1st timer on HAL very long westy 12/9-12/16

[sweetair]

After 45 cruises (mostly celebrity and princess)..this was my first HAL cruise Westerdam dec9-dec16.
Itinerary: day at sea/grand turk/puerto rico/st thomas/day at sea/half (_l_) cay

Embarkation: extremely smoothe at 3pm. I carried on 4 bottles wine and a case of water No problem.

Room 1015 inside cat J: I bought an inside guarantee and was upgraded to this. The room was very well laid out (except for the flat screen tv) and appeared much roomier than the balcony. The TV is severely angled towards the couch and only the person on the left side of the bed can really watch it. The room is square and if you want to envision the room...facing the outside door open it..to the direct left is a sleeper couch that is L shaped..back wall has a vanity..next to vanity are 3 closets. Next wall is empty..back wall has the bed and has the bathroom. There is no entranceway and plenty of room to get dressed. Hope i explained it correctly.

Dinner: table 89 Round table for 11 8pm upper: waiter PUTU(excellent): We got the table after embarkation..1 person in our group went to maitre'd and requested it (thanks ann)
Brought wine to dinner every night...no corkage..sommelier got a tip each night
Our table has an unusual way of eating We love to try all the entrees so we each order one and he delivered all in the center. Nothing ever went to waste.. and we got quite a variety!

Pinnacle grill: $30 charge:$15 corkage: adequate food Steak very very good: not worth the extra expense. Besides the steak, the chocolate volcano was yummy..last night dinner in dining room Warm chocolate pudding was EXACTLY the same!
1 person requested shrimp cocktail as a starter and was refused (hmmmm makes ya wonder??)

buffets: i liked the layout...breakfast: i loved the waffles after you get them crispy(whipped cream and peanut butter as requested)..i liked the eggs anyway you wish station
Lunch: taco bar was all i tried

Room service: WARNING they just show up and knock...WRITE on DELIVERY TICKET Please call before delivering! Then you will hear them knock and also be prepared!!!
We had an excursion that ran until 10pm so we missed dinner..room service satisfied that :)
breakfast delivery i got a HOT omelette and waffle (not until after 8am)

Day1: sea day: pictionary at noon then 1 trivia game

Day2: grand turk: weather too windy and rough because of Olga...could NOT stop..refunded $14.73 port charges and got 1 glass of champagne at dinner(they could have given 1 free drink instead)...1 trivia game

day3: puerto rico: took bus to marriott stellaris to lay on the beach..there was a "protest" near the caribe hilton LOTS of police activity..held the bus up for awhile.kinda scary.
At 3:45pm we went on the bio-bay excursion. I absolutely loved it...stopped at rest area for food and bathroom break to wait for sunset then approached the bay. 2 person kayaks are usually very stable..hardest part of paddling is where the boats are moored.

day4:st thomas: we used st thomas excursions to book a 3 beach snorkel We used HOMER> He was truely fantastic and did anything we requested...1st stop secret harbor beach: secluded beach, good snorkeling...next stop sapphire beach...Water was way too rough..beautiful blue waters. Next stop: MALOFIE hotel...AMAZING VIEW!!!! Next stop Coki beach:EXTREMELY crowded GREAT snorkeling. Great for kids to see lots of fish close to shore. Then we went to Homers house for lunch. Salads sandwiches soda,beer chips then the last stop was hull bay By then we were really tired. 3 people on the beach.

day5:sea day 1 trivia game

day 6: half (_l_) cay: rented the grand oasis cabana: AWESOME is the best way to describe it $1200 for up to 12 people Additional people $100 each
Comes equipped with FULL bar and bartender 9am-1:45pm,
/butler/personal chef ...food choices: steak,mahimahi,ribs , chicken,burgers,hot dogs along with salads and fruit,brownies cookies Snacks and dips also provided.
2 bathrooms/full shower/8 person hot tub/snorkel gear and floaties

Entertainment: helen and the hell cats were absolutely the WORST thing i have ever heard on any ship Saying she was OFF-KEY was an understatement..I guess HAL doesnt care because most onboard probably just turned off their hearing aids!!!

nightly shows: Illusionist: very funny guy Better at humor than illusion..fun to see

Comedian: funny guy You NEED REFILL NOWWWWWWWWWWWW!

