Sorry to hear about your experience. I just got back from The Eurodam . The rooms are large for two people and plenty of storage. Main dinning room was fast . We didn’t have same experience. However, I feel everyone is different. My husband and I travel a lot, we live simple. Only travel with a carry on and backpack. So the room was large to us. It was the fitness room that needed some help. Stuffy, more room needed. Holland invested more space in the spa than fitness room. Glacier bay was amazing and up close and personal. Good luck on your next cruise
Since ship crews are usually on 6 or 9 month contracts, you likely had a completely different crew than we did. Even cruising with just two people, which I have done several times, that was still by far the smallest cabin I've ever had.
Really interesting video, Heather. Connie & I have sailed three times on Holland America and really like the cruise line. I think all the Holland America cabins are about this size of the one you were in (but since it's just the 2 of us, that's plenty large enough.) I can see where that would be a problem for a family. We ate in the MDR on one of our cruises, and just in the buffet on our other cruises, and the staff in the MDR seemed to be challenged, but were better than what you encountered. The buffets were great - I especially liked ordering blueberry pancakes or eggs benedict and having them made up fresh when ordered, not sitting in a warming tray. And we really liked the Asian specialties they had in the buffet. Also we liked the taco bar they had at the Dive Inn burger bar on the Lido deck. Steve & Connie
Part of the problem is my kids' ages. They aren't old enough to be the "adult" on a stateroom. Most cruise lines require passengers to be 21, and some even require them to be 25.
I actually wonder if there even were any connecting rooms on this ship. It doesn't seem like there was enough wall space for there to be a connecting door anywhere.
I am sure it was such a great experience to see the Hubbard Glacier in person! The main dining room situation sounds unfortunate. Thanks for sharing the good and the bad from this cruise!
When my kids were younger we switched to Carnival or RCL if they were coming along. I love HAL, and especially Eurodam, but it's a more upscale/relaxed experience. Sounds like you might enjoy a different cruise line.
We didn't mind HAL being upscale or relaxed; the negatives we mentioned weren't really related to the atmosphere. We would not like Carnival. We cruise on Royal Caribbean frequently and do enjoy that, but my kids are pretty sophisticated adults at this point, so they're actually not into the same things that young children would be, and they are actually annoyed by a lot of the behaviors of some young kids on cruises. We want to try quite a few other cruise lines in the future.
Thank you for making this series. It was very helpful for our upcoming trip. We are going on the 7 day Alaska cruise on Eurodam this May 4th with my elderly mother and step dad for our 20th wedding anniversary and my husband's bday. It was great to see a real family's experience, the good and the bad. I felt so bad for you about the glacier pictures. I asked about the ship photographers on a FB group and one lady cautioned me about the private sessions and the cost already. We are also staying at the Hyatt House but before the cruise & doing the Chihuly exhibit and the Space Needle so I enjoyed those videos as well. 🎉
Agree with the entrainment has gone down hill along with MDR food. We did 14 days on Zaandam and thought entertainment would be awesome with a lot of sea days. Nope. MDR food was just ok. What we found awesome is always the crew regardless of all the other shortfalls. We enjoyed the Eurodam for Alaska in 2022. Thanks for sharing. You have to try the Neptune Suite. This is the level we booked now since our first experience and truly enjoy it.
It would be so helpful if this video’s title or tags included the cabin numbers you are reviewing. This is something I look for in TH-cam before booking a cabin.
Have it All for 7 day Alaska cruise as follows: *Beverage/drink package ...upgraded to elite *ONE specialty DINNER *Crew gratuities included *Premium internet *$100 towards an excursion
In my opinion, these types of packages are just the cruise lines' way of getting more money by selling you things you don't really need. I never buy a drinks package, since I don't drink alcohol and barely ever drink soda. I have no interest in specialty dining. I have no need for an internet package on most cruises because I have an international day pass that is much less expensive.
Probably not many kids because most aren’t out of school by the end of May except college. Not a good family cabin! And terrible that they hadn’t made up the cabin by after lunch. You should have complained to the Hotel Manager. I hate art auctions and things like that! No production shows at all? That’s terrible! And yeah, that’s not good you had such a bad experience in the main dining room. Sounds like the whole ship is short-staffed, and maybe a lot of them are new (and might not speak English well).
Great video and perfect timing for us! Thanks so much
Sorry to hear about your experience. I just got back from The Eurodam . The rooms are large for two people and plenty of storage. Main dinning room was fast . We didn’t have same experience. However, I feel everyone is different. My husband and I travel a lot, we live simple. Only travel with a carry on and backpack. So the room was large to us. It was the fitness room that needed some help. Stuffy, more room needed. Holland invested more space in the spa than fitness room. Glacier bay was amazing and up close and personal. Good luck on your next cruise
Since ship crews are usually on 6 or 9 month contracts, you likely had a completely different crew than we did. Even cruising with just two people, which I have done several times, that was still by far the smallest cabin I've ever had.
