Volendam Review
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We arrived in Vancouver on a beautiful, sunny, warm day at the end of August to find a red blazered HAL rep waiting for us with a cab to the Pan Pacific Hotel. Our room was ready and we explored the city with a trip (by local bus) to Granville Island. That night we ate dinner in Gastown and had a leisurely walk back up the hill to Canada Place and our hotel. The next morning we boarded a 3 hr bus tour of the city (part of our package through HAL) stopping in Chinatown, Stanley Park and delivering us to the ship. We had a painless embarkation, lunch in the Lido and a gorgeous night to sail away. Our room had a balcony which we enjoyed except for when our next door neighbor was smoking on his balcony. We ate half our dinners in the Lido, half in the Rotterdam. The food was delicious and plentiful. We always asked for a table for two in the MDR with no reservation, except for the one formal night we attended. We never had to wait at all for a table and never had to share at table. Service all over the ship was excellent. Sometimes it was difficult to find a table in the Lido and then we'd have to eat in the pool area, which was sometimes cold and damp. One morning we had room service but found the coffee lukewarm so didn't repeat that. Our room was comfortable and our stewards must have refilled our ice bucket 3 times a day. Chocolate was waiting nightly and half the nights we found towel animals.
We attended all the shows which featured the singers and dancers which we enjoyed. The entertainers are a very talented group of young people. We did not attend the comedian, magician or crew shows. We watched a movie one night. Each night we'd go to the Crow's Nest to listen to Monica and the HALcats. Great band!!! We also enjoyed the string quartet and the 3 piece lounge band. We gambled some in the slot machines, won more than we lost. Each morning my husband would work out in the gym and I would walk the deck for an hour. Other times on the ship, we would read in the library, watch movies in our room, or just nap.
Disembarking was also a breeze. Aside from my suitcase losing a wheel (could happen anywhere) we were out of the ship area in about 5 mins.
Cabin Review
Verandah Suite
Cabin was very comfortable. We had a tub with jets but never used it as the tub was very small. We had to endure our neighbor's smoking on the balcony which was not fun. Our bedding had holes here and there. Bed was comfortable and the room was always cool or hot enough. Bathrobes were great! The waste of paper (jewelry advertisements) was ridiculous. All information, scheduling, etc could have easily been on one of the tv channels. Our cabin near the elevators was always quiet, loved the balcony, lots of drawers and closet space.