We have been on 20 cruises, many of them with HAL. We knew going in that the Maasdam was an older, smaller ship and she was just fine. We selected this trip for the itinerary ... would rather have been on the Eurodam or Niew Amsterdam, but they do not sail this itinerary.

The Maasdam was in good shape with some minor signs of her age. We had a Neptune Suite and enjoyed breakfast in the Pinnacle reserved only for Neptune Suite guests. We ate the first night in the dining room ... food good. But we realized we really enjoy a top-notch meal with superior service and ate the remaining six nights in the Pinnacle. Wonderful each time! One of the nights was Le Cirque, was was wonderful as well.

All the ports on this cruise were nice. Heavy rain in Quebec City so we stayed on the ship. Went to the fortress (through HAL) in Sydney, a good lesson in history and a nice excursion. Did the lighthouses (HAL) in PEI ... also nice excursion, though we visited just two lighthouses. The tour guide was very knowledgeable and we learned many things about PEI. We hired a driver in Halifax and raced to Peggy's Cover before all the buses and then drove all around. Visited the Titanic tombstones (yes, there was a Jack Dawson!). In Bar Harbor, we took HAL's lighthouse boat tour. Rather cold (1st week of June) and be prepared ... this 2-deck boat goes fast. Visited about five lighthouses and got some really nice photos. We had lunch in Bar Harbor ... many nice places to dine and shop. Read more