Holland America Line

Fort Lauderdale (Port Everglades)

Amsterdam

Rotterdam

U.S.A.

Bahamas

Caribbean - All

Netherlands

Caribbean - Eastern

Caribbean - Southern

Europe - British Isles & Western

Europe - All

Europe River

Rhine River

Dominican Republic

Baltic Sea

Norway

USVI

France

Caribbean - Western

Mexico - All

Jamaica

Norwegian Fjords

Scotland

Transatlantic

Iceland

Belgium

Portugal

Seine River

Panama Canal & Central America

Costa Rica

Panama

Arctic

Denmark

Germany

Sweden

British Isles & Western Europe

Very Good

Excellent

Average

Terrible

Poor

Eurodam

Westerdam

Oosterdam

Zuiderdam

Nieuw Amsterdam

Koningsdam

Noordam

Volendam

Zaandam

Nieuw Statendam

Holland America Rotterdam

Rolling Stones Rock Room a Home Run

Rome (Civitavecchia)

Not our first HAL cruise and not our last. We love this itinerary which provides ample time ashore if desired, and ample time onboard to enjoy the ship.

One thing we noticed....staff was cleaning throughout the ship in public areas all day long and into the evenings. Also appreciated the hand sanitizers/hand washing stations in the Lido when we ate there.

We had early dining and great service from Ferry and Sandi the entire cruise. Any questions about menu items were answered to our satisfaction. Our food was always as ordered, perfect temperature, attractively presented and we had no disappointments with any of our choices. We felt there were a good number of options every night. Is cruise ship dining 5-star? I think most people might agree that it isn't.....but the ship is feeding over 2000 people every meal! You don't get your own chef, but you do get consistently good meals. Kudos to HAL's kitchen staff for doing such a great job!

We had a cabana again on this cruise. What's not to love about cabana life? We appreciate and value the quiet ambiance and personal service of the attendants there. 

We enjoyed the comedians, the Music Walk, the Exec Talks, the Orange Party, and football on the big screen at the pool. Our only wish at this point is for HAL to bring back the Lincoln Center Stage productions....PLEASE! We don't know if it is contract talks holding things up or ?, but those performances were a really classy addition to the cruise experience and certainly in line with HAL's overall image as a bit more sophisticated cruise experience. 

(we're heading back late January on the same itinerary....so you know we love it!)

Another great HAL cruise!

The original itinerary was changed two months prior to departure for three ports and we were not allowed to exchange or get a refund. The embarkation was a nightmare. Long, long lines with people in walkers and wheelchairs waiting over an hour. The food quality in the main dining room was horrible. The Lido buffet constantly had long lines and wait times. The theatre entertainment consisted of dances, steel drums and a guitar player. The production cost needs to be increased for better shows. All entertainment excluding the casino stops at 12am. We had many guest in the 50-60 range and we lacked any entertainment after 12. I addressed the issue with the cruise entertainment director but nothing ever happened. The ship shut down elevators for excursions to address retuning guest when it was am and everyone was leaving. The specialty restaurants were excellent. There was not enough interesting shore excursions to use the two included in our package so we lost one. We did like the rafting in Costa Rica.

Disappointed Cruiser 

We choose this cruise because of the ports of call.  Two ports were changed prior to sailing but their email indicating a change went to SPAM, and we didn't find it until it was too late to change the trip.  

We were really excited to go to Curaçao as well as Key West and Panama.  Curaçao & Key West were canceled prior to the sailing, Panama was canceled the day before arrival. We were refunded our excursion money, but a three-hour boat ride into the Panama Canal a 20-30-minute cruise around Lake Gatun and then three more hours to exit was a real disappointment. 

Overall, HAL is an excellent cruise line. Our accommodations were exactly what we expected since we had cruised on HAL's Nieuw Statendam in 2019 in the same suite etc.  The food was outstanding on the LIDO deck (smorgasbord style) but even better in the specialty restaurants throughout the ship. 

