Alaska on the Zaandam June 2 - 9 Review (Long)

[duck tune]

A week after returning from the Zaandam here is the review. It's a long one!

 

We were on the Zaandam Alaska cruise June 2 – 9. We flew to Seattle on June 1 and by the time we got to baggage claim our luggage was there. We went to a courtesy phone near door 16 and dialed 55 to speak to ground transportation. We opted for a limo to our downtown hotel – cost is $30 and that is about the price of a cab. We told them what door we were at and were informed that the driver would arrive within 4 minutes. He arrived promptly and took us to the Homewood Suites. A limo is a great way to start off a cruise.

 

The Homewood Suites on Western Avenue is within walking distance to the Space Needle and we had planned to ride the Monorail to get downtown but it was out of service until sometime later this summer. There was a bus stop near the hotel so we took the bus to the downtown area, had lunch and walked around, went to Pike’s Place and ended up calling a cab to go back to the hotel due to a heavy rainstorm that came through.

 

Homewood Suites is owned by Hilton and we got an internet deal that requires full payment at the time of booking but saved some money. The rooms are very spacious with a separate bedroom, a nice living room with large sofa, chair, microwave, coffeemaker, refrigerator and a TV in both the bedroom and living room. A bag of popcorn and coffee is provided in the room. Breakfast is included and the variety was good with fresh fruit, cereals, eggs, bacon, sausage, juice and Starbucks Coffee. Coffee is available in the lobby all day. If you stay Sunday through Thursday “dinner” is also included. They had a nice (small) salad bar, two types of chicken wings, potatoes, and fresh fruit – plenty of food plus free wine and beer with dinner if desired. We were satisfied with the quality and quantity of food and happy to stay in since it was raining quite hard. The only downside of this location is that it is not really close to a lot of the areas tourists like to visit but we had a nice view of Elliott Bay from our bedroom and actually say the Celebrity Mercury coming into port just before 10 a.m. (we found out later from our cab driver that the ship was supposed to dock at 7 a.m. but was three hours late and that was creating a mess trying to get people to and from cruise ships). There is a Safeway within walking distance if you want or need anything. DH wanted a Friday Wall Street Journal to take on the cruise. USA Today was outside our suite door in the morning.

 

The Hotel also has an arrangement with someone to provide shuttle service to both Pier 66 ($4) and Terminal 30 ($6). When we checked in on Thursday I saw the sign but it said the shuttle only operated on Saturday and Sunday. I asked why they didn’t provide a shuttle for Friday cruises and was told that this was the first year that Friday cruises were offered out of Seattle. We decided to call a cab in the morning when we were ready to leave. The shuttles are advertised as “first come first served starting at 10 a.m.” so I imagine they run only when full and go to both terminals. When checking out Friday morning we saw that they had added Friday to the shuttle schedule but we decided to take a cab anyway. The front desk clerk called a cab and we were told it would be there in 10 minutes but it took closer to 25 minutes – the cab came from the Zaandam and took us back out. The driver was very apologetic but explained the problem with Celebrity Mercury arriving late and mentioned that the Friday schedule was a little harder considering the competition with work traffic that doesn’t exist on weekends. He got us to the pier by just before 11 a.m. but it cost $15 plus tip primarily because the meter keeps running when sitting in traffic!

 

When getting out of the taxi a couple of men told us to take our luggage directly to the security bay (like they have at airports now) instead of standing in a line where porters were placing luggage on the carts. Fortunately our entire luggage was on wheels and stackable so we got in a very short line and sent the luggage on in less than five minutes.

Then we went to stand in the line to check in and that took maybe 10 minutes or so. There were several very efficient volunteers directing traffic and keeping things moving. The lady in our line said to tear out the contract; have the immigration form in hand along with passport, credit card for onboard account and accompanying form. She didn’t let anyone go to a counter who hadn’t done that!

 

When checking in the clerk had DH and I fill out a form that asked whether or not we had any vomiting, diarrhea or other illness in the past three days and a signature is required. She then informed us that we had been upgraded from an Outside D (deck 2) to Verandah A (deck 7). This was our 5th cruise with HAL. DH and I were shocked. The clerk seemed a bit surprised as well and told us that we would need to go to the front desk as soon as we got on board and have them notify housekeeping of our new cabin number so luggage could be diverted. We each had our photo taken with a web cam and we were given our key cards. I noticed when we used the card to log on board our photo showed up on the security computer screen. This also happened each time we went onshore in ports. They didn’t require us to show passports at any time since a current photo pops up on the computer encoded in the key card.

 

We spent almost 10 minutes waiting in the embarkation photo line which was annoying to just about everyone. There is a fairly long walk from the shore to the ship but no steps are involved and no need to rush. Once on board we went to the front desk first to tell them about our cabin change and then we went up to the Lido to have lunch. DH and I had huge grins the whole time. We walked around the ship a little after lunch and rooms were ready a little after 1:00 p.m.

 

We had booked this cruise in April and had the 3rd seating (7:45 p.m.) and were seated at a table for 8. We went to the Queen’s Room on the 5th deck to talk to the wait staff to see if we could request a change. We arrived there about 2 p.m. and we had to talk to one of the bus boys who wanted to know what we wanted to talk to “Mr. Johnny” about. Then he gave us a number written on a post-it note - #35 and directed us to the Explorations Café to wait. The room was packed and they were only on #15. We were told they would stop at 3:30 p.m. and then resume again after the life boat drill at around 5:00 p.m. DH was not thrilled to sit and wait so we took turns wandering around. We stayed together at 3:15 p.m. and were concerned that we would not get a chance to talk to “Mr. Johnny”. Many of the people waiting wanted to change dining times – some where scheduled early and wanted later dining times and vice versa. Only a few wanted to change table assignments to eat with friends.

 

When someone met with “Mr. Johnny” he or she would come back out through the crowd and some would say “did you get what you wanted?” 95% did not and a few were rather vocal about it. Our number was called at 3:25 p.m. and we had to walk this long walk to the head of the room where “Mr. Johnny” and a helper behind a computer were seated. It felt like being in a B movie.

 

I had put on my biggest smile and politely explained that we were interested in finding out if we could possibly be moved to a table for 2 and at one of the two earlier sittings. Mr. Johnny had his partner pull up our information and said “You just booked this cruise in April! Why would you expect to get an early sitting now? Early sittings are reserved for families with children or those who have medical conditions that require early meals!” Wow, I was shocked. We have always had the early sitting and never knew there were such rules. Likewise, we have always seen numerous empty tables on every cruise.

 

I and 50+ and DH is 68 and we usually at 6 or 6:30 p.m. However I could see that nothing was going to happen to have our time changed so I asked if he would consider giving us a smaller table. He said he would see what he could do. I told him that we had planned to eat at the Pinnacle Grill that evening.

 

The next morning when we got up we found an envelope that had been slid under our door saying we had been moved to a table for two but kept at the same dining time. We decided to try the later dining time and it was rather difficult to be finishing dinner at 9:15 p.m. which is normally the time we start thinking about going to bed (we are early risers). On the night of the “dinner show – the new concept by HAL” there were only two dinner seating 5:30 and 8:15 so DH and I decided to eat at the Lido that night. We went to dinner at 6:00 p.m. and found tables covered with table cloths, excellent food – the best dinner we had all week – and no crowds. We had a window seat and actually saw several whales while we ate.

 

Meals in the main dining room were OK but nothing was really spectacular except the soups. I was surprised about a few items that I ordered because I expected one thing (based on the menu description) and got something totally different. The last formal night there was a long delay between the entrée and the baked Alaska parade – more than 30 minutes. Several people got tired of waiting and left. On the final night when we docked in Victoria dining times were changed to 5:00 p.m. and 7:15 p.m. because of shore excursions starting at 8 p.m. I saw a table of 4 come in at 7:15 p.m. get up and leave at 7:30 p.m. because the steward hadn’t been by to take their order. The dining room had many empty tables each night but especially on the last night and it seemed as if the service was slower, the drink refills were absent and no extra “pampering” that had been present before. Ironically, “Mr. Johnny” was our Head Waiter and stopped by every evening to make sure everything was OK. A couple seated behind us at dinner found something to be critical about each evening. When the cruise director (a female) was doing the talk preceding the parade of the Baked Alaska the husband yelled at her to stop shouting and after the event the cruise director came over and told him he was very rude and the three of them got into a heated discussion.

