Veendam 5/9/10 Bermuda Review

[bermuda triangle]

I am attempting to be as unbiased as possible yet accurate. I had a fun cruise and wish it was longer. Bermuda is my favorite port and HAL has been a part of my life for over 20 years.

 

Embarkation- was smooth, we were the within the last 20 people to board, as there was a 5 car accident and very heavy GWB traffic. Our rooms were ready when we boarded.

 

Dining Room- My travel agent called when only some of us had confirmed Main Upper Dining..he was told we all did, it said it on all of our boarding passes. However when we checked in Anytime Dining, however we had a reserved table for every night at 8. We were never out of the dining room in time for the beginning of a show. At least 10 minutes late. One night our dinner sat at the station for 15-20 mins without a waiter in sight. The food was good and the choices plentiful. Mark our wine steward was excellent. My grandmother celebrated her 90th birthday aboard and the cake was delicious.

 

Food/Floral demonstrations-The floral demonstration was a lot of fun. There is one florist onboard and he receives 4,000 flowers a week. The cake decorating seminar was fun also. Except for the one woman who kept interrupting the speaker. Someone asked what a tool was that he was using and the woman said "Teflon". So a know it all who didn't know so much, but kept going on and on and was asked 3 times to be quiet so the demonstration could continue.

 

The Retreat- It was too cold to partake in the retreat, however I don't think I would have anyway. I miss not having an outdoor pool. When the 40 cabins were added, no additional staff was so that is 80-100 passengers more that the cabin stewards have to clean up after.

 

Tendering-Since this was HALs dry run at tendering into St. George's I am not surprised things didn't run smoothly, I am sure that they are only going to improve.

I think HAL should adopt Princess' tendering plan. Everyone should be given a number and should wait seated in theater or lounge until their number is called.

My issue was with the other passengers rather than HAL staff. Passengers yelling at my Mother w/ my GM in a wheelchair (who had priority tendering since they were in a suite) were totally obnoxious. Cara the Neptune Lounge concierge was excellent in handling this matter (she was all around excellent). There was lovely woman on crutches who Cara also had follow my mom. A woman who needed to get some air and came to the front of the line was also yelled at by passengers (as was an entertainer wearing a lifevest) the woman was sweaty and had a greenish/gray pallor and she had suffered from 3 previos heart attacks. Passengers screaming and cursing at an officer on his way back from a crew lifeboat drill were even more so. The officer remained cool, calm and collected while he was berated for something he had no control over.

While there were some very lovely people aboard, there was a large group of rude, impolite, obnoxious passengers. I can see now why HAL pulled the Noordam from NYC and wouldn't be surprised if next yr is the last yr for Bermuda. I now know where the term "Ugly Americans" come from.

 

The tendering itself was fine. The Bermudian was off schedule and waited to get back on. This inpart was due to the late call of staying and docking at Murray's anchorage. The captain made the call right around 8:30. I was in line then to get tendering tickets for the 9:30 ferry, which they were not doing. First come, first served basis. Unfortunately they ONLY did this for the 8:30 ferry. The staff of the Bermudian was cheerful, polite, and friendly. Having an amabassador from the Bermuda Dept. of Tourism aboard was also nice to give out maps and answer questions.

On the tender back at 6:15 there were maybe about 50 passengers returning.

 

The following day in Hamilton, Carole Holding (the artist and shopkeeper) told my mother that 70 people from the Veendam did not have the proper ID to return to the ship from St. George's. She said it made the news. How many times do people need to be told to bring a photo ID?? It was on the daily planner, announced multiple times, and also as people were leaving the ship. Carole also mentioned her mother is in the hospital and she hadn't been able to restock some items. A loud group of cruise passengers went into the back area of her store and started ripping apart boxes and were yelling at her. She was shocked!

 

St. George's-Quaint as usual. We took a taxi to the Clearwater beach area and wound up walking toward Long Beach. We had a very nice day all in all. While it was chilly we were able to swim.

Gombay's is an outdoor cafe which has food and drinks. The burgers were tasty and the rum swizzles excellent. Taxi each way for 6 was around $20 plus tip.

 

Hamilton- The first day my husband was sick, there was a head cold going around the ship. Lots of sniffling and coughing. We walked around town briefly, but had a lazy day all in all. I did purchase some bangle bracelets at Astwood Dickinson.

