Veendam

[Ginnyjen]

Just my thoughts...........Being a 4 star mariner, I have been on many HAL ships, but I just have to say the Veendam was not one of my faves. I was on the 15 day Panama Canal trip in late March early April. The best part of the cruise were the dining staff, so welcoming and attentive, made it a pleasure every night. I was invited to dinner with the Hotel Manager which was very enjoyable. Never saw the Captain.....who on other cruises has always been visable. Usually, music is played in the Lido pool at lunch time by the Hal Cats, but they only had music a couple of days at the beginning of the cruise. The shows and activities were just ok, rarely saw the Cruise Director. I realize that HAL caters to a more senior crowd (which I am ), but something about this cruise was really lacking. We were planning to do a New England trip, but the Veendam is scheduled for that time. so we will pass. I can't put my finger on it, but something was just not right.

[sugarcharlie]

Just my thoughts...........Being a 4 star mariner, I have been on many HAL ships, but I just have to say the Veendam was not one of my faves. I was on the 15 day Panama Canal trip in late March early April. The best part of the cruise were the dining staff, so welcoming and attentive, made it a pleasure every night. I was invited to dinner with the Hotel Manager which was very enjoyable. Never saw the Captain.....who on other cruises has always been visable. Usually, music is played in the Lido pool at lunch time by the Hal Cats, but they only had music a couple of days at the beginning of the cruise. The shows and activities were just ok, rarely saw the Cruise Director. I realize that HAL caters to a more senior crowd (which I am ), but something about this cruise was really lacking. We were planning to do a New England trip, but the Veendam is scheduled for that time. so we will pass. I can't put my finger on it, but something was just not right.

 

Sorry to hear that as I am considering a Veendam New England back to back from Boston. You could always do the Maasdam which I did last year and enjoyed.

 

Wasn't your cruise right before the scheduled dry dock? Perhaps things have improved afterwards.

 

Was your cabin ok? Any plumbing, AC problems or anything specific or just as you said " something just didn't feel right"?

 

Maybe someone who has been on her during the last couple trips can add some insight.

[Krazy Kruizers]

We are way past 5 star mariners and we have noticed a lot changes as well.

Rarely do we see the captain or hotel manager. Same thing with the CD as we no longer do a lot of activities -- some of them are at weird times like while we were having dinner.

[erewhon]

Just my thoughts...........Being a 4 star mariner, I have been on many HAL ships, but I just have to say the Veendam was not one of my faves. I was on the 15 day Panama Canal trip in late March early April. The best part of the cruise were the dining staff, so welcoming and attentive, made it a pleasure every night. I was invited to dinner with the Hotel Manager which was very enjoyable. Never saw the Captain.....who on other cruises has always been visable. Usually, music is played in the Lido pool at lunch time by the Hal Cats, but they only had music a couple of days at the beginning of the cruise. The shows and activities were just ok, rarely saw the Cruise Director. I realize that HAL caters to a more senior crowd (which I am ), but something about this cruise was really lacking. We were planning to do a New England trip, but the Veendam is scheduled for that time. so we will pass. I can't put my finger on it, but something was just not right.

 

Thanks for your comments.

Who was the Captain?

[mskaufman]

We are on Veendam next month. Hopefully we will have a positive post when we get back.

[Shmoo here]

We were on the Veendam last Oct/Nov Boston to San Diego (21 nights). We only saw the Captain and Hotel Director at the Mariner's lunch. But, then, we weren't looking for them. The captain changed partway through the cruise for about 4 (maybe 5) days because he had to go take care of some personal business. We did have the environmental officer and his wife join us for dinner one night in the dining room. That was a lot of fun and quite informative.

 

We had music every day at the pool. Sometimes the HALcats, sometimes the guitar player (we had 2 different ones during our cruise). We also loved our dining team.

 

We enjoyed our time on the Veendam, and we'll likely take her again on a different cruise.

