Moriah

I'm intrigued by your post because I am a coffee "snob", and I love iced coffee and get it at Grand Dutch Cafe and at Explorations Cafe, but I have no idea which of the types you mentioned it actually is!  Can you fill us on on what "actual iced coffee or cold brew" is?  As opposed to the other things? Thanks!!

Thanks for your review!! My first cruise ever was on Oosterdam in a Neptune Suite (in those days called a Deluxe Verandah Stateroom !) - in 2004! I love all four Vista ships and I guess because I can remember, like you, when they were the newest and biggest in the fleet, they never seem "small" to me.  Long may they sail! 

I'm curious, when you say Oosterdam is showing her age, did you mean the furnishings and decor is "dated" or were there places that were actually run-down or in disrepair?  

They limit the number of passes they sell on line so they still have them when you embark (but I think they do get to 'sold out' after a certain, undisclosed number).  What's so confusing about the pricing is they do it in day batches.  For example, for 7 day cruises, it's $149, then for "8 to 12" day cruises there's a price, and for "13 to 21" day cruises, and so on (I just made up those numbers, but the point is there are groupings of days, so it's not a "per day" price, and sometimes comes out kind of ridiculous)

6 hours ago, fox02554 said:

we're on the Zuiderdam scheduled to sail out of Botson on the19th of October , hope this is solved quickly 

I'm on Zuiderdam on Oct. 19 as well.  Envisioning a quick and fair settlement!!  Really looking forward to Bermuda...

6 hours ago, hobgoblin said:

As a first time HAL cruiser can I ask if there is free access to the sauna ?

Also ,? is there a happy hour and if anyone knows if the times change daily.

 

Yes! There is a free sauna.  Yes, there is happy hour every day, and Yes, it sometimes changes although there is *some* consistency.  Look at your daily program and Navigator app to see - sometimes there is happy hour in more than one bar in a day.

Yes, there are many inside cabins that are connecting.  Look at the legend on the PDF deck plan of the ship you are going on and you will see exactly which rooms are connecting.  Edit;  Sorry, I replied before reading carefully and see you are referring to a Pinnacle class ship.  I should not rush to reply about something I don't have first hand knowledge of.  Now I'm curious!  Are there really NO connecting inside cabins on the Pinnacle ships? 

I just found this thread, posted yesterday: 

12 minutes ago, 1025cruise said:

It doesn't appear HAL will be in either of those ports on October 1 so you have nothing to worry about.

I think the OP means that with a strike STARTING on October 1, it could very well extend to the rest of the month.  I had the same thought.  I am sailing from Boston on Oct. 19.  I never check luggage anyway - I make sure I can carry everything myself - so if that's the only concern, I guess we'll be fine.  However, what about food and other supplies - if these cannot be loaded it would cause the cruise to be canceled....

Absolutely the 14 day.  In Alaska you don't want to stay in your cabin, even if you have a balcony.  The great thing about HAL ships is there are so many outdoor decks you can hang out on and see the amazing vistas in Alaska from all sides of the ship.  Nothing wrong with an inside cabin - you still have the SAME ship as everyone else, and 14 days on NA in ALASKA sounds heavenly.  Having said that, either cruise will be awesome!!!

Best bet is later in April when most schools are back in session.  March will see the most kids on board.  As you already undoubtedly know, if you MUST sail during spring break season, HAL is absolutely your best choice, but if you would like a mostly adult ship, try for later (or February).

I took my daughter and nephew on a HAL Caribbean cruise when they were 19 and they had an amazing time and still talk about it all the time.  I personally don't think kids need an entire ship full of kids their own age to have a fantastic time.  Presumably you are not taking yours out of school so this cruise falls during a time when other teens could and probably will also be on the ship - not hundreds of them - but likely enough that they can meet new friends.  I think the two 17 year olds you are taking are going to have a WONDERFUL time, as will those of the other two generations!! Relax and enjoy! 

