Volendam Review

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Review for Alaska Cruise on Volendam
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alaskaboundx2
First Time Cruiser • Age 60s

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Sail Date: Sep 2009
Cabin: Verandah Suite

My husband and I can not enough good about our recent Holland America Cruise on the MS Volendam. Yes the ship shows signs of age in spots, but the crew and the scenery of Alaska more than make up for it. This was our first cruise, and we will be back. The transport from VanCouver airport to the Port was flawless, the embarkation was easy. The buffet lunch that was waiting for us was wonderful. We did not get our luggage until after 7pm that night, but we had packed our carry ons with that in mind. We booked a balcony stateroom and were upgraded to midship. Unfortunately that was right over the Ocean's Bar, and we are light sleepers, but the band ended at a decent hour so we did not mind too much. The room had plenty of storage and our Steward did a great job once he learned our habits and likes. The food and entertainment the entire cruise were magnificent and far better than we expected. The ship's photographic staff is very talented and we ended up buying many more photos than we thought we would. Roland in the Explorer's cafe makes the best Spanish coffee we have ever tasted. We booked all of our port excursions through Holland America and we experienced the same level of service in each port. The Captain and the bridge crew are also to be commended, my husband is ex- Coast Guard and he was impressed with how easily the crew handled the ship. The down sides are very few, yes the stateroom looked worn, and we had many plumbing issues during the cruise, but each was resolved quickly. Disembarkation was very confusing because we had one of the early times. The staff sent us back and forth from the third deckto the second and back to the third deck several times, which never should have happened. Holland America booked our flights and the time between flights in Denver was way too short, luckily we made it, but with only seconds to spare. Also while the shopping seminars were good and informative and the maps very helpful, be careful of the "freebies" most stores had none left when we walked in and most the clerks were overbearing and gave the hard hard sell. I think Holland America could do a better job of keeping track of what is available and what is not. We were sad to leave, and wished the cruise would have been longer, which is the mark of a great voyage. The MS Volendam is a fine ship and the crew is one in a million. Thank you all for exceeding our expectations.

Cabin Review

Verandah Suite

Cabin AA

Great views, great space but directly over Ocean's bar so very noisy at times.

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