We were on the Zuiderdam on May 24 and were pretty upset about a few things, namely the smells and a few other things. This is only our second cruise and it has kind of soured us on HAL. I had made comments on the card at the end of the cruise about the problems we had and also added our phone number in the space provided. HAL has not contacted us since returning over a month ago either via phone or mail and that too upsets me that they can have a customer leave negative comments and never even try to contact the customer to appologize or anything. My travel agent suggested writing a letter which I will do but wonder, apart from the Joe Blo type in customer relations, who should I CC the letter to? Who is the president of HAL (or Carnival as the case may be)? What other big wigs should I CC in?
I am on that ship in November, hope they straighten out their act. I have sent complaint letters to HAL before, but usually get nothing out of it but regrets. Had problem on Celebrity cruise in April, wrote two long letters and received no response. Princess has been responsive in the past, but now they are in the Carnival family so I dont know. Send letter to customer service at HAL Seattle address and good luck.
We just came home Sat. and had a pretty bad experience with some of the problems I have been reading about.We had sewage smells coming into the room in the middle of the night.We called the front desk and they sent someone to investigate.They admitted there is a problem when they process the sewage it seems to go into some of the airconditioning ducts into some rooms.Two of the rooms had problems for one night. They said they would file a report.We heard nothing more.
There is also sewage smells in some of the hallways.
Another big problem is the vibration in the lower dining room. Thank Goodness I read this and booked table 49 in the second floor dining room.We went for breakfast in the lower dining room to see the coffee cups falling off the tables!I asked the staff what was happening and they told me the captain was trying to make port on time.The Vista Lounge was also a tough place to watch a show.The ship rocked and rolled so much even the comedian joked about how bad it was.The seas were very rough for about 5 days out of the 7 because of a pending hurricane.I got the impression from the staff that the vibrations were a normal happening.I too filled out the survey and left my phone number.
I sailed the zuiderdam in May and also was sadly disappointed. tried many times to get problems corrected and it seemed to fall on deaf ears. We have sailed many times with HAL and did not have even a single tiny complaint. I would never sail the zuiderdam again. As beautiful as the ship is if it smell awful, overrun with unsupervised kids, lost luggage, and AC thats too cold well it;s not worth it. Lots of other ships to chose from.
My wife and I cruised on the MS Maasdam July 17 through the 25th to the Inside Passage to Alaska and back. Food was terrific, table service immaculate, room reasonable well kept and our cabin steward spoke excellent English. That's the carrot. Now here's the stick. For seven days the toilet in our cabin (149 ) either did not flush at all, or only when it felt like it. Continuous calls to the main office didn't seem to do much to fix the situation or the problem. Talking to the cabin steward and the Dining Room table captain sometimes got some results. We even received a apologetic letter from the Guest Relation Manager, one Maggie Patijn, claiming that the problem was in guests using too much toilet tissue and clogging sections of the sewage removal system. Sounded good until we heard from numerous other guests that were having the same problem, from all over the ship. Apparently the Engineering Department was inept in fixing the system. But the ship boarded a new contingent of passangers and still sailed back out to sea only hours after we disembarked. I pity the folks who will be stuck in cabin #149 or any of the others with non-functioning water closets. And yes I will be posting a letter of complaint to the CEO Mr. Lanterman, but I won't hold my breath wating for a reply. All the "sorries" in the world will never make up for a week without the use of a toilet in our cabin.
Gosh, what is it with HAL lately?? I've taken 2 cruises with them (Alaska and Carribean), and they were both great. That was a while back, however, and lately I've heard some pretty questionable things from people who's opinions I respect.
I know what you mean. We're booked on the Veendam in Nov. and I'm really questioning our choice. Our June cruise on the Amsterdam was so-so at best.
The Veendam's itinerary was great so if the ship isn't wonderful, I'm sure we will have fun ashore and get lots of rest while on board and that's not all bad.
I've been a staunch fan of H.A.L. and I don't like that this line seems to be slipping a bit.
Did the canal in May on the Volendam Ft L thro to San Fran. Great trip, but a dance host kept hasseling me. (Im married- Sr citizen- my spouse was with me on trip).! Filled out a report at departure. Heard nothing. Hope they took care of it. Also the waiter and room stewards did not seem happy about our tip to them . I was told HA was no tipping!!
Sailed the inside passage to alaska on Ms Maasdam 28 August thro 5 September from Vancouver.
When we checked into our cabin (321, starboard Promenade) the smell of sewage was unbelievable. Going out on deck we originally thought we were moored downwind of the Vancouver Sewage Treatment plant. Alas, the smell was to follow us throughout our trip and often throughout the ship making an otherwise enjoyable trip a disaster.
Beating a path to housekeeping and the front office proved futile. The only thing we could get out of them was the new Laws on sewags disposal required dumping Zenon?? into the system. Engineering was supposed to be working on it but obviously hadn't a clue.
Got the same excuse for our toilets being intermittent (passengers fault).
Wrote the letter to HAL and CRUCON our booking agent and refuse to use either til this is resolved. What bothers me the most are the number of complaints being heard before AND after OUR cruise without seeming regard to passengers feelings.
.
Sailed the inside passage to alaska on Ms Maasdam 28 August thru 5 September from Vancouver.
When we checked into our cabin (321, starboard Promenade) the smell of sewage was unbelievable. Going out on deck we originally thought we were moored downwind of the Vancouver Sewage Treatment plant. Alas, the smell was to follow us throughout our trip and often throughout the ship making an otherwise enjoyable trip a disaster.