[Ginnyjen]

Sugar charlie..............the cabin was great as were the stewards, no plumbing or ac problems and the ship was very clean.......and yes, we were on the last cruise before the drydock. Please don't get me wrong, it was a very enjoyable cruise........but after cruising for so many years I really do notice the cutbacks, but the staff try their hardest to please and they truly do succeed.

[sugarcharlie]

Sugar charlie..............the cabin was great as were the stewards, no plumbing or ac problems and the ship was very clean.......and yes, we were on the last cruise before the drydock. Please don't get me wrong, it was a very enjoyable cruise........but after cruising for so many years I really do notice the cutbacks, but the staff try their hardest to please and they truly do succeed.

 

Cruise prices have been cut so much it is amazing there aren't more cutbacks. Years ago only the well to do could afford cruise travel and now it is available to the masses. Let's see in 1967 a Caribbean cruise was about $2700. Today you can do one for $799!!

 

To put it in perspective I am looking at a New England from Boston for 14 days that is $899, or approximately $65 a day. One night in Boston before the cruise is running $275. I'm not sure if it includes breakfast.

 

As long as I can travel in comfort, have entertainment, meals and ports of interest to visit I'll not complain about being charged $1.95 for a can of soda or cappuccino I used to get for free when I paid three times as much for the cruise.

[igraf]

We have been on both the Veendam (2014) and the Maasdam (2012), and found them be very similar. I really don't care if I meet the captain or not.

 

igraf

 

 

 

Sorry to hear that as I am considering a Veendam New England back to back from Boston. You could always do the Maasdam which I did last year and enjoyed. ...

[rkacruiser]

We have been on both the Veendam (2014) and the Maasdam (2012), and found them be very similar. I really don't care if I meet the captain or not.

 

igraf

 

Agree that the two ships are alike, except for what was done to the aft pool area on the Veendam and her stern.

 

But, when the "bosses" are about and all--crew as well as guests--see them, that management style translates into people doing their jobs as they ought to be done.

 

That is to my benefit as a guest.

Edited May 11, 2014 by rkacruiser

[igraf]

Agreed, but why attribute that to the ship? Ship personnel come and go. The ship remains the same (at least for a while).

 

igraf

 

 

 

...But, when the "bosses" are about and all--crew as well as guests--see them, that management style translates into people doing their jobs as they ought to be done.

 

That is to my benefit as a guest.

[Boatdrill]

Just my thoughts........... I have been on many HAL ships, but I just have to say the Veendam was not one of my faves. I was on the 15 day Panama Canal trip in late March early April. ....I realize that HAL caters to a more senior crowd (which I am ), but something about this cruise was really lacking. I can't put my finger on it, but something was just not right.

 

I was on the same cruise, and couldn't agree more. Had it been my first HAL cruise, I'm not sure I would return.

 

The attitude of the staff was unlike any other HAL ship. It was if they had simply had enough of attempting any kind of customer service and it was every man for himself. Numerous over charging of drink orders, arguing with guests about their dinner order: "You DID order the pate !" "No I ordered the shrimp." "No, you ordered the PATE." Now the entire table: "She ordered the shrimp !!" This kind of back-and-forth between guest and staff happened more than once in different places.

It didn't happen to me personally, but I was a witness or overheard it.

 

One evening I wasn't going to make it my 2nd seating table for dinner, so I called the front desk and asked to be connected to the dining room to let them know. The call went through, and I told the man who answered the phone that I wouldn't be coming to dinner, and gave him my table #. He thanked me for calling and telling them. The next night our waiter said no one told him I wasn't coming. I said I had called. He replied that wasn't possible because the front desk is instructed not to put calls through to the dining room. But they did put the call through and I'm sorry he didn't get the message. Again he said that the front desk doesn't put calls through. I gave up at that point.

 

In Port: Last minute changes in the All Aboard time while in port. Costa Rica: originally due to sail at 6 pm. Night before, the time is changed to a 5:00 sailing, all aboard at 4:30pm. While passengers are ashore, word comes via port agent that the captain wants to sail early, and new all aboard time is now 3:45. Guests rush back to ship. But the last shore excursion returned late, so the ship sailed at 5:00pm as scheduled.

