Zaandam Cruise Reviews - Reviews

The service was outstanding, the crew was extremely accomodating and and a pleasure throughout the ship. We always had fresh ice in our balcony suite as well as fresh fruit, linens and when we ordered breakfast in the cabin, it arrived promptly and hot.

Only our second cruise, but this is definately the best way to vacation. Every thing you need is there, great food, your lodging, beautiful places to see and more activities than you can ever do! We like that when we get to a port,they have all these excursions that they have researched for you. Then we can check them all out and see which ones we would enjoy most. Otherwise we would not know what each port has to offer. We loved the helicopter and dog sledding ride at Norris Glacier! Breathtaking views and scenery and loads of fun. Would we do Alaska again? Absolutelely!!

The ship was beautiful. Great display of art and autographed musical instruments.

The ship was a little outdated for our tastes.

A class operation from the beginning to the end!! Every person, every staff member made me feel like royalty. Fabulous experience!

Mid-size ship just a nice size. Plenty of deck to walk, but not so large, it took a long time to get to your destination.

Not as big as some of the Holland America Ships, good thing. The cabin steward knew and rememberd my name from the first day. He kept my stateroom clean, decorated (towel Oragami), and my ice buckiet full. The food was to die for, I gained 9 lbs. even though I walked 15 miles. Took advantage of the Greehouse Spa for a special in port "massage & facial". Everyone at my table noticed the improvement in my face. The shore excursions were extremely educational and as a science teacher, got lots of great pictures. The 'Coup d'etat' was the express disembarkation: I set my luggage outside my room on Thursday night, and did not see it until I arrived in Hartford, CT the next day, intact. It was the last piece of luggage on the conveyor which means it was the FIRST loaded on the plane. I will continue to sail with Holland America. Thank you for a great summer vacation. I think I will book a cruise to the Panama Canal for this Spring.

The crew is very friendly and helpful. Holland America has boarding the ship and handling the luggage at the end down to a science. We paid the $16 fee for express baggage handling. The ship staff took our luggage to the airport directly from the ship and they also printed our boarding passes. Well worth the $16. The Zaandam is an older ship and starting to show some wear - but we thoroughly enjoyed the cruise. Beware! Men must wear suit coats to be admitted to the dining room on formal night. We didn't read the literature close enough and had to eat on the Lido deck on the formal nights.

The Zaandam ship was great, just the right one for us. We had a great time and can't wait to go on another cruise again with the "Dam" ships. Even if this was my 4th cruise, it felt just like the first time. The fun we had was just incredible.

easy to find places in the ship well planed. Did not like the food choices they had for vegeterians and they were not considerate enough to make proper accomodations for it either. Room services were OK - didn't get a fresh batch of towels everyday. internet service was horrible and very unreliable. did't have much for entertainment - would be nice to have comedians like in Carnival. Never heard of "sorry sir, we are out of it" in a cruise before during breakfast or lunch. overall, not very exciting that would leave a lasting impression.

Seven days was not enough.

Very clean, room was large with lots of closet space. We were on deck 3 - promendade and view from window was really great. Recommended spending as much time as you can on deck, the scenery was so great, we saw eagles and whales right off the side of the boat. Nighttime shows were very entertaining.

We took a trip on another cruise line many years ago and after this trip we realized that it was more pleasant on a smaller ship, 1500 vs 3000 passengers. The stewards all knew our name and addressed us each time they saw us. They were exceptional. There were tons of onboard activities. The staterooms were very comfortable. We enjoyed the amenities like the terry bath robe available in the staterooms upon arrival.

My wife and I took the cruise to celebrate our anniversary and to get away from daily life for a little while. Right from the start the baggage handler in Seattle was up beat and made you feel welcome. We had some wait in the check in line, but that was the only delay of the entire trip. Once on board we felt like we were in a 5-star hotel with the rich appointments and beautiful art displayed throughout the ship. Our ocean view stateroom was ready for us shortly after boarding and our bags came shortly after, the stateroom was roomy and very clean. We found the ship to be easy to move around in and the layout was great. We were never more than a few floors from where we wanted to be and took the stairs versus the numberous elevators. The food was excellent for the most part. The Pinnacle Grill was outstanding and worth every penny of the $20 up charge per person. The Rotterdam Dining Room was also very good and the wait staff and wine stewards were outstanding providing excellent service as well as the occational magic trick. The buffet on the Lido deck seemed to be always available and with a huge selection that would be sure to please the pickiest of eaters. If all else fails you can get a burger or hot dog at the Lido Pool Grill or even build a taco or get a slice of pizza. We ordered breakfast in bed most every morning and it was a perfect to start each day. The ports we visited were all great and each has too many assets to list in this review. We were able to sample the local cultures and enjoy the beatiful landscapes that make Alaska so special. We were able to see Dall's porpoises, Humpback whales, Sealions, harbor seals, numberous eagles and a grizzly bear on our way into Glacier Bay from the ship. The facilities on board that we used were fantastic. The gym area was on the top floor of the ship over the navigation deck and has a commanding view over the bow of the ship. I was able to be on a treadmill and watch Humpback whales play as we cruise by. The evening shows by the Zaandam Dancers and Singers was a great surprise, as well as the culinary arts kitchen were we attended a cooking class by on of the great chefs on board. We also attended a beer tasting event in the Compass Bar and sampled some of the great beers of Alaska. Overall the trip was a huge success in our eyes and we couldn't find a thing to complain about, I even won money in the casino which is a rare event in it's self. We found that we could be alone if we chose to or with others partaking in one of the on-board activities. The ship was large enough to not feel crowded, but small enough to be able to get around it quite easily. It was the best.

The Cruise Line needs to identify passengers in targeted age groups and try to get them toghether at the beginning of the cruise.

The room and bathroom was larger than other ships we had been on. There was a great deal of importance placed on hand hygiene. I really liked this!!

Overall it was very good cruise.

The ship was beautifully decorated - fresh flowers everywhere. The food was excellent. We only cruise Holland America now because we like their excellence in cruising but this cruise outdid them all. There was a lot of live good music in the evenings - a great variety from pop to strings to big band to the oldies. They have an excellent band that backs up all their big shows. The performers were above average. We were on the ship two weeks and the whole big show agenda was changed out to new performers for the second week. Everything was kept fresh all the time to the fruit and flowers in our cabin. Tendering went without a flaw - not easy for me to handle that. The Captain ran everything on time on this ship and it was truly ship-shape. His excellence was felt all the way through the ship and from all the crew.

Rough crossing did not bode well for the cruise.....problems with a/c and electical power on a very hot day completed the downturn. Medical staff was not able to alleviate medical issues and made rather arbritary decision to have me taken off the ship mid-cruise.

2nd. Time on this ship and Service is down a bit Maintanance needed bad, stuck in elevator and one day at a port to get of they were out of order had to walk down from deck 8 to 2 to get off