Sad Veendam Experience

[iancal]

We recently disembarked from a cruise (Celebrity...HAL was overpriced) in Venice (not a HAL cruise but we did follow Prinsendam for a few ports).

 

We spoke to two couples who had recently been on Veendam. Both were from the US.

 

The first couple, new cruisers, were on the Veendam a few months ago. They had a wonderful cruise and related to us the everything was perfect. They will take more HAL cruises.

 

The second couple were HAL loyalists who had recently abandoned the line after many cruises. In the words of this cruiser...they were Veendamized twice. Two bad experiences. The put the first one down to bad luck. The second one, according to them, was much worse...plumbing and ac issues. What drove them to abandon HAL was not only the two less than perfect experiences but the attitude of the ships management. This person claimed they also insisted on a meeting with the Hotel Manager. No such luck...despite their 15 plus HAL cruises. They even tried the future booking desk in desperation...no luck.

 

Their custom was apparently to book another cruise or two while on a cruise. They got the $100. future cruise credit and have essentially binned it as they have no intention of taking another HAL cruise. Nor do they plan on writing head office....they claim it is not worth their while because they were so turned off by both experiences.

 

They felt that they were purposely misled but the front desk. Yes,,,,,they too got that 3.00 bottle of wine delivered as a peace offering....and they sent it right back to the hotel manager with a note saying that after 15 or so HAL cruises this would be their last. They also got a fan...supposedly the last one available as all of them were in service. Still no response. So they switched to another line...for good. HAL is a good line. Hate to see this happen

 

HAL has an issue. Not only a problem with Veendam but also a problem wiht management who seem unwilling to meet with customers. Never, ever heard of this in my carreer with dealing with customers and customer service. Guess it is a new approach to customer disatisfaction.

[sammiedawg]

OMG, how far this company has fallen. Nevermind the "Signature of Excellence." Someone in business school needs to study this mess.

JHannah, if your friends want to pursue additional satisfaction, may I suggest going to a travel ombudsman such as Frommers. The ship was sailing despite the fact it failed a CDC inspection. I'm sickened that your friends experienced the sewage plumbing problems. I think your friends have a case.

I've been on Veendam twice, most recently in South America March 2012. I know the problems are real, we talked to people who had AC and plumbing problems. We experienced extreme smokiness in certain lounges and some hallways. At the time I wondered if there were lots of smokers on board but now I think the ventilation system was bad.

[crooser888]

All: Really sad to hear about the bad experiences. However, here is another point of view. My wife and I just came off the Veendam last week on the Oct 13-20 cruise to Canada and New England. We had a great time and while we thought there was too much salt in the food, overall, we really enjoyed our time on board. No issues with the CDC inspection. I had booked late and made full payment at time of booking but never read about the failed score until after payment was made. Read my review at this link if you are interested:

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=110396

 

We also sailed on her to Bermuda in April earlier this year. No issues at all, at that time either. I don't think everyone had a bad time. Just on HAL alone, we have been on Statendam, Amsterdam, Noordam, Nieuw Amsterdam and Eurodam. Each ship has its qualities but we enjoyed every cruise and all the staff. Whether on Disney, Cunard, Princess, Celebrity or Royal Carribean, we have really never had a bad cruise. BTW, we are not travel agents and have no affiliation with the travel industry so it's not like we were getting any special treatment. We just really enjoy cruising and are really fortunate for our travel opportunities and what we have been blessed with. We'll cross our fingers and hope our good fortune with cruising continues.

[George C]

We also was on Veendam in the end of May and had a great cruise, did not hear any complaints while on board ( my only problem was some rough seas and the one pool), my review was also posted.

