How an iconic Charles Darwin quote was oh so relevant on my cruise

Travel Weekly’s Teresa Russell recently had rather the interesting experience while traversing the Tasman Sea onboard MS Noordam. From lavish dining to a rocking band and (unfortunately) bouts of sea-sickness, Russell tells all on her latest sailing. Read on below!

“If it wasn’t for seasickness, all the world would be sailors.” – Charles Darwin

My confessions upfront: I never thought I’d like a cruise ship holiday. My recent Holland America Line cruise was very different to my only other cruise on an expedition-sized cruise ship into the Norwegian fjords. Oh, and I’ve got serious form in the motion-sickness department!

MS Noordam, a Vista class ship, accommodates up to 1924 passengers, but had 1750 when I was aboard with 800 crew. MS Noordam, named for the northern compass point, offers a 14-day Australia and New Zealand cruise from Auckland to Sydney. I boarded in Dunedin with my lucky plus-one for the second week of the cruise. I was lucky too, travelling with my best friend who lives interstate.

Noordam in NZ Fjords (Holland America Line)

Departing via the stunning Otago Harbour, we passed the only mainland colony of albatross in the Southern Hemisphere. Just prior to this avian highlight, the captain announced that due to weather conditions including 52 knot winds and a swell of up to 10m, we wouldn’t be entering the Fiordland National Park the next day and would, instead, cruise towards Hobart at a slower rate to avoid the bad weather in the Tasman Sea. Our cruise highlight turned into a lowlight. That night I took the first of many travel sickness tablets. Sometimes they worked.

Our cabin on the upper veranda level 6 was clean, comfortable and cared for by two delightful attendants who were always ready to help. They greeted us by name when we arrived. It was impossible to fault the level of professional service provided by every MS Noordam employee. You can check out all the ship has to offer online, but here are the highlights. The 7-piece band playing in the Rolling Stone Lounge rocked every night, and the Billboard Onboard lounge featuring two grand pianos and their duet performers who played chart-topping hits seemed to delight their audiences at every show I saw.

It doesn’t matter where you dine on MS Noordam, there’s something for everyone. There’s the lavish à la carte Dining Room, the Lido Market buffet and two specialty restaurants, the Pinnacle Grill (lobster tail with eye fillet recommended) and Canaletto, serving fine Italian cuisine. My travel companion, who has run licensed restaurants all his life and knows food and wine very well, was delighted each night with the availability from the well-selected, international wine lists.

My favourite place on the ship was sitting in the Crow’s Nest bar in the afternoon, playing hard-fought games of Scrabble with my friend (as we’ve been doing irregularly for decades). We each relished this time together. My experience made me realise that there are five things that can make or break a cruise: who you travel with – and that’s on you; the weather, which is in the lap of the weather gods; the food, which was excellent on MS Noordam; your own health and safety; and the service.

I interviewed the ship’s doctor, bringing my ex-Coronary Care RN experience to the fore. COVID is here to stay. Dr Ronaldo Manoos and his team capably manage the few dozen COVID passengers on each cruise. The two doctors are trained in Internal and Emergency Medicine and have backup via telemedicine to a top Texas hospital and from their three onboard RNs.

The last night farewell following an interesting presentation by the crew about how the ship works.

MS Noordam is well-equipped to manage up to three ICU patients and all other urgent care. Tell all your clients to get good travel insurance. A single visit to the onboard doctor costs USD$350!

A special shout-out for MS Noordam’s cruise and travel director, Christopher Pappas, who quietly defused a situation involving a very grumpy elderly guest, missing religious books and a daily Catholic prayer event. It was a masterclass in professional service that was a pleasure to observe.

(Featured Image: MS Noordam in Sydney)

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MS Noordam