 

Day 2 we went to Horseshoe Bay. We were able to swim again and the beach had quite a few visitors. Spoke to a couple of people who were unhappy with NCL-one because they had an extra sea day and they would have prefered an extra beach day. The other wanted to know if they served at least have a lobster tail. Apparently they received only 1/4 of a lobster tail and had to wait 45 mins to get another. Taxi each way about $30 plus tip also for 6.

 

Day 3 Finished up some shopping. Bought perfume at AS Cooper and Ginger Beer to bring back. As well as a couple T shirts as gifts.

 

Final Sea Day-Win a cruise bingo-so disappointing I only needed one number and for the final snowball bingo my sister needed one number. Guess we were almost lucky! The jackpot was split between 2 winners and the cruise bingo had two winners who went into a final playoff-only 1 cruise given away. Bingo cards cost either $20 or $25 depending on how many games were played.

 

Lido dining- Crepes were very tasty as were omlets. I love the custard danishes. Ice cream was good, but melts very quickly. Pizza was okay, not great. Burger was good. We remained at semi-code red throughout so service was slower than usual. No taco bar, no self serve. I wish they used larger glasses (as they used to) for iced tea instead of juice glasses.

 

Breakfast in dining room- service was slow although not a lot of people were dining. Eggs over easy were undercooked, bacon soggy undercooked (I asked for well done).

 

Shows-High quality singing! Shows were a little hokey though. Comedian was good. Dancers were very nice. They offered a cha-cha lesson..wish they did more!

 

Pub Trivia was fun!! DJ Aaron and Rashida (party planner) both very nice. Patti (cruise director) was okay.

 

Cabin 420 aft-Cabin clean, loveseat, tub, ample closet space. Andreas and Budi were great cabin stewards.

 

For those with Kindles-you can download in Bermuda w/ no problems. The time however will not display accurately. It was in the afternoon and my Kindle displayed 8:30am, then again so did my husbands cellphone.

 

Handicapped travelers- we rented the wheelchair for my GM through care vacations. $165 for the week from NYC (The prices vary by port and length of cruise). The chair was in the cabin upon embarkation and was picked up the morning we disembarked. No Hassles.

 

The Captain was out and about quite frequently. I saw him on the stairs many times. He dined in the dining room at the table next to ours with the Hotel Manager and other officers. Same group was also at the Crow's Nest Bar one night.

 

While I did not eat in the Pinnacle Grill, my parents, sister and GM went to the suite lunch and enjoyed it very much. They also had breakfast there and commented on the excellent service.

 

Mariner's brunch- I find it odd that people in the same cabin are given different times to go. My husband had an invite for 11 and mine was for 1. I went with my mom, sis, and gm to the 1 pm. The captain, cruise directer, hotel manager, neptune lounge concierge were in attendance.

The food same as usual-steak, salmon or quiche entrees.

 

Dessert Extravaganza- Very artistic as usual, however to the sculptures (chocolate) were more elaborate aboard the Noordam. I was too full from dinner to try anything.

 

Master Chef's Dinner- Lobster Bisque very very fishy! Brie appetizer very tasty. Steak Medallions yummy. Parade of Baked Alaska ( I used to love) however with lightsticks instead of sparklers it really lost its flair. The waiters singing also not necessary.

 

Laura

[bermuda triangle]

I forgot to mention a few things-

There was a problem w/ the sofa bed in my parents room. The mattress was sagging. Too uncomfortable to sleep on. This was remedied by having two twin mattresses placed on top of the sagging mattress.

 

The a/c was not the greatest. In the dining rooms, showroom, and cabins (deck 6 and 10), as well as corridors.

 

Also deck 6 corridor smelled of sewage.

 

Laura

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thanks for taking the time to write your review.

 

We had that happen one time -- DH was invited to one brunch and I was invited to the other one. Our Concierge took care of everything and both attended mine.

[serendipity1499]

Laura Thank you for your unbiased review..What a shame that you had such rude passengers on board.. And to berate the crew & go through un-opened boxes in someone s's shop is unconscionable & shameful:mad:!

Please don't blame all New Yorkers for this type of behavier..

I'm not sure where your table was...Was it in the Lower Dining Room & did you have the same DR Steward each night..Also did you happen to mention to the DR Mgr, that your food was sitting such a long time? I believe that he should have known about it in order to correct the poor service..

