Our extended family, which included two toddlers, was on the Westerdam that sailed out of Ft. Lauderdale for 7 days on November 27, 2011. I was very, very skeptical after hearing that Holland America had an older crowd and not many children. Lesson learned - don't believe everything you read and wait to form your own opinions.

We had a wonderful time. Yes, there were plenty of people who were probably retired. However I think we got only one strange look at a child who was dancing around the Lido restaurant. Other than that all the passengers were very courteous to my 3 year old daughter and asked if she was enjoying herself (which she was!). In addition the crew was fabulous and a lot would ask where my daughter was if we showed up somewhere without her.

The food was good, although my husband wanted more in the dining room. I let him know he could have ordered as much as he wanted : ) I felt the servings in the Dining Room, if you got a salad and appetizer, were good sizes. Since we had a little one we mostly ate at the Lido Restaurant. The food wasn't bad but nothing to write home about especially at dinner time. The lunch options seemed to have more variety. The Grille at the Lido pool was really good but only available at lunch. We also got room service a couple of times which came in really handy. Read more