Ms Zaandam is one of four Rotterdam-class Holland America ships. Her maiden voyage was in 2000, making her nearly 25 years old. That’s around 100 in cruise ship years which, as it happens, is also the average age of passengers onboard Holland America cruises (that’s both a bad joke and a deviation from the facts, if only a very slight one). She did receive a facelift and a new wardrobe from Chico’s in 2018 (called a “refurbishment” in cruise lingo), so she looks a lot younger from a distance. Over video chat. With a poor connection. Again, I kid. She’s a gorgeous ship (scheduled for another refurbishment in 2025) and has somehow managed to maintain her petite figure (with just 10 decks available to passengers, and a capacity of around 1500 guests and 600 crew) despite being fed multiple semi-trucks worth of food every week or two. Much more to come (consider that both a promise and a warning). Stay tuned!
Hello from Holland America’s ms Zaandam as we embark on a 16-day round trip sailing from San Diego to Hawaii/Mexico. Over these 16 days we’ll be singing “Deck the Halls,” “Auld Lang Syne,” and “Happy Birthday” to “H” (my soon to be 12-year-old) in addition to my usual Whitney numbers at karaoke that do not sound anything like a wild male boar who just took a major league baseball pitch to the privates (whoever told you I sound like that is just jealous of my upper range). My husband and son will be joining me on this voyage and I’m taking bets on how many thick novels my husband gets through and how many times my kid barfs from eating too many ice cream cones on an itinerary with 10 sea days. Not saying I’m not going to be setting records for ice cream (and cake) consumption, I’m just better at holding my desserts. But admittedly, I’ll probably only make it through like 15% of “Goodnight Moon” between naps and…you know…the desserts. Speaking of cake, we were greeted to this in the Lido Marketplace on embarkation Day:
If you’d like to see complete tours of the ship and our cabin, click on the photos below:
First drinks. I ordered one with vegetables and my 11-year-old ordered a cosmo. Go figure. Lol. We had the Quench beverage package and mostly stuck with zero proof drinks on our sailing (but did take advantage of 50% off happy hours for a few cocktails many afternoons). These were the “Cool as a Cucumber” and the “Not a Cosmo.”
You can see photos of everything we ordered in the MDR on night 1 on my Facebook page here:
The yogurt bar located in the buffet at breakfast offers a delicious selection of yogurt, chia puddings, fruit purees, and toppings (nuts, seeds, dried and fresh fruit, oats). I made myself a custom parfait this morning after the gym as a pre-breakfast while I wait for my son to wake up. Now should that last sentence leave you with the impression that I’m healthy and disciplined on a cruise, well, keep reading before you accuse me of being completely nuts (see what I did there).
You might think this is the lunch of my 11-year-old, but you would be wrong. Don’t judge. Or do, I don’t care. (Vegetarian lasagna, four cheese pizza, Beecher’s mac ‘n cheese, Oreo cheesecake in a jar, strawberry tart, vegan mango tapioca pudding).
Do you think a 15 minute sauna session will sweat out the 15,000 calories I’ve eaten so far today? Because I’m counting on it. But seriously, I love a ship with a sauna that doesn’t require a paid spa pass or treatment. The sauna, giant showers, and locker/changing room are available to anyone on the Zaandam. I used the nicer shower every morning while my kid slept in.
After I ordered that cucumber something something for my embarkation drink, many of you reached out with concerns about my mental state. I submit the following as proof that I’ve come to my senses.
No one wanted to join me in the dining room for breakfast this morning (smells pits), so I’m imagining a hot ghost Captain sitting across from me at this two top. I ordered him the banana oatmeal bread French toast knowing he’d offer it to me due to not having the necessary digestive organs. I’ll be discussing the MDR breakfast menu more extensively later in the cruise once I’ve had the chance to photograph more of the offerings, but as a teaser, here’s what I ordered today (spoiler alert, the the best at sea by FAR).
Photo 1: Forest mushroom Benedict with a side of Morningstar Farms Vegilinks
Photo 2: Banana oatmeal bread French toast
POV: I do NOT associate the word “nest” with relaxation. I’m a mom. I built the nest. I birthed the creature living in there. And I‘m constantly feeding it and trying to keep it alive until it learns to fly (or finally goes off to college) so I can surrender said nest to the wind and embark on b2b2b2b2b2death cruises. But boy oh boy, on the Zaandam I’m experiencing what it’s like to be in the nest, having my every want and need catered to (my mother may point out that I lived 18+ years of pampered life in the nest she build, but that was a loooong time ago).
Two hour nap in a comfy chair with my feet up between sipping cocktails while gazing out at the ocean? Done! Curling up with a good book? Done! Meeting up with a friend or loved one for a board game or to work on a puzzle together? Done! Having someone prepare my morning latte while I watch the sunrise? Done! This gorgeous and versatile space offers it all and is one of my favorite spots onboard.
See everything we ordered for dinner in the MDR on night 3 on my Facebook page here:
I love the library on the Zaandam. So does Mr. Cruise, a man who can polish off an entire Stephen King novel in the time it takes me to watch one episode of Teen Mom. His packing list for a cruise looks like this: 5,000 books. If I want him to have clean underwear, deodorant, and something that won’t get us turned away from the dining room on formal night, I have to pack it for him. Seriously, he brings so many books that when they weigh his checked luggage before a flight, they charge him the going rate for an overweight bag AND whatever it costs to replace their scale.
See everything we ordered for breakfast in the MDR on night 4 on my Facebook page here:
If you like In-N-Out burger on land, you’ll love Dive-In on Holland America ships. Just don’t accidentally ask for your fries “animal style,” because the crew member taking your order will just look at you with a blank look and say something disparaging in their head about Americans. #lessonlearned However, you can order your fries (or burger or dog) with special Dive-In sauce. Always ask for extra, because it’s so good it’s never enough. And ALWAYS order fries – they are the best at sea AND on land (if you like them super crispy).
Dive-In is especially great for vegetarians and vegans because you can substitute a Beyond Burger Patty, brown rice patty, or Beyond Brat for any burger or dog. This makes Dive-In the most vegetarian/vegan friendly burger joint at sea. You can also ask for a gluten free bun or no bun. Plus, you can order your meal via the Navigator app!
Hot tip for Dive-In: As you’re getting back on the ship from port, open HAL’s Navigator App and place an order for Dive-In. By the time you drop your stuff off at your cabin your order will be prepared and waiting for you at the counter (the app will alert you when it’s ready). No lines!
Sure you could take a pan of these warm sticky buns topped with caramel and sliced almonds from the breakfast buffet and stick them directly to your butt for practically the same long-term effect, but it’s so much more satisfying to eat two of them with a latte from the Crow’s Nest every morning. They, along with all the other pastries, are baked fresh and from scratch each morning. For the ultimate sweet, carby trifecta, also grab a buttered sugar bun and the croissant of the day (so far we’ve had chocolate, almond, cheese, and apple) and try to convince your taste buds you’re not in France (just ignore all the sunburned Americans stumbling by in novelty shirts, flip flops and lanyards).
Visit my Facebook page to see photos of the special Hawaii-themed brunch we enjoyed. If you’re on a different itinerary, yours will be itinerary specific and I STRONGLY suggest you attend.
Sorry to keep referring you to my Facebook page, it just keeps me from having to type and post everything twice.
Should you think I’m on some kind of health kick ordering avocado toast topped with vegan eggs and buckwheat pancakes for breakfast in the MDR, just prior to this I inhaled 32 buffet pastries. But seriously, I love that vegan eggs, yogurt, and cream cheese are offered on the MDR menu for vegans or just those, like Mr Cruise, who don’t like regular eggs or can’t eat them for health reasons. Mr Cruise asked for scrambled vegan eggs as a substitute on his Indian breakfast plate and they seasoned them up just like the regular eggs and I asked for them fried as a substitute for the poached egg on my avocado toast.
Taking advantage of happy hour (from 3-4, half off any drink priced $11 or less) in the Ocean Bar to sample two of the special holiday cocktails. The Elf Mint Martini was fabulous! If you’re on a non-holiday itinerary, there will be some special port-specific cocktails for you to try.
See my Facebook page for everything we ordered for dinner in the MDR tonight (note also, the I’ve posted the menus for each night in the comments on my Facebook posts).
While the whole world has fallen in love with pickleball, there are three groups left on earth who remain skeptical. Tennis courts, 11 year-olds who love playing basketball on Holland America ships, and the mothers of 11 year-olds who love playing basketball on Holland America ships. Can you imagine what it must be like to be a one of the few surviving tennis courts right now? It’s like being the rotary phone of racket sports. And as the mother of a son who does two things on HAL cruises, eat ice cream and play basketball, I wasn’t initially a fan of the new pickleball courts taking up time and real estate on the sports decks of HAL ships. You mean I can’t just send my kid up to play basketball while I fall asleep in the Crow’s Nest? But good news on the Zaandam, there are separate pickleball and basketball courts! So now young people AND old people can complain about the wind ruining their game! And as it turns out, my son and I have really taken to pickleball on this cruise. You can whack the ball super hard and pretend like it’s the noggin of your enemy (for me that’s the person who leaves his stinky socks all over our stateroom, not naming names, but a quick process of elimination might suggest Mr Cruise).
Well I’ve officially reached the point in my cruise where I’m craving fruit, like my body is screaming, “feed me a vitamin woman!” So we skipped the dining room tonight and I loaded up a plate in the buffet with perfectly ripe pineapple, mango, dragon fruit, and papaya. While the fruit on the Zaandam has been good enough to almost trick my buds into thinking it’s dessert, my brain knows better so after some pesto pasta and a garlic roll, I devoured two different cakes, a crisp, and some ice cream.
