aft or stern?

This has to be probably the dumbest ever question asked.

We are in cabin 4019 on the noordam . .above the Vista lounge and I cannot work out if it is at the "front" or "back" and which proper terms to use.

As you can tell first time cruiser lol.:confused:

no such thing as a dumb question

you cabin is in the front of the ship known as the bow

the noordam is a beautiful ship -- you will love her

There are many, many terms in the marine world. The front or pointy end of the ship is the "bow." If you are walking toward the bow, you are walking "forward." The back or blunt end of the ship is the "stern." If you are walking toward the stern, you are walking "aft." Ahhh, but it is a bit more complicated. You don't have things in the "bow end" you have things that are "forward," similarly things in the back end of the ship are in the "aft" or "after" end of the ship.

Then we have our favorites: "starboard" and "port." The right side is the "starboard" side, and the left side is the "port" side. If you have trouble remembering which is which, "right" and "starboard" are the longer words, and "port" and "left" are the shorter words. Like everyone, getting off an elevator or stairs (those would technically be "ladders") going between decks, you are likely to get a bit confused as to what direction you are facing or turning, so there are signs by the elevator/stair lobbies on each deck telling you which side is which and what cabin numbers are in what direction.

A ship carries a boat.

By the way, the ship's starboard side has a green light facing forward, and the port side has a red light facing forward. (Aircraft use the same convention -- green light at the end of the right wing, and red light at the end of the left wing). Ships also have two white lights facing forward, with the forward (front) light being lower than the rear (after) white light. Given the green and red lights and higher and lower white lights, if you see another ship at sea at night, you can easily tell the other ship's relative direction. If you only see a single white light, that is the other ship's stern light.

Having said all of that, don't worry about any of it. Lots of cruise passengers (we nautical folk refer to them as "landlubbers") often don't get into the nautical term thing, and nobody will fault you one way or the other.

Aww you are all lovely and I will print that out so that I remember it. but now I have a problem cause I thought we were at the other end ( I do need to learn the terms lol) and I get seasick! Do you think I should ask for a change and would it be too late to do that? Cheers Gayle

Can't say if it is too late to request a cabin change or not but it's worth a try for two reasons..

1) A relocation to the 'aft' portion will produce less ship movement and,

2) To get away from the Vista Lounge. If you are sensitive to noise and like to retire early, the lounge may be too loud for you to sleep.

There are many, many terms in the marine world. The front or pointy end of the ship is the "bow." If you are walking toward the bow, you are walking "forward." The back or blunt end of the ship is the "stern." If you are walking toward the stern, you are walking "aft." Ahhh, but it is a bit more complicated. You don't have things in the "bow end" you have things that are "forward," similarly things in the back end of the ship are in the "aft" or "after" end of the ship.

 

Then we have our favorites: "starboard" and "port." The right side is the "starboard" side, and the left side is the "port" side. If you have trouble remembering which is which, "right" and "starboard" are the longer words, and "port" and "left" are the shorter words. Like everyone, getting off an elevator or stairs (those would technically be "ladders") going between decks, you are likely to get a bit confused as to what direction you are facing or turning, so there are signs by the elevator/stair lobbies on each deck telling you which side is which and what cabin numbers are in what direction.

 

A ship carries a boat.

 

By the way, the ship's starboard side has a green light facing forward, and the port side has a red light facing forward. (Aircraft use the same convention -- green light at the end of the right wing, and red light at the end of the left wing). Ships also have two white lights facing forward, with the forward (front) light being lower than the rear (after) white light. Given the green and red lights and higher and lower white lights, if you see another ship at sea at night, you can easily tell the other ship's relative direction. If you only see a single white light, that is the other ship's stern light.

 

Having said all of that, don't worry about any of it. Lots of cruise passengers (we nautical folk refer to them as "landlubbers") often don't get into the nautical term thing, and nobody will fault you one way or the other.

I just have to say this has to be one of the nicest and well put together answers to a question I have seen answered here. Thank you for such thoughtful kindness :)

I agree with Iott and I dont think I acknowledged your response enough. I have cut and pasted and printed it so that I can learn the correct terms. Knowing me though I will probably still get confused and lost.

I have emailed my travel agent and asked if we can change cabins so will see what happens.

many thanks Gayle

UPcrawfish wrote: ......A relocation to the 'aft' portion will produce less ship movement.....

I don't agree with that statement. If you are looking for a cabin that has reduced movement, the cabin should be amidships and on a lower deck, not aft or forward.

SBtS

skydancing,

Have you seen a deck plan for the Noordam?

If not, go to the Holland America website, and check it out.

Has your travel agent given you a Holland America brochure with the deck plans for easy reference?

If not, ask your travel agent to obtain the relevant brochure from the New Zealand Holland America agent in Auckland.

