lollytw
September 28th, 2011, 02:10 AM
I am going to post my review of our trip to Alaska aboard the Zuiderdam here, as it will be available to you right now, as apposed to when it's submitted in the reviews area and takes days to show up. Gee.
My DH and I had a wonderful trip to Alaska on the Zuiderdam! We agreed it was the most relaxing vacation we've had to date.
I'll begin by reviewing the ship itself. A lot of people have commented in the negative about the decor aboard the Zuiderdam, but we both agreed it was beautiful! Yes, the carpets were very brightly colored, but I prefer that to more subdued, or to my mind, drab colors. I guess because our first cruise was aboard a Carnival ship, we enjoyed the "sparkle" all the color on Zuiderdam seemed to add. There were beautiful works of art everywhere on the ship and many lovely arrangements of fresh flowers, including in our stateroom when we arrived. I very much liked the red carpeting in many of the elevator areas with pretty benches to sit on and lighting that made it look so cozy.
The Vista Dining Room was very pretty, and I especially loved the ceiling fixtures. Loved the sparkle! I think the only thing decor-wise that I didn't appreciate was the chairs in the dining room. The colors on the backs of them detracted from the rest of the color scheme, IMO. And I have to say that the only reason I noticed was because of all the feedback on Cruise Critic about the decor. The Vista Lounge was gorgeous in brilliant red. Loved that. The Explorations Cafe/library/internet area was very cozy and welcoming, and both DH and I borrowed books and used the internet there (which, as others have mentioned, is quite slow). The Crow's Nest was lovely. The Lido/Canneletto was colorful and revealed a variety of stations of excellent food, and we took advantage of both on several occasions. Enjoyed the fresh flowers everywhere. We never made use of the Queen's Lounge, although it appeared to be quite pretty. We also never took in a movie in the screening room, but I did try the chairs, which were very comfortable. The shops were pretty standard, IMO, as was the photo gallery. We enjoyed the Sport's Bar, Ocean Bar and had dinner at the Pinnacle Grill, which was stunning (decor wise). The food was good, but I'm not sure about whether it should receive higher accolades than the dining room.
Our stateroom was an SS Verandah Suite, which we found to be our best cabin to date on a ship. So much room! Having both a bathtub and shower was wonderful, as were the double sinks. Loved the Elemis products in the dispensers. The bed was very comfortable, and the balcony was so roomy. We spent hours on it watching the scenery and enjoying the fresh air. Oh, how we miss this stateroom this week!! I wanted to get a glimpse of the deluxe suites or the penthouse suites, but quite frankly, I can't imagine them having more to offer us than what we had. We spent less on this suite than we did 14 years ago on a Carnival balcony stateroom, which was considerably smaller.
The food on board was delicious and varied. The only thing we would have preferred was that the portions be a bit larger. I ordered a chicken cesear salad one day from room service, and it came with a sliced breast of chicken but with a miniscule amount of lettuce! We found this in the dining room as well, when I ordered the turkey and dressing. The dressing was one very small scoop (perhaps a tablespoon) of dressing. It was two bites! Wonderful tasting but unbelievably small. I do appreciate that HAL probably doesn't want to waste food but it would be nice to at least receive adult-size portions. This occurred at the Lido as well, during the first two days of being served, rather than self-service. There would be a very small portion placed on the plate, and you had to keep asking them to add a little more. As I said, it's great that HAL doesn't waste food, but . . .
I cannot comment on the entertainment, other than to say that the comedian was very enjoyable. We did listen to the Adagio Strings briefly and one solo guitarist, but as DH was struggling with mobility, we spent a great deal of time in our stateroom.
