Zaandam Cruise Reviews - Reviews

In excellent condition.....very nice stateroom w/great storage space....good entertainment also

Ship needs a refit and an overhaul of the management. Nothing like our last cruise on the Volendam last year which is a similar ship. Would not recommend Holland America based on this experience.

ship is showing wear and tear...definitely geared to an older crowd...MUCH OLDER...not much to do on sea days...have travelled with them before and was impressed but not this time..probably wont sail with holland america again..

The overall impression was excellent, though they seemed to cater to a older crowd as far as entertainment on the ship was concerned. excellent staff, and food was good and plentiful.

This cruise and cruise line are top notch. Everything from the entertain to the room service were great. Hope to have the opportunity to do this again soon.

We knew the ship was smaller that other ships. We feel that it does not have that number of activities for people in the 40's or younger. Hoever the kids program was excellent, my son really enjoyed spending time in the Club HAL. Overall it was a nice relaxing time for me.

It was a very restful cruise, with lots of natural beauty to view. Service was good as always.

We liked everything about the ship except that our staterooms were underneath the galley so we didn't get a full night's sleep the entire cruise. Staff would be overhead in the late evenings for the midnight buffet and in the early mornings to get ready for the breakfast meal. Even bleary-eyed, we found plenty to keep us busy and the port calls were great.

This was my first cruise, and I have to be honest by saying that I was worried about "living" on a ship for 7 days. The minute I walked onto the Zaandam I knew I had nothing to worry about. We were immediately greeted by a warm and friendly staff and throughout the entire week, it felt like every crew member was going out of their way to make sure all of the passengers felt special and were having a good time. The staterooms were a comfortable size. My husband is 6'4" and we never felt cramped or like we had to work at getting around each other. All of the food was great, I probably even brought home a few extra pounds of it with me! We enjoyed the shows every night, especially the ones with the Zaandam singers and dancers. Eric, our cruise director seemed to really enjoy his job, and that joy was passed on to all of the passengers. I found that anytime we were on the ship, I had no problem finding either a fun activity to do or a quiet corner to read in. I will absolutely take another cruise with Holland America!

The ship was just the right size, not too big, not too small. Held around 1400 passengers, Ship was very clean and ship personnel were very friendly. Food was excellent in all areas.

main dining staff average in service level

Having cruised on a larger ship, we were pleased with the smaller size of the Zaandam. Also, Holland America caters to middle-age and older passengers and families with young children. There was always something to do for everyone.

my wife and i took the aug 6-13 cruise to alaska on the zaandam.the food at the lido restaurant and the rotterdam restaurant were excellent for all meals.the service at the restaurants was excellent.the entertainment on the ship was great.they had singing and dancing and comedy shows.the ship was clean and kept up.glacier bay was the best part of the cruise because you get a full day for viewing .the one area of the cruise that left a bad taste in our mouths was disembarking the ship in seattle.the ramp to get off the ship was broken which sometime happens nobodys fault but when we went 1 deck down to unload there was nobody to help elderly people off the ship.we did not need help.nobody from the ship or the terminal was a help they were just standing around doing nothing.

Was on the Holland America Zaandam. There was a nice variety of activities on board, as well as a large amount of public space to just hang out. I also liked that if hanging out in the lounges to listen to the musicians, there was no pressure to purchase drinks. All the crew members were so friendly and accommodating. The staterooms were well serviced. I was especially happy about the hand sanitizing units available throughout the ship.

The staff was very attentative. The food was delicious especially in the formal dining room. The last night the "dessert estravaganza" was unbelievable. The entainment was very enjoyable. Get a balcony. You will love it. We also had times of having breakfast in our room. It was very convenience especially when you have to get an early start on days you are at port. We really enjoyed the show the staff put on in the formal dining room and a "separate" entertainment show after the other shows. They work extremely hard to please you and are at your beckon call to serve you. The ship was always concern with keeping things clean. There was Purell everywhere. Zaandam was an older ship but was nice and kept up. Glacier Bay was the highlight of the trip. It was beautiful to see and enjoyed this immensely.

The Cruise was nice but I have ben on #12 cruises and I have to say the food was not a good selection it tasted good but I seen a lot of the same variaties and no LOBSTER?????

This was our 38th anniversary vacation trip and it couldn't have been any better. The ship was kept exceptionally clean throughout the cruise, the staff was very professional and ready to serve, the shows were very entertaining and the food was great and never ending.

The ship was beautiful, service exceptional, very few glitches, one with an over-charge that took quite some time to resolve. We had amazing weather - time of trip on advice of several including our advocate from Cheap Tickets Hans Gartmann (Peter) worked well. I really disliked the commercialism at every port - jewelry shops promoted at every turn. I would much rather have seen more of the "real" Alaska. Glaciers were awesome; saw whales sea otters and sea lions - big bonus. Shore excursions were well done, but pricey for time allowed. All in all - good. Carol Zehntner

My wife and I returned from a seven day cruise on the Zaandam to the Inside Passage Alaska. We thoroughly enjoyed the cruise! The staff were all very professional and always trying to please the passengers. We had sailed on another cruise line previously and Holland America outshown them in every aspect. The dining, entertainment ,tours and every phase of the cruise was enjoyable. I personally really liked the comedian and the Elton John impersonator best of all the entertainment. We wwould definitely cruise with HAL again! Our house keepers Ali and Padiyonta(sp) were fantastic and always pleasant. We had a different figure made from tiles every evening. All and all the cruise was delightful! However there was one aspect that I personally did'nt care for and that was parents allowing their children to fun up and down the deck in the cabin area at all times of night. Also, children were just plain rude while dining and just in general. The word excuse me is'nt a part of their vocabulary. My biggest problem is the parents allow this type of behavior to go unchecked! They just stand by and allow thier little angels to destroy the peace of everyone's vacation.

Did not find the ship to have enough to do and the service was lousy. The fact that routine maintenance was done to the pool in Atrium for 5 days during the cruise was unacceptable and the front desk were not able to tell me why and did not provide me with an update as promised.