Celebrity Cruiser considering first HAL cruise

We are considering a Southern Carribean cruise on the Nordam. Most of our cruises have been on Celebrity and we have had great experiences each time.

The Nordam cruise is a great itinerary and comes at a very good price.

Would love to hear from veteran HAL cruisers on the following:

Has HAL's smoking policy affected your cruise experience in a negative way?

Are you happy with HAL's entertainment options in the evening?

Are you happy with HAL's quality and selection in the MDR and buffet?

We are seriously considering this cruise and have only those concerns.

Thanks in advance for any replies.

We are considering a Southern Carribean cruise on the Nordam. Most of our cruises have been on Celebrity and we have had great experiences each time.

 

The Nordam cruise is a great itinerary and comes at a very good price.

 

Would love to hear from veteran HAL cruisers on the following:

 

Has HAL's smoking policy affected your cruise experience in a negative way? not ours - but some have complained about the smell of smoke on verandas. We haven't had any issues.

 

Are you happy with HAL's entertainment options in the evening? This is not HAL's strong point except on certain cruises. I think you will find it more low key than Celebrity.

 

Are you happy with HAL's quality and selection in the MDR and buffet? ok, food is subjective - but the Lido buffet has Celebrity beat hands down IMO and I prefer their MDR food as well.

 

We are seriously considering this cruise and have only those concerns.

 

Thanks in advance for any replies.

I posted some answers in red for you by your questions. We have done Celebrity and we prefer HAL. Something about the larger rooms, the stewards, the fresh squeezed orange juice, the many choices of different eggs benedict, orchids in the lido, etc. that we enjoy.

The Noordam is a nice ship IMO and probably a good choice for a 1st cruise on HAL. The one place where Celebrity may appeal more is the entertainment on the Noordam.

Definitely give the Noordam a try - and please, if you don't mind come back and let us know your thoughts and experiences.

Go ahead and book it - if you have any other questions, please ask away.:)

I'm really more of a Crystal fan than HAL but I have 3 recent HAL cruises and 1 Celebrity. I ended up in Blu and had only 1 MDR meal but thought it was fairly comparable to HAL and definitely preferred HAL's lidos.

I am a dedicated non-smoker and actually quite comfortable with HAL's policies but that's partially my preferences. The 2 biggest areas of concern with HAL's smoking policies are the casino (I never go there on any ship) and private balconies, but HAL ships have quite ample open deck space so I've never found a need for a balcony.

Aside from those potential problem areas I found smoking more disbursed on HAL and it was always easy to avoid smokers, more so than the experiences I had exiting from the Solstice solarium.

If you do try the Noordam, be sure not to miss the special teas.

Roy

I'm really more of a Crystal fan than HAL but I have 3 recent HAL cruises and 1 Celebrity. I ended up in Blu and had only 1 MDR meal but thought it was fairly comparable to HAL and definitely preferred HAL's lidos.

......

 

If you do try the Noordam, be sure not to miss the special teas.

 

Roy

I'll take HAL's Lido choices over Crystal's buffets and HAL specialty teas over Crystal's as well. Crystal wins in the main dining room, but not by much and their Crystal outdoor Grill does offer one heck of a good chinese chicken salad along with sweet potato fries, but the rest of their Grill offerings are fairly ho-hum if you don't mind the lines and the wait.

We have cruised both:

-smoking issue has never bothered us-a wiff of smoke coming across our balcony cabin does not cause us to go into convulsions. Though, we do not frequent the HAL casino very much because of it...which saves us money. It has that heavy,lingering odor of smoke that clings to one's clothing and hair.

-we think that Celebrity entertainment is anywhere from mediocre-very good for a cruise line. We find HAL's anywhere from mediocre to poor. Not HAL's strong suit BUT this is a personal preference issue. If you like music on the pool deck don't expect anything great on HAL as you will be disappointed.

-we would give the edge to Celebrity in the MDR but this very much is dependent upon the ship/cruise-both on HAL and Celebrity. Buffet is about the same. We much prefer Celebrity pay restaurants-especially. Again, a personal preference. HAL seems to have made some significant cuts in MDR staff lately...we have not experience a HAL cruise since this cut back so others are much better judges.

-we have not been on Noordam but it is on our list.

-I much prefer HAL's policy with regard to bringing wine on board. On Celebrity the most we can bring about is 3 bottles each. I know this is a slight 'violation' of the rules. It should be 2 per cabin or something like that. HAL also lets you bring wine from port stops which is really a very nice feature that Celebrity does not have

-we find service on all areas of the ship to be about the same-typically very good on both.

