Zuiderdam-needs that re-fit!

[colmil]

We have just returned from the Alaska cruise and have to say that I was disappointed with the ship.

 

My first impression was that it was looking worn and tired, I understand that it is due a re-fit in March when they will also be adding more cabins.

 

Not before time!

 

The settee in our cabin was badly marked, the carpets are on their last legs(pardon the pun!) the furniture everywhere has chips in the woodwork etc.

 

I can see no reason to take a HAL cruise in future, there is nothing to recommend it over NCL who we have sailed with twice before. on NCL the quality is clearly there without having the garishness of Zuiderdam.

 

However, there are also some good points in fairness.

 

Food, generally very good, waiters and staff very helpful.

 

Entertainment, acceptable, but the dancers routines were way out of sync, surely they should have them right by now!

 

No draught beer! (except for the flat Alaskan in the Crows Nest.)

 

They lost a lot of money as I dislike cans and bottled beer.

 

The singer in the Piano Bar is great, really good nights entertainment.

 

 

Alaska itself is beautiful, I just wished we had sailed on a higher quality ship.

[NHBob]

We have just returned from the Alaska cruise and have to say that I was disappointed with the ship.

 

My first impression was that it was looking worn and tired, I understand that it is due a re-fit in March when they will also be adding more cabins.

 

 

I was surprised to read this, as one of my most positive impressions on eight cruises was that HAL ships were spotlessly clean and continuously maintained. Particularly disappointed to read this about the Zuiderdam, as I am booked on the March 15th transatlantic, which I believe is her last cruise before the scheduled refit. I wonder if there is a tendency, either intentional or unintentional, to let things slip knowing that the ship is headed for drydock - that's not the HAL I know. March is still a long way off and I hope HAL doesn't wait until then to address what should be regular, ongoing maintenance.

[RevNeal]

When was her last wet-dock?

 

I agree ... HAL generally earns their moniker "the Spotless fleet." Not that there aren't exceptions to this, of course.

 

Remember, the Line does clean-up/small repair and other maintenance continually in-service. They have also been known to swap out carpet in segments during turn-around days (not just at wet-docks).

 

I wonder if she's due a wet-dock after the Alaska season?

[candbgirl]

I was on the Zuiderdam in April and really saw none of what the OP is reporting. I do agree the entertainment was just okay (one night we even walked out the entertainer-singer) was so awful and offensive. I didn't see the wear and tear this cruiser is reporting. I wonder what happened in the intervening months.

[colmil]

Thanks to everyone for your replies.

 

In fairness, my partner and I have a company in England that specialise in re-fitting licensed premises, so we can always tell when things are below par.

 

We all pay a lot of money for a cruise and I i think we deserve the best possible fixtures and fittings.

[helenp2]

How about those beds on NCL? Not the worst, but close to it. First time I ever sailed on NCL (right before it went freestyle) we enjoyed it very much. Tried it a 2nd time (after freestyle) and hated it. In particular their maintenance left a lot to be desired. Not once, but 3x they sat us at a table for dinner where the prior party's dirty dishes were still on the table. UGH! I thought I was in a diner. NCL's pool deck is a complete joke. Honestly, they had lounge chairs lined up 5 deep. You had to crawl over people to get out to a walkway. LOUD, music blasting all day long at the pool. I like music very much, but.....really didn't want to listen to "I see you baby shaking your ass". So, given my choice I'll always choose HAL.

[ozland]

We were on the July 21st sailing of the Zuiderdam and can support colmil's observations.

 

This was our 3rd time on her in the last 2 years and I commented to my DH that it appeared to have gone downhill considerably in that time. (I have been on 20 cruises, different cruiselines, and had said the Zuiderdam was my favorite ship......until this sailing.) Very tired and worn.

 

The crew/staff, as always, were wonderful. Food not as good as I remembered.

 

One strange thing that we could not figure out......there were small *holes* in the floor in various random places throughout the ship. Since they were covered in carpeting you didn't notice until you stepped in one. :confused:

 

We enjoyed our cruise but were sad to see her condition.

[colmil]

I, too, noticed the holes on several occasions, thought it was my high heels, but I don't wear them, especially as I am a man!

[NHBob]

When was her last wet-dock?

 

Remember, the Line does clean-up/small repair and other maintenance continually in-service. They have also been known to swap out carpet in segments during turn-around days (not just at wet-docks).

 

 

Don't know if HAL does it, but some lines will actually put a maintenance crew on a lightly booked ship and do some major work in cabins. I saw this once on Vistafjord, and more recently on a crossing on Crystal Symphony. On the Symphony, they upgraded all deck 8 passengers to veranda cabins and used the 9-days at sea to completely recarpetDeck 8. Must say I didn't envy the carpet installers on the couple of rough days we had. Just the thought of working on hand and knees in a confined space on a rolling and pitching ship, while breathing carpet glue fumes, makes me a bit queezy, and I'm not susceptible to motion sickness!

[frequent cruiser jock]

I'm thinking about booking the Zuiderdam for her Hallowen cruise...now I may consider!

[ozland]

I, too, noticed the holes on several occasions, thought it was my high heels, but I don't wear them, especially as I am a man!

