Nieuw Amsterdam Review

4.5 / 5.0
964 reviews

Wheelchair Passengers Beware

Review for Transatlantic Cruise on Nieuw Amsterdam
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JARSODAK
10+ Cruises • Age 70s

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Sail Date: Oct 2010

My husband and I cruise frequently and are the highest tier on Celebrity and Princess. We had a great experience on the Zuiderdam a few years ago; we thought a new Holland America ship would be fun. We were wrong. I believe Holland America has cut every corner imaginable in building there new ships. Everything has a glossy appearance (the ship is new) but the years will not treat her well.

My husband, who is in a wheelchair, and I booked a 13-Day Celebrity cruise and followed it with a 30-day Transatlantic cruise on the brand new Nieuw Amsterdam. We assumed (our fault) that a new ship would not have so many issues with handicapped passengers.

His electric wheelchair had broken in the airport in Rome, but we were told that would not be an issue in Venice. It was. The shore person at the hotel assured us that someone would meet us at the pier for embarkation and help with the wheelchair. When we arrived by water taxi (which works fine for mobility impaired people) we waited for over 45 minutes for assistance - this is in the hot sun with no cover. The ship's representative was also frustrated and told us she'd been calling the ship all morning and was getting no help. I walked to the embarkation area and was told they simply had no staff to help.

Cabin Review

Unusable closet, too small for wheelchair, balcony impossible to use from a wheelchair, bathroom barely ADA standard, poor TV reception, cheap remote, poor lighting. Don't book 4051.

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