SilvertoGold

Zuiderdam in early June Koningsdam in April and May: Overall food quality was better on the K. 1. MDR on the K: Salmon truly excellent, portions mostly small, but well plated, well cooked. Fresher, more finessed. Z: Salmon inferior cuts, but well cooked. Food in was average but good, acceptable. Ship was struggling with a lack of chefs, so that may have accounted for the lack of finesse. 2. Pinnacle on the K: apart for an overbearing hostess, excellent, superior service, food quality, plating and taste. Z: very good but serious evidence of over-salting just about everything. The one lunch was a disaster, undercooked, just lukewarm. Manager was mad enough to comp the meal. 3. Lido on the K: a delight at lunch, abundant choices, very fresh and with much eye-appeal. Z: some of food was tired looking. Asian bar was populated with a lot of meat only dishes, no vegetables. Also, food a bit tired looking. Not nearly as much choice.

Try 7 weeks and see how your body thinks of that :) I'll be watching for your autumn cruise reports!

HAL started asking for the receipt number in mid-May on the Koningsdam.

Thanks. Glad you had a good cruise. Aren't 2 weeks so much better than one? :)

We needed to fill out the ArriveCan app on each of our recent Alaska B-Bs for entry into Canada. HAL made quite a fuss about doing this. Things may change but in May, no one looked at the receipt.

One thing to consider is that schedules do change. Sometimes you go to Johns Hopkins first, then Margerie. Depends on what other ships is in the Bay and on the Captain. Watch for bears on the shore opposite Margerie and for white mountain goats in the vicinity of Gloomy Knob: scan for white dots and then get out the binoculars. Seals and sea lions on North and South Marble Islands are a treat. The Zuiderdam Captain sailed very close on the way out. The map HAL hands out the night before is very good.

We did some B-Bs in May Vancouver - Alaska - Vancouver: no test required. The Boston- Montreal route sounds the same type to me.

For those who have the Navigator App current wine lists are there. Used these extensively on our recent cruises.

The Zuiderdam has been doing "Express Lunches" with a very, very limited menu for a few cruises now. Having a hard time getting enough chefs back on board, the ship has been had to discontinue some meals (Canaletto, Afternoon Tea, Pinnacle lunch) on and off. Might take them a while to get things settled down. The Express Lunches varied from bad (soggy fish and chips) to quite good (soups, salads).

Probably you can't access the menus for the whole 7 days because they aren't set? We know the daily menu has been changed at the last minute and the menu presented on the app is not exactly what you see in the Dining Room. This has happened but with only with one or two items on a menu. I guess HAL wants to have the menus as accurate as possible which would be hard to do up to 7 days in advance.

Phenomenal review! Loved reading every word, every description of your first cruise. HAL seems a good fit for you and your wife. Maybe some day you will introduced the girls to this experience. The waiters love kids and go all out for them. We spent 7 weeks on the Koningsdam: your witty and in depth impressions really brought back fond memories for us. That the Hotel Manager and Exc Housekeeper showed up at your door after your experience is excellent! This is HAL at its best. So glad you enjoyed your time on this ship!

This is disappointing! The Zuiderdam was having problems getting a full compliment of crew, especially chefs. Our 3 dinners there were excellent, but the lunch was disaster: lukewarm and/or undercooked food. Not much prep being done, seemed like a new or substitute chef with no help in the kitchen. Waiter Mohanraj was outstanding. The meal was comped by the Manager who was visibly upset with the situation. Agree that the MDR was great and the fish excellent!

The $8.50 shrimp cocktail looked, to me, the same as the free one on Formal Nights. Those were very good!

Koningsdam in May - upcharge only Zuiderdam in June - upcharge only

Jason was the wine guy for Blend in May. If he is still on board in September you will be pleased with his class. He has a red blend that is used as one of the wines for the Wine Tasting.

I wonder if HAL will use the (new) Rolling Stones Lounges on the Vista ships as a hybrid of the Rock and BBKings and whatever else. On the Pinnacle Class they are leaving as is, both the rock and BBKings in their separate rooms.

More books now, an assortment of fiction and non-fiction. In the 7 weeks we were on board I read a few of the non-fiction. I would say bring a reader or actual books if you are particular about what you read.

The "Dressy" nights were all over the board. One of the lady photographers wore a full length gown (while working), pax wore mostly nice but not formal clothes (no sequins, very few full length dresses, not many suits, one tux that I saw). Dressy casual is maybe the best way to describe it.

On a round trip cruise out of Vancouver to Alaska: after the Alaska ports the ship has a day long port call in Prince Rupert (BC) and then disembarks in Vancouver two days later. For Arrivecan which port would you put in for entry into Canada/arrival? Thanks!

We have found in the past two months that ArriveCan is not well set up for cruising. It is good that you got it done!

The MDR was not open last week on embarkation day on the Zuiderdam nor on the Koningsdam in April and May. The Zuiderdam had the Lido and the Dive-In open from 11:30 am. And, of course, some bars :)

HM Burt and who was the Captain? Great to hear that the Eurodam had the Mariner Party. The Koningsdam held it very graciously each week on our 4 Alaska cruises in May but the Zuiderdam didn't in June. Looking forward to more!

Nicely done post. In 5 cruises there in May-June we saw calving at Margerie only twice and Johns Hopkins once. In Canada we don't call Eskimo Pies anything, we just eat them. I hope you plan to write more :)

Please, no.

BBKings on the Zuiderdam is gone. Venue renamed and somewhat renovated.