 

:D

 

Yes, quite strange since there wasn't a pattern to it......down a hall here and there, various public rooms here and there.....we said "ooops" quite a lot. (I'm so glad you noticed too....I hesitated mentioning it lest people think I'm a bit looney!) ;)

[alonzo14]

helenp2: We have sailed NCL three times. Once before the Freestyle and twice afterward. We did not experience the same as you on the last two Freestyle ships we sailed on except the music by the pool and indoors. We liked our NCL cruises. We received good service. I think the beds are MUCH better than their older ships. NCL also has some of the best entertainment. I didn't like the air vents located on the back of the theater seats. NCL is different or seems to be different than HAL atmosphere wise. HAL is more elegant.

[frequent cruiser jock]

The beds on NCL are excellent, now! It was the same on all ships...before the special bedding came into place!

[kikiwik]

 

Alaska itself is beautiful, I just wished we had sailed on a higher quality ship.

 

 

You must have been on a different ship then what I was on a year ago. That ship is top of the line as far as i'm concerned. It's called wear and tear and when you have thousands of people trampling thru it week after week things aren't going to be perfect. It's all about the destination just as much as it is the ship. I''m sure your house at home isnt perfect.

[RevNeal]

Thanks to everyone for your replies.

 

In fairness, my partner and I have a company in England that specialise in re-fitting licensed premises, so we can always tell when things are below par.

 

We all pay a lot of money for a cruise and I i think we deserve the best possible fixtures and fittings.

 

I understand that perfectly. Occupational hazard. :D I'm the worst critic of other clergy's sermons and their style (or lack thereof) in Eucharistic celebration.

[ozland]

You must have been on a different ship then what I was on a year ago.

 

 

Hi kikiwik......I was on the ship a year ago, and the year before that, then again last month. There was no noticeable difference from 2 years ago to one year ago. There was major difference from one year ago to last month. (If you read my previous post, I mentioned that I've been telling people for the past two years that the Zuiderdam was my favorite ship.....until last month.) That being said, I'm not giving up on her, I'll just wait until after a refit. :)

[twiceblessed]

I was on her in July and I agree with the conditions stated. Our room chairs were stained, the floor in some rooms and in the Crows Nest had dangerous dips that could easily cause someone to fall, like mini pot holes. There was a not so pleasing odor in the Vista Lounge too. The Westerdam was in much better condition the summer before her retro fit then the Zuiderdam. They should have switched dry dock scheduals.

 

I will say the crew was terriffic!

[lovedogs]

Sorry to hear about the ship's condition. Especially since we're sailing on Sept. 8th to Alaska and it's my dad's 1st cruise. Well, maybe he won't notice since he has nothing to compare it to....I love Holland America and we'll make the best of our trip while taking in breathtaking Alaska!

[RevNeal]

Ships often undergo what some people would even classify as "major" system enhancements and upgrades while the vessel remains in-service. For instance, when I was aboard the Ryndam this past March the Line was executed a LONG over-due upgrade of the ship's plumbing systems. The work usually occurred during port-days, when the ship was partly empty. It never bothered us, and was actually interesting to observe. I'm sure some people probably whined about it, or objected to it ... but, for me, it was interesting and not disturbing.

 

Check out this link to see photos of some of the work that was being done. I asked questions and was told that, over that cruise in the subsequent 2 cruises Line engineers were aboard doing this full swap-out of the ship's plumbing. Apparently the repairs and replacement of worn out and damaged pipes also included some significant upgrades to both the vacuum waste disposal system (i.e., toilet plumbing) and the potable water distribution systems. Hopefully the upgrades and repairs will solve some of the toilet problems that this ship has, sometimes, been known for (i.e., the periodic "Poopdam" remarks).

[SandRaven]

NHBob wondered if HAL does maintenance on the fly. They do; we saw Westerdam having a great deal of carpet swapped out while doing a weeklong cruise. The work must have been done at night, and the old carpet was tossed when we were in port.

 

The wear and tear on any ship in constant service of 1848 passengers plus full crew is HUGE. If they didn't maintain it on the fly, it would be a disaster and a health hazard. :eek:

 

We'll be on Zuiderdam Dec 8th, and a few dings in the countertops aren't going to ruin our cruise. I'm interested in finding the carpet potholes - I'm a total clutz and I wear heels at night, so I'm sure I'll locate a few of them! Give me a balcony, some sunny ports, good food & service, and I'll be totally happy! :)

[janmcn]

What type of things will they be doing while in dry dock? We're due to sail on the Z in Sept. 2008, so hopefully she'll be in good shape then...especially since it's a 24-day cruise and our first time on this HAL ship. We've thought all the others were always in great shape whenever we sailed on them.

Jan

[m steve]

I guess she will be in great shape for the Med cruises next year.

[NHBob]

What type of things will they be doing while in dry dock?Jan

 

In addition to needed maintenance, I understand that the aft end of the ship will be re-worked to add cabins, making layout and cabin numbers similar to the newer Noordam. If you check details of the ships in the HAL brochures, you'll see that the Noordam's as-built passenger capacity is slightly larger than the other Vista Class ships.

 

If I recall correctly there is quite a bit of discussion about the refit in another thread entitled "We don't need no stinkin' refit."

[Oceanwench]

We were on the Zuiderdam for the second time in May 2005.

At that time there were many uneven areas in the hallways. DH is in a wheelchair, and he would notice when the floor had low spots.

The HM said the problem was with the materials used for the floors and the problems would be corrected when the ship went into drydock. Not sure when that was.

[cruizelvr]

I am more than disappointed to hear these reports of needed repair. It is our first time trying Hal and don't want to hold it against them, however our cruise mates have never been on a cruise before and I was hoping to encourage them to try more. That is if the enjoy themselves, I hope the little repairs mentioned don't bother us.:confused: