Live from Alaska on Ms Zuiderdam - April 2022

[Crew News]

3 hours ago, NCTribeFan said:

OP, is there luggage service to the airport?  Having never sailed from Vancouver, I have no idea how far it is (you noted Can35$ for a taxi).  I understand there's also a train.  Just wondering whether it makes more sense for me as an older, solo female to just take a taxi or do the luggage/train option.

 

Is Uber/Lyft also an option?  They're typically considerably less than a taxi.  If I take a taxi, can I pay with a credit card?  Since I'm spending my pre-cruise night in Seattle and taking HAL's bus shuttle, I hadn't planned on having any Canadian $$s on me.

 

No luggage service was available that I could see.  Taxis accept credit cards and US dollars for the approximately 40-minute ride (depends a lot on downtown and airport traffic).  The train station is under the Fairmont Waterfront Hotel across the street so a about a two block walk with your luggage to get to it. I saw no uber/lyft vehicles allowed into the terminal loading area.  I saw lots of shuttle buses and extended SUV Hotel shuttles.

 

For simplicity and efficiency, I just use a taxi.  With the current HAL COVID testing end, taking the HAL Shuttle from the terminal back to Seattle might be another choice.

[Florida_gal_50]

I’m all about simplicity and making things easier.  I’d rather take a cab to the airport then fuss with taking the train and luggage.  I know some people love to save a buck no matter the discomfort.  That’s not me.

 

Roger thank you for another informative thread. I appreciate it.

[PSR]

Another THANK YOU! I especially appreciated the menus that will useful for a later cruise this year!

[neeuqdrazil]

The Canada Line to the airport (public transit) is really easy, but it's not quite as convenient as it looks. Despite there being an entrance into the station right outside the cruise terminal, you can't use that one to access the Canada Line (which is the line that goes to the airport.) It's a couple of (short) blocks walk to the main entrance. 

 

I took the train, and it was simple, but I'm also a regular public transit user at home, which might make a difference. 

[Horizon chaser 1957]

As a post cruise note,  we tested negative for Covid the day we arrived home, but positive the day after. We parked in Vancouver and drove home, so our source was on the ship, not the trip home. We each had flu like symptoms for a day or two, and are fine now but still required to self isolated at home. In retrospect, I should have avoided  BB Kings. The air circulation is very restricted compared to other venues. The music is loud enough people have to shout to converse, projecting aerosols for a greater distance. The Have It All Package is popular, but not caution friendly in any way. After the ship sponsored pub crawl, the completely unmasked participants were Conga line dancing and singing between rows, so as to leave no areas unpuffed on. By the end of a music session the viral load in there must be significant.  
Still, we had an awesome cruise, and in spite of getting mildly ill for a day or two after getting home, it was all worth it. 

[Crew News]

3 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

I’m all about simplicity and making things easier.  I’d rather take a cab to the airport then fuss with taking the train and luggage.  I know some people love to save a buck no matter the discomfort.  That’s not me.

 

Roger thank you for another informative thread. I appreciate it.

1 hour ago, PSR said:

Another THANK YOU! I especially appreciated the menus that will useful for a later cruise this year!

 

Since I have learned so much from CC, I owe a lot and my live threads just seek to help others in their planning.

 

As I work my way through the culinary chain of supervision in search of obscure menus, such as Late Snack and Half Moon Cay Butler menus, I get some very strange looks but meet HAL crew member who I occasionally meet again.  HAL is a small family and I share the names of those I have met on previous cruises with new equivalent-ranked crew members who are always eager to know how their former shipmates are doing.  Establishing relationships with crew members gets me a lot of insider info to share here on CC.

[whogo]

4 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

I’m all about simplicity and making things easier.  I’d rather take a cab to the airport then fuss with taking the train and luggage.  I know some people love to save a buck no matter the discomfort.  That’s not me.

 

Roger thank you for another informative thread. I appreciate it.

Some people take trains cause they really like trains. That's me.

[Crew News]

54 minutes ago, Horizon chaser 1957 said:

As a post cruise note,  we tested negative for Covid the day we arrived home, but positive the day after. We parked in Vancouver and drove home, so our source was on the ship, not the trip home. We each had flu like symptoms for a day or two, and are fine now but still required to self isolated at home. In retrospect, I should have avoided  BB Kings. The air circulation is very restricted compared to other venues. The music is loud enough people have to shout to converse, projecting aerosols for a greater distance. The Have It All Package is popular, but not caution friendly in any way. After the ship sponsored pub crawl, the completely unmasked participants were Conga line dancing and singing between rows, so as to leave no areas unpuffed on. By the end of a music session the viral load in there must be significant.  
Still, we had an awesome cruise, and in spite of getting mildly ill for a day or two after getting home, it was all worth it. 

