NCL Gem vs HAL Veendam

Looking to go to Bermuda in August and am comtemplating between these two ships. Can anyone offer any insight? Veendam is there longer which is appealing but my DH is afraid that the Veendam may not be as nice as the Gem seems because it is older. Thanks for all your help!

NCL would be my last choice. I think an older HAL ship would have better service and cleanliness than a new NCL ship. It will not have all the restaurant choices but the few it does have are a much better quality.

You might also look into Celebrity Summit. It has the same itineray as Gem but a lot nicer experience.

Having cruised on NCL, Holland America, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Azamara and Cunard to Bermuda, my answer is "it depends on what you're looking for".

We love NCL's casual atmosphere, choice of dining venues, spa facilities and entertainment. As you noted, the Gem is newer than the Veendam, and larger. If you are cruising with children, NCL has an excellent program for them.

Holland America will not have as much entertainment, will be a lot more formal and won't have as many dining choices. On the plus side, as you noted, it stays in Bermuda longer. It also visits St. George (via tender) and Hamilton, which many people prefer to being at Dockyard, where the Gem will be berthed...but there is ample public transportation available at Dockyard to take you wherever you want to go in Bermuda.

Having cruised on all the lines mentioned above (most often on NCL and Celebrity), plus a couple of others, I often wonder whether people who knock the "quality" of NCL have actually cruised on the line in the last few years. What I have seen on all the large cruise lines in the past couple of years is that food quality has generally declined, but oddly in the last year or two NCL's food has actually improved.

Having cruised on NCL, Holland America, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Azamara and Cunard to Bermuda, my answer is "it depends on what you're looking for".

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Nice balanced and fair post.:)

Personally, I would not write off any of the 3 lines we cruised on to Bermuda. All were slightly different but each one was enjoyable in it's own way and Bermuda was the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.;)

So I don't know how long Gem is in port in Bermuda; in addition to ship choice just for "the ship" if the Gem isn't there for at least 53-54 hrs like Summit and even longer (approx 70 hrs) for Veendam, that woudl be deal breaker.. You are docked for nearly 3 days and most folks are ashore for a good bit of that time. The Gem's less structured dining might be a plus when you get back aboard ship but all have room service, buffet options etc for that.

Having cruised on NCL, Holland America, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean, Azamara and Cunard to Bermuda, my answer is "it depends on what you're looking for".

 

We love NCL's casual atmosphere, choice of dining venues, spa facilities and entertainment. As you noted, the Gem is newer than the Veendam, and larger. If you are cruising with children, NCL has an excellent program for them.

 

Holland America will not have as much entertainment, will be a lot more formal and won't have as many dining choices. On the plus side, as you noted, it stays in Bermuda longer. It also visits St. George (via tender) and Hamilton, which many people prefer to being at Dockyard, where the Gem will be berthed...but there is ample public transportation available at Dockyard to take you wherever you want to go in Bermuda.

 

Having cruised on all the lines mentioned above (most often on NCL and Celebrity), plus a couple of others, I often wonder whether people who knock the "quality" of NCL have actually cruised on the line in the last few years. What I have seen on all the large cruise lines in the past couple of years is that food quality has generally declined, but oddly in the last year or two NCL's food has actually improved.

This answers it pretty well.

I have sailed on both the Gem and the Veendam - I wouldn't worry about the Veendam being older, it doesn't feel like it. The Veendam will feel less crowded that the Gem, but the Gem has better dining choices and entertainment - all dining on the Veendam is pretty much finished by 10pm, the buffet closes at 8pm.

I live in Bermuda and the Veendam itinerary is more convenient in some ways (being docked on Front St in Hamiton is great) but the tendering into St Georges is a bit of a pain and if the weather is bad, you'll miss the stop altogether. On the other hand, the Gem is at Dockyard and the ferry and bus service around the island is good.

More onboard excitement and freedom of choice - Gem.

More structured (limited, even) onboard experience but better itinerary - Veendam.

So I don't know how long Gem is in port in Bermuda; in addition to ship choice just for "the ship" if the Gem isn't there for at least 53-54 hrs like Summit and even longer (approx 70 hrs) for Veendam, that woudl be deal breaker.. You are docked for nearly 3 days and most folks are ashore for a good bit of that time. The Gem's less structured dining might be a plus when you get back aboard ship but all have room service, buffet options etc for that.

The Gem is in port for 57 hours. It arrives at 8 am Wednesday and departs 5 pm Friday.

Thank you for all your replies. I'm leaning more toward Veendam because you get that extra time on the island. I don't mind the more structured dining. There's always room service out on the balcony! I do worry a little about not enough entertainment for the kids though. I will be traveling with my son who is 14 and my daughter who is 6. I am hoping to find enough to do to keep them entertained!