I feel I can't adequately describe the ports of call on this cruise. DH is having bilateral hip surgery next month and isn't able to walk very far, so we booked no shore excursions and weren't expecting to disembark the ship for long at each port, if at all. In Juneau, we walked off the ship and wandered around the shops near the ship, which was not fun. There were too many people and few places to eat or sit nearby. When we arrived in Skagway, it was raining, and DH was not about to disembark, so we both remained aboard. Ketchikan was my favorite port, and I went ashore while DH slept. I wish I had had the opportunity for a shore excursion, but the best I could do was wander the main streets and shop. Still, this was fun, and I loved the scenery and the people I met.
To speak to the staff on board the Zuiderdam, this is an area where they really excel. From the room stewards, concierge, bar staff, lido and dining room wait staff, this was superior. I would absolutely give them higher marks than CCL or RCI, the cruises we enjoyed prior. Also, I met Captain Turner several times when walking about the ship, as he was always available and meeting with his staff. What a friendly gentleman! I recall an interview that I posted on CC from 2010, where he spoke of his philosophy of a "happy ship" and I definitely think he is a large part of the reason we encountered such friendly, warm staff on this ship.
Speaking now to warm and friendly people, this was a great trip for meeting people on board, who we had previously "met" on Cruise Critic. Loved the sailaway party in Roger and Joanie's stateroom. Thank you, you two! And it was a wonderful meet and greet in the Captain's Corner of the Crow's Nest, aside from the turbulence during the storm and the chafing dishes that crashed to the floor! I know Joanie and Roger, Vicki, Sue and Penni, Sue and Rhodi, Sean, etc. won't forget that! It was great to get together with them.
I hate to even mention the weather we had during this trip, but it should be recorded that the last week in Alaska (for the Zuiderdam) was, weather wise, NOT good! However, for me it was quite enjoyable. It rained, the seas were rough, and it was rather cold. But I really enjoyed it! I'm one of those strange souls who doesn't feel quite right unless there is a bit of "turbulence". I enjoy this in flight as well. Unfortunately, it put DH to bed for a while, as it apparently did many other passengers.
The last day was subdued, as it has been on other trips. So sad to leave our "sanctuary" on the sea. But hopefully we'll come back again, and you can bet we'll choose Holland America again. In fact, I'm sure HAL will be our next cruise.
Happy sailing, everyone! :)
My DH and I had a wonderful trip to Alaska on the Zuiderdam! We agreed it was the most relaxing vacation we've had to date.
I'll begin by reviewing the ship itself. A lot of people have commented in the negative about the decor aboard the Zuiderdam, but we both agreed it was beautiful! Yes, the carpets were very brightly colored, but I prefer that to more subdued, or to my mind, drab colors. I guess because our first cruise was aboard a Carnival ship, we enjoyed the "sparkle" all the color on Zuiderdam seemed to add. There were beautiful works of art everywhere on the ship and many lovely arrangements of fresh flowers, including in our stateroom when we arrived. I very much liked the red carpeting in many of the elevator areas with pretty benches to sit on and lighting that made it look so cozy.
The Vista Dining Room was very pretty, and I especially loved the ceiling fixtures. Loved the sparkle! I think the only thing decor-wise that I didn't appreciate was the chairs in the dining room. The colors on the backs of them detracted from the rest of the color scheme, IMO. And I have to say that the only reason I noticed was because of all the feedback on Cruise Critic about the decor. The Vista Lounge was gorgeous in brilliant red. Loved that. The Explorations Cafe/library/internet area was very cozy and welcoming, and both DH and I borrowed books and used the internet there (which, as others have mentioned, is quite slow). The Crow's Nest was lovely. The Lido/Canneletto was colorful and revealed a variety of stations of excellent food, and we took advantage of both on several occasions. Enjoyed the fresh flowers everywhere. We never made use of the Queen's Lounge, although it appeared to be quite pretty. We also never took in a movie in the screening room, but I did try the chairs, which were very comfortable. The shops were pretty standard, IMO, as was the photo gallery. We enjoyed the Sport's Bar, Ocean Bar and had dinner at the Pinnacle Grill, which was stunning (decor wise). The food was good, but I'm not sure about whether it should receive higher accolades than the dining room.
