Will we like the Koningsdam?

[SeaBands]

It wasn't our favorite ship. Maybe they made some changes by now. No library, no mah jongg sets, just didn't have the feel of a HAL ship. Best thing was Sel de Mer. Ate there several nights.

[Tjcal]

My wife and I had a great time on this ship. Baltic cruise in late May. We liked the decor, the art, all the music venues.

Thought the food and shows were great. Great staff. Friendly and helpful. Very smooth sailing ship. Very nice dining facilities. Promenade deck is a little narrow in a few spots but it really was not a problem. Plenty of area to walk outside on the upper decks as well. Great fitness area. Plenty of machines. A lot of modern art. Interesting. The kind that you look at for a little while and try to figure out how it was made. Great shows. Singers and dancers were NY trained for the shows before they got to ship. You can probably tell we really liked the Konigsdam a lot. Hope you do too!

 

Tjcal

 

 

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[grsnovi]

We just left the K'dam in Amsterdam yesterday (1 JUL 2019). It is a beautiful ship. I really liked the decor in the dining room. It is the largest HAL ship we've sailed on and borders on being too large for me. Despite being very similar to other ships in the line I think there were places that I'd not been to after our week. World Stage was great - wish all the shows were...

[*Miss G*]

We just left the K'dam in Amsterdam yesterday (1 JUL 2019). It is a beautiful ship. I really liked the decor in the dining room. It is the largest HAL ship we've sailed on and borders on being too large for me. Despite being very similar to other ships in the line I think there were places that I'd not been to after our week. World Stage was great - wish all the shows were...

Could you please tell me the winning PowerBall numbers for June?

[ASIWISH]

We chickened out, and booked the Nieuw Amsterdam!

 

Maybe next time... but, thank you everyone!

[oliver1821]

Love the Kdam. Going again in November!

[cruisemom42]

I have a follow up question on the Koningsdam:

 

I loved the initial renderings of the ship decor -- thought it looked updated but tasteful, and I liked the musical theme.

 

However, now that I'm seeing 'real life' photos of the Kdam decor, it looks a bit more glitzy and Las Vegas-like than I had originally thought. (More like the new Princess ships Royal and Regal and less like the more sophisticated decor of the Celebrity Solstice class ships.)

 

Can anyone tell me whether that's true or maybe just the photos I've seen have not really been the best at showing off the new ship...?

[CruiserBruce]

I have a follow up question on the Koningsdam:

 

I loved the initial renderings of the ship decor -- thought it looked updated but tasteful, and I liked the musical theme.

 

However, now that I'm seeing 'real life' photos of the Kdam decor, it looks a bit more glitzy and Las Vegas-like than I had originally thought. (More like the new Princess ships Royal and Regal and less like the more sophisticated decor of the Celebrity Solstice class ships.)

 

Can anyone tell me whether that's true or maybe just the photos I've seen have not really been the best at showing off the new ship...?

 

I would say it is a little more glitzy than previous HAL ships, but far from anything I have seen on other ships.

[HELENPSL]

I was a bit concerned about the K'dam but we cruised on her for the first time last Christmas. Is it different than the other HAL ships - absolutely yes! But we learned to accept the difference in decor and ended up loving the ship so much that we booked it again for 11 days at Thanksgiving. The food and service were great but that is something I've come to expect from a HAL cruise. The theater -in-the-round style was wonderful and there were very few poles that would block the view. There were many more music venues than on the other ships. And, of course, the casino was also larger.

 

The Zuiderdam is still my favorite but the K'dam is a close second.

 

Helen

[CTBob]

We did two weeks on the K-Dam when she was new and unfortunately the World stage was very underused. The Eurodam is my favorite but we are giving the K-Dam another try for an Eastern crossing and Adriatic Coast cruise. Reading this thread has reminded me of the things I really liked about the K-Dam and now I am more excited to be going back aboard. Bob

[Sir PMP]

It’s been a while since we’ve cruised, and we’re debating the 11-Day Southern Caribbean Seafarer.

 

I noticed that HAL changed the Promenade Deck... and we loved to walk it. Is the entire view blocked by lifeboats now?

 

You will be disappointed...

[Fouremco]

I have a follow up question on the Koningsdam:

 

I loved the initial renderings of the ship decor -- thought it looked updated but tasteful, and I liked the musical theme.

 

However, now that I'm seeing 'real life' photos of the Kdam decor, it looks a bit more glitzy and Las Vegas-like than I had originally thought. (More like the new Princess ships Royal and Regal and less like the more sophisticated decor of the Celebrity Solstice class ships.)

 

Can anyone tell me whether that's true or maybe just the photos I've seen have not really been the best at showing off the new ship...?

We were on the K'dam's first Caribbean cruise in November 2016 and found the decor to be quite a departure from HAL's traditional look, which we prefer by far. The MDR, with its coloured glass ball light fixtures, was our least favourite area of the ship, and it certainly matched your "glitzy and Las Vegas-like" description.

 

We are very familiar with the Solstice class ships, particularly the Eclipse, and agree that they have a more sophisticated decor. Not to mention a lovely library. Aesthetics aside, the K'dam has a lot of positives and, given an interesting itinerary, I wouldn't hesitate to sail on her again. In fact, we have a 2019 booking on her sister ship, the Nieuw Statendam.

[cruisemom42]

We were on the K'dam's first Caribbean cruise in November 2016 and found the decor to be quite a departure from HAL's traditional look, which we prefer by far. The MDR, with its coloured glass ball light fixtures, was our least favourite area of the ship, and it certainly matched your "glitzy and Las Vegas-like" description.

 

We are very familiar with the Solstice class ships, particularly the Eclipse, and agree that they have a more sophisticated decor. Not to mention a lovely library. Aesthetics aside, the K'dam has a lot of positives and, given an interesting itinerary, I wouldn't hesitate to sail on her again. In fact, we have a 2019 booking on her sister ship, the Nieuw Statendam.

 

Thanks! I'm looking at Med cruises for late 2019 and trying to decide if the Kdam's nice Adriatic itinerary is enough to get me on a big ship -- alternative is to finally try Oceania (one of the 680 pax ships) with a slightly less interesting itinerary but a somewhat reasonable fare.... Not that I like the decor so much on those ships either (;p)but have really wanted to try Oceania's food and ambience for a while now.

[Fouremco]

Thanks! I'm looking at Med cruises for late 2019 and trying to decide if the Kdam's nice Adriatic itinerary is enough to get me on a big ship -- alternative is to finally try Oceania (one of the 680 pax ships) with a slightly less interesting itinerary but a somewhat reasonable fare.... Not that I like the decor so much on those ships either (;p)but have really wanted to try Oceania's food and ambience for a while now.

If you've been happy with Solstice-class ships, you shouldn't have any problem with the smaller (tonnage and passenger load) K'dam. On the other hand, Oceania's much smaller ship does have a certain appeal, as do its food and ambience. A tough decision to make, but I'm sure you'll be very happy with whatever you decide.:)

[kenevenpar]

We liked the K'Dam, with a few exceptions:

 

 

The toilets, at least in the Vistas, are at an awkward angle.

The main pool area is too small, and at the behest of a pool attendant, was the first time in more than 30 cruises that we reserved chairs. It was the only way to get a seat.

The Vista suites aren't a suite.

Crow's Nest, like many other ships, was extremely underutilized and not convenient.

On our cruise, BBKing was exceptionally loud

 

 

 

On the positive:

Service was outstanding

Food was very good.

It has the first PG that I really liked.

Billboard 100 was a big hit.

 

Tamarind was absolutely wonderful

[JRG]

We liked it very much for a Med cruise and it does look and feel a bit like Celebrity ships, we which also like.

 

The World Stage (If you haven't sailed K-Dam yet) is unlike like other ship stages. It is circular and juts out into the audience like a peninsula, so the crowd surrounds the center stage, sort to speak. Better yet, it utilizes a 270 degree panorama of large screens so you are surrounded by very nice audio and visual effects. HAL needs some improvement in better utilizing this marvelous entertainment venue and I'd expect to see some better programming in the future.

 

Good food in MDR. Tamarind knocked PG out of the water in all aspects, but I'd like to see them add some Szechuan and more Thai.

We'd do Koningsdam again in but definitely not in the Caribbean with HAL

[CJcruzer]

I have a follow up question on the Koningsdam:

 

I loved the initial renderings of the ship decor -- thought it looked updated but tasteful, and I liked the musical theme.

 

However, now that I'm seeing 'real life' photos of the Kdam decor, it looks a bit more glitzy and Las Vegas-like than I had originally thought. (More like the new Princess ships Royal and Regal and less like the more sophisticated decor of the Celebrity Solstice class ships.)

 

Can anyone tell me whether that's true or maybe just the photos I've seen have not really been the best at showing off the new ship...?

