured the building. Less ostentatious than
Catherine’s Palace, it was still a reflection of affluence.
That evening we attended the Folkloric Spectacular which has been highly recommended. We were not disappointed!
St. Petersburg, Russia: Day Two
(The Hermitage Museum Tour including “The Golden Room”) – Another WOW!!
HAL’s Hermitage tours begin an hour before the Museum opens, so we were
able to visit a few of the most popular rooms before public hours. Our
tour also included the Golden Room with displays of jewelry and utensils
made of gold and precious gems. Although cameras and video recorders
were allowed in the other areas of the Hermitage, they had to be left
with an attendant before visitors were allowed into the Golden Room.
Among the items we saw were four goblets and a pitcher, all solid gold,
weighing a total of 26 pounds.
The afternoon following the Golden Room
outing, we cruised the Niva River. Frankly this was a disappointment to
me. I’d have preferred up-close visits to other landmarks such as the
Church on the Spilt Blood.
There was “noise” about the stay in St.
Petersburg being extended in the future from two to three days.
Hopefully this comes about. There was so much more to see, but no time
in which to do so.
Helsinki, Finland (Lapland, Arctic Circle
& Santa Claus Tour / Helsinki City Tour) – Teresa took the tour that
flew to Lapland. I took a city tour which featured city landmarks such
as Senate Square, Sibelius Monument and Temppeliaukion “Church in the
Rock.” The elaborate baroque forms were replaced by more subtle,
functional designs. This was a visual as well as physical return to
Scandinavia.
Stockholm. Sweden (Stockholm City Hall
& the Vasa Museum) –Nobel Prize festivities are held in the City
Hall, a quietly imposing structure. The interior was pleasantly
utilitarian in design although the ballroom is decorated with 18 million
glass and gold quarter-inch colored mosaic tiles. Initially I was
uninterested in seeing the Vasa, but once at the museum, was glad I’d
taken the tour. On the way back to the ship, the bus let us off at Gamla
Stan. There we walked through the narrow streets in search of the
narrow “street,” Martens Trotzigs Grand.
Karlskrona, Sweden – The one tour offered
was not of interest to us, so we tendered into town and walked the long
pedestrian mall. This is a pretty little town, but not one I’d expect to
see on HAL’s future itineraries.
Copenhagen, Denmark – We extended our trip
to spend a day in Copenhagen. As part of the post-cruise package, we
had a three-hour tour of the city before being taken to our hotel. We
stopped to see such sights as the Little Mermaid, the Royal Palace,
Glyptotek Museum and drove by several other landmarks including Nyhavn.
Our hotel, the Copenhagen Scandia, was within walking distance of the
popular Stroget where we shopped that afternoon and Tivoli Gardens,
where we had dinner that evening.
WEATHER
We experienced both light rain and sunny skies the first week, but sunny skies prevailed from Gdansk through the second week. Daytime temperatures were unusually warm throughout the cruise, generally from the mid-70’s to 80.
SUMMARY
As novices to international travel,
in Amsterdam we exchanged dollars for the local currency at a facility
recommended to us -- and paid a 25% commission! Later needs were met by
visiting an ATM for “pocket money” or simply exchanging money at the
ship’s front desk. (NOTE: Purchases in Gdansk and St. Petersburg could
be made by credit card or with dollars only.)
Would I recommend this cruise? Yes, if
your goal is to visit as many ports as possible in the shortest amount
of time. The fact that the ship’s staff and crew cater to the
passengers’ needs and wishes also made this an enjoyable experience.
Teresa and I arrived home exhausted but glad that this had been our
cruise choice.
