On Zaandam Oct 9-23rd

[sapper1]

Marion. I am enjoying your review, even more so because I can put a face to the reviewer. It was good to meet you on the Zuiderdam last spring and how I envy you living in a home port for cruising. It makes it so much easier to cruise.

[dobiemom]

Show time tonight was ventriloquist Ronn Lucas-he was hilarious!

I LOVE Ronn Lucas! I would even skip dinner to see his shows! :D ;) :D

 

Thanks for taking the time to post.

[SilvertoGold]

I agree, and it seems like an odd decision given that all the R/T Vancouver cruises sell out quickly.

 

Yes, these R/T Vancouver sell out nicely every year at what appears to be good pricing for HAL. I think the onboard spending is maybe one of the big considerations for cutting these cruises, though. Possibly the San Diego R/T to Hawaii does better in that respect.

[Lulubelle45]

I am on the cruise right after your return to Vancouver. You are so lucky to Ronn Lucas on board. I have been a fan of his since his Scortch days. Sure hope he is entertaining for us on the f 4 day cruise.

 

Renee

I too am doing the 4 day oct 23 and I am getting so excited reading these reviews. Thank you so much for taking the time!!!

[Copper10-8]

Thanks. Do you know when it (or if) it is rescheduled?

 

A year from now; 03-17 OCT 13 in Freeport, the Bahamas

[dobiemom]

A year from now; 03-17 OCT 13 in Freeport, the Bahamas

Thanks, Copper10-8! :)

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Hi Marion, I just saw you are doing a Live From :)

Sounds like you are having a great time on one of those rare round trip sailing to Mexico from Vancouver.

Looking forward to reading the rest.

Enjoys :cool:

[erewhon]

canadianbear,

Thank you for replying that you berthed at San Pedro.

Enjoying reading your reports.

Thank you.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Hi everyone! I'm paying for wifi again so can't read everyones posts until I get back but TROPHY thanks for that beautiful photo of the sailaway and posting the itinerary.

 

Day 4 LA continued-

 

There are a lot of upset people because we were told there is a red bus for $1 but the staff on shore did not know if it would show up on time or at noon. Seemed very disorganized guess they didn't really have much for us unless you took a ship excursion.

 

We just walked around that day. It was beautiful and warm for the sail away time although they said there were still about 30 people missing but hopefully they all arrived by the time we left!

 

Did the Canaletto tonight and wow-was it quiet in there. Not sure if that is because of the $10 charge now or not but one of the couples with us has never been on HAL before so we want to try most everything. Our meal was great. They also allowed for a little extra for no charge (one fellow we are with is 6'8" and my hubby is 6'4" so they gave them just a bit more meat!)

 

We have been doing happy hour from 9-10 in the Ocean Bar listening to the Neptunes and then going to the shows. Tonight ws Alfreda Gerald-a Tribute to the Divas. She has a spectacular voice. Clocks moved ahead tonight.

 

Day 5-sea day

 

Our room stewards are Dani and Henri-both are amazing just like any other room steward we have had. They just seem to know when we are out of our room and fix it all up.

 

They started working on the carpet replacement on the aft landings and stairwell carpets on deck 7,8, 9 last night. the midship elevator landings and stairwell carpet replacement is all done and looks really good-I will post a photo when I get home. It has been a bit disruptive but the final outcome is well worth it.

 

Show time tonight was ventriloquist Ronn Lucas-he was hilarious!

 

Day 6-Cabo San Lucas 11-6

 

We arrived to a cloudy but warm 89 degrees. Tendered into Cabo went smoothly although you had to be careful as it was a bit choppy. We did the Lands End Boat tour which was a 45 minute catamar sail around Los Arcos.

 

Entertainment tonight was the Zaandam singers and dancers in a tribule to Southern Nights. we enjoyed their show.

 

Day 7-Puerta Vallarta overnight

 

Due to the hydraulic problem last night we were 4 hours late getting into PV today and arrived at 4pm to thunder, lightening and rain! Atrium deck 5 stairs/area blocked off due to the re-carpeting.