You cannot go wrong. When it comes down to a choice like this we generally go with best value as we perceive it. We have found that there is always a variance between ships/routes/dates within each cruise line so comparisons can be difficult especially if one has had a particularly good or a somewhat less than satisfactory experience in the recent past on a particular ship.

We are switching to HAL from Princess because of Princess smoking policy on the balconys! And we won't sail Celebrity because of theres!

Wow. I just barely missed the time limit to edit my post. I believe Celebrity used to offer chilled soups in the MDR and no longer do so. They are still offered and excellent on HAL.

Roy

Would love to hear from veteran HAL cruisers on the following:

Has HAL's smoking policy affected your cruise experience in a negative way?

I like HALs smoking policy, it is almost as good as Celeberity

Are you happy with HAL's entertainment options in the evening?

I really like Hal entertainment, it was better than the one we took on Solitice

Are you happy with HAL's quality and selection in the MDR and buffet?

Perfer Hal for MDR and service, Celeberity has a better buffet

My understanding is that HAL permits smoking on the balcony. Celebrity does not. This does not bother us in the least.

Before HAL eliminated smoking in cabins, HAL was always down on our list as we never wanted to walk into a cabin that smelled like an ash tray.

HAL, to their credit, changed this and we are quite happy with their current policy. The casino and the other few areas where smoking is permitted is not a biggie for us...we simply avoid those areas.

Not sure about the chilled soups on Celebrity....we had them on our Oct 2011 cruise but things may have changed since then.

We are considering a Southern Carribean cruise on the Nordam. Most of our cruises have been on Celebrity and we have had great experiences each time.

 

The Nordam cruise is a great itinerary and comes at a very good price.

 

Would love to hear from veteran HAL cruisers on the following:

 

Has HAL's smoking policy affected your cruise experience in a negative way?

No

 

Are you happy with HAL's entertainment options in the evening?

No

Are you happy with HAL's quality and selection in the MDR and buffet?

Yes

 

We are seriously considering this cruise and have only those concerns.

 

Thanks in advance for any replies.

Hal's smoking policy is fine - never came on board to a room that smelled like smoke. Now that they don't allow smoking in the rooms, that is not an issue.

Hal's entertainment is not so good in my opinion. Some of the entertainers they hire are a little lacking in talent.

I think Hal's food quality is great. Better then Celebrity's.

In our many HAL cruises we never had a cabin that smelled like cigarette smoke, but I have been in hotel rooms that did so I know how awful this can be. Either the former occupants were not smokers or HAL had a way of cleaning then up between guests.

Only time smoke from the casino bothered me was when the large glass doors between the Explorations Cafe/Library reading room were left open which left the casino smoke drift in to this most favorite setting of all on Hal ships - the Library.

Hal's great itineraries are entertainment enough for us so, having late evening entertainment is way down on our own list of priorities mainly because we choose late dining too. It's okay, earnest in their efforts and certainly pleasant and mainstream. I am glad HAL ships don't add to the cruise fare putting on more lavish productions than what they do. We have always found Hal's daytime lecture offerings to be very good.

There is really no need for anyone to keeping trying to convince the world that their chosen cruise line is the best or to make excuses when it happens not to be the favorite in a certain area of offering.

It is similar to those old questions like... can someone recommend the best hotel in X or the best restaurant. No such thing...it really depends on your preferences, wants and desires. And budget of course.

At the end of the day whatever cruise you select will be wonderful. You will have good service, food, etc. and receive great value for your vacation dollar. Does not really matter if it is on HAL or Celebrity.

It is a reflection of our society that we moan and groan about the small things when there are so many people who would give their eye teeth to have the money and the opportunity of a great vacation on a cruise ship-any cruise ship.

Let me say ONE thing. I LOVE being able to smoke!

We have been on 5 HAL cruises. We also leave on the Westerdam this August 11. Our last two cruises, however, have been on the Solstice and the Equinox.

My wife now prefers Celebrity, while I am partial to HAL.

The two Solstice class ships are unquestionably the most beautiful ships we have sailed on. That said, there is something about HAL that I still prefer. The food in the Lido, in my opinion, is far better on HAL. The layout might not be as nice, but much of the food is cooked to order and is of better quality. In addition, the main dining room also is better on HAL.

Entertainment seems to be better on Celebrity. It is a bit more contemporary and upbeat.

