Previously, I sailed with Holland-America, on the Veendam in 1999, and the Volendam in 2001. Fine and impeccable was the service of the day, back then. Unfortunately, the service which previously existed, is alas, no more on the Ryndam. No sooner had my wife and I boarded the Ryndam on Dec. 1, 2013, that I noticed that there was a problem with the diverter valve in the shower. I was unable to get the water in the bathtub, to come out of the showerhead. Hence, I summoned the cabin attendant, who also had a problem with that device. In addition, the water was not properly draining out of the bathtub, as it was clogged. Someone had to have known about that problem, prior to Dec. 1, 2013. In any event, I called their main "service" desk, and reported the problem. One would have thought that both the cabin attendant and the main desk, would have contacted the ship's plumber. In fact, the matter was never addressed, until I again complained on Tuesday. I contacted a ship's officer, and also complained to the main desk, in person. This time, I got some action, as a maintenance person was actually sent to diagnose the problem. Afterwards, two plumbers came, and not only attempted to fix the problem, but also repaired a leaking faucet in the bathtub. However, I still had continuous problems with the diverter valve for the rest of the cruise, although I eventually got the water to come out of the shower head. To make matters worse, the toilet stopped flushing several days later. This time, the matter was expeditiously taken care of, and repairs were rendered.

In addition to the maintenance problems, there were problems with the Ryndam's security personnel. Some of them, whom we encountered when we disembarked and embarked at the various ports of call, were the lowest of the lowest, pertaining to professionalism, or the lack thereof. They had no training in dealing with customers who had mobility issues. I saw one of their lowlifes, grab the wrist of an older lady, as she was having issues with walking past their security scanner. Another one screamed at a passenger, who inadvertently left his cell phone in the security area, after he successfully passed through screening. I personally complained to the number two man on the ship (the Hotel Manager), and he straightened the security miscreants out. Unfortunately, when we left the Ryndam in Tampa, on Dec. 8, 2013, there was mass pandemonium regarding the expedited disembarkation. It was extremely disorganized, and some of the Holland-America crew, were shouting at the passengers. Again, it was very unprofessional., and could have been handled better. When we asked for assistance with our luggage, in getting off, the Ryndam refused to help us. However, there were plenty of porters in the Tampa terminal, once we exited the ship.

Years ago, Holland-America used to have a master baker on board, and he would bake the most delicious pastries. Then, in the evening, those pastries would be displayed for all of the guests to enjoy. Unfortunately, the Ryndam no longer does that, as the type and variety of pastries, left a lot to be desired. Read more