Wonderful port stops
Zaandam Cruise Review to Canada, New England, New York
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Reviews: 2
Helpful Votes: 51
Review summary
This cruise was cancelled twice due to the pandemic so it was wonderful to finally get to experience Canada and New England. It was a little eerie that we were on the ship (Zaandam) that had the horrible COVID outbreak back in March 2020 and stranded all passengers in Central/South America. Regardless, the ship was in good shape, very clean and the staff were very attentive. I was disappointed in the food. Holland America is known for having better food than other cruise lines but I didn't find the food any better than Carnival (maybe even a little worse). There were no activities for my 7 year old other than Club Hal and the small pool, that was disappointing too. While HA is known to cater to older generations, there were certainly multi-generational families with kids and more activities for younger kids would have been nice. The ports were wonderful--I could have stayed at each of them for two days. A couple of our excursions were cancelled which was disappointing but the ones that we went on were good for the most part. In Quebec City, the Falls excursion was very good. The "stroll" through Quebec City with tea was very strenuous for my 72 year old mother-- a two hour walk with no breaks. The tea was disappointing. The city itself is adorable. Prince Edward Island is as beautiful in July as Anne of Green Gables described it. We did the ultimate Anne of Green Gables experience. It was lovely but the "snack" could have been better. They also could have stopped at the author's birthplace. I did the bird islands of Cape Brenton in Sydney. It was a lovely excursion but there was no bathroom on the boat--people need to keep that in mind before they book that two hour boat ride. It is also very bumpy if you suffer from motion sickness. Halifax is a great, thriving port. We walked to the Maritime Museum to see the Titanic Exhibit. Our hike excursion was cancelled in Bar Harbor and my mother's bus tour of Acadia was cancelled too. Luckily, we were able to book a trolley tour of Acadia at the port and the tour was lovely. All in all, we had a great vacation and we expected a few bumps returning to cruising post pandemic. The food could have been better but the port stops were great and I would visit them again.Embarkation
went fast although it felt like each employee wanted something different from us (boarding pass with one, COVID test with another, passport with another, etc) why not one person who views and confirms everything?
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
I expected better food from Holland America--everything was just okay. My daughter got a tummy ache after eating a hot dog at Dive-In--not sure it was the direct cause but had no other problems before or after
Onboard Activities
very little for my 7 year old, spa was good although they did try and upsell other products more than once, shuffleboard was fun
Entertainment
comic and music was good
Children's Programs
Club Hal was ok--should offer more fun like face painting. Should have other activities for the younger kids
Service and Staff
everyone was wonderful--room service took 45 minutes which was a bit long
Ship Quality
good size, everything was clean
Cabin / Stateroom
was exactly what I expected, good storage space
Ship tip
eat out at the ports
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
very lovely--the "stroll" excursion was very strenuous for my 72 year old mother who had a hard time with a 2 hour walk with no breaks before a mediocre tea service
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
ultimate ann of green gables excursion--very nice but the "snack" could have been better and we didn't visit Lucy's birthplace
Bird island boat excursion was great but there is no bathroom on the ship and a two hour bumpy sea ride is tough for older people who need a bathroom
tender boat process was confusing and should be better; disappointed that our hike excursion was cancelled but was able to secure a local excursion once at the port--Acadia was wonderful but be aware that if you are doing it on your own, you need advance reservations to go to the top of Cadillac Mountain
Disembarkation
went smooth