Holland America Zuiderdam Cruise Review - Caribbean Cruise on the Zuiderdam
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More on a tour of the Holland America Zuiderdam --
Navigation (8), Rotterdam (7), Upper Verandah (6), Verandah (5) and Upper Promenade (4) Decks are all cabins.
Promenade Deck (3) ? OK. Were back to the action now. Forward is the upper tier fo the Vista (show) Lounge. There are two circular box sections overlooking the stage wings. Great view, if you want to squiggle around in your seat a bit. There are safety railings in the front to keep one from taking a John Wilkes Boothe style dive, and they do obstruct one?s view terribly.
I recommend just about any of the other seats at this level, but not for give-away events. Thrown prizes just don?t reach that high.
Working aft, you?ll come to the Internet Center (starboard) and the Half-Moon, Hudson and Stuyesant meeting rooms (port). Internet connection for $25/30 minutes. The biggest problem I had with this was that the connection speed is quite slow (I?m used to broad-band/cable connection) and checking your e-mail and checking account took up all our time. If I wanted to send a reply to any of the e-mails, I had to go off-line, prepare it as a Word document, then go back on-line and do a cut-and-paste. Otherwise, I?d have been spending way too much to chat with folks who should have accompanied us in the first place! Next is the Java Corner (think Starbucks at sea). HAL used to have free cappuccino 24/7 in the Lido Restaurant, but have now replaced it with a cozy little bistro style coffee/pastry shop. Question. Why pay for ?specialty? coffee and cookies when excellent (normal) coffee and cookies are still available for free, six decks up?
Next aft, on starboard side is the Erasmus Library. A very nice facility. Quiet. Cozy. Books, magazines, newspapers, stationary and playing cards are available. A charge to your account ($25) is made to check out a book, and removed when you return the item. The Duty-Free Shop is on port side. Note: ?Duty Free? only means that import duties have not (yet) been paid on the items, that?s why they?re so inexpensive. Depending on you home country, and allowances, you may well be charged duty on your return. Learn your allowances. The shop has your usual selection of gifts, necessities, clothing, liquor, cigars, perfumes, watches and jewelry. Don?t buy early on in the cruise. Prices drop in the second half. Wait for the sales.
OK. Now we?ve gotten to the Atrium and the Ocean Bar (midships). Whew! Be sure to check the cut crystal seahorse chandelier. Gorgeous! The Ocean Bar is on both sides of the Atrium and has a small stage to port. Comfortable seating and beautiful views! Heading aft, you?ll have to travel the starboard side, through the photo gallery. Very long and the only place we really experienced any crowds. Guess there are still people surprised that they can look so good when they glance in the mirror, but so bad when the view is through a camera lens! Prices are reasonable (generally) and don?t change till after the cruise, when they drop to 50% off! The only place left is the Upper Vista Dining Room. Again, covered elsewhere in this review.
Lower Promenade Deck (2) ? Again, starting forward, you have the mid section for the Vista (show) Lounge. Generally all seats are good, but there are a couple with semi-obstructed views. No problem. Seats aren?t assigned. Move over one. Aft is the Piano Bar (starboard) and the Casino. The Piano bar was usually fairly well used. Primarily because 1) the pianist was very good, and 2) it was the nearest liquor to the casino (drink away your losses). A little farther aft is the Sports Bar. Actually a takeoff from the Casino (there are gaming screens build into the bar counter), you can almost always get caught up on your team(s) via ESPN. Yes, it is satellite. No, they don?t have cable. (Can you believe, someone actually asked that?)
On port side is the Northern Lights Nightclub (and bar), run by DJ Gino. A great place for theme music, contests and dancing. Gino knows what he?s doing and keeps the crown entertained. The seats are not the most comfortable in the world, and are covered in a Holstein pattern (my daughter-in-law would love them ? she ?collects? cows). One neat thing I found was that, as you enter/leave the club, the overhead lights in the winding passageway light up as you pass under them and go out once you have passed. Way cool, but then SunFlower says I?m way too easily impressed! Midships is the Queen?s Lounge (and bar). Another center of entertainment activity on the ship. Intimate, but not too small. Think a comedy, or jazz club. Great shows. Next is the Odyssey Restaurant and Wine Bar. The private, by appointment only, surcharge dining room. We did not try this one out, but everyone we spoke with raved about it. Next time. They usually run a special on first night out (half-price). Take advantage of this.