I took Veendam to Bermuda last May and I couldn't believe how much later the other ships arrived! We had a whole extra day. I love St Georges, so even with the tender ride, it was still soooo much nicer to be there than out at the West End. And then we were in Hamilton for the rest of the time. Again, IMO much nicer than being out at the West End.

Thank you for all your replies. I'm leaning more toward Veendam because you get that extra time on the island. I don't mind the more structured dining. There's always room service out on the balcony! I do worry a little about not enough entertainment for the kids though. I will be traveling with my son who is 14 and my daughter who is 6. I am hoping to find enough to do to keep them entertained!

Take a look at these threads about the children's program on HAL.:)

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/search.php?searchid=19912113

Iheartbda,

The link isn't working for me. So was it good new or bad news? ;)

Thank you for all your replies. I'm leaning more toward Veendam because you get that extra time on the island. I don't mind the more structured dining. There's always room service out on the balcony! I do worry a little about not enough entertainment for the kids though. I will be traveling with my son who is 14 and my daughter who is 6. I am hoping to find enough to do to keep them entertained!

They do have an open seating option in the main dining room on the Veendam. I did that last summer as late seating was not available. The only caveat is that is you show up at 7:30 you might have to wait a few minutes if you don't make a reservation.

I prefer the Veendam because of the extra time on the island. I think it is a nice smaller ship. To me Bermuda is about Bermuda not days at sea or a mega ship with super sized amenities. I save the mega ships for the Caribbean.

Personally I did try NCL Dawn and did not care for it. If I do a larger ship that goes to the Dockyard it will be the Celebrity Summit.

Iheartbda,

 

The link isn't working for me. So was it good new or bad news? ;)

OOPS.....sorry. Usually I check to make sure the link works. Go to the HAL board and put in children's program under the search option. Looked to me like it was good news.:):)

Looking to go to Bermuda in August and am comtemplating between these two ships. Can anyone offer any insight? Veendam is there longer which is appealing but my DH is afraid that the Veendam may not be as nice as the Gem seems because it is older. Thanks for all your help!

For a variety of reasons (which have been beaten to death on other threads), we have been looking for an alternatve to NCL. Veendam's extra day this year is a big attraction, and we love St Georges; if she docked there, it might seal the deal. However, tendering is a pain and very weather-dependent . DW finds Hamilton good for an afternoon of shopping, but then you still end up on a bus to get anywhere else. Also, we found Dockyard has improved dramatically in the past five years and I love the history there. So long story short, if you end up on a ferry or bus anyway, the POC makes little difference. The deal breaker for me? Veendam has no balconies! Summit here we come.

For a variety of reasons (which have been beaten to death on other threads), we have been looking for an alternatve to NCL. Veendam's extra day this year is a big attraction, and we love St Georges; if she docked there, it might seal the deal. However, tendering is a pain and very weather-dependent . DW finds Hamilton good for an afternoon of shopping, but then you still end up on a bus to get anywhere else. Also, we found Dockyard has improved dramatically in the past five years and I love the history there. So long story short, if you end up on a ferry or bus anyway, the POC makes little difference. The deal breaker for me? Veendam has no balconies! Summit here we come.

Veendam does have balconies. Don't know where you get the idea that it does not.

As I have said for me it boils down to the extra day in Bermuda on Veendam.

I also prefer St.George/Hamilton itineray to the Dockyard itinerary but I can do what I want to do in Bermuda from either itinerary. Both the Summit and Veendam are ships I am can be happy with. I have been on both those ships. Both by the way are upscale over NCL, Carnival and Royal Caribbean.

Veendam does have balconies. Don't know where you get the idea that it does not.

 

As I have said for me it boils down to the extra day in Bermuda on Veendam.

I also prefer St.George/Hamilton itineray to the Dockyard itinerary but I can do what I want to do in Bermuda from either itinerary. Both the Summit and Veendam are ships I am can be happy with. I have been on both those ships. Both by the way are upscale over NCL, Carnival and

Royal Caribbean.

Uhp. Right you are - I should have said with the balconies only available at suite level they don't have any for our pocketbook!

I have also sailed on NCL & HAL numerous times and have enjoyed both cruise lines. On the Bermuda sailing both the Veendam and the Gem have advantages and disdadvantages as previously stated. Since we prefer a balcony stateroom, the prices for them on the Gem are much less than on the Veendam and that would be the tipping point for us. We are still waiting for a cruise ship than can dock in both St. George and Hamilton as the Norwegian Crown formerly did.

I have also sailed on NCL & HAL numerous times and have enjoyed both cruise lines. On the Bermuda sailing both the Veendam and the Gem have advantages and disdadvantages as previously stated. Since we prefer a balcony stateroom, the prices for them on the Gem are much less than on the Veendam and that would be the tipping point for us. We are still waiting for a cruise ship than can dock in both St. George and Hamilton as the Norwegian Crown formerly did.

