This was our 11th cruise with HAL and most likely the last. The dining room is always a very sad experience. During EVERY cruise the staff just can't get the requested table right. For this cruise we requested a seating at 7:45pm and a table for FOUR. So, what did they do? They placed us at a table for SIX. The food as always was luke warm at best. Most nights it seemed like it was a chore for the staff to even bring us our meal without complaining about this or that. The ship's "feeling" was less then stellar and when that happens in a company it usually starts at the top and works its way down the line. Stay away from this ship until they get their act together and remember that its clients that pay their salaries.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
No problem at all -- very smooth!
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
1 out of 5
Dining room food was always luke warm or a bit cold -- no matter what hot meal we ordered. The choices were less then stellar and the portions extremely small.
Onboard Activities
1 out of 5
There were almost no on board activities. Sad.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
The BBKing Lounge was the only option that had great music. The main stage was just as sad and disappointing as always.
Service and Staff
3 out of 5
Not one staff member went above and beyond and the feeling was that no one was happy to be employed on this ship. Where does that come from? In my humble opinion it comes from the top of the corporate ladder. If everyone was a happy employee then the rest of the staff would also be happy!
Ship Quality
5 out of 5
Acceptable.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
It was a clean cabin -- however, there was a box like wall that stood out from one side of the room making it much smaller then it should be...and, the bathroom could really use an update.
Sorry for the disappointment, the last time we cruised on Holland we ended up eating in buffet for most dinners. They put us in “Anytime Dining” which we did not request and we just found it more relaxing. We were surprised as to how many ate in buffet.
Our 2 cruises with Holland America were disappointing as well. The quality of the food and entertainment was lacking and below what we experienced on Carnival and Royal Caribbean. We had heard good things about HAL, but were underwhelmed. It seems that most that rave about the cruise line rarely, if ever, cruise any other lines, so they have nothing to compare it to. We will only cruise with HAL again if we cannot find a similar itinerary on another line.
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