Felt young
Zuiderdam Cruise Review to Canada, New England, New York
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 7+ cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 36
Review summary
Zuiderdam is a great ship if you want a certain type of cruise. It is very casual, so much so that I dispensed with a tie for the 2nd gala night. Average age is well over 70, predominantly American, seemingly all from Virginia on our cruise, A mixture of Brits, Canadians and Aussies were on board as well with a few Dutch. If you want plenty of shipboard activities, forget it, only one place to buy speciality coffees, in the Crowsnest above the bridge, which had superb views and interactive table screens.Embarkation
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Main dining room quality varied both in food offering and service. Hot plates were a rarity, some menu options were odd for European tastes. Lido buffet was manic at times but enjoyed the breakfasts in there and the dining room
Onboard Activities
Only the odd ping pong tournament and short quiz sessions were offered
Entertainment
Main stage was great if you liked classical music, juggler was poor, Scottish singer was good, dance group were probably the best I have seen on a cruise ship, but overall only watched 5 out of the 10 shows as piano recitals do not float my boat. However Billboard on Board was a completely different matter, the two singer/pianists were superb playing a vast range of songs, only slight contentious issue would be that they need to update their songbook with 2015 onwards songs.
Children's Programs
Service and Staff
Friendliest staff I have ever come across on a cruise ship, no hassling for the next drink and seemed genuinely happy to look after us.
Ship Quality
Spotless, though could do with a better meeting atrium, liked the many bar areas.
Cabin / Stateroom
Gettin* the lighting right was a challenge with a proliferation of switches, but could do with a power point on the bedhead side o& the cabin rather than an an extension lead across the floor for a CPAP machine.
Ship tip
Try and find independent tours or do your own thing as HAL tours are expensive
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
Arcadia National Park is a must as is a lobster roll and blueberry muffin bought locally.
Peggy’s Cove very picturesque if you don’t see the sea often, if you do it is interesting but overrun if there are a lot of coaches there.
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island