This was our 3rd cruise to Bermuda and our 4th cruise on HAL. Last year we sailed on the Celebrity Summit which was an excellent cruise. The reason we did not return on Celebrity was that the Veendam was the only ship to dock in downtown Hamilton instead of the dockyard which is far removed from just about everything.
The last time we chose HAL was in 2003 on the Zuiderdam. The cruise did not meet our expectations and we decided to drop HAL from cruises that we would consider. Since then, most cruises that we have taken have also declined, so we thought that HAL should once again be considered. I expectations were not high for the Veendam but I am glad to say they not only met but surpassed them. We will once again consider HAL.
To arrive in New York we chose to drive 6 hours and park on the pier. We arrived about 12:30 and found there were only about a dozen parking spaces available. We could have parked about 15 minutes earlier but we dropped off our bags first at the main entrance and then had to go into traffic again to get to the parking lot. Once we arrived at the parking lot (now $35/day), we found out we could have checked our bags there and not on the main entrance.
Cabin 194 seemed small considering HAL claims that it was 283-294 sq ft. It seemed like is was more like the RCL/Celebrity size cabin which are about 190 sq ft. HAL probably counts the balcony as total space whereas RCL probably does not. Therefore it is hard to compare apples to apples. That aside, the cabin was in a good location since it was near the elevators and only two decks removed from the lido deck where the pool and eating area. It was only one level down to the decks where most lounges were so you could easily walk.