Great service but VERY MOLDY smelling

Zuiderdam Cruise Review to Caribbean - Southern

matr

Contributor Level: Purser

Cruises: 7+ cruises

Review: 1

Helpful Votes: 45

Overall rating:

3.6 out of 5

Verified Review

11 Night Southern Caribbean Wayfarer Holiday (Ft. Lauderdale Roundtrip)

Sail date: December 26, 2018

Ship: Zuiderdam

Cabin type: Inside

Traveled as: Couple

Reviewed: 5 years ago

Review summary

Wonderful food and great service and staff. Unfortunately the ship was very moldy and when we tried to tell the customer service desk - they kept telling us to come back later(after we waited in line many times for at least 30 minutes.) Also the only place to lay outside in the sun was in the back of the ship where there were smokers and smoke from the smoke stacks. I was sick most of the cruise from coughing and not being able to breath. I have gone on 1-2 cruises every year for over ten years and never have experience this before. Very disappointing for Holland America

Embarkation

5 out of 5

excellent

Ship experiences

Food and Dining

4 out of 5

Main dining room was excellent the buffets were very limited but good

Onboard Activities

2 out of 5

very limited - fitness center was nice

Entertainment

3 out of 5

very limited - great dancers and musicians The main stage was VERY moldy smelling and had to leave most nights

Service and Staff

3 out of 5

Excellent friendly service from waiters and room stewards Customer service refused to meet with me about the mold smell - kept telling me to come back later

Ship Quality

1 out of 5

Limited outside seating space. Only could sit in the back and breath in smoke from smokers and the smoke stack. Very moldy in the main hallways and very strong in the MainStage area Became very ill with breathing problems. NEVER have experienced this before on a cruise.

Cabin / Stateroom

5 out of 5

5164 our cabin was small but very clean

Ship tip

if you have allergies AVOID this ship

Thumbs up

Ports of call

Ft. Lauderdale (Port Everglades), Florida

5 out of 5

easy

Thumbs Up 0

Philipsburg, St. Maarten

4 out of 5

good especially for having had a hurricane

Thumbs Up 1

Castries, St. Lucia

4 out of 5

Soufriere, St. Lucia

3 out of 5

Bridgetown, Barbados

4 out of 5

Fort-De-France, Martinique

3 out of 5

was closed for holiday - would like to go back and see

Thumbs Up 0

Basseterre, St. Kitts

2 out of 5

attempted to leave the port area - was interesting and decided to go back to the ship

Thumbs Up 0

Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas

5 out of 5

Half Moon Cay, Bahamas (Private Island)

5 out of 5

Beautiful beach and fabulous food

Thumbs Up 3

Disembarkation

5 out of 5

excellent service

7 Comments

Cruisers4Lyfe 2 months ago

Thanks for sharing

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

1usmcvet 5 years ago

If you’re health is that bad you should stay away from all cruise ships. We have sailed a lot on Holland’s ships and we have never encountered the problems you described above.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

cruisellama 5 years ago

Thanks

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

4Goodtimes 5 years ago

We sailed on the Zuiderdam twice. 20 plus days on one of the cruises & had a great experience each time.

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

1usmcvet 5 years ago

Sounds like if you have these kind of health issues you should stay away from all cruise ships

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

mike1946 5 years ago

Sorry to hear that. On that ship last spring, no one of those issues

Thumbs Up 0

Flag

BRTNY 5 years ago

Sounds fake

Thumbs Up 0

Flag