Louise sail

I have temporary mobility issues because of an accident I am a 5 star mariner, we did not cancel this cruise because we thought that breakfast every day  and lunch on sea days in the dining room the usual procedure up to now would continue.If we had heard of this before final payment we would have canceled.My doctor and Physio want me to do lots of walking so a scooter would be counterproductive I hope to be out circling the Promenade deck.Thank you for the report on the ship if you find out that breakfast is being served please let us know we board this Saturday.

Thanks for the support 

We are signed on for a back to back starting in Montreal and signed with the idea that we would eat mainly in the dining room where we could be waited on while I recover from an injured leg.

 The classical musicians are a favourite part of our before dinner time.We paid top dollar for this cruise and we expect good service.We will be very disappointed if our expectations are not fulfilled.

Thank you Rich for doing this report and to the contributors who add joy to all readers lives.To our American neighbours have a happy safe 4th of July.Hope to meet you all on a ship one day.

Heather

We were on the Zaandam and debarked in Quebec City.we were on a school bus that was full we had to keep our carryons on our lap for the four and half hours we were on the bus.We were on the bus from 8-12:30 We were let off at a picnic rest stop mid way there was no place to buy water and the temperature was warm.When we arrived at cruise terminal we were not allowed of the bus because too many taxis arriving with incoming passengers,after over a half hour in the sun with no air the bus driver let us off the bus.Our luggage which travelled in trucks had not arrived it took over an hour to get luggage and get a taxi.No taxis knew we were coming our driver said.We left cruise terminal at 1:45 the people in line with us had plane tickets to Texas for 2:40 PM so they were going to miss their plane.We saw no one from Holland to give this elderly couple help and I called Holland and got a busy signal.

We are worried about the St. Lawrence seaway dam at Cornwall when they open it we will get the excess from Lake Ontario and the other Great Lakes.They say the water is building up and they will soon have to release it,they have been holding back due to our flood situation.

You will probably dock on the eastern part of Montreal and have a slightly steeper slope to leave the ship otherwise you will have no problems.The water levels are too high for the ship to get under a bridge to get to central Montreal and we are told this situation will continue until the end of June.The flooding is mainly in the western part of the island where I live.We are not directly affected but many people have been working for over two weeks to keep the water out of their homes.It is a sad situation with many flooded homes.

We stayed at the Bethel Hotel in Nyhavn paying a little extra to have a room with a view of the canal which we enjoyed.There was a good continental breakfast provided,no AC but although it was warm in the daytime it cooled nicely at night.We would stay there again.

The city of Montreal is one large construction project,all the major roads are being renovated at the same time .I would plan on an hour just to be safe but you will have plenty of time for a 1PM flight.Disembarkation is fast in Montreal,we encountered a long line for taxis but it moved quickly.The port arrival building was being renovated last year and ships docked east of downtown but it is supposed to be ready for this season.

Hope you have a great cruise.

We have been to St. Petersburg twice both times we got off the ship as soon as it was announced the ship was ready to disembark.There was a long line to see the agents but we were finished and on our private tour bus in about half an hour.Have a great time in a beautiful city.

We did the 17 day transatlantic in the spring on the Zuiderdam the outside of the ship was a work zone the whole time except for

our day in Amsterdam when the crew had family onboard.

We like to walk the Promenade deck twice a day and did but without exception work was being done chipping metal,hammering,soldering,welding and painting.There was always crew out sweeping and hosing the deck but the deck was often slippery and covered with metal debris not an enjoyable walking surface.We like to be on the Promenade deck even though we have a balcony this trip we never sat on the Promenade deck once.

The interior of the ship was fine and we were well treated by all the staff.The food was well prepared and hot.We just did not have the outside quiet,clean air and clean deck we are used to on HAL.I would chose the Oosterdam.

Thank you very much for this information,we will use it.There is always someone at our city hall that is a commissioner of oaths.It will be fun travelling with a young person.

Safe travels

Thank you for your blog I enjoyed it again this year with your tales of distant lands and pizza.Have a great summer at home.

