Help! Can't decide - Ruby or Nieuw Amsterdam

[CruiseJunkie66]

Hi Everyone, need help deciding which ship. Some background: we are 2 single women - ages 43 and 54. Have sailed recently with Princess and Carnival. Have also sailed Royal Caribbean and Celebrity but was a long time ago. We are trying to choose between:

 

Ruby Princess sailing from FLL to Princess Cays, St. Maarten, St. Thomas and Grand Turk

or

HAL's Nieuw Amstedam sailing from FLL to Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk, Grand Cayman, and Costa Maya.

 

Itinerary isn't a huge factor - more concerned with onboard experience.

 

Which one would you choose and why?

[cruiserking]

Hi Everyone, need help deciding which ship. Some background: we are 2 single women - ages 43 and 54. Have sailed recently with Princess and Carnival. Have also sailed Royal Caribbean and Celebrity but was a long time ago. We are trying to choose between:

 

Ruby Princess sailing from FLL to Princess Cays, St. Maarten, St. Thomas and Grand Turk

or

HAL's Nieuw Amstedam sailing from FLL to Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk, Grand Cayman, and Costa Maya.

 

Itinerary isn't a huge factor - more concerned with onboard experience.

 

Which one would you choose and why?

 

You don't mention which time of year you are planning to sail. If it is over the summer, the Nieuw Amsterdam will be brand new and will need a few months to work out her kinks.

 

New ships always have tremendous appeal so if this is a winter cruise the HAL ship would be a good option. The Ruby itinerary is a bit nicer and also a great ship.

 

Itinerary I'd pick Princess, brand new ship excitement I'd opt for the Nieuw Amsterdam.

 

Jonathan

[bubbadog]

Definately the ruby,she is newer,with more things to do than Hal,To me Hal is just too stuffy,for my tastes,So my vote is for the Ruby Princess,have a great time:p

[RickEk]

Definately the ruby,she is newer,with more things to do than Hal,To me Hal is just too stuffy,for my tastes,So my vote is for the Ruby Princess,have a great time:p

 

As CruiserKing mentioned, the Nieuw Amsterdam will be the newer ship and is a sister to the Eurodam. She's due to launch later this year.

[sammiedawg]

I like HAL and Princess very much. We have been on the sister ship Eurodam and it was a great ship.

I do not care for the oversized 3100 Princess ships. I think Ruby falls into that category. Issues with passenger space ratio. They added an extra deck of passenger cabins, otherwise other areas were not enlarged.

I love the Princess Grand class, 2600 passengers.

I would go for the HAL cruise if deciding between these 2 ships.

[DrivesLikeMario]

That's so strange. I have heard complaints about the size of the Ruby, and yet, the whole time we were on it, we kept asking ourselves, "Where is everyone?". There were so few times that we found a big crowd, that I just find it hard to understand those statements. Perhaps our schedule was not the same as the mass of people. ??

 

The Nieuw Amsterdam is well, "new" and the Ruby is pretty new as well. I think you'll have a great cruise on either ship and really can't go wrong no matter which one you chose.

[cruiseaholic777]

I would pick the Ruby over most cruise ships. I have been on about 10 cruises and i find that Princess has the best over all cruises for my age (53) group. I have a friend that is 80 that likes HAL for it's laid back cruising. The ports on Princess are much nicer also.

 

 

good luck

 

you can't have a bad cruise:rolleyes:

[CruiseJunkie66]

Thanks for the comments everyone. Cruiseking, January is when we are planning to sail. I guess some of our concerns are that we heard HAL caters to an older clientele and that the ship basically shuts down after the evening show with not much to do. Been on Crown Princess twice and going on Caribbean Princess next month and Ruby is a sister to those two. So although I love Princess and it's my preferred line I kinda of have a "been there, done that" mindset so HAL's new ship/new cruiseline is very appealing but just have some concerns we may be a little "young" for the HAL atmosphere and could end up being bored if there isn't much to do. Anyway, thanks again everyone for your comments - much appreciated!

[Coral]

I like HAL and Princess very much. We have been on the sister ship Eurodam and it was a great ship.

I do not care for the oversized 3100 Princess ships. I think Ruby falls into that category. Issues with passenger space ratio. They added an extra deck of passenger cabins, otherwise other areas were not enlarged.

I love the Princess Grand class, 2600 passengers.

I would go for the HAL cruise if deciding between these 2 ships.

 

I agree! The crowds that we had on the Crown Princess were very apparent and annoying. Space ratio on the HAL ships is much better than the newer Princess ships.

 

I would choose HAL IMO. I am currently looking at the Eurodam.

[Coral]

So although I love Princess and it's my preferred line I kinda of have a "been there, done that" mindset so HAL's new ship/new cruiseline is very appealing but just have some concerns we may be a little "young" for the HAL atmosphere and could end up being bored if there isn't much to do. Anyway, thanks again everyone for your comments - much appreciated!

