We have cruised with several cruise lines in the past such as Royal Carribean, Disney, Carnival, and Princess. This is the first time we cruised with HAL. We wanted to celebrate Christmas and New Years with HAL. The main reason we chose HAL is because of its high ratings and the inaugural sailing in the Carribean. We experienced the 3rd and 4th sailing of Nieuw Statendam. We stayed at Cabin #4068, verandah room. We had positive and negative experiences with Nieuw Statendam.

Negative Experiences:

First, our balcony frame had a creaking noise. This noise was disturbing during the day but profoundly noticeable during the night. We requested to be upgraded, downgraded or moved to another stateroom the second day but the ship was fully booked. Nonetheless, our stateroom steward and guest services were attentive and prompt on attempting to address the issue when we brought up this predicament to them. Maintenance staff immediately responded to our complaint and attempted to resolve the noise by placing wood wedges around the metal balcony frame. The maintenance staff was able to significantly reduce the noise disturbance. Unfortunately, maintenance staff was unable to completely resolve the noise which led us not obtaining restful sleep some nights. We were on the waiting list to change staterooms. We were informed by guest services and several guests by speaking with several guest members that this is not an isolated issue. Read more