2 hours ago, TorontoTL said:

I guess I’m wondering about the food options then at the Explorations cafe on the Noordam.  Besides a few complimentary pastries, does it offer enough non sweet food options for breakfast and lunch?  I’m wondering about things such as muesli or egg sandwiches at breakfast and a variety of sandwiches for lunch?

Not really.  Sometimes there are sandwiches but more on the lines of "snacks" than meals.  it doesn't sound like the International Cafe you are describing.  If you ever have a chance to sail on a Pinnacle Class HAL ship, however, you will find that the Grand Dutch Cafe is more what you are describing (though that also is not open 24/7)

23 minutes ago, *Miss G* said:

 

The Noordam has the Explorations Cafe.  You will find it on Deck 3, next to the Library.  Have a great cruise and welcome to Holland America!

Yes, this is the one thing, in my mind, that sets Noordam apart from all the other Vista ships (my favorite size ship).  The Explorations Cafe as part of the Crows Nest Bar just isn't the same, and in my mind is tantamount to eliminating the Cafe.  For the OP, I think you'll find the Noordam's Explorations Cafe to be a lovely space.  I'm not familiar with the International Cafe on Princess, but it sounds similar.  Drinks are charged, but pastries are complimentary. It is NOT, however, open 24 hours.  I believe it opens at 6:30 on shore days and 7 AM on sea days, but that could vary. 

On 9/10/2024 at 6:05 PM, ghstudio said:

if you do the punch/lanyard, understand that you will have to lean down (or detach) the key card to get into your room.  I did the lanyard on one HAL trip and it just didn't work for me.

I'm 5 foot nothing.  Never have to lean down.  Key is hanging in just the right place! 🙂I think it's so funny how this whole lanyard question keeps people interested year after year.  I remember my first cruise ever, about 25 years ago, after having forgotten my key card in my stateroom several times, and having to dig in my purse or pocket or whatever to find it when I didn't forget it... I was absolutely thrilled to see someone with a blingy lanyard with her key card hanging from it and thought, "now that is BRILLIANT!"  After that cruise I bought a lanyard and, almost 5 star now, have never looked back.  Is it "attractive"?  Well, I used to think it was absolutely tacky (but didn't care). But now? I think it's super-cute!! I use it as an accessory!  I've even been known to have made it work back when formal nights were really formal!  I never remove the card from the hook.  I've never met a bar-tender or barista who objected to taking the whole darn thing from me - and I just slip it back over my head when they hand it back.  Also, as stated, opening the door is a breeze even if my hands are full!  So count me on Team Lanyard~ !!

I spent 2 weeks in a solo cabin and really enjoyed it.  I love that these cabins are ocean view and not inside cabins, and the bed is a nice large normal bed that does not have a division down the middle.  Keep in mind that the further forward the cabin the smaller it is.  Which just means a few more yards of open space - everything else is identical.  I missed having an actual couch or chair (these cabins just have that square bench in front of the desk/vanity.  But all in all, I would book it again if going solo on Pinnacle class - even if it was a little more expensive than the single supplement in an inside or regular ocean view.

22 hours ago, AMOttawa said:

I'm good with being part of a pack getting off. I just want to make sure I have enough time to get to the airport for our 1:45pm flight.

Well, depending on WHERE you are disembarking, 1:45 should be no problem at all even if you don't get off right away... but ... what port of disembarkation are we talking about? 

But do call Ships Services the day before you embark and find out what is still available. They can even tell you exactly which cabanas are available on which days. That way when you board early and go directly to guest services you can hopefully grab what you want for the days you want.  Good luck!  Let us know if you were lucky!