Sorry to hear about your COVID experience and so glad your symptoms were mild.  The HAL Pub Crawls are known for bringing the best in HAL passengers and I have managed to only run into a few.  Since i am not a evening party goer, I have missed a lot of virus transmission opportunities.

[Crew News]

I bought a new bird capture and tracking camera in February, 2020 and finally had a chance to give it a real try.  There is much more I need to learn about this feature but I got a great start for my next Alaska visit in September.

 

In addition to receiving and completing my end-of-cruise survey, I received another excursion survey for my Caribbean cruise last December.  Another first for me,  and they went live, according to an email from HAL, within an hour after submitting them. 

 

As a general comment to my last three cruises dating back to Nov 2021, crews were far friendlier than my previous accumulation of cruises.  The speed of clearing Lido Market tables is vastly improved.  Ship's senior staff  are far more visible than I can remember.  Movies are very rare except on Pinnacle-class ships and accompanying popcorn is haphazard.  Boarding processes are so much faster now. 

 

After the absence of cruising for nearly two years, I have a much greater appreciation for HAL and the dedicated crew members who are so happy to be back at work. 

 

This cruise was an impressive and successful return to Alaska for me.

[Florida_gal_50]

9 hours ago, whogo said:

Some people take trains cause they really like trains. That's me.

Really, you enjoy city commuter trains?  That’s a first.  I’m not speaking of trains to take you across country.  The subject was getting to the airport from the port.

[BeachBum47]

4 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Really, you enjoy city commuter trains?  That’s a first.  I’m not speaking of trains to take you across country.  The subject was getting to the airport from the port.

The Skytrain in Vancouver is unbelievably clean. Mind you, the only time I take it is when I go to the airport 😉 But I am always amazed at how clean it is. 

[Florida_gal_50]

1 hour ago, BeachBum47 said:

The Skytrain in Vancouver is unbelievably clean. Mind you, the only time I take it is when I go to the airport 😉 But I am always amazed at how clean it is. 

At least there is that.  I’ve taken transit pretty much every day of my working life except when my employer paid parking for a good portion of the pandemic.  That was a lovely break from reality.  I don’t live in Vancouver but I can tell you even if you can eat off the floor I’m still taking a cab so I don’t have to deal with my luggage. 

[PetitBateau]

Question for you, I saw on the menu the cappuccinos had a price tag. Is at least regular coffee included in the cruise price? Other lines we could have a nice cappuccino with dessert, all included. 
Thanks!

[Florida_gal_50]

1 hour ago, PetitBateau said:

Question for you, I saw on the menu the cappuccinos had a price tag. Is at least regular coffee included in the cruise price? Other lines we could have a nice cappuccino with dessert, all included. 
Thanks!

Yes in the lido or mdr a plain coffee is free.

[bcummin]

I can remember when we could enjoy a free cappuccino after dinner in the MDR, but they started charging for it a few years ago.

Barbara

[Crew News]

1 hour ago, PetitBateau said:

Question for you, I saw on the menu the cappuccinos had a price tag. Is at least regular coffee included in the cruise price? Other lines we could have a nice cappuccino with dessert, all included. 
Thanks!

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

Coffee and tea is available 24/7 and free in the Lido Market as well as Room Service.  Milk and juices are also available and free at breakfast. Juices at the bars are not free.

 

Lunchtime coffee goes really well with the free bread pudding at the ice cream station.

 

Feel free to ask lots of questions to help in your cruise planning.

 

See the links in the lower right corner of this post to see all of the current Holland America menus.

Edited May 9, 2022 by Crew News

[PetitBateau]

Thanks for the coffee answer, Crew News! Other things I’m curious about after reading your live reports, the cookies from the Café you were talking about, is there an equivalent on the Zuiderdam? And where is the Taco bar? I want to be ready to munch when I get on!😁

 

[trishbk]

On 4/27/2022 at 12:35 PM, Crew News said:

Just a few tidbits for "in transit" day here in Vancouver.  "In-transit" passengers were delayed from leaving the ship so that the pathway where several COVID had passed could be sanitized.

 

Our group left the Zuiderdam around 10:15 AM, walked past some clueless port workers and then waited in a line to be Security scanned, quick stop at US Border Patrol, 5-minute pause, and back on the ship before 11:00 AM.  This was absolutely the quickest I have processed in Vancouver in many years.  Kudos to those few who made this happen.  FWIW nobody wanted to see pour ArriveCAN receipts.
 

