ms Rotterdam to Norway?

We want to book our cruise for May 13-27, 2017 to Norway with Holland America but the reviews for the ms Rotterdam are not that great. We are looking at HAL so we can sail out of The Netherlands and spend the extra day in Amsterdam before returning on Memorial Day.

This will be our first cruise on HAL. We're in our 40's and 50's.

Our concern is the ship. We understand they have to use smaller ships to enter the Fjords, but is it worth getting on such an old ship to do this itinerary or best to just take a 7 days on a larger ship that may only visit one Fjord? See one seen them all?

They have another itinerary that goes to the North Cape, but we've been to St Petersburg and have experienced the midnight sun, so we prefer this one that does both sides. What do you suggest?

Rotterdam

Sea Day

Eidfjord

Cruising Hardangerfjord

Alesund

Geirganger

Cruising Geirangerfjord

Bergen

Sea Day

Rotterdam

Sea Day

Flam

Cruising Sognefjord

Stavanger

Kristansand

Cruising Oslo Fjord

Oslo

Sea Day

Rotterdam

Also, has anyone stayed in the Lanai cabins? How comfortable is that type of room that you can walk out to the deck where people walk around? Strange. :rolleyes:

We just completed a sailing on the Rotterdam in December and enjoyed our cruise very much. I am not sure exactly what you mean by bad reviews - service, cabins, decor, meals? The ship is older, but well maintained. The only complaint I had was slow service in the MDR, but this seems to be a problem on most of the ships, even with other cruise lines (i.e. have read several complaints of slow service on MDR).

If you like the itinerary, I would not hesitate to sail on the Rotterdam - unless you are looking for a modern, glitzy ship with all the newest amenities and attractions/diversions.

Carol

Re: slow service mdr.

Were you at a table for 8?

We did two Rotterdam cruises in 2015. One of them being a 14 day Norway.

We had both traditional and as you come dining. With a table for two it was in and out in 1hr to 1hr15 with the exception of the first night.

Ship might be old, but was newly refurbished beginning of 2015 and looks great.

Passengerwise, expect a lot of dutch and two language anouncements, dutch and english.

You shouldn't worry about some negative reviews.

Re: slow service mdr.

 

Were you at a table for 8?

 

We did two Rotterdam cruises in 2015. One of them being a 14 day Norway.

We had both traditional and as you come dining. With a table for two it was in and out in 1hr to 1hr15 with the exception of the first night.

Ship might be old, but was newly refurbished beginning of 2015 and looks great.

Passengerwise, expect a lot of dutch and two language anouncements, dutch and english.

 

You shouldn't worry about some negative reviews.

yes we were often at a table, of 8, a few times table for 4, and once we dined alone at a table for 2.. Service was slow when we were at table of 8 - we refused table of 10, and ideally our max is table of 6, but we were select dining. This was about the only complaint we heard on the ship...... Yes announcements will probably be made in both English and Dutch - but as they are kept at a minimum, it is not bothersome. The daily news will be printed in English, Dutch and I believe German... There are also Canadian, British and Australian editions available.

Carol

We want to book our cruise for May 13-27, 2017 to Norway with Holland America but the reviews for the ms Rotterdam are not that great. We are looking at HAL so we can sail out of The Netherlands and spend the extra day in Amsterdam before returning on Memorial Day.

 

This will be our first cruise on HAL. We're in our 40's and 50's.

 

Our concern is the ship. We understand they have to use smaller ships to enter the Fjords, but is it worth getting on such an old ship to do this itinerary or best to just take a 7 days on a larger ship that may only visit one Fjord? See one seen them all?

 

They have another itinerary that goes to the North Cape, but we've been to St Petersburg and have experienced the midnight sun, so we prefer this one that does both sides. What do you suggest?

