"For some reason, the wrong itinerary is listed for this cruise, so I can't get some of the ports we actually visited to appear in the port review section.This was our 5th HAL cruise, but it was our first time back with them since the pandemic...."Read More
WanderingTheWorld
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1-10 of 86 Europe Nieuw Statendam Europe Cruise Reviews
The Nieuw Statendam just came out of dry dock, so this was an opportunity to see what a newish ship was like as well as a transatlantic; the holiday time sailing was an added bonus. The dates allowed us to spend some time in Rome before departure, so we were able to do a land cruise. Returning to FLL helped minimize flight costs.
The food was overall very good; Club Orange dining room service ...
I would recommend you pick a different ship and even a different cruise line completely. It is really that bad. The worse of the worst? The food. The overall food quality and selection is poor. Not what you would expect from HAL. The food is either way overcooked or undercooked. The service is slow and there are way too many mistakes. Seriously it is a cruise where you actually dread meal time. On ...
I needed to go to the US and found this transatlantic for a good price and the timing that I needed. My first Holland America cruise 6 months prior on the Rotterdam was disappointing, but I gave HA another try. This cruise was much better. The atmosphere was much more relaxed (I'm assuming this stems from management down), and the crew seemed less uptight too. There weren't constant announcements ...
Selected itinerary for the ports and ability to spend a few days in Rome. Embarkation was the BEST, easiest, fastest we've ever experienced. We were boarded and eating lunch in MDR a full hour before our check in time.
For a ship going into dry dock, we did experience any maintenance related issues or ration shortages. There was no visible work being done in the areas where we walked. May have ...
My husband and I are in our 40's. This was our 5th HAL cruise, but it was our first time back with them since the pandemic. Our last HAL cruise was on the Koningsdam in the Caribbean, and we loved it! We were excited to try out her sister ship in European waters.
PRE-CRUISE
We spent 4 nights at an Airbnb near Termini in Rome. This was our 4th time in the Eternal City, so we skipped the major ...
Nieuw Statendam clearly wishes to appeal to the loving-loud-music-everywhere American. The ship will be successful in this.
The ship itself is beautifully maintained. You will have to search to find a rust spot anywhere. First-class paintwork, varnish and cleaning. Faultless and much appreciated. An MSC ship moored alongside at some stage and that looked very different.
All housekeeping and ...
Good points
- The ship is fairly new and well appointed.
- The service staff are very friendly and try very hard.
- Food quality is good.
The bad points
- Organisation on the ship is sub standard.
- The Lido kept some really strange hours - for example closing for diner at 8:30 pm which one would expect is peak time
Really bad points
- For the first half of the cruise ...
I loved the staff, the service and honestly the maintenance of the ship is overall very good. I would give them 4.5 to 5 stars in most cases. The ship however is old from the perspective of activities and value.
Activities are very limited compared to other vessels both in terms of physical offerings such as recreational opportunities but also in terms of creativity. Other ships have mini ...
I have cruised HA 15 times. Love the line. We took this cruise and extended another 14 days to travel to Egypt, Turkey, Greece etc. so we were on the ship a total of 25 days. HA has always attracted an older crowd and the ship is usually fairly full. We noticed the following during our 25 days: (1) Poor officer interaction with passengers (2) poorly trained Lido floor wait staff (3) lack of ...
This was our first time on HAL; our cruising has otherwise been on Norwegian and Royal C. We chose this ship for the itinerary--Norway fjords--and for the price, which included the drink package, internet, and credits for shore excursions and specialty dining, along with an $800 flight credit.
We left from Copenhagen--if you haven't been, seriously consider spending 3-4 days there before ...