Really interesting video, Heather. Connie & I have sailed three times on Holland America and really like the cruise line. I think all the Holland America cabins are about this size of the one you were in (but since it's just the 2 of us, that's plenty large enough.) I can see where that would be a problem for a family. We ate in the MDR on one of our cruises, and just in the buffet on our other cruises, and the staff in the MDR seemed to be challenged, but were better than what you encountered. The buffets were great - I especially liked ordering blueberry pancakes or eggs benedict and having them made up fresh when ordered, not sitting in a warming tray. And we really liked the Asian specialties they had in the buffet. Also we liked the taco bar they had at the Dive Inn burger bar on the Lido deck.
Steve & Connie
We agree that the buffet was quite good!
Putting 3 people in a stateroom is getting very cramped. Save your money for extra stateroom next time.
Part of the problem is my kids' ages. They aren't old enough to be the "adult" on a stateroom. Most cruise lines require passengers to be 21, and some even require them to be 25.
It’s too bad you couldn’t have had adjoining rooms! That seems too small for 4 people!
I actually wonder if there even were any connecting rooms on this ship. It doesn't seem like there was enough wall space for there to be a connecting door anywhere.
I am sure it was such a great experience to see the Hubbard Glacier in person! The main dining room situation sounds unfortunate. Thanks for sharing the good and the bad from this cruise!
When my kids were younger we switched to Carnival or RCL if they were coming along. I love HAL, and especially Eurodam, but it's a more upscale/relaxed experience. Sounds like you might enjoy a different cruise line.
We didn't mind HAL being upscale or relaxed; the negatives we mentioned weren't really related to the atmosphere. We would not like Carnival. We cruise on Royal Caribbean frequently and do enjoy that, but my kids are pretty sophisticated adults at this point, so they're actually not into the same things that young children would be, and they are actually annoyed by a lot of the behaviors of some young kids on cruises. We want to try quite a few other cruise lines in the future.
Thank you for making this series. It was very helpful for our upcoming trip. We are going on the 7 day Alaska cruise on Eurodam this May 4th with my elderly mother and step dad for our 20th wedding anniversary and my husband's bday. It was great to see a real family's experience, the good and the bad. I felt so bad for you about the glacier pictures. I asked about the ship photographers on a FB group and one lady cautioned me about the private sessions and the cost already. We are also staying at the Hyatt House but before the cruise & doing the Chihuly exhibit and the Space Needle so I enjoyed those videos as well. 🎉
We are staying at the Hyatt House as well before our cruise starts on May 25th. I have been to Chihuly a few years ago. Amazing! :)
Agree with the entrainment has gone down hill along with MDR food. We did 14 days on Zaandam and thought entertainment would be awesome with a lot of sea days. Nope. MDR food was just ok. What we found awesome is always the crew regardless of all the other shortfalls. We enjoyed the Eurodam for Alaska in 2022. Thanks for sharing. You have to try the Neptune Suite. This is the level we booked now since our first experience and truly enjoy it.
It would be so helpful if this video’s title or tags included the cabin numbers you are reviewing. This is something I look for in TH-cam before booking a cabin.
I actually made a separate video of the cabins we stayed in and the room numbers are in the title - that's an excellent tip!
I never knew the things on the end of bed were to set suitcases on. I always wondered.
Be careful not to confuse a decorative fabric runner with protective luggage mats. Our beds as shown in this video had both.
Have it All for 7 day Alaska cruise as follows:
*Beverage/drink package ...upgraded to elite
*ONE specialty DINNER
*Crew gratuities included
*Premium internet
*$100 towards an excursion
In my opinion, these types of packages are just the cruise lines' way of getting more money by selling you things you don't really need. I never buy a drinks package, since I don't drink alcohol and barely ever drink soda. I have no interest in specialty dining. I have no need for an internet package on most cruises because I have an international day pass that is much less expensive.
Did you tell the steward what your concerns were?
Possibly you could have asked for an updated cabin for no extra charge.
I think the ship was full.
That’s really concerning about the dining room!!
Get those crumbs out!😂
Probably not many kids because most aren’t out of school by the end of May except college. Not a good family cabin! And terrible that they hadn’t made up the cabin by after lunch. You should have complained to the Hotel Manager. I hate art auctions and things like that! No production shows at all? That’s terrible! And yeah, that’s not good you had such a bad experience in the main dining room. Sounds like the whole ship is short-staffed, and maybe a lot of them are new (and might not speak English well).
I was on the week after you. And the Eurodam was like the worst cruise in my 30+. Smelly and unkempt ship filled with rude staff - no thank you.
Your worst are THE worst a cruise can have!