Al Cerrachio

Age: 52
Occupation: safety consultant
Number of Cruises: 17
Cruise Line: HAL
Ship: Zuiderdam
Sailing Date: October 11th, 2003
Itinerary: Eastern Caribbean

This was our 17th cruise, fourth on a Holland America ship and our first on the Zuiderdam. The cruise was an anniversary celebration and we had purchased the anniversary celebration package, which was well worth the small cost. It was very nice to receive the special attention that this package brings. The eastern Caribbean itinerary that we sailed, Half Moon Cay, Saint Martin, St, Thomas and Nassau is one that we have done often and all of the ports we visited have become old friends. What follows are some thoughts, discoveries and insights into our cruise and the ship.

The Zuiderdam is the first of a series of ships that HAL calls the Vista Class. Others in the series include the Oosterdam launched in 2003 and soon to arrive, in 2004, Westerdam. I was told by the Ship's hotel manager that the follow on ship to the Westerdam will be called the Nieuw Amsterdam, continuing the HAL tradition of reusing names from the lines history. The Zuiderdam is the second ship to be so named. The ship utilizes the same basic design as the Spirit Class of Carnival and the Atlantica Class of Costa. Of course each line has decorated and outfitted their ships to reflect their respective design philosophies and cruise market.

The interior designer of the Zuiderdam is the same person/company who did previous HAL interiors, which is actually hard to believe. Somewhere along the line he was told, or so it is said, to "Jazz things up!" And boy did he ever! I guess he wanted to prove that Joe Farcus, the interior designer for Carnival, had nothing on him. The colors in most areas are not subtle ranging from ultra bright red suede leather in some elevators to bright yellows, blues and purples. Throughout much of the ship the carpeting is a multi-hue design in shades of blue. Designs include some very modern finishes, there are art deco touches, chairs and couches in red and gold brocades, tan leathers, white chairs and colored fabrics galore. In direct contrast with the wide range and variety of materials the interior corridors on passenger decks are a very bland, gray colored, man-made simulated wood material. Maybe to try and "Jazz" things up the wood pattern runs horizontally but I don't think that it works very well as it looks oh so fake. This patterned finish also shows up is some public areas in different hues of course. Fortunately for HAL regulars there are some areas that were left alone, including the Explorers Lounge, which is done in a tone very familiar to that on other HAL ships, the full promenade lined with teak deck chairs and the spacious, nicely decorated cabins. The swimming pools are fresh water and can be heated if necessary.

The many reviews of this ship have thoroughly covered the layout so I will skip this. Instead here is what I think works and what I think doesn't.

The sliding dome over the Lido:
I have been a big advocate of domes over lido pools but now I have come to see that they are a mixed bag. Having a dome provides a protected pool and sunbathing area and allows use of this area in all types of weather. This is especially nice when cruising in cold weather areas and of course when it rains. The downside to having the dome is that it cuts the Observation Deck off from the Lido Deck below rendering most of the midsection area of the Observation Deck unusable for sunbathing and/or listening to the music from the Lido deck below.

The Lido Restaurant
The Lido Restaurant is different in that he food is served from different serving stations. There are six major food serving area with two main lines, two deli stations, an Asian food station, an Italian station serving pasta and pizza plus two desert stations and a salad line. The food served here is excellent, amongst the best we have ever had at a Lido. HAL really does excel in Lido dining. While the food is really good the problem is finding a table to sit at to eat it. The number of tables is wholly inadequate for the number of people being served and at peak times during morning and lunch nary a table or empty seat can be found. Large dividers used to break the room up into smaller spaces are a main cause of the problem by eating up valuable floor space. Plans are already being made to redesign the area by removing these dividers to increase the seating capacity of which will be a good thing.

The Atrium
You call this an atrium? If so you only need to look at Royal Caribbean designs to see how it can and should be done. The atrium here is small, narrow and only three decks high. Also the ceilings in the area around the atrium seem very low eliminating the feeling of openness one should get from an atrium space. Consider this a space for connecting between decks and not a place one wants to linger at. The decoration is interesting with the central focus being a revolving Seahorse suspended from the ceiling. Each deck is done differently making for some really odd juxtaposition of color and design depending on which way you look. A small bar rests on the lowest level of the atrium but surprisingly there are no waiters or waitresses here to serve you. It is strictly get your own from the bar. Music from the Ocean Bar two decks above provides the only entertainment.

