Veendam Review

4.0 / 5.0
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Disappointed

Review for Alaska Cruise on Veendam
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soupbones wife
First Time Cruiser • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Jul 2008

We were a party of 8 on the July 18 sailing of the Veendam - Seward to Vancouver. Two of the 8 were "cruise virgins" and the other 4 haven't sailed in nearly 20 years so they were looking forward to the new modern way of cruising. This was our 10th cruise and first on HAL. We did the 7 day land tour first out of Fairbanks and for any of you wondering should I cruise first then do the land... don't! You need all of the relaxation after all of the hours on trains and busses.

We arrived at the dock after a wonderful sailing to the Kenai Fjords where we saw orcas, humpbacks golden and bald eagles, seals, etc. The weather was wonderful for a change. We checked in and then nothing!!! No one welcomed us on board or greeted us. Now Celebrity does give champagne and that is their thing. How are you supposed to know that room 042 is on the 10th floor? This area of entry is not the grand entrance as on most of the ships, but just an area with an elevator. Not too impressive. Our rooms were ready but missing towels and our steward was missing for a while. I wish he would have introduced himself and asked if there was anything we need. But as the cruise went on I realize the Phillipinos/Indonesians are not talkative like the Eastern Europeans. Our steward got better as the week went on. Later that evening there was a huge sewage smell in the hallway and one in our group insisted the smell was in her room. It took 2 hours until someone came and in the meantime their room keys didn't work so had them redone. Still didn't work and maintenance said it was the battery so he left. It wasn't until we got JoJo, who I believe was in charge of hotel services or housekeeping, did anything get done. Couldn't believe this. Our friends in that room did get a letter of apology and a bottle of wine and minutes in the spa SBC. None of the clocks on board had the correct time and I mentioned it to an officer going by. Nothing was ever done all week... unbelievable. Our rooms were in a great location, 042, 044,046 & 048 on the 10th floor just below the Lido which is convenient but oh so noisy. Every morning it sounded like drawers opening and closing and carts pushing and walking. Must come from the kitchen down to the vent. Also, this was Alaska and the automatic doors to the back deck/pool would blow open and not close so all of the cold air. Half the time the doors had to be pushed as they did not open automatically. This ship is ready for moth balls!!! On a positive note the food was the best of all of our 10 cruises. My husband liked the quaintness of the small ship. In port we had seen the Diamond, Dawn & Coral Princess, the Celebrity Millennium & Infinity and the Norwegian Pearl. I wish I had been on one of those beautiful ships!

Cabin Review

too noisy from the Lido

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