Zuiderdam Cruise Reviews - Reviews

This was one of the best cruises we have been on. Itinerary was wonderful. Activities on board ship were great.  The meals and presentation was excellent.  The staff on board were always pleasant and smiling and willing to help at any time.  Our room stewards were excellent and very efficient as were our waiters in the dining room.  We especially liked that on the buffet in Lido food was handed to you by the staff and that everyone was not serving themselves.  Cleanliness was excellent.  Organization of tours etc. was excellent and ran smoothly.  Tour options was very good and reasonably priced.

The staff was very friendly. Entertainment was good but not great. Food was very good. We had room 4177 and the shower would not drain entire trip. Ship is nice and clean but could use some updating 

Very good with the following exceptions:

Not enough programs at sea for the elderly to enjoy. More speakers and subjects would help

Entertainment was marginal at best. Just a canned schedule for a seven day cruise for a younger client.

Food was very good

Service in dining room and cabin was excellent

Didn't like paying 5 euros per person at almost every stop just to get off the dock!

Great itinerary. Crew fantastic. Food average and plentiful. Ship older but clean. Best entertainment was the crew shows. Plenty of activities for sea days. Would have prefered more open decks for lounging or  walking.

OUR CABIN WAS LOCATED ABOVE A STORAGE AREA AND WHEN EVER THE SHIP TOOK ON SUPPLIES IT SOUNDED LIKE WE WERE UNDER ATTACK. MOST OF THE ENTERTAINMENT WAS VERY GOOD, BUT SOME WERE POOR. THE BB KING LOUNGE WAS TOO SMALL FOR THE VOLUME OF THE MUSIC. OUR WAITER AND ASSISTANT WAITER WERE WONDERFUL.

The Zuiderdam was our first experience on Holland America and will probably be our last.  We were in a balcony cabin which was nicely appointed and the Cabin Stewards were exceptionally good.  They needed to be since the bath tub didn't drain properly and the A/C was grossly inadequate.  These issues were eventually addressed and made good, only as a result of continued persistence by the Stewards.  We experienced heavy seas between Cadiz and the Azores resulting in substantial amounts of salt being deposited on the balcony and the balcony furnishings.  They were never adequately cleaned in spite of the cabin stewards best efforts.  The entertainment on board ship was pathetic.  A 5 piece band, overweight and over aged dancers and singers and an entertainment schedule that was the worst we've ever seen and we've been on dozens of cruises.  The food on the other hand was good and the service in the dining rooms impeccable.  The wine list was exemplary.  The itinerary was the reason we chose the Zuiderdam and it was as advertised.  The Captain did a great job keeping us informed but why he allowed the apathetic level and sub standard  entertainment schedule remains a mystery.

The ports were good but the ship needs and overhaul. They added rooms but not public space so you could not find a seat in the lido, or sometimes the Vista lounge. They dropped the HAL Cats and the dance band in the Ocean Bar so dancing was not every night and was not as good as the dedicated dance band. The entertainment was good sometimes but they showed an old movie one night as the entertainment! There was "Voce" a female quartet whose high notes screeched! Not good! The Flyboys were great. The comics funny.

The crew was excellent, dining room, cabin and Front desk.

I disagree with any negative reviews of the Zuiderdam.  The ship was clean, well-maintained, and very comfortable.  Anything plumbing or electrical issues were expedited efficiently and service onboard was outstanding.  Everyone was friendly and eager to help.  I would cruise on her again with NO reservations at all!

The Ports-of-Call were wonderful.  We did six tours, but also went ashore and just poked around at many ports.  All were interesting, historic, and filled with friendly and helpful people.

The only time the ship was bumpy was between Cadiz and the Azores.  The actual crossing of the Atlantic was calm and very relaxing.  My husband and I are in our 70s and had a wonderful 50th anniversary cruise!

overall it was a good cruise........some concerns were the cleanliness of women's bathrooms, especially in the spa area, after repeated complaints the broken toilet seat was not repaired. 

Zuiderdam is a lovely ship, extremely clean and itinerary was great.  We experienced a terribly long wait boarding in Athens and the usual non-existent services disembarking in Civitavecchia.  Neither was a problem caused by HAL.  However, in Greece, the only thing they did was hand out bottled water!  We missed lunch.  Although they did extend hours, we never heard any announcement.

In Civitavecchia, there are absolutely no terminal facilities.  You are very efficiently handed through customs and reunited with your baggage.  Then you are dumped on a sidewalk to wait for your ride.  We got there at 8:30 and weren't due to be picked up until 9:00.  Others who got off with us had pickup times of 10:30!  There are no chairs, no water, no toilets.  Given the way shipside is handled during a port stop, HAL could have provided a shelter, chairs, water.  Bathrooms are a problem all the cruise lines ought to address with the port!