Crew Show: i really liked this...some very talented crew members.

Casino: won and lost Had fun There are a few newer slots...1/2/5 cent plus the usual quarter and dollar. Saw a few nice wins

disembark: fast and easy...i liked the fact that you could use your room until you actually leave the ship!!! I used express baggage and it worked out great.

MY opinions and impressions: i will say although i liked the ship and the staff i felt the age demographic was way higher than i expected. I think my next HAL cruise will be in 35 years or more. I would have liked a bit more activities to choose from. More daytime games more daytime trivia more poolside activities...I would have loved to watch them carve some fruits or carved the ice sculptures.

I had 1 major minor bathroom problem at 3:30AM. I thought it was handled very poorly. They called me at4am to see if it had been fixed Then called again at 4:30 am to check to see if it had been fixed. I got very little sleep and at 7am it still wasnt fixed. i went to the front desk and told them it does not take 4 hours to get the toilet to flush unless nobody bothered to try and fix it. Lo and behold It was fixed by 730am

a special thank you to those who made the meet and greet fantastic and to hans from beverage services for alcoholic beverages and cookies :)
Fun meeting all of you guys!

juice it up!!!!!
*sweet*

[Seago2]

Thanks for your review!

[kakalina]

Thanks for taking the time to post your review. Glad you enjoyed your first HAL cruise.

[hammybee]

Thank you for taking the time to share your perspective.

With 45 cruises under your belt, I think you know the game, well. Booking an inside guarantee on a pre holiday 7 day Caribbean cruise has got to be one of the all time great bargains, when viewed from a base cost per day perspective. I am surprised that you did not realize that sailing, at this time of year, especially from Florida, means you are likely to be sailing with a majority of retired folk.

Most people are satisfied when Room Service is delivered in the window ordered. I am not aware that any hotel or cruise line calls before delivering what was ordered. It most certainly has never been my experience, and I have sailed on most mass marketed cruise lines and stay in Marriotts, Hyatts and occasionally the 4 Seasons hotels.

Most people take responsibility for themselves and set their alarm clock before the delivery is expected. Imagine if every passenger made the same request to be called before delivery- oh my stars, that could be almost 1000 phone calls, on a ship like the Westerdam.

[our turn]

I agree that I would never expect to be notified of delivery when I had specified the time to begin with. However, a couple of times on our 12/02 Westerdam cruise, we did receive a call prior to delivery. On the Millenium, this past February, the butler called every morning before delivery.

[CroozeAddict]

Thanks for the review! We sail on the Westerdam next month and can't wait. I'm hoping we get good dining room service. Seems to be a hit or miss thing.

Thanks again.

:cool:

[Jo-Bob]

I have only been on 3 cruises, (2 on HAL) but with each and every room service order, each and every time, I have been called 5-10 minutes prior to the delivery of the order. It's a pretty nice gesture, not sure it's a matter of 'taking responsibility for oneselves".

[localady]

Thank you for taking the time to share your perspective.

With 45 cruises under your belt, I think you know the game, well. Booking an inside guarantee on a pre holiday 7 day Caribbean cruise has got to be one of the all time great bargains, when viewed from a base cost per day perspective. I am surprised that you did not realize that sailing, at this time of year, especially from Florida, means you are likely to be sailing with a majority of retired folk.

Most people are satisfied when Room Service is delivered in the window ordered. I am not aware that any hotel or cruise line calls before delivering what was ordered. It most certainly has never been my experience, and I have sailed on most mass marketed cruise lines and stay in Marriotts, Hyatts and occasionally the 4 Seasons hotels.

