Westerdam vs. Veendam?

[satchiesmom]

We have a cruise booked on the Westerdam for next Jan. but are considering switching to the Veendam which sails at the same time. We have sailed once on HAL (on the Westerdam) and loved it, but I read so much from HAL enthusiasts about the smaller ships being favored. The Westerdam itinerary is great (HMC, Aruba, Curacao), the Veendam is typical Western Caribbean.
We will be in an inside cabin this time due to budgetary restrictions. (DH's company is being bought out, don't know about job retention).
Which ship would you recommend? Itinerary doesn't matter so much to me as the ship experience.

Thanks,
Susan

[Tonklily]

We sailed the Veendam in February (Caribbean) and May (Alaska) of 2005. Loved it! However, we have booked the Westerdam for February of 2006, primarily due to its itinernary, which includes Aruba. I am confident that we will enjoy the Westerdam as much as we enjoyed the Veendam. Hope this helps. Happy sailing.:)

[CJcruzer]

We sailed the Veendam last summer to Alaska, the Westerdam this past Feb. to the Caribbean.....

The Veendam is a smaller, "classier", a little more elegant and has a cozier feel to it....the dining room on the Veendam is gorgeous!, I found the food and service on the Veendam to be slightly better, the lounges more intimate and cozier, the Wajang theatre more comfortable than the theatre seating on the Westerdam. Being a smaller ship, I felt the service and attention was better on the Veendam... I was late seating in the dining room on the Westerdam, so that may have affected the service (the waiters, servers being more tired toward the end of the evening).

The Westerdam had better evening entertainment, a litle more lively (but that could have been due to the Caribbean itinerary vs. the Alaskan), and I really enjoyed the thalassotherpay pool and thermal suite with their heated mosaic lounges. On a positive note, I never felt crowded on either ship - hubby and I always found lounge chairs by the indoor pool, and even tho the Westerdam carries approx 600-700 more people, you really did not feel like you wer herded!!!

Both ships are beautiful, IMO, I would choose the itinerary over the ship, but you can't go wrong with either one.

[peaches from georgia]

If I was only considering the ship I would take Veendam absolutely without a doubt. Loved it. Haven't been on the Westerdam, but her sister ship Oosterdam was not one of our favorites. However, Aruba and Curacao are 2 of our very favorite ports and if you haven't been to both of those islands I would say you should seriously consider the Westerdam itinerary in making your decision. :)

[packercruising]

We sailed the Veendam in February (Caribbean) and May (Alaska) of 2005. Loved it! However, we have booked the Westerdam for February of 2006, primarily due to its itinernary, which includes Aruba. I am confident that we will enjoy the Westerdam as much as we enjoyed the Veendam. Hope this helps. Happy sailing.:)

We were on Veendam Southbound 5/28-6/5, 2005. What was your sail date? Veendam was great! We liked the smaller ship, especially for Alaska.

[elmorejj]

We sailed the Veendam in February (Caribbean) and May (Alaska) of 2005. Loved it! However, we have booked the Westerdam for February of 2006, primarily due to its itinernary, which includes Aruba. I am confident that we will enjoy the Westerdam as much as we enjoyed the Veendam. Hope this helps. Happy sailing.:)



Hope you mean Feb. 07, otherwise you`ve missed the ship!!!.....jean:cool:

[Tonklily]

Dear Packercruising: We sailed May 14th, Southbound, as well. And, yes, I did mean, February 2007! Thanks, to whomever pointed that out!:)

[satchiesmom]

Jean - OOPS! I do mean 2007! We haven't been to Aruba or Curacao and were looking forward to seeing those ports, but the Veendam itinerary looks pretty good also. I took a second look and it has some ports we haven't been to (Belize, Santo Tomas de Castilla) and one we have and love (Key West). Decisions, decisions. We were originally booked for the Jan. 7th Westerdam, but then it was chartered, so we were bumped off. Some of the decision will depend on whether the shipboard credit we received for having to change our original booking is transferrable if we change our new booking. Sigh.
Thanks for your input everyone.

Susan

[Krazy Kruizers]

Itinerary is more important to us than the ship.

Have sailed on the Westerdam. Have not sailed on the Veendam but have sailed on her sister ships.

[RuthC]

I've sailed all the S-class ships, and the Noordam. All things being more-or-less equal I would book the Veendam over a Vista.
On the smaller ships you are more likely to run into the same people more often. Since the lounge stewards have fewer passengers it's easier for them to get to know your names/preferences.

The atmosphere is just more conducive to being made to feel like a "guest".

[Stevesan]

The S Class ships have unmatched forward viewing decks - a big plus in Alaska!

[satchiesmom]

Thanks so much for all of your replies, you folks are great. It's funny with all of the X vs. HAL posts on both boards, we started out cruising with X and stayed there thinking that we would never change lines. Then we went on the Westerdam last Jan. and fell in love. The service, ambiance, food, BEDS and everything else were just far superior in our humble opinion(s). I don't know what that has to do with this thread, but I just felt like saying it!:D
That being stated we have decided to go with our current booking because we found some exciting shore excursions for Aruba and Curacao on the Shoretrips site.
Thanks again for your help, I think we will book the Veendam next year. HAL cruisers are the best.

Susan