Waited 2 years for return of 25% of monies taken by HAL on the same cruise that was cancelled before covid.
Embarkation was hectic as 3 ships were in port at San Diego, however the ship was very clean and the crew were excellent our balcony cabin was nice and stewards were very friendly.
We had anytime dining later in the evenings an had nice tables at the rear window the food was very good ...
3 star Mariners, cruised HAL 137 nights, over a decade of loyalty towards HAL. Very disappointed with it’s treatments to loyal guests. Decreased in benefits, increased in “nickel and dime” up charges, gratuity, etc.
(Please see photos enclosed).
Menu selections mediocre (same old, same old). Cruised 3 times in 2022, same menu rotation, same entertainment line ups. HAL decreases menu ...
Our cabin steward was great and our dining room waiters are great but the pool attendants and buffet attendants left a lot to be desired.
The main problem that we encounter with Holland American is that there are pool chair hogs with chairs being blocked out and no attendant is interested in sorting this out.. On one afternoon I counted 222 chairs across from us that never had anyone in them ...
e had boarding in San Diego. I did all the pre boarding requirements on the HAL website and on VeriFLY. Our boarding pass said that a REAL ID-compliant driver's license was ok BUT the dock personnel did not seem to know that, we got shuffled over to another area and were finally told it was ok and we were allowed onboard.
The Koningsdam is a nice ship and seemed to be very clean. We got to our ...
We had actually booked a HAL Caribbean cruise in Feb, which we had to cancel, and we switched to the Classic California coast, as we live fairly close to San Diego, and we could drive to the port. This was our first HAL cruise, we weren't certain what to expect, but we wanted to try the line. I was attracted by the Music Walk concept, since I play instruments and love music.
Our expectations ...
I relied on HAL's reputation for excellent food and service and it's reputation for activities for adults and entertainment on previous very long cruises. This cruise was 35 days long, with many, many sea days. I was soon disillusioned.
The food was almost always served lukewarm and , for example, never was the toast at breakfast in the dining room served even remotely warm. Frequently, ...
Background: Nov 2021 we went on our second HAL1 week Mexican Rivera cruise on the Koningsdam from San Diego. Fun, high energy good cruise. Would repeat.
In June 2015 we were on our first Holland America cruise on the Zuiderdam for 33 days: 29 ports, 13 countries from Barcelona to Rome. Inside cabin. We had a wonderful time with the ports, fellow cruisers, food, music etc. we would ...
Holland America Zuiderdam 27th February 2022
Reviews are tricky at the moment as the Covid story still affects everything and some criticisms are because of this but I have ignored all Covid excuses in the write up. The cruise was from San Diego to Hawaii then on to French Polynesia then San Diego; 35 days with about half at sea.
Being met at airport; getting into hotel; transfer to ship; ...
This is the time to cruise while prices and capacity are low-it won't last! On day two of our cruise the mask mandate was lifted for all areas except the casino, theater and health center-YAY!!! With low capacity there was never an issue finding a lounger by the pool, a seat in a lounge or a table in the Lido Market. The menus in the Dining Room were great-lots of options every meal, food was all ...
We had a bit of a problem dealing with the 48 hour COVID Test required to board ship. We followed the HAL recommendation and ordered tests online 20 days prion to cruise. On Saturday before leaving home we went online and took the test via zoom with eMeD company, who immediately sent a e-mail to each of us, which we printed out and hand carried to the ship to expedite boarding. The EMED process ...