 

The month of January is going to bring an older group to both lines. I sailed HAL at the first of December (and had sailed Princess during that same time many times) and the demographics were about the same. I was in my 30's when I sailed HAL and I had a great time.

[sammiedawg]

Coral, Eurodam was swell. Beautiful ship, nice staff, slightly larger than the Oosterdam sisters, I think about 2,000 passengers. The library/Internet area was to die for. We will definitely sail it again. We've been on quite a few HAL ships including the sister ships Oosterdam, Noordam Zuiderdam and a couple of the older ones.

[Coral]

Coral, Eurodam was swell. Beautiful ship, nice staff, slightly larger than the Oosterdam sisters, I think about 2,000 passengers. The library/Internet area was to die for. We will definitely sail it again. We've been on quite a few HAL ships including the sister ships Oosterdam, Noordam Zuiderdam and a couple of the older ones.

 

Thanks - great to hear! I loved everything about the Oosterdam.

[Pam in CA]

Hi Everyone, need help deciding which ship. Some background: we are 2 single women - ages 43 and 54. Have sailed recently with Princess and Carnival. Have also sailed Royal Caribbean and Celebrity but was a long time ago. We are trying to choose between:

 

Ruby Princess sailing from FLL to Princess Cays, St. Maarten, St. Thomas and Grand Turk

or

HAL's Nieuw Amstedam sailing from FLL to Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk, Grand Cayman, and Costa Maya.

 

Itinerary isn't a huge factor - more concerned with onboard experience.

 

Which one would you choose and why?

I think the cruiselines are pretty comparable. There are a few differences but nothing that would prompt me to take one over the other given a similar itinerary and pricing. If cruising in January, you're going to see older cruisers on your ship regardless of the cruiseline as kids are back in school and thus there will be fewer families.

 

Half Moon Cay is lightyears better than Princess Cays if that makes a difference.

 

If it were me making the choice, I'd go on HAL rather than the Ruby for a lot of picky reasons. For one thing, I think HAL's Open seating is far better than Princess' Anytime because it's closely monitored and those with fixed seating can't do Anytime without prior approval.

 

Definately the ruby,she is newer,with more things to do than Hal,To me Hal is just too stuffy,for my tastes,So my vote is for the Ruby Princess,have a great time:p

Huh? How can a ship that's been cruising for years be newer than a ship that hasn't sailed it's first itinerary yet?

[Coral]

 

Huh? How can a ship that's been cruising for years be newer than a ship that hasn't sailed it's first itinerary yet?

 

I have to admit - it is confusing to have both the Amsterdam and Nieuw Amsterdam as names within a fleet. Not sure why they didn't use a different name.

[Pam in CA]

I have to admit - it is confusing to have both the Amsterdam and Nieuw Amsterdam as names within a fleet. Not sure why they didn't use a different name.

That's true if someone doesn't read the OPs post carefully (which even I tend to do at times.)

[BobT172]

That's so strange. I have heard complaints about the size of the Ruby, and yet, the whole time we were on it, we kept asking ourselves, "Where is everyone?". There were so few times that we found a big crowd, that I just find it hard to understand those statements. Perhaps our schedule was not the same as the mass of people. ??

 

Our experience also on the Ruby... 3 cruises...

 

our choice, not intending to take anything away form an unseen and untried new HAL ship, would be the known quantity..

 

RUBY!!!

 

RUBY!!!

 

RUBY!!!

[Tatka]

I find overall experience on Princess (Ruby and Caribbean) to be better than on HAL.. Despite less people on board we felt less crowdness on both Princess cruises than on Zuiderdam (sister to the Niew Amsterdam).

 

Half Moon Cay is a little bit better than Princess Cay, but they are pretty similar.

 

We like Eastern Caribbean more than Western.. more picturesque islands.

 

Production shows are draw, but smaller scale entertainment was better on Princess. State rooms are larger on HAL.

 

Dining is more various on Princess.

 

Pools are more various and less crowded on Princess.

 

I'd pick Princess. :)

 

Ruby is a beautiful beautiful ship.

[cruiserking]

Thanks for the comments everyone. Cruiseking, January is when we are planning to sail. I guess some of our concerns are that we heard HAL caters to an older clientele and that the ship basically shuts down after the evening show with not much to do. Been on Crown Princess twice and going on Caribbean Princess next month and Ruby is a sister to those two. So although I love Princess and it's my preferred line I kinda of have a "been there, done that" mindset so HAL's new ship/new cruiseline is very appealing but just have some concerns we may be a little "young" for the HAL atmosphere and could end up being bored if there isn't much to do. Anyway, thanks again everyone for your comments - much appreciated!

 

CruiseJunkie66,

 

We've sailed several times with HAL and it does not cater to an older crowd, there are plenty of people of all ages aboard their ships. I would agree though that the evening options are not plentiful on HAL beyond the show and the casino it is pretty quiet.

 

But, it sounds as if you are ready for a change, that's one of the great joys of cruising is trying out different cruise lines, perhaps then you will book the squeaky clean Nieuw Amsterdam.

 

Jonathan

[Coral]

I find overall experience on Princess (Ruby and Caribbean) to be better than on HAL.. Despite less people on board we felt less crowdness on both Princess cruises than on Zuiderdam (sister to the Niew Amsterdam).

 

 

I believe the Nieuw Amsterdam is sister to the Eurodam. This is a different design then the Zuiderdam.

[High Flyer]

Hi Everyone, need help deciding which ship. Some background: we are 2 single women - ages 43 and 54. Have sailed recently with Princess and Carnival. Have also sailed Royal Caribbean and Celebrity but was a long time ago. We are trying to choose between:

 

Ruby Princess sailing from FLL to Princess Cays, St. Maarten, St. Thomas and Grand Turk

or

HAL's Nieuw Amstedam sailing from FLL to Half Moon Cay, Grand Turk, Grand Cayman, and Costa Maya.

 

Itinerary isn't a huge factor - more concerned with onboard experience.

 

Which one would you choose and why?

 

I might leave you with more questions than answers but here goes...IMHO the food is superior on HAL as are the optional restaurants. The beds and bedding are way more comfortable on HAL. The crew and service are awsome on HAL. You can bring unlimited wine aboard on HAL. HAL has wine stewards in the dining rooms. HAL opens up the bow deck on some harbor approaches, remember "I'm king of the world"? Now for Princess; I prefer Princess's room decor. HAL's is a little bland compared to Princess. I love the Wheelhouse Bar. It's my favorite place on any ship. Princess has more pool area to be sure. Princess has GREAT pasta. I'd prefer the Ruby itinerary because I love St. Thomas & St. Maarten. You didn't mention if you are flying or driving but if you are driving, don't forget your duty free shopping in the USVI where you can return with 5 liters each of your favorite liquor. After 10 Princess cruises and 4 HAL cruises I always feel stress deciding which one but I'd give the nod to the Eurodam for our next cruise.

[sammiedawg]

Eurodam/Niew Amsterdam are slightly larger, slightly different design than the Vista class ships but more things similiar than different. They added a new area of "spa cabins" and some private poolside areas you pay to reserve.

 

Some have questioned whether there really is crowding on the Princess class of ships with 3100 passengers.

Space per passenger ratio is an objective way to compare, verses 90% plus of other comparisons, which are highly subjective in nature. The year the Island Princess rolled out, a national newspaper did a major comparison of ships based on this ratio and drew valid conclusions. Coral/Island Princess did as well as some of the luxury ships. I don't think the 3100 passenger Princess ships had rolled out yet.

The Grand class ratio is fine, 2600 passengers, it holds the crowd well.

We disliked the next size up, Ruby, Crown, Caribbean, etc with 3100 passengers, an extra deck of cabins and everything else sized the same. The ship was beautiful, the food service entertainment fine but too many people in close proximity. I would only sail one of these if it was the only ship doing an itinerary I wanted. You cannot hide 500 extra people in the same commnon space.

Last 2 cruises were HAL Eurodam and Noordam, next 2 are Princess Grand class and the Coral Princess. Whenever possible, we will avoid the Ruby class. HAL is a great alternative.

[Coral]

The Grand class ratio is fine, 2600 passengers, it holds the crowd well.

We disliked the next size up, Ruby, Crown, Caribbean, etc with 3100 passengers, an extra deck of cabins and everything else sized the same. The ship was beautiful, the food service entertainment fine but too many people in close proximity. I would only sail one of these if it was the only ship doing an itinerary I wanted. You cannot hide 500 extra people in the same commnon space.

Last 2 cruises were HAL Eurodam and Noordam, next 2 are Princess Grand class and the Coral Princess. Whenever possible, we will avoid the Ruby class. HAL is a great alternative.

 

I totally agree. Not sure what I will do in the future - I was on a very port intensive trip and thinking that would improve things but at night - it was so bottle-necked in certain areas that made it really frustrating. I can't say I would never sail the ship/class again but if there is a HAL alternative I would choose that.

[Tatka]

I might leave you with more questions than answers but here goes...IMHO the food is superior on HAL as are the optional restaurants. The beds and bedding are way more comfortable on HAL. The crew and service are awsome on HAL.

 

I agree - bedding is out of this world, but service we experienced (although in 2004) was subpar. Zuiderdam was clearly understaffed. Our cabin was not made till we called 3 times during the week, and food.. buffets were good, but MDR was so-so.

[velvetred]

CruiseJunkie66 - I don't know why I didn't think to mention this in my original post on the HAL board - you should check out www.beyondships.com

 

www.beyondships.com offers photo tours of both the Eurodam and the Ruby Princess along with commentary. Plus, the site posts sample menus and daily activity planners for both ships. Take a look and see what you think.

[kendon]

As a Princess fan, I'd grab the Zuiderdam! Lovely and new, and really LOOKS like a ship.