ms Rotterdam Cruise Review

For us, the best entertainment on a ship is just being on the ship--especially when the wind is blowing, the sea is dotted with whitecaps, and there's nothing to look at but the water, passing dolphins or tuna, and other ships.

It's also fun to watch port arrivals and departures from an open deck, or to enjoy a vicarious thrill as the harbor pilot steps off a rope ladder onto a bouncing boat. (When we reached the North Sea after our departure from Rotterdam, choppy conditions forced the pilot to be plucked off the ship by helicopter.)

Still, if your tastes run to more traditional forms of entertainment, ms Rotterdam won't leave you disappointed.

On most nights, the ship has two performances of Las Vegas-style shows in the Queen's Lounge, which has its main floor on Deck 4 with a balcony on Deck 5. The Queen's Lounge is also used for other events like the Indonesian or Filipino Crew Show near the end of each cruise, where the housekeeping staff, dining-room stewards, and other crew members entertain the guests (sometimes with help from the audience).

The Wajang Theatre (pronounced "Wah-yahng") offers feature films with popcorn, cookies, and cappuccino. It's also used for culinary demonstrations and lectures.

Rotterdam also has a piano bar (sometimes with "open mic night" for passengers), a band or a DJ at night in the Crow's Nest lounge, other live music performances in various locations (e.g., in the dining room or by the pool), and sports on TV in another of the ship's bars.

If you're an art aficionado, you can borrow an iPod from the library desk (next to the Explorations Café) and go on a free 45-minute, self-guided podcast tour of the ms Rotterdam art collection.

Cabin entertainment (other than sea-watching and DIY activities) consists of flat-screen TVs with DVD players. You can borrow movies and books in the library next to the Explorations Café.

Finally, ms Rotterdam has a casino and activities such as bingo, an art auction, and games (including bridge, shuffleboard, and hockey-slapshot competitions) to keep Type A passengers from becoming bored on sea days.