Zaandam Cruise Reviews - Reviews

Overall good tour. Made a mistake by not getting deluxe veranda suite. Our suite was quite narrow. Also deluxe suite gets to use Neptune lounge which was on our floor. Baggage handling was excellent. Room attendents were great. Food was excellent in dining room. Lido eating was a problem due to lots of people eating at same time. Terrace cafe was good until 2 passengers came down with flu symptoms after Cabo. Dining had to go back to being served instead of self service. Didn't do any of the shows so can't comment. Piano bar was good. Ocean bar had dancing with good music in evening. We used the llbrary and had coffee there often. Very nice and quiet. Costs of using on board computers and internet were too expensive so didn't use. Really enjoyed Vallarta-took a cab cruiise for 3 hours-driver was great. Cabo had too many street vendors on the boardwalk. Enjoyed relaxing on our veranda. Cruise director was good. Service in the dining room was excellent. Couldn't hear the announcements in our room, had to open the cabin door to hear. Getting on the ship and off the ship at the end were very efficient.

Just got back from the 7 day San Diego/Puerto Vallarta/Cabo Zaandam cruise. We had come to expect that Holland America would be the ultimate cruise line and we were very disappointed. Not that it was bad, everything was quite good, however we have experienced better and more enthusiastic service on other cruise lines. Pool and Hot Tubs closed way too early each night. Staterooms need serious updating and cleaning (our room smelled bad). Anytime dining was a misnomer as there were times when none of the eating areas were open. Yet sometimes it took over 1/2 hour to place an order for Room Service and then over an hour for it to be delivered. The additional charge for Canelleto Dining (in the Lido) was an insult because of terrible service. At all times the food tasted great, but expect to spend 2 hours to be served a full meal. The room stewards were excellent, the entertainment was excellent, the excursions were so-so and time in Cabo was very short. We were not told some port activities are in-accessible if mobility is an issue. Cruisers need to be warned that street vendors are extremely aggressive and in some situations almost dangerous.

Although the service and food was wonderful, the sewer smell combined with the movement of the ship was nauseating. We did enjoy our chosen port excursions.

We recently sailed Holland America Zaandam ship to Mexico out of San Diego. I didn't expect such an older crowd. My husband is 61 and we were among the youngest. I imagine because of this the activities were minimal. We loved the tennis courts(and they closed this court after 3 days) and volleyball courts but that was the only out door sport available. They did offer water aerobics and that was a good work out. I felt there could have been more outdoor activities offered. After 8 cruises, this one was by far the least active. We did enjoy the shows and they had a comedian ventriloquist that was awesome. The fact they didn't allow smoking in there bars was an absolute plus in my book. Normally we would love to join in the sing a longs around the piano on other ships but they allow smoking. This time we were able to enjoy all the bars including singing, dancing and just listening to music. The talent was wonderful. On one occasion I asked for ice water from a bar attendant walking around taking orders. He informed me that he only delivers alcohol drinks. I was very disappointed. However, I found out from other guests that he was an exception and they WERE supposed to deliver any drink I requested. The fact that you could walk around the entire ship on the 3rd floor was fantastic. Other ships we have sailed didn't offer this. The crew were friendly but everyone commented on the lack of enthusiasm on the lido deck. They didn't offer trays which cut down on the amount you ate because you couldn't carry more than two plates at a time. I thought that was a good Idea, but I always had to make two trips when I had a bowl of fruit, a lunch plate and then needed a drink. I'm not sure how the elderly people managed. In my opinion, if you are used to being sedate and not wanting to move much, this was the cruise for you.

Nice size ship with plenty to do.

food too strange/fancy not enuf of it at dinner crew very friendly, helpful entertainment high schoolish performances and all the same rooms good comfortable bed plenty of closet/drawers but shower leaked onto bathroom floor and not enuf plug ins ONLY ONE damaged my suitcase when taking to dock, clothes hanging out side of luggage and gave us wrong departure time missed bus to airport had to pay $45 for cab when bus already paid for not enuf information on excursions unless you already knew what there was to do and where to ask not helpful to first time crusier

Extremely professional and friendly!!

