My First Dam Review - Zuiderdam July 4-11

[maadimom]

Zuiderdam - July 4 -11, 2009

Alaska Inside Passage

 

I will preface this short review that we are very experienced travelers as we have lived in six different countries and traveled in over 47 others. Our cruises may be limited, but our experiences are not. My judgments are taken from all of our travels.

 

Embarkation: Flawless. We arrived in Vancouver the night before the cruise. We stayed at the Marriott Airport Hotel in Richmond. They had a free shuttle from the airport and the hotel was very nice suite type rooms etc. Highly recommend especially for families as the sofa made into a bed. We were picked up by the Vancouver Shuttle which was later filled by other passengers all on our cruise. It was $13/person and although efficient, we would probably just take a cab next time. It took about 40 mins. from the time we were picked up til we were at Canada Place. We had about a 10-15 minute wait and proceeded through customs and on to HAL check-in. Another 10-15 minute wait and we were on our way to the ship. By 11:45, we were sitting in the Lido eating our lunch.

 

We had booked the cruise using Marriott points and had been given a category G, obstructed view. We were pleased to find out that they had changed us to a verandah VH. Cabin 4001 was/is the first cabin next to the bow, on the right side of the ship (sorry). It was a decent cabin, but smaller than the one we had originally been assigned, and only a shower and no tub, but, the balcony made the differences negligible especially on Tracy Arm and Glacier Bay days. I was concerned that being at the very front of the ship would be noisy and bumpy, but not the case. (Exception: Tracy Arm day...one lady thought that she could stand at the bow door, just next to ours, and just yell at her family all morning because it was too windy for her. Fine, but at 6:30am, a little excessive)

 

Food: I had read a lot about the food and the reviews were less than favorable. For the most part everything we had was good. I say that being a cook and an extreme foodie. I didn't have to send anything back. Good is a long way from excellent. We ate at the Pinnacle Grill one evening. I'd say the food there was very good, but still far from excellent. The service all around was outstanding. Overall, a pleasant experience with great table mates and servers. I would like to say that the desserts were absolutely terrible. I am an avid pastry chef (not professional) and I never could finish one dessert on board. The chocolate souffle tasted like scrambled eggs. The creme brulee was not that, but a cheap packaged type vanilla custard. The lemon meringue pie was absolutely tasteless. So, I stopped with the desserts and stuck to the ice cream which was Dryer's brand. With so many extra calories during the week, I just kept in mind how many I was saving by not eating the desserts.

 

Shows: We never were able to go to even one show as we had late fixed dining and our table was never finished before 9:45. I have mixed emotions about this, but DH said he'd rather stay and be with the table mates we had than see the shows anyway, so a mixed review here. I do feel that if they offer a show at 9:30, the dinner should be finished by 9:15.

 

Ports of Call: 87 degrees in Juneau...beautiful day spent at Mendenhall Glacier and Whale watching.

 

89 degrees in Skagway...looked beautiful, but way too hot to enjoy the town. We went on the Glacier Point Wilderness Safari and had a great time. The guides are wonderful, and the sites amazing.

 

Didn't catch the temperature at Ketchikan, but it was bright and sunny, perfect for our Island Wings flight to Misty Fjiords.

 

Glacier Bay Day = Perfect!!! No fog, no mist, just bright sunny skies and amazing views.

 

Debarkation: Here's where HAL could stand some improvements. We were assigned a 8:00 - 8:10 departure. Because they do a silent departure, and because the ship was late starting the process, we were debarking at the same time as our table mates who were scheduled to leave at 7:30. As a result, the lines were huge, and when we arrived to the baggage area at 8:30, our bags weren't even out yet nor any other later times. So, there were people stumbling over each other because they couldn't get their bags since they weren't there and we had no place to go and wait. Huge log jam that could simply be avoided by announcing that your "color" time slot could now debark. I'm sure if everything had started on time that this wouldn't be a problem, but it was on this day.

