report of not changing linens for 10 days??

[happy cruzer]

Just read a review of the Volendam which reports that the bed linens were not changed for 10 days?? Anyone else experienced this?

The review is a bit negative because the poster is comparing cruising now to 15 years ago.

The bed linen thing confused me.

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=55045

[cb at sea]

On many ships,(and hotels, nowadays) you have to ASK to have linens changed....(some kind of "save the waves" program.) After day 2, I would have left a note to the attendant to make sure the linens were changed!!!

[JimVrhovac]

It has been our experince that linens are changed weekly or when they get dirty.

If you want them changed more frequently just ask the room steward to do it and they will

Ruth & Jim

[holacanada]

Hello cruisers !

I've just read the review of a recent transpacific Kobe to Vancouver. So I am a little shaken by what I've read. I know everybody have it's own opinion but...
Maybe this PAX put the bar too high..?
In 4 months I'll be doing the same cruise but back to Kobe...

IS this cruise pass thrue Alaska island. They said Aleoutians but I presume we will be near the Alaskan coasts..?

Any recent opinion on the Volendam ?

Holacanada
Boarding in 121 days, 15 hours, 39 minutes and 19 seconds

[Seacruise]

Hmmm comparing a cruise to 15 years ago isn't good because it will be so different.

Let's see my first HAL cruise was on the last Nieuw Amsterdam in 1983 on her second Voyage. Tipping not Required was just that. Champagne (Free) and Streamers at departure, Draft Beer was .65¢ a glass, hard drinks were $1.75 on board. Oh yes you could go to the duty free store and buy your bottle for you room and take it back and place it in the liquor cabinet and consume it. Oh yes HAL even provided the soda/mix for FREE. Flambe in the dinning room was still there.
Oh yes let's not get into the Dress Code in those days. If it said Formal night it meant Formal Night. If it said Jacket and Tie for dinner you did not get into Dinner without one. Oh yes and shorts in the dinning room at lunch was not allowed. I watched one man try it and he was removed by the Captain and told if he wanted to try it again he would be removed from the ship at the next port in a very public dressing down.

I will not try and compare my upcoming Oosterdam cruise to that first cruise, I know things are VERY different so we won't be expecting those things.

Phil

[CowPrincess]

The reviewer did not sound at all pleased with the cruise, though I wonder if English is perhaps not their first language. HolaCanada, don't worry yet, wait for several other reviews of this cruise, and throughout the summer, too!

This appears to be the reviewer's one and only contribution to Cruise Critic.

[lovebug33]

How often do we change our sheets? We do it once a week unless, like, Dh has a nose bleed or something like that. Same with towels. I don't want people changing my bed linens more often. That is a waste of water!

[holacanada]

....though I wonder if English is perhaps not their first language. HolaCanada, don't worry yet, wait for several other reviews of this cruise, and throughout the summer, too!...

Thank you CowPrincess.

Holacanada from the french speaking city of Quebec !!! ;)
Have a very good day !!!

[wander]

Once a week for sheets is fine with me, unless something dictates a more frequent changing. Towels, on HAL I have never had towels I put on the floor returned to the towel bars as is, always replaced by clean ones. If I left them on the towel bars, then they are not replaced. (15 yrs ago they were, unnecessarily so in my opinion)

[Sleepladypalmdesert]

I agree with above. Once a week linen changes are adequate. We change ours at home once each week also. That person who wants them changed after 2 days....in my opinion....a big waste of energy, both human and enviornmental.

[jaspersmycat]

Yes, the reviewer was a little negative and let us know the linen situation but if you noticed she still gave the cruise a 4 out of 5 so most of the cruise must have made her happy.

[pipedreams62]

Hmmm comparing a cruise to 15 years ago isn't good because it will be so different.

Let's see my first HAL cruise was on the last Nieuw Amsterdam in 1983 on her second Voyage. Tipping not Required was just that. Champagne (Free) and Streamers at departure, Draft Beer was .65¢ a glass, hard drinks were $1.75 on board. Oh yes you could go to the duty free store and buy your bottle for you room and take it back and place it in the liquor cabinet and consume it. Oh yes HAL even provided the soda/mix for FREE. Flambe in the dinning room was still there.
Oh yes let's not get into the Dress Code in those days. If it said Formal night it meant Formal Night. If it said Jacket and Tie for dinner you did not get into Dinner without one. Oh yes and shorts in the dinning room at lunch was not allowed. I watched one man try it and he was removed by the Captain and told if he wanted to try it again he would be removed from the ship at the next port in a very public dressing down.

I will not try and compare my upcoming Oosterdam cruise to that first cruise, I know things are VERY different so we won't be expecting those things.

Phil


Believe it or not my father was a cruise director on Holland America in the 70's. I ask him about the dress code back then and he says, no one dared to show up not dressed for formal night. Yes times have changed we've entered the full blown "Dumbing Down" stage and if you can mow your lawn in it then it's suitable for formal night.

One of his port talks was informing the passengers that in Bermuda if they were caught wearing a bathing suit in town,the local police would write them a ticket. I'm sure now it's a tidal wave of schleppers walking the streets.

[lorekauf]

Believe it or not my father was a cruise director on Holland America in the 70's. I ask him about the dress code back then and he says, no one dared to show up not dressed for formal night. Yes times have changed we've entered the full blown "Dumbing Down" stage and if you can mow your lawn in it then it's suitable for formal night.