Our stateroom was an SS Verandah Suite, which we found to be our best cabin to date on a ship. So much room! Having both a bathtub and shower was wonderful, as were the double sinks. Loved the Elemis products in the dispensers. The bed was very comfortable, and the balcony was so roomy. We spent hours on it watching the scenery and enjoying the fresh air. Oh, how we miss this stateroom this week!! I wanted to get a glimpse of the deluxe suites or the penthouse suites, but quite frankly, I can't imagine them having more to offer us than what we had. We spent less on this suite than we did 14 years ago on a Carnival balcony stateroom, which was considerably smaller.
The food on board was delicious and varied. The only thing we would have preferred was that the portions be a bit larger. I ordered a chicken cesear salad one day from room service, and it came with a sliced breast of chicken but with a miniscule amount of lettuce! We found this in the dining room as well, when I ordered the turkey and dressing. The dressing was one very small scoop (perhaps a tablespoon) of dressing. It was two bites! Wonderful tasting but unbelievably small. I do appreciate that HAL probably doesn't want to waste food but it would be nice to at least receive adult-size portions. This occurred at the Lido as well, during the first two days of being served, rather than self-service. There would be a very small portion placed on the plate, and you had to keep asking them to add a little more. As I said, it's great that HAL doesn't waste food, but . . .
I cannot comment on the entertainment, other than to say that the comedian was very enjoyable. We did listen to the Adagio Strings briefly and one solo guitarist, but as DH was struggling with mobility, we spent a great deal of time in our stateroom.
I feel I can't adequately describe the ports of call on this cruise. DH is having bilateral hip surgery next month and isn't able to walk very far, so we booked no shore excursions and weren't expecting to disembark the ship for long at each port, if at all. In Juneau, we walked off the ship and wandered around the shops near the ship, which was not fun. There were too many people and few places to eat or sit nearby. When we arrived in Skagway, it was raining, and DH was not about to disembark, so we both remained aboard. Ketchikan was my favorite port, and I went ashore while DH slept. I wish I had had the opportunity for a shore excursion, but the best I could do was wander the main streets and shop. Still, this was fun, and I loved the scenery and the people I met.
To speak to the staff on board the Zuiderdam, this is an area where they really excel. From the room stewards, concierge, bar staff, lido and dining room wait staff, this was superior. I would absolutely give them higher marks than CCL or RCI, the cruises we enjoyed prior. Also, I met Captain Turner several times when walking about the ship, as he was always available and meeting with his staff. What a friendly gentleman! I recall an interview that I posted on CC from 2010, where he spoke of his philosophy of a "happy ship" and I definitely think he is a large part of the reason we encountered such friendly, warm staff on this ship.
Speaking now to warm and friendly people, this was a great trip for meeting people on board, who we had previously "met" on Cruise Critic. Loved the sailaway party in Roger and Joanie's stateroom. Thank you, you two! And it was a wonderful meet and greet in the Captain's Corner of the Crow's Nest, aside from the turbulence during the storm and the chafing dishes that crashed to the floor! I know Joanie and Roger, Vicki, Sue and Penni, Sue and Rhodi, Sean, etc. won't forget that! It was great to get together with them.
I hate to even mention the weather we had during this trip, but it should be recorded that the last week in Alaska (for the Zuiderdam) was, weather wise, NOT good! However, for me it was quite enjoyable. It rained, the seas were rough, and it was rather cold. But I really enjoyed it! I'm one of those strange souls who doesn't feel quite right unless there is a bit of "turbulence". I enjoy this in flight as well. Unfortunately, it put DH to bed for a while, as it apparently did many other passengers.
The last day was subdued, as it has been on other trips. So sad to leave our "sanctuary" on the sea. But hopefully we'll come back again, and you can bet we'll choose Holland America again. In fact, I'm sure HAL will be our next cruise.
Happy sailing, everyone! :)