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Sorry to say that our experience on this ship was not very good! The services and accommodations were very good but the ship itself did not "wow" us! Felt the inside of some of the decks (2,3) were somewhat dingy.  We chose to have open seating for dinner thinking we would have been able to reserve the same table for 6 (we were 3 couples) for the 7 nights for the same time we wanted to chose which was for 6:30 pm but the only reservation time that arrangement was available was for either 5:30 or 8:30 seatings. Too early for 5:30 & too late for 8:30!!!! As a result - we always had to wait for a table anywhere from 10-20 minutes when we went to dinner for around 6:30.  We always had a problem as they tried to give us an oval (small) table for 6 near the aisle & had to request another one near a window.  So it was a different table every night except on the 2nd gala evening when we were not permitted to dine as my husband was not wearing either a dinner jacket/long sleeve shirt/tie!!! No "tie" no dine!!!  We ended up going to the buffet dinner!! The dress code in the dining room were a bit too restrictive! First night my husband was wearing his dressy shorts and was told that he needed to change to long pants so he went back to change while we had to wait for a table (for 6 people) to be ready. The shows weren't bad. We did enjoy the BB King Blues singers & band. The nightly violin & piano players for us was music to sleep by but they were good. No big screen by either pools. The ports we visited were excellent - reason why we choose this cruise. Didn't know that there were going to be so many very elderly people (slow walkers/canes/walkers/mobiles) which was sometimes a little difficult to move around them seeing there was limited walking spaces on some of the decks (don't mean any disrespect towards them as they were mostly very friendly)

in general - the ship was a disappointment (being the smallest of previous cruise ships) the dining problem & no "wow" factor!! In future we will not be booking any cruises with Holland America unless it becomes absolutely necessary if going to ports of call we haven't visited that other ships aren't going to and it would have to be a bigger ship at that!

Everyone should experience the thrill of going on a cruise! Other than the small hustle & bustle of embarking & disembarking, the in between makes it worthwhile. We call it the floating hotel. It is welcoming to take a break to not have to worry about what to cook for breakfast, lunch and dinner and the food is always good and great varieties to chose from (of course this could be a problem too as we usually tack on a few more pounds when we leave). Also nice not to have to worry about doing any household chores too! No stress, no worries - so nice!!!

The staff do a great job in making you feel special as they are always friendly, helpful, funny, entertaining, courteous and much more. Our stateroom attendant & dinner waiters were a great bunch of men!

The days on board are filled with so many activities, entertainment, movies & shows to keep us busy. The ports of call are interesting and colourful places to see,  explore and shop.

Overall experience & atmosphere is relaxing, carefree, fun, entertaining, and being pamper. Already planning our next one!