This was actually my very first cruise experience! Before we set sail, I read some of the posted reviews, so I wanted to share my thoughts as well.

We sailed on HAL's Zaandam ship to the Eastern Caribbean in December of 2004. This trip was actually a gift from family members so we did not necessarily pick this cruise line, but we were very thankful to go!

Let me first say that we are a young couple in our late 20's. I mention this because it is important for perspective buyers to know that the age demographic of this cruise was somewhere between 65-75. We knew this before leaving, but we were still a bit surprised. While the ship does offer activities for children, it seems to lack attention to anyone in the 18-40 age group. Thankfully we focused in the port visits. You could tell that the ship's staff is trying to improve on this point. It will be interesting to see how effective HAL will be on attracting a younger audience in the future. Read more