Veendam Repo FLL/YQB May 1st 2014 - Review

[Qc-Mtl-To]

Just came back from the Veendam Repo cruise from FLL to YQB. Before I start the review, let me just provide a little background about me and the context in which this review is written.

 

My Party:

Myself - 27 yo professional working in capital markets. (fully ENG-FR bilingual) Crazy winter workwise, physically and mentally drained. Needed a sedated vacation.

 

My Grandparents - 72 and 77 yo, retired, first big trip outside Quebec. Only speak French. This cruise and trip was their Christmas gift from me to them. Grandfather is very active, although need a cane to go around but do take the stairs when he feels like it. Grandmother can walk by herself but do only short distances.

 

Cruise Background:

I traveled a couple time with Celebrity in AquaClass,and truly love the contemporary feel of the Solstice Class and the Blu Restaurant which is much more intimate than the regular dining rooms. This was my first time with HAL. My GPs never cruised.

 

Why HAL:

I only had good experiences with X but fell like this would be a little too "loud" for my grandparents. Moreover X ships would have been too large for my GPs. Veendam proved to be the right size. I have to say that despite good reviews about HAL, when one didnt try the product, I was a little apprehensive regarding food, and overall luxury level. This prove to be a non-issue.

 

Pre-Cruise:

In case it interest anyone, I am a person of habits. I usually try to stay at the Ritz in FLL, but they were fully booked for the 2 days prior to our cruise. I don't really like surprises so I was disappointed into having to find another hotel. I ended up booking a 2 bedrooms suite at the Atlantic Hotel, a couple blocks north. The room proved to be great!~1,350 sq ft, with 2 bedrooms each with king size bed and huge bathroom with great toiletries and amazing views. Overall a very solid contender to the Ritz, but without that little touch that make the Ritz a Ritz. The Restaurant was great as well. We were supposed to go get dinner at Via Luna at the Ritz, but after a flight, my grandmother just wanted to have something downstairs. The tapa menu was great, with the crab cakes a definite highlight.

Embarkation:

We got to the port at noon. left our suitcases and were on the ship within 10 minutes.One plus I have to give to HAL is that cabins ready at embarkation is great, compared to my recent cruises with X. Makes for a less crowded lido area.

 

Cabins:

I originally had booked 2 Oceanviews which I upgraded to Lanai cabins (358 & 360)This proved to be a great idea. Due to me paying for all three trips (and mine in single occupancy...) suites and balcony cabins were out of the question. Lanai cabin proved to be a good compromise and allowed my GPs to enjoy the outside much more with a direct access from their cabin. Things to be noted are that the outside doors are really heavy. And that HAL should figure something out as you end up walking around with a full wallet of cards (beverage, patio and seapass) in my own opinion, everything could easily be concentrated on 1 card and would save a lot of plastic, especially when recycled fiber/starch pen were added to the cabin to save plastic waste from the previous "regular" plastic pens.

 

Ship:

The ship was spotless. I was apprehensive considering it was an older ship, and just came back from dry-dock with all the problems that can come with it. Beside from a ice cream freezer that blew up and prevented from having ice cream for 2 days, nothing major. I don't eat ice cream anyways...

 

Great art collection, ranging from statues, objects, pieces of furniture and painting.

 

Flowers everywhere add a touch of life very much like that lawn on X's Solstice Class. Just nice to see some "real" life everywhere. Plus, the smell of fresh flowers is always a good scent.

 

Lots of comfortable chairs everywhere and the leather chairs are real leather, not plastic, which is great.

 

In terms of decoration, the ship shows its age, with lots of brass and pastels, but the quality of the finishing allowed it not to be tacky and outdated.

 

Gym:

Ouch. I work out twice a day, usually 1-1.5 hours in the morning and 1 hours at night. (weight in AM and cardio in PM) Couldn't do it on this ship due to the lack of basic equipments. Definitely shows the age of the ship. Free weight choice is definitely aligned with the average age of the passengers. Heaviest is 50 lbs. Heavier ones should be bought has there was enough place for another weight rack. Multi purpose stations could be added as well replacing some of the older equipment.

