Veendam Review

4.0 / 5.0
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Disappointed with Holland America This Time

Review for Canada & New England Cruise on Veendam
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LE_from_MD
6-10 Cruises • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Oct 2013

We just returned from a Holland America cruise on the Veendam from Boston to Quebec, Canada (October 5-12, 2013). The cruise was incredibly relaxing, which I really needed after a very hectic and stressful year. What I especially appreciated was that the port cities were small and you could walk around on your own without a tour. I researched the cities on the web and had already downloaded a walking tour for each of the ports. So, we walked miles during the cruise and really appreciated the freedom. We were even able to walk around Acadia National Park although the organized tours to that site were cancelled due to the government shutdown.

The trees were not really showing their fall colors in Canada until Quebec, but the scenery of numerous rocky islands, charming lighthouses, and gorgeous sunny days made it a wonderful trip. The ship has a fabulous library and the "little something” appetizers and wine tastings every day at 5 p.m. were a lot of fun. The food was great and our cabin steward greeted us every time we passed him. I didn’t even mind that we could not enter the port of Sydney due to high winds. What really disappointed me, however, was the food service.

This was our third Holland America cruise (previously Alaska [Rotterdam] and Scandinavia/St. Petersburg [Maasdam]) so we came to this cruise with wonderful experiences and expectations of fabulous food and service. We were really shocked to see how the service had changed. At the Lido "buffet” restaurant, you had to serve yourself EVERYTHING—food and (non-bar) drinks. On previous cruises, there were servers going around the Lido restaurant with coffee, iced tea, etc. This time you had to stand in line with your hot food getting cold while you waited your turn to get yourself coffee, tea, or water. The only beverages for which they had many servers were the bar drinks. I only saw someone serving coffee at breakfast maybe three times. It’s hard to carry a plate of food and maybe a bowl of fruit as well as a hot cup of coffee. I’ve received better beverage service at a Denny’s or Waffle House!

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