Comparing Holland America and Princess

[ladybird1956]

My husband and I are looking into a wonderful looking cruise on the Pacific Princess, which looks like a delightful little ship. However, we've only ever cruised on Holland America (apart from one cruise on NCL - but we won't talk about that!). So, my question is this: What differences will we find between Holland America and the Pacific Princess?

[JimnKaren]

Two questions you asked. HAL has several sized ships and to try to compare them to Pacific Princess might not work. It all depends on which HAL ships you have been on.

 

The other part of the questions has to do with the people on board. And, that is determined a lot by the time or year and the itinerary. Longer cruise, a bit older crowd. Those folks have also cruised more. A typical 7 - 10 day cruise will have a younger crowd (because they can take only so much time away at a time). If it is summer, then more youngsters will be on Princess. I have never seen very many younger people on HAL.

 

The menus are similar, the cabin sizes are too.

 

After experimenting with several cruise lines, we have decided that the itinerary is foremost, along with the time of year. We are open to almost any cruise, as long as it goes where and when we want to go.

 

Jim

[ladybird1956]

You are right about ship size being important. We love HAL's smaller ships (although we've never been on the smallest, Prinsendam), so that's why the Pacific Pricess (capacity 680 or so passengers) looked so appealing. And this will be a longer cruise (Tahiti to Vancouver), so I expect the passenger profile to be similar. I guess I'm asking what makes each line different/similar. It would be easier to imagine if we had a variety of cruise experiences, but we've been sort of stuck on HAL (and enjoyed every minute of it).

[Amster12345]

Normally I'd say HAL had an older group of passengers than Princess, but I think you are right. For this size ship and this itinerary, the passenger age might be very similar. My brother is in his early 60s. He fits in on the Princess ships we've been on, but felt well below the average age on the HAL cruise we did.

I think HAL has bigger cabins, so that was nice. They also had a DVD library abailable for all cabins, not just the suites. It seemed less crowded. You could always get a lounge chair, even on sea days. They did seem to have less activities though.

[jrzebird]

You are right about ship size being important. We love HAL's smaller ships (although we've never been on the smallest, Prinsendam), so that's why the Pacific Pricess (capacity 680 or so passengers) looked so appealing. And this will be a longer cruise (Tahiti to Vancouver), so I expect the passenger profile to be similar. I guess I'm asking what makes each line different/similar. It would be easier to imagine if we had a variety of cruise experiences, but we've been sort of stuck on HAL (and enjoyed every minute of it).

 

As you can see from my profile below, I've sailed both Princess and HAL in fairly equal amounts. I love them both.

 

I found HAL to be a bit stiffer than Princess, yet they both have a grace and gentility that I love. The food is fantastic on both, as is service, with HAL having a slight edge over Princess on food. Princess may have a slight edge on HAL with service, but I think a lot of it depends on the crew. I prefer the entertainment on Princess, and the piano bar on HAL. The beds and bathrooms on HAL win hands down (particularly the hand held shower and tubs). The ships that have the new mattresses on Princess are very comfy, however. I prefer that Princess has one cabin steward who services your cabin, while HAL has 2 and it seems a lot less personal, and actually less productive (I'm sure my cabin steward and assistant wouldn't agree with me). I love the Piazza on the Princess ships that have them and HAL really has nothing to compare. The Ultimate Ship tour offered by Princess on many sailings is amazing, and the Bon Voyage experience they have is not offered on any other line that I know of. And the loyalty program on Princess is very generous. I love my free internet, priority boarding and check in, and various other perks, and all of this started after only 5 cruises. I also prefer waiting to disembark while sitting in the lounge and not hanging in my cabin, as you do on HAL, waiting to be called, while the stewards strip and clean the room in anticipation of the next guests. I also love that on Princess, when I embark, I can go directly to my cabin, which is ready for me, and drop my hand luggage. And I love the crew show and disembarkation show, both on HAL. Love in Any Language still brings tears to my eyes.

 

They both offer Afternoon Tea, and Princess also has crew that bring around cookies and milk or lemonade around 4. Princess has Movies Under the Starts (MUTS) and they give you a warm blanket and pop corn. HAL has free popcorn for the movies, too. I actually had a few interactions with the Captain on my last HAL cruise, which were memorable. I did have a few with the Captain on my last Princess as well though not as personal.

