Zuiderdam Cruise Reviews - Reviews

Costa Rico was very interesting.  The Banana Plantation was very interesting to learn about.  The Old Panama tour was interesting also.  

The food abroad ship was not the best and timing was really off schedule.  

But the wait, stateroom attendees, and dining room staff were very friendly and helpful as much as they could.  

Although I had no previous experience of a cruise I was delighted with the service, the entertainment and the overall friendliness of the staff.

My one recommendation is that there should be a more comprehensive guide on how to get about the ship, list of phone numbers to connect with the office, dining, spa etc.

It was nevertheless a wonderful relaxing and exhilarating 11 days from start to finish.

cruise good in the main. Quebec old town is very interesting and the all day trip to the falls and the Cathedral was excellent .some of the other trips were not as good and expensive The itinerary on the whole was varied but some ports of call small and it was best to go on a trip in able to appreciate the area. We enjoyed Halifax in Nova scotia . Bar Harbour Maine US ,Gloucester and Rock Port in the US  .The ship was a good size for us as we do not enjoy the very large ships The food was varied and acceptable in both formal and casual dinning areas We had a Balcony room and this was spacious and there was a Bath with shower over The Balcony was a good size . We also enjoyed our short stay in New York at the end of our stay on this trip  we had to go into port by tender on a number of occasions  This can not only be difficult for people with a Disability but it is also very time consuming both getting off and going back on the ship

Crew good, ship good, food good, ports good. The only down side was that the foliage hadn't turned.  Too early and too dry.  Temperatures were warmer than normal throughout the cruise.  Book later if you want to see changing colors.  Otherwise everything was fine.  People at the ports were friendly and helpful.  Some ports had more to do than others unless you booked an excursion from the ship or on your own.

First time on Holland America.  We were blessed with perfect weather in Norway, Iceland and Greenland.  After the Visit to St. John's Newfoundland, the Captain wisely decided we needed to skip Halifax and skirt around Hurricane Hermine to get into New York a day early. Although it was a rough ride we had an extra day of touring NY. Always glad to be safe and back in the USA.

Bright, Crisp, Sunny Weather in Norway, Iceland, Greenland & St John's, NFLD, Canada, but bring your warm sweaters and rain coats just in case. Our daytime temperatures ranged from 50 F/ 10 C to 73 F/ 23 C with one quite cold & windy day on the north coast of Iceland. The day-long scenic transit of Greenland's Prins Christian Sund (Prince Christian Sound) was an unexpected & spectacular experience, viewing icebergs, glaciers and mountain peaks reminiscent of the spires of Gaudi's Cathedral in Barcelona. The onboard commentary of an Icelandic professor and the ship's Dutch Location Manager made the viewing from the ship's bow (forecastle or foc'sle in Navy terminology), the Crow's Nest (Deck 10), Observation Deck, Veranda Staterooms and even the Sea View Pool Deck (Deck 9 Aft) made this "Inside Passage" transit even more memorable. The Cruise Director, an English lady from Newcastle, made timely and informative announcements on the ship's PA system and at the evening's Vista Lounge entertainment sessions. Even the Lifeboat Drill before sailing was fast and efficient. The Crew was friendly, the food was fabulous and the ports of call were spectacular.

The ship was wonderful full of things to do, trivia, cooking demos, computer classes and top notch entertainment.  The food was fabulous each meal got better. the ports of call were breathtaking. the cruise down prince christenson fijord was a beautifull adventure. We got to see the norther lights on 2 nights. The front desk called us to tell us they had appeared.. Great trip overall and great expierence.

The ports of call were great, especially St. Petersburg. Used SPB tours there for both days and it was great. Ran you ragged but we saw and did lot. Entering and leaving the various ports was quit interesting and make sure you wake up and see that.

Basically a nice staff on the ship, somewhat friendly, but the ship is way past its prime time. It needs a major overhaul and that may have reflected on the crew. 

The ship only had one area where a crowd could gather, and look out, the Crows Nest. So it was crowded, as people staked out prime seats seats early in the day so it became hard to watch the boat leave ports and have a cocktail. 

Food was OK, but dinner at the upscale restaurant was excellent. Recommend the Pinnacle Grill. Our dinner server in the Vista though, was really good. Used his recommendations for dinner and he was spot on. 

Service - Had a hard time getting drink service especially during happy hour, and for the first night at dinner where they never showed up to ask for a second round. Learned to order two drinks at the same time - good idea if your on the drink package.

The wi fi service was expensive and slow.  

Again the itinerary was excellent. Except for the major cities you can go out on your own, but the Hop on Off bus were poor in every city but Copenhagen. 

