Feeling Nervous - Considering HAL

[betsyl]

We are "loyal to Royal" and in fact, just made Diamond Plus on our last cruise. But we've been invited to go on a country-western cruise on HAL 1/19-26 on the Ms Eurodam. The ship looks very nice, but there are so many categories of cabins. Afraid I'll choose the wrong one (we want a balcony but it doesn't have to be a suite), and I'm wondering if it's going to be really "different" if we decide to go????:confused:

[Merion_Mom]

I have friends who love RC and Celebrity. They LOVE the "theme cruises" on HAL - the only time they sail HAL.

[FLACRUISER99]

We are "loyal to Royal" and in fact, just made Diamond Plus on our last cruise. But we've been invited to go on a country-western cruise on HAL 1/19-26 on the Ms Eurodam. The ship looks very nice, but there are so many categories of cabins. Afraid I'll choose the wrong one (we want a balcony but it doesn't have to be a suite), and I'm wondering if it's going to be really "different" if we decide to go????:confused:

 

Give HAL a try, you might like the line. Only you will know if they are right for you.

 

 

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[Dawniepoo]

what is this country cruise you speak of? My curiosity is peaked!:D

[mommastav]

We are Diamond on Royal, but have tried several other lines, including HAL. The ship (Noordam) was very well appointed, and the service was great. However, the atmosphere was a little too "sedate" for us, and we are far from party animals! It seemed as though everyone had a 10:30 curfew! We only tried the one cruise, so it is hardly fair to generalize to the whole cruiseline though. Bottom line, we would sail HAL again if there were an itinerary that excited us that we couldn't get with Royal. If you are travelling with friends I am sure you will find ways to make your own fun!

[Merion_Mom]

We are Diamond on Royal, but have tried several other lines, including HAL. The ship (Noordam) was very well appointed, and the service was great. However, the atmosphere was a little too "sedate" for us, and we are far from party animals! It seemed as though everyone had a 10:30 curfew! We only tried the one cruise, so it is hardly fair to generalize to the whole cruiseline though. Bottom line, we would sail HAL again if there were an itinerary that excited us that we couldn't get with Royal. If you are travelling with friends I am sure you will find ways to make your own fun!

 

That's what I was trying to convey: Their theme cruises are COMPLETELY different from "regular" HAL cruises. The demographic matches the theme.

[Leslie K]

Loyalty gives you some benefits, but don't let it prevent you from trying something new. I did a HAL trip to Bermuda that was enjoyable, but in a different way then my RCCL trip to Bermuda. HAL didn't have the quality of shows which we missed but I got to enjoy classical music I don't get on RCCL. The food on HAL was superior to anything I've had on RCCL. The cabin (we were inside) was larger than an interior I've had on RCCL. I enjoyed their educational programming on sea days. HAL didn't have the same energy level as RCCL, and I'm not even sure who the CD was on the trip. HAL uniforms seemed more formal for staff but it was interesting step back in time to art deco days. The pace seemed slower, calmer. Of course the ship was smaller and lacked all the WOW factors of RCCL. So there are pluses for each line. Doesn't mean you're disloyal if you try something different, just go for it, and try to remember during the cruise to enjoy the experience and not seek to compare everything.

[betsyl]

what is this country cruise you speak of? My curiosity is peaked!:D

 

I don't know if it's "legal" for me to post the link so email me privately and I'll send it to you - BETSYL@AIRMAIL.NET.

[Langley Cruisers]

HAL was also not for us but we know people who absolutely love them. It's a very individual choice.

[Friend100]

Give it a try. Royal Caribbean is all about WOW, non-stop onboard activities and great entertainment. I felt their job is to keep you busy 24x7 (maybe a bit exaggerated). On the other hand, Holland America is more about low-profile, quiet, tranquil. Things are a bit more refined there. I tried them and I like it, but it has to have 4 ports in a 7-day Caribbean sailing otherwise I will be bored. My next 2 cruises booked are Noordam and Quantum of the Seas.

