Family ceuise

Item: Veendam
Rating: 4.1
Author: dannih68

Veendam Cruise Review to Europe - Mediterranean

dannih68

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 2-3 cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Vote: 1

Overall rating:

4.1 out of 5

12 Night Mediterranean Romance (Venice To Barcelona)

Sail date: July 14, 2019

Ship: Veendam

Cabin type: Oceanview

Traveled as: Family (older children)

Reviewed: 5 years ago

Review summary

Given that we had limited timeframe in which we could cruise, the itinerary with Holland America fit it perfectly. We had a fabulous time visiting each of the ports. Each day allowed plenty of time to visit the places we stopped. Unlike other cruises we have taken previously, HollandAmerica didn’t have any enticing promotions going. This probably would have swayed us toward booking any future cruises with them. The Veendam is a smaller ship with fewer guests than some other shops, which we enjoyed. However if is looking a little outdated.

Embarkation

5 out of 5

Excellent

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

3 out of 5

Food was average, have had a better range of choices on other cruises

Onboard Activities

3 out of 5

Not many activities on Veendaam

Entertainment

3 out of 5

Average

Service and Staff

5 out of 5

Excellent

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

Ship was clean, but very dated

Cabin / Stateroom

4 out of 5

Cabin size was spacious, good amount of room for 4. But dated. Only one power outlet, had trouble with our toilet. We were in cabin 833. I would advise anybody to avoid this cabin as is at the very back of ship, & extremely noisy.

Ship tip

We only went on Veendam, as the itinerary & dates were the best for our trip. Probably wouldn’t sail with Holland America again, based on this experience. But I had read reviews about the issues we experienced, so went onboard with little expectation.

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Venice, Italy

5 out of 5

Dubrovnik, Croatia

4 out of 5

Advise to get to Old Town as early as possible. Gets extremely busy in Summer months. We arranged a driver to visit some of the sights, when we arrived at port

Thumbs Up 1

Sarande, Albania

5 out of 5

Nice, used it to have a relaxing day. Just wandered along pier

Thumbs Up 0

Katakolon (Olympia), Greece

5 out of 5

Great port. Organised a private car & driver

Thumbs Up 0

Naples, Italy

5 out of 5

Organised a full day tour with Italytours.eu