veendam

[Serendipity50]

HI, is their anybody out there, that would

recommend the VEENDAM for my 50th birtday cruise, it sets sail from Tampa on the 11/11/06 and goes to some intresting places ie Key West, Guatemala, Belize. etc, my last one was the Grand Princess which i really enjoyed, is Hal as good?:confused:

[1cruiselvr]

No comparison. Veendam holds half the # of pax as Grand Princess and is entirely different in many ways. If you ask folks on the HAL board, they will tell you HAL is better. If you ask Princess folks, they will say Princess rates better. I've been on both and can say that I have enjoyed both for different reasons. They are not the same cruiseline nor the same type of ship. So you are actually asking folks to compare apples to oranges. Happy Sailing!

[sail7seas]

Veendam is a wonderful ship IMO along with her sisters, Statendam, Maasdam and Ryndam. We love the design and size of these ships.

 

We enjoyed a 12 day cruiwse on Veendam this past January and found the ship to be in excellent condition with a wonderful crew.

I highly recommend Veendam and would sail her again without hesitation.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

I think this sounds like a great cruise for your 50th birthday. Last November I celebrated my 50th Birthday on her sister ship the Ryndam doing the Sea of Cortez which was also an interesting cruise as far as ports. Right now we are planning on booking the cruise you are speaking of on the Veendam out of Tampa except for early March 2006. I too thought it offered some interesting ports.

 

Definitely go for it.:)

[smoosh21]

I have a question about the Veendam as I am booked to go on her in April. Does anyone know why this ship is flagged out of the Bahamas while every other HAL ship is flagged out of the Netherlands? It seems very odd to flag this one ship differently.

 

I know most lines like to flag out of the Bahamas, or Panama or Liberia for tax reasons, but if HAL already flies the Dutch flag, why change for one ship?

[sail7seas]

I wondered the same thing and was told....but cannot absolutely say for sure this is the correct answer.

 

For a ship to be flagged out of Netherlands (as are all the other HAL ships), the ship must have a certain percentage of the officers be Dutch. There was a while when there were not enough Dutch Officers in order to crew all the ships with the required percentage. As the company had sufficient numbers, they transferred the ships' registrations to the Netherlands. The one ship has been left with Bahamian Registry, possibly (but I am no authority on the subject) to have the option of crewing it with less than the total number of Dutch Officers that are required.

PLEASE anyone who thinks this is incorrect information, kindly correct any errors I have made.

[LittleNoah]

I just returned today from an Alaskan cruise on the Veendam. It was our sixth cruise and our first on Holland America. Let me just say, the food was excellent..from the lido deck, the dining room and room service. Yummy!

 

I didn't care for the cruise director on the Veendam though. Everytime she spoke, I felt like I was going to be sent to the principals office. She is not entertaining at all.

 

But, we had a great time!!

[Serendipity50]

Thanks for all the info, much appreciated:)

[Cuttle]

The one ship has been left with Bahamian Registry, possibly (but I am no authority on the subject) to have the option of crewing it with less than the total number of Dutch Officers that are required.

 

PLEASE anyone who thinks this is incorrect information, kindly correct any errors I have made.

 

We were on the Veendam in 2000 and the captain and other officers were British. (Captain Jonathon Peter Harris). That is the only HAL ship we have been on with non-Dutch officers.

So your explanation of the Bahamian Registry could be true and makes some sense.

[lambcom]

We got back a couple of weeks ago from the repositioning Panama Canal cruise on the Veendam (Tampa to San Diego). It was our first HAL cruise in four years -- we had been on a Celebrity kick after five HAL cruises going back to 1983.

 

There's no reason why you shouldn't be pleased with the ship. She was clean, well maintained and the food was excellent. I'm still whimpering because I don't get my glass or two of fresh-squeezed OJ in the morning!

 

I do believe the level of passenger service from the cabin and restaurant staff has fallen since our last cruise. The crew tries hard, but the passenger/staff ratio has made it virtually impossible to provide the quality of attention my wife and I remembered on previous HAL cruises. For example, the waiter and assistant in the main dining roomhad so many tables and passengers to serve that there was almost no personal interaction. And there were more mistakes (wrong meals were nightly occurance at our table) that I think can be blamed on the reduced staffing levels. Also it's much later in the day before all the rooms are cleaned than it used to be for the same reason.

 

Still, did we get value for dollar spent? We think so. But it's still up in the air as to whether we'll go back to Celebrity or stay with HAL the next time around. And yes, believe everything you hear about the new mattresses. I haven't slept that well in years.

[spottedcamel]

This October 29th I will again get to sail on the Veendam.

Loved it in Alaska, and looking forward to a warmer trip.

 

I personally like that size ship and the fewer number of passengers on these Statendam-class ships. On the larger ones of other lines, I feel like a cabin number or revenue source - at least on HAL I feel like a welcomed guest.

 

Each time I go on board (seven already with HAL), once I walk across that gangway onto the ship, I exhale, and have the feeling that I have come "home."

 

I know that sounds kind of hokey, but I know I am in for a wonderful week or two of being cared for.

 

That is one of the reasons I keep going back.