 

Day 8-PV

 

Beautiful sunny day today. We did the free HAL excursion Two if by Sea-"Yelapa and Majahuitas. Beautiful catamaran ride and snorkel. Staff aboard were fantastic. I got some fun underwater shots with our new camera.

 

Running out of minutes now but we were supposed to have left PV at 4AM but are still here. They say we might leaving at noon. Hmmm..

 

We don't care-we are on a "cruise to nowhere" in our opinion because we just want to be on a DAM ship. Having a lot of fun!

 

Oh...San Pedro is where we docked in LA. The Captain did honk several times as we left Vancouver-can't remember any other questions and have to get off wifi as my time is up!

 

Thank you for posting and letting us know how your cruise is going.

[IRL_Joanie]

......were you supposed to dock in San Francisco?? If so, do you know the reason you did not??

 

I ask as another CC member on Zaandam right now is not very happy, and I am curious if it's true about missing the port on your way south because you never mentioned it at all......

 

Joanie

[trophy_23]

From the update I got from the Zaandam before they departed PV, it sounded like there would be a delay and it could mean possibly missing a port. At that point they weren't sure if it would be SD or SF, or if they could make up the time some how. I guess we will find out when/if they make SD today, right now it looks like they are still quite a ways away south of Ensenada.

[Copper10-8]

Oct 9Depart from Vancouver-04:00 PMOct 10At Sea--Oct 11At Sea--Oct 12Los Angeles, California07:00 AM04:00 PMOct 13At Sea--Oct 14Cabo San Lucas, Mexico11:00 AM06:00 PMOct 15Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (overnight on board)Noon-Oct 16Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (overnight on board)--Oct 17Puerto Vallarta, Mexico-04:00 AMOct 18At Sea--Oct 19San Diego, California10:00 AM11:59 PMOct 20At Sea--Oct 21San Francisco, California08:00 AM04:00 PMOct 22At Sea--Oct 23Arrive in VancouverNoon-

[goodearth]

Oct 9Depart from Vancouver-04:00 PMOct 10At Sea--Oct 11At Sea--Oct 12Los Angeles, California07:00 AM04:00 PMOct 13At Sea--Oct 14Cabo San Lucas, Mexico11:00 AM06:00 PMOct 15Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (overnight on board)Noon-Oct 16Puerto Vallarta, Mexico (overnight on board)--Oct 17Puerto Vallarta, Mexico-04:00 AMOct 18At Sea--Oct 19San Diego, California10:00 AM11:59 PMOct 20At Sea--Oct 21San Francisco, California08:00 AM04:00 PMOct 22At Sea--Oct 23Arrive in VancouverNoon-

 

 

I think this schedule was the itinerary, but they are not docked in San Diego right now. See the link on the "Zaandam nitemares" thread for a map and location. They appear to still be halfway down the Baja coast.........nowhere near San Diego. :(

[solocanadian]

A year from now; 03-17 OCT 13 in Freeport, the Bahamas

Thanks, John - a little late for me next year. Like your new avatar - guessing it's pretty current?

[igraf]

Gravity. Either more pressure in some of the lower deck pipes or simply a gravity path from the leak source to a lower deck.

 

This can certainly happen on an upper deck, but you can bet that this happens more often in the lower decks.

 

igraf

 

 

 

With all due respect, could you explain what makes you think a higher deck will solve the problem of floods?

 

Any area of any ship on any cruise line can have pipe leaks. The interiors of ships are completly crisscrossed with piping. This is going to happen, period, at some time or another. On the last Zaandam cruise it has been reported that there was a pipe leak on the first two decks forward. You can be sure this was fixed pronto.

The next leak may occur tomorrow, next month, next year. Maybe this time on deck 3, who knows, or 7 or 8. Really this is not something you can plan, unfortunate as that may be.

 

Hope you have a wonderful cruise and do not encounter any problems!!

[trophy_23]

They are pulling into San Diego right now. I wonder if they will spend the whole day there tomorrow?

