Zuiderdam

We are considering the Zuiderdam for a Canada & New England cruise this October, but I have read reviews of the ship being dated and sewage smell in some areas. Also, a few posts talk about missing ports due to weather.

Has anyone been on the Zuiderdam lately and/or taken this cruise that can tell me more about the condition of the ship?

I know the weather is a hit and miss, but is rough weather the norm for this time of year for this cruise?

Thank you. This will be our 3rd cruise on HAL after 28 cruises on other lines. We're in our early 50's and really enjoyed cruising with HAL.

We were on Zuiderdam in February and were very happy with the ship. We never encountered any bad smells anywhere.

We've done a few fall Canada-New England cruises, including one on Zuiderdam last fall. You're right, weather is variable, but we've had good luck with fall cruises. Once, on Maasdam, the wind was blowing so hard at our side of the ship that we couldn't open the balcony door. But even with that, she rode well. That's the worst I can remember.

In 2015 I did the Montreal to NYC on Maasdam, departing October 17, it was the last departure of the season. We had snow falling in Quebec, bitterly cold in Saquenay, and the wind was so fierce that we had to abort the stop at Sept-Iles. Then at Charlottetown PEI the winds were so strong at departure time that the thrusters didn't have enough power to get us off the pier and with no tugs available, we had to just stay there until the winds died down (about 4 AM) so of course we missed the next port.

So.....weather always unpredictable and October sailings have encountered issues in the past.

OP: my wife and I are now booked on the Zuiderdam for our very first HAL cruise (in 2018). Several months ago, before booking, I started a thread here to ask some questions about the ship very similar to yours (except that I hadn't read anything about sewage smells). You might find it useful to read the very positive replies I received:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2436730

I was on the Zuiderdam in February. I thought the ship was in very good condition and felt the food was exceptional. I had always shied away from this ship due to comments here, but I was more than pleasantly surprised and would sail her again anytime!

We were on the Zuiderdam March 19-29 of this year, so just a couple weeks ago...I thought the ship was in very good condition. We didn't experience any odd smells and found everything in good repair. I wouldn't hesitate to sail on her again.

We are considering the Zuiderdam for a Canada & New England cruise this October, but I have read reviews of the ship being dated and sewage smell in some areas.

We sailed her in December and had no problems with the ship - smell or otherwise. The only exception was that due to them scraping, applying primer, painting walls and the railing on the balcony we ended up being unable to use our balcony for 2 1/2 days. I complained to the front desk that I totally understood maintenance for one day ... but 2 and 1/2 was excessive - they apologized and sent a bottle of wine. :bottle-pop::wine-glass:

In 2015 I did the Montreal to NYC on Maasdam, departing October 17, it was the last departure of the season. We had snow falling in Quebec, bitterly cold in Saquenay, and the wind was so fierce that we had to abort the stop at Sept-Iles. Then at Charlottetown PEI the winds were so strong at departure time that the thrusters didn't have enough power to get us off the pier and with no tugs available, we had to just stay there until the winds died down (about 4 AM) so of course we missed the next port.

 

So.....weather always unpredictable and October sailings have encountered issues in the past.

We did the same cruise on Maasdam a few years before that and had great weather, except for rain on PEI (but that's on me, it always rains when I go to PEI!) and one very windy day after we turned to head south. Just proves you have to be ready for anything!

We had a gorgeous day in PEI last Fall but when leaving that evening we got hit by an unexpected wind current apparently left over from the prior Hurricane Mathew disturbance and plates went flying around the dining room. Captain explained they had no warning but it causes a lot of drama. So maybe this is one of those notorious passages for any ship. We were on the Veendam.

It has been almost a year since we were on the Zuiderdam on a 28 day Baltics-Northern Europe cruise and all was well - she got her entire hull painted during our various days in port on that cruise, after reports of her looking rather rusty and dowdy. She sparkled from that point onwards, but I wonder how often they have to keep re-doing the exterior hull paint jobs. Seems like it is an endless task to keep the rest of the exterior surfaces rust free (or covered up)

I appreciate all your replies. This definitely helps us decide to go somewhere else. My husband suffers from motion sickness so it will not be a good idea. We have been to Montreal and Quebec City. We also have traveled up the east coast to Portland, Maine. So I guess it's best to leave the rest alone.

Thank you.

I was on the Zuiderdam's repositioning cruise last fall. We got caught in a huge Nor'Easter (that many people thought was part of Hurricane Matthew, but that was wrong), We missed two ports due to the weather system, and coming out of Port Canaveral there were some issues with the navigation system update that caused us to leave late and arrive in Ft. Lauderdale late the next morning.

As far as the condition of the ship, I did not see any issues. I had a cabin at the front and my traveling companions were all the way aft, so I saw a good deal of the ship walking to and fro. There were a couple of wear spots here and there, but that is to be expected when so many people touch the same spots over and over each week.

I had no issues booking another cruise on the Zuiderdam for this year.

I will say that of all my cruises on the Canada/New England route, last year's had the roughest seas and worst weather, but all of that was caused by a storm. It is impossible to predict if a storm will impact your cruise this far in advance. But the North Atlantic is notoriously rough and I have never had a completely smooth cruise on a Canada/New England itinerary. Though the worst weather/seas I have ever had were crossing the Pacific from San Diego to Hawaii, so rough seas are liable to happen anywhere.

We disembarked the Zuiderdam Sunday. We did not encounter any issues that concerned or disappointed us. There was one water spillage issue from pipe leak that was corrected quickly. Zuiderdam is scheduled for dry dock this fall, where upgrades will be made.