Entertainment was varied and, in some respects, varied as far as entertainment quality (some ok, some excellent) and that is a very subjective rating. 

On board activities were about the same as my rating for the entertainment. 

Essentially, my wife and I were on-board to relax and enjoy doing nothing. We wanted to see how curacao liqueurs were produced, which was not happening on this cruise. We wanted to actually set foot in Panama; that was not happening on this cruise and we had some specific destinations in Key West, that was not happening on this cruise.

On board shopping: Overall, it’s a captive audience that keeps seeing the same stuff as you go to the clubs or the casino. 

Speaking of which, in 2019, the casino was smoke free on one day if I remember correctly, and on this cruise, the casino was smoke filled the entire time. Being an ex-smoker, smoke is disguising now, and I avoided the 3rd deck whenever possible. 

The biggest disappointment actually occurred last week - why so long after the cruise?  

Just about the entire cruise, there was an art auction. Even though HAL says they are not affiliated in any way, the parent company "Carnival CCL" must be aware of what of the art company is doing. Park West Galleries is the auction company.  Our disappointment comes after we purchased a print that was billed in a collection as "complete".  Which by their definition is matted and framed. 

Park West showed 4 prints by the artist David Najar and it was a buyer’s choice of the print. As I mentioned, they were "complete". Last week, the print arrived in a mailing tube and not matted or framed.  The appraisal and COA indicate a value of 1800.00.  Our disappointment is that it was not framed and attempting to contact the Park West Galleries met with a rude representative who shut down the questions we had and essentially said "you got what was on the invoice". 

That tells me that somewhere between the sales representative’s mouth and the paperwork that was done to bill through Holland America was not recorded based on that verbal communications.  At this point is it is a he said she said argument.  So far, Park West Galleries is not very cooperative.  

The invoice states that any disputes must go through arbitration paid for by the customer. 

Since this happened on a cruise, I know that the hype and excitement of being on a cruise is key to the sales effort. Medium to hard sale tactics are used to get you to buy more - 

Holland America actually becomes a party to this because they process the payments. 

I will keep trying to make Park West Galleries honor what the sales person stated (heard by both me and my wife) or I will begin to solicit people who feel the same as we do for a class action law suit. 

It comes down to Carnival Cruise Lines (CCL) either knowing how Park West Galleries operates or wanting to bury their heads in the sand. Hindsight being 20/20, looking at the reviews on many platforms shows there are probably more than enough people who are upset over the business practices of PWG to bring a class action. 

My advice to anyone on a cruise is to not buy something 1) under any pressure 2) in an environment that is supposed to be fun 3) stay far away from Park West Galleries.

A few disappointments, some HAL issues, some beyond their control. 

We have been on 45+ cruises and this ranked at the bottom. We requested a wheelchair assist and all that happened was we got shuffled through the regular access points. Finally we saw a wheelchair go by us. We asked about our assist and was told we were in the wrong waiting area.  We eventually got a wheelchair up to the ship. We all agreed that the Cruise Director be demoted. Shows that people literally got up and walked out. The "To Do" was 90% promotional or came at an extra cost. The worst part was when we went on a Holland Excursion. The meeting point was in the lounge and about 300+ people stood in a line that went down the hall, past the elevators and into the casino where it wrapped around.  The when we FINALLY got to the bus, we had our knees in our chest. Coming back from the tour we were dropped off on the other side of a bird sanctuary late.  We had to get through this sanctuary to get to the peir weaving back and forth. Got to the peir and noticed we had to walk about the distance of 3+ cruise ships. The wife and I were on canes and there was several elderly folks trying to make it back. Before getting there they started taking up the closest ramp. I went ahead as fast as I could to tell them to let these slower elderly go on this ramp. The officer there said he had orders from the bridge to close this one. I hurried the length of the ship to stop them from taking that ramp up. A dock worker saw some struggling to get back and got in a golf cart and brought the elderly passenger to the ramp. Keep in mind we were on canes. Been on Holland before and never had as bad a time as we had on the Rotterdam. This was not a typical Holland America cruise for our group and speaking to other cruisers they agreed.