[Copper10-8]

They are pulling into San Diego right now. I wonder if they will spend the whole day there tomorrow?

 

As we speak:

 

[DAllenTCY]

I wonder how long she will be in San Diego? Maybe some are disembarking or repairs will be made. Intersting to say the least.

David

[Freecall]

Still in San Diego at 5:50 Sat morning.

[trophy_23]

Still in San Diego at 5:50 Sat morning.

 

I wonder how long she will be in San Diego? Maybe some are disembarking or repairs will be made. Intersting to say the least.

David

 

I would think they will be there all day, pushing their itinerary back a day (then skipping SF) to make Vancouver for Tuesday at noon.

[rtlk]

Marine traffic shows them in San Diego at 10:35AM.

 

Holland/Carnival should comp everyone the entire trip, this is just wrong what they have done to these passangers!!!!!:eek::mad::(:confused:

[canadianbear]

Hi everyone,

I can't take the time to read through everything until I am home but will try to update you front where I think I left off?!!

 

Day 9-supposed to have left PV at 4am but delayed and told we could be off the ship until noon. We finally were told the divers cleared the starboard shaft for sailing (whatever that means!!) The Captain was quite humorous in his announcement-I mean, really, what can he do? They are doing their best. We pulled out around 2pm.

 

Entertainment tonight was Jeff Pete4rson who was very good and also had his dog Indi. They also did the marriage game which we always find hilarious.

 

I have heard a lot of people complaining about the carpeting being replaced as we all thought it would only be in PV but it has been on going since day one. To us, it's a minor inconvenience and since the final look is fabulous I think that is what is important. Yes, it should have been made clear to everyone prior to this cruise that it would be on-going.

 

Day 10-Sea day (Oct 18th)

 

We attended the Mariner luncheon and I think it was the best food yet. The choices were: gazpacho or salmon salad; entress: fish, quiche or garlic braised short ribs which is what we had and they melted in your mouth. Dessert was a lemon tart. We had some people that had over 700 sea days-wow!

 

Around 1 pm the Captain announced that after briefly stopping in Cabo earlier to pick up the tender and we were already so delayed leaving PV that he wasn't sure when or if we would be in San Diego. We were supposed to be in from 10am to midnight. The Captain was working on getting clearance for San Diego so we shall see. Again, he was quite humorous saying that since he outranks the chief engineer he wants to stay at a good speed on our journey north.

 

Later on we were informed we would arrive in San Diego probably around 8 pm tomorrow night and would stay overnight but we would be skipping San Fransisco. We are all fine with that-rather spend longer in San Diego.

 

The 6 of us had dinner at the Pinnacle then saw the dessert extravaganza. The show tonight was the Zaandam singers and dancers doing the musical journey thru the decades and it was really good. Arrival back at the cabin there was a letter from the Captain saying that every cabin would get an OBC because of the missing San Francisco and to us it was a generous gesture. I'm sure people will complain but our group are very happy. Again, we are on a DAM ship and that's where I want to be!

 

Day 11-Oct 19th basically a sea day since we won't be arriving in San Diego until around 8pm. Everyone seemed to just relax. We attended several more of the technology classes. We did arrive in San Diego around 7pm and they started calling deck by deck to come down to clear immigration-it was quick and we could get off the ship if we wanted to. We walked around for a bit then went back to the sihp.

 

Day 12-Oct 20th we were told we would be in San Diego until 4 pm. Woke up to cloudy and a bit of rain. We are just outside a Starbucks and wanted to update as much as I could.

 

Yes, there has been inconvenience because of ripping out of carpets, the smell, the closing of deck/elevator, but really-it's minor for us but it might be major for others. We are having a wonderful relaxing time and that is exactly what we booked this trip for.

 

Again, I will try to post photos when we get home and read all the comments and try to answer any questions. After we leave San Diego today at 4 it is on directly to Vancouver...yeah, sea days!!!

 

Bye for now! Going to explore some more of San Diego.

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Marine traffic shows them in San Diego at 10:35AM.