For the first time in many cruises, the self-disembarkation announcement came over a speaker in my stateroom and not in the hallway speaker system.  I was robbed of the last ten minutes of blissful sleep from my alarm clock .setting

Just confirming that you did two back to back 7 day Zuiderdam cruises ? We are doing the same exact 7 day Zuiderdam cruises that embark and disembark in Vancouver. I cannot get a 100% confirmation that the ship will test us in Vancouver before we start the 2nd 7 day cruise because it is not a Collector’s Voyage. . My other question since you are a 5 star mariner like myself, are they doing the embarkation welcome aboard party for 4 and 5 star Mariners or did they move it to a different day? They also may no longer include 3 star Mariners as evidenced on our Koningsdam cruise. I know each HAL ship does things differently. Finally, THANK YOU for posting the activities and menus from your April Zuiderdam cruise. You have a fan club on Cruise Critic and I am truly one of them.

[trishbk]

On 5/1/2022 at 11:36 AM, Crew News said:

You will disembark in Vancouver between each cruise to process through US Immigrtion/Border Patrol whether you choose to or not.

Did you have to remove all your luggage? I believe from prior posts you inferred you did not have to pack all your luggage, take it off ship and unpack again. I am asking because we are on a back to back and we have to move one cabin over which is frustrating. Our travel agent is telling us that we have to take our luggage off the ship. I wondered if you had any information regarding this.

[Crew News]

2 hours ago, PetitBateau said:

Thanks for the coffee answer, Crew News! Other things I’m curious about after reading your live reports, the cookies from the Café you were talking about, is there an equivalent on the Zuiderdam? And where is the Taco bar? I want to be ready to munch when I get on!😁

 

Sadly, the Zuiderdam does not have any cookies that can come close to those on the Pinnacle-class ships' Grand Dutch Cafe.

 

The bread pudding available on request at the ice cream station is awesome.  Some raisins would make it even better.

 

The Taco bar is just a few feet from the Dive-in burger window next to the Indoor pool on Deck 9.

 

At lunch everyday and often at the Lido Market Late buffet (10:30 PM), I ask for an empty bowl at the Salad Bar and take it to the sandwich station for a fill up of either potato or nacho chips.  If you tell the servers at both stations that Roger sent you,  you will see a lot of smiles and never have to ask for a salad bowl again.  It will be held out to you as soon as they see you coming.

[Crew News]

1 hour ago, trishbk said:

Just confirming that you did two back to back 7 day Zuiderdam cruises ? We are doing the same exact 7 day Zuiderdam cruises that embark and disembark in Vancouver. I cannot get a 100% confirmation that the ship will test us in Vancouver before we start the 2nd 7 day cruise because it is not a Collector’s Voyage. . My other question since you are a 5 star mariner like myself, are they doing the embarkation welcome aboard party for 4 and 5 star Mariners or did they move it to a different day? They also may no longer include 3 star Mariners as evidenced on our Koningsdam cruise. I know each HAL ship does things differently. Finally, THANK YOU for posting the activities and menus from your April Zuiderdam cruise. You have a fan club on Cruise Critic and I am truly one of them.

I boarded in San Diego and then just continued on to Alaska.  Much to my surprise, no COVID testing was required to continue on the same ship.

 

Thanks for the compliment.  I just want help others in their planning and am just one of many here who pay it forward.  It is amazing just how much passengers don't know what they don't know.  Those passengers who are fortunate to find us here on CC will be much better informed than those who have not.

 

There was a Mariner welcome-aboard party for 3-5* Mariners on Embarkation Day with Catherine from Guest Services screening entrants into the Crow's Nest.  No ship officers attended.  No toasts and no snacks.

[trishbk]

18 minutes ago, Crew News said:

I boarded in San Diego and then just continued on to Alaska.  Much to my surprise, no COVID testing was required to continue on the same ship.

 

Thanks for the compliment.  I just want help others in their planning and am just one of many here who pay it forward.  It is amazing just how much passengers don't know what they don't know.  Those passengers who are fortunate to find us here on CC will be much better informed than those who have not.

 

There was a Mariner welcome-aboard party for 3-5* Mariners on Embarkation Day with Catherine from Guest Services screening entrants into the Crow's Nest.  No ship officers attended.  No toasts and no snacks.