 

All aboard time also changed shortly after arrival in Corinto (shortened by 30 minutes).

 

Shore Ex: All tours met ashore, none in the public lounges onboard. This caused heavy congestion and long delays in getting off the ship as hundreds of guests attempted to get down the stairs to the gangway all at the same time. The backup was 3-4 decks up. The CD was told of the problem after the first time, and his reply: "I've never seen so many people trying to get off a ship." Nothing was changed. This was a safety issue that should have been taken care of. After a few more days of this and more complaints, a multi-star Mariner mentioned the problem to the HD. The HD responded "That's the way we always do it." The seasoned Mariner showed the HD his new medallion hanging around his neck and said "No, it's not."

 

There are other things that happened as well, but you get the picture. The itinerary was great; the staff attitude, not so much. It was VERY unusual for HAL.

 

(Apologies for the length of this post)

[travlin]

I will be on the Veendam for a 14 day in June/July. It will be my first time with her. These reports trouble me...especially the excursions meeting at the dock. I took my first trip with Royal Caribbean in March. They too met on the dock. It was awful. The lines were backed up as is described above. That was one reason I said I would probably not sail again with Royal. Is this a new trend with all cruise lines? If so, I wonder why? The crush of people getting off is dangerous, and at the very least, creates ugliness among the passengers before even getting off the ship. I am not as seasoned a HAL cruiser as most of you (this will be my 4th), but I never experienced this type of experience with them before. If it is the trend, I am disappointed.

[mllewis48]

Sorry you feel the way you do but we have cruised on many Dam ships and just returned from the 9 day reposition from Ft Lauderdale to Quebec City. As an "almost 5 Star Mariner" we enjoyed the Veendam, its crew, the CD was fantastic, and saw the Captain many times including our Mariner luncheon and the private party in the Crow's Nest. This trip was post Dry Dock and the ship, in our opinion, was in great shape.

 

We realize that the level of service has diminished over the past years but still acceptable to our liking, you make the best of what you receive and enjoy the trip. I'm sure other cruise lines have done the same.

 

Hope you give HAL another try but if not that's okay also.

 

Good Luck

[Boatdrill]

Sorry you feel the way you do but we have cruised on many Dam ships and just returned from the 9 day reposition from Ft Lauderdale to Quebec City. As an "almost 5 Star Mariner" we enjoyed the Veendam, its crew, the CD was fantastic, and saw the Captain many times including our Mariner luncheon and the private party in the Crow's Nest. This trip was post Dry Dock and the ship, in our opinion, was in great shape.

 

 

I'm happy to hear that the repositioning cruise went well. There was some thought that the Panama Canal cruise issues were due to the imminent dry dock, scheduled to begin the day we arrived in Ft. Lauderdale. Whatever it was, something was amiss.

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

We were on the Veendam for 28 days in August and September and again for 47 days beginning in late January. We like the ship and the crew, and never had a problem with customer service at the Front Desk or any where else. Once, the waiter brought the wrong appetizer, and after checking his order pad, said that was what I ordered. If you look closely at their order pads, it seems it would be easy to mark the wrong line as they are so close together.

 

I believe the atmosphere on the ship starts with the captain and works its way down even though the crew are always friendly and hard working. On our summer cruise, there was a change of captains after the first week, and there was also a noticeable change in the atmosphere. The new captain only made one of three mariner receptions and we only saw him at the welcome aboard toast and the one receptions.

 

Fortunately, we had the first captain on the winter cruise. There was a change of captains the day we disembarked, so that might explain the difference reported by the op.

[igraf]

I wouldn't worry. We never experienced anything as described on this thread on our very pleasant March 2014 cruise on the Veendam. In fact, we have NEVER had a waiter argue with us in eight HAL cruises. Not in the slightest bit.

 

You will not have disembarkation problems on the much smaller Veendam.

 

Enjoy your cruise. I recommend traditional fixed-seating dinners for the very best service. Keep in mind that positive people tend to have a good time, while other people tend to cause problems (and then complain).