 

Food:

Definitely up there. Didn't have 1 bad meal. just a dessert i didn't care for, which our waiter notice and replaced promptly. yum.Buffet lacked variety compared to X but understandable considering the size of the vessel and the fact that the ship was far from full, which would only result in more waste.

 

Main dining room was good all the time. Our waiter was good at steering us towards what he felt was the best and flatly told us one night not to have a certain dish as it wasn't good... Ended up with with about two appetizers main and dessert at every meal... This is one thing I was worried after the delights of X, especially Blu with its smaller dinning room and no mass produced meals. I was definitely not let down.

 

We tried Pinnacle Grill for lunch and had a good quiet lunch while in Halifax. Great meal. Didn't try it at night as my grandmother doesn't eat a lot at night and would have just had a soup for her entire meal.

 

The dive in provided good burgers and hot dogs. Healthier options should be available in mid afternoon for a snack. Also, afternoon tea was good, but could be done like X with scones and pastries provided in the buffet area, instead of the formal-ness of the dinning room.

 

Service/Staff

The ship was far from full (about 70%) due to the repositioning nature of the cruise.

 

The staff I interacted with were stellar. Prast and Tika at the dinning room were stellar, even managing to make my grandmother laugh to tears. Leo the sommelier was great both personally and professionally.

 

Diana at the Ocean Bar was a sweetheart which won my grandfather's heart with her witty remarks and her stories. Good luck in your future endeavor.

 

Josephine at the Explorer's lounge was great, attentive and remembering names and drinks (even the brand of liquor to put in it).

 

Entertainment:

Violin/piano duo was lovely in the explorer's lounge at night. However, as celebrity has an instrumental jazzy mix at night which gave a bit of sophistication when no live band were playing, the canned Katy Perry and Miley Cyrus piped in when/where no live bands were playing or between breaks at night were out of place. Given the age of the passenger, this is not only in line with demographics but would die of a heart attached should the wrecking ball music video be shown.

 

Shows had an amateurish feel to them and were clearly an afterthought after what I saw on X. My grandfather and I didn't care for them and rater just hang out at the Ocean bar all night long.

 

Port of Calls:

I didnt care for most as I already been to most as I am originally from the East Coast/Maritimes. but nice to see all the familiar sites and have strolls. Gloucester's hop-on/off was great for $3 but halifax and Sydney at $50 was a rip off. Just take a cab or walk. much cheaper and not far at all.

 

Closing Remark:

I had a great time and definitely the sedated vacation I was looking for. GPs had the vacation of a lifetime and already asked for Alaska next year.

 

While I was clearly the younger one on board, I didn't feel out of space, altough I would have not chosen HAL should I had been with friend or younger relatives seeking a comparably premium experience. X would have been my #1 contender just by the overall feel of contemporary luxury it offers. But for a sedated super quiet vacation, this is exactly what I needed. HAL is very traditional and definitely caters to a very loyal following. With aging demographics it'll be interesting to see how they evolve and cater to a new generation of cruisers without antagonizing their customer base.

 

One word on some event I witnessed. The table next to ours made a formal complain on 2 dining room employees under the pretext that their table of 8 could not be cleared within 1 hour. Their attitude towards employees was disgusting, speaking loud about how much they had paid and expected to be served the way they wanted and within the time frame that they dictated.

 

Respect brings in respect. This type of behavior should never be allowed and should have been retaliated against. Those employees work tirelessly so that we can enjoy doing nothing. Next time this happens try to think about how petty your complain is in the greater scheme of things. Plates are too small? Order 2! Coffee is too hot? let it chill. You have an important appointment at 9pm? Book as you wish dining or the first service, not the 2nd service. You're on vacation people! Slap a smile on and go with the flow!

[Himself]

Thanks for a nice report!