We chose this trip for itinerary which was great!  We have cruised many different lines but this was our first HAL since 1982.  We had heard such great things about them that we had high expectations.  Sad to say that they were not met.  The entertainment was meager compared to other lines.  Food was okay.  PInnacle Steakhouse, highly rated by many, was nothing superior to Cagney's on another line.  In fact I liked the other line better.  Wine selection was good but it was difficult to get the wine steward (read as waiter who took the beverage order, etc.)

Anyway, we would do HAL again if price/itinerary warranted it.  If another line had a better deal, we would opt for the other line.

I loved the itinerary of this cruise and wasn't disappointed.  Ports of call were all different and worth seeing. Zuiderdam is older but well appointed and very well managed.  Our cabin was on deck 6 with balcony. we loved it. Our agent Melissa Lemke found the best location for us. Public places on our ship were clean and nice, restaurants were very clean, service was good and food was aplenty and varied. I even tasted some things I only read about before.  That to mention that I am not afraid to taste any food humans eat anywhere in the world. The buffet manager Helmi was really good.  It was always fresh food and good service there. At ports KK was always there for everybody always prepared, very informative and good natured. Her suggestions and directions always worked well.  It was a good cruise .  Thanks to Holland America and Melissa Lemke.  We will do it again . I forgot to thank Holland America for providing the opportunity to celebrate Jewish Holidays . It was unexpected and very nice. Thank you

I was very excited to be cruising for the first time on Holland America. I am not a first time cruiser but, I am a new-bee on HAL. I was excited about the ports in Europe that I would be visiting and also that I was going to get a taste of a luxury cruise line. All of my other cruises have been on Carnival. I was looking forward to better food, better entertainment, a luxury cruise-line atmosphere. I have to say that all that I expected was just fair. 

The decor outside the rooms and inside was no different than Carnival. It did not have any "Luxury" feel to it. The rooms were of comparable size with no extra amenities and we had to pay for laundry every day. There isn't even a place to iron. On carnival they have a laundry on each deck and a place there where you can iron clothes.

The entertainment schedule was disappointing. The only  up side to that was that because of the number of ports vs. the days of cruise, there wasn't a whole lot of time for entertainment at night. We ported 10 out of 11 days and were exhausted when we got back on for dinner. So, because the entertainment wasn't that exciting, I didn't really plan for any of it. I did go to one show and a comedy thing. Not much difference there either. It was just OK.

The biggest issue I had was the food. OMG! This is supposed to be a higher end cruise line and I thought the food would be outstanding. Not so much! The buffet was not very good at all. The variety of salads, breakfast choices, and dinner choices in buffet was far surpassed BY CARNIVAL. Carnival has a wonderful buffets with different things daily and lots of variety. 

You can get Italian that is upper scale but you have to pay an extra $10 per person and it is in the buffet. It is not a separate specialty dinning restaurant like most other cruise lines you go on. We paid the extra $10 to eat the Italian because we were bored of the buffet. And you might be thinking, "if you didn't like the buffet, why not just go to the formal dinning room every night?" Well, after paying $35 extra per person to eat at the steakhouse the first full day on the cruise and having a very bad experience, we realized that all the food choices might be a problem. The bad experience at the steakhouse just set the tone for the whole cruise. It is a steak house and both our steaks were cooked incorrectly and had to be sent back. The sides were OK and that was all we had to eat for a while. it took too long for the replacement steaks to get there so we cancelled the dinner and told them we were done and leaving. The manager then came over and was very rude and said we would not be charged for the dinners but you will pay for the caviar and walked away.

Since this was the highest end restaurant on the ship, we didn't think any of the other food would be much better. We were right. Main dinning was just OK. I got tired of only having Cesar salad every time I was in the main dinning.  There was one other salad choice and a soup. None of them were anything I liked. So I would always go back to the house salad(Cesar). They did have the same choices you will see on any cruise menu:frog legs, escargot, prime rib, lobster(2-3 oz.) on one night only, etc. Nothing was prepared that was out of this world great or that memorable. After the issues at the steakhouse we cancelled the other premium dinning reservations we had at Le Cirque so I can't comment on that them night, but it is held at the steakhouse and run by the same people so it wasn't worth chancing and a waste of money.

