Holland America Line Southern Caribbean Cruise Reviews

We took this cruise because it was Available for back to back while visiting differs ports on each segment. Entertainment in the main theater was only BBC and dancers. While both were excellent, we’d like more of a variety. Also missing was Americas Test Kitchen, though it’s still listed. There was the same comedian in BB Kings on several nights. The music in that venue was good. We have not ...

I wrote a longer letter than this over 3 months ago to the President and CEO of Carnival, explaining my personal experiences, both good and bad, on Holland America’s (HAL) Rotterdam’s ten-day cruise, departing Port Everglades in November 2022. I was hoping my observations, and what happened to me, could help her and and her management team who oversee HAL, to make improvements and appropriate ...

This is a long, 'log style' review. If you just want the summary, scroll to the bottom. Nieuw Statendam, March 16, 2022, 11 night Wednesday March 16 – Embarkation day. Due to a medical emergency on the previous sailing, we were notified the Nieuw Statendam would be delayed in arriving to Port Everglades and to please not arrive before 2:00 PM to board. With that information we delayed ...

We’re moderately experienced cruisers, with a handful of voyages under our belts. However, this my first time aboard HAL; wife’s second time. Overall, it was nice being back on the water after the long layoff. This cruise reinforced the critical element of choosing a cruise line and ship that best aligns with your cruise priorities. For me, the ship is the destination, especially when ...

Hub and I booked a balcony cabin rather last-minute -- back surgery on his part necessitated us letting go a steal of a deal on Empress of the Seas and rebooking a different trip. We were looking forward to sailing on HAL again, as we appreciate the relative calm on board (we drop the average cruiser age by 20 years when we embark) and had not been on a Dam ship in four years. (As background: ...

This was our 12th cruise, 2d on HAL. What a disappointment! Ship is tired, scuffed, dirty and smelly. Needs a major renovation. Design is dated, but more important it's just old and not well maintained. The ambience of the ship transferred to many (but by no means all) of the staff, many of whom seemed just as tired as the ship and were simply going thru the motions. The food was ...

I chose this trip because the ABC islands are really nice to visit. We have been there four times. I also wanted a cruise for a friend who was new to cruising. In sum: -food especially the sushi at lunch was good. But the station closed at 1400 and our tours ended just a few minutes past this time. Other lunch stations on the Lido stayed open until 1430. -breakfast food was good but ...

As always, the ship, crew and food were great! The biggest issue was that more modern venues for entertainment have been shut down on the smaller boats. In the Ocean bar, the trio band (think older standards for ballroom dancing) played every night till 10pm and then at 11pm the cruise entertainment person took on the additional duty of DJ for the only dance floor left on the boat. Since it was ...

We chose this cruise as a 10 day special cruise for my 75th birthday. Unfortunately, we checked in our luggage at Koningsdam drop off. Somehow our luggage ended up on a Celebrity ship. We were notified the next day that our luggage was on the Celebrity ship and would catch up with us at our first stop in Bonaire. Then late in the afternoon we checked to see that everything was set up. Sheila ...

One star for Lincoln Center Stage and One more for our waiters and cabin steward, I'm behind generous. We chose this 30 day itinerary, round trip Fort Lauderdale, because we were anxious to sail on the Amazon River in Brazil and see the towns and villages that were scheduled. As always I'll try to indicate the good points and not so good experiences so you can make your own decisions as to ...