Unless they widen the Town Cut (very controversial there), there's not much chance of a cruiseship docking at St George's. Far as I know, the last one that could navigate it was the Azamara Journey. When the Zenith was retired in 2007, we were bumped to the Journey when X purchased it. Oh, the horror!:rolleyes: We had to suffer through things like the Captain stopping by our dinner table to see if we were enjoying ourselves... Needless to say, the ship was gorgeous and the trip spectacular.

Unless they widen the Town Cut (very controversial there), there's not much chance of a cruiseship docking at St George's. Far as I know, the last one that could navigate it was the Azamara Journey. When the Zenith was retired in 2007, we were bumped to the Journey when X purchased it. Oh, the horror!:rolleyes: We had to suffer through things like the Captain stopping by our dinner table to see if we were enjoying ourselves... Needless to say, the ship was gorgeous and the trip spectacular.

I also did the Azamara Journey to Bermuda. I also would love to suffer on her again!:) We got a bargain compared the prices they charge now for Azamara sailings.

I have to agree with you that the odds are low of a cruiseship docking at St. George.

As far as widening the town cut---- I think that while I wish it was something they could just do----there are good reasons why it is controversial.

Uhp. Right you are - I should have said with the balconies only available at suite level they don't have any for our pocketbook!

A good alternative to that is a Lanai cabin.

I was booked for that cabin type last May on Veendam (then HAL had the nerve to upgrade me to a spa cabin! ;) :D ).

I stopped by my "former home" ... cabin 336 on the morning of our NY arrival, and was impressed how they reconfigured the space.

Easy access to the Lower Prom deck from an outside sliding glass door, and each cabin has two reserved deck chairs for those occupants use.

I loved what I saw, so I'm trying it again for this year! :)

Unless they widen the Town Cut (very controversial there), there's not much chance of a cruiseship docking at St George's. Far as I know, the last one that could navigate it was the Azamara Journey. When the Zenith was retired in 2007, we were bumped to the Journey when X purchased it. Oh, the horror!:rolleyes: We had to suffer through things like the Captain stopping by our dinner table to see if we were enjoying ourselves... Needless to say, the ship was gorgeous and the trip spectacular.

Did a B2B on NCL's Majesty in 2008 and 2009 out of Phila. although on one of the cruises we were not able to get through the Town Cut due to weather and we were docked in Hamilton the whole time. Wouldn't you know it, the one year we didn't go was 2007.:(

Unless they widen the Town Cut (very controversial there), there's not much chance of a cruiseship docking at St George's. Far as I know, the last one that could navigate it was the Azamara Journey. When the Zenith was retired in 2007, we were bumped to the Journey when X purchased it. Oh, the horror!:rolleyes: We had to suffer through things like the Captain stopping by our dinner table to see if we were enjoying ourselves... Needless to say, the ship was gorgeous and the trip spectacular.

We also used to cruise on the Zenith and were on the Azamara Journey in 2007. The last mass market cruise ship that regularly docked in St. George was the NCL Majesty in 2009. The week we were aboard, the ship had to skip St. George due to high winds, and we ended up in Hamilton for the entire stay in Bermuda.

There are still some ships, generally on luxury cruise lines, small enough to get through Town Cut. The Seven Seas Navigator will be docked in St. George twice this year, and there will be one call by the Prince Albert II (I'm not familiar with that ship).

We also used to cruise on the Zenith and were on the Azamara Journey in 2007. The last mass market cruise ship that regularly docked in St. George was the NCL Majesty in 2009. The week we were aboard, the ship had to skip St. George due to high winds, and we ended up in Hamilton for the entire stay in Bermuda.

 

There are still some ships, generally on luxury cruise lines, small enough to get through Town Cut. The Seven Seas Navigator will be docked in St. George twice this year, and there will be one call by the Prince Albert II (I'm not familiar with that ship).

This discussion has me hyped up. I am calling my TA tomorrow and hope to book. Have to go a certain date this year so will check availability and prices on both Veendam and Summit. While I would prefer Veendam, the Summit would be fine. I can live with the free happy hour and the spa pool on Summit. :)

This discussion has me hyped up. I am calling my TA tomorrow and hope to book. Have to go a certain date this year so will check availability and prices on both Veendam and Summit. While I would prefer Veendam, the Summit would be fine. I can live with the free happy hour and the spa pool on Summit. :)

free happy hour? Do tell! I have family going on the Summit and would love to fill them in. Thanks

free happy hour? Do tell! I have family going on the Summit and would love to fill them in. Thanks

That is a benefit of the Celebrity loyalty program when you reach their Elite level.