Beating a path to housekeeping and the front office proved futile. The only thing we could get out of them was the new Laws on sewags disposal required dumping Zenon?? into the system. Engineering was supposed to be working on it but obviously hadn't a clue.
Got the same excuse for our toilets being intermittent (passengers fault).
Wrote the letter to HAL and CRUCON our booking agent and refuse to use either til this is resolved. What bothers me the most are the number of complaints being heard before AND after OUR cruise without seeming regard to passengers feelings.
.
I certainly don't doubt the experiences related here, but I would like to quell any doubts people may have about the Veendam. I was on a Caribbean cruise in April and an Alaskan cruise last week and was very happy both times. On the April cruise there was no sewage odor present -- on the Alaska cruise there was in the rear stairwell around the Main deck for a couple of hours on two evenings. It was never present in my room (and the plumbing worked perfectly) nor in any public room -- all of which I visited at least daily. Personally, I would not hesitate to book any HAL ship with the exception of the Zuiderdam, although many others have enjoyed that ship as well.
My husband and I sailed on the Veendam the first week of August this year from Seward to Vancouver. We loved the ship and crew, and the overall experience was one of the best cruises we have ever had, but must report that there were occasional sewage odors that were very pronounced and most unpleasant. One time as we left the upper level of the dining room, we noticed the area just outside the dining room (perhaps the area mentioned by Santa Fe Jim) smelled truly disgusting, especially as it was just near the dining room. We nearly broke into a run to escape the smell.
There was never a sewage odor in our cabin, which was on Verandah deck, forward.
HAL must address this issue and get rid of these odors. We want to go back to the Veendam, but must be assured that the odors are gone, permanently. They may need to rework the plumbing so that their "processing" does not produce detectable odors.
Many public restrooms had a faint sewage odor, too.
We had the same awful experience on a HAL ship, the Ryndam. Nothing was worth the money - especially the buffet quality food and the dreary supposed-to-be suite which barely had turn-around space - but the nauseating stench was the worst part. I followed my agent's information and emailed, called, and wrote HAL. The email came back as undeliverable, the 800 phone line was no longer operational ,and the letter was never answered. I finally called a non-800 number and actually got through to the passenger dissatisfaction person who told me the letter was in a pile on his desk. He hadn't gotten to it yet. It's been two and a half months now.
Don't even bother trying to get through to someone there. Just let everybody you know hear your experience.
Sharon---we were on the Veendam on August 10; they must have heard a complaint from someone and worked on the problem as there was no "stench" outside the dining room, and we ate on the 2nd floor . Sorry for the situation you ran into; I certainly wouldn't be in a hurry to go back, either, if it happened to me!
Does anybody know if there's a particular location of guest rooms (level,bow,stern etc) that seem to have the most complaints regarding smell or plumbing issues? We're sailing the Vendam in January with a stern veranda balcony room and are curious.
John & Elaine, I am sailing on the Veendam in December. I have a stern veranda balcony room. I will let you know what I experience. I have been on Veendam before but had a verandah room in the middle of the ship. It was a fabulous trip. I just love this ship.
Ms Sidney Leonor
Special adviser
Office of the Chairman
300 Elliott Ave. West
Seattle, WA 98119
Don't EVER take a "guarantee" room.
Don't EVER book rooms FF1816, 1818, or 1820 on the Rotterdam. They are right next to the housekeeping main service desk, the dry cleaning hold area, and directly over the tender doors.
It sounds like there are many problmes with the Zuuiderdam even thought it's a new ship. Letter would be my first choice however i people are right that sorries cant take away the problems you had on your vacation. The question is if anything will ever change in the future for the ship if enough complaints are filed. Not trying to be a free rider, but ill just try to ignore the problems and hope for better luck on the next cruise.
My family sailed on the Veendam last Christmas. It was our 6th cruise and by far the worst. The sewage smell in our cabin at times was over-powering. It was also bad in the hall. They brought in an ozone machine to get rid of the smell. Long story short--we were exposed to ozone while the damn machine was running. The whole experience was a nightmare. We got a letter of apology only because I think they thought we would sue. I would never sail on any HAL ship ever again, even if it was free!
Why does HAL have sewage problems on more than just a few of their ships?!?!? This just astonishes me? I can understand one having a problem for some unfortunate reason but why more?
A year ago when prices on HAL ships were downright cheap, even I, a non-HAL cruiser, was tempted to give them a shot ($299 for 7 with an automatic upgrade to an ocean view cabin). But FREE I'm sure that was just a figure of speech!
Promises, promises.
I've read all the kevechting. I've sailed HAL five years straight. I do not understand why some people expect some personal corporate level reply. You just want a free vacation. There are 26 major cruise lines to choice from. Go kevecht somewhere else and leave my favorite HAL alone. You go away to find things different.
Okay, I have finally decided not to book the Noordam for the Baltic this summer. I know that is not the ship you are talking about here, but it seems that HAL has many problems they do not address. And I know that the Noordam is their bottom of the line ship, so to speak. I have read about many problems with the air conditioning not working at all, which would be hard for me. I have only cruised once before, on Dawn Princess, and had absolutely no complaints. Guess it will be worth it to me to pay extra and cruise Princess. But I might be willing to give HAL a try for free and form my own conclusions.
Probably more than 60% of all sewage smells and backups can be attributed to people putting stuff down the toilet that should go in there. So you can be partly mad at your fellow passangers for not using a waste basket.
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