Back from Veendam June 28 - July 5

[mskaufman]

Hi,

 

This was our 10th or 11th cruise. In the last five years we have cruised HAL, RCI, CCL and Princess so I can make some comparisons. This was generally a good cruise to Canada - New England. I have not looked at pictures but when I do I will post a link to them. Here are some notes:

 

Embarkation - Fairly straight forward. We were on by noon and I never saw a line of more than half a dozen folks to check in.

 

Disembarkation - Easiest.

 

Service - We read on previous reviews that the crew was unfriendly. That is probably the wrong word but the crew certainly was not outgoing. Passengers all noted that the service was not up to HAL standards. In the MDR waiters did not chat with us. I wouldn't let that ruin my vacation but it was a difference from any other cruise we have been on. Our cabin steward always chatted with us and asked how our day was. He also did an excellent job with our cabin.

 

Food - Another area where previous reviewers had mixed reviews. The food in the MDR was inconsistent. Some was great - other not so. Here is an example. One night someone at our table ordered a seafood pot pie. It came almost empty and there was calamari, which was not indicated on the menu and only one shrimp, which was supposed to be. It was returned for something else. Later we met someone on the elevator who said how good theirs was and that it was full of shrimp and no calamari. Inconsistent. Most od the food we had was very good.

 

Entertainment - Singers were all great. Dancers were an area that was cut. there were only two. However, the quality of the singers made up for it. They could all be on Broadway.

 

Anytime dining - A mess. You could only make reservations for 5:00, 5:30, 7:45 and 8:00 (like the regular seating times). You could walk up anytime, but generally had to wait. We have done anytime dining on all the cruise lines a mentioned at the beginning (including previously on HAL and were always able to show up any time and were able to get the server of our choice.

 

Plumbing/elevators - Previous cruisers had indicated problems in this area. We did not experience pluming problems. Of the eight elevators, one was always out of service. No big deal.

 

Please ask questions and I will answer the best I can.

Edited July 6, 2014 by mskaufman

[portofrome]

Thanks for the review.

[sail7seas]

Thanks for sharing with us.

What did you think of the ports? Any particularly appeal to you?

[puppycanducruise]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review.

[Susie51]

Thank you for your review.

[igloo810]

Thanks for the review. We will be sailing her next month.

 

 

Sent using the Cruise Critic forums app

[mskaufman]

Thanks for sharing with us.

What did you think of the ports? Any particularly appeal to you?

 

In Bar Harbor we did Olie's Trolley - Nice tour to Acadia NP

 

In Halifax we took a private tour to Peggy's Cove. Very picturesque.

 

In Sydney we went to the Louisbourg Fortress. If you have ever been to Williamsburg VA, it is very similar.

 

In PEI we did a tour to the coast

 

In Quebec we saw the changing of the Guard at the Citadelle and then walked around town.

 

We had a good time in all the ports, saw interesting sights and learned a lot about Canadian history.

 

Was there anything that is a must see. Not like if you went to Rome but everything was nice, calm and interesting.

[RJ2002]

Thanks for sharing your review.

[idiebabe]

Hi,

 

This was our 10th or 11th cruise. In the last five years we have cruised HAL, RCI, CCL and Princess so I can make some comparisons. This was generally a good cruise to Canada - New England. I have not looked at pictures but when I do I will post a link to them. Here are some notes:

 

Embarkation - Fairly straight forward. We were on by noon and I never saw a line of more than half a dozen folks to check in.

 

Disembarkation - Easiest.

 

Service - We read on previous reviews that the crew was unfriendly. That is probably the wrong word but the crew certainly was not outgoing. Passengers all noted that the service was not up to HAL standards. In the MDR waiters did not chat with us. I wouldn't let that ruin my vacation but it was a difference from any other cruise we have been on. Our cabin steward always chatted with us and asked how our day was. He also did an excellent job with our cabin.

 

Food - Another area where previous reviewers had mixed reviews. The food in the MDR was inconsistent. Some was great - other not so. Here is an example. One night someone at our table ordered a seafood pot pie. It came almost empty and there was calamari, which was not indicated on the menu and only one shrimp, which was supposed to be. It was returned for something else. Later we met someone on the elevator who said how good theirs was and that it was full of shrimp and no calamari. Inconsistent. Most od the food we had was very good.

 

Entertainment - Singers were all great. Dancers were an area that was cut. there were only two. However, the quality of the singers made up for it. They could all be on Broadway.

