Holland America Line, which has been sailing for 150 years, visits 400 ports in 114 countries every year. Dutch heritage shines through in some of the $4million-worth of artwork to be seen onboard, complimenting the luxurious cruise experience.
Live music remains HAL's forte, with venues including the Rolling Stone Rock room and BB King's Blues Club. For foodies, a wide range of restaurants serve the finest of fayre.
Cairns, with its rich history dating back thousands of years to the Indigenous Aboriginal peoples, offers cruisegoers a glimpse into Australia's ancient past. Once a sleepy fishing village, Cairns has evolved into a bustling tourist hub, attracting visitors with its vibrant culture and stunning natural beauty. The city's unique blend of Indigenous, European, and Asian influences is evident in its art, cuisine, and traditions. Local cuisine in Cairns is a feast for the senses, with fresh seafood, tropical fruits, and Indigenous bush tucker dishes tantalizing taste buds. Don't miss the chance to try traditional Aboriginal fare like kangaroo or crocodile, washed down with a refreshing glass of locally brewed beer or a tropical cocktail.
Day 8
At sea
Day 9
Alotau
Day 10
Kiriwina Island
Day 11
Rabaul, Bismarck Archipelago
Day 12
At sea
Day 13
Honiara, Guadalcanal Island
Day 14
At sea
Day 15
Luganville
Day 16
Port Vila
Day 17
Mystery Island (Inyeug)
Day 18
At sea
Days 19-20
Lautoka
Day 21
Suva
Day 22
At sea
Day 23
Nuku'alofa
Days 24-25
At sea
Day 26
Waitangi, Bay of Islands
Day 27
Auckland
Known as the "City of Sails," Auckland boasts a vibrant waterfront and rich Maori heritage, providing a quintessential Kiwi experience. Explore the iconic Sky Tower, wander through bustling markets, and immerse yourself in Maori traditions at cultural centers like Te Puia. Sample local delicacies like fresh seafood, hangi feasts, and world-renowned wines, showcasing New Zealand's diverse culinary scene. With its stunning landscapes, friendly locals, and dynamic cultural offerings, Auckland captures the essence of New Zealand's spirit and serves as an ideal introduction to this captivating country.
Cairns, with its rich history dating back thousands of years to the Indigenous Aboriginal peoples, offers cruisegoers a glimpse into Australia's ancient past. Once a sleepy fishing village, Cairns has evolved into a bustling tourist hub, attracting visitors with its vibrant culture and stunning natural beauty. The city's unique blend of Indigenous, European, and Asian influences is evident in its art, cuisine, and traditions. Local cuisine in Cairns is a feast for the senses, with fresh seafood, tropical fruits, and Indigenous bush tucker dishes tantalizing taste buds. Don't miss the chance to try traditional Aboriginal fare like kangaroo or crocodile, washed down with a refreshing glass of locally brewed beer or a tropical cocktail.
Known as the "City of Sails," Auckland boasts a vibrant waterfront and rich Maori heritage, providing a quintessential Kiwi experience. Explore the iconic Sky Tower, wander through bustling markets, and immerse yourself in Maori traditions at cultural centers like Te Puia. Sample local delicacies like fresh seafood, hangi feasts, and world-renowned wines, showcasing New Zealand's diverse culinary scene. With its stunning landscapes, friendly locals, and dynamic cultural offerings, Auckland captures the essence of New Zealand's spirit and serves as an ideal introduction to this captivating country.
A fascinating destination in her own right, Westerdam has won multiple Best Cruise Ship awards and features superb bar, entertainment and dining venues.
Booked a cruise with HA, thinking they offer nice excusions. At the time of the booking they all seemed available. Day after booking I have discovered there is literally none left, besides basic walking city tours for over 100 USD!
In short, I cannot even spend my onshore excusions credit with them.
I have written so many emails and called so many times trying to find a solution, but they dont return any answer.. My phone bill is probably over 500 USD after one month of this now. I simply hate HA at this point of time.
On top of it, they website is super buggy - hundreds of error messages, you cannot check out, you see things as available which are not, and and and...
And they also advertise wrong prices - e.g. Have it all package for 55 USD a day, and when you try to check out it magically becomes 65 USD a day.
A wonderful way to see Indonesia and Malaysia from Singapore. This was a special time, especially the tours on the many ports of call. Quite naturally one compares it with the best of my many previous cruises, and that`s when improvements spring to mind.
What was missing was the daytime activities and evening entertainments to stimulate the senses. Regular Holland America cruisers, of which there are many, insist that classical music and educational speakers were the norm before covid. If the latter had been in evidence, then a great cruise could have been an amazing one.
Our tours were expensive, and although some tour guides were exceptional, sadly some were very poor. Holland America does not ask for feedback, so presumably no opportunity to reward the best whilst eliminating the seriously bad.
Thank you Holland America, and in particular the majority of the service staff, who went out of their way to ensure our well being.
We are regular cruisers and this was the worst experience ever. Waste of time and money. Total cheats. We took the cruise from Sydney to New Zealand and back for 15 days. The arrival back to Sydney was delayed and as a result, we missed our flight. We were told to submit all papers to Holland America who would reimburse our change of travel, hotel stay, and food it is going to be 1 year and we have had no response from the cruise line despite several reminders. We received a notification saying it is covid and we will get the response in 4-6 weeks' time. When the whole world is back to normal Holland America is still hiding behind covid. What a shame. Worse cruise line ever and cheats on top of that. No decency to send a reply either agreeing to pay or not. It is because of them that we unnecessarily spent USD 700/-.
Please do not use this cruise liner. There are other professional cruise liners who treat their customers well and reply to their queries. There is nothing nice about this cruise line.
Unfortunately, although the quality of food was good, it always arrived cold.
The fitness facilities were woefully inadequate whereas the gambling facilities were the opposite.
The entertainment facilities were also inadequate and very loud. The quality of the entertainment was variable.
Most of the staff were very courteous yet we found the lady on the restaurant booking desk rude and condescending.
There were queues lasting hours to embark but disembarkation was very smooth.
There were also large queues for reception and some reception staff were not particularly helpful.
The shops were mainly jewellery based so not much in the way of souvenirs aboard.
The destinations were very good especially Glacier bay.
Some clear evidence of cost cutting. Standard cabins need bathroom refurbishment. Food was good, but trying to get it hot was a challenge. Staff always great but clearly overstretched in the main dining room, which was also poorly organised when we joined the ship which meant queuing for up to 20 minutes to get into dinner even though we had a reservation. Not acceptable that we couldn’t book excursions as they were all fully booked although we had excursion credit which we couldn’t use. They were charging silly money for short shuttle rides into town - sometimes $50 for two for a 10 minute ride (a taxi would be cheaper!).
Main complaint was dining room which they just need to get sorted - poor management. Deterioration sine we were on this ship in 2019.
Fantastic cruise to Alaska with fabulous memories. Visiting glacier bay was amazing and all the trips were brilliant. On board facilities were good, great food great staff, lovely cabin. Cannot fault anything.