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

I will be on the Veendam for a 14 day in June/July. It will be my first time with her. These reports trouble me...especially the excursions meeting at the dock. I took my first trip with Royal Caribbean in March. They too met on the dock. It was awful. The lines were backed up as is described above. That was one reason I said I would probably not sail again with Royal. Is this a new trend with all cruise lines? If so, I wonder why? The crush of people getting off is dangerous, and at the very least, creates ugliness among the passengers before even getting off the ship. I am not as seasoned a HAL cruiser as most of you (this will be my 4th), but I never experienced this type of experience with them before. If it is the trend, I am disappointed.

[Boatdrill]

I will be on the Veendam for a 14 day in June/July. .... These reports trouble me...especially the excursions meeting at the dock. I took my first trip with Royal Caribbean in March. They too met on the dock. It was awful. The lines were backed up as is described above. That was one reason I said I would probably not sail again with Royal. Is this a new trend with all cruise lines? If so, I wonder why? The crush of people getting off is dangerous, and at the very least, creates ugliness among the passengers before even getting off the ship.

 

Part of the stairway problem with the Veendam on the Panama Canal cruise was the very warm air coming in from the outside, via the open door/gangway in each port. It overcame the air conditioning on the stairwells, and so with hundreds of people packed together, it became uncomfortable very quickly. Those passengers who could not stand for long periods or needed assistance used the elevators, but once on A deck, had to join the wait among the throng trying to get to the gangway. It was a very congested area. Everyone was very friendly, as we all knew it was a ridiculous situation.

 

This only happened with morning shore excursions. In Costa Rica, there were 12 tours all leaving at the same time (8:30). The buses hold 44 people. You can imagine the back-up.

 

One reason for this scheme is perhaps having passengers meet in the public lounges would use staff that are needed some place else, or shore ex. believes it's more efficient to have tours meet on the pier. In any case, no reason was given, and it was allowed to continue despite complaints. Only in our last port (Cartagena) did the CD ask that people not crowd the stairwells. Why ? Because "for the first time on the cruise" the local immigration officials were coming onboard to clear the ship, and that would take a few minutes.

 

Everyone agreed that this was not the way it's been done in the past, and were quite surprised that it was allowed to continue. The safety concerns were obvious.

 

It certainly didn't ruin the cruise, and it wasn't enough of an issue not to cruise with HAL again. The way around it is to book tours that leave after the morning rush. :)

Edited May 12, 2014 by Boatdrill

[rbp3072]

Like another poster above, I too was just on the Veendam for the 9 day repo from Fort Lauderdale to Quebec. Overall, I was highly impressed. Here's some cut/copy/pasting from a review I am still working on to email to HAL.

 

************

 

To Whom It May Concern -

 

I have just returned from a 9-Day cruise on the Veendam that I took my mother on to celebrate Mother's Day, (9-Day Canada & NE Discovery, Booking # ******). I would like to provide feedback, in the hopes that this helps Holland America Line to improve their offerings.

 

First, I would like to mention a few positive experiences that stood out for us:

 

1> Our Room Steward, "Dwi", was a true blessing. He was courteous, polite, and saw to our every need. He quickly learned our schedule, and managed to adjust when we deviated from it. He was very thoughtful when we were dealing with some environmental issues that occurred during the cruise as well, (see below under negatives). Our experience would not have been the same without Dwi being assigned to our cabin.

 

2> We ate at the Lido on a regular basis, and observed virtually all of the staff going above and beyond. A few of them stood out even more however. On a constant basis, we observed both "Nanang Kosim", as well as "Hendra", (both Assistant Lido Stewards), going out of their way to brighten the day of various passengers. They personally made sure my mother could locate me on several occasions, and always had a smile on their faces. Nanang seemed quite good and flashing a smile while using his charisma to put many of the passengers at ease. He was also very accommodating in helping me practice my Bahasa Indonesian. He taught me several phrases, and helped me with my pronunciation of the words I was having issues with. I truly hope there is no hesitation when it comes time to renew their contracts.

