Too New??

We chose this cruise because the Koningsdam is a new ship and we were happy to be cruising aboard another new ship as we have done in the past two years on the Princess Regal and the Princess Royal. Our favorite part of this cruise was the destination ports of Bonaire, Curacao, and Aruba. We also chose this cruise because the length of time in these ports was long enough to do some two-tank dives.

The ship itself is a very appealing vessel with a theme of musical notes and subdued tones. But, however, the staterooms are smaller than what we had on the Princess line (we have had mini-suites on all three ships). We had very pleasant cabin stewards. Unfortunately, customer service agents, supervisors, and the assistant manager, were not as helpful. We had to deal with all of these people because the Laundry Services lost my tuxedo. We were told in the beginning that the hotel manager was "too busy to deal with customers". Eventually, we were able to meet with the hotel manager, but it was after six days of frustration and disappointment. After meeting with him, the cruise line agreed to pay for the cost of the tuxedo. But this is all they did. There was no additional compensation as of today.

The dining room staff was pleasant and helpful. Unfortunately, the quality of the chefs and the food being served wasn't up to the standard shown on the Princess line. Three times we had meat that was tough or cooked incorrectly.  On one instance, scallops we ordered came out rubbery and chewy.

The Lido Market (buffet) food was controlled by the servers behind the glass counters. We found these servers controlling the amount of food placed on the plate. If you asked for more, there was a poor attitude displayed on their part. The breakfast and lunch menus during our ten-day cruise did not change very much. 

Overall, the food, except for Gala nights and the BBQ at the pool, was non-memorable. For myself, my favorite part of a meal is the dessert. I cannot remember one dessert on this cruise.

This was our first cruise with Holland America and we're not sure if Holland America wants customers to purchase meals in their five upscale restaurants at an additional cost of anywhere from $10 at lunch to $50 for dinner, per person. One of these is a French seafood restaurant that charges a la carte.

Our experience with the Journeys Ashore (shore excursions) desk was less than helpful. I had personally arranged for dives in Bonaire, Curacao and Aruba. I tried checking the Journeys Ashore agent about the dive offered through the ship at Grand Turk. I wanted to know what certification organization the dive company was associated with. The agent was unable to answer my question. He only repeated back to us what was written in the booklet.

Overall, the ship itself is a very appealing vessel.  However, service from the customer service desk, the shore excursion desk and food preparation and quality did not live up to what we experienced over the past years with Princess Regal and Princess Royal.