HAL Ship Parade

[eroller]

I'm sailing on NS next Sunday, so to get in the mood did a little ship spotting today.  It was an HAL ship parade as ZUIDERDAM, NIEUW AMSTERDAM, and NIEUW STATENDAM were all in port.  I enjoyed watching them all sail out along with HARMONY OF THE SEAS and MAJESTY OF THE SEAS.  

 

I have to say with each evolution the design has gotten more boxy and top heavy above the Bridge.  ZUIDERDAM is definitely the best looking of the 3, from the exterior anyway.  

 

 

Edited February 18, 2019 by eroller

[fatcat04]

Very cool pics! We have done that before from that park with the beach on the ships' starboard side. For cruise ship enthusiasts (I won't say addicts ), it was great fun. We met others doing the same thing.

[mncyclist]

Great photos!   It’s interesting to see the subtle differences in the three generations of the same basic ship structure.  I had not noticed before that the dark blue paint on Zuiderdam goes up to the promenade deck, whereas that deck is white on the two newer ships.  This is most noticeable across the stern.  

[eroller]

12 minutes ago, mncyclist said:

 I had not noticed before that the dark blue paint on Zuiderdam goes up to the promenade deck, whereas that deck is white on the two newer ships.  This is most noticeable across the stern.  

 

 

Great catch!  I hadn’t noticed that either.  I definitely prefer the dark hull a deck higher.  I think it provides a more proportioned and sleeker look.  Of course Z-dam is the sleekest looking anyway.  Not so overbuilt.  

[mncyclist]

Agreed on Zuiderdam.  The white that extends to a lower level on the newer ships may contribute to their top-heavy appearance at the front, too.  There just seems to be a much greater mass of white structure. 

[OlsSalt]

Now you know why some of us still love the fusty decor old ladies of the HAL fleet the best - the smaller R and S class ships that have not been modified in their aft ends too. They indeed remain the best of the HAL sleek, blue-hulled beauties. One feels truly at sea on them - a much more intimate connection.

Edited February 18, 2019 by OlsSalt

[ski ww]

Great pictures, thanks for sharing. When I think of sleek ocean liners the HAL ships are the ones that stand out as what a cruise ship should look like.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Great pictures.

 

There were also 2 other ships yesterday that sailed from Ft Lauderdale.  The ugly Celebrity Edge (JMO) and the Regal Princess whose toots are the "Love Boat".

[puppycanducruise]

Love those pictures.

Thanks for sharing.

[AZGal]

Great pictures to show the differences between the old and new designs!  Thanks for posting.

[sevenseasnomad]

5 hours ago, Krazy Kruizers said:

Great pictures.

 

There were also 2 other ships yesterday that sailed from Ft Lauderdale.  The ugly Celebrity Edge (JMO) and the Regal Princess whose toots are the "Love Boat".

First time we saw Edge, sitting next to NS, my son blurted, "What an ugly ship!"  We were thankful we were sailing on the pretty dam ship.  

 

Thanks for the pics.  Yes, I see the difference, although I never noticed it before.  I agree that HA is making a mistake selling the older ships (and not replacing them with the same sized ships) because there are plenty of us who still prefer those lovely ladies.  When all the smaller ships are gone, I may be looking for a new cruise line which would be a shame.

 

OP, have a lovely cruise on NS.

[trystran72]

So pretty to see them all lined up.  Thanks for posting!!

[VMax1700]

7 hours ago, ski ww said:

Great pictures, thanks for sharing. When I think of sleek ocean liners the HAL ships are the ones that stand out as what a cruise ship should look like.

We agree that is what a cruise ship should look like. 

Our first cruise, just over 10 years ago, was on Celebrity Galaxy.  As we sailed from Curacao we passed a beautiful cruise ship flying a Nederlands flag.  DW said 'That is a gorgeous boat!'. I agreed and noted the name 'Westerdam'.  When we got home I googled the name and since then, we have been hooked on her blue hulled sisters.

[OlsSalt]

I have long said when one can't decide between Princess or HAL for Alaska, the one advantage taking Princess is you have the beautiful HAL ships in  your Glacier Bay photos, instead of the ugly Princess ships if you are taking photos from a HAL ship.

[TAD2005]

One of the ugliest ships is the Celebrity Epic.   It has those extra cabins stacked in front, above the bridge, which looks like afterthoughts.   Celebrity wanted more "heads in beds" so they said "Oh, just stick a bunch of cabins up there".   May of the current fleets of ships look like container freighters.   Stacked to the top with sea freight containers.   One wonders what would happen if a big rouge wave would hit the ship broadside.  Would we have another "Poseidon Adventure" ??

[eroller]

26 minutes ago, TAD2005 said:

One of the ugliest ships is the Celebrity Epic.   It has those extra cabins stacked in front, above the bridge, which looks like afterthoughts.   Celebrity wanted more "heads in beds" so they said "Oh, just stick a bunch of cabins up there".   May of the current fleets of ships look like container freighters.   Stacked to the top with sea freight containers.   One wonders what would happen if a big rouge wave would hit the ship broadside.  Would we have another "Poseidon Adventure" ??

 

 

It’s Norwegian Epic and yes it’s ugly.  The big problem though is that the decks above the bridge are not tapered back. Instead they slope forward making them very pronounced.  

 

Unfortunately HAL has done the same thing, and K-Dam and NS have just as many decks above the bridge making them very forward heavy and ungainly looking.  At least they are sloped and tiered back so not as pronounced as Epic thank goodness.   

[sevenseasnomad]

5 hours ago, OlsSalt said:

I have long said when one can't decide between Princess or HAL for Alaska, the one advantage taking Princess is you have the beautiful HAL ships in  your Glacier Bay photos, instead of the ugly Princess ships if you are taking photos from a HAL ship.

You made me smile.  

[sevenseasnomad]

20 minutes ago, eroller said:

 

 

It’s Norwegian Epic and yes it’s ugly.  The big problem though is that the decks above the bridge are not tapered back. Instead they slope forward making them very pronounced.  

 

Unfortunately HAL has done the same thing, and K-Dam and NS have just as many decks above the bridge making them very forward heavy and ungainly looking.  At least they are sloped and tiered back so not as pronounced as Epic thank goodness.   

IMHO, all of the Norwegian fleet is garish, displeasing to the eye.