Looking for good reviews for Volendam

[OlsSalt]

7 hours ago, Mary229 said:

That was not the case on the Grand South America this year.  .....
 

My floor had no balconies 

 

The HVAC linked cabins can be on different floors - part of the fire suppression systems. So whether there are no open verandah doors on one deck will not matter- if you are on a shared circuit with verandah cabins elsewhere  

 

ChengKP has offered very extensive explanations in the past. This can be the source of these temperature regulation  problems, but certainly not the only source .Equipment failure happens too.  

 

Plus inherent design issues that simply may not work efficiently when facing extremes in heat, or cold. Though even Antartica did not seem as cold, as cruising across the equator seems so hot, particularly in the afternoon side cabins. We experienced this too on some ships in some locations, but luckily one does sail out of them as much as perhaps a fix is found. There are small signs on the verandah doors, requesting they be kept closed at all times. 

 

The Boys in Beige - the engineering staff - one more layer of unsung heroes on these floating hotels who must have available parts and expertise to keep it all patched together ..... while at sea..  

[LondonCa11ing]

I sailed on Volendam in July 2023 to Alaska. It's a really nice, smaller ship. The facilities were all up to scratch as far as I could tell. The service left much to be desired, but I think that's basically any ship these days. I found the ship easy to navigate and the cabin and public areas were clean, nicely updated, and the public bathrooms were clean and smelled good.

[coachmouchet]

We just got back from Alaska (July 26 - Aug 2) on the Volendam and loved her!  I brought a small portable fan.  Along with it and the AC, our room temperature was fine.  The Volendam is probably my favorite ship in the fleet.  There is something about its perfect size that suites me just fine!  You of course will always hear of complaints due to the lack of amenities the larger ships have.  But I don't care for this.  The ship recently (maybe less than a year ago) received new carpet and chairs throughout the ship.  The colors look great!!  

Check out this recent video on youtube:  

 

[Ineke]

Thank you for the video! It was very helpful.,

[erewhon]

@coachmouchet   thank you for posting the video. Have enjoyed several cruises on the Volendam ........ our favourite HAL ship.

[terrydtx]

On 8/1/2023 at 7:23 AM, LadyBerard said:

We are booked on the Volendam for July 20, 2024, and after reading the poor reviews, thought about switching to Emerald Princess.  However, we prefer small ships, and love the seaview pool area on Holland ships.  We also do not want to cruise with a lot of children on board.  Decided to keep our Volendam cruise and not switch.

We are booked on the August 2024 NE/Canada cruise on the Volendam as well. Our first HAL cruise was on her in 2007 and we loved the ship and cruise. We looked at Celebrity, HAL, Viking Ocean and Oceania for the 2024 cruise and HAL had the best itinerary and price. We booked a Vista Suite with Club Orange so that we hopefully will avoid long lines on the tender ports, as this cruise has 4 of them. Also, no lines for anytime dining in the MDR with CO. We have 6 of us traveling together in 3 VS cabins in a row that have balcony dividers that can be opened.

[jsn55]

So happy to have found this thread.  The Volendam reviews I read yesterday are quite 'dismal', so all these posts are wonderful to read.  I really like a couple of her itineraries and now won't hesitate to book Volendam.  

[PalmSprings]

54 minutes ago, jsn55 said:

I really like a couple of her itineraries and now won't hesitate to book Volendam.  

It’s a terrific older ship.  We sailed in April/May off this year and had a truly wonderful cruise.

 

 The ship is well maintained and the crew is especially passenger-focused.  The food was great and even an “old dog” like me learned something new - anytime dining is awesome and made the MDR experience so much better.

 

I hope you enjoy your cruise as much as we did ours!

[CGinMTL]

I am booked b2b in may 2024

A/c should not be a concern that time of year 

Montreal to Boston and return.

Love the smaller ships 

.

We did same itinerary on Zaandam this year 

 

People forget that there is a price to the bigger , newer ships 

 

Your review has to match what you bought.

 

I am looking forward to spending 14 days on her in may  

[happytotravel]

Hello CGinMTL,

 

I've booked a b2b as well from Montreal but my cruise begins June 01.  It is my first HAL cruise and am looking forward to it. 

 

I chose this because I didn't want the hassle of flying this year.  I live an hour and half from Mtl and would have to stay at a hotel the night before and leave my car at the airport.  Trying to make life a bit simpler.  I can just take the bus in the morning and get on the ship and relax for 14 days!

 

I hope you enjoy your cruise as much as I plan to.

happytotravel