Add Hawaii Plus Zaandam and You Get.......

[May4]

Happiness:D

May I take this opportunity to heap praise on the heads of the Zaandam crew? Talk about the spotless fleet. The housekeeping department was everpresent, cleaning the edges, cleaning the broad surfaces, cleaning little fingerprints. Germs had no chance.

We sailed December 5 - 20 from San Diego. This was my first visit to Hawaii. The sea rocked and rolled for a day or so, but hey, what're ya gonna do? I would take the same cruise in a heartbeat.

There were all sorts of special touches. The steward assigned to toaster duty in the Lido breakfast line wrapped the bagels all warm and snug in a blue cloth napkin. The holiday decorations and the flowers were lovely. Music around the pool area was just right, never intrusive. The string trio drew overflow crowds in the Explorers Lounge.

I do like the Mariner brunch and reception the way they were handled on the Zaandam and on my previous Maasdam cruise. We had a short reception for medallion holders first and then had reserved table for brunch. IMHO it's easier to hold a conversation when the gathering is smaller.

We had the 8:30 seating for dinner. That's what we requested. Here's hoping you find Bambang is your dining room steward someday. He and Fernando, our wine steward, were gracious, unflappable, and generous. The fact is, we were impressed with Team Zaandam wherever they were assigned. The fellows in the Lido were upbeat and quick to help. The beverage staff couldn't have been nicer or have worked harder.

It may well be uncharitable of me to say this next part. A certain number of our fellow passengers should have gotten coal in their stockings last week. Let's just say they tried WAY WAY too hard to find something to complain about.

[kakalina]

Thanks for taking the time to flatter the crew. They are great aren't they?! I have had the pleasure of dining with Bambang and he is a dear. The staff and crew of the Ryndam are fantastic.

There are always those that deserve coal year round.

[hammybee]

What a lovely post, May.

I suspect you will never have a bad cruise.

Thanks for taking the time to balance it all.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Glad you had a great cruise.

We also had a couple of rough days going and returing from Hawaii - that's just the Pacific.

[sassyredhat]

Thanks for the info. We are taking Zandaam in April. Now I am getting excited ! :D

Pat

[cruise101]

Excellent post. We will be heading out on the Zaandam this Fri so are very comforted by your comments.

May4, we haven't yet booked any shore excursions, but would like to hear from you re any suggestions you may have. We are both mid-50s and though reasonably active, my wife has back problems so we are looking for nothing too streneous.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks again for the wonderful post.

[LoyHAL]

[quote=May4;12789831]Happiness:D
The string trio drew overflow crowds in the Explorers Lounge...

Did you by any chance remember any of their names? We were on Zaandam in the Caribbean a few years ago over the holidays, and the trio was fantastic! They called themselves the Hungarian Strings and the violinist [Janos] was absolutely incredible!

Would love to know if it was them....
Thanks,
LoyHAL

[kalabash]

Sounds great!
Going in April. Only 93 more days to go!:)

[May4]

Excellent post. We will be heading out on the Zaandam this Fri so are very comforted by your comments.

May4, we haven't yet booked any shore excursions, but would like to hear from you re any suggestions you may have. We are both mid-50s and though reasonably active, my wife has back problems so we are looking for nothing too streneous.

Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks again for the wonderful post.

I'm so happy for you that you'll be sailing on the Zaandam in a very short time!

In Hilo, we took a tour that would let us see the observatory at the top of Mauna Kea. However, we weren't able to get all of the way to the summit because the rangers had closed the area. There was a hiker missing and a search was underway. Also, there was ice on the road further up. Imagine that! But, I recommend the tour anyway because what we were able to see from up there was spectacular. Our tour guide was a young and very enthusiastic fellow, very much in love with his Hawaiian home.

In Laihaina, we took the oddly named, but wonderful, Lavender and Winery tour. Yes, there's a vineyard on Maui!
We were a small group (just six of us) and traveled all around the island to many charming places.