Page 4 > > More on the Holland America Zuiderdam Cruise > >
More on a tour of the Holland America Zuiderdam --
Navigation (8), Rotterdam (7), Upper Verandah (6), Verandah (5) and Upper Promenade (4) Decks are all cabins.
Promenade Deck (3) ? OK. Were back to the action now. Forward is the upper tier fo the Vista (show) Lounge. There are two circular box sections overlooking the stage wings. Great view, if you want to squiggle around in your seat a bit. There are safety railings in the front to keep one from taking a John Wilkes Boothe style dive, and they do obstruct one?s view terribly.
I recommend just about any of the other seats at this level, but not for give-away events. Thrown prizes just don?t reach that high.
Working aft, you?ll come to the Internet Center (starboard) and the Half-Moon, Hudson and Stuyesant meeting rooms (port). Internet connection for $25/30 minutes. The biggest problem I had with this was that the connection speed is quite slow (I?m used to broad-band/cable connection) and checking your e-mail and checking account took up all our time. If I wanted to send a reply to any of the e-mails, I had to go off-line, prepare it as a Word document, then go back on-line and do a cut-and-paste. Otherwise, I?d have been spending way too much to chat with folks who should have accompanied us in the first place! Next is the Java Corner (think Starbucks at sea). HAL used to have free cappuccino 24/7 in the Lido Restaurant, but have now replaced it with a cozy little bistro style coffee/pastry shop. Question. Why pay for ?specialty? coffee and cookies when excellent (normal) coffee and cookies are still available for free, six decks up?
Next aft, on starboard side is the Erasmus Library. A very nice facility. Quiet. Cozy. Books, magazines, newspapers, stationary and playing cards are available. A charge to your account ($25) is made to check out a book, and removed when you return the item. The Duty-Free Shop is on port side. Note: ?Duty Free? only means that import duties have not (yet) been paid on the items, that?s why they?re so inexpensive. Depending on you home country, and allowances, you may well be charged duty on your return. Learn your allowances. The shop has your usual selection of gifts, necessities, clothing, liquor, cigars, perfumes, watches and jewelry. Don?t buy early on in the cruise. Prices drop in the second half. Wait for the sales.
OK. Now we?ve gotten to the Atrium and the Ocean Bar (midships). Whew! Be sure to check the cut crystal seahorse chandelier. Gorgeous! The Ocean Bar is on both sides of the Atrium and has a small stage to port. Comfortable seating and beautiful views! Heading aft, you?ll have to travel the starboard side, through the photo gallery. Very long and the only place we really experienced any crowds. Guess there are still people surprised that they can look so good when they glance in the mirror, but so bad when the view is through a camera lens! Prices are reasonable (generally) and don?t change till after the cruise, when they drop to 50% off! The only place left is the Upper Vista Dining Room. Again, covered elsewhere in this review.
Lower Promenade Deck (2) ? Again, starting forward, you have the mid section for the Vista (show) Lounge. Generally all seats are good, but there are a couple with semi-obstructed views. No problem. Seats aren?t assigned. Move over one. Aft is the Piano Bar (starboard) and the Casino. The Piano bar was usually fairly well used. Primarily because 1) the pianist was very good, and 2) it was the nearest liquor to the casino (drink away your losses). A little farther aft is the Sports Bar. Actually a takeoff from the Casino (there are gaming screens build into the bar counter), you can almost always get caught up on your team(s) via ESPN. Yes, it is satellite. No, they don?t have cable. (Can you believe, someone actually asked that?)
On port side is the Northern Lights Nightclub (and bar), run by DJ Gino. A great place for theme music, contests and dancing. Gino knows what he?s doing and keeps the crown entertained. The seats are not the most comfortable in the world, and are covered in a Holstein pattern (my daughter-in-law would love them ? she ?collects? cows). One neat thing I found was that, as you enter/leave the club, the overhead lights in the winding passageway light up as you pass under them and go out once you have passed. Way cool, but then SunFlower says I?m way too easily impressed! Midships is the Queen?s Lounge (and bar). Another center of entertainment activity on the ship. Intimate, but not too small. Think a comedy, or jazz club. Great shows. Next is the Odyssey Restaurant and Wine Bar. The private, by appointment only, surcharge dining room. We did not try this one out, but everyone we spoke with raved about it. Next time. They usually run a special on first night out (half-price). Take advantage of this.
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