Sunfinder Vacations

Writers John and Sally Macdonald based this independent review on their 7-night Western Caribbean cruise departing from Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Commissioned in 2004, Westerdam is the third and most recent of Holland America Line’s Vista class of ships. She’s one of the larger liners on the ocean, with room for 1,848 passengers and 800 crew. The ship dotes on her maritime roots, with classic and contemporary art depicting the romance and tradition of the high seas, particularly the Dutch influence on the U.S.’s sea-going past. Colors used throughout reflect sea, shore, and sun, with crisp navy carpets and cherry-wood railings in elevator areas, dark blue and sandy shades in cabins, and eye-squinting sunset tones in lounges. Even the brass stools at the Lido Bar reflect the briny deep -- they are scaly monster fish reminiscent of the denizens of the seas, announcing “Terra Incognita” on ancient maps.

Why Westerdam?

• Tradition: Westerdam reflects the line’s passenger-cruise history going back to 1873, when iron steamers sailed the Transatlantic. Though today’s cruiser expects a more casual experience, some things haven’t changed. Expect opulent surroundings, classic early and late seatings, formal nights, and more chocolate at the midnight dessert extravaganza than anyone needs.
• Art: This ship is a floating gallery, with millions spent on museum-quality art and antiques. A major theme is Dutch exploration of the Americas in the 17th century. On deck, whimsical watery asides take over, while in the spa an ancient wine amphora graces a niche in one wall while medieval-style dolphins frolic beside the water.
• Bars and lounges: With a dozen nightly hotspots passengers can choose from martinis in the forward-facing Crow’s Nest atop the ship, cigars and cognac in the clubby Oak Room, or poolside concoctions at the Sea View.

Who should go
Westerdam would be a good choice for anyone who wants a traditional cruise experience amid a modicum of luxury. Activities abound for young and old -- there’s even special bingo for the little guys -- and music ranges from classical to karaoke.

Who shouldn’t go
Twenty-somethings looking for a dusk-to-dawn party ship would be better off elsewhere. There are fewer video games and PlayStations for the plugged-in younger crowd than on more kid-oriented ships, and activities just for the younger set are reduced during the school year.

Heard on the deck: “I found that the most interesting thing to do this afternoon was pull up a deck chair near a big group and start listening. People don’t know how interesting they are.”

Hits and misses

• Don't miss: The Champagne Strings musical trio plays lovely classical favorites during high tea and performs mini-concerts in the Explorer’s Lounge.
• Best part of the ship: The spa whirlpool is outfitted like a sheik’s domain, with views of outside obscured by window shades painted like dunes in the sunset. Columns turned out like the trunks of palm trees support a ceiling hidden by a billowy turquoise drape.
• Best experience: Treat body and soul in the therapy suite adjoining the whirlpool. Sea-green ceramic lounges provide soothing heat to the spine, steam and sauna rooms bake travel-weary bones, and showers spray pampering mists scented with peppermint or orange.
• Best shipboard activities: Anything goes in the “Life at Sea” Q&A session. Learn such facts as how much the crew works (10 hours a day, and then it’s overtime) and for how many months (12 on, three off for most employees; three on, three off for the engine-room crew).
• Needs improvement: Service seemed cool, and in some cases not even especially helpful. Lido waiters often looked elsewhere when passengers loaded with lunch trays tried to get out the door, and most staff members didn’t greet guests as they passed in the hallways.
• Activities to skip: Shuffleboard -- you could go deaf before the game ends because the court is painted on an upper deck right under the ship’s noisy ventilation fans. If you’ve never played Quoits (a shuffleboard-like game), you may want to watch a game before you embarrass yourself in front of more experienced players.

Heard on the deck (from the activities staffer trying to get a Quoits game going): “We play my rules. They’re more fun.”

How to meet the captain
Westerdam’s captain greets everyone at the evening reception on the first formal night, though you’ll only get a brief moment to shake hands and move on. He also hosts get-togethers for repeat passengers and couples renewing their wedding vows. If you want to sit at his dining table, ask the maître d’, but there’s no guarantee the table’s not already filled with VIPs and veteran cruisers.

You could eat constantly if you so desired. In addition to three square meals, you’ll find afternoon tea, an ice-cream bar that almost never closes, hot hors d’oeuvres during cocktail hours, late-night snacks, and complimentary room service any time. Dinner menus are mostly continental cuisine (gravlax and escargot are favorites), regional specialties (jerk chicken and Pacific salmon go over big), and traditional favorites (lobster, rack of lamb, and beef in any form). The chefs are members of the prestigious Confrerie de la Chaine des Rotisseurs gourmet society.

Vista Dining Room
The main dining room is lovely, with a ceiling of blown-glass trumpets in shades of sun and ocean overlooking a spread of gleaming crystal and brass. Breakfast and lunch are open seating. Evening meals are staggered, from 5:45 until 8:30 PM. The food was consistently gourmet good -- especially the baked Alaska, a Holland America signature dish that’s topped with sparklers and served with a flourish one formal evening.

Pinnacle Grill
Westerdam’s specialty restaurant is an experience not to be missed. The room glows under illuminated still-life photos of fresh foods. Service is impeccable and meals are prepared to gourmet standards. Have the Grand Marnier Chocolate Volcano Cake, a thinly crusted concoction of molten chocolate in a ramekin still warm from the oven. There is a $20 per person cover charge, and while a tip is optional, you’ll probably feel cheap if you don’t leave something for the attentive servers.

Other dining options

• Lido Restaurant: Casual dining is found in the Lido and on its adjacent outdoor decks. For breakfast there’s continental fare or the full-meal deal. Lunch or dinner can be collected from a variety of buffet lines featuring pizza, pasta, Asian stir-fries, salads, and deli sandwiches. Late-night snacks are served from 11 PM to midnight and ice cream and pizza are available until 1 AM. Tea and coffee are available any time. Nice touch: Fresh flower bouquets grace tables beside the Lido Pool -- roses, daisies, and carnations in perky little pillbox arrangements.
• Terrace Grill: Burgers, hot dogs, and tacos provide good ol’ American fast food poolside throughout the day.
• Room service: Available 24/7, room service includes continental or full breakfast in the morning, sandwiches and salads at noon, dining room menu items at dinner, and bar food for late night noshing.

Best dining

• Dish: There are plenty of exotic entrées to choose from in the Vista Dining Room, including venison, pheasant, and, of course, lobster. But the best is probably the duck breast, which is marinated for two days in papaya and orange juice to render it tender and juicy. If you get tired of all that fancy fare, the meat loaf featured one evening as “comfort food” was better than mom ever made.
• Dessert: The “Chef’s Signature Chocolate Cake” rules decadently, even though the name doesn’t come close to describing the delicacy. It’s no cake in the usual sense, but rather a dark mousse hidden inside a pouffy chef’s hat made of white chocolate. It even has his signature inscribed in a sweet scrawl along the band -- cute and absolutely delicious.
• Restaurant: Pinnacle Grill -- prime beef is the specialty, seasoned with rubs and sealed with the kiss of a 1600-degree oven.

How to…

• Get a table for two: Ask at booking or visit the maître d’ upon boarding. There’s usually not a problem changing, although you may have to wait in line.
• Celebrate a birthday/anniversary: Let your waiter know that you’re celebrating and there’ll be a cake for you and your table. For a snappier celebration, $119 buys you flowers and champagne in the room, dinner for two at the Pinnacle Grill, and a photograph in an engraved frame.
• Change seating: The maître d’ is available on embarkation day to change dining times or seats. There’s usually no problem, although no promises are made.
• Dress for formal night: Women usually haul out the glitter and high heels. Tuxedos are suggested for men, although most show up in business suits and ties. Sport coats and ties are acceptable.
• Dress for informal night: Men are expected to wear sport coats and women usually wear pantsuits or dresses.
• Dress for casual night: Anything goes for both the main dining room and Lido Restaurant, as long as it’s not shorts, jeans, tank tops, swimwear, or workout attire.

Tips:

• Formalwear -- a tux for men, a long skirt and filmy or glittery top for women -- can be rented for the entire cruise. We took measurements at home with a tape measure and ordered a tux online, using the Web site included in our cruise packet, about three weeks before the cruise. Complete with two shirts, shiny shoes, cuff links, and dress-shirt buttons, it cost $97 for the week and was a perfect fit. The woman’s skirt (velvet or crepe), blouse, and black low-heel pumps runs $62. We didn’t have the heart to try the women's rental for fear of running into a duplicate at dinner -- and, indeed, we did see one pair of “rental twins.” But the tux was a hit.
• Make dinner reservations for the Pinnacle Grill early in the voyage. Popular dining times fill up early.
• Order your evening’s wine at the wine desk on Lido Deck at lunchtime and it will be waiting for you when you get to dinner. You’ll also get a 10 percent price break.
• Arrange for special diets and meals, such as diabetic or salt-free foods, before leaving for the cruise.
• There’s no kosher kitchen on Westerdam, but meals can be prepared in kosher kitchens off-ship. Meals are kept frozen and brought to the table sealed in their original containers. Order before leaving for the cruise.
• Don’t grab the plain old orange juice for breakfast without thinking. There’s also fresh-squeezed o.j. right next to it in the ice cream/dessert cooler.

Heard on the deck: “I just realized why this latte is so great. I forgot to order it with nonfat milk. Oh, shoot, what the heck. I’m on vacation.”

Westerdam’s standard cabins are decorated uniformly in shades of navy and sand with maritime prints. Standard oceanview cabins have 194 square feet of space -- a bit larger than most at sea. Sixty-seven percent of the ship’s 924 cabins (85 percent of oceanview cabins) have private balconies. All cabins have TVs, telephones, multi-channel music, minibars, individually controlled air conditioning systems, and hair dryers. Fresh fruit is replenished daily. The TV set sits on the dresser, taking up way too much space; we couldn’t figure out why they didn’t hang it from the ceiling. Hanging space is ample, but shelves in the closet have to suffice for drawer space. A low shelf under the sink in the bathroom is handy for keeping clutter off the counter. Most standard cabins have bathtubs; ours had only a shower but it was large enough to bathe without bumping the walls.

The penthouse suites are as big as some city apartments, with 1,313 square feet including the balcony. They have bedrooms with king-size beds, living rooms, dining rooms, dressing rooms, bathrooms with whirlpool tubs and showers, guest toilets, and large balconies with private whirlpools. There are also VCRs, microwaves, refrigerators, and stereo systems. Guests in deluxe balcony and penthouse suites get special privileges -- personalized stationery, in-suite afternoon tea and hors d’oeuvres on the house, access to the ritzy and exclusive Neptune Lounge, and the services of a concierge who’ll make reservations for shore excursions, car rentals, and the Pinnacle Grill.

Cabins for guests with disabilities
Westerdam has 28 wheelchair-accessible cabins of several sizes and configurations. All have showers only, no tubs. One woman reported her standard-size wheelchair-accessible cabin was large enough for her needs, and the ship seems well-planned for people with limited ability. For instance, doors to Promenade Deck latched open so her husband could easily help her out, and there’s an elevator down to the tender deck to make shore excursions easier.

Tips:

• Try to book the standard-size cabins at the stern of the ship. They have large balconies and unbeatable views of the water and the ship’s wake.
• A $10 per person, per day tip is added to shipboard accounts to be divided among cabin stewards and servers, as well as the people you never see in the engine room and galley. You’re also charged 15 percent for bar and beverage purchases.
• There is no self-service laundry, but you can have all the underwear and socks you can stuff into a bag washed for $12. The catch: It won’t be returned for 48 hours.
• Unlimited laundry service costs $45 and unlimited pressing throughout the cruise is $30.

Heard on the deck: “Gosh, it’s hot out here. I don’t know what got into us. We brought sweaters. I guess it’s because we were cruising in Alaska a couple of months ago and it was cold.”

The heart of the ship is the three-story atrium. It’s small by cruise-ship standards, but luxurious nonetheless. A revolving crystal chandelier in the form of a sailing ship from the age of discovery forms the centerpiece, casting an icy glow on the eating and drinking spots in orbit around it. Music from the Ocean Bar, a centerpiece dance lounge at one end of the atrium, sifts down to the Pinnacle Grill below, and on to an intimate and quiet little lobby.

Heard on the deck (from a lounge chair napper in the Crow’s Nest): “I just sat down and the ship was rocking back and forth and all of a sudden I just zonked off. I didn’t snore, did I?”

Bars, lounges, and casino
Westerdam has more than a dozen places to get a drink, each with its own ambience. Have tea afternoons and flaming drinks after dinner in the Explorer’s Lounge, a series of three small sitting rooms with picture-window views of the sea. Hit the Northern Lights for neon-lit karaoke and late-night dancing (on Country Line Dance Party night, the music turns yee-haw). The Atrium Bar specializes in 30 different styles of martini, while the Oak Room sells cigars and late-night aperitifs. Settle into a lounge chair in the Crow’s Nest for a ship-top view ahead and happy hour dancing to a live jazz trio. Depend on the Lido and Sea View bars for poolside refreshments, the Ocean Bar for after-dinner dancing, and the Piano Bar for after-dinner music and sing-alongs. The Sports Bar has a huge TV for athletic addicts and the Queen’s Bar serves people in the Queen’s Lounge, the secondary showroom. The Windstar Café opens from 7 AM to 10 PM for morning espressos, pick-me-up afternoon coffee drinks, and non-alcoholic nightcaps.

The razzle-dazzle casino has lots of ways to win or lose, including 87 slot machines and four blackjack tables. If you like competition, $20 will buy you a chance to win $500 in the slot tournament. If cards aren’t your thing, there’s a $1 Lotto Scratch ticket for a chance to win up to $1,000. Don’t worry about taking along lots of money for gambling: The casino will front you up to $1,000 a day -- charged, of course, to your shipboard account.

Heard on the deck (after bingo): “Well, that card was a piece of junk. I’m going to the casino. Maybe I can win in there.”

Swimming pools
Westerdam has two pools: The Lido Pool and a smaller aft pool, both popular for sunning, swimming, and napping. The aft pool is surrounded by a teak deck and has two adjoining whirlpools, while the Lido area has three whirlpools and a composite deck that’s soft and cool to bare feet. It’s easy to be mesmerized by the holographic stylized wave border around the pool deck. It looks silver in the shade, but turns every color in the neon rainbow when the sun hits it.

Shows
Vista Lounge features more subdued décor than many cruise-ship showrooms, with a geometric black-on-black design set off by white-leather and red-brocade seats. The stage itself performs more magic than Houdini, silently transforming flat surfaces into stairs, lifting dancers from the orchestra pit to stage front or taking them in dizzying circles like skaters around a rink. Westerdam’s 14 singers and dancers are hired from Stiletto, a talent company owned by Barry Manilow. They have some of the biggest voices at sea and exploit them with Broadway-style songs, like “Granada” and “Paris in the Springtime,” that can only be belted.

Shore excursions
Tours ashore include something for everyone’s ability or age. Swim with dolphins or play a round of golf in the Caribbean, explore Mayan ruins in Mexico, or tour ancient castles and Viking villages in Europe. Watch the daily “Happenings” sheet distributed to your cabin for specials -- one day a swim-with-stingrays trip was offered for $19 (regular price is $39). Don’t stand in line at the shore excursion office to book: E-ticket machines are located on several decks next to the elevators amidships.

Weddings, vow renewals, and religious services
The captain doesn’t perform wedding ceremonies, but services can be arranged onboard in one of the ship’s meeting rooms or in any port of call, on the beach or in a chapel. If you’re cruising the Caribbean, there’s a romantic little chapel overlooking Half Moon Cay for just such an occasion. Cruise weddings are civil ceremonies unless you bring your own minister. Wedding packages can be booked for two to 75 guests. Packages start at $1,295 and include fresh flowers, a wedding cake, champagne, and wedding music.

The captain presides over services each cruise for couples who want to renew vows. The $129 package includes the ceremony and reception for all the couples, flowers and champagne, dinner at the Pinnacle Grill, and a certificate presented by the captain.

Interdenominational services are held on Sundays and religious holidays. Catholic mass is observed daily and Jewish services are held each Sabbath eve -- a rabbi is onboard for High Holiday services. Décor in the showroom and meeting rooms used for religious services isn’t really conducive to spirituality. The showroom is Las Vegas glittery in shades of persimmon and scarlet and the meeting rooms are done in wake-up shades of orange.

Looking for…

• Quietest spot: Find the little no-name, rarely visited lounge just outside the Internet center. A world map blinks the ship’s itinerary in colored lights, while a rolling text above scrolls out current weather conditions. It’s very informative and very cool.
• Liveliest spot: The Northern Lights bar doesn’t start rocking until 9 PM and closes when the last karaoke singer finally goes hoarse for the night.
• Most popular activity: Bingo -- people love this game so much that one player on our cruise set up a little shrine at her table with her favorite “bingo bear” and other good-luck pieces brought from home. Several hundred people crowd the Vista Lounge, quacking noisily when the caller draws I-22 (“a pair of ducks” in bingo parlance) and wolf-whistling over B-11 (“a lovely pair of legs”).
• Best view: Sports Deck forward is about as close as you can get to wraparound nirvana. A tinted UV shield protects you from the sun and wind. The quiet is broken only by the drone of engines and whoosh of radar blades as they fan the air in front of the smokestacks. The closest thing to a sport on this part of the deck is lounging in the sun and watching the waves ahead.
• Best show: Grand Tour, a Broadway-style review, includes favorite songs belted in fine form by some of the best singers at sea.
• Best drink: Miami Vice -- a layer of frozen strawberry daiquiri tops a layer of piña colada for a frothy, frosty antidote to the sun. Yummmm.

Tips:

• Westerdam’s quiet Internet center has 18 PCs with 24/7 connection. After a one-time activation fee of $3.95, connection charges are 75¢ per minute (as low as 50¢ with time packages). The ship has wireless “hot spots” for those traveling with laptops, and cabins are wired for in-room dial-up for 50¢ per minute.
• Inexperienced at the casino? Lessons are offered on the first sea day to help you learn to play favorites like blackjack and roulette as well as three variations of poker: Let It Ride, Caribbean Stud, and Three Card.
• Early in the week, take photos of the gorgeous, and enormous, floral arrangements scattered about Westerdam’s public areas. They become pretty bedraggled by the end of the cruise.

Heard on the deck (after two women tied at bingo for the free cruise and had to play a tie-breaker): “They ought to give ’em both a cruise. Come on, we’re talking two inside cabins here. They can afford that.”

Spa and salon
Pampering and fitness are a huge part of Westerdam’s architectural design, with the spa and gym taking up as much space as the main pool deck. In the spa, mystical Asian music creates a spiritual backdrop for treatment and changing rooms. Before your treatment, you’ll be given a one-size-fits-all terry cloth robe and shown to a small room decorated with Dutch tiles in a floral design. The “Exotic Coconut Rub and Milk Ritual Float” ($197 for 75 minutes) sounds yummy enough to drink. The ultimate experience is the “Absolute Spa Ritual” which lasts an hour and 40 minutes and costs $215. But try the Japanese Silk Booster Facial, which bathes your skin in hot and cold collagen boosters and uses aromatherapy oils to relax you -- it costs $119 for 75 minutes. You’ll be offered water or orange juice while the beauty therapist tries to sell you some of the magic potions she’s used. Good luck saying no after you’ve just been told the sad state your skin is in.

The hydropool and thermal suite provide spa extras that will make you think you’re in an exotic Turkish bath. In the pool, mineralized bubbling water is heated to body temp to relieve sore joints and tired muscles. In the thermal suite next door, lounge on heated ceramic tiles the color of tropical waters or visit the shrine-like chambers that release a variety of dry heat, steam, and aromatherapy vapors. A pass to the two areas is $25 per day or $149 for the entire cruise (bring a partner along for half the weekly cost).

Heard on the deck (from the beauty therapist during a facial): “They’d like me to close the curtains, but that won’t happen in my therapy room. There’s too much to see out there and lots of women like to watch the ocean while I work. That’s what we’re here for anyway.”

Fitness areas
Fitness rooms have a full complement of treadmills, free weights, stationary bikes, and workout toys. Exercise classes -- group cycling, yoga, Pilates, step-and-abs classes, and more -- are $11 each. An unlimited pass is $99; it’s worth it if you’re going to take more than nine classes during the cruise. The fitness gurus also offer a “Cruise Control” package for $350 that guarantees you won’t gain a pound on the trip. They say one woman lost 12 pounds on a 17-day cruise. That’s control!

Tips:

• Book early if you want a spa treatment on a sea day. Appointments fill up quickly.
• If money is an object, book treatments and fitness classes when the ship’s in port. Bargains can be half price. The best deal on our cruise? A 25-minute facial on the last day for just $10.
• Facials, manicures, and pedicures are for anyone over age 13, although parents must make appointments for minors and stay during their treatments. Guests must be over 18 to get a massage.
• Belt that spa robe extra tight before you leave the changing room. You’ll have to traipse through the elevator area to get from one side of the spa to the other.
• The golf center isn’t easy to find -- it’s in a tiny room near the children’s play area. Take lessons from the pro (starting at $45), or try playing such famed courses as St. Andrews or Pebble Beach at the video simulator (an unlimited pass is $99). If you’re really good at the game, plunk down $45 for a chance to win prizes in the tournament at sea. In port, the pro hosts play at local courses.

Westerdam’s shopping mall is like a big duty-free shop selling everything from key chains to swanky evening gowns, gems by the carat to pearls by the strand. Most is cheap to reasonable, but you could pick up a bottle of well-pedigreed cognac for $999.95. If you’re curious about the art auction but a novice, don’t be shy about joining the fun. You’ll get a free glass of champagne and a bit of art history from the auctioneer. If you get caught up in the moment, your new piece will be shipped home for you. And don’t miss the chance to pose for the ship’s photographers -- there’s no obligation to buy. If you do succumb, a 5" by 7" snapshot will cost you $15.95, and an 8" by 10" portrait is $20.95. A 40-minute video of shore excursions and shipboard activities on your cruise sells for $34.95. If you’re lookin’ really good, buy them all: 10 photos and the Cruise Chronicle DVD costs $124.95. And if photos and videos seem, well, ordinary, order a collector’s plate with your photo and the ship’s name on it for $39.95.

Tips:

• Disappointed with that diamond you bought in port? Not to worry if you bought from a ship-approved shop and filled out the buyer’s guarantee form onboard. It covers repair or exchange for 30 days, provided you get an appraisal from a certified gemologist back home who isn’t affiliated with a retail jeweler.
• With the exception of wine and champagne, you can’t bring your own booze onboard. Hard liquor bought in ship shops or onshore will be collected and returned to you on the last day of the voyage -- just in time for a goodbye party in your cabin.

Club HAL has activities for kids ages 5-12. Kids under 5 are welcome, but a parent has to stick around for the fun. Activities for the youngest kids include storytelling, arts and crafts, sundae and pizza parties, ship tours, and even bingo. For tweens, there’s miniature golf, ping-pong, theme parties, and scavenger hunts. And for teens through age 17 the ship has disco, dance lessons, arcade games, and movies. If there are enough youngsters on a particular cruise, “kids only” shore excursions may be planned. Babysitting is always available for a fee.

Tips:

• You have to be 21 to order alcoholic beverages on the ship.
• Passengers under 21 must sail with a parent, guardian, or chaperone who is at least 25.
• Because of limited medical facilities onboard, babies 12 weeks or younger aren’t welcome.

Westerdam cruises the Caribbean, starting and ending at Fort Lauderdale, from January through May 2005 and November 2005 through May 2006. May to October 2005, she heads to Europe, calling at ports including Barcelona, Rome, and Copenhagen.

• Year entered service - April 2004
• Cruise line - Holland America
• Passenger capacity - 1848
• Officers nationality - Dutch officers, Indonesia
• Tonnage - 82,000
• Registry - Nerthlands