Panama Canal

Jost Van Dyke

We based our decision to cruise Holland after sailing with the line 2 times in the past and being extremely happy with exceptional service.  However, I am sure a lot is the loss of crew members after COVID but also the age factor.  It was not something we knew beforehand but did figure the line itself is for mature adults 50plus. The majority it appeared were over 75-95!  We found on this particular ship the daily activities were based on the majority- origami mice/etc, Doodling, coloring, - very boring , very sedate activities peppered with a few excercise classes usually offered when the excursions were scheduled.  We found the excursions far below our expectations - even juvenile for some with the guides treating their group like elementary aged- having to stand in line to count ourselves, or stand while the guide tried to make sure everyone was accounted for-  not sure the guides experience but half of the tours appeared to be first time guides who were more adult babysitters.  Some of the tours could have been amazing but due to the guides , some were merely time spent at a beautiful city-  We had a couple good excursions but mostly left us feeling like we wasted our time/money.  Good points for the amazing hard working, very patient front desk personnel- at times more help would have been nice but first come, first served. Our personal room attendant was amazing- he worked hard and always had a smile on his face and made sure we were happy- the first week for me personally was difficult with some specific dietary needs not met or even discussed.  I did write a note to Errol which brought about a big change and personal attention which we appreciated.  It helped- one huge disappointment I had and others also felt the same- the FORMAL afternoon tea service!  I was so anxious to take Holland specifically for this lovely ritual served with special attention and wait staff in their finest with their caps and white gloves- making it a true experience with the tiered plate of different finger foods, desserts- Now? nothing special but tables with the small variety of goodies and one type of tea, poured by waiter who then disappeared.  There was nothing Formal nor special- in fact I never returned since it was not worth my time - again I found many other cruisers echoing my sentiments.  Food was abundant and fresh and shockingly the buffet had sometimes better food and many more varieties than the dining room offered.  Room service was great too.  By the time our cruise was coming to an end we had decided to cancel a cruise we had set on the Rotterdam for 14 day British Isles since we did not care to pay that much money and be as disappointed as we were.  Again just talking to some others, they also said this was likely the last cruise they would take on Holland and some specifically said the Rotterdam-  Again this ship is perfect if someone is a certain age - the physically challenged were able to enjoy most of the activities as they were slow paced and accomodating- It was truly inspiring to see the older age group still trying their best to stay active/enjoy the ship and activities.. God bless them!   I do wish we had a wonderful time and I was writing simply positive statements-  We did note staterooms were quite a bit smaller in size- but well appointed. - I would have liked to hear the announcements in room and not having to run to the door to hear what was being said- it should be an option- not just for emergency or important announcements.   We only had reservations at Pinnacle Grille but it was incredible and a highlight of the cruise- food and service were great!  Lacking also was daily turn down chocolates- we did find them maybe 4 times- that was it.  The Mariner Lunch was great-  we enjoyed it despite the very limited menu and having to wait for beverage fill ups or other special requests since staff was hard at work attending to the full capacity crowd. I guess what I realize is that we must lower our expectations- our travel agent applauded the cancellation which shocked me, but he stated the line is noted for its older guests and while we are not spring chickens ( 76 and 71) for this particular ship we seemed to be outnumbered.  We elected to do a similar cruise on Princess- we have sailed her 3 times before with great experiences and much broader activities for all ages!

disappointed!

We just finished a seven-day cruise to Norwegian fjords out of Amsterdam and really enjoyed the experience.  The ship is brand new and looks it; the staff were cleaning the already immaculate common spaces daily.  The balcony room was well laid-out and spacious.  The service was excellent and food was very good as well.  

The entertainment worked for us because it was music-focused, and we liked going to the B.B. King blues club and Rolling Stone music room every night.  If you want Broadway shows, you will need to find a different cruise.  As a couple in fifties, we liked that the fellow passengers tend to be somewhat older and more sedate.  This was not a party crowd by any stretch of imagination.  But that did not mean that people did not know how to have fun, especially during the Orange Night with its Dutch theme and drinks.