[riclop]

If you go to sleep early than you will be fine other wise if you like sme excitement after dinner and the show dont do it.

[pspercy]

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1807363

 

Cast: http://www.pollstar.com/event.aspx?ID=2069509

 

Preceded by a jazz cruise.

[Lexi731]

I have taken 2 HAL cruises - and like the line. I was concerned the first one - but now I wouldn't hesitate to book with the line again.

 

Yes, it seemed that most everyone was in bed by 9pm but that just meant that we had the run of the ship :p. DH and I are in our early 40's and were amongst the youngest on the ship - even with that we had a great time on both of our cruises.

 

The HAL ships didnt seem to "shine" like a Royal one does. However, the staff is top notch and is primarily from the Philippines rather than the Carribean. The line is very interested in customer feedback. In fact - the senior staff sought us out on the 2nd cruise after we had made some comments about the lack of the ship shining on the 1st cruise - to make sure we had a great cruise and to let us know if we had any issues they were there for us.

 

The food is great - reminded me of the first RCL cruise we had gone on. High tea every afternoon in the MDR is a nice touch as well. :)

 

Karen

[itzmered]

A cruise is a cruise and it is what you make of it, I have never had a bad time on a cruise no matter what line I have gone on. There is good and not so good about each line and I don't let the not so good bother me or ruin my vacation ;)

[Zigggypup]

We are "loyal to Royal" and in fact, just made Diamond Plus on our last cruise. But we've been invited to go on a country-western cruise on HAL 1/19-26 on the Ms Eurodam. The ship looks very nice, but there are so many categories of cabins. Afraid I'll choose the wrong one (we want a balcony but it doesn't have to be a suite), and I'm wondering if it's going to be really "different" if we decide to go????:confused:

 

Variety is the spice of life. If you don't try something new, you will never know...........

[sail2sea]

I just got back from an Alaska cruise on HAL's Zaandam, my first HAL cruise. 10 months ago I had an Alaska cruise on Radiance. Radiance price about 3 times more than Zaandam and let me just say, you get what you pay for.

 

The HAL ship was old, worn, dirty and smelly. The aft lower decks were very noisy. The ship doesn't begin to compare to Radiance.

 

Other than that, the early to bed thing didn't bother me as I flew from east coast. There was few activities on board but that didn't bother me either. Shows were not close to Royal ships but entertainment was not my top priority on an Alaska cruise. Food was fine but no better than Royal or Carnival. They have a few funky dutch themed item. Some tea with a dutch name and some soup with a dutch name. (I don't remember the details because they didn't impress me) The crew was good but so is the crew on Royal or Carnival. The MDR was very formal and guys need jackets to get in on formal nights. Shirts and tie won't do. I was worried about smoking but we got lucky. Never bothered by any smoke on this cruise.

 

What I like was the Crow nest lounge, perfect for viewing. It's similar to Royal's Viking crown but Crow nest is at the forward of the ship so the view was better. The big open top aft deck was an awesome spot for whale watch. We booked last minute and got a guarantee OV room ended up on lower promenade deck. The window is facing the public promenade deck so privacy was compromised. But that room was very nice and spacious. Ship is small and not crowded by any definition, very peaceful and quiet.

 

I still say go ahead and give HAL a try. Eurodam is much newer so it should be much better than Zaandam.

[varoo]

We are "loyal to Royal" and in fact, just made Diamond Plus on our last cruise. But we've been invited to go on a country-western cruise on HAL 1/19-26 on the Ms Eurodam. The ship looks very nice, but there are so many categories of cabins. Afraid I'll choose the wrong one (we want a balcony but it doesn't have to be a suite), and I'm wondering if it's going to be really "different" if we decide to go????:confused:

Here is a link to the

 

-HAL forum

 

I would suggest posting your concerns there and see what kind of response you get.

