The ship despite being supposedly refurbished, is old and shows it. The upper exterior actually showed chipped paint which was visible from a distance. We could see it from our hotel room which was across the street from the port. The upper deck deck which contained the hot tubs had obviously been neglected and had no decor except for a slab of of white paint. The mosaic benches were chipped and outdated. All the windows were dirty. Hard to imagine how they could have neglected all of them from the main dining room to our room. The robes given to you at the spa were shredded and looked as if they were 10 years old. No room in the men's locker room except for one seat. Gym equipment was old and outdated. Seating in the upstairs theatre could not have been more uncomfortable. Low back and hard seating. The food was mediocre except for the steak specialty restaurant. The Italian was ok but not enough of of a selection. Service in the main dining room although well intentioned was very erratic. Had issues with the internet for the first 24 minutes of use and management graciously gave me a 10 minute credit. Cut in staffing meant there was no one to assist in the internet cafe which made it difficult and expensive on some of the old timers. The post lunch snack options were limited and closed shortly after returning from excursions. It seemed there was an absolute attempt to cut corners especially since we cruised last year on the Eurodam and we were very pleased. Never again will we cruise with Holland America. And no music at sail away! I find it difficult to believe HA ranked 5th in the travel & Leisure poll. Obviously no one was on the Veendam.