Just back from the Zuiderdam May 23 sail.

[ehogan]

We just returned from sailing the Zuiderdam May 23 - 30. I will be posting a review in the member review section soon, but in the meantime if you have any questions, I'll try to answer.

 

A little synopsis:

 

Excellent, excellent food especially in the dining room.

Perfect service, especially in the assigned dining and cabin service.

 

There was an outbreak of Noro? (they had not determined exactly) the last 3 days of the cruise so that did impact self service areas.

 

Make sure you take advantage of the hand sanitizing stations and bring some of your own for your purse/pocket. We even went to the extent of using a tissue for elevator buttons and avoided handrails where we could.

[Christapie]

We just returned from sailing the Zuiderdam May 23 - 30. I will be posting a review in the member review section soon, but in the meantime if you have any questions, I'll try to answer.

 

A little synopsis:

 

Excellent, excellent food especially in the dining room.

Perfect service, especially in the assigned dining and cabin service.

 

There was an outbreak of Noro? (they had not determined exactly) the last 3 days of the cruise so that did impact self service areas.

 

Make sure you take advantage of the hand sanitizing stations and bring some of your own for your purse/pocket. We even went to the extent of using a tissue for elevator buttons and avoided handrails where we could.

 

Looking foward to your review! Do they have an all you can desire lobster night? How are the pools and hot tubs?

 

Thanks and I'm glad you enjoyed your cruise!

 

Christapie

[ehogan]

Yes, on one of the formal evenings, lobster was available and I am sure you could order additional servings - I don't eat seafood, but DH said it was excellent.

 

We didn't use the pools/hot tub and didn't see too many using them - but it was a cold voyage.

[SnorkelFool]

I was on the 5/23 Zuiderdam as well and will most likely write a review. We found the food to be below average in quality with only a few exceptions to that rule. My husband described it as "glorified cafeteria food." We did not enjoy the food at all. But, to each their own.

[Christapie]

I was on the 5/23 Zuiderdam as well and will most likely write a review. We found the food to be below average in quality with only a few exceptions to that rule. My husband described it as "glorified cafeteria food." We did not enjoy the food at all. But, to each their own.

 

Wow this is destressing to read that the food is glorified cafeteria food. I have only been on Princess, and I love their food in the dining room. Can you recall specifically what you ate in the dining room that was cafeteria like? What cruise lines surpassed the quality of the Zuiderdam?

 

Thank you!

 

Christapie

[Christapie]

Yes, on one of the formal evenings, lobster was available and I am sure you could order additional servings - I don't eat seafood, but DH said it was excellent.

 

We didn't use the pools/hot tub and didn't see too many using them - but it was a cold voyage.

 

Thank you ehogan! Of course it was too cold to go in the pools! You were in Alaska! LOL on me!

 

Christapie

[Susie51]

Looking forward to reading your review. It is always interesting to read two different perspectives of the same cruise.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Looking forward to your review.

Welcome home.

[SnorkelFool]

Wow this is destressing to read that the food is glorified cafeteria food. I have only been on Princess, and I love their food in the dining room. Can you recall specifically what you ate in the dining room that was cafeteria like? What cruise lines surpassed the quality of the Zuiderdam?

 

Thank you!

 

Christapie

 

Some examples included "Master Chef Rudi's Cheesecake" - which was not anything like real cheesecake, I doubt it had any cream cheese in it; "Lobster Bisque" - was not even close to being a bisque, my husband took two bites and shoved it aside declaring it the worst lobster bisque he has ever tasted (and he has eaten his fair share of it over the years); Anything Fish - overcooked and heavily dressed with sauces, etc to mask the flavor; Most desserts - everything was spongecake - spongecake with mango, spongecake with strawberries, spongecake with orange; The "volcano cake" in the Pinnacle Grill was laughable - it was basically warm pudding in a bowl, nothing like lava/volcano cakes you would get anywhere else; even the ice cream was more like ice milk, not creamy like ice cream should be. Our steaks in the Pinnacle were a waste of time. They were not cooked properly even after being sent back for being overcooked and lacked flavor. There were many more examples but this gives a good feel for it.

 

The exceptions were some of the salads which were good and fresh, mashed potatoes were good, some of the goodies in the Neptune lounge, waffles in the Lido, made to order eggs, preparations of squash and zucchini, knockwurst at the grill.

 

I have sailed Princess previously and although I find their food to also be somewhat lacking, we agreed that it was better than what we experienced on HAL.

[Christapie]

Some examples included "Master Chef Rudi's Cheesecake" - which was not anything like real cheesecake, I doubt it had any cream cheese in it; "Lobster Bisque" - was not even close to being a bisque, my husband took two bites and shoved it aside declaring it the worst lobster bisque he has ever tasted (and he has eaten his fair share of it over the years); Anything Fish - overcooked and heavily dressed with sauces, etc to mask the flavor; Most desserts - everything was spongecake - spongecake with mango, spongecake with strawberries, spongecake with orange; The "volcano cake" in the Pinnacle Grill was laughable - it was basically warm pudding in a bowl, nothing like lava/volcano cakes you would get anywhere else; even the ice cream was more like ice milk, not creamy like ice cream should be. Our steaks in the Pinnacle were a waste of time. They were not cooked properly even after being sent back for being overcooked and lacked flavor. There were many more examples but this gives a good feel for it.

 

The exceptions were some of the salads which were good and fresh, mashed potatoes were good, some of the goodies in the Neptune lounge, waffles in the Lido, made to order eggs, preparations of squash and zucchini, knockwurst at the grill.

