Booked on Rotterdam; Jump Ship and Change to Eurodam? Last Minute Doubting...

Hello all,

I'm having a moment of doubting myself...

I booked the Rotterdam for our family spring break vacation in April, taking our two kids (ages 2 and 8) along with grandma and grandpa in a separate cabin. In fact it was such a deal my aunt and uncle booked another cabin to join us as well! We like our family, so I don't mind. ;p

I wanted something a bit different from our norm. We've never really sailed HAL. We've never been to Costa Maya, Mexico or Santo Tomas de Castilla, Guatemala. (We've been to Guatemala and Mexico several times and loved it, just not these specific ports). It's also calling at Roatan, which we haven't visited for 12 years, but which I remember really liking...So, I was attracted to the itinerary and it was a BARGAIN.

Now I'm seeing for $100 more, we can sail the same week in the same cabin category on the Eurodam. I know this is a larger and newer ship, although I'm not as excited about the ports. We've been to St. Maarten and San Juan many times (like them both!). Amber Cove would be the only new port for us. We've done a land vacay to the DR and loved it, but from what I'm understanding Amber Cove is nearly like visiting a ship's private island, is that right? Not really getting a true "taste" of the DR?

These things considered, would you jump ship over to the Eurodam?!

I'm basically a HAL newbie so any advice is appreciated!

I say stay where you are. I sailed the Rotterdam last year and loved it. Both ships are great so go by the ports.

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I say stay where you are. I sailed the Rotterdam last year and loved it. Both ships are great so go by the ports.

 

 

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Thank you for chiming in! Glad you enjoyed the Rotterdam!

It has been years since we sailed on the Rotterdam -- so I can't say much about her.

But we chose cruises for their itineraries. The Rotterdam's itinerary sounds so much better than the Eurodam's.

We only sailed on the Rotterdam in March and April last year - pre dry dock. that's when the issues started I think.

the cruise was great and the staff were phenomenal.

But, with two young ones - it is a small ship and no sea view pool.

Eruodam has both plus the Tamarind. The Rotterdam is an iconic ship - beatiful and different art work but does not have some of the things you might want. Her itineraries can be very nice.

As much as our sailing was great, Eurodam might be a very good option with your 2 children.

Hello all,

 

I'm having a moment of doubting myself...

 

I booked the Rotterdam for our family spring break vacation in April, taking our two kids (ages 2 and 8) along with grandma and grandpa in a separate cabin. In fact it was such a deal my aunt and uncle booked another cabin to join us as well! We like our family, so I don't mind. ;p

 

I wanted something a bit different from our norm. We've never really sailed HAL. We've never been to Costa Maya, Mexico or Santo Tomas de Castilla, Guatemala. (We've been to Guatemala and Mexico several times and loved it, just not these specific ports). It's also calling at Roatan, which we haven't visited for 12 years, but which I remember really liking...So, I was attracted to the itinerary and it was a BARGAIN.

 

Now I'm seeing for $100 more, we can sail the same week in the same cabin category on the Eurodam. I know this is a larger and newer ship, although I'm not as excited about the ports. We've been to St. Maarten and San Juan many times (like them both!). Amber Cove would be the only new port for us. We've done a land vacay to the DR and loved it, but from what I'm understanding Amber Cove is nearly like visiting a ship's private island, is that right? Not really getting a true "taste" of the DR?

 

These things considered, would you jump ship over to the Eurodam?!

 

I'm basically a HAL newbie so any advice is appreciated!

I would stick with the Rotterdam.

Be sure there are no group bookings on the Eurodam, because that is often the ship of choice for larger groups. Someone here keeps a scheduile or you can do a search to see if it pulls up any organizations that are offering group cruises during your sail dates.

There is lots to like about the Eurodam, or her sister Nieuw Amsterdam even better, but for the ship and the itinerary, it would be the Rotterdam for me. We just spent almost a month on her for Voyage of the Vikings in Aug/Sept 2017 - no problems.

i sailed on both the rotterdam and eurodam within the last year.

1-my biggest complaint about the rotterdam is there is no ocean vuew pool. instead, it is an area with maybe 6 inches of water and lounge chairs sitting in it. if you want to swim, you have to go mid ship and i found most of the time it was very stuffy and hot and the roof was not open.

2-the entertainment on the eurodam was by far better than the rotterdam. from what i have heard, they have also taken off bb kings from the rotterdam.

Unless you're cruising purely for itinerary I would move over the Eurodam no hesitation for a more lively ship, for the pool, for the entertainment, and for the dining options

If you're going for itinerary then the Rotterdam and the Central America ports are great. Done then a couple of times and like then way better than what the Eurodam is stopping at.

But if it's the ship rather than ports then go for the Eurodam. Way more to offer.

Dan

We just got off the Rotterdam today. It was our first, and probably last, time on HAL, at least in the Caribbean. We chose it for the itinerary, and did enjoy the ports, but were very disappointed in the ship.

I have been on 16 cruises on multiple current and defunct cruise lines and always heard HAL offered better food, service, etc. We found the food quality and selection, the service and the quality and variety of entertainment far below what we experienced on Carnival, Royal Caribbean and Norwegian.

This is the first cruise I have been in where I was actually bored. I am 56 yo and not a party person or big drinker, but I found very little entertainment on board that interested me. The theater entertainment was well below what is offered on the older ships with other lines and the other entertainment consisted of a piano player and a group playing 1940s music and jazz. There was nothing more upbeat in the way of live music.

If you want to visit the ports and don't really care about a lot of activities on board, then choose the Rotterdam. Otherwise, choose another ship, or another line, if our experience was typical of HAL ships.

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Thank you all for your feedback! It has been helpful for me to think through some of these issues, and what we really value most. We rarely go in the pool or go to the shows onboard the ship, but if we did, it would be good to know these are lacking on the Rotterdam.

Thanks for the insight! I think we really are more interested in the Rotterdam's ports overall.

I too was bored on the Rotterdam in December and so were lots of others. If it had been my first cruise ever I wouldn't have wanted to take another one. As you can see by my signature I have lots of cruises to compare this one to. I obviously love cruising, but not this time.

I too was bored on the Rotterdam in December and so were lots of others. If it had been my first cruise ever I wouldn't have wanted to take another one. As you can see by my signature I have lots of cruises to compare this one to. I obviously love cruising, but not this time.

Thank you! Would you say it was the lack of quality entertainment that made you bored? Appreciate your input.

I too was bored on the Rotterdam in December and so were lots of others. If it had been my first cruise ever I wouldn't have wanted to take another one. As you can see by my signature I have lots of cruises to compare this one to. I obviously love cruising, but not this time.

Thank you! Would you say it was the lack of quality entertainment that made you bored? Appreciate your input.