I have a new favourite ship!

A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of visiting the MS Zuiderdam!  As Holland America ships don’t come to Southampton much I jumped at the chance to get on-board and have a look around!  The MS Zuiderdam is a mid-sized ship holding around 2000 passengers.  I noticed when stepping on-board however that there seemed to be more space per passenger than many other mid-sized ships which is great when you want to find a spot to sit and have a drink or sunbathe!

The décor on-board the ship really surprised me!  It has recently been refurbished and looked gleaming from this!  The décor is beautiful with an abundance of fresh flowers, interesting sculptures and artwork wherever you turned.  You really got the feeling that a lot of thought had gone into every detail of the ship!   The public spaces flowed in a lovely way into each other and special mention also has to be made for the amazing lifts.  I have not seen this kind of effort go into the design of the lift doors on any other ship!

The deck area was beautiful with snack areas including a taco and nacho stand!  The buffet restaurant was laid out with tables set with utensils, glasses and flowers meaning it felt like far more than just a canteen.  We enjoyed dinner in the Main restaurant which was lavishly decorated.  I enjoyed my shrimp cocktail, beef tenderloin and chocolate orange tart very much and the standard of food and service did not disappoint.

Holland America are very focused on the exploration experience for their passengers including getting the most out of all the stops on the itinerary and really educating the passengers the places they visit.  This is very apparent in explorations central at the crows nest on-board.  This is an area unlike any other I have experienced on-board.  It in cooperates the library with touch screen devices developed to educate passenger on each port of call.  There are areas where port talks take place up there too and lots of information, so customers can navigate around ports if they wish rather than having to book an excursion.  Holland America do however offer some very immersive and different excursions to really allow their passengers to get into the heart of each destination, so I think these are worth investigating further!

Another excellent feature on-board is ‘America’s Test Kitchen’ which we were told is a very popular show based on the hit American cooking show!  Evenings on-board sound great with highlights we were told about being the B.B. King’s Blues Club and duelling Piano’s as well as spectacular shows in the beautiful theatre on-board.  I would love to sail on-board and experience this for myself.

We offer some amazing deals to all areas of the globe with Holland America.  Here’s just a few of our latest offers:

https://www.cruise.co.uk/cruise-guides/eblast-hal-product-03july18/?affref=debbiec

If you wanted to discuss any cruises, please call me on 03333002638 and I’d be happy to help find you the perfect cruise.