 

Anytime dining - A mess. You could only make reservations for 5:00, 5:30, 7:45 and 8:00 (like the regular seating times). You could walk up anytime, but generally had to wait. We have done anytime dining on all the cruise lines a mentioned at the beginning (including previously on HAL and were always able to show up any time and were able to get the server of our choice.

 

Plumbing/elevators - Previous cruisers had indicated problems in this area. We did not experience pluming problems. Of the eight elevators, one was always out of service. No big deal.

 

Please ask questions and I will answer the best I can.

 

Enjoyed your review as we did the same cruise a few weeks earlier!

 

The one area I have to disagree is the friendliness of the Crew. We found them to be extremely friendly! We had a great Waitstaff (we had Late Seating) and also thought the Servers in Ocean Bar (especially Jimella) and Crow's Nest were extremely friendly. Jimella, Leo , our Wine Steward, and our Wine Steward from Pinnacle were all in the Crew Show. They were so excited to have us see them perform!

 

We also found it a bit hit & miss with food in the MDR especially with regards to temperature and the Soups seemed watered down and the Onion Soup was warm but never hot. We were on Zaandam in March and Zuiderdam in January and thought the food was definitely better and more consistent. Overerall, Veendam's was good!

 

We also thought the Shows were very good especially Hilby the Skinny German Guy. Out of 50 plus cruises we thought he was by far the funniest Juggler/Comedian we have ever seen. We laughed so hard we ached! Also, Neil the fellow who did the Elton John concert put on a great show (and I'm not a huge Elton fan).

 

We also had a wonderful cruise and enjoyed the Ports! :)

[TracieABD]

Thank you for the review.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the report! Seafood pot pie? That's a me one on me.

[mskaufman]

I didn't have the seafood pot pie so I can't comment.

 

The juggler and the Elton John show were not on this cruise. The comedy was by Julie Barr and the EJ show was probably replaced by some Cape Breton fiddlers.

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for taking the time to write and post a review of your Veendam cruise.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for your review.

Seems that food is hit and miss on various ships.

[lolane1]

Hi,

 

This was our 10th or 11th cruise. In the last five years we have cruised HAL, RCI, CCL and Princess so I can make some comparisons. This was generally a good cruise to Canada - New England. I have not looked at pictures but when I do I will post a link to them. Here are some notes:

 

Embarkation - Fairly straight forward. We were on by noon and I never saw a line of more than half a dozen folks to check in.

 

Disembarkation - Easiest.

 

Service - We read on previous reviews that the crew was unfriendly. That is probably the wrong word but the crew certainly was not outgoing. Passengers all noted that the service was not up to HAL standards. In the MDR waiters did not chat with us. I wouldn't let that ruin my vacation but it was a difference from any other cruise we have been on. Our cabin steward always chatted with us and asked how our day was. He also did an excellent job with our cabin.

 

Food - Another area where previous reviewers had mixed reviews. The food in the MDR was inconsistent. Some was great - other not so. Here is an example. One night someone at our table ordered a seafood pot pie. It came almost empty and there was calamari, which was not indicated on the menu and only one shrimp, which was supposed to be. It was returned for something else. Later we met someone on the elevator who said how good theirs was and that it was full of shrimp and no calamari. Inconsistent. Most od the food we had was very good.

 

Entertainment - Singers were all great. Dancers were an area that was cut. there were only two. However, the quality of the singers made up for it. They could all be on Broadway.

 

Anytime dining - A mess. You could only make reservations for 5:00, 5:30, 7:45 and 8:00 (like the regular seating times). You could walk up anytime, but generally had to wait. We have done anytime dining on all the cruise lines a mentioned at the beginning (including previously on HAL and were always able to show up any time and were able to get the server of our choice.

 

Plumbing/elevators - Previous cruisers had indicated problems in this area. We did not experience pluming problems. Of the eight elevators, one was always out of service. No big deal.

 

Please ask questions and I will answer the best I can.

 

We were on the same cruise and I have to agree on some of the food issues. I thought the lido set up was not so good. Long lines for particular food items. And, for me, too much shellfish near other items I might have wanted. (shellfish allergy) so I had to avoid much of it. Quite of bit of it was unappealing perhaps the way it was displayed. Cesar salad, delicious. But could they cut those lemons near the tea any smaller? All of this being said, we ate mostly in the dining room for breakfast and lunch. It was by far the best selection of lunches in the dining room on any ship I have ever been on.

