4/11/10

By Angelinfl

• April 28, 2010

I had sailed Holland America before. This trip on the Statendam following its 2 week dry dock was the ship from hell... the only thing the ship didn't do was sink. We even had a fire on board. I heard the 7 bells and told my friend... Get your lifejacket we're sinking. (On the lifeboat drill, we were specifically instructed to NOT bring our lifejackets to the drill never heard of that before!)

The day we left it rained. Our luggage was soaked in the rain. Had clothes hanging all over my cabin. You would think the luggage personnel would have handled things much better....

We had no pool for 4 days as I found out that the steel deck under the pool had been replaced in dry dock and when pool was filled leaked. All the cabins in that area and down to deck 3 & 4 included in that area were soaked. Some people sloshed through water in their cabin. Some had their stuff in one room and a bed in another and were told it was only temporary because they needed these cabins for guests embarking in Barbados for the 7 days from there to Ft. Lauderdale.

There was sporatic or no air conditioning most times in the Rotterdam Dining Room. It was so hot. The elderly obese dining room manager was rude to female passengers and absolutely lied. The captain, a very nice man who has throat cancer knows it too.

Walking down the halls in the Statendam different levels of sewage and mold were sniffed. i could identify where my cabin was by the smells. Shame on Holland America.

I will say the food was excellent. However, for several days the drinking water was salted and I was told a "little salt is good for you" Holland America came around with their expensive bottles of bottled water for a fee never offering them to guests free. I found that very insensitive as there are many elderly people (their main audience) who have blood pressure and other issues and who are also eating a rich diet who should NOT have been drinking salt water.

Half the elevators on the ship were not operational. The leather was peeling from the walls due to water damage. i was in an elevator and the lights went out. I didn't think I was on a Holland American ship but in the Haunted Hotel from Hell. I was so scared it was not funny. We couldn't even see where the emergency button was.

They had contractors on the ship who was working on electrical and other problems because they knew this ship was doomed. The passengers were inconvienced on every turn and Guest Services answer was WRITE CORPORATE in Washington. Shame on them.

I'm a member of the Mariner Society. I have cruised many happy times with Holland America and I expected someone to acknowledge that this was not a carefree vacation but I felt like I was on the Mary Celeste and didn't know from time to time what was going on.

Generators were out. We were late to port because of engine problems. Tours were cancelled. It was horrible and certaintly not the vacation I expected.

I think Holland America should suck it up and give the people on this cruise at least 3/4 off the "real" prices not the inflated prices of a new cruise.

Oh yeah and if you look at the pipes on deck 12 they are held together with duct tape painted white. so many things are wrong with this ship at this point I'm getting really picky.

Also Liz and her alliterations got old and the instructions to the guests to fill out everything as a "9" was sickening. She made the cruise particularly unpleasant and unattractive. If she is representative of the image of Holland America then please put her on a diet and make her more pleasant and less obnoxious.

I have a feeling honest reviews of the crusie and ship are going to be hidden from the public. If you notice on x the last review allowed to be published on this ship was back in 09. Someone on these sites hold up honest reviews.

I feel my vacation was ruined by the mechanical issues of this ship. i broke out in hives on this ship every day and NEVER had a problem with it before. I also could not breathe very well and bought some antihistimine pills in a port and I have not had asthmatic problems for 15 years. That ship is filled with mold spores.

I would like someone from corporate Holland America land to contact me.