 

I have sailed Princess previously and although I find their food to also be somewhat lacking, we agreed that it was better than what we experienced on HAL.

 

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions specifically. In your opinion which line has the best food? Thank you again.

 

Christapie

[ehogan]

Wow! I guess we ordered totally different items. I might agree on the fish, generally I avoided all fish dishes except for one evening and that was a disappointment. I don't usually order fish on cruise ships because I rarely find it well prepared.

 

We did enjoy the lamb and steak and did find the steak in the Pinnacle Grill a slight disappointment - generally we felt that the Pinnacle Grill was not worth the extra fee - food was as good or better in the dining room.

 

Perhaps our fellow cruiser had anytime dining? It is our experience that food preparation suffers with this type of dining.

 

As for desserts, we didn't choose any of the sponge cake types, but opted for the chocolate desserts which were very yummy.

 

So, I guess we were lucky in our choices because I stand with my earlier comment that except for the one fish meal I ordered (a poached item) which I did not finish, all our food experiences were positive.

 

Just a side note - we did not eat very many meals in the Lido, and when we did we did not eat the hot foods (line ups were too long) so I can't really be a good judge of the Lido food.

[MarilouR]

We also found the dining room food very good - although not quite as good as on the Veendam 18 months ago. I too attributed the slight difference to the "anytime dining." But overall we really had no complaints. The night we went to the Pinnacle the food and service were exceptional. But it was on one of their quieter nights. We also had breakfast there one morning and really enjoyed it.

 

We ate very little in the Lido - I think two breakfasts, one lunch and one dinner. The main reason we stayed away, was that it always seemed so busy, and it was difficult to find a seat.

[DizzyDallasDi]

I was also on this cruise and was pleased with both the food and service in the dining room. I had late fixed seating but I can't imagine how that would make any difference in the food quality. In fact, I had the sea bass one night from room service and it was delightful -- flaky, succulent and quite tasty. I'm starting to think I was the only one on the ship who enjoyed the cruise and have nothing to complain about. :D

 

Diane

[Activated95b]

I was on the 5/23 Zuiderdam as well and will most likely write a review. We found the food to be below average in quality with only a few exceptions to that rule. My husband described it as "glorified cafeteria food." We did not enjoy the food at all. But, to each their own.

 

I was on the same cruise and I just loved the food. (A little too much as I now have to burn off 4 pounds.)

 

And when I ate in the Pinnacle on the last night of the cruise - I thought that the New York strip steak I had was one of the best tasting steaks I had ever eaten.

 

My only real complaint was/is about something that HAL has no control over - having to go through both Canadian and US customs without ever setting foot on Canadian soil.

 

BTW - the magician was the exact same act as I saw on the Oosterdam last Nov. The show was still great and I thought that I could use the repeat performance as a chance to figure out how he did it. (And I still couldn't spot the trick!)

[off2ctheworld]

Thanks for all your comments-we will soon be on the Zuiderdam and are eagerly reading all her reports! Will look forward to your reviews-good-bad-and anything in between. Did you like the cruise director? Did you find enough events during the sea days to keep you occupied?

[sujay]

we are off on the zuiderdam for alaska trip in august. can anyone be of help in overall view of ship, food, suites etc...theres 13 of us going, one child. some never been on cruise so hoping its going to be good! one of the main worries is clothes..what to wear, is it cold or just chilly??? looking forward to it and trying not to read too many soso reviews!!

did any of you have a child in your party, if so how did he/she like it/fit in.did they go to the kids club?

any tips would be welcome!!

[ehogan]

There seemed to be enough activities on board - we really enjoyed the culinary presentations in the Queen's lounge, there were several during the week including the preparation of the cinnamon rolls they sell in the Explorations Cafe. They also give you samples of what they are demonstrating.

 

The "coffee chat" with the comedian was really interesting. These events in the Queen's lounge fill up quickly so try to get there a bit early.

 

While we mostly relaxed on sea days, there were events such as trivia, bingo, name that tune, karaoke, etc. The cruise director did seem to do a good job, not as vivacious as some, but I think HAL has more serene directors in line with their image. No complaints on that score. I also appreciated the fact that the announcements were kept to a minimum.

 

You will enjoy the Zuiderdam.

[MarilouR]

I have to echo ehogan. We really enjoyed the activities on board and participated in trivia, Name that Tune and kareoke. We also enjoyed just sitting in some of the lounges and listening to the live entertainment - which there really is a good variety - from a piano player to a stringed quartet to a traditional dance band, to a more contemporary dance band. I also liked Shane (the cruise director) and thought he provided the just right degree of "reserved excitment." ;)

 

We had an SA suite (which the upgrade fairy so generously provided) and have to say we absolutley loved it!!! We are definitely spoiled for life. The spacious lay out is wonderful and allowed us to take full advantage of the scenic views. The balcony was great. And our room stewards were wonderful. We also enjoyed having the Neptune Lounge available for snacks, light lunch etc. There are a few other little perks that came with the suite that we took advantage of as we know we will not be able to cruise in a suite regularly - unless, of course, the upgrade fairy chooses to bless us again. :D :D

 

ETA: Regarding clothes: plan to layer! The weather is very unpredictable. Glacier Bay was cool, so was Tracy Arm - and the best places to view these is on the bow. We also had some rain. When we went whale watching in Juneau it was defintely cold on the water. Plan to take a scarf, hat and gloves (and a back pack), just in case.

[ehogan]

My review is up - check under Member Reviews, Zuiderdam, ehogan.