VEENDAM REFITTED: RETREAT when we boarded in Ft Lauderdale

[JimVrhovac]

Was not finished until San Diego

 

Picture set #1

[JimVrhovac]

More pictures

 

We got a special tour of unfinished area

[JimVrhovac]

More

[JimVrhovac]

Last Set.

 

HAL Corporate Hqs needs to rethink their refurbishment schedules. By sending this ship on a cruise with so much work unfinished the caused multiple problems for the crew and the passangers it was unreal.

 

The CEO of HAL needs to be on the first cruise after the next ship goes in for refubishment and he needs to be booked into one of the cabins that has been added. That would indeed be poetic justice....

 

Te shipyard men that remained on the ship worked their buts off but this work should have been finished in the shipyard not on a cruise where the passangers paid to use the WHOLE ship.

 

A 20 or 30% shipboard credit was given to each passanger to compensate them

[kryos]

Te shipyard men that remained on the ship worked their buts off but this work should have been finished in the shipyard not on a cruise where the passangers paid to use the WHOLE ship.

 

A 20 or 30% shipboard credit was given to each passanger to compensate them

That's exactly why I would never book a cruise when a ship is fresh out of the shipyard, nor would I book one where the ship was just coming out of drydock.

 

From what I understand, schedules used to allow for far more "elbow room," and when a newbuild was first floated, often employees of the cruise line were the only ones onboard ... they called it a "shakedown" cruise and those employees were there to help shake it down by doing things like everyone flushing their toilets at the same time, or everyone jumping up and down together in the show lounge to see if the noise could be felt/heard in the cabins on the deck below ... stuff like that. But, today, with budgets so tight, often there is no time for these sorts of cruises and the "shakedown" may only last for one day while the ship makes its way to its first embarkation port.

 

Also, if the shipyard runs out of time on the refurbishment, they will be working during the shakedown cruise, and even on the first couple of actual passenger cruises. Not a good thing.

 

Frankly, I'd rather sail a ship after she has all her kinks out. It's a better deal for my money. But thank you, Jim and Ruth, for being kind enough to give us the "skinny" on this one.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[RedmondCruiser]

We were on the old Noordam on her first cruise out of the yard and everything was fine. Mechanically we did have short engine problems twice but the ship was in perfect order and all work was completed. The ship was clean and it was a very enjoyable cruise.

[Himself]

I suspect that they were too amitious in what they undertook in the time allotted. I am sure if they had finished everything in drydock and then let the ship out, things would have been a bit better. Perhaps a six or seven week drydock would have been more apropos for what was done.

[mamadot]

Jim & Ruth, We so enjoyed meeting you on the Veendam. I promise you we had much smoother sailing from Vancouver than you had on the previous cruise. The Retreat was finished but we are still wondering what the heck it is!! Just a place to sunbathe and dip your fingers in the water??

Happy cruising as I know you will be off on another soon!!!! Mamadot