2016 Dec. 4-14 Koningsdam 10 nt Cruise

2016 Dec. 4-14 Koningsdam 10 nt cruise (Half moon cay, Grand Turk, Amber Cove, Bonaire, Curacao, Aruba):

On our last cruise (2015 Nov. cruise) we signed up for the future cruise bonus.  The Koningsdam is the newest ship in the HAL fleet and was going on a route we wanted to do.  Didn't know if we'd like being on such a big ship, but it turned out to be great.  We met a lot of interesting people, ate a lot of great food, visited several interesting ports, enjoyed the entertainment; everything would have been perfect----if it hadn't stormed all day in Bonaire.  Oh well, there's always next time!

We tend to base most of our cruises (and most of our land vacations) around beaches and snorkeling.  This one was no exception.  In fact I chose this specific itinerary because it went to Bonaire and Curacao again, plus a couple new ports for us---Amber Cove and Aruba.

Instead of making a ridiculously long blog, I'm supplying links to the ship, ports, and sea days individually.
 
The Koningsdam

Dec. 4---embarkation day

Dec. 5---Half Moon Cay

Dec. 6---Grand Turk

Dec. 7---Amber Cove

Dec. 8---1st sea day

Dec. 9---Bonaire

Dec. 10---Curacao

Dec. 11---Aruba

Dec. 12-14---sea days and disembarkation

I'd read a lot of complaints about the Koningsdam---no library, walking was hard on the promenade deck, lines were bad in Lido, not enough elevators,  more places to nickel and dime you, and more that I can't think of right now, but none of that bothered us.  We loved the Koningsdam.  But then, we've loved every ship we've been on.  This one was different from the other HAL ships, but I kind of liked that.  Shows they're trying to grow with the times.  I especially loved the digital daily Navigators, the Lido movies, the New York Deli, and the World Stage.  I wouldn't hesitate to cruise on the Koningsdam again.

2016-12-12 through 12-14 --- Sea days and back to ATL:

Dec. 12---Today was the day of the Mariner luncheon.  Our time slot was noon.  Apparently we've moved up in days sailed so that we now get seated with the higher ranking Mariners!  I think we have about 125 days sailed on HAL. Can't say the menu was too impressive this time---either a fish or pork entree.  One of the couples seated with us even got up and left before ordering.

  I ended up with the fish.  It and the rice was pretty good. The fritters were chewy.

2016-12-11  Aruba (7am - 4:30):

I was excited and apprehensive about Aruba.  I've heard alot about it being a great vacation spot, but we've never been there.  It doesn't have the reputation for snorkeling that the other ABC islands have, but I had printed off a map with a couple spots listed as snorkel areas, so we decided to check at the information center in the port shops and see what they say about snorkeling from shore.  Especially since the destination guide on the ship said there was no shore snorkeling on Aruba.
The view from our verandah from where we were docked in Aruba.  I was amazed that there was a tree growing in the ocean. 

2016-12-10  Curacao (7am - 10:30pm) :

They were calling for the same weather here today as we had on Bonaire yesterday, so I was a little down.  But we were seeing some blue skies, so decided to head out and hopefully get some snorkeling in.  We had tentatively made plans to go to Porto Mari with someone from Cruisecritic.com.  I had gotten her room number at the meet and greet which was held before docking at Grand Turk.  I think I woke her.  She wasn't wanting to leave before 11.  So we headed down with no real plans.  I figured we would see if anyone else was wanting to go to Porto Mari at the taxi waiting area, or just go to Blue Bay again (where we went last time we were here). 

 After waiting about 30 minutes, someone wanting to go to Blue Bay finally showed up, so we joined them.  Made our fare $7.50@ one way.

2016-12-9   Bonaire (8am - 5:30pm) !

I was hoping to be able to take a water taxi over to the little island just off shore, Klein Bonaire, but the weather wasn't cooperating today.  It was suppose to rain heavily and storm all day. 

 So we rushed off the boat and took a short taxi ride to the nearby Eden Beach.  Our fare was only $7.50/person each way.  Not bad when you consider how much a HAL excursion costs.  We had gone here the last time we were on Bonaire, too, and knew that there was great snorkeling and that the water taxi also ran from here.  Being a resort, it also had a pool, bar, restaurant, restrooms, and lots of chairs for rent.  