 

3> Related to the Lido, the food was excellent on this cruise. But what stood out, yet again, was the staff. In particular, "Christine" and "Jomar", who kept the staff behind the counter lively and energetic. It was not uncommon for them to break out singing random tunes. They were quite good, and it got the guests energized and happy when they would sing. They never 'over-did' it though, and seemed to know when to settle back down. Many times we heard large amounts of applause from diners as we all ate and they serenaded us. Kudos to them for having some fun, and bringing all of us along for the ride.

 

4> The itinerary was excellent, as were the shore excursions we attended, (which were all booked direct through HAL). We were particularly fond of the Lulu-Boat Lobster Ride in Bar Harbor, ME, and the Seafood Chef in PEI.

 

5> The Entertainment was fabulous on the Veendam. We both fell in love with Paul's performances. He was a highlight to some of our evenings, and I only wish we had seen much, much more of him. In fact, HAL should really consider having cast photos/autographs in the signature shops. A nice way to both get extra money from passengers, and something that more than a few would likely purchase if they are impressed with the performers. His energy, voice, dancing, and charisma was amazing. In addition to Paul, we loved when Michael would start belting out with that deep operatic voice of his. Both of these guys need to be offered new contracts for much more than they are likely getting.

 

6> We learned the last night of the cruise that the Front Desk staff had advised Seattle about our AC/Heat issues, (see below under negatives). We had a letter in our 'mail' stating that they were sorry for the situation, and were providing us an OBC in the amount of $240. We were not expecting that, nor had we asked for anything in our favor from the situation we were placed in. The fact that HAL took this approach, without us asking, speaks volumes to the front desk staff in how they track and handle these types of things. (See note later on about 'paying it forward').

 

I have a 'Neutral" comment as well:

 

1> The morning of our last sea day, I went to the front office and filled out an adjustment form for our Hotel Service Charge. I increased it to what I felt was an acceptable amount, given what I had budgeted. I returned that evening when I learned of the OBC being issued from the AC/Heat situation, and asked for my form back so I could make another adjustment. (In my opinion, this was money I had already 'spent' and budgeted for, so I had no problem just passing this along to the hard-working staff, and I still would've done more if my finances allowed).

 

When I got my form back, the desk staff had circled my previously adjusted daily HSC, and wrote something to the effect of, "Yes, this is real" with a smiley face. I asked the current desk agent about it. I was shocked to learn about people who don't just leave the HSC at the standard level, but even more-so that there are people who completely remove it. I understand now why they were so happy when a passenger adjusts the HSC when they feel the service dictates it. I know the majority of the staff, (non-officers), work ridiculously long hours for weeks and months on end and for meager wages. (For the record, I would happily pay more for a cruise if it meant there was finally an official adoption across all the cruise lines for a standardized set of minimum wages and benefits, but that is another issue).

 

Regardless, I was happy to do my part, however small it may be. I only hope that more passengers show their appreciation to these men and women.

 

Unfortunately, we had a few negative experiences as well. I have listed these below:

 

1> A fellow passenger organized a "Meet and Greet" for an estimated 50 passengers from CruiseCritic. It was to take place the morning of our first sea day in the Crow's Nest. Like many Meet & Greets, several folks did not show. However, we certainly didn't think that some of the no-shows would be the officers of the ship. The only participation HAL did was bring out a tray of cookies from the Lido, and have our Cruise Director Mario, as well as an Officer from the Entertainment Dept come out. While every ship and how it is run varies, I was certainly surprised that we didn't have any other officers, crew, or staff make an appearance to tell us about their departments, daily duties, etc. Especially for a group from CruiseCritic, which obviously tells their experiences to other cruisers out there looking for feedback on a ship or company.

 

2> Upon entering our suite the first day, it was observed to be incredibly hot. We notified the front desk, and they stated they would have one of the engineers take a look. By the time we went to sleep later that night, it had been fixed, and we had nice cold-blowing air circulating through our room. However, this was actually a bad thing, as once we began working our way north up the eastern seaboard, the heat refused to activate. The lights would be lit up red, and air would be circulating, but it was only chilled air from the AC system.

