We're home at last 3pm Tuesday. Wanna hear about our adventures?

[dexter]

We are finally home after what we thought would be a quite little 7 day cruise on the Zuiderdam. We ran from Frances for 6 of those 7 days and we finally caught her today (tues) in Atlanta. Here is a brief review of our cruise.

 

DAY BEFORE: We flew into Miami on Friday 8/27. No one told us that President Bush was going to be in Miami making speeches. We circled in the Gulf of Mexico about a half hour before finally landing. Our limo driver didn't meet us (must have gotten a better offer from the President's party). We hired a shuttle to take us to Marriott Marina at Port Everglades and we arrived around 8pm. We had a room on the 9th floor overlooking the ship terminal. My wife and really loved the hotel. Got up early Saturday morning and watched the arrival of Caribbean Princess, Zuiderdam and some other smaller ships. It was like watching moving hotels all lit up and gleaming in the dark. We had breakfast on our room and then took a dip in the pool before getting a taxi to the pier around 11am.

 

EMBARKATION: This was not smooth at all. It's like nobody is in charge and no one knows what's going on. The porters are all running around gathering up luggage but they don't seem to go anywhere. We finally began the boarding process around 12noon. We went directly to the suites desk and that process was rather slow also. The lady took our pictures and gave us a little star to stick on our shirts that would get us into the Neptune lounge to wait for our suite to be cleaned. We finally got into the cabin around 1:15pm.

 

THE CABIN: We had a category S suite and man what a beautiful way to spend a cruise. King size bed, whirlpool bath ( fullsize), huge leather sofa, 3 chairs, a coffee table, a media center with TV, CD player, DVD player and writing station. Our cabin was directly across the hall from the Neptune lounge. We stepped out of our room and right into the Neptune. The balcony had four wicker type chairs, a table, and two other chairs with ottomans. It was all the balcony we needed to watch the waves and the sunsets and sunrises.

 

THE FOOD: I must be honest. The food in the main dining room was not comparable to other ships I've cruised. It was not bad, but it was nothing to rave about. I had read here about the waiters refusing second servings, but I didn't experience that. However, the food in the Lido restaurant was outstanding and so was the service there. BTW Hunky Dory was exactly as I had heard. I told him everyone on Cruisecritic said hello. He always remembered my wife's name, but he never remembered mine.

 

THE ENTERTAINMENT: We went to the Vista lounge every night except one and we saw some really funny guys. EDGE the juggler was outstanding and so was Bob Berenski (sp), but Julie Barr was the hit of the cruise. I wasn't impressed with the Indonesian staff show nor the ship's singers and dancers. There was no flashy Las Vegas style show. In general this was a mostly relaxing laid back cruise since we had four days at sea running from Hurricane Frances.

 

THE PORTS: Half Moon Cay was absolutely gorgeous. We got on the beach very early and were back on the ship about noon. We don't like to burn our skin. Next day was a sea day and then we arrived in Tortola on Tuesday. We caught the outer fringes of the hurricane and it rained all day. The Virgin Gorda excursion was cancelled so we tool a taxi over to Pusser's landing. No one informed us that all the shops were boarded up in preparation for the hurricane...so the taxi driver made a healthy stipend from us. I was not at all impressed with Road Town. It was littered and it looked like the people there took very little pride in their home. Wednesday we were in St. Thomas and thankfully the hurricane had moved on. We took the ferry over to St John and spent the day at Cinnamon Beach. Nodody informed us again that the park was closed and the beach was deserted. The high tide had the water all the way up into the jungle. So...we came back to the ship and enjoyed the aft pool. That night the announcement was made by the captain that we wouldn't be going to Nassau because of the hurricane. That was the beginning of several delay announcements by the captain. We never saw land again after leaving St. Thomas on Wednesday until we arrived back in Port Everglades on Monday morning. Needless to say, there were quite a few disgruntled passengers who wondered why we couldn't visit some other port not affected by the Hurricane...like Cayman, Jamaica, Key west, or scored of others. We just circled Cuba ad nauseum along with many other ships who were doing the same thing we were.