 If I remember correctly, the chair fee was only about $5 and included access to the pool. 

 We managed to get there before the storm and were able to snorkel for about an hour.

2016-12-8 a day at sea:

A day to wander around the ship and rest up a little before the next 3 port days.  I suppose it's a neat idea to have these exercise equipment pieces along the walking deck, but they sure didn't get used much.  In fact, the whole deck didn't get used much. 

 Nice that they have filet mignon and shrimp in the Lido cafe for dinner.  They even had lobster one night.

2016-12-7  Amber Cove, Dominican Republic (8am-5:30pm) :

This is a new cruise port.  Only open since 2015.  I didn't have much success researching snorkel areas near here, so we just planned to stay in the port area.  It was another early port day.  Today we even woke up in time to see a pretty sunrise.

The port is in a pretty area.  I had hoped it would be like Grand Turk and we could swim in the ocean there, too, but the water here was very murky.

This map was on the pier as we were walking to the port.

2016-12-6  Grand Turk (11am-5:30pm) --- off to Pillory Beach:

This was our 2nd time to Grand Turk.  It was suppose to be our 3rd time, but we missed that port a few years ago when hurricane Tomas beat us there.   This time looked promising.  The water here by the port was calm.  Love that there are free loungers here, too.  Behind them is a Margaritaville with a large pool.  We ended up hanging out there the other time we were on the island.

  I had read that Pillory Beach was the place to go to snorkel.  We had tried to go there the other time we were here, but there was a south surge and the waves were really rough.  That time we took a taxi there, looked at the water, then took the taxi straight back to the port.  Ended up being a $28 taxi ride to nowhere.  This time we tried it again.
Some views along our way.

2016-12-5  Half Moon Cay day (8am-2:30pm) :

We had all our breakfasts in the Lido.   Today we happened to be in this young man's station.  Along with busing tables and filling drinks, he took the time to make me a flower out of a napkin.  Such a nice gesture!  Thanks Komano!

 final result.  It sat in our cabin for the rest of the trip.

2016-12-4  Embarkation day:

Our short 4 day stay in South Florida was over.  It was time to make our way to the cruise port.  So we jumped into our rental car and headed off to the Budget Rental Car location on 17th street across from the cruise port.  They offer a free shuttle to the port, so we've used this return location a few times.  It also offers a free shuttle from the port, so it was a busy place.  No Fastbreak line there, but they were anxious to get the returned cars so they have cars for the people from the cruise ship, so the wait wasn't too bad.  By 11 we were on our way to the port.  I shot this picture from the shuttle as we were entering the port.  Not too busy for a Sunday---only 3 ships in port.  I had read about the mobile passport app and while we were waiting to board the ship, I went online and downloaded it.  It's suppose to get you through customs much quicker.  Unfortunately, the app wasn't good for port entry with a Samsung phone yet.

 Our wait wasn't long.  Soon we were on the ship and eager to check out our spa cabin.  I had originally booked an oceanview Guarantee for $1199/person.  About a month ago, the verandahs dropped to that amount for an obstructed view (VH) with metal wall category, so I called to see about switching.  It was past final payment, so I knew no refund would be given.  They did have a category (VF) Guarantee(non obstructed with plexiglass wall) for $100 more/person, so I went ahead and paid it.  About 10 days before our cruise, I was offered a paid upgrade to a verandah suite for another $599@, but didn't think it was worth that.  A few days later, we got our assigned room---VQ 10031 (spa verandah--I think that's the highest verandah category).  Also got another upgrade offer for $499, but that was still too high and I was curious about the spa cabins.
Our cabin was nice (more pictures of it in my Koningsdam post--- (click here Cabin VQ 10031 )  It had a few extra amenities since it was a spa category: yoga mat; Bose speakers; pedometers; and was suppose to come with 3 complimentary bottles of flavored vitamin water and 1 large complimentary bottle of plain water, but ours were missing.  We called the number on the flyer in the room and inquired about the water.  Took 3 days to get them, but they were handy for taking on shore.  We also liked the new features of USB ports, large mounted tv, lots of tv channels,  and throw blanket, didn't even mind not having a tub.