My wife and I have a 30-year relationship with Holland America, stretching back to a Christmas cruise on the old Noordam in 1986. For a number of years it was our preferred cruise line, but our two most recent experiences – this year and last to Alaska – have persuaded us to question whether to take future trips, in particular the 24-day cruise we've booked on the Zaandam next April. Regrettably, our level of dissatisfaction with the HAL cruise product reached a tipping point on this year's journey.

We took this cruise because the pier is a cab ride away from home, we could relax for a week and the ports are friendly and familiar. On the plus side, the ship was spotless, the public areas nicely fitted out and the design still perfect for the Alaska run with its scenic views and wildlife encounters. The passenger list was notable for the absence of Americans: only 11 per cent of the complement were US citizens. Australians were the largest group (34 per cent), followed by Canadians (24) and Brits (21). What does it say about this line when only one in nine of its passengers on a cruise to Alaska are Americans, the company's primary market? It says the line can't attract enough of them, which means, in turn, that on-board revenue has to be jacked up to augment cabin fares and that expenses have to be shaved to preserve the bottom line for the shareholders.

These unfortunate trends were notably in evidence. The entertainment was mediocre at best: tired dancers straining mightily with stale material, a show band notable by its absence, a singalong piano man consistently off-key. Featured entertainment on our night in Juneau? A movie. At least the cruise director (an Aussie) was polished and professional. Read more