The Odyssey Restaurant
We ate here twice and both times were amply rewarded with the best meals we have had at sea. The menu concentrates on beef but alternatives are also offered. The porterhouse steak I had was yummy and the filet mignon was simply superb. The Crab soup and crab cakes offered as appetizers are fantastic. The restaurant is done up in white upholstered heavy metal frame chairs and matching tables. The ceilings are decorated with what appear to oversize replicas of sand dollars. Fiber optic lighting simulates rays of light flowing out from the center along the spines. To add some color large backlit pictures of vegetables and wines are used as wall decoration. The tables are elegantly set in a very formal presentation. All in all it is simply a superb place to enjoy a meal. There is a $20 per person cover charge to eat here and it is worth every penny spent. The charge is added to your on board account. Incidentally the cover charge does not include a tip so be sure to bring some cash to tip the waiter and his assistant. One very nice touch is that the chef comes out and chats with you at the end of the meal talking about the food it's presentation and just about anything else. While we never saw the Odyssey totally full I highly recommend making your reservations for early in the week. This way if you want to come back for a second visit you have first dibs simply by telling your waiter.

The Ocean Bar
The Ocean Bar has always been a special place for us to have a pre-dinner or post dinner dink, enjoy hot appetizers before dinner and listen to good music. On all other HAL ships the Ocean Bar is a totally separate, self-contained area, elegantly decorated with a special ambiance. On the Zuiderdam the Ocean Bar now surrounds the upper deck of the atrium and is totally open to it except for the area with the bar. The bar area is divided off and reserved for smokers but it is now separated from the music which is on the other side of the Atrium! Traffic flows through the entire area and that special Ambiance has been lost. And it seems even the servers have a hard time providing the level of prompt and courteous service that is so typical of HAL. For me the Ocean bar is a complete miss and regretfully there seems to be little that can be done to improve it.

The Vista Dining Room
The Vista Dining room is a two-deck affair with a single circular staircase and small atrium connecting the two levels. In designing the restaurant the designers were forced to make a decision that I think they now regret. The choice was this: either have was two dining rooms separated by a galley in two fire divisions or confine the dining area and galley to one fire division. Unfortunately the decision was the latter and the compromises this choice forced on the design are not good ones. First of all the dining room is too small for the number of tables and seats required. This has forced the spacing between tables to be very tight and has also forced the use of numerous rectangular tables seating ten. The tight spacing means that the waiters often have a tough time getting to the people at the far end of the table without making someone else move their chair or "pull in" a bit. The lack of space also forced the atrium to be far less grand and with only one staircase. Visibility of the staircase is so restricted that anyone wanting to make a "Grand Descent" at dinner is simply wasting their time, as nobody can see them. And the vibrations reported by others are real. The ship now slows down during dinner hours to lesson the vibrations and at least where we sat at the stern on the upper level it was tolerable. The vibration is caused by a design flaw resulting from air bubbles generated by propeller cavitations hitting the bottom of the hull. A fix has been developed and this fix has been incorporated in the Oosterdam. The fix will be retrofitted into the Zuiderdam and that should eliminate the problem.

The Vista Dining Experience
The quality of the food served in the main dining room has certainly improved over that we have had on other earlier HAL cruises. The presentation was excellent; the food arrived hot and cooked as desired and well seasoned. The appetizers were varied and tasty and the soups were wonderful, but the salads were a bit bland. The entrees seemed to be wholly enjoyed by all at our table. Noticeably absent from the menu were any veal dishes (a favorite of mine).

Flowers and Art Work
This ship continues the HAL tradition of placing artwork, antiques and antique reproductions throughout the ship. Fine paintings of prior HAL ships and large pieces of art are found in the stairwells. Everything is labeled and one could spend quite a bit of time just studying the art onboard. Fresh flower arrangements are also spread throughout the public areas of the ship. Since the ship is so much larger than other HAL ships the arrangements just don't seem as numerous.

The Crows Nest
The Crows Nest lounge is now a truly a nice evening venue for live music as this ship has a separate disco. On other HAL ships the Crows Nest is a dual-purpose room becoming a disco late in the evening. The Zuiderdam arrangement is far superior. The Crow's Nest surrounds the forward part of deck 10 providing tremendous views during the day. Unfortunately reclining leather-covered lounge chairs that line the forward glass wall of the lounge were broken. I would think that the chairs would have to be replaced with sturdier chairs. The sides of the crows nest are decorated differently from the main area giving them a different feel from t he main lounge. These areas feature ceilings with Murano glass tiles.

The Vista Lounge
The Vista lounge design is much better than that of the other HAL ships. The lower level is steeply inclined to provide stadium like seating that provides excellent views for everyone except those unlucky enough to be sitting behind one the support columns of which there are more than a few. The upper level also provides pretty good sightlines. The décor is bold being all red and there is a fabric covered ceiling decoration that looks like a huge parachute. The stage, lighting, sound and special effects are state of the art. Unfortunately so is the music, which is all prerecorded eliminating that special feel that a live orchestra provides. The shows are good, standard production fare, a magician, a male singer and a comedian rounded out the entertainment and all were fine.