THE ONE really great thing on this cruise was the themed food nights on Lido Deck!!! They had: buy one glass of wine-get one wine for a $1 from 5-7 pm. And during the same time frame The Lido also hosted 4 different nights of themed food spreads: appetizers and main courses based on where we were at Port. We had Croatain, Italian, Greek and a Mediterranean night. This food was memorable. Thank god for it because on those 4 nights we ate there instead of any of the dinner venues. 

Instead of gaining weight on a cruise from too much eating, I lost weight on this one!

I doubt I will go on a Holland America cruise again. It would have to be a SMOKIN' deal. They offer a return cruiser discount and try to get you to book another cruise while on this one and give huge discounts but even that was good enough for me to consider it. it is up to you if you want to be your own judge of the cruise and not heed my advice. Everyone has different taste and interest. 

I am looking forward to Norwegian and Royal Caribbean next.

We were warned by a couple that are 4 star mariners that we would see a marked downgrade in the Holland offering.  They were sure correct!!!

From the dinning menu to the ship's appearance it is clear that this is not what we have historically experience on our prior curses.  Specifically the dinner menu offering were far fewer.  In effect, down to one page vs. historically a broader selection of two full pages.   My question on ship appearance was when will Zuiderdam  be going in for refurbishment?  The answer was it just came out.  You draw your own conclusions. 

We took 5 shore excursions; 1 from Holland and 4 through United Cruses (out sources to local operators).  We are sure glad that we only booked one through the ship.  We were taken by the Holland offering via bus with 35 to 40 of our fellow ship mates to a small  sea side town on a Sunday; dropped offer for a hour with no direction at this location where most of the businesses were closed.  The second half was booked as visiting a local winery.  In reality, it was a small store front where you had an opportunity to purchase a very limited selection of local over priced wines. The only plus you were allowed to bring back on board one bottle per person w/out corkage fee.  As a contrast, United Cruse offering was 4 to 5 couples with a local tour guide on a mini bus providing significantly broader highlights and a far more rewarding experience.

Cabin accommodations: we were assigned a handicapped veranda room with no tub and lack of closet space.  My wife and I do not need nor want this type of state room at this point in our lives. The only veranda offered on board by the front office was a mid ship accommodation directly outside the passenger stairway and elevators.  This was unacceptable and we finally settled on a suite upgrade at a higher additional price to us. 

To be balanced the ship's crew was attentive, helpful and all-around great and I would rate them 5 star out of 5. 

My wife and I expected much more based on our historical experiences and contributed to the reason for the 3 star rating.  If I could of rank the cruse 2.5 it would have been more accurate. 

I would not recommend Holland unless they reverse course and add back quality and breath to their offering.

We have travelled on three different cruises; Carnival 😶, Disney 😘 and now Holland America 😃😃😃😃. This was a great trip with me and my husband and our three children; 17, 14, and 9. We did all the various shore excursions, and it was a great way to get an introduction to Southern Europe. But the cruise ship specifically I would say; great and friendly crew, excellent food, great accommodations and would travel with Holland America and Zuiderdam again.

What a fabulous way to see the Mediterranean!  Unpack once. No hassles with passport stamping or customs and you get a taste of 5 different countries.

The ports of call were great! Cost of the cruise was fair, however, the entertainment was lacking -- seems like the "actors" were more interested in their performance then singing the actual songs; Casino staff very un-attentative. Host on the third deck dining room (a heavy-set gentlemen) was quite rude night-after-night. Stateroom and front desk staff were just wonderful and every request (small or large) was met with a friendly sincere smile. Art auctions were a joke. Bingo from Kevin was more about humiliation then allowing guests the "pleasure" of winning. Who in their right mind encourages guests to "boo" other guests? Kevin does! 

Good choice for mature travelers.  Not alot of fun, silly activities.  good way to see many different countries.  Using hop on hop off bus works well in Barcelona and Monte Carlo and other area . 

The ports were great but the vessel needs upgrading and overall  

 the lower level hallways had a pungent odor.

Toilets on many floor were blocked especially bad with many passengers complaining and the crew agreeing there was a problem.

I feel sure they will have to attend to this immediately.

for the length of the cruise the menu was quite repetitive but good.

The Zuiderdam is starting to show its age, but in spite of this the 11 day cruise was truly amazing.   Beautiful ports of call and a very attentive crew on the Zuiderdam. 

As always, we were not disappointed.  Holland America is a quality cruise line and this is our 4th time on the Zuiderdam, a wonderful ship!  My only complaint - and I have this with most of the cruise lines anymore, except for Royal Carribbean - is the quality and selection of food.

I would not hesitate to recommend this ship to anyone.