Half Moon Cay and Two Ships

[SmokinActuary]

I was wondering if you would be tempted to stay on the ship if two ships visited this island at one time?

When we are scheduled to go our ship arrives at 8AM and the Carnival ship arrives at 9AM.

Thanks in advance!

[iflyrc5]

It is a Huge and beautiful beach so if the weather is nice go and have a wonderful time.

[sbtw13]

we were there 2 weeks ago on the Zuiderdam and the Eurodam was there as well. It was fine-- we walked along the nature trail and didn't see a soul. While we did have to wait in line for about 5 mins or so for the buffet we had no trouble finding a nice quiet table in the pavilions- just a matter of going to a further away one. The beach further down was also not at all crowded.

The slowest thing was actually the tender line to go back to the ship-- probably waited for almost 30 minutes, but that had nothing to do with having two ships there.

[jtl513]

When we are scheduled to go our ship arrives at 8AM and the Carnival ship arrives at 9AM.Wherever you picked up that schedule was wrong. HAL and Carnival never have ships there on the same day. (Or at least they haven't for many years, despite what cruisett.com often says!) Two HAL ships, yes. We have been there with two HAL Vistas, and it wasn't terrible.

[jtl513]

Too late to edit my last post. cruisetimetables.com shows that the N.A. and the Carnival Glory will both be there on Nov 21. IF that's correct, I would get off early in the morning long enough to check out the Pirate Bar for myself and take a few pictures from the upper level, and then head back to the ship for my lunch reservation at the Tamarind! :D

4,000 from two HAL ships is tolerable to me ... 5,800 would be something else!

[alpal1993]

Two ships in port yesterday and there was plenty of room and plenty of food to go around.

[Boytjie]

Wherever you picked up that schedule was wrong. HAL and Carnival never have ships there on the same day. (Or at least they haven't for many years, despite what cruisett.com often says!) Two HAL ships, yes. We have been there with two HAL Vistas, and it wasn't terrible.

CruiseTT.com shows both the Nieuw amsterdam and the Carnival Glory in HMC on 11/21. The HAL and Carnival websites also shows that they will be there on the same day. Strange.

[Krazy Kruizers]

wow -- i am really surprised to see that a hal ship and a carnival ship both will be at hmc at the same time

i do remember a few years ago both cruise lines were scheduled to be there on the same day and carnival changed their itinerary

and we were all assured that this wouls never happen

since the cruise date is so far out -- maybe one of the ships will change their itinerary

[kazu]

wow -- i am really surprised to see that a hal ship and a carnival ship both will be at hmc at the same time

i do remember a few years ago both cruise lines were scheduled to be there on the same day and carnival changed their itinerary

and we were all assured that this wouls never happen

since the cruise date is so far out -- maybe one of the ships will change their itinerary

It will be really interesting to see - that will be a lot of people :eek: I hate to make generalizations but I wonder if the pirate bar will be louder if there is a Carnival ship there :confused:

[CruiserBruce]

The schedule may change- we are still 8 months away- in order to keep HAL's pledge.

And, no, two ships wouldn't keep us from HMC.

[jtl513]

Two ships in port yesterday and there was plenty of room and plenty of food to go around.Noordam plus Westerdam totaling just over 3800 is a lot different than Nieuw A plus Glory totaling over 5800.

[kazu]

If there were going to be 5800 people (and I did say IF), I can guarantee we would probably stay on the ship and treat it like our own private yacht :) as long as everyone else didn't get the same idea :D

[SmokinActuary]

I do hope the schedule changes, because almost 6,000 people on that beautiful island does not seem appealing.

[Essiesmom]

Cruisecal also has both ships there that day. Really surprised. EM

[SmokinActuary]

For kicks and giggles I called HAL headquarters in Seattle and spoke to customer service representative about Carnival and HAL using Half-Moon Cay at the same time. At first she said "only Holland America Ships use Half Moon Cay, the other cruise companies have their own islands". I reminded her that Carnival and HAL are both owned by the same corporate parent and Carnival indeed uses Half Moon Cay. At first she disagreed but I told her she was mistaken. She put me on hold and returned to tell me that there would be enough staff on the island to handle the large amount of people, that they have done it before.

Now I have looked at the most that is usually at the island are two Vista/Signature class ships, but the NA/GLory beats that by over 1,000 passengers. Ah well.:o

[bcd2010]

I am under the impression that the two lines cater to different demographics (not only age but in how much partying is done, etc.) and fear that it would not be a good mix.

[SmokinActuary]

At first I was thinking of this as only an inconvenience but after I thought about it more it may be hazardous.

That Monday the ships are visiting the island is Thanksgiving week. Can that Island really handle 1,000 or more kids! The play facilities near the tender are going to be a zoo to say the least.

Monday I am going to call Carnival Corporation and see what they have to say about this.

[innlady1]

When we were at HMC on the Maasdam at the very end of January, the Noordam was also there with a Jazz Cruise. Day of the Pirate ship inaugural. It was perfectly fine.

[Typhoon1]

As jtl mentioned, that's seems unlikely. HAL and Carnival ships don't call at the same time. It's pretty likely you will be the only ship there, or another HAL ship. That's still somewhat crowded, but tolerable.

[artnak]

We were at HMC 2 years ago with both the Eurodam and the Zuiderdam.
It was tolerable ... not quite as nice as when only one ship is there.
We tend to head to the far end of the beach .. just beyond the last cabana and with 2 larger ships there were only few lounge chairs available by 11 am.
Can't imagine what it would be like with 1800 more people. :eek:
I'll have to look more carefully when choosing any future cruises, because we consider HMC ... a nice relaxing day at the beach.
I'm not sure 5800 people would be very relaxing.

[jtl513]

When we were at HMC on the Maasdam at the very end of January, the Noordam was also there with a Jazz Cruise. Day of the Pirate ship inaugural. It was perfectly fine.Noordam + Maasdam = 3176 passengers
Nieuw Amsterdam + Glory = 5804 passengers
That's 82% more people.
I'll have to look more carefully when choosing any future cruises, because we consider HMC ... a nice relaxing day at the beach.
I looked at cruisett.com for other HAL/Carnival combos at HMC and found these:
2/5/12 and 4/15/12 - Liberty and Maasdam
2/20/12 - Fascination and Westerdam
If the schedule for 11/21/11 holds, these are three more cruises that you may want to avoid.

[innlady1]

Noordam + Maasdam = 3176 passengers
Nieuw Amsterdam + Glory = 5804 passengers
That's 82% more people.

Considerably more! :eek:

[Krazy Kruizers]

we have been to hmc when there were 2 vista class ships there -- the worse area was the long lines at the bbq and to get drinks at any bar

if we were on a cruise when a carnival ship was there -- we will definitely stay on the ship

[Krazy Kruizers]

At first I was thinking of this as only an inconvenience but after I thought about it more it may be hazardous.

That Monday the ships are visiting the island is Thanksgiving week. Can that Island really handle 1,000 or more kids! The play facilities near the tender are going to be a zoo to say the least.

Monday I am going to call Carnival Corporation and see what they have to say about this.

you are right -- the children's area will be a zoo

i'll be curious to see what answer you get from carnival

I am under the impression that the two lines cater to different demographics (not only age but in how much partying is done, etc.) and fear that it would not be a good mix.

jmo -- and i agree with you -- carnival has a reputation for being the fun ships with more of a party group

[GmaPajama]

I don't think it could ever happen ... a Carnival Ship and a HAL Ship at HMC at the same time. We once saw a Carnival scheduled for our HMC day, but it got changed about 4 months out. It's just not something that's ever been done, and with good reason.

[catl331]

Noordam + Maasdam = 3176 passengers
Nieuw Amsterdam + Glory = 5804 passengersThe Carnival ship alone is 524 more than the Maasdam and Noordam combined. :eek:

It's just not something that's ever been done, and with good reason.Just the bookkeeping for the bars, shops, and excursions would be a huge hassle. And who furnishes the food?

[GuyFromOK]

It will be really interesting to see - that will be a lot of people :eek: I hate to make generalizations but I wonder if the pirate bar will be louder if there is a Carnival ship there :confused:
I have enjoyed the island traveling on HAL and also on Carnival. Yes, there is a noticable difference in the environment between the two. Espically in the Pool....

[Krazy Kruizers]

I don't think it could ever happen ... a Carnival Ship and a HAL Ship at HMC at the same time. We once saw a Carnival scheduled for our HMC day, but it got changed about 4 months out. It's just not something that's ever been done, and with good reason.

jtl513 looked ahead and saw that there are 3 more dates where a hal ship and a carnival ship will be at hmc together

hope this sn't going to become a regular practice

[jtl513]

jtl513 looked ahead and saw that there are 3 more dates where a hal ship and a carnival ship will be at hmc together
On checking further I see that cruisetimetables.com and the Carnival site disagree with cruisett.com about the Liberty being there on 4/15/12, so that leaves just two.

[CruiserBruce]

Lets not jump to any conclusions here. It hasn't happened yet (Carnival and HAL at HMC at the same time), it is against their stated policy, the potential conflicts are at least 6-7 months away, and there is definitely a history of changes made to avoid having a Carnival and HAL ship there at the same time.

The sky is not falling.

[SmokinActuary]

I do not think the sky is falling but I am learning something new about potential rescheduling!

Now if there isn't a rescheduling it should be a VERY interesting day on Half Moon Cay. :-)

[SmokinActuary]

OK - here is my prediction. If they make a change either the Carnival goes to another Bahamas and the HAL itinerary stays the same OR the Carnival itinerary stays the same and HAL by passes Half-Moon Cay and has a sea they stops at either Grand Turk or San Juan on the regularly scheduled sea day.

The worst case for me would be stopping at San Juan!:cool::D

[Himself]

Several years ago I was there on the Zuiderdam and the Amsterdam was in with us and it was not bad at all. But I would think If I was in with the mob scene from Carnival in might be too much.

[CruiserBruce]

OK - here is my prediction. If they make a change either the Carnival goes to another Bahamas and the HAL itinerary stays the same OR the Carnival itinerary stays the same and HAL by passes Half-Moon Cay and has a sea they stops at either Grand Turk or San Juan on the regularly scheduled sea day.

The worst case for me would be stopping at San Juan!:cool::D

Given HAL was the original owner (I know, Carnival owns HAL, but HAL is the original) and developed HMC, I would assume HAL has priority. It seems the common solution done is to flip-flop itineraries. That is, in most cases HMC is either the first, or last stop on the cruise. So, an itinerary get flopped, from having HMC on the first day after sailing from FLL, to be the last day before arriving back at FLL. Or vice versa.

[jtl513]

Several years ago I was there on the Zuiderdam and the Amsterdam was in with us and it was not bad at all. But I would think If I was in with the mob scene from Carnival in might be too much.
Zuiderdam + Amsterdam = 3300 passengers
Nieuw Amsterdam + Glory = 5804 passengers
That's 63% more people.
The Glory alone is 3700.

...and HAL by passes Half-Moon Cay and has a sea day
or HAL goes to Nassau, or ... neither ship gets in to HMC because the sea is too choppy for tendering. That happens 25>30% of the time.

[OCruisers]

It will be quite interesting to see "End of Story" on this. :D

[SmokinActuary]

Thanks! I really find this interesting.

[SmokinActuary]

Now this has turned into an exercise of how HAL and/or Carnival would revise their itineraries to avoid setting a precedent of a HAL and Carnival Cruise ship of HMC,

I tried to reverse the itineraries in question and assuming cruisett is correct and assuming no other itineraries would change, a simple reverse itinerary would not work for either line.

Reversing the NA itinerary would put it on HMC with two other HAL ships, and reversing the Glory's itinerary would but the Glory on HMC with the Eurodam!

[SmokinActuary]

Well I spoke to Carnival and they said the HMC can handle the two ships and each ship will have its own activities (including Children activities) on shore.

So far it sounds like they have no intent to change the itineraries.

[jtl513]

Well I spoke to Carnival and they said the HMC can handle the two ships and each ship will have its own activities (including Children activities) on shore.:eek: Ridiculous response IMO. There's only one food serving area, one set of bars and shops, one venue for each excursion, one set of cabanas. There's no way they can effectively separate the two ship brands, which carries an entirely different set of problems than two ships of the same brand.

[SmokinActuary]

:eek: Ridiculous response IMO. There's only one food serving area, one set of bars and shops, one venue for each excursion, one set of cabanas. There's no way they can effectively separate the two ship brands, which carries an entirely different set of problems than two ships of the same brand.

I came to the conclusion that they don't know what they are going to do just yet and that they were giving me some rote answer.

I guess I will just have to wait an see.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Well I spoke to Carnival and they said the HMC can handle the two ships and each ship will have its own activities (including Children activities) on shore.

So far it sounds like they have no intent to change the itineraries.

sounds as though they have no idea of what is going on

:eek: Ridiculous response IMO. There's only one food serving area, one set of bars and shops, one venue for each excursion, one set of cabanas. There's no way they can effectively separate the two ship brands, which carries an entirely different set of problems than two ships of the same brand.

yes -- one of everything -- one children's area -- same areas for excursions

hope we never encounter a situation like this

[jtl513]

An afterthought - IF they mix the two brands, I wonder if HAL people will pay Carnival's cheaper price for the cabanas, or if Carnival people will be charged HAL's $299? ;)

[Krazy Kruizers]

i thought of that

also different prices for drinks and shore excursions

wonder what carnival provides at their bbq?

[SmokinActuary]

wonder what carnival provides at their bbq?


Isn't there a hunting shore excursion?

[sbtw13]

I saw on a carnival thread (I would like but I haven't the foggiest idea how to do this) that if a Carnival ship and HAL ship were scheduled for HMC at the same time, Carnival substitutes Nassau for the Carnival ship.

[jtl513]

It would make sense to me for Carnival to go to Nassau or Freeport instead, but ... we'll just have to wait and see.

[Krazy Kruizers]

I saw on a carnival thread (I would like but I haven't the foggiest idea how to do this) that if a Carnival ship and HAL ship were scheduled for HMC at the same time, Carnival substitutes Nassau for the Carnival ship.

that's what was done a few years ago when carnival made a few stops at hmc

[SmokinActuary]

Yup,

Just have to wait and see.

[jankn]

We have been at HMC several times and, more often than not, two ships are there at once but have never seen another cruise line there. Are there any other private islands owned by Holland America Line ? Just wondering if Carnival usually goes to some other location for their "beach day".....

[SmokinActuary]

It is not on cruisett yet but the Carnival Site has changed the itinerary of the Glory from HMC to Nassau.

I guess this goes to show don't put much stock in itineraries this far out from the cruise date.

[CruiserBruce]

And put any stock in the many of us who said there won't be a Carnival and a HAL ship there at the same time?;)

[SmokinActuary]

well that too! :o

[Typhoon1]

And put any stock in the many of us who said there won't be a Carnival and a HAL ship there at the same time?;)

:):):):)