Most people take responsibility for themselves and set their alarm clock before the delivery is expected. Imagine if every passenger made the same request to be called before delivery- oh my stars, that could be almost 1000 phone calls, on a ship like the Westerdam.

Hammybee- Just FYI- When we were on the Infinity in May they would call appx 5 minutes before to let you know room service was on the way. It was nice as it gave me time to pull on a robe before they arrived. It was a nice touch and the room service guys got to see a less scary me!!;) :D

[hammybee]

I agree that I would never expect to be notified of delivery when I had specified the time to begin with. However, a couple of times on our 12/02 Westerdam cruise, we did receive a call prior to delivery. On the Millenium, this past February, the butler called every morning before delivery.

Not my experience on X, but then again, I have only sailed inside cabins on X and did not include butler service.

[mafig]

Is this the itinerary that you stay 13 hours in Puerto Rico?

We are considering this itinerary next year on Eurodam, and we would want to rent a car and tour the complete island on our own.

Aside from the bad weather, how did you like the itinerary?

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for taking the time to write your review.

[localady]

Not my experience on X, but then again, I have only sailed inside cabins on X and did not include butler service.
Hammybee- We were in a Concierge Class cabin, no butler service. It may have been an add on for that cabin though, as we had a larger breakfast menu than other cabin classes.
I had to agree that it was a nice touch, whether it's doable ship-wide is another thing.....

Thanks to the OP for a great review!:D

[starysacz]

Thank you for the review. Enjoyed reading it.

[sweetair]

To all those who questioned the phone call before breakfast delivery...
Every cruise on celebrity i have taken (22), they have always called prior to room service delivery and 20 of those trips were in INSIDE cabins.

HAL did follow the request and called 5-10 minutes before delivery It was great. Just write it on the breakfast request order.
It must be protocol for HAL to call 30 minutes after room service to see if everything was satisfactory.

Mafig:We were in PR 15 hours because we missed our grand turk port of call. I only took this Itinerary because of grand turk and half (_l_) cay. Loved half (_l_) and would do that again in a heartbeat if it were possible to do without a HAL ship ;) Never got to grand turk so i cant comment. I have been to PR and St Thomas 25 plus times so no excitement there.

croozeaddict: enjoy your cruise..i cant wait to hear what you think!

juice it up!
*sweet*

[alonzo14]

Hi sweet: It was great meeting you at our Meet and Greet!

FYI we had room service 6 or 7 times and were never called either before or after delivery.

[sail7seas]

Thanks for your review. Enjoyed reading your comments.

I think it was generous of the ship to offer free champagne. They really didn't have to as they can't be responsible for weather/rough seas and missing the port due to it. I don't think they needed to offer anything and certainly not a free 'drink of choice'. JMHO.....


We have never been called prior to Room Service delivery and we have it just about every morning. We set our alarm.

Welcome back and thanks for posting your review.

[sweetair]

im glad i requested the room service call Try it! you guys have no idea how great it is..celebrity spoiled me with that.

I forgot to mention about the casino charges...IF you are playing the slot machines...You can have $10-$100 taken from your room card to use at the slots free of service charges up to i believe $1000 daily. If you want money to play the tables or you need cash they charge a 3% charge.
SOLUTION...go to a slot machine..add the money into your account and then go to cashier and cash out FREE of 3% charges It works very well!

*sweet*

[ILoveScotland]

Sweetair, thanks for the review. DH and I are on same cruise as CroozeAddict, and a bunch of us on the Roll Call have booked the Oasis on Half Moon Cay. Any highlights of the Oasis you can share? Our itinerary is different as we're heading to the Southern Caribbean. Our first stop is HMC.

We almost always have room service breakfast. We're still checking out several cruise lines, but NCL, Celebrity and RCCL have all called at least 5 minutes before delivering breakfast. It's made a nice wake-up call. But I'll remember to write a note on the menu when I put it on the door each night.

