Tips for planning a Canada/New England Cruise

In early June, my husband and I took a Canada/New England cruise on Holland America’s Zuiderdam, from Quebec to Boston. For those planning the same trip, I wanted to provide my thoughts on the cruise.

Montreal and Quebec City, Quebec

Flying into (or out of) Montreal a few days early was perfect. It’s a nice city, with a great Old Town. Buy souvenirs in Montreal as they’re a little less expensive than in Quebec City.

Beaver tails are delicious. I ate one in Montreal, and was very happy they served them a couple of times in the Lido Market on the ship.

We took the Via Rail train from Montreal to Quebec. It was a slow ride, and not especially scenic, but it was relaxing and easy.

In Quebec, we took an Uber from our hotel in Old Town, to the top of the Montmorency Falls, walked down the wooden steps, then called another Uber to pick us up from the bottom of the falls. Total Uber cost was about $30. Much cheaper than a tour, and we got to come and go when we wanted.

We arrived at the cruise terminal at about 12:30 p.m., and were on the ship, had visited our cabin, and were eating lunch on the Lido deck by about 1 p.m.

The Zuiderdam

The ship is beautiful, and the crew was exceptional. All crew members were friendly and courteous. Surprisingly, many of the waiters in the Lido Market remembered us within a couple of days, and one even knew our name!

We had an oceanview cabin, on the port side of the ship under the casino. It was a nice location. It was quiet, and a short walk to the elevator where we could easily go to the Crow’s Nest, or to the elevators that faced outside the ship, where we could quickly access the Lido Market buffet. The room was clean, and our stewards were awesome.

We ate most of our meals in the Lido Market, because we like the flexibility and food choices. I’m a vegetarian, and found plenty of tasty food for me. We did eat in the Pinnacle Grill one night (to use our credit from the Have It All package). The food was good, and it was nice to be pampered.

Viewing wildlife

Keep your eyes peeled to spot whales from the ship. We saw several whales, although they were only fleeting glimpses, not like what you’d hopefully see on a whale watch trip. On our second day of cruising in the seaway, I momentarily saw one beluga right next to the ship as I was eating in the Lido dining area. I saw another whale (unable to ID the species) briefly from our oceanview window when we were in the seaway. Plus a couple more fleeting glimpses from the Lido while in the seaway. I also saw a whale from the Crow’s Nest a few hours before we arrived in Portland. Although I knew we’d be going through areas with whales, I didn’t expect to see any from the ship, so even the brief glimpses were magical.

The onboard entertainment

We’d looked forward to hearing the Rolling Stones lounge band, but were disappointed. We felt the band lacked cohesion, and had song choices that didn’t match the set descriptions. Hopefully the band got better with practice. 

We enjoyed music trivia in the Billboard Lounge. We also enjoyed listening to the Billboard Lounge piano singer. She was fun.

Arrive early to the art room if you want to participate in any of the art lessons on sea days. There was a line both times I wanted to participate. Once, I arrived only 10 minutes before the class began, and there wasn’t space for me. For the next class, I arrived 20 minutes before the class began, and I was the last person for which there was space

Charlottetown, P.E.I.

In Charlottetown, we reserved and rented a car from PEI Car Rental (a 10-minute walk from the port) and drove to Cavendish Cliffs, walked to the beach, then to Green Gables Heritage Place, to a restaurant for lunch, then down to a lighthouse in Victoria before returning to Charlottetown. A wonderful day on our own.

Sydney, N.S.

In Sydney, we had a lazy day, with nothing planned. We saw The Big Fiddle which is right next to the port. We walked around downtown and the boardwalk, took a tour through the Cossit House (which was interesting). It’s a nice little town, but not many shops were open. We were back on the ship for lunch and stayed onboard. If we could do it over again, I think we would have booked an excursion or checked on car rentals and visited either the Fortress of Louisbourg, or a portion of the Cabot Trail. Unfortunately, Uber is not available in the town.

Halifax, N.S.

In Halifax, we took an Uber to Fairview Lawn Cemetery, where some Titanic victims are buried, then another Uber to the top of the Citadel. We then walked down to the Maritime Museum, and back to the ship. The total Uber cost was about $20, and allowed us to spend as much time as we wanted at each place.

Portland, Maine

Immigration back into the states in Portland was easier than expected. We waited for our shore excursion number to be called, then waited for about 20 minutes in a line inside the cruise terminal.

In Portland, we used our Have It All package shore excursion credit to book the Portland Head Light, and Fort Williams tour. It is described as a two-hour tour visiting the lighthouse and fort, with a guided tour through the city. It was awful. Our tour guide made questionable jokes, then was upset we didn’t laugh. The park was absolutely beautiful. Unfortunately we only got to stay there for 30 minutes before we had to get back on the motorcoach to endure an hour-long drive through the city, where we learned and saw very little. I checked, and instead of taking the tour, we could have taken an Uber to the lighthouse and back for only about $30, a fraction of the tour cost. And we could have stayed there for as long as we wanted.

Boston, Massachusetts

Coming into the Boston cruise port was easy. We took an Uber to the airport, where we rented a car. It was a short and inexpensive ride. Note that you do have to take a short shuttle ride to the Uber pick up area. 

Overall, we enjoyed this trip, and being on this ship. If you’re planning your own Canada/New England cruise, best wishes!