Self-Service Laundry Gone?

The Holland America website says, "Onboard self-service launderettes consisting of washers, dryers, irons and ironing boards are available on the ms Amsterdam, Maasdam, Prinsendam, Rotterdam, Ryndam, Statendam, Veendam, Volendam and Zaandam." In looking at deck plans for Rotterdam and Amsterdam, I don't see any.

Have they been taken out? What's the state of the union with regard to doing your own laundry on the Rotterdam these days?

OMG!!! I'm on Amsterdam in a couple of weeks! I read your post and checked the HAL site. You're right! The self-serve laundries on Amsterdam are gone. So I looked at the rest. It seems that the S class still have theirs but they appear to be gone on the R class. I'm going to call HAL today and get clarification.

Update! Update! I just talked to Ships Services and the rep said that the self-service laundries have been removed from the R-class ships. They are still on the S-class. Bummer!

I checked the deck plans for both ships.

They are gone. Just white blocks where they used to be located.

Looks like HAL is thinking of how else they can make money.

Incidentally, jhannah, when I told the Ship Services rep about your quote "The Holland America website says, "Onboard self-service launderettes ....." he seemed quite concerned that the site still says that. I went back and looked at the HAL site and couldn't find it anywhere. Can you tell me where on the site you saw the quoted sentence about self-service laundries?

We were on the Rotterdam for the Singapore to Rotterdam cruise, Mar 3 to April 6, 2015 and there were still launderettes aboard. However the Rotterdam went into drydock after that cruise and changes may be being made.

Dan

Wow, what next ...

Looks like I'll make 4 star just in time.

Roy

Isn't Amsterdam headed to dry dock? If so, that likely is one of the things that is planned.

Does Prinsendam still have self-serve laundry?

Amsterdam is scheduled to be in dry dock from April 30 to May 12.

Isn't Amsterdam headed to dry dock? If so, that likely is one of the things that is planned.

 

Does Prinsendam still have self-serve laundry?

 

On the Prinsendam, laundry rooms are still shown on the Main and Verandah decks.

Looks like I'll make 4 star just in time.

 

 

 

Roy

Me too.

Amsterdam is scheduled to be in dry dock from April 30 to May 12.

I thought so.. :)

Looks like I'll make 4 star just in time.

 

Roy

Me too.

Not I <whimper, sniff>. And I doubt that I'll ever make 4 star because, after a last goodbye cruise on Statendam, I'll likely be switching to X because of the smoking issues. So I'd better budget a LOT for laundry on Amsterdam next month:(.

Whew...glad we now get complimentary laundry!

It is hard to believe that they would eliminate the self-serve laundries, yet leave the info about them on their website. I found the info on the ships with self-serve laundries in two different places on the HAL website. It seems the left hand does not know what the right hand is doing. Very sad that they are gone.

BUT maybe these little laundry areas were/are causing a lot of the leaks onboard the ships.

I would imagine the laundry areas on the Amsterdam will be removed during this upcoming drydock. Otherwise, I think there would have been some mention of this in the world cruise blogs that are happening now.

This seems pretty short sighted to me, particularly on a ship like Amsterdam that spends most of its time on very long cruises. I would think that the lack of laundry facilities would discourage a lot of people who are not yet 4 stars from taking such a long cruise. You can pay to have your laundry done, but on a 4 month world cruise like the one Amsterdam does it would be pretty expensive.

Can you tell me where on the site you saw the quoted sentence about self-service laundries?

http://www.hollandamerica.com/cruise-vacation-planning/PlanningAndAdvice.action?tabName=Shipboard%20Life&contentMenu=Onboard+Services#

Click on "Are Laundry Services Available On Board?"

I'm thinking the deck plans are just not highlighting them. Rotterdam had them in September.

Do they still offer unlimited laundry package if so then that is well worth the price.

Here's where you'll find it.

http://www.hollandamerica.com/cruise-vacation-planning/PlanningAndAdvice.action?tabName=Shipboard%20Life&contentMenu=Onboard+Services#

 

Click on "Are Laundry Services Available On Board?"

Thanks! And I also found a second reference to the self-service laundries:

http://www.hollandamerica.com/main/Search-Results.action?cx=012833409254578470856%3Aciqlswzabey&cof=FORID%3A10&ie=UTF-8&sa=Search&q=laundry

It's a .pdf that pops when you click on the "general information" link. The laundry statement is on page 8 of that file

I'm thinking the deck plans are just not highlighting them. Rotterdam had them in September.

No, the Ship Services rep that I spoke with when I called HAL stated that they are being removed from the R-class ships.

During the 2014-15 holiday cruise on the Amsterdam, the previous self-service laundry on Main Deck was already gone and replaced with a new staff/entertainer cabin. At the time, the HAL web site still showed a laundry room as still being there. The on-board maps (in the elevator lobbies) had been updated and did not show the Main Deck laundry.

There was still a working self-service laundry on Lower Promenade Deck, perhaps next to cabin 3340, however. It sounds that is also scheduled for removal, unfortunately.

Jim I will try to contact a friend that is sailing on ms Rotterdam right now. As soon as I know more I will let you know.

Apart from that we often used the ""fill the blue bag"" for US$ 20,-. It is amazing how much you can put in it.

The few cruise lines that still have self service laundries on ships are re-thinking the entire idea. Lloyds Registry and several national Coast Guards claim that these areas are fire hazards and want them removed.

You may notice that most new ships no longer have self service laundries.

The CDC is also taking a hard look at them as sources of NLV contamination.

When a passenger is ill and soils his or her clothing, they are often too embarrassed to send the clothing to the ship's laundry. More likely, they do not want the ship to know they are sick, so they will not be confined and miss a shore excursion or a meal.

So they sneak it down to the self-service laundry and wash/dry it there.

But the self service laundry does not have the steam heat that the ship's laundry has. The water in the self-service laundry is not hot enough to kill the live Norovirus spores left in the washing machine by the previous user.

The environmentally friendly soaps that are supplied in many ship's self service laundries are not very effective in ridding the clothing of NLV spores.

If you have the bad luck to use the washing machine after an ill passenger has used it, your clothing is now contaminated. The heat in a marine grade clothes dryer is not high enough to kill the spores either.

It's all in the luck of the draw.