 

I could go on and on, but suffice to say that I love both lines, because of their differences (which are fairly slight) not despite them. I have just always felt that Princess is a bit warmer and light-hearted, with tons of activities if you're so inclined, and I have lots of fun sailing her. But, I love HAL too.

 

I look forward to your impression of Princess. I know you will love her. The first day I boarded her I was mumbling about why I wasn't on HAL and how I missed her. By the end of the cruise I was booking my next Princess vacation!

 

Maureen

[riclop]

People on HAL go to sleep earlier than Princess. HAL is so boring.

[casavaha]

One of the nice things about Princess is: the air-conditioning in the rooms work, so does

the heat. The cabins are modern, the food is very good and best of all there are many

amenities on the ship. Multiple restaurants, great entertainment in the Piazza, etc, etc.

 

I have sailed on both lines many times, I doubt I could sail on HAL even if it was a deal.

 

Not to say every cruise on Princess has been perfect. The ships are well maintained.

 

This of course is my opinion, now I only cruise Princess.

 

 

Greg

[Pam in CA]

I'm Elite on Princess, a 3-star Mariner on HAL. I've also spent quite a few days on the Prinsendam and have sailed on the Royal Princess (II), which was a sister ship to the Pacific and Ocean.

 

Comparing the Pacific/Ocean to the Prinsendam, the vibe and cruise experience is very similar and the passenger demographics for these two types of ships are similar. It's a small ship experience with more personalized service. In my experience, stewards and waitstaff have been much better on Princess, bar service staff much better on HAL. This is personal preference but I prefer the food on Princess over HAL although HAL has some outstanding Indonesian dishes. Cabin size and layout are very similar although the Pacific/Ocean have a small shower vs. a tub/shower. Most Pacific/Ocean cabins have a small couch, like the Prinsendam.

 

The Prinsendam has Open/Anytime dining, the Ocean/Pacific does not. Muster on the Ocean/Pacific is in the theater and public lounges, not on deck. The buffet is better laid out and you don't have to go up and down stairs the way you do on the Prinsendam. The library on the Pacific/Ocean is gorgeous. It's large with a huge selection of books and lots of seating.

 

Things I think are better on Princess: entertainment, shore excursion reservations and organization, and overall level of activity. Things I think are better on HAL: Crow's Nest/piano bar and pre-dinner hot hors d'oeuvres.

[caribill]

My husband and I are looking into a wonderful looking cruise on the Pacific Princess, which looks like a delightful little ship.

 

You can see pictures of it's sister ship (now the Ocean Pricness, formerly the Tahitian Princess) in the bottom links at http://fp.caribill.com/

 

It is indeed a delightful little ship.

[sassyredhat]

I agree with what Maureen and Pam said. :)

Up until HAL moved most of their ships, it was our line of choice. PCL has been filling the bill nicely since then.

I will say, HAL's beds and the whirlpool tubs in balcony cabins are better. But~~ PCL has an awesome closet/storage area.

I do not like MUTS, so HAL not having that isn't an issue with us. Not sure if the Pacific has an IC-International Café- but those are great places. HAL doesn't have those.

I think the differences are so subtle that you will have a great cruise.

Pat

[trinaM]

My husband and I are looking into a wonderful looking cruise on the Pacific Princess, which looks like a delightful little ship. However, we've only ever cruised on Holland America (apart from one cruise on NCL - but we won't talk about that!). So, my question is this: What differences will we find between Holland America and the Pacific Princess?

 

*What is the itinerary of the Pacific Princess cruise? sounds interesting.

 

I have done both princess and holland america cruises. I enjoyed both. Princess has more a variety of entertainment I think(from my experience) if you are searching for something to do later at night,Princess is good. Holland can be a very relaxing experience. Cabin stewards have always been very good on Holland.

I would consider Holland a more traditional cruise.

 

Best wishes for a great cruise.

[Pam in CA]

Another difference between Princess and HAL that I forgot to mention is that HAL has a full breakfast room service menu and you can even order off the dinner menu, Princess does not. Princess' room service menu is adequate but not as extensive as HAL's. On the other hand, the Princess buffet is open from early in the morning until nighttime. Unlike HAL, it doesn't close during the day and you can get a full late breakfast or lunch late in the morning or mid-afternoon. The pizza is MUCH better on Princess than HAL.

[caribill]

I do not like MUTS, so HAL not having that isn't an issue with us. Not sure if the Pacific has an IC-International Café- but those are great places. HAL doesn't have those.