Hmmm, I hope you won't be disappointed and find that getting the thermal suite pass just for sea days is not possible.  On some cruises they sell enough cruise-long passes that they only end up selling the one day passes for port days.  I hope you'll be lucky.  And yes, you have to go to the spa - which is on the Lido deck, forward.  Also very unlikely that you will be able to rent a cabana for particular days - they usually sell out for the entire cruise - but your best bet for that (actually the ONLY way, unless you want to buy the cabana for the whole cruise, which. you can do in advance if they are not sold out) is to board EARLY, go directly to guest services, and see what is available, if anything.  Your best strategy is to call the day before embarkation and find out if the cabanas are sold out. They will tell you, but you'll still have to book any available days at guest services on board.  If you find out there IS availability, make that your FIRST stop.  THEN go to the spa and ask about the thermal suite passes.  If when you call you find out there are no cabanas available anyway, you can skip guest services and go straight to the spa and see if they will sell you the sea day passes.  I'm crossing my fingers for you, but it's a long shot.

I was on NS a couple of months ago and I don't remember movies on the Lido, but there probably were some. 🙂  In your room the on-demand system has literally hundreds of movies - many very new.  Whatever they show at the lido pool is also available on demand in your cabin.

18 minutes ago, FlaMariner said:

 

Agree....

 

The Pinnacle class ships (Koningsdam, Nieuw Statendam, Rotterdam) have, IMO, the best hydro suite areas..Along with the pool, there's more stuff (the ice bucket, the horizontal shower) plus it is all in one area (you don't have to go out one area and into another area) to go between the sauna/steam/heated chairs/showers to get to/from the pool. 

 

Enjoy....it's a great splurge and Her Majesty requires her spa pass if we are on for lots of sea days.

Absolutely.  The OP asked specifically about the pool, but when you take into consideration the entire spa area, I would agree the Pinnacle class have the best overall.  I especially agree about it being all connected and not having to go back to the hallway to go from the thassolo pool to the thermal suite.  I never braved the ice bucket, but it's cool that they have it! 🙂

The two smallest ships do not have them, really. They have hot tubs inside the thermal suites, and are very nice, but they are not the great big thassalotherapy pools.  The Vista and Signature class ones are all the same size and virtually identical.  The Pinnacle class ones are about the same size as well, but round rather than square - not sure that matters much. Also the metal benches inside are different - some people prefer the newer design on the Pinnacle class ships.  But shorter answer - On the ships that have them, they are all the same size. As for "best" - I think they are really similar. Others will probably have comments about subtle differences, but I think until you try them yourself you can pretty much consider them identical.  The differences are small and subjective.

The interior rooms on NA will have the exact same outlets/ports as any other cabin on the ship (other than Pinnacle suite perhaps).  It's been a while since I was on NA or Eurodam, but I remember there are very "few" ports and outlets. They do have USB and outlets on each side of the bed, as opposed to on the smaller ships that only have them on the desk. And I believe just the one on the desk, but hopefully someone who has recently sailed one of them will enlighten with details.

20 hours ago, Jensue9 said:

Just heard back from my TA and he said holland America don’t have traditional dinning times (early and late) it’s open dinning???? I’m sailing in westerdam out of Auckland next march. 

Probably what the TA meant is that fixed dining is not available for you because both times are "sold out" (for lack of better term at the moment) for your cruise.  If he really meant that Westerdam does not HAVE traditional fixed dining, then he is misinformed. 

There are other locations to rent cars in Ft. Lauderdale, not just the airport.  Which ever one you choose, I would just jump in an Uber or taxi to the location.  If you do go to the airport, you still need an Uber or taxi (or prepaid HAL transportation, which I do not recommend) Some rental companies will pick you up in their "shuttle" but they are not convenient, in my experience.  It's a small area and as a rule Uber prices not prohibitive.

This is an old thread, but I'm booked on Zuiderdam on October and VERY excited about the new library!  I've been loving the libraries on the Pinnacle class ships.  I've always loved the smaller ships having the library sort of wrap around the Explorations cafe... that's still my favorite... (not a fan of Explorations as part of the Crows Nest bar, and a few books - maybe- up there...), but the dedicated library space on the new ships is also lovely, and as said, can't wait to see how it is on the Z soon. 

HAL cruises longer than a week, and especially the ones during the regular school year, rarely have more kids than you can count on one hand.  If one of them gets into the hot tub I don't think it really bothers anyone.