[scm1848]

How wonderful that you not only spent the money to treat them to the cruise, but even greater that you gave of yourself and your time!!! May your memories enrich all of your lives forever!!!

[pv girl]

How wonderful that you not only spent the money to treat them to the cruise, but even greater that you gave of yourself and your time!!! May your memories enrich all of your lives forever!!!

 

Well said - what a treat to spend time with each other.

 

Your report was excellent and really on point about all the details. So? Are you planning that Alaska trip with them for next year?

[Qc-Mtl-To]

If health is good, I don't see why not!

[Qc-Mtl-To]

Well said - what a treat to spend time with each other.

 

Your report was excellent and really on point about all the details. So? Are you planning that Alaska trip with them for next year?

 

If health is good, I don't see why not!

[POA1]

Thanks for your review. The Wrecking Ball comment made me laugh. :)

[Krazy Kruizers]

Wonderful review.

Thank you for taking the time to write it.

Thank was so nice of you to take your grandparents on a cruise.

[GradUT]

Thank you for taking the time to write this review. I've been looking at the Veendam for several days now trying to decide whether to book it for a Canadian cruise this summer. Some of the recent reviews have not been good, but you seldom know the writer's background. It definitely helped knowing your age and past cruising background. I think the Veendam would be a good choice for me and my spouse--mid 50's who enjoy both leisure and active.

 

One question about the gym--How was the cardio equipment? I try to do at least an hour of cardio each day--treadmill, stationary bike, etc. and not having access to this type of equipment could affect my decision to book the Veendam.

 

Thanks!

[mskaufman]

Glad to see a positive Veendam review!!

[Qc-Mtl-To]

 

One question about the gym--How was the cardio equipment? I try to do at least an hour of cardio each day--treadmill, stationary bike, etc. and not having access to this type of equipment could affect my decision to book the Veendam.

 

Thanks!

 

Cardio equipment was fine. elliptical, treadmills and bike with TVs. Never had trouble getting a treadmill.

 

A vacation is what one makes of it. You'll have a good time!

[KirkNC]

Thanks for the review!

[erewhon]

Thank you for your review.

 

You are a very caring person to take your grandparents cruising.

 

It horrifies me, that some people are very rude to the crew.

[Crew News]

Thanks for your review. It will be very helpful to those cruisers that will follow you on the Veendam.

[holacanada]

Thank you for your informative review Qc-Mtl-To !

 

I've worked as a tourist guide on the St Lawrence river back in summer 2000. My job consisted of leaving Port of Quebec to Saguenay Fjord while describing the surroundings, presenting the wales and doing some animation on board.

Everyday, from 06 am to 06 pm..! I kept a lots of good souvenirs even if my job was to please 250 pax everyday from all around the world and inform them about the St Lawrence fauna like belugas, humpback and minke whales and etc..!

Aboard the former Famille Dufour II catamaran.

Now a luxurious spa and restaurant in Montreal old port.

 

Holacanada from Quebec City

[madera1]

Thanks for the review. So happy that your grandparents had their trip of a lifetime. How nice of you to do this for them.

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.

[0bnxshs]

Thank you for the thoughtful and comparative review! Glad your GPs had a nice time and want to go again. :)

Edited May 15, 2014 by 0bnxshs

[Cruiser Bruiser]

OP, thanks for your well-written, insightful review of the Veendam. I'm taking my 17-year old niece on the Maasdam next June, and we will be sailing from Boston to Montreal. As the two ships are essentially similar, and you are in your 20s, I found your comments to be particularly helpful.

 

I took my older two nieces on Caribbean cruises, but Isabelle, my youngest niece, is looking for a sophisticated, urban experience. I feel like this HAL itinerary will be perfect. Isabelle wanted to go to Paris (which Uncle John simply couldn't afford), but I think she will be impressed by the Maritimes and especially Quebec City and Montreal.

 

Cheers! (And you're a wonderful grandson. Bravo!)

Edited May 16, 2014 by Cruiser Bruiser