 

DISEMBARKATION: This was much smoother than embarkation probably because suite guests get early disembarkation priveledges. We left the ship around 8:45. We were supplied complimentary shuttle service back the Miami international. However, that is where our nightmare bagan. When we pulled into the airport it was obvious everyone who had been on vacation that week was trying to leave Miami at the same time. The airport had been closed the day before and many, many flights were cancelled including ours. We stood in line for about two hours and then were told there were flights available to Atlanta until Tuesday at 8am. We then called the Hilton at the airport and reserved a room. Got up at 5am this morning and rushed to the airport and feel very lucky to have gotten our of that place alive. Our flight back home was a bit bumpy and when we arrived in Atlanta tropical storm Frances was blowing and raining. I think it's kinda ironic that we ran from the Hurricane all week long in a cruise ship and caught it in a jet airliner.

 

All in all we loved the ship. It is beautiful. None of the complaints I read here were true exept one. The ship does have an air conditioning problem. It is cold in one area and then you go to another deck and it's hot. We felt no vibration in the dining room and we only had one occasion in which we smelled bad odors (just in one hallway on a lower deck). We both loved the experience, but we sure got homesick for our pets and they missed us too.

We met many folks who owned property around the Ft Lauderdale area and we should all say a prayer that their homes survived. It was really sad watching them clammoring for information about the storm and and the safety of their homes. One gentleman said his 84 year old mother was at his home alone and he couldn't contact her.

 

Well that's about it. If you have any questions...fire away.

[BLStokes23]

Glad you made it back safely. Thanks for posting your review so soon. Enjoyed reading your comments. We really enjoyed the Zuiderdam this summer too.

[jhannah]

What an adventure you had! Sorry the cruise wasn't all that it could be, but I'm glad you were able to make the best of it and press forward. I'm just glad that you're safely back home ... as I'm sure you are.

[OCruisers]

dexter .... WOW! What a trip! Thanks for telling us about it!

 

Aren't you glad you had that CAT S Suite! If you even needed a suite, this was the cruise for it! :eek:

 

Glad you're safely back home!

 

Happier Sailing Next Time! OCruisers

[DFD1]

Thanks for sharing your experiences with us. I would be curious to know if other members here have any insite into why some other ports of call were not arranged for the Zuiderdam. I'm sure there is a reason, but it would have been nice if they could have made one other port of call during the later portion of your cruise.

[Lois R]

Hi Dexter:) thanks for your review.....I am sailing her on Saturday(HOPEFULLY)....

Hmmm...may I ask if your wife brought a shawl or cardigan for the evenings? The A/C problem seems really weird! When I started posting on HAL (back in the middle of July) the previous cruisers mentioned that problem too!....

Just wondered if she (Mrs Dexter) felt the need for a light cardigan while on board? From HOT in one area to COLD in another.....strange!

Did you eat in the Specialty Restaurant?..If so, how was the food in there?

 

I am glad you had an overall good time...please keep your fingers crossed that IVAN goes in another direction!

[RevNeal]

Dexter, thanks for your account of your cruise! Is good to hear all sorts of reports! Glad you made it back safely!

[Krazy Kruizers]

To the Dexter's

Thank you for your review.

It was wonderful.

So glad you enjoyed your cruise.

[Paticakes]

Dexter,

 

Glad you made it back safely and enjoyed the Cruise. We experienced very few of the problems that were mentioned on our cruise in August. We loved the Zuiderdam.

[sail7seas]

Thank you for posting. We've wondered how things were for those of you whose cruise was 'extended'. Welcome Back. Happy you are home safe and sound.

[woldridge]

We too were on the 8/28 sailing of the Zuiderdam, also in a 'S' suite. Possibly I can add some additional information. Lois, I would bring a light sweater or shawl. The first day it was very hot, but after that the temperature seemed to stabilize - a bit on the cooler side. For the most part, I needed an extra layer in the dining room and the show theater. Of note, they had shawls for sale for only $5.00.

