When you think of Holland America and know that it has an older crowd, know that on this particular ship the average age is 80. Of the 1800 passengers less than 100 were under the age of 60. Very few were even in their 60s. Almost everyone that we interacted with were in their 80s. Nearly everyone went to bed straight after the 8:00 show let out. If there was an actual emergency onboard there is ...
Some people must be very difficult to please or be entirely selfish. When I read negative reviews it makes me wonder what would make some of these people happy. This ship is older than some, it does cater to an older clientele, and there aren't a lot of activities geared for younger people late at night. If those things bother you, pick a different cruise.
Embarkation Simple and fast. ...
We chose this cruise for the ports and the opportunity to leave March allergens in our home town.
We enjoyed the stop at Half Moon Cay and were pleased to find a tender that was perfect for wheelchair users.
Each of the ports had something to offer in the local town except Colon Panama, which is a fenced in port with tourist shops.
Orangestad, Willemstad, and Cartegena are beautiful ...
This cruise was the 10-day Sunfarer itinerary, which is a partial transit of the Panama canal with additional calls at: Half Moon Cay; Orenjestad, Aruba; Willemstad, Curacao; and Puerto Limon, Costa Rica.
I cruised with my sister; we are in our late 50s to mid 60s. Throughout this review, I will be comparing aspects of the cruise with Carnival, as this is the first HAL cruise for a habitual ...
Upon viewing the exterior of the Zuiderdam while boarding my first impressions were not good. There is rust evident, especially in the mechanisms above the life boats. On the interior there were gaps in the stairway carpeting (as mentioned in previous reviews)
But once underway there was a flurry of activity to address these issues.The carpeting on the stairways was completely replaced ...
This was our second cruise with HAL. Although the Zuiderdam is showing her age in places, overall we had no complaints. Everything was clean and sparking and worked very well. Our room (1052) was extremely comfortable (although the bed took up two thirds of the room)! The room was cleaned beautifully and was quiet and warm or cool when necessary. The bathroom was clean and we had a bath with a ...
This was the 14th cruise in 16 years for my DH and myself. During the cruise we were awarded our bronze medallion for 100 days on Holland America ships.
Pre-cruise we stayed at Best Western Plus, Fort Lauderdale Airport South on Stirling Road. I would probably not stay there again, due to the location not being near restaurants (except to jaywalk across a busy highway), and due to fingerprints ...
We were a little apprehensive boarding the Zuiderdam after reading some of the Cruise Critic reviews, but were pleasantly surprised. Yes, there were some rust spots, but who cares, it is not like the pipe is going to fall off the ship.
Our room, 2036, was a balcony and there was adequate room for our clothes, room was clean, and stewards were excellent, thank you Danny and Suigi. ...
Arrived at the pier 12:00 noon. Waited on line outside the building for ten minutes, then entered to stand on another line for 20 minutes to get past security check. Waited another 15 minutes to check in and obtain the cruise cards, and then waited another 30 minutes in another room before our "number" was called, to allow us to enter the ship. We have taken over 25 cruises and Holland has the ...
We enjoyed a comfortable cabin on Deck 10 ("Observation Deck"), a good bed, clean, efficient bathroom facilities. Our cabin was a one-minute walk from the "Crows Nest", an observation lounge and bar at the front of the ship, and an equal distance from the library, where computer work-stations and a small snack bar were located. The cabin was perfectly quiet--no noise from other staterooms. The ...