Enjoy your cruise.

I love HAL over Celebrity but Holland needs to tighten up their smoking policy. On a recent South America cruise, there were a lot of smokers on board and it was very irritating. The smoke was bleeding out from the casino into the Exploration Cafe. Smoking in or near the Crows Nest really bothered me when we went up for scenic cruising. Some of the passenger hallways were quite smokey. We complained and we were told unofficially HAL's smoking policy is under review and will be more restrictive in the future. We heard other complaints about smokey balconies and smoke drifting down to the promenade deck. We do not smoke, we do not have to inhale second hand smoke in our home, at work in restaurants or public spaces. It is time for Holland America to make changes. At the very least they should tighten up in line with what other brands have done. Sorry if anyone is offended but smokers lost the civil rights battle decades ago.

The Noordam is our favorite ship. She is also the first HAL ship we sailed on, to the Southern Caribbean! Ah! To repeat that experience! We are an early 40s to early 50s couple, very sensitive to smoke, always book verandah cabins and have never had a problem. I believe, from reading reviews, that its the So. American and European cruises that have trouble with passengers smoking on the verandas--maybe because the Carrib cruises attract lots of Americans, and we now smoke less than much of the rest of the world.

We love the string quartet in the evenings, and the dancing, but we spend a lot of time in the thalassaotherapy (sp?) pool and loungers. This is my husband's favorite thing to do on a cruise now. On the So. Carrib. cruise, we were out and about nearly every day and in the evenings, hung out on our verandah and often had room service there... ahhh... the sunsets...

I think you will find them to be very similar. HAL smoking policy had no impact on us. We don't smoke but had no problems from those that do. X seems to have more going on and they use a live band in the show which I find nice. I like the food experience on X better. At the end of the day I would pick price and itinerary, however I enjoy X more.

We are considering a Southern Carribean cruise on the Nordam. Most of our cruises have been on Celebrity and we have had great experiences each time.

 

The Nordam cruise is a great itinerary and comes at a very good price.

 

Would love to hear from veteran HAL cruisers on the following:

 

Has HAL's smoking policy affected your cruise experience in a negative way?

Only in the casino. We're non smokers, so we avoid the casino except for the occasional walk thru to get from point A to point B.

 

Are you happy with HAL's entertainment options in the evening?

Generally. This is normally a hit or miss affair and in my experience is more based on individual taste & preference. While some shows and entertainers are better than others, I have never been truly disappointed on any of our HAL cruises.

 

Are you happy with HAL's quality and selection in the MDR and buffet?

Always. Like entertainment this is subjective based on individual taste & expectations, but my DW & I have never had a bad meal in the MDR or the Lido.

 

We are seriously considering this cruise and have only those concerns.

 

Thanks in advance for any replies.

We cruised on the Noordam last fall in the Med and had a great time. She's a beautiful ship, and Captain & crew were wonderful. :D

We love HAL and do not plan on leaving them again (our Princess cruise was a disappointment).

Let me say ONE thing. I LOVE being able to smoke!

Hope you have enough breath to say that out loud 25 years from now!:eek:

Have been on 1 TA each on =X= and HAL.

=X=; We had fixed dining with great waiters, HAL gave us non-fixed and we found the Lido (Buffet) was a lot better for atmosphere, bar service and had the same dishes as the MDR. At that time, they took your order for the entre and served it at your table. They have discontinued that, I hope they still have the white tablecloths and fresh flowers. Quality of food was good on both lines.

Shows; On =X= the musical shows were so loud I was the first out of the room :((I looked back and several thers were following). I didn't try the shows on HAL.

Cabins, beds, baths and linens, HAL by a large margin. 40 years ago I wasn't so fussy, but I felt the fiberglass frame of the bed on =X= and prefer bare ground. HAL has matresses that make you think twice before you get up.:)

Service; The service on ALL cruises I have been on is very good. If you smile, they will smile back. The same applies to the people you will meet in other countries. :cool:

..... =X= and prefer bare ground. HAL has matresses that make you think twice before you get up.:)

 

Service; The service on ALL cruises I have been on is very good. If you smile, they will smile back. The same applies to the people you will meet in other countries. :cool:[/color]

HAL has beds where you only need to think once before diving in. Yummy.

HAL has crews that smile first, last and always. Hospitality seems to come from deep inside and I suspect their crews are chosen for exactly this quality. I'll take a smile any day over fluent English if a choice has to be made.