All right! Just booked the Amsterdam

[johnlcruise]

So excited.
We(4 of us) just booked the Amsterdam for Oct.30th. 10days of great sailing and doing the Panama Canal.
This will be my 6 HAL cruise with 20 something cruise's under my belt.
I'm really looking forward to sailing the MS Amsterdam. I love the smaller ships and heard nothing but good things about her and the crew. :)

[AlohaPride]

So excited.
We(4 of us) just booked the Amsterdam for Oct.30th. 10days of great sailing and doing the Panama Canal.
This will be my 6 HAL cruise with 20 something cruise's under my belt.
I'm really looking forward to sailing the MS Amsterdam. I love the smaller ships and heard nothing but good things about her and the crew. :)

Congratulations! Don't forget the Halloween Costumes ;) It should be so much fun!!

[luv2cruise450]

She's a beautiful ship with a terrific crew and staff! We did the full transit of the Panama canal with her and it is a fantastic experience!
And so far...of all the ships that we've been fortunate enough to sail with...she is our very favorite ship!
Happy sailing!

[Alexborngal]

So excited.
We(4 of us) just booked the Amsterdam for Oct.30th. 10days of great sailing and doing the Panama Canal.
This will be my 6 HAL cruise with 20 something cruise's under my belt.
I'm really looking forward to sailing the MS Amsterdam. I love the smaller ships and heard nothing but good things about her and the crew. :)

We sailed to Hawaii on her last December. It was our first HAL experience and we are now true blue HAL fans. Immediately booked Zaandam Mexican Riviera for October 22 and Zaandam Circle Hawaii December 2007 as these were the itineraries we wanted.

The shows were outstanding. The Amsterdam singers and dancers are the best of any entertainers we've ever seen. The orchestra is unbelievable. They quickly adjusted to each entertainer who boarded the ship to entertain us. The crew was wonderful - all of them had genuine smiles for us. Wait until you eat in the dining room and the Lido - you're in for a major treat. Pinnacle was wonderful also. I especially liked the fact that we weren't hustled for drinks and we were able to watch the shows without people constantly asking us if we wanted another drink. When we called them they were there right away.

Have a great cruise.

Joan

[Alexborngal]

She's a beautiful ship with a terrific crew and staff! We did the full transit of the Panama canal with her and it is a fantastic experience!
And so far...of all the ships that we've been fortunate enough to sail with...she is our very favorite ship!
Happy sailing!

We did the Circle Hawaii on the Amsterdam last December and loved her. We're booked on two Zaandam cruises. Have you sailed the Zaandam? How does she compare to the Amsterdam? Thanks.

[luv2cruise450]

Hi Alexborngal...both of these ships are beautiful. The Zaandam sizewise is about the same as the Amsterdam...but holds 1440 pax as compared to the Amsterdam's 1380 pax. Both have the same amount of decks (10)...just laid out a little differently. The Amsterdam has the big Astolabe Clock Tower in the atrium while the Zaandam has a big pipe organ. The 'theme' of the 'Z' is music and you will find that reflected thru out the ship. When we were on board the 'Z' she didn't have the Pinnacle Grill; the alternative restaurant was named the Marco Polo and served a delicious Italian cuisine. But the similarities outweigh the differences and both have all the hallmarks of HAL's sailing traditions. The crew and staff were great and the beautiful classic sailing ambiance is there. The refined dining experience and the beautiful flowers are everywhere.
But the Amsterdam is the co-flagship of the HAL line and IMO she does have that intangible little something extra that puts her just a hair's notch above most of the rest of the fleet. I can't pinpoint it but it's there. And the Amsterdam, along with the Rotterdam and the Prinsendam usually do the longer sailings and to some...maybe the more prestigious sailings (these 3 ships are the ones usually designated for the World cruises and/ the Grand Voyages). Anyway...you will enjoy sailing the Zaandam if you've already fallen under the spell of the Amsterdam!
I don't know if I've answered your question but Happy sailings!

[Krazy Kruizers]

Congratulations!!

We have sailed on the Amsterdam a couple of times - most recently Mar/Apr - love the ship.

[kryos]

So excited.
We(4 of us) just booked the Amsterdam for Oct.30th. 10days of great sailing and doing the Panama Canal.
This will be my 6 HAL cruise with 20 something cruise's under my belt.
I'm really looking forward to sailing the MS Amsterdam. I love the smaller ships and heard nothing but good things about her and the crew. :)
Trust me, you're gonna love sailing her. In fact, I'll be getting off the day you are getting on. I'm sailing the Amsterdam on the 17th of October ... from New York, same basic itinerary, for 13 days.

Maybe we'll see each other at the pier. I'll be the one they're carrying off the ship ... kicking and screaming. :)

Blue skies ...

--rita

[Crazy]

The Amsterdam is a great ride.

We were onboard last December for the Holiday cruise to Hawaii and everything was perfect.

Enjoy

[Grumpy1]

I'll be the one they're carrying off the ship ... kicking and screaming. :)

Blue skies ...

