Holland America Rotterdam 12-Day Eastern Caribbean Cruise Review – Day 3: November 18, 2025

Day 3 on Holland America’s Rotterdam was the first of two back-to-back sea days as we make our way toward our next port of call, St. Maarten, where we’ll arrive on Wednesday. Personally, I love a sea day — no rushing, no tender tickets, no “be back onboard by 2:30pm,” and absolutely no stress.

As I mentioned yesterday, I have a cabana at The Retreat for this first leg of the cruise. Since I’m on Rotterdam for a total of 21 days — this 12-day segment followed immediately by a 9-day — the cabana has already become my all-day go-to spot.  Sea days can get a little hectic around the Lido and Sea View Pools, and having a quiet, space with your own loungers, bottled water, champagne, and attentive service is basically unbeatable.

If you haven’t checked out yesterday’s report, give it a read because I covered Rotterdam’s pools, the chair-hog situation, and what you can expect around the Lido area on sea days. It’ll give you some good context for why The Retreat is such a prime spot on a ship this size.

For today’s report, I’m going to cover all things Deck 2, one of Rotterdam’s main public-space decks. Deck 2 is where a huge chunk of the ship’s entertainment, dining, and nightlife comes together, and honestly, it’s one of the liveliest areas onboard at night. Whether you’re grabbing a cocktail, catching a show, wandering between music venues, or just people-watching, this is where a lot of the magic happens.

Rotterdam Deck 2 Venues

Deck 2 is one of the busiest, most entertainment-heavy decks on the entire ship. Once the sun goes down, this deck becomes the heart of the action — music, cocktails, shows, strolling, people-watching… it all happens here. Let’s take a walk from the very front of the ship all the way aft and explore what you’ll find.

World Stage

All the way forward on Deck 2 you’ll find the World Stage, Rotterdam’s main theater and show venue. The World Stage is a massive space with a 270-degree wraparound LED screen that transforms the entire room. Depending on the show, it can be a rainforest, a city skyline, a galaxy — whatever the production calls for.

It’s home to:

• HAL’s signature production shows
• Guest entertainers (singers, comedians, magicians, etc.)
• Enrichment talks and port guides
• Special presentations

Sightlines are good, the seating is comfortable, and the tech is impressive.

Library

Moving aft, tucked off to the side is Rotterdam’s Library — a quiet, cozy space with bookshelves, seating, and plenty of natural light during the day. HAL still maintains real libraries on their ships (a rarity these days), and people do actually use them. You’ll find books, the daily crossword, and spots to just relax and stare out at the ocean.

Billboard Onboard

On the port side, you’ll find Billboard Onboard, one of the three main music venues that make up HAL’s “Music Walk.” This is the piano bar, where pianists take requests, and get the crowd involved. If you love live music and a fun time, this is your spot.  It’s lively, but not wild. Think “fun night out” rather than “college bar.”

Rolling Stone Rock Room

Directly across from Billboard Onboard is the Rolling Stone Rock Room (called Rolling Stone Lounge on some ships), home to a live rock band covering everything from classic rock to pop hits. This venue replaces the old Rolling Stone Rock Room setup and offers full-band performances each night.

It tends to draw a big crowd after dinner — great atmosphere, great drinks, and a nice balance for piano tunes next door.  Since this is an open space, Billboard Onboard and Rolling Stone entertainers perform alternate sets.

Atrium

Continue aft and you hit the Atrium, the beautiful central heart of the ship. It spans multiple decks and has a modern, elegant sculpture in the middle that changes colors throughout the day.  Surrounding the Atrium are multiple venues, including shops, the photo gallery, and two specialty restaurants.

B.B. King’s Blues Club

Just past the Atrium sits B.B. King’s Blues Club, one of, if not, THE most popular venues onboard. On Rotterdam, it’s a large, beautifully designed two-story space, and the B.B. King’s All-Star Band absolutely packs the house every night.  Expect soul, blues, Motown, and more.  If you want a seat… arrive early. This place fills up fast and stays packed all night.

Shopping

Surrounding B.B. King’s are the shops — essentials, souvenirs, logo merch, accessories — and Effy Jewelry, HAL’s main jewelry retailer who has now taken over ALL retail operations on the ships.  Before the regular non-jewelry stores were run by 3rd party Starboard Cruise Services, and prior to that, Durfy America.  Now, Effy has gotten into the regular merch business and has taken over every retail outlet onboard from souvenirs to booze.   If you’re cruising, chances are you’ll pass through this zone at least ten times whether you meant to or not.

Pinnacle Grill

Heading further aft brings you to Pinnacle Grill, HAL’s signature steakhouse. This is where you’ll get your steak and seafood fix and is one of the best steakhouses at sea with great food and polished service. It’s open for lunch (on select days) and dinner every night.

Rudi’s Sel de Mer

Attached to the Atrium and accessible from Deck 2 is Rudi’s Sel de Mer, the Mediterranean bistro by celebrity chef Rudi Sodamin who also has venues on other Carnival brands including Carnival Cruise Line and Princess Cruises. Fresh fish, French-inspired dishes, and artfully plated meals are the specialty here.

Ocean Bar

Just forward of Half Moon Bar and directly across from Rudi’s, you’ll find the Ocean Bar, a venue perfect for pre-dinner cocktails, people-watching, and relaxing.  Lounge space has been significantly reduced this week in the Ocean Bar due to HAL putting slot machines here!  Whether they’re here for the next leg which is a casino cruise, or they’re here for the long haul, Ocean Bar’s space got shrunk big-time.

Half Moon Bar

I talked about this yesterday, but it’s worth mentioning again — Half Moon Bar is one of the hidden gems on Deck 2. It’s small, cozy, and the only place onboard to get smoked cocktails like the Rotterdam VII and the Smoked Cherry Old Fashioned.  Located across from the Club Orange Restaurant and right down the hall from the main dining room, it’s perfect for pre- and post-dinner cocktails.

Club Orange Restaurant

Running along the starboard side aft is the dedicated Club Orange dining room. This isn’t a section of the MDR — it’s a fully separate restaurant exclusively for Club Orange guests. You get the standard MDR menu plus several upgraded choices each evening.

Main Dining Room

All the way aft is the massive, two-story Main Dining Room, arguably one of the most beautiful MDRs in HAL’s fleet. Floor-to-ceiling windows wrap around the stern, giving you sweeping views.  This is where you have traditional early/late dining (upper level) and open seating here on deck 2.  Breakfast, lunch/brunch (on select days), and dinner are served.  It’s elegant, classic, and very Holland America.

Dinner in the Main Dining Room

While we’re on the subject of main dining rooms — what a transition, right? — let’s talk about tonight’s dinner. I went back to the MDR once again. Day 1 was… rough. Day 2 kind of redeemed itself. So what would Day 3 bring?

I arrived and was seated at a table along the back wall of windows — a great spot with a nice view of the wake if it was light out. My servers came over to introduce themselves, offer recommendations, and take my wine order. And yes, if you’re keeping track… I skipped the bread tonight.

Since this was a dressy night, most people were dressed up a bit, and the MDR featured a special menu. And just like that things went south immediately.

Lido Market Dinner Menu

Main Dining Room Dinner Menu

For my starter, I ordered the coppa, burrata, and cantaloupe salad — which, according to the menu, should have included arugula, roasted pistachios, and a balsamic reduction. When it arrived… one of the key ingredients in the title was missing.

The burrata.
As in, the entire burrata.
Just gone.

What I received was basically cantaloupe and coppa on a plate.
Strike one.

Next up was the shrimp cocktail — three small shrimp with traditional cocktail sauce. Nothing special, nothing memorable, nothing offensive. Just… shrimp cocktail.

Next up was the entrée: lamb chops. They were on the thinner side — not exactly the thick, big cuts you get in Pinnacle Grill — but they were cooked to a proper medium rare. Flavor-wise, they were… fine. Not bad, not great, just somewhere in the middle. Definitely not in the same league as Pinnacle’s lamb chops, but acceptable for an MDR option.

I also asked for a small portion of the baked ricotta and asparagus–filled paccheri. Paccheri, for anyone who hasn’t had it, is wide, tube-shaped noodles — kind of like oversized rigatoni. On paper, this should’ve been a solid pasta dish.  And it would have been… if it wasn’t cold.

Not lukewarm. Not “cooled off on the walk over.” Nope — cold.

Strike two.

At this point I was really hoping dessert would bring some redemption, because the MDR was starting to slip back into Day 1 territory.  So in order to play it safe, I just went with a cheese plate.

While there weren’t three strikes tonight, there were definitely two — one for the missing burrata on the appetizer and one for the cold paccheri that should’ve been great but absolutely wasn’t. This is a vastly different MDR experience than what I had on Zuiderdam just last week, and that’s what makes it surprising. HAL’s Main Dining Rooms are usually very, very good — consistently so — which is why this uneven start stands out even more.

I’m really hoping things improve as the cruise goes on.

After dinner, I took a walk around the ship and stopped by the Rolling Stone Rock Room to catch the band for a bit. They were fantastic, as usual, and the place was absolutely packed. When they went on break, I made my way over to B.B. King’s Blues Club, and that venue was just as full — standing room only and everyone having a great time. It’s really nice to see Rotterdam buzzing like this at night, as opposed to my cruise on Queen Elizabeth two weeks ago when it was a ghost ship after 8pm.

We’ve got another sea day tomorrow before arriving Thursday in St. Maarten. Until then, thanks for following along — more to come!

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