[sammiedawg]

All: Really sad to hear about the bad experiences. However, here is another point of view. My wife and I just came off the Veendam last week on the Oct 13-20 cruise to Canada and New England. We had a great time and while we thought there was too much salt in the food, overall, we really enjoyed our time on board. No issues with the CDC inspection. I had booked late and made full payment at time of booking but never read about the failed score until after payment was made. Read my review at this link if you are interested:

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=110396

 

We also sailed on her to Bermuda in April earlier this year. No issues at all, at that time either. I don't think everyone had a bad time. Just on HAL alone, we have been on Statendam, Amsterdam, Noordam, Nieuw Amsterdam and Eurodam. Each ship has its qualities but we enjoyed every cruise and all the staff. Whether on Disney, Cunard, Princess, Celebrity or Royal Carribean, we have really never had a bad cruise. BTW, we are not travel agents and have no affiliation with the travel industry so it's not like we were getting any special treatment. We just really enjoy cruising and are really fortunate for our travel opportunities and what we have been blessed with. We'll cross our fingers and hope our good fortune with cruising continues.

 

The CDC inspects what is going on in the back of the house and monitors health and sanitation issues. The Veendam has issues both in the back and the front. Having a good cruise on Veendam is the luck of the draw. I would not book this ship again, vacation time and money is limited.

[hammybee]

We were on the Veendam in early June and had no problem nor did we hear of any HVAC or plumbing issues. Then again, we did not speak with every passenger.

 

My sense is that the majority of cabins have not had persistent issues. If one had knowledge of all the reported problems, there's likely a pattern. Certain cabins or parts of the ship are likely more vulnerable than others.

 

Makes no sense to me why cabins in vulerable areas would be sold.

[silvercruiser]

Itinerary sort of wins out for me, also point of departure. I sailed Veendam in 2007 and 2008 because it was leaving out of Tampa, only a one hour drive from my home. Everything was wonderful.

Voyage of the Vikings has an itinerary that isn't matched by anyone else and I only have to fly to and from Boston for a 35-day cruise next summer. Air conditioning would not be a problem, since I'm basically going to cold weather places (and getting away from the summer heat here in Florida) and I'm hoping that my cabin, 337 on Lower Promenade, won't have plumbing issues. If the toilet should not be working, this cabin is very near the public Ladies room. As for odor, being forewarned, I'll pack a jar of Vicks to put under my nose.

Meanwhile, I'll keep reading the reviews of the Veendam and sure do hope for the best.

[RuthC]

Air conditioning would not be a problem, since I'm basically going to cold weather places

Don't be so sure about that. I have done that cruise three times, and cruised many additional times in the same area.

The hottest cabin I ever endured was on the cruise that went up to the polar ice cap. That's a lot further north than the VoV goes.

Can't get too much colder than that while cruising.

[world~citizen]

...Not only a problem with Veendam but also a problem wiht management who seem unwilling to meet with customers. Never, ever heard of this in my carreer with dealing with customers and customer service. Guess it is a new approach to customer disatisfaction.

 

This has been going on for a long time and has gathered momentum. To read some accounts, HAL is raising this to the state of the art.

 

It has been a long standing concern of mine...if they don't listen to PAX, if they avoid them, how can they improve?

 

I am no longer a voice in the wilderness on this one...

[jars]

Some dear friends decided to try Holland America after our urging for a long time. Unfortunately, they chose Veendam, and ended up in a cabin with major sewage problems. They were given the run-around, so insisted on meeting with the hotel manager. They were told they had to make an appointment. They did, but never got to speak to the manager. Their impression was that no one seemed to care. They were given a $100 shipboard credit to compensate for their trouble. Hogwash!

 

Needless to say, they are done with Holland America. What's the old saying? You never get a second chance to make a first impression.

Sorry to hear of all your bad experiences on the Veendam.

We sailed on the Veendam 2 years ago from Beunos Aires around Cape Horn ending in Santiago. We had no problems at all, we had a cabin on the Lanai deck and enjoyed sailing on a smaller ship.

It's sad to hear that a Very Small Minority have problems and then it's blamed on the ship.