Before our first cruise we studied the deck plans so that we knew the ship layout before boarding.

Hi Erewhon, and thanks for the advice.. we had a bit of a deal going on with our travel agent. I have emailed him and he is going to check with HAL to see if we can change.

it was my fault for reading the plans wrong in the first place.

Another quick tip when you are wandering the corridors, lost and confused: cabins with 'odd' numbers are usually located on the starboard (right) side of the ship as you face forward, and 'even' numbers on the port (left) side and increasing as you move from bow to stern. The first digit of the cabin number (4,5,6 etc) usually indicates the deck number.

The 'movement' issue really depends on the individual. Some of us are very sensitive to the motion of the ocean so the bow or stern isn't ideal and midships (low) is better. Think of a see-saw and how the ends rise/fall much more than the fulcrum in the middle. Even of you aren't too bothered by the motion it can get a bit noisy in the bow cabins with the sound of the waves breaking against the hull there. But then again some people just love the sensation of being all at sea!

Wherever you go I would highly recommend taking some good ear plugs because unless it's flat calm there are always rattles and squeaks in cabins that can drive you crazy if you are trying to sleep. Maybe I'm ultra sensitive but I seem to spend the first couple of nights putting wedges of paper into the wall/ceiling panels to try to stop those d*mn squeaks! I'm a pretty good sailor and have never been struck down with mal de mer, but those squeaks, oh boy...

To avoid becoming sea sick, and to enable us to be close to things, we try to get a cabin mid ship on a lower to middle deck. It's central to everything. Enjoy your first cruise!

skydancing,

Good luck changing your cabin.

Do you know to keep checking the price on the HAL website.?

If the price for your cabin category comes down from the original price, ask your travel agent to apply to the HAL NZ agent in Auckland to give you the lower price. ( I speak from experience, the lower price was granted.)

We got a change of Cabin up to Upper Verandah deck and it is nearer to the lifts for me as well. Plus it was a free upgrade. I am fine with the seasickness if I can get outside or see the horizon. Will definitely take some pahia bombs with me in case I do need them though. We have gone from a VF cabin to a VB so i think that is a good one?

Many thanks for you input everyone.

We got a change of Cabin up to Upper Verandah deck and it is nearer to the lifts for me as well. Plus it was a free upgrade. I am fine with the seasickness if I can get outside or see the horizon. Will definitely take some pahia bombs with me in case I do need them though. We have gone from a VF cabin to a VB so i think that is a good one?

 

Many thanks for you input everyone.

Congratulations on your free upgrade.

Hi-

I grew up with a career Navy dad, and learned the terms from him from the time I was old enough to talk...reading this made me remember him fondly, and also refreshed my memory. It was lovely. Thank you so much for taking the time to explain in such a nice way with no condescension.

(He was in the Navy for 25 years, and retired for 25 before he passed away, and always used the head, never a bathroom!)

Thanks for the refresher!

-Kim

There are many, many terms in the marine world. The front or pointy end of the ship is the "bow." If you are walking toward the bow, you are walking "forward." The back or blunt end of the ship is the "stern." If you are walking toward the stern, you are walking "aft." Ahhh, but it is a bit more complicated. You don't have things in the "bow end" you have things that are "forward," similarly things in the back end of the ship are in the "aft" or "after" end of the ship.

 

Then we have our favorites: "starboard" and "port." The right side is the "starboard" side, and the left side is the "port" side. If you have trouble remembering which is which, "right" and "starboard" are the longer words, and "port" and "left" are the shorter words. Like everyone, getting off an elevator or stairs (those would technically be "ladders") going between decks, you are likely to get a bit confused as to what direction you are facing or turning, so there are signs by the elevator/stair lobbies on each deck telling you which side is which and what cabin numbers are in what direction.

 

A ship carries a boat.

 

By the way, the ship's starboard side has a green light facing forward, and the port side has a red light facing forward. (Aircraft use the same convention -- green light at the end of the right wing, and red light at the end of the left wing). Ships also have two white lights facing forward, with the forward (front) light being lower than the rear (after) white light. Given the green and red lights and higher and lower white lights, if you see another ship at sea at night, you can easily tell the other ship's relative direction. If you only see a single white light, that is the other ship's stern light.

 

Having said all of that, don't worry about any of it. Lots of cruise passengers (we nautical folk refer to them as "landlubbers") often don't get into the nautical term thing, and nobody will fault you one way or the other.

Having said all of that, don't worry about any of it. Lots of cruise passengers (we nautical folk refer to them as "landlubbers") often don't get into the nautical term thing, and nobody will fault you one way or the other.

Can I just be the next to jump on board and say "Thanks!!" for that fantastic explanation?

:)