[m_duck]

We are looking for a med cruise in September and have always sailed RCI. Our son will be 20 months by then (already done 2 cruises) but it wasn't until I started looking that I noticed that HAL, NCL, P&O and some others don't charge as much as RC and Celebrity for infants. The price difference for some 12 night cruises in suites is nearly £1000 for the little fella.

 

Since I discovered this I've spent time researching other lines and have found it really interesting comparing them. NCL with the Haven, HAL with its wine policy etc .... It has really opened my eyes to what other lines offer. And has also made me realise how many aspects of RCI we like.

 

I would say go for it but as with many things in life do a little research and hopefully you will be rewarded.

[FLACRUISER99]

I just got back from an Alaska cruise on HAL's Zaandam, my first HAL cruise. 10 months ago I had an Alaska cruise on Radiance. Radiance price about 3 times more than Zaandam and let me just say, you get what you pay for.

 

The HAL ship was old, worn, dirty and smelly. The aft lower decks were very noisy. The ship doesn't begin to compare to Radiance.

Old? She was built in 2000 only one year older than Radiance!

 

 

 

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[kyriecat]

Theme cruises are different than a regular cruise. There are usually special activities planned other than the typical "cruise" ones. When I did a theme cruise, we had concerts scheduled from about 10 AM until the wee hours. I don't think I went to bed before 2 AM. You have to keep in mind the demographics when booking a cruise.

 

In general HAL is more sedate than RC, but not always. The two "deadest" cruises that I have been on were both RC - Radiance to Alaska in 2006 and Legend in the Med in 2008. One night on Radiance I walked around the ship at midnight and only saw 3 other people - two of them were crew! Bars and casino were empty. That was really weird - thought the Tribulation had come. I admit HAL wasn't much better, but I did find a few people still in the bars at midnight. That was a regular cruise though.

 

HAL ships are a bit underwhelming to those who have sailed RC. I'm not sure about Eurodam since it is newer than the ships I've been on. HAL ships don't have the soaring Centrum and promenades like RC and have fewer windows. They also use dark wood for their trim instead of brass and glass like RC. Overall, it gives the ships a "closed in" feeling. Since I'm not sailing for the decor, that isn't a big deal to me - prefer my balcony to see the sea anyway.

 

If OP enjoys country music (not my thing despite living in TX), I'd say go and have a great time. Sounds like they will have friends so if things do get a little quiet (doubt that will happen), they can always make their own fun.

[allisons]

We are "loyal to Royal" and in fact, just made Diamond Plus on our last cruise. But we've been invited to go on a country-western cruise on HAL 1/19-26 on the Ms Eurodam. The ship looks very nice, but there are so many categories of cabins. Afraid I'll choose the wrong one (we want a balcony but it doesn't have to be a suite), and I'm wondering if it's going to be really "different" if we decide to go????:confused:

 

Go! We used to be loyal to Royal! But then we went on HAL (and X)! HAL is now our favorite cruise line by a mile (and X is second)!

[Loyal2RCCL]

Old? She was built in 2000 only one year older than Radiance!

 

 

 

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That may be the case but the Zaandam looks about 20 yrs older than Radiance. The Zaandam is not kept in the best condition (something I've found on all HAL ships), nor is that ship very clean.

[MMOMOM]