[sweetair]

ilovescotland: i wrote a review of the cabana on the private islands in port of call.
First thing you will need from all of your group is the size of their feet for flippers (they can call it into shore excursions on embarkation day or you can make a list and deliver it) The person who paid for the excursion will be the room the butler picks everyone up at on the morning of arrival. We wanted the earliest tender but was given priority 9am as the earliest YET there were tenders as early as 8am. i was assuming the cabana would not be ready until 9am...IF i ever do it again i would just go ashore at my earliest time and play on the softest sand i have EVER encountered!
You guys need to be prepared to tip 3 people..the butler (he is with you guys the whole time 9am-3pm) the bartender (with you from 9am-1:45pm) and chef. The chef stays about 1.30 minutes They will ask you guys what time you want to start lunch...we chose Noon and the salads arrived at that time.The PINEAPPLE WAS A WOW!!!!! the chef started cooking. He grilled...
steak,mahimahi,burgers,hot dogs, and had BBQ ribs and chicken.(and he was so cute too hehehe)
Tipping is a personal matter
Be smart and get extra bottles of water from the bartender before he leaves and take them back to the ship (its crystal geyser) I usually finish a case or 2 of water per week...Ask EARLY if you guys want mojitos so they can get you mint.
There is a slide that is strictly for the use of those in the cabana..People will try to use it or get into the cabana..the butler will stop them or you can just politely tell them its private. None of my group are impolite but we didnt want screaming kids all day long using it.
It was extremely relaxing and lots of alcohol!!!! a hammock and 2 person lounger inside along with 2 bathrooms and a full shower.
outside was 4 loungers 4 adirondak chairs and 8 person hot tub.all your snorkeling gear and floaties.
The highlight was just being there after a long week of rough waters and missing a port :)

have a fantastical time and CALM seas and please let me know
*sweet*

[ILoveScotland]

Wow! Thanks, sweetair. I'll pass the info on to the person who's booked the Oasis for us. I'll go over to ports of call and look for your review, too.

[cands]

Now read the review of the same cruise by the same poster on the Celebrity board!

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=678429

[Solo Cruiser]

The one disappointment of my recent cruise was that we couldn't get a CC group large enough to rent the private oasis. Thanks so much for the review and the specific information about what is for me a must do sometime in the future.

[Seago2]

Now read the review of the same cruise by the same poster on the Celebrity board!

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=678429

What is your point? It's essentially the same review.

[cruzinnluvinit]

After 45 cruises (mostly celebrity and princess)..this was my first HAL cruise Westerdam dec9-dec16.
Itinerary: day at sea/grand turk/puerto rico/st thomas/day at sea/half (_l_) cay

Embarkation: extremely smoothe at 3pm. I carried on 4 bottles wine and a case of water No problem.

Room 1015 inside cat J: I bought an inside guarantee and was upgraded to this. The room was very well laid out (except for the flat screen tv) and appeared much roomier than the balcony. The TV is severely angled towards the couch and only the person on the left side of the bed can really watch it. The room is square and if you want to envision the room...facing the outside door open it..to the direct left is a sleeper couch that is L shaped..back wall has a vanity..next to vanity are 3 closets. Next wall is empty..back wall has the bed and has the bathroom. There is no entranceway and plenty of room to get dressed. Hope i explained it correctly.

Dinner: table 89 Round table for 11 8pm upper: waiter PUTU(excellent): We got the table after embarkation..1 person in our group went to maitre'd and requested it (thanks ann)
Brought wine to dinner every night...no corkage..sommelier got a tip each night
Our table has an unusual way of eating We love to try all the entrees so we each order one and he delivered all in the center. Nothing ever went to waste.. and we got quite a variety!

