A-Z .... The ABC and D Islands on the Zuiderdam

[scubacruiserx2]

We booked this cruise on the Zuiderdam from December 10th to the 20th leaving from Port Everglades . Our normal 1 hour drive to Park and Go took an extra 1/2 hour due to a couple of construction obstructions . We arrived at 11 AM and moved through the check process quickly and  were seated the the upstairs area with about 200 other people . We didn't budge until about 1 PM when the boarding process began . There were long lines that moved slowly  and we discovered why as we boarded . Every name had to be checked off manually on an alphabetical list instead of  using our cards . We asked and were told that there would be no free lunch in the MDR . We did drop our carry on luggage at our cabin and fearing a crowd of hungry cruisers , we opted for the Dive In ( it was hard to tell if the french fry cup was half full or half empty ) . It was also the first time that we saw the pool area topless . We were in one our favorite cabins #5191 . 

 

 

 

[scubacruiserx2]

We did a little walk around after lunch and went into The Green House Spa and had a look at the hydropool  followed by a look at The Crow's Nest .

 

 

 

 

[Krazy Kruizers]

Enjoying your review with pictures.

[scubacruiserx2]

2 hours ago, Krazy Kruizers said:

Enjoying your review with pictures.

 

Thank you we have lots of photos to come .

 

Edited December 26, 2019 by scubacruiserx2

[canadianbear]

Love reading reviews and seeing photos!

[ski ww]

Thanks for posting love the pictures.

[Krazy Kruizers]

9 hours ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

Thank you we have lots of photos to come .

 

 

Looking forward to them.

[scubacruiserx2]

6 hours ago, canadianbear said:

Love reading reviews and seeing photos!

 

Thanks .

[scubacruiserx2]

2 hours ago, ski ww said:

Thanks for posting love the pictures.

 

You're welcome , enjoy your skiing , no snow here !

[scubacruiserx2]

2 hours ago, Krazy Kruizers said:

 

Looking forward to them.

Here we go .

 

 

[palolake]

Thanks for the review!

We'll be on in a few weeks and it's our first time on HAL.  Is the Dive In and Hydro pool free?

[scubacruiserx2]

It was about 84 F and very humid when we did our safety drill . We were on the sunny side of the ship and it seemed to take an hour without the computer to check our cards for attendance . Once again we had to go person by person asking our name and checking it off on a list with all of the passenger's names .  We missed the New Statendam's drill where we were beeped in and sat in the Air Conditioned MDR .

[scubacruiserx2]

5 minutes ago, palolake said:

Thanks for the review!

We'll be on in a few weeks and it's our first time on HAL.  Is the Dive In and Hydro pool free?

 

The Dive In is free unless you order it delivered through your stateroom where it is $ 4.95 .  The hydro pool was for the use of people who booked the Green House Spa but it was open to look at on the 1st day as an enticement to book the spa . We hope that you enjoy HAL . Our next cruise is a TA on the Regal Princess which we haven't been on for a couple of years .

Edited December 26, 2019 by scubacruiserx2

[scubacruiserx2]

Because we had an aft wrap balcony we had a great view of  the boat parade including the Caribbean Princess . 

 

[scubacruiserx2]

As we were watching the dinner menu on TV the Captain made his first announcement .

 

 

 

[3rdGenCunarder]

I'm on Zuiderdam later this winter, so I'll be eager to see how it goes. I remember the old days of standing at the drill while the person in charge shouted names. The card scanner is so much more efficient! 

 

Nice pictures! Does anyone else here think that Princess ship looks like a supermarket cart?

 

[scubacruiserx2]

Our sail away was about an hour and a half late around 17:30 . We noticed a ship with boats on it's deck . Maybe they were Christmas presents . Another thing that we noticed which may have been done during dry dock was foot lights . They would come on when you would walk past them - very handy at night .

 

 

[3rdGenCunarder]

So glad to hear they've added the motion-activated lights. Such a good idea, surprising that it hasn't been done sooner.

[scubacruiserx2]

17 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

I'm on Zuiderdam later this winter, so I'll be eager to see how it goes. I remember the old days of standing at the drill while the person in charge shouted names. The card scanner is so much more efficient! 

 

Nice pictures! Does anyone else here think that Princess ship looks like a supermarket cart?

 

 

Thanks , and yeah a rather large shopping cart that holds over 3,000 passengers ! We have cruised on the Caribbean Princess 5 times .

[Krazy Kruizers]

Enjoying your reports.

 

Love the pictures.

[suec12]

could you include some menu shots from the MDR? we will be on in May. We are not frequent HAL cruisers but very excited about upcoming sail. It will be in the Med. - does HAL add local dishes to their menu rotations? Thanks!

[scubacruiserx2]

14 minutes ago, Krazy Kruizers said:

Enjoying your reports.

 

Love the pictures.

 

Thank you , much appreciated !

[scubacruiserx2]

1 minute ago, suec12 said:

could you include some menu shots from the MDR? we will be on in May. We are not frequent HAL cruisers but very excited about upcoming sail. It will be in the Med. - does HAL add local dishes to their menu rotations? Thanks!

 

Sure we will work them in . We liked that the menus were on TV . Sometimes they have regional dishes but not so much on this cruise .

[scubacruiserx2]

The When and Where had a different look that wasn't too kind to old eyes .

 

 

[carlyshenk]

We're on Zuiderdam in February.  Enjoying your review and especially the photos!  Thanks for taking the time!  Have fun!