As others noted, we would highly recommend the Grand Dutch Cafe for coffee and the Main Dining Room for breakfast and dinner.  The Lido buffet was also good even if the service was sometimes underwhelming.  We never experienced lines for anything, and the ship seemed just the right size for 2600 guests with a mix of American and European - mainly Dutch - passengers.  We also liked the itinerary, which is why we chose the cruise in the first place.  The full-day at Sognefjord and Flåm was the highlight for everybody.

All in all, a great first cruise.

Everything we expected

Outstanding 1st Time HAL Norwegian Fjords, long review

We chose this cruise very long ago ,and then, covid! So it was rescheduled and changed some ports a few times. We were excited about the ports, we had not been to any of them. We made plans to stay in Amsterdam for a week before boarding. We were ready to cruise when we boarded.

Boarding was ok. Since we have 4 stars we got sent through right away when we arrived at the pier, in time for the Mariners' Lunch. By a happy coincidence we were seated next to fellow CCers Roxy Rocks, and we quickly made plans for trivia.

Since the cruise was round trip Amsterdam many of our fellow cruisers were Dutch. I am wondering if a lot of them were booked 3-4 to a cabin, because the ship was very crowded. We ate in the dining room the first night. Since we got there early we were seated right away, but it quickly became quite crowded.

The next day was a sea day. Everything was crowded all day. The Lido generally had no available seating. It was hard to get a seat in Billboard to play trivia. The line at the Dutch Cafe was lengthy. Walking outside on the promenade was tedious, with frequent stops and slow moments because the people ahead were gawking or taking pictures.

We had booked the Tamarind for that night, and it was great. My favorite of everything on the ship.

The next day was Bergen. We had booked a Segway tour which was really fun, even in light rain. The first part was a little tour, then we went up in the hills and swooped around in the small hilly neighborhoods. Lots of fun. Beware in Bergen, one of the places the cruise ships dock is pretty far from the town. We had to grab a cab to get to our segway tour on time.

Our second port was Molde. We had booked the Troll Road tour. This was cancelled in the middle of the night, with the cryptic explanation that Norway did not have enough buses. We fumed, and rebooked some kind of Atlantic Coastal Road tour which was a snore. Boarding for all ship shorex was cumbersome and involved lengthy lines. The shorex department overall did not impress.

Another sea day next, with Rudi' Sel de Mer. I liked it fine, but to me Tamarind was much better. At least we avoided the crowds in the dining room and the Lido.

Our third port was Akureyri. Iceland! Iceland is beautiful, but this tour was marred by insistent midges. We really needed personal mosquito nets. This was a ship tour, and again we were unhappy with the boarding process and the crowds.

Next Isafjordur. We had a private tour this time with a hilarious guide and a trip to a really magnificent waterfall, and then a small farm where they had the most unusual looking sheep and goats.

That night we learned that we would not be calling at Reykjavik due to stormy weather. Instead we backtracked along Iceland's north coast and went to Invergordon, after two sea days on the very crowded ship. Our inrepdi travel companions booked a taxi tour, but we were unable to join them because my husband got covid and he was quarantined for five days. I tested negative and was not quarantined, which I thought was odd. We also had a little trouble with the medical center receptionist, but fortunately we were able to convince the doctor to call my husband's transplant team and get their treatment instructions. 

We had to dine via room service and this was a pain. Meals never arrived on time, and they took forever to pick up the dirty trays. We had trouble convincing them to bring us breakfast menus, although they did furnish lunch and dinner menus. They also wanted me to receive the large heavy trays and bring them into the room. This was very difficult.

I went ashore at our next stop, Lerwick, because we had booked a private Noss boat tour. It was great! Amazing birds and seals, many of them, right by the boat. I heartily recommend this option.