One of his port talks was informing the passengers that in Bermuda if they were caught wearing a bathing suit in town,the local police would write them a ticket. I'm sure now it's a tidal wave of schleppers walking the streets.
When I took my first cruise in 1984 things were pretty formal. As I recall men were required the wear a tie and jacket every night. The ladies could easily get away with getting a lot less dressed up. I work at a company that is supposed to have a strict dress code and I really don't mind it. I think a person should dress suitably for work. Some others come to work in what they find on the floor in the morning....yet nothing is said.

[Charles4515]

I agree with above. Once a week linen changes are adequate. We change ours at home once each week also. That person who wants them changed after 2 days....in my opinion....a big waste of energy, both human and enviornmental.

My experience is that they change them every two or three days on cruise ships. They certainly should be changed more often than ten days.

But like some others if I think the linens need changing, or more often than they are changing them, I would have my cabin attendant change them!

[durangoscots]

Once a week for sheets is fine with me, unless something dictates a more frequent changing. Towels, on HAL I have never had towels I put on the floor returned to the towel bars as is, always replaced by clean ones. If I left them on the towel bars, then they are not replaced. (15 yrs ago they were, unnecessarily so in my opinion)

We were on a 28 day cruise .... bed linens were changed every 3-4 days.... we were told that towels would not be replaced unless on floor (which we did) but a few times I noticed that they were taken from the towel bars and changed. Certainly no complaints on that score. OP should have had a discussion with the cabin steward.

[sapper1]

How often do we change our sheets? We do it once a week unless, like, Dh has a nose bleed or something like that. Same with towels. I don't want people changing my bed linens more often. That is a waste of water!
I'm fine with once a week for bed linens but I change my towels daily at home and would not settle for less on a cruise.

[Juanita462]

We have had the bed linens changed from 5 days to 10 - at 10 days I asked the room steward to change them as that is too long IMO. On our last cruise they were changed every 5 days but they had duvet covers over a blanket with no top sheet at all. Didn't care for that as I sometimes like just a sheet over the shoulders - hope they aren't going to go that route on all the ships.

[sail7seas]

Never on any cruise we have taken have sheets been on our bed for 7 days let alone ten. I wouldn't be agreeable to that but it is not an issue as stewards assures our bed linens are fresh.

[jhannah]

A week for sheet change is fine by me. About 3 days for towels would be okay, too. Not beyond that.

[lorekauf]

I'm fine with once a week for bed linens but I change my towels daily at home and would not settle for less on a cruise.
I'm SO with you on this one. I can't handle using towels twice!

[lorekauf]

We have had the bed linens changed from 5 days to 10 - at 10 days I asked the room steward to change them as that is too long IMO. On our last cruise they were changed every 5 days but they had duvet covers over a blanket with no top sheet at all. Didn't care for that as I sometimes like just a sheet over the shoulders - hope they aren't going to go that route on all the ships.
Princess does that and I don't like it. I'm always thinking....did they change that duvet cover between me and the last passenger:eek:yuk!

[B-May]

Just off the Zuiderdam - our cabin steward said they change the sheets every 3 days which seemed rather stupid to me to change the sheets on day 6 and then when we disembark to change the next day again.

I was sleeping on the horrible sofabed in our SC and never noticed if they were changed or not. I slept on top of the sheets as the room was kept warm for my mom and I was too hot. So I assume he never changed them.

[brucory]

The reviewer did not sound at all pleased with the cruise, though I wonder if English is perhaps not their first language. HolaCanada, don't worry yet, wait for several other reviews of this cruise, and throughout the summer, too!

This appears to be the reviewer's one and only contribution to Cruise Critic.

We had some friends on this Volendam cruise - the 19 night transpacific.

The price they got for it was an absolute bargain, much less than what the same cruise would have cost 15 years ago. They had a fantastic time and must have enjoyed the food as they put on a couple of kilos. They did not have any major complaints and were overall, very impressed with Holland America and the Volendam.

I have never heard anyone complain about food from China in relation to HAL, however I do know that milk out of Japan is either imported or has its own unique "turnipy" taste (because of what the cows are fed), which could be relevant to the choice of milk that was used in the coffee area.

:D:D:D

[happy cruzer]

Ok, thanks for the updates on the linens. I remembered them be changed at 3 day intervals.

Alot of the other review items can be subjective.

Thanks.

[lorekauf]

I have to ask...how do people know when the bedding has been changed? Do they see the steward changing it?

[Charles4515]

I have to ask...how do people know when the bedding has been changed? Do they see the steward changing it?

A number years ago I started putting small marks on the linens to check because I was curious. No joke.

[kakalina]

There is a certain feel and smell to fresh changed sheets that cannot be duplicated. We tend to take longer cruises and our linens have been changed on an average of every 3 to 4 days.

[CowPrincess]

I have to ask...how do people know when the bedding has been changed? Do they see the steward changing it?

The "sleeping wrinkles" are gone. Or in my case on last cruise, the hole at the edge of the top sheet is gone :)

[lorekauf]

A number years ago I started putting small marks on the linens to check because I was curious. No joke.
The last Princess cruise I was on I'm was sure the guy put used towels I had on the floor back on the rack. I marked them too:D. When I came back to the room my towels were not marked so they were new. My friends and I laughed saying we were going to set up a camera to secretly tape the guy. He was very nice but not the best steward.

[lorekauf]

The "sleeping wrinkles" are gone. Or in my case on last cruise, the hole at the edge of the top sheet is gone :)
I wish I could get those sleeping wrinkles off my face:D.

[CowPrincess]

I wish I could get those sleeping wrinkles off my face:D.

:D It unfortunately doesn't get any better :D