 

It reminds me a lot of Celebrity Silhouette (Solstice class) - it is not "in your face" glitzy - it is a more sophisticated contemporary decor. Perhaps the chrome "thingy" in the atrium gives it that "edgy" look, but once onboard for a few days, one gets over it. The Dutch cafe is very tastefully done. The dining room is not my favorite, could not get over the red and clear bulb balls hanging as light fixtures every so often. The dining room is a bit too "stark white" for my taste -

Still lots of beautiful floral arrangements all around the ship.

Edited July 27, 2018 by CJcruzer

[cartervan]

We spent two weeks in June and July sailing up and down the fjords of Norway on the Koningsdam. I must say it was a wonderful cruise, and I liked the Koningsdam better than I thought I would. Echoing what many have said, the pools were kind of small. I thought the staterooms were very nicely appointed but a little cramped (we had a veranda), the theater was less impressive-looking than I expected at first, but the use of lights and images was dazzling and we really enjoyed all the shows. Contrary to what some have said, the Crows Nest was very well used all day long and not that different from the old Crows Nests on other ships. The ship didn't seem all that big until you saw it hulking over the harbors of some of those small Norwegian ports. But you certainly noticed the extra passengers at breakfast time in the Lido. And, while I liked the glitzy look of the MDR and the food was hot and delicious, I found it to be very noisy.

[grsnovi]

... I must say it was a wonderful cruise...

...and I bet you met some great people too! ;p

[cartervan]

...and I bet you met some great people too! ;p

 

Sure did!

[oliver1821]

Love the K-Dam going again in November!! With Friends from Halifax NS, Marion & Doug, Friend from NJ Fearless Phyllis and classmate from Pompano Beach Linda!!!

[sevenseasnomad]

My favorite breakfast there was the lox, bagel and cream cheese with lettuce and tomato and onion, but another favorite was the bagel breakfast which was a bagel sandwich with ham, cheese and a fried egg. There was juice and yogurt and maybe some sliced fruit. The lunch menu was more extensive with Deli type sandwiches. The pizza was good with lots of types and a build your own as well.

 

If you order a sandwich at the Deli, ask for extra meat. They really pile it on, but if you don't specify the extra, the meat is pretty thin with lots of bread. The Reuben is fantastic, one of the best I've had.

[SumoCitrus]

The Lido on the Koningsdam is excellent. One night they had shrimp cocktail and snow crab. They had prime rib on embarkation day. Breakfast is wonderful with eggs Benedict, a full English, fresh pastries, and waffles/crepes to order (among much, much more). Overall we were very pleased with the food on the Koningsdam.

[markarmel]

Been on Royal Carribean,Princess, P & O and HAL and have to say that Koningsdam is our favourite ship. We cannot wait to get back on her again in a couple of weeks. Beautiful cabins,great crew,fantastic food and a fantastic layout throughout the ship.

[JRG]

Will we like the Koningsdam?

 

We've probably done 50-75 family vacations and Washington DC we rank#1. We rank our Med cruise on K-dam # 2 and came to that conclusion before we got home.

 

My opinion is that unless you have any pre-conceived notions or prejudices about ships or lines, most cruisers new and old will like it and some very much so.

 

For knowledgeable cruisers, it's a perfect HOHO from port to port if you just want to drool around the museums etc and still enjoy the on-board amenities.

 

My other opinion is that, as the newest of its fleet, I believe that the best of the HAL personnel was assigned to K-dam when she launched. This covers everything from the Captain down to the person who sews the buttons. Why wouldn't a top-notch employee in the HAL fleet not want to be assigned to the latest and greatest staffing assignments. There is a food chain here just like everywhere else

 

Now for the halfacts:

 

On our sailing, they served chateaubriand on the final night and it was very very good. Not the best I've had, far from it, but a fantastic way to begin winding things up on our cruise.

 

We liked our Spa cabin for location. Two steps from everything across from the NY Deli. Seconds away from the baristas in the Crows nest. I really enjoy a double expresso at 4:00 when cruising and the baristas get to know you really fast. Great service if you just avoid the rush hour.

 

On an almost daily basis, funner groups congregate after excursion returns in the Dueling Pianos bar or whatever its called for the free appetizer bar and we like this and had fun here too with people we met.

 

It's not the Ritz-Carlton of-the-seas, but we were very very satisfied overall.

 

p.s. these are only a few of my favorite things about the ship, there is much more.