HEPL! Would you book a brand new ship (Niew Amsterdam)?

[icecreamdavid]

I would like to start a discussion with those who have experience with the pros and cons of traveling on a brand new ship. We are planning our vacation for next summer and LOVE the Mediterranean Empires itinerary. Two ships are offered - the Westerdam in May and the Niew amsterdam on July 14th (inaugural is on July 4th). I've heard horror stories about being on a new ship while all of the "kinks" are being ironed out. What would your preference be?? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks--David--

[emileg]

I would like to start a discussion with those who have experience with the pros and cons of traveling on a brand new ship. We are planning our vacation for next summer and LOVE the Mediterranean Empires itinerary. Two ships are offered - the Westerdam in May and the Niew amsterdam on July 14th (inaugural is on July 4th). I've heard horror stories about being on a new ship while all of the "kinks" are being ironed out. What would your preference be?? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks--David--

We were on the Zuiderdam on its second cruise. the only "kinks" were that they were still painting the molding on the outside promenade. It was interesting to see how this dark brown stripe progressed and by the end of the cruise it was all complete. I think the greater risk is that the ship might not be ready in time and the cruise could be canceled. However, it is exciting to see how everything sparkles on a brand new ship with no wear to show at all.

[CowPrincess]

HEre's Rev Neal's "live from" the Eurodam Inaugural cruise

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=801149&highlight=eurodam

 

It might give you some insights into some of the potential issues you may face.

[CDRMark]

In 2008 we sailed on two new ships-Queen Victoria about 7 months after launch, and Eurodam about 3 months after launch. There is no doubt that the proximity to maiden cruise made an impact. QV was hitting on all cylinders while Eurodam was definitely still working out the kinks. Unless you want the "new ship" experience and are able to roll with the breaking in process punches, I would go with the Westerdam. That said, Tamarind did almost make up for it.....:)

Cheers

Mark

[Roz]

I've ready many, many review of inaugural sailing on all different types of cruise lines, and overall they're not good. They usually read like this - "This ship is a disaster, service was terrible, and I'll never sail (insert cruise line name) again!" :D

 

I think a couple of factors come into play. First, you pay a premium price for inaugural cruises, so expectations are heightened. The ship is new to everyone, crew and passengers alike, so the crew is learning along with you and has difficulty answering questions. Just like with a new restaurant, a ship's crew need time to gel and get their act coordinated.

 

Roz

[koolforkatz]

Personally I wouldn't. However, if you can go with an completely open attitude, ready for anything and able to go with the flow, then go for it!

 

I would pick the Westerdam, though, just because it's May not July.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

We have done a couple of inaugural cruises -- JMO -- we won't book another one. Far too many things went wrong.

[mamaofami]

I've never done an inaugural cruise, but after all I've read about them on this board, I won't consider it. Too many kinks that need working on.

[Mary Ellen]

We did the E'dam Inaugural and the one following that (two 10-day segments). We will NOT do another Inaugural again. However, you are asking about the cruise after the Inaugural - that we might consider in the future. For us the two cruses were very different experiences.

 

We expected (as mentioned above) the crew/staff not being accustomed to working as a team. Yes, that happened on both our E'dam cruises - not a problem for us. Why we won't do another Inaugural is the feeling of being 'interlopers' - we were paying guests (and paying dearly for the 'honor'), not 'invited' (free) guests and we were made to feel as we really shouldn't have been there. The second part of our cruise, after the head honchos and the 'invited' departed, was much better in that respect. That is the cruise you are considering.

 

In spite of being brand new, along with the staff in them, the Tamarind restaurant and the Silk Den were wonderful on the E'dam and I would expect the same on the Nieuw Amsterdam.

 

I would also agree with koolforkatz - May in the Med is MUCH better than July.

[Himself]

It will be 11years this fall that I ran into a man on the Statendam. He raved about the Statendam. He said one ship he would NEVER go on was The Veendam. He had been on the first or second cruise on the VEENDAM and he said it was a disaster. PROBLEM: They were still getting the kinks out of the VEENDAM. I found the Veendam to be a nice ship. But when I got too it, the kinks were all worked out.

[Gerd]

Hello all,

 

this board helps everybody for thousand-end one reason – but it is sometimes funny to follow all posts here around.

 

Yesterday there was a post that the MS Amsterdam is much to old (she is only from 10/2000), and now the MS Nieuw Amsterdam will be just to young…

 

Is there an ideal age for an vessel ??:o

 

 

Happy cruising

 

G E R D

 

 

 

Our marvelous cruises : :)

 

MS Ryndam – Wayfarer – March 1997

MS Noordam - Transatlantic Island Hook - April 2001

MS Volendam - Southern Caribbean - April 2002

MS Volendam - Westfarer Caribbean - April 2004

MS Prinsendam - Windmills & Waterford – September 2004

MS Westerdam - Western Caribbean - April 2005

MS Statendam - Hawaii Circle - September 2005

MS Rotterdam - Vikings and Czars – July 2006

MS Veendam - Southern Caribbean – March 2007

MS Volendam – Panama Canal – April 2008

 

116 days - 33'054 Nm :

 

 

 

Future Cruise : :p

 

 

10-day Mediterranean Enchantment :

 

 

 

10-day Mediterranean Inaugural Cruise :

 

 

 

12-day Mediterranean Empires :

 

[jtl513]

OP: for you is a cruise mainly about the ship or the ports? The Med is so port-intensive that you may not be needing as much service on board as on a cruise where you are spending a lot of time on board. On our Med cruise we mainly ate breakfast and dinner on board and flopped into bed early! :D

 

Is there an ideal age for an vessel ??:o

We were on the Noordam at approximately 6 months old and it was great!! :)

[RuthC]

I was on each of the E-dam's first two 10-day cruises. Never again will I take an inaugural cruise. Service in the lounges, for one thing, was too terribly slow. That continued unabated throughout all 20 days.

A new ship needs time for everyone to get into their rhythm. I would consider taking the E-dam again, as later experiences indicate it did improve.

Take the Westerdam in May.

[MightyQuinn]

Is there an ideal age for an vessel?

We sailed Rotterdam V when she was 38 years old. And she was PERFECT. :):)

[icecreamdavid]

Thanks everyone for the feedback! This place is great.

To answer your question, of course the ports are very important in this very port-intensive itinerary. I would not like, however, to have a fabulous experience tarnished by a ship that hasn't had time to go through its growing pains. I'm just trying to gauge how severe the problems usually are in brand new ships. I've sailed on the old and new Noordams, the Maasdam, and on a few other lines - but never had the chance to sail in the first few voyages after an inaugural. I'm now leaning towards the Westerdam, which I hear has been a nice ship. I'm not against "rolling with the punches" with a new staff and crew, but we'll be traveling with our 2 yr old who presents enough challenges on her own. Thanks again everyone!!

 

PS - anyone ever sailed on that itinerary???

[helenp2]

We were on the Noordam inaugrual and thought it was great I would positively do another one especially if it was out of NYC.

[Charliesmom]

There's another reason to take the Westerdam. I think it is a nicer ship. Eurodam (and the Nieuw Amsterdam is in the same class) had a crowded feel to it in the Lido. Also, we like corner aft suites and the balcony on the Eurodam was a LOT smaller than the Westerdam.

 

We were on the Westerdam at the end of her inaugural year and it was marvelous. The ship was new, the crew broken in and we had a great time - so much that we booked her for the following year, which was even better. We haven't been on her since the refit, but think if we had the same corner suite we would be even happier, because now the whole balcony is shaded.

[iancal]

No, never. Would not consider it unless the discount was plus 80 percent. And especially not on HAL. The 'teething' problems are one thing, but in reading reports from those on the Eurodam I got the distinct impression that HAL treated the 'paying customers' very differently from the 'comped' passengers. In my mind, it speaks volumes.

[jhannah]

I was also on the Eurodam for her prelude and inaugural cruises. No major problems for me, but the cost was not worth it, IMO. The great fellowship with Mary Ellen, RuthC, Revneal, Copper 10-8, Brian, et. al. made it much more memorable than being on a new ship.

 

I certainly agree that May will be nicer than July for the Med. We cruised there last time in July and it was hot, hot, hot.

[bepsf]

We were on the Noordam inaugrual and thought it was great I would positively do another one especially if it was out of NYC.

 

I agree - the Noordam inaugural was very nearly a perfect cruise...

...but it was also the 4th ship in a series - HAL had worked out the bugs and made significant improvements with the previous 3 ships and had plenty of opportunity to do their shakedown while dead-heading across the Atlantic and dealing w/ about a week of serving TA's in Boston and NYC.

 

Eurodam had significantly more issues despite being just an over-crowded Vista (let's call a spade a spade), and Nieuw Amsterdam will not have a significant shakedown since the inaugural is leaving from Venice - Just downstream from the shipyard.

 

I wouldn't book that ship until at least 2-3 months after she enters service and the rates are more in line with what's appropriate for the product offered - or stick with a more spacious, tried and true Vista Class vessel. IMO, let some other dam fool pay double the going rate for mediocre service, and buy the inaugural plate and book from a TA off eBay.

[bepsf]

The great fellowship with Mary Ellen, RuthC, Revneal, Copper 10-8, Brian, et. al. made it much more memorable than being on a new ship.

 

I agree Jim - I enjoyed cruising w/ you, Donna and the others and would do so again in a heartbeat...

 

...but not on a HAL inaugural.

[INSIDERS CABIN]

No-we were also on the Euro inaugural. We did choose because of dates and itinerary, then opted for new ship. I guess my main disappointment for the premium price was that the product was no different than the standard cruise and if you want to pay a premium, go for a holiday cruise-much more rewarding. Now, we were on the inaugural seasons of the Statendam and Rotterdam and had the most memorable trip ever on the Statendam and in contrast, lots of new ship problems, leaks, new port etc, on Rotterdam. We also thought the confusion factor was very high on the Eurodam-shore excursions with large participation were a logistical disaster, lots of grumbling passengers, dining room did not run smoothly. However, keep an open mind-on the plus side, all is nice and new, just like moving into a brand new house (with the inevitable punch list!)!

[Mary Ellen]

The great fellowship with Mary Ellen, RuthC, Revneal, Copper 10-8, Brian, et. al. made it much more memorable than being on a new ship.

Why thank you, Jim and right back at ya! :D Are we sorry we went on the Inaugural? No. But, it would have been a MUCH better cruise if we'd gone a year later (same itinerary and CC group).

 

We did have great cruise on the E'dam - only because of the WONDERFUL CC'ers on board and the fantastic itinerary. HAL did absolutely nothing to make it special and actually detracted from the normal cruise experience. As an example - Imagine arranging to arrive at the after dinner show in time, and then sitting there cooling your heels for 20-minutes after the scheduled start, because the CCL/HAL head honchos and guests hadn't finished their dinner yet.

 

DH rates that cruise as his favorite because of the itinerary and the people we sailed with. I didn't think any cruise would top Antarctica for him, but this one did. However, he is adamant that we will NOT sail an Inaugural again. I think a fantastic itinerary and the opportunity to sail with the great group we had last time would be required to get him back on the E'dam.

[DFD1]

We would not book a ship less than about 4 months old. Others have said it better. There are just too many things not settled in.

 

On another matter, the idea that a ship is "old" at ten or twelve years of service seems totally unreasonable to me. Some of the most charming, comfortable and well run ships we've sailed on have been twice that age and more.

[kryos]

Of course, I haven't done the research, but have you priced the cruises out on the two ships? I'd be willing to bet the new ship will be twice the price since everyone wants to be among the first to sail a new ship.

 

Personally, I'd prefer to wait to sail a new ship. Work could be incomplete when the ship has to leave the shipyard, and you could wind up with workmen still busy as the ship sails. That's gonna mean certain areas of the ship being blocked off and unusable. You also could have certain kinks ... like toilets that don't flush, lights that don't turn on when you flick the switch, etc. I'd rather wait at least six months before booking a sailing on a new ship ... let the kinks get worked out and the novelty wear off so that the prices come down a bit ... but then that's just me.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita