Zuiderdam 12/2/06.Things we learned

[vpoopsy]

Zuiderdam 12/2 cruise. Stuff we learned:

Missed our connecting flight in Houston. We were given “standby” seating until the attendant at the Continental desk contacted HAL. Immediately found us seats on the next flight and we were on our way. Thanks HAL!!

Hairdryer in room is not very strong. I can dry my hair at home in about 4 minutes and it took over 10 with the hairdryer on board. Bring your own!

We stayed in 6027 and the room was very small. However, I saw the rooms with balconies and I wasn’t too impressed with the size of those either.

Average age is 70. Bingo was the highlight of the day. The activities are geared more for the older crowd. There is a disco and we didn’t go, but heard it was hopping every night for the younger folks

Dress code isn’t followed very well. Most men would wear slacks and a shirt to dinner. Very few ties and jackets except for formal night. Ladies wore capris, dresses, slacks. And a lot of people changed clothes after dinner to attend the shows.

Bring jackets!! The ship stays very cold and especially in the lounges where the shows are. Ladies, I would suggest bringing some comfortable pants like sweats to wear at night.

If you don’t want to dress up and eat in the main dining room, they usually serve the same thing in the Lido.

When you complete your disembarkation paperwork they ask you about having your bags sent directly to the airport for a fee of $10 per person. We assumed that was charged to our ship account. When we arrived at the port, it was very unorganized and we went to 3 different places before we figured out where to leave our luggage. We also found out that we needed to pay there, not on the ship. The service was nice and we even got our boarding passes, but it wasn’t made clear on the form when we filled it out.

We have never been treated so well on a cruise. The staff was awesome. I got sick leaving Tortola because of high winds. When I got to the main dining room, our steward could tell I wasn’t feeling well and immediately got some drugs and had someone bring me a green apple and crackers. I went to the atrium and spent 3 hours down there trying to recover and many crew members stopped to check on me. By 9:00, I was up and back to normal.

The cruise staff was awesome. They are such fun people. Jerry, Jay, Melissa, Matt, Brandon and Sparkie are great!! They do read these boards too. I was a finalist in the Superstar competition and had a great time getting to know these guys first hand. I didn’t win, but had the time of my life. Jay, if…….

Food was ok. My husband was disappointed in the pizza, but the taco bar and the burgers were great. Weird hours on the lido, so check before you go for a snack to see what’s open. The ice cream bar was nice, but the cookies weren’t very good.

Overall, the trip was great. Half Moon Cay is the most beautiful place I’ve been. The sand was like walking in flour!! We had fun, met some awesome people. Bob & Dee, you’re great. Patty & George, you are a hoot. Kalena & Denny, didn’t spend a lot of time together, but enjoyed you when we did. Sharon, you’re a sweetheart. Hope you made it through the last party!!

[twinkletoes4445]

Thanks for the review...we're going to be on the Zuiderdam next year.

 

We don't much care if there's a lot going on. And oddly enough, we like bingo (only when we cruise). We're happy as clams to sit on our balcony with a glass of wine and a good book, so I think no matter what goes on on the ship, we'll be happy.

 

I am a tad bit concerned about what we are bringing for clothing. Hubby plans on wearing a tux for formal nights & I have a couple of fancy outfits, but for the other nights, hubby was going to wear a jacket, slacks and maybe a tie. I have lots of nicer pantsuits so I thought I'd wear those on those nights. I wonder if we're going to feel overdressed? I suppose we will just do our thing...but if everyone around us is in capris, I don't know how comfortable we will feel. I have capris, but I was going to use those for daytime activities.

[vpoopsy]

Oh, we played bingo one day. It was $20 for 4 games and then you could buy another 2 cards for $5. It was fun. I spent about 30 minutes in the casino, plugging quarters and I was done.

 

I think you should dress the way you want to and not worry about others. Again, on informal night when you are suppose to wear a jacket, there were very few. Didn't look much different than casual night.

 

Oh, I left out Jeff as as cruise staffer.

[twinkletoes4445]

Thanks for the info! :)

[EggDropErin]

Thanks for the review! I wish my cruise would get here faster! :)