Holland America Line. Rotterdam. Caribbean Cruise. 4th/ 5th & 6th February 2023. Sea Days.

 4th / 5th / 6th  Feb 2023. 

4th Feb 2023. Embarkation at Port Everglades. 

Its raining! of course it is! we are very good at taking our English weather with us on our travels! 

We had a quick walk in the rain to the Publix supermarket for a few things we had forgot to pack, had a smoothie for breakfast - I think it was mainly ice- the packed ready to go to the port. 

We were going on a 21 day Caribbean cruise, on the new Holland America ship, The Rotterdam. As I am not the best sailor we had booked a mid ship balcony cabin, and had the HAL 'Have it All' package of drinks, Wi-Fi, three speciality restaurants and cruise credit of US$ 300 pp for excursions. 

Holland America had allocated our boarding time to be 11.20. Checking out of the Hyatt, we got an Uber. But as we got closer to Port Everglades it became clear our Uber driver did not want to go into the port. I ignored his requests that we get out at the port gates and he reluctantly took us to terminal 19. 

The port was busy and three Holland America Ships were moored, as well as two Celebrity ships, a Princess and Wonder of the Seas. 

The embarkation process was almost self check in, all done on i-pads. You had to find your cabin yourself and the keys to your cabin were  on the door. It was quite impersonal and no welcome glass of champagne given. 

The first thing I noticed was that I did not like the smell of the ship, I can not describe the smell but it was unpleasant and I didn't like it. 

We were on deck six, or The Mozart Deck in room 6048. The décor in the cabin was modern, beiges and muted tones. It was quite small, the bed was slightly larger than a UK double. The cabin had good storage. The bathroom was very well designed, with a large shower with glass door. 

As usual the whole ship was open so we started at the top and worked our way down, getting our bearings. We had lunch in the buffet, it was busy but the food was good, I opted for a salad and sushi. I liked that it was not self service. 

The Dutch Café was a big disappointment, tea was not served in tea pots or inster-grammable delft patterned mugs, but in tall glass cups. this was the one and only time we used the Dutch Café. 

We were due to leave at 15.00, but did not depart until after 18.00 so there was no 'sail away' party. 

Our allocated dinner time was 19.30 and we found our allotted table in the main dining room. The options were a bit limited and my mozzarella salad and grilled chicken was not the best choice as it was tasteless. The wine and service were OK. Feeling a little deflated I went to the 'Music Walk', and enjoyed the BB Kings Blues band. 

Holland America line, Rotterdam. BB KINGS 

However walking back to our cabin was a challenge as the ship appeared to me rocking and rolling, you really could not walk in a straight line. I did not know if the seas were really choppy and rough, or if this was just normal for this ship, but it was not what I had expected for a Caribbean cruise.  

Holland America line, Rotterdam, Daily Program 2023

Holland America line, Rotterdam, Daily Program 2023

Holland America line, Rotterdam, Daily Program 2023

5th Feb 2023, Sea Day. 

A day to relax at sea. But, as the ship is rocking and rolling about really badly relaxing was difficult. 

I went up to the abs class on deck 9 at 07.00, but by the time I finished I felt really sea sick due to the motion of the ship, and due to the movement of the ship slipping across the gym floor didn't help! So back in the cabin I got back into bed. 

This is a new ship, I did not expect it to be so unstable, looking out at the sea it was not really rough or choppy, the swell looked like the English Channel on a good day and I began to question if the stabilisers were working? It was quite windy, so maybe the ship is not stable in the wind? 

Holland America line, Rotterdam, Daily Program 2023

Holland America line, Rotterdam, Daily Program 2023

Holland America line, Rotterdam, Daily Program 2023

As it was 'Gala Night' tonight, I hoped I would feel better by the evening? 

later in the day the ship seemed more stable, even though the seas looked the same, it stopped rocking about so much, maybe the Captain put the stabilisers on?  

The Gala dinner was very nice and it had specials on the celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the line.

We are both in our mid 60s, and it was very apparent that we were some of the youngest passengers on this ship. It certainly has an older passengers demographic. 

Traffic in the main dining room. Holland America line, Rotterdam, 2023

6th Feb 2023, Sea Day. 

The ship has stopped moving around so much, thank goodness. We manager to find a sun louger on the top of the back pool deck and read our books. 

The daily activities are poor, unless your into flower arranging or Origami?

Dinner in the main dining room was again very good and an English group provided the evening entertainment in the theatre area. 

We are exited to see land tomorrow. We should be in Philipsburg, Sint Maarten for 08.00. 

Holland America line, Rotterdam, Daily Program 2023

Holland America line, Rotterdam, Daily Program 2023