Noordam Review

3.5 / 5.0
829 reviews

We had a wonderful Australia/New Zealand cruise on the Noordam

Review for the South Pacific Cruise on Noordam
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Dragonboat
6-10 Cruises • Age 60s

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Additional details

Sail Date: Mar 2017
Cabin: Deluxe Ocean-View Verandah Stateroom

We chose this particular cruise based on our schedule and desire to see Sydney, Tasmania and New Zealand after a week on Australia's Gold Coast. The Noordam cruise was perfect for us (our 10th cruise, and first on Holland America).

Embarkation at the White Bay Cruise Terminal was fairly quick. Our boarding pass showed 12:30 pm boarding for a 6:30pm embarkation. However, we arrived at 11am by taxi (AU$20 from the CBD). We were in boarding group 2, and went through security at 11:30. Remember that you can take 2 bottles of wine or champagne in your carry on luggage when boarding. We were on board at 11:50, in time for lunch. Our room was ready, and our luggage was there when we returned after lunch. Very nice. Only downside to White Bay is that there is no wi-fi in the building; odd in a city that tends to have wi-fi everywhere. They need to get with it.

We selected an aft balcony cabin on deck 7, so that we were not under the Lido noisy deck or over the theater or dining rooms; made that mistake on our first cruise and never again. Our room was quiet and peaceful; in 12 days, we saw our neighbors 3 times and only heard the people in the cabins next to us and above us only once. Our room stewards Dodit and Eko were fantastic, greeted us always by name, and maintained the room in perfect condition. The room was a bit on the small side, and only one of us at a time could walk between the bed and the wall. The bathroom had a tub with shower; very nice. Lots of storage in the bathroom and throughout the room. Plenty of closet space and shelves. The room was clean and the bed was very comfortable. The climate control system was easy to use and responsive.

Cabin Review

Deluxe Ocean-View Verandah Stateroom

Cabin VE

This was an aft balcony cabin on Deck 7 starboard. Super quiet, with no Lido deck above us or theater or dining rooms below us. Only heard neighbors twice during a 12-day cruise. Far from elevators and busy hallways, but close enough to get to the Lido Market restaurant (deck 9) for breakfast or lunch in 2 minutes. Or down the hallway to the elevators to get to the Vista Dining Room on decks 2 and 3.

Port Reviews

Sydney (Australia)

Wonderful to see the opera house and harbor bridge from the ship as we sailed out of the harbor.

Port Arthur

This is a tender port and you take a 10-15 minute ride in from your cruise ship. This is the first prison that the British set up in Australia, and has a very interesting history. No pre-booked tour is needed, just go at your own pace. When we arrived at the dock, one of the Port Arthur staff provided a free 30-minute intro tour that was very well done and interesting. During March 2017, the visitor center was still under re-construction. Free wi-fi is available in the coffee shop next to the "Separate Prison". Using the brochure and map that they handed out, we wandered around the prison, hospital, chapel, and gardens for about 2-1/2 hours before returning to the ship. The signage and information iin the buildings is very well done and makes for an interesting tour.

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