Holland America newbie, have some questions

[melika091900]

Hey everyone, well we are almost booking holland america Ryndam 10 night sea of cortez cruise and before we do, i had some quick questions,

do they have room service?
priority tickets for the tenders for people in wheelchairs ?

as far as comparing holland america to princess, celebrity,NCL, carnival , who would be the closest in comparison? i know its hard to compare since everyone likes different things, but in general,

do they offer any wheelchair accessible excursions ? i know that celebrity and princess were the only cruiselines we have been on that did,
how are their staterooms? they look pretty big like carnivals rooms

how is the ship itself? easy to navigate? kids club?

any other thoughts on it ..?

thank you to everyone who responds,
and happy new year !!
Melissa

[Mary Ellen]

do they have room service? Yes, excellent selection for a cruise line. KK has the menu in this post (http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=17354130&postcount=2).
priority tickets for the tenders for people in wheelchairs ? No, only the S/PH suites suites get the priority tickets.

as far as comparing holland america to princess, celebrity,NCL, carnival , who would be the closest in comparison? Celebrity

do they offer any wheelchair accessible excursions ? It all depends upon the port and what is available. Have you checked HAL's web site for shore ex? They use the wheelchair symbol to denote which are wheelchair accessible. If more info is needed on specific shore ex, a call to that department will have specifics.

how are their staterooms? Not knowing what you've booked - IMHO the A/B HA cabins are a bit small for one who requires a wheelchair. Some of the inside/outside HA cabins are far better to maneuver around in. The HA bathrooms are great, but some are missing the fold-down seat. Be sure to let special services know what your requirements are.

any other thoughts on it ..? Has you TA put you in contact with the 'Special Services' dept??? If not, I believe their contact info is on the web site.

[melika091900]

thank you so much for the info... ;)

i ve heard that they are more like celebrity.. and we loved celebrity, so im sure we will like holland america,

thanks again for all your info..

happy new year
melissa

[martinchem]

Room service, yes; Priority on embarkment; older passengers; n/a excursions; nice, new ship; yes; not good, older crowd. Take Carnival.

[wilsonqbc]

Another couple of Questions,

1] Are there sockets in the room for, recharging a video camera ?

I realize irons are forbidden due to fire risk, was am wondering about recharging my video camera?

2] also I guess hair dryers are also not allowed, is there a permanant one in the bathroom as in hotels ?
if electrical ones are not allowed, do they allow a cordless one ?
or are those also too dangerous, ie not alowed?

Thanks

[wilsonqbc]

sorry, I found my answers with the search tool.
it seems there are hairdryers and outlets to charge a camera.

[matondo]

It wouldn't hurt to bring a strip switch so you plug in severl things at the same time. We could recharge our laptop, cell phones, camera batteries, and use a curling iron and not have to wait for something to quit charging.