Having never been on a 'Themed Cruise' I can't address that, but I can relate to being a 'loyal Royal' and thinking about another line! We got a great last minute deal 2 years ago on the Eurodam and I was hesitant since we not only mostly did Royal, but always the Voyager Class and Freedom Class, bigger ships (hadn't been on the Oasis yet, but once we did, have to say WOW!) .... and that being said, have to say we LOVED the Eurodam! We aren't big 'party animals' either, but also, despite our age, we are energetic and very active! We don't consider ourselves what has been called 'sedate'. We had a blast! We saw many walking around late in the evening and once with family around midnite on the Mariner, we were walking around after and didn't see very many people out at all ... so who knows?! The Euodam is smaller than what we were used to, but I wouldn't call it too small, and never felt 'closed in'. We do like the Promanade which they lacked, but there was plenty of places to walk around and things to do if one wanted. We also didn't find it just the 'older crowd' (which actually chronologically, we are, LOL! But I prefer to say we are 'young at heart! LOL!) .... actually there were families with children and we saw all ages, 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and yes, 60s! We told our neighbors about it and they booked and their friends told them it was all 'old people and boring' but that had a wonderful time and can't wait to go again .... and they btw, about our age, late 50s/early 60s, ARE party animals! We booked a 'gty suite' since we normally do a JS on Royal and that was a concern for us since we'd never done a 'gty' before, but got lots of info on the HAL site and was told there really is only one location for the gty suite, looked it up and it looked fine to us. We actually got upgraded up a deck but still midship. Of course was hoping for the 'higher grade suite' but what we had was beautiful, clean and roomy. We found the service very good, the food exquisite and we loved the itinerary. All in all, I wouldn't hesitate to do HAL again ... especially the Euodam. As OP said, I don't choose the ship for décor, but I actually liked the dark wood .... sort of reminded us of 'Elegant Old Time Cruising' you read about. I will tell you what others told me ... give it a try, you never know and I think you will have a good time! :) Let me know about the Country Theme ... we love Country Music!! Might be something for us to think about too! :)

[Lavendar]

I have sailed HAL (twice), NCL, and Celebrity. This October will be my first time with RCL. I honeslty enjoyed the more laid back atmosphere of NCL and their service was fantastic. I cruised once on Celebrity and the price was astronomical for what you received and it was very, very stuffy. The service on Celebrity was good, but it is a much, much older crowd and almost everything shut down after dinner. HAL has wonderful service and they do treat you like royalty, however there are two formal nights and when I sailed (years ago) there were no specialty restaurants, so if you didn't want to go to the buffet, you could almost count on being dressed up for several nights. The atmosphere on HAL is a bit stuffy like on Celebrity and the crowd is a much older one. I enjoy a relaxed atmosphere and a diverse crowd of people. So, I guess if you enjoy a very quiet experience with an older crowd then you will enjoy HAL. They are very elegant. I have no real complaints about HAL, but I would never sail with Celebrity again. We had horrible experiences with the excursions booked through the cruise line and really didn't feel the cruise itself was worth what we paid for it. I hope that helps :)

[MMOMOM]

I have sailed HAL (twice), NCL, and Celebrity. This October will be my first time with RCL. I honeslty enjoyed the more laid back atmosphere of NCL and their service was fantastic. I cruised once on Celebrity and the price was astronomical for what you received and it was very, very stuffy. The service on Celebrity was good, but it is a much, much older crowd and almost everything shut down after dinner. HAL has wonderful service and they do treat you like royalty, however there are two formal nights and when I sailed (years ago) there were no specialty restaurants, so if you didn't want to go to the buffet, you could almost count on being dressed up for several nights. The atmosphere on HAL is a bit stuffy like on Celebrity and the crowd is a much older one. I enjoy a relaxed atmosphere and a diverse crowd of people. So, I guess if you enjoy a very quiet experience with an older crowd then you will enjoy HAL. They are very elegant. I have no real complaints about HAL, but I would never sail with Celebrity again. We had horrible experiences with the excursions booked through the cruise line and really didn't feel the cruise itself was worth what we paid for it. I hope that helps :)[/quote

 

It must depend on the cruise ... we didn't find it stuffy (HAL Eurodam) at all! But, I have heard what you said about Celebrity, however, don't know since we haven't tried Celebrity yet, but would like to. Regarding the Specialty Restaurants, there is the Pinnacle on Eurodam which was exquisite ... but now that I think about it, it was quite 'upscale' but I didn't pick up on 'stuffy'. And, like I said, we saw all ages there and plenty to do. Maybe just not so much the 'party hardy' crowd? I don't know, maybe you just 'gotta try 'em all and take it as it comes'!! We always have a good time on a cruise, no matter which line. We just like some better than others! :)