 

The dinner in the Pinnacle Grill was good but not as good as on other HAL ships. I had wanted to try the rib eye but the waiter said “no, a filet is more appropriate for a lady”. I was speechless. We have had at least 2 meals in the Pinnacle on all other cruises but not this time. No half price at the Pinnacle for the first night either.

 

We had a couple of breakfasts in our room and the order was correct and served promptly. The other days we went to the Lido and were satisfied. The waffles are not as good as on the Oosterdam (they were Belgium waffles on the O) but there are plenty of choices. We ate one lunch in the main dining room and decided not to go back. Stay away from the “Classic Ruben Sandwich” – not classic and not at all what we expected. We stuck with the Lido the rest of the time. The pasta was always good and the bread pudding was great. They did have a carving station most every lunch with chicken, lamb, ham and beef. The breakfast sausage patties and round potatoes are excellent.

 

Our luggage arrived in our stateroom before the life boat drill but I was dismayed to see stewards on some decks literally pushing luggage off the carts used to transfer the luggage from downstairs up to the various decks. One steward saw me looking and stopped it but I had to wonder if anybody had broken items in some of the bags that were forcefully pushed.

 

We were schedule to depart at 4 p.m. but by 4:15 we were still docked. The captain announced that we were waiting for “one person” so we ended up leaving during the life boat drill (4:45 p.m.) so couldn’t take pictures of Seattle or do the usual sail away celebration.

 

The Zaandam is a beautiful ship with a “Music” theme. There is a huge white organ that rises up in the atrium area and plays at 12 noon, 2 and 4 p.m. yet it was always about 10 minutes late. Some of the carvings are animated and move with the music. There are saxophones, guitars and other music related items all throughout the ship and the wall treatment in the hallways of each deck are replicas of musical scores. Look closely or you’ll miss it! The showroom drink table lights all have small musical instruments encased in the class/plastic with the colored light coming through. There are some worn spots in the rug here and there but we did not see any major physical problem.

 

We had a beautiful room on the port side and it was probably the biggest of the verandah suites we have had. Easy to move around and laid out very efficiently. Plenty of storage space and closet space. I had several empty drawers left over. The safe in the closet does not require a code but rather you need to use a credit card with a magnetic strip to open and close the safe (the room key will not work). The bed is heavenly and the new upgrades make it feel like you are sleeping on a feather bed. Robes were roomy and comfortable and we had two wool blankets available to use on the balcony.

We got the impression that our steward was fairly new at the job because he was inconsistent from day to day on some items but all in all he did a good job. We had towel animals on four or five nights and always got the schedule for the next day before dinner. DH put his dress shoes out to be polished the evening we boarded and they were back in the room the next morning in time for formal night.

 

Our room was across from a pantry used by the stewards but there was minimal noise. On rare occasions the door to the pantry was open and we could see dishwashers and glassware. We were about 6 cabins from the elevators and stairs (one deck up to the Lido deck) and again, we heard very little noise. At night with the curtain pulled across the hallway to the bathroom and the curtains pulled over the balcony it is very dark and no outside light gets in until you want it.

We had some rough seas during the first night and I had some seasickness from 6 a.m. – 12 noon Saturday then was fine. I have only been seasick twice and both times were the first day out from Seattle. Several passengers were feeling the effects but I never saw any seasick bags near the elevators nor any bowls of green apples and crackers like were seen on the Amsterdam. I felt better in the afternoon and everyday afterwards went fine.

 

We had rain every day except in Ketchikan where it was nice and sunny. We did not do any shore excursions this trip because we have done them before and wanted time to shop and walk around. Our first stop in Juneau it was pouring rain and helicopter tours were cancelled due to poor visibility. Sitka it rained a little but it wasn’t too cold – sweat shirt under a rain poncho worked fine. We did not bother to get off the boat in Victoria since the time at port was 8 p.m. – 12 midnight and we were still eating at 9 p.m.