--ritaAs if you will be the ONLY one that doesn't want to leave..:D

[Alexborngal]

Hi Alexborngal...both of these ships are beautiful. The Zaandam sizewise is about the same as the Amsterdam...but holds 1440 pax as compared to the Amsterdam's 1380 pax. Both have the same amount of decks (10)...just laid out a little differently. The Amsterdam has the big Astolabe Clock Tower in the atrium while the Zaandam has a big pipe organ. The 'theme' of the 'Z' is music and you will find that reflected thru out the ship. When we were on board the 'Z' she didn't have the Pinnacle Grill; the alternative restaurant was named the Marco Polo and served a delicious Italian cuisine. But the similarities outweigh the differences and both have all the hallmarks of HAL's sailing traditions. The crew and staff were great and the beautiful classic sailing ambiance is there. The refined dining experience and the beautiful flowers are everywhere.
But the Amsterdam is the co-flagship of the HAL line and IMO she does have that intangible little something extra that puts her just a hair's notch above most of the rest of the fleet. I can't pinpoint it but it's there. And the Amsterdam, along with the Rotterdam and the Prinsendam usually do the longer sailings and to some...maybe the more prestigious sailings (these 3 ships are the ones usually designated for the World cruises and/ the Grand Voyages). Anyway...you will enjoy sailing the Zaandam if you've already fallen under the spell of the Amsterdam!
I don't know if I've answered your question but Happy sailings!

Thanks for your answers. I'm sure we'll have great experiences on both our Z cruises. Guess Marco Polo has been replaced by Pinnacle as I got Pinnacle dinners as part of the promo.

I'll keep checking itineraries and see if we can go on the Amsterdam another time.

Thanks again.

Joan

[newmexicoNita]

Thanks for your answers. I'm sure we'll have great experiences on both our Z cruises. Guess Marco Polo has been replaced by Pinnacle as I got Pinnacle dinners as part of the promo.

I'll keep checking itineraries and see if we can go on the Amsterdam another time.

Thanks again.

Joan
Hi Joan, so we run into each other again. Of course we are excited about our HAL cruise coming up in November. We already love the Amsterdam just from what we have read. As much as I like the activities on the larger ships, there is something very special about the smaller ones, I think it is a combination of service and intimacy. We decided to go with a guaranteed cabin (outside G) hope we get a good upgrade, but if not as long as we are outside everything will be fine. I want to thank you for your positive feed back, it has helped us so much. NMnita

[kryos]

As if you will be the ONLY one that doesn't want to leave..:D
LOL ... good point, Grumpy. There will probably be a whole slew of us being dragged down the gangway. :)

Blue skies ...

--rita

[Alexborngal]

Hi Joan, so we run into each other again. Of course we are excited about our HAL cruise coming up in November. We already love the Amsterdam just from what we have read. As much as I like the activities on the larger ships, there is something very special about the smaller ones, I think it is a combination of service and intimacy. We decided to go with a guaranteed cabin (outside G) hope we get a good upgrade, but if not as long as we are outside everything will be fine. I want to thank you for your positive feed back, it has helped us so much. NMnita

Hi again Nita. Somewhere on the boards I read that the Amsterdam has a certain something that sets it above the rest. I asked HAL yesterday about how the Zaandam compares and it's just a slight bit lower on the wonderful scale - and that's perfectly fine for me. We're going on the Zaandam on Oct. 22 to the Mexican Riviera and December 2007 to Hawaii. If I wrote this before, sorry for the duplication. I'm all over both boards. I am soooo addicted!

Wasn't feeling well this past weekend and spent most of three days on the boards. Yikes!

Did you see my post about Christine's CSUN graduation in 1993?

By the way because of CC I've met terrific people who are going on the Oct. 22 cruise. Can't wait to meet them and it'll be our first cruise where we'll actually have people to spend time with. Yessss!!!! I usually spend my sea days roaming around the ship and my husband loves to stay in the cabin and watch tv so this is the first time I'll have company during my roaming around. Yeah for CC - it rocks!!!! Would you believe I'm in my 60s an "speaking" this way? Oh well, I'm young at heart.

Take care.

[Alexborngal]

LOL ... good point, Grumpy. There will probably be a whole slew of us being dragged down the gangway. :)

Blue skies ...

--rita

So, if I get the picture right - if there are more people who are dragees than there are dragers, would some people get to stay on the shp? Where do I sign up for that cruise?

By the way kryos - I'm sure you know that kryos means cold in Greek?

[kryos]

By the way kryos - I'm sure you know that kryos means cold in Greek?
No, it means "icy cold." :)

Long story ... back in another life, I used to be a "cryonicist." Now there's a new one for you to figure out. :)

Blue skies ...

--rita

[SDHALFAN]

No, it means "icy cold." :)

Long story ... back in another life, I used to be a "cryonicist." Now there's a new one for you to figure out. :)

Blue skies ...

--rita

"Cryonicist" - freezes people at the time of death in the hopes that doctors of the future will be able to reanimate the corpse! OMG:eek: .

By the way Rita, Alexborngal, who is a friend of mine, is half Greek (half English) and was raised mostly by her Greek mother, grandmother and aunt. The woman does know her Greek, in fact it was her first language before French and English - just so you know that you are not dealing with an amateur here.

As for me: Scottish to the core, I would not have had the slightest idea what a Cryonicist was unless I looked it up in the dictionary.

Blue skies to you also.

Valerie:)

[kryos]

"Cryonicist" - freezes people at the time of death in the hopes that doctors of the future will be able to reanimate the corpse! OMG:eek: .

Bingo! :)

Actually it's a valid concept and the only thing preventing its success is the cellular damage caused by the death process and the freezing process itself. Once that is worked out, who knows? Medical science is capable of amazing feats.

I used to be the East Coast Coordinator for a company called TransTime ... this was back in the 70s. Did a bunch of talk shows about the subject ... hence, I got the nickname "kryos."

Actually, by birth I am half Italian and half Greek. I was adopted at 18 months, though, and raised in an entirely Italian family ... so Greek is not in my background.

Blue skies!

--rita