Back from the Zaandam

[jeda]

Hello! My sister, parents and I are back, yesterday, from the Zaandam Circle Hawaii. The trip was fabulous, even though the weather was not that great and the ship was in Code Red. It just didn't matter, as luckily no one in my family were affected. I do though feel badly for the people who were sick..

 

Embarkation went very smoothly at Canada Place. We had arrived at YVR at 830AM and were at Canada Place by 10 AM. We were easily boarding the ship by 11 and having lunch on the Lido by 1145. Ahhh ship life, I love it! Some very surprising news for my parents who have sailed 36 times with HAL. They were upgraded from 6th deck veranda cabin to a 7th deck deluxe veranda suite! They were so excited as they have never sailed in a deluxe suite before. There number was 7003, right next to the Penthouse, forward! It was an awesome suite and my sister and I also spent a lot of time in it. It was so nice to have so much room for my Dad's wheelchair! My sister and I were on the Dolphin Deck 1889 and the room steward was the nicest guy! The Neptune Lounge was a wonderful experience for my parents the the concierge Kristene, just the nicest person.

 

The food on board, always so good (luckily I only gained 4 pounds on a 19 day cruise!!), and our dining room steward Dindin and assistant Wira were so friendly and helpful. We had table 23 (for 4) by the window and we had traditional dining at 545. I can't comment on AYWD although a couple we had met on the ship had no problems with it at all. The Lido was always busy in the morning and at lunch. The lines went slow as everything had to be handed over by personnel because of the Code Red. We were on holidays though so to us, it was whenever, whatever! It was all good. There were some people though who were grumbling about service and I felt bad for the staff who were trying so hard under trying times..

 

The shows were typical ship fare. We enjoyed the Zaandam singer and dancer shows the most.

 

The Front Desk personnel were so nice! Donald, Darius, Rommel all such nice men. I miss them already!

 

The ports of call were awesome and the one port that surprised us the most was Astoria, Oregon. We LOVED this place. They know how to do Tourism up right! There were tourist ambassadors all over the place, shuttles to town, tourist guides, it was just the most beautiful town. The architecture was awesome. We loved this stop. We also enjoyed Victoria a lot and were able to take a cab to the Inner Harbour and then walk around downtown. It was great! We made it to Chinatown and I showed Mom, Dad and my sister Fan Tan Alley. These were the the two added stops from the same cruise we took last year and we felt they were a great addition.

 

I am back to work this afternoon and "real" life goes on. If I can answer any questions, I would be happy too.

 

Jess

[CoolChile]

What a wonderful, positive tequilla-glass-half-full trip report, Jeda! And what a treat for your parents to get that upgrade to a sweet suite.

 

I was following your roll call with envy, as you know. Yours was an ideal itinerary for those of us on the west coast. For us, just a short swim to Vancouver to board and a short swim home afterwards. ;) But had to have something percolating besides my coffee so, as you know, I've booked on Zaandam for Sept 21/08 ... Vanc-Hawaii-SanDiego.

 

I know your roll call was pretty sparse as far as numbers of CC'ers go (but it was still alot of fun!). Same for the one I've started for my sailing ... lots of views, but only a few posters. I'm curious what you and other people think: When cruises embark in Vancouver for points south, are people (e.g., Americans, who are the majority of cruisers) less inclined to join roll calls for those sailings? For instance, I notice that cruises leaving from San Diego for Hawaii get a waknoodle of posters on their roll calls. Am I on to something, or is it something else?

 

Anyway, I'm thrilled you all had a great time despite the Code Red ... never pleasant, but I'm sure the crew appreciated the likes of you, who remained so pleasant and grateful for their efforts.

 

Come on over and visit our roll call when you finish the laundry. :D

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=735607

[kenish]

The ports of call were awesome and the one port that surprised us the most was Astoria, Oregon. We LOVED this place. They know how to do Tourism up right! There were tourist ambassadors all over the place, shuttles to town, tourist guides, it was just the most beautiful town. The architecture was awesome. We loved this stop. Jess

 

Sounds like a great time despite the code red. FYI, the movie "Kindergarten Cop" was filmed partly in Astoria, you may recognize some places and sights. (The mall scene was filmed at a mall here in Orange County, nothing exciting about that setting!)

[lstrong]

Hi Jeda, wecome home from a beautiful ship. I'm just curious about your code red since I was on the Zaandam's March 19th cruise and all but 3 days were under code red. We also thought the staff did an excellent job under the circumstances - with the possible exception of the long coffee lines in the morning. Aren't those sea days wonderful.

[Guest 1WorldTrader]

I'm getting pretty nervous about the Zaandam. It seems that it has been under code red for most sailings since November. I'll be sailing on her starting June 22. Why in the world can't they get the ship cleaned thoroughly?

 

Anybody know a website where I can check the Zaandam health stats?

[dutch46]

I'm getting pretty nervous about the Zaandam. It seems that it has been under code red for most sailings since November. I'll be sailing on her starting June 22. Why in the world can't they get the ship cleaned thoroughly?

 

Anybody know a website where I can check the Zaandam health stats?

 

Maybe, just maybe its not the Zaandam that's unhealthy. Perhaps the virus exists in the terminal at San Diego and new passengers keep bringing it on board again. It's not the ship that is sick.

[CrystalLady]

I sailed Zaandam March 4th (15 night Circle Hawai'i cruise). We had no problems whatsoever. Reminders to cleanse your hands - and Purell dispensers - were everywhere. I kept thinking to myself how difficult it should be for any Norovirus outbreaks. The recurring Code Reds baffle me.

[JonV]

I wasn on the Zaandam Apri 18-22 from San Diego to Vancouver and we were not in code Red. I had cabin 7004 and loved the suite and large balcony.

[Guest 1WorldTrader]

That's great news. I'll be in 7009...really looking forward to it (and the Neptune lounge)!

[camrosegirl]

Hi,

 

I was on Zaandam March 19-April 3 and we were in code red--still had a fabulous time. You can look on the CDC website for a list of the cleanliness scores given to cruiseships. I think only 8 received %100. Zaandam received %99 so cleanliness is not the problem.

[GmaPajama]

I'm getting pretty nervous about the Zaandam. It seems that it has been under code red for most sailings since November. I'll be sailing on her starting June 22. Why in the world can't they get the ship cleaned thoroughly? ...

As others have posted here, it is most definitely not the ship that is sick. Being on a Holland America Ship is one of the most sanitary places a person can possibly be - cleaner, in fact, than any hospital I've seen. Noro comes on board with people, who bring it from any number of places. I've always suspected airlines as the biggest culprit, especially with all the cost cutting - which includes reduced cabin cleaning. Have you taken a good look at your seat area lately. Yuck.

 

Blaming the ship for noro is just plain wrong.