The tender experience to Sitka was the first time we ever spent a long time in line waiting for a tender. Those with shore excursions were given priority to take the tenders and about 9:45 a.m. the cruise director announced that tender tickets were no longer required and there was no waiting. Apparently a lot of us had the same idea to go ashore at the same time because DH and I got in line at 10:00 a.m. and it was 10:45 a.m. before we boarded a tender to go ashore. They were running at least 3 tenders and we were never told what the delay was.

 

The day at Glacier Bay was wonderful. We picked up 3 or 4 park rangers from the National Park who served as guides and stayed on the ship from 7 – 4 p.m. The ship spends a long time at the major glacier and the captain rotated the ship so people on both sides had close to one hour of viewing from the balconies or public rooms inside. It is always a spectacular sight.

 

There were plenty of activities on the ship to keep people occupied. The midship pool on the Lido deck was busy all the time. We did not go to the spa on this cruise. We did use the internet and the Explorations Café area is very nice, large windows, comfortable chairs that people used. The internet connection was always very fast and there are plenty of computers and lots of WiFi spaces so those who take their own laptops had no trouble finding a spot to work.

 

Try one of the coffee drinks from the Explorations Café. A good selection, the price is excellent and the quality superb. Better than Starbucks. We went to High Tea and to 4 other afternoon tea sessions – all were held in the upper level of the Rotterdam dining room. One day we had trouble getting the attention of one of the waiters and didn’t get any of the small sandwiches offered to have with the tea but overall it is always great fun.

 

We went to the Ocean Bar every night before dinner for a drink and to listen to the live band. They were excellent but are on a three month vacation now so don’t know who is there now. The hot appetizers were excellent. There was a piano player and two violinists that often played in the Explorer Lounge and they were great. We did not go to any shows in the showroom due to our late dinner sitting. We did miss doing that because we always took in a few shows on prior cruises.

 

We spent a lot of time enjoying our cabin and played card games, scrabble and enjoyed the view. The new LCD televisions in the rooms are excellent and the reception on the few stations we had was generally quite good. One night we were watching an old Jimmy Stewart movie on TCM “Mr. Smith goes to Washington” and the signal went out just at the end of the movie!

 

We did attend the Mariner Reception which was 15 minutes late getting started and it wasn’t as well attended as others we have been too. People didn’t seem to have a lot of patience on this cruise.

 

The disembarkation form was in our cabin when we first went in the room but they had a 2 day timeframe before it had to be turned in. We asked to disembark at 9:30 a.m. and they called our number about 9:10 a.m. No problem getting off the ship and once we got our luggage and went through customs we asked for directions to the area for taxi cabs. We had less than a five minute wait and they had plenty of cabs available. By the way the RCCL Vision of the Seas was disembarking at the same pier at the same time and everything went well. It took maybe 15 - 20 minutes from the time they called our number until the time we were in the cab. We were at the airport and checked in our luggage by 10 a.m. for a 1:45 p.m. flight.

 

A few final thoughts:

1. It was difficult to hear announcements in the Lido buffet all week and especially during the disembarkation time. I don’t know what that was about. It is better to stay in your cabin and turn the radio over the bed to channel 5 to hear what is happening. There was not a lot of banter by the Captain during this cruise and announcements were kept to a minimum.

2. If 80% of the passengers on any HAL cruise are Mariners then the other 20% may not be happy campers. We heard some complaining here and there but that is to be expected on any cruise.

3. Overall we had a wonderful time and certainly the surprise upgrade added to our experience. We have no major complaints and frankly feel that once you have a few cruises under your belt you tend to prioritize what is important and not sweat the small stuff.

[HALOnlyCruiser]

Hi Ducks!

I'm so glad your upgrade worked out! I remember you posting about the Upgrade Fairy visiting you at the pier. And what a good review! Concise (even if you thought it wasn't) and truthful. Everyone wants "the perfect cruise experience" and we all know it just ain't out there! I'm just happy when things go reasonably well...which it looks as if your trip did. Good for you! Welcome home, and back to reality!:D

[SaltwaterTwo]

Well done Duck Tune. A lot of good information there. I appreciate someone reporting how it realy was - the good and the bad. This is the type of review of which we need more. I wrote a similar review about the Zaandam a few years ago but was flamed out for reporting some very bad service throughout the ship (along with my very favorable impression of the ship itself.)