Zuiderdam Jan. 16-27 Review

[wldflr]

Panama 11-night cruise - HMC, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, Panama Canal, Costa Rica.

 

Introduction: DH and I are late 40s and this was our 3rd HAL cruise, sailed on Zaandam and Eurodam. I've been cruising since I was 21 on several lines as you can see in my signature and this was my 13th cruise and DH's 10th. Booked a VH Balcony Guarantee and was upgraded to VB6025. 3 days prior to sailing, we were offered an upsell to a suite for addl. $200pp, but due to tight $ right now, we declined...and DH regretted it when he opened the door to our cabin the first day :)

 

Here are my general observations about the ship/food/crew and I may add more details in later postings.

 

Ship condition: like others have noted, the Zuidy is really showing her age. Yes, I would expect to see general wear-n-tear in carpet and cushions, scratches here and there, but we noticed lots of areas where appearances looked a bit sad. Lots of bubbled wallpaper, torn fabric ceiling in the piano bar where you could see the support structure under it (wonder how that happened??), broken and filthy-looking sun lounge chairs on the aft lido deck. One day, as I was entering the Spa, the doorknob literally came off in my hand! DH (being a former carpenter/door installer) tried to fix it but was unable to. We took both knobs to the spa staff so they could contact maintenance. BTW...it still wasn't fixed when we disembarked several days later. Speaking of the spa, the high-powered whirlpool in the hydrotherapy pool is still out of order. One of the stools around the piano bar was broken (wobbly) and it was very unstable to sit on it. I believe this ship is scheduled for dry dock this November...IMO it needs it much sooner.

 

Cabin Toilet: much has been said about this in other postings and this is what I noticed...our cabin the toilet worked (big sigh of relief!) But...the afternoon we were anchored at Half Moon Cay, when we returned to the ship, our cabin toilet did not flush immediately. Told DH we would wait until the engines were running full and we were sailing before calling the front desk. Flushed a few minutes later (whew!). Had another long delayed flush a few days later with much 'gurgling' noises from behind the seat. Made me very nervous but it never happened again for the remainder of the cruise.

 

Public Toilets: Found most working except the one day I was walking around the Promenade on Deck 3 and needed a ladies room. Toilets by main theatre and mid-ship were marked as "out of service" and I ended up walking all the way to the back of the ship by the dining room to use the toilets there. I would have felt sorry for anyone who has mobility problems...it was a short hike! I didn't notice any men's rooms marked out of service and DH didn't mention any problems.

 

Food: Ate in MDR twice (did AYW dining)...second time DH ordered Salmon salad and the fish was undercooked and raw. By the time he noticed, he had eaten some, notified the waiter who brought him another salad. Fish was cooked this time but he ended up experiencing food poisoning later that evening anyways. Not good at all. Ate in Pinnacle Grill another night and had a lovely dinner, no complaints. Ate most meals on the Lido deck and 3 times in the Canaletto which we hadn't planned on but the first time we visited the maitre'd to make our reservation for 2 nights later, he asked where we were eating dinner (like now). We motioned to the Lido Buffet and he insisted we eat in the Canaletto right then! He did it again another night as we were passing through (in shorts & t-shirts). Food & service excellent. And DH liked their meatballs so much, he approached the cooks behind the counter and asked for 2 meatballs by themselves on a night we were not dining in the Canaletto and they gave him some!

 

Service: Awesome as always on HAL. Servers in Lido Buffet plentiful most of the time and we found a delightful server, Jetro Manik, who I know will go far working for HAL. If he saw us, he would jump to find us a table, get us a drink, or anything else. Taught us a little Indonesian to boot. Saw him helping many others all cruise long with a happy smile...I imagine he got a lot of extra tips. Cabin Stewards were great...smiles and greetings every time we saw those hard-working guys. Kept cabin very clean.

 

Shows: Saw the Island Magic Steel Drum Band...not to be missed...incredible group! Also hung out a few nights in the Piano Bar with Jim Fischer on the keyboard - really nice guy and a heck of a pianist! He will be disembarking at the end of the current cruise now sailing but he says he will be on the Noordam in April. Did a few of the trivia contests with Mario and cruise director, Dave - both upbeat and funny. I participated in the 'Game Show Mania' on the final night and when it seemed like the girls were beating the guys terribly, Mario and Dave stepped in to "help" the guys out...done all in good fun, we all got HAL coffee mugs for playing along!

 

Additional note: we were onboard the same sailing as the Phil Coulter Tranquility Cruise (Irish music) and for the most part, their group of 275 didn't interfere with our cruise experience. They did have 2 shows daily including one at 5:45 in the main theater (closed and private) and one at 10:30pm by the middle Lido pool, which they totally closed off that area during the hour+ show. Also closed off the Crow's Nest a few evenings for their private parties.