Those were the only two excursions that we booked. Otherwise we struck out on our own and went exploring in the shops, parks and such.

Aloha:)

[May4]

Did you by any chance remember any of their names? We were on Zaandam in the Caribbean a few years ago over the holidays, and the trio was fantastic! They called themselves the Hungarian Strings and the violinist [Janos] was absolutely incredible!

Phooey! I cannot for the life of me remember what they called themselves. :confused:

[sassyredhat]

May4, we haven't yet booked any shore excursions, but would like to hear from you re any suggestions you may have. We are both mid-50s and though reasonably active, my wife has back problems so we are looking for nothing too streneous.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

We are taking our 2nd Hawaii cruise because we want to see a show in Maui called Ulelena. DH saw it last time and said that I just have to see it.
I want to the the rare seahorse farm--I think it's in Kona.
We have done the main attractions, so these are 2 of the offbeat ones.

Pat

[cruise101]

Thanks for the info. Just one question: were these excursions booked through the cruiseline or did you make your own arrangements. If it is the latter, I'd appreciate a link or a contact. Thanks again.

[May4]

We booked through the excursions office on the ship.

[sassyredhat]

Sounds great!
Going in April. Only 93 more days to go!:)


We're going April 3rd. Will you be on our cruise ?? :cool:

Pat

[sassyredhat]

Thanks for the info. Just one question: were these excursions booked through the cruiseline or did you make your own arrangements. If it is the latter, I'd appreciate a link or a contact. Thanks again.

We will be booking them through HAL. I am waiting to book, because HAL will be adding new tours in a few weeks, and I want to see what they're adding.

We are also planning on the Astronomy tour on Hilo. It has has a tsunami museum.

I also have back problems and can't walk far. These tours are easy.

Pat

[LoveHAL]

My wife and I had the pleasure of being on the same cruise (Dec. 5-20th/Zaandam) and it was 100% wonderful. The String Trio was called The Fantasy Strings, but I suspect that it is a name that HAL thought up. Still, the very best String Trio of all 11 cruises we have taken with HAL. The crowds got larger and larger as the cruise progressed. Towards the end, not a seat could be found at 9:20pm.

We took one tour - on Hilo, a 4-1/2 hour bus drive to Volcano National Park. It cost $49 per person and was worth every penny and more. A fantastic adventure.

Also enjoyed the Mariner/Medallion Reception and Luncheon. Much better concept than past cruises (Maybe because we received our Copper Medallion).

[LoyHAL]

LoveHAL,
Do you happen to remember the name of the violinist? Janos played a 200-year-old violin -- and he made it sing! We will never forget it.
I've been wondering if it was him again.
Wish we had been there, too!
LoyHAL:)

[LoveHAL]

I am so sorry for the delay in response, but I don't check this stuff out daily. Anyway, I never talked to any of the musicians - so got no names at all. Just know that the trio was excellent. It was an amazing cruise.

[kalabash]

We're going April 3rd. Will you be on our cruise ?? :cool:

Pat
Sure will, Pat. I'm knew to CC so it's quite exciting to find out about the other people not only that are are going on our cruise, but others as well. It's a great way to find out about all the ins and outs of cruising. Aloha!:p
Sandra

[boccismom]

We're going April 3rd. Will you be on our cruise ?? :cool:

Pat
Pat,
My DH and I will be on the 4/3 cruise with you. This is our first on the Zaandam but our 4th on HAL and we have never been disappointed. Well, there was the time in Alaska where we got stranded due to the roads being washed out and the land tour people not being at all helpful...but that was a land tour and not the cruise.

Hope to see you onboard.

Phoeb

[boccismom]

Sure will, Pat. I'm knew to CC so it's quite exciting to find out about the other people not only that are are going on our cruise, but others as well. It's a great way to find out about all the ins and outs of cruising. Aloha!:p
Sandra

Sandra and Pat,
We should plan on getting together onboard. It's always more fun with other folks.:D

Phoeb