Veendam--8/22-8/29 Where do I begin?

[richstan]

I literally just got home from a WONDERFUL week on the Veendam!

 

We were a group of 5 all in our 40's and 50's. I have been on 35 cruises and my travelmates have been on at least 4 cruises---It was all of our first time on Holland America and we all agreed that it was one of the best cruises ever!

 

Embarkation was a breeze, we were on the ship in less than 30 minutes. I had a veranda cabin and my mates had a lanai cabin. I loved the lanai cabin and was sorry I didn't save some money and book that instead of the veranda suite.

 

Food was great. We had dinner one night in the Pinnacle Grill--well worth the charge. We had 2 dinners in the Lido restaurant---I am usually a Lido snob when it comes to dinnner, but pleasantly surprised at both the food and Lido service experience. MDR was fantastic! We usually had brakfast and lunch on the Lido deck.

 

The shows were some of the best I have ever seen a sea---the talent was unbelievable.

 

Thankfully we didn't experience any of the air conditioning problems that have been written on these boards---My cabin (146) was never freezing cold--but always quite comfortable. The public areas all seemed fine.

 

Bermuda is as beautuful as ever. While the other passengers were off shopping and snorkling I chose to stay on the Veendam and make beleive it was my own private yacht.

 

My one and only complaint was room service. I ordered breakfast one morning and after waiting 90 minutes had to cancel due to a cooking class I had signed up for. The other time was waiting over an hour for a club sandwich. Missing a meal and a partial snack was probally good for me anyway--LOL!

 

The ship itself was gorgeous and elegant. Yes! There were a few tiles missing from the Retreat area--I looked the other way and didn't let it ruin my vacation!

 

The crew was amazing!

 

There has been a lot of negative things written about the Veendam on these boards and for about 2 seconds I questioned my choice in booking it----I was glad to embark with an open mind and disembark having had one of the best cruises of my life!

 

Holland America, I'll be back!

[IRL_Joanie]

Great to read another in a list of Great reviews for Veendam!!

 

So I guess you no longer will be a :D"Lido Snob":D

 

Welcome home!!

 

Joanie

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome Home!!

 

Glad you had a wonderful cruise on the Veendam.

 

Maybe HAL is working on all those "problems".

[babygirl722]

So glad you enjoyed your cruise as much as we did 2 weeks ago! Welcome home!

[aliaschief]

Another favorable review for the MS Veendam. Glad you enjoyed your cruise and thanks for telling us about it.

[aliaschief]

On my earlier post I forgot to ask. Did you encounter rough seas with all the storm activity in the Atlantic?

[Colakid]

Welcome back. Just wondering if you met any great people on the Veendam and now that you said you are new to HAL you will repeat. Just off myself and need to find my sea legs. Colakid.

[Luvmesomeme]

Thank you so much for your review. You have given so many of us who have not yet sailed so much encouragement & hope. You have also encouraged me with your comments about the lanai as I will be in onein a few short weeks.

[aliaschief]

Welcome back. Just wondering if you met any great people on the Veendam and now that you said you are new to HAL you will repeat. Just off myself and need to find my sea legs. Colakid.

 

Welcome home Colakid and our best to PolarBear_Mom.

[shandryl]

Welcome home richstan!! :D A very positive review and very glad to hear you had a wonderful time. (I made believe that the Noordam was very own private yacht Too!! Nice to know I am not the only one!! LOL

[retiredkid]

so happy and relieved to read your wonderful review.

as stated already, gives us hope for our cruise in three weeks.

thanks so much

[richstan]

Welcome back. Just wondering if you met any great people on the Veendam and now that you said you are new to HAL you will repeat. Just off myself and need to find my sea legs. Colakid.

 

We did meet a family from Canada----they were okay-----eh!

Ahhhhh Rowland---not even 24 hours ago we were chatting on the Lido Deck watching the sea and sky!

Hope to see you again---soon!

[Bridget.bradshaw]

I'm so glad I read your review! I am on the 9/5 sailing, and staying in cabin 146 as well. I was starting to worry about the a/c problems, after having stayed in a hotel with a terrible a/c issue just a month ago! The cruise was booked spontaneously by my father only a few weeks ago, so he never looked at any reviews and is completely unaware of any problems we may face, so I am pleased to know that this one issue won't be an issue for us.

[Coolcruise02]

Glad to hear you had a great cruise! :)

[HeatherInFlorida]

So glad you had a positive experience on the Veendam which is what I would expect as long as you didn't have A/C problems (and no one ever said those issues were throughout the ship).

 

During all the controversy I pointed out, as did others, that no one should ever consider cancelling a cruise based on what they read on CC. You see a few people posting who, over a period of several years, had a problem and you get the feeling every cabin is either freezing or boiling. It's just not the case.

 

Veendam is a perfect size ship (IMO) with a wonderful crew and Bermuda is amazing so what's not to like:)? (although I'm just as glad I'm not on her this week:eek:).

[portofrome]

Thanks for the review.