 

One more story...On the last day before disembarkation, DH filled out his comment form on the Lido deck and went to the glass elevators to take it to the main desk. As he tells it, he met 2 officers also standing there for an elevator. When the door opened, he told the guys to 'go ahead, you're guys just like me.' They declined and insisted he go first. The one officer noticed the comment form in his hand and asked if he had given the ship all high scores? Well...not exactly, he replied and went on to tell them about the raw fish, food poisoning, broken doorknob, etc. DH says the 2nd officer who never said a word, was dumbstuck with his jaw agape! They all get off on deck 1 and they both follow DH to talk to him further (for about 30 minutes)...oh, the officer who initially asked how his cruise was? Turns out he was THE Captain and he introduced himself to DH then. (I asked DH later did he not notice the gazillion stripes on the captain's shoulders as a clue???!)

 

Will we sail on HAL again? Probably. But DH did find sailing with the older, retired crowd a bit annoying at times and the lack of entertainment after 10pm frustrating. We did find some fun people of all ages to hang out with during the week.

 

If I've missed something, ask away...I'll try and answer as best I can.

[Mar56]

Thank you for taking the time to post your review.

[canadianbear]

Thanks for the review. I appreciate the honesty and length. We have a deposit down for this ship but not until next year so shall see how it goes. I do have concerns but as long as our toilet works I will be happy!

[portofrome]

Thanks for your review.

[startwin]

I really appreciate your review, and must admit I was hoping for better, as we are sailing on this ship in April and all the negative reports, especially about the plumbing, have been causing us some concern. There were some positives in you report, but it is obvious this ship is in dire need of a major overhaul very soon. Great story about your DH and the captain... hopefully he took note of the comments.

[erewhon]

Thank you for your review.

[kazu]

Thanks for your review. Great story about your dh and the captain. Sorry to hear of your experience on the Zuidie. Just wondering how this ship went downhill so fast:confused:

[GeriatricNurse]

Panama 11-night cruise - HMC, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao, Panama Canal, Costa Rica.

 

Introduction: DH and I are late 40s and this was our 3rd HAL cruise, sailed on Zaandam and Eurodam. I've been cruising since I was 21 on several lines as you can see in my signature and this was my 13th cruise and DH's 10th. Booked a VH Balcony Guarantee and was upgraded to VB6025. 3 days prior to sailing, we were offered an upsell to a suite for addl. $200pp, but due to tight $ right now, we declined...and DH regretted it when he opened the door to our cabin the first day :)

 

Here are my general observations about the ship/food/crew and I may add more details in later postings.

 

Ship condition: like others have noted, the Zuidy is really showing her age. Yes, I would expect to see general wear-n-tear in carpet and cushions, scratches here and there, but we noticed lots of areas where appearances looked a bit sad. Lots of bubbled wallpaper, torn fabric ceiling in the piano bar where you could see the support structure under it (wonder how that happened??), broken and filthy-looking sun lounge chairs on the aft lido deck. One day, as I was entering the Spa, the doorknob literally came off in my hand! DH (being a former carpenter/door installer) tried to fix it but was unable to. We took both knobs to the spa staff so they could contact maintenance. BTW...it still wasn't fixed when we disembarked several days later. Speaking of the spa, the high-powered whirlpool in the hydrotherapy pool is still out of order. One of the stools around the piano bar was broken (wobbly) and it was very unstable to sit on it. I believe this ship is scheduled for dry dock this November...IMO it needs it much sooner.

 

Cabin Toilet: much has been said about this in other postings and this is what I noticed...our cabin the toilet worked (big sigh of relief!) But...the afternoon we were anchored at Half Moon Cay, when we returned to the ship, our cabin toilet did not flush immediately. Told DH we would wait until the engines were running full and we were sailing before calling the front desk. Flushed a few minutes later (whew!). Had another long delayed flush a few days later with much 'gurgling' noises from behind the seat. Made me very nervous but it never happened again for the remainder of the cruise.

 

Public Toilets: Found most working except the one day I was walking around the Promenade on Deck 3 and needed a ladies room. Toilets by main theatre and mid-ship were marked as "out of service" and I ended up walking all the way to the back of the ship by the dining room to use the toilets there. I would have felt sorry for anyone who has mobility problems...it was a short hike! I didn't notice any men's rooms marked out of service and DH didn't mention any problems.

 

Food: Ate in MDR twice (did AYW dining)...second time DH ordered Salmon salad and the fish was undercooked and raw. By the time he noticed, he had eaten some, notified the waiter who brought him another salad. Fish was cooked this time but he ended up experiencing food poisoning later that evening anyways. Not good at all. Ate in Pinnacle Grill another night and had a lovely dinner, no complaints. Ate most meals on the Lido deck and 3 times in the Canaletto which we hadn't planned on but the first time we visited the maitre'd to make our reservation for 2 nights later, he asked where we were eating dinner (like now). We motioned to the Lido Buffet and he insisted we eat in the Canaletto right then! He did it again another night as we were passing through (in shorts & t-shirts). Food & service excellent. And DH liked their meatballs so much, he approached the cooks behind the counter and asked for 2 meatballs by themselves on a night we were not dining in the Canaletto and they gave him some!

