This was mine and DH's first cruise on Holland America. Prior to this we did a 10 day on the Radiance and decided to hop on this repositioning cruise to make our way back home to Seattle. We have cruised many times (19 for DH and 17 for me) and our favorite line is Royal Caribbean, with Celebrity being our second favorite. I expected the service on HA to be top notch and about what Celebrity offers but overall I didn't get that at all. So, I'll start off with some of the good things I found while onboard this ship:

- Great Captain. He was very friendly with all of the guests and took part in many activities, the cruise director was also a lot of fun. I found a few of the bar staff to be friendly which was nice since everyone else on the ship lacked that!

- The Culinary Arts program was a lot of fun. Cat with the Explorations Team was a lot of fun and did some great classes. I was able to partake in a cooking demonstration with the Pinnacle Grill chef. It was a great experience and afterwards we were able to take our food that we made to the Pinnacle Grill and enjoy a glass of wine. Well worth the $29! Read more