Pinnacle grill: $30 charge:$15 corkage: adequate food Steak very very good: not worth the extra expense. Besides the steak, the chocolate volcano was yummy..last night dinner in dining room Warm chocolate pudding was EXACTLY the same!
1 person requested shrimp cocktail as a starter and was refused (hmmmm makes ya wonder??)

buffets: i liked the layout...breakfast: i loved the waffles after you get them crispy(whipped cream and peanut butter as requested)..i liked the eggs anyway you wish station
Lunch: taco bar was all i tried

Room service: WARNING they just show up and knock...WRITE on DELIVERY TICKET Please call before delivering! Then you will hear them knock and also be prepared!!!
We had an excursion that ran until 10pm so we missed dinner..room service satisfied that :)
breakfast delivery i got a HOT omelette and waffle (not until after 8am)

Day1: sea day: pictionary at noon then 1 trivia game

Day2: grand turk: weather too windy and rough because of Olga...could NOT stop..refunded $14.73 port charges and got 1 glass of champagne at dinner(they could have given 1 free drink instead)...1 trivia game

day3: puerto rico: took bus to marriott stellaris to lay on the beach..there was a "protest" near the caribe hilton LOTS of police activity..held the bus up for awhile.kinda scary.
At 3:45pm we went on the bio-bay excursion. I absolutely loved it...stopped at rest area for food and bathroom break to wait for sunset then approached the bay. 2 person kayaks are usually very stable..hardest part of paddling is where the boats are moored.

day4:st thomas: we used st thomas excursions to book a 3 beach snorkel We used HOMER> He was truely fantastic and did anything we requested...1st stop secret harbor beach: secluded beach, good snorkeling...next stop sapphire beach...Water was way too rough..beautiful blue waters. Next stop: MALOFIE hotel...AMAZING VIEW!!!! Next stop Coki beach:EXTREMELY crowded GREAT snorkeling. Great for kids to see lots of fish close to shore. Then we went to Homers house for lunch. Salads sandwiches soda,beer chips then the last stop was hull bay By then we were really tired. 3 people on the beach.

day5:sea day 1 trivia game

day 6: half (_l_) cay: rented the grand oasis cabana: AWESOME is the best way to describe it $1200 for up to 12 people Additional people $100 each
Comes equipped with FULL bar and bartender 9am-1:45pm,
/butler/personal chef ...food choices: steak,mahimahi,ribs , chicken,burgers,hot dogs along with salads and fruit,brownies cookies Snacks and dips also provided.
2 bathrooms/full shower/8 person hot tub/snorkel gear and floaties

Entertainment: helen and the hell cats were absolutely the WORST thing i have ever heard on any ship Saying she was OFF-KEY was an understatement..I guess HAL doesnt care because most onboard probably just turned off their hearing aids!!!

nightly shows: Illusionist: very funny guy Better at humor than illusion..fun to see

Comedian: funny guy You NEED REFILL NOWWWWWWWWWWWW!

Crew Show: i really liked this...some very talented crew members.

Casino: won and lost Had fun There are a few newer slots...1/2/5 cent plus the usual quarter and dollar. Saw a few nice wins

disembark: fast and easy...i liked the fact that you could use your room until you actually leave the ship!!! I used express baggage and it worked out great.

MY opinions and impressions: i will say although i liked the ship and the staff i felt the age demographic was way higher than i expected. I think my next HAL cruise will be in 35 years or more. I would have liked a bit more activities to choose from. More daytime games more daytime trivia more poolside activities...I would have loved to watch them carve some fruits or carved the ice sculptures.

I had 1 major minor bathroom problem at 3:30AM. I thought it was handled very poorly. They called me at4am to see if it had been fixed Then called again at 4:30 am to check to see if it had been fixed. I got very little sleep and at 7am it still wasnt fixed. i went to the front desk and told them it does not take 4 hours to get the toilet to flush unless nobody bothered to try and fix it. Lo and behold It was fixed by 730am

a special thank you to those who made the meet and greet fantastic and to hans from beverage services for alcoholic beverages and cookies :)
Fun meeting all of you guys!

juice it up!!!!!
*sweet*

Can you tell me who the Captain is on the Westerdam now?

