Very successful cruise experience

Zaandam Cruise Review to South America

Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 11

Overall rating:

4.5 out of 5
Zaandam

14 Night South America Passage (Buenos Aires To Santiago)

Sail date: December 06, 2015

Ship: Zaandam

Cabin type: Inside

Cabin number: 2691

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 8 years ago

Review summary

Overall a very successful cruise experience with absolutely stunning scenic cruising in great weather conditions. We enjoy HAL.  Ship very comfortable and manageable size.  Staff very efficient and friendly, exception being Main dining room experiences (open dining). Entertainment of a high quality in our opinion.

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

5 out of 5
Taste good but not hot ! Specialty restaurants excellent.

Onboard Activities

5 out of 5

Entertainment

5 out of 5
Live bands & singers excellent. Show staff V. good but show content average.

Service and Staff

3 out of 5
Service levels generally V. good. Main dining staff variable

Ship Quality

3 out of 5

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5
Adequate for our requirements. Kept very tidy & clean by excellent stewards

Ports of call

Montevideo, Uruguay

5 out of 5
Easy walking tour from port

Port Stanley, Falkland Islands

5 out of 5
Lucky to land. Local bus ($20 or £10 ! ) short trip to Gypsy Cove for penguin & nature views

Cruise Strait Of Magellan Did not visit port

All inshore cruising was stunning. Like Alaska & Norway on steroids !

Punta Arenas, Chile

5 out of 5
Didn't disembark. Looked uninteresting. Must pay for shuttle transfer.

Cruise Cockburn Channel

5 out of 5

Cruise Beagle Channel

5 out of 5

Cruise Glacier Alley

5 out of 5
Stunning !

Ushuaia, Tierra Del Fuego, Argentina

5 out of 5

Cruise Cape Horn

5 out of 5
Very fortunate - like a "duck pond "

Cruise Canal Sarmiento

5 out of 5
All inshore cruising was stunning. Like Alaska & Norway on steroids !

Cruise Chilean Fjords

5 out of 5
All inshore cruising was stunning. Like Alaska & Norway on steroids !

Puerto Montt, Chile

5 out of 5
Surprisingly interesting. Great WiFi just as you enter terminal.

Valparaiso (Santiago), Chile

3 out of 5
Long shuttle trip from ship to terminal. Taxied thru on way to Santiago - Valparaiso looked rather run down. Santiago worth extra day/s stay

Traveler Photos

Chilean fjords Calm !  Cape Horn Magellenic penguin on Falklands Typical cruise scenery
Was this review helpful? 11

1 Comment

suziqqq    8 years ago

what was the problem with the open dining please? we've booked that! thank you!

Other reviews of this sailing