IT WAS HORRIBLY RUN BY HOLLAND AT EVERY ARE FROM SERVICE TO EXCURSIONS TO BASIC INFORMATION . THEY WERE UNORGANIZED ,UNINFORMED -MANY DID NOT EVEN COMPREHEND BASIC ENGLISH AND NEEDED HELP FROM ANOTHER CREW MEMBER VERY UNDERSTAFFED SHIP AS WELL .
Embarkation
1 out of 5
LONG LINES AND WRONG INFO GIVEN AT THE FRONT DESK -HOLLAND AMERICA ORKERS AND OFFICERS WERE VERY INCOMPETANT
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
2 out of 5
THE ROOM SERVICE FOOD WAS AWFUL AND THEY GOT MANY ORDERS WRONG EVERY SINGLE DAY EVEN WITH SAYING LET ME REPEAT YOUR ORDER THE DINING ROOM SERVICE WAS FINE AFTER WE FINALLY GOT A COMPETANY WAITER -THE DINING ROOM FOOD WAS ABIT BETTER BUT WITH VERY LIMITED CHOICES .
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
BASIC TIA CHI , THE GYM ARTS AND CRAFTS WERE OK BUT COULD HAVE BEEN RUN BETTER
Entertainment
4 out of 5
THE ENTERTAINMENT WAS PRETTY GOOD THERE WAS A SAND ARTIST SOME GREAT SHOWS AND COMEDIANDS
Children's Programs
THIS WAS A GRAND CRUISE WITH NO CHILDREN WITH US
Service and Staff
1 out of 5
WITH THE EXCEPTION OF A FEW PEOPLE LIKE FINALLY FINDING A GOOD WAITER AT THE DINING ROOM AFTER 2 WEEKS OF REALLY BAD SERVICE AND GETTING ONE OR BOTH OF OUR DINERS WRONG AND THE ROOM STEWARD BEING MOSTLY AVG -THEY WOULD MISS THINGS HERE AND THERE . THE EXCURION DESK AND FRONT DESK AND THE OFFICERS LIKE THE HOTEL MANAGER WERE RUDE AND ALWAYS GAVE VERY WRONG INFO CONCERING PORTS AND TIMES AND MONEY AND VISA INFO -I COULD GO ON AND ON OF HOW REALLY STUPID THESE PEOPLE RUNNING THINGS WERE .EXCURRSIONS WERE LATE ALMOST EVERY TIME BY OVER 30 MINS WAISTING OUR ON OUR OWN TIME AS WELL AS THE DAY EXCURSION TIME .CONSTANTLY HAD TO FIGHT WITH HOTEL MANAGER OVER BAD ROOM WITH NOXIOUS ODER AND LOUD NOISES AND NOT REALLY ENOUGH ROOM TO GET INTO BED APX 10-12 INCHES BETWEEN THE BED AND THE WALL -A CHILD WOULD HAVE A HARD TIME SQUEEZING ALONG THE SIDE OF THE BED .
Ship Quality
1 out of 5
THE SHIP WAS OLD ,SMELLY AND RUN DOWN -IT HA MULTIPLE PLACES WHERE THE GLASS WAS BROKEN -THE LIDO DECK HAD THE GLASS DOOR ENTRYWAY BROKEN FOR THE DURATION OF THE 95 DAYS THE WOOD ON THE LIDO DECK HAD PATCHES MISSING AND WAS BUMPY SO MUCH THAT IT WOULD SPRING BACK UP WHEN YOU WALKED ON IT - WE ARE IN OUR EARLY 50'S AND MOST EVERYONE ON THE TRIP WERE 65+ AND MANY FELL AND WERE INJURED .
Cabin / Stateroom
1 out of 5
THIS TINY ROOM WITH A NOXIOUS CHEMICAL SMELL AND A MUSTY ODER HAD ZERO ROOM TO BET INTO BED AND NO ROOM TO PUT ANY FOOD OR DRINK -THE ROOM WAS AT THE VERY FRONT OVER THE ENGINE ROOM WHICH HAD A BIG FIRE LIKE THE NEW AMSTERDAM WHO HAD 2 WORKERS DIE -THE SHIP WAS SUPPOSED TO GO INTO DRY DOCK -IT WAS POORLY RUN AND IN POOR CONDITION THERE WAS MOLD IN OUR ROOM -WE COMPLAINED ALSO ABOUT THE SEVERE NOISE FROM THE ENGINE ROOM - WE NEVER HAD SUCH PROBLEMS IN 20 YEARS OF CRUISING AND WE ARE 4 STAR MAINERS ON HOLLAND BUT THIS SHIP WAS RUN BY KIDS WHO WERE VERY RUDE AND JUST KEPT SAYING NO WORRIES !! BUT NEVER RESOVED ANY PROBLEMS -EVEN THE HOTEL MANAGER JUST SAID TAKE IT UP WITH HOLLAND AFTER THE CRUISE AND REALLY COULD NOT BE BOTHERED
WENT TO TUVIA ISLAND MUCH BETTER SIDE OF FIJI ARE THEIR ISLANDS -EVEN THOUGH HOLLAND WAS OVER A HALF HR LATE WITH THE START OF THIS EXCURSION IS WAS A NICE PORT DAY INSPITE OF A LATE START AND EARLY HEAVY RAIN
NICE PORT OUTSIDE MAIN CITY AREA WERE THERE WERE PROTESTS GOING ON -WE TOOK THE BUS TO THE BEACH BUT THERE WERE MANY PARTS CLOSED DUE TO BOXED JELLY FISH -WE WENT TO THE AQUARIUM WHICH WAS GREAT - THE SHOPS WERE VERY HIGH PRICE AND RUN MOSTLY BY CHINESE VENDORS
HOLLAND EXCURSIONS FAILED US AS THEY WERE LATE BY 1 HR AND ONLY GAVE ABIT OVER 2 HRS ON A 7.5 HR DAY !! VERY UNORGANIZED -THE AUS ZOO WAS VERY NICE EVEN THOUGH IT WAS HEAVY RAIN AND FLOODING DUE TO THE REMNANTS OF A CYCLONE
SNORKELED THE GREAT BARRIER REEF - HIGH PRICED HOLLAND EXCURSION
LITERALLY MORE THAN DOUBLE THE RATE AS IT WAS $315 VERSE 129-159 FOR MOST OTHER PLACES .
