Cruising on the NEW Holland America Westerdam

The only thing that the new Westerdam has in common with the old Westerdam is the name and the number of Firsts for Holland America when both where introduced.

The new Westerdam is the First Holland America ship to include all of the new features of the 200+ million Signature of Excellence initiative.  In my opinion the Westerdam, the third Vista Class ship, is truly Holland America's best.  Her sister ships, Zuiderdam and Oosterdam, are great ships as well but the Westerdam's interior decor is one of the most pleasant and contemporary on any Holland America.  The colors are fresh and flow together very well.  Boomers are going to love this ship.

Westerdam has a total of 924 cabins and suites and is 85,000 tons. This compares to similar ships by Costa and Carnival that have over 1,100 cabins and 90,000 ton RCCL ships at 1,250 cabins. It should be pretty obvious passengers enjoy a lot more public space on these Vista Class ships than their competitors.  Soaring Atriums are great but what can you do with a big hole in your ship other than look it.  The Westerdams entrance Atrium is only 3 deck levels capped off by a very impressive Waterford piece of original art.  It has the WOW factor we all looking for.

Westerdam has a total of 623 balcony cabins and suites and 165 standard outside cabins.  Some information on the three categories of cabins you should really focus on; there are 60 Deluxe Veranda Suites that have a total of 510 sq ft.  These cabins come with private butler, access to the Neptune Lounge which has f&b service and concierge service for these suite holders only, afternoon tea served in your suite, nightly canapés during cocktail hour served in your suite, free laundry, cleaning, dry cleaning, flowers on formal nights for the ladies and gentlemen and a full sized floral arrangement.

There are 100 Superior Veranda suites that are 398 sq ft. These suites come with all of the amenities above except butler service and access to the Neptune Lounge. If you have the group size that fits either one of these two categories its a way travel and also to your people that they are special. These suites are great! For top executive there are also two penthouse suites which are very much top-of-the-line.

The standard Deluxe Veranda cabins are certainly nothing to sneeze at as well, as they are very generously sized at 254 sq ft.  All cabins and suite and have bath robes, fresh flowers, stocked mini bars, REAL hair dryers, lighted make-up mirrors, bath and shower with message shower head (just like home), GREAT pillow top mattress, Egyptian cotton liens, duvets, oversized extra fluffy towels, stainless steel ice buckets and fruit baskets which are refilled daily and complimentary shoe shines, (ALL Holland America ships are being retro-fitted with these items as well).  The beds and bedding are really good.

As with the total decor of the Westerdam, cabin colors are lighter and brighter, the bed spreads and drapery are a pleasant departure from past Holland America decor.  The bathroom amenities are now nice size practical bottles versus the small fiddly ones found on many other ships. The art in all the cabins is contemporary and pleasing. All in all these are some of the best and largest cabins found on ships of this size and class and are sure to please your clients.

If you have cruised on Holland America before you'll find the Westerdam is no different in having the popular Ocean Bar located mid ship and is one of the most popular watering holes.  In difference to some of the other Holland America ships however, this lounge wraps around the entire deck level at the top of Atrium. Another familiar name is the Queens Lounge which seats 170 but can hold far more reception style.  This is a great private room for meetings, presentation and receptions with full a/v capabilities.

The Crows Nest located forward on the upper most deck of the ship is another great room for private functions (it seats 270 and much more again reception style).  During the evening you'll find live dance music, but during the day its a nice quite room just to read, day dream or watch the world go by.  The Northern Lights Disco is the late night spot on the ship, this room actually has two sections, the main dance floor area with ample seating, as well a separate bar and seating area where you can actually talk over the music. The disco has all the latest bell and whistles and rocks to the wee hours of the morning.

The other public rooms include the Piano Bar, which can be used as private room for 70, a Sports Bar, Crows Nets bar and lounge, 3 dedicated Meeting Rooms that can hold up to 90 people class room style, Internet Cafe with 18 stations, Golf Simulator room,  Explorer Lounge (with its adjacent Smoking Room), Casino and the main Show Lounge which seats 867 with ALL the toys.  When you put all of these rooms, as well as  with dining option restaurants together over a total of 6 decks for public space ONLY, you get an idea of how much space there really is for passengers to enjoy.