 

 

 

The Pacific Princess and the Ocean Princess have neither an IC nor MUTS.

[sweetsleep]

My only HAL cruise this summer was very unpleasant on the Maasdam.

Terribly old,tired and outdated and drab decor(duct tape holding up ceiling panels),terrible service in both the MDR and elsewhere,food better on Princess(they ran out of many food items on the Maasdam and this was the first time I ever left the table hungry because the food was so bad and others at our table did the same),no IC and their pitiful coffee bar opened at 7am and even when no one else was up it still took forever to get a simple cappuccino. Service was so slow in the MDR we never finished in time to make ANY shows. Air conditioning was non existent which meant leaving the cabin door open until we went to bed,safe did not work despite several attempts to fix it so we had to carry all of our valuables with us everywhere.

Even my 84 year old mother thought the ship was old,activities boring and nonexistent!

The only good thing was the itinerary.

Never again on HAL for me regardless of the itinerary.

Going back to Princess for the Panama Canal

[sunsetbeachgal]

We are going on our first HAL cruise in over ten years this November...chose it based on itinerary... We are sailing on the Eurodam, which I understand (and hope!) is nice...will be sure to write up my impressions.

[Pam in CA]

We are going on our first HAL cruise in over ten years this November...chose it based on itinerary... We are sailing on the Eurodam, which I understand (and hope!) is nice...will be sure to write up my impressions.

I would love to sail on the Eurodam. You're going to have a great cruise. Call room service and ask to have the dining room menu delivered to your cabin. You can order anything off it. A great way to relax on your balcony. Kind of a UBD without paying for it. The Canaletto is a lovely Sabatini's-like dinner with no extra charge. Make a reservation ahead of time.

[sunsetbeachgal]

I would love to sail on the Eurodam. You're going to have a great cruise. Call room service and ask to have the dining room menu delivered to your cabin. You can order anything off it. A great way to relax on your balcony. Kind of a UBD without paying for it. The Canaletto is a lovely Sabatini's-like dinner with no extra charge. Make a reservation ahead of time.

 

Great suggestions...thanks! Have also read on the HAL boards that the Asian restaurant (senior moment...name escapes me) is fantastic and we love Asian food!

[Pam in CA]

Great suggestions...thanks! Have also read on the HAL boards that the Asian restaurant (senior moment...name escapes me) is fantastic and we love Asian food!

Yeah... I think it's "teppan" Japanese. Would love to try that as I love teppan.

[PescadoAmarillo]

I think they are charging for Caneletto now. 3 years ago on the Maasdam they weren't, but last year on the Noordam they were.

[Pam in CA]

I think they are charging for Caneletto now. 3 years ago on the Maasdam they weren't, but last year on the Noordam they were.

Bummer. It was free on the Zuiderdam and Oosterdam 1-2 years ago.

[J-D]

For those of us to whom the rules about smoking on balconies/verandahs are of concern (one way or the other), Princess now forbids smoking there while HAL allows it.

 

John

[canadarocks]

We've sailed on HAL's Eurodam and it is our favorite HAL ship (we've been on 3 others). There is a charge now for the Canaletto & the asian restaurant is called Tamarind.

 

Looking forward to our very first Princess cruise next year! :)

Edited September 4, 2013 by canadarocks

[ladybird1956]

I do not like MUTS, so HAL not having that isn't an issue with us. Not sure if the Pacific has an IC-International Café- but those are great places. HAL doesn't have those.

 

...sorry for being so ignorant, and I know I'm going to kick myself when I find out, but...MUTS?

[ladybird1956]

[I do not like MUTS, so HAL not having that isn't an issue with us. Not sure if the Pacific has an IC-International Café- but those are great places. HAL doesn't have those.

 

...sorry for being so ignorant, and I know I'm going to kick myself when I find out, but...MUTS?

[ladybird1956]

*What is the itinerary of the Pacific Princess cruise? sounds interesting.

 

I have done both princess and holland america cruises. I enjoyed both. Princess has more a variety of entertainment I think(from my experience) if you are searching for something to do later at night,Princess is good. Holland can be a very relaxing experience. Cabin stewards have always been very good on Holland.

I would consider Holland a more traditional cruise.

 

Best wishes for a great cruise.

 

Very briefly, it is two back to back cruises. The first is 8 or 9 day round trip Papeete, and the second is Papeete to Vancouver, via Hawaii. Sounds like heaven!