I have to begin by saying I am generally a Holland America fan, and have sailed with them more than any other cruise line (now 4 Star Mariner). Also, my most recent cruise before this one was on the Prinsendam in October 2015 and it was near perfect. So this was a brutal decline from that last experience.

This was a 14 day Collectors Cruise, doing Eastern Caribbean the first week and Western the second week. Sadly, nearly every day there was a significant failure on HAL's part, which so discouraged us that it was hard to enjoy the parts that did go right.

The troubles began right at Embarkation. We arrived at the Terminal at 11 am and were checked in in just a few minutes. Then the wait began. We did not get on the ship until just after 2 pm. First they blamed the wind for making the gangway shift position. But the worst part was that we were given a Boarding card with "Group 25" on it. About 20 minutes after that, another couple came in and sat beside us and asked what the card was. We told them you had to have one to Board and they went to get one and came back with Group 13. So they boarded way before us. Read more