The main dining room on the Westerdam, as is the case with most of the public rooms, is surrounded by glass looking out to sea.  In the case of this 1045  seat dining room, this means two deck levels of floor to ceiling glass on three sides.  Holland America has gone to a policy of 4 different seating for dinner. This might not sound like a big deal but it really is from two stand points.  First it means better service and better food as the kitchen and staff are only serving and preparing food for half the number of guests at any one given time.  For us in the corporate business this gives you 4 different opportunities to take over either the upper (about 400 seats) or the lower (about 600 seats) dining areas for private dining. 

The Pinnacle Grill alternative restaurant seats 130 by reservation only and comes with a surcharge, but well worth it. Cuisine style is basically a chop house with a Pacific Northwest flair and is EXCELLENT.  Included in the total number of suites is a small private annex for around 18 that would be great for the top VIPS.  Pinnacle Grills are being added to all Holland America ships as part of the Signature of Excellence program.

The Lido Restaurant is buffet style for breakfast, lunch and casual dinners.  This room features a deli stations, pasta and pizza stations, as well as bistro stations with carvery, wok stations, salad bars, dessert stations, ice cream parlor and beverage stations.  Lots of choices and very rarely any lines, and again plenty of floor to ceiling glass. Adjoining the Lido is the Terrace Grill located by the pool for grilled items and other goodies that allow you to stay in your swim wear.

The Windstar Cafe is open 18 hours a day and serves coffees, pastries, cookies and other light snack food.  Most items carry an additional charge. This room is a very popular gathering spot. Should you have forgotten to bring your favorite novel along, the Erasmus Library is both well stocked and a pleasant place to relax with your book.

I have been on most Holland America inaugurals over the past 13 years and numerous normal "DAM" cruises as well and I must admit that this was undoubtedly the best food I've seen Holland America produce and the best trained and attentive crew I have ever seen on an inaugural.

The dinner menus, have a selection of 7 entrees nightly, where more creative and diverse in selection. The tastes where as advertised, the presentation straight from a brochure and there never was a case of only having one thing on the menu that looked remotely interesting. The food was excellent and raises the bar in the Premium Class cruise market.

Just as one small example that most of use can relate to when we are in a hurry at breakfast are the good ole steam table soupy scrambled eggs. Not so on the Westerdam! Scrambled eggs as well as fried eggs are being produce on the serving line FRESH. The list of small details like this goes on and on.

Bar service on the Westerdam has not been over looked as well. The Holland America staff has a well deserved reputation of being friend and attentive particularly behind the bars. Trying to further improve their product Holland America has hired a bar consultant to bring an extra spark to their bartenders as well as to train them in making all of the latest hip drinks. Think of a Tom Cruise who really knows how to make a drink, puts on a show and can train people.

The Greenhouse Spa and Saloon is an exclusive to Holland America and offers a wide selection of spa and facial treatments also includes a couples only room. The Thermal Suite over looks the Lido Pool and is very relaxing but carries a daily surcharge. There is also a well equipped gymnasium to work off those extra calories.  As with other Holland America ships the Lido Pool and Lido Bar, which can be covered in bad weather, is the active pool area and the Aft Pool and Bar is a quite totally open pool area.

Holland America premiered two new shows on this cruise, both of which had more energy than some past shows I've seen. The staging and production sets where more elaborate than some past shows I've seen. As usual the Bob Mackie customs are the best.

Finally, in case all this wonderful eating and partying overcomes you, the Westerdam has a well equipped infirmary that also includes a Dialysis room.

All in all this was a great experience particularly considering it involved flying from Florida to Venice for just a 3 night cruise. The nicest surprise for me was being able to visit Dubrovnik which is a great, clean little city, this is a great port of call.  The whole Dalmatian coastline is just beautiful and should get more serious attention from corporate buyers.

As I mentioned earlier I really think this ship is going to be a hit with the Boomers, your corporate clients and incentive participants.  The ship has the WOW factor for an experienced traveler, flows well, has numerous options for private functions and private dining. The Westerdam will be doing 7 night Caribbean cruises this winter and 7 night Alaska cruises in the summer. Call us for more information.

This report was contributed by Steve Bloss - 04/30/2004.  The above are the opinions of the writer and not necessarily those of Worldwide Travel and Cruise Associates.