 

Holland/Carnival should comp everyone the entire trip, this is just wrong what they have done to these passangers!!!!!:eek::mad::(:confused:

 

Sorry Marion, that this poster is spoiling your nice Live From:o

To rtlk in case you missed my other post to you since you found you needed to keep posting this.

 

With all due respect I think you need to read any cruise line's Cruise Contract.

To read the whole thing you can go here

http://www.hollandamerica.com/legalAndPrivacy/Main.action

 

5. Change in Itinerary/Cancellation/Cabotage Laws: (a) Although we will use our best efforts to provide you with the Cruise, Cruisetour and/or Land Trips, situations may occur which require that changes be made. By way of example only, we may adjust itineraries and schedules, delay departures or arrivals, or cancel a Cruise, Cruisetour or Land Trip, due to casualty, weather, labor problems, the need to render assistance to others, governmental or insurer directives, passenger or employee injury or illness, schedule delays or changes by third parties, repair and maintenance requirements, fuel or other shortages, or damage to the Ship, other means of transportation, roads, tracks, bridges, docks, equipment or machinery. Furthermore, the Master of the Ship or of any other vessel as well as the operator of any other means of transportation may, in his/her sole discretion, elect not to proceed in the ordinary course. Consequently, we cannot guarantee the itinerary of the Cruise, Cruisetour or any Land Trip (including time of sailing from or arrival at any port or that all ports will, in fact, be called at, or that all places on your Cruisetour or Land Trip will be visited). We reserve the right to provide you with alternative transportation whenever the Cruise, Cruisetour or Land Trip is unable to proceed or be completed in the ordinary course or, in the case of hotels, to substitute facilities of similar category in cases where the planned hotel is unavailable due to overbooking or otherwise.

(b) Your safety is very important to us. For safety or other reasons that we believe qualify as good cause, we may, without notice, substitute any suitable ship, ships or other means of transportation, change any date of sailing or travel or cancel any sailing, Cruisetour segment, port of call, Cruisetour or Land Trip destination or stopover, or the entire Land Trip, Cruise or Cruisetour.

© If the Cruise or Cruisetour or a Land Trip is cancelled, we may disembark you at any port or terminate your travel at any location, and transship and forward (at our expense, but at your risk) you and your property to or toward a port or location from which you may return home or to the Ship, as appropriate. The means of conveyance may or may not belong to us and may or may not proceed directly to the desired destination. If a Cruise, Cruisetour or Land Trip is cancelled before commencement, you will be entitled, as your exclusive remedy, to receive the applicable Refund Amount. If a Cruise, Cruisetour or Land Trip is cancelled after commencement, you will be entitled, as your exclusive remedy, to receive the applicable Refund Amount less a reasonable allowance for transportation and services already provided to you. The reasonable allowance will be determined on a pro rata basis by taking into account the time missed relative to the scheduled duration of the Cruise, Cruisetour or Land Trip. Notwithstanding the foregoing, we are not obligated to issue any refund to you in the event of a cancelled Land Trip to Half Moon Cay.

(d) You acknowledge that for round trip cruises commencing in a country that stop in other ports of that country, you may visit but may not permanently disembark in any port in that country other than the port of embarkation. If you do disembark in a different port in that country, a fine or penalty may be imposed by that country’s government. In consideration of the fare paid, you hereby agree to pay any such fine or penalty imposed because of your failure to complete the entire Cruise.

[solocanadian]

Canadianbear: Thanks again for posting. :) Not too sure I'd be as tolerant as you. Way to go. Do you have Captain Andre van Schoonhoven?

Lisa: Way to go girl - this person really annoys me.

[startwin]

Hey Marion - lunch next week? Glad you are enjoying it in spite of the controversy on this board. My other friend Annette is definitely not a happy camper (cruiser!) on this cruise, but she has had some thing affecting her and her family directly, so it can sure change the way you view things.

 

I would have enjoyed a stop at SF, but it's probably cool there anyway right now. Have a wonderful trip back up to Van :) and hope the seas are calmer than last April:eek: