late 20? HAL?

[PACrew]

Quick Question:

We are looking at a HAL cruise for March of 07 to the eastern carribean.

There are 4-6 of us traveling all in our late 20's.

 

We have all cruised before and do quite well financially for our age and are looking for a cruise where we can relax and enjoy the nicer side of things. We all enjoy decent food and service HOWEVER, we do like to have some fun...we dont drink ourselves silly till 3am but we do like to throw back a drink everynow and then. HAL seems to offer a nice mix of things...meaning quality, service, activities.......

 

Should we even consider HAL or go to princess/rccl category???

 

Thanks for your help.

[Mary Ellen]

I was 26 on my first HAL cruise, DH was 30. We've now been happily sailing on HAL for 20+ years. It worked for us.

[AlohaPride]

My DH and I are early 20s and we are sailing with HAL. From the research I've done, it should be GREAT! Why not give it a try?

[Atomica]

My girlfriend and I are both in our early 20's and absolutely love HAL. They do offer a nice mix of everything - good food, good service, beautiful ships, great crews...with HAL, it's really in the details, and they all add up into a great experience.

 

The Vista-class ships (Zuiderdam, Oosterdam, Westerdam & Noordam) are probably more likely to have a younger crowd on them, but really it boils down to which ship appeals to you most.

[sonocruiser]

Quick Question:

We are looking at a HAL cruise for March of 07 to the eastern carribean.

There are 4-6 of us traveling all in our late 20's.

 

We have all cruised before and do quite well financially for our age and are looking for a cruise where we can relax and enjoy the nicer side of things. We all enjoy decent food and service HOWEVER, we do like to have some fun...we dont drink ourselves silly till 3am but we do like to throw back a drink everynow and then. HAL seems to offer a nice mix of things...meaning quality, service, activities.......

 

Should we even consider HAL or go to princess/rccl category???

 

Thanks for your help.

 

having never sailed before i was a little concerned if our group would enjoy a hal cruise too. myself, dh, and two friends went on the westerdam to alaska and had a blast. our ages ranged from mid 20's to 30. we enjoyed the atmoshere of the ship, the food was great, and service top notch. we also like to cut loose a little and spent most of our evenings in the northern lights disco. after a certain time in the evening the dj would take requests and we had a great time having some drinks and dancing. there were not alot of people there but we always create our own fun. depending on your itinerary, there may be more younger cruisers.

[jhannah]

We have met a number of 20-somethings on our cruises, and they were having a fine time so far as I could tell. HAL has so much to offer, and I'm delighted you're thinking of seeing for yourself.

[PACrew]

Thank You everyone for your advice.

 

It seems we wont have a problem at all.

After reading the reviews and HAL site, they seem to offer so much for the cost and therefore we are quite attracted to it.

 

Being semi-experienced cruisers....attention to detail, fine food, and good service are the hallmark of a great cruise. However, we also like to have a blast. Although Carnival/RCCL/NCL can provide the blast part, they sometimes lack on the other things...hence our change

 

Thanks for your help!!!

[FoxyTerrier]

PACrew, I think you will have a great time on HAL. As some one recently put it 60% of the people will be asleep by 11pm so the lounges and disco's won't be over crowded with people.

 

DH and I spent a lot of evenings in the Northern Lights recently and we found 20s, 30s and 40s - It was a lot of fun - with a theme each night then requests.

 

I love hearing younger cruisers wanting the finer things that we all love about HAL just don't tell to many people or it might turn into Carnival. :p

[PACrew]

Thank You

Ill keep it between us!

[kingtns]

I've been debating on the March 31 cruise, love the itinerary & the 11 nights but hear O-so-often Hal is a great line, but do it when your older w/ no kids. We are a bit older than you PACrew (40) but VERY young in look & heart. We love the night life but & the finer things life has to offer. Our kids are 16,14 & 7 & this will be their 7th cruise. We like an upbeat crew that offers lot's of fun & games!! Both us & our kids! Last year we sailed the Voyager & just came off the Princess Crown. Fun ships, how does the entertainment compare? We are between the Nordam & Explorer for next spring, any imput would be greatly appreciated!

Susan:)

[kingtns]

Just reading up on the CC review of the Vista ships, they said even though Hal is bringing in more families...the majority of the people are over 60. My Mom (young 60) was on a newer one in Feb. (forget which one) & she said although everything was beautiful, great food ect...she did miss the games by the pool during the day & the ship was asleep by 11pm...not sure I'm sold yet...certainly not putting Hal down, just not sure it's for me & my family.

[LHC]

DD is 28 and we went on our first HAL cruise (her second cruise, my first) last December. We had a wonderful time and have a longer one planned for this Christmas/NYE.

You can go to bed early or you will find nooks and cranies and things to do all night long if you desire.

The food, the other passengers, and the staff are all gracious, kind, and fun loving without being obnoxious. Old world charm and elegance with a great feel. ...that is HAL.

Linda

[FoxyTerrier]

We love the night life but & the finer things life has to offer. Our kids are 16,14 & 7 & this will be their 7th cruise. We like an upbeat crew that offers lot's of fun & games!! Both us & our kids! Last year we sailed the Voyager & just came off the Princess Crown. Fun ships, how does the entertainment compare? We are between the Nordam & Explorer for next spring, any imput would be greatly appreciated!

Susan:)

 

Susan - DH and I are in our late 40s and have done 6 HAL cruises since 2001. Each time DS (now age 18) was with us. He loves HAL, but has nothing to compare it too. We love the wonderful service, food and the very elegant ships.

 

What kind of fun & games are you used on your other cruise lines?

[kingtns]

Susan - DH and I are in our late 40s and have done 6 HAL cruises since 2001. Each time DS (now age 18) was with us. He loves HAL, but has nothing to compare it too. We love the wonderful service, food and the very elegant ships.

 

What kind of fun & games are you used on your other cruise lines?

I don't think I have any particular games in mind, I just have been hearing Hal is just beautiful, but more of an older crown, mellow cruisers (I mean sit back & listen to the piano or Sinatra type music) Do they have pool games & get the crowd into it? Newlywed type of games? On RCI they had an adult show at night called Quest, it was an adult scavenger hunt, absolutely hysterical!!

I like to relax, but I also look forward to choices of games throughout the day & night. Although I do love to hang in the casino later in the evening.

As for childrens programs, for my kids anyway when they meet friends onboard they always have a good time. I'm sure they have the usual things to do for the kids. I'm thinking Hal is more on the line of Celebrity, which we have sailed twice & had a wonderful time!!

Thanks!!

[Jimsgirl]

I would suggest Celebrity or Princess , have travelled both. For myself HAL (I have taken 6 cruises with HAL) passengers are "too old" too many wheelchairs, walkers, canes, hearing aids (on one cruise ata table for 10 , I was the only one without a hearing aid!)

 

Wheelchairs ,walkers and canes mean getting from A to B can be a slow

shuffle and the elevators are also slowed down, imagine trying to get 2 or 3 wheelchairs/walkers into an elevator at the same time.

 

On a cruise this year even the dance hosts were 75-80! One complained he had difficulty dancing because he had a back problem!

 

Even though a cruise goes to the right places and has the right price, and even though on the surface the service is fine, I will look for another line offering the same facilities rather than travel on HAL. My age 80+ by the way.

[FoxyTerrier]

I don't think I have any particular games in mind, I just have been hearing Hal is just beautiful, but more of an older crown, mellow cruisers (I mean sit back & listen to the piano or Sinatra type music) Do they have pool games & get the crowd into it? Newlywed type of games? On RCI they had an adult show at night called Quest, it was an adult scavenger hunt, absolutely hysterical!!

I like to relax, but I also look forward to choices of games throughout the day & night. Although I do love to hang in the casino later in the evening.

As for childrens programs, for my kids anyway when they meet friends onboard they always have a good time. I'm sure they have the usual things to do for the kids. I'm thinking Hal is more on the line of Celebrity, which we have sailed twice & had a wonderful time!!

Thanks!!

 

HAL does have a slightly older mellow crowd some of the time. I think it all depends on when you cruise. If you cruise during the summer, holidays or over spring breaks there will be a younger crowd with kids. If you pick a cruise over 10 days there will be fewer younger people no matter when you cruise. The only time we did not find a lot of families cruising was when we went in late April after the spring breaks and it was a 10 day cruise in Europe. DS turned 13 on the cruise and had a great time even though there weren't many kids. On all other cruises he's met lots of teens and still keeps in touch w/ them.

 

As for the activities from my memory:

Games in the large lounge

Not so Newlywed Game

Sea Quest (adult game)

How well do you know your teen

Match game

Family Fued

Bingo (not free)

American Idol type of thing - forget the exact name.

 

Sports games

Volleyball

Shuffle board

Ping Pong tourney

Various pool games like pool golf

HAL olympics

 

Daily games

Various board games (Taboo, Pictionary, Scatagories)

Team Trivia (my favorite - won twice on last cruise)

 

The smaller ships have Mr. and Ms. Damship - at least they used to do this. Some one posted they don't do it on the Vista class ships. I was Ms. Noordam and DH was Mr. Maasdam.

 

There are also many activities in the club HAL program for kids, but I don't know exactly what they are.

 

Hope this helps.

 

PS. We just got back from 10 days in the Med and didn't see lots of wheelchairs or hearing aides except from my mother and father.

[newmexicoNita]

It truely depends on what you are looking for in a cruise experience: Here are 2 examples: I have a client that took his mother on an HAL ship about 5 years ago: He was, maybe mid 30s at the time and his remarks when he returned: I have never seen so many seniors in my like, nor have I cruised a ship that was so classy; old folks or not, I love every minute of my week. He has probably taken 20 cruises or more. Second example: good friends of ours, late 60s did a HAL cruise and their comments: OMG, never again will we cruise a ship where bedtime is at 9pm and everyone rises at 5:30AM. obvioulsy there are different views here. If true class is your main reason for cruising HAL would fit you just fine regardless of your age: if activities and night life is important maybe you should look somewhere else. NMnita

[kingtns]

Thanks everyone for your replies...It is very helpful!

Susan