Koningsdam Review

Norwegian Fjords - Awesome, Koningsdam - Not SO Much

Review for Norwegian Fjords Cruise on Koningsdam
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flviking
10+ Cruises • Age 60s

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Sail Date: Jul 2017
Cabin: Verandah Stateroom

We have taken approximately 25 cruises over the past six years on Celebrity, Princess and Royal Caribbean. This was our first HAL cruise. We selected Koningsdam for the itinerary and that this is the flagship of HAL. We traveled in a balcony stateroom. The ports of call and the scenic cruising were all wonderful. The ship is beautiful. Unfortunately HAL doesn't match the soft product with the hard product. We have never been on a cruise where the dining room staff wasn't attentive (we did fixed dining so the same personnel each night). The dining staff was as good as any we've experienced but not notably better so no differentiation here. The cabin steward kept everything neat and tidy, but that's always been our experience so no differentiation here. The main dining room served good food with a bit less variety offered than other lines but not enough to note a difference. The lone positive difference was the efficient tender operation at Geiranger. Celebrity should hire HAL as a tendering consultant.

Now some of the items which were less than the competition in my opinion. Main stage entertainment was weak. One night the "show" was a movie about penguins. Do passengers really want to use the main show room to watch a movie? Not us. We like the live bands, singers, dancers, etc as a special part of cruising. The venues for music each closed one day a week. The buffet closed at 8:30 pm except for a very limited offering between 10:30 and 11:30. The Dutch coffee shop officially closes at 10:00. The case was routinely cleaned out by 8:00 and cleanup was well underway. The ice cream section of the buffet closed at 2:30 in the afternoon! Why would anyone maybe want an ice cream cone at 3 or 4 in the afternoon? But all is not lost as passengers were readily directed to the added fee gelato shop which remained open. There was a scarcity of activities day and night. Other ships we have sailed on of this size usually has a cruise directors staff of 5 or more. Koningsdam has two very hard working gentlemen who can only do so much. The guest entertainers were mediocre in our opinion. Flagship vessels deserve at least average talent. We were on Royal Princess during her maiden Mediterranean season. The entertainment was awesome! We expect to hear of a Norovirus outbreak some time on Koningsdam as there is no effort made to ensure passengers use hand sanitizer in food service areas. Other lines station a crew member at each entrance with their Purell type sanitizer but we know we were less likely to experience an unfortunate bout with an avoidable virus. Koningsdam is a beautiful ship sailing a wonderful itinerary for a premium fare. HAL needs to hire enough of the right people and let them extend the ships potential to reach a high level experience for their passengers. We feel a lot of areas need attention. The only thing in the way is the commitment to make Koningsdam a true flagship for the line.

Cabin Review

Verandah Stateroom

Plenty of space for a weeks voyage. The toilet is at an angle such that any seated individual taller than maybe 5'6" will have their knee hitting the shower glass. The shower door should be wider to remove the obstruction. Furnishings and decor were modern and comfortable. Very nice to have USB ports on board but the technology upgrade ends there as you can't even view your room bill on the TV. You have to have a smart phone and download an app.

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