 

Overall, our trip was great. Zero rain, warm, almost too warm sunny days. We had a very nice time with no major issues to be had. The ship isn't perfect, but haven't seen a perfect one yet. I don't think that I would choose the Zuiderdam for a Caribbean cruise as I don't think there are as many options available that could be enjoyed there, but she is a great ship for a port intensive cruise such as the inside passage. I'd have no problem recommending her to a friend or relative.

 

Cutbacks: I have read on these boards that the service is down on HAL. I have no prior knowledge of what it used to be like, but judging it by our previous cruises, I have to say I miss certain things...ie) I can't tell you the name of our cabin steward as we never met him. There were four down our hallway that were always friendly and talked with us, but I couldn't tell you which one cleaned our room if any. The wait staff never introduced themselves by name and it appeared as if the waitstaff were serving multiple tables besides the ones they were assigned. So, the service was still outstanding, but the personal touches were missing. I guess that could be a plus to some, but we enjoy getting to know these people. We have met many wonderful people this way.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thnak you for taking the time to write your review.

Glad you had beautiful weather. We have been to Alaska when it was HOT.

[skankycat]

Thanks for the dessert warning - luckily I like ice cream too!

Desserts don't have to expensive or time consuming to be good, so it sounds like a manpower shortage or a poor hiring choice in the kitchen.

Perhaps I'll just gain four pounds instead of the expected five! :rolleyes:

[Himself]

Thanks for the nice review. I was there a few weeks before you and wore a jacket at each port. Glacier Bay was darn cold. When you said Sunny in Ketchikan my teeth almost fell out of my mouth. Ketchikan is very rainy. Again, thanks for the nice review.

[jmps]

Thanks for posting your experiences. You were so lucky with the weather, even if it was a bit hot in Skagway.

 

We were on the Zuiderdam in June. We, too, felt the desserts were not all that good. The Baked Alaska and souffle were particurally disappointing. On the other hand, the pastries in the morning were very good. This seemed strange because these usually seem to go hand in hand. I am not a dessert person so this affected my DW and DD more than I. :-)

[fsdj1097]

We were in Alaska the first week in June aboard the Amsterdam. We too, had bright sunny days in highs in the 80s.

 

Tell me your thoughts of sailing the Inside Passage. We sailed from Seattle and had some moderately rough seas that puts DW in bed for the duration.

 

Thanks for your replies.

[suse]

Thanks for the review. But, what does it mean that you never saw your room steward. Was your cabin a horrible pig stye? Like no one ever cleaned it? I don't understand why it matters. Also, you are an "extreme foodie". What is that? I like to cook, I like to eat, but I never heard of that.:confused:

[diathoney]

Thanks for writing this review. We'll be on the Zuiderdam next month. Disappointing about the desserts. I'm not a foodie, but I like my steaks cooked correctly, hot foods hot, cold foods cold and nothing cooked to rubber. I'll keep my fingers crossed we have a good server team.

We also have the fixed late dinner, bummer about the shows, we like to see at least a few. Maybe we'll eat in the Lido a couple of nights. Welcome home!

[GadgetNeil]

Thanks for the review!

 

We'll be on the Zuiderdam's inside passage July 25th.

Your review left me with a question. I've never been on a cruise, so I'm not clear how these things work, but when exactly are the early and late show, and what times are early and late dinner seatings. we have reserved late seating dinner, which I believe is 800 pm. Partly, that's because 545 just seems awfully early for dinner, unless you are feeding 6 year olds! I've been debating about switching to unreserved dinner times, to leave us flexibility. So, if we stay with the late seating, does that mean both the early and late shows won't work?