 

Rotterdam

Sea Day

Eidfjord

Cruising Hardangerfjord

Alesund

Geirganger

Cruising Geirangerfjord

Bergen

Sea Day

Rotterdam

Sea Day

Flam

Cruising Sognefjord

Stavanger

Kristansand

Cruising Oslo Fjord

Oslo

Sea Day

Rotterdam

If you're concerned about an older ship - the brand new Koningsdam will sail the same itineraries, but from Amsterdam instead. But that particular B2B/Collector's Voyage on Koningsdam won't be until June 25 or August 20. However the individual 7n cruises are available earlier in the season (first ones May 14 and June 4).

We loved the Rotterdam decor - colorful, tasteful and full of whimsy. You just can't beat the size, flexibility and comfort of these "smaller older" HAL ships in our opinion. Two of our best long cruises were on the Rotterdam.

We did a 14 day Fjord cruise on the Rotterdam last year and I would sail her again in a minute. I think it became my favorite HAL ship. Wonderful service. We found the food in the MDR so good that we cancelled most of our Pinnacle reservations. The announcements are in two languages, but, especially if Michael Langley is still the CD (and I think he will still be on in the spring) they will be brief with no painful attempts at humor.

Edited to say it was the year before last. Still feels like 2015!

We did the first half of this cruise in September 2014. I did a live thread you can find here (details of ports might help): http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2095784

The ship is a great size and quite attractive. We had an inoperable toilet which really dampened things but ship happens I guess.

We enjoyed the elegance of the Rotterdam in May 2008, and will be on her again for 21 days, the last 7 being the first part of your itinerary. You get on after we get off, so we promise to leave things in good shape! HAL ships have always been well cared for, and we love the smaller ships.

sppunk, I went back and looked at your review and great pictures...I can't wait to visit Norway! Thanks for the review.:)

Karen

Thanks for the input on the Rotterdam! We will be sailing her in June and are really looking forward to it.

We were in a bit/lot of a rut having sailed the NA, then the Eurodam 3 times. We cut the cord to try the Westerdam then the Maasdam last summer.

There were a lot of things I liked about the Maasdam ( the Mix and the location of the Explorers lounge) that I am excited to see on the Rotterdam.

I know the rear pool area provokes strong feelings but it's not a deal breaker for me as I just like to sit out back.

We were on the ROTTERDAM for 14 days in June 2013 from Rotterdam to North Cape and return to Rotterdam. The itinerary, geography...the ports, the scenery...are fantastic.

We had a lanai cabin and enjoyed that too. Especially for some of the scenery...it was easy and helpful to be able to step outside, quickly, onto the lower promenade deck.

As someone has mentioned, there will likely be a preponderance of Dutch pax...that was no problem for Michael who was the CD then...and perhaps he will be again. He is thoroughly capable in Dutch & English and most enthusiastic. He was a very positive part of our cruise on the ROTTERDAM...in addition to the scenery, etc.

I was just aboard the Rotterdam in December and found the decor and furnishings to be elegant. We had the best time in the Canary Islands.

We have sailed Norway on the Eurodam and would love to go back. One of our most relaxing cruises combined with the most beautiful scenery!

We, too, like sppunk, had a toilet issue, where it simply would not flush on 4 occasions. The front desk explained that the various sections are on a vacuum system and what happens in one cabin may affect the others on the line. But they always promptly got it working again and I would not hesitate to sail on this ship again. I don't know if Ship Services might have a list of problem cabins or not, but that's why I mentioned it.

We found the crew to be the happiest of any ship we've sailed. The food was excellent. The ship wasn't too big and wasn't too small, in my opinion. It never took long to walk from one end to the other. We would sail the Rotterdam again if given the opportunity.

Hope that helps!

Thank you very much for your replies. We just returned from our Western Caribbean cruise and have just read all of them. We will be looking at the itinerary and decide which one to choose.

We really want to see Oslo so we're leaning towards the B2B out of Rotterdam.

If you're concerned about an older ship - the brand new Koningsdam will sail the same itineraries, but from Amsterdam instead. But that particular B2B/Collector's Voyage on Koningsdam won't be until June 25 or August 20. However the individual 7n cruises are available earlier in the season (first ones May 14 and June 4).