[sammiedawg]

Sorry to hear of all your bad experiences on the Veendam.

We sailed on the Veendam 2 years ago from Beunos Aires around Cape Horn ending in Santiago. We had no problems at all, we had a cabin on the Lanai deck and enjoyed sailing on a smaller ship.

It's sad to hear that a Very Small Minority have problems and then it's blamed on the ship.

 

Jams, with all due respect, we are way beyond the theory that a " small minority" is "blaming " problems on the ship. There is extensive documentation of problems in the front of the house ( A/C, plumbing) and in the back of the house (CDC inspection). These are real issues, I was on the ship March 2012 and we talked to people who had no A/C and others who had plumbing problems.

[kazu]

Sorry to hear of all your bad experiences on the Veendam.

We sailed on the Veendam 2 years ago from Beunos Aires around Cape Horn ending in Santiago. We had no problems at all, we had a cabin on the Lanai deck and enjoyed sailing on a smaller ship.

It's sad to hear that a Very Small Minority have problems and then it's blamed on the ship.

 

2 years is a long time - things happen and develop - and certainly appear to have on this ship - yes some still sail with no incident - but there are definitely issues and they must be dealt with. JMHO;)

[NYteacher]

My travel agent is on a cruise industry cruise (I want his job). He spoke to a HAL representative about my concerns about the ship. We had been booked on the Westbound Voyage of the Vikings. We went from thinking about doing the whole voyage, to canceling the westbound trip.

 

The HAL rep told him there had been significant staffing changes and have brought in a couple of their "best" senior officers. I'm glad HAL is aware of the issues, and is working to remedy them, but we will stay with our changed plans.

[madera1]

We were on the Veendam last week and we had problems with cabin temperature, plumbing, and dinner reservations. However, for the cabin temperature and dinner reservation issues, we found people who worked hard to solve the problems for us. The plumbing issue would be fixed and then recur again a day or two later. At one time our cabin steward told us that the toilets were not working in any of the cabins on our corridor. When we got back from our time in port it was fixed, for that time anyway.

While we would much rather not have had those problems (and they are causing us to consider trying some other lines) we at least felt that someone was listening and trying to make things better. It must have been very frustrating to be ignored!

 

What room number were you in with the plumbing so bad? We are going on the ship Feb. 20, 2013... hope it is not your old room!

[iancal]

Good on board hotel management will not solve the real problem with this ship.

 

The problem is engineering and maintenance.

 

HAL needs to take the time and invest the money to fix or bring the HVAC and Plumbing systems up to scratch. And while they are at it perhaps they could take down the netting over the MDR light fixture and actually repair the two year old damage.

 

It is not rocket science. Continuing to sell a percentage of sub standard space on each sailing will not enhance their reputation.....even with a change in the shipboard management team.

 

The problems will not go away by handing out more bottles of cheap plonk, more fans, or by giving those unfortunate cruisers a $100 future cruise credit on a cruise line that the may avoid in the future after such an experience.

 

HAL.....just fix the darn ship!

[mamaofami]

Good on board hotel management will not solve the real problem with this ship.

 

The problem is engineering and maintenance.

 

HAL needs to take the time and invest the money to fix or bring the HVAC and Plumbing systems up to scratch. And while they are at it perhaps they could take down the netting over the MDR light fixture and actually repair the two year old damage.

 

It is not rocket science. Continuing to sell a percentage of sub standard space on each sailing will not enhance their reputation.....even with a change in the shipboard management team.

 

The problems will not go away by handing out more bottles of cheap plonk, more fans, or by giving those unfortunate cruisers a $100 future cruise credit on a cruise line that the may avoid in the future after such an experience.

 

HAL.....just fix the darn ship!

 

Wish there was a like button. Actually, I think they plan to sell her and don't want to invist the millions it would cost to bring her up to speed.

[Bea3]

Am planning the Voyage of the Vikings for 2014- hope the ship changes.