GandJTravels

Back to Sea — Here We Go Again

Well, here we are again!

Apparently we enjoyed last year’s adventure a little too much because we have once again packed our bags, hauled everything down to the ship and climbed aboard the Zaandam for another rather long trip across the Pacific.

And yes, this is very similar to the Legendary Voyage we did in 2025.

Obviously, we liked it!

This time we are starting in Vancouver on October 4 and heading south. The first part of the trip is an 11-day cruise down the Pacific Coast to Mexico and then back to San Diego.

Then, on October 15, we don’t get off the ship. We continue, in the same stateroom for part two on the beautiful Zaandam.

The second cruise is the Legendary, 35-day Legendary Hawaii, Tahiti & Marquesas voyage, also aboard Zaandam. Holland America has put together quite a trip for this one, taking us from San Diego to Hawaii and then on across the Pacific to French Polynesia and the Marquesas before eventually bringing us back to San Diego. Holland America lists this as one of its 2026–27 Legendary Voyages.

So when we put the two cruises together, we are looking at 46 nights aboard Zaandam.

Yep.

That’s a lot of nights.

And a lot of meals.

And a LOT of laundry.

First Stop — Mexico

We left Vancouver October 4, and the first few days were all about getting into cruise mode.

There were several sea days as we head south before reaching San Diego. From there we continued toward Mexico, with scheduled stops at Cabo San Lucas, Pichilingue (La Paz) and Mazatlán, before eventually returning to San Diego on October 15.

So the first part looked something like:

Vancouver → sea days → San Diego → sea day → Cabo San Lucas → Pichilingue/La Paz → Mazatlán → sea days → San Diego.

This is where we had a bit of cruise interruption, on two fronts, front one was Hurricane Simon, the second, well, let’s just say did cause a pause in our anticipated journey. Hurricane Simon and its track prevented us from being able to visit the port in Mazatlan but for us this was okay as we needed to give ourselves a bit of a breather. As this blog main focus remains on our travel journey, we will simply say that after the four day crossing we had a week aboard the ship taking it easy and getting us ready for the Legendary portion of our trip.

So I believe with last year’s incredible weather that there maybe some adjustments need to be made to accommodate.

The weather on our 2025 Legendary trip was almost ridiculously good for much of the voyage. We kept looking at the forecasts and wondering when our luck was going to run out. The weather gods remained on our side so our luck never did run out.

This year I’m sure Mother Nature will be happy to correct us.

October can be a bit of a mixed bag as we head south from Vancouver. We could get beautiful sunshine and calm seas.

Or we could get rain.

Or wind.

Or big waves.

Or all three at once.

And then, as we get farther south, hopefully we will start seeing more of the sunshine and warmth we remember from last year.

But we aren’t making any predictions.

We learned our lesson.

We’re just going to take whatever the Pacific decides to give us.

Although we did bring our sense of adventure for whatever the Pacific will throw at us.

On October 15, we arrive back in San Diego.

Here rather than going home, like many on the ship, we stay aboard Zaandam and start 35 more nights of cruising.

This is the part we have really been looking forward to.

The Hawaii, Tahiti & Marquesas cruise takes us from San Diego across the Pacific to Hawaii, then south toward French Polynesia and eventually into the Marquesas.

The scheduled itinerary includes:

San Diego → Nawiliwili, Kauai → Honolulu → Kahului, Maui → Kona → sea days → French Polynesia → Rangiroa → Huahine → Bora Bora → Raiatea → Papeete → Moorea → Fakarava → Nuku Hiva → sea days → San Diego.

The itinerary has also changed since we originally booked it, so Fanning Island is no longer part of the cruise.

That’s cruising.

You make plans.

The cruise line makes plans.

The weather makes plans.

And eventually somebody decides what we’re actually doing.

We’ll just go with it.

One of the highlights of this trip will be the amount of time we have in some of these places. There is an overnight in Honolulu and an extended stay in Papeete, along with a later departure from Bora Bora. Those longer calls are one of the things that make these Legendary Voyages so interesting. (Holland America)

And, of course, there are a couple of things that make the trip even more fun.

We cross the International Date Line but only to transit through it, our clocks or in our case our date will not need to change. This is because of the funky line surrounding this arbitrary date line, lol. So we gain time, lose time, we cross the equator twice and then there is the weather.

The Pacific is a very large ocean and October and November can produce just about anything. We could have calm seas and blue skies for days on end, or we could get a reminder that we are sitting on a relatively small piece of metal in the middle of a very large body of water.

Personally, I am voting for calm seas.