We booked this cruise with trepidation, as the reviews of the ship (andf Holland America in general) were, at best, mixed. But boy, were we pleasantly surprised! Having sailed 30+ times, we are not novices when it comes to judging ships. The Zaandam far exceeded our expectations. The staff---especially the servers in all the restaurants---were wonderful. The food was better than most and reminded us of the kind of choices we used to get on all cruiselines. The ship is older but charming. The staff is constantly cleaning and polishing, and they seem to take pride in their ship. The cabin size was larger than on similar ships. Lines onboard were quite manageable and moved quickly. The ship's overall size (on the small size) is actually preferred over the mega ships that require one to wait in line for elevators, wait in line flor food, fight crowds for deck space, etc.

Very comfortable

scenic at sea days, excellent dining, and friendly staff. Can't ask for more.

We enjoyed the Zaandam. It is a classic. The ship WAS maintained and art work was worth viewing.

After returning from a Carnival cruise in the Caribbean we were quite disappointed. Three weeks previous we had been on a cruise with Carnival on the Freedom. No comparison. We thought we were upscaling(what a let down) In no way did this cruise hold a candle to the cruise on the Freedom. The ship is old and need lots of repairs, the food average, the crew less than customer aware, the moral of the crew seemed to be in the dumps. I could go on but if you havent caught on by now more words are going to help.

Horrible customer service, loud construction and maintenance going on the ships common areas during peak passenger usage. Fumes and dust from chemicals used in stripping and sanding done by the Holland America maintenance personnel, of wood in common areas during peak passenger usage. Passengers not allowed to use some of the workout equipment at the gym unless they paid a fee. Staterooms dirty and run down, rust, mold, and dust. Foul smells emanating from many of the cabins. Furniture and carpets badly stained and in need of cleaning. Throughout the cruise, the staff would suddenly decide to take away our privileges or our opportunity to disembark at a port because of "unsafe conditions". For example, the captain decided to skip two of the five Hawaiian ports because of "unsafe conditions". I have at least 30 witnesses that can testify there were no "unsafe conditions" at the time this excuse was being used. We were treated like inmates in a prison from the time we stood in line to enter the ship for the first time to the time we disembarked. Staff attitude and behavior varied from artificially saccharine and patronizing to mostly hostile and threatening. They shut down the few bars and the casino somewhere around 12-12:30. If you were fortunate, they might stay open until 1am. They closed the pool for most of the cruise because of "unsafe conditions". They shut down usage of most of the workout equipment that was free because of "unsafe conditions".

The overall all is good. Good for first time cruise travel to me. But one time is enough to me. Won't go to Alaska again.

Overall a pleasant experience, but a bit disappointed in the food and wait staff.

Perfect in all ways.

With the exception of the dinner service, we were very impressed with the quality of the service on the ship. My mother needed a wheelchair for both embarking and disembarking and they made everything very easy for us. Our cabin servers were always very cheerful and helpful. During the days at sea, there was always an activity too keep us busy. For the most part, the food was very good.

The cruise was from San Diego to Vancouver, Canada. If I had known this was the tail end of the Mexican cruise and that the ship would be leaving for Hawaii after Vancouver, I would have never had booked the trip. This wasn't a cruise, but a fill in. Don't bother booking this trip. Our room didn't get any towel animals - or even a breakfast menu on one night. There were very few activities after 5 p.m., almost as if the ship had a curfew. I was excited when I found out there were cooking classes, but dissapointed when I found out they were on the Hawaii cruise (why they even advertised these classes was confusing). I ordered the "anniversary" package which was a bouquet of flowers and a photo. The bouquet that was delivered to our room looked half dead and I thought that perhaps the previous residence had left it behind. No mention of our anniversary. The crew seemed really ticked off about something and were rude and non hospitable.

entertainers were not well chosen--schedule of certain activities were scheduled always at dinner time-- embarkation was a mess and very poorly supervised -especially with luggage- help for people needing help was available and done with a great attitude

This was our first cruise and it didn't disappoint us. We wanted rest and relaxation and we sure got it. We could sleep all day if we wanted or enjoy the numerous activities they offered. The food was every bite wonderful and service was immaculate. We forgot some medicine and got that replaced quickly. The excursions were excellent. Everything was perfect and as close to heaven as it can get. We felt like babies who were fed, entertained and rocked to sleep every night and afternoon in the cloud soft beds. LOVED IT and would go again as soon as money is saved up for it.