Public Restrooms
There seems to be a dearth of public rest rooms or perhaps there are enough but they are placed in strange locations. Many times it was simply easier to go back to the room rather than search around looking for one, which is not very convenient. What bathrooms there are were nicely decorated and provided with clean hand towels to dry your hands and even the men's rooms have small vases of flowers in them.

The Queens Lounge
The Queens Lounge serves as a dual-purpose room being both a lounge and movie theater. While practical it lacks the feel of a true movie theater, the seating is of the lounge type and site lines are poor from the sides as the movie screen is set too far back on the stage to be seen. However, freshly popped popcorn is still served when movies are shown and the sound system is very good.

The Northern Lights Disco
For those who enjoy disco the much talked about Northern Lights Disco certainly has a unique and somewhat bizarre color scheme that looks like a giant commercial for Gateway computers as all the seating and some walls have a what looks like a faux cowhide finish in black and white. But it is a real disco and was well used on our sailing.

The Sports Bar
A first for HAL this bar is located adjacent to the casino and since we were cruising during the playoffs it became a popular spot at night. Some complaints were made that college football games were not being shown. Instead international sports such as soccer were on the numerous boob tubes.

The Elevators
Unlike previous HAL ships the elevators lack fold down seats in them. I never used the seats so I don't know if this is a good or bad thing. The elevator interiors are very bold in color, which wakes you up in the morning! The glass enclosed elevators that face outward and provide ocean views are delightful and a real plus.

Miscellaneous
We never visited the Piano Bar but it seemed a nicely decorated room. Being nonsmokers we never visited the Oak Room, which is the cigar smokers lounge. Unlike other HAL ships there is no self-service laundry. If need be you can fill a laundry bag with dirty clothes and have them all cleaned for a flat $12 charge. Room service was excellent providing a good selection of items and was always on time. Be sure to tip the steward a dollar or two.

The Service
Traditional HAL service was somewhat hard to come by on this ship. The crew seemed a bit tired as they have been onboard since the beginning and seem to be getting worn down a bit. The warm and gracious service that we have found on other HAL ships was noticeably absent in most areas of Zuiderdam. However there were still some bright spots to be found, some service people that greeted you warmly, remembered your name and even from where you came from. Hopefully this will improve as fresh crew is brought aboard and the existing crew is recycled for some well earned rest.

First impressions can be both misleading and/or correct. In the case of the Zuiderdam they turned out to be both, especially for those who have sailed on Holland America's other ships. Upon first entering the ship and having a quick look around one starts to wonder, "Where is the Holland America interior that I have grown to love? The colors are so much bolder and bright that you almost think that you are surely on a Carnival ship. After awhile though you begin to notice the decorator touches and finishes that make HAL what it is. The flowers are still there, the Murano glass is still there, as are the artwork, and antiques and high value finishes such as leather and suede. It's just that it takes some time to notice some of them. My fellow passengers confirmed these impressions. First time HAL cruisers loved the interior designs and those who have sailed on other HAL ships did not find some of them quite as appealing.

For me the emotions and feelings about this ship are quite mixed. It has some truly great pluses and some truly great misses from a design standpoint. The plusses are the Odyssey Restaurant, a truly magnificent alternative dining venue, A Lido buffet area that does a terrific job at keeping lines small by splitting food service into six different major food stations plus two desert bars. The minuses are just as significant. The Vista Dining Room is too small and seating is very tight. Seating in the Lido is inadequate to handle the number of passengers dining there for breakfast or lunch, although this should soon be rectified. The Ocean Bar is a total flop losing all of the charm and ambiance that make the Ocean bars on other HAL ships so special. Finally the atrium is actually so small as I hesitate to call it an atrium. It seems even smaller than those on the smaller HAL fleets and should only be considered as passage between decks.

Finally, did I enjoy this cruise and ship. The answer is absolutely and positively yes! While many of the comments I have made may seem negative understand that may dislikes we are a talking a matter of degree from a very high opening standard and expectation. They should be not be misconstrued as being a total dislike or condemnation for the ship or the cruise. It is just a fact that the Zuiderdam is so different from previous HAL offerings that one cannot help but to make comparisons. Apparently even HAL has done some rethinking and the evidence can be seen in the follow-on Oosterdam and Westerdam as they have reportedly returned to a more traditional HAL interior décor. For the most part our cruise was delightful and we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly. I would recommend this ship to my friends.

For all cruise lines and cruise ships the bottom line is "Would I sail on this ship again?" For us the answer is yes.

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