Did you go to all the entertainment opportunites in the evening?

We are going next Sunday and would like any information you have for us since this is a different itinerary.

Linda

[sweetair]

solo cruiser: it was too bad but you still got to experience half (_l_) cay which i LOVED! i would love to find sand like that on any other island :) I am also a solocruiser and i still feel the "bite" of paying double for my cruises. Thats 1 reason this cruise appealed to me...it was cheap to try it.

carlalena:thank you but i ignored cands comment and yes i did write the same basic review but shortened it a bit Maybe cands was upset that i left out the droll details of my day to day activities or every detail of the room layout.

i know that my review would stir different reactions on the 2 boards...i am not a cheerleader for ANY cruiseline (although i have seen quite a lot from the "defenders of their choice") but i know quite a few people that sail celebrity and would be interested in my experience.

*sweet*

[barbon2]

Sweetair,
Hi, I remember you from the Constellation a few years ago, we had a great CC get together.
Have to say, that each experience for us on HAL gets better and better, we booked her again.
I think if you want to do the Caribbean, you may want to try the Eurodam, HAL's newest ship. I think you will find a nice mix on this ship. We are doing her in Dec.
Regards,
Barbara

[cands]

What is your point? It's essentially the same review.

I thought the subtle (and not so subtle) wording differences were interesting.

[Jax6S]

MY opinions and impressions: i will say although i liked the ship and the staff i felt the age demographic was way higher than i expected. I think my next HAL cruise will be in 35 years or more. I would have liked a bit more activities to choose from. More daytime games more daytime trivia more poolside activities...I would have loved to watch them carve some fruits or carved the ice sculptures.




I just got back from Zuiderdam (12/15-22) and I feel the same way. I chose HAL because I was going with my mom (72 yrs old) so I wanted a more upscale cruise for her. But my gosh, the first time I board the ship, it felt like I was walking into a retirement home!

Overall, it was a good cruise. Too old for my taste though. Plus, I feel that the service, food, entertainment are equal to Carnival (actually I feel that they are slightly worse than Carnival.) So I probably won't book HAL again unless my mom want to go on another cruise.

[cands]

carlalena:thank you but i ignored cands comment and yes i did write the same basic review but shortened it a bit Maybe cands was upset that i left out the droll details of my day to day activities or every detail of the room layout.


*sweet*


Oh, gee, maybe it wasn't any of the things you mentioned above.

Maybe it was the Heading:
'i survived HAL but..........'

Or the reference to the cost of your next HAL cruise:
The age demographic was way too high and i definitely might possibly return to HAL in 35 years if the itinerary appeals to me and its nearly free :)

Or this shouting gem:
EXTREME BOREDOM..

I was just suggesting people look at the difference in the style and content of the posts, as modified for a different audience. I thought it was interesting.
I did not really want to have to explain it, but the dismissive post above drew me out.

Cheers,
Steve.

[mafig]

I noticed a different slant on the X board also.

[mafig]

I noticed a different slant on the X board also.

[Sky Sweet]

Can you tell me who the Captain is on the Westerdam now?

Did you go to all the entertainment opportunites in the evening?

We are going next Sunday and would like any information you have for us since this is a different itinerary.

Linda

Hi Linda :)

We were on Westerdam last month during Thanksgiving week. The Captain at that time was Henk Keijer.

I don't know if you like classical music, but there was a wonderful string quartet that played in one of the lounges almost every night that we really enjoyed.

[Elephant Man]

Sweet and Hammybee: We are starting our first cruise on HAL after many cruises on X. We have been told they are about the same in quality and service. Do you agree?

