How's the Veendam These Days?

[startwin]

I've been very fortunate to find some extra "mad money", and with a need to just "do it now while we can" am thinking of adding one full cruise to another. The Veendam has a perfect 15-day from San Diego to FLL through the Panama at the end of March, getting to FLL on Apr 15th. And then we board the Zuiderdam on the 18th and come all the way back through the Panama and on to Vancouver. It would be a perfect vacation for us - and possibly our last as DH's insurance costs are going through the roof.:eek: Also, it would eliminate a lot of flying for us if we don't have to fly to FLL. San Diego is just a short flight away.

 

I haven't booked it yet, but am very tempted. The Veendam was my first HAL ship and I have a real soft spot for her, but there have been negative comments in the past. Is anyone recently back from a cruise on her?

[silvercruiser]

Veendam was wonderful on the Voyage of the Vikings cruise that ended Aug. 17. The ship was in great shape and I had the best cabin ever after I took an upsell to one of the aft-facing Terrace Suites. The ship is a perfect size, smallish, but large enough to offer lots of things to do. You'll love it!

[RuthC]

With the exception of the aft Retreat area, which I totally hate, I didn't have any problems whatsoever on the Veendam last January. I enjoyed every aspect of the cruise thoroughly. I thought my food and service in the Pinnacle was the best I have ever had on any ship/cruise, although others were just fine.

One thing about the Veendam that I don't like, is the number of lanai cabins, and how they take away most of the prime seating in my favorite sitting space. There are more lanai cabins on the Veendam than on the Maasdam, and it shows.

If you're not interested in sitting out there, then that's not a problem for you.

I do believe that some areas had A/C problems, but I don't know how extensive that problem was, or the current status.

[sail7seas]

Retreat is AWFUL but aside from that the ship is in better condition than we expected and we found her to have a great crew.

 

We enjoyed our brief seven days on her in August and would happily sail her again on an itinerary where we didn't need/want an outdoor pool.

 

Bad enough there is no pool but the ugly hot tubs they dropped there block the view. :(

 

Food was among the best we've had on recent HAL cruises.

 

[Linda&Vern]

I've been very fortunate to find some extra "mad money", and with a need to just "do it now while we can" am thinking of adding one full cruise to another. The Veendam has a perfect 15-day from San Diego to FLL through the Panama at the end of March, getting to FLL on Apr 15th. And then we board the Zuiderdam on the 18th and come all the way back through the Panama and on to Vancouver. It would be a perfect vacation for us - and possibly our last as DH's insurance costs are going through the roof.:eek: Also, it would eliminate a lot of flying for us if we don't have to fly to FLL. San Diego is just a short flight away.

 

I haven't booked it yet, but am very tempted. The Veendam was my first HAL ship and I have a real soft spot for her, but there have been negative comments in the past. Is anyone recently back from a cruise on her?

Eliminating a lot of the flying would count for a lot on my pro/con spreadsheet! :D Given your home location I think it is a perfect trip. I am jealous. ;) Should you decide not to use that "mad money" I could help you out there. I say go for it.

[dfish]

My last two cruises have been on the Veendam and I enjoyed both very much. I was on her for 17 days in January of 2011 for a South America/Antarctica trip. That was shortly after all the complaints poured in about AC and other issues. I did not encounter any problems and we had wonderful service in all parts of the ship.

 

My last one was in August and we were in an inside cabin in the bowels of the ship. AC worked fine, toilet flushed each time and as soon as we pressed the button. We also thought the food in the MDR was good and enjoyed two meals in the Pinnacle Grill with excellent service.

 

I would not hesitate to book another cruise on the Veendam.

 

Debbie

[scdreamer]

We were on the Veendam for a seven-day new England/Canada cruise a few weeks ago - found the crew and service to be great, food was very good, and public areas of the ship were well maintained.

 

We were on deck 6 aft in an OV, and the a/c did not work the entire time we were onboard. Others in that area of the ship said they experienced the same. It was stuffy and very warm in our cabin, even though the temps outside were quite cool. Not the best sleeping conditions.

[JessWright]

The Veendam is currently in the Bahamas in dry dock. It is there for 2 weeks, which ends either this coming Thursday or Friday, then to So. America. I took the identical 2 week cruise from San Diego to Ft. Lauderdale (9/19 - 10/3) before the ship went into dry dock. I had the best time, and am eager to try the route again next fall when it leaves Alaska to FLL. One of the officers gave a talk for more than an hour about the updates and comprehensive changes to the Veendam, including the awful sound system. The changes will be similar to those made on the Volendam. Do go!

[RuthC]

The Veendam is currently in the Bahamas in dry dock. It is there for 2 weeks, which ends either this coming Thursday or Friday, then to So. America. I took the identical 2 week cruise from San Diego to Ft. Lauderdale (9/19 - 10/3) before the ship went into dry dock. I had the best time, and am eager to try the route again next fall when it leaves Alaska to FLL. One of the officers gave a talk for more than an hour about the updates and comprehensive changes to the Veendam, including the awful sound system. The changes will be similar to those made on the Volendam. Do go!

Huh? What changes to the Volendam? There haven't been any fundamental changes to that ship.

And as far as the thread on the current location of the fleet, the Veendam is sailing, not in dry dock.

[Shmoo here]

Huh? What changes to the Volendam? There haven't been any fundamental changes to that ship.

And as far as the thread on the current location of the fleet, the Veendam is sailing, not in dry dock.

 

My underline - I certainly hope so, we're planning on boarding her on Saturday in Boston! :rolleyes:

[rafinmd]

It's the Zaandam in drydock, not the Veendam. I was on the Veendam August 17-24 (same cruise as dfish) and found the ship and crew excellent.

 

Roy

[startwin]

Thanks for the responses. Generally favourable, so this is looking good. Now to sell the idea to DH:D I think it's the perfect solution - short flight straight down the coast to SD vs 2 flights to FLL. Then, spoiled and pampered for 15 days to FLL, 2 full days in FLL, and another 22 days back to Vancouver, spoiled and pampered - it's a no brainer!

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

I also say go for it. Besides the big plus of one short flight, and extra 15 days on a ship -- what's not to like with that idea. We were on the Veendam from August 24 to September 21 (two b-2-b 14 days cruises to avoid the heat in Texas) and found the ship in good condition with a very friendly crew. The food in the MDR was good, and except for the the steaks in the Pinnacle, so was the food there and for Le Cirque.

 

We had some problems with the a/c the last week, but part of that was the man who worked on the a/c one day closed off the cold air vent. Once it was open, we had no more problems and were able to control the temperature.

 

I agree with Ruth C about the Retreat with it's hot tubs and the lanai cabins. Still, we managed to enjoy the aft Lido deck in spite of the limited view.

 

We would definitely sail on her again.

[silvercruiser]

Ruth, I totally agree about the Retreat. What a waste of space. However, the aft mini-suites added above were worth it to anyone staying in one. As a solo, I hadn't had any kind of balcony in three years, when DH could no longer travel. As a solo my upsell price was also double, but it was sheer heaven to spend 35 days looking out at the sea from an aft view. And so I just didn't miss the absence of the back pool that made these cabins possible. Peter Bos was also the best captain I've ever had in over 700 days at sea.

The veranda cabins, having their own private space on the deck mean that the rest of us can't sit out there except in a few places. And the new cabins added make the atrium space quite small.

[George C]

Had a very nice cruise on her last year , but would not sail her again beacuse of the retreat. Perfer Maasdam which is same ship without retreat and with 2 pools

[sail7seas]

It's the Zaandam in drydock, not the Veendam. I was on the Veendam August 17-24 (same cruise as dfish) and found the ship and crew excellent.

 

Roy

 

 

We were on that same cruise with our friends. )

 

 

Had a very nice cruise on her last year , but would not sail her again beacuse of the retreat. Perfer Maasdam which is same ship without retreat and with 2 pools

 

 

We love Maasdam and she is one of our two favorite ships. Her Navigation Deck Pool is definitely one of the reasons but certainly not the only. We prefer the decorating and colors and very much love Maasdam's art. Veendam is still a lovely ship but Maasdam and her crew is special. :)

 

[mamaofami]

Comments about Veendam have been favorable for a while...except of course for the Retreat area,

[PathfinderEss]

Sounds like a great cruise Startwin, think you should do it. Wish I could find some money like that, I certainly would be jumping on another cruise too.:D:D:D

[startwin]

I have a question now - what exactly is The Retreat? I haven't sailed on the Veendam since around 2003, and it didn't have anything called that back then. One other comment I noted was the Lanai cabins taking deck space - because that would be a factor for this cruise as we'll be booking an oceanview cabin so the promenade deck is doubly important.

[RuthC]

I have a question now - what exactly is The Retreat? I haven't sailed on the Veendam since around 2003, and it didn't have anything called that back then.

Originally, The Veendam, like the other S-class ships, had a small aft Lido deck overlooking Navigation Deck, with a swimming pool.

 

Several years ago, the aft pool was removed, and aft Navigation Deck was filled in with cabins. That created a new full deck on Aft Lido. That is where the original Retreat was installed.

That deck has subsequently undergone a second renovation, with Retreat 2.0. The current Retreat is a high "mound" (for lack of a better word) with a footprint of most of the deck space back there. The "mound" is about 6' high (I would guess, since it's taller than I am), with several hot tubs up there; there are also a few loungers.

 

The "mound" blocks the expansive view that used to be found on Lido aft and Navigation Deck; perhaps the view is still there if you sit on those few loungers :confused:.

There is also a huge movie screen above the superstructure. The last time I was there (Jan. '13), there was nothing playing all day, but the original purpose was to have movies, filmed concerts, etc. running.

[startwin]

Originally, The Veendam, like the other S-class ships, had a small aft Lido deck overlooking Navigation Deck, with a swimming pool.

 

Several years ago, the aft pool was removed, and aft Navigation Deck was filled in with cabins. That created a new full deck on Aft Lido. That is where the original Retreat was installed.

 

That deck has subsequently undergone a second renovation, with Retreat 2.0. The current Retreat is a high "mound" (for lack of a better word) with a footprint of most of the deck space back there. The "mound" is about 6' high (I would guess, since it's taller than I am), with several hot tubs up there; there are also a few loungers.

 

The "mound" blocks the expansive view that used to be found on Lido aft and Navigation Deck; perhaps the view is still there if you sit on those few loungers :confused:.

 

There is also a huge movie screen above the superstructure. The last time I was there (Jan. '13), there was nothing playing all day, but the original purpose was to have movies, filmed concerts, etc. running.

 

Thanks, Ruth. I think I prefer the original deck! Sounds like it also reduces the amount of public deck available.

[RuthC]

Sounds like it also reduces the amount of public deck available.

It does, significantly. I was out there for sail-away from NYC when it was Retreat 1.0; it covered about the same footprint. It was jam packed with passengers trying to enjoy the views down the Hudson. There was no place to move around, which has always been a big part of being out there for sail-away.

 

You mentioned the Lower Promenade, and public space there. Since there are so many lanai cabins on the Veendam, with the reserved deck chairs, there isn't a lot of space left for everyone else in the areas with a view.

I paid particular attention to the difference when I was on the Maasdam last June. The Maasdam took many fewer cabins for lanai, thereby leaving that many more desirable loungers for everyone else.

[rafinmd]

While I haven't been on the Maasdam, I'm quite sure I'd prefer it to the Veendam. While the Maasdam is likely a much nicer ship, it isn't going through the Panama Canal at the right time. If I lived on the west coast and had the choice, I'd book the Veendam here in a heartbeat.

 

Roy

[scdreamer]

I have a question now - what exactly is The Retreat? I haven't sailed on the Veendam since around 2003, and it didn't have anything called that back then. One other comment I noted was the Lanai cabins taking deck space - because that would be a factor for this cruise as we'll be booking an oceanview cabin so the promenade deck is doubly important.

 

Just a word to the wise --- we had an OV on the lower promenade deck (6) on Veendam last month, and the a/c did not work at all in our cabin. We met other passengers who were in the same general area of our deck, and they were complaining about the a/c problem to us - in fact they were the ones who convinced us to go to the front desk and make a report of the situation. Supposedly HAL sent in maintenance workers - we never saw them - but it didn't make any difference. We had very cool weather on this voyage, but our cabin was always warm - consistently over 78 degrees I would think, and sometimes even warmer, especially at night. We had asked for a fan, and that did offer enough relief to get some sleep, but for the most part it was stuffy and hot in the cabin. It seems that the aft cabins on deck 6 were the ones affected the most.

 

Other than that, we liked the ship and thought the service and food were very good. But the uncomfortable cabin made our vacation less than stellar.

[FunForUs]

Just a word to the wise --- we had an OV on the lower promenade deck (6) on Veendam last month, and the a/c did not work at all in our cabin. We met other passengers who were in the same general area of our deck, and they were complaining about the a/c problem to us

Thank you for your post. I am concerned now about the cabin that we recently booked -- 404. Is this cabin in the area where you had the problem? Shirley