And sunshine.

Lots of sunshine.

But after last year, I’m not getting too confident.

We have packed rain gear.

We have packed warmer clothes.

We have packed summer clothes.

Basically, we’ve packed everything.

So whatever happens, we should be prepared.

Probably.

Why Are We Doing This Again?

That’s actually pretty easy to answer.

We loved the 2025 Legendary Voyage.

We enjoyed the longer stretches at sea, the smaller Zaandam, the relaxed pace and, of course, getting to places that aren’t exactly on the average vacation itinerary.

There is something very nice about unpacking once and then letting the ship do the work.

We don’t have to drive anywhere.

We don’t have to find hotels.

We don’t have to pack every few days.

Given the time changes, we just have to figure out what time dinner is.

And where we’re going tomorrow.

And what day it is.

So here we go again.

Vancouver to San Diego.

Mexico.

Back to San Diego.

Hawaii.

Across the Pacific.

French Polynesia.

The Marquesas.

And eventually, San Diego again.

Forty-six nights.

One ship.

A whole lot of ocean.

And hopefully a whole lot of sunshine.

We’re looking forward to sharing the trip with everyone who follows along with us.

We’ll see what happens.

There will undoubtedly be some great ports, some interesting people, some good meals, some not-so-good meals, plenty of sea days and, knowing us, a few adventures that weren’t actually on the itinerary.

And if the weather cooperates, we’ll be very happy.

If it doesn’t…

Well, that’s what coffee, books, trivia and a covered deck are for.

So, once again…

Welcome aboard!

Not our ship but a bow in made for a better picture. lol.

Thank you Aaron and Karen for hosting us and the Galapagos group while in San Diego.

Oh, the last few days of a longer cruise—always a whirlwind, always action-packed, and always leaving us wondering how time slipped by so quickly. These final sea days were no exception. The officer-vs-guest competitions wrapped up with great fanfare and, in the end, resulted in a perfectly fitting tie. Honestly, could there be a better ending?

We also enjoyed a fabulous crew show, one of our favourite events on any voyage. It never fails to amaze us just how much talent lies behind the hardworking crew members who take such exceptional care of us every day. Singers, dancers, performers—there’s no shortage of hidden skills onboard, and the show was a reminder of just how multi-talented this team truly is.

Then came our last dressy night, where the crew once again pulled out all the stops to give us a beautiful, memorable closing to our voyage. A few days ago, one of the younger crew members asked if I liked motorcycles. I said yes—though not quite enough to ride one! Well, out of nothing more than champagne corks and wire, he created a miniature Harley-style bike, a true little masterpiece. Thank you, Ginan—you are an artist through and through.

On our final day, the ship’s officers held an auction for the navigation charts used and displayed throughout the cruise. The proceeds go into the crew fund, which makes the whole event even more meaningful. Bidding started slowly, but momentum built quickly, and in a flurry of hands and excitement, both charts sold for $2,000 each. A fantastic result—well done indeed.

As we close out this voyage, our gratitude goes out to the entire crew. This team is truly top-notch. Special thanks to our wonderful cabin stewards, May and Aji, who were so attentive and detail-oriented—right down to remembering that we prefer our sheets untucked. Such a lovely touch. In the dining room, Mika and Yudha were always ready with a smile, thoughtful suggestions, and the occasional gentle nudge to try something outside my comfort zone. And of course, my Lido breakfast duo, Carlo and Rocel , who—very early on—remembered not only my name but my quirky little breakfast order. Fantastic.

The list really does go on, from bar staff to wait attendants to the many team leaders who keep everything humming behind the scenes. And then there’s the guest factor—the unpredictable variable that can make or break the tone of a cruise. This time? What a crowd. People came “bells on,” as they say. Participation was through the roof, not only at the evening balls and themed events but also with guests dressing up and leaning into the fun. We met so many wonderful people, both new friends and familiar faces from past adventures.

And finally, a tip of the hat to our cruise director, Clare—warm, personal, and absolutely instrumental in setting the tone for this incredible, truly legendary voyage.

All in all, a wonderful cruise—so wonderful, in fact, that we may just consider doing it all again next year. Lol… we shall see.

Finally, we hoped you enjoyed our version of this amazing legendary adventure, thank you for coming along and thank you for your comments and emails. We do have some more travels coming up and we welcome you to come on back and join in our fun. A note to some of you that have asked, please check our older blog posts for additional information on many of these ports as well as other ports around the world. In the most part, our planet is an amazing place with amazing people and are just looking for a smile and a hello… Until our next adventure… Cheers!