Question for recent and current Noordam passengers

[496and706]

There is a lot of discussion regarding issues with toilets and air conditioning on at least one ship.

 

Are there any issues onboard the Noordam?

[sail7seas]

They come and go from every ship in varying degrees and severity. At the moment, Noordam seems to be relatively quiet in terms of plumbing and air conditioning complaints. All ships have temporary or rotating problems because there is always someone or more than one 'someone' who will flush stupid things down a toilet thereby clogging the line. Until you stop stupid people from doing stupid things, there will be temporary toilet blockages.

[SwissMyst]

There is a lot of discussion regarding issues with toilets and air conditioning on at least one ship.

 

Are there any issues onboard the Noordam?

 

Keep in mind a "lot of discussion" does not translate as a lot of problems. Had we listened to the discussion going on here about what a junk yard dog the Maasdam was in 2009, we should have cancelled our cruise. Instead we are now well on our way to be four star Mariners and have never looked back on our choice to make HAL our primary cruise line - and every single ship we have taken have had the good, bad and ugly discussions here as well.

 

Yet, we found nothing ourselves to complain about, and even had many of the same issues reported as inexorable gloom and doom: worn furnishings, bizarre decor items, moldy grout in the bathroom, less than perfect room items or service; less than piping hot and prompt MDR service, confused MDR beverage service, imperfect A/C controls and delay-flush toilets. These things happen. This is a large operation. We don't go in expecting 100% perfection at all times. HAL takes us to great places with comfort and ease for the dollar and that is why we cruise. And bottom-line even with all the trash/smack talk on Cruise Critic about HAL and every ship we have also experienced, we are eagerly marching on to our four star Mariner status with no concerns about HAL ships or HAL's future.

[linjam]

We were on the Noordam a month ago and did experience toilet issues for the last 2 or 3 days of our cruise. Other than that, we loved the ship, it's crew, and had a fabulous cruise experience.

 

I agree with sail7seas....there will always be stupid people doing stupid things, and thus causing issues.

[SwissMyst]

We were on the Noordam a month ago and did experience toilet issues for the last 2 or 3 days of our cruise. Other than that, we loved the ship, it's crew, and had a fabulous cruise experience.

 

I agree with sail7seas....there will always be stupid people doing stupid things, and thus causing issues.

 

I hope we can get more definition when "toilet issues" are reported as they seem to mean everything from delayed-flush ..... to overflowing massive cabin contamination requiring trips 24/7 down the hall to use public toilets.

[496and706]

Dh and I have been to Cuba more than 40 times, so we are used to dealing with issues like the room not being 5 star and I think we can overlook slightly moldy shower curtains and grout that doesn't sparkle. We have heard people (tourists) there complain that the ocean was salty and there was too much sand on the beach. (Really!)

 

 

We have never had any overwhelming nastiness onboard any HAL ships.

 

 

 

 

 

(I wish I could say that about the Bolero...) :eek:

[sail7seas]

Noordam is a very beautiful ship and IMO, HAL really got it right with her. Many of consider her high on our list of favorites. She is the fourth in the series of sisters and by the time they got to Noordam, the little niggly things the other ships suffered that weren't perfect were corrected for Noordam. :)

 

Hope you love her as much as we do.

 

[496and706]

We were on her in October of 2010. That is the main reason we will be on her again in June. I can hardly wait.

[linjam]

I hope we can get more definition when "toilet issues" are reported as they seem to mean everything from delayed-flush ..... to overflowing massive cabin contamination requiring trips 24/7 down the hall to use public toilets.

 

My apologies, I should have been more specific in my earlier post. In our case, it was several days of delayed- flush, and on the last day, one overflow incident that was quickly attended to by the staff...certainly not an extreme scenario. In hindsight, maybe I shouldn't have even mentioned it. The Noordam is a beautiful ship, and I look forward to sailing on her again very soon.

[sail7seas]

Of course, you should mention it. No reason to not and most of us welcome when people give us a 'heads up'.

 

[Krazy Kruizers]

We didn't have any issues on the Noordam -- toilet wise -- when we sailed on her November 2011.

But when we sailed on the Maasdam in February 2012 -- several of the public restrooms had problems and would be shut down for a day or two.

[DeepWaterMariner]

We were also on the Noordam about a month ago and had no problems at all with plumbing or anything else. Our experience is that, no matter what ship or cruise line, the odds are about 50/50 that there will be some hiccup with the toilet. You report the problem, they fix it, and you generally forget about it. The Noordam is a wonderful ship.

[Fred321]

We were on the Noordam for 3 weeks last summer in the med. Ship was in beautiful shape and the crew was just great. Saw a few familiar faces in the crew from a previous grand voyage on the Prinsendam and they seemed really happy that we remembered them and took the time to say hello.

 

Once or twice there was a problem with a delayed flush in the head but it always seemed to resolve itself before we needed to call someone. Rest of the ship was immaculate. No cooling issues at all and it was warm.

[Skiforever]

We were on Noordam March/April and did not have any issues with A/C. Only twice noticed a delayed flush (only for a couple of minutes) in our bathroom, as did our friends in their cabin. We both booked Deluxe Verandah Suites. We had a wonderful time on our first ever cruise. We liked the traditional ship and great service. My DH and I both agree we would go back on the Noordam anytime, anywhere.