The main pool area on the Zaandam features a retractable roof for temperature control, keeping rain out of your giant frozen cocktail, and preventing the wind from turning deck chairs into projectiles (except when revenue is down in the medical center, then they leave it open). And it’s pretty cool (but noisy) to watch it open and close (who says HAL can be lacking in quality entertainment?).
This morning’s second breakfast in the MDR. I’m always impressed with the variety of omelette fillings available on HAL and was tempted to order 5 of the 6 cheeses (I can’t trust the cheese from an animal who jumps up on all manner of s**t to stare me down with rectangle pupils), but it was my designated healthy item of the day, so I got some asparagus and chives with Swiss.
Photo 1: Build you own omelette (asparagus, chives, and Swiss) with Morningstar Farms veggie links
Photo 2: Asian congee
Photo 3: Belgian waffle
Photo 4: Menu
Photo 5: Omelette options
One of our favorite activities onboard the Zaandam has been, “The World/Hawaii Up Close.” These multi-media lectures presented by our cruise director, Bettyann, are highly engaging, well-written, fascinating, moving at times, and most of them have been specific to our itinerary. Even my 11-year-old loves them. Some of the topics we’ve enjoyed so far include: the history of agriculture in Hawaii, the origin of ukuleles and Aloha shirts, and the history of surfing. We’ve also enjoyed having Hawaii ambassadors, a guest professor (dream job), and a naturalist (another dream job) onboard, but more about them later. Do you enjoy this sort of thing on a cruise?
Let me apologize if those two words in sequence prompted a sudden episode of involuntary retching. The same thing happens to me when the words “raisin” and “cookie” appear in close proximity. But I assure you, the buffet sushi and sashimi on the Zaandam is fresh and delicious and included at no extra cost. I’ve only tried the vegetarian rolls, but my husband (who has high standards for food) has tried a wide variety of rolls and can attest to their quality. And even combined with 25 foot swells, no barfing occurred.
A huge thank you to all the crew members, our naturalist @naturalistnattan, and fellow passengers onboard the Zaandam for making H’s 12th birthday so special and memorable. Our waiters sang to him in the MDR and Nat called him up to the stage to recognize him for some conservation work he did at one of our ports AND had the entire audience sing him “Happy Birthday.”
Last night we had the privilege of dining with the Food and Beverage Officer of the Zaandam and his wonderful wife Sascha, who works as a travel writer, along with the Director of Beverage Services. Conversation flowed easily and offered a fascinating first-hand account of work and life at sea and a bit of exciting insider info on things coming to HAL. While I was tempted to be resentful of Sascha for living my dream, I couldn’t help but love her for how warm and friendly she was with my son – making sure he felt comfortable and included and even suggesting a special mocktail he try (which was promptly delivered by our incredible wait staff). It was my son’s birthday and he was surprised with a special cake and song. I’ve included a shot in this post which perfectly captures both how special the crew made him feel and how genuinely kind our wait staff was. Yeah, yeah, yeah, but what did you EAT?!?! While I was engrossed in conversation and didn’t remember to photograph everything, I promised you a money shot. My husband has been dying to try the “Lobster 2 Way,” created by Iron Chef Morimoto and pulled the trigger tonight since our meal was comped (there is normally a $25 supplement for this dish in the MDR). He said it was fabulous and worth the $25 he didn’t have to pay for it (lol). I’ve also thrown in a photo of my main course (Beyond Beef Stuffed Squash) if anyone (Bueller, Bueller) wants to see the veggie option.
Did you initially book a Holland America cruise because you heard others comment about the “little touches” that distinguish Holland America from other lines? No? Just me? In any case, some of the special little touches I love on Holland America include the gorgeous fresh flowers, blue and white Royal Delft china used in the dining rooms, and complimentary Elemis bath products provided in every cabin category (including separate conditioner and lotion). And if you’re brave enough to use a cruise ship public restroom and smart enough to scrub your hands down to the subcutaneous fat layer after, you can wipe off the water and blood with the lovely little hand towels provided as an alternative to rough paper towels in every bathroom.
We’ve had some gorgeous sunsets on this cruise and last night’s was one of them!
There are usually complimentary waffle cones available at the ice cream station, you just have to ask for them. And for those new to Holland America, the hard ice cream is really high quality with delicious rotating flavors. Some of the flavors we’ve enjoyed: rocky road, pistachio almond, eggnog, banana, stroopwafel and caramel, butter pecan, raspberry cheesecake, and mint chocolate chip.