[frbob]

The Veendam is an excellent ship...one of HAL's best. I rate HAL superior to Princess, but that's pretty subjective. HAL just has a warmer "feel" to me. But heck, what do I know! Happy 50th :)

[Mabers]

I have just today had an overwhelming urge to book a cruise to Alaska at the end of July on the Veendam. It sounds as though I might be making a good choice! We have only done one cruise on RCI and I note the huge difference in the number of passengers between the 2, but I don't think this should make a huge difference.

 

Any more comments re this ship? Sure would appreciate!

 

M.

 

P.S. We all know that 'thinking about it' means ready to reserve, don't we? LOL!

[Joanandjoe]

We're thinking of booking the same cruise as Scouser (11/11/06), but our recent experience has been or will be on the Radisson Navigator (9/05), Wind Surf (11/04) and Celebrity Horizon (11/03). We have sailed HAL twice: Rotterdam VI (5/02) and the old Noordam (7/98), but have heard that the service on HAL has deteriorated in the last two or three years. Are we likely to find the Veendam too big, and the service too ordinary, after being on Windstar and Radisson? The itinerary certainly seems to be interesting, and the price (even taking into account the free wine, soft drinks, specialty coffees, and bottled water, and the no tipping policy, on Radisson) is much less than Radisson, even at 50% off on Radisson.

[Sigtau21]

Just got off the Veendam two weeks ago. Service was OK, I expected more from them. It was not a bad experience, I just thought they had a reputation of awesome service, and I did not feel that way. I felt as though I have had better service on previous cruises with RCI.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=184876

 

Next time I am going to consider princess or Celebrity. Would I recommend not going on HAL or the Veendam...NO.

[Serendipity50]

wow! certainly a mixed bag, husband has just broke his leg! :( [ the night LIverpool won the european cup:D ] so everything is on hold at the moment, but thanks for all the reviews.

[Mabers]

Just discovered the cruise I thought was quite perfect was a one-way to Alaska! I don't think so......so off to search again!

M.

[Tinknock50]

I am booked on the Veendam to Alaska September 11th.......can't wait!

[Islandbuoy]

Love the V-dam--but

watch the West Carrib this time of year, can be quite windy,with missed ports and closed beaches.

[Serendipity50]

do you mean november?:confused:

[Islandbuoy]

yes, in the fall.

[Tonklily]

My husband and I were on the Veendam from May 15th thru May 22nd. This was our second cruise this year on the Veendam. Thoroughly enjoyed all aspects of the cruise; food, service, cabin, entertainment (particularly the production cast shows, there were three), and the three Alaskan ports. Have cruised with Carnival (2), Princess (3), Royal Caribbean (1), Celebrity (1), and HAL (2). There are great things about each and every cruise ship that we have been on. To date, I have not been on a bad cruise. We think that they are great! Go for it, and enjoy!

[Dutchman]

Who is the Cruise Director on the Venndam at present?

[jessemon]

HI, is their anybody out there, that would

recommend the VEENDAM for my 50th birtday cruise, it sets sail from Tampa on the 11/11/06 and goes to some intresting places ie Key West, Guatemala, Belize. etc, my last one was the Grand Princess which i really enjoyed, is Hal as good?:confused:

 

Scouser,

We have sailed on both HAL & Princess. I agree with what someone else said, apples & oranges. We like HAL a little better because of the size of the ships in the "Statendam" class. They are warm and cozy. You meet people and see them more than once during the cruise. Unlike the larger ships like the "Grand Class" of Princess. We have sailed on many lines and always like HAL. When we first sailed with HAL it was on the Veendam, we will be sailing on her for the 3rd time this DEC 20th for Christmas. It will be our 5th cruise with HAL.

The first time we sailed my wife and I were the youngsters on the cruise. Early 40's. Last year I was 50. It is a traditional line. Service is wonderful. Ship is neat, clean & the last time we were on her well maintained. There is no large disco...no hairy chest parties at the pool...and proper dress is the norm.

If you like being treated well and like passangers you can have great conversation with...and a little parting...this is it.

[jessemon]

I have a question about the Veendam as I am booked to go on her in April. Does anyone know why this ship is flagged out of the Bahamas while every other HAL ship is flagged out of the Netherlands? It seems very odd to flag this one ship differently.

 

I know most lines like to flag out of the Bahamas, or Panama or Liberia for tax reasons, but if HAL already flies the Dutch flag, why change for one ship?

 

Smoosh21,

I noticed something the other day in the back of a HAL brochure. It is at the very end of the brochure under the heading of responsibility. If you look at that paragraph 8 ships are owned by HAL Antillen NV chartered to HAL. 2 ships are owned by HAL Nederland and chartered HAL. The Veendam is owned by "WIND SURF LIMITED" (as in sailing ships) and chartered to HAL. So it would seem that there is no apparent reason for the differance in registration of the ship or where the Capt. comes from. Except that the Antillis are Dutch and the Nederlands are Dutch. Wind Star I think is based out of HAL HQ. in Seattle, Wash. Every time (twice) we have sailed on the Veendam it has had a Dutch Cpt.

Back to the question...I guess it is just a corporate thing.