Following a very long port day in Aruba, Day 6 of this 21-day cruise on Holland America Line’s Rotterdam was a sea day and we also had a time change overnight, with clocks being set back one hour. Depending on the cruise line and destinations, some will use “ship’s time” for the duration of the cruise whether passing through time zones or not.
Ship’s time is the time zone of the port you left from, so if you left from Miami which is Eastern time and you had a day in the Central time zone, you would not adjust time, but stay on Eastern. I find that easier than adjusting to different time zones as we are doing on this cruise.
This is the first of many time changes. Before bed Sunday night we will go back another hour, putting us two hours behind Eastern. Then we will go an hour forward at 2 am Tuesday, another hour forward at 2 am Friday, and then with the switch to Daylight Savings Time, we will go back an hour at 2 am Sunday.
That’s a lot to keep track of, but thankfully devices change time on their own now, but it’s still a little much.
Today’s topic is going to be about doing your homework before booking a cruise. Yes, I’ve been joking about the number of “older” passengers on this cruise and the fact that once 10 pm rolls around, the ship turns into a ghost town. I’m surprised by the number of people I’ve talked to who booked this cruise thinking there would be a ton of entertainment, late-night parties, game shows, etc. One person said to me, “we thought it was going to be like Carnival.”
If there was any cruise line that is the complete opposite of Carnival, it’s Holland America. While Carnival attracts a younger crowd who likes to party, stay up late, push the drink package to the limit, and enjoy a 4, 5, 6, or 7-day “booze cruise,” Holland America attracts a much older group who eat dinner at 5 pm, take in the 7:30 pm show, and are in bed by 8:30 pm. They’re not here to get drunk, smoke weed, party, or even gamble – as the casino on this ship is very, very small compared to Carnival’s.
If you’re a family with young kids or teens, this isn’t the line for you. While there is a kid’s club, outside of going to the pool, there isn’t anything for kids to do and they’ll be bored silly. There’s no arcade, no waterslide, no splash pad, and no self-serve ice cream machines, but there is a basketball court, corn hole, and shuffleboard area. Families are better off booking with Royal Caribbean, or if they’re willing to spend twice to three times as much, Disney.
Researching before you book a cruise is important not only to make sure you’re traveling on a cruise line that suits you, has the amenities you’re looking for, and is in your price range. You may find a dirt cheap Carnival cruise for 3-days in the Bahamas that would be perfect, but if you’re not ready to be onboard a raucous booze cruise where the only time you’ll see your fellow passengers sober is in the terminal before boarding, that’s your fault.
I’ve sailed quite a bit with Holland America Line going back to 2008 and while I don’t fit into the scooter-driving demo that’s on this ship, I love the relaxed atmosphere, the cruise director you only hear from once a day, the lack of party-party-party everywhere you go, and the quality of service and food.
On to the evening’s activities. Comedian Cisco Duran from Comedy Central fame was the evening’s headlining entertainer. I had the opportunity to chat with him and his girlfriend earlier in the day and he talked about doing stand-up on Holland America as opposed to when he does it on Carnival. Carnival, he said, is no holds barred while he was told to “keep it clean” for Holland.
His 7:30 pm show was standing room only and no ethnic or age group was off limits. While I would think that calling the majority of the audience, “old white guys with money” would illicit groans, it was roars of laughter I heard. White, Black, Hispanic, Puerto Rican, you name it – they were all targets with side-splitting humor. Scooter and old age jokes went over just as well, even though he admitted several times “someone is going to guest services to complain.”
It was a fantastic show and I was told he did get a little dirty during the 9:30 pm show, which I didn’t get to see. However, I’m told the “gloves will come off” during his next two shows later during the cruise.
After the show, I headed for dinner which was at the ship’s steakhouse, Pinnacle Grill. Available for $19 pp for lunch and $46 pp for dinner (plus 18%), the restaurant serves up classic steak and seafood in a dark, elegant setting, known for its exceptional service.
I started with the Steak Tartare which was served with the usual accompaniments. I’m a huge tartare fan and this was one of the best I’ve had, however, the two small pieces of crostini were not enough for the very large amount of steak.
Up next, Clothesline Candied Bacon. I found it odd that a novelty dish like this would appear on the menu, as this is more of an Instagrammable menu item and I don’t see too many people on this ship using Instagram. However, the bacon came suspended from a miniature clothesline and was “candied” with a combination of maple syrup and brown sugar. Again, an unusual dish for here, but it was good.
For my main entree, I went with the 15oz boneless ribeye and added a lobster tail for $10. The ribeye was delicately seasoned and prepared medium rare as requested. The lobster tail was about a 3oz tail which my server removed from the shell at the table. It was small and if you’re looking to save $10, you won’t miss passing on it.
I ended up skipping dessert as this turned out to be a lot of really good food with attentive service to match.
As I was finishing up dinner, an older (imagine that) came over and asked if I was alone and sat down and bought a round of after-dinner drinks. I guess they felt sorry for me! We ended up talking for over an hour and once the topic turned to a certain former president, my server kindly reminded us that closing time was a long time ago.
Thank god for the small things in life.
Links to Rotterdam Restaurant Menus
Restaurant menus for October 27, 2023, on Holland America Rotterdam:
- Lido Market – Breakfast Menu
- Lido Market – Lunch Menu
- Lido Market – Dinner Menu
- Main Dining Room – Breakfast Menu
- Main Dining Room – Lunch Menu (Special Mariner’s Club Lunch – Invite Only)
- Main Dining Room – Dinner Menu
- Club Orange – Breakfast Menu
- Club Orange – Dinner Menu
- Pinnacle Grill – Lunch Menu
- Pinnacle Grill – Dinner Menu
- Canaletto – Dinner Menu
- Nami Sushi – Dinner Menu
- Tamarind – Dinner Menu
- Tamarind Bar – Lite Bites Menu
- Rudi’s Sel de Mer – Dinner Menu
- Rotterdam Room Service Menu – All Day Menu
- New York Deli & Pizza – All Day Menu
- Dive In Burgers & Hot Dogs – All Day Menu
Daily Planner for Day 6:
