Focus On...The Rotterdam, Part III

The view overlooking Rotterdam's bow.

Photo © 2010 Aaron Saunders

In this final installment of our three-part photo-tour of Holland America Line's elegant MS Rotterdam, we wanted to take a look not only at some of the other refurbished public rooms, but also at some of the features offered aboard every Holland America ship that set them apart from other lines.

As the photograph above alludes to, the first one is:

Deck Space.

Almost every Holland America ship allows guests access to the forward bow deck at least once in the voyage.  This makes for a tremendous vantage point when viewing Panama Canal transits or calving glaciers in Glacier Bay National Park.  While every cruise ship in existence has a bow deck, many lines reserve this space for crew only (interestingly, Royal Caribbean's latest ships include accessible bow decks as well)

Every HAL ship also features a teak, wrap-around promenade deck, allowing guests to walk a full circuit around almost the entire length of the vessel.  Many new ships, like Norwegian Epic and Oasis of the Seas are doing away with promenade decks altogether, instead filling this space with wider public rooms and retaining a small alleyway to use in the event lifeboats need to be lowered.  

The abundance of open decks makes HAL ships feel far less crowded than similarly sized ships, and as a result, a quiet place to sit or a sunny deck chair is often not hard to find.

Artwork Onboard

  A beautiful statue outside the Crow's Nest, Deck 9.

Photo © 2010 Aaron Saunders

Every cruise ship has artwork, but few come close to matching the astounding collection of artwork, artifacts, and sculptures found onboard Holland America Line ships.  In fact, the ship itself is a bit of a floating museum.  Rare antiquities litter the ships, on display in every corner, noon, and cranny.  

Eighteenth-century clock located 

in the Greenhouse Spa.

Photo © 2010 Aaron Saunders

Want to know what everything onboard is, but don't want to spend the time hunting each piece down?  No problem - Holland America offers downloadable art tours for your iPod or MP3 player so you can follow along.  These self-guided tours are also available on an iPod from the Front Desk, but can also be downloaded directly from the lines' website, allowing you to listen onboard or at home.

Continuous Refurbishment

  The Explorer's Lounge onboard Rotterdam.

Photo © 2010 Aaron Saunders

If you've read this far, you've obviously come to the conclusion that HAL takes good care of its ships.  So much so, in fact, that we were hard-pressed to find any area of the ship that looked its age; for a 13-year old vessel, Rotterdam looks like it could have sailed from the Fincantieri yards yesterday.

 Atrium, and clock, aboard Rotterdam.

Photo © 2010 Aaron Saunders

One of these areas that sparkles post-refit is the three-deck high atrium.  Spanning decks 3, 4, and 5, the focal point of the atrium is an enormous clock specially designed for Holland America.  Based on a Flemish original, the clock itself contains 14 individual timepieces in addition to an astrolabe and and astronomical clock.  Most impressively, the clocks actually work.  

Detail on The Clock.
Photo © 2010 Aaron Saunders

Like the Showroom at Sea, gone is the powerful red carpeting that formerly graced this area.  Replacing it is a soft, multicolored blue pattern with solid navy runners along the sides.  This deeper, calmer color has the effect of making the area seem more spacious than its previous iteration, and this theme is carried out throughout the ship.  Carpeting in passenger corridors has been replaced as well with a light sea-foam blue pattern.  Decks 6 and 7 feature this same pattern, but in red, in their stateroom corridors, presumably to indicate the presence of balcony staterooms and suites.

Fine dining at The Pinnacle Grill,

Photo © 2010 Aaron Saunders

Custom Salt & Pepper shakers in the Pinnacle.

Photo © 2010 Aaron Saunders

The Wine Bar, just forward of the Pinnacle.

Photo © 2010 Aaron Saunders

Heading aft on Deck 4 from the Atrium, we pass the Wine Bar added during the ships' 2005 refit, which saw the spa and gym area extended dramatically, as well as the addition of the Explorations Cafe on Deck 5.  What strikes us most is how well everything flows together - the entire interior design is so well executed that many passengers simply had no idea the ship had underwent two major refurbishments - the highest compliment.

Aft of the Wine Bar is The Pinnacle Grill, Holland America's specialty restaurant.  Focusing mainly on fine steaks and seafood, the Pinnacle Grill makes for a relaxing, subdued experience in which fine food and excellent service are on the menu.  Also unique is the fact that the location, size, and decor of the Pinnacle Grill changes from ship to ship, and on Rotterdam, it is one of the most elegant.  Dark walls with rose-colored accents, inset booths, and marble floors help lend this area an atmosphere akin to a private dining room in one of Europe's classiest hotels.  Once again, the little details reign here: even the Salt and Pepper shakers are custom-made.

Reservations are required to dine at the Pinnacle Grill, and can be made for $20 per person for dinner, or $10 per person for lunch.


In Closing

Rotterdam's new Aft Section, as seen from

the Promenade Deck.

Photo © 2010 Aaron Saunders

I've always been a fan of bigger ships.  Up to this point, I'd always preferred larger Holland America ships like Oosterdam, for the simple reason that they had more amenities and seemed newer and 'fresher' than the line's smaller ships.  

 Flowers in The Crows Nest.

Photo © 2010 Aaron Saunders

With the refurbishments to Rotterdam, as well as Statendam, Veendam, Ryndam and eventually Maasdam, Holland America has given their smaller ships a makeover that actually gives them some features their larger fleetmates can be jealous of.  In fact, I'd go out of my way to sail on Rotterdam again - the atmosphere onboard, coupled with the recent renovations, resulted in a feeling that was just right.  

It's nice to see Holland America taking such good care of its midsize ships in an age when many lines are building bigger and bigger megaships.  I had taken a cruise onboard Royal Caribbean's Mariner of the Seas in January, which holds over 3,000 passengers.  It was a nice ship, and I had an enjoyable cruise.  But it wasn't until I stepped onboard Rotterdam that the advantages of sailing on a ship which holds 1,404 passengers hit home: few lines, lots of deck chairs, lots of space.  In fact, I never once had a problem finding a seat in any lounge or pool.  The Retreat was busiest, but turnover was good.  The Lido was also more serene than I expected, particularly on embarkation day: seating was plentiful, and lines moved quickly.

Rotterdam has a lot to like, and if you are scheduled to sail on her, chances are you won't be disappointed.  As for me, I grabbed the 2011-2012 Cruise Planner on my way off.

I will be back.

For more information on the Rotterdam, please visit Holland America's Website.