Quite an international choice of foods available for both breakfast and lunch. Excellent. Dinners were not as spectacular. However, nobody starved in the least.

 

As for friendliness of the staff, it was the best on all my cruises. Staff I didn't even know greeted me all over the ship, and sometimes called me by name. That was a bit scary.

 

Our first night in the dining room was unbelievably slow and painful. At two hours into the dinner, we were just getting our main dishes. The entire waitstaff was replaced the following night and it never was an issue again. And this is unbelievable, we got a call after room service delivery to make sure the food was up to our standards. Seriously nice.

 

Fourth of July barbecue had really good ribs. And I did like the french fries in the dive in, and the always present chips, guacamole, salsa, and sour cream.

 

I have to say that I prefer Princess for dinners and cafeteria style food but I thoroughly enjoyed my first cruise on HAL. What I particularly liked was the small size of the ship which provided a sort of warmth and congeniality. I will definitely be booking with HAL again.

[lolane1]

Oh, and FYI, once in Canada, Sydney and Quebec have free internet in the cruise terminals. I also found free wifi in Quebec in Paillard and also stopped in McDOnald's, not to eat,LOL, but get a quick internet fix before finding

Paillard's.

[Typhoon1]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

[sail7seas]

In Bar Harbor we did Olie's Trolley - Nice tour to Acadia NP

 

In Halifax we took a private tour to Peggy's Cove. Very picturesque.

 

In Sydney we went to the Louisbourg Fortress. If you have ever been to Williamsburg VA, it is very similar.

 

In PEI we did a tour to the coast

 

In Quebec we saw the changing of the Guard at the Citadelle and then walked around town.

 

We had a good time in all the ports, saw interesting sights and learned a lot about Canadian history.

 

Was there anything that is a must see. Not like if you went to Rome but everything was nice, calm and interesting.

 

Thank you.

I get a kick out of your Rome comment. Well put. Two entirely different experiences but both are wonderful, IMO.

 

 

 

 

Oh, and FYI, once in Canada, Sydney and Quebec have free internet in the cruise terminals. I also found free wifi in Quebec in Paillard and also stopped in McDOnald's, not to eat,LOL, but get a quick internet fix before finding

Paillard's.

 

Just want to add there is Free internet in the park across from tender deck in Bar Harbor, in cruise terminal in Sydney, Halifax, Charlottetown and Quebec City.

 

[mskaufman]

We found free wifi in most (maybe all) of the Canadian ports and were able to check emails and look up some things. Also, thanks for reminding me about the Dive In. Whatever we had from there was great. I don't eat meat but the mushroom sandwich was great. My DW says that the burgers and even the hot dogs were excellent.

[travlin]

I was on this cruise as well. I actually did a back to back starting the 21st. I have to agree 100% with the original poster on all points. I had early dining, and on both legs of the cruise, my tablemates mentioned the overworked staff and lack of friendliness. They were far from rude; they were just preoccupied. It won't keep me from cruising HAL again, but it was a marked change from previous HAL experiences.

[mskaufman]

On two of the seven nights the Head Waiter came over to help cover our table of four (since we had anytime dining there were different wait staffs). The Head Waiter was wonderful. He made sure that everything was order and was able to go into the kitchen and correct things quickly. He was also able to move things along. In the anytime dining area this seemed important since they need the tables to turn over to keep the lines shorter. When something was incorrect with the food (remember the seafood pot pie) he took detailed notes and said he would work with the kitchen staff to get things corrected.

[erewhon]

Thank you for reviewing your Veendam cruise.

[Keith1010]

Thanks for your report.

 

Keith

[mskaufman]

A couple of other things I thought of over night.

 

There was no CD on this cruise. There was an "event manager" and a "show host". Neither had the charisma of a good CD or did the full CD job. Maybe another cutback.

 

Folks at the front desk did a good job on the standard things (Card became demagnetized, need a copy of the account, etc.). If you needed help with general information (what time do the tenders start in Bar harbor?) it was more difficult to come by. One person at the desk told me I couldn't get a tender until 10:30 am. We kept going back until we found someone who knew the info (we were off by 8:30).

 

There was also some quality control issues with the daily schedule. When we were in Halifax some Sydney information was there.

[Lil' Baba]

Thank you for the review..

 

Did you notice if the main dinning room was open for lunch on port days?