[maadimom]

Thanks for the review. But, what does it mean that you never saw your room steward. Was your cabin a horrible pig stye? Like no one ever cleaned it? I don't understand why it matters. Also, you are an "extreme foodie". What is that? I like to cook, I like to eat, but I never heard of that.:confused:

 

No the room was always cleaned rather mysteriously while we were gone. It doesn't matter, but the other cruises I have been on, the steward has come and introduced themselves and made it a bit more personal. It's like I said, it's just one thing that I missed. If you've never had that, you'd not know any different.

 

I have taken food courses, classes, trips, etc. around the world learning how to clean, cook, prepare, etc. all types of food and pastries. It is my hobby more than anything else, but I love it. Because of my DH job, I have been able to eat at some of the top rated restaurants around the world...some not so top in my opinion. I love food, not just for the eating part, but preparations, the presentations, etc.

 

Definition of foodie from wikipedia:

"foodies differ from gourmets in that gourmets are epicures of refined taste who may or may not be professionals in the food industry, whereas foodies are amateurs who simply love food for consumption, study, preparation, and news.[1] Gourmets simply want to eat the best food, whereas foodies want to learn everything about food, both the best and the ordinary, and about the science, industry, and personalities surrounding food"

[maadimom]

Our sailing was really smooth. I was worried being moved to the very front of the ship, but it wasn't bad at all. There was a couple of times I felt the ship swaying on the night we had to travel the furthest distance, but I think that was from the speed of the ship, not the waves.

[maadimom]

Thanks for the review!

 

We'll be on the Zuiderdam's inside passage July 25th.

Your review left me with a question. I've never been on a cruise, so I'm not clear how these things work, but when exactly are the early and late show, and what times are early and late dinner seatings. we have reserved late seating dinner, which I believe is 800 pm. Partly, that's because 545 just seems awfully early for dinner, unless you are feeding 6 year olds! I've been debating about switching to unreserved dinner times, to leave us flexibility. So, if we stay with the late seating, does that mean both the early and late shows won't work?

 

The late seating was recently moved to 7:45, but it still ended late for our section. The shows were at 7:30 and 9:30. Theoretically, you should have some time for the show. That is why they changed dinner from 8:00 to 7:45, but out entire section was always late getting finished. Two nights we returned from excursions after 8:00 so missed the dining room, but chose not to go to the shows because we were exhausted.

[diathoney]

Definition of foodie from wikipedia:

"foodies differ from gourmets in that gourmets are epicures of refined taste who may or may not be professionals in the food industry, whereas foodies are amateurs who simply love food for consumption, study, preparation, and news.[1] Gourmets simply want to eat the best food, whereas foodies want to learn everything about food, both the best and the ordinary, and about the science, industry, and personalities surrounding food"

 

So I'm a gourmet? Wow - I had no idea! I want to eat the best, but unfortunately am unwilling to pay for it! The definition doesn't mention that part. I struggle through hoping for a decent steak at a decent price. :)

 

I'm glad to read that the sailing was smooth. My DH and DS are both prone to sea sickness, We moved from a Seattle sailing to Vancouver for that reason.

[Duck Duck Cruise]

 

I'm glad to read that the sailing was smooth. My DH and DS are both prone to sea sickness, We moved from a Seattle sailing to Vancouver for that reason.

It was like sailing in a bathtub. I like to rock and roll and that is the only part I missed on this cruise but Alaska is incredible and you'll love the Zuidy.

[papergypsy]

I think that the time it takes to finish dining is dependent upon the size of the table. Our first night we had a table for 8 and everyone spent so much time talking and trying to impress one another that it took our steward and his assistant a long time to clear courses. Nobody received their entree until everyone finished their appetizer or starter. Then nobody received their dessert until all had finished their entree.

 

We asked for a small table for 4 for the remainder of the trip because we could not stand the one upmanship at the table. There were 3 of us in our party, and we were finished by 8:45 most nights, 9:00 at the latest. We learned our lesson - smaller table equals faster completion.

 

And the best dessert on the whole ship was the Dreyer's Ice Cream with chocolate sauce that we picked up in the Lido restaurant and took back to our cabin every night!