 

Service: Awesome as always on HAL. Servers in Lido Buffet plentiful most of the time and we found a delightful server, Jetro Manik, who I know will go far working for HAL. If he saw us, he would jump to find us a table, get us a drink, or anything else. Taught us a little Indonesian to boot. Saw him helping many others all cruise long with a happy smile...I imagine he got a lot of extra tips. Cabin Stewards were great...smiles and greetings every time we saw those hard-working guys. Kept cabin very clean.

 

Shows: Saw the Island Magic Steel Drum Band...not to be missed...incredible group! Also hung out a few nights in the Piano Bar with Jim Fischer on the keyboard - really nice guy and a heck of a pianist! He will be disembarking at the end of the current cruise now sailing but he says he will be on the Noordam in April. Did a few of the trivia contests with Mario and cruise director, Dave - both upbeat and funny. I participated in the 'Game Show Mania' on the final night and when it seemed like the girls were beating the guys terribly, Mario and Dave stepped in to "help" the guys out...done all in good fun, we all got HAL coffee mugs for playing along!

 

Additional note: we were onboard the same sailing as the Phil Coulter Tranquility Cruise (Irish music) and for the most part, their group of 275 didn't interfere with our cruise experience. They did have 2 shows daily including one at 5:45 in the main theater (closed and private) and one at 10:30pm by the middle Lido pool, which they totally closed off that area during the hour+ show. Also closed off the Crow's Nest a few evenings for their private parties.

 

One more story...On the last day before disembarkation, DH filled out his comment form on the Lido deck and went to the glass elevators to take it to the main desk. As he tells it, he met 2 officers also standing there for an elevator. When the door opened, he told the guys to 'go ahead, you're guys just like me.' They declined and insisted he go first. The one officer noticed the comment form in his hand and asked if he had given the ship all high scores? Well...not exactly, he replied and went on to tell them about the raw fish, food poisoning, broken doorknob, etc. DH says the 2nd officer who never said a word, was dumbstuck with his jaw agape! They all get off on deck 1 and they both follow DH to talk to him further (for about 30 minutes)...oh, the officer who initially asked how his cruise was? Turns out he was THE Captain and he introduced himself to DH then. (I asked DH later did he not notice the gazillion stripes on the captain's shoulders as a clue???!)

 

Will we sail on HAL again? Probably. But DH did find sailing with the older, retired crowd a bit annoying at times and the lack of entertainment after 10pm frustrating. We did find some fun people of all ages to hang out with during the week.

 

If I've missed something, ask away...I'll try and answer as best I can.

 

Apparantly, the Zuiderdam is next scheduled for a 10-Day Dry Dock from November 30 to December 9, 2012 in Freeport, Bahamas! ;)

[GeriatricNurse]

I really appreciate your review, and must admit I was hoping for better, as we are sailing on this ship in April and all the negative reports, especially about the plumbing, have been causing us some concern. There were some positives in you report, but it is obvious this ship is in dire need of a major overhaul very soon. Great story about your DH and the captain... hopefully he took note of the comments.

 

Have you made your final payment yet? :p

[KirkNC]

Thanks for posting a review, sounds like the Zuiderdam does need a dry dock. November is a long way out.

[iriemon]

Thanks for posting your review. Your experience echos ours that we took in Dec. It is good to hear the public bathrooms are working (most of the time) when we were on it, a good 60% were out of order. We also experienced the "delayed flush" but eventually it did. We wrote to HAL in Dec, received a form letter back saying we would hear from them again, still waiting. That is not anything like HAL use to be. We would agree, the Zuidy needs a dry dock badly. I know they can do a lot in 10 days but I think the Zuidy may need more.

[RuthC]

Service: Awesome as always on HAL. Servers in Lido Buffet plentiful most of the time and we found a delightful server, Jetro Manik, who I know will go far working for HAL. If he saw us, he would jump to find us a table, get us a drink, or anything else. Taught us a little Indonesian to boot. Saw him helping many others all cruise long with a happy smile...I imagine he got a lot of extra tips.

Someone is doing a fabulous job running the Lido on the Zuiderdam.

When I sailed in December I found the best service I have ever had up there. The stewards, and their supervisors, could not do enough to help me. My personal fav was Andi, as he attended to me the most, but all went above and beyond.

Osgar and Chandra are supervisors there. They always came over to see that I had what I needed, and did I want more.

 

I can't say enough good things about the Zuiderdam Lido. Every ship should be like this every time.

[cmdchiefthom]

wldflr,

 

Thanks for your objective and thorough review. I also liked the chance encounter your hubby had with the Captain. I'm willing to bet the door knob is fixed, and the stool around the piano doesn't wobble anymore. What was good or not so good in the ports you visited?:)