 

The speciality dining was wonderful! I have regretted doing this on other ships, but was very glad I did not pass this up on the Zuiderdam.

 

We ate in the lower dining room, and yes, did feel a vibration several times, however it is slight - I have been on ships that were much worse, such as the Maasdam.

 

Rented a cabana at the private island which is the only way to go if you want to spend the whole day on shore. It gets very hot in August/September and the air conditioner, lounger misters, fresh water shower and ceiling fan made the day very enjoyable. On our cruise there were at least 2 cabanas that were not rented. One of our cabana boys was new, so we had to ask for some of the things we were suppose to have had, but he was very attentative and everything worked out fine. Cabana surprises: iced washcloths and towels (we brought them from the ship but did not need to as they had them ready for us). Snorkeling was very poor with few fish to be seen. The water was PERFECT!

 

Yes, we had 4 days at sea (something I love), two of which we did not pay for. The captain kept us in sunshine and calm water and kept us as informed as possible. Unfortunatly, the only news on TV was national CNN which had little information on what was going on at home. I had brought a laptop which can be connercted to the internet using your room phone and instructions you can get from the internet center. There is no connect charge when done this way and it is $.50/min. instead of the normal $.75/min. charged in the internet center. It was very valuable to have to get information to loved ones. We live in southwest Florida, so did not have to make air changes, but it would have been easy to do. HAL made air arrangements for those who booked flights through them, everyone else was on their own. Telephone service was sporatic and many found this frustrating. The bonuses (aside from the additional two days) included: passenger talent show (they do something different - lip sinc passenger show), spa services 50% off, behind the scenes tour, not charged for a coke in the dining room the last two days, no tips charged to the bill the extra two days although they "pointed this out" and offered a form to add them if one so desired, and creative dinners (the only things I noted they ran out of was small cartons of milk, lettuce and orange juice on the last morning). Continuing on to the western Caribbean for the next 5 days was offered at very LOW prices because of the amount of cancellations they experienced. How I wish I could have done this!

 

Some things not to be missed: the bread pudding, the flambe desserts served every evening in the Explorer's Lounge from 7:30p-11:00p, the fresh squeezed orange juice, the feather pillows and duvet, the free DVD movies for 'S' and 'SS' passengers, and the robes. Surprises included a $25 security deposit for every book or DVD that is borrowed and pier parking charges for the additional two days.

 

I would be happy to answer any aditional questions you may have.

Barb

[oceanlov1]

lois,on the 7/31 zuid i did not need a sweater around the ship, lounge, casino areas and i usually get cold easily. i wasnt hot, but comfortable.

[dakrewser]

Dexter, Barb thanks to you both for sharing these experieces. Sounds like you both made a very tasty lemonade out of those lemons :D

[Marie-Claude]

We were also part of this Never Ending Cruise - and you can find my comments on a previous post!

 

Dexter: I'm relieved by your comment about the food in the dining room as we too (actually most people I talked to) found the food to be very 'ordinary' even flavorless at times. However, we too found the Lido food to be very good and the Lido stewards extremely friendly - Honky Dory and Shy and all the others!

 

Lois: The A/C in our stateroom was not controllable - it was always freezing! I had to ask for extra blankets and slept with a sweatshirt (and I'm not usually cold) - so bring a shawl and a few warmer pieces, just in case - better safe than sorry!!

[Lois R]

Hi Barb:) thanks for the review!...I have a pretty off-white cardigan...feels like cashmere......but not the price:D ...don't you love these new fabrics!

 

Glad you had a good time too! I look forward to this trip...actually more than I realized...especially after this week:eek: .........I could use a week of pampering!

[saltydog28]

woldridge-I have a question. Did I read that right? You had to give a $25. security deposit for each book and movie. Is this something new that all the ships are doing? I've never had to pay anything before. That is not a surprise, it's a shock!

Glad you got back safely.

Pat.