[sweetair]

hiya barbon!!! good to hear from you again :) i am happy that hal is your perfect fit...i wish i liked it enough to get all those great discounts they offer.

cruzinluvinit:sorry we must have posted at the same time. I really cant remember the capts name Thanks Sky :)
I did however see quite a few shows. I really liked the talented crew show Something very different for me. They had an illusionist LEO who was quite funny and a comedian PHILLY who had a few memorable gags. I did not see the pianist but heard he was good. I did not see any of the production shows.

elephantman:i will say for the most part service was good except for my bathroom problem The way it was handled was quite poor and left a bad taste in my mouth.The mostly indonesian staff are very helpful and always smiling Quality was also good I liked the upscale beds and bedding. You shouldn't be disappointed in that

*sweet*

[Sky Sweet]

Sweet and Hammybee: We are starting our first cruise on HAL after many cruises on X. We have been told they are about the same in quality and service. Do you agree?

Hi Elephant Man :)

My husband and I are elite members of Celebrity's Captain club and have only been on one HAL cruise, which was last month during Thanksgiving week. Based on that one cruise, I will attempt to answer your question.

HAL has much better cabins. Our bathroom had twin sinks, a jacuzzi tub, and a separate shower stall. It also has much nicer balconies and cabin furnishings.

HAL's speciality restaurant is not nearly as good as Celebrity's but it has much better food, options, and service in its buffet. The crew in the buffet area were constantly refilling my coffee cup and taking away dishes that were in our way. HAL also has much better fish and desserts than Celebrity.

HAL has a much better disembarkation procedure where you can enjoy your time on the ship until it is time for you to leave.

HAL has much more interesting itineraries, and a wonderful private island.

Maybe it was the time of year that we cruised on HAL, but on our cruise HAL had more younger adults (age 25 to 45) than on most of our Celebrity Cruises.

Even though Celebrity does some things better than HAL, HAL does a lot of things better than Celebrity.

[Elephant Man]

My thanks to both of you. We've been perfectly happy with X but they have no Hawaii itinerary this time of year so we thought we'd try HAL. I suppose this cruise (19 Jan, Circle Hawaii, Zaandam) will give us an excellent opportunity to make a comparison. Again ....... thanks.

[barbon2]

SkySweet,
We also have done quite a few Celebrity Cruises but "moved over" to HAl, at first based on their itineraries. Our first HAL cruise was on the Amsterdam to Alaska and we loved the entire cruise. There was a mixed demographics age wise and the cruise was very port intensive. As you stated the cabins on HAL offer a good size for the money.
After our Amsterdam cruise we still leaned toward Celebrity. As I stated on these boards and the Celebrity boards, if I were doing the Caribbean I definitely would choose Celebrity over HAL. We then did Canada/New England on HAL, Maasdam. Again, port intensive and again I stated I would opt for Celebrity if I was in the Caribbean where you spend more time on board the ship. If I remember the order correctly, we then went back on Celebrity, on the Constellation where we met Sweetaire and I felt that Celebrity did offer a more upscale atmosphere and as SkySweet stated their speciality restaurant was much better then HAL. Our next cruise was the Mexican route last Dec. on the Oosterdam. As the posters here know, we were less then pleased with this cruise, but had already booked Alaska again (because of itinerary) on the Noordam, and that WAS the cruise that sold us on HAL. That was our first time on a new HAL ship, so I could really compare apples to apples. Most of our Celebrity cruises, even the ones prior to the Constellation were on newer ships, the Amsterdam and Maasdam were not. I really felt that the Noordam was right on par with Celebrity. You cannot beat the size of their suites (which we do on both lines). The service was first rate and the food was as good as Celebrity. We loved this cruise so much that we booked HAL Eurodam (their new ship), for the Caribbean over Celebrity Soltice feeling that HAL offers the same product, larger cabins and a better itinerary. My point here is that I feel that both lines are very very similar and you would not go wrong with either line. I am not saying that I would never go back to Celebrity, I am saying that I think HAL's newer ships are closer in comparison to Celebrity.
Barbara

[ILoveScotland]

Okay, I'll jump in with my 2 cents worth of comments that are based on my extensive (NOT) crusing experience.

