Holland America Cruise Lines is a premium cruise line with about 14 cruise ships that sail to a great variety of ports. Best Cruise Lines Info thought that the Holland America Line (HAL) would be a great place to start our reviews of the best cruise lines.

We took a 10 day Mediterranean cruise aboard the Holland America ms Rotterdam. We had heard lots of good things about the Holland America Cruise Line, including that they have a high ratio of crew members to passengers and that they cater to a little more mature crowd (we’re not that old, but stories of other cruise lines with rowdy Spring Break students didn’t appeal to us). The good things that we had heard proved to all be true.

The ship itself was in great shape and very nice — with plenty of activities to entertain anyone (and a computer center to check your email). The crew was outstanding, from the restaurant to the cabin crew who seemed to instantly clean our room and refill our ice bucket every time we left the room. Unlike some cruise ships, the crew did not go around with their hands out for tips constantly — nor was a “voluntary” tip added to our credit card. Instead, all tipping took place on the last day of the cruise and was completely discretionary.

The food on our Holland America cruise was also first-rate, among the best cruise food that we’ve had. In the main dining room, the food ranged from nicely-done classics such as lobster and steak, to port-specific cuisine. In addition, room service was at no extra charge, and we enjoyed great room-service breakfasts in our cabin before heading out each day for our shore excursions. All of our excursions were really great, except for our tour of Valleta, Malta, where the contractor tour company kept us in a tourist-trap gift shop area for entirely too long. Overall, though, our entire cruise was an excellent experience. We gladly recommend Holland America Cruise Lines to all of our friends and family, and consider it to be among the best cruiselines around.

For 2008 Holland America Cruises is introducing their first “signature class ship”, the ms Eurodam, which appears to be a very impressive cruise ship. For more information on this new ship, and cruise deals to your favorite destinations, please visit the Holland America Cruise Line web site.