We looked into the Koningsdam and found it to be $400 pp cheaper than the Rotterdam. It's the same exact itinerary. Thank you for pointing this out. It actually gives us 2 days pre-cruise in Amsterdam.

Any reason why the end of June is cheaper than May?

We looked into the Koningsdam and found it to be $400 pp cheaper than the Rotterdam. It's the same exact itinerary. Thank you for pointing this out. It actually gives us 2 days pre-cruise in Amsterdam.

 

Any reason why the end of June is cheaper than May?

Koningsdam is a new ship and the weather will be better in late June, so it's a bit illogical to pay less. But, I'm thinking that the Rotterdam is more expensive because it's a much smaller ship, which restricts capacity for collector voyages (B2B), and capacity/availability drives the prices. Cabin type is also important, Rotterdam has few and therefore expensive verandah-cabins (Vista suites).

Koningsdam is a new ship and the weather will be better in late June, so it's a bit illogical to pay less. But, I'm thinking that the Rotterdam is more expensive because it's a much smaller ship, which restricts capacity for collector voyages (B2B), and capacity/availability drives the prices. Cabin type is also important, Rotterdam has few and therefore expensive verandah-cabins (Vista suites).

Better weather as it relates to rain or temperature?

Better weather as it relates to rain or temperature?

Both I should hope :) The weather is quite unreliable here in Scandinavia. IMO it's often nice weather for a short period in May and then in July-August, and June is often rainy, however it wasn't like that last summer.

We looked into the Koningsdam and found it to be $400 pp cheaper than the Rotterdam. It's the same exact itinerary. Thank you for pointing this out. It actually gives us 2 days pre-cruise in Amsterdam.

 

Any reason why the end of June is cheaper than May?

We have also been looking at 2017 Norway cruises. I don't seem to see the same results you do. To me, it looks like the Rotterdam is more expensive in June than May, and the Koningsdam in June is also more expensive than the Rotterdam in May except for the Vista suite which is equal.

What cabin category are you comparing?

We have also been looking at 2017 Norway cruises. I don't seem to see the same results you do. To me, it looks like the Rotterdam is more expensive in June than May, and the Koningsdam in June is also more expensive than the Rotterdam in May except for the Vista suite which is equal.

What cabin category are you comparing?

I did not look at the Rotterdam in June, I compared the Verandah in the Rotterdam which are Vista Suites Gty for $3799 pp on May 13 to the Verandah Gty on the Koningsdam for $3399 on June 25.

We're going on Rotterdam in November! We go on HAL once a year, will someone please let me know about formal dress night? DH always has worn tux. If the less formal is really happening, we'd like to know. THANKS in advance!

We're going on Rotterdam in November! We go on HAL once a year, will someone please let me know about formal dress night? DH always has worn tux. If the less formal is really happening, we'd like to know. THANKS in advance!

We were just on the Zuiderdam. Formal night is now "Gala" night... Only collared shirts are required for men. Many still wore jackets (with/without ties) some suits and some tuxes. It was a Caribbean cruise so maybe it was a bit more casual. One of the men at our table had nice dress pants but a regular golf type shirt (not a T-shirt) They made him put on one of their assortment of suit coats.

At our Caribbean cruise last fall (our first HAL cruise), once on a formal night they asked me at the MDR desk if I wanted a sport coat and I declined. No particular pressure. I was wearing a decent shirt and trousers. I did notice a high percentage of men wearing sport coats or suits.

For our next cruise I will consider bringing a sport coat if it works for our "carry on only" travel plan. :)

I did not look at the Rotterdam in June, I compared the Verandah in the Rotterdam which are Vista Suites Gty for $3799 pp on May 13 to the Verandah Gty on the Koningsdam for $3399 on June 25.

Thanks for clarifying what you are comparing.

OK I see how you are comparing, as the two ships have different deck plans and cabin types, and you are looking at balconies by whatever name and features.

We have been concentrating on Oceanview, which are $1100 more expensive on the Koningsdam in June vs Rotterdam in May.