WENT TO TERRITORY PARK IT WAS GREAT INSPITE OF HOLLAND AMERICAS POORLY RUN EXCURSIONS (I WOULD HAVE FIRED ATLEAST 4 OF THE 5 EXCURSION WORKERS AS THEY EXCUSED EVERYTHIN AND COULD NOT ANSWER SIMPLE QUESTIONS AND WERE COMBATIVE AND RUDE
ZOO WAS GREAT - MELBOURNE FULL OF INDONESIAN AND CHINESE VERSE AUSTRALIANS - OVER THE TOP WITH LGBT==== MANY PARADES WITH ENDOCTRONATING THE CHILDREN TO BE GAY AND EVEN TRANS COUPLE WITH DECORATED BABYS - NOT HOMOPHOBIC BUT THIS WAS BLATANT CHILD ABUSE IN MELBOURNE AND SYDNEY AS WELL
WE HEARD ITS AN AWESOME SOUND HOWEVER HOLLAND SKIPPED IT AS IT SEEMS HOLLAND ONLY WENT FASTER -REALLY ALMOST DOUBLE THE SPEED ON THE WAY HOME -THE CAPTAIN HAD NO GUTS ON THIS TRIP AND POOR PLANING AS HE WAS LATE ON PREVIOUS PORTS AND SAID WE NEED TO MISS THIS WHEN MANY ABOARD SAID SIMILAR THING THAT WE WERE ONLY A FEW HRS BEHIND AND HE COULD HAVE GONE A BIT FASTER OVER THE FEW DAYS AND IT DID NOT NEED TO BE CANCELED -ITS HOLLAND BEING CHEAP WITH GAS
VERY SEEDY PLACE LOTS OF STRIP JOINTS AND POT STORES AND BUMS
OUTSIDE OF THE MAIN CITY IS MUCH BETTER WE WENT TO THE ZOO AND THE AQUARIUM -THE MAORI PEOPLE ARE RUDE AND MENECING AND SOME OF THE PEOPLE WORKING IN THE TRANSIT SYSTEM WERE ALSO NOT REALLY INFORMATIVE AND ACTED LIKE YOUR BOTHERING THEM BY ASKING WHAT IS THE TRAIN TIME ECT...
AGAIN HOLLAND BEING CHEAP MISSED THIS PORT AT THE LAST MINUTE AS THEY SAID -WE JUST GOT PERMISSION TO GO TO BORA BORA -AND THEY SWITCHED THIS LITERALLY A DAY OR SO BEFORE
THE CAPTAIN COULD HAVE GONE HERE SAID WATER TOO ROUGH - ALWAYS SINCE HOLLAND HAS A VERY ELDERLY CROUD -THEY MISS PORTS VERY EASILY - THEY SWITCH THIS DAY AND MOVED IT UP -THEY SHOULD HAVE BEEN ABLE TO GET TO EITHER COOK ISLAND BUT POOR PLANNING BT HOLLAND WHICH IS PAR FOR THE COURSE
What an amazing itinerary, though! Sorry to hear that most things on board were well below your hopes and expectations, and I hope your next cruise is amazing!
So sorry to hear what a disappointment your cruise was. The itinerary sounded awesome but I bet you couldn’t wait for it to end! While the Volendam is an older ship, we always thought Holland kept their vessels shipshape! We quit cruising with them because they were just a little too low key for us. Sad to hear they’ve gone downhill so bad.
response to mcraf98 - i can send many pics and tell many more unfortunate things but my 3 pics show the rough condition of the ship -also i did not mention that a tender broke down and we all waited 3 hrs for a tender back to the ship from kirbati also a tender window broke into a womans face as the tender pilot slammed into the concrete wall by the dock in komodo
I can tell you there was a engine fire and one that killed 2 crew members on the niew amsterdam AGAIN - you do not have to believe me but you will once you go on the Volendam and see for yourself how rundown things are . You will also find a very poorly run ship with regards to service and excursions and hotel management- cruise this ship at your own peril . the elder crowd are wealthy and could care less about missed ports or tardy excursions or long lines at the service desk because it took 2 to 3 people to get involved in some questions as many crew were Indonesian and had another seasoned person helping them and double checking what they were doing .
I too hated how poorly run Holland America has been lately - and i can relate too Hollands very poorly run excursions and the food service and the front desk ever since corona they have changed . The new Rotterdam ship was nice and with the exception of the excursions still not running on time and some room service slow -the entertainment was very good and the ship was beautiful.
response to javawoody -i have over 1200 days at sea and am a 4 star mariner on holland you can take my advice or leave it - my 3 pictures show broken glass door rusty pool mold on port hole window that you cant even see
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