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Noordam to Hawaii


MKellyUtah
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I'm looking for some advice here ... some BG: we've done about 11 cruises, everything from short coastals to more recently 10 to 14 day cruises in the Caribbeann out of Florida. We've been on X, RCCL, NCL, Princess, Carnival. We'd like to get back to Hawaii (haven't been there in 20+ years, on land vacations). I know there are round-trip and 1-way cruises off the West Coast, I'd like to combine the enjoyment of being on the ship with a week or so on a few islands of our choice. So ... I'm looking at the Noordam 6-day cruise next fall out of Vancouver (It's the start of a cruise that goes on to Australia, I think.). It doesn't have any stops between Vancouver and HNL. I know it's an older ship ... we've never been on HAL before, but are always interested in trying something new (the ship is part of the destination for us.)

 

Any thoughts on this ship & cruise from people who have experienced it? Thanks ...

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Having been interested in that kind of cruise myself (changed my mind though) I found quite a lot of information on Noordam in the member reviews and searching for Hawaii cruises via the search function. Perhaps that might help with your decision.

We would have done it the other way round, by the way: Fly to Honolulu, do some island hopping to see our favourite islands of Kauai, Big Island, Molokai again, then a week of sea days with lots of relaxation and pampering on a cruise ship on our way back to the mainland!

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This sounds perfect for your wishes, 6 days at sea, then hop off to do a land vacation. We personally like how HAL handles the crossing to Hawaii, a good combination of lectures, events, classes and lots of good food in several venues.

 

The Noordam is a medium-sized ship for HAL with about 1900 pax, spacious enough that you rarely think there could possibly be all that many pax on board.

 

Right now the pricing for this cruise is is quite high, based on how it priced out for this past September sailing. If you book, you might want to watch the pricing and refare it before final payment.

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We were on the Noordam in May to Alaska. I liked this ship very much. For entertainmnt, there was the BB King’s and the Piano Bar (with an amazing performer named Jeremy Oren). The fitness center was a good size with plenty of available machines and a number of free exercise classes. The pool area was fine, but it was too cold for us to swim, even with the retractable roof. The dining was fine—better than on my previous HAL cruises. (We did not pay for any of the specialty restaurants). The staff was, as usual, first-class.

 

I would sail this ship again in a heartbeat.

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We were on the Noordam in May 2017. It will have had a drydock done before you board, I think, so should be in good shape! We like the size of the ship. It was in okay condition when we were on it, not fabulous. Our Dining Steward was a bit odd, but .... it's pretty unlikely you would have the same one :) The food overall was good. Can't comment on the cruise you are looking at but it certainly seems to fit your requirements (y)

 

Noordam was our favorite ship until we sailed the Nieuw Amsterdam. Now Noordam is our 2nd favorite ship.

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I'm looking for some advice here ... some BG: we've done about 11 cruises, everything from short coastals to more recently 10 to 14 day cruises in the Caribbeann out of Florida. We've been on X, RCCL, NCL, Princess, Carnival. We'd like to get back to Hawaii (haven't been there in 20+ years, on land vacations). I know there are round-trip and 1-way cruises off the West Coast, I'd like to combine the enjoyment of being on the ship with a week or so on a few islands of our choice. So ... I'm looking at the Noordam 6-day cruise next fall out of Vancouver (It's the start of a cruise that goes on to Australia, I think.). It doesn't have any stops between Vancouver and HNL. I know it's an older ship ... we've never been on HAL before, but are always interested in trying something new (the ship is part of the destination for us.)

 

 

 

Any thoughts on this ship & cruise from people who have experienced it? Thanks ...

 

 

 

We just did this cruise but with stops in Seattle, San Francisco and Hilo before arriving in Honolulu. The ship was going on to Australia but we spent a week on Oahu. We were pleasantly surprised with the Noordam. Good size, great food and plenty of activities. It was an 11 day cruise and we only paid $499 for an interior cabin on the Rotterdam deck. One of our best deals ever.

 

 

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Just to toss in another idea- NCL/Pride of America has a great product IMO. I have done both the HAL RT San Diego Hawaii and the NCL POA. For seeing the islands POA has it hands down because you have so much more time in ports. They do overnites in Maui and Kauai so you can pick up cars and see as much as you have energy for. POA has recently been refurbished and they offer a number of dining venues.

 

 

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. It will have had a drydock done before you board, I think, so should be in good shape! .

 

The dry dock for 2018 was cancelled unless they have rescheduled it again. It was supposed to take place between leaving Hawaii/arriving Vancouver and the start of the Alaska Season, but they have now scheduled two cruises during that time. I booked my Alaska cruise for 6/10/18 on Noordam partially because I thought the dry dock would just be finishing. I've re-fared to a non-refundable fare (not just the deposit), so I'm stuck unless I want to use my cancel for any reason insurance. The ship cna't be that bad, so I plan on sticking with what I've got!

 

 

OP, if you do go ahead and book, make sure you don;t book w/ a non-refundable deposit so you can re-fare when the price drops.

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The dry dock for 2018 was cancelled unless they have rescheduled it again. It was supposed to take place between leaving Hawaii/arriving Vancouver and the start of the Alaska Season, but they have now scheduled two cruises during that time. I booked my Alaska cruise for 6/10/18 on Noordam partially because I thought the dry dock would just be finishing. I've re-fared to a non-refundable fare (not just the deposit), so I'm stuck unless I want to use my cancel for any reason insurance. The ship cna't be that bad, so I plan on sticking with what I've got!

 

 

OP, if you do go ahead and book, make sure you don;t book w/ a non-refundable deposit so you can re-fare when the price drops.

 

Ooooh thanks for that correction about drydock! I'm thinking about a cruise on Noordam in May (I thought that would be pre-drydock for some reason....) I hope you still have a great time! It is, after all, Alaska (y) :)

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Like SOPO53 we just did this cruise and paid something similar. I posted a review which gives more detail. We were pleased. We also stayed on in Honolulu for 3 days. Another time we would maybe stay longer and head up to the North Shore.

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My wife and I did this cruise this past Spring, in reverse from what the OP is contemplating. We flew to Honolulu (from Toronto I had forgotten how long a haul it was by air, having in the past done the HAL San Diego-Hawaii round-trips several times) for a 4 night stay, which was lovely, then boarded Noordam.

 

We have been on this ship a few prior times and found it in very good shape on this trip; enjoyed our cabin, food, and great service. It was a quirky little cruise--we enjoy sea days: reading, relaxing, eating, etc., and did so until Victoria, BC. Next day Vancouver, with our short cruise at an end. It was a change from the Caribbean, yet the only thing I personally found hard was all the time zone changes. I had barely caught up in Hawaii before we boarded, and we started changing time on board as of day 2. I felt I was in a fog because of that.

 

If the pricing is good (it was for us) go for it. We also enjoyed meeting many of the Aussies and Kiwis on board--while some were not chronologically young, they could out-party me! :)

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Thanks for all of the replies & insights.

 

The information you all passed along makes it look like this ship is a good fit for us, and this trip is a good option. If we go ahead & book this cruise, I will do a report here & let you know how it all turned out.

 

Thanks again for the input ...

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