This was our first cruise on Holland America after two cruises on Princess.  All the jokes we heard about the "elderly crowd" on Holland America, compared to Princess, were just plain untrue.  There were plenty of seniors, but also lots of younger folks.  Overall, I would say that the Princess cruises had a higher overall age, not that it really matters.  But I would say that despite the Zuiderdam being an older ship, it was quite elegant and nicely maintained.  The service was impeccable and overall I felt that it had a certain degree of "class" that Princess lacked.  I would definitely cruise with Holland American again, in general, and on the Zuiderdam again, in specific, if the right opportunity and itinerary came along.  Compared to Princess, I would say that Holland America is a bit more expensive, but worth the small premium.  I was particularly impressed with the asian and pasta bar stations in the Lido buffet and the availability of multiple flavors of hand scooped ice cream at lunch and dinner.

This cruise was most enjoyable.  It was a very busy cruise with little down time as most of the sailing was done at night and there were new ports with shore excursions almost every day.  The food was excellent.  The onboard service was outstanding.  The shore excursions were very well organized and presented.  We found an excellent and delightful piano and violin duo we enjoyed in the evenings--sadly the main shows were not much to our liking.  One was actually terrible.  BB King's group was good if you liked jazz.  My main complaint was with the wifi.  It was expensive and then used up your precious minutes very quickly because it took so long to download and upload things.  Wifi should be provided free of charge when it is that slow.  I also think that more time in fewer ports would have been beneficial.  There was only time for a basic tour and no down time to just look around on your own in most of the many ports we visited.  Although they were interesting, we could have left off Lubeck, Germany and Gothenburg, Sweden and spent more time in Stockholm and Helsinki.  We did leave off Helsengbourg, Sweden because of bad weather conditions.  This added time to Copenhagen which was good.  Overall it was a great trip.

Would definitely not recommend this cruise ship to others.

The itinerary stopped in unnecessary ports. 

The food was not good.

Ship was not kept up

Ship excursions way overpriced and information on their website was misleading, almost threatening.

Staff, except for excursions head, were very good and friendly.

We had a lovely time cruising the Baltic Sea. Seeing Berlin, Stockholm, St. Petersberg, Gottenburg, Helsinki, Travemunde, Copenhagen--amazing places. It was wonderful to hear the languages and see the cultures of each country. Exhausting, but in the best possible way.

The destinations on this cruise were fantastic. Berlin and St. Petersburg were our favorites. We were supposed to go to Helsingborg, Sweden, for our last port, but there were very strong wind gusts and the captain thought it would be dangerous for us to tender in and out, so we went to Copenhagen early. We had a great time there as well, and preferred it to Helsingborg. The food on the cruise was great. The weather was great for us, with temps in the high 60s to low 70s every day, with short rain showers on several days. The ship didn't have a lot of bells and whistles, and was showing its age a bit, but we weren't there for the ship. The staff was great, very attentive and friendly. Overall, it was a great trip. 

3rd time with Holland America.  Was a fine cruise, with the usual HA services & amenities.  I especially liked the itinerary beginning & ending in Copenhagen.  Most Baltic touched Copenhagen for a day stop.

St. Petersburg is my favorite city to visit. There are so many great Palaces, museums and churches,. Two days are too rush. In 13 days we are able to visit 6 countries and their capitals, and cities. We were busy, tired but happy and joyful. This is a very impressive cruise with Zuiderdam.

This cruise had an excellent itinerary.  Don't take this cruise for the food.

This cruise had 2 tender ports and the tendering was handled very smoothly.

Interestingly, this was the land of the midnight sun, and the only time we saw the sun was between 10pm and midnight.

Loved it.  Did not like location of room. nice suite but right under the Lido Deck. Has passengers dragging deck chairs around at all hours. kids running etc. will not do a guarantee again. Also the food selection at the buffet was crazy. Veal, duck, fish, lamb and extremely rare beef were served together more than one night. and the baked potato had goat cheese in it. I ate pasta or pizza quite a few times. My husband does not like eating in the dining room but I will be putting my foot down next cruise.

Weather was good (and cool).  Sights were excellent especially fjord boat trip out of Stavanger and Hop on/Hop Off out of Oslo and Belfast.  Third time in Edinburgh is not enough.  Need a week to see everything,  Almost too many ports...needed more sea days to rest. Food on board is great and service was excellent.  Norway and  Denmark are expensive.

great ,but it was too short, not enough time for all 12 days, wish cruise all 24 days, will enjoy 2nd leg of the cruise, maybe next time,not enough time for all 12 days, will try to do next summer, love the countries, clean, nice places, thoroughly enjoyed.

the ship was nice. But the staff? Outstanding. Literally everyone was outstanding. The dining room food was above average, the buffet was not very good. The Italian specialty restaurant was not very good at all! But the Pinnacle Grill was outstanding!