Holland America Line, MS Eurodam Review

Overall Rating

Embarkation and Disembarkation was orderly and fast. We can stay in own stateroom on Disembarkation as opposed to waiting in the lounges or casino. Though we had to open our cabin door to hear the announcements in the hallway. Supposedly, the announcements were to come through on a channel on TV, but that did not materialize.

It seemed to me that the photographers lacked experience in taking group photos.
Ship did not give me a "WOW" feeling though this is a brand new ship.
I thought the service in the Open Seating dining room was poor. Too many reservations mixed up.
I did not get a feel of luxury, rather signs of cost cutting is everywhere.

The photographers on the MS Eurodam suggested groups to stand and pose on stairway. When asked if there are other locations on ship that would be suitable, they could not offer any suggestions.
I thought the color scheme of the ship was drab. The walls have pale green wall paper, the carpet is utility brown/gray. The 2-seater couch in the cabin is olive green. It did not give me the impression of "WOW, this is a NEW ship!"
When a party of two was brought to a table (at the Open Dining Restaurant) that seated 4, they were not told ahead of time that another unrelated party of 2 would be seated with them. It is only courtesy that all parties be informed before they were seated that they would be sharing a table, so that they would have a choice to take that 4-seater table or waited for a 2-seater table.
Our waiters at the Pinnacle Restaurant to me seemed like did not know the basics of taking food orders and serving. They presented the wrong dishes to the guests. Also it seemed they did not know that the entree item should be presented facing the guests to offer the best presentation.
The quality of the shows was poor in my opinion. There was a guitar expert that showed off his expertise in playing different guitars. He could not remember his lines. He lead the strings, the band and other musicians for a group performance, and had to stop it, cause the other performers could not follow him. All pointed to seemingly a lack of proper rehearsals. Also the neon lights on the stairway by the stage seemed to be malfunctioning. It was flashing non stop and I found it so distracting. Very surprised that it wasn't fixed for the duration of the cruise.
When asking for orange juice at the casual cafe, the attendant would point to the glasses of juices that were in the refrigerators. Those were orange juice from concentrate. One had to ask for "real" orange juice before the attendant would provide. Further, toiletries in cabin bathroom were not automatically replenished. If you used half a bottle of shampoo, it would stay where it was. Only when you used it all, it would be replaced.

Members' Comments onNinethTimeCruiser's Review

• Milliedoggy on 15th Oct 2008

  What's wrong with having to use an already opened bottle of shampoo? Why waste it?

• Travelhappy on 26th Jul 2009

  My wife and I were both wondering if this reviewer replaces a half-full bottle of shampoo at home; we doubt it. We have traveled extensively, and if the food is not presented to us in the way that we consider "proper", our meal/trip is not ruined.