Next we had a day and a half in Edinburgh. We dropped anchor at South Queensferry, which meant a tender in, followed by an hour long bus ride to Edinburgh. There were other cruise ships anchored right in Edinburgh, so I am not sure what went wrong there. I just felt it was cumbersome to even get there since the ship was so far away.

Edinburgh was nice but I really missed my husband, so I just rode around on the hop on hop off bus.

Back to the crowded ship for one more sea day, my husband was released from quarantine, and we had a nice dinner at the Pinnacle and then packed.

I want to mention two crew members we really liked. Cliff, a waiter in billboard, and Tomas, who did trivia and other games and entertainments. They were both great.

A downer was our couples' massages. We compared notes afterwards and realized both masseuses had been texting the whole time. We felt kind of icky about that. I hope they weren't snapping pictures!

We did self embarkation and towed our own luggage off the ship. Taxis were plentiful. We had an early-ish flight so went straight to the airport which is huge and took a while to navigate. 

I have two more HAL cruises coming up, one on the Nieuw Statendam and one on the Westerdam. But if we keep encountering the crowded conditions of the Rotterdam we will be looking at small ship cruises in the future.

Too crowded

Positives are cleanliness, food and employees.  Negatives are entertainment and dropping you in remote tender ports without any concern for availability of taxis or busses to primary location.  

The entertainment in the primary show room was very disappointing and appeared to be low budget.  One of the large bars has a piano and not sure why they never used it with a cello or violin for entertainment a little quieter than the music walk entertainment.  

The Dutch coffee shop should have waiters instead of people standing in line like a starbucks.  

Ate at all of the specialty restaurants and they were very good with exception of Canaletto the Italian place.

Overall, I thought Celebrity provides equal or nicer ships with much better entainment.  I think they are also a better value though everyone gets a different deal.  

I am 70  but still thought the demographic was a little old and infirm.  Have been on 2 other HAL cruises and was aware of this issue.

Very Nice Clean ship Very weak entertainment

I booked this cruise because it was a “no fly” cruise from Amsterdam and the Norway landscape was on my “must see” list.

Furthermore Holland America had a lot of promotions because of their “150 years of Sailing” celebration with  the “Have it all” package. This included basic WiFi, beverages, including alcohol, specialty dining, a shore excursion budget of 100 dollar per person and 25 dollar on board spending budget per person.

Ports of call were Oslo, Kristiansand, Lervik and Flåm. 

I recommend Oslo, plenty to see there, Kristiansand is smaller, but very pretty and Flåm was beautiful because of its landscape. Lervik could be skipped in my opinion, nothing special there. The cruise included two days at sea.

The Rotterdam is a nice and comfortable ship. Cleanliness was excellent, crew was friendly and officers were very visible, what I like. The Lido Deck had a nice option to close the transparent roof, what turned the pool area into a tropical swimming paradise on colder days and a pleasant sun deck on warmer days. ( sunny days that we surprisingly had in Norway during this cruise) Seating around the Lido buffet was slighly too little on busy moments.

What I dislike from the Rotterdam is the smoking policy. In the casino smoking is allowed. The casino is an open space near the atrium, so smoke spreads and you can smell that. Also around the adult only pool bar smoking is allowed including smoking of cigars. What a pity. Old fashioned too, with everything that we know nowadays about the health issues of smoking.

I had an inside cabin on the Gherswin Deck. Small, but well furnished, crisp clean and OK for just a week. And, lovely cabin stewards.

Food was good. Main dining room is a little bit noisy. We had one diner in the Tamarind Asian food specialty restaurant. Good, but not the best I ever had. Asian food may be spicy, I like that, but it was ‘t spicy at all.

A thing that was visible was the great amount of guests with mobility issues. Plenty of wheelchairs and scooters. I hope that never an energency is going to happen. How do you quickly get all those people from board if that is ever needed? On the other hand, the Rotterdam caters guests with mobility issues very good.

Beside above minor things I can recommend cruising with the Rotterdam and Holland America.

Beautiful Norway 

Filters

1-10 of 92