Holland America Zuiderdam

Booked on back to back Zuiderdam cruises in the Eastern Mediterranean from 24 August 2015. Have noted that reviews from April cruises following dry dock renovations were not very positive, citing problems with water, toilets, unavailable deck space and poor response to complaints. Can anyone tell us if these issue have been overcome in recent cruises. Some reassurance would be nice?

There have also been some positive reviews such as

http://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=503484

and

http://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=503558

Or check out this thread :

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2210133

Just got off the Zuiderdam last Sunday in Barcelona after 22 days which started in Venice. Our cabin was #4136 on the upper promenade deck. My biggest complaint is that I had to leave. Wonderful time with a most friendly crew. I did here of some toilet issues but they mostly have seem to be caused by passengers. As for deck space on the 1st leg there was some of deck 10 cut off due to renovation work but that has been completed. I went up on deck 11 (the one above the Crow's nest) a couple of times during the 2nd leg & found it deserted both times. As usual there were chair hogs at both pools but I did see the crew clear up chairs a few times. In summary I found the Zuiderdam a much more enjoyable ship than the Nieuw Amsterdam which I cruised on in 2012.

Booked on back to back Zuiderdam cruises in the Eastern Mediterranean from 24 August 2015. Have noted that reviews from April cruises following dry dock renovations were not very positive, citing problems with water, toilets, unavailable deck space and poor response to complaints. Can anyone tell us if these issue have been overcome in recent cruises. Some reassurance would be nice?

We were on the 4-14-15 cruise after dry dock. Yes, there were some problems with cabins that we feel HAL addressed in a timely manner. We had no problems with our cabin and felt that the ship was in excellent condition. A lot of new carpet in public areas, new dining room furniture. The staff never missed a beat and were at their usual excellence. Some of the negative reviews I read gave the impression that the whole ship was in poor condition which I do not feel was correct. But if it was my cabin that had problems I probably would have been negative about the condition of the ship. However the large majority of the passengers we knew or dealt with on the ship had a good cruise and had no problems with their cabins, the staff and the general condition of the ship. I wouldn't hesitate to book a cruise on the Zuiderdam or go on an upcoming cruise. You should have a good cruise.

HAL added cabins on the Observation deck and completion was delayed due to the Italian contractors going on a 2-3 day strike during drydock. This put the Crows nest off limits for about 7-8 days of our cruise while they worked to complete the addition. All passengers of the first 11 day segment were credited with additional on board credit for this inaccessibility.

Thank you all for your responses. We feel reassured that problems after dry dock seem to be resolved.

See you on board.

Geoff and Pauline

We just got of the Zuiderdam in Rome and had a great cruise.....aside from the weather some days:(. I think most of the problems reported in reviews immediately after dry dock have been resolved. We thought the ship was in good shape and the food was also great in both the MDR and Pinnacle. Enjoy your cruise!

We just got of the Zuiderdam in Rome and had a great cruise.....aside from the weather some days:(. I think most of the problems reported in reviews immediately after dry dock have been resolved. We thought the ship was in good shape and the food was also great in both the MDR and Pinnacle. Enjoy your cruise!

We are also just off the Zuiderdam in Rome. Missing it already!

Ship was in good condition. New carpets and drapes in our stateroom, new carpets in many public areas including a most of the lido etc.

I heard only one complaint about toilet problems and that was apparently resolved quickly. I was speaking with one of the engineering dept and he said that it was amazing just what some people tried to flush down the system!

I would go back on Zuiderdam again tomorrow, or the day after or the day after that. ;)

We just got of the Zuiderdam in Rome and had a great cruise.....aside from the weather some days:(. I think most of the problems reported in reviews immediately after dry dock have been resolved. We thought the ship was in good shape and the food was also great in both the MDR and Pinnacle. Enjoy your cruise!

We are also just off the Zuiderdam in Rome. Missing it already!

Ship was in good condition. New carpets and drapes in our stateroom, new carpets in many public areas including a most of the lido etc.

 

I heard only one complaint about toilet problems and that was apparently resolved quickly. I was speaking with one of the engineering dept and he said that it was amazing just what some people tried to flush down the system!

 

I would go back on Zuiderdam again tomorrow, or the day after or the day after that. ;)

Thank you for the positive reports.

We are also just off the Zuiderdam in Rome. Missing it already!

Ship was in good condition. New carpets and drapes in our stateroom, new carpets in many public areas including a most of the lido etc.

 

I heard only one complaint about toilet problems and that was apparently resolved quickly. I was speaking with one of the engineering dept and he said that it was amazing just what some people tried to flush down the system!

 

I would go back on Zuiderdam again tomorrow, or the day after or the day after that. ;)

Follow up on my comments after the 22 day cruise that we took right after the Zuiderdam's dry dock.

After talking to some of the officers while on board, some of the toilet problems were not the result of dry dock work but the result of passengers putting prohibited items down the toilet. This problem continues and continues.

The condition of the Zuiderdam was very good even if they were not able to complete the upgrades prior to us getting on board on 4-14-15.

Glad to hear the reassuring reviews. We are on Zuiderdam at the end of June for our first HAL cruise and really looking forward to it.