So far I've cruised 2 times on Windjammer Barefoot Cruises, and truth is they remain my favorites with their laid back style and the sailing and being close to the water. Then I've been on NCL 2 times, RCCL once and Celebrity once.

Of the three big ship experiences I preferred Royal Caribbean and was disappointed in Celebrity. I have friends who say the Galaxy is their favorite ship so I think I was expecting too much, because I was not all that impressed and felt claustrophobic. Now it's time to try HAL. We'll see how it goes.

[Marmarjudy]

Sweetair,
Hi, I remember you from the Constellation a few years ago, we had a great CC get together.
Have to say, that each experience for us on HAL gets better and better, we booked her again.
I think if you want to do the Caribbean, you may want to try the Eurodam, HAL's newest ship. I think you will find a nice mix on this ship. We are doing her in Dec.
Regards,
Barbara

Barbara,

Aren't you a previous Princess cruiser, too? Or am I confused? (We've also sailed Celebrity...maybe that's why I recognize your name.) We are sailing HAL for our first time in January after 20+ cruises, and I would love your comparison of Princess vs. HAL. We are somewhat hesitant, but are hoping to find another option, even though we LOVE Princess. We sailed Carnival twice this year (long story, free cruises) and the entire time on both of those cruises, we SO missed Princess. We are hoping we won't feel that way on HAL.

Judy

[barbon2]

Judy,
You probably remember me from the Celebrity boards. We have only done Princess once, the Grand. It was a nice cruise experience for us, but we did not love Princess. I use to post A LOT on the Celebrity boards (think back to some "friendly discussions" with Parnami) or perhaps the cruise critic chat rooms and you will probably remember me better, plus we did several Celebrity cruises in a row.
I posted pre and post Constellation on Celebrity but have not been back to the boards since. I feel that my points in general are really only valid within a year of going on a specific line. I don't think it would be fair to post with specifics on Celebrity now, as well as Princess and NCL, since it has been well over a year or more then I have done either product. I try to just post general comments when I have not recently cruised on a specific line, that is why in my post on this thread I pointed out how I felt when we first switched over to HAL.
Now back to "missing Princess" when doing HAL, I think when one has cruised on ANY line for a period of time, you do tend to compare one to the other and sometimes the comfort level of the line you are use to may not be there the first time trying something new. I hope you have a great cruise.
Barbara

[Marmarjudy]

Judy,
You probably remember me from the Celebrity boards. We have only done Princess once, the Grand. It was a nice cruise experience for us, but we did not love Princess. I use to post A LOT on the Celebrity boards (think back to some "friendly discussions" with Parnami) or perhaps the cruise critic chat rooms and you will probably remember me better, plus we did several Celebrity cruises in a row.
I posted pre and post Constellation on Celebrity but have not been back to the boards since. I feel that my points in general are really only valid within a year of going on a specific line. I don't think it would be fair to post with specifics on Celebrity now, as well as Princess and NCL, since it has been well over a year or more then I have done either product. I try to just post general comments when I have not recently cruised on a specific line, that is why in my post on this thread I pointed out how I felt when we first switched over to HAL.
Now back to "missing Princess" when doing HAL, I think when one has cruised on ANY line for a period of time, you do tend to compare one to the other and sometimes the comfort level of the line you are use to may not be there the first time trying something new. I hope you have a great cruise.
Barbara

Barbara,

I'm sure it's because of the past posts on the Celebrity board that you are familiar to me...and thanks for the memory of Parnami! I'd forgotten! And that was memorable :-)

We are sailing Holland for the first time with an open mind, really looking forward to it, and will try to keep the comparison to Princess in check. After experiencing two Carnival cruises this year (although there is no such thing as a bad cruise, ever,) we know that this upcoming Holland cruise will be great!

Judy