Starting the new year off right with…cake! “Cake Me Away” is a complimentary cake extravaganza offered on most Holland America cruises. It takes place in the Lido buffet and offers 14 different cakes with vegan, gluten free, and sugar free options. And the cakes are really high quality and delicious – something you’d pay $12-$15 a slice for at a bakery in my home city of Seattle. Scroll through for the menu and share which ones you’d order. I did NOT order one of each (ok, yes I did). Here was the menu followed by some serious cake porn.
Wide, wraparound outdoor promenade decks are one of my favorite features of Rotterdam-class ships on Holland America and I spend my usual time each day on the Zaandam walking while listening to an audio book and scanning the horizon for UFO’s (since I have a better track record of seeing those than whales and dolphins). I never reach my desired number if steps though as the comfortable padded loungers are like little devils on my shoulder tempting me with a nap.
While there are generally far (FAR) fewer kids on HAL ships (which is the appeal for many adults, myself included), they are often my son’s favorite cruises because HAL does youth/family programming so well and the vibe is less crowded and chaotic than other lines. Today they hosted a family carnival with games, raffle prizes, an ice cream buffet, and cotton candy machine. Not to brag, but I dominated at that clown smashing game like it was personal.
Considering what’s happened on other lines regarding room service over the past few years, my breath is bated waiting for an inevitable announcement from Holland America that the awesome room service situation is changing. Sorry for going all fatalist on you and maybe I’m wrong (I mean, it’s happened a time or two). We’ll see. But in the meantime, I’ll continue to enjoy the extensive, complimentary room service offerings on HAL. Not only is there a dedicated room service menu available, you can also order any item from the main dining room as long as it’s open. Like we did tonight!
My kid kept me up 4 hours past my usual bedtime of 9pm last night to ring in the new year by jumping into the pool fully clothed. And that was BEFORE the free champagne. Anyway, 10 steps to an elevator to the dining room to sit upright for an hour in real clothes was more than I had in me tonight, so I ordered a full meal from the MDR menu to be delivered via room service. For free (we always tip $1 per dish)! Here’s what I ate in bed in my PJ’s while watching Netflix:
Chile Rellenos
Ricotta and Spinach Tortellini
Grilled Asparagus and Artichoke
Dulce De Leche and Coconut Tart
Crème Brûlée
You’ve probably heard rumors about the passenger demographic on Holland America cruises, right? Well here’s a typical afternoon on the Lido deck to give you a sense of what to expect. (But for those wondering, the average age on the Zaandam for our sailing is 75.)
I affectionately refer to this one as “Qdoba at sea.” I say “affectionately” because Qdoba is my favorite land-based fast food restaurant. This complimentary taco/nacho/burrito bar, with an extensive selection of premium toppings, is located near the main Lido pool on the Zaandam and open for lunch. Unlike Qdoba and almost any other food option on the Zaandam, it’s self-serve, so you can construct your dream nacho tower and won’t have to keep asking for, “more cheese please!”
When in Mexico…eat Mexican food on a cruise ship.
Photo 1: Three cheese vegetable enchiladas
Photo 2: Mushroom cheese quesadillas
Photo 3: Tortilla soup with mushrooms
Photo 4: Tres leches
If I had to choose my #1 favorite food-related feature of the Zaandam (and HAL in general), it would be the dining room breakfast. The menu is extensive, delicious, vegan friendly (with coconut yogurt and vegan eggs as available substitutions), and has a large selection of international offerings you won’t find on any other line. We ate there almost every morning, ordering multiple items each, and barely made it all the way through the menu. While I can think of many reasons to book a longer cruise, getting to sample all the delicious breakfast items is definitely among them.
There was really only one thing that bugged me on the Zaandam and that was the main buffet line, which was confusing and inefficient and understaffed. Other than that, I loved everything about the Zaandam – the quality of the food, the enrichment programming, the music, the crew, the special little touches, the port specific offerings, the Happy Hour drink specials, the wrap-around promenade deck, the pools, and on and on and on. So, would I sail on the Zaandam Again? Yes! And in fact, I did! This was my second time onboard and I’d sail on the Zaandam again and again and again! If you’re lucky enough to be booked on her, have a fabulous cruise (and eat lots of dessert for me)!
Is this gal with H a hippo at the San Diego Zoo (where we ended up when our flight back to Seattle was delayed) or Prof Cruise post 16 day cruise?
Answer: Both
And with that…
Class Dismissed!
I ALWAYS buy travel insurance to cover my cruises, but I NEVER purchase it through Holland America. It costs more and usually covers less than policies you purchase on your own. I go through sites like travelinsurance.com* to compare plans and prices and get the best deal for the coverage I want. Just enter some basic information such as your travel dates and total costs and see a list of quotes. Compare prices and coverage and read reviews. Spend less on insurance and spend more on excursions, special onboard cruise experiences and…future cruises!
Homework (10 points): Share to the comments any questions you still have about the Zaandam or your own experience cruising on her. Let’s learn from each other!
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