I am in the middle of a 67 day HAL cruise from the states all around Australia. This is a bucket list cruise, until HAL put holes in my bucket. No on-board passengers while sailing from the states were allowed to book any excursions in future ports of AU until we reached Sydney. Meanwhile close to 1500 passengers boarding in Sydney had been booking excursions from home, resulting in all good ...
We had our MiddLe Eastern cruise cancelled and thought that by sailing around our own New Zealand and Australia we would be fine. It was great, we managed to book another cruise for the return to Australia but sadly they cancelled that in the week we had as a stopover in Auckland. Understand the situation completely. The Noordam is perfect for size for us, love the crew, well presented ship with ...
We chose this cruise because we had heard good things about Holland America and it was going to places we wanted to visit. We have been on many cruises before always using Cunard, Celebrity and Royal Caribbean in the past without criticism. However, from the moment we boarded we were disappointed. The ship looked very tired. Our stateroom had a balcony and we had paid a lot of money for it. ...
What was meant to be a holiday of a lifetime was spoilt by choosing Holland America as our cruise line. We were on a 15 night cruise starting from Sydney on February 26th. Although this ship was refurb the only changes to the cabins was the television on the wall. The bathrooms are very tired and our friends whose cabin was next door had the enamel peeling off the bath.
On return from our ...
The itinerary was good. A place we had never been before and very much wanted to see. We Hadn't been with HAL before but will never go with them again. Extortionate drinks prices, happy hour lasted 15 minutes in BB kings. Entertainment rubbish other than BBkings. Food luke warm, not much choice for vegetarians, lots of pasta and pizza and salad. They were proud of the fact they would make you some ...
14 days on the newly renovated Noordam and felt thoroughly pampered every day. From the outstanding service of the room attendants to the doting Main Dining room staff ( we had a fixed 8pm seating and loved it!) this was a fabulous cruise. Turned out to be the retirement cruise of our HAL Captain John Scott so there we’re lots of unique touches and events to commemorate the event.
The casino ...
We heard that Holland America has a more mature passenger crowd and fewer kids. The activities are geared towards a more mature clientele, but there is still a kids club and swimming pool for the few kids who were on the cruise, but no water slides, etc.
Holland America really went the extra mile to keep the guests happy. One of the sightseeing destinations On the itinerary was a morning of ...
We were very hesitate to go on this cruise after reading posts on this site. I am a 4 star mariner and was extremely surprised that the bad reviews were way out of line. This fall we sailed the Nieuv Statedam and in January took the Noordam around Australia and found the Noordam much better in almost all categories. The ship is not tired or in need of major upgrades. The crew was probably the ...
We chose this cruise for the number of port stops and we weren’t disappointed! We got a great feel for New Zealand. We travelled with children between 7-14 and they all had a great time. Kids clubs were entertaining and staff were wonderful with them. Although decor was a little dated, cabins were a great size and layout. Balconies were spacious. The new flat screen TVs with on-demand movies were ...
We chose this cruise on the basis of previous happy cruises with HAL, a total of some eighty (80) days on Volendam x 2 , Westerdam and Konigsdam. The service, entertainment, and especially the food on those cruises were pivotal factors in selecting Noordam. We are bitterly disappointed in the Noordam cruise and it’s invisible on board management. I shall be writing to HAL CEO, Stein Kruse seeking ...