Holland America vrs. Princess

[fedexpackage]

We are booked on our first Holland America cruise on the Eurodam going to Canada New England. We booked a SS category. We have been on 11 Princess cruises and usually book mini-suites. Are there many differences between the two. I am a bit concerned about this cruise as I have read several mixed reviews about Holland America and have always enjoyed Princess. We are taking this ship for it's itinerary. Thanks for any help. Linda

[T739]

We are just back from a cruise on Sapphire Princess, our second on Princess. We have cruised with HAL at least a dozen times. Both are very good products. You will like your cabin better on HAL, and service levels will generally be equal or better throughout. The Lido Buffet is much easier to navigate on HAL, and the choices are better. I would rate traditional dining very similar on both lines. If you prefer a variety of venues and times for dinner, Princess has more to offer. The Princess ships are typically larger and carry more passengers. I have not had a bad cruise on either line, and with the Eurodam being brand new, I believe you have selected a winner. Have a great trip.

[LoveMyBoxer]

Don't know the Eurodam, but we sailed once on the Noordam from NY last New Year's. We also just cruised on Princess in July on the Crown. We had sailed twice before on Princess (original Pacific Princess). We found HAL to be slightly better than Princess. Princess ships have too many passengers per square footage, and we felt very crowded. Also, the service on HAL was much better than on Princess. The food was about the same with a slight edge to HAL. The suites and mini-suites just seem bigger on HAL, and they are also not positioned right under the pool deck, as they were on the Crown. Hope this helps.

[penk99]

We had our very first cruise on Princess to the Mexican Riviera and it was the best vacation ever.....that was until the next cruise on HAL to Alaska, which then became the best vacation ever.....and so on and so forth ~ you can figure out where I'm going with this one...:p

I would say that each has an excellent product. We found the accomodations on HAL to be an upgrade. I also like the decor a bit better - seemed a little more refined, warmer. We enjoyed the anytime dining on Princess with the different restaurants. The service on HAL seemed a little better than Princess, probably because the passenger to crew ratio was higher. They seemed to want to go above and beyond for us, which is always nice.

We got hooked on HAL because of the overall experience - it seemed to be just a little step above. That being said, I wouldn't hesitate to go back to Princess if there was an itinerary I really loved. But somehow, I always seem to search the HAL cruises first and find one right away. I don't think you will be at all disappointed with HAL. I know I haven't been!:D

[CrystalWater]

We are just back from a cruise on Sapphire Princess, our second on Princess. We have cruised with HAL at least a dozen times. Both are very good products. You will like your cabin better on HAL, and service levels will generally be equal or better throughout. The Lido Buffet is much easier to navigate on HAL, and the choices are better. I would rate traditional dining very similar on both lines. If you prefer a variety of venues and times for dinner, Princess has more to offer. The Princess ships are typically larger and carry more passengers. I have not had a bad cruise on either line, and with the Eurodam being brand new, I believe you have selected a winner. Have a great trip.

I second this and agree with all that you said, except from my experiences, I feel Princess has the edge on the dining room food over HAL. I'm sure the Eurodam will be a great choice though!

[fedexpackage]

:) Thanks for all yor help. I am feeling much better about cruising on the Eurodam next fall.

[eh2zed]

Both lines provide a good product and I am sure you will have a great experience on HAL. There are differences in terms of ship size, programming, etc. Carnival owns both of these lines and FYI it promotes HAL as a premium cruise line and Princess as a standard cruise line. This equates to a half to full star difference on paper. The actual experience of course can differ according to personal preferences, itinerary, etc.

[Stevesan]

We are booked on our first Holland America cruise on the Eurodam going to Canada New England. We booked a SS category. We have been on 11 Princess cruises and usually book mini-suites. Are there many differences between the two. I am a bit concerned about this cruise as I have read several mixed reviews about Holland America and have always enjoyed Princess. We are taking this ship for it's itinerary. Thanks for any help. Linda

The SS on HAL's Vista class and Minisuites on Princess are very similar in size and layout with maybe more drawer space in the SS.

Although larger than the HAL ships I've sailed, I have enjoyed my three Grand Princess cruises immensely. I have even adapted to Anytime dining to where I now prefer it for it's flexibility. I haven't sailed HAL since June 2005, but I gather from this board that HAL has modified it's dining times to resemble Anytime.

[innlady1]

Our first cruise was on the Caribbean Princess out of Port Everglades; our second on the Noordam out of NYC, and we're repeating that cruise this February.

We enjoyed both lines...and would do Princess again without hesitation. I like the decor in the staterooms better on HAL (the flat screen TV, makeup mirror...and the very comfy beds! They're to die for! The room stewards were comparable, although the service in other areas of the ship goes to HAL. I was impressed with the fine points on HAL...the cloth towels in the public restrooms, the flowers, the teak chairs on the Promenade Deck...the general ship-like feeling of the Noordam...enjoyed the wood and brass compared to the glass and chrome of the Princess.

The only thing that had an edge on Princess was the Anytime Dining. We enjoyed the flexibility of it. We made reservations for the same table and waitstaff each night...but at different times depending upon what we were doing during the day. It worked like fixed dining but on our schedule!

I thought the food was comparable, but enjoyed the Lido more on HAL.

With 3000 pax on CP, you'd never know there were that many on the ship...until the day at Princess Cays when we were lined up like cattle in the theater, waiting to tender. HAL seemed to be able to move pax more efficiently.

[jhannah]

Princess has a fine product, but for us the edge goes to Holland America. The SS cabins are superb, IMO. I like the layout much better than Princess' minis. I'm sure you'll enjoy your HAL experience.

[silvercruiser]

I agree with everything I've just read here, but would add that one negative about HAL is the seating in the large theatres...very uncomfortable benches. Also, it's a bad place for the Captain's party and we just skip them because of this.
Princess wins hands down when it comes to past passenger perks. And if and when you're offered an upgrade, it's a free one, while HAL offers them with a charge.
I love both lines and the pros and cons are really trade-offs.
One more thing: HAL has the best lunch selections in Horizon Cafe of any ship I've been on except the Marco Polo, where they grilled T-bone steaks on the grill at noon.