 

We made 5 calls and visits to the front desk over the course of several days, and the engineer came by a few times. Finally, after 5 days of freezing temperatures in our room, the heater was successfully repaired. We got to spend the last night in comfort. During this ordeal, our Room Steward made sure we had several extra blankets. Despite this, we still had to sleep in our clothing underneath the covers. My mother developed a minor 'cold' from the cold temperatures, but nothing too severe thank goodness.

 

While this was a very aggravating situation, we certainly understand that our vessel is going on 20 years old. However, reading that there have been constant issues with her heat/AC system the last few years on key cruise-related forums, as well as hearing from several other passengers on board of heating/AC issues they were experiencing the same time we were, made it apparent that the system needs to really be looked at the next time a major renovation is done.

 

We were very pleasantly surprised by the OBC that was issued the last night of our cruise though, as notated in the 'positive section'.

 

In summary, this was a very memorable cruise for both my mother and myself. I would not hesitate to repeat it. While we are only two-star mariners at this point, I can easily see us rising in the ranks. (Provided of course HAL finally revamps/updates their Mariner program, and gives better Mariner-Only perks like other lines do with their own programs, and stops diluting the existing perks. We enjoyed it enough that we booked a future cruise while on-board, (a 13-Day Passage to America, Booking # ******). I look forward to cruising with Holland America Line again.

 

Sincerely,

 

Me

[Boatdrill]

Once, the waiter brought the wrong appetizer, and after checking his order pad, said that was what I ordered. If you look closely at their order pads, it seems it would be easy to mark the wrong line as they are so close together.

 

But the waiter should never have disputed the issue with you. If he puts down food in front of you, and you say you didn't order it, his response to you should be to quickly apologize and ask what you did order. Then remove the food, and go get what you wanted.

 

No back-and-forth. None. Never.

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

But the waiter should never have disputed the issue with you. If he puts down food in front of you, and you say you didn't order it, his response to you should be to quickly apologize and ask what you did order. Then remove the food, and go get what you wanted.

 

No back-and-forth. None. Never.

 

We did not go back and forth since the appetizer he brought was acceptable. An assistant waiter brought the food, but he was not the one who took the order. As it was the first night and I knew it had been hectic, I chose not to start a back and forth. I just enjoyed the food served, and ordered the other one on the next segment.

 

My point in response to the other post about wrong orders was to point out that errors can occur by accident with the close spacing on the order pads the waiters us.

[erewhon]

rbp3072,

 

Thank you for your Veendam cruise review.

 

Yes, the staff are always pleased when passengers increase the daily Hotel Service charge,......... it is so easy to do.

[tigger-ttfn]

Sorry you feel the way you do but we have cruised on many Dam ships and just returned from the 9 day reposition from Ft Lauderdale to Quebec City. As an "almost 5 Star Mariner" we enjoyed the Veendam, its crew, the CD was fantastic, and saw the Captain many times including our Mariner luncheon and the private party in the Crow's Nest. This trip was post Dry Dock and the ship, in our opinion, was in great shape.

 

We realize that the level of service has diminished over the past years but still acceptable to our liking, you make the best of what you receive and enjoy the trip. I'm sure other cruise lines have done the same.

 

Hope you give HAL another try but if not that's okay also.

 

Good Luck

Also just off this cruise had dinner with a couple who had pipe break in their bathroom. also another couple at our meet and mingle also had a pipe break. we had toilet, shower problemsand safe problems. also heard there were elevator problems. alot for a ship right out of dry dock. All this didn't effect our cruise. had a great time.

Edited May 13, 2014 by tigger-ttfn

[mskaufman]

Wow, I was hoping the reviews would improve before our cruise next month.

[shoresofsuperior]

Also just off this cruise had dinner with a couple who had pipe break in their bathroom. also another couple at our meet and mingle also had a pipe break. we had toilet, shower problemsand safe problems. also heard there were elevator problems. alot for a ship right out of dry dock. All this didn't effect our cruise. had a great time.

 

Yikes - a lot of water problems! Did there appear to be a specific area on the ship or deck number which was most affected?

Glad you had fun despite the floods...