Mexican Baja Cruise

MS ZUIDERDAM: Holland America’s MS Zuiderdam (pronounced Zy-der-dam) made her inaugural cruise in 2002. She was the first of four Vista-class ships launched, followed by Oosterdam in 2002, Westerdam in 2004 and Noordam in 2006. Carrying 1,848 passengers, these ships are Holland America’s third largest design, but they still have an intimate feel to them. Zuiderdam’s gross tonnage is 82,000 and she is 300 metres long. Her 11 decks feature a 900-seat live entertainment theatre, seven lounges, casino, shopping arcade, movie lounge, beauty shop, library, games room, Internet centre, spa, gymnasium, and two swimming pools (one with sliding dome cover). Zuiderdam has 14 elevators and four of them are glass with panoramic views. Dining is one of the highlights of a cruise. The elegant two-floor Dining Room serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner with full choice of menu. The Lido Market offers six buffet-style serving stations for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and the 11 pm buffet. The Pinnacle Grill, Canaletto, and Morimoto by Sea restaurants offer extraordinary service, reserved seating, and gourmet menus for an extra charge. You can also dine in the privacy of your stateroom by ordering from the complimentary room service menu 24 hours a day. Staterooms have twin lower beds (some convert to queen-size double), television, music, telephone, and bathroom with toilet, sink and shower or bathtub. A crew of over 800 ensures top-quality service and entertainment. Every day has a full schedule of optional activities: dance class, bridge, bingo, shuffleboard, table-tennis, karaoke, and board games. The movie theatre presents recent films frequently, there is an entertaining live stage show every evening, and musicians are playing in most lounges.

Please book early: Cruises are incredibly popular nowadays. Ships are filling up faster and earlier than they once did, so waiting too long to book usually means “Sorry, wait till next year.” Holland America has confirmed a block of staterooms for this cruise and they are normally held until 90 days before sailing (midOctober 2026). However, any unsold staterooms can be taken away from us at any time if the ship or even a category fills. This occurs on most of our group cruises, then we must turn away disappointed customers, even though seats are available on the connecting motorcoach. Therefore, please don’t delay booking this tour.

Dinner reservations: The Zuiderdam offers both open dining and fixed dining. Open dining is standard, so you can go to a restaurant when you are ready with your friends or make a reservation earlier in the day. If you prefer to dine at the same time with the same people each day, we can request this. The specialty restaurants take reservations on board and you should do this early in the voyage, or you can book online up to 3 months before sailing.

Shore excursions: All your shore excursions should be booked when they become available on Holland America’s website, usually 3 months prior to the cruise. The popular shore excursions fill up early (such as those mentioned in the itinerary), so booking on board may be too late.

Included lunches: The above itinerary shows an included lunch on every cruise day. These lunches are on the ship, so if you book a shore excursion, you may miss an included lunch if you are not back on board at lunchtime. There is no compensation for missed lunches.

Flight seating: We are unable to take requests for window or aisle seating on the planes, no matter what class you are booked in. The airline will not accept them, as group seating is assigned as a block. If this is important to you, we suggest you take the “No Flight” option with a fare reduction of $850 and book your own flight which allows seat selection. Please refer to our Terms & Conditions for more information about taking the “No Flight” option.

Flight upgrades: Please enquire about current prices for upgrades on the flights to and from San Diego. Business class or premium economy may be available.

Flight delays or cancellations: In the event flights are delayed or cancelled by airlines due to weather or other reasons, there may be additional costs to you. Wells Gray Tours will not pay for hotel rooms and meals during the delay. Most travel insurance policies cover expenses incurred for flight delays.

Food Allergies on cruises: You must notify us no later than at final payment if you have a food allergy. An allergy causes medical distress, a preference does not. Most food allergies can be handled at meals on the ship, but you may have to order 24 hours in advance. For some allergies, please consider bringing your own snacks or food items so you are not dependent on what restaurants are able to serve.

Payments: A deposit of $500 per person is requested at time of booking and balance is due October 15, 2026. By paying the deposit, you agree to the Terms & Conditions, Activity Level and Cancellation Policy outlined. Payments can be made by online banking or cheque (3% discount on tour fare), or by Visa or Mastercard.

Early Booking Bonus: Receive a $250 discount on the first 12 seats and $125 on the next 8 seats for booking early with deposit. The discount is not offered after October 15, 2026.

Cancellation Policy: Up to September 15, 2026, the cancellation charge is $100 per person. From September 16 to October 15, the cancellation charge is $300 per person. From October 16 to November 13, the cancellation charge is 50% of the tour fare. From November 14 to December 15, the cancellation charge is 80% of the tour fare. After December 15, there is no refund.

Itinerary and Fare Changes: Our many suppliers may notify us about changes to the itinerary prior to departure and sometimes during the tour. We do our best to substitute a similar service if something cancels, but occasionally the only alternative is to provide a refund for the missed activity. Please note that if we are forced to cancel a tour component due to an issue beyond our control, the current penalties still apply if you choose to cancel the entire tour. Fuel surcharges and changes to taxes, currency exchange rates, or other tour costs can occur at any time, therefore Wells Gray Tours reserves the right to increase fares due to such changes up to departure.

Travel Insurance: A Comprehensive Insurance policy is available through Wells Gray Tours and coverage is provided by Travel Guard. Policies purchased at deposit include a waiver of the pre-existing condition clause for medical and cancellation claims, otherwise policies can be purchased no later than at final payment. Medical questionnaire is not needed. Please contact us for details. If you have your own travel insurance, please read the policy carefully to be sure that you are adequately covered for medical, cancellation, interruption, and luggage. Please do not travel to the USA without medical insurance as a minimum.

Photo Credits: Holland America Line (Cabo San Lucas, La Paz, Zuiderdam ship and pool deck), Adobe Stock (Arches at Cabo San Lucas), and Wikimedia (Mission de Loreto).

Experience Points or E-points: This tour earns 120 e-points. Each time you travel on a Wells Gray tour, you earn e-points that are added to your account after the tour returns. One e-point equals $1. Redeem your earned points on select tours or accumulate enough points to earn a free tour! Redemptions offered until October 15, 2026.

Consumer Protection BC Licences: Kamloops 178, Vernon 655, Kelowna 588, Penticton 924, Victoria 65842