Thanks again for your nice review...

Cheers....:)Betty

[bermuda triangle]

Laura Thank you for your unbiased review..What a shame that you had such rude passengers on board.. And to berate the crew & go through un-opened boxes in someone s's shop is unconscionable & shameful:mad:!

 

Please don't blame all New Yorkers for this type of behavier..

 

I'm not sure where your table was...Was it in the Lower Dining Room & did you have the same DR Steward each night..Also did you happen to mention to the DR Mgr, that your food was sitting such a long time? I believe that he should have known about it in order to correct the poor service..

 

Thanks again for your nice review...

 

Cheers....:)Betty

 

Hi Betty,

I certainly don't blame all New Yorkers, however they were obvious New Yawkahs. Maybe some were from NJ too! ;)

We did have the same dining room steward each night. He was fine with the exception of the waiting food that one night. The DR manager was pleasant and helpful, he had a strong presence in the dining room. The Maitre D on the other hand was only visible downstairs the night the captain dined next to our table. Our dining room steward always had full tables and that combined with people dining at different times lead to the late exit from the dining room IMO.

Laura

[ChiSquare8]

I am new to HAL but after reading your review perhaps I booked the wrong ship/cruiseline.

 

I have also sailed many many times to Bermuda on Celebrity, RCCL. and NCL. I picked HAL due to the Hamilton docking and I also thought we were docking in St George?

 

My favorite cruise line is Celebrity (with 23 +)

 

What were the positive aspects of the cruise!

 

And No I am not a New Yorker.........................................

[sapper1]

I am new to HAL but after reading your review perhaps I booked the wrong ship/cruiseline.

 

I have also sailed many many times to Bermuda on Celebrity, RCCL. and NCL. I picked HAL due to the Hamilton docking and I also thought we were docking in St George?

 

My favorite cruise line is Celebrity (with 23 +)

 

What were the positive aspects of the cruise!

 

And No I am not a New Yorker.........................................

The original plan was to dock in St. Georges but HAL discovered rather late in the game that the remodled and now heavier Veendam cannot make it through the cut into the harbour-----hence the anchoring and tendering. This was discussed at great length a few months ago on this board.

I mentioned on another thread that I am praying for winds strong enough to force us into Hamilton for the duration of our stay and we can avoid the tendering altogether. This did happen on the first two cruises this season.

[ChiSquare8]

I agree ................ I am sailing 6/13. I will also cross my fingers.

 

I also prefer Hamilton and was not very fond of St George until I found the shuttle to St Catherine's beach!

[bermuda triangle]

I am new to HAL but after reading your review perhaps I booked the wrong ship/cruiseline.

 

I have also sailed many many times to Bermuda on Celebrity, RCCL. and NCL. I picked HAL due to the Hamilton docking and I also thought we were docking in St George?

 

My favorite cruise line is Celebrity (with 23 +)

 

What were the positive aspects of the cruise!

 

And No I am not a New Yorker.........................................

 

There were many positives-

Its a cruise and no cruise is bad! While this cruise wasn't perfect it was superior to NCL. I cannot comment on RCCL or X.

You get an extra day in Bermuda on HAL versus NCL or X, or with RCCL a couple for that matter.

I find the quality of the food to be superior to NCL as well. You don't have to pay more for a good meal.

The staff is friendly and courteous.

The cabins clean, beds comfortable.

If there is a problem it was remedied quickly.

Entertainment was excellent.

 

 

I don't care where people are from I was on an NCL cruise where a bar fight ensued involving a passenger being arrested upon return to NYC. Rude people are worldwide. There just seemed to be a large bunch of them on this particular sailing.

 

Also on this sailing was a PAN AM group, the pilot who flew the Beattles to the US was part of the group. There was also an Afflak group of 120 from Arizona onboard.

 

Tendering was an issue but again it was the 1st cruise where they were able to tender and go to St. George's. Without being able to do trial runs it was a dry run as I mentioned. I am sure HAL is well aware of the problem and they will work it out.

 

There have been many threads regarding tendering into St. George's since it was announced this winter. The Veendam is unable to dock due to the added cabins.

 

I hope you enjoy your cruise.

