Heavenly pleasantness

Volendam Cruise Review to Caribbean - Southern

Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 40

Overall rating:

5 out of 5
Verified Review
Volendam

10 Night Southern Caribbean (Ft. Lauderdale Roundtrip)

Sail date: December 13, 2006

Ship: Volendam

Cabin type: Inside

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 14 years ago

Review summary

The Volendam is a comfortable, elegant ship with excellent, and friendly, service. I liked the size (about 1200 passengers), and the familiar surroundings, like the Amsterdam, which was our first cruise ship. Our inside cabin was spacious (after our steward took out the chair we didn't need), with plenty of room for storage. I appreciated the self-service laundry on our deck, which, like everything else on the ship, was clean and thoughtfully organized. I don't know if other ships do this, but there is hand sanitizer available at many places on the ship, and everyone is expected to sanitize before entering any dining area, and upon returning to the ship from shore excursions. I find this reassuring! Every member of the staff we encountered was pleasant and helpful, and we enjoyed meeting other cruisers. It was a ten-day cruise in mid-December, so there weren't a lot of children, and those that were onboard were well-behaved. My only negatives were that the air conditioning was too cold (at least in our cabin we could control it ourselves), and the Internet connection was very slow, which was frustrating considering the price per minute. Otherwise, I would take this cruise again, and will definitely cruise with Holland America again.

Ports of call

Roseau, Dominica

5 out of 5
The rain forest was beautiful. It was crowded at the Emerald Pool, which I guess is to be expected when there are several ships in port. Dominica seemed much poorer than the other places we visited. It's good the cruise ships are adding to the economy.

Willemstad, Curacao

5 out of 5
We were there on a Sunday, so many stores and museums were closed, but we enjoyed being in town with the locals. Willemstad impressed us as a place people lived and worked, rather than just a tourist attraction.
Don't Miss: See the floating bridge. If it's open to allow a boat to pass, you can take the free ferry right nearby.

Oranjestad, Aruba

5 out of 5
We took a private tour with Bryson and Nina, who were superb guides.
Don't Miss: Get out and see the island.

Willemstad, Curacao

5 out of 5
We were there on a Sunday, so many stores and museums were closed, but we enjoyed being in town with the locals. Willemstad impressed us as a place people lived and worked, rather than just a tourist attraction.
Don't Miss: See the floating bridge. If it's open to allow a boat to pass, you can take the free ferry right nearby.

Half Moon Cay, Bahamas (Private Island)

5 out of 5
Gorgeous. Great barbecue. Soft sand, pleasant water. You don't need a cabana if you can find a shady spot.

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

5 out of 5
A shopper's paradise. Best prices on t-shirts, liquor. Good quality souvenirs. Plenty of taxis, all charging the same price so no surprises. Lots of traffic!
Don't Miss: Use your cell phone like you were in the States. Mail your mail with stamps from home.

Roseau, Dominica

5 out of 5
The rain forest was beautiful. It was crowded at the Emerald Pool, which I guess is to be expected when there are several ships in port. Dominica seemed much poorer than the other places we visited. It's good the cruise ships are adding to the economy.

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

5 out of 5
A shopper's paradise. Best prices on t-shirts, liquor. Good quality souvenirs. Plenty of taxis, all charging the same price so no surprises. Lots of traffic!
Don't Miss: Use your cell phone like you were in the States. Mail your mail with stamps from home.

Half Moon Cay, Bahamas (Private Island)

5 out of 5
Gorgeous. Great barbecue. Soft sand, pleasant water. You don't need a cabana if you can find a shady spot.

Oranjestad, Aruba

5 out of 5
We took a private tour with Bryson and Nina, who were superb guides.
Don't Miss: Get out and see the island.

Pros: being cared for, pampered

Cons: too much air conditioning--I was cold!

Recommends Volendam? Yes!

Was this review helpful? 40

1 Comment

Gwbigdog    2 years ago

Thanks for sharing your cruise.

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