[woldridge]

Yep, you read it right Saltydog. At one time we had 2 books and 2 movies checked out and had $100 added to our bill. It is credited back when they are turned back in, but I agree, I had never experienced this before!:mad:

Barb

[Jimbo and Katy]

Great to read about your trip and so glad you made it back O.K.

We just booked the Zuiderdam for March. Also booked an S suite. Had an SS on the Oosterdam in April and figured we would go for an S this time.

Could any of you tell us a little more about the Neptune Lounge and anything else we may want to know about the S suites? We are on the back of the ship, so we should have a really nice balcony.

We are 2nd seating for the early dining which I believe is on the first level. Any table recommendations?

Also, we are thinking of renting a cabanna. Which color or colors should we try to reserve?

If we enjoy this cruise as much as the one on the Oosterdam, I know it will be great.

 

Thanks for all your help,

Katy

[BnCCruisers]

Jimbo,

 

We had an S (7049) last week, and it was wonderful! The Neptune was staffed from 8 or so in the AM until about 8:30PM (they have posted hours). The folks in there (Irene and Avon) will do ANYTHING that the front desk / excursion desk / Pinnicle will do for you. They were both really nice, althought not exceptionally knowlegable.

 

There are snacks, water and tea in there. They also have this WONDERFUL coffee machine that makes specialty coffee drinks (free, obviously). DW and I fell in love with it.

 

You can sit in there and relax (several couches), play games (a few board games) or watch TV. With so much else on the ship, it was pretty empty most of the time, but nice to have down the hall from us.

 

We talked to some folks that were in S4180 (back of the ship), and they said their room rattled all the time. The husband wasn't bothered, but the wife was. The tables at the back of the upper dining room (we were at 61) rattled a LITTLE BIT. It never bothered us at all, but it was there. A couple tables away there was no rattle at all.

 

You will enjoy your time!

[Ziggy7]

Thanks for the review :) We are glad you are home safe and sound too!

[dexter]

I forgot to mention one rather hilarious incident (according to my wife) that happended at the Atlanta airport. We were going through security when the officer scanned the metal detector over me and when it got to my knee area the beeper went off. At first I was puzzled and so was the officer. Then, I remembered that I had worn a knee brace which had strips of metal down each side. The guy wanted to see the thing, but I couldn't pull my jeans up enough to get a view. He pulled me aside into a room and I had to "drop trou" and have my knee inspected and the funny thing was I was going "commando". My wife was outside the room in hysterics with laughter. Rather embarrassing, but made me feel much more secure that the security is that tight. And oh yeah...there was a $25 deposit to rent dvd's and cd's from Neptune lounge also. I returned all of them, but apparently their records indicated that one had not been returned. After a brief altercation with Irene, we got it straight.

[viennacruiser]

Jimbo,

When are you going in March ? We are going March 19 and also have an S 5186,

I originally booked an SS but than figured what the heck, I am actually surprising DH , he thinks we have an oceanview..won't he be schoked when we walk into an S!!!

Nancy

[Jimbo and Katy]

Jimbo,

When are you going in March ? We are going March 19 and also have an S 5186,

I originally booked an SS but than figured what the heck, I am actually surprising DH , he thinks we have an oceanview..won't he be schoked when we walk into an S!!!

Nancy

 

Nancy,

We are going on the 26th. So leave that cabin in great shape! Ours is the Eastern cruise. Is yours Eastern or Western? We were on the Oosterdam in April in an SS, but decided to go for an S this time. Once when we sailed on NCL we had a Mini-Suite on the back and practically lived on the large balcony. I think this one will be even bigger!

Your husband will be shocked! I am trying to decide whether to reserve a cabana and surprise my husband. Friends of ours had the orange one when were on HMC before. It sure was great!

Hope you guys have a great trip! I will be thinking of you while I am going crazy packing for the cruise knowing you will be enjoying our cabin. Ha!

 

Katy

[specialthing1]

are cabanas just for s class? If not how does one go about reserving one ?

[Ziggy7]

are cabanas just for s class? If not how does one go about reserving one ?

No, they are first serve first come basis, just go online and choose it as a shore excursion or call HAL services.