 

Laura

[IRL_Joanie]

Great Review and attitude!! Thank you for both!!

 

Joanie

[Limeygirl]

Thanks for your review. Sounds like you were able to get past the glitches and have a good time...sorry about all the rude people...I think of all the issues this would have bothered me the most. A little respect goes a long way.

[3rdGenCunarder]

 

Rude people are worldwide. There just seemed to be a large bunch of them on this particular sailing.

 

 

Laura

 

I wonder if they were in a group. I've only seen one group of rude people on a cruise (no, they weren't from NY--the cruise line had run a "special" that included a bus ride from a nearby [not from NJ!!!] city). I think people with bad manners tend to restrain themselves when they're alone. But if they're in a group of friends they relax and forget their "company manners." And the really bad behavior, like rummaging in the store room of a shop, is something one of them probably did "for my friends who wanted something else..." Absolutely NOT an excuse (except to them). But it's an explanation.

 

Thanks for posting the review. I hope they get the tendering worked out. I'm not looking forward to that.

 

Has anyone had a good experience with open dining on the Bermuda run?

[bermuda triangle]

I wonder if they were in a group. I've only seen one group of rude people on a cruise (no, they weren't from NY--the cruise line had run a "special" that included a bus ride from a nearby [not from NJ!!!] city). I think people with bad manners tend to restrain themselves when they're alone. But if they're in a group of friends they relax and forget their "company manners." And the really bad behavior, like rummaging in the store room of a shop, is something one of them probably did "for my friends who wanted something else..." Absolutely NOT an excuse (except to them). But it's an explanation.

 

Thanks for posting the review. I hope they get the tendering worked out. I'm not looking forward to that.

 

Has anyone had a good experience with open dining on the Bermuda run?

 

Some were in a small group (maybe 20). The group of 20 were on my floor, near my cabin. Those were the people rude to my mother/gm.

The man who screamed and cursed at the officers was not with them. Various other people made obnoxious comments who were not with the group or the the man having the temper tantrum.

 

Laura

[robertmartha]

Laura

 

Were you docked in Hamilton? If so port or starboard faces Hamilton?

 

Thanks - Bob

[Cinema15]

I was on this cruise also and I have to say the ferry service was a disaster! Waited on line beginning at 10:15am to board a 10:30 departure (which was originally a 9:30 call). Did not get on the ferry until 11:40! Not sure who was at fault (HAL or the Bermudian Government) nor do I care. All I know it began the day or should I say afternoon with a sour taste which I never fully recovered. Happy to see this week's Veendam cruise bypassed St. George all together and went on to Hamilton on Tuesday. Docking in Hamilton was terrific and if one wants to visit St. George on their own there is easy access with the ferries and buses ;)

 

PS...I'm from Jersey so perhaps I am one of the rude passengers this blog is referring to :D

[bermuda triangle]

Laura

 

Were you docked in Hamilton? If so port or starboard faces Hamilton?

 

Thanks - Bob

 

Starboard faced Hamilton, however HAL has been known to dock in either direction.

Laura

[bermuda triangle]

I was on this cruise also and I have to say the ferry service was a disaster! Waited on line beginning at 10:15am to board a 10:30 departure (which was originally a 9:30 call). Did not get on the ferry until 11:40! Not sure who was at fault (HAL or the Bermudian Government) nor do I care. All I know it began the day or should I say afternoon with a sour taste which I never fully recovered. Happy to see this week's Veendam cruise bypassed St. George all together and went on to Hamilton on Tuesday. Docking in Hamilton was terrific and if one wants to visit St. George on their own there is easy access with the ferries and buses ;)

 

PS...I'm from Jersey so perhaps I am one of the rude passengers this blog is referring to :D

 

We too planned to be on the 9:30 tender. However since the first tender (scheduled for 8:30) did not leave until after 9:30 there was no 9:30 tender. Then next announcement made was around 10:45 am by Patti, the CD that the next tender would be leaving at 11:15. It is unfortunate that you waited in line for so long. A lot of people left the line and came back later. Our friends left and came back they were on deck 6 around 11:15 (the tender boarded on deck 3) and they made it onto the tender with no problem.

Again I think HAL should do the number system to avoid lines like this. However, if waiting in line ruined your whole cruise, maybe you should go on NCL or Celebrity next time-that way you can walk off the ship at the dockyard. I am not trying to be sarcastic, just making you aware of other options should you cruise to Bermuda again.