Thank you Roger appreciate it. I cannot agree with you more that the more that we keep each other informed the better we are as I do myself. If it was not for Cruise Critic,  I would’ve boarded a plane for Tahiti only to find that my ship would never stop in Papeete right at the beginning of the shutdown in March 2020. I knew more about what was going on then the Holland America reps on the phone. That’s only because we had wonderful people who were on the New Zealand to Papeete cruise and the Captain said they would not be arriving. These poor souls had to be on the cruise ship all the way, bypassing in Hawaii and finishing up in San Diego. I felt so bad for them but I was so gracious for their information that they shared with everybody on Cruise Critic. 

[Crew News]

1 hour ago, trishbk said:

Did you have to remove all your luggage? I believe from prior posts you inferred you did not have to pack all your luggage, take it off ship and unpack again. I am asking because we are on a back to back and we have to move one cabin over which is frustrating. Our travel agent is telling us that we have to take our luggage off the ship. I wondered if you had any information regarding this.

Nothing worse than travel agents not checking with HAL before giving an answer. 

 

Sorry for not being clear on the luggage issue.  Unless you are permanently leaving the ship, everything remains in your current or new stateroom. 

 

The stateroom change process is fast and fully supported by your Room Stewards.  On Disembarkation Day, and as soon as your new stateroom is empty (not yet cleaned), Room Stewards open the room and will assist you in moving everything.  Only minimum packing is necessary and drawers with their contents will just be exchanged with those in the new room.  Your laundry basket is a good way to move shelved items from one closet to another.  Make sure you keep your documents with you and not move them to the new room.  After everything is moved, your new stateroom will be locked and you will not have access to your items until your new stateroom key is issued.  If you are lucky, your new room may have been unoccupied or the occupants will be leaving the ship in the first groups to do so.

 

The ship will send you a letter giving you a time to pickup your new stateroom key, probably when you return from the terminal or maybe it will be placed in your mailbox.  Your account will be automatically extended to the next week with any new OBC added.

 

You and your documents (paper or digital) will be all that is required when you  meet in the BB King lounge (formerly known as the Culinary Arts Center).  When all of the other passengers have left the ship (there are always stragglers), you will be escorted from the ship for processing through both Canadian Immigration, then through US Customs and Border Patrol, and finally to a seating area to wait until the ship is verified not having any passengers aboard (zeroed out).  With no glitches, this should take about 30 minutes before you are allowed to reboard but sometimes an hour.

 

Being the first in-transit passengers going through this process, my experience was one of confusion inside the terminal,  The bugs should be worked out before you cruise.

Edited May 14, 2022 by Crew News

[trishbk]

3 hours ago, Crew News said:

Nothing worse than travel agents not checking with HAL before giving an answer. 

 

Sorry for not being clear on the luggage issue.  Unless you are permanently leaving the ship, everything remains in your current or new stateroom. 

 

The stateroom change process is fast and fully supported by your Room Stewards.  On Disembarkation Day, and as soon as your new stateroom is empty (not yet cleaned), Room Stewards open the room and will assist you in moving everything.  Only minimum packing is necessary and drawers with their contents will just be exchanged with those in the new room.  Your laundry basket is a good way to move shelved items from one closet to another.  Make sure you keep your documents with you and not move them to the new room.  After everything is moved, your new stateroom will be locked and you will not have access to your items until your new stateroom key is issued.  If you are lucky, your new room may have been unoccupied or the occupants will be leaving the ship in the first groups to do so.

 

The ship will send you a letter giving you a time to pickup your new stateroom key, probably when you return from the terminal or maybe it will be placed in your mailbox.  Your account will be automatically extended to the next week with any new OBC added.

 

You and your documents (paper or digital) will be all that is required when you  meet in the BB King lounge (formerly known as the Culinary Arts Center).  When all of the other passengers have left the ship (there are always stragglers), you will be escorted from the ship for processing through both Canadian Immigration, then through US Customs and Border Patrol, and finally to a seating area to wait until the ship is verified not having any passengers aboard (zeroed out).  With no glitches, this should take about 30 minutes before you are allowed to reboard but sometimes an hour.

 

Being the first in-transit passengers going through this process, my experience was one of confusion inside the terminal,  The bugs should be worked out before you cruise.

Thank you Roger for your thorough explanation. And if we ate oh so lucky, perhaps the front desk ca reassign us to a cabin so that we do not even have to move. Albeit might just be wishful thinking. 

[Crew News]

14 minutes ago, trishbk said:

Thank you Roger for your thorough explanation. And if we ate oh so lucky, perhaps the front desk ca reassign us to a cabin so that we do not even have to move. Albeit might just be wishful thinking. 

Might even  be able to make a swap with your neighbor if you can catch them before you both start unpacking.  Never hurts to try.