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hi I'm Gary Bembridge from tips for
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travelers we're cruising again and this
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time we're going to be exploring holland
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america's ms west sedan now this is a
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very important ship because in 2017 it
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went through a big reset to introduce
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many new attractions and features to the
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Holland America Line it was kind of the
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flagship for introducing some new and
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exciting things the most important new
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feature is explorations central which is
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up in the crow's nest so the whole
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crow's nest area on board the ship has
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been converted into a space dedicated to
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exploring ports and destinations and
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some of the features include this whole
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area with iPads which has news and you
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can access various resources with more
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information there's also a coffee shop
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which is open during the day and into
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the evening serves drinks and has these
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rather tasty treats with there's also a
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library of travel books and destination
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guides which is a great resource one of
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those exciting things of all are these
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interactive tables now these tables the
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top of which are actually devices where
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you can engage with upcoming
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destinations so for example if there's a
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port coming up on the cruise you can
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visit this table and through putting
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various spots on the table it will give
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you various suggestions and tips on
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different things you can see themed
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around arts or culture or food also link
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to that is a smartphone app which is
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free to use on board the ships you
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basically download it and not only does
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it give you destination resources but
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also you can do things like book
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excursions or reservations for dining
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venues there's also this great big
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interactive War which has a map of the
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world and each day there's a different
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question asked and gifts are encouraged
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and going input their answers and it can
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track and build all sorts information
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and actual fellow guests and where they
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live a really popular feature is this
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virtual bridge so here it gives lots
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information about the ship how fast it's
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traveling what's being engaged the shore
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excursions desk is also being moved up
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into this space so the exe Center has
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completely changed the whole closeness
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area it's real focus is on promoting and
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giving you information about forthcoming
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and places that the ship is visiting
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another really important innovation is
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the Rijksmuseum at sea now the rival
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team is a very famous Museum in
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Amsterdam and it has many beautiful
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artworks and the Rijksmuseum at sea has
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reproductions of some of the key
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artworks has books from the Rijksmuseum
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and has various experts who can talk to
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about the art that the Rijksmuseum at
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sea is located right in a hub of the
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ship just near to the guest services
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desk now another big feature is what's
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known as the music walk now the music
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walk consists of a number of venues some
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of which have a different role during
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the day and some of them which are
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always there so during the day for
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example this venue here which is
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America's Test Kitchen as various
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cooking demonstrations talks and classes
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at night it converts into BB King Blues
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Club and has really great blues playing
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further on from that is the billboard on
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a board bar this is a great bar very
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popular night they have two penis Sunday
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sing songs tape request great venue
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right in the hub of the ship also part
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of the music walk and post of these
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other great music venues is the lincoln
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center stage this relatively cozy place
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hosts classical concerts and
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performances and also close by is
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another great bar the gallery bar it
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really hosts and focuses on serving
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great cocktails it used to be the
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nightclub and has been converted into
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this really quirky and unusual bar so
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the music organ and these various venues
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are a real heart of the evening
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entertainment and activities on the ship
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now of course there are other
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opportunities and things to do in terms
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of entertainment so for example the main
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stage which is the very large theatre
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which hosts guest performances and of
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course the production shows you also
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have the casino you have shops there are
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lots of things to do around the ship so
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let's talk about outdoor activities and
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fitness well there are a number of pools
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on board with the central pool being the
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liner pool which is a great pool because
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also when the weather's not so great the
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roof can actually come over and that
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pool can be used all year round also the
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back is the sea view pool which as the
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name would suggest has views onto the
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sea now the green house spa is a large
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and has lots to offer you have the hydro
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pool which is a great place to hang out
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and there's also some relaxation areas
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linked to that then of course you have
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the usual spa treatment areas and spa
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rooms and then you have the fitness
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center which is a large well-equipped
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fitness center so let's talk about
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dining options well obviously the most
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important dining menu of all is the main
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dining room this is on two levels and
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has both fixed seated dining to set
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times a day where you have your set
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table and the same waiting staff but
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there's also anytime dining as well the
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Lido is another very popular venue much
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one formal dining and of course is open
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pretty much all day and into the night
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and certain with a much more relaxed
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environment and more casual food and
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eating in terms of speciality dining the
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most important of these is the pinnacle
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grill this is a very upmarket restaurant
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which is normally a more steakhouse
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restaurant but there are occasionally
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pop-up restaurants which are themed and
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run based on menus by the different
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celebrity chefs that have an America
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partner with so there you have it that's
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a look at foreign America and how its
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evolving and changing based on the West
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damn which is the first ship to have
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many of these new features introduced to
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the line I love it if you liked the
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video and please also subscribe to the
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