I am curious to see when the Veendam is able to anchor off St. George's again to see if the tendering goes any smoother. We are contemplating another trip to Bermuda this summer. It would be nice for them to have things worked out now knowing that there is a problem with the way they originally expected to handle lining up for the tender.

Laura

[AlexandNessa]

You reminded me that I forgot to bring my Kindle! Nice to know it would've worked though. I don't think you missed too much not eating in the Pinnacle. It wasn't one of our better Pinnacle experiences.

Sure hope we weren't among the rude pax you encountered. :D Fortunately, we didn't encounter too many. Most of them we saw were berating the shorex mgr at the St. George's pier because the Bermudian was off-sched.

If you decide to go again, may you have much nicer (warmer) weather. :)

[Cinema15]

We too planned to be on the 9:30 tender. However since the first tender (scheduled for 8:30) did not leave until after 9:30 there was no 9:30 tender. Then next announcement made was around 10:45 am by Patti, the CD that the next tender would be leaving at 11:15. It is unfortunate that you waited in line for so long. A lot of people left the line and came back later. Our friends left and came back they were on deck 6 around 11:15 (the tender boarded on deck 3) and they made it onto the tender with no problem.

Again I think HAL should do the number system to avoid lines like this. However, if waiting in line ruined your whole cruise, maybe you should go on NCL or Celebrity next time-that way you can walk off the ship at the dockyard. I am not trying to be sarcastic, just making you aware of other options should you cruise to Bermuda again.

I am curious to see when the Veendam is able to anchor off St. George's again to see if the tendering goes any smoother. We are contemplating another trip to Bermuda this summer. It would be nice for them to have things worked out now knowing that there is a problem with the way they originally expected to handle lining up for the tender.

Laura

 

 

Next cruise is a World Voyage (103 days) on the new Queen Elizabeth beginning in January 2011. I'm sure this will be great cure for sour taste left by the Veendam experience.....

[MikeT718]

Great Review only one question was the casino open a 10:00pm every night in port as I had heard. As this is something that I really enjoy and it is something to do late at night aboard ship

[Cinema15]

Great Review only one question was the casino open a 10:00pm every night in port as I had heard. As this is something that I really enjoy and it is something to do late at night aboard ship

 

 

Casino and shops were closed the entire time the ship is docked in Bermuda. Reopen around 4pm after leaving Hamilton on Friday.

[GrammieK]

Casino was not open in port on our Veendam/Bermuda (4/25) cruise. That saved us a lot of money!!

[bermuda triangle]

Great Review only one question was the casino open a 10:00pm every night in port as I had heard. As this is something that I really enjoy and it is something to do late at night aboard ship

The Casino is not allowed to be open in Bermuda. The Bermudian Government does not allow gambling. So the casino was open sunday evening, all day monday (don't know what time it closed). Closed Tues-Friday, Open Friday about an hr after setting sail thru Sat night.

As with most ports, the shops were closed while docked in Bermuda as well. If you play bingo there is a game Sun night, one on Monday, win a cruise Sat AM and final coverall/snowball Sat afternoon.

 

Laura

[SSHappySailor]

Thank you Laura for your helpful review. I'm also going on the SS Veendam on 6-13-10 and I also have my fingers crossed for highwinds in the morning only lol. The time it takes to tender to port you can go from Hamilton to St. George twice, either by bus, scooter, taxi or ferry, its easy.

 

A hint for first timers in Bermuda. Almost all (except a few private ones) Hotels/Resorts allow you to used their facilities/beaches (pools,bathrooms,bars,restaurants etc) If someone asks you "can I help you?" just tell them you're a tourist and would like to see their Resort. You can walk/look around etc. Its FREE and you just pay if you buy a drink/food etc. (dont forget to bring a towel) They do this because they're hoping that you'll like their Resort and come back to Bermuda and stay with them. I always recomend a 1/2 day out the 4 days in Bermuda to visit 1-2 Resorts. You will love it, that's how I found my favorite Resort The Reefs, where eventually I had my wedding reception. Enjoy beautiful Bermuda:)

[Rigger]

Glad to hear that you liked your cabin. We are sailing in August and are in 420.

 

Rigger:)