Heather

We just got off the Zuiderdam, in Rotterdam on may 3rd. Yes there is a lot of painting going on, we never experienced any closures of the promenade deck during our morning walks. We were on deck 7 ( aft) and were able to enjoy the balcony without any noice from hammering or such. Only one day, when they were working on the sliding roof of the Lido pool, it stopped us from sitting on the Lido deck.

Apart from that: wonderful cruise, great staff, great food and inside a great looking ship !

We walked the promenade deck twice a day for 17 days were on your cruise and got off in Copenhagen agree inside everything perfect,wonderful cruise,staff fantastic, everything good.We only had promenade deck closed once but I think it should have been closed most of the time it was being hosed continuously to clean paint chips,pieces of rusted metal and sawdust.One day they were welding and the sparks were flying though they did have a watcher to call stop to the workers when passenger close by.I went in felt I was preventing there work.We had a balcony on 7 and heard no noise,we felt sorry for people that had no balcony, as no quiet place to sit with clean air.

I am sorry to hear about the problems on your cruise,the Noordam was our first Holland America ship we sailed her in the Med and we had a perfect cruise but that was eight years ago.I hope you had a good holiday anyway and that the suits at HAL will read your report and institute some improvements in their service to their customers.The excellence they used to talk about is sometimes sadly lacking.Thank you for your report.

I have been following your reports daily,thank you for doing them after very busy days they are much appreciated.Wishing you continued good health and happy days.

Heather

I did this when sailing on the Ryndam the BA we liked had been downgraded to a BC we had a BB guarantee.We told HAL we were happy with what we paid but prefered the BC they accommodated us.Good luck.

We took the local bus to Tarquinia had a wonderful time it is a beautiful town but everything closed at siesta time so be prepared to just walk around and enjoy the sights at midday.The bus does not run frequently so check with bus driver when he will be back.

The Museum of Anthropology on the UBC campus is a must see in Vancouver in our opinion,along with a walk in Stanley Park a perfect day.

Have a great cruise in your suite.

Congratulations you will love it.We enjoyed the fast breakfast in the Neptune lounge when you are on the ship for a long time as you will be,it is nice just to have a relaxing breakfast.The snacks were good too after ashore excursions that overlapped lunch.

We were down the hall from you on the Atlantic Adventure,you told me which of the ship's hairdressers was the best,I had one of the best haircuts of my life,thanks again.

Have a wonderful time we hope to do this cruise next year

We walked by those same pictures and wondered whether they were major stock holders of Holland America who were sailing in the 1950's.The father did not look too happy,If you saw these pictures up close you would not call them art but they were representative of 1950's ship life.I am glad you took photos of these pictures,I asked a room steward who was working nearby if he knew the story and he said no.The people had different clothes on so the pictures were taken on two different occasions.I think they may have been Easter bonnets as there were tulips on the table and the male incorporated them into his hat.Still wondering.

WCB's thread reports today that the Amsterdam has a kiosk set up but not working yet. Post #61

 

We hope this will expand to all HAL ships!!

We had two of these kiosks on the Eurodam in June near the front office just put in your cabin card and you received a full print out of your account,very easy.

There were shuttle buses when we visited in June 2014 I think they were provided by the port,they were frequent and shared with another cruise ship.

We did a Baltic cruise this past June on the Eurodam, and despite the curtains being closed I woke up at 4 AM several mornings when the room became light from the very early sunrise. We had an act balcony so it must have hit our window as the sun was rising. But no complaints here!

We were on the Eurodam with a regular balcony from June13-July 7th on a Northern cruise and were bothered by light coming through our curtains they looked light blocking but they were not.Last year we did 3 weeks in Norway in the same timeframe on the Ryndam and had no issue with light.The Masdam also has light blocking curtains I think the quality of drapes is poor on Eurodam.I would suspect that the quality of curtains varies from ship to ship.

Eyeshades are a small price to pay for a wonderful cruise in a beautiful area have a great trip.

The Eurodam had two printers in front of the front office where you could put in your room key and a up to the minute printed statement came out right away.This was in June and they were very easy to use.